Chapter Forty Seven

Legolas moved away from the tree and walked toward his long-time friend, the grin still on his face. He abruptly stopped, when he saw the worried look on the man’s face. The elf was confused. If there was something amiss, why had Estel been smiling at him just now? His own smile quickly faded. “Estel? What is wrong?”

“Legolas, you’re walking without your crutches. Ada will lecture you senseless, if he catches you like this.” He looked around quickly, thinking to grab the crutches and push them under Legolas‘s arms before someone saw him and told Elrond. He did not see them lying nearby. “Where did you put them?”

Legolas watched the ranger’s near frantic effort to locate the two wooden supports and couldn’t help but laugh. He put his hand on the man‘s shoulder and turned him so that they were facing each other. “Estel, ever my protector. Thank you, mellon nin, but this time your worry is unfounded.” With that he stepped back and lifted his left leg straight out in front of him for the ranger to inspect.

When Aragorn looked down, his frown turned to a smile. “The splint is gone.” He narrowed his eyes in mock suspicion, then said, “Ada removed it, I trust?”

“Oh yes. I would never try to do that myself. As you just stated so eloquently, I do not wish to be lectured senseless. My ankle is quite mended.”

“Does it bother you at all to walk on it?” Both the healer and the concerned friend merged in Aragorn at that moment.

“Not really. Elrond will not let me ride just yet, so Elenblaith and I have been walking for the last hour. There is a bit of discomfort---very mild discomfort---from working muscles that have not been used much lately. But, Elrond said that walking would soon correct that. My foot does not bother me at all.”

Aragorn nodded. “Ada is a very wise healer.”

“It is good for me that he is.” Legolas’s countenance took on a more serious look. “I can never thank him enough for what he has done for me, not just now but all the times in the past, when he had to put me back together.”

Aragorn nodded again. “You and me both. He has done more for me than I can ever repay him for, starting with taking me in to raise, when I was a child. As a father, he neither expects nor wants any kind of thanks, of course.”

“But, the thought is always there in your mind just the same,” Legolas stated, understanding completely. “Since he never wants anything in return, I will always try to honor my debt to him by helping others in ways other than that of a healer, which I am not.”

Aragorn tilted his head and seemed to appraise the elf. “I don’t know. You could probably become a very good healer given time and effort. You always put good effort into whatever you do. And, we both know you definitely have the time,” the man added with a laugh, teasing the elf about his immortality for the ten thousandth time, at least.

Legolas couldn‘t deny the truth of that last statement. “However, my skills lie elsewhere, Estel, as you well know. I will use my bow, my knives and my skills as a warrior to provide what assistance I can to whomever may need it.”

Aragorn smiled. “And, they are lucky to get that assistance, mellon nin. It has cerainly saved my own hide often enough.”

The two friends stood and stared into each other’s eyes for several moments. A world of silent communication passed between the two. They understood each other so well. They each were thankful that the other was in their life. Friendships as deep and true as theirs were rare, and they were both thankful that that realization allowed them to fully appreciate it.

As they stood seemingly transfixed, a warm gust of wind blew up around them. When a section of Legolas’s hair blew into his eyes, the spell was broken. He grabbed the wayward hair and tucked it behind his left ear. It was so thick that it didn’t all fit, and the wind soon had it flying loose again. “When I return to my room, I will have to rebraid this mess,” he declared with exasperation. His eyes were following the blowing strands, giving him an almost cross-eyed look.

Aragorn didn’t dare say anything in the way of an insult, because his own unruly hair was blowing in his face. Legolas’s hair was almost always neat and well-groomed. Where the ranger was concerned, however, unruly hair was a normal occurrence.

“Do you feel like walking some more, or would you rather sit for a while?” With a nod, Aragorn indicated a stone bench sitting just off the path in the shade. It looked most inviting, but he would do whatever Legolas had in mind to do.

Legolas didn’t hesitate. “Let us walk. I have been still for much too long recently.”

“Then, walk it is,” Aragorn said.

