paradisalogs | (no subject)

Entry tags:

legolas,
thranduil

(no subject)

Who: Legolas and YOU
What: Legolas is on a bitty loss. Whoops! Hope that thing he’s climbing isn’t important to you. Or that you don’t notice a small elf following you and hiding (conspicuously) behind something.
When: Jan. 22nd to Feb. 5th
Where: Inside the castle, in the garden, in the forest- Anywhere, really.
Rating: C for cute

On the morning on the twenty-second, Legolas woke up not as a five-hundred year old elf with amazing skill with a bow but the equivalent of a six year old elfling who enjoyed climbing things. So several people will see a small elf with golden hair around his shoulders and bright eyes running through the halls.

And without any previous knowledge of the castle or people there. His priority, surprisingly, was not finding a familiar face but exploring. A whole new place available for a small elf child to run through and find things to climb!

He could also be sliding down the railing of the stairs into the lobby with a delighted squeal, or trying to climb the shelves in the library. Legolas could also be running through the garden and kicking around snow, throwing snowballs or going into the forest to try to find a tall tree to climb. Probably not the best idea, he might get stuck in one of them. There was no limit!

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Thranduil, at least, had a great deal of practice in dealing with this situation, though recently he had not been called upon to use it. It appeared that was set to change.

That was Legolas, or a very close imitation, and so after some small consideration Thranduil made his way down the hall, in manner perfectly oblivious to the tiny being peeking out from behind the curtain... until he was level with it. Then he had pulled it away and was crouching, more or less on eye level in the space of a breath.

"Legolas." Despite everything, he is slightly surprised to see it confirmed.

With a squeal (that was more of a laugh than anything), Legolas stepped back at his fathers 'sudden' discovery of him before he jumped forward and wrapped his arms around Thranduil's neck in a hug.

He looked absolutely unashamed for his mischief too, once he leaned back enough to look at his father.

"Ada, you found me~"

It has been quite some time since he's been called upon to handle anything of the kind, but old habits die very hard, for an elf, and Thranduil manages to catch him and hold him close without too much delay.

"And what are you doing, little one?"

He's content to just nuzzle against his father for a moment, not answering for as long as he can. He wasn't doing anything wrong exactly but he's definitely not being as well-behaved as he should in a new place.

"Just playing. You should play too."

It's been long, very long, since Legolas was this small. Thranduil has to bite back the impulse to hold him too hard, too long, especially with what he now knows. He has few enough excuses to hold him.

"Do you know where you are?"

Well, now that Thranduil asks, Legolas looks around a bit before shaking his head. It's nowhere familiar and definitely not home. He hadn't even really thought about it until now.

"No... Where are we?"

Thranduil, for the time being, ignores the question.

"And do you not think that before you begin to play you should have found out where you are?"

TIME FOR EXCUSES!

"I was exploring while I was playing... And you're here so it must be safe." Because, clearly, it's always safe with his dad.

A sigh.

"Legolas, you should not be so reckless." Dad can't be everywhere, after all. It is true, at least, that there are less obvious dangers here than there were in Mirkwood, but that did not mean less obvious dangers did not exist.

"I haven't gotten hurt though." Not yet but that's clearly enough for Legolas. And nobody has really bothered him otherwise. Even when he has been getting up to mischief.

"And so do you now believe that if you have not been hurt yet, you shall not be?" His voice is a little stern now - he has to be strict, living where he does. On the positive side at least here if Legolas ran off he'd be less likely to be attacked by a great spider, but the authority had to be maintained.

Legolas pouts, looking down at the floor and his shoulders slumping just a bit. His father has a point of course, he's smart and experienced. His father knows everything. (Or so he believes.)

"No..."

It's not a belief he's planning to discourage too quickly; there's no harm and a great deal of good in it.

"Then what should you do?"

The prompting is gentle, but he is going to follow through - Legolas could be flighty, and make him slow down and figure things out himself, then say what it was, was one of the few ways Thranduil had found to keep him from forgetting the lesson instantly, especially without Thranduil personally becoming stern.

And Legolas wouldn't believe it anyway. Dad always knows everything. He kicks his feet against the floor, still pouting, and takes a breath before looking up at his father.

"I should wait somewhere safe until you find me? Or come find you?" That second one is probably pretty wrong. All the more reason for him to mention it second.

It's a step in the right direction, at least, and so he does not chastise him for the second answer.

"But what if I am not there, or cannot be found?"

"I should stay somewhere safe?" It's the most obvious answer at the moment, for a kid who always stays in his fathers Halls where it's safest.

It's a decent answer; he'll take what he can get. "And how would you do that, little leaf, if you go running around without knowing where somewhere safe is?"

He takes a moment to think and then points in the general direction that his room is.

"I saw a room with my name on it. That would be safe, right?"

"That would be a good place to look, as long as you didn't climb everything there."

He knows your tricks, Legolas.

Awww dad, don't ruin all his fun. What will he do if he can't run around or climb things or play?

"But what if there's something high up that might be helpful?"

"Then I trust you to make a choice that would keep you safe, ionneg. One that would not worry me without cause."

Thranduil was not above emotional manipulation.

All the pouting, to be honest, but dad is right. And he doesn't want to worry him because he's a king and he's here too. So he obviously has more important things to worry about than Legolas getting hurt.

"I will, ada. I will try, at least."

Thranduil kisses him on the forehead.

"Good. And I hope that this means I will only hear about you being very, very good from now on."

It wouldn't last, of course, but it might buy a few days of peace where it might not otherwise be, before he had to once again have him renew his vows.

As soon as his dad kisses his forehead, Legolas wraps his arms around him in a hug.

"I am always good!" So he claims. And as long as dad doesn't hear about him being anything but good... well, it leaves room to have fun.

"You are sometimes good," Thranduil responds dryly, but holds him tight in a return of the hug all the same. "And you should learn to be good more of the time. I may not always be there to look after you, after all."

Thranduil was here less thinking of similar situations to this or even death and more of how inventive Legolas could be when it came to not being found. There had been times enough when, if not for the spell of the doors, Thranduil would have been driven frantic with worry. He still was, on occasion, but knowing that his child could not have left without the gates being opened was often some measure of comfort.