Gandalf turned the rabbit roasting on a spit over a small fire. Treebeard had been kind enough to indicate wood acceptable for burning. The mundane activities of hunting and cooking were rather soothing, despite Gandalf's growing sense of urgency. They were needed in Rohan, but they would go nowhere before Legolas regained his vitality.

And Legolas had much to regain. After bathing in the Entwash, he had fallen asleep beside the fire, curled into himself. Frequently startled awake by noises of the forest, Gandalf mulled over his stay in Orthanc that he could become so unaccustomed to the wood.

Thankfully, Fangorn had been generous with his revitalizing waters. After perhaps a day of hearty eating and additional draughts from the Entwash, Legolas might have the strength for the arduous travel ahead. Gandalf's instincts demanded they travel to Edoras, not Isengard, and he hoped the elf trusted his word that they would return to Isengard as soon as they were able.

Now Gandalf turned to attending Legolas's wounds. The wizard was only mildly concerned for the many superficial wounds that had begun to heal with the first ent-draughts. The elf seemed accustomed to the limp he bore, and so it was likely an older wound for which Gandalf could do little. A swelling on Legolas's side restricted his movements and breathing, hinting at more broken bones to which he could not tend.

He hoped to do something for Legolas's hands, however. The fingers of his right hand were puffy, red, and bent at odd angles. He held the hand in a cupped fashion close to his body and used only the back of the hand when he had the need of it. Without the use of his hand, Legolas would be greatly impaired—and possibly never wield a bow again. For that reason alone, Gandalf would do what he could. But what that was, he did not yet know.

"Legolas," he called gently. "The meat is cooked."

The elf's eyes blinked as he woke. He looked around him sharply, until he saw Gandalf and Wellinghall behind them and relaxed.

"You're safe, Legolas. We are in Fangorn Forest, remember?" Legolas nodded as he rose, shaking sleep from him. His eyes landed on the food immediately and widened. "I am fortunate you are not a hobbit," Gandalf said. "I would be hunting the entire day."

Legolas remained somber, his eyes on the food. "The last sight I had of a hobbit was in Orthanc, as we were brought before Saruman." He looked up now. "I felt Pippin's eyes upon me as they led me away, but I could not look at him. I wonder if he yet lives."

Gandalf mutely handed Legolas a piece of meat. As Legolas tore into the food, eating with one hand, Gandalf asked himself again whether a day's rest and care would be enough to ready the elf for riding. "You say you do not know how long you were in Orthanc?"

Legolas shook his head as he chewed. "I do not. I only know we marched for four days before arriving in Isengard."

"And you were not fed then, either?" Legolas shook his head. "Water?"

"Once." Legolas finished his meat and laid down by the fire to enjoy some blackberries Gandalf had gathered.

"I wonder if there is nothing to be done for your hand. Would you tell me, did they break it?"

Legolas's eyes grew dark. Turning on his back, he chewed silently until he had finished the fruit. Sitting up then, he drew his right hand out before him.

"One of the uruk leaders," he began, looking at his hand, "who was present when we were captured..." Legolas's expression grew distant as the memories returned. "He remembered that I used the bow," he said in a whisper. "He decided I would use the bow no more."

"So this was done because you were an archer?" Legolas nodded.

Gandalf held out his hand. Legolas hesitated before slowly extending his own. The fingers had been broken in many places. Splinting them would be excruciating. "I fear the most I can do at the moment is to wrap the hand to prevent it from being bumped."

Which brought them to the next obstacle: Legolas still wore the manacles with which he was restrained in Orthanc. They were of iron, leaving few options for breaking them. "There must be a way to remove them. I need only a closer look..."

He peered at the pin that had been inserted to close it shut and discovered another hindrance. The pieces of iron that made up the pin closure had melted together. "How did they melt the iron? Your hand is not burned...." But upon turning his wrist, Gandalf detected burns on the skin beneath the metal. Clearly the iron had gotten hot enough to melt the fastenings while Legolas wore the cuffs.

"They dropped small pieces of melted iron onto it, so that it became as one with the metal beneath."

