I'M NOT SURE WHAT BUG BIT ME, BUT I AM RARING TO CONTINUE THIS STORY. I HOPE TO GET MORE AND MORE CHAPTERS UP SOON. SO, WE SHALL BE IN MIRKWOOD FOR THIS ONE. NOT SURE WHEN IT'LL CUT OFF FOR ANOTHER CHAPTER, BUT WE'LL BE, WON'T WE? :3
I WILL ADMIT, I WAS PRETTY TEMPTED TO MAKE AILI OR MITHRA FALL IN THE WATER, BUT...THAT'S KIND OF A CLICHE IN THESE STORIES AT THIS POINT, TO ME. I WANT TO EXPLORE THE AFFECTS OF THE FOREST RATHER THAN HAVE TO DEAL WITH THE DRAMA OF MEMORY LOSS. SO...THERE'S THAT, TOO. ANYWAY, HOPE YOU LIKE
(M) = MITHRA'S POV AND (A) = AILI'S, OKAY? LOOK FOR THOSE MARKS IF YOU ARE CONFUSED AS TO WHOSE POINT OF VIEW IT IS.
GOD BLESS AND GOOD DAY!
~THE LUPINE SOJOURNER
(M)
Mirkwood. Who knows what awaits us in this forest. Or who? No one knows.
Actually, I do. Torment and darkness in every sense of the word. Nothing light and happy happens in Mirkwood. Nothing.
I have a sneaking suspicion that I won't like whatever awaits us in there. Especially if we run into the Woodland Elves, and if someone from my past is there, as well. These two races, Dwarf and Elf, don't mix. At all. And Delfs are considered an utter disgrace, though I've managed to get in and stay in King Thranduil's fairly decent graces the once or twice I've been by there. Each time, I've managed to avoid someone who'd no doubt be out for my blood. The same someone who may see me if we end up in Thranduil's palace. If he does see me...I'm done for.
So let's go in the forest again, shall we? Cus that's a great idea, Gandalf!
Not.
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(A)
"This forest...feels...sick." Bilbo muttered, glancing suspiciously at the forest facing us. "As if a disease lays upon it." It did feel...wrong, I found as I swung out of the saddle. Something told me not to go in there, that whatever was lurking under those trees would not be friendly...however...it's also the fastest way to Erebor, and we need all the speed we can muster if we are to get to the Mountain before Durin's Day. And we must. I swallowed thickly as we prepared to enter that dark forest.
"You alright, Aili?" Bofur asked, unclasping his pack for the pony he'd ridden. I smiled as I unclasped mine.
"Fine, Armalime. Just...been a while since I was in a saddle. Feels a little odd."
"Are your ribs bothering you?" I laughed, feeling hardly anything in my ribs anymore, which was a bit weird. Maybe riding had numbed my body? Possibly.
"Not really." Bofur grinned.
"That's great news, Aili!"
"Yes. Now...I believe we're about to move out." I giggled, and snuck a quick kiss before anyone saw. I wanted to reveal my relationship soon. I just...was waiting for the right time, that's all. Uncle had enough on his plate without having to worry about me and Bofur. And I know he would worry. A lot. He's fairly sweet like that, but it can be a tad annoying when he threatens any boy I become good friends with. Hopefully, he'll take to Bofur as my One without a hitch. We'll see, though, I guess.
"Is there no way around?" Bilbo asks.
"Not unless we go 200 miles north, or twice that distance..." Gandalf trailed off a little as he gazed around, finding something of interest, apparently. Then, out of nowhere, it starts to rain. I huff a little in annoyance as I settle my pack gingerly against my back and head toward the entrance with the others, patting my pony fondly. These animals are a credit to their species. Beorn is right to be possessive of them. Just as we're about to start the journey into the woods, Gandalf comes striding swiftly toward us. "Not my horse!" He calls. "I need it!" I frown.
"Whatever for?" I ask, noting distantly that Mithra looked suddenly a little paler than usual.
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(M)
I swallow thickly for what feels like the tenth time since we arrived at the entrance. Then Gandalf nearly collides with me as he heads toward his horse, and I realize what he's doing.
