I decided that since I'm such a horrible updater, I'd just give the readers
the last two chapters, so I don't have to post anymore.
In response to all your reviews:
Deana: Here you go. *Sniff* it's all done (
Goth 13:I again apologize for the paragraph issues. hopefully it works this time.
I hope you guys like the last two chapters. Chapter 6: Final Escape
Legolas slept soundly that night. He felt better when Naniel woke him in the morning but still had no regained his full strength. He slowly walked back to his cell. His back had bled again during the night and had a feeling that Saruman would want him to change his shirt or people would get suspicious- not that he cared what Saruman wanted. He stood stiffly and waited for Saruman to come for him. He didn't have to wait long.
"Come on," said the Wizard, and turned down the narrow passageway. Legolas stumbled after him. Saruman handed him a fresh shirt and Legolas changed quickly, glad to be rid of the bloody shirt he'd been wearing. The Elf was then given a bit of food. When he was finished he turned to the wizard hovering near him.
"Where is Aragorn?" he asked. The day before he had no energy to talk; now he needed answers.
"Why should I tell you?" Saruman shot back. Legolas didn't answer.
"If you get all your work down today without a problem, you can see him." Saruman said. "Now get to work.
The morning passed slowly for Legolas. He cleaned several things, but his back was sore and he found movements hard at times. All the time he worked, he kept and eye out for Naniel. He needed to talk to her and make some escape clans. He met up with her in the early afternoon.
"Hey," she murmured, "how's you back?"
"Alright," Legolas replied, shrugging. He instantly regretted it as one of the cuts spilt open and he cringed.
"You're sure you're alright?" Naniel said, her eyes concerned.
"I'm fine," Legolas assured her and steered her towards a room down the hall where they could talk without being heard. They slipped inside and closed the door behind them. Legolas turned to Naniel.
"I'll probably see Aragorn tonight. If Saruman's not there, I can talk to him then," he said. Naniel nodded.
"We should probably plan to get you two out during the next few weeks. Even if Aragorn isn't better by then, I can get horses for both of you."
"Do you have horses here?" Legolas asked.
"I have one for me, but I can get at least one more, probably two." Naniel replied.
"How soon an you get them? Legolas asked. Naniel thought for a moment before replying.
"Probably within the next few days," Naniel finally said. "If I can leave today, that is."
"Why don't you stay until tomorrow and I'll talk to Aragorn tonight. Then we can get a plan together either tonight after I see him or tomorrow morning."
"That sounds good," Naniel agreed.
"I'd better get back to work before the notice I'm gone," Legolas said. Naniel nodded and they left, one a few minutes after the other so anyone watching wouldn't think they were together.
It was almost five hours later when Saruman came to find Legolas
"Follow me," he said. Legolas kept up with him, hoping that he was leading him to Aragorn. The wizard led him down the hall and opened a door that Legolas hadn't even noticed until Saruman had opened. it. "As promised," Saruman said before turning and walking away. Legolas looked hopefully into the room and was delighted to find his friend inside.
"Aragorn!" he said, entering. The human looked up and smiled. Even though he looked better than the way Legolas had found him seven days before, he was still deathly pale.
"How are you?" Legolas asked. Aragorn sighed.
"I've been better." He replied.
"That's fairly obvious." Legolas said. He strode over to Aragorn and crouched down beside him. He glanced around to make sure they were the only ones in the room, which was hard, there was no light entering the room but from a small vent in the far corner. "I need to talk to you," he murmured softly. He explained all that had happened with Naniel. Soon, all was set. He would talk to Naniel as soon as he could and she would bring the horses for them in three days. They'd decided that it would actually be better to escape during the day. It would be too difficult in the might, when orcs patrolled the area and they were locked in their cells. Hopefully, their luck would be better this time then it had been in the past. Now that they had help from someone else, their luck was bound to improve.
After Legolas and Aragorn had talked and planned for about an hour, Saruman came back and brought Legolas to his cell. After he'd left and Locked the door, Legolas paced for several minutes. He was upset that he hadn't been able to talk to Naniel that night and his back was still sore. Finally, exhaustion overtook him and he lay down of the floor, falling into a deep sleep.
