Aragorn and Legolas journeyed on. The elf was shocked to find himself walking through the fallen snow rather than on top of it, and though it was odd for the elf, Aragorn was glad, for it was easier to hold onto Legolas when his friend wasn't walking six inches above him.
Legolas was sure that he'd never felt so cold in all his life. He knew that long exposure to freezing temperatures could prove fatal to mortals, and he wondered how long it took to reach that state. He was afraid to ask.
Aragorn tried to keep them going at a steady pace, wanting to get as far as possible. He ignored his own frozen body, concentrating instead on his friend; watching for any sign that indicated that the elf needed a rest.
Legolas began to cough, and Aragorn took out the waterskin of cherry-bark tea, fumbling to get his frozen fingers to open it.
The tea was ice-cold, and Legolas nearly gasped as it slid down his throat. He wondered if the liquid would ultimately do him more harm than good—being so cold, in such freezing weather—but it soothed his cough and they continued on.
As Aragorn feared, it eventually began to snow again, and it quickly became heavy.
Legolas was shivering uncontrollably, barely able to walk anymore. Aragorn considered stopping and building a fire to warm their frozen bodies, but without warning, Legolas suddenly slipped and they both fell to the ground.
Aragorn tried to get up, but his hands slid and he realized that they'd been walking on a frozen pond that'd been hidden beneath the snow. "Legolas?"
Looking up, the elf saw Aragorn kneeling beside him, looking worried. Sighing, Legolas shot him a frustrated expression. "I've fallen, and I can't get up."
Aragorn's concern fled at his friend's humorous words. Smiling slightly, he chuckled. "That must have been a very difficult admission for you to make, mellon-nin."
Legolas shot him a mock-glare.
Still smiling, Aragorn helped his friend turn onto his back, before getting behind him and gripping the elf under his arms, trying not to put too much weight on his friend's bad shoulder.
Legolas winced, trying to stand using Aragorn's support, but his legs were simply too frozen, and he slipped back down again.
Aragorn tried to pull him up, but Legolas fell again to a sitting position, making the human nearly lose his own balance.
Legolas was nearly thrown down onto his back when Aragorn suddenly started sliding around, gripping the elf's good shoulder tightly. Legolas tried to reach up to grab his friend's arm, but the motion combined with Aragorn's sent the elf falling onto his side.
The absence of the elf's body for support was Aragorn's undoing, and he tumbled down to the ice, landing on top of him.
For a second, neither of them spoke.
"It appears that we have a dilemma," said Legolas.
Aragorn started laughing.
Legolas was sick of the cold and his numb limbs, but not being able to stand up had been more humorous than he would've ever thought.
Aragorn heard his friend laugh, and it made him smile; Legolas had done that far too little lately. He frowned when the elf's laugh turned into another cough. "Are you all right?"
Legolas coughed again, nodding his head.
Aragorn sighed and tried to sit up. "It appears that there's only one way that we'll be able to stand."
Legolas looked askance at him, and Aragorn got to his knees, helping Legolas do the same.
"Give me your arm," said the human.
Legolas complied, and Aragorn tightly grasped his friend's upper arm, gesturing for Legolas to do the same.
The elf obeyed and waited for Aragorn's next command.
"When I say three, we both stand together," said the human. "Ready?"
Legolas nodded, fighting the urge to cough again.
"All right…one, two, three."
Rising together, they were unable to get very far when Legolas' legs refused to obey him. The elf's body felt like an icicle, and his whole body was numb.
Aragorn held onto his friend tighter when he had trouble standing, and he felt himself start to slip. "Legolaaaaaas!" he ground out through his teeth.
Legolas felt like a fool as he valiantly tried to remain standing. If only I wasn't so cold! he thought. I wouldn't have this trouble if I could actually feel my legs!
Aragorn knew that they were going down, and he pulled the elf closer to his body in an effort to prevent Legolas from taking the brunt of the fall. He succeeded, and they both crashed to the ice once more.
Legolas closed his eyes, frustrated. He coughed again, wincing when it hurt his frozen lungs.
Aragorn sighed, feeling frozen himself. "We cannot lie here, it will only worsen our condition," he said, amazed that he managed to keep his frozen lips from stuttering.
Legolas tried to nod, but his muscles were too sluggish. "Forgive me, Aragorn…I-I apologize for being s-such a burden," he said, unable to prevent his teeth from chattering.
Aragorn turned, quicker then he thought his frozen body would let him. "No, Legolas, don't you ever consider yourself a burden! Do you hear me?"
Legolas sighed, but he gave his human friend a slight smile. "S-shall we try again, or do y-you have another idea?"
Aragorn shook his head. "We must try again. I can think of no other way." Besides dragging you across the lake! he thought.
