Chapter 7: Escape
Walk on
What you got, they can't steal it
No they can't even feel it
Walk on
Walk on
Stay safe tonight
Ceslon looked at Legolas with a confused expression on his face. "He knows you?"
Legolas nodded. "Yes," he began; his voice thick with emotion. "Estel is my best friend."
Ceslon fixed Legolas with a skeptical look. "How do you know Estel?"
Legolas smiled slightly. "We met ten years ago and have been friends ever since. When he was captured, I was not with him and did not know anything had befallen my friend." He shook his head and felt something brush his arm. He looked down to see the material that had covered his ears in his hands. His hand automatically went to his ears.
Ceslon noticed Legolas' pointed ears and gasped. "You're an elf!"
Legolas didn't answer right away; he just tied the material around his head again. "Yes, please do not tell." he begged.
Ceslon shrugged. "Who'd listen to a slave?"
Legolas looked at him sadly. "I am sorry."
Ceslon nodded indifferently. "It doesn't matter anymore." He looked at Aragorn. "Estel needs to get to his bed. He is terribly hurt."
Legolas nodded. He wanted nothing more than to escape but he knew it was impossible to run away in broad daylight. "Let me help you carry him."
Ceslon shook his head. "They'll whip me if you help. If you're pretending to be a noble you ought to act like one."
Legolas smiled inwardly. If only this person knew Lord Elrond and his family. He would have a much different opinion of nobles; he would see they were not all cruel. "I will carry him until we are in view of the guards. You are tired, you have been working for a long day."
Ceslon nodded slowly. "I guess that's acceptable."
Legolas scooped his friend up into his arms and held him protectively. His heart was crying for the pain his friend was in. He was only twenty-six. Aragorn shouldn't have to go through so much pain. "I have you, mellon-nin. I will keep you safe," he whispered softly into Aragorn's ear. He wasn't sure if the human could hear him, but he continued to speak to him quietly.
Ceslon looked at Legolas, intrigued. "What language is that?"
Legolas looked startled. "It is Elvish."
Ceslon nodded and then asked another question. "How does Estel know the language?"
Legolas paused, trying to figure out a good way to explain things to this human. "Estel is a Ranger of the North. He goes by Strider normally."
Ceslon's head snapped around to look at Legolas. "Estel is Strider?"
Legolas nodded slowly. "Yes, have you heard of him?"
Ceslon nearly laughed. "I'm from Bree! I used to go to the inn and watch Strider sit in his corner, wondering where he was from."
Legolas chuckled. "It is a small world."
Ceslon grinned and continued walking with Legolas. He would have to ask Estel some questions when he woke.
Legolas could see the guards. "I see the guards; perhaps you should carry Estel so that you do not get in trouble. I will not have you getting whipped on my account." He really just wanted to get in the house as quickly as possible so that he could see to his friend's wounds. He didn't want the young man to be tortured either; he hated to watch that sort of thing.
Ceslon nodded and took Aragorn from Legolas. He held the man more roughly, but with a gentle grip. "Come, I will take you to our area." He led Legolas into the house and down a flight of servant stairs.
It seemed to Legolas that Ceslon was trying to avoid people. With good reason, he thought to himself. He followed Ceslon down a dark hallway and into a poorly lit room.
"This is our room," Ceslon informed Legolas. He put Aragorn on his bed and grabbed a chair for Legolas to sit in. "I must return to the fields. They will notice if I am gone for too long."
Legolas nodded. "I will take care of him."
Ceslon nodded and walked towards the door. "What is your real name?"
Legolas only shook his head. "My name is Legolas."
"Where are you from, Legolas?" Ceslon asked.
Legolas almost chuckled. Humans always asked so many questions! "I am from Mirkwood."
Ceslon nodded. "Oh…"
Legolas had to chuckle at the confused expression. "You should go; you do not want to be in trouble."
Ceslon jumped and ran out the door. He was already late.
Legolas sighed and turned to Aragorn. "Oh Estel," he whispered. "I am so sorry I did not reach you sooner." He brushed stray locks of hair behind his friend's ear. He felt Aragorn move and watched him reach up to shakily take Legolas' hand. "I am so sorry, Estel."
Aragorn looked at his friend with unfocused eyes. "It is not your fault," He whispered hoarsely.
Legolas had tears in his eyes; it was so painful to see his friend so terribly wounded. "I have to get you out of here."
Aragorn shook his head slightly, his voice urgent. "No, we must free the other slaves."
Legolas nodded. he had been thinking of that. "I do not know if we can free them all."
