A/N – Hope you enjoy the antics in this chapter.

Chapter 12 – The High Pass

Two days passed in Rivendell before Aragorn and the large company of elves departed. He was familiar with the High Pass road that wound through the snow-capped Misty Mountains. Many times had he taken this road with Legolas back and forth between Rivendell and Mirkwood. But once they reached the eastern side of the mountains, they would immediately head south before the Great Forest Gate of Mirkwood and the threatening giant spiders that dwelled among the dense trees. As they climbed higher into the mountains in the days that followed, Aragorn was forced to don more clothing to ward off the cold. The elves, however did not feel the cold so easily.

Only Aleera felt the cold. Even though her wounds were almost completely healed, she was still not fully recovered and her elven senses were not quite up to speed. She regained them slowly as the days passed…her hearing more alert, her vision more acute. She recalled how overprotective Legolas had been in Rivendell. He had wanted to stay several more days to allow her more time to recover. But she was anxious to head out. She knew he hated being cooped up and idle. And so she told everyone she felt well enough to travel. The cold she felt was a reminder that she probably should have heeded Legolas and waited a few more days. But at least he kept her warm when they stopped to rest, holding her close against him beneath the blankets. With so many others around, he only kissed her and refrained from anything else, even though she knew with amusement that he was itching to climb on top of her and force his name out of her lips in passionate cries.

Legolas had many thoughts going through his mind during the arduous trek on horseback through the deep snow over the Misty Mountains. If they had been on foot, they could have simply walked on top of the snow, as elves often did. Although Aragorn would have sunk down to his nose in the six feet of soft flakes. Legolas would have gotten a good laugh out of it, always quick to show off elven abilities his friend 'the man' did not have. All kidding aside, he knew Aleera felt the cold and he would have warmed her with his body heat if she had been riding behind him on his horse. But Lord Elrond had given her a horse for her own use. Even with the many cloaks that covered her, her teeth still chattered. Legolas offered to pull her behind him on his horse, but she shook her head and suffered through the cold.

To keep everyone in high spirits, Legolas continued his pranks with Arwen's brothers. With them riding ahead behind Glorfindel, Legolas had an opportunity to instigate a playful snow battle. He reached down from his horse and scooped up a handful of snow, packing it tightly into a ball in his hands. With a wink at Aragorn, Legolas took careful aim and hurled the snowball over the heads of ten other elves to land perfectly on top of Elrohir's head.

Elrohir instinctly looked up, thinking the snow had come down from the rocky overhang above them.

Aleera snickered beside Legolas as he bent to grab another handful of snow. This time he aimed for Elladan. When the snowball hit its target, Elladan quickly turned to Elrohir, thinking it had come from him. Then she watched with her mouth open as some of the other elves ahead of them began to grab snow and throw it at the twins, joining in the antics.

In a matter of five minutes, it became a full blown battle to the death. The horses skittishly reared, tossing their masters from their bare backs. Balls of snow came flying from every direction. Cries of triumph and cries of defeat echoed through the High Pass. Aleera laughed hysterically as she took up battle alongside Arwen, only to end up making snow angels with her.

From the side, Glorfindel watched the display in mild amusement from astride his calm horse. He was even more amused over the fact that no one dared engage him, much to his disappointment, but he knew the elves in his company respected his position. Legolas had been the mastermind behind many of the deeds that made them all laugh. Glorfindel was heartened that Legolas thought to raise the spirits of those around him. The wood elf had a good heart and always thought of others and saw to their needs before his own.

Legolas ducked and avoided every projectile of snow that came toward him, while he managed to strike each of his targets flawlessly, centering his attention on Aragorn and the twins. Finally he stood up from behind his rock cover. "I am undefeated!" he yelled out with his arms raised. Twenty snowballs came at him from different directions and he fell backward from the multiple impacts.

By the eighth day they were making their way south toward the Gladden River, the heat of the sun much welcomed. Far off to the east were the dark woods of Mirkwood, which paralleled their passage, along with the continuing Misty Mountains to the west.

With Aleera riding beside him, Legolas noticed her innocently glance every once in a while in his direction with a smile. His heartbeat quickened with every move she made. The way she tucked her hair behind her ear to reveal it, letting her fingers touch it. It was enough to bring him to tears.

Then without warning, Legolas moved closer to Aleera and he effortlessly hopped off his horse and onto hers, directly behind her. She tried to not appear surprised so it would not draw attention to them. It was difficult when he leaned against her to breathe into her ear.

"You have enticed me into a frenzy, meleth nin," he whispered. (my love)

"I have done nothing to entice you." When he sank his teeth into the side of her neck, Aleera gasped. "Legolas…daro!" (stop)

"I cannot."

"Noro lim," said Aleera to her horse. (run faster)

Aragorn was riding beside Arwen, directly behind Glorfindel and the twins, when Legolas and Aleera passed them at a full gallop on her horse, both of them laughing at what appeared to be for the fun of it. He watched them moving further ahead and then he noticed Arwen looking at him.

"They run off to steal a kiss," she told him with a smile.

Aragorn glanced at Elladan and Elrohir riding ahead and then turned back to Arwen, returning her smile. "If only I had thought of that."

Arwen's smile widened and she leaned toward him. With another quick glance at the twins, Aragorn leaned toward Arwen, meeting her halfway for a kiss. But then he noticed some of the other elves watching and he quickly faced forward again, hearing Arwen giggling beside him.

Legolas did not want to get too far ahead of the others, but he knew that they could not hide from the eyes of the elves. At this point he no longer wanted to disguise his feelings for Aleera. Let the entire company see and know what he and Aleera felt for each other. When Legolas drew her horse to a stop, Aleera turned her upper body around to him and accepted his lips when he tilted his head toward hers. Unfortunately, instead of sating him, the taste of her lips only sparked his internal flame even further.

