~ Sometimes you have to close your eyes to learn to see. ~

*~Unknown ~*

Learning how to see.

The days past slowly for the blind prince. He was, for the most part, left alone in his room. He had been given strict orders not to leave his room, or even get out of his bed. Of course Legolas didn't listen, until King Thranduil showed up and gave him a direct order to stay in his room. There had only been a few other times that Legolas had been given an order from the King instead of his beloved ada. This was one of the times that Legolas decided to obey his king.

Aragorn, Elladan, Elrohir and most of his friends stopped by from time to time, but since they all were doing something, they rarely stayed longer than just a few minutes, leaving the bored prince to his own devices. So far he was still bored.

A soft tap on the door alerted the prince that someone was at the door.

He sighed. "Come in Lomion."

"How did you know it was me?" Lomion questioned curiously.

Legolas shrugged, "I don't know, I just know."

Lomion laughed then sobered. "Bored?"

Legolas snorted. "You have to ask?"

"I asked ada if I could take you outside.." Lomion began but was interrupted.

"Really? And? And? What did he say?" Legolas questioned eagerly.

Lomion put up a hand to stop to questions before he remembered that Legolas couldn't see. "Legolas!"

Legolas instantly quieted.

"Ada said I may take you out for a few hours, but." He paused making sure his little brother was completely listening.

Legolas tilted his head ever so slightly to the side, reminded Lomion of a curious bird.

"You have to stay at my side the whole time."

"Or else?"

"Or else you'll never go outside again until you get the bandage off." Lomion threatened a smile playing on his lips.

Lomion was not surprised when Legolas completely agreed and stood up. In a few minutes, they went out into the bright sunlight.

Legolas stopped right out side the door, taking several deep breaths of the clean air. He could hear elves walking around, the wind lightly teasing the treetops and birds chirping in the distance. And though he couldn't see it, he could feel everyone's stares.

"Where do you want to go?" Lomion asked quietly.

"The stables." Legolas decided.

"You horse has been making a racket these past few days." Lomion said dryly.

"Oh?" Legolas turned his head in Lomion's general direction.

"Yes, he has been very upset that you haven't come to visit him."

Legolas laughed, stumbling slightly on something on the ground. Lomion instantly grabbed Legolas to keep him from falling.

"Are you alright?" Lomion asked worried.

Legolas shrugged him off irritated. "I'm fine Lomion." He sighed frustrated. "Why does everyone treat me like some fragile glass?" He asked angrily shrugging off Lomion's hand again.

"Well." Lomion replied once more getting a firm hold on Legolas' arm. "For one, you can't see.

Legolas immediately stiffened.

"For two." Lomion continued, ignoring Legolas' repeated attempts to pull free. "I swore to protect you when you were but a babe."

Legolas slowly subsided. "Whom did you swear it to?" He asked quietly.

Lomion stopped; he hadn't expected that question of all questions.

"Lomion?" Legolas tilted his head in Lomion's general directions, still seeking an answer.

"Do you really want to know 'Las?" Lomion asked, unconsciously saying a nickname that had been given to Legolas when he was just an elfling. (Las - leaf)

"Yes."

Lomion's heart twisted at that one small, simple word.

"Naneth." He said simply.

"Really?" Legolas asked, his voice choked.

"Yes."

"When?"

"Right before she left for the Valinor."

There were several minutes of quiet, before Legolas gathered enough courage to ask the question that he had wanted to ask for years. "Why did she leave Lomion?"

Lomion bowed his head, he knew that question was coming, but he still couldn't bring himself to answer it. He swallowed. "Ask ada when we return." He said quietly his voice also choked.

*~*~*~*

"Ada?"

Thranduil looked up into the bandaged face of his youngest son. "What are you doing out of bed and out of your room?" He asked sternly.

"Lomion took me out to the stables." Legolas said, stretching out his hand to find a chair. He groped in the air for a while before his hand hit the top of a chair.

Thranduil had to keep his eyes averted or else he knew he couldn't keep up his stern façade.

"Ada?"

"Yes nin ion?"

Legolas bit his lip as he fidgeted in his seat.

Thranduil bit back a grin, though Legolas was 'far from an elfling' or so he said, Thranduil was always reminded of a small elfling wanting ask, but hesitant to ask.

"What is it ion?" Thranduil asked again, patiently.

"Why did Nana leave?" Legolas asked hesitantly.

