Author's Note: Well, after a small hiatus, I have returned with the new story I promised. This is the first AU I have attempted, and though I will keep it as canonically accurate as possible it must be read with somewhat of an open mind. So with that said, I'll make the usual disclaimers, all recognizable characters and places are the property of JRR Tolkien. Please do not hesitate to review, even constructive criticism, as all writers can thrive on that. Enjoy!

Chapter 1

Logan snapped the newspaper shut and threw it down on the table. It was as they had feared, and this recent article was only helping to confirm the worst.

Logan sat back and passed a hand over his face, letting it rest over his mouth. He was tired, and he did not even want to think about all that this new discovery might imply.

But would it really be that bad?

So what if they had uncovered the ruins of an old volcano, that did not mean they would be able to discover its dark secrets, the terrible past it held.

No, there was a good chance nothing would really come out of this. He knew enough now to know that the most rational explanation was the most popular and that if the truth was beyond reason, it would simply be refused.

What did it matter that Mount Doom had been found?

The phone rang, cutting into Logan's dark thoughts. He pushed his chair away from the table and rose to answer it. But with his hand hovering over the receiver, he decided at the last minute to let the machine answer. The answering machine clicked on and Logan listened.

"Hey Logan, it's Dan," said a familiar voice. He could hear laughter in the background and an unbidden smile came to Logan's lips. "Roger made me call to tell you that we got the last DVD. He claims it's yet another theatrical masterpiece and that you have to come over to watch it with the new speakers even though I keep telling him we dragged you to enough showings of it while it was still in theaters."

The speaker broke off and there was the sound of muffled voices and shuffling in the background before Dan came back on. There was a sigh, "And he keeps saying that you'll be amazed by the clarity of the picture even though I say it makes no difference..."

More scuffling with the phone. Bits of conversation came to Logan like, "I'm not letting you talk" and "Your sales pitch is all wrong" and even "Never get him out of the house."

By this time Logan was starting to laugh and he could feel his previous mood begin to lift. Finally there was a loud thumping sound followed by a curse and then a new, breathless voice came on the line.

"Hey Logan, Roger here," there was a slight emphasis on the names as if they were a joke unto themselves. "I can't talk long seeing as how Dan's bound to get up any minute, but I know you're probably there anyway and just pretending not to be so rest assured that we will be at your house in a few hours and that you will be coming back to ours to enjoy the movie. Just thought I'd give you a heads up." And then there was a click and the call was ended before Logan found out if Dan did indeed get up and pummel Roger. But knowing those two, he imagined it would turn out that way.

Logan went back towards the table and then stood beside it, looking down at the newspaper. The front page was covered with politics, war, and murder. But that was not what had bothered him. The article he had been preoccupied by was found in the corner of the fifth page, a small, non-important and non-threatening article. But it's words were enough to send chills down Logan's spine. This was why he had come back, this was the new problem that had to be dealt with, and quickly before it got out of hand. The world was troubled enough without this new threat that could easily dwarf all the recent problems.

The article itself did not mention anything about Mount Doom, just that an ancient volcano had been found in the middle of a ruined civilization. They had found the ancient city first, the findings bringing excitement to archaeologists everywhere but bothering little else. But now the volcano was found too, and that meant the archaeologists were getting more inquisitive, closer to tampering with things that should be left alone.

Logan moved away from the table and the newspaper. There was no need to start worrying about it now, he told himself, there was no need to get all worked up over it. Besides, there was still a chance that the volcano was just that, an ancient volcano. He still did not have any concrete proof that it was in fact the Mountain of Fire.

Logan made his way into the living room and lowered himself onto the large couch seated in front of an equally large television. But he did not turn it on, he hardly watched T.V., and instead thought of his most immediate problem.

How he was going to deal with Roger and Dan.

They were coming over, of that he was certain. There would be nothing he could do to dissuade them from that. Once they got it into their heads that Logan was being too reclusive again they used any excuse to harass him. And the release of the latest Lord of the Rings movie was enough to do so.

Logan laughed slightly as he envisioned his evening. Roger was particularly obsessed with the movies, and he would end up being pummeled by Dan again before the night was over, for he would undoubtedly be recounting tales and facts about what was going on behind the scenes while they watched.

For his own part, Logan was only mildly interested in the movies, and if it weren't for Roger and Dan he would not have seen them at all. Dan had not been lying when he had said they had dragged him to the theaters. It wasn't that he was against the movies, per say, they just made him slightly uncomfortable.

Logan drifted in his thoughts, thinking of various and unrelated things, and it was some time before he glanced over at the clock. And when he did he bolted upright. Immediately getting to his feet, Logan shook his head. He had to stop doing that. Besides, Roger and Dan would be here any minute. They never failed to arrive on time and even sometimes early when it came to delivering Logan from his 'recluseness'.

Logan hurried into the bedroom. He was not even properly dressed yet. He was wearing old jeans and a slightly faded T-shirt. He could not go out in public dressed as thus, even if it was only over to Roger and Dan's house.

Logan glanced outside his large window. It was slightly overcast outside and the wind was starting to pick up. Logan traded his jeans for loose black slacks and a dark green sweater replaced his old T-shirt. He was just finishing pulling on his light loafers when he heard the doorbell. Resigning himself to his fate, Logan rose from the bed he had been sitting on and made his way to the front room.

As soon as he had slid back the chain on the door and undid the bolt, the door swung open on its own accord. He should have known Roger would not be so formal as to actually wait for Logan himself to open the door.

"It's been too long!" Roger proclaimed, grabbing the dignified Logan in a large hug before Logan could get out of the way.

As Logan fought for breath in the overly tight embrace, he looked over Roger's shoulder and saw his twin brother standing in the hallway outside.

Dan gave a small nod, "Legolas."

Legolas finally managed to extract himself from Roger's grip. "Elladan," he answered, then turning his attentions back to the overzealous one, "and Elrohir."

Elrohir grinned. "Please, just call me Roger." He paused to think about it. "No, better yet, just keep it Elrohir." Then, forgetting all about the names, Elrohir grabbed Legolas by the hand and pulled him out the door.

"Wait," Legolas protested, "I need my keys."

Elrohir did not relent, however, and Elladan, sighing, stepped past the struggling pair and over to the low coffee table that the keys were on. He grabbed them, held them high to show Legolas he had them, and then all three went through the door with Elladan closing and locking the door behind them.

"I can follow you on my own," Legolas continued to struggle with Elrohir's grip on his wrist.

"Nonsense, I don't want you coming up with a sudden excuse to miss one of the best experiences of your life," Elrohir said cheerfully.

"I'm coming already, you know that I am coming."

Elrohir glanced at Legolas with a raised brow and then, suddenly, released him.

Legolas frowned and massaged his freed wrist. Elladan was walking beside him. "He gets overly excited," he said.

"One would think after all this time he would learn to calm down," Legolas said with a scowl.

Elrohir glanced over his shoulder at the two of them. "Where's the fun in that? Honestly, if I were more like you two I would have bored myself to death long ago."

Elladan and Legolas exchanged a glance. "Meaning he has no tact," Elladan said.

Elrohir pretended not to hear and only continued on down the hallway to the elevators that would take them down to the parking garage.

As they climbed into the elevator, Legolas contemplated telling the twins about his recent findings in the newspaper, that Mount Doom had possibly been found. But one look at their faces made him keep his mouth closed.

I'll tell them later, Legolas promised himself, no need to ruin the whole evening with useless worry.