Legolas nodded, and slowly succeeded in getting to his knees.
Aragorn did the same, but then thought of something. "Try to get one leg under you before we stand."
Legolas did as he was told, so that now he was down on only one knee.
Grasping his friend's arm again, Aragorn said, "Push up with that leg. Perhaps this will work."
Legolas nodded, and when Aragorn counted to three, they again tried to stand.
Aragorn's idea worked, and Legolas managed to finally get to his feet. His frozen legs shook under him, and the human quickly wrapped an arm around his friend's waist, to keep him upright. He could feel violent shivering coming from the elf, and Aragorn wondered how much longer Legolas would be able deal with this. "After we leave the ice, we will search out a place to rest."
Legolas inwardly sighed with relief at those words.
They began to walk towards the edge of the lake, very slowly. The falling snow prevented Legolas from seeing a small tree branch lying on the ice ahead of them and he stepped on it, losing his balance. With a gasp, the elf suddenly slipped and fell to the side.
Aragorn was taken by surprise, and when he tried to hold onto his friend's arm, he slipped himself, landing on his rear.
Legolas wasn't so lucky. He automatically threw out his bad arm to catch himself, but instead of breaking his fall, his hand broke through the ice and plunged into the icy water.
The elf gave a loud cry of pain and shock, landing hard on his side, his head smacking against the ice.
Aragorn frantically scurried over to his friend. "Legolas!" he exclaimed, grabbing the elf and pulling his arm from the water.
Legolas was trembling violently, the pain in his shoulder unbearable, his arm completely frozen.
Aragorn quickly pulled Legolas into a sitting position, taking the drenched glove off his friend's left hand and replacing it with his own, before undoing the buttons on the elf's soaked coat and pulling it off him.
Legolas eyes were closed; his eyes clenched shut from his pain.
Aragorn grabbed the left sleeves of Legolas' layered shirts, unceremoniously ripping each one off, desperate to get the wet fabric off his friend before frostbite had a chance to begin forming. Shrugging the pack from his shoulders, he dug out a blanket and wrapped it around the elf's bare arm, which he saw had turned blue.
Legolas' trembling increased as he sat there in the snow without a coat. Aragorn knew that the encounter with the icy water had undoubtedly lowered Legolas' body temperature even more than the weather already had, and he tied the blanket around his friend's arm, shedding his own coat and quickly putting it on Legolas.
The elf's head suddenly lolled forward as Legolas apparently lost the ability to hold it up, and Aragorn placed his hand under his friend's chin, trying to see his face. "Legolas?" he said, nervously.
Legolas' eyes were closed, and Aragorn saw with shock that there was blood on the side of his face. His heart began to race, and the human carefully laid his friend down and checked the injury.
The elf made no sound, and Aragorn was relieved to see that the cuts that he'd obtained from his fall weren't serious.
What was serious was the fact that Legolas was unconscious.
Aragorn lifted the elf's eyelids and checked his pupils, relieved to see that his friend had not obtained a concussion. Sighing, he reached over for the elf's coat and put it on himself, ignoring the soaked left sleeve and the fact that it was a little too small.
Legolas remained motionless, and Aragorn quickly put the pack back on his shoulders before lifting his friend into his arms. His legs felt numb and he stumbled as he stood, clutching Legolas to his chest lest he drop him. As he turned to continue walking, his eyes passed the hole in the ice, and he stopped, looking at it with an expression of shock.
The water was nearly black. That could only mean one thing; the lake was enchanted.
Aragorn felt as if someone had punched him in the stomach. Looking down at Legolas, he worriedly wondered what the water's effects would have on him. Unconsciousness was a given; thankfully Legolas hadn't been completely soaked in the water, or he would not wake for days.
Ai! he thought, trying to quickly walk to the edge of the lake. Out of every lake in Mirkwood, why did it have to be an enchanted one?! Why did I not notice which lake this was?!
After what seemed an eternity, Aragorn finally made it off the lake, and he suddenly realized that the thicket that Thranduil had lead them into two months ago should be nearby.
"Where is it?!" Aragorn exclaimed, shouting at the trees. "I can't save him without your help! Where is the thicket that we took shelter in?!"
The tree that stood closest to them suddenly swayed its branches, and others joined in. It took the human a few seconds to see that only certain trees were moving, and he noticed a pattern.
They were leading him.
Aragorn started to run—or tried to, rather. He followed the swaying trees for an indeterminable amount of time before suddenly seeing the thicket ahead of him.
Giving a cry of relief, Aragorn stopped for a minute, catching his breath.
The trees' swaying grew agitated, as if telling the human to keep running.
