Reviewer responses for chapter two:

Deana: Thanks for the review..I do admit that Thranduil's change of heart was EXTREMELY fast, as someone else pointed out, but I didn't want to dilly-dally in the emotions and arguing and such. Enjoy!

Mornflower: LOL, yeh, Estel was on a role. Of COURSE, Legolas won't be careful...you'll see just how UNcareful he is in this chapter. Read on...

Rmc: Well, I am happy to give you the more that you want...and hopefully the angst you are looking for too.

Eph: Here's ... more...

Marbienl: Another great review...thanks! You know, I'm not entirely sure what Estel looked like, beard or not..I guess he was a bit scruffy and I don't think even covering his ears he could have hidden his race...but it was an interesting thought.

MimiMumuMomo: Interesting name you got there! Glad you liked "Then and Now" and I hope this pleases you as well. Sorry but I don't write any slash, I DO, however, write torture and it can be quite graphic at times. Slash is something I just can't do. Please don't let that deter you though...and PLEASE do review again!

Aranna Undomiel: EEEP, you caught me there...Thranduil gave in VERY quickly. I don't know that he trusts him COMPLETELY, but he did allow him to be the only one to go after Legolas, so in a way it is a major shift. Maybe if I wasn't in such a hurry I would have drawn it out a bit...anyway, hope it doesn't deter from the story too much...:-/

Kelsey: I'm glad you are reading and reviewing this story as well. I like to hear from you, it keeps me on my toes. As for the bit about Aragorn's lineage...I admit I was uncertain whether I ought to do that or not. I think by this age, at least for the purposes of my story, Estel knows about his lineage. Perhaps he is near to leaving Rivendell and becoming "Strider", I don't rightly know really. As for how Thranduil knew...I am just going to say for this story that it is possible Aragorn resembled his ancestors enough that Thranduil noticed and he also may have heard things from Rivendell. ENJOY THE NEXT CHAPTER!!!


Chapter Three: Taken

How could he be so naïve? Why couldn't he accept that Estel is my friend? Does he think so low of his own son that he doesn't trust my judgment in friends?

Legolas scowled as he urged his mare Rodwen through the dark forest. He was so completely consumed by his anger and despair over the argument with his father that the darkness and its dangers did not seem to reach the Prince.

Rodwen, however, was not so distracted as to miss the subtle changes in their surroundings. As they traveled further and further south, the forest grew darker, denser and quieter. Until finally, there was nearly no noise at all.

Legolas, who was locked in his thoughts, muttering to himself; noticed nothing amiss. The Elf's faint light stuck out like a beacon in the inky night and their progress was being watched from the nearby undergrowth.

"Should we take'im now?"

"No, wait until he is a little further along...don't want to risk anyone following him. This is almost too easy!"

Rodwen snorted and stopped her forward momentum after a few more minutes. Legolas, jarred from his thoughts, grumbled. "Rodwen, is there a problem? Why have you stopped?"

To his utter surprise, the horse reared on her hind legs, flinging the Elf from her back. Rarely did Elvish horses throw their riders and it was unusual for an Elf to not be able to remain seated when they tried.

Landing hard on the ground, Legolas sat stunned for a moment, looking up at the snorting, pawing mare above him. She was highly agitated and was throwing her head around, her eyes wide and nostrils flared.

Something is wrong...Legolas suddenly realized, recognizing the horse's actions for what they were. Rodwen is frightened. Then, he understood why. Looking around him, Legolas found himself deep in the forest, in the middle of the night, alone and uncertain of where he was.

Great, just great! What have I gotten myself into this time? The Elf thought as he picked himself up from the ground and raised his hands to Rodwen, gently stroking her haunches to try and calm her down. Slowly, he made his way to her head. "Hannon le, mellon nin," he said. {Thank you, my friend} "If it hadn't been for you, I might have rode all the way to Dol Guldor in an angered haze."

Grateful that her master understood now, Rodwen calmed down for a moment. Then, her head snapped up and her nostrils flared again. Legolas frowned. He hadn't heard anything.

"What is it, Rodwen?"

Before he could think on it, something burst from the scrubs behind him. Legolas, hearing the crash of feet on dried leaves spun around, reaching over his shoulder for his knives as he did so.

He whipped the blades out in front of him and found himself knife to sword with an ugly, unnaturally large Orc. He cursed himself for his inattention. As he fought the creature; more materialized from the trees and undergrowth around him. Fleeting thoughts crossed his mind. Why are there Orcs this close to the city? How did the border guards not know of them?

What the Elf didn't realize as he fought and pondered the questions was that he had traveled further then he thought he had.

Unbeknown to the Elf, a lone Orc stayed far from the fight, fingering the string of his bow. This was far too easy...

Raising the bow and sighting along the string, the Orc released the arrow.

A sharp pain suddenly erupted in Legolas' left leg. He stumbled, unable to block the blow of an Orc club, which hit his upper back, knocking him to the forest floor. Immediately, the Prince was surrounded by Orcs who leveled their various blades at his chest and back.

He was outnumbered.

He was caught.


