Book 2: Where They Are Going [Legolas]

Chapter 14

The throne room had been converted into a healing quarters. The villagers left the caves to roam about the streets and helped to salvage the Keep, while those injured were carted inside. Women young and old were hard at work rushing about to those lying on the ground when the two entered.

"Let's hope we can find someone," Gimli mumbled.

As a mother and daughter passed he quickly caught their attention and motioned towards Linnéa. Their eyes widened at the sight of her. Ushering her through the room and down a hall she was given private quarters to undress away from the others. Gimli further explained that an explosion threw her from the wall and to check to be sure nothing was broken earning a,

"You're such a mother hen sometimes," from the princess.

"Just do as yer told, milady," Gimli ordered. "I will find Aragorn and let him know where you are."

The door closed behind him as the daughter rushed off to find what was needed to treat the young woman. The mother looked to Linnéa unsure at first where to begin. There was so much blood on her it was rather intimidating.

"We should remove your armor," the woman stated.

Normally Linnéa would just perform the task herself, but didn't stop the mother from helping. She didn't want to come off as rude. As the weight was lifted, the shifting on her body made the sore spots become more noticeable. The daughter came back moments later as the chainmail was tugged off.

"Clean away the side of her face and let's see how bad it really is," the woman said.

Linnéa then saw her reflection in the water basin brought in. The sight was pretty terrible. The young woman couldn't remember a time looking so devilish and bloody. She could now partially understand Legolas's concern with the visible wound. The streams of blood even disappeared beneath the armor running down the side of the neck to stain the shirt underneath.

The princess sat on a stool so she was at the same height as the young girl. The villager tried to be as gentle as possible. Though it was difficult to see the cut for a long while due to the amount of blood. Her efforts earned a few hisses from the pressure applied. The daughter apologized profusely, but it was all brushed off. Linnéa knew she wasn't doing it on purpose.

"It's amazing that it's still bleeding a bit," the mother stated once it had all been cleared away. "We will need to stitch it shut."

The pain that followed was almost worse than receiving it. They presented no drink to cause her mind to go fuzzy in order to ignore the pain. Or relax as best she could. A few Dwarvish curses escaped her lips every now and again, gripping the wooden bed frame beside them. It was the only thing she had to hold onto, knuckles turning white. The treatment felt like hours passed before the woman finished, cleaning the tender skin once more to be sure it wouldn't become infected.

"You will need a proper bath when we return to Edoras," the mother said. "Now let us see what we're working with under that clothing."

They stripped the princess down to the wrap around her breasts and short pants that only came to the top of the thighs allowing them to look over her body. Both pairs of eyes went wide seeing the back. The skin had completely discolored, ranging in various hues from purple, to blue, to yellow, to red. Hitting the stairs made its mark. There was a similar bruise on the right shoulder from the fall to the ground, but thankfully it was smaller in size.

"How bad is it?" Linnéa asked when the silence stretched on.

"I am amazed you are standing, milady," the woman answered truthfully.