Title: "After the Wars"
Author: BalianswordChapter: 3, "The Scars of War"
The screams he could hear in his head were enough to awaken him. His cerulean eyes opened and he quickly scanned the room. He immediately reached out for a weapon but did not have one when he saw the ranger. He swallowed and pushed his back against the wall as Aragorn stood.
He recognized him but could not help but fear him at the same time. He trusted no one now. The only thing that his brain would tell him was to defend, then attack. As Aragorn came closer Legolas felt his hands clench. With nothing in them he knew that only a furry of punches would protect him.
Aragorn knelt down in front of him. He was far enough away that Legolas did not lash out. Yet if he moved Legolas knew that he would probably kick him as a reaction –even if he may not want to. All he knew now was how to fight. The ranger sat before him and stared at him. Legolas met his dark eyes with his own and stopped moving. He recognized him.
It is Aragorn, his mind told him. He will not hurt you. He is your friend. He will not hurt you. He wanted badly to believe what his mind told him. Instead he pushed his back even closer to the wall.
"Legolas," Aragorn whispered as he leaned closer to the elf. He reached out with a hand and Legolas slapped it away as quickly as a cat. The elf had lunged forward and was back in place before Aragorn could blink. Aragorn watched Legolas for a moment before he reached out again.
Again Legolas lunged forward and this time punched him in the side of the face instead of shoving his arm away. Instead of giving him time to sit back again Aragorn got closer. Aragorn grabbed one of Legolas' arms as he tried to hit him. Because of his position against the wall Aragorn had the upper hand, because he could move, whereas Legolas had to remain where he was.
When he grabbed the other arm Legolas tried to pull away. When he was unable to he kneed Aragorn in the gut. Aragorn let out a breath of air. Legolas kicked him again and tried to stand. Aragorn pulled him down before he could stand. The elf still struggled even though Aragorn tried to calm him.
"Legolas,'' he called out. He still held both of the elf's wrists. The elf pushed his back against the wall and tried to kick Aragorn once more. When he was unable to he resulted to using his head. He head butted Aragorn hard enough to make the king feel slightly dizzy. Yet the blow forced more injury upon Legolas than it did the ranger.
When pulling his head back he hit the base of his skull against the wall. He cried out and began to sink back against the wall. This gave Aragorn a chance to lean closer. He forced his arms around Legolas. Even though the elf hit him hard with his fists on the back he held on.
"Legolas," he said into the elf's ear, "I am not going to hurt you. I'm not going to hurt you. You're safe, I won't hurt you."
He must have repeated it five times before Legolas let his hands fall to the floor. His breath came out in hard gasps of breath. Aragorn let a little space come between them. As he reached for Legolas' neck, the elf wrapped a hand around his wrist, just to let him know that he would not be afraid to fight him. Aragorn silently put a finger on a vein in Legolas' neck and lightly pressed down upon it to check his heart rate.
"What have they done to you," Aragorn whispered as he stared into Legolas' cerulean orbs. Legolas breathed deeply in and closed his eyes for a moment. His head spun from the hit to the back of his head. It was truly self inflicted but he had only been trying to protect himself like he had being doing since he had been captured.
"Don't let them take me back," Legolas whispered. His eyes then closed and his head tilted back. Aragorn picked him up in his arms and brought him back to the bed. The first thing he knew that he must do was to get him something to drink, and to eat, for he could feel his ribs through his clothes.
Legolas lay with his head tilted back. Aragorn noted that this position eased the elf's lungs. It was easier for him to breathe this way so Aragorn did not try to move him. Instead he got up and went to get some water. He came back, with a pitcher and a cup, and sat down next to the bed.
Legolas heard him enter and had already turned his head. His eyes opened halfway before he closed them once more. Aragorn filled the cup with water and then picked up Legolas' hand. He put Legolas' hand under his so that he too may steady the cup. The then pressed the cup against Legolas' lips.
"Drink," Aragorn said quietly. Legolas moved his head away at first but Aragorn steadied his head with a hand so that he could not move. "You must drink my friend."
Legolas managed to swallow a mouthful of water. He tried to drink more but ended up coughing. Aragorn took the cup away. He then took Legolas' hand in his own. He badly wanted him to recover, but he knew what the physicians had said, and now that he saw him he believed them.
"Stop watching me," the elf whispered suddenly. "I can hear everything when I sleep. Even your breathing keeps me from awakening."
