Haldir was napping, that faraway look in his eyes as he leaned against the mast of the ship. There was a slight smile on his face, and no doubt his thoughts in reverie were more than pleasant.

- - -

"… thirty-four… thirty-five… thirty-six…" Orophin counted as loud as he could so that it would be heard through the entire floor of the tree. Rumil was scurrying about in the room, opening up cupboards and lifting lids off chests, but each time he was about to step into one, he caught a faint smile from Orophin, and was sure his older brother was peeking. Not that Orophin had to peek - he was much older, and nearly an adult, and did not need help finding Rumil.

A lone figure watched from the doorway, shaking his head. Haldir stepping silently inside, putting a finger to his lips as he watched Rumil pout once more just as he thought he'd found a great place to hide. "… sixty-one… sixty-two… sixty-three…" Rumil ran to Haldir and gave him a worried look.

Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, Haldir then bent down and picked up the small elfling before stepping out of the room to look for a good spot to hide his youngest brother. "If you help him, I expect that means you're playing, too, and the penalty if you're found is you get tickled!" shouted Orophin before resuming his count.

"He mustn't find us, 'Dir, he really, really mustn't!" Rumil said fearfully, still not fully grown out of speaking in baby babble. He hid his head against Haldir's chest as the elf chuckled.

Youthful games such as this one were something Haldir had long outgrown, as had Orophin, but Rumil was much in need of distraction. The youth still had not been able to grasp the fact that his Adar and Naneth would not be coming to get them, that this was no holiday from Lindon. Rumil constantly had to be around one of his brothers, even when resting. Haldir spent much of his time wandering the woods that would now be their home while Orophin spent his days entertaining Rumil. At night, nothing was said as Rumil crawled into Haldir's bed and would fight off reverie until after he had been securely tucked in with at least one brother at his side. None of them had yet to speak of their mother's fall at the great battle that took their king as well, nor of the fading of their father, but it was an obvious weight upon them all.

Welcoming the pastime that he had not shared with either brother - he was grown already when Orophin had been born - Haldir carried Rumil into the kitchen, finding Celebrian, their nearly new sister, sitting at the table. "We need a hiding space," whispered Haldir, and the elleth put her spoon down and smiled.

"We can't let Orophin find us, or he'll tickle us and he won't ever stop!"

Her smile turned into a grin. When her parents had first told her that they would be fostering the children of two great warriors who Celeborn had known as elflings in Doriath, Celebrian was uncertain how to take the news. The thought of three siblings did not readily appeal to her, but when she was introduced to her new brothers, her mind changed almost instantly. Rumil was as sweet an elfling as any, and Orophin was himself a charming young elf. Haldir, though somewhat reserved, was quite social once Celebrian was able to get him talking, and their similar age and interests caused the pair to sit at the top of the tree some nights and talk into the next morning.

Now she had a task at hand that she did not plan to fail at. Spying the pantry, she opened the door and pointed out the bottom of it, which was devoid of shelves. "How's this?"

"It looks dark," answered Rumil. "Isn't there anything bigger and brighter?"

"Small, dark places are the best places to hide," said Celebrian. "Here, I'll go in first, you can follow," she offered, and ducked into the pantry. She had few playmates as a child, and the ones she had would rather have played with dolls and had tea than play such simple games and have adventures. Even as old as she was, she delighted in the games Rumil wished to play and in playing along with her new siblings.

Rumil hesitated, but crawled in as Haldir set him onto the ground. Squeezing into the small space with his sister, his eyes widened frightfully with the realization, "There's no room for you, 'Dir!"

"Ready or not, here I come!" boomed Orophin's voice.

Rumil's eyes were huge as saucers. "He's going to get you, 'Dir," he nearly cried, but Haldir shook his head.

"He won't find me, I'll hide so well, no one will," promised Haldir, and helped Celebrian shut the door most of the way, leaving it just slightly ajar before heading out of the room. There was a balcony of sorts that wound around the entire flet that Haldir went to, and he watched through the windows, ducking down as he saw Orophin enter the kitchen. Just as his younger brother placed a hand on the doorknob, Haldir picked up a mallorn nut and chucked it into the window so that it landed across the room. Orophin turned abruptly and chased the noise.

"Just stay there," hissed Haldir, approaching the pantry when Orophin had gone.

"Where are you going?" questioned the elfling, peeking his head out of the pantry. "I'm coming with you!" he added as he began to scoot out.

"No, no, Rumil, stay here! He'll find me, but he won't find you. You don't want to be tickled, do you?" Haldir asked, looking down with one brow arched in askance.

Rumil shook his head. "But I don't want to be left alone," he pouted.

"You aren't. Your sister's here," Haldir reminded him, and Rumil stuck his lip out further.

"'Dir," he said in a loud whisper, "she's not our sister."

"Not in Lindon. But she is now, so go hide with her, or I'll tickle you myself!" he threatened lightly, and the elfling giggled and ducked back into the pantry. "Now keep quiet in there! He won't be back anytime soon," Haldir added, following stealthfully after Orophin.

Up six floors the chase went, Orophin searching and Haldir leading, or misleading as the case was. When he was certain Orophin had given up on Rumil and was only chasing him, he ducked into one of the bedrooms and looked around for a suitable hiding place.

