Much Ado About Dwarves
Part One - A Moral Dilemma
Chapter One
Disclaimer: We own nothing from The Hobbit, or any of the Lord of the Rings franchise, and no monetary gain is being made from this story.
Summary: Written for The Hobbit Big Bang challenge. Realising that he can't let even a dwarf suffer from an orc's attack, Legolas leaves Mirkwood to find the dwarven archer and help him. Thorin falls prey to the Arkenstone's influence and as relationships form between the characters, there is still the threat of the coming battle
Rating: R, to be safe - there are scenes of violence and one sex scene
Warnings: Spoilers for the book and both of the movies; violence; one sexual scene; AU
Pairings: Kili/Bliss (OC); Bard/Sheena (OC)
Authors' Note: A tremendous thank you has to go to Lauren, our amazing beta reader/cheerleader. To be honest, if it wasn't for her, there's a very good chance we wouldn't have been able to complete this on time. Thank you so much for your support, Lauren!
Also, a big thank you goes to NickyGabriel. She was the one who created this fantastic piece of artwork at the start of this post. She's also the moderator of The Hobbit Big Bang challenge - a job that clearly involves a huge amount of work, time and effort.
Legolas raced along the bank, bow in hand with an arrow already notched to it. He barely felt the grass under his feet, but he could hear the sound of water as well as the guttural shouts from the orcs. The dwarves were shouting to each other as well, but the exact words were lost in the sound of rushing water.
Legolas didn't know what the orcs wanted with the company of dwarves, but the latter were still their prisoners - and he wasn't going to let the orcs take them without a fight. He could see that the barrels containing the dwarves had stopped at the gates. The elves guarding the bank had obeyed Legolas' directions to close the gates, but there was now one remaining problem - one that Legolas hadn't taken the time to realise.
The orcs would easily be able to attack the dwarves, despite the fact he could see that a couple of them had managed to rearm themselves. At least one orc carried a bow and a quiver of arrows.
Apparently, the dwarves had also realised this; or one of them had, anyway. A young dwarf with dark hair and a small bow and arrows clambered out of his barrel and climbed swiftly towards the gate mechanism. Legolas ran his fingers over the wood of his bow, knowing that he was close enough to fire an arrow. He even reached behind him to pull an arrow free of the quiver.
But although Legolas still grasped one of the arrows, he didn't aim at the dwarf. Despite his dislike of their race, he couldn't bring himself to shoot one from behind, who wasn't even threatening him and was just trying to save the rest of his company.
Legolas heard an arrow whistle through the air and the archer cried out suddenly. Legolas saw an orc arrow sticking out of his leg. Without pausing to think, Legolas leapt lightly over to the opposite bank and let the arrow notched to his bow fly immediately, before he turned to shoot at another orc, sure enough of his aim that he didn't need to see the arrow strike.
By the time Legolas turned back to the dwarves, he saw the wounded one had pulled the lever, forcing the gates to open, and had toppled back into one of the barrels. Legolas hadn't seen how bad the wound was, but he could see some blood on the grass. There was a surprisingly small amount, but he couldn't dwell on it as there were still many orcs now racing after the drifting dwarves.
Legolas fired a third arrow, this time wounding an orc in the leg and sending it crashing to the ground. The orc wasn't carrying a bow, so he knew it wouldn't be able to shoot him from behind. As he passed the prone form, he kicked the blade away so that the orc couldn't stab him in the back.
Other soldiers from the guard were around Legolas, but he only paid enough attention to be sure he wasn't targeting the same foes as they were. He moved fast, but light on his feet as he used the heads of various dwarves as stepping stones to further pursue the orcs, now fleeing from his people.
Legolas followed the orcs as far as he dared, but as the barrels moved to more open water, he knew he couldn't follow further; at least not alone. And his father would want a full report before deciding what to do next.
As Legolas retraced his steps back to the orc he had wounded, he felt a stab of what he recognised as pity. He pushed it quickly away, though. They might have been elves once, but now, they were just wounded animals turned wild. The kindest thing anyone could do was take their lives and hope they would find some form of peace in Mandos' Halls.
The orc snarled at Legolas, speaking in its guttural tongue. "I will never talk, elf!"
Legolas didn't bother making a reply and called two of the members of the guard to come and help him take the orc back to his father. He had no doubts that Thranduil would want to question the creature - and Legolas himself was curious to know why a band of orcs had targeted a specific company of dwarves.
"Why were you targeting those dwarves in particular?"
Legolas and his father were alone in the halls, the orc restrained in front of them. Thranduil was the one who'd asked the question, but there was an odd tone to his voice - as if he already knew the answer. Legolas glanced at his father as his voice echoed through the hollow place, but made no comment, knowing that it wasn't his place to question.
"I will tell you nothing," the orc ground out.
Threatening an orc with pain - with torture - would do nothing to gain information from one, even if an elf could bring himself to go through with it. Their existence was already torturous enough. What more could be done to make them suffer?
"Give me the information and I will free you."
Legolas' gaze slanted to his father. He could hear the half-truth in those words. Freedom for an orc lay not in physical freedom, but in freeing their souls and perhaps enabling those spirits to find peace in Mandos' Halls. When the orc remained silent, Legolas spoke. "Does it matter what you tell us? You've failed in your mission."
The orc's lower lip curled. "It doesn't matter. The dark-haired dwarf will soon be dead."
Legolas narrowed his eyes as he remembered seeing the dwarven archer being shot. "The wound wasn't fatal."
"The arrow used was a morgul shaft," the orc answered. "The poison will consume him within a day... two at the most."
Legolas was surprised at how much that bothered him. He knew his father wasn't concerned, but being faced with the knowledge of someone's imminent death - even a dwarf's - disturbed him more than he'd suspected. More so because he'd been there and could have possibly prevented it.
Thranduil studied the orc for a moment or two longer, then simply stepped forward and killed it, displaying no emotion.
"It could have given us more information," Legolas said.
"We shouldn't concern ourselves with a company of dwarves," Thranduil replied. "Recall the guards. Close the gates. Let no one in or out." Without waiting for a reply, he swept out of the hall.
Legolas watched until his father was out of sight. He felt torn - an emotion he hadn't felt in centuries. He had no love for dwarves, but he couldn't shake the image of the archer's courageous actions. Even wounded, he hadn't given up. If not for him, the orcs would have easily slaughtered them.
It wasn't just his conscience that pricked him. Legolas had been fostered by Lord Elrond for a time and had absorbed a lot of the healer's teachings and values. He knew that Lord Elrond would do everything within his power to heal a being who was hurt, whether they be human, elf, halfling, or dwarf.
Legolas only knew the theory of treating a wound caused by a morgul weapon, but he suspected that was more than the dwarves knew. He didn't know for certain where they were heading, but he decided to begin his search in Laketown.