The two friends left the sunshine and walked toward the heart of the garden. Due to the large trees, the sun was forced to filter through the new green leaves of spring. Dappled patterns were formed on the stone pathways and on the surrounding grass. When the branches waved in the wind, the patterns shifted constantly, forming different designs, as sunlight and shadow chased each other over the ground.

It was the caress of the wind on his skin that brought another smile to the elf’s face. “It is so beautiful here,” he said wistfully, sounding like the words were aimed at no one in particular.

“Yes, it is,” the ranger agreed. “Many of my fondest memories are of this garden.” Aragorn seemed as lost in the beauty and wonder of the Imladris gardens as the elf was.

The man suddenly stopped. After a couple of steps, the elf stopped, as well. He looked back at the man with an inquiring gaze.

“It was right there.” Aragorn pointed to a spot a few feet ahead of where they stood. “Right there under that tree.” There was no mistaking the certainty in the man’s voice.

Legolas stared at the spot and then at the man. “What was right there?”

“Don’t you remember? It was right there that you finally caught a ten year old human child and made him understand that you would not eat him.”

Legolas burst out laughing. “So, it is. You were so young I am surprised you would remember the exact place. And, I am glad you finally believed that I would not do such a thing to you.”

“I never told you this, but after you left, I used to come to this spot and think about when I would see you again.”

“You did?” Legolas was obviously surprised by Aragorn’s confession.

“I did. I had been around elves almost as long as I could remember, but you were different.”

Legolas frowned. “That can be a bad thing,” he mused.

The man smiled at his friend, sincerity shining in his eyes. “Not in this case. You made quite an impression on me.”

“I never knew that,” Legolas said softly. When they had met again, seven years later, Estel had not mentioned his previous impression of the woodland prince. By then he was almost grown and had not wanted to say anything that might point toward any type of veneration.

“I used to think of you, too, Estel. I often wondered if those rapscallion brothers of yours had managed to convince you that I really did want to eat you. After all, I was no longer around to defend myself. I never had observed a human go from a child to an adult, or near adult, and so I was so surprised at how grown up you were, when I saw you again, that I never thought to ask.”

“They did try a few times, but I wouldn’t listen to them. They finally gave up. You know, we never have paid my brothers back for making me think you would eat me, if given half a chance.” He looked at the elf with a mischievous grin. “We should do some thinking about the perfect prank to get them back. They should not get away with what they did to us.”

Aragorn had two reasons for saying what he did. First, he wanted to make the twins pay and pay dearly. Second, he wanted to try and distract Legolas from thinking about all that had befallen him recently. The archer appeared to be his old self right now, but Aragorn knew those horrific memories could never be completely banished. He just hoped that they could be pushed so far into the background that they would never surface again.

Legolas smiled to himself. He knew exactly what the ranger was trying to do, and he appreciated it. Besides, the twins did need to be made to regret what they had done all those years ago. It was something that he and Estel would have to ponder further. Right now, however, the only thing Legolas wanted to do was enjoy the peace and beauty of the garden and the companionship of his best friend.

The elf moved on down the path, and Aragorn was right beside him. Neither spoke for a long time until they came to Legolas’s favorite tree. It was the largest one in the garden, growing very close to the center. It was an ancient oak and the one that the wood elf loved most to climb. He stopped beneath it.

At first, Aragorn couldn’t understand why Legolas just stood and stared up into its broad leafy branches. He opened his mouth to ask, when it dawned on him that if Elrond had told Legolas not to ride, he most assuredly had told him not to climb. The man put his hand on Leoglas’s shoulder. “Do not worry, mellon nin. It will not be long before you will be scampering around up there in those branches.”

Legolas turned his head and looked at the human with a frown on his fair face. “I do not scamper,” he declared with indignation.

“Pardon me, woodland prince,” Aragorn said with a mocking bow of his head. “I should have said---romp, perhaps?”

Legolas’s expression did not change. “I do not romp, either.”

“You...?”

“I simply climb and commune.”

“Yes, of course.” Aragorn laughed. “Well, you will be climbing soon, I‘m sure. As for communing, you can do that from here.” The man smiled encouragingly. “Really. I don’t mind waiting.”

