AN: Please R&R.

The boy sat on the floor and played with the elven trinkets he'd been given. He was perfectly content and completely unaware of the numerous pairs of eyes fixed on him. All the hobbits, Gimli the dwarf and Legolas the elf sat watching him, none could take their eyes away. Gandalf walked into the room. No one looked up acknowledge him. He cleared his throat. Legolas looked up, saw him and hurried over.

"What did Lord Elrond say?" Legolas was anxious to hear the news.

"He has heard only one incident of this occurring before. He advises us to question the boy and find out who and where he thinks he is. If Aragorn has been reverted back to childhood, his head will be weakened. It is important that we do not break this spell until we are certain he is strong enough to return to adult form. We must know what reality he lives in so the spell will remain unbroken. If the spell is broken I fear he will not be able to take it and we will lose him. All we know now is he thinks you are his mother, that much is plain. But we must know more. Come, we will question him now."

Gandalf knelt down in front of the boy, Legolas doing the same. The boy looked up, got startled and hurried to Legolas's side, clinging to him in fear of this tall formidable stranger.

"What is your name?" Gandalf questioned the boy.

The boy looked up at Legolas, eyes clouded with incomprehension. Legolas turned to Gandalf. "I do not think he understands anything but elvish"

Nodding, the wizard tried again "Mani naa essa en lle?" what is your name?

The boy looked up at Legolas, unsure of what to do. Legolas nodded encouragingly.

"Estel" come his small voice

"Ya naa sina, Estel?" Gandalf gestured to Legolas. Who is this?

Estel gave the wizard a look that told him he'd asked a stupid question "Naneth!" he answered, as if it was common knowledge.

"Manke naa lle tuulo?" Where are you from?

Estel shrugged his shoulders, crawled into Legolas's lap and resumed playing with his toys.

Gandalf stopped his line of questioning and turned to Legolas. "To find more I think I shall have to look into his memory"

"Will he be alright?"

"Oh yes. He won't be hurt in the slightest. It is whether or not he will co operate that I am worried about"

Gandalf held out his arms to take Estel. Reluctantly, Legolas slipped his hands under Estel's arms and passed him to him. Estel's eyes widened in fear as he realized what was happening. He wriggled in Gandalf's hands, causing the wizard some trouble in keeping his grip.

"Nana! Tua amin!" Mama! Help me! He whimpered and held his hands out to Legolas. Legolas longed to reach out and take him back from the wizard, loath to see him in distress, but knew he had to see into his mind.

"Uuma dela, Estel. Gandalf naa mellonamin" Don't worry, Estel. Gandalf is my friend

As soon as the wizard was done he handed the boy back. Legolas took him, holding him close to his chest. Estel stole suspicious glances back at the wizard, sticking close to his "Naneth"

"He thinks he has been travelling across country with you, coming here to stop and rest. He believes you are his mother, that he has no father and that you are both from the keep of Rivendell though that memory is hazy. He doesn't recognise anyone but you. For added ease I have opened again his knowledge of the common tongue, an action that will soon take effect. It is probable that he will prefer elvish though."

"Thank you Gandalf."

"The task of his care until he is restored has fallen to you Legolas but it is not a burden you need carry alone. Though I have not had much experience raising children I will be what help I can. I'm sure the others will do the same"

Legolas smiled. "It is a burden I gladly bear" he said, looking down at the youngling's big bright eyes. "He is my friend, and has saved me many times. It is no trouble for me to protect him."

Legolas gave Estel an affectionate squeeze. The boy giggled, wriggling in the embrace.

"Estel!" Legolas exclaimed angrily, chasing the mischievous youngster around the dining hall. "Ona ta a'amin sii!" Give it to me now! He reached out to grab him. The boy continued to run, clutching his ill begotten prize tightly. Everyone watched in thinly veiled amusement as the usually reserved and composed Elven prince threw himself around the room in an attempt to corner the young larrikin. At that moment, no one envied Legolas the task that fate had thrown him. The boy had been eyeing the pies set in the middle of the table for sometime, asking if he could have one. Knowing that the pies had been cooked with rich mead based gravy, Legolas wisely disallowed it. That, however, did not stop Estel taking one when his "Naneth's" back was turned. When Legolas had turned back he caught the boy red handed. Fearing punishment the boy had fled his seat. Thus the chaos commenced. Legolas was close to catching Estel when he dove under the table. Unfortunately for him, Legolas was a quick thinking and agile young elf and his hand had closed around the boy's ankle and whipped him out before he could get very far. The Elf quickly plucked the stolen food from the boy's hand and threw it away. No one wanted a piece of food that a young boy had squished between his fingers and dragged along the floor. Estel moaned bitterly but his "Naneth" was firm, marching him out of the dining hall and sending him to bed without supper. As the poor maidservant tasked with taking Estel to his bed chambers departed, dragging the grizzling child behind her, Legolas closed the doors. He stood there a moment before his arms went limp, buckled and he was leaning his head upon them, sighing wearily. Lord Elrond got up and led Legolas back to the table, patting him soothingly on the hand and easing him into his seat. As a man who had raised Estel when he really was a child, he knew exactly what poor Legolas had gotten himself into. Raising Estel was enough to drive any body to distraction.

