Chapter 27

The Company was led over a long bridge before the gates of the Woodland Realm. After passing through, Legolas paused by the guards. "Holo in ennyn," he said. He turned suddenly, sensing something behind him. He looked back down the bridge, but saw only the edge of the forest, nothing amiss. He turned his back and walked through the gates as they closed behind him. He didn't realize that he had a small, invisible shadow that slipped through behind him, just before the gates slammed shut. He led the dwarves through the raised wooden walkways of the Woodland Realm. His home was earthy and comforting, at least to him. Giant tree roots rose up from the floor of the subterranean cavern and torches warmed the stone walls. Legolas led the group into the throne room. Far above, sitting regally on his majestic throne, Thranduil, King of Mirkwood, sat gazing down on them. He wore a silver tunic, his beautiful face like creamy alabaster, his long blond hair enshrined with a crown of wooden leaves and berries.

"What have we here?" Thranduil's voice was rich like syrup, his dark eyebrow rising in interest. The dwarves were silent. They had encompassed Kili, trying to keep Ember hidden. "Why have you trespassed in my kingdom?" Thorin stepped forward.

"We are simple merchants that lost our way in the forest," he said in a controlled voice. Thranduil looked at him, almost in amusement.

"Indeed. If you are merchants…where is your caravan?" Thranduil sneered. Thorin was silent. "Interesting…a group of 13 dwarves. I see that one of you is carrying something…or someone. Bring them forward." The dwarves muttered, but Kili was thrust forward by Legolas. He held tightly to Ember, who whimpered softly in her sleep. Thranduil's eyes narrowed as he recognized her. "So…you have taken it upon yourselves to kidnap my kin? To harm her?" he snarled.

"She is a member of our Company, not a prisoner," Kili retorted. "And it was one of your elves that shot her with an arrow!" At this, Thranduil's ice blue eyes blazed in anger.

"You dare to lie to me? You dare to enter my kingdom without permission? You dare to kidnap and endanger my KIN?" He was now roaring in anger.

"Diheno nin, selenin," Ember spoke up softly, opening her eyes. She fixed them on Thranduil, but he quickly shifted his away from her gaze. She frowned, gesturing for Kili to put her down. He complied, keeping his arm tightly about her waist, he could tell she was still unsteady. "I was the one who got us lost in your kingdom. We meant no disrespect. We were simply trying to reach Laketown to…" Thranduil chuckled.

"Your voice is still music to my ears, Yuula," he smiled. "But I fear it is not speaking the truth. Lies do not become you, Yuula. I expect that behavior from your companions." Dwalin growled at the insult, and Thranduil smirked. "I know the reason for your journey. Some may imagine that a noble quest is at hand. A quest to reclaim a homeland and slay a dragon. I myself suspect a more prosaic motive: attempted burglary, or something of that ilk." He turned to the Company. "Legolas, please take our girl to the healing chambers, then to a guest room. The others….to the dungeon."

"My Lord!" Ember demanded, fixing her gaze on him. "If you imprison them, you must imprison me. I will not be separated from them!" He laughed at her defiance.

"Oh yes you will, Ember," he sneered, using her Common name. "You see, I have some questions for you as well. It seems you have been keeping some secrets from me." With that, he gestured to an elf who had been standing in the shadows. Ember gasped as he came into the light.

"Lindir…" she said fearfully, as the dwarves growled in anger at the betrayer. "What have you told him?" Lindir smirked, his eyes fixing on Kili in satisfaction. Kili gripped Ember closer in fear.

"It seems, my dear," Thranduil said darkly, "You have become very…useful. Yes, we have much to discuss. Take them away!" The dwarves roared in anger, struggling against their captors, but the guards moved to take them away. Ember clung to Kili, but he was ripped from her grasp.

"EMBER!" he cried out, struggling against the guards. Lindir came and grabbed her from behind. She shrieked as he began to pull her away. Legolas moved forward, but a glare from Thranduil held him back.

"STOP! PLEASE! LET ME GO!" she screamed, as the pain in her shoulder exploded. Kili punched his guard, and raced towards Ember. Two other guards leapt forward, seizing his arms. He grunted as another guard smacked him from behind in the head with the hilt of his sword. Kili slumped forward onto his hands and knees, dazed. The guard seized the opportunity, bashing his knee into the young dwarf's skull cruelly. Kili collapsed into unconsciousness. "KILI!" she cried, as they were both dragged from the room. Thranduil smiled as he settled himself back on the throne.

