Aragorn bit his bottom lip when his back protested to the movement. Adrenaline continued to course through his blood stream making him extra sensitive to every twinge. It also served to keep away the exhaustion he knew was waiting. Elrond met the three at the doorway to Legolas room where everyone was; Legolas had an arm wrapped around his abdomen and was moving carefully and slowly. Once everything had calmed down, Legolas realized that his wound had started hurting. He watched as Aragorn slowly walked towards a bed with Elrond's help. The human wore a pair of loose fitting tunic and leggings. Elrohir draped a blanket over Aragorn's shoulders and felt his little brother's forehead.
"Stop Elrohir. I am not sick. Just leave off, will you?" he muttered and swatted away his brother's hands.
"Could someone please explain why Estel is here? I thought he was off with the Rangers?" Legolas asked, causing Aragorn to look at him confused.
"Rangers? What are you talking about?"
Elrond cleared his throat as he looked over at Thranduil.
"We withheld the truth from you, Legolas. Your wound was severe and you did die from it. However, Elrond did not heal you," Thranduil said softly.
"Who did then?"
"Estel did. He formed a transfer bond. It is a healing talent that few can perform. He bonded his life force with yours, Legolas. He shared his health, strength, and warmth with you. Boil it down to simple statements, Aragorn gave you his health and he took your pain," Elrond explained.
"You what?" Legolas yelped and looked to Aragorn.
"I could not let you die, mellonin. If I could save you then I would. If given the chance, I would do it again and again," he muttered and pulled the blanket tighter around him.
Aragorn blinked tiredly as his vision blurred and slowly focused again. Now that his adrenaline was fading, his exhaustion was catching up to him. The voices of everyone were fading in and out as he weakly shook his head to hopefully clear his head.
"Estel?" Elrond asked worriedly when he noted his son's pale face.
"I think…that I need to lie down," he murmured and slowly stood.
His legs crumbled under him and he collapsed to the floor before anyone could catch him. Elrond quickly knelt next to his son and waved away everyone crowding in. He gently lifted an eyelid and noted the dilation before pressing his fingers under Estel's jaw. After a few seconds, he removed his hand and gently slipped an arm under Aragorn's knees and shoulders. The elf lord carried his son back to his bed and covered him with blankets. Aragorn had succeeded in exhausting himself beyond his physical abilities. The human's body had drawn the line to how far it would be pushed and had stuck to it. Elrond figured that Estel would sleep for at least a day and a half. Going back to the other room, he quietly closed the door before turning to the others.
"He will be fine once he rests. Attacking the assassin proved to be too much for him in his weakened state," he stated before moving to Legolas' side. "How is your wound?"
"Aches but not terribly so. It started hurting when Aragorn dove out the window after the assassin," he answered as Elrond lifted the loose tunic to view the wound.
The stitches were still intact and there was no blood seeping through the tight stitches. Nodding to himself, he rewrapped the wound and glanced over to his twin sons.
"I want one of you to stay with Estel constantly. The other stay with Legolas."
"I do not need a body guard," he objected as Thranduil glared at his son.
"There have been two assassination attempts on your life. I would feel more comfortable if Elladan or Elrohir stayed with you," Thranduil said sternly as Elrond nodded.
"And almost succeeded both times, Legolas. If it was not for Estel then the assassin would have. Both of you will need to be extra careful until this assassin is caught. I am sure that the assassin will be plenty angered at Estel, seeing how he foiled both assassination attempts," Elrond said as Elladan moved out of the room and into Aragorn's room to stay with his little brother.
"Did you recognize your attacker?" Thranduil asked his son as Legolas shook his head.
"No, but he looked to be a dark elf. Long black hair, dark eyes, pale face; that is all I saw. Estel might have gotten a better look than I," Legolas said as Thranduil's eyes narrowed.
"I am now going to kick everyone out except Elrohir. My patient needs his rest," Elrond said and cast a glance over at Thranduil.
Everyone left and Elrohir claimed a chair against the wall so he could view the entire room. Legolas raised an eyebrow at the dark haired elf before rolling his eyes.
