Story Title: Lean on Me

Chapter Title: Crossed Paths

Author: J. Chassells

Summary: My take on how Aragorn (mostly referred to as Strider and Estel in this fic) and Legolas met and how their friendship was forged throughout their adventures and misadventures.

Author's Note: My first LOTR fic, so please don't hurt me! Reviews and flames are appreciated. This fic isn't really dedicated to anyone, but if I'd have to dedicate it to someone or something, I think this one goes to the US Military. I'm an extremely patriotic person and I support our military completely and firmly. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: Don't own the characters, just the plot, yada, yada, yada...

Characters that star in this story: Strider (Estel), Legolas, Elladan, Elrohir, Elrond, maybe a mention of Arwen here and there, and some unnamed orcs and just plain ol' bad guys.

Another A/N: I've revised this chappie as requested by a couple of my reviewers, and I thank everyone for their comments. They keep me going! The changes made aren't huge, but they do alter the story slightly, but not in a huge way, if you know what I mean. Take care! goes to write another chappie

Chapter 1

Estel walked in front of his horse, watching the woods around him, carefully taking in every detail. He listened intently to the birds, and watched the treetops move with the spring breeze. The full moon above gave the traveler light enough to see.

The horse followed his young master obediently, obviously trusting the eighteen-year-old boy to lead him safely. The pair had been traveling for two days, but in the last leg of their journey, the boy had taken to walking in order to alleviate some of the weight that burdened the horse's injured leg.

Hijak whinnied in something akin to annoyance as he stumbled some. Estel brought them to a halt and stroked the horse's muzzle in a soothing manner. Hijak was an odd name for a horse, but Estel had thought it appropriate, considering he'd stolen the horse from a thief in the forest two years earlier. No words were needed from the quiet young man as he soothed Hijak.

He checked the splint he had wrapped around the broken leg, ran water over the bandage from his deerskin flask to relieve some of the rubbing pains and to cause the bandages to contract after they dried, and let the horse drink some water from his hand. When the animal had his fill, Estel brought the flask to his lips and brought his head back to drink, but was stopped.

He looked around, immediately on guard, as the sound of clanking steel filtered through the trees. Dropping one hand to his sword, he pulled Hijak from the road and led him behind some high bushes. He stoked the horse's neck gently, whispered words to him in Elvish, then pulled his bow from around his neck, notched an arrow, and waited. His silent vigil of the road was not long.

They seemed to come out of nowhere. The handful of orcs were hurrying through the bushes...pursuing someone. Estel's sharp eyes widened as he saw who they were after. The figure stumbled as he reached the small clearing, and the orcs were immediately upon him.

A word breathed through Estel's lips; "Legolas." He pulled back the bowstring, watching as the orcs relentlessly pummeled Estel's closest friend, and waited for his chance. He got it as the head orc raised his arms in a victory cry.

Estel released, and the cry ended with a gurgling sound. The other orcs looked at their fallen leader in awe, not caring as blood squirted from the impaling arrow through his throat, and the fastest orc turned to the source. He was met with an arrow between the eyes that was fired with such strength that the arrow penetrated the skull and killed the orc standing behind him as well.

Estel had already released a third arrow by the time the orcs started moving. Four lay dead, and as the orcs charged the teenager, Legolas weakly looked up from his pinned position and whimpered, "Estel...no..."

The human didn't hear his horse whinny in fear as the orcs came, so intent was he on the battle. He held his blade carefully, in a loose but versatile grip. Five orcs came charging. The first swung his sword, which Estel parried with his own. He avoided another blow by twirling to the right. Dropping to one knee, he swept the orc's feet out from under him and decapitated him on his way down. He was unprepared for the fist that buried its way into his back. The blow left him open and another savage blow landed on his ribs. He staggered backwards as he felt a couple ribs crack under the force of the blow.

He heard his name being called from somewhere far away as stars swam in his vision. He shook his head fiercely, grinding his teeth in anger, before resuming his fight. Within five minutes, the other three orcs fell dead at his feet. He panted with weariness and turned to the last orc who was holding Legolas in front of him like a shield. In the pale moonlight, Estel could see blood on the front of the prince's tunic.

