Ashley leaned back against the window once more, looking to the ceiling and letting her inner turmoil over Legolas subside for a moment. She turned her face to him and saw that he was watching the land pass them by rapidly, for Amy was breaking the speed limit, as usual. The woman allowed herself to smile as she studied the Elf's profile. His eyes were focused elsewhere and did not notice her gaze.

      The only word that came to Ashley's mind was hott. She knew that Legolas was the most handsome being she had ever laid eyes on and, that he was the only guy from then on, that the girl might ever think about. His presence filled her heart with so much joy, yet sadness also, for she knew his coming would pass and her life would trudge on much as it always had. Yet, these few moments they had together, she would treasure for all her lifetime.

      Her thoughts of her previous boyfriend were far from her mind, the man she had mentioned before as to Amy. The old crush of Ashley's had been, in her mind, the finest man she had ever met. He was no comparison to Legolas however.

      The Elf's gaze drifted and, from his peripheral vision, he could see her watching him. His eyes turned to hers and, once more, in the sun filled cabin of the SUV, they locked in a seemingly endless moment. All Ashley's soul screamed out that his gaze was the only thing she needed in life, but her mind of logic tried to disagree. It spoke to her, saying that he would leave and she would never again gaze on such beauty as there was to be found in his eyes. But for the moment, her soul and heart won over her mind and the two just sat there.

      A smile came to Legolas' lips, "An man thel caro le tiri an nin ned sen pad." he asked, a glimmer in his blue eyes. ~[For what purpose do gaze at me in this way?]~
      A tint of red rose upon Ashley's cheeks as she replied sheepishly, "Fanu nu gerin penio hen bo pen ai thir sui bain sui le... Ha rinc nin, kunn." She has spoke her mind before even realizing what she had done. ~[Never before have I set eyes on one who looks as fair as thee. It moves me, prince.]~

      But Legolas was not angry nor did he mock her feelings. He simply nodded his head but his smile vanished and his disposition became very serious.

      "Im hannad le, Nileregwen, an i eglario. Dan le garo henio, Im pulu dor anim ned Estel en haid." ~[I thank you, Nileregwen, for the praise. But you have to understand, I cannot place myself in Estels position.]~
      Ashley nodded, "Im henio." ~[I understand.]~ was her short reply, for at that moment Amy interjected.
      "Estel? What are you two talking about?" she asked, rather annoyed, "I may not know much Sindarin, but I know that you're either talking about some sort of hope or of Aragorn. So," her eyes turned to catch Legolas', "Which is it?"
      The Elf leaned back in his seat once more, "I spoke of Aragorn, yes."
      "Uh huh..." Amy's eyes caught Ashley's in the rearview mirror, "And what else where you too talking about?"
      "Nothing." The woman replied with a smile, "Just making conversation."
      "Ah! You two are impossible! I followed your conversation for a bit, since I do know what 'hannad le' means. What did you say that received a thank you?"
      Ashley shrugged, "I just gave him a compliment, that's all."

      Twenty minutes passed and they entered the small town of Ruidoso. It was a quite mountain town, filled with tourists most of the time, mainly in the winter and summer. Though it was spring now and all the skiers had put their skis into closets and attics. The time for summer, when many students were off school, had also not come. So, for the moment, the small town belonged to it's residents, and to those who visited from the nearby city of Roswell.

      The streets were more modern then one would expect but it had a rustic feel in the atmosphere as people walked by. Shops lined the streets and, as Amy finally found a small parking space, Ashley noticed some strange activity.

      She saw people whom she had become good friends with, but now they looked on her like an outcast. Her thoughts went immediately to the presence of a few strangely clad men in business suits. No one in Ruidoso wore suits, at least none that Ashley had ever seen. They also sported black shades and, the woman's mind went once more to the thoughts of The X-Files.

