Disclaimer: I own nothing Tolkien created.

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Mirkwood's Plague

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Thanks to everyone who has reviewed, I really appreciate it. Okay, here we go, chapter 15.

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Chapter 15 ~ The Prince's Relief

"Keep an eye on him, let me know if there's any change," Elrond whispered to the healer. She nodded then looked over at Legolas, who was perched on the edge of his chair beside his father's bed. He was gripping Thranduil's hand so tightly that if the king had been awake he would have been complaining that it hurt.

"What about Prince Legolas?" the healer whispered back, looking over at her prince who now had his head bowed as if in prayer.

"Let him stay here with his father. Make sure he gets some rest and watch him. I'll be in Rumil's chamber if you need me. Let me know if there's any change…in either of them."

The healer turned back to Legolas once Elrond had closed the door. The prince was still sitting in the chair clutching his father's hand. He was pale and trembling, although whether it was shock or illness the healer couldn't determine. Standing there she didn't know what to do next. The events of the past few days had been unpredictable at best and Legolas, who had been the face of the royal family, had always been the rock to which the people clung. Until this moment the healer had never really thought about the way the kingdom was run. The royal family simply kept everything ticking over. That was their job, their right, their destiny. Before now, the royals, Legolas included, had been distant, something to be watched, admired and respected from afar but never touched. Of course, she knew that Mirkwood only kept running smoothly thanks to the combined efforts of all of its people and their professions but King Thranduil, Prince Rumil and Prince Legolas were the true rulers and they were the reason Mirkwood had survived over the years of war and now flourished in times of peace. At the moment though, Legolas was just another one of the ordinary public; no longer untouchable or unapproachable. Disaster made everything equal.

"Your Highness," she wasn't quite ready to ignore protocol, including titles. Legolas raised his head but didn't turn around at the voice. "Is there anything I can do for you, sir?" Sympathy clouded her voice.

Legolas laughed gently. "Can you work miracles?"

"I haven't quite gotten to that part in my training yet, sir."

Again Legolas laughed hollowly. He turned around and she was unsurprised by the sadness she saw there. "No, unfortunately no one has." His voice was weak and tired and dejected. "You should get back to the main hall. You are needed there more than here."

"Lord Elrond said I should tend to you and King Thranduil."

"Do you usually take orders from Lord Elrond over your prince?"

"Right now I take orders from whoever deigns to give them."

"Desperate times, eh?" Legolas sighed. The healer nodded.

"Is there anything you need, my Lord?" the healer repeated and Legolas shook his head once more so the healer walked around to the other side of the bed and began rearranging the bed sheets, making sure the king was comfortable. "Would you like a better chair, Prince Legolas?" she asked when she had finished.

"You are very attentive," Legolas smiled, turning shocking blue eyes to the woman.

"It's my job."

"Then a better chair would be great."

The healer nodded and immediately left in search of a more comfortable seat for her Lord. Legolas was only alone for a few moments before a gentle knock came from the door. He called for the visitor to enter and the door opened revealing Aragorn. The man smiled at Legolas before closing the door quietly and walking over to the bed. He placed his hands on the Elf's shoulders. Legolas smiled looking grimly up at his friend.

"How is everything in the Great Hall?" the prince asked.

"The same. But don't worry about that right now. How is Thranduil?" Aragorn moved over to the king and placed a hand on his forehead. Legolas noticed that the man's large hands were completely steady, not shaking like Legolas' own were right then. How could the man be so composed? That was how he was supposed to be.

"How can you be so calm about this?" Legolas asked in a trembling voice.

Aragorn smiled and sat gently down on the bed, being careful not to disturb the king. "Do I look calm?" Legolas nodded, looking down at Aragorn's hands again. "Well, I'm not. Would it help you to know that I'm as scared as you?"

"No," Legolas said simply. That was the last thing he wanted. Aragorn knew how to take charge; he did it during the Quest of the Ring, taking Gandalf's place as the leader of the Fellowship after he fell at Moria. "No, it wouldn't."

Aragorn bowed his head and laughed. "Sorry."

At this point the healer opened the door, carrying with her a bigger, better padded chair. Aragorn immediately got up and helped the healer move the chair to the bed. Legolas also stood to help but Aragorn immediately pushed him gently down into the newly positioned chair and Legolas didn't protest.

"Is there anything else I can do, Your Highness?" the healer asked Aragorn.

