Authors Note: Ok. So I def need to apologize to all of you. I am so very
sorry that this did not come sooner. I honestly meant to have it out that
long ago week of final exams, but one certain exam sabotaged me and then I
came home for the holidays, and well, I was screwed. You all must forgive
me. I hope you enjoy the chapter. For some reason it was very hard to
write, so I hope it is all right. I lieu of seeing TTT, I noted that I
will stay away from the movieverse image of wargs, because Aragorn never
would have survived three wargs on top of him, lol. So therefore we will
stick with my image of them ;) Hope you enjoy and tell me what you think!
- as always, Lady Winter
Marbienl - I'm glad you liked it! Try this out ;)
Nili - More pain for my darling Aragorn in this chapter.especially the end. Help is sometimes very painful, even from the kind elves. I hope you enjoy!
Marie Kenobi - great user name ;) Thank you for the compliment, I am trying to work on making myself more detailed.
Estelcontar - sorry for the wait, I hope it is worth it!
Untouchableheart - enjoy!
Angel of the Elves - Wow. Thank you so much for the compliment! That means a lot!
Valin - thank you very much. I want a little bit of reality. No hero can go without getting a scrape or a bruise here or there.
Elanor - yes, indeed my story is not so original, but shockingly enough, when I first started to write it, almost a year ago (yikes!!!) there were very few "how aragorn and legolas met" stories.so yea.. I tried!
Annakas - I hope you like this chapter just as much
The Insane One - thanks for hugging Estel, he needs it ;) I sure wouldn't mind him hugging me back. ;) hope you like this chapter. Thanks for your enthusiasm!
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Legolas stood entirely still as he watched his father lean over Aragorn's still form. The Ranger had at last succumb to the wrenching pain that had hold of his body. He had passed into a soundless sleep where pain was felt but not registered. For that, Legolas was eternally grateful. He was pained to see the suffering that Aragorn was going through. It reminded him of a few ill accidents his brothers had suffered in their youths, many many years in the past. Shaking himself from dark memories, Legolas focused on what was at hand. That was the setting of Aragorn's ugly and broken arm.
Legolas briefly tore his eyes away from Thranduil's cursory inspection to glance at Cressen. The young Man was not watching the elven king, but instead was looking down at his still captain. He still held Aragorn's shoulders, but had lowered Aragorn's head into his lap so that the King-to- be was resting in a position where Cressen would be able to hold him even in the throws of pain that would seek to shake his body even in unconsciousness. Legolas smiled at the boy, although he knew that Cressen was too absorbed in concern for Aragorn to notice. The boy looked pale, as if he was still shocked at the experience, but his lips were set in a thin line that showed a strange determination to see Aragorn through this thing to the end.
Turning back to his father, he saw that Thranduil also was looking at Cressen. He nodded in approval and Legolas could not help but smile back. Inside, his heart swelled with the thankfulness that he owed his father now. Legolas had long known of Thranduil's distrust of men and was glad that he had overcome such things to help Aragorn.
"Legolas, we will need more hot water," Thranduil said slowly, motioning to the basin that sat next to the bed. Legolas nodded and picked it up, noting with sudden dread that the water was tinged a dark shade of red. Aragorn's blood. Trying not to shudder at how fragile a Man's already short life was, he hurried to complete his task, bringing his father the basin back, this time brightly filled with clean water, shimmering in the pale light of the room, blessedly clear.
"Now what father?"
"We'll have to clean this first. There is quite a bit of dirt and I am not sure that all of this is Estel's blood. We must see how deep this goes, though I am most concerned that I can see the broken bone here. Once it is thoroughly cleansed then we must set it. Cressen, are you all right lad?"
"Yes, my lord," the boy said, looking up for the first time in many minutes. Legolas thought he looked paler after having heard what must be done to place Aragorn out of further danger.
"He will not react well to this. You must hold him as still as you can. Thank the Valar that he has passed into the dusk for this."
"I will do my best, but he is very strong, my Lord. I have once seen him toss with Halbarad and Halbarad did lose. And badly at that sir. Not to mention the orcs and wargs," blushing slightly, Cressen trailed off, looking as if he feared he had said too much. Legolas found himself smiling at the tale. Indeed, Aragorn was not an average Man.
"Indeed Cressen. Your Strider has more to him than your eyes see. If need be, we will restrain him." Thranduil touched Cressen lightly on the shoulder and Legolas was again moved by the softer side that the king had chosen to show the Man. It was often seen in the confines of the elven kingdom but rarely surfaced with any type of dealing with the outside world.