The first thing Legolas did when he awoke the next morning was find Naniel. He needed to talk to her so that they could put their plan into action as soon as possible. He met up with her and they stood in a corner, talking quietly.
"Did you see Aragorn last night?" she asked.
"Yes, we decided on three days from now, at midday if that's alright with you."
"Thet's fine. I can get two horses. I talked to my father last night." Naniel said. Legolas's head snapped up.
"Did you tell him about Aragorn and I?" Legolas asked, worried. He didn't want anyone to know that they were alive until they were free. If someone did know, Saruman might find out. If he did., the results would be disastrous.
"No, she replied, "he didn't question why I wanted the horses and I didn't tell him." Legolas let out the breath that he hadn't known he was holding. They both tensed as an orc walked around the corner.
"I will see you in three days, at midday," Naniel whispered softly and hurried off. As she hurried off, Legolas felt a deep sadness fill him. All the time that he had been here, Aragorn had been with him. Now Aragorn was hurt and the only other being that had been on his side was gone. All he could do was hope that the next three day s passed quickly.
Aragorn was forced back to work the next day. It was evident that the human was not healthy enough to do work, but Saruman wouldn't listen to any excuses. As much as he could, Legolas did extra work so Aragorn wouldn't have to do as much. At the end of the day, Aragorn didn't look any better than he did at the beginning of the day. Even so, all they could do was wait.
At the beginning of the third day, Legolas awoke quickly. This is it, He thought, today's the day. He roused Aragorn and together they waited for Saruman to come.
"We should get some sort of knife," Aragorn said nervously, "That way we can defend ourselves if we get caught."
"We're not going to get caught!" Legolas shot back, although a shiver of doubt ran through him. "But your probably right." he added. Saruman entered and they stopped talking. He told them what he wanted them to do that day and left quickly. The two friends changed glances. both well aware that they weren't going to do any of what Saruman had told them to. They were going to find a weapon and then get out. They were lucky enough to come across a weapon room and quickly selected a knife each. Aragorn slipped his into his boot and Legolas slipped his up his right sleeve. Now, if something attacked them, they would seem defenseless.
"It is almost midday," Legolas whispered softly. Together, they found a door to the outside and slipped out. They had almost made it to the forest, where they would meet Naniel when an Orc saw them. He growled loudly, calling the other watchers.
"Hurry!" hissed Legolas and quickened his pace. Aargorn, still injured, struggled to keep up. Under any other circumstances, Legolas would have helped his friend, but he had his own safety to worry about too. As they ran, arrows began to hit the ground near their feet. It was evident that the orcs didn't want to kill them unless Saruman told them too. For now, they would try to disable them by hitting their legs or arms.
"Come on!" Legolas called to Aragorn, who was dragging behind him, desperately trying to keep up with him. He was distracted for a moment as he watched his friend and didn't notice an arrow aimed for his owe left leg. The arrow hit him, digging deep into his flesh, and the Elf cried out in pain as his knee gave out. He stumbled, but managed to stay on his feet. His pace slowed dramatically.
"Legolas!" Aragorn yelled. The tall blond Elf gathered all the strength he had left and continued to run towards the forest. He was almost there when he heard a surprised and pained cry from Aragorn. Legolas spun to see several orcs punch his friend. The knife that had been in the human's boot slipped out of Aragorn's reach. The human's eyes filled with pain and fear and the orcs laughed. One picked up the knife lying on the ground.
"Does this belong to you?" it asked, before taking it and stabbing Aragorn in the upper left arm. Again, the human cried in pain . Legolas flicked his wrist and the knife hidden up his sleeve landed in his hand. He flipped it over and got a good grip on it. He raised it and was about to run over to help his friend when he felt the cold metal of a knife blade pressed against his neck.
"Don't move."
Chapter 7: The Road to Mirkwood
Legolas froze, all of his muscles tensing. His captor grabbed a handful of the Elf's hair and twisted. Legolas clenched his teeth against the pain. His leg hurt horribly where the arrow had hit and he could feel the knife digging into his skin. A small trickle of blood ran down his neck as the knife cut.
