Hello everyone! How are you all. Here's eight. Once again, no ownership of LOTR, The Hobbit and anything else. I don't know Khuzdul - I used the Dwarrow Scholar site and Neo-Khuzdul page to help with one part. If you read this chapter and enjoy it - please leave a comment or review. :) I'd love to hear from everyone one way or another.
Special Thank Yous go out to: Katnor, Hollydoor, Cosetta P (That's a very pretty name by the way), Ninediva, Ebony-Roza-Black and vai26.
Wishing Well
****Eight****
I don't know how it started but we were locked in a staring match. At least, I think it was a staring match between me and Fíli. He rubbed his chin with his thumb, examining me and I made faces at him, trying to get some kind of response of what we were doing. We stood across from each other, both of us having finished packing up our sleeping supplies and saddling up the ponies. Everyone else was milling about, hassling poor Bombur for breakfast nearby, finishing packing up their ponies.
"Everything alright, Fíli?" I finally asked, breaking the silence between us. He had that look on his face like he knew something was up but couldn't put his finger on it.
"I was just thinking." Was his short reply. He narrowed his blue eyes a bit and nodded to himself like he was having a private, mental conversation. Apparently he must've come to a decision with whatever he was thinking of and didn't seem to care to share it with me. I stood there patiently hoping he'd elaborate.
"About?" I asked when no explanation ever came.
I let the question linger in the air for a moment. Normally he wasn't like this but he'd gotten to be a little weird lately. He'd become quite nosey with me and Gandalf at times and if I wasn't so nervous that he'd freak out that I was a Wiccan I would've told him what was going on. Gandalf said I shouldn't be going shouting my secrets to everyone so I kept my mouth shut…for the time being. Fíli shrugged his shoulders and quit fiddling with his chin.
"Nothing. You and Wendy just look a little shorter than I recall."
Fíli was staring at me like he expected for me to give some kind of sign I was hiding something. Well then….
"Maybe you're getting taller Fíli. People don't shrink."
I tried to hold back a smile but I couldn't help it. I either looked (a) goofy or (b) extremely guilty. I was a little surprised he noticed the change at all. Too be honest, I expected Wendy to notice the incremental decreases in her height but so far I heard nothing from her – thank the Goddess . Gandalf gave me a few warning looks over the past few days but I was getting sick of being one of the tallest towers in the group. Since Wendy was already pretty short, it didn't take long for her to shrink to a height less than Fíli and Kíli's that I liked. I on the other hand was still in that slow process of getting short.
"I'm watching you Elli." Fíli warned, looking around to make sure none of the other dwarves were listening to us. It wasn't a threatening comment but it wasn't friendly either. I flashed him my most innocent look, feeling quite confident he wouldn't find anything out. I'd been pretty cocky lately and nothing happened. I was getting good with fire and was sneaking off by myself more often to practice. No one noticed (except for that meddling Fíli!) that Wendy and I were shrinking ever so slightly. And yesterday when Wendy wasn't looking, I added a few other ingredients to her salve that the guys were using. No one noticed it or didn't care to mention it but Fíli, Kíli and Ori were looking a lot better than they were the day before. You wouldn't have guessed they even had poison ivy with how good they were looking. Just little of Wiccan herbs and magick and ta-dah! Poison ivy gone!
This Wiccan be balling! Aww yeah!
Fíli and I continued our little staring match while Kíli came walking up to our little group readjusting his arm guards or whatever they were called. Wendy along beside him looking a little worn out. She had chased him down earlier this morning, trying to convince him to let her examine him. When it came to her 'patients', she was freaking persistent and eventually Kíli either caved in or got cornered.
"What are you doing Fíli?" The dark haired dwarf asked, glancing between me and his brother.
"Just waiting on you two." I stated before Fíli could say anything to him. "Now let's go and get breakfast before everyone else eats it!"
I grabbed ahold of Wendy's wrist and started dragging her along, leaving the two behind. Wendy didn't protest and let me drag her around like a ragdoll towards the other dwarves who were surrounding Bombur for food. We were quiet for the moment, the sounds of some of the dwarves laughing and yelling filling the void between Wendy and I.
I glanced back at her and asked her if Kíli was doing alright. She replied back with a yawn and nod of her head.
"Yeah. I'm surprised how quickly they've healed up." She stated, telling me how Fíli and Ori were recovering quickly too. "I didn't think poison ivy would go away so fast…"
"Must be a dwarf thing." I suggested cutting her off, "Probably more resilient and can recover faster than us." She mumbled a tired agreement with me and I continued dragging her along. Normally she wasn't like this. She was a morning person - awake at the crack of dawn, doing a morning run then making breakfast. I did a quick examination of her, seeing a light ring around the bottom of her eyes.
"Why are you so tired?" I asked "Could you not sleep last night?" Wendy shook her head no.
"Up all night talking to Fíli." She replied back, stifling a yawn. My eyes widened in surprise for a second. That was new.
"Ooooh! About?" I asked, trying to disguise my concern with excitement. Maybe Fíli and Wendy caught on to something last night. Maybe they were in a coup together to figure out what was going on. Scratch that, Wendy already knew what was going on. I shot her a mischievous grin as I thought that maybe they were getting a little friendlier. Fíli was kind of cute...maybe Wendy was out trying to play the field or...
"Trying to teach him Japanese." She replied back, stopping my train of thought. I made an 'oh' face to her comment. Well that was kind of boring. "He didn't want to turn in till he got some of the basics down."
"How'd that go?"
"It was a long night…."
I rolled my eyes at her comment and resumed dragging her along. Teaching him Japanese was nowhere near as juicy as I wanted it to be...
Oh well, at least they weren't up all night talking about me.
(Later)
The day had progressed on nicely. After breakfast and packing up, we did the usual and moved out. No clue where we were going but at least we were moving. The most astounding thing did happen though. Wendy didn't ride with Ori this time but Fíli. They had started their language lessons last night and resumed it again once the two were on the ponies. I thought Fíli would find it tedious working with Wendy but the guy was patient with her and was smart. I mean…really smart. And it was kind of more interesting watching them instead of entertaining the idea that they were interested in each other and flirting. Well...not more interesting than that...at least it was something to help pass time.
