Aragorn and Legolas: Catch Me When I Fall.

Chapter One: A Rare Mistake.

Aragorn sighed as he continued to run, doing his best to stay ahead of his
companions, Legolas and Gimli. There was no rivalry or competition between
the three, but Aragorn had an excellent reason for wishing to stay in front
of them.

The excellent reason was that whenever Legolas was in front, he took his
eyes off the trail that they were supposed to be following and lost
concentration. They had been hunting for Merry and Pippin for a few days
and nights non-stop; and in those days and night Aragorn had found himself
becoming increasingly attracted to the Mirkwood prince.

Legolas ran past Aragorn then with a sudden spurt of speed, and Aragorn
cursed inwardly for allowing himself to get too wrapped up in his thoughts
again. He tried to run faster, his already overtired muscles burning
painfully. Underneath his hastily mended tunic was a cut from a previous
battle. It had healed up, but now as Aragorn pushed the limits of his
strength, it re-opened and began to bleed.

Aragorn didn’t notice however. He was too enraptured by the movements of
Legolas’ long, slender legs in front of him. The muscles were clearly
visible through the tight leggings that the elf wore, and Aragorn cursed
under his breath as he realised he had been eyeing him very obviously and
far too appreciatively. The Mirkwood prince’s close proximity was a far
greater danger than an unnoticed wound. Or so he thought.

Finally, after much effort, Aragorn was several yards ahead of both Legolas
and Gimli. With nothing but rocky terrain between him and the not so
distant horizon, Aragorn’s concentration returned and he continued to run,
oblivious to the shouts of his companions to pace himself or he would
collapse with exhaustion.

He had become numb to everything around him but the emotions that he was
trying to block out with little success. Emotions he was trying to out-run,
but couldn’t if he tried.

Aragorn finally stopped at the edge of some rocks, which he as a Ranger
recognised to be the beginning of the realm of Rohan. His hair was damp,
and his entire body was slick with sweat. Some of it dripped into his
wound, making it sting, but he barely noticed. All he could do was try to
get his breath back, ready for the next gasp. All he could do was fight
what seemed to be growing inside him, against his will.

“Aragorn?” Aragorn closed his eyes as he heard the cool, soothing soprano
of Legolas’ voice, and paused briefly before turning to answer him.
“Yes, Legolas?” he asked quietly. The elf’s face wore an expression of
great worry and concern, but as Aragorn searched a little deeper into his
eyes he thought he caught a glimpse of something else. Something that he
could not name, yet he was caught by it’s beauty.

Legolas frowned deeply as he said: “You must be exhausted. We must all get
some rest, or we shall lose the trail due to our own fatigue.” Aragorn
shook his head stubbornly, knowing that these words were largely meant for
his benefit, and said: “No. I can’t allow myself to be tired. There are two
lives at stake here, and I refuse to risk them further than I have done
already. We must continue.”

Legolas replied, the cool beginning to slip from his voice, pleading
slightly: “You will be of little use to the captives if you drive yourself
to death! Please, you must rest...” At this moment, Legolas caught sight of
the rapidly spreading pool of red upon Aragorn’s pale green tunic.

“You’re bleeding!” exclaimed Legolas, indicating Aragorn’s mid-section. The
Ranger looked down at himself and swore candidly. As Legolas attempted to
approach closer, Aragorn stiffened and walked away, saying: “I’ll be fine,
now let’s get moving!”

And before the Elf could stop him, he began to
sprint again. Legolas ran to catch up, calling to Gimli over his shoulder.

Aragorn ran for a long while until finally, his weariness betrayed him. He
had been running as fast as he could manage, and he had trodden upon a
large piece of rock, which turned beneath his foot and twisted his ankle,
causing him to fall to the ground.

As soon as his head hit the floor, Aragorn found himself feeling weak, and struggling to stay conscious.
He heard Legolas’ stricken cry of “ARAGORN!” as the elf ran to his side. He
felt himself being lifted gently off the ground, and he raised his head
painfully to see Legolas’ sapphire blue orbs gazing down at him. The only
word that Aragorn could emit coherently at this point was “Love...?” before
he passed out into the awaiting darkness.