I have chosen to use the timeline of the movies, where Frodo departs the Shire soon after Bilbo's party, rather than 17 years later as he did in the books. This then puts Aragorn at about age 27 rather than 10.
The Search for Strider
Legolas checked his stores again. He was eight days out of Rivendell. Bree was likely three days away. He hoped he would be able to get more supplies there.
If he went to Bree, that is. He had not gotten a clear idea from Lord Elrond as to where exactly he would find this Strider. Or who exactly this Strider was and why Thranduil thought he was such a good man to find.
Enough food for at least five days he decided. More if he found anything to forage along the way. Now he either needed to set a course for Bree or head south and skirt around the Shire to head to Ered Luin.
He made a face. He had had enough of dwarves and Ered Luin was full of them. He decided Bree was a better destination.
Elrond had said this Strider was a Ranger of the North—a Dunedain. They patrolled the whole of Eriador, as their old Kingdom of Arnor was now known. He could be anywhere between Ered Luin and Gundabad, or the Gray Haven or outskirts of the Shire.
Legolas made another grimace. He really had no appetite for traipsing around Eriador, in search of this Ranger! But then again he was in no hurry to return home. Much as he loved his forest it had become stifling in recent years, as his father had pulled their people further and further in and limited contact with the other Elven realms of Imladris and Lothlorien.
His father. Another reason he was in no hurry to go home. Legolas checked the buckles on his pack one more time, scanned the horizon and started off in the direction of Bree.
Thranduil was a strong king but he could be cold and distant, even for an Elf. Legolas had distant memories of his father laughing, happy, content. But that was before his mother's death. Ages ago. He'd briefly glimpsed that side of Thranduil when Tauriel had first come to the palace as a child.
Tauriel. The main reason he was on the road and staying away from home. The main reason he wanted to avoid Ered Luin and those dratted dwarves.
He could see hills ahead in the distance. He should reach them by nightfall if he kept this pace. The Weather Hills should have some shelter for the night. He had seen the old fortress of Amon Sul on the map at Rivendell. That would serve him well for tonight.
By sunset he could see the ruins of Amon Sul ahead. He quickened his pace and reached the summit as the sun dipped below the distant mountains.
Amon Sul was indeed in ruins but Legolas could see signs of recent occupants. Likely not easily noticed by others but Legolas had been patrolling long enough and little got by him anymore.
A small indentation with a trace of black ash had been a fire. The ledge behind that showed some undulation in the rock. Not likely from wind and rain, protected as it was from the elements by an overhang. More likely it had been used as a resting place. Centuries of bodies sleeping on that slab of stone had made a small shallow hollow at the one end and in the middle. Well, it would do nicely for him tonight too.
He sat on the stone outcropping, under the overhang. He could see the whole of the land before him, as the dark deepened. It had been well placed as a watch tower he decided. Even as the light faded he could make out the road and the plain and saw no movement on it.
No fire. A fire would be visible for leagues and Legolas had no interest in attracting company. Small risk of goblins or orcs here although Gundabad was not all that far.
But those orcs were likely dead or scattered beyond the Misty Mountains now. The Goblins of the Misty Mountains themselves were unlikely to venture this far west.
If anyone would disturb him it would likely be men or dwarves. He was content to have neither at this point. He leaned back and took some lembas and dried fruit from his pack and nibbled on it. The stars grew brighter as he ate. The sliver of the moon rose and he gazed at the silver light above.
One benefit of these travels of his over open land was the daily sight of the vastness of the sky above at night. No tree cover, no leaves or branches to obscure the light he loved that came from the stars.
He was considering getting a bit of rest on that undulating slab of rock when he heard a faint rustle from the thicket to the left of the fortress. He stood silently, his bow swiftly fitted with an arrow. Likely some nocturnal animal but he could not be sure. Silence. Then a faint scrape from the left again, and closer.
Legolas faced left, arrow at ready. A shadow seemed to move at the edge of the ledge, a dark shape against the gathering darkness behind.
"Mae Govannen, " said a man's voice quietly from the shadows. Legolas could clearly see a hooded and cloaked figure in the dim moonlight. He kept his bow and arrow pointed directly at the man's chest.
" Not many men speak Sindarin anymore," Legolas replied warily, as the man moved a step or two closer, then stopped.
"There are those of us that do still," the man said pushing back his hood. He was far younger than he sounded, no lines on his face, dark brown hair and a slight beard.
"And who are you who still speaks the language of my people?" Legolas asked, arrow still pointed at the man.
"I mean you no harm, sir." He said to Legolas. "I had not expected to find anyone here. Most men still shun the place and only Rangers use it as a shelter. It has likely been many long years since an Elf has crossed this threshold."
Legolas kept his bow steady. "And are you a Ranger?" he asked.
The man inclined his head slightly at Legolas. "I am."
Legolas lowered his bow slowly and gripped the knife handle at his waist. "And what is your name, Ranger of the North?" he asked.
The man paused, a flicker of a smile fleeting across his face. "You may call me Strider." he said finally. "And you are?"
"You are called Strider?" Legolas asked incredulously.
"It is one of my names," the man replied. " You are not an Elf of Rivendell, " he continued. "for I know most of Elrond's folk. You do not appear to be of Cirdan's either. Your bow is unlike those of Lothlorien so I must be in the presence of an Elf from the Woodland Realm." he finished, smiling again.
Legolas nodded slowly. "I am Legolas Greenleaf," he said, then added "Son of King Thranduil, of Eryn Galen."
Strider bowed his head at Legolas. "We do not often see Elves of Eryn Galen in these lands. What has brought you so far west?"
Legolas released his knife handle and directed his gaze at the man. He gave a half smile and tilted his head. "You do," he said. "I have been searching for a Ranger of the North by the name of Strider."
A quick look of surprise, rapidly suppressed, crossed Strider's face. "Why?" he asked the Elf. "I am but a simple Ranger, patrolling these lands as my people have for generations. What do I have to do with the realm of Thranduil?"
"I'm wondering that myself," Legolas said. "Time had come for me to leave my father's kingdom. My father told me to look for a man named Strider. A Ranger of the North. He said your father was a good man." Legolas paused as he caught another surprised look on the Ranger's face. "My father said he was a good man, but that you could be a great one."
Strider could not hide his surprise as he looked back at Legolas. "Your father," he said. "My father." He paused. "I do not understand."
"No more do I." said Legolas. "I took counsel with Lord Elrond on my travels and he would tell me no more than I would find you in Eriador and that my father was right."
"So Lord Elrond told you nothing about me?" asked Strider.
"No more than what my father said and where to look for you." Legolas looked at Strider intently. "Although from your words it does not seem that you are unfamiliar with Elrond and his people. You are a man of great mystery for one so young."
"Not so very young," Strider replied. "I've 27 years."
Legolas laughed. "If you know Elves you know twenty seven years is but a blink of an eye in the life of an elf, as my father would say!" He smiled at Strider. "I am sorry I have imposed on your shelter for the night. It has been my good fortune as you were the man I have been seeking. Come join me tonight. I've come a long way to find you. Maybe you can finally tell me why."
Strider smiled back at Legolas and came to stand in front of him. "Mae Govannen in truth, Legolas." He stretched out his hand. Legolas reached out his own and they gripped each others forearms.
"It is good fortune for me to have you search me out. I don't know what your father had in mind but I certainly welcome the company." Strider said.
"We have a long night ahead," Legolas replied, as they sat together under the overhang. "Perhaps you can tell me of your father, who my father spoke so highly of?"
Strider looked at Legolas thoughtfully. "It's a long story to tell."
Legolas shrugged. "I came all this way to hear it. I've got the time."