A/N: I would like to give a BIG HUGE GIGANTIC SUPER DUPER REALLY BIG TOTALLY HUUUUUUGGGEEE apology for the REALLY REALLY REALLY LATE delay (redundant, eh?). My computer was broken and my modem wouldn't connect to the net and I had to wait a really long time for it to be fixed. I have no idea how to make it all up to you people!!! I AM FRIGGIN' SORRY!!!! I want cry!! Oh, the guilt!!! The horrible terrible guilt!! Ack!! The pain!! Ow!! NO!! HELP MEEE!!!! Gak!! *dies*……… no, I'm still here!! Now you wouldn't want me dead now do you?! Thought so! :)
Special Thanks to…
KaytUnfading: My inspiration! (don't argue.) Thanks a bunch for telling how to format!! Please stop saying that I'm better!! YOU ARE!! YOU ARE!!! End of discussion… :p But…. Thanks anyway for making me go 'aww shucks, really?' I totally can't wait for the next chapter for your story!! It's worth everything!!
Katrina: Here's the third chapter,okay?! So… PLEASE OH PLEASE DON'T HURT ME!!!! PLEASE!!!! THERE ARE STILL SO MANY THINGS I WANT TO DO!!!!!! WAAAH!!!!…….. *looks around and realizes everyone is staring* ahem… sorry bout that. Anyways, read and review.
Lefty: I'm sorry, I really can't tell you. But I'll give you a cookie if you keep reading!! Hehe… cliffhangers :p
Krisnkriss: yea, I know. Why DO we like to do that to him? Hmmm……… maybe it's because, he just looks so hot covered in blood and sweat and… and… *purrrrrr*… sorry, couldn't help it.
Helen: It was a 'plant' that did this all to him. Not a person coz if it was a person then I'll be out on a hunting spree!!! BWAHAHAHAHAHA!!! I know it's my story and it probably would've been my own character but……… so what?
PokethePenguin: Hmm…. cool name. Sorry 'bout the cliffhanger, teehee. I'm so naughty.
Stary Night: Yes, I will include how it all happened, in fact it's here in this chapter! Don't worry! Thanks for reading!
Lady Aniviel Greenleaf: I promise to make the rest of the chapters longer. Just don't hurt me!! *hides*
Shauna: You do?! I didn't think my story would be that likeable!!
Legolas4me: Me? Talented? Ya'll just exaggerating! *blush*
Dragon-of-the-North: Legolas hiding place? Hmm… maybe. About the orcs, well, yes, there'll be quite a number of them.
Lux Aeterna: Elves wear socks? Oh well… :p Sounds cute!
Deimos: Heya! Didn't think you'd read my story. You like it? You really really like it?! Guh-ha!!! I'm so happy!! Why won't you reveal your 'identity' at school? It's not like anyone's gonna hurt you or anything… except me, if you leave any cliffhangers… wait a minute, I do that!! Aheh…
Bill the Pony: I didn't abandon this story!! I'm sorry I took really long. As you read from the note I left above my computer died and then it came alive again!!! I hope you enjoy this third chapter.
Hobbit-eyes: Well, I enjoy making Legolas suffer because he's too hot not to hurt!! BWAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! Well, anyway, enjoy! Read and review, okay? Okay! Hyper today, sorry.
Legolasluver: Heya!! I wanted to email you to tell you that I didn't abandon this story but you didn't leave any email address so I had to live in guilt about the fact that I was making poor widdle reviewers believe that I forgot about his story… *sigh*
And also to…
Veghead182, Kelly L. K, rose, neo, orion, queen greenleaf, 'I need a name'
Like I said before, I suck at action scenes!! :p
Disclaimer: Well, DOY, people!! What do ya think?!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
For a moment, Aragorn felt panic arise but had managed to push it back down. The orcs were coming and still, he had not found a place to hide Legolas. What to do? What to do? He asked himself. His eyes frantically searched his surroundings. The large trees' branches above matted the forest floor with its shadows made by the warm sunlight. It would've been a beautiful sight if not had there been orcs coming and a poisoned elven prince in Aragorn's arms. Where? Where? Where? The question echoed inside his head. I need a cave… but where?
You wouldn't be looking for a place to hide him if you hadn't done what you did…
What? Keep quiet…
You did this to him… all your fault…
I didn't know… how was I supposed to?