Anyway...
"Are you listening Wendy?" Fíli asked as he peered over his shoulder and back at Wendy. Kíli and I were riding parallel to them and I could see the lost look on Wendy's face. She was staring up at the sky and, although I had been lost for the past hour listening to Fíli try to teach her Khuzdul, she looked like she wasn't even on Middle Earth anymore. I pulled one of the arrows from Kíli's quiver that was hanging onto the side of the saddle and waved the yellow, feathery end at Wendy's face when she didn't reply to him.
"Middle Earth to Wen-Ten. Don't make me use the pointy end to get your attention."
I heard Kíli chuckle a bit as I poked Wendy's cheek with the end of the arrow, finally getting a response. She blinked a few times before coming back to us.
"Achrachi gabilul. Kulhu biraglabizu?" I blinked a few times at her gibberish. I didn't expect her to know sentences after only a few hours with Fíli. That was kind of cool I guess.
"What did she say Kíli?" I asked, looking to Kíli for an explanation.
"She said, 'I'm sorry. What did you say?'"
I made an 'Oh' face as I placed the arrow back into the quiver. It fell into it's place without any problem and I resumed staring at my friend. She glanced around, looking as if she had no idea where she was at.
"And just so you know," Kíli began getting my attention, "the pointy end of an arrow is called the head, Elli." I felt my face go red from embarrassment from the comment. No one has ever said, 'Oh cool, I found a pointy end! Let's make a cool pointy end necklace out of it!'
Great. Kíli probably thought I was an idiot now.
"Thanks, I'll remember that next time." I managed to say as I turned my attention back to Fíli and Wendy. She was looking back up at the sky and I glanced up trying to see what caught her attention. Giant, white, fluffy clouds floated across the blue sky while warm sunlight came down in rays through the canopy top. Tree branches covered in thick green leaves spread out above us, providing us with shade while we traveled. As far as I could tell, there weren't any strange looking creatures in the trees. Occasionally a bird would fly through the tops but that was it.
Everything seemed to be pretty normal.
"Do you see something?" Fíli asked, sounding just as confused as me. I looked back to the dwarves who were looking up at the trees with us. Wendy covered her mouth as she let out a tired yawn.
"Oh, no. I just think it's going to rain today." She stated. I awkward silence surrounded us for a moment.
Random – party of one.
Apparently I wasn't the only one who thought her comment was weird.
"Are you crazy?" Kíli asked, looking back up at the sky. "It's gorgeous outside." He went on, pointing out how there were no signs of a storm or rain coming.
"He's right." Fíli added, backing his brother up. Wendy shook her head, blinking her eyes a couple of times as if trying to wake herself up.
"It'll rain today. Not right now but it will later."
Fíli and Kíli looked at each other and I could see Fíli grinning. I assumed Kíli was too and I silently watched as things started to unfold. The guys in the group liked to take bets and apparently this was a good moment for it.
"Do you want to bet on it Wendy?" Kíli asked, sounding cocky like he had an easy win within his grasp. Wendy wasn't the gambling type but she had a smile on her face.
"I don't have anything to bet with, Kíli." She replied back sweetly. It was true, we didn't have much of anything – a lot of the stuff we had was borrowed and we weren't willing to part with what we did have. Fíli said something to Kíli in Khuzdul and I waited anxiously as the two debated back and forth. The look on Wendy's face assured me she had no clue to what the brothers were saying either so I wasn't alone in the dark. Eventually the brothers came to a conclusion, deciding on whatever they wanted and gave each other a nod.
"We want spaghetti if you lose." Kíli stated excitedly. Wendy and I raised a brow at him. I casted a funny look at the back of his head. There was something wrong with this dwarf. Nobody loved spaghetti as much as him an is was boarding on weird.
"Spaghetti?" Wendy asked as if she needed clarification.
"Yes. Fíli and I want you to make us spaghetti if you lose."
"Sounds fair, Elli and I can do that."
"Wait! And me? When did I get dragged into this?" I commented giving Wendy a look.
"Just now."
"Wen!" I whined, looking at her. Fíli and Kíli laughed at us as I shot Wendy glares and she just smiled.
"You're not going to consult with Elli about it?" Fíli asked, grinning like he had already won the bet. Wendy shook her head and ignored my whining, telling me she 'had this'. Uh, you better!
"And by some miracle you're right, what do you two want?" Kíli asked. I glanced down to the side of the saddle, eyeing his bow and arrows. I mentally debated if he'd be willing to bet on it. The whole thing seemed like an easy win but Wendy beat me to making a decision, asking for the most ridiculous thing you could think of.
"We want your jackets. The ones with the hood." She stated, poking at Fíli's hood for emphasis.
"Our jackets?" One of the guys asked.
I shot Wendy a look. Really? Did she not see that awesome bow and arrow set Kíli was carrying? No? Cause if she was going to drag me into this then I wanted something a little more…awesome. Wendy smiled at me and shrugged her shoulders. Okay weirdo - you keep being weird.
She gave Kíli a nod and extended out her hand for him to shake, which the dwarf eagerly took. They gave each other a quick shake of confirmation and Fíli resumed, trying to teach Wendy Khuzdul again.
I prayed that Wendy's sixth sense wouldn't let me down. Did Middle Earth even have pasta noodles for us to buy? It's gonna be pretty hard to make spaghetti without noodles. And pasta sauce. Ground beef. It was going to be pretty near possible to make spaghetti in Middle Earth period.