"Gandalf, please, no!" I hiss. "We need you."
"You're not leaving us?" Bilbo asks miserably.
"I would not do this unless I had to." Gandalf replies soothingly. I huff.
"And that's supposed to make me feel better?!" I bark. "Gandalf, please." I whisper, pleading with a look. He sighs.
"Mithra, be strong. He will not dare harm you under Thranduil's watch. Legolas is also fond of you. You will not be-"
"Stop. I get it." I mumble. "Just...hurry back, okay?" He smiles.
"I'll be with you again before you know it." He replies softly, caressing my cheek for a moment before taking a few more steps toward his horse, then he stops and looks at Bilbo. "You've changed, Bilbo Baggins. You're not the same Hobbit that left the Shire." He notes.
"I was going to tell you." Bilbo replies, sounding a little shaky, nervous, and uncertain. "I..." He starts, smiles for a moment, then drops it and shifts from foot to foot anxiously. I take a half-step forward despite myself in curiosity. "found something in the Goblin tunnels." he goes on. I cock my head curiously. He hasn't said much about what happened to him in there, how he escaped...
Gandalf frowns. "Found what?" He asks. "What did you find?" Bilbo swallows.
"...My courage." He replies after a moment of thought. I can tell that's not quite what he had been about to say, but don't have the heart to press him. Not when Gandalf is abandoning us in Mirkwood, knowing what it most likely meant for me.
"Good. Well, that's good." Gandalf praises, as if he can't see through the lie. "You'll need it." He adds. Bilbo swallows. "I'll be waiting for you at the overlook, before the slopes of Erebor. Keep the map and key safe. Do not enter that mountain without me." Gandalf instructs strictly, just as the rain starts drizzling down harder. "This is not the Greenwood of old." Gandalf warns sternly. "There is a stream in the woods that carries a dark enchantment. Do not touch the water." He orders. "Cross only by the stone bridge. The very air of the forest is heavy with illusion. It'll seek to enter your mind and lead you astray." Bilbo looks around worriedly as everyone murmurs about this new development.
"'Lead us astray'?" He repeats. "What does that mean?"
"You must stay on the path!" Gandalf calls as we move closer to the foreboding forest. "Do not leave it! If you do, you'll never find it again. No matter what may come, stay on the path!" He calls over his horse galloping away. Then, he's gone, leaving nothing but unease and anxiety behind him. Thorin sighs.
"Come on!" He calls. "We must reach the mountain before the sun sets on Durin's day! It is our one chance to find the hidden door." He adds worringly.
The forest seems to swallow us whole, and I hate the dreadful shiver racing up my spine as the darkness encloses us.
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(A)
I can kinda see why Mia was hesitant to come here. This place is...evil. I already hate it. Everyone seems to have contracted shivers just from the air. It's actually not that cold, but something about this place...unnerves everyone. Mia especially, though. She looks like she's being led to the chopping block. I fall in beside her, at the back, and we walk in silence for a while.
"Hey...are you okay?" I ask after a few minutes. She shrugs.
"Yeah, just...uh, just the air. Everyone else is affected, you know." I nod.
"Yeah, but...you look like you're going to your execution." She huffs and starts going faster.
"It's nothing. Just the air." She grumbles, a little defensively. I decide to drop the matter for the moment and continue walking, catching up to Bofur, taking his hand and walking on in the pervading, slightly eerie silence. The longer we walk, the more everyone seems to be affected, some swaying side to side sometimes.
"If you think about it," Bofur said, his voice echoing strangely around my ears, with an almost unnatural ringing to it. "This is kinda like walking through the woods in the Blue Mountains." I smile.
"Not really." I hated the way my own voice echoed, but ignore it for the moment. "There wasn't this weird echo and lack of virtually any natural light, so there's that." I reply. He shrugs.
"Just saying." I shake my head to try and clear it. Something made my thoughts turn to molasses in my mind, slow and loathe to move.
"I know."