Oh yes, keep telling yourself that… you didn't know…
But I didn't…!
Your suppose to know… you're a ranger and the king of Gondor…
Oh…
You see…
My fault… why…?
You're an ignorant fool… that's why…
"No one's fault…" Legolas' hoarse voice snapped Aragorn back into reality. He let his conscience blame him once again like he always did.
"Yes, I'm sorry." He apologized more to himself than to Legolas.
Stop wasting time! The branches!! The trees will protect him…
Aragorn raised his gaze up to the trees that towered over them. Yes, the trees will protect Legolas; he was an elf after all. But how would he get Legolas up? The elf can't even stand on his own. What was he supposed to do? Aragorn froze. His worst fear had come. Aragorn, son of Arathorn, king of Gondor, didn't know what to do. It was then panic really began to arise.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
These horrible stamping sounds pounded against my head. Why won't they keep quiet? It hurt my head like a burning flame. It was worse than the weather, worse than the cruel sun's rays that burnt my skin. For a moment I dreamt of being back home with my father and brothers. Dreamt of being free from the heat, of being back under the shade of my home's trees… of Mirkwood's trees. But somehow, somewhere… no, everywhere, there were whispers of soothing words. Who were they? It felt comforting to feel life all around but still, there was pain. It would have been unbearable if it weren't for the anonymous whispers of life and comfort. But why? Why do they bother? But of course, it couldn't have been anyone else but the trees. Yes, like always, the trees were whispering to me. I wanted to reach out and ask if I could stay and rest with them for I was so exhausted from something I'd been doing the whole day but I just couldn't remember what. It didn't matter though I just wanted rest.
I reached out but something held me. Something warm yet it wasn't harsh like the burning sensation on my temples. It was gentle but the trees still whispered to me so tantalizingly. I reached out once again but a fiery pain shot out fiercely and so suddenly from my shoulder to the tips of my fingers, I yelped in pain and fell on my knees praying it would pass as quickly as it had come.
"Legolas." A faint voice called out.
What?
I tried to say something but all that emerged was an exhausted moan. I squinted through the shadows that dulled my vision almost entirely but no light would clear them away. I felt so blind but a pale blur hovered over me. Aragorn? I felt safe all of a sudden but safe from what? A strange feeling of approaching danger disturbed me.
"Legolas… are calling… can… hear?" Aragorn's voice dipped in and out of earshot and I shook my head weakly unable to understand.
The stamping sounds came back so suddenly, louder and more unbearable blocking out whatever Aragorn was trying to tell me. I winced in pain and tears pooled around edges of my eyes. What have I done to deserve this? I hadn't meant to complain but my whole body shook with pain. It was all so unendurable and for a moment caused me to fall into complete despair but Aragorn was here. Yes, my best friend would help me yet I was afraid that they, Aragorn, Elrohir and Elladan would leave me behind and there wouldn't be anyone to—to comfort me. Again, Aragorn's voice spoke to me, this time clearer.
"Legolas… please listen… me… trees are… -ing… hear them? Trees… calling you…"
Again, I reached out and this time, I felt the rough surface of bark. I felt so much life beneath the tips of my fingers and slowly I leaned against the tree and whispered back asking if I may lie among her branches to rest. She agreed and bent down and gently took me in her arms, not only to let me rest but to protect me from danger unknown to me.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Now that Legolas was in a safe place, the time to deal with the orcs had come. Their loud footsteps echoed loudly through the woods declaring their short distance from the man and the elf. Aragorn drew his sword, its blade shining brightly as the sun's rays reflected on it. For a moment, the ranger stood there estimating how just how many there were. He crept through the woods and, careful not to be seen, spied among the group of orcs that approached. Indeed, their number was great compared to a group of three, him, Elrohir and Elladan.
Speaking of those two, where are they?
Suddenly, from above somewhere in the trees, bows sang and arrows flew from different directions, one sank into one orc's neck, the other in another's chest killing them instantly. The filthy beings stopped abruptly and watched their two companions fall upon their faces, crushing the arrows protruding from their bodies, slain. Cursing in their own foul language, they drew their weapons, their eyes searching among branches stretching above them.
"In the trees! The trees!" some cried in the language of men.