(***)
I think the mistake Kíli made was that he didn't set a time frame. He only stated today so that left us wide open till we made camp. He kept pointing out to Wendy that the day was gorgeous, it wasn't going to rain, and she better be ready to make some spaghetti for dinner tonight because he was going to win. Around noon-time, Wendy told the brothers to get ready to give up their jackets because it was going to rain in a few. Bofur, Nori and Ori had caught onto our little betting game earlier, saying that Kíli was right. The dwarf bragged to them about the pasta dish and if they wanted to start betting now was the time. Ori had declined but Bofur and Nori were feeling confident they were going to win. No one was siding with Wendy except for me which was still unwillingly.
Poor Wendy was trying to get Bilbo to side with her for 'his benefit' but the hobbit declined stating he wasn't the betting type. Gandalf was just staring back at us occasionally so I had no clue what was going on with him. He did keep looking at the sky so maybe he was silently judging who was going to be the winner and gauging Wendy's accuracy on guessing. Either way, he didn't join in.
So when the first few raindrops began falling, I don't think anyone believed it. Fíli and Kíli glanced at each other for a second as if they were surprised they might have been wrong. The sky was still a lovely color of blue but the clouds in the sky were becoming thicker and gathering closer together. Slowly white clouds started darkening to a light grey.
"It's not really raining, more like sprinkling." Bofur added when he looked up. "Don't think that really counts as a win, lass." The guys mumbled in agreement with Bofur, almost if they were worried Wendy was right. Wendy didn't say anything back to them but instead pulled Fíli's hood over his head as if prepping him for the impending rain. She had that 'I'm-giving-you-all-the-silent-treatment-because-you're-all-wrong' vibe coming off her.
"You mad Wen?" I asked as it continued to sprinkle. It really wasn't that bad. The canopy leaves were stopping most of the drops from getting to us so only a few drops actually hit us. Wendy shook her head no and kept a blank look on her face.
"Don't be such a sore loser, Wendy." Kíli commented, trying to get some kind of emotion out of her. Wendy didn't reply back and I held onto Kíli a little tighter as it began sprinkling harder on us. The cold droplets began to fall faster and I could feel cold, wet spots forming on my clothes where the droplets had hit.
"I think you owe us your jackets now." I whimpered to Kíli as the rain continued to come down harder and harder. It was almost like a freak act of nature. One second it was beautiful and the next it was becoming a downpour. All the dwarves let out a groan, throwing their hoods up as the rain began to pour relentlessly on us.
Wendy didn't say anything but the grin on her face practically said, 'I told you so'.
"How did she…." Kíli sounded so confused.
"Female intuition. Wendy's senses are pretty good." I just didn't think they'd be this good - especially with the weather being so beautiful this morning.
I shivered a bit, mentally thanking Wendy for betting for their jackets. When she looked over at me I mouthed a 'thank you' to her. She smiled back and gave me a nod. Fíli reluctantly began taking off his jacket with the hood, muttering with his brother how they couldn't believe this was happening. When Kíli finally got his jacket off, I happily snatched it up and put it on. I let out a relieved sigh as the cold pellets of water pounced off the material and I stayed dry. The poor dwarf in from on me looked absolutely miserable as the rain poured down on him. I could hear the loud patter of the drops on the hood and could see Kíli visibly cringe in as he and his clothes became soaked. I scooted as close to him as possible, trying to readjust the hood of the jacket so it could cover both of our heads. I made a face as my clothes started soaking up some of the water from Kíli's wet clothes. He tensed up a bit when I got closer, looking back at me to see what I was doing.
"Let me know if this isn't working for you." I stated, holding the hood over his head like an umbrella. We looked ridiculous but hey, at least it was helping a little.
"Won't your arms get tired?" He asked. My arms were outstretched and I shrugged the question off. I felt bad for the guy. It was pouring cold rain and if I had to suffer with an arm cramp, no biggie. Better than him catching a cold, right?
"Hopefully this stops before that happens."
He gave me a smile and I could feel my cheeks go red. Normally I'm not like this but this guy had a smile that could seriously make any girl blush.
"Just rest your elbows on my shoulders." He stated, reaching back with his left hand to bend my elbow down on him. "I don't think this well let up soon."
Correction, this man could seriously make any girl turn into goo.
The ride in the rain wasn't too bad. Poor Fíli and Bilbo had to get soaked while Kíli and I joked around under our makeshift jacket/umbrella thing. The rain did last for a while but as the day came closer to an end it eventually stopped. It took us a while to find an area that wasn't so wet where we could set up camp for the night and when we did, it was in a weird area that looked like it had been a farmer's house at the edge of some woods.
Setting up camp for the night sucked. Well, it wouldn't have been too bad if Gandalf and Thorin didn't get into a fight about it. The wizard I guess wanted one thing and the dwarf didn't which caused the two to get into a little shouting fight where Gandalf stormed off and away from us.
Far away.
I couldn't find him when I wandered about and I was scared he may have just abandoned us. Outside of Bilbo and me, no one really seemed to care. Wendy didn't seem to mind the situation as she and Ori looked through the young dwarf's note/sketch book. I guessed he was helping her practice her Khuzdul at the same time because every now and then I'd hear them say something in another language. I tried to sit and interact with them but it didn't help distract me. Honestly, they were kind of boring.
"I'm think I'm gonna go bug Fíli and Kíli. You two want to come with me?" I asked, dusting myself off as I got off the ground. I looked down at the two who seemed content with hanging out on the floor. Ori looked to Wendy as if he'd follow her lead while Wendy flipped through Ori's book.
"I'm fine. I think I've annoyed Fíli enough today." She replied back. She gingerly turned the page to the next image of a mountain range that was done in charcoal. I had to hand it to Ori, he was talented. The image was beautifully done with amazing detail of the mountain and trees at the baseline.
"Do you want me to give him his jacket back for you then?" I asked.
I'd given Kíli's back a while ago when it had stopped raining but Wendy seemed to be strutting around with her prize. She hadn't taken if off since she got it and still had the hood up and everything. Apparently when she said she wanted his cloak, she meant she wanted it for good.
