Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: We do not own the characters. They belong to J.R.R. Tolkien. We merely take them out for some fun and will return them in good shape… more or less… However, the original characters belong to their respective creators. :)

Summary: When Legolas failed to show up at The Last Homely House as promised, Aragorn set out to search for his missing friend, but all that he found was Legolas’ abandoned elven knife. When Elladan and Elrohir realized that letting Aragorn go after their friend alone was a grave mistake, the twins tracked their brother into the forest. To their dismay, they found that the human and the elf prince had landed in the hands of a band of slavers…

Note: This round robin story is made possible by a group of wonderful and talented writers. The Moderators of the list (Wanda and Coon) would like to thank everyone for their wonderful contributions, delightful feedbacks and constant encouragements. Wanda would also like to thank Coon for helping her maintain the list and keep track of the authors. Thank you Coon, I couldn’t have done it without you!! :D *hugs*

List of Authors (in order of writing appearance): Wanda, Elvensong, Val, PT, Jessi, Cat, Alex, Chianna, Louise, Saber, Ginny, T’Pai, Gilgaladiell, Meril, Iridia, Rhonda, Deana, Karri, Ryoko. I hope I didn’t miss out anyone. If I did, feel free to kick me. LOL!

Additional Notes: Special thanks to Iridia for taking the time to beta read all the chapters. :)

Feedback: LadyGreenleaf@gmail.com

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Round Robin
Chapter 1
By Wanda

Aragorn leaned on the window looking out at the slowly darkening sky. "Where are you, Legolas? What have you gotten yourself into this time?" He sighed softly, not hearing the light footsteps that approached him from behind. Elrond walked silently to the window and wrapped a blanket around his youngest son's shoulders, startling him. Aragorn twirled around and was greeted by a pair of dark brown eyes.

"I'm sorry, Estel," Elrond apologized, "I didn't mean to..."

"It's all right, Father," Aragorn cut him off in mid-sentence, running his hands over his tired face. "Did Elladan and Elrohir find him?" he asked, even though he already knew the answer, having seen the twins return without his elven friend.

Elrond shook his head sadly. The twins had been out in search of the elf prince ever since he had failed to show up at midday as promised; but unfortunately, they had been forced to return by the rapidly approaching storm. The sky had turned dark as night; strong winds assaulted the trees, trying to break them. A gust of icy cold wind found its way through the window and Aragorn shivered, wrapping the blanket a little tighter around himself.

"I would have gone with them, if not for that stupid hunting accident," the young human added guiltily, looking down at his heavily bandaged leg and kicking himself mentally for being so careless. "It would have increased the chances of finding him..." he trailed off.

"We will find him," the elven lord tried to assure the ranger. "We will send out more scouting parties after the storm breaks." Elrond wrapped his arm around Aragorn's shoulder, pulling him gently away from the window and guiding his slightly limping son to the bed. "You need rest."

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Legolas groaned and opened his eyes, blinking a few times to clear his blurred vision. For a moment, he didn't know why he was lying face-down on the ground. As he tried to push himself off the rocky surface, a sharp pain pierced through his chest, sending him into a coughing fit, a thin trail of blood running down the corner of his mouth. As the coughing ceased, the elf took a shuddering breath and pushed himself up slowly to a sitting position. He leaned against a large rock, wrapping his left hand protectively around his chest.

The prince squeezed his eyes shut and took inventory of the different pains in his body. At least one of his ribs was broken, and he knew that he was bleeding internally. His left ankle hurt, but he realized it was just sprained; but his head hurt... a lot. Legolas reached up with his right hand to touch his forehead above his right brow and hissed in pain. The fingers came away bloody; and the blood continued to flow from the deep cut down his face and neck, soaking into his dark green tunic.

Lightning flashed across the sky and the cold wind started to pick up speed. Legolas knew that he would need to find shelter before the storm hit. Pulling himself up painfully, he scanned the area. His sharp elven eyes found an area of thickly grown trees about a hundred paces from where he stood. The injured elf limped miserably towards the closest tree as heavy raindrops began to fall. Within minutes, he was drenched from head to toe, shivering from the pain and cold that assaulted his battered body.

After what seemed like an eternity, he finally reached his haven. Stumbling towards the trees, he collapsed onto the forest floor in a heap, jarring his injured ribs. A small cry escaping his trembling lips, he curled into a tight ball, hoping to minimize the pain--to no avail. "Estel! Help me!" The desperate cry for help turned out to be merely a soft whisper, lost in the merciless storm.

TBC...