Again, I will start with apologies. But do understand that I really am incredibly busy, and I always go back to this whenever I get the time.

Enjoy!

Important Note: This chapter takes place after Saruman was expelled from the Order and his staff was destroyed by Gandalf.

Chapter Three: The Plains of Rohan

That morning when they left Minas Tirith, a curtain from the skies descended upon them and left their clothes cold and seemingly wet. The men had been yawning even as they ascended the horses. Many of them had been murmuring about how the comfort of their beds and wives were more preferable, now more than ever.

But as the hours progressed, the sun bathed their company with warmth and they rode on more merrily from Isengard back to Minas Tirith. The two hobbits now in their care seemed also to add to the cheerfulness that abounded. No one was yawning now. The sight of the ents and the destruction of the wizard Saruman had left them all wide-eyed and alert. They had been in such high spirits that they traversed to the outer borders of Helm's Deep in half the time it had taken them that morning.

When the sun was at its peak, they paused near the river by the Gap of Rohan, setting up camp before they continued on to the latter half of their journey. The trees on the foot of the mountains shielded them from the unbearable heat.

The hobbits sat merrily on the green, tall grass, eager to go over their loot from Isengard. When they were found in the Isengard shed, bones littered the ground from all of the meat that they had consumed. However, they still grinned as they brought out from their sacks fruits and bread, cheese and milk. The men happily shared with the food, grateful to finally fill their stomachs.

Legolas himself was thankful for their discovered treasure. There had been plenty of bread, originally baked by his kin, and each bite he took made him wistful of days long past, in the company of his brethren. His journey with the fellowship had taught him more than he had ever learned in the centuries that he had been in Middle-earth, but it had also birthed in him a craving for the company of his fellow elves. He had been the lone elf of their company, and though he knew the friendship he had found with them was something that would stay with him eternally, it had also made him wistful of all the friends he had left behind.

It was why he had been so heartened by the answer of the Lorien elves to the call of Helm's Deep. His heart pinched at the memory of many of them, lifeless on the battle ground. His naïve hopes of merriment and talk with them had been shattered, and instead, his heart mourned for the loss of his kin.

"You are troubled," Aragorn said, taking a seat beside him.

Legolas smiled ruefully, as he met his friend's eyes. "Death's song still plays in my ears. It will take some time for its melodies to finish."

Aragorn nodded thoughtfully. After their talk in the balcony, Aragorn seemed to have grasped a new sense of reassurance and had lost all traces of trouble in his face, much unlike the elven prince. Legolas found it ironic that he had been lecturing his friend about death just the night before. The future king mourned heavily, but he also mourned quickly.

"Such carefree spirits," Aragorn mused, as he watched the two hobbits skipping from stone to stone, half-bitten fruits gripped in their hands.

"Yes," Legolas agreed, watching them seemed to block unpleasant memories from returning to his mind. "They are to be envied, in times like these."

The hobbits, as if hearing the comments made about them, began singing a half-song. Legolas smiled upon realizing that it was about the stack of food they had found in Isengard. It was one topic the hobbits have not stopped speaking of ever since they had been rescued. "They had a stack of marvellous chicken. It was cold, but every time we bit into it, the juice would dribble down from our lips," Merry piped while Pippin laughed.

"You rascals," Gimli grumbled, staring at the bread in his hand with a deep frown. He was seated on a large rock, a couple of yards behind Legolas and Aragorn, and still his voice rang clearly. The men laughed at his reply, but Legolas knew that the dwarf was truly and deeply upset. In the past few days, he had been speaking of nothing but his cravings for meat and wine and smoke. "Sometimes you hobbits can be worse than the elves."

More laughter emanated from their pack, only to be broken by a gasp from Pippin. He skipped back to the ground, his pants wet from the river's touch. "Elves! We saw an elf once!"

Aragorn looked at him curiously. "Of course you have, little one. There were hundreds of them in Rivendell, and one of them is with you now," he smiled, gesturing at Legolas. "Or do you now mistake Legolas for a dwarf because of the time he spends with Gimli?" he grinned.

Before Gimli or Legolas could protest, Pippin shouted in denial. "I don't mean that, of course!" he looked around, catching everyone's attention.

"We saw a different elf. A girl elf. She was alone." Merry agreed, as he nodded fervently.