She looked up at me and gave me a triumphant grin. "I think I'm going to keep it. I did win it fair and square." She must've really liked it or something. Poor Fíli lost his jacket and Wendy was gonna rub it in his face. I shrugged my shoulders and said bye to the two - not feeling bad I was leaving them. I left the little group of dwarves, hobbit and Wendy as I searched for the brothers outside of camp. I headed off towards the woodsy area where I last saw the ponies. I weaved around through thick brush and weeds, searching for signs of the guys. I kicked around burnt pieces of wood that seemed to litter the area. The area had a few old and broken farming utensils about I could only guess a farmer and his family lived here before a fire happened and destroy their house. There had been a burnt frame of a small home that Thorin and Gandalf were talking in earlier in the day so I assumed the pieces I kicked around came from that.
I called out to the brothers, hoping they'd hear me and respond back. I could hear the neighing of the ponies and followed the sound deeper into the woods.
"Fíli…? Kíli…?" I called out again, taking faster steps when I saw one of the many ponies grazing about. I glanced around, seeing no signs of the brothers.
"Well, here's one pony." I stated out loud to myself, petting the creature. The pony ignored me and continued on grazing without a care in the world.
"Two…three….four." I continued as I meandered about, hoping I'd find some sign of the dwarves.
"Eleven…twelve…thirteen…fourteen." I mumbled to myself as I finished counting up the ponies. I frowned, going back over and recounting them again. I thought we had sixteen. Maybe I miscounted. The sun was almost down and the trees were casting shadows and making the area dark so maybe I missed two. I walked around, finding a large rock to stand upon to give me a better view of the area. I did my recount and frowned again.
Fourteen. I did a triple count. I couldn't have messed up three times. I began to panic a little as I searched around for Fíli and Kíli. Their ponies were still here – and they wouldn't have just walked off. Thorin said for them to watch them and the two wouldn't just disobey their uncle and wander off. That dude would FLIP if he found out. Well, I assumed he would. I listened to Wendy and avoided that man like the plague.
"Alright guys, c'mon! Quit it." I stated a little loudly, hoping the guys would come out from where they were hiding. "You're starting to freak me out." I hopped off my rock and looked at the ponies who were staring at me as if I was a lunatic.
"You all, stay put." I stated, pointing to who I think was Minty. She made a huffing noise like she didn't care and continued on grazing. I wandered about in the dark, calling out to Fíli and Kíli and stumbling occasionally over tree roots. I began to worry as I thought of all the things that could've happened. They could have ran off. They could have been kidnapped by rouges! Maybe an accident happened and they fell down a ravine or something and were injured! They fell in a river trying to retrieve one pony, maybe one snuck off again and they went to go get it. Finally I received a reply back that slightly relieved my overdramatic fears.
"We're over here Elli!" Fíli's voice echoed out a bit, leading me to where he should have been. I glanced around the area I thought I heard Fíli call from but couldn't see much in the fading light. There was a gagging noise and I looked over too see Fíli sitting between two large roots of a giant tree. His back was to the trunk and Kíli was caught in a chokehold under his brother's arm. The poor younger dwarf was flailing his arms, trying to break out of it and sounding a little short of breath.
"Don't kill your brother Fíli! If you ask Wendy for your jacket back she'll give it to you!" I squeaked. Kíli tried to laugh but ended up coughing and gagging instead. Fíli finally let go of Kíli and the younger dwarf gasped for air as he moved away.
"He's fine." Fíli stated, pulling himself up from his seat. I moved to Kíli who was coughing and laughing between breaths.
"I'm fine El. We were just playing around." Kíli said as he finally caught his breath. I helped him up and he said his thanks. When I looked to him to tell him no problem I saw grinning at me which instantly turned me into goo. I blinked a few times, trying to break whatever nonexistent spell Kíli had on me before I melted into the ground.
"Are you alright?"
"Mmhmm. I just…" I fumbled for words and looked around to avoid looking at him. "Two of the ponies are missing. Did they follow you out here?" Whooo! Good save El. The two dwarves began looking around with me, trying to spot any stray ponies.
"Are you sure two are missing?" Fíli asked, leading the way back to where the herd was.
"I doubt I miscounted three times in a row."
The brothers wandered about, counting the ponies one time around then again. I waited patiently for them to finish as they came back to stand next to me. The look on their faces told me they were screwed. Really screwed. Royally screwed.
They stood there dumfounded for a moment, just staring at the ponies. There was the sound of footsteps behind us and I looked back to see Bilbo walking towards us with two bowls in his hands. He seemed a lot dryer and happier than when I saw him earlier.
"Hello Elli. Wendy wanted me to let you know she had a bowl for you back at camp." He stated as he walked between the two brothers and held out the bowls to them. When Fíli and Kíli didn't take the food, Bilbo looked to me and I made a face and turned to look at the ground.
I didn't lose the ponies. I wasn't going to say anything. The air in the area became an awkward, tense mixture of emotions where you knew something bad was happening. Like someone was in trouble and you were just waiting for them to say it.
"What's the matter?" Bilbo asked, motioning to the food again. My stomach growled in response to it and I was half tempted to take one bowl for myself.
"We're supposed to be looking after the ponies." Kíli began, sounding really nervous.
"Only we've encountered a slight problem." Fíli didn't sound any better.
"We had sixteen."
"Now there's fourteen."
Yay! I could do math! Fíli and Kíli moved back into the herd to determine who was missing. Bilbo and I followed as the dwarves named off who was all here. I followed behind Fíli who had stopped by a large, uprooted tree. He let out a frustrated sigh and began examining the area around it. I gingerly followed behind him, avoiding a large indent in the ground that he pointed out to me and told me to be careful of. It was a huge awkwardly shaped print that almost resembled a footprint but in the lack of light, I couldn't really tell. Kíli came up behind us, letting out a frustrated sigh.
"Daisy and Bungo are missing." He stated, noticing the uprooted tree and the large indents in the ground. As we looked down the pathway we could see a somewhat trail of damaged trees being either hit or knocked over that lined the indents.
