Aragorn finally awakened at noon, which was a relief to Legolas, who had begun to think he had killed the King after all, and as Arwen seemed not quite ready for that yet, he would have sorely regretted causing her pain.

When he stirred, Legolas quickly moved to his bedside and waited expectantly, ready to spring away should Aragorn lunge again.

But Aragorn's eyes opened slowly, squinted against the light, and turned, unfocused, toward Legolas. A wide grin traveled across his face as he recognized his friend.

"Mae govadded, Legolad!" he said warmly and extended a hand in greeting. "Whed did you ged to the cidy?"

I have done some damage to his mind,

Aragorn clasped his hand and pulled himself up, throwing both arms around Legolas' neck and holding tightly in a massive hug. Caught off balance, Legolas was pulled downward, collapsing on top of Aragorn, who continued to hold him tightly round the throat. Legolas kicked his legs and looked for leverage, but could not reach the floor from where he dangled in Aragorn's arms, his face pressed hard in Aragorn's armpit.

"Well med!" Aragorn was saying, but Legolas heard little else because his ears were starting to rush with blood trapped in his brain by Aragorn's death hold.

"Ara---" Legolas struggled to pry the King's arms from his throat, "Ara--GORF!" He finally choked out and broke free from the death hold, gasping for air.

Aragorn was still smiling very sweetly as Legolas retreated to a safe distance. "How are you feeling?" he asked carefully.

Aragorn didn't answer and instead stared up at the ceiling, mouth hanging agape in awe of something. Legolas glanced up at the ceiling, saw nothing, and looked back to Aragorn who still watched the air above him in fascination. Legolas looked more closely, but still saw nothing but bare stone.

"Well, loog ad thad," Aragorn murmured in wonder, chuckling to himself and giving a little wave to the ceiling.

Worried now, Legolas stepped closer to the bed, snapped his fingers before Aragorn's face and waited for Aragorn to slowly look at him and smile in greeting all over again.

"Well med!" he repeated.

"Can you tell me who you are?" Legolas asked nervously, asking the Valar to keep Arwen with her children until Aragorn could be restored to his former self.

"Do nod be ridculud," Aragorn giggled a little. "Don'd you know who I ab?"

"Yes. Yes. Who are you?" Legolas pried, hoping to draw the right answer.

"I like thid gab!" Aragorn threw back his head and howled with laughter, before sitting up in bed and fixing a stern look upon his face and proclaiming, "You shall nod passssssed!" as he drove an imaginary sword down on the bed between his knees.

Legolas looked completely horrified and Aragorn laughed and slapped his knee. "Cub odd, Legolad. You know thid. Who ab I?"

"What game? What are you talking about?"

"We meed agaid. Ad the turn of the tide," Aragorn tried again.

Giving in at last, and knowing there was little else to do until the strange effect of the root wore off of Aragorn, Legolas sighed, and played along. "You're Gandalf."

"Good! Led's play agaid!" Aragorn grinned and thought for a moment. "Mr. Frodo! Mr. Frodo! Where had Mr. Frodo god off to now?"

Legolas rolled his eyes. "At least give me a bit of a challenge, Samwise."

Aragorn narrowed his eyes. "All righd. If you are so smard, you go."

"I don't want…" Legolas began but when he saw that Aragorn was preparing for a revolt if he did not, sighed and considered. At last, feeling very foolish, he droned out in monotone, "I will not have a pointy-ear out scoring me."

"Gibli," Aragorn announced.

"Very good. Now may we stop playing this ridiculous game?"

"Thid wad Eldariod's favoride gab!" Aragorn muttered dangerously.

"Fine then, fine. Your turn," Legolas sighed and retreated to the window sill as he watched Aragorn think very hard on who would be next.

"I ab nod afraid of paid or death. Cages worry be."

"Eowyn," Legolas answered quickly and Aragorn looked a little surprised at how easy it had been for him.

Aragorn waited expectantly.

"Oh for the love of the Valar," Legolas muttered under his breath. "I shall not leave my daughter in Middle Earth in the hands of a filthy Ranger!"

Aragorn raised a brow. "I do nod thig thad wad how he pud id, exadly, but Elrod."

"You're good at this game," Legolas said sweetly.

Aragorn scowled as if trying to gauge if he was being patronized, which he was, but then smiled. "Try thid. 'Gondor needs no Kig!'"

"Aragorn, it is not polite to mock the dead," Legolas scolded.

A look of utter horror flashed on Aragorn's face. "Boromir id dead? Whed did this happed?"

And so the hour went on, as Aragorn exhausted all of the people he'd ever known in Middle Earth, and quite a few he had not. Legolas grew very weary of the game, but Aragorn was tireless in his amusement with it, howling at his own impressions and even at Legolas' as the elf grew more inspired by his easy audience.

At last, Arwen stepped in the door and Aragorn sat up again in bed and made claws out of his hands. "My Preciousssss!" He hissed at her, "we wads her, we neeeeeeds her, precioussssss!"

"What in--?" was all she was able to choke out after a moment of stunned silence.

Legolas cringed and met Arwen's questioning, and rather accusatory, look. "He's Gollum," was the only explanation that seemed fitting.

"Gollub, gollub," Aragorn agreed, and exploded into a fit of laughter punctuated with coughs.

*******was Legolas' first thought as he took Aragorn's hand, at a lost of what else to do. His second was, Arwen will kill me.