Legolas leant back in his chair, reading through one of Elrond's book. He was so absorbed in the story, so relieved to escape his reality for a moment; he did not notice how quiet it had gotten. This was why when Estel popped up beside him and declared he was bored it shocked Legolas so much he started and threw the book into the air. It fell to the ground with an unceremonious thud, splaying out pages. Legolas put his hand to his heart and sat for a while to still its rampant drumming and catch his breath.

"Oh Estel! Please don't do that! Oh! You scared me half to death!"

Estel looked confused "Did I hurt you Naneth?"

Legolas puffed for a short moment longer "No Estel. I… I'm fine. I'm alright"

"Can we do something? Play a game?" Estel asked, eyes shining.

Legolas sighed and got to his feet, fishing the book up of the floor and smoothing out the pages. "What game would you like to play?"

"I don't know!" he whinged "You pick one!"

"I know!" Legolas thought, casting his mind way back to the games he played when he was small. "Do you know how to climb trees?"

From the confused face he pulled, Legolas guessed that no, he didn't know how to climb trees.

"Would you like me to show you?" Legolas asked, beaming down at him. Estel's eyes sparkled with excitement.

"Yes please!" he squeaked, bouncing a little.

The rest of the day sped past, neither Estel nor Legolas noticed the passing of time, so absorbed where they in their play and each other's company. In the beginning, Estel needed Legolas to lift him to the branches and guide him to which ones were safe. But soon he was able to judge this for himself and though he was still a little tentative, it was clear he was really enjoying himself. At the end of the day, he was even able to scrabble up the bare trunk to reach the branches.

"Look at me, Naneth! Look how high I am!" He said, leaning out from the branch he was clinging on to. Legolas gave him a big smile and shouted up words of encouragement, masking the worry that had bubbled up in his stomach.

"Remember to have at least 3 points of contact, 3 feet or hands on the tree, Estel! Be careful!" he called. His attention was riveted on the actions of the little boy up in the tree. He only noticed that it had become late when Elladan came to tell him his presence was requested at the dinner table and people were asking after him.

"Oh goodness! Dinner! I had clean forgotten!" he shouted up to Estel by he refused to come down, he was having so much fun.

'Don't make me come up and get you!" Legolas threatened but Estel would not budge. Eventually he had to make good on his threat and climb up after him. With the easy swiftness that comes with much practise he leapt to the nearest branch, pulled himself up and scaled the tree, quickly catching up to Estel, taking hold of him and pulling him down. Estel wiggled and whined all the way down.

Legolas was exhausted. Running around after a child was a lot more tiring than he expected. He'd gotten wet, dirty and skinned his knees many times over. His back ached from stooping and his head hurt from shouting. He took a deep breath as he lay in his bed. He just wanted to relax. And as he lay there, in comfortable silence, he did. He was teetering on the edge of sleep, slipping into a dream. He was pulled from that dream by a timid knock at the door. Legolas groaned.

"Who is it?" he asked wearily, wishing he could just be left alone

The door opened and the knocker was revealed to be Estel. His hair was bedraggled and he was clothed in his long red night gown. He was rubbing his eyes, frowning and clutching his teddy. Legolas sat up.

"Mani naa ta Estel? Mankoi naa lle sinome?"

"The little beardy man is snoring beside my room. Can I sleep with you?"

Legolas smiled. He had heard "the little beardy man" snore before and could understand why it would cause a child fear. If you were unused to it, it was quite a disturbing sound. Legolas lifted his blankets and patted the space on the bed beside him. Grinning, Estel rushed to the bed and clambered in. Legolas covered him over with the blankets and he burrowed down into them. Legolas wrapped an arm around him and held him close.

"Naneth…"

"Yes tithen pen?"

"I love you" Estel wriggled until her could reach Legolas' face and kissed him softly on the cheek before burrowing back down into the blankets. Legolas' face stretched into a grin on its own accord. This child had had him up and running all day, had him at his beck and call. He'd defied him, run from him and made his day like running a circus. He'd also smiled at him, hugged him and kissed him. He'd also made his heart melt and life sparkle. Legolas loved him and that mattered far more than a good night's sleep.