“Master Ilmendin. Master Legolas.” Galion waited at the door until the elflings regarded him. “Your father- good gracious me, what is that?!” The butler jumped back from the sight of something small and furry scampering across the floor, over Ilmendin’s leg, and under the bed.

“That is Dasher,” answered Legolas before Ilmendin could cover his mouth. Once Ilmendin’s hand was over his brother’s lips, Legolas got a rather upset look on his face and made an attempt to bite Ilmendin’s fingers. Before it could come to blows, Galion stepped in, pulling Legolas away from his elder sibling.

Sitting him down on one of the beds in the boys’ room, Galion rested back on his feet after kneeling on the floor. “What is under the bed?”

“Friendssss...” Ilmendin said uneasily, his fingers playing with the fur of the rug.

Galion narrowed his eyes, and then crouched down to look under the bed. What he saw made his eyes widen. “You two can not have these in here! They are wild animals! They must go outside!”

Legolas burst into tears, and Ilmendin crawled up onto the bed to comfort his brother. “Please, Galion, please do not tell Adar. Please? Please? Pleeeeease?” begged the older of the two.

“Just help me put them outside, and none of this need get back to anyone,” promised Galion. This only made Legolas wail louder. “What is wrong with him?”

“Adar took us outside the other day and we saw a big spider. Legolas was afraid it might eat him because it was nearly his size, but Adar said they eat the squirrels so we did not need to worry.” Ilmendin pointed down, where the squirrels were being hoarded under the bed. “Legolas just brought in one that he had been feeding in the summer, but the other ones just found a way in.”

“They just found a way in?” questioned Galion as he walked to the window that was ajar. How the boys had found a way to climb up to where the small chiseled out window was so high off of the floor (but level with the ground outside), Galion could only guess from the assortment of mobile toys and games that might have been stacked up. As soon as he slid the panel back in place and slid the lock, nine little heads came popping out from under the bed to watch him.

In answer to the accusing look he was being given, Ilmendin said, “Huh. They must have done that themselves.”

With a sigh, Galion pulled down the little ladder made of sticks and spare bits of rope. Folding it up, he placed it aside on the top of the dresser. “Time for dinner. Your father wanted you both to wash up before the meal, so we will need to hurry. We will deal with this issue later.”

There was a chirp, a chatter, a few little clicking sounds, and a black ball of fluff accompanied by an even fluffier tale, scurried out from under the bed. The creature stood up on its hind legs, studying Galion for a moment. Galion, under normal circumstances, would have shooed away such a thing, but with Legolas finally calming down he had no intention of bringing the elfling to tears again. Hesitantly, the squirrel hopped over to Galion’s foot, reached out to touch the leg of his pants, and scampered up the elf, perching upon the butler’s shoulder.

“He likes you. That one is Blitzen. You can keep him,” declared Legolas.

“What? No.” Galion took hold of the furry critter, bent down, and placed him on the floor. “Come, it is time for-“ Blitzen leaped up and grabbed hold of the front of Galion’s shirt, and crawled back up onto his shoulder. “Now, see here,” he began, but the squirrel would have none of it, and began to cuddle against Galion’s neck. “Now... just stop it...” he said, thinking himself mad for addressing the squirrel. “You belong outside, not in here.”

Plucking the squirrel from his shoulder, he carried it to the window and started to unlatch the bolt. When Blitzen realized what was happening, he twisted out of Galion’s grasp, and dived down the front of his shirt, hiding down his sleeve. “Now... now that tickles, you!” he scolded as he laughed, and on the bed, the boys began to laugh, too. “As for the two of you... Ooooo...” Galion bolted the window again and set to the task of removing the squirrel from under his shirt. A head finally popped up in front of him, peeking up from the collar. “Alright now-“ Galion frowned. “That is quite enough-“ Galion growled. “Now, see here!”

Each time he tried to talk, the squirrel began to chirp and chatter over his words, and stop the moment he did. Ilmendin was rolling with laughter and snorting, and Legolas giggled and clapped his hands when finally Galion gave up and the squirrel took his place on the butler’s shoulder.

“See? He likes you,” repeated Legolas. He lifted his arms out as Galion approached. “Bath time now!”

“Oh, my, oh, my,” grumbled Galion as he lifted Legolas up into his arms. “Come along, Master Ilmendin,” he called to the elfling who had laughed himself off of the bed. Ilmendin ran over to the door, ran back to the bed to scoop up a squirrel, and then ran back again. “No, no more squirrels, we have one and that will be plenty to explain to your father.”

Ilmendin hugged the squirrel to his chest. “This is Rudolph. This one is for nana. She likes things that are soft so this is for her. We always meant to find homes for all of the squirrels.”

Feeling a headache coming about, Galion led them to the washroom. “Fine, Ilmendin. We will discuss this with your father at dinner.”

---

“... and if we did not, then the spiders would have eaten them.” Ilmendin pouted. “You did say the spiders would eat them, right?”

“I...” Thranduil caught his wife’s disapproving look out of the corner of his eye. His sons had arrived a little early, with two extra furry guests than anticipated. The pair of squirrels were happily munching from a dish of nuts on the table. Oropher was speaking to Galion and Saelbeth about matters of the day, seeming completely unconcerned over the fact his realm was being invaded by bushy-tailed rodents, and Thaladir looked quite amused, but hid it well. “I do not think it a good idea to have them inside.”

“But we trained them to make potty only in one spot!” shouted Legolas from across the table, and loud enough for those at nearby tables to hear as well. Thranduil covered his face with his hand and sighed. “We even gave them baths yesterday, too!”

Thaladir leaned away from this conversation and towards the one that Oropher and Galion were having. “Your pardon, your highness- Galion, it would seem the answer as to why the hall was flooded with soap suds yestereve has been revealed.”

Galion glanced over at the elflings, who both looked quite sheepish now, and his shoulders slumped. Seeing his chance, Blitzen dropped the nut he was working on, and jumped up onto Galion’s shoulder.

“Well, they actually seem quite tame,” interjected Avisiel. She watched as Blitzen snuggled against Galion’s neck. “Whose is this one? Is this one yours, Ilmendin?” she asked, pointing to the one still gouging on nuts.

“That one is for you,” Legolas said proudly. “Look! His nose is pink!”

“For me? That is so sweet,” she said, lifting up the chubby little squirrel.

“We named him Rudolph,” added Ilmendin.

“Honestly, where are they getting these names from?” questioned Saelbeth as a server came with wine for the table.

Thaladir knew the answer. “I thought one of the dwarves who helped dig the caves was named Rudolph.”

“You can rename him if you want,” offered Ilmendin when he saw the smile on his mother’s face falter a little, though it was really just because of the mention of dwarves at the dinner table.

“Even if it is a dwarven name,” she replied, “I think it even better as a name for a squirrel.” Holding it out for her husband to see, she asked, “Isn’t he cute?”

Thranduil took one look at the puff-cheeked squirrel, with his legs dangling and tail askew. Waving the wine server over, he decided that this was going to be a long winter.