Thank you for all of your encouragement, everyone! I really do appreciate every review I get! As I've said, they keep me going. With that said, yay for Mirkwood! I hope everyone is ready for elves and spiders. Oh, and I still don't own the Hobbit. Enjoy!
Luin struggled as she almost tripped once again on an inconvenient tree root. She felt her stomach clench, and took a couple of deep breathes, praying that this time she would not vomit. She swayed a little, feeling a strong arm steady her. It was Dwalin's turn right now.
She felt truly horrible, and it wasn't just her stomach. She had never felt so useless in her entire life as she had for the past week. At least her mind was a little clearer and she could mostly walk on her own.
They hadn't been in the forest an hour before she'd collapsed, vomiting uncontrollably. When she'd tried to change in her panic, to get away, to fly, she'd discovered that as bad as things were as an elf, they were ten times worse as a dragon.
She was just grateful she hadn't accidentally hurt someone, though she had terrified them with her writhing and screaming. As soon as she'd changed back, she'd passed out. She had woken up three days later, in Thorin's strong arms.
Bilbo informed her as he tried to get her to drink a little water that all of the dwarves had been taking turns carrying her, and that they'd all been incredibly worried. Things had been improving steadily for her since then, though she'd only been able to keep down a sip or a mouthful here and there.
She was getting more and more worried as time went on, though. It seemed as her mind was clearing, the others were getting confused and acting strangely. If she hadn't been so weak, she'd have tried to find the path they'd misplaced yesterday. Or what she was pretty sure was yesterday.
As it was, all she could do was struggle to keep up and watch helplessly as her companions seemed to fall to madness. Even Bilbo, who'd been the most coherent, was starting to behave oddly.
As Oin and Bofur discussed a tobacco pouch they'd found, which turned out to be Bofur's...(they were going in circles!) Bilbo seemed to manage to pull himself together enough to declare them lost. As Dwalin disagreed, declaring they merely needed to go east, Luin felt her heart sinking.
Bilbo was right, and how were they to know which way was east? They couldn't see the sun! She managed to force herself straight as she looked around a little wildly. It was then she realized that the webs Beorn had warned them about were very close to surrounding them...and Bilbo was missing.
Before she could completely panic, she saw his foot as it disappeared up into a tree. She relaxed, understanding that meant that he was going to find the direction for them. It was just as she'd started to calm that she felt a great force hit her in the back.
She was tossed forward so hard that her head swam and she fought to stay conscious as she hit the ground. She'd barely had time to groan before she felt herself picked up and twisted this way and that. A second later, she realized that she was covered in sticky web and that her companions were in similar circumstances.
She could barely make out a blob that she was sure was one of the others being carried off, and then she was moving too. She blacked out for a moment as the swaying jarred her, but she didn't think it had been too long before she regained consciousness.
As she did her best to peer around without attracting the attention of the unnaturally large arachnids surrounding them, she felt her heart shrink.
She was surrounded by bundles that weren't moving. She didn't dare try to change, afraid it would cause her the same problems she'd had before.
She would be no help vomiting and passing out, especially since the web was close enough that the vomit would have no where to go. She didn't think she'd be much use if she drowned. Eww, gross thought.
She did her best to bring her exhausted mind back to focus on their problem. She was a little encouraged when one of the spiders nipped one of the others and whichever one it was yelled and struggled. They weren't dead, then. At least, not all of them. Not yet.
She scolded herself for her pessimism. She seemed to be one of the best off at the moment, so she needed to do something! She twisted slightly, doing her best not to attract attention. She still had her daggers, and her bow, but she would have to move a great deal more to be able to reach them, which would attract the spider's attention.
As she debated with herself, she was relieved as something else seemed to catch the spider's attention and they ran off. Instantly, she was twisting and cutting herself loose. She used one hand to cling to her prison as she cut at the nearest dwarf bundle, and then there was another sword next to hers. She looked over and found Bilbo smiling at her in relief. She returned the smile, as relieved as he was.
This relief was short lived, however as he was attacked from the side by a spider and fell. She struggled to get over to him, yet found he'd taken care of it by the time she got to where she could see him. She nodded as he waved his sword at the remaining bundles, and she turned to finish cutting the dwarves down.
She assumed he'd release them once they reached the ground. As the last dwarf dropped (and she'd been counting, they were all here!) another spider attacked her. Apparently they were coming back.
As she defended herself, she forced the fear and panic back. She would do them no good if she died because she couldn't focus. She spared one last thought to hope that they'd freed themselves enough to defend themselves, then went on the attack.
As the spider fell, dead, she had to take a moment to lean on the tree as her head swam once again. She was so tired, and weak. Before she could force herself back upright, an elf jumped past, focused on the fight below her. She froze. Her dwarves!