"Well that's not good." Bilbo said, letting out a nervous chuckle as he noticed us. "And that is not good at all. Shouldn't we tell Thorin?" I glanced back at the hobbit and could see that he was looking just as scared as the brothers. I didn't want to be the one to tell Thorin we lost ponies especially when I wasn't the one to lose them.
"Uh, no. Let's not worry him. As our official burglar we thought you might like to look into this." I looked at Fíli, confused on what he meant about 'our official burglar'. Bilbo didn't look like a burglar and I didn't expect the brothers to be thieves of some sorts. I kept my mouth shut for the moment, not wanting to start something. Apparently I wasn't the only one in the group with secrets. Now I didn't feel bad about not sharing my Wiccan identity with them.
The hobbit stared at the fallen tree and began to say something about it but I tuned him out. There was a light flicker of something off in the distance that caught my eye causing me to sneak away from the guys. The closer I got, the more I could see the glow of a fire a little ways off. I weaved cautiously around bushes and roots, not looking back as I passed more broken and fallen trees that littered the way. My heart was pounding and I was grinning ear to ear knowing something else was out there. Something big. Something dangerous.
I came to a halt and hid behind a tree, trying to get a better glimpse of the giant figures moving around the flames. I could hear their voices muttering things incoherently, grumbling about this and that. There was the faint neighing of ponies and I peered around, trying to find them. When I turned my head back, ready to call for the guys to come and see this I froze. I couldn't do anything as a giant, dirty, grey beast came stomping my way through the woods. It was an obese creature with rough, grey skin. It was completely hairless and appeared to be wearing only a tattered and dirty loincloth for clothes. The scowl on its face was frightening and it had a bite of an overbite to it, flashing a few sharp yellow teeth that almost looked like they were rotting. In both of its arms were two of our ponies, neighing and protesting in an attempt to free themselves.
It was a troll. A freaking troll.
Honest to the sun and moon a legit freaking troll.
I stood there dumbfounded, not bothering to move to better hide myself behind the tree. The beast cursed and muttered to the ponies, roughly shaking them to get them to stop squirming. I couldn't tell if the pounding I was hearing in my ears was from my heart or if it was the sound of the troll's footsteps coming closer and closer but it was almost deafening.
Half of me was amazed. Never in my life had I ever believed the possibility of this ever coming true.
The other half of me was scared witless. What do you do when you encounter a troll? Was this like in the Three Billy Goats Gruff where trolls would eat whoever crossed their path? If so, I may just be an appetizer before that thing starts chomping on the ponies.
I continued to stand there like an idiot as the beast got closer. I was so far out of it that I didn't notice as a hand moved over my mouth, stifling my scream when I was yanked behind the tree. I was pulled back and away from the troll's path and I felt my back slam into someone's chest.
"It's just me." Kíli whispered, slowly pulling his hand from over my mouth. His warm breath grazed my ear and suppressed a shiver while giving him a nod that I understood. We both remained quiet and pressed up to the tree as the troll stomped on by, not noticing us. Kíli peered around the other side of the tree, checking to make sure the troll continued on. We waited a moment to ensure the troll was a good distance away before we moved.
"You shouldn't be out here. Go back to the camp." He said to me as Bilbo and Fíli moved out of their hiding spots and sneakily went after the troll. I opened my mouth to tell him no but Kíli followed after his brother, moving quickly and quietly through the woods. I stood there, frozen for a second before I followed after him, ignoring his command. I tried to move as quickly and quietly as them. I don't know how they did it but those three were good. If I hadn't been aware of them, I wouldn't have noticed them at all. I slowly my pace, trying to avoid stepping on twigs or kicking over rocks. I fell a bit behind, slowly making my way to where they were all grouped together. Bilbo still had the bowls in his hands and I was impressed he didn't drop the dishes or spill it on himself in the whole process. The fire from the troll camp flickered brightly, illuminating the area of the camp while we crouched behind trees and large boulders for cover.
"What are they going to do with them?" I asked quietly, earning everyone's attention. Fíli and Bilbo looked surprised to see me while Kíli shot me an annoyed glare.
"I thought I said go back to the camp."
"You did.
"Then why are you here?"
"I'm not leaving you guys alone. What if something happens?"
"Elli…"
"I think they're going to eat them." Bilbo stated, interrupting our conversation. "We've got to do something." Fíli and Kíli took the bowls away from Bilbo, saying something to him about his brilliant idea. I slowly inched away from Kíli and moved around to the left side of the trolls' camp trying to get a better view of the scene. Three enormous trolls were sitting around a large fire pit, complaining loudly to each other. One of them was stirring a giant spoon in an equally giant pot while another was sharpening a creepy makeshift looking blade. The third and smaller of the two trolls sat closer to a makeshift looking pen of wooden posts and ropes that boxed in the ponies. I sat on the outskirts, hiding in the coverage of the bushes trying to see how I could get the ponies out without them noticing me in the process. The ropes tied around the posts were large and thick so cutting through them would take time – also I had nothing to cut the ropes with. And if we did cut the ropes there was no guarantee the ponies would come through all quietly. I racked my brain, trying to think of ways to get to the ponies without being caught. Everything in my mind didn't seem to work and either way I looked at things - my cover would be blown and I'd be dead.
"Elli!" I heard Fíli hiss from somewhere behind me, scaring me from my thoughts. I barely had time to turn around to see where the two were at before I was snatched up by the collar of my shirt. Fíli whipped me around and I could see the two brothers with their bowls in the hands. "Let's go." He commanded, moving back towards our camp. I trailed after them, whining. I didn't want to go and also, I was kind of hungry.
"Why? Where's Bilbo?" I asked.
"We'll come back for him." Kíli stated.
"Come back?" I squeaked, turning back towards where the trolls were, "You didn't just leave him!" I started back towards the hobbit to help him out but Kíli grabbed my wrist and pulled me along in the opposite direction.
"Kíli it's three trolls against one hobbit! He's not going to win!" I whined again, trying to pull my hand back from him.
"Two dwarves, a human and a hobbit don't stand a chance against three trolls either, Elli."
