Chapter 8
The rest of the evening was spent catching up with times passed. Danuinel, Legolas and Estel sat and talked about past adventures and reminisced about jokes they had played upon unsuspecting members of court. They had a small contest on who had played a joke on the highest-ranking person.
It turned out that Legolas won this competition. He had, many years ago, put a ferret in the bed of his father, which had angered the Elven King to no end. Having played a practical joke on a King, this made the prince the winner.
After a short while, Legolas begun to tire. It went unnoticed by his two friends by the prince hiding the yawns. Finally, Estel picked up on the fact that Legolas was sitting, his eyelids threatening to close by their own accord. The prince had tried to keep them open for a good half hour but was losing the battle.
Without letting Legolas know that he was being watched, Estel managed to alert Danuinel to the same fact and silently, the two watched as Legolas drifted into sleep while sitting up. A few moments passed while the Ranger and Elf made sure that Legolas was asleep. The blonde Elf slowly began slipping to the side, no longer holding himself upright.
Estel caught hold of the swaying Elf and held him gently while Danuinel moved the pillows behind the prince into a better position. Together, they managed to get Legolas moved forward slightly so that he could lie flat without tearing the stitches.
"He seems to be doing a little better now." Danuinel commented, to no one in particular.
"Yes, though I dare not tempt fate. Legolas has been through enough already. I do not wish for him to push himself. The last thing he needs is to suffer a relapse." Estel replied, looking at the dark-haired Elf in the chair opposite.
Legolas still looked pale and thin, too thin. The poison lingered in his system. The effects still prevented simple things. Eating was one of them. Legolas had no appetite and had problems keeping food down. Water was another thing, the Elf could drink but it stayed for mere moments before being vomited back out.
"Estel, I understand that I have not been here for very long, but I have to ask you a personal question." Danuinel suddenly said, looking very curious. Estel hesitated, wondering what the Elf was about to ask.
"Certainly, mellon-nin, ask away. I shall do my best to answer." The Ranger replied and Danuinel took a deep breath to steady himself before he began.
"Why are your clothes pink?" The Elf said slowly. He said it hesitantly in case he angered the human. At his utmost surprise, the Ranger laughed whole-heartedly. It was a few minutes before Estel could control the laughter enough to answer.
"It was a practical joke. Revenge almost. The person who did it had good reason and I was not the only one who suffered his bout of revenge. It was not done in bad intentions, just for payback for many years. The person who did this lies before you now." Estel replied, enjoying the expression on the other Elf's face. "Yes, he dyed all the clothes I have. Now, every piece of clothing I own is pink. Not my favourite colour, I must admit."
Now it was Danuinel's turn to laugh. And he did, for a long time. It ended by Legolas calling out in his sleep. While the new friends were laughing over the prank, the prince had slipped into a nightmare. The same one that had been plaguing his sleep for the past few months.
Legolas' dreamHe was running through the trees surrounding Rivendell. They blurred as he ran, too quickly for any details to be seen. The yelps and barks of Wargs could be heard behind him. They were in hot pursuit and there were many. Too many for him to deal with on his own.
His legs were beginning to tire and ache. Despite this, he ran faster. But the hairy beasts were much quicker. They were right behind him now, snarling and biting at any opportunity they had.
He leapt into the nearest tree, grabbing the lowest branch and swinging upwards. One Warg leapt with him and ripped a large gash in his thigh with its massive claws. He cried out, the pain rippling through his body. Finally, he swung his body far up enough in the tree to be safe, for the moment.
Settling on a branch, he heard a sound, different from the rest.
"Legolas!" The voice belonged to Estel. He would know that tone anywhere. Whirling around, he looked desperately for his best friend. He spotted the Ranger below him, holding onto a branch not too far away.
The branch was old and very fragile. The Ranger's grasp was slipping and the wood creaked with the effort of holding the human's weight.
"Estel, grab my hand!" He cried down to the Ranger. Estel reached as far as he could with one hand, but it wasn't far enough. Their fingertips touched and Legolas stretched as far as he could. The Wargs leapt and snarled at the thought of having prey so close.
They tried again and again, but both were tiring. Legolas stretched down further but Estel's hands were hurting and he was slipping further and further. It wasn't enough. Before long, the inevitable happened.
The branch holding the Ranger finally gave a last crack and broke from the tree. Legolas could only watch as his best friend fell to the forest floor and was attacked from all sides by the grey-haired beasts.
Determined not to let his friend be killed by the enemy, Legolas leapt from his position in the tree. Hands appeared from nowhere, grabbing at his tunic and shirt to try and stop him. He batted at the hands and cursed loudly. Couldn't they understand that his friend needed him?
TBCReplies:
LanierShazar: We'll have to see if this good spell will last or not, this chapter may let you know a little more. Do you think he will recover quickly? How well do you know me?
Marauding-siriusly: Well, thanks for the compliment about the updating speed. I update nearly every time I am on the computer. It depends on school work and stuff like that. As for the poison person. Well, Legolas might find out, or he might not. Aragorn may kill the person, or he might not. Aren't I infuriating?
The return of merry: Gosh, I hope your brother is all right now. Has he stopped taking the medicine for a reason? I used to have seizures too, but thankfully, they seem to have stopped. It was a horrible thing to have to go through. Mine were not as bad as your brother's or Leggy's. They were a different kind of seizure but horrible all the same. To not be in control of your movements and actions is terrible.
Sindauviel: I had seizures, but they were a different kind to Leggy's. I had what was called an 'absence'. Not sure exactly what happened in my brain at the time. I have been informed that it looked like I was daydreaming, but no one could bring me out of it. They just had to wait. It was horrible. Some of my friends did not believe me at first and thought I was pretending, that was the worst part of it. I don't remember a lot of them and had lots of tests at the hospital. So, anyway, how is your friend, I hope she is ok now. Thanks again.
Moonyasha: Legolas and the gang all send their thanks for the great gifts and Elrond says a special thank you for remembering about him. I don't think he gets many things. About the party, both Estel and Legolas are well up for it, as soon as Legolas recovers enough to stand. Poor thing. Oh well, thanks for the monster truck, it is helping me to crush all those little people who do not review! Grr!
HarryEstel: But if I don't do anything to change that, it might get boring. Hmm, I'll have to think about that. Anyway, in general things have to get worse before they get better. I'll leave you to think about it.
Mornflower: Your little brother sounds like a right cheeky monkey. I have a little sister but she's only two years younger than me. She's cheeky too, but in a more grown up way, you know, the annoying way. Thanks for the compliment about my descriptions, I never thought about it before. Oh well, enjoy the chapter and thanks again!
Sierra Leone: Thanks for that! I agree that sometimes sequels can be extremely boring and I was really hoping that when I started this one that it would be different from all the rest. It stupid but I keep myself in suspense too, since I don't plan my chapters. I just sit down and write them.
LiLred: I love Legolas too!
BitterLee: I feel really guilty. Please don't sue me if your eye doesn't get better. Hope it gets better soon so that you can enjoy other people's stories too. Thanks for the compliments anyway. I'm glad I made it worth your while too, here's the next instalment for you. Enjoy!
Floridagirl1025: I don't think I have heard from you before. Could be wrong and I'm definitely not complaining. Thanks for reviewing and the fact that he is getting better might just change soon. I am addicted to Legolas angst and so things might well change. We'll just have to wait and see. Thanks for reviewing!