Forgive Me, Mellon-nin

Summary: Legolas sustains a mortal wound the moment after Gandalf falls. Will they reach help in time, or has the elf's time come to an end?

Pairing/s: None.

Warnings: Blood, but not that much.

Disclaimers: I don't own LotR.

-

"Gandalf!"

Frodo's voice echoed between the stones, and Aragorn stood paralysed and watched his friend fall. This was not happening. Legolas pulled his arm, trying to make him move, but the human did not. He did not notice the goblins aim for them; his eyes were fixed on the bridge.

Only when a gasp of pain sounded right next to him did he wake up, only to a new terror. He whipped his head to look at the elf, and the sight made his blood run cold.

An arrow stuck out from the elf's chest. Legolas himself looked at the arrow in almost confusion, blood dripping from his pale lips to his tunic. Aragorn regained his footing and dragged his friend with him up the stairs, out of Moria.

When they came out, Legolas could no longer keep himself on his feet; his knees buckled and the human swiftly pulled the weak Sindar with him. The others were turned away from Moria, away from the sorrow.

"Boromir!" Aragorn screamed. "The bandages; I need them now!"

The other human turned around in confusion but his eyes opened wide at the sight of the bleeding elf. He hurriedly searched through his pack until he came across them. He ran towards the Ranger and now the others turned.

Aragorn was now sitting on the cold rocks, Legolas cradled in his arms. The Sindar's eyes had rolled back, and the body was now slack and lifeless.

"Mellon-nin!" the human shouted to the archer. "Mellon-nin, do not give up!"

Legolas coughed weakly, spraying blood onto his lips and blinked so he could focus on Aragorn.

"Cuamin linduva yassen megrille," the elf said quietly. "I said that… the morning we left Imladris… Forgive me, Estel, for not keeping that promise." (My bow shall sing with your sword.)

"Baw!" Aragorn shouted, making the others flinch as the harsh tone. "You are not going to die!" (No!)

Legolas held a trembling hand against Aragorn's cheek and whispered:

"Namarie, gwador-nin." (Farewell, my brother.)

The hand fell down, and the eyes slipped close as Legolas lost consciousness.

-

The hobbits sat huddled together by the fire as they watched Aragorn sitting by the elf's prone body. They had no idea if the Sindar was still alive; all they knew was that the Ranger refused to leave his friend. Aragorn held the cold hand gently as he checked the wound. Earlier he had removed the arrow and stopped the bleeding as well as he could. He knew Legolas needed to get better treatment, but that treatment was still at least a day's walk away. Lothlórien was the Sindar's only hope now.

Suddenly Legolas' lips moved, and Aragorn perked his head up. He leaned in closer to hear what his friend was saying.

"Estel?"

"It is I," Aragorn reassured and squeezed the elf's hand. Legolas' eyes fluttered open and the others now saw the archer was awake.

"Is he alright?" Pippin asked.

"He needs elvish treatment," the Ranger replied and looked at the hobbit. "Treatment he will soon receive."

The Sindar coughed and opened his mouth again. This time the words came out in Elvish, so quiet that not even Frodo could hear. Only Aragorn could. Surprisingly the question made the Ranger laugh and he replied:

"No, I do not think my dear friend, that you are perfectly fine. That habit of yours you must drop."

Legolas smiled weakly and said:

"'Tis no habit of mine; 'tis purely the truth."

"Hah! When the phrase 'I'm fine' comes out from your mouth, pointy ears, I know there is something deeply wrong," the Ranger huffed. "Now speak no more; rest and save your strength. You will need it."

The Sindar looked at the human and said:

"Hannon le." (Thank you.)

Aragorn said nothing.

-

Legolas bit his lip to keep the gasp of pain inside; Aragorn murmured an apology and shifted his hold. They were soon to enter Lothlórien and the Sindar looked forward to it; the pain was wearing his patience thin and he found it more and more difficult to keep his eyes open.

He closed his eyes and had no strength to open them. He let them be close, his frustration making it only worse. He felt the Ranger's strong heartbeat against his ear and tried to calm his own racing heart to the human's beat. It was not easy as his wound throbbed with pain.