He didn't answer immediately but looked over to Legolas who had his head laid sadly in his hands. Aragorn couldn't remember ever having seen his friend in such a bad state. The Prince was shaky and pale. His clothes, over which he wore one of his father's thick robes, were stained with the blood and tears of his people. More than that though, the prince seemed to have an unshakable air of melancholy about him. He tried to hide it in front of his people but here, in private, despair radiated from him and almost overwhelmed Aragorn with its potency.

Aragorn finally answered the healer's question. "Yes, run a bath for the Prince."

Legolas looked up at this, sad eyes looked questioningly up at his friend but Aragorn just stood up and walked into the bathroom adding soothing herbs to the warm water. The healer watched carefully. Seeing such a great man and healer at work was a privilege to any staff member and Aragorn's hands deftly picking out the best combinations of oils and herbs fascinated her.

"Get Legolas some clothes, something warm and comfortable. Then go to the Great Hall and pick up some healing supplies - bandages and select herbs. Go to the kitchens and get him some hot ginger tea and something light to eat, perhaps soup, something he can easily swallow and keep down." Aragorn spoke quietly and confidently but concern was plainly heard in his strong voice. "Oh and while you're there tell Gimli and Elrond that I am here with Legolas but that we are not to be disturbed unless it is absolutely necessary. Let's try and make our prince a little more comfortable, shall we?"

The healer nodded almost enthusiastically and quietly left the room whilst Aragorn turned off the water and checked that the temperature was perfect. When it was perfect he moved his hand through the water, swirling the herbs around. Already the water smelled sweet and pleasant and Aragorn could feel himself relaxing.

He walked back out to the bathroom to find that Legolas was by now dozing lightly in the chair; apparently it was more comfortable than they had first thought. Aragorn smiled and walked over to him. Gently he placed a hand on Legolas' arm and the prince was immediately awake and looking to his father to make certain he was alright. His slightly glazed, tired eyes then turned to Aragorn, who smiled warmly, rubbing a reassuring hand up and down Legolas' trembling arm.

Legolas lowered his head and rubbed his hand over his eyes. "Sorry," he said weakly and Aragorn didn't need to see his eyes to know there were tears in them.

"For what?" he asked gently, keeping his hand in place. Legolas just laughed gently but it held no humour. "It's alright, mellon nin," Aragorn reassured. He knelt in front of the prince making sure their eyes met. "It's alright now." Legolas nodded as crystal-like tears fell down his pale face. Aragorn stood up and enveloped the prince in a warm hug as he struggled for control.

After a few minutes Legolas had calmed himself and sat back in the chair again, rubbing his face. Aragorn pulled back but then placed his hand on Legolas' forehead, checking his temperature. It wasn't surprising that he still had a fever.

"Come on," Aragorn said, holding out his hand and pulling an unsteady Legolas out of his chair.

"What?" Legolas asked as Aragorn led him slowly towards the bathroom. "What are you doing?"

Aragorn led Legolas into the bathroom and showed him the bath. "Now is a good opportunity for you to rest a little," he explained.

"Now? Aragorn, my people…I can't."

"Legolas…"

"I will rest when my people do. When this is over. They need me," Legolas protested.

"They do need you. But it won't hurt for you to take care of yourself for a little while."

"I should be…Elrond needs me."

"Elrond needs you to get some sleep. You're completely exhausted, mellon nin. You have to rest."

"But…my people." Although he was protesting, Legolas wanted nothing more than to sink into that bath and forget about his troubles for a while but guilt overcame his desire. "How can I relax when they suffer so?"

"By remembering that you also suffer, mellon nin," Aragorn retorted.

"What? I am fine, Aragorn."

"Oh, right. Of course you are," the man's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"I…"

"Please, Legolas. Just let me take care of you for a while. Please?" Legolas looked out at his sleeping father with concern. "Thranduil will be fine. He's right next door and I'll keep an eye on him. Come on, you'll feel a lot better afterwards. I hate to see you suffer so, Legolas."

Bowing his head, Legolas nodded slowly. Everything his friend said made sense. He couldn't argue with the fact that he was feeling unwell and desperately needed to unwind. Aragorn moved behind him and helped him shrug out of his thick robe. Although he was shivering, Aragorn could feel the heat of a fever coming off Legolas but chose not to mention it for the time being. As Aragorn placed the over-robe on a chair standing in the corner, Legolas unbuttoned his shirt, wincing as he slipped it off his shoulders. Aragorn helped him, trying not to gasp when he saw the sore, red blotches that spotted Legolas' otherwise flawless skin. The whole of Legolas' body ached fiercely and he found it difficult to not wince as he moved to take off his leggings. He paused, however, when he remembered that Aragorn was still in the room.