Thranduil blinked, of all the questions he could think of, that was the very last one. He sighed as he stood up and sat next to his son. "For many reasons." Thranduil began softly, thinking upon his wife once more.

"Was it my fault?" Legolas asked timidly.

Thranduil was shocked. "No!" He burst out. "You had nothing to do with your naneth leaving." He said firmly.

Legolas brought up his knees to his chest, hugging them. "Then why did she leave?"

"I have been meaning to tell you this as I have told your other siblings, but." He paused reaching out and gently caressing the smooth cheek in front of him. "You still are so young." He said softly.

"Please ada?"

Closing his eyes, Thranduil inwardly braced himself. "Your nana was pregnant." He started. "She was so happy." Thranduil smiled remembering that day like it was yesterday. "But she tripped and fell down the case of stairs." Thranduil choked back the tears. He could still hear the cries that echoed in the corridors and into his heart.

"She lost the child." Legolas said quietly.

Thranduil shook himself. "What?"

"She lost the child." Legolas repeated himself.

"Yes." Thranduil wiped a tear away. "She was heartbroken. Not." He choked again.

Legolas stretched out his hand, trying to find his Ada's.

"Not even you could fill her again." Thranduil finished. "I begged her to stay if only for a little while longer, so you could at least remember her. But her heart had already left, and so did she."

There were several minutes of quiet as Thranduil regained his emotions and Legolas pondered what he had just heard.

"Did I really try to find her?" Legolas broke the silence abruptly.

Thranduil laughed wiping a stray tear away. "Yes. You refused to believe that she had gone and so you ran off to find her, and in the process you healed wounds that not even Gil-Galad himself could heal." He smiled.

Legolas nodded, "Lord Elrond told me about that." He said quietly. He cocked his head to the side. "Was I really sick?"

"Well, you weren't really sick, you just never had a fair chance really until Lord Elrond healed you." Thranduil said thoughtfully. "You were born about 2 months prematurely and your lungs and heart really didn't have time to fully grow."

"What would have happened if Lord Elrond wouldn't have healed me?"

Thranduil sighed. "You would have died." He said simply. "We were very surprised that you lived as long as you did as an elfling. There were many times you stopped breathing in the middle of the night, or your heart would beat so fast that we thought it would just stop." He laughed. "You out of any of my children have given me all of my white hair."

Legolas laughed along. "You don't have any white hair ada."

"Well if I did have white hair you'd be the one." Thranduil stood up. "Now, I have work to do, the healers are probably looking franticly for you and you need to be in bed."

"Ada."

"No whining either prince-ling." Thranduil said sternly, though his eyes belied him. He crushed his son to his chest.

"I love you ada." Legolas murmured in his Ada's chest. An Ada's arms were still a wonderful place to be.

*~*~*~*~*

"Legolas Greenleaf! You are supposed to be in bed!"

Legolas turned so fast; he tripped over the step and fell headfirst into the stone.

"Legolas!"

Legolas sat up, rubbing his head. "What?"

"Are you alright?"

"I am fine, Elrohir." Legolas said irritated. "If you hadn't surprised me!"

"I was right behind you!"

"Exactly!"

"I don't have eyes in the back of my head, 'Ro!"

"Well I'm sorry." Elrohir said soothingly, helping the blind prince up.

"Sure." Legolas brushed Elrohir's hand off.

"What's a matter Legolas?" Elrohir asked quietly, sensing something a miss.

Legolas snorted. "What's a matter?" He asked. "What's a matter? What do you think is a matter?" He yelled. "I'm blind for one, for two all my friends have abandoned me, for three I have to stay in a stinking' stupid bed!"

Elrohir snickered. "Stinking' stupid bed?"

"You know what I mean." Legolas replied sullenly.

Elrohir draped an arm over his friend's shoulder. "I think you need those bandages off. What do you say?"

"Really!"

Elrohir laughed. "That's why we were looking for you. Where you were anyway?"

"Lomion took me to the stables and then I went to talk to my Adar."

"Ah."

"What?" Legolas demanded.

"Well, you sound like an elfling describing his day to his naneth." Elrohir replied with a smirk, glad for once that his blonde haired friend couldn't see. His exultation was short lived when he was smacked on the side of his head.

"Ouch!"

Legolas smiled, he was picturing a raven-haired elf, ruefully rubbing his head. He wasn't far from the mark.