"Gandalf said hobbits are light on their feet. Hopefully he will sneak in and out without them knowing." Fíli said.
"And if they catch him?"
"That's why we're going to tell Thorin." Fíli sounded mildly disappointed with his last choice, like no matter how he explained things, his uncle would be pissed. Even if there was a good explanation on how the ponies got abducted, I doubted it would matter to Thorin because he was forever angry.
Once we got back to camp, we made our way over to Thorin as quick as possible. Kíli still had my wrist and I was dragged along unwillingly. As we got closer, I could see the grumpy looking man give his nephews a look. We didn't even have to tell him something was wrong – he already knew and was already pissed. As soon as he shot me a glare I finally managed to wriggle my hand from Kíli's grip and made a detour away from the dwarves.
Things in Middle Earth were getting real.
Fíli and Kíli weren't going to stop me from getting a part of this. Everyone began to crowd around Thorin and his nephews and I started investigating some of the unattended supplies nearby.
(***)
"I thought we told you to stay at camp!" Fíli snapped, jumping back and barely missing a trolls hand from grabbing a hold of him. He swung his sword at the beast, slicing open a bit of its flesh and causing the troll to wail out in pain. I learned from firsthand experience that troll skin was thick and hard to pierce, making a lot of our attacks almost useless. Well, mainly mine because I lacked the awesomness of dwarven strength to actually penetrate troll hide. The dwarves at least had the power to actually break skin with their attacks but even then, they still weren't doing too much to the trolls.
"I thought you would've learned by now that I don't follow orders well!" I replied back, taking backward steps while trying to avoid being stomped on by our ungainly opponent. The beast staggered around, wincing and trying grab ahold of any dwarf or person it could. The troll let out a painful growl as I finally dug my blade into the inner part of his lower leg. I gripped the blade as hard as I could, running between the trolls legs and around back, dragging the blade through its skin. The beast let out a painful howl and reached back for me, nearly swatting me as it held onto its calf. Thankfully while Fíli and Kíli were getting chewed out by their uncle and everyone began running off to save Bilbo, I was able to steal a blade that no one had claimed at camp. Hopefully no one would notice that it was taken and I could give it back before they realized it had gone missing or was used.
Maybe. I kind of liked the thing.
"And Wendy?" I heard Fíli ask.
"Camp." Was my short reply as we continued our attacks, slicing any vulnerable and open areas on the troll. There was a yelp from one of the dwarves and I glanced up in time to see Ori being knocked over into my general direction. I don't know if he was thrown or hit so hard he went flying across camp but he hit me with so much force that my breath was almost knocked out of me. We hit the hard ground with an 'omph' and we tried to untangle ourselves from each other.
"You alright, Or?" I asked, groaning a bit as I sat up. I could feel my body ache and I knew I was going to have bruises all over my body in morning. The poor dwarf seemed surprised that I was there and hurriedly got himself up, apologizing for being knocked into me. I was roughly grabbed by another pair of hands and pulled up into a standing position. My legs wobbled under me and I glanced up to see Kíli steadying me.
Now was not the time to turn into goo.
I repeat Elli, do not turn into goo.
He asked me if I was alright and I tried to reply but was cut off.
"Lay down your arms!" One of the trolls yelled, catching everyone's attention. "Or we'll rip his off!" We all turned to the two trolls that were holding Bilbo by his limbs. The poor guy winced in pain as the trolls pulled on him to emphasize how serious they were about disembodying him. We all turned our attention to Thorin, wondering what his decision would be. Bilbo's life was hanging on the leader's call and he seemed to be contemplating the worth of Bilbo's life.
'Drop it, Thorin.' I thought to myself as he paused. I looked up to Biblo to see the pleading look in his eyes then back to Thorin. He was unreadable – the eternally pissed off look on his face hadn't changed a bit. I glanced at everyone else in the group, all of us, staring at him intently our weapons already held loose in our hands. All of us seemed like we were more than ready to lay down our weapons for Bilbo. What was seconds felt like minutes before Thorin let out a growl and tossed his weapon down. We all followed suit,
"Tom, put them in the sacks."
Dang it…
We didn't put up a fight as the trolls began rounding us up.
(***)
I wanted to vomit. I was so hot and rotating over a fire on a spit wasn't enjoyable. It was an almost unbearable heat – the kind that made you feel sick and close to passing out – and breathing in smoke wasn't helping us either. I could hear the dwarves on the spit with me complaining about the burning heat and making curses and threats at the trolls. With every turn over the fire and into the smoke, I could feel myself slowly begin to suffocate.
"If they're half-wits what does that make us?" I heard Bofur, who was tied up next to me, reply back to Dori who was somewhere else on the spit. Ori whined next to me and I rolled my eyes.
"Pretty much dead." I commented to no one in particular while someone else began yelling out how hot the fire was when they were rotated over it. Half of us were getting roasted while the other half were tied up in sacks just chillin' in the cool night's breeze. Losers.
"Well what do you expect? It's not like the fire is going to go out." I heard Bofur shout next to me, instantly making my eyes go wide. 'Me' plus 'Wiccan' times 'Practicing Fire Non Stop with Gandalf' equals 'I Can Put This Fire Out' probably. Energy coursed through me as I formulated how to go about the task. Weeks practicing with fire with Gandalf was going to pay off tonight.
I mean, it better pay off tonight – all that hard work better not have been for nothing!
"You're freaking awesome Bofur!" I shouted, looking over to the dwarf. He turned his head as much as he could toward me to give me a confused look. I kicked at Ori as much as possible trying to get that dwarf's attention. "You two: keep yelling, talking, whatever. Be louder than me and keep the trolls attention away from me for a moment, okay?"
"Why? What are you going to do?" Ori squeaked as Bofur immediately went to cursing and threatening the trolls. You didn't have to tell him twice to swear like a sailor. In fact, I think he enjoyed it.