The man noticed his hesitation. "For Valar's sake, Legolas, I am a healer," Aragorn smiled, looking pointedly at his friend.

Legolas just laughed softly before nodding and removing his leggings, leaning slightly on Aragorn for balance, something he would never have had to do normally, but right then he could only just stand up on two feet let alone one. When he was fully unclothed, Aragorn helped the shaky Elf relax down into the soothingly warm water. Legolas sank down into the water and couldn't stop a sigh escaping his lips as the fragrant water caressed his cold skin. Aragorn smiled at the prince even though he couldn't see it; he had already closed his eyes and slid further down into the water, trying to immerse as much of his shaking body as possible.

"Nice?" Aragorn asked.

Legolas opened his eyes half-way and looked tiredly up at Aragorn, who he had nearly forgotten was even there. "You make a good bath," he complimented with a smile.

"Good," the man smiled back.

A knock came from the door, disturbing the peace of the room. It wouldn't have been the healer; she couldn't have completed all his requests so quickly.

Legolas looked up at Aragorn as the person knocked again. "I'll get rid of them," Aragorn said, walking out of the room. He opened the door to reveal a very dishevelled looking Elf standing in the corridor. "Go away," Aragorn said simply before the healer could even speak.

"I need to see Prince Legolas," the Elf said.

"He's not available," Aragorn answered diplomatically. "Is it a matter that requires his immediate attention?"

"We're running out of healing supplies…."

"Then talk to Lord Elrond. Legolas is busy. Now go away." With that Aragorn shut the door on the Elf and returned to the bathroom where Legolas had been listening to the conversation.

"Maybe I should…"

"Don't worry about it. Elrond will handle it."

"But…"

"Legolas," Aragorn warned. "Don't worry about it."

As he said this another light tap came from the door. Just as he was about to run and shout at the insistent Elf, the healer walked back in. How she managed to balance so many things was beyond Aragorn but he walked towards her and relieved her of some of her burden. She had brought him almost everything he had asked for in one go.

"Is there anything else I can get you while I fetch the food?" she asked.

"No, thank you," Aragorn replied.

"I'll go and get the food then," she said immediately walking out of the room. She knew that her prince would want some privacy and she didn't want to intrude upon that.

Aragorn placed the things on the table before returning to Legolas in the bathroom. The prince was leaning back against the tub with his eyes peacefully closed. They opened, however, when he heard the King of Gondor entering.

"Feeling any better?" Aragorn asked with a knowing smile.

"Hmmm," was Legolas' incoherent reply.

Aragorn snatched up a cloth and some soap from the edge of the bath. "Here," he said gently, dipping the cloth in the water and lathering the soap. He handed the soapy flannel to Legolas, who took it from him lazily, not really paying too much attention to what was going on. Sitting up, he began slowly washing himself off. His hands were still shaking but at least they now felt warm whereas before they had been weak and cold.

Seeing Legolas' marred body nearly brought tears to Aragorn's eyes. He must have been in pain, although he barely showed it even now he was away from the prying eyes of his people. Now, alone in private though, the utter exhaustion and misery the prince was suffering was seeping through the cracks in his mask.

Lazily washing himself, Legolas kept his eyes closed. This was the first time he had been able to do so without horrific images of death passing through his mind and it felt good.

Aragorn smiled softly and took the cloth from Legolas' weak hands. The prince opened his eyes in mild surprise but closed them again when Aragorn added more soap and began carefully cleaning his cold, pale skin.

When the prince was suitably clean, Aragorn got up and placed a warm, fluffy towel on the back of the chair. Legolas leaned back again and Aragorn decided to leave him to himself for a few minutes while he sorted out the healing things the healer had brought. Every now and then, his sharp grey eyes flicked to Thranduil who still slept soundly; seemingly unaware of everything that was going on with his kingdom and his son. For a moment Aragorn envied the king. Pulling himself away from Thranduil, Aragorn returned to the bathroom where Legolas was still reclining in the water, now half asleep. He sat down on the chair and smiled at the sight.

"Come on. I think it's time to get out before you turn into a prune," Aragorn joked.

Legolas reluctantly opened his eyes and looked up at Aragorn with mock annoyance. However, he nodded and pushed himself up whilst Aragorn held out the towel for him. Bundled up in a warm towel, Legolas stepped out of the bathtub and followed Aragorn to the chair, into which he was pushed down.

