Chapter Two

“Elrohir!” Aragorn was on his knees at his brother’s side in a flash. Whatever had hit Elrohir had gone past Aragorn so fast the ranger hadn’t even seen it.

In another second, Legolas was beside the unconscious Elf as well. He and Aragorn very carefully rolled Elrohir onto his back. An arrow was sticking out of Elrohir’s chest; his tunic was already half-soaked in blood.

“We have to remove this NOW,” Aragorn declared.

Legolas nodded but let Aragorn do the work; the ranger was much more experienced in ways of healing than Legolas. Legolas scanned the land surrounding them, looking for signs of the attacker. This seemingly random hit still had him shocked.

“Do you see anything?” Aragorn asked after a few silent moments as he continued to work on his brother.

“No,” Legolas replied quietly, his eyes wide. He looked down at Elrohir. Aragorn had successfully removed the arrow but the wound was still gushing blood.

“Help me remove his tunic,” Aragorn asked before Legolas could say anymore.

Legolas turned his attention back to Elrohir, and very carefully he and Aragorn removed the older Elf’s tunic. Legolas cringed at the wound. Even without a lot of healing skills, he could tell the arrow had done a lot of damage. It had hit Elrohir squarely in the chest. While there was a chance the arrow hadn’t directly hit his heart, the chances were greater that it had. Meanwhile, the dark-haired Elf was deathly pale, which was even more alarming because only a few minutes had passed.

“I don’t understand, Estel,” Legolas continued. “How could anyone have gotten away so quickly?” Legolas scanned the lands again quickly, still seeing nothing. “I did not even sense any presence of danger.”

Aragorn didn’t know either. Elrohir had obviously not seen any danger either, since he had been joking around with his brother just seconds before the arrow hit him. Elrohir and Legolas both had incredible Elven instincts.

Aragorn was having far too much trouble stopping the bleeding. Finally he bound the wound as tight as he could manage and sat back, all of his facial features registering concern and worry.

“We need to get back to Rivendell immediately,” he told Legolas, who nodded and began to pack up their things.

Aragorn sighed and turned to the arrow that had shot his brother, meaning to take it with him. He had not had a chance until now to get a good look at it. He prayed it was not an Orc arrow, although he already highly doubted that it was. But if it was, there was a high chance that the arrow was poisoned. Even so, he would have to keep a close eye on the Elf for signs of poisoning.

As he took a good look at the arrow, Aragorn recognized it and felt his face pale. “Legolas!” he called out to his friend.

Legolas turned to Aragorn immediately and was puzzled by the expression on Aragorn’s face. “What is wrong now mellon nin?”

Aragorn swallowed hard. “This arrow… it is Elladan’s.”

TBC

To Cathy-- Thanks for reviewing, even though this makes it like the third time you've read this lol! *hugs*