Aragorn and the dwarves rode as fast as their horses could go. The waterfall wasn't very far ahead, and they were terrified that the elf had already gone over it.

"There it is!" Bari suddenly shouted.

Aragorn spurred his horse on faster, his heart nearly matching its speed. They caught up to the barrel and rode past it, hearing the loud, ominous sound of the huge waterfall, which the barrel had nearly reached.

Dismounting, Aragorn quickly ran to the edge, with the dwarves right beside him. He watched as the barrel got closer and he prepared to grab the rope that trailed behind it, but a sudden huge splash abruptly sprayed water in his face. Re-opening his eyes, he saw the two dwarves in the river, triumphantly holding onto the rope…as the barrel pulled them towards the waterfall.

When the dwarves realized that they were about to go over, they tried to swim and pull the barrel to shore, but it was too late.

Jari looked at Aragorn, who was now running along the shore. "Help?" the dwarf squeaked, just before going over the falls…brother, barrel, and all.

Aragorn ran down the hill as fast as he could, praying that Legolas and the foolish dwarves had survived. When he reached the bottom, he found the dwarves pulling a very cracked barrel to shore. They were both coughing and wincing, but their main focus was the elf still within the barrel.

"Open it!" Aragorn shouted, while they were still in the lake. "He may be drowning!" If he is still alive…

The dwarves looked at the barrel, realizing that the way Legolas was squished in there, his head might indeed be under water.

Aragorn jumped into the lake and helped them yank the rope off, before removing the cover and pulling the elf out.

Legolas was limp and unresponsive, his eyes closed.

The sight of his obviously injured friend sent fear stabbing through Aragorn's heart, and he quickly pulled the elf to shore and laid him on the grass, checking for a pulse. He found it and closed his eyes, hanging his head with relief.

"No!" Bari exclaimed, misinterpreting Aragorn's action. "He cannot be dead!"

Aragorn looked at him as he began examining the elf. "He lives."

Both dwarves sighed with relief, dropping to sit on the ground.

Aragorn listened to his friend's lungs, hearing some water within. He quickly checked his friend for broken bones, before grabbing the elf and carefully rolling him onto his right side. "Fetch me some tree branches," he told the dwarves.

Jari and Bari both winced at the realization that the elf had obviously obtained a broken bone. They obeyed, rushing into the woods.

Aragorn felt along his friend's back, ensuring that there was no damage before he firmly slapped it.

Legolas immediately woke, coughing on water.

"You are safe, mellon-nin," Aragorn said, pushing hair out of the elf's face. "You are safe now."

Legolas opened his eyes for a second, closing them again as he continued coughing.

The dwarves ran out of the woods, their arms overflowing with sticks. They left a trail of fallen ones as they ran, and they dumped them all in Aragorn's lap before throwing themselves beside Legolas.

"Forgive us!" Bari yelled. "Please forgive us, Legolas!"

"It was meant as a jest!" Jari said. "We did not know that the rope would break!"

Legolas, wincing openly at the pain that filled his body, didn't quite understand the dwarves. "What?" he asked.

"Not now!" Aragorn told them. "Fetch me my healing bag!"

Jari rose to obey, taking the bag off Aragorn's horse and dragging it over.

The human gently rolled Legolas onto his back again, gently picking up the elf's right arm.

Legolas closed his eyes, biting his lip to stop a cry of pain from passing his lips. It was obvious that his arm was broken, and he wasn't surprised at all that it was the one that had been twisted behind himself.

"Legolas?" said Aragorn, feeling the break and preparing to set it. "Did this happen from the waterfall, or sometime sooner?"

"Waterfall," Legolas replied, eyes still closed.

Aragorn was relieved that it wasn't an 'old' injury, and he pulled on the elf's arm and twisted it slightly to put it back in its proper place.

Legolas was unable to hold in a cry of pain that time; it was magnified by the excruciating pain of the cramped muscles and it stole the breath from his lungs, forcing him to gasp.

Aragorn shot worried looks at his friend as he splinted the arm and wrapped it. It frightened him to see that Legolas hadn't moved any part of his body in all this time. "Do you have any numbness?" he asked, nervously praying that the elf's back or neck hadn't been injured. "Can you feel all of your limbs?"

Can I feel my limbs…ai, I wish that I could not! Legolas thought. "Yes…unfortunately."

Aragorn realized the problem, and he checked the elf for broken bones again now that he was awake and could speak. "Where is the worst of your pain?"

The dwarves watched anxiously, looking extremely upset over what they had caused.

Legolas sighed, assessing himself. "Head and arm. The rest are mere bruises."

Aragorn felt his friend's ribs, making the elf flinch. "Mere bruises?"

Legolas gave no reply, blinking his eyes.

Aragorn reached over and gently turned the elf's head, looking into his eyes. The pupils were dilated, and he gently probed the darkening bruise on his friend's forehead, making sure that his skull wasn't fractured. "Is your vision blurred?"

"A little," Legolas admitted, wincing at his friend's touch.

Aragorn felt the rest of the elf's skull, finding a lump on the back. I knew he hit his head when they dropped him out the window… "Are you nauseated?"

"Only slightly," Legolas answered, eyes closed again.

Aragorn took a canteen out of his healing bag and poured some into a cup, dropping three different leaves in. "Here," he said, sliding an arm under his friend and sitting him up high enough to drink.

Legolas winced from the movement, obediently drinking the herbs.

After the elf finished, Aragorn put the cup down, still holding Legolas up. "Do you think that you can walk?" he asked. "Can you move your limbs?"

Legolas really didn't want to try, and he despised the dwarves witnessing his obvious weakness. He was able to move his unbroken arm, but his legs had been folded so awkwardly in the barrel that they were throbbing unmercifully.

"Why can't he move!" Bari exclaimed; panicked at seeing the terrible effects of what they'd done to the poor elf.

Aragorn shot them an exasperated look. "Does he really look as if he fit in that barrel?"

The dwarves looked even more upset at themselves.

"Come, mellon-nin," said Aragorn. "Let's get you back to Lake Town." He slid his other arm under the elf's knees and carried him over to his horse.

Legolas submitted, having no choice.

The human commanded both steeds to kneel, and he mounted, watching the dwarves do the same.

Legolas sighed with relief as they galloped off, and he fell asleep without even realizing that his friend had given him a sleeping herb.

TBC
:)