Vicious || Legolas

Twenty four

"Namir, Radag, you're unharmed. It is alright". Namir came aware to the scent of grass and blood and river. There were other scents tangled in that, wood and Legolas' elf scent, but those three were the most prominent. As he breathed, he could hear the creak of sails and the hollow noise of waves lapping at the side of the boat. He blinked open his eyes, head aching like he had hollowed it out and a dry emptiness in his lungs.

Legolas was leaning over him, golden blonde hair glinting in the weak sunlight. Spots of blue peaking through the clouds above them and casting the prince's face in shadow. Still, Namir could see the smile blooming as the elf smoothed some hair out of his face. "Miog", Legolas breathed as the skin-changer sat up. "You had me worried. Agorel Vae. You have made me so proud".

"Oh", Namir breathed as the elf pressed a gentle kiss to his forehead. For some reason he felt like crying and tears built in his eyes. He barely ever cried. He hated the feeling, the vulnerability yet there was a need to weep as everything he had been ignoring hit him at once. Things had been good since he was freed. He had been getting better and other than the night terrors he had been fine. What had happened in the mountain was not fine and he felt as weak as he was when he was back in that cell. "I'm sorry".

"There's nothing to apologise for", Legolas murmured against his temple. "You were so brave". Namir let out a deep shuddering breath as he relaxed into the elf's hold. Hugging the blonde back with a fierce need to feel his warmth.

Footsteps alerted them both to Gimli's arrival. Neither moved much, other than to pull back slightly to face the dwarf. Gimli was paler the normal, obviously affected by the whole ghost experience too. He sat down heavily on a rock in the grass at their side and gazed down the slope of the base of the mountain to the grey river below. They were still high up enough to look down stream to the white city of Gondor in the distance. "You feeling better lad?" He asked as he stuck his pipe in his mouth, not lighting it but merely holding it. "Gave us a right scare when you dropped like that".

"Yes", Namir nodded. One hand reached up to massage the scars on his neck soothingly. "I don't really like spaces where I can't see the sun anymore. Sorry, I doubt I will be visiting Erebor any time soon".

"Aye", Gimli sighed, then chuckled. "Though after the incident with the Arken stone, several dwarfs still hate you. King Fili likes you though, since you saved his and Kili's lives after all. maybe stay in Dale if you ever visit. They would be glad to know that you're alive".

"If my father lets me out of his sight anytime in the next couple of hundred years", Namir muttered.

"We need to destroy the ring before we can go home", Legolas reminded.

"I still don't understand that thing", he scowled. "Why is war always fought over jewels and jewellery? My race was never like that".

"Yes yes", the dwarf grumbled, rolling his eyes. "Skin-changers were very peaceful". Legolas hummed as he began to undo the tangled remains of Namir's long braid. The older huffing as he turned around to face out over the plains below as a comb began to fight it's way through his dark waves.

"I never said we were peaceful. Just that we didn't have war in the same way you lot have it. From what my father told me, our race was divided into clans based on our animals. We don't start shifting until we are around five or so and our bodies are able to take the change. Before them, we can be any animal and our eyes would change between them. But it is common for animals to run in families".

"So you could have been a bear like Iar Brog ?" The elf asked, fingers moving smoothly. Namir had been debating about cutting his hair back to it's original length but Legolas seemed to love braiding it. He knew that hair braiding was important in elf culture. So maybe he would keep it long. He was starting to enjoy these close moments of calm like this.