"Drop the knife." Saruman's voice said. Legolas shivered. He had a real enemy now, not just a couple of orcs. He refused to loosen his grip on the knife. If he dropped it, Saruman would have complete control over him and he would be defenseless. But, if he didn't drop the knife, Saruman was sure to kill him
"Drop it!" Saruman repeated. The wizard was getting angry.
How could I have been so stupid? Legolas thought. He'd been distracted by the fact that Aragorn was injured and hadn't noticed Saruman approaching. He had learned long before that you couldn't allow yourself to be distracted during a fight.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~
Legolas stood by his father, King Thranduil. The young Elf had been delighted when his father had told him that he could help train other young Elves who might one day be under his father's, or even his, order. Thranduil looked at the group.
"You must always remember that you can never loose concentration during a battle. If you do, the results can be disastrous. Legolas?" he turned to his son. "Would you please demonstrate?" The young prince stepped forward proudly and strung his bow. He aimed for a target on a tree a little ways off. He vaguely heard the other young Elves yelling, trying to distract him. He blocked them out and Loosed the bow. His arrow hit the target in dead center. He quickly retrieved another arrow from his quiver and again strung his bow. He was about to shoot when a female Elf, who he couldn't remember the name of, walked up beside him. He barely acknowledged her presence. She placed one hand on his shoulder and leaned forward, blowing softly in his ear. Surprised, Legolas lost track of his target and the arrow flew into a tree that was a lot closer to him then the actual target. The crowd of Elves laughed and the young Elf blushed, laughing along with them.
Legolas was pulled from his memories as Saruman jerked hard on his hair.
"Let go of the knife." he said, his voice dangerous. Instead of obeying, the Elf slammed his foot into Saruman's knee. The wizard hissed in pain and loosened is grip. Legolas took the opportunity to pull away from Saruman, and the wizard's knife fell uselessly to the ground. Legolas tightened his grip on his knife and stabbed one of the orcs pinning Aragorn. He raised his arm to kill another when a knife was plunged into his right biceps. The muscles in his arm tensed and he almost dropped his knife. He grimaced in pain but forced himself to keep fighting. Again, Saruman raised his knife and moved to stab Legolas, this time in the leg. Legolas managed to block the wizard's attack. Saruman hissed in anger and slashed left and right across Legolas's stomach, carving an "X" into the Elf's skin. As Legolas recovered Saruman stabbed him in the upper thigh of his left leg. With the arrow already in that leg, the pain was excruciating. Legolas only barely managed to stay on his feet. Saruman grabbed his arm where the brand mark was.
"You belong to me," he said, "don't forget it."
Legolas's vision swarm for several seconds as his body got control of the pain, filling him. when he could speak, he said " No one owns me!" With all the strength he had left, he pulled away. He hauled an orc off Aragorn and was horrified to find that his friend was unconscious.
"Naniel!" He called desperately. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Saruman approaching. The wizard had almost reached him when Naniel rode out of the forest. She rode without reins, and was leading two horses. Saruman saw her approach and yelled angrily. Legolas struggled to help Aragorn to his feet, as the human was reviving. Naniel halted the horses beside them and together they helped Aragorn into the saddle. The orcs and Saruman were reluctant to attack or shoot arrows at them in case they hit Naniel. They were still unsure whose side she was on, although she appeared to be with Legolas and Aragon.
Soon, Aragorn was in the saddle and Legolas swung stiffly onto the other horse. Naniel continued to hold Aragorn's horse and Legolas struggled to steer his own through the pain. Together, they galloped into the forest and disappeared into the trees. The orcs shot arrows at them in the forest, but they were reluctant to enter. They rode hard for a day, but the horses began to tire and they had to stop. As they rode, Legolas found it was easier and easier to ignore the pain in his body, but the second they stopped it all flowed back. even worse than it had been before. He stopped his horse and began to get off. He had to pause after he swung his leg over the saddle and wait for some of the pain to subside. When he landed, he tried to get most of his weight to land in his right leg, the uninjured one. When he landed, his left leg gave out form under him. Legolas grabbed his saddle to steady himself for a minute before lumping over to a tree. He sat and leaned against tone of the trunks, closing his eyes and clearing his head. When he opened his eyes, he saw that Naniel was helping Aragorn off his horse. They human was woozy, but only had one serious injury, the stab wound in his left arm. As he focussed on Legolas, Aragorn's eyes widened slightly. The Elf was badly injured and was bleeding freely from each of his wounds. Naniel gasped as she saw just how badly Legolas had been hurt. She rushed over to him and crouched down. She looked at the arrow in his lower left leg.
