A big Thank You to everyone who read, and especially everyone who reviewed. I love to read reviews, they help sustain my life force! pixie88 don't worry about "going on too long" I love long, indepth reviews, and I'm so glad that my story has touched you in some way that you can be so enthusiastic about it!
pen which "crack" about Buffy's look did you mean? There are a few:)

Happy Fourth everyone. Read, enjoy, and please keep reviewing!

Chapter 21

It was dark. It was Christmas. No one felt much like celebrating, though. Buffy was in a cave. She hadn't even realized it was December. Maybe when she got home, she could decorate the rubble. Right now, it was stalagmites, stalactites, a sort of dead tree smell and looking for…

Who was she looking for? There was something here. Something really bad. Besides the one she searched for, something else lurked. Something big and…old. Ancient. Her footsteps echoed. Take a deep breath and close your eyes. Try to focus the senses.

When she opened her eyes, she was no longer in that cave. Looking around, she saw she was in some kind of factory. Buffy started to take a step forward and winced. Her ankle was injured. Oh yeah, forgot about that. Thought it was better, but…no that was someplace else. Some other time. Not here.

Turning, she was back in the cave. Nothing can grow in this place. We won't have a tree this year. Why does evil interfere with holiday fun? A scrabbling sound put her on the alert. Her head turned swiftly, following the sound. Nothing.

Where are all those eyeless, chanting bald guys in robes? This was their major hang out spot last time. Another noise, and a shadow. Someone running. Buffy carefully made her way through the cave. The pain in her foot was gone. Of course it was. It hadn't been hurt in the first place.

Buffy strode confidently forward. She was the Slayer. There was no need to be shy about it. Just walk through like you own the place. This is my town. She stepped on something lying in the dirt.

She bent at the knee to take a look. Her fingers brushed away the dust and came up with a delicate, silver chain with a tiny cross. She let it dangle from her hand and swing in the air. Holding it up, she stood and brushed the dirt from her other hand.

Factory again. Something's following me. Am I hunting or being hunted? The pain was back, and her heart sped up. It was time to run. Run! her insides shouted. She ran, but it was like she had weights chained to her ankles. Suddenly, she was thrown into a wall.

Buffy couldn't see what had attacked her, and she struck out blindly. She couldn't move fast enough. Whatever it was hit her again, and she was down. Lying in the dirt of the cave floor, she rolled over, and her heart nearly stopped. A dead girl lay next to her. Long brown hair. Pretty. Blue sweater. Neck broken.

Up again, Buffy swung her arm, still unable to see what she was fighting. It moved so quickly, as if it could predict her every move. As if it came to her house and listened in on her meetings and training sessions. And she didn't know it for what it was.

A clip to her jaw, and a punch in the gut and she was down again, scrambling for a weapon. Grabbing something metal, she tried to lift it. Too heavy. Where's that old ingenuity, Buffy? Didn't you used to be clever when you fought? She kicked out with her foot, sending something crashing down from the factory's ceiling.

Time to run again. It's not slowing down, but I am. It had her by the neck now, and it used her as a wrecking ball, sending her crashing through a concrete wall.

She lay under rubble and debris. Blood trickled down her cheeks. Buffy's eyes were closed once more, and from under the pile she heard her friends' panicked voices.

"Buffy!" Xander called. She heard metal scrape against metal, weight being lifting off of her battered and bruised body. It took forever for them to dig her out. Willow and Giles sounded scared, and Xander just kept on tearing away at the wreckage. At last, cool air washed over her face, and a warm hand checked for a pulse on her neck. She heard him sigh in relief.

"She's alive."

Feeling safe, Buffy gradually opened her eyes. She reached out a hand to Xander, but when he came into focus, she screamed.

Buffy sat up abruptly, breathing hard, and sweating. Her heart raced, and she couldn't remember where she was for a few minutes. She focused on the sputtering campfire and got her bearings. She had not had a nightmare in such a long time. Not since…Buffy looked around for Legolas, but he was not nearby. Drawing her knees up to her chest, she covered her eyes with her palms but withdrew them immediately.