The dwarves were led, struggling and protesting, into the dungeon. The elves began to shove them into the cells. "This is not the end of it! You hear me?" Dwalin roared angrily.

"Let us out of here!" Gloin protested. The red-haired she-elf was in charge of Fili. She made to shove him into his cell, before she reached beneath his coat, finding another large dagger. Fili sighed in frustration. She rolled her green eyes at him.

"Would you like to search my trousers?" he asked sarcastically. "I could have anything down there!"

"Or nothing," she replied cheekily, with a raised eyebrow. He grinned at her reply, then froze as his brother was tossed into a cell across from him. Kili lay motionless on the cold stone floor.

"KILI!" Fili cried frantically, making a move towards him. The red-head raised her sword to his neck and he stopped. "Please…he's my brother. Please let me help him. Put us in the same cell," he pleaded, his blue eyes searching hers. She studied him carefully. She had not realized dwarves cared that way about their kin. Finally, she came to a decision.

"Very well," she murmured. She led Fili to his brother, watching as he rolled Kili onto his back. He struggled to raise him onto the small cot in the cell. Looking back at the other guards, she carefully approached, taking the dark haired dwarf's legs. Fili looked at her in silence, and together they lifted Kili onto the cot. She made to move to the cell door.

"Thank you," Fili said quietly. She turned back to him.

"I will send a healer to him," she said. He looked at her in surprise.

"Again, I thank you," he said. As she closed the cell door, she heard him say quietly, "My name is Fili." She locked the cell door, a small smile on her lips.

"Tauriel," she said, catching his eye briefly, before heading out of the dungeon.

Ember kicked and fought against Lindir all the way to the healing chamber, where he unceremoniously set her on a bed. She lunged away from him towards the door, but was stopped by a guard standing in the doorway. "Yuula, you are injured. Please let us heal you," Lindir said in a placating tone. She glared at him in anger, but allowed a healer to approach and guide her gently back to the bed. Lindir smiled at her, and she turned away in disgust, accepting a draught from the healer. She then lay down on the bed on her stomach, her face turned away from Lindir.

"Get out," she said angrily. Lindir watched her shuddering in fear and pain, and a strange feeling passed over him. Maybe he shouldn't have told Thranduil...

"I mean you no harm, my friend…" he began and she laughed bitterly.

"You are no friend of mine. I do not want to hear anything you have to say. GET OUT." The healer gestured for him to leave, knowing that she did not need to be agitated any further. Lindir frowned, but nodded in acceptance and silently left the room. Once the door closed, Ember burst into fresh tears, sobbing into her pillow. She felt mentally and physically drained, and she was weak from the spider venom. She felt as if a part of her soul had been torn from her as she was separated from Kili and her family. Finally, the draught began to take effect and she closed her eyes in exhaustion. The healer called his assistant, and together they removed the remainder of the arrow shaft from her shoulder. After cleansing the wound, they bound it tightly, then turned to the large spider wounds. They covered the stings with an antivenin salve, and she moaned in her sleep. Finally, after ensuring there was nothing else they could do for her, they covered her with warm blankets. As they settled her, the door to the room opened and a blond figure approached the bed. Legolas stared down at his beautiful cousin. He was deeply troubled by what had occurred in the throne room. There had been no reason for things to have escalated as they had. He sighed, stroking her soft cheek. "Kili," she murmured in her sleep. Legolas sat down in the bedside chair, a soft smile on his face. It seemed that his little cousin had fallen in love…with a dwarf. There was no denying the connection after their reactions in the throne room. It rarely occurred to him that Ember was half dwarf, she was too…beautiful. Kind. Smart. Funny. Just…completely the opposite of everything he knew dwarves to be. He decided to stay with her until she awoke. She would need to see a friendly face. He settled back into the chair, his thoughts of the day drifting away.

Dwalin, Nori, and Gloin were throwing themselves against their cells doors, grunting with effort. Balin finally yelled at them in frustration. "Leave it! There's no way out. This is no Orc dungeon; these are the halls of the Woodland Realm. No one leave here but by the King's consent." The prisoners sat down grumpily. Thorin peered over to the cell holding his nephews. An elven healer had come nearly an hour ago to see to Kili, who had still not stirred. The healer had handed Fili a draught for pain when the dwarf did manage to awaken, and had left soon after. Thorin was worried.

"Fili?" he called with concern. Fili's golden head appeared at the cell door. "How is he?" Thorin asked anxiously.