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(M)
I have never yearned for a day to end so much. Fili has his eye on me the whole day, I can feel it, so I force myself to put on a better expression and he stops. After Aili's questions, I have been a little on edge. I know that eventually, I'll have to reveal my past to this Company, but...for some reason...
I don't want to know how they'd react. Normally, when I tell people, they act like I'm made of glass afterwards, and I hate that. Can't people see how strong I am, forged through the experiences I've survived? I abhore people's pitying glances and pretend sympathies. I guess I just don't want to have the cycle repeated once again. However, I also know it'll happen eventually.
The later, the better for me, really. I have a bad feeling I won't have a say in the matter, though...
It was a mercy when night came and Thorin called a halt. I admittedly was getting tired and I was feeling off, as I'm sure everyone else was, as well. However, there is a reason I felt off even before we entered this accursed forest. A reason no one else can know.
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(A)
The days seem to meld into a dull sense of nothingness before too long. Without normal amounts of natural light, I can't tell how much time has passed and whenever I want to check, I can't see the sun, curse, and continue walking, walking, walking. Why couldn't we have kept the ponies? Would get us out of here sooner. I sigh and look behind me and, to my shock, find that another me is right behind me! I blink, look forward, and rub my eyes before taking another look. I find a confused Kili, looking at me blankly. I shrug and resume looking forward. That was weird...and probably what Gandalf meant by 'lead us astray'. I shake myself and resolve to not let the air play with me again.
After an unknown number of days, or maybe just hours, I find myself bumping into someone and realize that it is Uncle.
"We found the bridge." Kili calls.
"Bridge!" Bofur echoes. I smile.
"Great, let's-Eeeee!" I had nearly gone right over into the water before realizing that there was no bridge. I was only saved by Uncle's timely intervention, grabbing the neck of my clothes.
"Be more conscious and aware of your surroundings, Aili." He ordered, pulling me back onto land. I nod.
"Thanks." I reply. "Sorry." He just pats my shoulder before joining everyone figuring out what we were going to do now.
"We could try and swim it." Bofur suggested. I frown, standing up.
"Gandalf said don't-"
"Didn't you hear what Gandalf said?" Uncle interjects. "A dark magic lays on these woods."
"And dark things creep among them." Mia adds miserably under her breath. I cock my head, but don't comment.
"The waters of this stream are enchanted." Thorin goes on. Bofur frowns.
"Doesn't seem very enchanting to me." He muses. I smile.
"Bofur, trust Gandalf." I whisper, taking his hand. He squeezes it.
"Right, right. Sorry." I peck his cheek.
"No problem."
"We must find another way across." We look around and my brothers and I find a series of vines we could probably climb across on, if we had to.
"These look strong enough." Kili notes and prepared to start crossing.
"Kili!" Thorin calls. Kili halts. "We send the lightest first." He orders. Then looks to Mia and Bilbo. They simultaneously pale, but then Bilbo gives us a look like 'I hate each and every one of you' before moving with Mithra to the nearest vine. Mithra is across in moments, as if something were chasing her, leaping lightly from vine to vine before stepping onto the other side. Bilbo was up next.
"It's alright." He muses after moving along a few vines, slightly unsteady, but not enough for me to worry about him falling. "Can't see any problem." He adds, promptly slipping, automatically gripping the vine and swinging under it. "There's one." He calls, hanging upside-down, inches from the water.
"You okay?" Mithra calls.
"Just fine." Bilbo replies. "Everything's...fine..." And after a few tense moments, he's across. I sag a little in relief. I'd known Bilbo would make it, but...I guess the air's gotten to me again.
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(M)
I reach down and heave Bilbo onto land once more. He sags against me, relieved to have survived without falling into that water, whatever that would mean. I sit down, letting him just relax for a moment.
"Something is not right." He notes, shaking a finger as if to admonish himself.
"You feel it, too?" I ask.
"I think so. Not right at all." I look at him with a newfound respect. He could feel magic, too? There is definitely more to this Hobbit than meets the eye. I like him more now. Might even consider him a friend, if this keeps up. Bilbo then sits up. "Stay where you are!" He calls back to the others, then gets a good look at the vines and pales. "Oh."