      Ashley could be very paranoid at times and suddenly, small details seemed to click within her mind. The strange light of the vortex, which had spit Legolas out of it's mouth, would have caught the attention of some, she had no doubt. And, since the city of Roswell, a very well known haven for UFO fanatics and activity, was no more than an hour away, she suspected that they had heard the report of the lights. Also, the airbase in White Sands brought new thoughts to her mind. An airbase would surely have had radar and access to satellites, but if it worked this high in the mountains or could catch a photograph, she knew not. Her breath caught in her throat as she peered over Amy's shoulder.

      "Park somewhere else." she whispered.
      Amy turned to her, "What are you talking about? What's wrong with this spot?"
      "Something's wrong, park elsewhere Amy. Please."
      Her friend looked into her eyes and nodded, "Are you always going to be so paranoid, Ashley?" she asked, pulling out of the parking space.
      Ashley smiled, "I hope so."
      The Elf looked out the passenger window and noticed that the men in suits were walking down the street toward them, "They are approaching, the men you are so wary of."
      "How did you know I had a bad feeling about them in particular?" Ashley asked as the car turned down a nearby corner.
      Legolas looked to her, "I felt them watching us as we pulled in and the look of them unnerves me."
      "Great." Amy said as she parked again, a few blocks away, "Now I have two paranoid people to deal with." but she smiled as she said it, all in good fun.
      "Well, you had better be glad I'm paranoid Amy. It always comes in handy when you listen to your gut feelings." Ashley replied, thrusting her cell phone back into her purse and stepping out of the car.

      Amy and Legolas got out as well and they began to walk down the street. Dungeon Castle was two blocks away, but Ashley feared that the strange men might catch up with them in no time.

      "We must hurry." Legolas whispered from behind her as they walked, "They are drawing nearer, I can hear their footfalls even at this distance."
      "How can that be?" Amy asked, "There are a lot of people out walking."
      The Elf turned his eyes to Ashley's friend, "Do you not trust my senses? You will find no being more attuned to what is going on about them than an Elf, Enlygiel."
      "Enlygiel?" Amy raised an eyebrow.
      "That would be your name in the tongue of Elves." He replied.
      "Ah..."

      After a few more tense moments of walking, the trio made it to Dungeon Castle. Ashley quickly ushered them inside, and just in time too. As the door closed behind them, the well dressed men rounded the corner.

      "Mark, we need to hide in the break room. I'll explain it in a minute." Amy told their friend who owned the store.

      He did not have time to respond as the three rushed into the back of the building, closing the break room door behind them.

      Just then, the men entered and stepped up to the counter.

      "Excuse me, sir. I was wondering if we could get a little information from you?" one of the men asked.

      To Mark, they all looked rather identical and he began to wonder if Ashley's paranoia had been right all those years through high school.

      "Sure." he replied, continuing to wipe the display counter with a rag.
      Another of the men handed him a picture, "This was taken by a satellite a few days back. Do you recognize the surrounding area?"
      "Yeah, it's up in the mountains." Mark laughed, "You see one patch of forest in this place, you've seen them all."
      They looked at each other for a moment, "Do you recognize the two figures in the picture?"
      "Well..." he said, adjusting his glasses and taking the photo, "One's a women and the other's a man, but that's about all I can make of them."
      "No names then?"
      Mark shrugged, "I think I went to school with the woman, but I can't recall her name, no."
      The first man who spoke shook the store owner's hand, "Thank you for your time. May I ask, has anyone been in here lately?"
      At that moment, in walked Kenneth, and behind him were a few of Ashley and Mark's other friends, "Hey Marcus Aurelius, wuz up?"
      Mark shook his head, "Be with you in a sec, DoWhatNow." he turned his attention back to the others, "Aside from these guys and another friend, no one has been in today."
      "Does this other friend have a name?" the man asked.
      A woman stepped out from a bookshelf behind them, "Of course I have a name." She said, "I'm Becca."

      The woman was dressed in black from head to toe and sported some slightly pale make-up, save for the dark eye shadow and liner and her semi dark lipstick.