"I have to get this out." she said. Legolas nodded in agreement. The pain was indescribable as she removed the arrow, but it came out cleanly, leaving to pieces behind. She then examined the stab wounds in his arm and leg. The stomach of his shirt had been ripped open and the wounds on his stomach were bleeding badly. "I managed to find you a couple of extra shirts" Naniel said. Legolas changed and Naniel wrapped his other shirt around his stomach to cover the injury. She ripped up another shirt to wrap Legolas's two stab wounds and arrow wound. Finally, she bandaged Aragorn's arm.
"Go to sleep you two," Naniel said, "I'll keep watch." Aragorn fell asleep quickly but Legolas lay awake for a while. He was in pain and uncomfortable, but at least he was out. He gazed at Naniel. The female Elf was stirring some herbs in water to help heal Legolas and Aragorn. She hummed softly to herself. Legolas was very grateful that he had gotten out of Isengard, and couldn't have done it without her. He sighed. They would be tacked by orcs for a few days, and had a long way to go to get home, but he was glad that Naniel was with them. Finally, his exhaustion got the better of him and he slept.
The next day was bright and clear. As they rode through the forest, Legolas felt his strength begin to return. Although his injuries still hurt, they were healing quickly. Hours later, they emerged from the forest. They slowed their horses and turned to each other.
"Where should we go first.?" Legolas asked.
"I'm not sure" Aragorn replied. They turned to Naniel
"You probably already know that everyone thinks we're dead," Legolas said, "where do you think we should go?" Naniel thought for a minute before replying.
"I think Mirkwood is closer to us the Rivendell. We can go to Rivendell after we go to Mirkwood." Legolas turned to Aragorn.
"Is that alright with you?" He asked the human. "I know you want to see your home as much as I do." Aragorn nodded.
"Naniel is right. Mirkwood is closer." Legolas then turned to Naniel.
"You don't have to come with us." He said. "Don't you have somewhere you would rather be?"
"That's okay." Naniel replied. "I don't have to be anywhere right now. I've only ever been to Mirkwood once and Rivendell twice. I would like to see them again." It was final.
After a good night's sleep, the trio headed off the Mirkwood. It was a four day journey and by the end of the third day, both Aragorn and Legolas were feeling their injuries. Their horses were also beginning to tire. Even Naniel, who was uninjured, was feeling fatigue. They would all be very glad when they got to Mirkwood. Legolas most of all. The fact that he'd bee seeing his home soon kept him riding all those days through the pain. It was just passes midday when Mirkwood came into view.
Legolas smiled. For all of the three years that he'd bee with Saruman, he'd been waiting for that sight. He gently kicked his horse into a canter, wanting to get to his home as soon as he could. He glanced at Aragorn, who was also smiling. The human had visited Mirkwood many times before and was almost as glad to see it was Legolas as. They rode forward side-by-side and Naniel cantered a few paces behind them. It took several hours for them to reach the boarder of the forest, but as they passed through the trees, Legolas felt a great happiness fill him.
They ride for a ling time before they saw another Elf. When they did, Legolas asked him in Elvish where he could find Thranduil. The Elf seemed reluctant to answer and looked long at Legolas before saying "Legolas? I thought you were dead!"
"Anything you heard was a lie," Legolas replied, smiling. "Do you know where I could find my father?". This time, the Elf was happy to lead them to where Thranduil was. Legolas rode in first and dismounted. He bowed low, as did Aragorn and Naniel. The Elf king stared at his son for a long time, shocked. Then, a delighted smile spread over his face.
"Legolas!" He looked over at the tall blond Elf. "You are injured badly. Legolas smiled and walked towards his father.
"I thought you were dead!" Thranduil said, emotions filling his voice.
"I'm here now." Legolas said softly and the two embraced. As they did, Legolas closed his eyes. There would be allot of explaining to do, and he would soon need to go to Rivendell, but for the first time in three years, he felt both happy and safe.