Beorn had not spoken kindly of these elves, and while she was glad they were here to help, she couldn't help the fear that started to worm it's way back into her heart. She took a deep breath, then slowly made her way down the backside of the tree. As she peaked around it to assess the situation, she found herself directly behind a head of blond hair that was threatening to shoot Thorin.
She didn't even think of the fact that there were elves all over the place, or that she wasn't really in the shape to help anyone. She felt a burst of energy, and sprung forward, placing her dagger at the blonde's throat.
"I would kill you if you tried!"
As the body in front of her stiffened, she did her best not to sway. Perhaps this hadn't been the best idea, but he'd threatened one of her dwarves, and she couldn't just sit back and do nothing!
As she struggled to keep her stance straight and her dagger steady, she did her best to look over the clearing. She could barely see her companion's faces over the elf's shoulder.
They were looking at her with disbelief. The elves surrounding them were, too. What? It wasn't like she expected to take on an army of elves and save her friends all by herself. She swayed slightly, again. Oh wait. That was kind of what she was doing, wasn't it?
Before she could stiffen her stance once again, she found her knife hand grabbed and she was swirled around as the elf turned to face her. She had only a moment to notice how handsome he was and the fact that her own knife was now at her throat, before the motion caught up with her.
The elf looked astonished at the sight of her, and pulled the knife back just a little. This was probably a good thing, as she took that moment to turn her face down and vomit all over him. If it had been closer, she might have slit her own throat.
His expression quickly changed from surprise, to disgust. As he stepped back, withdrawing his support, she struggled to stand. Balin spoke up at that point, worried.
"Please don't take offense, lord. She's but a wee lass, and she's been sick ever since we entered these accursed woods."
At the elf's sharp look, he amended his statement.
"Ah, lovely, lovely woods?"
The elf snorted, then spoke.
"You speak truly, dwarf. These woods are not what they once were."
He reached out a long arm and steadied the girl before she could fall. Taking charge of the situation, he ordered the dwarves searched and their weapons taken. He turned back to the girl. Not a child of man, as he had first thought. She'd used the arm he wasn't holding to brush her hair back, probably hoping to avoid getting any more vomit in it than there already was.
He grimaced, trying not to think too hard about how he smelled. How she smelled. Which meant the distraction provided by the delicately pointed ear he'd glimpsed was welcome. As she struggled weakly to step away, he forced her still with the hold he still had on her arm, and reached his other hand to firmly brush back her hair.
Apparently he wasn't the only one to notice this time, as several other elves gasped and the dwarves started to struggle.
Most of them had been relieved of their weapons by this point, but the sound of steel being unsheathed said that they hadn't gotten them all. Indeed, he whipped his hand down to the girl's second dagger and barely made it up fast enough to catch the dwarf king's sword before it could be placed at his throat.
He whipped around, tossing the girl to the dwarf even as he disarmed him. Taking a long look at the sword in his hand, he found himself getting angry.
What was this young elleth doing traveling with dwarves, and why was she so willing to defend them?
What was a legendary elf sword that hadn't been seen in at least an Age doing in the possession of a dwarf?
He looked up to demand some answers, just in time to see the dwarf holding the girl gently and scowling at him as she leaned forward, retching once again. He felt a bit guilty for a moment, but forced it back. He was the Prince of Mirkwood, and these were trespassers.
His father had been clear. All trespassers were to be brought before him. So he straightened, held the sword point first towards the aggravating dwarf, and allowed his frustration to bleed through just a little.
"Where did you get this, and why are you traveling with an elleth?"
The dwarf straightened angrily, yet his hands were still gentle in their support of the girl.
"It was given to me, and she has been traveling in the company of her brother, who has journeyed with us."
"And where is this brother now? Not only a thief and liar, but a kidnapper as well. We shall see what my father has to say to this."
As the dwarves, and curiously enough the elf girl, looked outraged at this he ordered his elves to bind their hands and bring them along. Except for the girl. She didn't need bound, and was in fact now looking around rather frantically.
As she called for her brother, using both his name and the title of brother (what kind of an elvish name was 'Bilbo'?) one of the others put away his bow and scooped her up. She struggled weakly, but couldn't get away.
He frowned, turning away from her. He didn't have enough men to spare to search, and he didn't see any sign of a brother, but he would send a patrol to search as soon as he could. It wouldn't do to leave an elf lost and hurt.
He decided to make a quick circuit around the clearing as the others moved off. With a signal to Tauriel, she joined him. They saw no signs of an elf, and no signs of anyone leaving the clearing in any other direction, so they regretfully sped to catch up with the others. He'd send out that patrol, but he feared they would find no more than he had.