Sun seeped gently through the curtains and lay warmly on Aragorn's face. He smiled wrapping his arms tightly around Arwen. Words from the previous night crept back into his thoughts, but fear and worry did not overtake him. For a time he lay there letting the sun warm his face when Arwen stirred. Her sleep was still troubled by the same vision, and while it seemed for a time that she would be peaceful, the moment would end and she would thrash about as if being attacked by ravenous animals. Worry stayed Aragorn's heart, but for now he would take in the few peaceful moments left with his love before starting his journey to Hobbiton. Suddenly the sun peaked over the mountain tops and lit the whole room into a brilliant gold frenzy. The curtains looked as if they had been made of gold and stretched out as if hands reaching out and grabbing softly at his face. He took in a large breath of fresh air and closed his eyes, dreaming of his future.

"Aragorn, the hour grows late." Arwen stirred beneath his arms. "My love, you must leave and save those who need it most." She smiled as she said this, gently kissing the tip of his chin. He kept a lot of the scruff that he had earned as a ranger, along with the messy black hair. She smiled running her fingers through his hair. "What troubles you?" she whispered.

"Nothing." He gripped her tighter in his arms, fearing that if he let go she might slip away and disappear.

"Something bothers you. You will not come to an end in these days. You are strong and the Orc fear you, although they have more number. People look up to their king; you will bring victory when no others can. Have faith in your skills." She wrapped her arms around his chest and kissed his chin once more. He looked down into her blue loving eyes, the pools that he seemed to be able to look into forever.

"I am not as strong as you say, or wish me to be. I lead because I made a promise long ago. These will be my last battles. I'm not as young as I once was Arwen. There are many things that I can not do that I once could. I fear that this shall be my end." He looked over at the curtains then put his face into her hair and kissed the top of her head.

"Aragorn, my lord, my love and my strength, you are stronger than you will ever know. You didn't give into the evils that you could have, you gave your life in times when others would shy away. Not many men are as brave as you, nor will they ever be. You are great and you do not abuse your power. Not many leaders can say they have done that." She sat up and started to move off the edge of the bed. Aragorn wrapped her tightly in his arms and pulled her back towards him.

"You have to say that, your biased." He kissed her softly on the lips before letting her go. "And I must get ready for my journey!"

"Sam, is he alright? These wounds across his face and arms seem most reluctant to heal!" Pippin observed walking over to Sam's bedside. He frowned as he poured more ointment. He scrunched up his nose and fanned his hand in front of his face. "This smells horribly rotten Sam. How much more shall I pour?"

"As much as it takes to heal the wounds, you sorry excuse for a gardener!" Sam yelled exasperated. Pippin was not happy about his situation and had been telling Sam about it for the last hour. The wounds on the elf had not healed, and seemed to get worse, where as the elf himself seemed full of life and anxious to venture out of Hobbiton.

"Sam he keeps asking for Aragorn. Why? And why were the Uruk- khai so close? I thought that they were all destroyed when Mordor fell." Pippin asked as he angrily patted at the wounds, not realizing the pain he was causing the elf.

"Pippin, be more careful!" Sam grabbed Pippin's raging hand. "He calls for Aragorn because that is who he thinks should help us. I doubt that Aragorn knows of our trouble. As for the Uruk-khai, I don't know. For some reason they want to traipse through Hobbiton. I thought they were all dead too, but it seems as if we were wrong. There's to be an uprisin' there is, and Hobbiton is going to be in the middle!" Sam frowned as he took the cloth from Pippin and began patting at the wounds himself. "Pippin you might have woke him! Poor elf."

"Let them have Hobbiton! So long as the killing does not begin. I can not take more battles." Merry said as he walked over to a chair and sat down. "I just want peace!" he took an apple out of the bowl and began to crunch loudly. The elf began to stir in his sleep.

"He does not sleep peaceful these days. He sees visions of our futures." Sam frowned as he patted the elf's blonde hair.

"What is it you think that he sees?" Pippin asked, hovering over the elf's face.
"I don't know, I don't want to know." Sam answered pushing Pippin back in his chair.

"I see death and destruction to little hobbits who can not keep their faces far enough away." The elf stirred waking and grabbing at Sam's arm, pushing it back off a wound.

"We didn't mean no harm. We were just tryin' to help!" Sam stammered out.

"Yeah Legolas, we didn't mean nothing by it." Merry smiled at him, seeing right through his joke.

"Yes, well, if Pippin continues to push hard on these wounds, he will be paying for it!" Legolas laughed, then patted the hobbit on the back. "No matter, what is for dinner? This Hobbit food is wonderful!" Legolas smiled warmly at the three hobbits.

"What would you like Master Legolas? I can get you anything." Sam smiled back, wrapping the last of the bandages across his arms.

"Legolas, can we ask you what it is that you see when you dream?" Merry asked, suddenly deep in thought.

"I see things that should never be brought to the Shire. Pain and death to such a happy place, it troubles me. Some nights I relive Gimli's death, other's I see the destruction of Mordor." He shuddered a bit at the thoughts that were running through his mind.

"Gimli is dead? How can that be?" Sam took a seat on the closest chair and looked out the window.

"I'm sorry to say that he is, and it is my fault. I could not protect him when he needed it. The Uruk- khai were too large in numbers for us, and we had lost each other. For a while we out ran them, trying hard to lose them and return to Aragorn with the news of this uprising, but they caught us, trapped us in the surrounding trees. They separated us and moved us to different areas of the forest, I heard his shouts, his anger, but I couldn't get back to him. That's when I lost consciousness and that's when you found me." He looked down at his hands and arms, seemingly ashamed.

"Legolas, it wasn't your fault. You did what you could, and you took a terrible beating. No one would have survived what you went through. Do not fret, perhaps Gimli is fine." Pippin smiled at Legolas, not seeming to grasp the seriousness that was taking place in Merry and Sam.

"Perhaps Pippin, perhaps." Legolas followed Sam's gaze out the window. "So what's for dinner?"