In response to all your reviews:
Deana: Here you go. *Sniff* it's all done (
Goth 13:I again apologize for the paragraph issues. hopefully it works this time.
I hope you guys like the last two chapters. Chapter 6: Final Escape
Legolas slept soundly that night. He felt better when Naniel woke him in the morning but still had no regained his full strength. He slowly walked back to his cell. His back had bled again during the night and had a feeling that Saruman would want him to change his shirt or people would get suspicious- not that he cared what Saruman wanted. He stood stiffly and waited for Saruman to come for him. He didn't have to wait long.
"Come on," said the Wizard, and turned down the narrow passageway. Legolas stumbled after him. Saruman handed him a fresh shirt and Legolas changed quickly, glad to be rid of the bloody shirt he'd been wearing. The Elf was then given a bit of food. When he was finished he turned to the wizard hovering near him.
"Where is Aragorn?" he asked. The day before he had no energy to talk; now he needed answers.
"Why should I tell you?" Saruman shot back. Legolas didn't answer.
"If you get all your work down today without a problem, you can see him." Saruman said. "Now get to work.
The morning passed slowly for Legolas. He cleaned several things, but his back was sore and he found movements hard at times. All the time he worked, he kept and eye out for Naniel. He needed to talk to her and make some escape clans. He met up with her in the early afternoon.
"Hey," she murmured, "how's you back?"
"Alright," Legolas replied, shrugging. He instantly regretted it as one of the cuts spilt open and he cringed.
"You're sure you're alright?" Naniel said, her eyes concerned.
"I'm fine," Legolas assured her and steered her towards a room down the hall where they could talk without being heard. They slipped inside and closed the door behind them. Legolas turned to Naniel.
"I'll probably see Aragorn tonight. If Saruman's not there, I can talk to him then," he said. Naniel nodded.
"We should probably plan to get you two out during the next few weeks. Even if Aragorn isn't better by then, I can get horses for both of you."
"Do you have horses here?" Legolas asked.
"I have one for me, but I can get at least one more, probably two." Naniel replied.
"How soon an you get them? Legolas asked. Naniel thought for a moment before replying.
"Probably within the next few days," Naniel finally said. "If I can leave today, that is."
"Why don't you stay until tomorrow and I'll talk to Aragorn tonight. Then we can get a plan together either tonight after I see him or tomorrow morning."
"That sounds good," Naniel agreed.
"I'd better get back to work before the notice I'm gone," Legolas said. Naniel nodded and they left, one a few minutes after the other so anyone watching wouldn't think they were together.
It was almost five hours later when Saruman came to find Legolas
"Follow me," he said. Legolas kept up with him, hoping that he was leading him to Aragorn. The wizard led him down the hall and opened a door that Legolas hadn't even noticed until Saruman had opened. it. "As promised," Saruman said before turning and walking away. Legolas looked hopefully into the room and was delighted to find his friend inside.
"Aragorn!" he said, entering. The human looked up and smiled. Even though he looked better than the way Legolas had found him seven days before, he was still deathly pale.
"How are you?" Legolas asked. Aragorn sighed.
"I've been better." He replied.
"That's fairly obvious." Legolas said. He strode over to Aragorn and crouched down beside him. He glanced around to make sure they were the only ones in the room, which was hard, there was no light entering the room but from a small vent in the far corner. "I need to talk to you," he murmured softly. He explained all that had happened with Naniel. Soon, all was set. He would talk to Naniel as soon as he could and she would bring the horses for them in three days. They'd decided that it would actually be better to escape during the day. It would be too difficult in the might, when orcs patrolled the area and they were locked in their cells. Hopefully, their luck would be better this time then it had been in the past. Now that they had help from someone else, their luck was bound to improve.
After Legolas and Aragorn had talked and planned for about an hour, Saruman came back and brought Legolas to his cell. After he'd left and Locked the door, Legolas paced for several minutes. He was upset that he hadn't been able to talk to Naniel that night and his back was still sore. Finally, exhaustion overtook him and he lay down of the floor, falling into a deep sleep.
The first thing Legolas did when he awoke the next morning was find Naniel. He needed to talk to her so that they could put their plan into action as soon as possible. He met up with her and they stood in a corner, talking quietly.
