Bear with me!
I hope that you enjoy this as much (or more than) as you did the other chapters!
-Romen
Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters; but I do own Jinny and Varda (the horse, not the other one that belongs to Tolkien).
4. Written In Stone
"Where does he think he's going?" Elrohir gripped his arm tighter as he watched Legolas ride off to the forest on Varda. He looked down at his hand. Crimson blood stained his tunic sleeve from the wound that Legolas had created with his own knife. What had their friend been thinking? Elrohir bit his lip as he wondered.
Elladan immediately translated Elrohir's expression into one caused from severe pain. "Let's get you back to the caves," he ordered, calling over his brother's horse.
"But what about Legolas?" The youngest twin turned to watch Legolas disappear among the trees. "Something goes ill with him."
"Legolas has chosen his own path," Elladan said stiffly, also watching the woods. He looked into his brother's eyes. Elrohir was surprised to see that they had anger in their pitch-black depths. "Remember, he is the one who gave you that cut."
Elrohir nodded. "Trust me, I have not forgotten. Still, there is something...different about Legolas. I am worried about him."
"We need to get back to the camp," Elladan repeated, sheathing his sword. Elrohir did the same.
"Let's go after him." Elrohir gripped his arm tighter as he felt it going numb. "He is wounded as well, you know."
Elladan sighed. "Ro, we can't go after him until your arm is treated. You know that."
Elrohir went over to his horse and stroked his mane, frowning. "You're right. Maybe we can get Glorfindel to send a party after him..."
Elladan nodded. "For now, we need to get back to the caves."
-
Legolas slowed Varda to a trot shortly after he'd entered the forest. "Whoa, girl, calm down." He refrained from stroking her. He couldn't let his emotions get in the way. He knew what could happen to her while they were fighting.
The Elf looked around. How much time had he wasted with the twins? He hoped that the Wild Men weren't too far away. There were probably other warriors hidden out in the forest that they would have alerted. They would all be waiting for Legolas...
Legolas could taste a salty liquid on his lip. He put his hand to his forehead. It felt wet. Blood was on his fingers. For a split second, he considered returning to the caves and allowing himself to be healed. He didn't have to stay there. He could come back and finish off the rest of the Wild Men later...
Then again, none of the other Elf's had much of a sense of honor. They would try to keep him from coming. He scowled. Besides, the healing process would take for too long. No, the best thing to do was to press on, despite all distractions.
Varda snorted. Legolas glanced down at her.
"Silence, animal." That horse would alert every hidden sentinel out there before he could even put her to good use. He wondered how he had ridden with her all of those other times...
Other times? Legolas quickly scanned his memory, looking for images and thoughts. Nothing came to him.
But there had to have been other times. He vaguely remembered them, their exact details gone. It felt like his clearest memory was getting up and leaving the caves after he had sworn the silent oath. It had almost been like the first day of the rest of his life.
'It will hard to come back...'
"I don't want to come back!" he hissed. Varda looked up at him, as if accusing him of hypocrisy.
Legolas tried to avoid her piercing gaze. He ran his hand over his face, trying to wake himself up. He suddenly felt cold and tired.
No. You're not cold and tired. Think of the Wild Men.
That did the trick. Blood thundered past his ears and adrenaline coursed through his body. He couldn't sit still any longer. He liked it better this way; he wouldn't be able to stop and think about Estel. He dug his heels into Varda's sides, and they were off.
-
"Legolas did this to you?" Glorfindel drew the needle through Elrohir's flesh.
"Yes," Elrohir said through clenched teeth, grimacing. "I don't think that he was really in his right mind. Something about him was...different."
Glorfindel didn't stop sewing, though his voice said that he was ready to drop his needle in horror. "Elrohir, how was he different?"
Elrohir hesitated, looking at Elladan. His twin wasn't facing them. He was staring towards the mouth of the cave, looking at the stars. Around them Elves were busy bustling about. The news of what had happened had spread like wildfire, and no one was in the mood to rest. Elrohir turned back to look at Glorfindel, swallowing as he watched the needle about to be drawn through again...
"There was something troublesome about his spirit," Elrohir answered, flicking his head away just in time. "He seemed like a completely different person."
"In what way?" Glorfindel paused.
"When he was fighting, it was almost as if..." Elrohir searched for the right words. "It was almost as if he enjoyed killing them. The Wild Men, I mean; he enjoyed taking their lives. I've never seen him like this before."
"I'm afraid that you're right, Elrohir," Glorfindel replied, his voice heavy. "Legolas is in danger."
"He was in his right mind." Elladan's voice was harsh. The Balrog-slayer and the youngest twin turned to look at him. "He knew exactly what he was doing."
