Another World

Chapter 63

Charlotte and Legolas rode through the woods of Mirkwood in silence, the plodding sound of hooves upon the hard earth intermingling with the soft, melodious chirps of the birds perched in the canopy above.

Charlotte cast a sidelong glance at the elf beside her, who was staring resolutely ahead, his face an unreadable mask of angelic perfection. Even though Legolas seemed, for all the world, relaxed and untroubled as he rode upon his stead, Charlotte was not fooled. The laidback aura that currently permeated from him could quickly morph into deadly warrior precision in the blink of an eye, should any threat present itself. Legolas was dangerous in his own right. Almost as dangerous as Thranduil.

But Charlotte knew she was safe with him and was glad Legolas had offered to join her for a ride. Ever since the terrifying ambush of those ghastly spiders, Charlotte was now more hesitant, tentative even, to venture forth into the forest of Mirkwood by herself, not even along the well-known and relatively safe path that led to the glade she and Thranduil often retreated to. Legolas' presence was reassuring and offered a safety net of sorts. She knew in her heart, regardless if he hadn't quite accepted her yet, that he would see no harm come to her, and would endeavor to protect her.

"Do you have a particular destination in mind?" Legolas suddenly asked, his soft tone breaking through her musings. His gaze was still trained ahead and his grip was loose on his reins, looking deceptively unconcerned, but there was now no doubt that Legolas had sensed that she had been observing him even though she had tried to be discreet about it.

Charlotte hastily glanced away and focused on his question, wracking her brain for an appropriate reply. She didn't think it appropriate to lead him to hers and Thranduil's spot – that was a place she considered solely 'theirs'. But she hadn't had much opportunity to explore and knew of no other places to go. When she had decided to take Tallagor for a ride, she had thought it best to stick relatively close to the kingdom.

"I hadn't really thought about it," she admitted. Then she glanced his way, giving him her full attention. "Is there someplace you would like to go?"

Legolas made a show of thinking about her question before he shot her a devilish grin.

"Depends."

"On what?" she asked, taken aback.

"On whether you can keep up," he declared, a mischievous twinkling light entering his brilliant blue eyes before he suddenly urged his horse forwards into a gallop.

Charlotte gaped at the quickly disappearing form of the Prince of Mirkwood, her brain not quite comprehending that he had just challenged her to a race. Who would have thought that he was capable of such playfulness?

"Hey! That's cheating!" she cried out indignantly, though Legolas paid her no heed. He didn't even glance back at her, though she thought she detected his musical laugh floating back to her. Huffing, she leaned forward, gripping the reins tightly in her hand. "Come on, Tallagor. Let's give Legolas a race he'll never forget!"

If she was expecting Tallagor to respond immediately and break out in a full-speed dash, she was sorely disappointed. The moose merely snorted, managing to convey that he was in no such mood and was above such trivialities.

"I'll give you a bucket of apples if you win the race," she coaxed in a sickly-sweet voice.

Charlotte barely had time to brace herself before the moose suddenly broke into an all-out dash, his powerful hooves thundering along the earth as he sought to catch up with Legolas. It wasn't long before the familiar halo of platinum white hair was seen up ahead, and she grinned widely.

We may just catch up to him yet, she thought smugly to herself.

Legolas glanced over his shoulder and then turned his attention back ahead, urging his horse to go faster. It was in that moment that Charlotte realized that he had actually been hanging back, making sure that she would, indeed, follow. Now...now he was not holding back. Legolas was determined to win this race, his competitive side coming to the forefront. Charlotte felt a stab of pity for Gimli and the future contests he would endure against Legolas.