"Will we ever have a moment alone on this trek, Legolas?" asked Aleera breathlessly when he released her.

Legolas nudged the horse into motion. "I fear there will be none at this time. Not under Glorfindel's watchful eye. But if you care not what anyone thinks, then when night falls and we make camp, we will sneak away to be alone."

Aleera's horse moved back and forth in a twenty foot line. She peered out as the others approached not far away. "I care not what anyone thinks, but I know you do."

Legolas knew she was correct. As much as he wanted her, he did not want word to get around that they were committing acts of intimacy, which could taint Aleera's image. It was bad enough that Aragorn and Arwen knew. But he knew they would not tell anyone. Legolas happened to know that his friends had shared their own moments together. A certain bonfire he recalled, where they snuck off to be alone in the woods.

"We will have time alone in Lothlorien," she commented.

Legolas drew his arms around her torso from behind and squeezed her tightly as he placed a gentle kiss on the side of her face. "Im hartha," he whispered in her ear and then released her. Legolas called out to Isilrö and the stallion broke from the slow jog among the other riders and charged up to stand beside Aleera's horse. Then Legolas hopped on Isilrö's back and they waited for the others to reach them. (I hope)

Hurrnäd rode at the front of the formation of Kozari warriors on horseback and Orcs on foot. He knew his wife was riding somewhere behind him. His disfigured wife…her face would be forever marred by the blow she received from the doomed golden-haired elf. The image of her bloodied face would remain with him as long as he lived as would the memory of the entire evening. After the little elf witch connected her foot with his rocks, he had been incapacitated for hours. Gwinn had been far more enraged than he was. She grabbed Aleera by the wrists and bound them to the bed. He was staggering out of the bed chamber when he heard the sound of ripping cloth and then he was halfway down the corridor when the elf girl's screams reached him. The hours passed and he finally returned to see if his wife had softened Aleera up enough for him to take her. He hoped Gwinn had not broken her completely because he still wanted to see some fire in her eyes as he took away her innocence. But what he found instead shocked him into a stoic state of disbelief. There was Gwinn, her nose splattered all over her face, blood pouring from the lacerations. Her eyes were glazed over in unconsciousness. And Aleera was gone. He ordered his guards to look for her and received word that she was no where in the palace and neither were his guests. When Gwinn later regained consciousness, she informed Hurrnäd that the elf warrior, Legolas had stormed into the chamber, struck her in the face and undoubtedly took Aleera. The guards went in pursuit, only to find that there was no sign of them.

Hurbag got Hurrnäd's attention and he looked down at the gangly Orc leader. He pointed a disfigured finger toward a rock cropping up ahead. Three figures stood nearby, patiently kicking at the sandy ground. Hurrnäd raised his hand, calling for a halt. The company of Kozari and Orcs stopped in their tracks. Hurrnäd looked out at the three figures, unable to make out whether they were men or elves or Orcs from this distance. Then he turned to Hurbag. "Who are they?"

Hurbag grinned. "They are my informants."

"What kind of information do they have?"

"They know many things and may be able to tell us more about what you seek."

As Hurbag jogged ahead toward the rock cropping, Hurrnäd nudged his horse forward. He could hear Gwinn moving out as well. She would not be left uninformed. She had her own plans for the elf who forever marred her face.

The three figures turned out to be men, filthy and in tattered clothing. Hurbag began to speak to them in some strange language and Hurrnäd saw one of them nodding in understanding. The conversation went back and forth for many long minutes and Hurrnäd's patience was wearing thin.

Finally Hurbag sauntered back over to Hurrnäd. "They know of the man Aragorn and the elf Legolas."

Hurrnäd's eyes narrowed. "And?"

"Rivendell is where the man comes from."

"I do not care about the man. Tell me where the elf resides."

"A place called Mirkwood."

"Mirkwood? How far is it from here?"

"I know the place well. Many Orc friends have I lost to the Mirkwood elves. It expands south of the Grey Mountains and east of the River Anduin."

Hurrnäd had no knowledge of the places Hurbag named. He and his soldiers had never ventured further south of the desert. "We will cross over the mountains."

Hurbag shook his head. "Impossible. The Grey Mountains are unsurpassable with no place to camp. If we continue to travel east alongside the mountains, we will come to a place called Withered Heath. Here we can recruit more of my Orc companions."

"How many more?"

"Three hundred."

Hurrnäd contemplated this. He had slightly over two hundred Kozari soldiers and Hurbag's company currently consisted of ninety-six Orcs. An additional three hundred would assure a victory against elves, which he knew were proficient with bow and arrow. "We will head east then."

Hurbag nodded in approval.

"How long will it take to reach this Mirkwood?"

"From Withered Heath, we go around the edge of the Grey Mountains and immediately head southwest. We can gather our forces at the foot of the Lonely Mountain. It will take three weeks to reach our destination. From the Lonely Mountain we march west and storm Thranduil's caverns."

"Thranduil?" asked Hurrnäd.

"He is the king of the dark woods."

One of the men said a few more incomprehendable words and it made Hurbag's snicker joyfully. "What did he say?" asked Hurrnäd.

"It seems that Thranduil has an only son…whose name is Legolas."

"So he is the son of a king," said Hurrnäd with a sinister smile, as he glanced over his shoulder at his wife. "Let us see how the king of Mirkwood deals with receiving his son in pieces."

A/N - Come on kiddies, I know you're out there, I get hundreds of hits on my story every day. I would really like to hear from you. Just click on the little GO button in the lower left corner. Thanks!