If she closed her eyes, then she saw…it. Whatever it was she had been fighting in her dream. It was like nothing she'd ever seen before. Its skin was utterly white with black veins weaving underneath it. Small evil eyes glared at her in malicious joy from the middle of black circles, and black lips curled back to reveal mangled fangs and bloody gums.

Its wrinkled brow and nose formed the familiar vampire features, but this was something older, something primitive. Something normal vampires were afraid of. Buffy didn't know how she knew this, but know it, she did. Deep in her bones, she could feel its evilness like a disease. Her dream had shown her its strength. She couldn't fight it.

Shaking her head hard as if to rid herself of her vision and the fear that lingered, she stood. Voices sounded in the night above the din of crickets and Gimli's snoring. Low and melodic, they spoke in the flowing language that Buffy now recognized as Elvish.

Looking further afield, she saw the glowing forms of the three elves some distance away. They looked to be having a heated discussion, and Buffy was loathe to interrupt. But for some reason, when Legolas was near her, she did not have these horrible dreams. She needed the comfort only he seemed to be able to provide.

Disregarding her earlier feelings of annoyance with Legolas, she started walking towards him. She saw that he had been looking her way, and had taken a few steps in her direction, his hand outstretched, as if he knew what she needed from him. Buffy quickened her pace, not wanting to seem desperate, but feeling it all the same.

As she drew nearer, their eyes locked. His blue ones were full of concern, and she ran to him. He drew her into an embrace, and Buffy felt safe enough to close her eyes, burrowing into his warmth, breathing in his scent. It was like rain on trees, she thought, fresh and vibrant and green. A small part of her mind was disturbed at how familiar he'd become to her in such a short time. Where she usually held most people at a distance, Buffy wanted to bring him closer. It frightened her, and she slowly pulled away after a few moments.

Buffy glanced at the two newcomers to their party, embarrassed at having made such a public display, especially in front of virtual strangers. They looked back at her, their fair faces grim with concern, but not necessarily for her, she thought. Legolas put a hand on her shoulder, and she turned back to him.

"What is wrong, Buffy?" he asked softly.

Feeling like a four-year old, she answered "I…I had a nightmare. I haven't had one in awhile, and it kind of freaked me out."

Legolas' lips tightened, and he seemed angry for a moment, but he softened a second later. "I am sorry, Buffy. I should have been with you."

"Why?" she asked, bewildered. "It's not your job to be my bedtime friend," hearing herself, she flushed and tried to cover. "I mean, you know, you seem to hang around me a lot when I sleep and I don't have bad dreams when you're there, and I'm not implying that there's anything more than that going on, and I'm going to stop talking now."

The twins each raised a brow at her almost indecipherable babble, but neither of them showed any sign of laughing, and Buffy once again felt some kind of disapproval emanating from the two. Silence reigned, and when that happened, Buffy just couldn't keep her mouth shut. Especially when her back was up, which it now was, due to the current atmosphere of frowniness.

"So, I'm guessing I interrupted some really important discussion." Buffy took on a challenging stance and stared back at the twins with equal disdain. "You guys making some late night Elf plans? Gonna sneak into someone's house and make shoes tonight?"

A long pause ensued as the elves stared at Buffy and each other, very perplexed. Buffy immediately felt sheepish, seeing as her little joke had fallen flat. "Guess that's not a story you guys heard, growing up." She cleared her throat, and turned to Legolas seeking help.

Legolas only half-smiled, a wicked gleam in his eye. "Are the elves primarily shoemakers in the place where you are from, Buffy?"

Buffy frowned up at him in bafflement. "No, I told you, we don't have any elves in my wor-" she stopped short of confessing that she was from a completely different world, and corrected herself. "My town. We don't have any elves in my town." She stated with as much conviction as she could muster to the twins. She turned back to Legolas and mouthed "Nice try."