The room was enormous, but that did not deter Haldir from walking around the bed to the large closet on the other side of the room. Stepping inside, it was too dark for him to make out what was in it, and he slid the door shut as he heard someone approach the room. Surely, Orophin had not found him this quickly? Haldir peeked through the slats of the closet door to watch Orophin's movements.

But it was not Orophin who entered. Long silver-gold hair flowed behind her in the breeze as the lady entered her chambers. True, she and the lord shared as large room at the top of the tree, but it was more convenient for them to have separate rooms as well. She shut the door, but not the windows. No tree was taller than the Great Mallorn, and no rooms were on this level, save hers and her husband's. The wind fluttered the curtains and gently lifted her loose hair, like a waterfall cascading down her back.

Reaching behind her, she unfastened her dress until she was able to slide it down off of her body. She wasted no time in removing the garment - it was a warm day, and she no longer had appointments, and so looked around to choose something lighter to wear. When she saw nothing in the room itself, she moved to the closet.

Scrambling as quietly as he could back against the side of the wardrobe, Haldir held his breath as the door furthest from him slid open and the lady stepped just barely inside. All she need do was turn her head to the right to see the eldest of her charges, frozen in fright, and yet fully aroused at what he was accidentally witnessing. Instead, Galadriel thumbed through the garments hanging in the closet, pulling three dresses from their spots and draping them over her arm. Once more the door was closed. Though he knew he should stay in the shadows until she had left the room, Haldir stepped carefully back to the doorway to look out once more.

She was sitting on the edge of the bed, glowing and gloriously naked. She hummed to herself as she set to braiding thin golden-silver ropes behind her ears, and within them weaving beads of blue and green. It didn't take long for her nimble fingers to complete the task, and soon she was setting aside the tray of beads on a shelf and was moving back to the chair where she had left the three dresses. Relief flooded the elf from where he hid, thinking she would soon leave the room.

But this was not to happen. The first two garments were rejected, and the third Galadriel seemed to accept with a small frown. She sighed and sat in the chair where the dresses had been, for now they were on the bed. In thought for a moment, she rested her thumb under her chin, with her index finger against her lips. Her gaze would have been upon Haldir had the door of the closet not been in the way and had she not been staring at the floor. It seemed she was trying to make up her mind about something, and Haldir began to sweat, thinking he was found out.

This could not be the case he decided as she slid her index finger into her mouth, moving it gently in and out for a few seconds before withdrawing her saliva-coated digit. Haldir's jaw dropped as he watched her move forward a little on the chair and then lean back before inserting her finger much, much lower. He could do nothing but watch, unblinking, as a scene played out before him that would give him strange comfort later on so many cold northern nights.

Her movements were slow, and well-timed, and so very elegant as the breeze caressed her body and gently played with wisps of her hair that hung over the back of her chair. The rhythm she set was in time to the rhythm of her breathing, in and out, and relaxed; yet wanting. After one particularly sharp intake, her speed increased and her eyes closed. Her other hand was free, and roamed the curves of her own body as her head lolled to the side.

It did not take long for her to bring herself to completion, nor to clean up what evidence there had been of it. She blushed slightly as she dressed, perhaps hoping her husband would not be able to tell of her actions when she met him for dinner. Haldir did not know, nor did he care. He was in part shamed, but mostly excited, and was trying already to figure the quickest way out of this bedroom back to his own before… well…

Looking down, he realized it mattered little, for what he had seen alone brought him release. His attention was caught as he heard the door open again, and caught only a glimpse of Galadriel leaving her room. Swallowing hard, he counted to one hundred before slipping out of the chambers and down to his rooms two floors below to clean up, knowing he would still make it to supper late.

~-~
"We looked all over for you!" Orophin said, passing a basket of rolls around to Celebrian. "In the study, in the library, even in your own room!" Orophin shook his head. "Where have you been hiding?"

"Did you check the kitchen?"

"All of it!" Orophin nodded as his brother sat down across from him and next to Rumil. "How do you think I found them?" he replied, waving between the elfling and the elleth.

"He only tickled me a little, though," Rumil assured Haldir. "Then he let me tickle him a lot."

Haldir smiled. "And while this tickling was going on, did anyone check the cellars?"

"Oh, that shouldn't count," argued Orophin. "That's not part of the tree, it's beneath the tree."

"Sorry, I didn't really know the rules."

"Perhaps next time Haldir should be the seeker," suggested Galadriel, and Haldir listened but paid more attention to the bowl of vegetables than to her as she spoke. "I have a feeling he's very good at finding things."

Blushing just a bit, Haldir gave a little nod and took a large gulp of his wine.

- - -

"My lady, we're nearly to shore," called out one of the sailors on his way to find Lord Elrond and give him the same news. The elf stopped when he saw the elf slumped against the mast. "Should I rouse him for you?" he asked Galadriel, who sat on a bench nearby watching the elf in reverie.

Lady Galadriel shook her head with a faint smile. "Let him rest a while longer," she said. The sailor walked on and she shook her head again as Haldir's thoughts drifted into her mind, in such a peaceful state he was that he did not notice.

Standing up as she saw Elrond approach from the cabins below she looked once more at Haldir and whispered, "You may still think yourself adopted, but you are more Celeborn's son than you shall ever know," before walking across the ship to join Elrond at the railing facing the west.