I felt the poison course through my veins; I knew not if it was lethal nor what the effects may be. All I knew is I continued to faze in and out of consciousness until finally all went black for a long while. When my eyes did open again I found myself in darkness, alone, but something was very different. As my eyed adjusted to the world around me I noticed something most unusual. I was there, in that field where Thaleon left me. What sorcery is this? I murmured to myself quietly; noticing that I was dressed in the tunic I had worn that dreadful night. Had I passed into the shadow realm? Had I been cursed to relive the wretched tragedies of my memory?

In an instant I felt the piercing pain in my shoulder as I snapped back into reality; the pain was calm to me. It assured me I had yet to live, but again the world began to fade once more. I wearily glanced around me, taking in what I could. I noticed the blonde man near me and the shadows of others close by. My vision faded once more, as I gasped for air. A voice faded in what only seemed to be distance; it was familiar to me, but I could neither place its origin nor its memory. "Aragorn, the woman, she stirs! We must hurry…" it spoke, my mind placing an echo to it, for a moment I saw him clearly and felt myself speak the faintest words, "I know your face."

Then I drifted back, back to that forsaken memory. I walked through the marsh, not giving a second thought to the darkness. I watched onward as the memory resumed, this time I had only been a shade of myself; free to take in what projections the darkness played for me.

Thaleon, my only companion in this cruel, world was gone. In my fear I felt betrayed, alone, abandoned. How could I forgive such insolence? I knew not where to go, I knew not who to go to, I knew not what would come of the day ahead. I had been travelling on foot the whole day and night had come to pass. Never had I felt as alone as I did that dark, wind chilled night.

I carried only with me what I could; I necklace of my mothers, a pack that carried some bread and a canteen of water along with other minor necessities, and of course the bow and quiver Thaleon had left for me. Vulnerability was something I had known well at the time, I let my emotions take charge and cloud my mind.

It was dark in that marsh and I heard the groans and howls of the creatures that were out in the fray. From my assumptions I knew I had to be somewhere on the outskirts of Mirkwood but I knew Lake Town could not be too far ahead of me. As the night went on, I heard faint noises in the marsh alongside me. The sounds of beasts no doubt, my small body began to tremble in fear as the sounds grew ever closer. Before long I found myself surrounded by wolves; they had been hunting me and I knew I was no match for them. They snarled and circled around me as I stared at them, frozen with terror.

I screamed through the night as one lurched at me but its teeth never fell upon my flesh; rather its body fell to the ground. I looked up to see that it had been struck by an arrow. Before my mind could comprehend the sight before me I saw a tall, graceful being come to my rescue; slaying each beast as it attacked. My savior was elegant in his movements, swift and courageous. His eyes were bright, piercing blue. His hair was like silk and was a pale, beautiful, yellow. He was not a man, but what I assumed to be an elf; the first I had ever encountered in my years. He rushed to my side, asking if I was alright.

"I owe you my life," I spoke softly to the elf.

I sat up abruptly; gasping for breath, a pair of strong but gentle arms caught me. "Hush now," called the familiar voice from before, "a young maiden as yourself should not be out wandering these lands alone."

"Those words," I whispered, "I've heard them before…" I looked into the same piercing blue eyes I had seen that night in the marsh, "from you my brave Legolas…"

Author Note:
Well, this is short... And an unexpected update. You've all been asking for an update to this story for nearly two years and only now did I remember I had a half written chapter to submit. So here it is. I think I will be discontinuing this story and replacing it with one based in the time period of The Hobbit... If I do, I will let you know. Until then, I fear this story is now closed. Thank you for reading thus far. I appreciate your support.