The orc held a deadly looking dagger up to the elf's throat and hissed, "Stay where you are, young ranger, and this one shall not be harmed." Estel quietly said, "He's already injured, demon. What good is your promise then?"

Estel made a couple of steps towards the creature, who merely brought the blade closer to the fair skin of the elf prince. "Make another move, young ranger, and he dies." Estel stopped immediately, fearing for the elf's life. Suddenly, there was a whinny from Hijak, who had wandered farther down the tree line.

The orc whipped his head around to see what was the source of the sound, and when he looked back at Estel, a dagger met his lips. The orc fell to the ground, letting go of the wounded elf, who stayed on his feet for only a moment longer before crumpling to the ground.

Panic-induced adrenaline pumped through Estel's veins as he ran towards the elf. He dropped to the ground, rolled Legolas over, and his mind numbed at the sight of Legolas' injuries. "Oh Valar...no." Quickly calling Hijak to his side, Estel ripped off his cloak and ripped it into several pieces. He made quick work of identifying his friend's injuries, and they scared him.

Hijak neared the two comrades and Estel quickly soaked one of the pieces of his cloak in the remaining portion of his water. He thought it ironic that Legolas had stopped him from drinking it and here he was, needing it more than for a drink. As he opened his friend's tunic to get at the wound in Legolas' side, the elf's eyes opened. They were dazed and glassy, and his voice was but a whisper. "Estel...?"

The young boy nodded and looked closely at the wound. "I'm here, mellon nin. Peace." Legolas' voice was cracked as he whispered, "You...saved my life..." Young Estel kept talking to keep Legolas' mind off the wound in his side. The Elvin warrior was also cold, and having already used his cloak for bandages, Estel had Hijak lay next to the fallen prince and carefully positioned Legolas so he was comfortable and receiving the warmth that radiated from Hijak.

Estel put pressure on the side wound, causing Legolas to gasp and strain against him. "Estel...hurts..." Estel felt sharp guilt in his heart at being the one to cause pain to his closest friend. "I know, and I'm sorry, my friend." Estel kept pressure on the wound as he scanned his eyes over Legolas' body and used the wet piece of cloth in his hand to wipe away some blood from a gash on his cheek.

Legolas' eyes slid shut, and Estel shook his shoulders gently. "I need you awake, mellon nin. Please, don't fall asleep." Legolas opened his eyes at the soft but insistent voice.

"Legolas, how did you get in this condition?" The elf seemed to shudder. "Hunting...headed to Rivendell...attacked by orcs...got away...hunted me...you saved me..." Estel saw the distress in his friend's eyes. "Hush, mellon. You're safe now. I won't let anything hurt you."

He finished tending to Legolas' wound, his thoughts constantly on how he was going to get Legolas back to Imaldris, to his father, Lord Elrond. His horse would not be able to bear his weight, and Estel himself was feeling tired from his long journey. However, suddenly, something caught Estel's eye.

"Black flesh..." The area around Legolas' side was tainted black, and Estel knew it meant only one thing: the blade that had delivered the wound had been poisoned. "Legolas, mellon nin, you can sleep now. You're safe." The elf turned grateful, fever-glazed eyes to Estel, nodded once, and promptly passed out.

Estel took his outer jacket and quickly slipped it over his friend's shoulders. He summoned Hijak to his feet and shivered as the chill night air cut through his light shirt. Turning back to Legolas, he knelt in front of his friend, grabbed his arms and wrapped them around his neck, and hoisted the light elf onto his back. Legolas' head fell to Estel's right shoulder, and Estel jumped Legolas' weight some to position him better. With little difficulty, Estel grabbed Hijak's reigns in his left hand, threaded his arms under Legolas' legs, and started walking.

Estel panted as he walked forward through the trees. The first night and day had gone slowly, and it was night once again. There had only been one stream along his path through the trees, and his flask was nearly empty. Stopping for a rest underneath a tree, Estel grabbed his flask from Hijak, set his friend down on the ground, and leaned his back against his chest.