More arrows felled more orcs and still the miserable creatures couldn't fight back at whatever was attacking them. Confusion and fear swelled among the tiny army, Aragorn could smell it. His lips curled into a smile revealing almost all the cruelty and malice he held inside. So much hatred he knew for these despicable beings that held no reason to be walking Middle-earth. They had no right to come marching into their way. No right to show their deformed faces to him. Aragorn's grasp tightened around the elven blade's hilt, his knuckles' fleshy color faded into white as the rage in his heart boiled ever so dangerously. The smile that played on his lips vanished as anger replaced all else that he had felt.
Aragorn burst inside and all the rage that had been boiling deep inside of him spread through him like lava and causing his breathing to deepen. He grit his teeth behind his lips which had formed themselves into a thin line and he knew, as his heart told him, none of them would be leaving this forest alive.
Kill them. Kill them all now.
The Ranger leaped from behind the trees brandishing his weapon and buried it into the nearest orc's back. It cried out arousing the attentions of the rest of its standing fellow orcs, they raised their weapons above their heads and opened their abnormal mouths letting out some kind of war cry but above these cries, a different one, a more humane one, rang in Aragorn's ears. It was distant but familiar to the Man.
An orc swung its curved sword at Aragorn's throat missing it only inches away as he bent back dodging its deadly effect. Gathering himself quickly, Aragorn countered bringing his blade up against the creature's neck and swiping its head clean off its shoulders. He twisted around sharply and brought down another one with a stab into the heart. He dodged a blow from another orc and brought his knee up to its groin causing it to arch its back in pain. Aragorn dug his blade deep into its hip that the other end jutted out from the other side, he twisted it sharply before pulling it out killing the single enemy instantly.
The cry that differed from these orc cries grew louder. Aragorn couldn't tell where it was coming from, too distracted by the battle he had himself in now. Fresh warm blood coated the blade completely when Aragorn swiftly withdrew it from the fresh carcass. The same black substance stained his tunic and spreading all throughout his exhausted arms yet no fatigue bothered him or broke the adrenaline that boiled so rapidly in him.
Aragorn hacked madly at the horrid beings that dared approach him and slowly they faded into a smaller number and their hideous cries began to soften making the familiar cry that seemed to ring in the ranger's ears grow louder and seem so near. Too near. He spotted Elrohir and Elladan in the distance battling with their elven blades, their quivers empty. Their usually clean, fair faces spotted with the black blood that only creatures such as orcs possessed.
The area of the forest that they stood in, reeked with blood and sweat bringing nausea into Aragorn. The orcs around him were no more than useless corpses. Slowly, the cry died down; only then did the Man realize that he was heaving, his chest carrying a heavier burden than it had been already holding since the hours after the rising sun. He winced when a sudden terribly sharp pain rose from his left shoulder. He raised his hand and revealed to himself that among the dark blood of his fallen enemies, a crimson red covered his palm and dirty fingers.
He sighed heavily and winced in pain. He'd been struck with knowing it, how ironic. Aragorn tried to pry the sleeve of his bloodstained tunic but the fatigue began to kick in. "I overdid it again." He whispered to nobody. His eyelids grew heavy, all seemed to fade into vagueness. He used up all the effort he had left in him to keep his eyes open yet they dropped against his will and slowly the darkness embraced him, for a while, giving him peace.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The golden rays of the sun cut through the thick canopy of the forest making all seem peaceful. The foursome walked along the grassy path of Dol Guldur in single file, searching for a perfect place to set camp but at the moment Aragorn and Legolas seemed to be too busy childishly shoving each other.
"Look at those two, will you! I've never seen anything so unusual. Two full- grown beings pushing each other as if they were two of those little elflings back home. Why, we're a hundred times more mature!" Elrohir chided to his twin.
Elladan raised an eyebrow at Elrohir and blinked twice. "Alright, so maybe I exaggerated a little." Elrohir said… exaggerating again. "A little?" Elladan chuckled, "We've played more jokes than everyone in Imladris put together! We're probably as childish as… well, children."
The twins laughed gaily, as reminisced about the past jokes they've played on Lord Elrond and more for the past centuries they've been living.
"No! Hey!!" Legolas cried out as Aragorn shoved him back harder than the elf did. Legolas fell backwards, landing in a pile of different leaves and plants, the impact covering him completely save his feet and ended up in a hilarious position. "I shall get back at you for that, human!" the Prince's muffled voice said annoyed. "Why? Have you got your 'ever so' fair hair messy?" Aragorn teased. Laughter burst from all, even Legolas' muffled chuckling could be heard. He emerged from the pile, leaves clinging to his golden hair, beaming his smile revealing his white straight teeth.
