Haldir crept up to the crib and peered into it. "Someone's not very sleepy, is she?" he asked softly. Reaching over the side, he pulled the blanket around the little elfling and slid his arms underneath to support the tiny one's head before drawing her gently from the crib.
He carried her to a lower spot in the nursery - the floor dipped down about a foot and a half to make a shallow play area that very young elflings couldn't crawl out of - and sat down among the toys that resided there. "Do we want to crawl around, or do we want to play? If you're hungry, I regret to tell you, I shall have to wake your parents, and then I shall go back to sleep myself," he explained, stifling a yawn. The elfling wrapped her fingers in the loose strands of one of the messy braids that hung over Haldir's shoulder. "Determined to keep me here, I see," he said, rather amused.
Picking up a wooden grasshopper toy, the elfling's favorite, he pushed the legs back and forth, the elfling watching as she chewed on the loose hair from his braid. The action caused the toy to make a chirping sort of singing, and two short little arms reached forward in an attempt to grab the toy. "Laiqua," he said as he handed it to her. "Green."
"Gheeh."
"Green. Very good." Now that his hair was free, he set her down so that she was sitting opposite of him in the toy hollow, chewing on a yarn antennae. "Green." Haldir picked up a small comfort blanket that was in among the toys, no more than a small patchwork cloth. He wiped the drool off of the end of his hair and was about to toss the blanket up over the side of the ledge when he held it out to the elfling. "Lúne. Blue."
"Buh."
"Blue."
"Buhluu."
"Close enough." Haldir set the damp cloth outside of the hollow and fished around the toys for something else. Holding up a brightly colored ball, he said, "Karne. Red."
"Red!"
"That was an easy one, try this." Lifting up the edge of the nightshirt he had on, he said, "Malina. Yellow."
"Yahl," she replied, partly because she could not say the word, and partly because she was still chewing on the yarn.
"What are you doing?"
Haldir dug through the toys instead of looking up at the elf who entered. "I'm keeping her quiet so that you can keep sleeping." Pulling a small wooden horse that rocked back and forth out, he held it up and said, "Varne. Brown."
"Bwarn."
"Haldir," whined Legolas, sitting down on the edge of the hollow and letting his legs dangle somewhat in the lower area, "she's three. Don't you think she should be speaking Quenya and Sindarin before you teach her Westron?"
"Never too early to learn." Haldir took hold of the leg of Legolas' sleeping pant and pointed to it with his other hand. "Kuluina. Orange."
"Onge!"
Haldir pinched Legolas' toe, pointing now to the older elf's sock. "Morna. Black."
"Black."
"Excellent! What a silly Ada you have, wearing socks that don't match his pants. He's so silly. Yes, he is," Haldir cooed at the elfling as he tugged on the sock. The elfling squealed with delight and reached up to catch part of her father's heal in her hands.
"Uhhnn." Legolas flopped backwards onto the floor, leaving his legs draped into the play area. "She's only three!" he complained again, throwing his arm over his eyes.
Haldir picked up a block that was dyed a red-violet hue. "Lasiavis, what color is this?"
"Laiquaninwa!"
"Very good!" he announced without pause, dumping the toy into the pile before Legolas could realize the item was not blue-green. "See? She's very good at this already."
"Mmmnnnphhh."
Haldir chuckled and squeezed Legolas' foot. "Go back to bed. We are fine, the sun shall light the sky soon enough. Go. I'm sure the bed is still warm enough for you," he teased.
Legolas did not answer, and Haldir wondered if the elf had slipped back into reverie. He didn't have the time to ponder this, for a high wail softly came from the tiny elleth, and Haldir picked up a golden rattle, likely a present from the elfling's grandfather. "Laurea. Gold."
"Uhhnnn!" Lasiavis made a grab for the rattle, and fell forward. She sat stunned for a moment before beginning to whimper.
"Truly your daughter," Haldir chuckled as he scooped up the little elf to comfort her. "Hush, hush, now, here you are," he said, shaking the rattle and handing it to the elfling. It was batted away, and Haldir frowned. "No?" Glancing behind him, he pulled a white fluffy lamb. "Ninqua. Wh- Hey!" he took hold of the elleth's hands as a second toy was slapped from his.
"Give it up," suggested Legolas, who was not entirely resting as Haldir had thought. "Just put her into the crib, she's too tired to play right now."
"I know what will make her happy," said Haldir, pulling out another stuffed animal as he sat her back down on her own. "Airalúne. Purple." He held the bunny to her, and Lasiavis wrapped her arms around the toy, then preceded to chew on the rabbit's ear. "No, no, no, no nibbling Nibbles," he said, pulling the rabbit away with a frown.