Elrond waited while Thranduil talked to the warriors that returned from going after the assassin. Thranduil didn't look very happy at whatever the warrior was saying. Growling an order at the warrior, Thranduil watched as the warrior departed to spread around the order. Elrond moved up to stand beside the king as the two ageless elves stared down the hallway.
"Well?" Elrond questioned without looking over at Thranduil.
"The warriors could not track the assassin through the forest. They are almost positive it is an elf and familiar with the Mirkwood forest. He disappeared once he reached the thick trees. Some of the warriors are still trying to track the assassin but I do not think that they will succeed. This elf knows this area well and it worries me slightly," Thranduil mused as the two started walking slowly down the hallway.
"Did the elf sound familiar to you? I noticed your subtle reaction to Legolas' description of the assassin."
"It is rare to hear of a dark elf. I do not know of any dark elves that would wish harm upon Legolas."
"Do you know of a dark elf wishing harm upon you?
Thranduil stopped and turned to face Elrond. The moonlight illuminated the elf lord's face and serious expression. The two elves watched each other as Thranduil wracked his long memory. He was a king, it was common to have enemies no matter how good of a king you were. Elrond has some enemies of his own however few and far between.
"None come to mind, Elrond. But I have lived a long time and I am sure that I have made some enemies."
"I understand Thranduil, I am trying to help you solve this mystery. You forget that this assassin may go after my son also after all of this. I would stop all of this before anyone gets more hurt," Elrond said sternly as the golden haired king rolled his shoulders.
"There is nothing more we can do now. We will deal with everything in the morning after getting some rest. Till morn, Lord Elrond," Thranduil said and bowed slightly.
"Till morn, King Thranduil."
~~~~~~~~
The palace was quieter than normal and every elf felt the air tingle with tension. News of the assassination attempt had spread quickly like wildfire and by noon everyone knew of it. Extra warriors were placed along the corridors and the healing wing. Elladan and Elrohir stayed close to their charges and at the moment they were all in the same room. Once Legolas heard that the warriors suspected that the assassin may be an elf and may go after Aragorn, he had demanded to be allowed to see his human friend. It didn't matter that Aragorn was still asleep, Legolas just wanted to be near his friend. The elf was sitting by the human's bed while looking out the window with the twins somewhere behind him in chairs. The hand under the elf's hand suddenly flexed and caused Legolas to jerk around and look at his friend. He moved his chair close to the bed and watched the human's face.
"Mellonin? Are you awake?" he asked softly as the twins moved to stand beside the bed.
Aragorn moaned softly as his eyes moved under his eye lids. He could hear his friend speaking to him but returning to consciousness was slow and tedious. Surprisingly, he didn't have any pains other than a few aches and sores. He knew that if he was waking up with someone leaning over him asking if he was okay then pain would also be there. It was inevitable. Slowly forcing his eyes to obey, he slowly cracked his eyes and paused to let his eyes adjust to the light. Oh Valar, he was in the healing wing. What happened to him now? He didn't know if he really wanted to know.
"Estel?"
"'Dan?" he questioned softly and turned his gaze slowly to the dark haired elf.
"Aye, little brother. How do you feel?"
"Tired," he mumbled and allowed his eyes to flutter shut.
Something continued to nag about in his mind that he should remember. Something important. Growing frustrated, he tried harder to remember whatever was so important to him. He remembered struggling with someone. Then falling off the balcony before his brothers stood over him. Elrond and Thranduil speaking before he passed out after hearing Legolas ask him something. That was it! He suddenly remembered the assassin trying to stab his friend. His eyes opened again and looked at the faces still above him. Finally reaching his friend's face, he relaxed and weakly smiled.
"Legolas…you are…well?"
"Aye, my friend, I am well. You, however, are not. Once you have rested more, we will have a discussion," Legolas smiled as Estel started to lose the fight to stay awake.
"Go to sleep, Estel," Elrohir ordered softly as the human relaxed into the bed.
"Stubborn human. Always trying to do too much," Elladan commented softly and moved back to his seat.
"Does he not always?" Elrohir asked with a grin as he moved towards the balcony.
