Maureen
I open my eyes and it's all dark, all I can hear is hissing and clicks, I feel the thick sticky web cocoon engulfing me. I try to reach for my knife but my hands and legs are too tightly bound. I try to control the panic as I can feel myself getting claustrophobic. I try to take in a deep breath but the web sticks to my face. I struggle in my cocoon and hear the hissing getting louder and the branch moving faster. I freeze.
I see something silver shine as my web is sliced, "Bilbo!" I whisper and give the hobbit a tight hug, I've never been so happy to get out of somewhere. He gives me one of his knives and we go around freeing the dwarves. Thorin comes out seething as spider webs cling to his hair and body, just then he jerks his sword behind me pulling me forward and slicing a spider's body in half.
I turn quickly as I hear Kili's panicked scream and plunge my knife in one's eye. He's surrounded I try to get close to him as I feel a long shiny sword on my neck. A tall blonde elf is looking down at me as the others have their arrows pointed at the dwarves.
I see recognition in the elve's eyes as he lowers his sword. The other elves relaxe too just a tiny bit. I nod at Legolas. The elves have striped the dwarves of their weapons, Legolas holds Orcrist in his hand . "This is Elven made. Where did you get it?" he asks pointing the sword at Thorin.
"It was given to me." Thorin replied tightly.
"Not just a thief but a liar as well. I'm not surprised" he brings the point closer to Thorin's throat.
"He's not lying" I say my teeth clenched as I try to control my temper.
Legolas looks at me, "What are you doing here and with these idiots anyway?"
I wrap my hand on the sword I feel the blade digging into my palm as small beads of blood drop on the ground, "Lower the weapon Legolas, we come with no ill will" I say sternly.
Surprised he doesn't resist and brings the sword down still not taking his eyes off me, confusion in his eyes as he brings his hand towards me.
"Do not touch her." Thorin gives low menacing growl.
" She wears your mark?" the Elf said wide eyed.
"What of it?" Thorin growls again pulling me closer.
"But she's not a dwarf..... interesting." Legolas says more to himself than to anyone as his lips curve in a smile.
Kili's shout takes our attention to him as tall she elf going from branch to branch with her bow draws an arrow into the spider. The elf brings Kili to us pushing and shoving him. She looks at me surprise marring her face but she says nothing. The elves surround us pushing us froward as their arrows point in our direction at all time.
They brought us to Thranduils palace and down to the dim dank dungeons, they put everyone in cells except Thorin, I think they took him to the King. I did not want to think of how it might end as knowing both the Kings, things didn't look very promising for us. The dwarves were busy shouting hurling threats and insults at elves and ramming into the doors trying to break them.
"Enough!" Balin shouts, "These are no orc dungeons, this is the Woodland prison, there's no way out until the King wills it." The others sit down muttering.
"Balin, where have they taken Thorin?" I ask getting anxious by the minute.
"To see the King lass." He replies
"What do you think would happen?" I continue.
Balin let's out a long sigh, "That my dear remains a mystery."
I sit down my back to the wall and my eyes looking for Thorin's return. The elves bring him and push him in cell with me.
"Did he offer you a deal?" Balin asks
"Aye" Thorin replies pacing the call like a cornered tiger. "I told him to ish kakfe ai-'d-dur-rugnal! Him and all his Kin" He bellows. The others cheered and hooted.
"Well, that's that. A bargain was our only chance." He said in a tired voice.
Just then two elves come and open the door to our cell, "The King wants to see you." One of them says looking at me. Thorin stands in the way shielding me, "Tell him he can go to hell." he said teeth clenched.
"Thorin" I come and stand behind him my hand on his shoulder, "Let me see him" I whisper, he shakes his head, "Please." I plead. He looks at me and moves out of the way.
I follow the elves down a long passage. Thranduil sits on his high Throne looking majestic, wearing a crown of berries and red leaves. He get's up and comes down the stairs slowly, his cape sliding behind him, an amused look in his eyes. I nod at him. He circles around me "Welcome back Maureen. Though I would have never thought I would see you again and that too with the dwarves." he says. I nod again. He comes to my side and sees my beaded braid, "I have a proposition for you. A favor for a favor."
"I'm listening." I reply. He chuckles
"This is exactly what Thorin Oakenshield said to me." I take in a deep breath, "Come to the point please" I quip.
"I want something that's mine, white jewels. They are important to me. I want you to ask Thorin to return them to me." he drawls. I look at him, "What makes you think he would listen to me?" I ask.
He looks at the bead pointedly, "He's protective of you, more than protective may be, I offer him a deal, he returns the jewels after reclaiming the mountain and I return you." my shoulders tensed. "You stay in my palace until then, not as a prisoner of course but as a bargain. Return of my jewels for his jewel."
I was fuming at his stupidity, who did he think he was, I'm no bargaining chip, I look at him smiling "Hey Thranduil." He looks at me eyebrows raised, "You can take your deal and shove it!" I bark and turn around walking to the dungeons with the guards at my heel. I find Thorin standing at the door waiting for me. I don't say anything until I hear the clang of the locks and the guards shuffling to leave.