"A she-elf," Legolas corrected, and his eyes narrowed as he stared at them both. "Where?"

"Well, we aren't entirely sure it was an elf," Merry admitted, blushing slightly as he looked down.

"Yes we are!" Pippin retorted. "We saw her in the forest," he added proudly.

"In the forest? Fangorn?" Gimli laughed. "The elves are busy protecting their own homes, lads. Why would they be here?"

Pippin paused before answering, "Maybe she came to visit Gandalf?" The men laughed again and even Gandalf smiled at the hobbit's suggestion. Pippin shrugged at their response. "Well whatever her reason may be, all I know is she's in the forest!"

Merry looked around and saw that some of the men were still chuckling. He then turned to Pippin, frowning. "She was hidden by the leaves in Fangorn! We didn't even see her face clearly. She might have been a human-ent! Or an orc!" He turned his attention to the ground, as if realizing that he had said something embarrassing.

"There are no such things as human ents! And did she look like an ent to you, dimwit?" Pippin shouted, even stronger than before.

"Well she could have been human!" Merry frowned.

"No, I saw her ears," Pippin emphasized, shaking his head fervently.

"But we were moving," Merry insisted. "Treebeard was carrying us, wasn't he? And sometimes you can see unusual things when you're flying through the air the way he carried us. And she was too far away."

"No. That was a girl elf. She may have been hidden in the shadows, but I saw what I saw and I know that she was not human nor orc nor dwarf nor any other creature you insist she is," Pippin turned away from Merry, frowning slightly.

Silence fell upon them again, and Legolas caught Gandalf and Aragorn's eyes. He knew that beyond the frown in their brows and the downturn of their lips, they were all questioning what the hobbit could have seen. Legolas himself was reminded of what Aragorn had told them the night before. Of a pack of elves mercilessly stealing from the dead.

Aragorn tore his gaze away. He stood, and dusted his pants. "I see we have all finished with our meal, and surely must now be rested. It would be best if we hurry back to Helm's Deep," he turned to their company.

Gandalf nodded grimly, and the rest of them quickly re-packed their items. They saddled their horses with quick hands, none of them wasting time. The noticeable urgency in Aragorn's voice had not gone unnoticed.

Legolas climbed a horse, Pippin in front of him. The horses whinnied as their riders mounted, and all of them trotted away from the creek upon Aragorn's signal.

They rode near the side of the mountain, the thick bunches of trees that had grown at their feet provided a continuous and unbroken shade for at least a league. Pippin kept glancing at the shadows that danced under the growth of leaves and branches, and Legolas saw that Merry did the same.

"Are you searching for your human-ent, lads?" Gimli chuckled, also taking note of their hesitation.

"Girl elf," Pippin muttered under his breath, yet from that moment on, he kept his gaze away from the forest.

Legolas counted a few minutes before he whispered his question to the hobbit. "Did you see what she looked like, this she-elf you claim to have spotted?" his curiosity had been eating him ever since Pippin first confessed of their discovery. "Was she wearing a black cloak?" he asked. It had been decades, but Legolas still clearly remembered the dark-elves, and their cloaks that mirrored the darkness of night.

Pippin shook his head, but seemed happy that someone was inquiring and actually believing their claim. "I can't say for certain. Where she stood, everything had looked black. But I remember her face," his brows furrowed as he frowned in thought. "It sounds unbelievable, I know. Especially because she was a good distance away, and it was only a few seconds—because Treebeard had been moving uncharacteristically fast—but I can still see her face. She was very beautiful. But she was also very pale, which I suppose, is why we did see her. Her face seemed to glow in the dark of the forest. She was also looking at us, or at Treebeard. But she did not seem surprised to see an ent. She just looked very tired. And almost…sad."

Pippin looked up to him, as if awaiting a reply, but Legolas had nothing to say to the hobbit. This time, ignorance would be bliss. His thoughts, he knew, would only confuse and frighten the hobbit. Legolas himself struggled to accept the strings of events that foreshadowed only one potential conclusion: the enemies of their past had returned.

They had not traversed two leagues when they caught sight of a band of five men, turning from the mountains to meet them.

"Scouts, from the castle," Legolas announced, knowing that his companions' eyesight would not recognize the riders from their distance. "They carry the banners of Rohan."

They spurred their horses faster, and quickly gapped the distance that separated them from the riders.