Thranduil motioned for his son, and Legolas moved quickly to his side. He sat lithely on the bed next to Aragorn, and taking a soft cloth, he dipped it into the warm water and began to wash away the blood and grime that covered Aragorn's forearm. The Ranger lay still for some time until Legolas was forced to wash the wound itself. Aragorn's body reacted instantly, his back arching as his muscles protested. Cressen held Aragorn's shoulders firmly while Legolas searched the ranger's face to see if he showed any sign of waking. When he was sure that Aragorn would remain in blissful darkness, Legolas continued with what he knew was like slow agonizing torture to Aragorn. The Ranger's body continued to react, and Aragorn attempted to role away from Legolas as the prince continued to attempt to clean the nasty bite.
Thranduil moved to hold Aragorn in place, but the Man's body protested. Legolas noted the change as Aragorn's muscles tensed up once more. Thranduil took hold of Aragorn's shoulder and using elven strength, far superior to that of a Man's, he held the Ranger in place. Legolas nodded at his father and carefully and thoroughly cleaned the wound. After what seemed like an age, Legolas finished and found himself surprised at how relieved he was to be done hurting his friend, even in this kind way. Moving away, he once again went to change the water. When he returned he found that Aragorn's body was just relaxing back down into Cressen's faithful hold. Thranduil was looking carefully at the wound again.
Legolas had to admit that the wound actually did look better now that it was free of the dirt and warg blood. The garish looking skin was puckered in several places, showing where the set of teeth had entered in. There were numerous puncture wounds, but the worst part of the wound was where the teeth had actually torn flesh. Blood, the color of rubies, streamed from the wound and in the midst of blood and damaged skin was the ivory white of broken bone. Cressen inhaled sharply as if seeing it for the first time.
"What did he do, invite it to bite him?" Thranduil asked suspiciously, staring intently at the wound.
"Father," Legolas trailed off, his voice holding an unspoken warning. This was hardly the time for the elven king to insult Aragorn.
"Well, let us get this thing done," Thranduil said, shooting a glare at Legolas. The prince chose to ignore his father and turned back to Aragorn.
"We should restrain him. He will not stay still for this."
"All right." Thranduil nodded in agreement and produced soft grey rope from a nearby chest. The rope was hand woven by the skilled elves that made their living from such things. It was the softest material, but held strength that Legolas would liken to the steel used to forge the sword which Aragorn carried by his side at all times.
"Is that necessary?" Cressen's voice was soft but certain as he spoke. Both elves were surprised and turned to look at the young Man. "Strider would not like to be bound in any fashion."
"Cressen, you yourself saw how he thrashed as I merely cleaned the wound. We must now set the bone. It will be pain beyond comprehension and Strider will react, unconscious or not," Legolas knelt next to the bed, looking up at Cressen. Conflict flashed through his eyes as he glanced from Aragorn to the rope in Thranduil's hands.
"I understand. But still, if he wakes, will that not cause some panic?" Legolas hesitated for a moment, glancing at the rope also. Cressen had a point and Legolas knew that he too would be frightened if he awoke not only to blinding pain but the inability to escape from it due to restraints.
"It is a risk we will have to take. Cressen, you cannot hold him and this must be done." Thranduil turned away, his word being final. Cressen said nothing more but looked back down at Aragorn. Legolas sighed silently and took the rope from his father. He bound Aragorn's good hand to the bed as gently as he could. He then did the same with the Ranger's still shod feet. "Hold his shoulders as tight as you can. Legolas, I will need you to bind his arm once I straighten it."
Approaching his father, Legolas could not help but feel apprehension. He had never treated another elf, let alone a Man who had been hurt in this way. He had indeed been there to supervise the healing and help of smaller injuries, but nothing of this magnitude. He wished it were not Aragorn in this position. Strangely enough, he had come to care for this man in some way. Perhaps it was the intense destiny that wrapped itself around the Ranger. Maybe it was even the devotion to Arwen or the devotion Arwen felt for this simple mortal. Or it might even have been the feeling that he would always be friends with this brave king-to-be that would one day see them both to what they sought for their futures. None the less, he wished he weren't looking down at Aragorn. But there was no changing that.
"Very soon, Legolas," Thranduil warned, seizing Aragorn's arm. The Ranger's body again tensed up, and a small cry escaped his lips in the wrath of pain-filled sleep. Thranduil then took hold of Aragorn's upper arm and slowly twisted and pulled. Aragorn began to writhe in pain and Cressen was having trouble holding his superior's shoulders in place. The unconscious Ranger pulled violently at the rope that bound him, trying desperately to pull away from Thranduil's not so gentle attention to his arm.
"Father!"