"Did you see Aragorn last night?" she asked.
"Yes, we decided on three days from now, at midday if that's alright with you."
"Thet's fine. I can get two horses. I talked to my father last night." Naniel said. Legolas's head snapped up.
"Did you tell him about Aragorn and I?" Legolas asked, worried. He didn't want anyone to know that they were alive until they were free. If someone did know, Saruman might find out. If he did., the results would be disastrous.
"No, she replied, "he didn't question why I wanted the horses and I didn't tell him." Legolas let out the breath that he hadn't known he was holding. They both tensed as an orc walked around the corner.
"I will see you in three days, at midday," Naniel whispered softly and hurried off. As she hurried off, Legolas felt a deep sadness fill him. All the time that he had been here, Aragorn had been with him. Now Aragorn was hurt and the only other being that had been on his side was gone. All he could do was hope that the next three day s passed quickly.
Aragorn was forced back to work the next day. It was evident that the human was not healthy enough to do work, but Saruman wouldn't listen to any excuses. As much as he could, Legolas did extra work so Aragorn wouldn't have to do as much. At the end of the day, Aragorn didn't look any better than he did at the beginning of the day. Even so, all they could do was wait.
At the beginning of the third day, Legolas awoke quickly. This is it, He thought, today's the day. He roused Aragorn and together they waited for Saruman to come.
"We should get some sort of knife," Aragorn said nervously, "That way we can defend ourselves if we get caught."
"We're not going to get caught!" Legolas shot back, although a shiver of doubt ran through him. "But your probably right." he added. Saruman entered and they stopped talking. He told them what he wanted them to do that day and left quickly. The two friends changed glances. both well aware that they weren't going to do any of what Saruman had told them to. They were going to find a weapon and then get out. They were lucky enough to come across a weapon room and quickly selected a knife each. Aragorn slipped his into his boot and Legolas slipped his up his right sleeve. Now, if something attacked them, they would seem defenseless.
"It is almost midday," Legolas whispered softly. Together, they found a door to the outside and slipped out. They had almost made it to the forest, where they would meet Naniel when an Orc saw them. He growled loudly, calling the other watchers.
"Hurry!" hissed Legolas and quickened his pace. Aargorn, still injured, struggled to keep up. Under any other circumstances, Legolas would have helped his friend, but he had his own safety to worry about too. As they ran, arrows began to hit the ground near their feet. It was evident that the orcs didn't want to kill them unless Saruman told them too. For now, they would try to disable them by hitting their legs or arms.
"Come on!" Legolas called to Aragorn, who was dragging behind him, desperately trying to keep up with him. He was distracted for a moment as he watched his friend and didn't notice an arrow aimed for his owe left leg. The arrow hit him, digging deep into his flesh, and the Elf cried out in pain as his knee gave out. He stumbled, but managed to stay on his feet. His pace slowed dramatically.
"Legolas!" Aragorn yelled. The tall blond Elf gathered all the strength he had left and continued to run towards the forest. He was almost there when he heard a surprised and pained cry from Aragorn. Legolas spun to see several orcs punch his friend. The knife that had been in the human's boot slipped out of Aragorn's reach. The human's eyes filled with pain and fear and the orcs laughed. One picked up the knife lying on the ground.
"Does this belong to you?" it asked, before taking it and stabbing Aragorn in the upper left arm. Again, the human cried in pain . Legolas flicked his wrist and the knife hidden up his sleeve landed in his hand. He flipped it over and got a good grip on it. He raised it and was about to run over to help his friend when he felt the cold metal of a knife blade pressed against his neck.
"Don't move."
Chapter 7: The Road to Mirkwood
Legolas froze, all of his muscles tensing. His captor grabbed a handful of the Elf's hair and twisted. Legolas clenched his teeth against the pain. His leg hurt horribly where the arrow had hit and he could feel the knife digging into his skin. A small trickle of blood ran down his neck as the knife cut.
"Drop the knife." Saruman's voice said. Legolas shivered. He had a real enemy now, not just a couple of orcs. He refused to loosen his grip on the knife. If he dropped it, Saruman would have complete control over him and he would be defenseless. But, if he didn't drop the knife, Saruman was sure to kill him
"Drop it!" Saruman repeated. The wizard was getting angry.
