In spite of King Thranduil worrying himself sick over his little elfling being so far away, in truth Legolas was doing just as Gandalf had expected he would; the prince was enthralled with Imladris, taking in the sight and with round, curious eyes as they crossed the bridge. The elves of Imladris sang cheerfully from a distance, their songs lighthearted as they teased Gandalf and inquired about the "bright haired elfling" that accompanied him.

On the steps to greet them was Lord Elrond himself, along with several of his advisors. Legolas turned shy as they neared, clutching Gandalf's hand tightly when they dismounted from the horse. The elfling stayed half hidden behind Gandalf while the wizard greeted everyone, peeking up at the new faces warily.

Suddenly Lord Elrond bent down so that he was closer to Legolas' height, and he began to move his hands in recognizable patterns as he gently spoke aloud: "Welcome to Imladris, Prince Legolas!"

His smile was warm and sincere, and Legolas decided on the spot that he liked Lord Elrond; the half-elf reminded him of his Ada. No longer feeling so shy, Legolas stepped out in front of Gandalf, remembering his manners as Ada would have wished him to.

'Thank you! I am pleased to be here.'

Gandalf squeezed his shoulder approvingly. He was soon introduced to the elves who accompanied Lord Elrond. There was Erestor, a dark haired elf with a gentle smile who was the chief advisor of Imladris. Then there was Lord Glorfindel, the mighty balrog slayer that Ada had told him about. He was tall and fierce, with waves of long golden hair. Legolas, in awe, hardly knew what to say to him.

Elrond spoke, "I understand that this is your first time making such a long journey. There is a room prepared for you; would you like to rest until the evening meal, or would you prefer to see more of Imladris first?"

Despite how weary the elfling looked, it was hardly a surprise that he wanted to delay resting, his eyes shining with excitement as he fidgeted. It was decided that Erestor would take Legolas to see more of Imladris. The chief counselor was proficient in the voice of the hands, being the only one who knew it apart from Elrond and his sons, the latter two having learnt a rather rough version from their time with the rangers.

While this occured, Gandalf, Elrond, and Glorfindel sat down for a private talk in Elrond's study. Gandalf delivered a box containing several vials of venom collected from the newly infested spiders of Greenwood. Elrond and some of his best healers would see what they could do in coming up with a remedy to counteract the venom's symptoms.

"I'm afraid that I can only stay tonight," Gandalf soon informed them. "I know that Legolas will be in good hands, so I needn't say that we shall all face the king of Greenwood's wrath if anything happens to him."

"It is unfortunate that you cannot stay longer to recuperate from such a long journey. Still, you have my word that the prince will receive the utmost sort of care that an elfling should have. He will be very safe here," Elrond promised.

"I'm still surprised that you managed to persuade Thranduil in letting Legolas come here," Glorfindel remarked. "We thought the child would not be allowed from Greenwood for at least another century or five ."

"He has plenty of reasons to be concerned," said Elrond. As a parent himself, he understood the king's fears. Though his own children were considered grown, to this day he still always anxious when they traveled away from home. It was only natural for a parent to worry, and the fact that Legolas was so young and had a speech impediment made Elrond understand completely.

It took less than a day for the entire household of Elrond to fall in love with their Greenwood visitor. He was introduced to the many elves who worked and occupied the household, and his impeccably charming behavior brought smiles to all of their faces. Being the youngest elfling in Imladris was another reason as to why everyone doted on the prince so much; it was impossible not to love such a sweet face and young soul. Initially, no one knew what to expect from a wood elf of Greenwood, especially one who was a prince. Legolas surprised them with his eagerness to engage and learn everything that he could.

Lord Elrond observed Legolas while remaining as subtle as he could. One of the most intriguing things he noticed straight away was how at certain times, the elfling's mouth opened and closed, as if he wanted to to talk, but no words could make it out. He could laugh just fine, giggling like any child might when he found something to be funny. That gave proof that there was no physical damage to his vocals, just as they had expected.

Another observation was Legolas' behavior in general. For an elf of around fifteen, Legolas was about the size of a six year old mortal. He behaved as many elflings that young might; he was playful, curious, and slightly apprehensive when encountering new people. He was developing as any elf might be at such an age, and it was obvious that there were no learning impairments.

It was highly comical to witness Legolas' first encounter with the twins. Three days into Legolas' stay, they returned from their latest orc hunting spree. After ensuring that they were safe and uninjured, Elrond asked for them to take dinner in the hall with everyone else. It was always a hit or miss with the twins since the departure of their mother; more often than not they were closed off and preferred to be alone, but other times they would endure the company of others in order to satisfy Elrond. This time they agreed to their father's request, accompanying him to the meal.

Legolas had been sitting at the high table, ignoring his food while telling a wild tale to a confused Glorfindel, who had yet to grasp the voice of the hands. When Legolas caught sight of Elrond and his sons in the doorway, however, his eyes widened. He sprang up from his seat, fork clattering to the ground as he ran straight over to them.

The elfling pointed to Elladan and then to Elrohir, giggling in delight as he held up two fingers. 'Two! Two of you! Two!'

It was obvious that the elfling had never encountered identical twins before, which made sense, seeing as twins were rare among elves.

Elrond had to hold in laughter. "Boys, this is Prince Legolas, the son of King Thranduil. Legolas, these are my sons, Elladan and Elrohir. As you can see, they are twins."

As if a switch had been flipped, Legolas frowned. It took them a moment to realize that he was trying to figure out how to sign 'twin,' likely never needing to do so before.