"Gonna save our butts." I replied back. I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath, trying to calm myself and focus on the fire beneath me. That was the key. Focus on the fire and getting into tune with it.
"Bide within the law you must, in perfect love and perfect trust. Live you must and let to live, fairly take and fairly give." I began slowly, keeping my voice as level as possible as I chanted out loud. I was unable to gauge the fire's response to me as I was rotated around but continued on. There was a slight pause in the shouts coming from the dwarves around me and I waited for them to start shouting again. I didn't know if they heard me and were curious as to what I was doing or just needed a break. Once the dwarves started shouting again, I went back to chanting.
"Fire deity by the power of thee, give the power of fire to me."
"Elli what are you doing?" Ori whispered beside me, sounding utterly confused and terrified. I didn't have time to answer him and continued ignoring him trying to time myself just right. I could feel the cold air of the night as I was rotated up from the fire and waited to feel the heat again. "And it harm none, do what you will."
I waited for the moment that it felt like I was directly above the fire. I could feel the intense heat as I came closer and could hear the crackle of the flames. I took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled while opening my eyes once I felt I was right above the flames. There was a moment of silence as I stared down into the fire, watching the flames dance wildly about before they began collapsing into themselves. There were shouts from the dwarves and trolls at the same time as the fire began dwindling, burning down to embers that barely kept the camp lit.
"Aye! What happened?" One of the trolls asked furiously as the spit came to a stop. That troll moved closer to their dead fire, nudging the embers with a stick to get it going again. "Whats going on?" There was a chorus of laughter from the dwarves in response as the trolls began snapping at one another about whose fault this was. The fire continued to dwindle, some of the embers cooling and going out on themselves while others glowed faintly.
"Elli, what did you do?" Ori didn't sound too thrilled to see that just happen. "How did you do that?"
"Don't worry about it." I replied back, wriggling around in hopes to get loose. "Help me find a way to get out of these ropes." I winced at the pain, feeling the ropes and wood dig into my skin when I moved. Not only was I going to have bruises and some minor burns but now rope burn and splinters too. Yaaaay.
"Hurry and get the fire started again!" A troll growled, "Dawn ain't far off and I don't fancy being turned into stone." They scrambled around in the dark, groping around for items to use on the fire.
"Ouch! What was that for?" One troll randomly snapped, hitting out at however he thought was his assailant. There was the sound of someone's fist striking someone's face.
"It wasn't me!" The assaulted troll whined, continuing the argument. There was a thunk of something hitting a troll and the first victim wailed again, screaming that Tom had 'done it again'. Tom denied it again and resumed being assaulted by his partner.
Randomness. The three continued to argue for a moment, each of them taking turns attacking Tom.
There was a rustling noise in the bushes and we all grew silent. I listened carefully till I could hear it again, noticing that it came in the opposite direction from the pile of dwarves who were in sacks. It couldn't have been them doing it. The trolls stopped their fighting long enough to hear the rustle noise again, realizing they weren't alone in the woods with just us anymore.
I froze for a second as I thought of the missing person in our group. I began struggling harder against the ropes, hoping that Wendy wasn't the one roaming the woods. She was going to walk right into the middle of this and get killed.
"Tom, stay 'ere and get the fire started again." One of the trolls growled, making his way over to the other end of camp where the last rustle occurred. "Bert and I are going to find whoever's out there." I could hear Tom grumble as the other two stomped off into the woods, striking trees in hopes to scare out whoever was hiding. We waiting for a moment while Tom stumbled off, looking for firewood and matches while mumbling to himself.
"You don't think its Wendy they're after, do you lass?" Bofur asked quietly beside me.
"I hope not." I whined as Tom began putting little bits of tinder and wood on the embers to get the fire going again. He lit a little match and tossed it into the tinder. Little flames appeared and he added a few more dry logs to give the flames something to burn and grow on. We all let out a groan again as the flames slowly began consuming the new fuel. Ori gave me a pleading look, silently asking me to stop the flames. I was going to try for my second attempt but Tom's stomping caught my attention.
"No one will notice if I have a small snack." He stated out loud, moving over to the sacks of dwarves. "Nothing wrong with a bit of raw dwarf. Nice and crunchy" We all began shouting as he picked up Bombur, dangling the dwarf over his head. The big guy squirmed and wriggled like a worm trying to get away from Tom as he was held over the trolls wide open mouth. Tom stuck out his tongue and I opened his mouth wider, causing me to gag as I caught site of his yellow, rotten teeth.
"No not that one he's infected!" Bilbo shouted, gaining the trolls attention. "He's got worms in his…tubes." He stated, sounding a little confused at the end.
"Tapeworms?" I asked out loud, cringing at the thought of the parasites.
"Yeah, tapeworms." Bilbo confirmed. "Nasty business I wouldn't risk it." I suppressed the urge to throw up a little while everyone began making disgusted sound. Tom seemed just as grossed out as us and dropped Bombur back into the pile. Shrieking and stepping back. "In fact, everyone's infected with parasites."
"Really Bilbo? Seriously?" I asked, shooting glares his way. I began denying it with the others until I heard Kíli and Oin making comments that they had tapeworms. I shut my mouth and listened as the guys began…being guys. At first the sounded stupid and awkward, like they weren't sure or not if they had tapeworms but then they began chiming about who had parasites and whose were the biggest or had the most. If I wasn't tied to a spit over a fire I probably would have laughed as the guys tried to beat out each other. Fib or not, I wasn't about to start shouting I had tapeworms.
Tom looked around as if he needed the advice from the other two to make a decision on what to do next. With the other large trolls nowhere in sight, he looked around confused.
"Probably should let us all go."
"Not like you can eat us."
"Don't want to get infected too." The dwarves began, advising Tom to release them. He timidly got closer to the group on the floor as if he was going to let them go. For a second I thought he was actually going to do it as he reached out for Bilbo but Tom paused in his movements. The light apparently came on in his head and he figured out our little bluff. His beady little eyes narrowed and the troll let out an aggravated growl, jabbing Bilbo in the chest and knocking him onto the ground.
