Billana has never liked spiders. She has never been the sort to scream and flap around like some hobbits, but she's more likely to call out to some of her bird friends and advise them of where to find a meal than she is to want to share her space with one. The thing before her now, however, makes her rethink every bad tempered mumble she has ever given over the hobbits who scream and cry at the sight of one. It makes her think that somewhere out there is a spider-god who is cackling gleefully at this revenge against one who has sent so many of her children to their deaths. She stares out from between Fili and Kili in abject horror as it approaches, quaking at the sight of a spider that would easily fill the parlour of her little smial. Billana has faced orcs and wargs with no weapon other than her teeth, she has stood upon the knees of stone giants as they battled and she has faced trolls. She has never been more terrified than in this moment.
Fili and Kili are steady in front of her, arms raised and weapons in hand, but she hears more than one dwarf let out some oath or another. Kili doesn't let it get close, loosing an arrow as soon as he realises what she has been warning them about. It is one of the arrows he made while they were at Beorn's and he mumbles a word when it hits the spider. The massive creature seems to waver slightly, then it bursts, splattering the trees around it, several of their companions and another three spiders with its insides. Billana pulls a disgusted face, drawing her sword as the sense of wrong from the approaching spiders begins to overwhelm her. The elves are not chasing one or two of the things, there must be at least a dozen. Kili's next arrow misses when the spider he is aiming for turns suddenly and makes for Dori and Ori with alarming speed. Another drops from the trees and onto the path behind them, distracting Billana and Fili who spend a seeming eternity chopping off legs, avoiding ropes of webbing and grasping jaws that drip venom. She hears two more of the things explode while she and Fili are busy, along with the baffled voices of the elves as they arrive behind their quarry. Clearly they had not expected anyone to be using the road and there are some hard words exchanged when elf and dwarf cross paths and get in one another's way.
By the time the spiders are all dead Billana is exhausted. She, however, is better off than most of the Company and a lot of the elves. While all of the dwarves are tired, a third of them, Thorin included, are covered in spider entrails. Of the twenty elves, only one of them has avoided the same fate and he stalks towards Thorin with hard blue eyes and a grim expression. Next to her, Kili looks positively gleeful at the mess his arrows have created, but Fili is eyeing the elves warily.
"What are you doing here, dwarf?" The elf demands and Thorin bristles.
"Using the road," Thorin replies, his tone as scornful as the elf's.
"To go where?"
"It goes from one side of this damned place to the other, you work it out," Thorin sneers.
Fili makes a soft noise and puts his head into his hands, next to Thorin Billana sees Balin tilt his head back and she can well imagine his expression in that moment. The elf snaps an order to his companions and several raise bows while the others approach. The dwarves are good, but they are exhausted from the fight after days on low rations. If they retaliate they might take one or two elves with them, but their archers will have killed all of them before the Company can do much else.
"Put your weapons down," the elf orders. "I think it would be best if you came with us and spoke with our king. You will need to be disarmed, of course."
"And if we disagree," Thorin demands.
"You will be coming with us," is the response, "whether willingly or by force."
There is a heavy pause, the other elves all have swords drawn and Billana watches Thorin from the corner of her eye even as she looks at the pale blond in front of her. There is none of the warmth in this one that she has seen in the eyes of the Rivendell elves. She regards the scene unfolding before her warily. If Thorin were an animal she would be able to see his fur standing on end. He radiates aggression towards these elves in a way that is almost overwhelming, all of the Company do and that includes Fili and Kili, though they were generally polite to the elves of Rivendell. She shifts nervously, leaning closer to Fili since she is still nearest to him, and the elf watching them turns his attention towards her, his eyes sharp.
"Remain still!" He orders.
"Leave her alone!" Kili retaliates, taking two quick steps back towards her. The other elves tense further and two more approach the three of them.
"Enough!" Thorin bellows. "Do you honestly expect us to disarm and trust our safety to you, elf?" He demands of the one he has been speaking to.
"I expect you to do what is best for your people," the elf replies. "Lord Thranduil no longer permits the use of this road through his realm. The question becomes how many of your people are you willing to sacrifice to avoid being disarmed and taken to him?"
They wait, watching as Balin leans in to mutter something softly. Billana can hear him well enough, though she doubts that the others can, which means that the elves will be able to hear him as well. Balin's words, however, are all in Khuzdul and even with the intermittent lessons from Ori she only catches the odd word. Finally, Thorin nods and, through gritted teeth, orders them to lower their weapons and hand them to the elves.
"Do not lose these," Fili says as he hands his twins swords over. "My father made them and a great many unpleasant things will happen to the one who loses or damages them."
The elf looks startled, as though they cannot quite believe a prisoner would dare make such threats and Billana wonders if this one has ever had much occasion to deal with dwarves. It has quite the opposite effect on Billana, who grins widely. This is the most like himself that Fili has sounded in days and it is a relief to hear. She hands her sword to her own guard, who looks down at her with a contemptuously raised brow.
"And I suppose your father made this as well?" He mocks.
