Hey all. Am back with another story after a while. Was watching Lord of the Rings (for the hundredth time am sure) and had to write this. I have always been dissatisfied with the way Legolas just walks away after Aragorn's fall from the cliffs. I would have liked a little more reaction from him. So here's my filler
Disclaimer: I do not own Lord of the Rings.
"Get the wounded on horses. Leave the dead".
Legolas' head turned towards Théoden when he heard the order. He was so sure that he had misheard it. Théoden could not have just asked him to leave his best friend, the man he considered a brother behind.
But no, Théoden's eyes were looking at him with compassion like he knew exactly what the elf was thinking.
"Come", he ordered gently.
As the king of Rohan walked away Legolas turned his eyes towards the river, his hands clutching the Evenstar. Realistically he knew that Aragorn could not have survived the fall and even if he did the river would do what the mountain did not and swallow him. Even if he could somehow climb down the treacherous hill the current was too swift. Aragorn would be washed away a long time before he could make any attempt at a rescue.
Though he knew all of this Legolas still took a step forward as if to climb down the hill, but another hand on his arm stopped him.
"He's right lad", a gruff voice beside him said. "We need to leave him".
Legolas did not turn. Did not even acknowledge that he had heard the voice but he did halt all movement.
"We need to make sure Rohan's safe", the voice continued. "It's what he would have wanted".
With his thoughts in turmoil Legolas' mind flashed back to Aragorn's last conversation with Gandalf.
"The defenses have to hold"
"They will"
Aragorn had promised Gandalf that the defenses of Rohan would hold. And they had to, he thought for Middle Earth to be safe Saruman and his orcs had to be defeated, but still he did not move.
The knowledge of what he had to do did nothing to help the fact that it was his best friend who was hurt, quite possibly dead. That what he was being asked to do was perhaps the hardest thing that he could do in his entire life. In fact he was sure that taking on the entire army of Mordor by himself had to be easier than this.
But he knew he would do it. He knew he would walk away. Knew he would go back to Helm's deep and fight for Rohan.
He would do this not just because he was the son of a king who knew what it was to make sacrifices, not just because he was a soldier and had seen people he knew die in front of him, not just because he had lived everyday seeing his entire realm being slowly taken over by darkness, not just because it was important for the survival of Middle Earth, not just because it was his duty.
BUT BECAUSE IT WAS WHAT ARAGORN WOULD HAVE WANTED. IT WAS WHAT HE WOULD HAVE DONE IF THEIR ROLES WERE REVERSED and even though he would not wish the kind of pain he felt with the decision he had made on anyone, especially his best friend, he just couldn't help but wish that he was the one who had fallen off the cliff.
BECAUSE ANYTHING HAD TO BE EASIER THAN THIS