"Thank you," Aragorn said, heading into the thicket. "Hannon le!"
The trees gave no reply, but he could almost sense them smiling.
"You are safe, mellon-nin," Aragorn whispered, as he brought his friend further and further into the dry thicket. He didn't expect an answer, and Legolas gave none.
Aragorn didn't have to go far before the snow disappeared and he was walking on dry ground. They were completely sheltered from the wind and snowflakes, and an enormous wave of relief swept through the human.
Laying Legolas down, Aragorn quickly sought out some fallen wood and built a fire. Digging through his pack, he pulled out all the blankets and wrapped Legolas in them, placing the elf as close to the fire as he dared. Even thought it was perfectly dry inside the thicket, it was still extremely cold.
Sitting beside his friend, he warmed his hands before the fire, noticing that the soaked left sleeve of Legolas' coat—which he was wearing—had frozen, thereby preventing his own arm from getting wet.
When he had regained some feeling in his hands, he turned to Legolas, pressing his fingers against the pulse-point in his neck. The elf's heartbeat was beating much too slowly; proof that his body temperature was too low.
Aragorn shook his head. "Ai, Legolas! We've come so far; please do not give up now!"
The elf remained motionless, his face deathly pale and his breathing very shallow…
Aragorn blinked his sluggish eyelids, staring into their small fire in a slightly dazed state. He'd had to reduce the size of the fire because smoke had begun to fill the thicket, and he had stayed awake most of the night, holding his unconscious friend close, trying to give the elf his body heat.
Legolas never stirred, still under the effects of the enchanted water.
Aragorn sighed, watching as his breath froze in the air. Their small fire was a help, but wasn't adequate in raising their body temperatures because of it's reduced size. The human was very upset, because he knew that when they left the thicket, Legolas would be fully exposed to the elements once more. I can hear the wind, Aragorn thought. Has the snow continued, or grown worse, even? Will it mean death to leave this shelter? It could mean death for Legolas to stay in it; time is growing short, Legolas needs the vanwacoi antidote!
Aragorn sighed again, closing his eyes tiredly. Mayhap I should get some sleep…my mind will be clearer when I wake.
Lying down, Aragorn held his friend tightly, his arms seemingly frozen around the elf. As Aragorn fell asleep, he suddenly thought of their fathers. Ai! Are they too caught in this storm?
Elrond and Thranduil carefully rode through the snowy mountains, worried out of their minds.
"Only our children!" the king exclaimed. "Only Legolas and Aragorn would set out on a journey and end up in the middle of weather like this!"
Elrond shook his head with a sigh. They were both extremely worried; Aragorn was human, and not immune to the cold, while Legolas…Ai, Legolas!
"Ai!" Thranduil exclaimed, as if hearing Elrond's thoughts. "Will Legolas be able to survive this?"
"They will survive!" Elrond said, his grip in his horse's mane tightening. The two elves weren't suffering the deadly effects of the cold that Aragorn and Legolas were, for their elven bodies were as strong as ever. But they were feeling some effects from the cold weather, and the wind felt nearly strong enough to knock them off their steeds.
Thranduil suddenly stopped his horse, and Elrond halted beside him. "What is it?"
"No!" the king exclaimed. "Please tell me that my eyes deceive me!"
Elrond looked ahead through the flakes, seeing what his friend had spotted.
Legolas and Aragorn's horses.
The two elves spurred their steeds on, their hearts racing at the implications. When they came upon the horses, they saw with shock that they were both bloody.
"What has come upon our sons now?!" Thranduil exclaimed. "Where are they?" He dismounted, incorrectly assuming that their sons lay wounded nearby. "Legolas! Aragorn!" he shouted.
Elrond quickly looked the horses over. "The blood belongs to the horses, Thranduil!" he said. "Aragorn and Legolas must've been separated from them and continued on their journey."
The elf-king looked at him, pushing hair from his face when the wind blew it in all directions.
"Gwaeren has a wound to her leg," said Elrond. "That must be why they linger."
"Well we cannot!" said Thranduil. "We cannot continue on at their pace!"
Elrond shook his head, holding the hood on his head when the wind tried to whip it off. "We can and were, mellon-nin…we are still in the mountains and it is slippery due to the snow. I shall treat their wounds, and by the time that we are off the mountains, they will be able to match whatever pace we set. We need to take them with us, for Legolas and Aragorn will need them when we catch up to them." If we catch up to them…he thought.
Thranduil looked at his friend, sighing. He is right…ai, I must calm myself! I will do Legolas no good in such a state.
Elrond walked forward and clasped Thranduil's shoulder, as the snowflakes continued to fly around them. "Let us tend the horses and we can again be on our way. Legolas and Aragorn will be fine." I hope…