~~~~~~~~~
Bretharso snarled silently as he watched the warriors move past him without realizing he was only a few yards from them. He was far older than any of those warriors trying to track him. These woods were his home and there were only a rare few that knew these woods better than him. Waiting a few more minutes until the warriors were a comfortable distance away, he started to move again and headed towards the outer edges of the forest. His movements were silent and smooth as he sprinted down the tree limbs and leaped to other trees, not once slipping. His scowl deepened when he remembered the second failed attempt to kill the prince. Everything was falling apart because of that whelp of a human boy. He had been so close to succeeding until that boy had tackled him. He may choose to kill the boy just for spite.
Stopping his movements, he listened closely before dropping to the ground. The thick foliage cast deep shadows across the forest floor from the moon as he walked to the cave's opening. Pressing aside the thick bush shielding the cave opening, he moved deeper into the cave. His memory guided him through the twists and turns of the dark cave. Soon, he arrived to a large room that was obviously lived in with torches placed around the room. Pulling off his outer tunic, he tossed it to the side and rolled his shoulders. A few more steps and he pulled off his under tunic to drop it on the floor. Scars marred his pale flesh deeply as he pulled a pair of twin knives from their sheaths. Twirling the two knives in each hand to loosen his wrists, he moved to a spacious area where he practiced with his weapons. The knives danced around him with only a soft hiss as the weapons cut through the air. Everything around him faded away as he centered himself and focused on the deadly weapons. His long legs stretched and flowed as he went through his paces with deadly precision. His ebony hair whipped around him as the knives moved past and around him in a silent yet deadly song. Soon, his entire body was participating in the dance as his leg lashed out to the invisible opponent. Kicking at a small lever at the edge of the practice circle, he spun as fake opponents dropped from the cave ceiling. The knives ripped through the hay stuffed figures and slit open the dummies' chests. The last dummy had a crudely constructed circlet placed upon the dummy's head to represent royalty. Bretharso stared at the dummy for a moment before spinning towards the dummy, his arm wrapped around the fake head and savagely twisted. The sound of hay tearing was the only noise in the cave as he ripped the head from the dummy. Tossing the head into the air, one of his knives slit the head in half while he buried the other knife into the dummy's chest. He looked around at the scattering of hay pieces that littered the area with disinterest.
Heavy, shuffling footsteps alerted him to visitors as he pulled his under tunic back on. He held his knives ready until he realized who it was.
"I have another job for you, Gresnak," he told the orc as he slipped the knives into their sheaths.
"What is it, elf? And remember your promise."
"I remember, now listen closely."
~~~~~~~~~~~
"Get out of my way, prissy elf."
"No, stubborn dunedain."
Aragorn glared at Legolas as the elf blocked the human's attempt to get out of his bed. He should have known that Aragorn would try to get out of bed before he was able. Well, Aragorn said he was able and Legolas said he wasn't. It was extremely common between the two whenever one of them was injured. They should be over this and past it all but both of them were stubborn. Stubborn beyond anyone's belief. And their stubbornness flared terribly at moments and this was one of those moments.
"You are not getting out of that bed until you have Lord Elrond's permission."
"I do not need my father's permission to get out of bed. As a healer, I know when I am physically able to get out of bed and when I am not."
"From interacting with your father, brothers, and you, I have picked up a little extra knowledge of plants. I know exactly which ones will serve to push you into unconsciousness," Legolas growled as Aragorn's eyes narrowed.
"You would not dare."
"Please, I beg you, tempt me," Legolas replied with a glint in his eye that actually worried Aragorn.
"As much as I think Legolas would enjoy that, I must protest."
Both turned to look at the elf standing in the doorway. Elrond smothered his smile at the sight of the two friends. He did not doubt that Legolas would do everything in his power to keep Aragorn in that bed. That bit of fact worried Elrond because he knew that Legolas would make good on his threat. His son looked about ready to leap over the elf and run.
"What would you two misfits be arguing about now? I assume that Estel wants to get out of bed and you will not let him," he said as Legolas nodded grimly.
"Yes, my lord," Legolas replied.
"Well then I shall solve it. Aragorn you are allowed out of bed-"
"Ha!" Aragorn laughed as Legolas' face fell.
"But you are only allowed out of bed. You may not leave this room under any circumstances-"
"Ha!"