"Estel," he whispered.

"Yes, mellon-nin," he heard Aragorn say.

"It hurts…"

The human looked down at his friend's face and brought the body closer to his chest.

"Hold out," Aragorn soothed. "This will be over soon."

"I fear soon is too far away for me," Legolas murmured, opening his eyes with his last ounce of strength. Aragorn locked eyes with dull blue. "I cannot… hold on, Estel. But I thank you for everything you have ever done for me. I thank you, and will wait for you."

"Legolas, don't you dare die!" The elf's eyes slipped close. "Legolas!"

There was no answer from the Sindar.

-

The Fellowship was running, Aragorn leading despite his burden. The archer could no longer be woken up, and the Ranger feared he was carrying an already dead body. As they ran among the beautiful forest, Aragorn called out a name. For the rest of the Fellowship the name was just a name, but for the Ranger it was a call he hoped the person would reply to. He knew Haldir often guarded Lothlórien and hoped he would do so today as well.

His prayers were answered. As they came to a ring of trees, they were met by an elf. The others stopped in shock, but Aragorn felt hope in his chest.

"Haldir," he panted out.

The blonde elf stared at the lifeless form in the Ranger's arms and then up at Aragorn's face. He did not even react they had a dwarf with them. He did not wonder about the small men, or the other human staring at him.

"This way," he said to the Ranger. "And make haste! My friends will lead your friends."

The two took off, almost in a sprint while other elves entered the clearing.

-

Once the rest of the Fellowship reached Caras Galadhon, they were met by Haldir. The elf took over and led them over to a prepared place for them.

"Rest," he said to them. "The Lady of Light already knows of your arrival, so feel no fear."

"Where is Legolas? Is he alright?" Sam asked.

The blonde elf looked away and replied:

"His strength is one of a kind, but even he fell victim to the goblin's poison. If he lives to morning, he is safe."

He looked at them all, and saw the fear in their eyes. He did not let them see his own fear and left quietly, soon melting into the environment.

-

Legolas opened his eyes. It took him a while to understand what he was seeing but once he did he slowly sat up in the bed. He could hear elves singing amongst the great trees, and turned to his left.

Aragorn was asleep, looking very uncomfortable in the chair. His face was worn and he had dark rings under his eyes. Legolas touched the bandaged chest gingerly and looked up once more. Breathing no longer hurt, and he took an extra deep one and closed his eyes.

"'Las!"

He turned back to the Ranger, who was now awake and stared at him.

"I shall not say I'm fine, Estel," Legolas said with a hint of a smile, "but I dare say I feel much better than before."

Aragorn got up and sat down on the elf's bedside.

"You nearly died," the Ranger said. "And all because I did not follow you, back in Moria."

"You saw something we never thought we would see," Legolas said. "As for getting my injury, the fault was my own. I was not paying attention to the goblins."

But Aragorn shook his head and said:

"Your shift of attention was because of me, elf! Forgive me!"

Legolas looked at the upset human, and calmly hit him over the head. Aragorn looked bewildered at his friend who said:

"If you ever try to apologize for my own foolishness, you will receive more than a hit. I made a mistake, and that is all. I have not died and despite what I deliriously said to you I do not plan to die anytime soon."

Aragorn bowed his head and fought back his tears.

"You will be the death of me, pointy ears," he finally said, choking back a sob.

"And you will be the one who finally makes my patience snap," Legolas huffed. "I am alright now, so stop your crying and act like yourself! What will Elrohir and Elladan say about this?"

Aragorn whipped his head up and warned:

"Not a word to them."

"Oh, why not?"

"Then I shall tell them about your foolishness."

"As good as it sounds, they are too used to my foolishness to even be surprised."

Aragorn glared at his friend, who only smiled mischievously at him. Then they heard steps and soon the Fellowship came, all with relieved faces. As they saw Legolas and Aragorn bicker with each other, they knew everything was well.

End

Rather similar to The Death of an Elf, but it still had its own charming side. I wrote this in like a half-hour so don't expect too much of it.

Until another time,

Ja,

Tiro