"I thought you were dead," Aragorn admitted. "I should never have let the gates shut, never, without you. For the longest time I believed you were well. But then, one day, it was as if everyone knew. Legolas, can you ever forgive me?"
Legolas let his eyes open even though it sent pain throughout his body. He stared at the face of the ranger. He looked at the stubble around his face, his dark eyes, and his soft lips. He also had the highest cheekbones of any mortal Legolas could remember seeing. The elf nodded softly and began to close his eyes.
"When was the last time you slept," Aragorn asked. "Or is the pain too intense for you to stay awake?"
"I never sleep," the elf replied with a whisper. "The pain never stops."
"I have medicine," Aragorn told him. Legolas did not reply. He let his eyes close and his world fade away to blackness. Aragorn stayed by his side for hours before Legolas opened his eyes again. When the elf opened his eyes he pulled quickly away as he had done before. This time he stopped before he fell from the bed. He stared at Aragorn for a moment.
"You are the one that needs to sleep," Legolas told him as he let his eyes open. Pain was sent through his entire body. He moved his head and the pain was enough to make him feel like vomiting. Since there was no food in his stomach it would be rather pointless though.
The elf then looked down at his body. He touched his tattered vest. He then reached up to his throat. In the instant that he touched the most recent of his cuts it began to bleed. Legolas withdrew his fingers, his hand shaking, and looked at the blood.
"I will get you some clean clothing," Aragorn said. Legolas only nodded and Aragorn went to the dresser. He pulled out a pair of dark brown leather pants and a white shirt. The king then returned and sat down next to Legolas. "Promise not to hit me."
Legolas nodded. The ranger then reached out and touched the tattered bloodied rag that Legolas wore for a shirt. Aragorn then pulled the sheet away from Legolas' body. He stood, deciding that Legolas would want to bathe first, and put out a hand which the elf took without hesitation.
Aragorn helped him into the room. As he filled the tub with water from a nearby pond Legolas looked in the mirror. He touched his cheek, staring at what he had become. He had never been vain, but this was enough to make him feel like dying would be the best thing for him.
"Come," Aragorn said when he saw the horror in Legolas' eyes. "It is not as bad as you think. Most of it will wash away."
If only he had known. Legolas came closer. He was still so weak that he had to keep a hand on the wall so that he did not fall down. Aragorn carefully united the few pieces of fabric that held the elf's shirt together. He then let it fall to the floor. Burning it would not be a bad idea. Then he looked down.
The horror was now in his eyes. Scars covered Legolas' entire chest. The ranger could not help but reach out and touch the scar that ran from the top of his ribcage to the bottom diagonally across his chest. The cut had been deep and had created a fleshy scar larger than all of the rest. The cut had needed stitches. The ranger could tell this by looking at the way the scar had healed. There had also been an infection.
"I had a fever," Legolas said as if he were reading his thoughts. "For days I thought that I would die. I think they did too. They had me fight orc after orc in those days."
"Fevers drive men mad," Aragorn said to himself. He continued to touch the scars on Legolas' chest. He then touched a scar that he followed from the middle of his lower torso to halfway across his back. Legolas had bruises on his back and Aragorn lightly touched one. The elf drew in a pained breath.
"Forgive me," Aragorn whispered. He looked at one bruise. It was the size of a plate. It was also the deepest purple Aragorn had ever seen on a living being. Around the edges it was green. It reminded his of a rotten plum. The ranger went back to Legolas' chest.
"It's just a body," Legolas said quietly. "Nothing more."
"It is not your body that I worry about," the ranger admitted. Legolas did not reply. Instead he glanced at the cool water and then at Aragorn. "I will be just outside. Call me if you need anything."
Legolas nodded. As soon as Aragorn had left the room he stripped from the rest of his clothing and climbed into the tub. He let the water soothe his aches. He leaned his neck against the ledge of the tub and slowly closed his eyes. Every noise in the room he could hear, yet he wanted to hear nothing. He remembered the blows that would cause him to black out, and remembered them fondly, because there would be nothing. It would all go silent and black.
Aragorn had changed the sheets of the bed. It had taken him some time. He went to the door of the bathing room and knocked softly. There was no response from within so Aragorn knocked again, only this time louder. When Legolas did not respond he opened the door.
He rushed into the room and quickly grabbed Legolas' shoulders. He pulled his head from the water and brushed the wet blond hair away from his face. Before he could register mouth to mouth Legolas' lips parted.
"Let me go," he said as his head fell back. "It's too loud and too bright. Just let me go Aragorn, and all will be fine. It's too late, I am already gone."
xii