IMPORTANT : I have to suspend this fic for a short period of time, but I'm not abandoning it. I don't know if you guys know (those of you who are left after my above rant) that this is one of four WIP. Having that many fics going on at once is starting to stretch me a little thin. I have one that is close to being finished so I will finish it and then come back to this one. I have an update list to let you guys know when I pick this story back up. If you want to be on it, leave your email in the review or email me at melindoranightsilver@hotmail.com

Review Responses:

Ezmerelda, John, Andine, thank you guys so much for your reviews!

Pandoras Box1, no, there will be no Faith/Wesley pairing. I have another man in mind for our dark slayer.

vampy the chosen one, I felt the same way about Faith. But I've got to tell you, she is a blast to write. I was a little worried about, but once I got going with her I had a lot of fun. And whoo hoo to you! You were my 100th reviewer!

LOTR Notes:

mellon nin is elvish for my friend (mellon = friend, nin = my)

Fic Notes:

Remember that there is a time difference between Middle Earth and our Earth. It roughly equals 1 day on ME = 2 days on Earth.

Also, this fic will be more plot driven from here on out and less character driven then the last one.

It is unbelievable how many of you came up with the idea that Frodo and Sam are in the Forbidden Forest. That thought never even occurred to me. But you know me, I like for my characters to suffer so it couldn't be that easy.

Thanks to my beta, PuNKyCoWGiRL!

Chapter Thirteen

Worry

The sun had long since set when the company stopped for the night. Aragorn was worried that he might miss a sign without adequate light. They ate a quick meal of lembas and lay down to sleep with Aragorn and Legolas keeping watch.

Dawn quickly realized that even though she was dead tired, she couldn't get comfortable. It wasn't that the ground was hard and cold, it was more a feeling of general uneasiness. She sighed softly and looked at Ginny, who was lying next to her.

"I can't sleep," Ginny whispered.

"Me neither." An idea came to Dawn. She smiled and flicked her eyes over to Draco and Harry, and then understanding shone in the redhead's eyes. Without another word, the two got up and walked over to their respective boyfriends.

"What wrong?" Draco blearily asked as Dawn laid down next to him.

"Couldn't sleep," she answered.

He opened his arms and she quickly snuggled up against him. She looked over to see Harry and Ginny in the same position. With a satisfied smile, Dawn closed her eyes and quickly fell asleep.

********

It was a few hours before dawn when Legolas gently awoke Buffy and Spike. "We need to be on the move soon," the elf explained.

Buffy nodded sleepily and moved to wake Dawn and Ginny when she noticed that they weren't where they had been the night before. She cast her eyes about and couldn't find them.

"Where's my sister?"

Aragorn inclined his head to where the four slept. "They moved during the night."
"And you just let them? Do you know how inappropriate that is?" She demanded.

"They were having difficulties finding sleep, yet it came quickly to them when they had joined the boys. They needed their rest so I felt it was prudent to let them be."
"But..."
"He's right, luv," Spike said, joining the conversation. "It's not like they could be doing anything out in the open like this. 'Sides, those kids are smart, they wouldn't do anything foolish."

Buffy scowled, but didn't say anything more.
After waking the young witches and wizards, they ate a quick breakfast then started running again. The sun rose above the mountains, bathing the land in a pale light. With it, they were able to see the land about them more clearly.

At some point in time they had reached a set of rocky hills. Harry and Ginny watched Aragorn in amazement, as he seemed to easily follow the trail.

"No sign of our quarry except what bare rock can tell," Gimli grumbled beside them.

"He seems to be finding a trail, but how?" Harry asked, slightly nervous. The grouchy dwarf made him wary, but he seemed more approachable that the beautiful elf or the stoic man.

"Lord Aragorn is a Ranger, one of the best. The Rangers have been taught how to track and find signs in the most unimaginable places," Gimli informed them as he breathed deeply.

"I still don't see how he can find anything on rock," Ginny said.

"I trust him," Gimli said. "He's led us this far and he cares deeply for those hobbits. We all do." Then he picked up his pace to catch up with the others.

"He's worried," Harry said.

"Wouldn't you be too?" Ginny asked. "Especially if it was Ron and Hermione?"

"Yeah, I guess I would be," Harry conceded. Then they ran on in silence.

By mid-afternoon they had dropped down out of the rocky hills and onto the plains of Rohan. The orc tracks were easily visible for the grass was trampled in a wide path.

Suddenly Aragorn shouted, "Stay! Do not follow me yet!" They stopped and watched as he studied the tacks then walked off the beaten path.