"King Theoden!" they hailed, all of them removing their helms when the two companies finally met. The man who led them bowed curtly before pointing hurriedly to the mountains. "They are following, my lord! We have to hasten back to Helm's Deep!"

Theoden spurred his horse forward, but Gandalf raised his palm to silence him. "My Lord, let us not take risks. Ask your questions on the journey back. For now, let us follow their advice and continue on," the wizard shot a dark look to the direction of the mountains.

"Very well," Theoden agreed, nodding as he led the way, positioning himself beside the leader of the scouts. They rode quickly, running from pursuers that they did not yet see. "Albor, who is this you speak of? Who is following you?" the king shouted. At their pace, the wind whipped noisily against them, but his voice travelled clearly to Legolas' ears.

"We could not tell, my Lord, but all of them were strangers. There were around twenty of them, an assortment of men and—and elves," Albor replied, glancing back at Legolas.

A heavy weight seemed to drop itself into the elven prince's chest. Little by little his worries only seemed to bloom closer to reality. Here was one of the moments he bitterly wished he was proven wrong instead.

"We saw them looting the bodies on the outskirts of the Helm's Deep. We followed them, hoping to see where they would return to. We thought they were simply mountain bandits, the usual thieves. We kept our distance and thought they had not noticed us, because they paid us no attention. But when we were halfway through the mountain, they suddenly turned on us, my Lord," almost ashamed, he glanced away. "It was an ambush."

Albor's hand flew to his helm, and he gave a bow again. This time, shame was heavily apparent on his face. "We could not have risked a battle with them, my Lord, we—we were greatly outnumbered."

Theoden waved a hand impatiently, urging him to continue his report.

The scout nodded. "Thankfully, because of our smaller number and familiarity with the mountain paths, we were able to eventually widen the gap. Filad and I chanced a glance before we lost them, and we saw that they had unrobed their black cloaks. That was when we saw that there were elves among them. We recognized them quickly, my Lord, what with their…their hair and ears."

Legolas glanced at Gandalf, but the wizard was already watching him grimly.

"You made the right decision, then. To not engage them in battle," Gandalf commented, and silently, Legolas agreed. If the rumours were true, then it would mean the looters were not clumsy, heavy orcs; nor simple thieves. They would be elves, skilled in war and in bow, quick to kill. And most of all, merciless. Their souls poisoned, or their bodies controlled. His blood rushed, and an image of hooded figures with elvish arrows flashed before his eyes.

He hurriedly checked their surroundings, but there was no sign of the pursuers.

Albor's report killed the earlier jovial mood of their company. Many of the men were frowning, probably left confused by the findings of their brothers. Even the hobbits had gone back to their habbit of glancing now and again at the forest, their bright eyes scanning the shadows for any disturbance.

Only the whips and the tired whinnies of the horses disturbed the sound of their movement, as the riders spurred the beasts to run on, and to run faster.

When finally they reached the inner borders of Helm's Deep, did Legolas allow himself to breathe freely. They were ascending a wide plateau that lasted only half a league long. He knew that once they descended to the other side, they would finally be able to see Helm's Deep.

But his moment of peace was shortlived.

The moment they reached the top of the plateau, he saw her immediately. Almost seconds later, so did the rest of his companions. She was clearly exposed, for the long field was bare and flat, with only small patches of grass growing here and there. She was riding a white horse that emerged from the eastern side, opposite the mountain and to the left of Minas Tirith.

Her horse curved, and she rode straight to them. Her steed and the dust they left in their path cut through the plains like a disturbance cutting through the surface of a still and quiet pond. The sight brought Legolas and all the men to pause, and they watched intently as she rode on.

He knew who she was. Even without the heightened eyesight that their races were known for, he would still have recognized her immediately. It was perhaps, the green cloak that she wore—the cloak of his people, or the way she sat as she rode, or her auburn hair that seemed to burn in the afternoon light. Perhaps it was just her.

Unbidden, his hands pulled the rein of his horse and they came to a stop. His company, who had also been slowing, halted around him. He watched, feeling both dumbfounded and mesmerized as she neared them. He felt suspended in a dream, and it took a while before he realized that Aragorn and the others had brought their bows out, and were aiming at her.

"Don't," he said softly, and Aragorn turned to him in surprise.

