The Dwarfs hurriedly packed their things and followed after Aragorn, Thorin swiftly overtook him, taking the lead. From the look on the humans face he was clearly used to be being in charge but he did not question the king.

Mirkwood was just as dank and horrible as Bilbo remembered, even more so in fact. It seemed as if the trees had grown even thicker and vines tangled about them, creating huge green webs reminiscent of the spiders creations. At first these only caused annoyance but soon they were practically at a stand still trying to move through them. Even using their swords to slash through the blasted things took a long time.

"I think I preferred it when there were spiders." Fili grumbled, picking pieces of vine off his weapon, "At this rate my sword will be blunt before we reach Thranduil's house."

"Perhaps there is a clearer way through?" Thorin theorized, "the vines are thinner over there, it's a longer route, but perhaps it will take less time."

Aragon nodded.

It took time but finally they stumbled upon what must have been a path once but was now heavily overgrown. It did not have the thick vines growing over them at least. Bilbo stifled a yawn as they trekked, he'd not gotten any sleep since he'd been on watch. Of course he didn't dare complain, the last thing he wanted was to hold up progress or even worse, be carried like a child. Of course he should have known he could hide nothing from his brothers.

"Uncle, Bilbo needs rest." Fili pipped up.

Dammit.

"No really I'm-"

"None of that now Bilbo." Thorin argued, "you didn't get any sleep, Fili's right."

"We need to be careful."Aragorn warned, "only a few hours at the most."

He didn't bother resisting again, he really was tired. Too tired to bother with his sleeping roll in fact, instead he just grabbed his blanket and threw it over himself before curling up against a tree trunk. He felt as though he'd only just closed his eyes before he felt himself jerking awake again. Fili, Thorin and Aragorn were all on their feet already, probably acting as sentries while Kili was sitting next to him whittling away at a stick to pass the time.

"Nightmare?" Kili asked softly, "You looked like you were sleeping fine until just then."

No, it hadn't been a nightmare that had woken him. At least not one he could remember, yet he felt a sort of anxiousness creep over him for no reason.

"It matters not." Thorin cut in, "We've been here almost an hour, we need to move on."

Come to me...come to me~

The ring was whispering again, that was odd. Bilbo never heard it's voice unless he was holding it, but now it was still resting against his chest on it's chain.

Come!

Who was it speaking to if not Bilbo? He was already here...

The sound of hooves and a bird like screech reached the Hobbit's sensitive ears. His companions apparently hadn't heard it and at first he just thought the forest was playing tricks on him but then it dawned on him.

There were no wild horses in Mirkwood.

They had foregone ponies because of the thick forest but riders with magic, perhaps their horses could leap over the large obstacles.

Come to me...

"Don't you know you are being hunted? Ringwraiths are following that Ring's call."

Oh no.

"Thorin!" He yelled, suddenly very much wide awake, "Thorin the Ringwraiths are in the forest!"

"What? How could you-"

"The Ring, it's calling them, I can hear them!"

The group stilled, listening carefully and paling when the sound of hoof falls reached their ears.

"Come on!" Aragorn ordered, "We need to move, we've let them catch us!"

Aragorn lead them over roots and through vines, Thorin didn't even seems to mind that his leadership had been temporally usurped from him.

"We need to find the river that runs through here." Aragorn panted, "Ringwraiths can't cross water, once we're on the other side we can get to the Elves home without risk of attack."

"But which was is the river?" Fili asked slightly panicky, "We went around our planned path, how do we find our way to it?"

"We will," Aragorn insisted, "I know my way I've visited here many times."

"Less talk more running." Thorin grunted, "They have horses, we have only our feet."

The hoof falls got louder.

Then the forest went silent.

In anything, that was worse. Mirkwood was never silent.

The small group stopped and created a small circle so there were no blind spots. Bilbo was sure his heart was beating loud enough for the wraiths to hear but he tried to keep his breathing low and quiet as he'd always been taught.

It happened slowly, the dark figured emerged from the dank recessed of the trees, circling them, drawing their swords.

The Ringwraiths were as tall as men, draped in black cloth that hid their face and armor the same colour as ash. There was nothing remotely human or living about them, except for the fact that they moved. There were five of them and they were advancing.

It was Kili who broke the silence.

"Get back you devils!" He yelled, clashing his sword against the wraiths longer one but pushing it back none the less.