As he stooped down, Buffy called out, "What did you find?"

Aragorn walked back to them and held out his hand. Resting in his palm was a glittering leaf.

"The broach of an elven-cloak," Legolas cried.

"Not idly do the leaves of Lórien fall," Aragorn said. "This did not drop by chance. It was cast away as a token to any that might follow. I think Pippin ran away from the trail for that purpose."

"Then at least he was alive," Gimli said with a heartening laugh. "And he had the use of his wit and legs, too."

"Come! Let us go on!" Legolas cried. And the nine of them set out again.

********

Buffy looked back and saw that the teens were straggling. She had to admit that her own strength was waning, she could only imagine what it was like for the others. The sun had set several hours earlier and she decided to call for a stop.

"Aragorn! We need to rest."
Legolas looked at them and came to the same conclusion. "She is right. We must gather our strength for the morrow. I am afeared that if we continue much longer that we shall miss other signs."
The ranger nodded wearily and they hastily set up a camp. The four teens continued their same sleeping arrangements from the night before and quickly fell asleep.

The slayer frowned when she saw that Aragorn intended to keep watch for another night. She walked over to him and said, "You should get some rest."

"I will be fine."
"No, you won't. I can tell that you're exhausted. When was the last time you slept?"

"Two nights ago," he replied.

"You won't do Merry and Pippin any good if you're too weak to fight when we catch up to them. I know that Legolas doesn't need as much sleep as the rest of us. Let him keep watch."
"She is right, mellon nin. Rest. I can keep watch alone," Legolas said softly.

Aragorn nodded as he realized that they would badger him until he slept. He was asleep nearly as soon as he laid down.

"Thank you," Legolas said. "If you had not said anything, he would have killed himself with exhaustion."
"Nah, you would have stopped him before then," Buffy said with a shrug. Then she went to lay down with Spike.

*********

Hermione and Ron were cuddled up together on one of the sofas in the common room she had once shared with Draco. The two stared absently into the fire.

Ron wearily sighed after a while and said, "It was a good thing that we had decided to start training some of the younger students before all of this happened. Otherwise we'd be in big trouble with the quidditch team."
She shifted so she could look up at him. "How can you say something like that? Our friends and your sister are in another dimension where there's a war going on. And the only thing you can think about is quidditch?"
He sadly looked down at her. "I know exactly where they are, 'Mione. And don't think that it doesn't keep me up at night worrying about it. But we won't be helping them if all we do is sit around worrying about it. They wouldn't want that. You're forgetting that Buffy and Spike are there with them. They'll take care of them."
"That doesn't mean I can't worry," Hermione pointed out.

"No, it doesn't," Ron agreed. "But you can't just sit around here and mope. It'll cut back on our chances to find Frodo and that ring. The sooner we can do that, the sooner we can send them back to Middle Earth, and the sooner that our friends can come home." He straightened and looked her directly in the eye. "You're the smartest person I know, pumpkin. We can't do this without you."
"I thought I asked you not to call me that," she said with a glare.

"Call you what, pumpkin?"
"You did it again!" She said as she moved away from him.

"What? Pumpkin?" He innocently asked.

"Yes!"
"Stop me... Pumpkin," he taunted.

Ron wasn't able to identify the emotion that flickered in her eyes before she suddenly pounced and began tickling him. She quickly had him calling for mercy in between his laughter.

They calmed down and moved back into their cuddling position. "Thank you," she said after a few minutes.

"For what?" He asked.

"For showing me that it's ok to laugh even though I'm worried about them," she admitted softly.

"That's what I'm here for," he said piously. "To keep you laughing."
"You definitely do that," she said as she kissed him.

************

Snape sat brooding in his quarters. He felt absolutely worthless. He'd felt that way ever since Voldemort had discovered that he was a spy.

For years, that had been his place in the world. To report to Dumbledore all he had learned about the inner workings and plans of the death eaters. But now that that ability had been taken away from him, he saw himself as just a hanger-on. Just getting in the way. And he just hated hanger-ons. Even the students seemed to have a purpose, while he was left floundering in the dark.

The door to his rooms opened to reveal his demon girlfriend. She took a quick look around and realized what was going on.

"Alright, broody butt. They've been gone for four days and that's enough of this," she demanded.

"Whatever do you mean?"

"You're not helping these kids much by sitting around in a half dark room feeling sorry for yourself. So you can't spy for Dumbledore any more. Big deal."
He glared at her.

