A/N: HEY! IT'S VACATION SEASON!!! Ok, only three days, I know, but who cares? THERE'S NO SCHOOL!!! YAY!!!

Anyone like to clear my mind on this? Is it 'looking forward to see' or 'looking forward to seeing'?? They both sound alright to me, so I don't know which one is the correct form! Tell me what you think of this chapter, I had to do lots of research on the geography! R/R!

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Chapter X - From Bruinen To Mitheithel And Back Again

The next day, they all rose early to prepare to leave. It seemed the twins had somehow planned everything the night before. Elladan went to fetch some food for them to take, while Elrohir and Legolas went to ready the horses.

They were all eager to leave, horses included, and the later were quite restless too, as if they had too much energy to hold within and couldn't wait any longer to be off. Elladan saddled the two silvery horses while Legolas fetched the weapons and checked them. He did so more out of habit than by actual need. Evil did not roam those parts of Arda and since they weren't going anywhere too far from Imladris, none of them believed there would be any troubles along the way.

Each bore a sword, or a long knife and a small dagger in Legolas' case, a bow and a quiver full of arrows - those would indeed be needed and would provide them with a good amount of fun. Legolas was looking forward with amusement to see the so-called-practice the twins had talked about. On the other hand, the two sons of Elrond were quite confident they would finally defeat the Mirkwood archer. It would be quite a feat, for everyone knew Mirkwood had the finest of those, and no less was expected from its Prince.

As soon as Elladan came, they split the food by the three and took off at a quiet pace, there was no hurry. Elrohir had already thought of a nice clearing, Southwest of the Last Homely House, where they could spend their time in peace.

At first, they had to lead their horses by hand, since the paths were too narrow and steep for riding, but as they left the protection of the hidden valley, a plainer road extended in front of them. One of the twins caught Legolas' attention and pointed North.

"See there Legolas. To the far North lie the Ettenmoors, where springs the Mitheithel, which is that river you can just glimpse there in the distance. Further to the East, the great Hithaeglir, and down South used to lie Eregion. In those woods and hills you see to the West, in front of us, lay the ruins of old towers and castles and walls, which once housed Men. However, they became evil people, for remained under the shadow of Angmar. They were all destroyed in the war that lead to the ruin of Arnor, but some say there are men who live still in them. None are seen, though, not any more. It's been centuries since the last time Men dwelled in those parts." A shadow crossed his fair elven features, but disappeared just as fast as it had come.

"Which way are we going now?"

"Well, we'll be heading towards the ruins for now, but we won't go that far! That would be a several days' journey! We'll just stay by the Bruinen, a little farther downstream. There's this clearing I found some time ago, perfect for us to spend the day!"

And so they went on and did not look back again. If they had, though, they'd probably notice someone hiding in the dark. He swore they could have seen him when they stopped to gaze behind. Fortunately for him, a tree happened to be just in the right place, while the Elves' eyes were somewhere else. He was grateful for that, his plan would have been ruined, were they to see him. He was also very lucky, for they moved slowly, even when riding, and he had the time to follow them through the hard path only on foot. The thing now was that they weren't going where he thought they would, but that was not too much of a problem. He'd come this far, how much further could it be? The only problem he could think of was that they were moving on to regions with much less vegetation and which he didn't know. He hoped he would be able to find somewhere good enough to hide.

Only about hour and a half after leaving the house of Elrond, the trio reached the clearing where they would spend the day. It wasn't too far from Rivendell. They stayed by the Bruinen's bank, where drowsy willows mourned their branches into the cool waters. Great oaks there were too, and it was in one of those that they chose to place the target for their little competition. The packs were lifted from the horses and they were left to themselves. The Elves had a late breakfast too, before their friendly dispute.

They picked up a piece of used cloth they had brought along, and placed it around the tree's trunk. There, the twins had already drawn a large circle with many other smaller concentric ones within, all converging to a single spot in the middle. They agreed that Elrohir would have the first shot, then Elladan and Legolas last. Each would have five shots and everyone would use the same bow and the same arrows from the same quiver. The bow chosen was Elladan's and the arrows, Legolas'. The twins had the obvious advantage, being more familiar with the weapons. Not only was it Elladan's bow, a Rivendell crafted one, but the arrows were from Imladris as well, since Legolas had lost his when travelling and had to re-supply there. But any good warrior should be able to make good use of any weapon that presented itself.

After a short rest, the match began. Elrohir strung the first yellow-feathered arrow to his brother's bow with care and very slowly. He knew that if he was to miss but one shot, he would very likely lose to the Mirkwood Prince. Pulling the string back and stretching his left arm forth, he focused to remain unmoving, unconsciously tensing his arms. He took aim and moments later his arrow flew. It hit the spot in the middle, but not quite in the centre. He went to take the arrow and passed the bow to Elladan, who was already waiting at the line they'd agreed shots to be made from.

Elladan picked his bow with ease. He had been using it for longer than he could remember and knew everything there was to know of it. He was very familiar with the way it tended to slightly swerve right if one were to shoot as Elrohir had and knew its every other little trick and detail. So it was no surprise that his first shot hit the dead centre. He fetched his arrow and then handed the bow over to Legolas with a challenging smile.

Legolas had watched them both, Elladan with intensified care since the weapon was his own. He noticed the way the older twin smiled when Elrohir hardened his grip and took note on how Elladan made sure to keep a relaxed hold. He pulled back the string to test the strength of the bow and, after confirming his suspicions, only then readied the arrow to it. He took aim and shot. The arrow flew true and pierced the cloth in exactly the same hole Elladan had made before. Legolas then returned the smile to Elladan.