"Well?" I hear Balin, "What did he offer you.?"
I let out a long shaky breath as I try to calm myself down, "He offered me a bargain for Thorin, he's ready to let all of you go if I stay here." Thorin's body tenses so much that he starts shivering, a muscle in his jaw ticking, " He wants you to return his white jewels and he would return me. Return of my jewels for his jewel were his exact words." Thorin is besides himself, he yells and hits the door with such a fury that the whole thing vibrates. I wrap my arms around him from the back, "Stop it! You are going to hurt yourself." I say my voice raised. He is breathing so hard that I feel myself moving with every inhale and exhale. "I'm going to kill him." He whispered.
"I would give five gold coins to hear what your reply was" Dwalin said.
"I told him to take his deal and shove it up his little arse." I replied. Thorin gave a loud laugh throwing his head back and the others cheered, he turned and held my mouth in a fierce kiss. "I love you" he said against my lips.
"I love you more" I smiled.
There was a celebration going on high up in the castle and all the dwarves had gone unusually quiet. "Thorin, I want to go under. I want to know what the night has to say ." I say softly. He nods. I sit close to him and close my eyes. When I come out he's looking at me intently. "We'll get out of here." I whisper.
I closed my eyes trying to sleep a little when I heard rattling of keys, Bilbo opened our cell door, the dwarves cheered, "Quiet!" he said as he moved down opening each door "There are still guards all around, Follow me."
"Bilbo" Bofur couldn't contain himself, "You are supposed to lead us out not lead us deeper."
"Just trust me." Bilbo whispered exasperated. As we went farther Bilbo turned pointing to a row of barrels.
"Get in barrels, quick" he said looking around uneasily as the guards were passed out in the other room.
Thorin glared at him and then growled, "Do as he says."
All of us get inside the barrels. "What's next?" my words drown by a low think and a high pitched creak and the barrels start rolling. I gasp as we hit the river and the chill of ice water drowns me for a second. The barrels kept bouncing around and dunking in the water. It was so hard to stay afloat.
We bounced along the rapids of the river bumping and cussing, when I saw the stone bridge my heart sunk. A loud horn sounded and the elves swarmed all around us, weapons drawn, arrows pointed at us. There was a floodgate under the bridge that slowly closed on us.
Thorin smacked the gate first as one by one all the barrels bumped into each other crowding under the bridge. Out of no where an elf toppled over the bridge with a black arrow stuck in his back. 'Orcs' I realized eyes widening, my heart thumping. More black arrows flew around us from all directions. We couldn't escape unarmed.
The elves had turned their attention to the orcs and Kili saw his chance. He swam out of his barrel towards the bank. My heart sunk. "Kili noooo!" I jumped out of my barrel swimming towards him, I felt Thorin's hand trying to grab my shoulder but I managed to follow Kili. He was at the lever to open the gates. An orc aimed his arrow at him and shot. He missed by a hair. I was out and near Kili by that time when another arrow was shot and I heard Kili scream. "Oh my God please don't let him die" I didn't know what I was mumbling but the arrow was stuck in his thigh. I pulled the lever and the gates opened slowly the current pushing the barrels out. I pulled the arrow out from his leg, orc arrows flying near us. I tried to lean him on me as we hobbled to the edge. There was an empty barrel and Kili jumped into it. I jumped in the river trying to grab hold of Dwalin's barrel. My hands were cold and slippery and the ice water was making it hard to breathe. I kept getting pushed under the water a white haze forming in front of my eyes, I was ready to give up when strong hands grabbed me under my arms and pulled me into a barrel. Thorin, I slumped into my barrel, muscles aching. Dwalin grabbed a sword and hurled it back to Dori, an orc who had jumped on him got his forehead slammed on his head. The elves were leaping from barrel to barrel but they were going after the orcs and not paying attention to the dwarves.
After what felt like an eternity I heard Thorin, "We've lost the current, move to the shore." We all swam to the shore. My body felt like a boulder had hit me. I cam out on all fours and stayed with my head down for a few minutes. "You all right" I heard Thorin, I nodded. There was a hiss when it suddenly hit me that Kili was hurt. "We need to move." Thorin barked.
"Kili is hurt" I tell him, "We need to tend to his wound first."
"We don't have time, we have an orc pack on our tails." he said.
"I don't care! I'm not moving until we help Kili" I yell.
Thorin takes in a deep breath and then nods, "Hurry"
"Fili, Bofur, Ori please find me a weed. King's foil, they feed it to the pigs." I say as I hurry to Kili. His face is all screnched up in pain.
"Don't worry, you'll be fine." I say to him.
The others bring me the weed, I break it into small pieces and stuff it in the wound. Kili gives out a loud cry of pain. "I'm sorry" I whisper as I wrap a piece of my cloak on his leg.