He gently said, "Legolas, you must wake and drink." The elf mumbled something in his sleep, and Estel felt the unnatural heat emanating off his friend's skin. Opening the flask, he held it to the elf's lips and forced some water into his mouth. The elf choked and tried to cough it back up, but Estel placed his hand over his mouth, and the elf swallowed the water, coughed once more, and slipped into a delirious sleep.

Estel laid his friend down and stood to put the flask back in his pack on Hijak's back. Sudden sharp pains in his chest suddenly bit into him, and he sank to the ground, gasping for air, his head bowed. A coughing fit seized him, and up came blood.

The man grimaced and tried to get his breathing under control. He looked at the blood in his palm in disgust, and stood on shaky legs. Wiping the blood on his pants, he replaced the flask, and picked up Legolas once again. The group continued their trek, and Estel knew that before the next night, they would reach Imaldris.

Elladan smiled at his twin brother, Elrohir, as he sweetly said, "But that wasn't my fault, either, gwador, for you had sabotaged my hunting equipment." Elrohir smiled back and said in the same sweet voice, "But not before you had sabotaged mine, as well." They continued their bickering, and found themselves within the Hall of Fire. Elrond was pacing back and forth, and the twins fell silent.

Elladan asked, "Ada, what is troubling you?" The ancient elf lord looked up and quietly said, "Estel. He's been too long gone on his trip." Elrohir asked, "He was going on one of his wilderness treks, was he not?" Elrond nodded, his eyes dark with concern. "Illuvitar...Pray nothing's happened to him." Suddenly, there was a cry by the wall scouts. A second later, an elf ran in. "Sire, it's Estel and Prince Legolas of Mirkwood, returning. Prince Legolas seems injured, milord, and Estel is carrying him. Also, Estel's steed is limping, sir."

Elrond hurried after the elf, his sons on his heels, and quickly found himself at the front of his home. An elf had grabbed Hijak's reigns and was leading it to the stables. Estel walked slowly, his eyes cast down, his breathing harsh.

He stopped when he reached the single flight of stairs separating him from his family. He turned his head as he heard Legolas moan, and whispered, "It's alright, mellon nin. We're at Rivendell. You're safe."

Elladan and Elrohir dashed down the stairs to their human brother. "Estel! What's happened?" Elladan cried. Estel gently set Legolas on the ground and kneeled next to him. His voice was husky with weariness as he said, "Orc attack. He was stabbed in the side. It's poisoned."

Elrohir took in his brother's pale complexion. "Estel, are you injured?" Not answering directly, Estel turned to Elrond and pleaded, "Please, Ada, you must heal him." Elrond nodded and said, "Elladan, Elrohir, bring the Prince to his chambers here." Elrohir picked up Legolas and Estel stood to follow.

Suddenly, though, his chest felt afire, and he sank to his knees, coughing. Elladan was beside him in a moment. "Tithen gwador, what is it?" Elrond looked at his youngest in horror as blood splattered to the stone from Estel's mouth.

He dashed down the stairs and knelt next to his son. "Estel, look at me." Estel raised his head some, catching his breath, and Elrond saw the trickle of blood from his son's parched lips. Suddenly, Estel's eyes rolled into the back of his head, and he slumped to the ground. Elladan caught him and cried, "Estel!"

Teary eyes found stoic ones, and Elrond ordered, "Bring them both to the Hall of Healing." Elladan picked up his brother, and Elrohir carried Legolas. The elves on guard on the walls shook their heads sadly. One muttered, "They're both beyond aide." His companion added sorrowfully, "The Kingdom of Gondor will have no king."

It seemed appropriate when it started to drizzle.

Translations:

Adan- human
Estel lasta an enni- Estel listen to me
tithen pen- little one
tithen gwador- little brother
ion nin- My son
post mae- rest well

Brannon nin- My lord
Mellon nin- My friend
Ada- Father

Okay, so...Review! Please!