Every single Dwarf is climbing over the gap, and it's a disaster waiting to happen. Surprisingly, Aili is the furthest along. Guess she'd rushed ahead to avoid any accidents.
"Oh, fer Mahal's sake!" I growl, standing up.
"We heard you a bit late." Aili mutters, stretching over the gap Bilbo had a hard time fitting over.
"Noticed." I reply, leaping over and helping her up. "You're ribs hurting with this cavorting about?" I ask. She shakes her head.
"Not like before. Since I let Oin treat them, they've been getting steadily better." She replies as we make it to land.
"That's good news." She smiles and Thorin is right behind us, looking slightly exasperated at his company's behavior. I was, too, slightly. He then notices something off to the side, over my shoulder. I turn and see a gorgeous white stag. I gasp a little in awe at the sight and am shocked when Thorin's bow creaks as he's drawing it back, arrow at the ready.
"What are you doing?" Bilbo asks drowsily, frowning.
"We'd have to leave the path to get it." Aili adds with a little yawn. "It's not worth it, Uncle." She adds. He fires anyway and I flinch as the arrow whizzes away. However, it misses and the stag gallops away.
"You shouldn't have done that." Bilbo mutters. "It's bad luck." I frown.
"Where is that a token of bad luck?" I ask, feeling bogged down and exhausted.
"Shire, I think." Bilbo mutters, again in that drowsy tone, a little confused himself as to what he was saying.
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(A)
I've never been one to pass up the opportunity to get some quality meat, but...that was not a deer you kill, Uncle. That's the deer you admire from a distance. I just...had a feeling about that deer. Like Bilbo said, bad luck.
"I don't believe in luck." Uncle growls. "We make our own luck." I frown.
"I don't know..." Just then, Bombur gave out an especially loud snore and fell off the vine he'd fallen asleep on and somehow stayed on til now. Into the water! I pale.
"You were saying?" Mithra mutters, wisely under her breath where Thorin couldn't hear it. Everyone works quickly to get him out and we have to make a carrier for him before we can move out. I groan as I help heave him onto it.
"Why did it have to be heaviest one here?" I grumble softly.
"Just our luck." Mia replies beside me. In other circumstances, I would have probably chuckled at the slight humor, but this was not the time or place.
"Must be." We let those already standing at the posts pick him up and stay behind to walk along with those not on carrying duty. Bofur insisted with a hand on my shoulder to keep me back because of my ribs. I found that a reasonable excuse and stayed behind. We carry on for a long time before we end up calling a rest. I can't remember who first called a halt, but I am grateful. Walking for what feels like days on end takes a toll on anyone. A short distance, I hear Bilbo muttering to himself.
"Those...voices..." Bilbo mumbles, a little louder. "Can you hear them?" I frown.
"No, Bilbo. I think it's just the air." I reply. He frowns.
"No, I hear voices." He argues.
"I hear nothing." Thorin mumbles, looking around cautiously, just in case.
"I hear them, too." Mia affirms. "Faint, but they're there." I sigh.
"Probably because you two can hear things better than Dwarves can." This satisfies both Bilbo and Mithra and they fall silent.
"No wind, no birds." Thorin mumbles. "What hour is it?" His voice, as with everyone else's, echoes on the open air. I absently look up, forgetting for a moment that it's impossible to locate the sun through the thick lair of leaves and branches and...webs? Are those...spider webs? Weird. Those don't look like any webs I've ever seen...huh...
"I do not know." Dwalin replies. "I do not even know what day it is." He adds. I shake my head.
"We've been here five days? Ten? I can't remember." I try, thinking hard, but there appears to be a fog in my head, obscuring all but the need to get out of this forest and fast.
"Is there no end to this accursed forest?!" Thorin calls.
"None that I can see." Gloin 'helpfully' replies. "Only trees and more trees." Mia shivers.
"And the spider webs." I blink.
"You see them, too?" She nods. Thorin then shoves us aside and heads toward a point off the path, and no one's protests seem to make a difference as they all eventually fall in behind him, leaving Bilbo fiddling with the webs, and Mia and I standing there in shock.
What is he thinking?!