Aragorn stretched his hand out to help his fallen friend get back on his feet and the elven Prince took it. A flash of crimson took hold of Aragorn's attention. "You're bleeding." He said grasping Legolas' slender arm. The elf twisted his head to his side and glanced at his arm. "Imagine that, I didn't even notice anything." He said hoping to break the tension that so easily replaced the joyous atmosphere only a few moments ago.
"There's nothing unusual in here, Estel." Elrohir yelled over his shoulder after searching through the pile Legolas fell in a few minutes ago. He and Elladan had been digging through it in search for any poisonous plants or anything of the sort but, to their relief, had found none. "You're doing that intentionally!" Legolas whined as Aragorn cleaned his wound. "I am not! Now sit still, you're only making it worse. If you would just stop wriggling, it wouldn't hurt so much!" the Ranger scolded. Legolas glared at the Man and sighed. He opened his mouth to say something but thought better of it and closed his fair lips back together.
"There. I've finished. Thank the Valar, it's only a minor wound. Nothing seems to be poisonous or poisoned. You'll live." Aragorn explained. "After you finished probing it, I don't think he will, Estel." Elladan said bringing back the merry air that was lost.
Aragorn's eyes fluttered open revealing the starry night sky and the full moon casting her silver shine through the clearing and brightening up the black sky magnificently. The ranger blinked a few times trying to gather himself and what had just happened. He cleared his mind of the flashback-like dream and sat up, his arms pushed against the ground and supported his weight. A glowing red flame sat only a short distance from him. The twins were nowhere in sight. He breathed heavily as memories of the day's battle came back to him.
Aragorn winced suddenly remembering his wound. It was just beneath his elbow, a cloth, supposedly white, dyed red covered the opening but did nothing to extinguish the pain. A silhouette of another being lay down next to his bedroll, its back facing him. The long golden hair that spread beautifully on the ground told the Man that this was Legolas. Aragorn bit his lip and gently rested his hand on the resting blonde's shoulder and turned him slowly on his back. The elf's dull face welcomed him, he was shocked at how the ethereal glow that all elves carried had dimmed dangerously on Legolas. "Oh Valar…" Aragorn whispered.
"I don't think he'll last long if we stall any longer."
The ranger started and quickly glanced over his shoulder. Elladan stood a few meters away, the moonlight caught in his blue eyes. "I know." Aragorn replied, "I know." But did he? He felt completely useless at the moment; he prayed that he wouldn't have to feel useless for the rest of his life. "Is your arm alright?" Elladan was suddenly crouching next to him, his silent steps had not reached Aragorn's ears. "Don't fuss about me." He whispered, "where's Elrohir?"
"He's looking for more firewood. How's you arm?" Elladan repeated his question, his stare on Aragorn intent.
"It's fine. How long have I been asleep?"
"A few… hours." His foster brother said uncertainly. Aragorn shut his eyes in disappointment. Flashbacks of the past battle visited him in elusive moments, the blood (which until know clung to his tunic), the angry faces, the bodies and the last cry. The cry.
"Elladan, did you hear anything different or unusual during that battle?" Aragorn said snapping his eyes open.
"What do you mean?" Elladan replied, his gaze upon his foster brother suspicious.
"I mean did you hear anyone yelling as if they were so angry, I swear I felt it."
Elladan raised his eyebrow, his features sketched with more worry than it already held. He dropped his eyes, furrowing his brow and sighed heavily. The dark-haired elf gazed back into Aragorn and smiled softly yet it revealed so much concern and sadness. It went as quickly as it had come.
"Yes, I did. Elrohir and I heard." He replied slowly.
Aragorn looked at Elladan intently hoping he would know the answer to who was yelling with so much rage and loathing. He couldn't understand why he wanted to know so badly but maybe if he did, he'd forget about it.
"Who was it? Who was so angry?" he asked eagerly.
The twin's eyes seemed to be searching for something before he answered. The pair of blue eyes swept past their surroundings and back into the ranger's cobalt eyes. At first, it seemed like he didn't know what to say but he cleared his throat and told Aragorn something that gave him a few moments of fright.
"You were."