Warnings: injuries, descriptions and mentions of blood
Word count: 1454
Other: -
Requested: by Pisces35
Alone in the forest, injured and frightened, trusting the man that appears out of nowhere isn't the easiest thing.
Panting, you dragged yourself to the roots of an old oak, hoisting your injured leg closer to your body with a huff. The warg had gotten a good hold of it, the deep lacerations from it's fangs clearly visible. The only reason you were still alive and not warg-food was the fact that you had fallen into a river as you had tried to get away from the beast. Now you were soaking wet, injured and alone with no idea where you were. A shiver ran trough your body as the cold breeze blew across your wet skin and dripping clothes. You had lost your bag as you had fallen. Not that it had held anything of value, just the few coins you had managed to procure with your other set of clothes and your old and worn tinderbox. All of them would have been useful, but it was no use crying after them now, they were gone, probably lost forever to the roaring waters of the river.
Sleep pressed down on your eyelids, but you fought to stay awake, knowing that if you fell asleep, you would probably never awaken. So you hoisted yourself higher on the tree trunk, rubbing your arms to try and warm yourself up even the slightest bit. But it was no use, the sun had set hours ago and the wind showed no signs of easing, and you were starting to realize that your chances of survival were slim. You traveled alone, so no one would be looking for you, and judging by the absolute silence that plagued the woods, there were no humans around for miles. Your dagger laid next to your thigh, your hands so cold that they didn't have the strength to hold the blade.
You decided to sacrifice a part of the hem of your shirt to try and stem the bleeding. Blood was oozing out in a steady stream, so red against he dull brown ground beneath you. You ripped off two strips, tying them both over the most serious cuts, the shallower ones already having stopped bleeding. You hoped that the raging water of the river had washed out the wounds, you could't have them getting infected. In your current condition, that would be a death sentence.
You jumped when there was a crack in the woods. You stilled, listening. Something heavy was heaving into your direction, you could hear it from the footfalls. You fought the black that was slowly surrounding your vision, flexing your hand despite the pain to grab the dagger. It was a poor help, but it was all you had. The sounds were closer now, and you slowly dragged yourself towards the yellowing bush on your right, hoping it would somehow mask you from whatever was coming.
A white horse with simple dark tack walked out of the bushes, shaking it's head as it's ears caught onto the tree it was walking under. The man, elf, you reminded yourself as you saw his ears, tapped it's neck, pressing his heel to it's side gently to move around a bolder. They were right in front of you, and the vibrations from the horses hooves traveled on the ground and to your leg, causing you to hiss. You couldn't do anything to stop the sound, and the elf pulled his horse to a halt, his brown eyes scanning the area around him as he noticed you. It was clear that your presence surprised him, as his eyes widened and he stared at you for a moment before he recovered. As he did, he slid down from the horse, taking a step closer to you. You winced and tugged your injured leg closer, trying to ignore the throbbing pain that shot up to your hip.
As he noticed you shifting away, he stopped and stared at you for a moment before kneeling down so the two of you were face to face.
"Hello." When you didn't answer, he continued.
"My name is Lindir. Would it be okay for me to take a look at your leg?" You shifted away again as he tried inching closer. You didn't trust him. Why was he here, in the middle of the woods, all alone?
"I wish you no harm, I promise." You frowned. His words sounded sincere, and you couldn't see any ill will in his eyes, but could you trust him? If life on the road had taught you anything, it was to be cautious of everyone you met.
"How do I know you are not lying?" You questioned him, lifting your dagger higher. It took you a tremendous effort to move your hand, your muscles tired and heavy. Lindir noticed this, knowing full well that the cold weather of the starting autumn would be your death, especially if you stayed in those wet clothes for much longer.
"You'll have to take my word. I know a place where you will be looked after."
He extended his hand to you, his eyes conveying the question in his (and your) mind clearly.
"Do you trust me?" Truth to be told you didn't know whether or not you could trust him. He had been nothing but nice to you during the time you had been with him, but your past experiences were still screaming at the back of your head that you shouldn't trust anyone.
There was a long silence, neither of you moving as you studied him, trying to decide what you were going to do. You felt the strength draining out of your body, the exhaustion setting in into your limbs. The knife fell off your hand, and numbness of laying against the cold ground was slowly taking over your legs. Your wound throbbed the bandage you had applied already soaked trough, ruby red with your blood.
"Please. Take me away from here." You finally begged. You were dying, if he wanted to harm you there was only a small window for him to do so before you drew your last breath. You saw something that resembled relief in his hands as he approached you and laid his hand on your arm. The warmth on our freezing skin felt almost scalding, but you didn't even think of pulling away, the warmth was so comforting that a pair of tears quickly escaped your eyes. His arms slid to your waist, keeping an eye on your reaction, he didn't want to step over any boundaries.
Lindir hoisted you up from the ground gently, helping you to your feet, but was immediately forced to drop his hands to your waist to keep you upright as your injured leg almost gave up under your weight.
"You mustn't push yourself, my lady, you are injured." You blushed at his words. No one had ever called you lady, mainly because you weren't one.
"I am no lady." You corrected him. Being the daughter of a sheep farmer wasn't the most glorious life to be born to, but you had loved it. When your father had passed away a few years ago, you had taken for the road as your mother was long dead and all of your brothers had a family of their own. He looked shocked for a moment before he smiled, tugging the reins of his horse to urge it closer.
"Nonsense, I know a lady when I see one." With gentle hands, he hoisted you up and into the saddle, causing you to let out a sharp breath as your legs left the ground.
"You haven't ridden before?" He asked, seeing your stiff shoulders and your white knuckles as you squeezed the saddle with two hands. As you shook your head, he pulled the reins off of the horses neck, holding them in his hand firmly.
"Do not worry, Lagor* is a good horse." You gave a stiff nod as he started to lead the horse down the path, your hold tightening as the movement of the horse faltered your balance.
"Is everything alright?" Lindir asked, leading the horse to a smoother part of the path.
"Yes." Your voice was small when you answered, but the shaking was gone, replaced with a small tint of trust. You had been wrong to doubt him.
One more request in the line (and the angst but my brain is NOT working with me on that), so I'll get to open the requests soon, maybe tomorrow or the day after that!
(if you are interested in requesting, remember to read the request rules ;) )
**Lagor - Swift, rapid