"Twin," Elrohir said quietly, kneeling down to match Legolas' height. He held up two fingers, brushing them first against his left cheek, and then his right. Legolas gleefully repeated the gesture once, twice, and then a third time while all of the other elves watched in amusement. The twins themselves were grinning, and it was obvious that the little elfling had captured two more friends with his endearing personality.

One week into Legolas' stay, Elrond spoke of his observations to his chief advisor as they sat down for tea in his study. It was late into the night, and the elfling was tucked safely and soundly in his bed.

"It's very intriguing. As far as I can tell, there is nothing physical that prevents him from talking. It's as if there's some sort of mental block that hinders him from verbally speaking words."

"But what could cause such a thing?" Erestor asked.

"Well, that question cannot be answered right now, and perhaps not ever. There is no known record of an elf born without speech. In fact, most elflings master the art of their vocals far before they even learn to walk."

"It's because elves develop quicker in the mind than the body," Erestor noted. "Usually it takes only a few months for an elven baby to begin speaking."

"Elrohir had a slight language delay," Elrond mused. "But only for a few months after his brother began to speak. Of course I can't compare either of the twins to Legolas, for their human blood was responsible for slowing their infantile development in general. It was the same case with Arwen."

"Well, Legolas is still very young in elven standards," Erestor pointed out. "He has only just reached his fifteenth year; he might have a possibility of becoming vocal yet."

"Yes, a slight possibility. The older he gets, the less likely it will be for change to occur. I do wish I could understand it better," Elrond mused quietly in frustration. "I know that King Thranduil worries a great deal for his son."

"He ought not to worry," Erestor said. "Legolas is a fine child."

"He certainly is," Elrond agreed. "All three of my children have taken a shine to him. Did you know that Arwen has been telling him bedtime tales each night? And the twins take him 'adventuring' through the valley almost every day. I haven't seen them act so carefree since…"

The chief advisor nodded in understanding. "That child brings out only the best in all who surround him. People may judge the elven-king however they'd like, but nothing ill can be said about his parenting skills."

"I had wondered," Erestor started, but then grew hesitant. "Have you considered- well, Greenwood has been changing for awhile now. The spiders, the sickness…"

"You're wondering if Greenwood's sickness could be a reason for his silence?" Elrond finished his thought. "I admit, I have considered it."

Elves only had children in times of peace, and for many years they could feel an unnatural darkness looming over the lands. Legolas' birth had been a true rarity, making him the youngest elfling of Middle Earth. A pure innocent elfling babe, born in a time of darkness.

"And what do you think?"

Elrond sighed. "No matter what I think, there is still no way to know for sure. But if that is the reason, then there is nothing that can be done."

The good thing was that Thranduil had no desire to see his child talk; it was clear that he loved Legolas just the way he was. Although the healer in Elrond wanted to do something to help, he knew deep down that finding the source of Legolas' impairment wasn't the reason that Gandalf had brought him here.

The true reason behind Gandalf's scheming was to open Legolas to a world outside of Greenwood, which had been accomplished easy enough. Legolas had made many friends here in Imladris, ones that would no doubt benefit him greatly. Once he returned to Greenwood and Thranduil saw how happy he was, Legolas would no longer be so sheltered. The elfling would do great things in his lifetime. Gandalf sensed it easily enough, and Elrond found himself knowing so too. Silent or not, the woodland prince spoke enough with his heart, with words more powerful than anything spoken out loud.

Yes, truly there was no reason for Thranduil to worry about his son.

MANY YEARS LATER

Elladan could sense his foster brother's disgruntled attitude, but he was clueless to the reason for it. Legolas had hardly even been in Imladris for five minutes; he couldn't possibly have done anything to offend Estel yet.

Still, the child was staring at Legolas with a disgruntled expression, watching as the woodland elf conversed with Elrohir and the other elves who had gathered around to greet their visitor.

"I want to play too," he suddenly spoke, his lower lip turning into an adorable pout.

"Play what, Estel?" Elladan asked him, puzzled.

"The hand game!" Estel said. "Can't you teach me, 'Dan? It looks like fun, but I don't understand it!"

Suddenly it began to make sense. Elladan laughed lightly, crouching down to the six year old's level. "It's not a game, Estel. Legolas cannot speak aloud, so he uses his hands instead."

Estel's eyes grew comically wide. "You mean he doesn't talk at all ?"

"Not out loud," Elladan told him. "But I think you'll find that he talks very much for someone who is so quiet. Now come, and I shall introduce you."

Elladan took Estel's hand and led him toward the small group. Legolas waved cheerfully upon seeing them, cocking his head curiously as he took in Estel.

"Legolas, much has happened in these recent years. This is Estel, and he is staying here in Imladris with us."

"Hello!" Estel said, never known for his shyness. "Can you teach me to talk like you do? 'Dan told me it's not a game, but it looks fun!"

If he was surprised by the child's abruptness, Legolas did not show it. Instead, his smile grew tenfold as he nodded excitedly. He then rose both of his hands in the air, opening and closing them twice. It was a quick and simple gesture, and afterwards he touched the top of Estel's head.

The child's brow furrowed. "What does that mean?"

"He said your name," Elrohir answered. "It's the symbol for hope."

"Oh!" Estel blinked. "Do it again, do it again!"

Needless to say, Estel remained glued to Legolas' side for the remainder of the woodland elf's visit. He wanted to know symbols for everything, from tableware to oliphants. It pleased the twins and Elrond to see their ward get along with Legolas; it was easy to tell that the two would have a lifelong friendship.