They repeated the procedure for three more times, until, at the beginning of the fifth round, Elrohir was already far behind the other two. Neither of them had failed the centre yet. As Elrohir made his last shot, though, the usual 'thwang' of the string was not heard. Instead, a loud, piercing scream made itself known from behind them. The three turned as one, looking for the source, sharp eyes running through the trees. Legolas thought he'd seen something and headed towards it, grabbing his weapons along the way and unsheathing his long, shining silver knife. The twins followed.

Through the trees they ran, searching, and more cries were heard, this time clearer. Those were definitely calls for help, but they could not believe what their ears told them. They recognised the voice but did not comprehend how it could be so. Elladan called back and Elrohir franticly walked through the low vegetation hindering his movements. Legolas, walking on his side, though, moved with grace, for he was a wood-elf, more accustomed to those environments than the other two. He picked up a trail, some time afterwards, leading further West and North. The markings were indistinct and did not allow identification of whatever it was that had taken the screaming one.

"Elladan! Elrohir! Here! I found their tracks! They can't be too far and there are not many! If we hurry, we might still catch up with them!"

"Very good, mellon, we shall follow at once. Lead the way! I shudder to think of what may be if harm is to befall on Estel."

"How did he get here anyway?! He was supposed to be in Imladris, for his protection! What was that foolish child thinking? He must have followed us for some reason."

"I cannot guess why, as much as I'd like to, mellyn. Elladan, do you see it over there? The trail?"

"I'm not sure. All this foliage makes it hard to tell. I'm sorry, but it's up to you Legolas."

They ran on with all the speed they could, the twins falling somewhat behind, but not much. Need drove them on through the hard terrain. By the sounds they'd heard earlier, Legolas would have sworn Estel was nearby, but he could see no trace of him apart from the marks on the ground. They reached the border of the small forest and looked ahead, a terrible sight greeting them. From the high vantage point, the Elves could make out the contours of three black figures on horses carrying little Estel. They were too far off to be reached by arrows and had already crossed the river, but the worse was the place where they were heading: West, to another, larger, forest. The one the trio had been staring at earlier, the one where ruined towers and great shattered houses of Men laid and where they had been replaced by Trolls. Where Angmar's hold could still be felt, even though it was a long gone threat.

The Elves shrank back in incredulity and indecision, looking at each other, trying to figure out the best course of action. If they wanted to rush ahead to save the little one as soon as possible and spare him from whatever it was those creatures wanted with him, they would have to go completely unprepared: without supplies, nor horses, nor any kind of aid. But if they were to go back and then return, they would be better armed and would have better chances of winning in a fight against whatever those were. They had a nagging feeling there were more than just three. However, the loss of time might also cause the tracks to fade and then they would not know where to look, not to mention that it would be only more time Estel would be with those things, alone and unprotected. Elrohir spoke:

"I'm sure we're all aware of what consequences our actions from here on might have, so I'd say it would be best for us to split up. One goes back to get what we left behind, perchance ride all the way back to Imladris to get help, either Elladan or myself. The other moves on with Legolas, since he is the best tracker, considering we'll be entering some tricky woods."

"Elrohir speaks wisely. Elladan, I think it would be best if you were to be the one to go back, you're the second best tracker. See if you can find anything else from what's back there. I and Elrohir will go on ahead, in the meanwhile."

And so it was. They parted ways there, at the top of that small hill. Legolas and Elrohir quickly descended it and crossed the ford of Bruinen that flowed just below. From there, they ran across the plain, taking advantage of the favourable ground and not willing to waste another second to whatever the dark figures were.

"Tell me, what do you know of those hills, Elrohir?"

"Not much. We don't like to go there, there's still a shadow hovering around, even though no Evil roams in them now, or so we used to think. Usually, we avoid coming through those paths; we only go through the road down below. What I do know is mostly from the time before Angmar, but the lands have changed since then. What do you think those creatures who took Estel were? Not Trolls, nor Orcs it would seem, but I might be wrong."

"Nay, I don't believe it either. You said before that Men used to dwell here and that some say they still do. Do you think these could be some of those men?"

"Perhaps. Who can tell? I seem to know little more than you do at the moment of those areas, for that which I believed true has already been proven otherwise. However, I still find it highly unlikely. I fear for Aragorn above all else, right now."

"As do I. And yet another question plagues my mind: do they know who he really is? Could it be that they are servants of the Enemy that were chasing Isildur's heir, or simply wicked beings without purpose?"

"Those are all good questions, to which I have no answers good enough, mellon. Only guesses, as you do. Let us hope the later to be the one true. All this brings back dark memories." Legolas knew Elrohir was speaking of his mother's captivity. None of the twins ever could forget the torment Celebrían had suffered at the hands of the Enemy.

"Think not of such things now, for you forget that it is Hope we chase now, and that shall never vanish. The Valar will not allow it!"

The tracks were very clear on that ground, even Elrohir could make them out perfectly. Obviously, the captors were not expecting others to follow, for it was quite readable that no attempts at covering them had been made. That lifted the gloom off of the pursuers mind for a while, only to settle moments later, after realising how long the road ahead of them really was and how ahead of them Estel's captors really were. It would be at least two whole days of travelling until they made it into the woods. And from there, who knew how much further would they have to go? If only they had the horses. ~Hurry, my good Elladan!~

Meanwhile, Elladan was with troubles of his own, and even in Imladris events were stirring.