"They hit him pretty hard," Fili replied grimly. "He is still unconscious, and he has a very large lump on the back of his head, and a black bruise near his temple. The healer said there was not much that could be done until he awakens." Thorin dropped his head in anger and worry. Far better that Kili was out while he sorted through the thoughts that were racing in his mind. He had to voice the one that nagged him the most.

"They said she was their cousin," Thorin said. "Has she come all this way to betray us?"

"Not a chance," Dwalin spoke up. "Ember is a good lass, and she has sacrificed herself more than once to help us."

"Indeed," Balin added. "She also demanded to be kept in the dungeons with us. That elf from Rivendell is the real betrayer. I can only imagine that he has told this king about her powers." There was murmurs of assent from the Company. Thorin was relieved that his Company believed in her as much as he had come to. Thorin feared for Ember, both as a young female dwarf, and Kili's One. If she were to be killed, it would destroy Kili. He would never recover. Thorin could not bear the thought of losing either of them. He was interrupted from this train of thought by an elven guard.

"King Thranduil wishes to speak to the leader of this…group." The guard stated disdainfully. Thorin motioned him forward.

"I am the head of this Company," he stated. The guard summoned another elf, who opened the cell, and they led Thorin away. Fili sighed in frustration as his uncle was led away. He sat back down beside his little brother, and stroked his brow gently.

"You need to wake up now, nadadith," he said quietly. "You have been asleep long enough." The worry in his voice was evident. The rest of the Company listened on into the night as Fili continued to whisper encouragingly to his brother, urging him back to consciousness.

Thorin was led back into the throne room. The Elf king sat upon his throne, a calm expression upon his face. Thorin stood quietly, waiting for his enemy to make the first move. "You have found a way in," Thranduil finally said. "Have you not, Thorin Oakenshield?" Thorin stared in silence at the king, revealing nothing in his expression. Thranduil continued, "You seek that which would bestow upon you the right to rule: The King's Jewel, the Arkenstone. It is precious to you beyond measure. I understand that. There are gems in the mountain that I too desire. White gems of pure starlight. I offer you my help."

"I am listening," Thorin said carefully.

"I will let you go, if you but return what is mine." Thorin turned away, pacing slightly.

"And what of Ember?" Thorin asked.

"She is my kin. I thank you for returning her to me. She will remain safely here." Thorin frowned, unhappy with this statement, but chose to ignore its implications for now.

"So…a favor for a favor," Thorin muttered, turning away. Thranduil smiled.

"You have my word. One king to another." Thorin stopped his pacing, turning back to the elf with a dark look in his eye.

"I would not trust Thranduil, the great king, to honor his word should the end of all days be upon us!" Thorin roared in fury. "You lack all honor! I've seen how you treat your friends, and now how you treat your kin! We came to you once, starving, homeless, seeking your help but you turned your back! You turned away from the suffering of my people and the inferno that destroyed us! Now you treat Ember as a prisoner! Imrid amrad ursul!"

"Do not talk to me of dragon fire! I know its wrath and ruin. I have faced the great serpents of the north!" Thranduil snarled, his face contorting. Thorin saw that half of his face was covered with burns and scars, his left eye milky and unseeing. The king pulled back, and his face returned to its normal state. "I warned your grandfather of what his greed would summon, but he would not listen. You are just like him." He motioned towards the guards, who grabbed Thorin roughly.

"I am not my grandfather," Thorin growled. "You will not get the answer you want by insulting me."

"Stay here if you will, and rot. A hundred years is a mere blink in the life of an elf. I am patient. I can wait." The King waved his hand, effectively dismissing Thorin. He was led back to his cell, and he made a rude gesture as his jailer strode away with a ring of keys jingling at his side.

"Did he offer you a deal?" Balin asked quietly.

"He did. I told him ish kakhfe ai'd dur rugnu! Him and all his kin!" Thorin growled angrily. Balin closed his eyes, sighing in frustration.

"Well…that's it then. A deal was our only hope."

"Not our only hope," Thorin replied. He turned his thoughts to the two people that he hoped would be able to figure out a way to free them. Ember…and Bilbo.

Holo in ennyn - close the gate

Diheno nin, selenin, -forgive me, cousin

nadadith - little brother

Imrid amrad ursul! - Die a death of flames (or Burn in hell)

ish kakhfe ai'd dur rugnu! - I pour excrement on your head (or I shit on your face)

Please Review! I have been having trouble with the next few chapters, and reviews help a lot!