All hell seemed to brake loose them. The wraiths were upon them, all clambering to get closer to Bilbo, closer to the Ring. Thorin was the first to get the upper hand, poising his sword side ways and thrusting it straight through a wraiths body. But it did not fall.

"Their the living dead!" Aragorn cried, "You can't kill something that's already dead with a simple weapon!"

"What do we do then?" Fili yelled, pushing another wraith back.

"We need fire!" Aragorn.

Kili was the one with their fire stones, but they were in his pack.

"I'll cover you." Bilbo hissed, fending off the wraith while his brother fetched the flint.

This plan didn't work though and Bilbo found himself barely blocking an attack and slamming onto the muddy ground, Sting falling from his grasp. The others were all too busy fending off their own attackers to come to his aid, he had no choice.

Without hesitating he drew the ring from around his neck, undoing the clasp and dropping the silver chain onto the ground. There was a terrible shrieking as Kili set a branch alight and threw it at one of the wraiths, setting it's black robes on fire. The wraith that had knocked him down was stalking closer and closer now as Bilbo scrambled backwards and lacking any better idea, he slipped the ring onto his finger.

It wasn't like the other times he'd used the Ring, it seemed darker now. As usual the world lost it's colour but it seemed to shift, as if the wind could blow all the earth like it did leaves on a tree. The dark, imposing figures of the wraiths were now pale, white and infinitely more terrifying. Their faces were visible to him now, drawn, mummified and dead with no skin stretched over their bones like leather, if Bilbo were not so terrified he'd have screamed.

He could see his family and Aragorn fighting them still, setting them each alight one by one and winning the fight but in doing so he broke one of the most important rules Thorin had ever taught him.

He'd taken his eyes off his own enemy.

To be fair, he thought the Ring had made him invisible, but it seemed the wraiths were immune to it's power. Bilbo's eyes shifted back just in time to see the wraiths sword come toward him, piercing his shoulder. This time he did scream.

"Bilbo!" Thorin was glancing around desperately, he must have heard him.

Bilbo was vaguely aware of Aragorn finishing off the wraith who'd wounded him and his brothers yelling for him but all he could focus on was the blinding pain in his shoulder. He'd never felt anything like it, it was as if his bones were on fire and spreading through his whole body. He tried to call out but all he managed was a whimper.

"Bilbo? Bilbo! We can't see you, you have to take of the Ring!"

Oh. How could he have forgotten he was wearing it. As he reached, weakly, for the golden band around his finger his vision was suddenly filled with a great eye made from fire, blazing in the centre of his vision.

'I see you...' It hissed.

The pain seemed to double.

Finally, Bilbo managed to wrench the ring from his finger and cried out again as the pain began to grow.

"Bili!"

Fili's face suddenly appeared above him, he had never been so glad to see his older brother in all his life. Bilbo reached up and clenched at his brothers tunic with his good hand, desperate for any kind of comfort. He managed to whimper out his brothers name but after that his tongue refused to listen.

-oOo-

Thorin wasn't aware Bilbo could make such a sound. Fili had reached him first, then Kili. Thorin joined them as Aragorn swiftly checked no more enemies were waiting in the wings. Bilbo trembled and whimpered but Thorin couldn't see no blood, so what injury could be paining him so?

"His shoulder." Kili breathed, voice filled with panic, "Their's a stab wound here."

Bilbo cried out when Kili touched the wound, despite the fact the touch was light. Kili's hand instead went to his younger brother's forehead to try and soothe him but it seemed to do little.

"Did anybody see what happened?" Thorin asked, watching Bilbo writhe in obvious agony and feeling helpless to stop it.

Aragorn knelt with them, picking up the discarded blade left by the wraith that had attacked Bilbo.

"He's been stabbed by a morgul blade." The man hissed, cursing at the blade turned to black dust in his hands. "He needs Elvish medicine."

Any other time Thorin would have been amazed that a weapon could simply disintegrate but right now all his thoughts were with his son.

"What do we do?" Thorin asked quickly, "There is no blood."

Aragorn gathered Bilbo up, ignoring his cries as the movement jarred his injury.

"A morgul blade is poisonous." he explained hurriedly as he began to move, "Shards break of inside the flesh and make their way to the heart."

Fili and Kili flinched, Thorin felt his stomach churn. No wonder Bilbo was in such pain.

"We need to get to Mirkwood. We must pray that Elrond has already arrived, I fear he's the only one with the healing skills necessary to save Bilbo."

Morgul blades, nasty stuff.