How could I have been so stupid? Legolas thought. He'd been distracted by the fact that Aragorn was injured and hadn't noticed Saruman approaching. He had learned long before that you couldn't allow yourself to be distracted during a fight.
~*~ ~*~ ~*~
Legolas stood by his father, King Thranduil. The young Elf had been delighted when his father had told him that he could help train other young Elves who might one day be under his father's, or even his, order. Thranduil looked at the group.
"You must always remember that you can never loose concentration during a battle. If you do, the results can be disastrous. Legolas?" he turned to his son. "Would you please demonstrate?" The young prince stepped forward proudly and strung his bow. He aimed for a target on a tree a little ways off. He vaguely heard the other young Elves yelling, trying to distract him. He blocked them out and Loosed the bow. His arrow hit the target in dead center. He quickly retrieved another arrow from his quiver and again strung his bow. He was about to shoot when a female Elf, who he couldn't remember the name of, walked up beside him. He barely acknowledged her presence. She placed one hand on his shoulder and leaned forward, blowing softly in his ear. Surprised, Legolas lost track of his target and the arrow flew into a tree that was a lot closer to him then the actual target. The crowd of Elves laughed and the young Elf blushed, laughing along with them.
Legolas was pulled from his memories as Saruman jerked hard on his hair.
"Let go of the knife." he said, his voice dangerous. Instead of obeying, the Elf slammed his foot into Saruman's knee. The wizard hissed in pain and loosened is grip. Legolas took the opportunity to pull away from Saruman, and the wizard's knife fell uselessly to the ground. Legolas tightened his grip on his knife and stabbed one of the orcs pinning Aragorn. He raised his arm to kill another when a knife was plunged into his right biceps. The muscles in his arm tensed and he almost dropped his knife. He grimaced in pain but forced himself to keep fighting. Again, Saruman raised his knife and moved to stab Legolas, this time in the leg. Legolas managed to block the wizard's attack. Saruman hissed in anger and slashed left and right across Legolas's stomach, carving an "X" into the Elf's skin. As Legolas recovered Saruman stabbed him in the upper thigh of his left leg. With the arrow already in that leg, the pain was excruciating. Legolas only barely managed to stay on his feet. Saruman grabbed his arm where the brand mark was.
"You belong to me," he said, "don't forget it."
Legolas's vision swarm for several seconds as his body got control of the pain, filling him. when he could speak, he said " No one owns me!" With all the strength he had left, he pulled away. He hauled an orc off Aragorn and was horrified to find that his friend was unconscious.
"Naniel!" He called desperately. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Saruman approaching. The wizard had almost reached him when Naniel rode out of the forest. She rode without reins, and was leading two horses. Saruman saw her approach and yelled angrily. Legolas struggled to help Aragorn to his feet, as the human was reviving. Naniel halted the horses beside them and together they helped Aragorn into the saddle. The orcs and Saruman were reluctant to attack or shoot arrows at them in case they hit Naniel. They were still unsure whose side she was on, although she appeared to be with Legolas and Aragon.
Soon, Aragorn was in the saddle and Legolas swung stiffly onto the other horse. Naniel continued to hold Aragorn's horse and Legolas struggled to steer his own through the pain. Together, they galloped into the forest and disappeared into the trees. The orcs shot arrows at them in the forest, but they were reluctant to enter. They rode hard for a day, but the horses began to tire and they had to stop. As they rode, Legolas found it was easier and easier to ignore the pain in his body, but the second they stopped it all flowed back. even worse than it had been before. He stopped his horse and began to get off. He had to pause after he swung his leg over the saddle and wait for some of the pain to subside. When he landed, he tried to get most of his weight to land in his right leg, the uninjured one. When he landed, his left leg gave out form under him. Legolas grabbed his saddle to steady himself for a minute before lumping over to a tree. He sat and leaned against tone of the trunks, closing his eyes and clearing his head. When he opened his eyes, he saw that Naniel was helping Aragorn off his horse. They human was woozy, but only had one serious injury, the stab wound in his left arm. As he focussed on Legolas, Aragorn's eyes widened slightly. The Elf was badly injured and was bleeding freely from each of his wounds. Naniel gasped as she saw just how badly Legolas had been hurt. She rushed over to him and crouched down. She looked at the arrow in his lower left leg.
