The smell of tea and pipe smoke roused Legolas from his restless sleep. Long had it been since such luxuries had been available, and this led him to believe it to be another cruel dream of temptations. A murmur of voices swirled around him and somehow he discerned his name from the slurred chatter. Again he heard it, but a bit clearer.
"Legolas?" Pippin's voice was muffled and smaller than usual. "Aragorn, come quick! He's waking!"
He tried to open his eyes. It was then that he noticed the light. Brightness beyond his memories blinded him so that he shut his eyes again straight away. His body ached in ways he never had before experienced. His skin felt as though it were on fire and his head was throbbing with each excruciating beat of his heart. A soothing hand set upon his forehead, cooling him. His breath came easier to him now, not hitched and painful, and he was beginning to calm down.
"Legolas. Legolas, can you hear me?" Aragorn's heavenly speech brought Legolas a little more to his senses.
"It's so bright, Aragorn… Where am I? How…" his voice trailed off as he finally looked up into his lover's eyes. "I missed you so," he whispered through parched lips and squinted eyes.
"I missed you, too, love," Aragorn whispered back. Tears swelled in his eyes at the sight of Legolas' gaze. "Now," he started, pulling himself together, "can you feel your toes? Can you move them?"
Legolas grinned slightly and wriggled his toes pleasantly. "Yes, I have toes again. It is awful bright in here, though. Could you not close the shutter? And who is lavishing in tea and pipe? I can smell it so clearly as though it were my own." He sat up and immediately regretted it. His head swam and the room spun. Color drained from his already pale face and he was swallowed by darkness again.
Aragorn took the soft wet cloth into his hands. He dipped the rag in the cool spring water next to him and dabbed Legolas' face gently. He wrung it out and dipped it again. The fellowship was scattered about, attempting to be preoccupied, but all eyes were on Legolas. Aragorn could feel them watching, worrying behind him. Long had Legolas lain in cold sweat. An abandoned shack provided temporary shelter for his recovery.
With a gasp, Legolas awoke. He grabbed Aragorn's arm desperately; terror was etched into the elf's face.
"Aragorn!" he hissed. He looked as though he'd seen demons and fiends beyond imagination. Words dangled on his lips, but his tongue wouldn't cooperate. His eyes were wide with fear and his body was tense. "Aragorn," he said again, organizing his thoughts, "I… I should not have sat up."
A chuckle escaped Aragorn's lips at this lighthearted remark. He had expected the words of devils and tortures to escape his lips, but Legolas revealed nothing of his dreams to him that night.