Chapter 1
"Can we take a break, please? I'm hungry," Pippin complained, grimacing. His cousin Merry gave him a quick, amused look.
"You are always hungry, my dear Pippin. But you are right, a break would be really good." Aragorn tried not to get upset. It wasn't so long ago that they had stopped, but he had to remind himself that the hobbits were smaller and tired more quickly. His eyes roamed the small group. Frodo and Sam also looked exhausted, even if they said nothing. Boromir and Gandalf looked worried about the hobbits and Gimli seemed annoyed by the hobbits' constant complaining. But when the ranger looked at Legolas, he frowned. The elf looked tense and his eyes wandered restlessly. What was wrong with his friend? Aragorn decided not to ask. The Elf's pride would never allow a real answer.
"All right. Let's make a fire and rest." Immediately and without instructions, Boromir and Gimli set out to look for firewood while Pippin dropped to the floor and the others sat down. Aragorn smiled. These hobbits were really incredible. While the man was unpacking the food, Gandalf was talking to the hobbits and Legolas was walking up and down attentively as if he expected an attack to take place at any moment. Which was strange, because elves could sense when a threat was coming. Aragorn watched his long-time friend closely. The prince was still very, very tense. Aragorn wanted to help him, but he knew that Legolas wouldn't say anything. The Ranger suppressed a sigh and went back to unpacking everything.
Just a short time later, Sam had conjured up a delicious meal and the community sat down by the fire. Everyone except the beautiful Elf. The prince's gaze wandered into the distance. He felt strange somehow. It was like everything was coming back. Lately, Legolas had managed to squeeze everything out but now every little moment came back. Probably because he had too much time to think at the moment. He had too much time to remember. And that he was now responsible for eight other companions didn't make things any better. Legolas was not an easy man to get down to. He fought no matter how hard it was. But something had happened that the wall he had built to protect himself from memories was torn down and threatened to collapse. The elf closed his eyes briefly and took a deep breath. He couldn't let the memories overwhelm him now. They had a job to do. A task that would decide the fate of all of Middle Earth. Suddenly a hand came down on his shoulder and the prince winced. At the same time, he was annoyed about it. He wasn't usually that frightened. The prince turned and looked into the worried eyes of his best friend.
"Are you all right, Legolas?", the man asked, looking at his friend with concern, but at the same time quite suspicious. He knew that Legolas' pride often stood in his way. The Elf smiled. He didn't want to worry his companions any further. The burden of the ring and its task was already too heavy for them and he did not want to become a burden.
"Yes I'm fine." The Man's eyes told Legolas that he didn't believe him in the slightest, but luckily he left it at that.
"There's food. Are you coming?" Legolas shook his head. Just thinking about eating made him sick. He was also an Elf and didn't need much food.
"Thanks, Aragorn, but I'm not hungry." His friend's eyes grew even more concerned.
"You know you can talk to me if there is anything." And with these words, he let the prince think again.