"Just free Ceslon. He needs to return to his family. Most of the others do not mind being slaves; they have been in slavery their whole lives." Aragorn whispered. He wished he could add more, explain to Legolas how the slaves didn't know what freedom was like, and probably wouldn't be able to cope. He couldn't, though; his voice began to crack before he could form the words on his lips.
"Sleep, Estel. I will come for you tonight. Tell Ceslon to be ready." He noticed there were other beds in the room. "Will the other men want to escape as well?"
"No other men live in this room besides me and Ceslon. The other two were sold," Aragorn explained flatly.
Legolas was horrified but didn't mention it. "You sleep now, I will return late tonight."
"I will be here," Aragorn muttered. He was in so much pain he could do very little. He doubted he would be able to walk, but if it meant he could escape then he would do his best.
Legolas squeezed his friend's hand one last time before standing. "I brought Deçwen."
Aragorn smiled softly at the mention of his sweet mare. "I will see you tonight," he mouthed. His voice was completely gone.
Legolas nodded and walked from the room. He ran up the servant stairs and went to the sitting room. He found Lord Nelkoo sitting on one of the couches and went over to him. "Has your daughter returned from her ride?"
Lord Nelkoo looked up and broke into a smile. "No, I am afraid she is going to be staying with some friends in the city. I am sorry if this inconveniences you. Perhaps you could return at a later date?"
Legolas sighed and faked unhappiness. "Yes, I guess I could."
Lord Nelkoo noted the discontented tone in Legolas' voice. "Dine with me. Tomorrow you can start on your way home."
Legolas nodded. "That would be wonderful." He needed to kill time until it got late. As soon as he was sure Lord Nelkoo was asleep he would help Aragorn and Ceslon escape.
-----
Lord Elrond paced the balcony that connected most of the rooms in the house. Legolas and Aragorn had been gone for three months and he was beginning to worry. He knew that his son had wanted to show Legolas around, but he had expected them back soon. Elladan and Elrohir had returned a week before. They had told him that they had tracked the slave traders with the Rangers only to lose the trail. The twins had returned and the Rangers had continued on without them.
He continued to pace the sunlit balcony. He hadn't rested well for the past month. He had been so concerned for his youngest son's safety that he hadn't been able to get a good night's rest. He was full of worry and he was close to the point where all coherent thought was gone.
"Ada?"
Elrond turned to see his twin sons walking towards him.
"Yes ionath-nin?" he asked his sons. "What is it?"
"We are worried about you, Ada," Elrohir said to his father. "You look tired most of the time."
Elrond sighed. "I am concerned about Estel and Legolas. They have been gone for more than three months."
Elladan and Elrohir both nodded.
"We worry for them too," Elladan said. He went over to his father and hugged him tightly.
Elrond hugged his son back. "I fear for them. It has been such a long time since they left."
"Aragorn is a Ranger, perhaps he met up with the others," Elrohir said optimistically.
Elrond nodded. "Perhaps," but the pit in his stomach told him otherwise.
-----
Legolas finished eating with Lord Nelkoo. He wanted to get away from the lord as fast as possible and go help Aragorn. It was getting late and he hoped that the lord would go to sleep soon. "I need to rest. Is there a room I can stay in?"
Lord Nelkoo nodded. "Of course!" He motioned to one of the guards. "Take Duke Nelon to one of the spare rooms." He turned to Legolas. "I apologize, but the guest chambers are very close to the slave quarters."
"That is fine; I just would like to sleep. I will leave very early in the morning so it would be nice if I can be close to an exit," Legolas said, keeping the hopeful tone out of his voice and replacing it with an air of uncaring. If he was near the slave quarters then he might be able to rescue Aragorn more easily than he had thought!
"There is an exit very close to those rooms. It leads to the stables so you would be able to get to your horse easily. Will I see you tomorrow morning?" Lord Nelkoo asked pleasantly.
Legolas shook his head. "I doubt it, but I hope so."
Lord Nelkoo smiled. "I hope so as well. If I don't see you in the morning I hope you have a safe trip home. Please return soon."
Legolas nodded. "I will do my best to return when your daughter is home."
The guard tapped Legolas' arm. "Come with me, Your Grace. I will show you to your rooms."
Legolas followed the guard out of the dining hall and towards the slave chambers. "The house is very big," He commented.
The guard nodded. "Yes, it is." He led Legolas down the hall. "This is the exit that leads to the stables," he indicated a stone breezeway, "and this is your room." He opened the door to a lavishly decorated suite. "Sleep well, Your Grace." He left, humming pleasantly to himself as he left the hallway.