"Where do you hail from, then Buffy, daughter of Joyce? We much desire to know," Elrohir asked, crossing his arms and doing his best to intimidate her.

It only made Buffy more irritated. "That's for me to know, and you to find out when I feel like telling you," she snapped.

Legolas placed a restraining hand on her shoulder. "Buffy," he admonished. "You have no reason for speaking to him thusly. The sons of Elrond are friends and can be trusted. You are going to receive their father's aid, do not cast aside their offer of friendship."

"If I see an offer of friendship, I'll grab it," Buffy retorted. "So far it's mostly 'who are you and where do you come from?' and a whole lot of posturing that's on the table."

Elladan cleared his throat. "Forget not that I helped you to catch your meal, lady."

Somewhat abashed, Buffy turned to the nicer twin conceded his point. "But you're both still making with the suspicious glaring, and that hardly gives me the warm fuzzies."

Both twins stared at her with incomprehension for a moment before Elrohir spoke again. "You exaggerated not, Thranduilión, when you said she spoke oddly. It is near to impossible to understand her." He smirked as Buffy threw him a dirty look and added, "I wonder if you exaggerated though, when praising her skills as a warrior earlier."

Buffy whirled around to face Legolas, her eyes wide. "You have such a big mouth! What did you tell them that for?"

Legolas shrugged, unmoved by her irritation. "I saw no reason not to. I had to tell them something of you."

"No, you didn't!" She stepped closer to Legolas lowering her voice to an extremely low whisper. "I do not just blab my 'chosen' status to every Tom, Dick and Elfie!"

"Chosen?"

"Elfie?"

Buffy, having momentarily forgotten the elves' ability to hear a frog hiccup halfway across the world, rolled her eyes and muttered, "Damn elves." She turned to face the twins again. "Look, it's not that I don't trust you, it's just that I have the feeling that I'm going to have to repeat my story to a whole lotta people, and I don't want to keep rehashing it. When we get to your dad's house, you can hear the whole thing, okay?"

"We already know a few things, child, so you may as well tell us a little more so we may understand you better," Elrohir looked a little smug when he saw how being called a 'child' rankled Buffy.

"Like what?" she challenged.

"Like you come from a place that is unheard of in these parts," Elladan contributed. "That you have no need of fishing, hunting and camping where you come from."

"You are secretive and stubborn, have a strong will and are unafraid to stand up to and accept a challenge." Elrohir began to circle her slowly, looking her up and down.

"Your dress and speech is very strange and off-putting." Elladan began to circle the other way.

"You do not know how to ride a horse, therefore you must have no need for that skill."

"You have good reason to guard your secrets, but you have an unmistakable air of goodness."

"You have been through harrowing trials that would test the strongest heart."

"You have strength beyond that of a normal mortal, and fighting skills, and you have been chosen for something very important."

"You awoke in Fangorn Forest, of all places, without any recollection of having gone there. You were alone and unarmed with no supplies of your own."

"You fight in a manner that has been unseen by either Legolas or Gimli, and they have seen much."

Buffy was beginning to get dizzy, not to mention royally pissed off. If they didn't stop walking around her in circles, she was going to explode. At last, they stopped again where they had started, but not before dropping two bombs.

"You share a unique bond with Legolas of Mirkwood."

"And your hair seems to be changing color at the roots."

At this, Buffy's hand flew up to the top of her head as if to cover the evidence of her natural hair color. Then the remark that was made before the crack about her hair resurfaced in her mind, and she frowned in puzzlement. "I have a bond?" She looked back at Legolas, whose expression was unreadable. "There's no bond. I'm totally bond-free." She suddenly remembered their hugging action and attempted to explain.

"Oh, you mean because I-I hugged him, well that was just because, um-" Think, Buffy, think she berated herself. "Actually, that's none of your business," she stated with an air perky confidence.

