Disclaimer: See Chapter One.

A/N: Haha, I told you that I would have this out much more quickly! Thank goodness spring break is next week and I'll be able to write a lot more often. Whoo! I swear though, Estel is rubbing off on me people! Just by walking towards my English class, I somehow tripped, fell, my body going on way, my ankle the other, and as though that wasn't bad enough, my monstrous back pack landed on the sprained ankle! OUCH! So, I'm officially on crutches for the next week, hence why this is so much earlier than usual. I have nothing else to do as I can't really walk. Anyway, enough of my blabbing. Thank you all so much for your lovely reviews! I adore them all. Also, thank you leggylover03 to pointing out that mistake my beta and I keep missing. Sorry! We'll work on that. Some people have asked how long this fic is giong to be and honestly, I can't give you a definite length. My muse often runs away before I can catch her and before I know it, I'm typing away! LOL! My goodness this is a long A/N. Anyhow, thank you all so much for your reviews and as promised, here is Chapter 18. Enjoy!

As Legolas carried Estel through the forest, he cursed loudly several times in several different languages. He knew that it was unbecoming for a prince to curse as he was, but he truly did not care at the moment.

Not moments ago, the trees had warned him of approaching danger in the form of wargs and that if he did not change direction, the wargs would catch their scent.

This left Legolas with quite the dilemma. Either he could go back the way he came, which was not an option, or, take the long way back to the palace in an attempt to avoid the wargs.

With Estel in the condition he was, he would have to risk the long way back. Estel wasn't in any condition to protect himself, let alone fight. It might mean a delay in getting his injuries treated but it far outweighed the risk of being caught by the wargs and being ripped to shreds in the process.

Eyeing the longer path with weary acceptance, Legolas turned around and began to carefully pick his way through the dense foliage. With any luck, the trees would keep Gorothdil from finding them very easily.

Legolas knew that this was wishful thinking but he was beginning to become desperate. He didn't know what kind of effect he could expect from the poison and he worried about the lethalness that it could have. He knew also that he would have to find shelter for the night and soon. Neither he nor Estel would last long if they spent the whole night trying to get away from Gorothdil. The best option for now was to find a good hiding spot.

Legolas was jerked out of his thoughts when Estel suddenly shifted in his arms and let out an ear piercing scream that sounded as though it had come from the depths of the underworld itself.

"Estel!" he shouted as he hastily lowered his friend to the ground. Estel didn't seem to be able to hear him though as he continued to shake and moan while tears streamed down his face.

"Mellon nin, wake up. You must fight it Estel! I am here. Whatever it is, it is not real," Legolas said becoming more and more frightened. Looking around, he glimpsed a small pond of water by a cave, but it was enough. Hastily he ran over to it, scooped some up with his hands, and threw it onto Estel's face, mentally apologizing for the coldness.

Estel woke with a start, for which Legolas was very grateful. He only hoped that the cold water would not prompt one of Estel's illnesses.

"Legolas?" Estel asked weakly once he was more coherent.

"Shhh, it's all right Estel, I'm here. What was it that you were dreaming?" Legolas questioned.

Estel shuddered and buried his head in Legolas's shoulder as the memories of what he had seen in his nightmare resurfaced. "It was awful Legolas," he whispered.

Legolas knew it had to have been judging by the scream Estel had let out earlier but to see Estel nears tears hit home just how badly the nightmare had effected his friend.

"What happened mellon nin?" he asked gently. If Estel didn't want to relive it just yet, he would abide by that, for now.

"At first, it was when my biological parents died, a nightmare I had for quite some time when I first started to live in Imladris with my family. It changed though. Suddenly, instead of my birth mother and father, it was Ada, the twins, Arwen, and you being slaughtered by the orcs. It felt so real and all I could do was sit there and watch as everyone I love was killed in front of me," Estel said as tears flowed down his cheeks.

Legolas was horrified by the nightmare and was willing to bet that it had been induced by the poison. Sure enough, when he checked Estel's brow it was very warm. He hugged Estel tightly to him and murmured softly in elvish. "Tis all right now Estel, your family is fine. The yrchs will never get their filthy hands on them, not while you and I are here to prevent it."

Estel nodded and tried to sit up but Legolas would not let him. "Nay Estel, rest while you still can. We need shelter for tonight and this place seems to be better than any other, even if it is a cave," Legolas said with disgust lacing his voice. Still, it was far better than the cave that Gorothdil had had them in.

"A cave Legolas?" Estel said weakly noticing the direction that Legolas was looking.

"Aye, a cave for I fear we have no other option. We both need to rest and the trees will warn us if we are in any danger. They have not yet been corrupted by the darkness of the yrch and their kind," Legolas spat.

Estel nodded wearily and allowed Legolas to help him up into the cave. He wanted to help Legolas with the preparation of the cave and the fire, but he was just to exhausted. Already his weakened body was protesting his every movement. Legolas seemed to have sensed that however.

"Just rest for now mellon nin while I get the fire started. Then I want you to eat something and go to sleep. Something tells me that we are going to need all the strength we can get in the coming days," Legolas said.

Estel nodded and leaned against the wall of the cave wearily, fighting not to give into the weariness that he was feeling. He watched Legolas putter around the cave and decided to just close his eyes for a minute. He really needed to rest.