"Damn that Elf!" Estel grumbled as he swung up onto his horse's back, gripping the reins tightly. "Why can't he just storm off like a normal person? He just had to take his horse and gallop off into the forests of Mirkwood in the middle of the night!?"

Urging the horse forward, Estel headed off in the direction Legolas' horse tracks went. In the dark, he had to dismount frequently to check he was still on the right path. Luckily, Legolas didn't seem too intent on avoiding trackers and his trail of crushed brush was easy to follow.

What worried Estel was how far his friend had gotten and the direction he had taken. "He must have been extremely distracted to head toward Dol Guldor. Even though the palace is a ways away from that place, Legolas has surely made good time!"

Soon, Estel found he was unable to see the trail on the forest floor. Cursing to himself, he knew he had to stop or he might lose the trail altogether in the darkness. Dismounting, he ripped his pack from the horses back and stomped toward a nearby tree where he flung the pack down and slumped beside it.

If only I hadn't taken so long to chide and change Thranduil's mind! I might have ridden out sooner and found Legolas by now. The way he has left such a horrid trail leads me to believe he is not paying the slightest attention to his surroundings. I hope he is all right.

Estel was about to rummage in his sack for something to eat when he heard fast approaching hoof beats. "Please tell me that's you, Legolas," the man muttered to himself, standing and approaching his own mount.

A large chestnut mare emerged from the nearby trees, nickering in fright and seemingly anger. Legolas' horse! Estel thought to himself. Upon closer inspection, the man found the horse to not only be without a rider, but Rodwen was limping.

Stooping, Estel felt along the horse's hind leg. His hand met with a long, narrow shaft. His heart leapt into his throat as the man bent low and felt the end of the arrow.

"That's an Orc arrow! Oh, no! Legolas!"

Frantically, he spoke to Rodwen in Elvish, hoping she could understand him. "Take me to Legolas, Rodwen. Take me to your master!"

It appeared that the horse understood because she began to impatiently paw the ground despite her injury. Estel quickly mounted his own horse and followed the limping mare into the forest.

It was only a few hundred meters before Rodwen stopped dead in her tracks. Estel, thinking something was wrong with her leg, dismounted and approached her. But she simply pushed him forward with her snout.

Estel stumbled on something and looked down. Sinking to his knees, he clutched what he had tripped on to his chest.

Legolas' knives and his bow and quiver. The bow; ornately carved and never far from his friend, was slippery to the touch right where Legolas would have gripped it.

Estel didn't need to see the color of the liquid to know what it was.

Legolas' blood.


Thranduil paced in his quarters, worry increasing by the minute. "Why haven't they returned yet? Surely Legolas can not have stormed far from the palace!"

Determined to find out what was taking so long, Thranduil swung a red robe over his sleep clothes and swept from the room, heading down the corridor. He knew that his son would have had to pass the gate guards to exit the city and he headed toward their station.

"Cel? Did you see Legolas pass by here?"

The Elf nodded. "Yes, hir nin, he passed this way. Said he had urgent business to attend to and had to leave at once. Is something the matter? Estel left about half an hour after him, saying much the same."

Thranduil sighed. "We had an argument, Celronen. Legolas and I. Over Estel. I was...rather uninviting and quite rude actually, now that I think on it. I was not prepared for the edan and I fear I may have greatly angered and disrespected my son."

The old warrior nodded in understanding. "He did seem a bit agitated when he left, Sire. It is not my place to question my lords, but I wondered why he was leaving in the dead of night, knowing the dangers of the forest and all."

The King nodded, his eyes shining with some unreadable emotion. "I thought he would be back by now. I thought Estel would have found him."

Celronen frowned. "Estel left half an hour after him, hir nin. Legolas and Rodwen could have gotten quite far in that time and Estel will need time to dismount to follow his trail."

Thranduil's eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat. "Rodwen? Legolas left on horseback!?" Great! He could be miles and miles from the palace by now. And Estel can not follow him at a gallop, which is the speed I do not doubt my son traveled at. What have I done?

The warrior seemed to read his lord's thoughts. "You are worried; Legolas has gotten far into the forest alone and in an angered state. He will not be thinking clearly. Would you like me to ride out and look for them both?"

For a moment, Thranduil considered the notion. Then, he shook his head. "Not this night, Cel. As much as it pains me to think of Legolas in danger, it would do no good to send you out tonight. You won't be able to see the trail either. I will not risk any more people's lives."

Looking past the Elf, Thranduil sighed, sending off a silent prayer to the Valar and to Estel to bring his son back home to him safely. Or at least in one, fully-healable piece, the King thought.


A/N: As some pointed out, Thranduil suddenly trusted Estel rather quickly. Sorry bout that! Also, about Dol Guldor, I don't know much about distances in Middle-Earth so I am just going to say that Legolas was HEADED in that DIRECTION...not that he was anywhere near it. So PLEASE don't bite my head of or anything and tell me it would take him like DAYS to get anywhere near it!!! LOL...Anyhow, please R/R and let me know what you think...if you have any suggestions or desires about what you'd like to see. (Besides angst..torture...i know that is a given!)

-Gwenneth