Elrohir eyes flicked to those of Legolas and back to Buffy's. "I suppose not," he murmured thoughtfully.

"A-and neither is any of the other stuff you said. Do you guys have some sort of nightclub act? If you can read minds, then you really ought to go on the road. You'd make a bundle."

"We do not need to read your mind, as you say. If we could, we would already know everything about you, and we would not be having this tiresome discussion." Elladan retorted, quite weary of this girl's obstinance. "We are merely telling you what we observe."

"As well as what Legolas told us of you."

"Peace, mellyn, I beg of you. If Buffy does not wish to say aught of herself, then we cannot force her," Legolas interjected.

"Damn straight," Buffy uttered, and she headed back toward camp, also tired of this discussion. Legolas turned to follow her, wanting to make sure her sleep was not disturbed again this night.

"Perhaps, we cannot force her," Elladan said to their retreating backs. They stopped and turned, wary of his crafty tone. Elladan looked at his twin with a twinkle in his eye. "But if we held a sort of contest-"

"One of us against her," Elrohir added, understanding his brother's mind immediately.

"And perhaps if we set stakes," Elladan continued.

"Such as if we win, she tells us all-"

"And if she wins she keeps her silence until we reach Imladris-"

"Then perhaps we may resolve this matter." Elrohir finished.

Buffy stared at them for an instant, then shook her head. "Anyone ever tell you that twins completing each other's sentences is just plain creepy?" she quipped. When she got no response, she gazed at them in interest. "What kind of contest?"

"How are you with a bow and arrow?" Elrohir asked.

"Pretty damn good," Buffy answered.

"And with the sword?" asked Elladan

"Pretty damn good."

"Which one do you prefer?"

Buffy thought for a moment. "Well, I have the feeling that if I picked the bow and arrow, you guys would probably set a target about a million miles away that only you could see with your super-elf sight. I think I'll stick with the sword, if I can borrow one." She glanced at Legolas hopefully.

He shook his head. "I do not carry a sword, else I would lend it to you." He paused, frowning. "As long as you did not use it for-"

Buffy clapped a hand over his mouth. "Not a problem, since you don't have one." They stood for a moment, staring at each other, Buffy's hand still over Legolas' mouth. A warm shiver went through Buffy as she realized how intimate the pose was, and she slowly took her hand away. The moisture from his lips lingered on her palm like a kiss. Legolas continued to stare at her as Buffy turned shyly away, closing her hand tightly.

"You may borrow one of our swords, I suppose," Elrohir drawled. "As soon as you choose which of us you wish to be at the mercy of."

Buffy raised a challenging eyebrow. "I think it's going to be the other way around. Let's see, do I want Tweedle-dee or Tweedle-dum?" She looked at Elrohir first and then Elladan. Her eyes slid back to Elrohir and she grinned. "I think I'll have me a slice of Tweedle-dee."

"I suppose that makes me Tweedle-dum," Elladan growled. "Be careful with my sword, girl, or you'll regret it." He reached for his sword's hilt, and it sang as he drew it from its scabbard.

Buffy stared at the weapon. It was beautiful. She took it from Elladan's hand reverently as he handed to her. Turning it this way and that, she examined the silver blade in the light cast by the elves. Holding it close to her face, she could make out engravings in a flowing script that she could not read. She looked up at Elladan. "What does it say?"

Elladan paused before answering. "It says (1)Ne rîn uin baul emil nîn, Degin le."

Buffy tilted her head in curiosity. "What's that mean?"

Elladan smirked. "That's for me to know, and you to find out when I feel like telling you."

Buffy grinned ruefully and nodded. She turned to Legolas. "You should probably go wake Gimli up."

"Why is that?" asked Legolas.

"Because he's going to want to watch as I kick this elf's ass."

(1)You'll find out what this means when Buffy does! Unless you speak Sindarin, that is.