      "It's the perky goth!" Kenneth said, though he was being rather ignored through the whole thing.
      Becca smiled, "Yep, that's me." The men now noticed that, even though she was clad all in black, her boots each had a band-aid on their tops... SpongeBob SquarePants, band-aids.

      The men turned their attention back to Mark, "And there has been noone else?"
      "I said there hasn't but, if you don't mind me asking. What is going on in this photo?"
      "That is classified information, sir." the other man said and, with another thank you, they left the store.
      Kenneth stood there starring at them as they went, "Whoa, I never thought I'd live to see the day that I would see real men in black. Dang."

      A noise issued from the back of the room and, out of the break area stepped Ashley and Amy. Behind them, was a tall blonde haired man. Mark, who was very suspicious as to why he just lied to the government, walked up to his friend.

      "What is this all about, Ash? Those guys meant serious business, and they had a photo of you and your tall friend here." he indicated Legolas.
      Ashley sighed, "I think we'd better all sit down." She said, seeing as how all the members of their group were now present.

      Kenneth grabbed a chair quickly, "DoWhatNow, ready for action!"
      Beside him, Ashley laughed as she sat, "Kenneth, only you would use your Dungeons and Dragons name in public."
      "Yeah, and you wouldn't use Nileregwen?" he laughed, "I thought you liked Elven names but I guess you don't like it that much."
      At this, Ashley paled slightly and Legolas gave her a quick glance but she shrugged it off, "Noone would know me by that name, Kenneth. It's not like you, who during high school said 'Do What Now' to everything."
      "Don't forget about, 'Pop the balloon'." Becca replied, "I'm glad you guys finally got over that small phase."
      The brown haired man shrugged, "Yeah, but then she got into her Lord of The Rings phase." Kenneth eyed Ashley for a moment, "And it's still going strong, no?"

      She nodded, all the while aware that Legolas held her in his steady gaze. Ashley hated the feeling that she had somehow lied to the Elf but he sat next to her nevertheless.

      When Mark and Amy and the other members of the group finally seated themselves, they began the meeting.

      "I want to know what in heck is going on here." Mark said, "I don't like my store being under suspicion, especially from the government."
      Ashley sighed, "I know, but what else could I do?"
      "For starters." Jessica, another of her friends, spoke up, "You could introduce us to your friend."
      The woman shifted in her seat, "I think I need to tell you guys a few things first, before introductions are made."
      "Then get on with it!" Kenneth replied, he was very anxious to know why a meeting had been called on a holiday.
      Ashley folded her hands on the table, "A few days ago, I was out practicing archery and..."
      "Yep, that proves the Lord of the Rings phase is still in full swing." Becca said with a smile.
      Again the woman felt Legolas' eyes on her, but she continued, "Any way, I was out practicing and a huge storm blew in. At first, I just tried to wait it out but, as I turned to head back to the cabin, there was a bright flash in the sky."
      "So that's what the MIB are doing all over town." Mark replied.
      Amy looked at him in shock, "They're all over?"
      He nodded, "Yeah, they've been asking questions of everyone and, apparently, giving them a photo of you." The man pointed at Ashley, "I hope noone has told them we do know each other or else they might be back."
      "Crap..." Ashley sighed, "This complicates matters. Any who, I went to investigate the light, like any normal paranoid person would." She smiled slightly at this, "And when I got there, I met my friend here."
      "He's an alien?!" Kenneth yelled, jumping from his chair.
      "Sit down!" Amy said in a hushed but stern tone, "We don't want anyone else in on this conversation than need be!"
      The younger man nodded and sat back in his chair while Ashley continued, "No, he isn't an alien... well... okay maybe but let me explain."
      "I think it would further this discussion if I just showed them." Legolas replied, putting a hand to the baseball cap on his head.

      Ashley held her breath, though she knew not why, as the Elf removed the hat. His pointed ears sticking out like a sore thumb.

      The room was completely dumbfounded.