Lasiavis frowned back, her lower lip trembling. Quickly, Haldir tried to hand the rabbit back to the elfling, but she shoved it away and let out a wail.
"Mmmhh..." Legolas sat up and rubbed his eyes as he stretched his back. "Come, little one, enough Westron for one morning." He reached down and tried to pick up his daughter, but she was back in Haldir's lap before he could. "Haldir!"
"Go, get some rest, you're still tired," suggested Haldir.
"And that is what new parents are. Tired. All the time. Kindly give my daughter back to me," he insisted.
"We can share," Haldir told him, but the elfling began to squirm, trying to get to her father.
"You're impossible!" Legolas laughed, crawling into the hollow and plucking Lasiavis from Haldir's lap. "You'll share playtime, but never eating time or changing time or throwing up on the nearest Elf time."
"I let you play with my son whenever you want to, and I wouldn't ask you to change him or clean him."
Legolas gave Haldir a withering look. "Your son," he said pointedly, "is twenty-three."
"I still don't ask you to change him," smirked Haldir as Legolas pulled Lasiavis close to his chest and exited the play area. "That has to count for something."
Legolas did not answer Haldir, concentrating now on a conversation with his daughter. "You are up, I am up, time for breakfast. Shall we see what I can find for you? I'm sure there's something delicious being prepared, I know, I heard your Nana head into the kitchen. Let's see if we can find your Uncle Gimli, and he can watch you while I go downstairs and get breakfast and then you won't have to listen to that silly elf telling you those silly Westron words."
"Oh, please," Haldir said, rolling his eyes, following after Legolas. They walked down the hall and entered the sitting room, where Gimli was indeed awake.
"Here's your Uncle Gimli! I knew he was hiding out in the open somewhere," Legolas said, kissing the top of his daughter's head on her curly dark hair.
"Gimme! Gimme!" Lasiavis said with excitement, struggling to get out of her father's arms.
"Ah, there's my little lassie," Gimli said affectionately as Legolas placed the elfling in Gimli's arms. Lasiavis stretched and cooed and grabbed hold of a handful of greying beard, which she promptly shoved into her mouth.
"Aiya, my little girl," Legolas said, shaking his head. "I shall return with something better for you to eat." Walking away, he mumbled to himself, "I never did that as a child...it has to come from her mother's side..."
Haldir sat down next to Gimli and leaned back on the couch. It seemed a waste to go back to bed now that the light was peaking in through the curtains.
"What did you do?"
"Hmm?"
"Why didn't he just let you hold her?" asked Gimli.
Haldir smirked. "I was giving her lessons in Westron again."
Gimli harrumphed and held out a finger for Lasiavis to latch on to. "The wee thing's only three, she's much too young for Westron words."
"It was only colors," Haldir said in defense, closing his eyes.
Gimli harrumphed again and wiggled the caught digit, much to the glee of the Elfling. "Still too young for Westron," he repeated. He cleared his throat as his finger was let go and gently took hold of a tiny foot covered by a soft knitted bootie. "Zibaraz," he said, acknowledging the tiny pink foot cover.
"You're as bad as Haldir!" scolded Legolas, entering the room with a glass milk bottle in one hand and a blanket thrown over his shoulder. "Teaching her Dwarf-tongue?! Ai!"
"We're merely enhancing her vocabulary," answered Gimli as the child was pulled away from him. "Everyone knows it is easier to speak Khuzdul than it is to speak Westron."
"Go enhance someone else's vocabulary," huffed Legolas as he walked from the room with his daughter. Gimli scratched his head, while Haldir shrugged.
"Don't suppose your son still needs to learn his colors, does he?" asked Gimli, somewhat hopefully.
Haldir shook his head. "He's well beyond those."
"What about animals?"
"Knows their names in Quenya, Sindarin, and Westron."
"Aye, but does he know them in Dwarvish?" Gimli nudged Haldir, who was considering the idea.
"He's spending the day with Elrond, they were going to go off into the forest to look at plants or something," Haldir said as Gimli stood up.
"Well," said Gimli as he made his way to the door, "I doubt Lord Elrond knows the names of all the animals in Dwarvish."
Haldir grinned. "I would hate ever so for him to be uninformed..."
"And if we happen to have the majority of the lesson in whatever room poor Legolas is feeding Lasiavis-"
"I love how your mind works, Master Dwarf," Haldir said, practically leaping from his chair, and the two set off to find Belegar.
