He doesn't even remember what Hythlodaeus is referring to. Like so much else, it is a memory lost to time, pale in comparison to so many others which stand out more starkly - such as their final moments together.

Coldly (far more coldly than he intends), he replies, "I'm not a child." He hasn't been a child for a long time. He doesn't think he could ever mimic one.

More to the point: his worst fears are confirmed. Hythlodaeus recognises him. He doesn't want his friend to see him like this, lesser in more ways than stature.

He takes a step back and glares upward.

"I fear you have mistaken me for someone else."