Anya rolled her eyes in return. "You should know by now that that particular type of insult doesn't exactly phase me. Hello, demon! Tortured and killed thousands of men for a thousand years."
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to cheer you up, silly," she answered.

Snape arched a dark eyebrow. "Does cheering me up always have to include so many insults?"

"They're not insults, I'm just speaking the truth." Then she quickly turned serious. "Sevie, I know you're worried about those kids, but they are seventeen, almost eighteen years old. And they've already been through more than you can imagine. They're going to be fine."
"I don't worry about them," Snape said darkly.

"Why do you keep insisting on the continual portrayal that you hate those kids? You've loved each and every one that has walked through your classroom."
"They can't be coddled," he said, not denying her declaration. "Life in the real world is too hard for them to be coddled. They have to be able to face it with strength."
"Oh, like the way you're facing it right now, Mr. I'm all alone cause I can't help so I'm going to keep myself locked in my room?"
"Again, this is a strange way of cheering me up."
"Why don't you go out and help?"
"How?" He roared as he jumped to his feet. "My only way of contributing is now lost."
Anya studied him for a moment and then said, "You know, for someone as smart as you are, you're an awfully big idiot." He sent a scathing look towards her. "It's true. You're smart. You could be out there researching with everybody else instead of holed up in here feeling sorry for yourself. Just thought I'd leave that little tidbit with you." Then she slipped out the door.

Snape stared after her, knowing that that sneaky blond of his was right. There was a way he could contribute. Adopting a long-suffering look, he squared his shoulders and headed to the scooby common room to offer his services as a researcher.

**********

Their third day on the run began before dawn again. Gimli woke the six other worlders in time for them to see Aragorn lying on the ground with one ear pressed against the earth. He seemed to be intently listening for something.

"He's not planning on catching ants for a meal is he?" Dawn asked after taking a drink of water. "'Cause that would just be eww."
Legolas handed her a piece of lembas and explained, "He is searching for hints of our quarry's distance from us."
"Here's hoping he doesn't fall back asleep," Draco mumbled to himself.

The sun was just beginning to peak out when Aragorn finally stood. His face was pale and drawn. "The rumor of the earth is dim and confused. Nothing walks on it for many miles about us. Faint and far are the feet of our enemies. But loud are the hoofs of horses."
"Horses?" Buffy asked. "Are they coming towards us?"
"Nay, they are drawing ever further from us."
They set out shortly after that, onto the rolling plains of Rohan. As the crested one hill that was taller than those around it, Legolas stopped and seemed to look far into the distance.

"They run as if their master's whip was behind them," Legolas said.

"There is something strange at work here. Some evil gives speed to these creatures, sets its will against us," Aragon said softly to the elf, not thinking any of the others could hear him.

"They are taking the hobbits to Isengard!" Legolas cried.

"Saruman," Aragorn said with disgust.

"We'll catch up with them before then," Buffy tried to assure him as she stepped closer. She had heard their entire conversation.

He just nodded grimly at her and they started running again.

Later that night, Ginny awoke with the realization that she needed to use the bathroom. She quietly disentangled herself from Harry and indicated to Buffy, who was standing watch, where she was going.

Ginny had always hoped that one day she'd be able to visit Middle Earth with Dawn, she just hadn't imagined that it would be like this.

The past three days had been hard on her. While she had always been naturally fit, running for days on end was starting to take its toll. The lembas bread had been sustaining her, however. She was amazed at its remarkable ability to keep her strength up.

She did find herself longing for plumbing the most, though. Peeing in the bushes or out in the middle of a field was not exactly something she would classify as fun. Not to mention she needed a bath, she absolutely reeked. The only comforting fact about that was that the rest of the group smelled, too. Except for that elf. She found herself wishing he'd fall into a mud puddle.

The redhead finished up and walked back to the camp. She stopped as Legolas caught her attention. A gasp escaped her lips as she realized that his eyes were wide open, unfocused and unseeing. She hurried over to Buffy. "Merlin, Buffy. He's dead."
Buffy looked at her in alarm. "What? Who's dead?"
"Legolas. He's lying over there with his eyes open. He's dead."

The slayer relaxed and softly laughed. "He's not dead, Ginny."
"But he's not blinking," she protested.

"I know. Elves sleep with their eyes open," Buffy explained.

Ginny's jaw dropped. "You've got to be kidding me."
"No, I'm afraid not. Freaked us out the first time we saw it. You'll get used to it. Now go back to sleep."
The young witch nodded numbly and walked back to Harry. She crawled under the blankets and snuggled up against him. As he wrapped his arms around her, she sighed softly and quickly fell back asleep.