A/N: Phew! Sorry this chapter's taken so long! I just completely forgot about it in the midst of my two other stories and a three page paper due on Monday that I haven't even started, and I've been having some friend issues, and I'm at a loss as to where this story is going. I'll have to have a discussion with Schmo tomorrow!

I can't believe Kim isn't here.

This thought kept running through Katelyn's head as she watched the fire in her hands crackle merrily. She held the fire up to her face and let it warm her cheeks, staring with unseeing eyes at the trunk of the tree in front of her. Why can't she be here? Katelyn sighed.

"Hello, my beautiful maiden."

The fire in her hands disappeared abruptly, and she whirled around to see Elladan looking at her with a fond expression on his face. "Oh! Hello, Elladan. Er…long time, no see. Sorry I didn't come see you after you were in Galadriel's talan. I just…forgot. It's been…what, three weeks, now? You just hid from me, didn't you?"

He grinned, but Katelyn didn't feel that familiar fluttering in her stomach she had gotten in Rivendell whenever he'd look at her. "How are you doing?"

"Very well, thank you."

She put her fire-blackened hands behind her back. "What are you doing here, in Lothlórien?"

"My grandmother requested our presence, and my father asked us to go before the snows of winter fall too heavily. It is already early December."

"Already?" Katelyn gasped.

Elladan nodded. "We left with Elessar to hunt the Ringwraiths not long after you and your companions departed for Lothlórien. We tracked them as far as the mountains, but then lost them in the peak's snows. We returned to Imaldris, and began our journey here not long after."

"Interesting," Katelyn mused. "We had a relatively uneventful trip, ourselves."

"Relatively?"

"Well," she sighed, "A few days from here, we were attacked by wolves in the dead of night. I was fine, but Rachel—Aranel—got a nasty bite on her shoulder and a gash on her cheek, then her shoulder got infected and she nearly died." She nodded. "But I got bitten on the hand, too."

A thrill of pleasure went up her spine at Elladan's shocked face. "But you are all right?" he asked worriedly.

"Of course. I wouldn't be here if I wasn't."

He made to put his arms around her, but she stepped away, her face pink with embarrassment. "Please don't."

Elladan's brow creased with bewilderment at her actions. "Mae—"

Katelyn cleared her throat and made fire jump into her hands. "Look at what I can do!"

"That's…very interesting."

"I know."

They fell into awkward silence, and Katelyn welcomed the interruption of Rachel running towards them. "Katelyn Ruth Barcanic, I—oh, excuse me."

"You're not intruding on anything," Katelyn was quick to point out. "We were just…uh…saying hello."

Rachel looked curiously at the two of them, but, at a murderous glance from Katelyn, shrugged and said, "Katelyn, I suggest you get your butt into gear and follow me. You're half an hour late for archery practice, and Glorfindel's furious."

"Aw, Rachel, I've been coming early the past nine times. Can't he cut me some slack, just this once?"

"Don't shoot the messenger, all right? Just come on."

"I've got to go," Katelyn said to Elladan. "Archery…"

"May I come?" he asked.

"No!" Katelyn said, perhaps a little too quickly. "I mean, sorry. It's a…private lesson." She stomped on Rachel's toes to keep her from blurting anything out.

"Right," Elladan said, sounding disappointed.

"Say, Elladan," Rachel said nonchalantly, "I haven't seen your brother around—what's his name…Elrohir?"

Elladan gave her a dry look. "I'm not as stupid as you think, Aranel. And no, I haven't seen 'what's his name' since early this morning."

Rachel turned a bright pink as Elladan shrugged at her.

"What is it you were saying about archery?" Katelyn said brightly.

"Oh, right, let's go. Preferably now, before I humiliate myself any more."

Katelyn followed her mindlessly cheerful friend to the Lothlórien archery range, the only place within a five-mile radius that had no trees. It was long and green, like the one in Rivendell, and a dozen targets were situated at equal intervals down the length of the field. Two tall Elves chatted lazily between two targets, one leaning on a strong bow.

"Sorry we're late, Glorfindel," Rachel called out. "Maethoriel was talking to—ow, Katelyn, don't step on my toes like that!—someone."

Glorfindel strode up to her and promptly put her in a headlock.

"OW! Glorfindel, knock it off!"

He shook her briskly, then let her go and did the same to Katelyn. "I hate it when you do that," Rachel snarled, massaging her throat.

"You've met Elrohir, I daresay," Glorfindel said, ignoring Katelyn's groans of pain.

"You dare say?" Rachel said, a maniacal glint in her eye.

Glorfindel hastily took her quiver.

"Yes, I've met him," she continued, looking at her once-friend. "I just…haven't talked to him in a while. Have we, Ro?"

Elrohir didn't look at her, and a muscle in Rachel's jaw tensed. Katelyn stepped away from her friend, slightly afraid for her physical safety. "Give me that," Rachel said testily, grabbing her quiver from Glorfindel. "We're wasting time."

"Take your positions," he sighed.

The two girls fitted arrows to their bows and pulled the strings taught.

"Aim at the targets, please, not me."

The girls sighed remorsefully at stood in front of their respective targets to take aim.

"Ready…aim…fire!"

Katelyn's arrow sailed through the air and struck the second circle from the middle; Rachel's spun crazily and hit the base holding the target up. "Aw, shoot."

"You're holding your bow wrong," Elrohir said. This was the first thing they'd heard come out of his mouth since they'd left Rivendell.

"Oh, yeah?" Rachel said in English.

"Yeah."

"Then show me where I've gone wrong."

He sighed and slid her hand down further on the sturdy wood of the bow; a quick nudge sideways got her feet in the right positions. She nocked another arrow and let it fly into the center of the target. "See?" he asked smugly.

"Neh."

"You probably shouldn't hold the bow so tightly, either."

"And who are you to tell me what to do, huh?"

"Well, I'm significantly more experienced in this area of warfare than you…"

"And?"

"'And'? What do you mean 'and'? Just because I'm better at archery than you doesn't mean you have to hate me."

"I don't hate you."

"Oh?"

"I strongly dislike you right now."

"Oho, I suppose the feeling's mutual, then!"

"Well, duh!"

"Rachel—" Katelyn began, but her friend ignored her.

"You know what, Elrohir," Rachel snapped, "since you know so much more than I do, have fun with my bow!" She shoved it into his arms and chucking her quiver at his feet before stalking off the field.

"Nice going," Katelyn said dryly.

Elrohir scowled at her, and she fell silent.