"Ya know what? I don't think ya'll got parasites," Tom said, pushing down on Bilbo's chest and slowly pushing the air out of him. "I think ya is trying to pull a fast one on me." We gave out a chorus of denials, trying to get the troll away from Bilbo but had no luck.
"I outta just squish you right now. Smash you into jelly." Tom began while jabbing onto Bilbo's chest, causing the guy to cough and gasp for breath with every aggravated hit. "How about that?" We all started yelling again, trying to draw away Tom. You couldn't really do much when you were tied to a spit or wrapped up in a sack. Voicing out what we were going to do once we got loose seemed to be our only option.
Unfortunately Wendy's voice managed to squeak louder than ours, catching Tom's attention.
"How about you pick on someone a little bigger!"
I froze and listened, trying to pinpoint where Wendy was hiding. She didn't sound too far off but I couldn't see her in my visual field. She was lucky the fire wasn't as bright or blazing like earlier. She still had a good amount of shadow and darkness to hide in. Tom didn't seem too pleased with another person out in the woods and began pacing and growling. He looked over to us on the spit and pointed at us.
"Who else do you have out there?" My heart was pounding loudly and I couldn't think of what to do next. All I know was that I started screaming for Wendy to run and began struggling so hard against the ropes that the other dwarves were yelling in pain as the ropes dug into them.
"You better hurry and find me before Bert and William find out you let me go!" There was the sound of something hitting the round and the ruffle of bushes and branches in the woods. I continued screaming as Tom stampeded into the woods where the rustle came from. His footsteps echoed about as the sound of falling trees filled the air as he pushed the things over. The dwarves on the ground began shouting to each other, Thorin yelling for them to hurry and get up and get loose. I could hear the dwarves on the spit, shouting for them to hurry and put the fire out and cut them free.
Everyone else was still functioning. Fíli and Kíli managed to wriggle out of the sacks they were in and wobble their way to their fallen weapons to cut the ropes that bound their wrists and ankles. Bilbo struggled on the ground, still trying to catch his breath as the two dwarf brothers began cutting loose everyone in the sacks. I prayed to myself, praying to the Goddess that Wendy was going to be okay. That everything and everyone was going to be alright. I didn't really notice those who weren't tied up on the spit with me were doing what they could to put the fire out below us.
"Move faster! I think they're coming back!" Nori shouted, squirming around. We all glanced back to the woods to hear the approaching steps of the trolls. They didn't sound too happy and their stomps and shouts confirmed it. Loud cracks of trees falling over signaled that the three were grouped together and they were pissed.
"Forget us, we're fine! Someone go save Wendy!" I shouted, "She's the one who has three trolls chasing after her!" The footsteps of the trolls got louder and I could hear the sound of trees breaking and falling from their force. Everyone turned their attention to the noise coming from the woods towards us. It was like watching scary movie and you were just waiting for whatever it was to pop out of the darkness and scare you. I stared out into the dark, just waiting to see the disgusting image of the trolls to pop into view. For a moment things were silent until rustling noises where heard.
"Move. Move. Move!" I heard Wendy shout from somewhere in the dark void. None of the dwarves moved and another voice boomed around us, startling me and probably everyone else in the area.
"Get out of the way, you fools."
If the trolls' voices had been scary, then the way Gandalf's resonated around us was just plain terrifying. I couldn't see where he was at and I guessed it had to behind and away from me. Everyone followed Gandalf's command, backing away from us on a spit and providing a clear pathway through camp. Wendy came sprinting through the dark void I'd been staring into, her legs carrying her as fast as they could as the trolls scrambled after her, pushing aside trees and shrubs to get to her better. She ran into the camp, darting towards us with the trolls right behind her, just barely an arm's length away.
I heard Gandalf's voice boom again, stating how the dawn would take us all or something like that. There was a deafening sound of something striking stone that echoed in the air around us.
"What's going on?" I asked, twisting my head every odd angle I could to see what was happening. There was the sound of something splitting and falling to the ground as bright sunlight flooded into the camp.
I was pretty sure I was not the only person who nearly pissed their pants in fear as the trolls began screaming and clawing at their bodies as their grey skin began to singe and turn white while it turned to stone. Their faces contorted into violent looks of pain as they burned in the sunlight. They lost their balance as their legs began burning and changing. The first troll fell onto his knees, causing the ground to shake a bit from the impact. I watched horrified as Wendy shrieked and lost her balance, tripping over herself and onto the floor. She curled up into the fetal position as the first troll continued his chase on her, slamming his hands into the ground and dragging his half stoned body over to her. He froze, one hand in the ground next to her while the other hand was up in the air as if he was about to slam it down on her.
The second troll didn't have the luck of freezing in spot as the first. As more sunlight reached him, he collided into the first troll, knocking it over Wendy. Fear grew inside me as I heard her scream and I lost the image of Wendy under the toppled trolls. The third and final troll was the one that dealt the most damage. He was still moving at full speed, writhing about as he was the last to be hit with direct sunlight. It was like watching a wreck happen on the road where one car stopped and then three larger cars rammed into it, causing a pile of wreckage and sending shrapnel everywhere. Except these were stone trolls that had all rammed into each other and became a contorted mess of stone and limbs all piled onto each other. The third troll collided with the other two, actually causing their stone bodies to crack and pieces break off.
We were silent for a minute, all of us eyeing the trolls for a moment. Small pieces of stone fell to the ground, making light clinking noises as it tumbled. Dust and dirt floated in the air, making a slight fog but I could tell that everything was still. There was obviously no movements from the trolls and no sign that Wendy was moving under the rubble.
I started screaming, yelling Wendy's name out violently when I saw no movement from the pile. I knew I was being loud and hysterical but I couldn't hear myself over the dull hum that filled my ears.
This couldn't be real...
So that's it. Please review. :) Once again, I own nothing. I got Khuzdul from the Dwarrow Scholar and used the chants Elli uses from the Wiccan Rede.