Disclaimer: I don’t own Legolas, Aragorn, Gimli, or Faramir.

 

"Legolas! Gimli! It is wonderful to see you!"

Legolas halted his horse, smiling at Aragorn as he and the dwarf dismounted. "Likewise, mellon-nin!"

Gimli jumped heavily to the ground, throwing a wary glare at the horse before greeting his human friend. "It has been too long, laddie! Is it time to eat?"

Aragorn smiled, clasping his friend's shoulders as they turned towards Gondor's palace. "Indeed it is! After you freshen yourselves up, meet me in the dining hall."

"We certainly will!" said Gimli. "I am so hungry that I could eat a horse!"

An indignant whinny suddenly came from Legolas' steed, as if he understood the dwarf's words.

Gimli grumbled something under his breath that Aragorn couldn't hear.

Legolas saw the human's puzzlement. "A story that will be shared over dinner, my friend! Won't it, Gimli?"

"I have no doubt that it will!" said the dwarf, sarcastically, as he headed down the corridor.

Aragorn watched the two of them walk away, and he shook his head with amusement as he headed off to the dining hall.

 

********************

Gimli reached the dining hall before Legolas, running into the room quickly.

"You must truly be as hungry as you said!" Aragorn exclaimed.

Gimli smiled, stopping at the table and catching his breath. "I wanted to get here before Legolas."

"Why is that?"

Gimli shrugged as he walked past Legolas' seat, and accidentally knocking a fork off the table.

Aragorn bent down to pick it up, and when he sat up again, Gimli was tucking something into his pocket and passing Aragorn, to sit on the king's left. Before he could ask Gimli what he had, Legolas came into the room.

"Could you have been any slower, elf?" said Gimli, jokingly trying to bait him.

Legolas smiled, ignoring the dwarf as he looked at the food.

"How was your journey?" Aragorn asked.

"Uneventful," said Legolas, choosing a piece of chicken.

They made small talk for a few minutes, before Gimli picked up his goblet of wine. "No ale?" he complained, taking a sip.

"Wine is much better than ale!" said Legolas.

"Especially elvish wine," said Aragorn.

Legolas looked up at him. "This is elvish?"

Aragorn smiled. "Of course! Elvish drink for my elvish friend."

"Ah!" Legolas said, raising his goblet. "I shall consume this wine with joy!"

Gimli snorted, having laced the elf's drink with a sleeping herb.

Aragorn looked between the two, realizing what Gimli had sneakily done while he'd picked up the dwarf's fallen fork. "Legolas...I don't know if you want to drink that."

But it was too late; Legolas downed the wine in one swallow, attempting to show-off to the dwarf.

"Dim-witted elf," Gimli muttered, just loud enough for Legolas to hear.

Legolas looked at him with an expression of mock-anger. "Dim-witted, am I?" he said. "And how do you plan to prove that, dwarf?"

"I already have!" said Gimli, grinning.

Legolas frowned, puzzled at his words, before suddenly noticing an odd feeling in his head; a slight dizziness that quickly grew.

"Legolas?" Aragorn said, concerned to see the elf's face suddenly pale.

The Mirkwood elf blinked his eyes, as if he was having trouble seeing. "You shall regret this, dwarf," he said. "Mark my words."

Without another sound, the elf suddenly slid from his chair and dropped to the floor, disappearing from sight.

Aragorn and Gimli both jumped to their feet, kneeling beside their friend.

"Ai!" said the dwarf. "I didn't know that it'd affect him THAT fast!"

"What did you give him?!" Aragorn exclaimed, carefully pulling their friend out from under the table.

"Ah…" said Gimli, nervously. "I asked a healer for something to aid sleep…"

Aragorn's heart did a flip. "And she gave you something fit for a dwarf! A dwarf, Gimli, not an elf!"

Gimli's expression turned to one of horror. "Ai! Do not tell me that I have poisoned him?!"

Aragorn said nothing as he anxiously checked Legolas' pulse and breathing, finding them to both be slow. "I do not think him poisoned...but he may sleep very well for the next day or two."

"The next day or two?!" Gimli shouted. "Do you mean that I have knocked the elf flat for two days?!"

Aragorn firmly tapped Legolas' face, getting no response. His eyes were also closed, testifying to the strength of the herb. "Aye, it looks that way."

Gimli wasn't sure if he should howl with guilt or laugher. "I only have that long to live, I imagine..."

Aragorn started to smile, but quickly hid it. "I think that you may have three days to live; he shall not be able to rise from his bed after he wakes, due to the dreadful headache that he will undoubtedly have."

Gimli frowned. "Ai...he will inflict upon me a very slow death."

Aragorn sighed, feeling sorry for the dwarf, but also angry at the dangerous thing that he had done to Legolas. "Let us take him to his room."

Gimli stood back as the king slipped his arms under their friend and lifted him, quickly leaving the dining hall.

As Aragorn carried Legolas down the corridor, Faramir came around the corner ahead of them, and gasped at the sight.

"What happened?!" he exclaimed, rushing over.

Aragorn looked at Gimli, who sighed, looking contrite. "An…accident," said the King.

"Why are you not taking him to a healer?" Faramir asked, seeing that they were heading in the wrong direction.

Gimli sighed again, saying nothing.

"We'll explain," said Aragorn. "Come."

Faramir frowned, looking puzzled as he followed.

They entered the elf's room and quickly settled him in bed. Gimli was very quiet, looking very remorseful.

"What happened to him?" Faramir asked, as Aragorn pulled a thin blanket over the elf. The Steward couldn't help but worriedly notice that Legolas hadn't made any sound or movement.

"I am a fool," said Gimli, finally speaking. We already knew that, dwarf, he could imagine Legolas jesting. He sighed, looking at the two men. "On our journey here, Legolas was in a very happy mood. He kept making sport of me, somehow getting his horse to not let me off her back."

Aragorn smiled slightly, imagining the dwarf's annoyance with the animal.

"Every time I tried to dismount, she would sidestep, preventing me from getting down," Gimli said. "I can see the humor in it, but at the time, it was very frustrating, especially when it happened repeatedly. Legolas had to tell her to stop, but not until letting her continue for quite some time."

Faramir was smiling, trying to hide it as he imagined the sight.

"Naturally, I swore revenge," said the dwarf, with a shrug. He remembered Legolas jokingly replying, 'Do your worst'."For the remainder of the journey, I tried to think of something that he would not expect, and came up with the notion of a sleeping herb. I knew that it would embarrass him to oversleep tomorrow."

Aragorn nodded. Everyone knew how the elf prided himself on his habits.

Gimli sighed then, jumping up to sit on the side of the bed next to his friend. "I did not realize that I would give him the wrong herb!"

Faramir looked at Aragorn with alarm.

"A healer gave Gimli a sleeping herb fit for a dwarf," the king told him. "It was much too strong for an elf."

Faramir shook his head, not sure if he should be amused or worried. "You have gotten yourself into quite a spot, Master Dwarf," he said. "I imagine he will not keep that joyful mood when he wakes."

Gimli shook his head. "Indeed not."