"I have to get this out." she said. Legolas nodded in agreement. The pain was indescribable as she removed the arrow, but it came out cleanly, leaving to pieces behind. She then examined the stab wounds in his arm and leg. The stomach of his shirt had been ripped open and the wounds on his stomach were bleeding badly. "I managed to find you a couple of extra shirts" Naniel said. Legolas changed and Naniel wrapped his other shirt around his stomach to cover the injury. She ripped up another shirt to wrap Legolas's two stab wounds and arrow wound. Finally, she bandaged Aragorn's arm.
"Go to sleep you two," Naniel said, "I'll keep watch." Aragorn fell asleep quickly but Legolas lay awake for a while. He was in pain and uncomfortable, but at least he was out. He gazed at Naniel. The female Elf was stirring some herbs in water to help heal Legolas and Aragorn. She hummed softly to herself. Legolas was very grateful that he had gotten out of Isengard, and couldn't have done it without her. He sighed. They would be tacked by orcs for a few days, and had a long way to go to get home, but he was glad that Naniel was with them. Finally, his exhaustion got the better of him and he slept.
The next day was bright and clear. As they rode through the forest, Legolas felt his strength begin to return. Although his injuries still hurt, they were healing quickly. Hours later, they emerged from the forest. They slowed their horses and turned to each other.
"Where should we go first.?" Legolas asked.
"I'm not sure" Aragorn replied. They turned to Naniel
"You probably already know that everyone thinks we're dead," Legolas said, "where do you think we should go?" Naniel thought for a minute before replying.
"I think Mirkwood is closer to us the Rivendell. We can go to Rivendell after we go to Mirkwood." Legolas turned to Aragorn.
"Is that alright with you?" He asked the human. "I know you want to see your home as much as I do." Aragorn nodded.
"Naniel is right. Mirkwood is closer." Legolas then turned to Naniel.
"You don't have to come with us." He said. "Don't you have somewhere you would rather be?"
"That's okay." Naniel replied. "I don't have to be anywhere right now. I've only ever been to Mirkwood once and Rivendell twice. I would like to see them again." It was final.
After a good night's sleep, the trio headed off the Mirkwood. It was a four day journey and by the end of the third day, both Aragorn and Legolas were feeling their injuries. Their horses were also beginning to tire. Even Naniel, who was uninjured, was feeling fatigue. They would all be very glad when they got to Mirkwood. Legolas most of all. The fact that he'd bee seeing his home soon kept him riding all those days through the pain. It was just passes midday when Mirkwood came into view.
Legolas smiled. For all of the three years that he'd bee with Saruman, he'd been waiting for that sight. He gently kicked his horse into a canter, wanting to get to his home as soon as he could. He glanced at Aragorn, who was also smiling. The human had visited Mirkwood many times before and was almost as glad to see it was Legolas as. They rode forward side-by-side and Naniel cantered a few paces behind them. It took several hours for them to reach the boarder of the forest, but as they passed through the trees, Legolas felt a great happiness fill him.
They ride for a ling time before they saw another Elf. When they did, Legolas asked him in Elvish where he could find Thranduil. The Elf seemed reluctant to answer and looked long at Legolas before saying "Legolas? I thought you were dead!"
"Anything you heard was a lie," Legolas replied, smiling. "Do you know where I could find my father?". This time, the Elf was happy to lead them to where Thranduil was. Legolas rode in first and dismounted. He bowed low, as did Aragorn and Naniel. The Elf king stared at his son for a long time, shocked. Then, a delighted smile spread over his face.
"Legolas!" He looked over at the tall blond Elf. "You are injured badly. Legolas smiled and walked towards his father.
"I thought you were dead!" Thranduil said, emotions filling his voice.
"I'm here now." Legolas said softly and the two embraced. As they did, Legolas closed his eyes. There would be allot of explaining to do, and he would soon need to go to Rivendell, but for the first time in three years, he felt both happy and safe.