"Peace, Legolas. It must be done," Thranduil said, but even his own voice sounded pained at what he had to do. Legolas realized that Thranduil was getting no where with the technique he was using and that worse would have to be done. Without another word, Thranduil turned Aragorn's arm the opposite way. There was a sharp sound of cracking and rubbing and Aragorn again cried out. Legolas' attention was drawn to the Ranger as he jerked upwards, silver eyes flashing open in a startled way. Aragorn was awake.
Marbienl - I'm glad you liked it! Try this out ;)
Nili - More pain for my darling Aragorn in this chapter.especially the end. Help is sometimes very painful, even from the kind elves. I hope you enjoy!
Marie Kenobi - great user name ;) Thank you for the compliment, I am trying to work on making myself more detailed.
Estelcontar - sorry for the wait, I hope it is worth it!
Untouchableheart - enjoy!
Angel of the Elves - Wow. Thank you so much for the compliment! That means a lot!
Valin - thank you very much. I want a little bit of reality. No hero can go without getting a scrape or a bruise here or there.
Elanor - yes, indeed my story is not so original, but shockingly enough, when I first started to write it, almost a year ago (yikes!!!) there were very few "how aragorn and legolas met" stories.so yea.. I tried!
Annakas - I hope you like this chapter just as much
The Insane One - thanks for hugging Estel, he needs it ;) I sure wouldn't mind him hugging me back. ;) hope you like this chapter. Thanks for your enthusiasm!
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Legolas stood entirely still as he watched his father lean over Aragorn's still form. The Ranger had at last succumb to the wrenching pain that had hold of his body. He had passed into a soundless sleep where pain was felt but not registered. For that, Legolas was eternally grateful. He was pained to see the suffering that Aragorn was going through. It reminded him of a few ill accidents his brothers had suffered in their youths, many many years in the past. Shaking himself from dark memories, Legolas focused on what was at hand. That was the setting of Aragorn's ugly and broken arm.
Legolas briefly tore his eyes away from Thranduil's cursory inspection to glance at Cressen. The young Man was not watching the elven king, but instead was looking down at his still captain. He still held Aragorn's shoulders, but had lowered Aragorn's head into his lap so that the King-to- be was resting in a position where Cressen would be able to hold him even in the throws of pain that would seek to shake his body even in unconsciousness. Legolas smiled at the boy, although he knew that Cressen was too absorbed in concern for Aragorn to notice. The boy looked pale, as if he was still shocked at the experience, but his lips were set in a thin line that showed a strange determination to see Aragorn through this thing to the end.
Turning back to his father, he saw that Thranduil also was looking at Cressen. He nodded in approval and Legolas could not help but smile back. Inside, his heart swelled with the thankfulness that he owed his father now. Legolas had long known of Thranduil's distrust of men and was glad that he had overcome such things to help Aragorn.
"Legolas, we will need more hot water," Thranduil said slowly, motioning to the basin that sat next to the bed. Legolas nodded and picked it up, noting with sudden dread that the water was tinged a dark shade of red. Aragorn's blood. Trying not to shudder at how fragile a Man's already short life was, he hurried to complete his task, bringing his father the basin back, this time brightly filled with clean water, shimmering in the pale light of the room, blessedly clear.
"Now what father?"
"We'll have to clean this first. There is quite a bit of dirt and I am not sure that all of this is Estel's blood. We must see how deep this goes, though I am most concerned that I can see the broken bone here. Once it is thoroughly cleansed then we must set it. Cressen, are you all right lad?"
"Yes, my lord," the boy said, looking up for the first time in many minutes. Legolas thought he looked paler after having heard what must be done to place Aragorn out of further danger.
"He will not react well to this. You must hold him as still as you can. Thank the Valar that he has passed into the dusk for this."
"I will do my best, but he is very strong, my Lord. I have once seen him toss with Halbarad and Halbarad did lose. And badly at that sir. Not to mention the orcs and wargs," blushing slightly, Cressen trailed off, looking as if he feared he had said too much. Legolas found himself smiling at the tale. Indeed, Aragorn was not an average Man.
"Indeed Cressen. Your Strider has more to him than your eyes see. If need be, we will restrain him." Thranduil touched Cressen lightly on the shoulder and Legolas was again moved by the softer side that the king had chosen to show the Man. It was often seen in the confines of the elven kingdom but rarely surfaced with any type of dealing with the outside world.
Thranduil motioned for his son, and Legolas moved quickly to his side. He sat lithely on the bed next to Aragorn, and taking a soft cloth, he dipped it into the warm water and began to wash away the blood and grime that covered Aragorn's forearm. The Ranger lay still for some time until Legolas was forced to wash the wound itself. Aragorn's body reacted instantly, his back arching as his muscles protested. Cressen held Aragorn's shoulders firmly while Legolas searched the ranger's face to see if he showed any sign of waking. When he was sure that Aragorn would remain in blissful darkness, Legolas continued with what he knew was like slow agonizing torture to Aragorn. The Ranger's body continued to react, and Aragorn attempted to role away from Legolas as the prince continued to attempt to clean the nasty bite.
