Story Name: Dark of Night
Pen Name: Elena Roan
Disclaimer: Don't own any of them, written purely for enjoyment.
Rating: M
Warnings: very dark
Summary: When Legolas journeys from Mirkwood to Rivendell seeking answers to his unease and troubling dreams, little does he realise what awaits him and his gwador.
Editor: Michelle
Timeline: III 2990 (Aragorn 59 years old)
Note: AragornStriderEstel

Chapter 6: Dark Disappearance

Wakefulness came slower for Legolas than it had the previous morning, but even for that difference he found himself wondering whether the previous day had happened at all as the twins were again hovering over him while he woke.

"How do you feel?" Elrohir asked softly, steadying him as he sat up.

"Sore," he admitted, rubbing his forehead, "and tired." He frowned as more details of the previous night filtered into the forefront of his mind; they'd woken him up fairly frequently in the early part of the night. "You were treating me as per a concussion, were you not?"

"Yes," Elladan confirmed, "that would explain your headache and nausea at least, though we found no visible injury."

"You may have hit your head when you fell. Even if it was not the cause, we would not take the risk," Elrohir added softly.

Legolas nodded slightly, taking it in. "When are we returning to the clearing?"

"I do not think your returning there is a good idea, caun neth (young prince)," Glorfindel stated, coming over and kneeling down in front of the wood elf.

"We need to find Strider," Legolas protested.

"I am not asking you to sit that out," Glorfindel reassured him. "Merely stay here and rest while Raven, one of the twins, and I go get what we can from the tracks then make some deductions about where to search for him. Then we shall return for both of you before we go after Strider."

"The rest will do you good," Elrohir added in support, "and will allow us to make sure you are as recovered as you think you are."

"I do not like it," Legolas replied.

"You do not have to," Elladan answered. "Please indulge our concerns, you gave us all quite a scare yesterday."

Legolas looked up at them sharply at the comment, scrutinising their faces.

"Very well," he said softly after a moment, "I shall stay here. But promise me you will take care."

"We shall," Glorfindel answered earnestly.

"I will be going to the clearing while Elrohir stays with you," Elladan added, being kind for once in regard to the prince not being able to tell them apart. "Can you remember what happened?"

Legolas hesitated for a bit then slowly answered the question. "It was like...it was like the darkness that permeated the area had suddenly solidified around me. I had been following some tracks that actually made sense when they suddenly stopped short of the tree line; I had crouched down to have a closer look when it happened." He looked up at the other elves. "Did I manage to draw my knives?"

"Sorry Legolas, you did not even manage to reach for them," Glorfindel answered, causing the other elf to sigh in disgust.

"That you thought to try says a lot for your strength," Elladan put in and Glorfindel nodded in agreement.

"I shall investigate that area myself," Glorfindel stated seriously.

"You should be going if you plan to collect us before dusk," Elrohir interrupted, having moved away from them and now returning with some food.

Even Elladan deferred to him, for once, and soon it was just Legolas and Elrohir in the cave.

"You should eat," Elrohir commented softly after a while when it looked like Legolas was just going to push the food he'd been given around the plate.

Legolas looked up at the other elf, sighed then put the plate aside. "Forgive me, I do not feel much like eating."

He sighed again when Elrohir came over to him and gently repositioned his head to where the raven haired elf could look into his eyes.

"You should have said something if you still felt nauseous," Elrohir scolded gently.

"Not nauseous as such," Legolas replied softly, "more...that food is unwelcome."

Elrohir frowned in concern. "If I make you some tea, will you at least try to drink it?"

"I will try, no guarantees though," Legolas answered.

"Good enough. I need to get some water though; will you be alright staying here?" He received a small nod in answer from the prince, collected the things he needed and made his way out of the cave.

Legolas occupied himself as best he could with the twin gone, he hated not doing anything and couldn't even fletch since his hands were still shaking from the incident the previous day, something he hoped he would not need to admit to any of his companions.

He looked up as he heard a noise outside the cave thinking it was Elrohir returning. He frowned when the other elf didn't appear after a few moments.

"Elrohir?" he called cautiously. Getting no reply he picked up his knives and got to his feet, he hesitated, then quickly wrote a short note in the dirt of the cave floor as an explanation and went to see what the noise had been.

A short while later Elrohir returned and stopped short as he entered the cave upon seeing that Legolas was not where he left him.

"Legolas?" Elrohir questioned the empty cave, alarmed and worried. It crossed his mind that the prince may have left to go to the clearing, but he'd given his word and that was something the wood elf would never break if he could help it.

The younger twin put down the water and walked over to where Legolas had been the last time he saw him, noting as he approached that his knives were gone though his bow and quiver were still there along with his cloak. Then he saw the note and felt a chill race through him.

'Heard a noise, going to investigate.'

Elrohir grabbed his own weapons and left the cave, searching as he did for Legolas' tracks as to which way he went. They went a different direction to the three who had gone to the clearing and that reassured Elrohir for a while. Then he came upon something that chilled him to the bone. The tracks came to an abrupt end with no sign that the prince had leapt into a tree or a tree close enough to do so. Abandoned in the same place were Legolas' twin knives.

In the clearing

"Anything?" Elladan asked as Glorfindel walked back from the spot where Legolas had collapsed the previous day to where the other two were trying to make sense of the jumbled tracks.

Glorfindel sighed and shook his head. "Nothing." He glanced up at the position of the sun and continued. "We should return to the cave, we have no more time to waste on figuring these tracks out. It looks like we shall have to do a search pattern on the surrounding terrain."

Elladan had opened his mouth to answer the elven lord when he saw the blond elf's attention had been caught by something. Turning to look he saw his twin run into the clearing. All thoughts as to their next steps were chased from his mind as he turned and raced over to his brother.

"What is wrong? Is Legolas well?" he asked as he skidded to a stop in front of his twin.

"I do not know," Elrohir replied, looking visibly distressed. "I went to get water, when I got back he was gone."

"He should have known better then to sneak away," Glorfindel remarked, looking annoyed.

"He did not sneak away," Elrohir answered softly. "He left a note that he had heard a sound and was going to investigate." The other two elves looked at each other, this didn't sound good. "I followed his tracks; they stopped as though...as though he had vanished into thin air. And...And his knives were there."

The younger twin was near tears and Elladan pulled him into a hug.

"Can you show us where?" Glorfindel asked gently after a moment and got a nod from the twin in response.

Quickly the four returned to the cave, then followed Elrohir as he led them to where Legolas' tracks had vanished.