"Don't be ridiculous," she replies, seeing Fili and Kili tense at the tone. "I'm a hobbit, we don't make swords. It was, however, a gift from a dear friend."
Kili doesn't say anything as he hands over his bow. That, at least, is treated with more care than the swords. Not satisfied with the weapons that have been handed over, especially with the abundance of belt knives and the axes that Fili wears strapped to the top of his boots, the elf in charge orders them all searched. The dwarves remain still, but that doesn't make them cooperative. Fili, especially, stands with a smirk on his face and his fingers looped into his belt as blade after blade is found and removed, including two of the daggers from the twins. Even the elves seem to be impressed with the number that they find and Fili retains his smug expression even when it seems likely that they have found all of them except the one in his boot. Kili just scowls, always having carried fewer weapons than his brother, allowing the elves to pull him around as they search him while keeping his head turned to watch her carefully.
"Looks like the dwarves have got themselves a little camp-follower," one comments when he opens her jacket to check inside. He is speaking the elven tongue and she gasps in horror when she hears the words.
"Do dwarves do that?" The one searching Kili replies. "I thought is was just the Men."
"We've evidence enough here," the one searching her says and she yelps when he grabs her arm harder than necessary.
"Get your hands off her!" Kili roars. She had no idea he understood the elves, but judging from the murderous look in his eyes he did so perfectly.
"Relax, dwarf," the one holding her sneers, "we have no interest in your playthings." Tears fill her eyes and shame floods her, especially when a glance tells her that all eyes are on them.
The elves are apparently done, however, having found only her useless pocket knife, which she had forgotten she even carried, and the flask of Miruvor. They are finished with Kili too, who quickly takes her into his arms as Fili glares at the elves with the kind of expression that speaks eloquently of slow and agonising death while seeming to fix their faces into his mind. A nervous expression flickers across the face of the one searching him, though he had not joined in the conversation, and that elf is quick to declare that he's done, picking up the collection of blades and striding away quickly.
"Are you alright, Kitten?" He asks. "Did they hurt you?"
"No," she whispers, though her arms throbs and their words echo in her mind.
She looks over at the elves who have taken their belongings. They are quiet now, but the one in charge is still watching them with narrowed eyes. Given what she knows of elven hearing, Billana suspects that his attention had been drawn long before Kili's shout and he has likely heard everything. Sure enough he stops the three of them and talks to them quietly, his whole demeanour exuding anger. Two of the three argue, their voices rising, until he cuts them off with an angry snarl.
"Enough," he snaps, still in his own tongue. "That you would even consider such a comment shows that the curse on our home has begun to affect you. Once we have returned you will report to the healers."
Billana suspects he would not have said so much had he known that more than just one of their captives could understand him. It isn't something that would usually be admitted in front of prisoners. She shares a quick glance with Fili and Kili, wanting to see their reactions, when the ones rebuked acknowledge their orders with a bow and call their leader 'my prince'.
"Thranduil's son," Fili breathes, almost too quietly for her to hear. "That's going to make Uncle's mood more foul than it already is." She stares at him, baffled by this confirmation of her suspicions and that they hadn't mention this sooner. "Uncle wanted to be sure that we would never be at a disadvantage when dealing with-" he gestures at their captors, correctly interpreting her expression. "He made sure we were taught."
"Why didn't you tell me?" She asks after a pause as the elves order them all to form a line. The three of them are ignored aside from the odd curious glance in Billana's direction. Clearly the elves think that the older dwarves are more of a threat.
"Habit," Kili replies just as softly. "Our people keep a lot of secrets."
"And some just for the sake of it, apparently," she grumbles and Fili chuckles.
"We speak it better than we read it," he admits and she huffs, well remembering her assumption that they wouldn't know how the twins had addressed their parting gifts.
She waves it off, taking their hands when offered until they are all ordered to stop talking and keep moving in single file. She hates that she cannot be near them, and that she has been completely separated from Balin as well, and for a moment she debates changing form and hiding herself on one or other of them. A glance at the trees that surround them, however, makes her reject that idea. There must be untold numbers of those spiders out there judging by the wary glances of their escort and she has no intention of making herself an easier target than she already is. The pace increases as it becomes clear that night is approaching, the elves clearly not outfitted for such an event, and she follows as quickly as she can, her lungs burning as she all but runs to keep up with everyone. Even the dwarves have fallen silent, though she suspects that one or two of them are considering sitting down in protest. She notices, however, that as they run the forest begins to look different, colourful, as though they are moving into a healthy section. In fact, a quick look around shows tendrils of darkness that reaches up from the leaf litter towards the trees, winding in crazed lines up the trunks. Whatever has caused the curse is advancing.
Finally, as night falls, they find themselves stood before a great gate into the underground halls of the Elven King of Mirkwood. They all pause and Billana entertains the momentary though that should she enter, she might never leave again.
A.N: So, I have nothing to really say, except that most of this was thought up while painting. Fumes. And the elves aren't completely immune to what's happening in Mirkwood, it just seems to take longer.