Elrond almost laughed as Aragorn's face fell and Legolas laughed. The elf lord counted himself lucky that those two didn't live that closely to each other. The world would never be safe. He had to remember to inform the warriors of Aragorn's room arrest and not let him leave under any story that he may tell them.
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And there is the new chapter. I hope everyone enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. So, it is now 12:30 in the morning. I am hungry. I am going to post and get something to eat and go to bed so please pardon me if the reviewers' responses are kind of short.
Isadora2- I hate to fish but that line is very common. I just thought of it while I was writing it and I thought that it sounded marvelously in it. I know that a bet like that would get me and I can be very stubborn. Am I under a microscope? I do not like being under microscopes. Too crowded.
Got-lotr- Need another box of extra strength tissues? I hope that I will remember to put up a 'Caution: Box of tissues may be needed' on a chapter that needs it. I thank you for the compliment and I will continue to write as quickly as physically possible.
XxgemxX- It is something about your name that just makes me laugh; I can not explain it. Where did you come up with it?
Aranel of Mirkwood- And the fic loves you too!
Bill the Pony2- Yes, you are very loved. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as the others.
Deana- He did feel the effects but they were very minimal because he was already well on the way of being fully healed. So, mild discomfort.
Vicki Turner- Wow! I am so happy that you like this story so much.
Jadesaber- I know about the spelling errors *hangs head*. I had one of my beta readers go over this chapter before I posted it today so I hope that it is better today. The plot will thicken.
Ringmarciel- I am having a problem keeping my plot bunnies apart. All of my stories are running together and blending.
Leggylover03- Thank you very much.
Tychen- The big 'discussion' will happen in the next chapter…at least I hope it will. My brain is just running on fumes right now. Need food, need brain food.
Elvendancer- I am doing the late at night updates again and late night writing session. I am so bad. I am very glad that you are enjoying this story so much. I want to go to sleep now but I must post this chapter. Must…post…*starts to snore before jerking awake again*…readers…need me.
Frodo16424- I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the rest of the story.
Tithen Min- Here you go! Enjoy!
BalrogsBreath- Have you ever heard of the 'phantom pain' that some amputees suffer? It is a condition that a person would dream that their arm or leg (which ever appendage was amputated) was hurting and they would wake up and it was still hurting or they imagine that it was still hurting even though it is not there. Kind of the same idea with Aragorn and Legolas; Aragorn was not physically injured but he took on the pain and severity of the wound upon his psyche. Hope that clears it up for you a bit.
Jambaby1963- Thank you very much. Hope you continue to enjoy it.
Roccovende- The two plot bunnies are driving me crazy. I have Poppy and Twitch now. They are starting to exchange ideas on how to annoy me. It is a conspiracy.
Xanthia Morgan- *blushing* Well thank you very much. I have hopefully fixed most of the spelling errors in this chapter.
Roz- Believe me, it is a serious balancing act between school, social life, and writing. And I have about five stories that I am bouncing between.
Riva van Dyk- I love my dorks! I will work on it as much as school and life permits it.
Kept-Secret- Wow…that is a lot of questions. But have no fear; they will all be answered eventually. How quickly I do not know, but they will be eventually.
Grumpy- Thank you for the compliment. Enjoy.
Crystal-rose15- *blushing* I thank you very much for the compliment.
Slea- It is turning into a great tale. Thank you for the compliment.
Legalady- I do not know where these stories come from. If it did then…well…I do not know what I would do. If you ever have need for ideas, give me a holler or if you need help with an idea and need it developed some. I am always willing to help as much as I can. Yes, I have read Cassia's 'Captive of Darkness' story. I would very much love to read the poem that you wrote. And I am very honored that you would write a poem about my story. I am eagerly awaiting both of them when they are completed.
Cosmic Castaway- I am very glad that you are enjoying this story so much. I will continue to work on as much as time and school allow it.
MelanyeBaggins- Hope you enjoy this chapter as much as the others.
Joshua Nenya- *blushing* Danke für das Kompliment. I am glad that you have enjoyed this story so much. I hope that you did not have to wait too long for this update. Tschüs von United States.