Glorfindel and Elrohir looked at each other. Elladan tended to be a bit over-protective of Elrohir, and now that he had lost his other brother, that was bound to get worse. Elrohir took a deep breath.
"Elladan," he began, but he was interrupted as Elladan turned around and began pacing.
"He's blaming us for Estel's death," the Elf snarled, his hands clasped behind his back. "You heard him. 'We should have kept him here with us, where he wouldn't have seen much action.' Legolas is saying that it's our fault, so now he's trying to get us all killed with his reckless behavior!"
"Brother, I believe that he was blaming himself for Estel's death when he said that," Elrohir said, swallowing as he felt the needle pull through his skin once again. "It's a good theory, but I'm sure that our friend's problem goes back deeper than that."
Elladan sat down, his hands clasping his knees. "You're right. I suppose that I'm just angry that he..." He didn't finish, but gestured towards Elrohir's arm, sighing. "Something is truly disturbing me."
Glorfindel finished up. "I shall go after him as soon as it gets light. For now, we should wait here. He might return tonight, though I find that unlikely if I know our Elven prince well enough."
"I'll go with you," Elrohir said quickly, standing up.
"No, you should stay here, little brother." Elladan stood as well. "I'll go with Glorfindel in the morning, while you stay here and wait for your arm to heal. We can't risk further injury to you."
Elrohir looked to Glorfindel, frowning.
"Elladan is right. We shan't be gone long." But Glorfindel's eyes said otherwise.
Elrohir sighed. "All right, I give in. I shall remain here."
"Don't forget to send out a messenger for us," Elladan added. "Ada should know about Estel soon...and you should probably tell him about Legolas, too. He might know what's wrong with him."
Elrohir nodded. "Do not worry, my memory will not deceive me."
-
Legolas coughed lightly into the back of his hand. They had been riding for some time with no sign of approaching warriors. The Elf scowled. This was getting ridiculous. He was about to send Varda back again (because, of course, it was the horse's fault and not his own).
At that moment, Legolas heard the sound of bowstrings being drawn back. There must be archers, looming down at him from flats in the trees. He froze, pondering which move would be the best. Should he make a wild run for it while he still rode Varda? Would it be best for him to dismount and grab his own weapons? Legolas decided just to pretend that he hadn't heard it. He nudged Varda into a trot, seeing Wild Men hidden in trees on his left and right. Soon, they would let their arrows fly...
The hair on the back of his neck stood up. What were they waiting for?
Legolas heard a snap and a cry from Varda. The world was rushing past him. He was falling...
It took a few seconds for him to realize what had happened. He looked around him. He was in a pit. Long poles of wood that had their tips sharpened to a point were stuck in the ground around him. It had been pure luck that he had not fallen onto one of them. However, Varda...
Legolas looked over at his horse. One of the poles was stuck in her thigh, but otherwise, she looked perfectly fine. Legolas looked at the height of the pit, trying to assess the situation as best he could. Varda could probably climb out if she was in the mood to, and it did not seem to be that way at the moment. He might be able to get out...
The sound of the Wild Men approaching allowed fear to grip him. He grabbed onto the pieces of root, rock, dirt and wood that stuck out of the sides and was able to climb out quickly. He readied his bow and allowed an arrow to fly into the neck of an approaching enemy. When he saw that they had arrows as well, he thought it better to switch to a more confrontational combat and pulled out his knives, charging at them.
He liked it better this way. He liked it better very much so.
-
Elrohir watched as Glorfindel and Elladan rode towards the abandoned camp. Legolas had not returned the night before. He felt a surge of envy at the fact that Elladan was going but he was unable to. Elladan always got everything that his little brother wanted...
He sighed, turning around. At that moment the messenger approached.
"Elladan said that a message needed to be delivered to Lord Elrond at Imladris?" he said, looking at Elrohir.
The youngest twin was in a foul mood, so he pretended to be incompetent. "Yes?"
"Should I deliver the message?"
Elrohir felt a wry smile creep across his face. Of course! Why hadn't he thought of this before? Elladan and Glorfindel had only said that he could not come with them to go after Legolas. They had not said that he couldn't deliver the message to their father at Rivendell.
"Didn't you hear?" he asked the messenger, who shook his head. "Elladan told me to take the message. I was just leaving now."
The messenger nodded, though his face looked doubtful. "Good luck on your journey."
Elrohir mounted his steed. "Thank you." Anything was better than staying in that closed in space, completely useless to everyone else.
Wasn't it?
Here's the responses:
Deana: Well, I am a little frustrated with him at the moment. He seems to be very stubborn when it comes to "coming back".
Glad you're enjoying it!
IwishChan: Don't worry, Leggy will get back eventually. He can't stay that way forever. I'm just still working on it... (: