A/N:
Dazzler420 – I hope my note cleared things up for you.

To my other readers – I'm sorry if I confused anyone by bringing in a lot of the book in the last couple of chapters.

More of the book and movie here. Huorns are mentioned in the book as sort of "ent-like" creatures. Somewhere between an Ent and a tree. Entwives are exactly as their name implies. Over a period of years, the Entwives drifted off and the Ents have been searching for them ever since.
Please don't hesitate to tell me if I'm confusing you. If I'm being obscure then it's my problem and I need to make myself clearer.

After the fog lifted a bit more, they continued south and were upon the great rapids before late afternoon. Aragorn asked Legolas to accompany him in searching for the ancient path that skirted the great rapids. It took them the better part of an hour to find it, but once they did, they could see that it was clear and well marked. Just the entrance had been overgrown and difficult to detect.

So it was decided and the company struck off carrying the boats and baggage along the ancient path. It took them the rest of the evening to bring all of the baggage and the boats past the rapids along the path. The boats were very lightweight and one man could easily carry one alone. The baggage, however, was heavy and cumbersome and it took several trips to get all of it past the rapids.

Exhausted from carrying the baggage over the rough path, they settled in for the night. There had been no sign of Gollum recently since Aragorn had determined to lose him and Sam was glad of that. The creature gave him the jitters and he was more than happy to be rid of him. Fortunately, his eyesight was not as keen as the elf's and so he did not see the distant shadows of the Nazgul reappear in the sky.

The next morning dawned with the same overcast skies and rain as the company set out on the river again. As they drew near to the pass at Emyn Muil Frodo was surprised to see that two giant stone kings flanked the pass. Behind the statues sheer stone cliffs climbed to dizzying heights. The cliffs created a canyon that the river flowed through. Sam was terrified at the roaring water and the speed of the boat and vowed never again to set foot in one of the unstable things if he emerged from this frightening ordeal.

Legolas found the sensation of speeding along the water quite enjoyable if a little intimidating. The water though the canyon ran much faster than the Forest River at home but the rapid movement of the boat as it sped along the canyon made him smile with pleasure. Sprays of water flew in his face and the wind whipped his hair about as they zipped over the water. He could not be in or near the water without thinking of Annowe now. The water was her territory and she loved the seas most of all. Perhaps when this was all over, she would take him to the sea. He had always wanted to gaze upon its vast waters for himself.

The boats shot along the roaring canyon and were finally disgorged into a calm and peaceful lake on the other side. It was quite an abrupt change from the canyon. Here the water was tranquil and the air quiet. They could still hear the rush of water as it flowed out of the canyon but the cliffs had held the sound making it seem much louder.

Aragorn pointed out the tall hill of Amon Hen on the right and they paddled their boats in that direction. They would rest at the foot of the hill before deciding their next move. The time for a decision was upon them but no choice seemed any better than it had before when they first left Lorien.

The company pulled their boats ashore and sat in a small group to discuss the final leg of their journey. Reluctantly, Aragorn told Frodo that, as the Ring Bearer, it would be his decision as to what course the Fellowship should pursue.

With a heavy heart, Frodo agreed to chose the course but requested an hour alone to decide. He missed Gandalf and wished the wizard were there to advise him. Quietly, he slipped off into the woods to gather his thoughts. It was now in his hands, as if The Ring its self was not burden enough. Now he must chose which direction the Fellowship would go. It was the most important decision of his life and he would have to make it alone.

Legolas watched the Periannath make his way slowly into the woods and felt a deep sympathy for the young Frodo. He was holding up well under the weight of The Ring but Legolas wondered how much heavier it would grow as it approached its master. He was glad that the task of destroying it had not been appointed to him. He was prepared to protect Frodo wherever he went to ensure that the accursed Ring was destroyed once and for all but did not know if he could carry the burden himself. He hoped he would never have to know the weight of the thing around his neck.

Would The Ring begin to affect the others? He wondered. So far, Legolas had not felt any desire to possess it but that could be because he understood what it was. Boromir seemed drawn to it and Legolas worried that the man did not quite understand what The Ring contained.

To the man, it was the source of enough power to protect his people. What he failed to realize was that it contained the essence of Sauron so it would always be nothing but evil. He would be making a deal with Morgoth in order to protect his people but, in the end, they would all become his slaves.

The more Legolas thought about their situation, the more troubled he became. Certainly, the closer they came to Mordor, the more the Nazgul and Sauron would sense The Ring's presence. Just recently, the Nazgul had begun to swoop across the river, sensing its presence and searching for it. Their near appearance had terrified him and the piercing cries of their winged mounts, although far off, had hurt his sensitive ears as the cold blackness of despair settled over him. It was an experience that he did not care to have repeated but feared would become more frequent as they approached Mordor.

The others quietly spoke amongst themselves and Aragorn answered questions about the ancient history of the place to occupy the time. Their minds never strayed far from the ultimate question - what path would Frodo chose and who would accompany him?

For his part, Legolas silently asked himself several other questions. Could The Ring actually be destroyed? How would they ever make it across the Plateau of Gorgoroth without being seen? Without the Enemy sensing The Ring? And would he ever see his beloved friend again and have the opportunity to pursue the course they had set for themselves?

The following morning was quite busy for the nymphs. Deka had roused the sleeping dryads and was mustering them to leave before the evening. They had been angry at being awakened in the late winter but once Deka had explained to them the circumstances, they were livid and wanted to head to Isengard as soon as possible to punish Curunir for turning against them.

Annowe hastily packed her things, placing the pillowcase in her pack and lovingly slipping the comb into her pouch. She would not leave those precious items behind. Fleetingly, she wondered where Legs was now. He should be well past Isengard. Perhaps they had made it to the land of men. She hoped so. The land of men would be sufficiently safe until Sauron decided to attack. By that time, she hoped to have the young one safely by her side.

Thinking of him gave her pause. After what Holly had told her she wondered if they would be better off just remaining close friends. She inexplicably feared that if their relationship progressed, she would lose him in some way. That he would grow weary of her or she would drive him away with her restlessness. Was she prepared to spend forever with him? Or, more importantly, could he spend forever with her? Without her driving him mad?

All she wanted was for him to be safe and happy. The same thing she wanted for Holly and Deka, too, truth be told. They were the reasons she was determined to put a stop to this madness. She smiled to herself, remembering that Legs had told her nearly the same thing when she scolded him about going with The Ring. He felt responsible for it and wanted to see it destroyed to make the world safe for all of them again.

Curse his noble spirit, anyway! She thought ruefully. She would rather have him by her side if he were going to fight so she could keep an eye on him. But she had let him go with The Ring alone. He needed to go alone, to know that she trusted him. Although they had fought bitterly in the past about her leaving, he never held it against her and always welcomed her back home. She wondered if he now understood the real reason why she would leave him in search of adventure.

Partly it was Deka's request so that she could find him a mate and partly because Annowe herself was afraid of her feelings for him, thinking that nothing good would ever come of it. If he had mated, then the two of them could have stayed good friends without any "complications".

She had mated herself with Darion and they had been happy in the short time they had been together. But now he was gone and had left her free to mate again. Everything had managed to come full circle and she was right back at the beginning only this time it was Legs who had run off in search of adventure, leaving her to worry.

A chilling thought occurred to her – would HE find a mate while on his adventure? Her heart skipped a beat. What if he did? Could she live with it? Could she let him go after all?

"Stop it!" She scolded herself. "I can't start thinking about that. I have more important matters to see to right now. I will think about this later, when I have more time."

She was so lost in her thoughts that did not hear the knock on the door but came out of her room when she heard Holly speaking to Deka. The dryad was smiling smugly and Annowe felt a fleeting twinge of anxiety. But Holly was also looking quite satisfied and Annowe curiously approached the two of them.

"What is it?" She asked tentatively.

Deka could no longer hide her glee and laughed openly. "I have spoken to Everleaf and he has agreed to send a message to the Ents for us as well as take us south toward Isengard."

Annowe was stunned. "Everleaf? Who is that? WHAT is that?"

Deka laughed again and Holly smiled. Deka patiently explained, "Everleaf is one of the Ents who periodically searches Mirkwood for the Entwives. I thought I had seen him earlier in the fall and, fortunately for us, he was still in the area. I told him everything you told me. He would only agree to take us south – he said that he would send a message to the other Ents regarding the Curunir situation."

Annowe's eyes lit up. "Truly? He will take us south? He will inform the other Ents?" She laughed out loud at their great fortune and hugged Deka. "This is great news! Oh, I hope the Ents agree to help us!"

Deka, too, laughed with glee and patted Annowe on the back. Annowe now understood the smug look on her face and couldn't help but grin with smug satisfaction as well. Everleaf would help!

She extracted herself from Deka's firm grip. "When are we leaving?" She asked anxiously. Now that things were going their way, she wanted to take advantage of this sudden fortune before it evaporated.

"Right now, if you like," Deka answered her. "Everyone is ready."

Annowe turned toward Holly. She did not want to leave her sister but Holly would be safe here for the time being. "You will stay with Thranduil, yes?" She nervously questioned her sister.

Holly nodded. "Yes. I will be the only one in the area as I'm sure everyone else will have fled north or retreated to the Halls."

Annowe and Deka hugged Holly in turn and Annowe retrieved her belongings from her room. Deka excused herself to wait outside.

"So, little sister, you are off on another adventure," Holly smiled weakly and hugged Annowe tightly one last time. "You be careful. And make sure you find Legolas before Deka does. She's likely to give him an earful."