The Witch of Mirkwood

Chapter 10 - Escape

The pale Orc lifted his leathery chin towards the sky and sniffed the night air "Man-flesh" he snorted sensing they were being tracked. It was probably Aragorn with help. he ordered some scouts to go with him to investigate, leaving some orcs behind to guard the two prisoners

Only the weaker smaller orcs remained, this was a mistake, Legolas saw an opportunity for escape. He reached his hand to hers and whispered "Nicassius, wake up" she lifted her head weakly "can you reach your hand towards the base of my back?"

"I think so" she replied "there is a small knife under my tunic, it is hidden in the belt of my trousers, I cannot reach it in this position" she nodded and moved her hand slowly upwards towards his body, he shifted forward to try and make some room between himself and the tree.

"What are you two whispering about?" Spat an Orc who suddenly appeared in front of them.

Nicassius nearly jumped out of her skin, but legolas remained calm "she is ill, she needs water"'he told the Orc trying to distract it.

"Sick is she?" the Orc questioned, he licked his lips as he moved his hand towards her face, she flinched and turned her head away

"do not touch her"Legolas spat beginning to raise his voice.

"Care about the witch do you elf?" The Orc sniggered, he began to rub his hand along her neck and down towards her chest "I will kill you if you touch her" Legolas growled as he started to struggle beneath his bonds

The Orc took no notice and carried on, Legolas felt a wave of sickness run through his body as he watched unable to stop the filthy creature. The orc jumped back and yelped as Nicassius dug the tip of her boot into his shin, she might not have been able to move her arms but she could certainly kick. He thrust his fist into her already bruised ribs before grabbing her face, Legolas was about to explode by this time as the Orc pushed her chin upwards, grinning, that was until she sank her teeth into his thumb, "arghh" he winced before whacking his fist into her face.

"Keep still witch or I will slit the elfs throat" she clenched her eyes shut as she waited for the searing pain in her cheek to stop, and she could taste blood in her mouth as her lip began to bleed. The Orc continued to slide his dirty hand down her bare skin towards her breasts, moving it slowly as he drooled, savouring the feel of her soft warm flesh under his cold fingers. Just as he began the push under the material at the top of her dress he stopped suddenly, his eyes opened wide and he stared into space for a second, then he looked down towards the middle of his body to see Nicassius has stuck him with something sharp, she had found the knife he gasped then drew his last breath as he fell dead on the floor.

"Quickly, cut the rope" Legolas said, his tone was urgent. She sliced through the bonds and they both stepped forward freely. "Run" Legolas grabbed her by the hand and they moved quickly, it was a few minutes before the other orcs even noticed they were gone, distracted by another fight that had broken out "find them!" Legolas heard the screeching voice drift through the air as he swept Nicassius up into his arms and began running as fast as he could, he knew the forest well and his elf eyes could see much more easily than that of the orcs who stumbled after them unable to see the thick roots of the trees that seemed to swallow them up as they tried to clamber over them.

The pale Orc returned to see the commotion "fools" he screamed "find them, kill them both" he ordered as they began to follow

Legolas leapt nimbly though the trees, running at great speed and not stopping to look back. Nicassius drifted in and out of darkness as she clung onto him "stay with me" he whispered "I know a place were we will be safe, you must hold on" It had started to rain heavily and after a couple of hours of searching the orcs had lost their scent and were no longer following them.

The trees were getting thicker and the forest was more dense, legolas knew that there were other dangers ahead of them, he was leading them into a part of the forest he believed was spider territory and he had no weapons apart from the small knife Nicassius had used to kill the Orc. He slowed down to a fast walk knowing that they were now a safe distance from the enemy, they were both soaked through from the rain, he needed to find shelter and headed towards a place he knew would be safe and dry, at least for now.

They soon came to a small treehouse that had been built by the elves to use as a shelter when they were out on long hunting trips, it was well hidden high up in the trees, and out of sight. He climbed the narrow steps upwards and they entered the small wooden hut, there was a bed on one side and he sat Nicassius down on it, she was wet and shivering, he searched around and found some provisions that had been left by the elves, a blanket, some water and even some dried food stuff. There was a small fire place and some dry kindling. He began to light it, taking out his knife and striking it against a piece of flint. A small flame began to dance along the wood as he stood and watched until it grew stronger.

"We must get you out of those wet clothes" he turned to her and pulled her too her feet

"I killed him" she said as he took off her cloak and began helping her out of her dress that was heavy with the weight of the rain

"You did what you had to do"

"I've never killed another living thing before"

"Not even a bug?"

'"Except bugs"

Underneath her dress she wore a long white cotton slip and bodice that covered her well, to her relief it was almost dry still. Legolas wrapped the blanket around her and she blushed slightly and sat back down on the bed. He removed her boots and lifted her legs up then he put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her backwards to lie her down.

"Well think of the Orc as a bug then, for he was no better" He said as he pulled a strand of wet hair from her face

She looked around the small cabin as he went back to poking the fire and adding more wood, there were some pots and pans above the fireplace and there was a table and a chair in one corner, above it was a small window and some books, she could see it was still raining outside and the heavy drops made a pitter patter sound on the wooden roof. It felt cosy and dry and it soon warmed up once the fire had got going. Legolas poured some water into a pot and placed it on a hook above the heat, he hung her wet dress over the back of the chair to dry and he removed his wet tunic. Under neath he was wearing a light blue cotton shirt, she could see the silhouette of his taught body as the light of the flames shone through the thin material.

"How do you feel?" he said as he sat down on the edge of the bed, raising his hand towards her cut lip and brushing his thumb across the wound as though he was trying to erase it.

"safe" she whispered as she closed her eyes. She fell into a light sleep still aware of him as he tended to the pan of hot water. His movements cast shadows over her eyelids as he pottered about the hut. Then she felt a dip in the side of the bed as he sat down next to her again and he shook her gently to rouse her.

"drink this"he said holding out a cup "then I will let you sleep".

She pulled herself up and took the cup from him "what is it?" she asked taking a sip of the hot drink.

"A mixture of things" he mused "some herbs and spices. It will help you to heal". It tasted pleasant, warm with spice and earthy from the herbs. He watched as she drank, pushing the cup her way urging her to drink it all, she felt like a child being made to drink her medicine.

"Good, now you can sleep" he said when she had finished it all

"You are quite bossy" she said still unable to read him, "do you still think I am a witch?" She asked, regretting it almost immediately not wanting to know his answer, she quickly followed it up with "if I were a witch I might have turned you into a toad by now for being so bossy"

He laughed warmly. "Sometimes I have to be, and it is for your own good. Now lie down" he ordered. She did as she was told and he pulled the blanket over her and then stroked her angry red cheek "sleep" he soothed and she closed her eyes.

Legolas watched her as she slept, her body was cut and bruised, her hair was wet and tattered and she looked fragile, pale and worn, yet she still looked elegant and as she slept gracefully, he thought she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.