Thranduil moved to hold Aragorn in place, but the Man's body protested. Legolas noted the change as Aragorn's muscles tensed up once more. Thranduil took hold of Aragorn's shoulder and using elven strength, far superior to that of a Man's, he held the Ranger in place. Legolas nodded at his father and carefully and thoroughly cleaned the wound. After what seemed like an age, Legolas finished and found himself surprised at how relieved he was to be done hurting his friend, even in this kind way. Moving away, he once again went to change the water. When he returned he found that Aragorn's body was just relaxing back down into Cressen's faithful hold. Thranduil was looking carefully at the wound again.
Legolas had to admit that the wound actually did look better now that it was free of the dirt and warg blood. The garish looking skin was puckered in several places, showing where the set of teeth had entered in. There were numerous puncture wounds, but the worst part of the wound was where the teeth had actually torn flesh. Blood, the color of rubies, streamed from the wound and in the midst of blood and damaged skin was the ivory white of broken bone. Cressen inhaled sharply as if seeing it for the first time.
"What did he do, invite it to bite him?" Thranduil asked suspiciously, staring intently at the wound.
"Father," Legolas trailed off, his voice holding an unspoken warning. This was hardly the time for the elven king to insult Aragorn.
"Well, let us get this thing done," Thranduil said, shooting a glare at Legolas. The prince chose to ignore his father and turned back to Aragorn.
"We should restrain him. He will not stay still for this."
"All right." Thranduil nodded in agreement and produced soft grey rope from a nearby chest. The rope was hand woven by the skilled elves that made their living from such things. It was the softest material, but held strength that Legolas would liken to the steel used to forge the sword which Aragorn carried by his side at all times.
"Is that necessary?" Cressen's voice was soft but certain as he spoke. Both elves were surprised and turned to look at the young Man. "Strider would not like to be bound in any fashion."
"Cressen, you yourself saw how he thrashed as I merely cleaned the wound. We must now set the bone. It will be pain beyond comprehension and Strider will react, unconscious or not," Legolas knelt next to the bed, looking up at Cressen. Conflict flashed through his eyes as he glanced from Aragorn to the rope in Thranduil's hands.
"I understand. But still, if he wakes, will that not cause some panic?" Legolas hesitated for a moment, glancing at the rope also. Cressen had a point and Legolas knew that he too would be frightened if he awoke not only to blinding pain but the inability to escape from it due to restraints.
"It is a risk we will have to take. Cressen, you cannot hold him and this must be done." Thranduil turned away, his word being final. Cressen said nothing more but looked back down at Aragorn. Legolas sighed silently and took the rope from his father. He bound Aragorn's good hand to the bed as gently as he could. He then did the same with the Ranger's still shod feet. "Hold his shoulders as tight as you can. Legolas, I will need you to bind his arm once I straighten it."
Approaching his father, Legolas could not help but feel apprehension. He had never treated another elf, let alone a Man who had been hurt in this way. He had indeed been there to supervise the healing and help of smaller injuries, but nothing of this magnitude. He wished it were not Aragorn in this position. Strangely enough, he had come to care for this man in some way. Perhaps it was the intense destiny that wrapped itself around the Ranger. Maybe it was even the devotion to Arwen or the devotion Arwen felt for this simple mortal. Or it might even have been the feeling that he would always be friends with this brave king-to-be that would one day see them both to what they sought for their futures. None the less, he wished he weren't looking down at Aragorn. But there was no changing that.
"Very soon, Legolas," Thranduil warned, seizing Aragorn's arm. The Ranger's body again tensed up, and a small cry escaped his lips in the wrath of pain-filled sleep. Thranduil then took hold of Aragorn's upper arm and slowly twisted and pulled. Aragorn began to writhe in pain and Cressen was having trouble holding his superior's shoulders in place. The unconscious Ranger pulled violently at the rope that bound him, trying desperately to pull away from Thranduil's not so gentle attention to his arm.
"Father!"
"Peace, Legolas. It must be done," Thranduil said, but even his own voice sounded pained at what he had to do. Legolas realized that Thranduil was getting no where with the technique he was using and that worse would have to be done. Without another word, Thranduil turned Aragorn's arm the opposite way. There was a sharp sound of cracking and rubbing and Aragorn again cried out. Legolas' attention was drawn to the Ranger as he jerked upwards, silver eyes flashing open in a startled way. Aragorn was awake.