Legolas debated for a moment. With almost anyone else, he would have declined, not wanting to appear rude by going off to be with a tree and leaving that person alone on the path. But with Estel, he felt so comfortable, he knew his actions would not produce any kind of resentment. Still, he said, “For only a moment.”

The ranger nodded and walked to another nearby bench, this one a smooth, carved wooden one, and sat down. He picked up a twig lying on the grass just at the edge of the path. Earlier he had observed mud on his boots from the recent rains, so this would be the perfect opportunity to get rid of the mud before he tracked it into the house. He laughed to himself, thinking he also did not want to be lectured senseless. He well remembered Elrond saying on numerous occasions, “Do not track mud into the house, Estel.“

Chuckling at the memory, the man lifted his right foot and rested it across his left knee and then began digging the mud from around the soul of his boot. He became so engrossed in the task that all else left his mind.

Legolas walked over to the large oak tree and stood beneath its sheltering branches. He longed to leap up and nestle in the comforting foliage, but he was still determined not to break his promise to Elrond. With a sigh he approached the large trunk, closed his eyes and placed the palms of his hands on the rough bark.

The elf was confused when there was no response whatsoever to his touch. He opened his eyes and stared at the bark close to his face. Tilting his head, he again closed his eyes and called to the giant oak. There was still no response.

Legolas then stepped back and let is hands fall to his sides. Looking up into the green and brown expanse soaring above him, he asked softly, “What is wrong, my friend? Why do you not speak to me?” There was a plaintive plea in his voice. He could not remember ever having a living tree refuse to answer his call.

Hoping for an answer, the elf again put his hands on the dark trunk. This time there was a response to his touch, though it was far from what the archer was expecting. The tree shuddered, as if responding to something vile it had encountered.

This time Legolas jumped back in shock. He had felt the tree’s inner cry of fear and loathing. The feeling of revulsion had swept through the elf’s body to his very soul. He didn’t understand the tree’s almost violent reaction to his touch. He stared uncomprehendingly.

After a few moments of bewilderment, Legolas reached out and placed his hands against the tree once more. He tensed up, anticipating yet fearing that he would get the same reaction as before. He did, much to his chagrin.

Backing away slowly, the elf hung his head and said sadly, “I am sorry. I will not touch you again.” He couldn’t bring himself to cause this old giant further distress. Turning, he looked into the other trees surrounding him and felt their fear. It was his turn to shudder.

He stood, trying to work his mind through the puzzle of why the tree would display fear at his touch. With a sudden horror that almost knocked the elf to his knees, Legolas knew the answer.

“Of course, you know the answer, little prince. The tree fears YOU.”

Legolas cried out in shock and horror. He put both of his hands against his ears, trying to block out the sound of the dark elf’s voice. Amid the swirling emotions in his head, he was vaguely aware that it would be a futile gesture.

When Legolas felt a hand on his shoulder, he jumped back and let out a gasp of surprise. He lifted his head and found himself staring into the concerned eyes of his friend.

“Legolas, what’s the matter? Have you hurt yourself?” The ranger had turned his head and looked toward Legolas, when he heard his friend cry out. Seeing the elf in obvious distress had brought the man running.

Aragorn had to bite the inside of his lip to keep his face from reflecting the shock and fear he saw in his friend’s eyes. He took hold of each of Legolas’s arms and pulled them down away from his head. “Talk to me, Legolas. What’s happened?”

The elf did not answer immediately, however Mordraug did. “Go ahead and tell him, princeling. He will certainly believe you when you say I am here in your mind. Your mood swings and the fact the trees fear you are all perfectly reasonable things for a human to understand. So, tell him.” The words were challenging and accompanied by maniacal laughter.

Legolas tried to turn away, but Aragorn still held his arms tightly and did not slacken his grip. “Legolas, talk to me,” he repeated more firmly.

Legolas turned his head aside. He could not bear to let the man see his fear. Yet, he knew it was already too late. So, he turned his head back and looked deep into the eyes of his friend and said, “I am going insane, Estel.”

TBC