Collecting the healing supplies from the bedroom Aragorn knelt in front of the prince, who was hugging the towel tightly to his body, preserving the warmth for as long as possible. Already the steady shivering had started to return. Aragorn took up a glass pot of a green herbal paste and dipped the corner of a cloth into it. With his free hand he pulled back a corner of Legolas' towel and applied the sweet-smelling paste to one of the larger red blotches on Legolas' skin. At first the prince was a little startled at this but he settled when he realised it was just another of Aragorn's healing techniques. He didn't have the heart to tell his friend that Elrond had already applied a similar mixture and it had been completely ineffective. However, his faith in Aragorn's healing skills was absolute and he let the man continue.

"Are you warm enough?" Aragorn asked, looking up from what he was doing and attaching a padded bandage to one particularly bad sore. Legolas nodded gently in answer, his blue eyes firmly fixed on the opposite wall. In truth, he hadn't felt so good since before all this started.

Although Legolas tried to hide it, Aragorn knew he was still in pain and he knew where it was most affecting him. When he had finished applying the green paste and bandages, he retrieved a bottle of scented massage oil, pulling the stopper out and inhaling the relaxing scent. Ideally the oil was supposed to be heated but Aragorn knew it worked just as well straight from the bottle. The healers often used it to help relieve stress on the muscles or just for general relaxation purposes. It was the best and quickest way Aragorn knew to relieve the aching Legolas was suffering.

Aragorn tipped a bit into the palm of his hands and, after replacing the bottle, rubbed them together, slightly warming the oil in the process. He looked up at Legolas but the Elf had his eyes closed again, apparently savouring the warmth before it disappeared completely. Aragorn placed his hands on Legolas' leg and began gently massaging the oil into his skin. The prince opened his eyes in surprise at the sensation and looked down at the man when he felt his soft touch.

Aragorn explained, "It is massage oil. It'll loosen your muscles; stop the aching, even if only for a while."

It obviously worked as when Aragorn moved to the other leg, Legolas leaned back with a relieved sigh and closed his eyes. "Thank you," he whispered when the annoying aching faded a little under the man's gentle touch.

Once he had finished on his legs, Aragorn stood up and, after refreshing the oil on his hands, pulled the towel from Legolas' shoulders and arms. The Elf briefly shuddered but when Aragorn began massaging it stopped and he went still and relaxed again.

At this point, the healer returned with a bowl of steaming soup and an equally hot mug of ginger tea, just as Aragorn had requested. She placed them on a table in the bedroom then silently entered the bathroom, diverting her eyes respectfully from her prince who merely smiled weakly when he noticed her, and waited for further instructions from the King of Gondor.

"Could you please light a fire?" he said after a second. "And hang the prince's clothes in front of it so they warm up."

"A fire?" she asked in apparent confusion.

"Yes, a fire. Why?"

"No one ever lights these fires anymore," Legolas answered for the healer.

Aragorn stopped what he was doing and turned to the servant, whose eyes had drifted to her half-naked, injured prince. "Then now would be a good time to start again."

Obeying the King of Gondor's orders, the servant left the room to light a fire. They were rarely used in Mirkwood simply because Elves didn't usually feel the cold. They were only constantly lit in the main healing hall where recovering patients needed the extra warmth. Each room contained a fireplace though, more for ornamental and decorative purposes than for anything practical. A lot of the time the King's and Prince's fires were lit during the day so the rooms were the perfect temperature for when the Royals returned to their rooms in the evening. However, Mirkwood, to a human anyway, was a cold place – comfortable but cold – and now Legolas was also feeling it. It may not have physically helped his condition but heat often brought with it comfort and right then they all needed that.

Aragorn began massaging again. In a moment, the healer came back, silently nodding that she had done as asked.

"Move the prince's nice new soft chair in front of the fire." When Legolas shot him a disapproving look, he added, "And make sure it is facing the King." Legolas nodded in satisfaction and the healer returned once more to the bedroom.

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"Lord Elrond, where is Prince Legolas? I need to speak with him." A healer had approached Elrond whilst he was assessing a patient who had been given the possible antidote.

"He is not to be disturbed," Elrond answered distractedly. Another healer had already informed him of what Aragorn was doing with Legolas and Elrond wanted to avoid anyone interrupting his few moments of peace. "What is wrong?"

"I really think I should report to the Prince…"

"I said he is busy. You may report to me," Elrond snapped, in no mood for a debate. The Elf before him showed no signs of getting any better. Elrond's first attempt at a cure had been unsuccessful; hardly surprising but frustrating nonetheless.

The healer hesitated for a moment before speaking again. "There was a fight in one of the healing halls, my Lord. Someone's been stabbed."

To Be Continued…

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Translations:

Mellon nin – My friend.