The elves crouched in the snow, feeling cold and exposed. They were waiting for Aragorn and Legolas to return from scouting the fort. Legolas had picked up a lot since they'd arrived in the White Mountains, except that he never smiled, or laughed. He was intent upon retrieving Aniarel. There was a howl from somewhere nearby. The elves tensed, their eyes darting towards the source of the sound, hands reaching for their weapons. A wolf padded through the snow, ignoring them. They relaxed, laughing a little self- consciously. It would be a long afternoon.



*~*~*



'Are you sure?'

Aragorn stood against one of the forts inner walls, Legolas beside him. The elf was gazing intently at a small window set high in one of the tower walls.

'She's in there, Aragorn, I can feel her.'

Aragorn's hand thumped against Legolas' chest, pushing him back into the shadows with an audible thud, as the elf tried to run across the snow to the tower.

'Don't even try it,' he scolded his friend. 'It's too exposed. We'll go back to the camp and tell them what we've found.'

Legolas fumed quietly, feeling his heart reach out to his beloved Aniarel. She had stopped responding when he called to her, a fact which had frightened all his friends as well as himself. Galadriel had tried to strengthen the bond between them, but to no avail. Aniarel was no longer conscious. Aragorn looked deep into his blue eyes, speaking softly,

'Look, if we get captured, it's not going to help her, is it? You're the only one who can find her in here, so the whole purpose of tonight will be to get you in and out alive, understand?'

Legolas nodded, seeing the sense in Aragorn's plan. As much as he wanted Aniarel in his arms again, it wouldn't do them much good if they were both locked away in that tower cell. He and Aragorn slipped away, back out the way they'd come.