It didn't take long for Legolas to make the fire and try to conceal the cave from the outside world. When he turned back to Estel, he saw that the man had already fallen asleep.

Smiling, he gently walked over to Estel and picked him up and carried him closer to the warm fire. Estel desperately needed the rest, as did he. Laying down next to Estel, Legolas allowed himself to drift off into a light sleep. If anything were to happen during the night, he knew that the trees would warn him. For now, he and Estel were safe and that was all that mattered.

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The small group of elves that had set out to find Estel and Legolas were quickly becoming frustrated. They knew that they had only been searching for one day, but far too many things could happen in that short amount of time.

"Grandfather, why do we not split up? You, Thranduil, and Glorfindel can search one way while we and Haldir search the other," Elladan said.

"It would save time Grandfather, do you not think so?" Elrohir said.

Celeborn, Thranduil, and Glorfindel all frowned. "I would rather we not split up Elladan. We have two missing people already. I have no wish to increase that number," Glorfindel said.

"If we split up though, we will cover more terrain and we would have a better chance of finding Estel and Legolas sooner," Elrohir protested.

"I agree. Valar only knows what condition they're in by now," Elladan said.

Glorfindel sighed and threw up his hands. How was one to argue with logic like that? Still, he did not like it but it seemed that they had no choice if they wanted to find Estel and Legolas with all due haste.

"Fine, we shall split up, but not until the morning. It is far too late to do so now," Thranduil said, knowing well how dangerous his forest was in the night time hours.

The twins and Haldir did not look very happy but they agreed, seeing the wisdom in Thranduil's words. "We shall take first watch then," Haldir stated.

Celeborn sighed but knew that was the best agreement he was going to get out of them. "Very well.Let us find shelter for the night then," he said.

In no time, a suitable thicket had been found, scouted, and proved to be creature free, for the time being at least. "Settle down everyone, I fear this may be the last time of peace we may have for a while," Glorfindel said ominously.

Haldir and the twins took the first watch and were relieved by Glorfindel, Celeborn, and Thranduil in the middle of the night. No one, however, slept as thoughts of Estel and Legolas plagued their thoughts, and they were not the only ones.

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Within Mirkwood, thoughts of Estel and Legolas's fate plagued Elrond as well. He had gone to sleep only to have his dreams plagued with visions of Estel and Legolas in terrible pain. A byproduct of his over active imagination and fear for his son and Legolas.

It was nearing the very early hours of the morning when Elrond's nightmares, turned into an all to real nightmarish vision of Estel and Legolas.

Dream

"No, please, no more," Legolas pleaded brokenly as another lash rained down upon Estel's back. Elrond watched in horror as Gorothdil smirked with glee and only hit his son all the more harder. Elrond knew with horrific certainty the only thing that was preventing Estel from collapsing to the floor right then and there were the brutal chains which were holding him up.

Estel did not scream out, though. He had long ago passed the stage of screaming from the pain. Instead, all that could be heard was a whimper or two and silent cries that only one who knew Estel well would recognize.

"NO! Stop this Gorothdil!" Elrond yelled out.

Gorothdil did not heed him however, nor did he hear him. Smiling, he bend down and grasped the human by his hair. "I want to hear you scream again my little urchin. I know you can, I heard you before. What will it take to get you to scream? Hmm, about another dose of my poison? Yes, that should do the trick quite nicely!"

Elrond watched with horror as Estel's eyes widened with fear and started to tremble. "No, please, I can't do it again," he pleaded weakly from his position against the wall. "I can't," he cried out.

"Oh but you can my little urchin and you will," Gorothdil said while uncorking what Elrond presumed to be the poison.

"Gorothdil, don't do this. Estel has done nothing to you. He can't handle another dose of the poison so soon," Legolas pleaded with the insane elf.

"No can do, my good little princeling. Never fear though, as soon as I am through with the creature here, it will be your turn," Gorothdil said as he backhanded Legolas.

Elrond watched as Legolas was rocked back from the force of the blow but continued to glare daggers at his captor.

"Now, let the fun begin once more," Gorothdil hissed as he poured the foul concoction into Estel's mouth.

At once, Estel let out an ear piercing scream that Elrond echoed as he felt his son's pain. The world faded around him and all he could hear was his and Estel's scream mingling together.

End Dream

"ELROND!" someone shouted as he bolted upright in his bed panting heavily.

"Elrond, are you all right?" Galadriel asked as soon as she saw that Elrond had noticed her.

"No, no I am very far from all right," he muttered. He could still feel the pain that his youngest was suffering and enduring under Gorothdil's hand. Once this was all over and he had killed Gorothdil, he was never going to let Estel out of his sight again.

Galadriel somehow sensed that this had been more than a nightmare. "What did you see Elrond, leave nothing out," she commanded.

Reluctantly, Elrond spoke and told her the entire vision in all it's gruesome glory. By the time he had finished, he was exhausted and Galadriel was grim.

"This may or may not be a vision of what has yet come to pass. You know as well as I that the future is never set in stone. We can only hope that they will be found before Gorothdil can do any lasting harm.

Elrond and Galadriel spent the rest of the night wide awake and fearful for Estel and Legolas. All they could do was wait, and waiting was the hardest part for any parent, no matter what species they may be.

Translations:

Ada: Dad/Daddy

Mellon Nin: My friend