Gandalf nodded then in understanding and removed his cloak, sliding an edge of the cloth between a cuff and Legolas's skin. As Legolas looked on silently, he explained, "I believe the only way to accomplish this is to fight fire with fire." Legolas looked up sharply. "Do not be alarmed. With the control I wield over the fire under my power, I believe I can release you without harm. Perhaps we should attempt this beside the Entwash? In case we are in need of cold water."

Legolas's eyes were wide but determined, and he said nothing. Gandalf hoped the elf's reticence would last only as long as his injuries. He longed for the return of the Legolas he had known.

As they rose, they heard heavy steps behind them and much rustling among the trees. After some moments, Treebeard appeared in the clearing. "Ah, you have not left. You have decided to not be hasty after all."

"Precisely," Gandalf said with a smile. "Legolas must regain his strength, and one cannot be hasty about such things."

"You are doing a fine job, Mithrandir. He is brighter already."

"I must offer my gratitude," Legolas said, "for the waters of the Entwash. They have done much for me."

"It is my pleasure to provide them, as it is my pleasure to have an elf among my trees again."

"Indeed, I thank you, Fangorn, for all you have done. Far more than providing water, as much of a blessing as that was, you brought me where I could be safe and rest. But no words can express my gratitude for your arrival at Isengard at the very moment I needed your protective branches to escape the orcs. Without your presence, I would be no more."

"Hoom! What fine words, young elf! I accept your gratitude, and I am thankful as well that I was able to provide your escape from the dreadful orcs. If I had not been so recently awakened, I could not have helped you in the least."

"Awakened?" Legolas asked.

"You awoke recently?" Gandalf asked. "For how long did you slumber? What disturbed your sleep?"

"One never knows for how long one has slept, and we give it little thought. For then you are awake! We do sleep for longer seasons in this age, for there are few who come to our forest to speak with us.

And that is precisely what awoke me. A greeting came to me in my sleep and I awoke to see who spoke to an Ent. The creature ran through the trees as I pondered if any but Elves knew how to speak to Ents." Treebeard's voice deepened. "Then I saw the orcs and I lost my interest in finding the one who greeted me. I fear I was a bit hasty, for I never learned more of the creature, whether it was Elf or another."

Legolas broke out in a burst of laughter that soothed Gandalf's heart. "Dear Fangorn, I was the very creature who offered you such a greeting!" He sobered and his voice dropped to a whisper. "I attempted to escape from the orcs as they marched us across the plains. I had climbed the trees and thought to travel faster than the orcs. As I scaled the tree, apparently you, it occurred to me how long it had been since I had been among trees, and I indulged myself in leaving a greeting. I could do no more, for I needed to continue running."

"Hoom-hoom! So the creature was you! That is quite perfect indeed. I am doubly glad that you awoke me!"

Gandalf noted Legolas's change in mood. "It seems you provided for your own escape, only not the one you attempted. Tell me, Legolas, how is it that you were unable to run faster than orcs among the trees? Frankly, I find it rather hard to imagine."

"I must agree, Gandalf. But I was severely hampered by these." Legolas held up an arm. "They had already cuffed me, albeit in different cuffs, and the cuffs were locked together. I had little mobility, and it also hampered my balance. I was slowed far more than I expected. Once I was shot with an arrow, the escape attempt was over." He turned to Treebeard. "Have the other Ents finished their work at Isengard?"

"Yes, my friend, they have. And they found no one in the tower, so I am certain your friends have not been left there. Quickbeam and the others are as weary of orcs as I am, however, and they now follow the orcs' trail. It was quite clear the direction in which they had gone."

"The Ents are rather inspired," Gandalf said. "I dare say the world shall look differently when they are finished."

Treebeard hoom-hoomed a few words in Entish. "Will you remain here tomorrow?"

"I think not. Tomorrow, if all goes well, we will travel."

"Then I bid you farewell. I do hope you return to Fangorn, especially my young elf friend."

"I will, Fangorn. That is a promise."

"Come, Legolas, we have work to do." Gandalf urged him to continue to the river and saw the light go out of his eyes.