Sitting in a tree, Legolas thought back on the day. He and Aragorn had come upon nothing in their journey—literally. The rumors appeared to be true; there was no living thing in this forest. What bothered Legolas the most was that they could not find any reason why that would be.

What bothers me just as much, Legolas thought, is that these trees still have yet to utter a sound…I had hoped that they could explain to me this mystery…

The hours went by slowly, as he pondered their quandary. He and Aragorn had confirmed that nothing lived within this place, but now they faced another dilemma; should they warn Middle Earth to stay away from this location…did people once live here, only to die from some terrible occurrence? Did it mean death to reside here?

He closed his eyes with a groan, letting it slip past his lips without thinking; the headache he'd woken up with had steadily increased throughout the day, and it hurt more then he cared to admit. Another thing that I cannot explain…

"Legolas?"

Startling, the Elf's eyes snapped open at the sound of Aragorn's voice. He hadn't heard his friend's approach; he had the headache to thank for that…

Aragorn stepped back as he heard Legolas climbing down the tree. The fact that he hadn't jumped down—as he usually did—didn't escape the human's notice.

When Legolas touched down, Aragorn stared at him for a moment.

Legolas knew that he suspected something, and fought to hide his pain. “Aragorn?”

“What ails you?” Aragorn asked.

“Nothing,” Legolas said. “I am merely confused…and tired.” He added the last words hoping to give Aragorn a reason for the strain in his face that he knew was there.

“Why do I not believe you?” Aragorn said, only half-joking.

Legolas started to feel annoyed, and did something that Aragorn never saw him do; he shrugged. “I do not know, mellon nin,” the Elf said, walking past him to their campsite. “Good night.”

Aragorn frowned as he watched him. Something is wrong, he thought. Why will he not tell me? Sighing, he sat on a log, surveying their surroundings. If his strange behavior continues tomorrow, then I will refuse to leave this campsite until he explains...

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

"Legolas!"

The Elf felt someone gripping his arms, and Aragorn's face slowly came into focus above him. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly when it felt like his head exploded.

"Legolas! Tell me what is wrong!"

Realizing that he was displaying to Aragorn what he'd tried so hard to hide, he opened his eyes and shot Aragorn a neutral expression. "Is there a reason why you are holding me down?" he asked.

Aragorn loosened his hold on his friend. "You were groaning in your sleep, Legolas. No more lies, tell me what is wrong so that I may help you!"

"Nothing is wrong," Legolas lied. "I merely had a disturbing dream."

Aragorn abruptly released him, sitting back and shaking his head. "I do believe that you are more stubborn than I."

Legolas said nothing, wishing that Aragorn would look away. The last thing the Elf needed was for the human to watch him try to sit up…if he could sit up.

Aragorn continued to stare, as if looking right through him, so Legolas brought his arms up and laced his fingers together, pillowing his head on them. He hoped it made him appear casual.

"I do not know what you hope to see, Aragorn."

"I hope to see that I am wrong," the human said. "But I know that I am not. We have known each other far too long for you to keep something from me. Why will you not let me know what ails you? You know that I am a healer."

"And you know that I am an Elf!" Legolas replied. "Elves do not suffer illness!"

"No, but they can be poisoned," Aragorn said.

Legolas' eyes opened wider. Thanks to his pain, his mind had been too occupied to realize that. He is right…

"Will you now tell me?" Aragorn asked, sounding upset.

Legolas sighed, finally giving in. "My head aches."

Scooting closer, Aragorn felt his friend's pulse. "When did it start?"

"Yesterday morning."

"Are there any other symptoms?" Aragorn asked, feeling his forehead.

"No."

Aragorn frowned, surprised. "Nothing else?"

"Nothing," Legolas answered, with a sigh. "I am at a loss to explain it."

Aragorn thought for a minute, unable to think of any substance that caused headache as a lone symptom in Elves. "This doesn't make sense." He stood, looking around their campsite.

Legolas sighed in relief as he watched his friend, knowing that he was looking for an herb that would ease his pain.

Aragorn found it quickly, and brought it back to the campfire, pouring some water into a small pot and dropping in the crushed leaves. As he held it over the fire, he watched Legolas, who seemed nervous. The Elf was excellent at hiding his feelings, but Aragorn had known him for so long that he could see through his mask.

I am a fool, Legolas was thinking. I never considered that this pain could be the result of a poison…but where did I acquire it? Aragorn and I have eaten the same food, drank the same water…is he also doomed to fall ill?

Before he could dwell on that question for long, Aragorn suddenly appeared again, holding a cup. "Here."

Legolas started to sit up, and Aragorn helped him, holding the cup to his lips.

It was nothing short of a miracle that Legolas managed to drink it. As soon as he moved his head, the world started to spin and his vision clouded over. It was a good thing that his friend held the cup, for the Elf couldn't even see it.

After Legolas drank it, Aragorn laid him back down, watching his face. He saw that his friend's eyes were unfocused, but the Elf didn't complain. Stubborn, stubborn Elf…

When Legolas could see normally again, he noticed the worried look on Aragorn's face. "I am fine," he said, attempting to stand. "Let us be off."

Aragorn's expression changed dramatically. "'Let us be off'? You are ill! Do you wish to make yourself worse?"

Legolas sighed when his friend prevented him from moving. "It is only a headache, Estel. I have traveled with near-fatal injuries and survived."

Aragorn nearly smiled at that. It seemed that the majority of their trips always involved injury to one—or both—of them.

Gathering his strength, Legolas pushed against Aragorn's weight, making the human release him. "If it were poison, I would likely have fever. Mayhap it is simply due to…anxiety…over the potential danger that we may be nearing." Sighing inwardly, the word 'anxiety' left a bad taste in his mouth…he was not someone who admitted to feelings of that sort, but it was worth it to stop Aragorn from worrying. Aye, to stop him from worrying, and from smothering me with concern, as well…

Legolas tried to stand again, and Aragorn had no choice but to help him. He held onto his friend's arm tightly, should he falter, but Legolas managed to stand without incident. Perhaps he is not as bad off as I thought.

Perhaps I am worse off than I think…Legolas was glad that Aragorn was beside him and not in front of him, or the human would've seen his eyes lose focus again as his vision skewered and faded. He knew that the only thing keeping him on his feet was Aragorn's tight grip on his arm, and he was grateful for it.

He suddenly felt himself being moved, and found that Aragorn was pulling him to sit on a fallen log.

"Stay there," Aragorn said. "I'll break camp."

Legolas opened his mouth to protest, but his pounding head didn't let him. He hadn't much time to feel guilty, for the human had the camp dissolved quickly.

Packing the horses, Aragorn led them over to Legolas, who stood before Aragorn reached him; he wanted to appear strong to his friend.

Petting his horse, Legolas leaned against it to ride out sudden dizziness.

Sensing something amiss, the faithful steed knelt beside its master, making it easier for Legolas to mount.

The Elf smiled, patting its neck as he climbed aboard.

Aragorn kept his hand on his friend's arm as the horse stood, making sure that he didn't lose his balance. When he saw that Legolas was all right, he mounted his own. "Are you sure that you are up to this?"

Legolas nearly nodded, but caught himself in time. "Yes. It is only a headache." Without waiting for a reply, he kicked his horse into a walk.

Aragorn watched as his friend passed him. "Stubborn Elf."