Legolas waited until he could no longer hear the man's footsteps. After waiting another ten minutes he ventured out of the bedroom and towards Aragorn's room. He was pleased that it was only five doors down the hall. He opened it quietly and slipped inside. He saw Ceslon bent over Aragorn's sleeping form and smiled. "Rouse him; for it is time for you two to escape!"
Reviewer Responses:
Linuvial Greenleaf: Hm…I am sort of afraid to respond to this review, mellon-nin. Heehee, I don't know if there ever will be enough insanity for you. You seem to grab it by the horns and dance with it. Hm…ok I guess I will respond to what you said about the fic. Yes, poor Legolas having to suffer through his friend's torture session and be unable to stop it. That would definitely be something traumatic. Smeejee!!! Hm…we must give our smeejee awards to all. I know they all want them! SMEEJEE AWARDS TO THE SMEEJEE WRITERS!!! Ok…hem. La, the fugitive. Sounds like you had some…pauses for correct word interesting experiences with that fugitive. I hope she has left you in peace and quiet…you know, like the quiet in your house when you get Krazy Glue on your hands. ::grins:: HAH! You are sooo good at giving directions. At least you gave me the correct address…I hope that you have gotten my other postcards! I leave…looks at calendar Tuesday. That is not true about the tree (read that the way you read "Sam I am" by Dr. Suess…I dunno, it's just funny) you finished the tree! (You did…didn't you?) KILL THE GIRL WHO DUMPED YOUR BROTHER (hm…doesn't sound quite as good as KILL BILL) Oh well. Goodbye my smeejeetic friend. I shall talk to you soon. Other smeejee out.
Someone Reading: Thank you for the compliments. : ( Poor Aragorn. He really goes through so much. Poor Legolas too!!! He had to witness something no friend should ever see. I hope you like this chapter as much as the others. Thank you so much for reading. It really means a lot to me. I also hope you liked the chapter of my novel that I sent you.
Allie5: Yay! I am happy you are enjoying this! Well, you know, I do have little breaks but for some reason chucks them out when I post. It doesn't accept squiggles or stars anymore (which is what I used to use for breaks) I have gone back and redone it, but for some reason it still isn't happy. ::sighs:: I am sorry.
Shadowfaxgal7: Heehee, I am happy you really liked the previous chapter. Wow…you give me soooo many compliments! I always feel so good. Thank you. I really hope you have a good time at camp and that this chapter doesn't disappoint you. Thank you so much for reading. Have a wonderful vacation at camp!!!
DreaminofLorien: : (Poor Estel. I know he appreciates the morphine…too bad it didn't get to him. (Had to be confiscated, I am sorry but you know, the fic has to continue!) Heehee. I am so happy you liked the bit about the servants and slaves. I wanted to put that in there because we all know Legolas has to have servants attending to him, since he is a royal. I hope you like this chapter as much as the one before it!
Leggylover03: Ahh, the pleas have begun. ::grins:: I hope you keep reading and that the suspense isn't too bad for you. Heehee!
Wolf Jade: Heehee. Sorry about your hopes. I hope you liked the chapter, though! I am really happy you are enjoying my fic and I hope you continue to enjoy it! Thank you so much for the compliments. It really does make me feel good, and I look forward to them all the time. It makes me confident as a writer. Thank you so much for reading.
Lindahoyland: Heehee I hope the angst doesn't give you a heart attack! Yes, Aragorn really needs some TLC. ::sighs:: poor guy. He was safe before he left his house. : (
Iluvia negra: Heehee! It wasn't too sad was it? Oh I hope you continue to enjoy!
Elana: Thank you for the compliments. I am so happy to hear that you can't wait for more. Always makes me feel good! Enjoy!
Lazuli-rain: Thank you! I hope you really continue to enjoy! I am trying really hard to make the feelings known to the readers. I hope you continue to read and enjoy!
Alexandra: I know!!!! Poor Aragorn and poor Legolas!!! Thank you so much for the lovely compliments. I am really happy to know you are enjoying it! Aw! Thank you for adding me to your favorites! I hope I didn't leave you hangin' for too long! I am sorry! Enjoy!!!!
Catmint: And we get to you, my faithful beta. ::hands over a tissue:: I am sorry I made you cry. Thank you so much for the lovely compliments. I really do try hard to capture the emotions. I hope you are enjoying the fic. ::huggles:: Hope it wasn't too much for you! Thank you once again for beta reading for me. You do a wonderful job and I really do appreciate it. Thank you.
