Wounded Warrior (Legolas x OC) [COMPLETED]

Chapter 3: Adventure Beyond the Gates of Rivendell

The Fellowship traveled for many days to reach the Misty Mountains. During one of their stops to rest, Rushil sat on a boulder, sharpening her dagger with a rock. She paused a moment and watched Boromir teach the two younger hobbits swordplay.

"Good, very good," Boromir praised his students as they continued to duel.

Aragorn observed the trio brawl, "Move your feet."

"Stay on your toes," Rushil shouted to them. "Always be watching your enemy for a weakness. Everybody has one."

The hobbits tried her advice and she laughed as they tripped over their feet. Maybe their toes are too big . . . Her eyes shifted to Gimli and Gandalf as they talked, but her concentration fell to Legolas when he sat down beside her.

Rushil held up her dagger and rotated it in the sunlight to observe her work.

"That's a beautiful weapon," Legolas commented, and Rushil let him hold it to further observe the craftsmanship. "Who designed it?"

"Well, with the help of Lord Elrond, I did."

Legolas eyed her with surprise, "You forged this?"

Rushil nodded and took the dagger back, turning it in her hands. "It took some time, but he taught me how to forge, and how to carve my own arrows. With his teaching, I now have a fine dagger, and some of the best arrows in all Middle Earth."

Their conversation stopped as something in the expanse of the sky caught their attention and they stood for a better look. "Did you see that too?" Legolas asked.

Rushil jumped on nearby rocks to reach a large boulder so as to gain an improved view and the other elf followed. She squinted and turned all her senses to her eyes, "What do you think it is?"

Legolas shook his head to say he wasn't sure. There seems to be a dark mass in the sky coming over where they rested, but its movement made Rushil uneasy.

Sam—one of the hobbits who seemed very attached to Frodo—asked, "What is that?"

"Nothing, it's just a wisp of cloud," Gimli replied with full confidence.

"It's moving fast," Boromir commented, "against the wind."

Rushil suddenly caught full sight of the moving figure. She looked at Legolas with immediate concern, "Everyone find cover!"

"Crebain from Dunland!" he shouted and grabbed Rushil's arm, pulling her down from the rock.

"Hide!" Aragorn ordered and Rushil was stowed behind a boulder, waiting as the others hid as well. She held her breath as the group of birds circled their hiding places, barely noticing how her body rested against Legolas's side and that his hand tightly held her own. His presence and touch comforted her as they waited in anticipation to be discovered. The moment never came, much to the Fellowship's relief, and they soon were able to emerge from their hiding places once the Crebain departed.

"Spies of Saruman," Gandalf announced. "Our passage south is being watched. We must take the Pass of Caradhras."

No words passed between the elves concerning the previous occurrence since they both knew of their affection for each other. Rushil separated herself from Legolas as they continued the journey to ponder their relationship as she had for the past century. They had parted ways 60 years ago after defeating Azog, the king of the orcs of Moria, but Rushil had never fully understood why. She thought they decided courtship would destroy the friendship they already had, but perhaps they had deprived themselves of a deeper and sweeter relationship. Had they made a mistake?

The journey to the pass left Rushil plenty of time for thought, but it became increasingly difficult to ignore the cold and wind. Elves were not greatly affected by changes in weather, but Rushil felt the cold pass through her skin and to her core many times as they walked up the slope. She couldn't imagine how cold it was for the others. However cold, Rushil and Legolas had no trouble maneuvering through the snow. Elves were light on the feet, so they barely dented the snow as they walked along its surface easily.