++++++ If you haven't read Shadow Huntress: The Fellowship of the Ring or Shadow Huntress: An Unexpected Journey, I suggest you do to my profile and read both of them. Thanks ++++++

++++++ I do not own the Lord of the Rings or any affiliated characters apart from my OC. All rights belong to Tolkien ++++++

One

Three days and nights we had been chasing the fighting Uruk-Hai and we had yet to catch up to our prey. I found myself wondering if we would ever find Merry and Pippin safe and alive.

When the five of us had left Amon Hen, the shores where the Fellowship had broken at long last, I had such high hopes that we would find the lads. But now I was allowing myself a kind of false hope that never, ever did anyone good.

A company of eleven had set out from Rivendale, the house of Lord Elrond Half-elven just over two months ago. The Fellowship of the Ring we were called and an odd Fellowship we certainly were. We were led by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, a wizard of many years, much cunning and much mystery, a wizard whom I trusted with my very life.

Gandalf often took council with Aragorn, son of Arathon, a ranger from the north and also the Heir to Gondor's throne. Aragorn was the kind of man who let his deeds speak louder than his words but he also had a gift for negotiation and often used words not his weapons.

Boromir, son of Denethor, Steward of Gondor was the exact opposite. He looked at Aragorn like he was some kind of threat and looked down on me and my student simply because we were women and war was no place for the likes of us.

Breya Talathion was both mine and Gandalf's former student and elemental wizard. She could wield a sword as sharply and deadly as she could her tongue but happened to have a soft spot for all things dwarven having grown up in Lake Town, just a stone's throw away from Erebor where she now spent most of her time. I had adopted her when I accompanied Thorin Oakenshield in his quest to take back Erebor from the dragon Smaug.

Gimli, son of Gloin, the only dwarven member of our Fellowship was a great friend to not only Breya but myself as well. He didn't like the elves, nor the fact that they were a part of the quest. Since I was friends with his father, he did hold a certain respect for me.

Legolas Greenleaf, son of Thranduil, Prince of Mirkwood and I had history. When the company of Thorin Oakenshield journeyed through Mirkwood on their way to Erebor, it was Legolas and his Wood Elves that captured us and took us to his father. We were held prisoner in Mirkwood for several days before Bilbo Baggins, our hobbit thief broke us out.

In our company we swore to protect and four young hobbits, Samwise Gamgee, Meriadoc Brandynuck, Peregrin Took and Frodo Baggins, the bearer of the One Ring. Frodo had inherited the ring from his Uncle Bilbo who had found it in the Goblin Caves on our journey to Erebor. Originally it had just been Frodo who was to accompany us but Sam, Merry and Pippin had insisted they come along.

Then there was me.

My name is Falathiel and I'm an elf. I wasn't what you would call your typical elf. I was lucky enough to be blessed with the extraordinary grace, skill and beauty that all elves in Middle Earth possessed but instead of employing a skill like healing or craftsmanship, I was gifted with the ability to track and to kill. But my main skills lay in the ability to manipulate the shadows and use them to my advantage. As far as I was aware, I was the only Shadow Elf to walk Middle Earth in thousands of years. It was something that took a long time to get used to and honestly, I was still struggling to accept that I would never be like the rest. I had joined the Fellowship with my constant wold companion Ghost to protect Frodo and I had even failed that.

We had left Rivendell as a Fellowship until Gandalf fell defending us from the Barlog in Moria. From Moria we went to Lothlorien, my old home, and from Lothlorien we journeyed to Amon Hen where Boromir was killed and the Fellowship broke.

Frodo and Sam chose to go to Mordor and destroy the ring alone.

Merry and Pippin were in the hands of Saruman's fighting Uruk-Hai.

And we had given chase.

But three days and night's pursuit had brought us nothing but dust.

I did not know if we would find them alive.

"Falathiel?" called a voice, cutting me from my thoughts. When I looked up I saw Breya standing on a rock just behind Aragorn.

"What do you feel?" I asked them.

"Their pace has quickened," Aragorn replied, slowly getting up. "They must have caught our scent." He turned his head to us. "Hurry!"

Breya jumped down off her rock and landed with the skill and grace of a cat. "Come!" she shouted.

I kicked my boot to get rid of some of the dry mud on my heel and turned to Legolas. "Lost Gimli again?" I smirked as I took off after Breya.

"Come on, Gimli!" Legolas shouted as the dwarf struggled to keep up with us.

I had to admit, the fact that they had sensed us didn't bode well in our favour but I had convinced myself that we mustn't given up hope, not whilst there was some of it left.

As we ran, chasing after the vibrations that Aragorn and Breya both felt in the earth we came to a small pass surrounded by rocks and littered with boot prints. They had definitely come this way.

Aragorn knelt down on the ground and picked up a small leaf-brooch. We were all wearing them, they were the clasp to our cloaks given to us in Lothlorien by Lady Galadriel and Lord Celeborn. "Not idly to the leaves of Lorien fall."

"They may yet be alive," Legolas replied, his blue eyes twinkling with happiness.

"Less than a day ahead of us," Breya replied, her bare hand lay gently against the rock. She grinned, "come!"

I grinned and followed her.

Yes, there was defiantly still hope.