Disclaimer: Hold on, lemme check...nope, not a single stud sex god is mine...

Author's Notes: I'm still so happy whenever I get reviews! It makes me so happy!!!! Oh, oh, please check out my first fic, I have this soft spot for it because it's my first one...you know, like a sentimental thing...well, please check it out! :)

That night, Legolas fell into another fitful night of sleep. But this night was different. The dream started out very differently.

There was the most beautiful lady elf Legolas had ever seen in a forest clearing. She looked vaguely familiar, flaxen hair straight down to her waist, delicate features, and clear blue eyes. She had her eyes closed and was dancing by herself, no wait, she was dancing with an invisible spirit. She was dancing with the spirit of the forest. Legolas could see little Legolas peek out from behind some large leaves. The lady elf laughed and took little Legolas' hands and brought him out of the shadows of the bushes. Legolas winced to see that the little Legolas had a split lip and a black eye. The lady elf passed white porcelin hands over the wounds and they disappeared. The little Legolas smiled and the lady elf gave him a warm hug. Then suddenly, a shadow came over the happy pair. Legolas drew in a sharp breath. The large giant hand of his father roughly took little Legolas' tiny hands and started to drag him away from the lady. Little Legolas started screaming and trying to get away but Thranduil held on and took him away. The lady collapsed on the forest floor and started to cry. That scene quickly faded to another one of where again, little Legolas was crying in front of his father. His father frowned, seeing that Legolas' wounds were gone. Thranduil gave Legolas a mighty punch in the jaw. Legolas fell to the ground, skinning his elbows. Then Thranduil stalked away, very aruptly, leaving little Legolas confused and relieved yet with a little foreboding that remained claws gouging themselves onto Legolas. A scream split the night...

Legolas woke up with a start, the dream running quickly through his mind. Who was the lady? She had been kind, she had treated Legolas with tenderness as a mother would to her child....a mother....she was Legolas' mother, realized Legolas with a jolt. He had finally seen his mother. But that scream, was that her mother's scream? Had Thranduil hurt her in any way? He put a cool hand on his jaw that was aching. Wondering, Legolas craned his neck to see his elbows. It was dark but Legolas could see that they were bleeding. He quickly went to a quiet stream and made sure in the river's reflection that his elbows were really hurt. Legolas' eyebrows notched up together. What was happening? How was it that everything that happened to him in his dream was happening to him now? He examined the rest of his arms and was startled to realize that faint, red lines were starting to appear. He fell asleep by that stream, cradling the image of his mother in his mind.

"Legolas!" called Aragorn. "What are you doing here?" Legolas slowly awoke and pushed himself off the ground. Yawning, he answered, "I couldn't sleep last night, I needed a drink." Aragorn noticed the thin snaking lines around Legolas' arms but didn't speak of it, yet. Aragorn was startled by Legolas' eyes once more. They were dead. There was no spark in them. It was as if someone had blown out the candle within them. Aragorn tucked a lock of dark hair behind his ear and wondered how to say what he was thinking. Before he had a chance to ask him about how he was feeling, Legolas walked away.

Later even Merry and Pippin noticed something about Legolas.

"Oy, Legolas," called Merry. "Looks like you've landed a punch." Gandalf silenced him with a look but his eyes held concerned. So did Aragorn's. They could both clearly see the dark purple bruise splashed across the side of his jaw, contrasting vividly to his pale skin. It was as if someone had spilled grape juice on a length of white silk. Legolas turned his face away and let his long hair fall over a shoulder and hide it. Aragorn shook his head. He did not know how much longer Legolas would go on like this. He would talk to him tonight and he would make sure that Legolas would answer.