"What?" he asked, confused.

"Keep your bows. I know her," he answered.

Aragorn watched him for a moment, before he slowly brought down his bow, and the others followed.

It felt only seconds when she finally reached them. She was only a few yards away when she came to a stop, and descended her horse. An unusual mask of indifferencecovered her face, and her gaze swept through his companions, before finally landing on him.

When their eyes met, he again saw what seemed like magic. Her face softened and a glint of light found their way to her eyes. A lips were threatening to curve into a smile, and her shoulders dropped as she slowly breathed out. After what seemed like hours, she bowed to him.

Before any thought could process in his mind, Legolas jumped from his horse. His arm reached out to her, and he would have run to her if he did not suddenly remember the situation they were in. He stopped in his tracks.

Silence enveloped them then, as Legolas' companions looked at both elves in confusion. He knew they wanted answers, but Legolas could not speak. He could not take his eyes away from her. It had been years, and the green of her eyes wrapped him in a dazed state.

"Legolas," she whispered heavily, when they recovered.

Her voice broke the disbelief in his heart. He had thought her a mirage, something unreal. And he was tempted to run to her and hold her—until it became clear to him what her presence here meant.

Her cloak was tattered and torn. Scratches riddled her face, and this time, he did not need to check her hands to know that many more abounded there. He could not tell where she had come from, but he knew that she had travelled many leagues alone. His gaze flew to the already empty quiver at her back. He almost sighed in disbelief. Why was she always so eager to prove herself reckless?

His longing gave way to frustration and when he spoke, it was with a harsh tone. "Why are you here?" he asked in Elvish.

She did not answer him, but her eyes steeled as well, and she returned his gaze defiantly.

"Legolas," this time it was Aragorn who spoke. "You know her?" he asked quietly.

Legolas nodded. There was a moment of hesitation, before Aragorn nudged his horse closer to Tauriel. "I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn, and these are my comrades, King Theoden of Rohan and his men, and other visitors from the wide expanse of Middle-Earth." He gestured to them. "Now, pray, my lady, tell us your name."

"I am Tauriel of Mirkwood, and I have journeyed far to find my prince." Her voice was steady and confident, and her answer garnered even more curious looks from everyone.

"I have met the lady before," Gandalf added, his eyes twinkling with curiosity.

"Yes. Many years ago, Gandalf of Greyhame," her eyes softened. "I am joyful of your presence now. I have heard of what happened in the kingdom of Moria."

Gandalf nodded knowingly.

She then turned to Aragorn. "I also know you, Aragorn, son of Arathorn. You, I met long before you could learn to speak my name." She gave a small smile. "You have grown, Estel."

Aragorn's frown deepened all the more. He opened his mouth to speak, no doubt to ask questions, but Gandalf moved closer. "I will vouch for the lady," he said, looking down at her. "We are on our way to Helm's Deep. A band of thieves have been after some of our companions, and they ride from the mountains. It is not safe to be so exposed and so alone in these plains of Rohan."

Theoden nodded, and he gazed at her thoughtfully. "If it is what you wish, you can ride with us to the castle, my lady."

Gandalf nodded, and then looked at Aragorn and Legolas. "It is best if we save the questions and conversations for the safety of walls. This is not the safest place for us to loiter."

Before she could answer, Legolas willed himself to turn away from her, and mounted his horse.

When he took his place behind Pippin, he gazed up to see her watching them, her eyes darting from the hobbit to him. A curious look came to her face, and a smile tugged at her lips. But then she seemed to remember Theoden's offer, and she turned to the King. "Thank you for your kindness, my Lord. I would be honoured to join you," she gave a curt nod and a small smile to Theoden, and returned to her horse.

She turned away from Legolas, and when their companyresumed their journey, kept a considerable distance away from him.

Although he tried not to, his gaze repeatedly flew back to her. Even after being with her so long, the sight of her still stunned him. But then he would also remember the empty quiver at her back, and annoyance would return to goad the war within his thoughts.

As if hearing him, Pippin also turned to her. "She's beautiful," Pippin whispered, after a long moment.

With a sigh, Legolas nodded. Despite everything, that much had always been true.

END OF CHAPTER

A/N: I am still in need of a beta? Someone please help meee haha.

Thank you to all who remain. This update is for you!

Please help me improve, and do leave a review!

Vee