The Hobbit & Lord of the Rings -oneshots II

Songbird - Thranduil

Warnings: imprisonment, abandonment
Word count: 2393 (poems around 150 + 80)
Other: I've had this idea for a long time, but only now did it take form so I could actually write it. Also, there is only a sliver of Thranduil action, but I didn't want to make this a company oneshot.
Requested: nope.

Your freedom has been taken, and no one seems to notice the turmoil inside you.

The free bird leaps on the back of the wind
and floats downstream till the current ends
and dips his wings in the orange sun rays
and dares to claim the sky.

But a bird that stalks down his narrow cage
can seldom see through his bars of rage
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing.

The caged bird sings with fearful trill
of the things unknown but longed for still
and his tune is heard on the distant hill.

For the caged bird sings of freedom.

The free bird thinks of another breeze
and the trade winds soft through the sighing trees
and the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn
and he names the sky his own.

But a caged bird stands on the grave of dreams
his shadow shouts on a nightmare scream
his wings are clipped and his feet are tied
so he opens his throat to sing

The caged bird sings with fearful trill
of the things unknown but longed for still
and his tune is heard on the distant hill
for the caged bird sings of freedom

(I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou)

You had been captured months ago while you had been flying in the forests near Bree, sailing through the trees with a free heart and a clear head. You had flown through the Sun's rays as they filtered through the canopy of the great oaks above, painting patterns of fellow light onto the forest floor. The warmth of the sun had lifted your already high spirits, giving speed to your flight. The song had flowed out from the depth of your chest, the bright notes seemingly filling the air around you with their beauty. But it had been cut short by a net. It encased you in its rope, the harsh material rubbing against your feathers, making your skin ache. You screeched in horror, trying to struggle free, but a hand, large coarse but gentle, wrapper around you and trapped your wings against your body. You tried to peck the hand, your feet reaching for the skin to scratch it, but the angle was impossible. You were shoved into a cage, and you began flying around it, panicked, chirping, and hitting the metal bars with your wings.
"Leave it be, it'll calm down with time." Most of them lost interest in you then, but someone leaned closer to the cage, their warm breath fluttering on your skin, sending your heart beating faster.
"Chirp all you want little bird, you are not getting out."

You did settle in your cage, but it wasn't because you calmed down, it was because you accepted your fate. You were not free to fly across the sky anymore.

The dwarves were kind to you but didn't seem to understand that you didn't belong in a cage. You wanted to be free, to feel the wind under your feathers, to soar against the blue skies. No matter how much you beat the bars with your wings, singing your sad songs, they just laughed at your escapades and shoved dry bread through the bars of your cage. It had no taste and it did little to keep your strength up. You yearned for the fresh berries of the forest, the sweet nectar of flowers, the occasional drop of honey. 

As the journey continued, you began to settle into your cage. You got used to the swinging as the dwarf that carried you walked, and you got used to the food. Bilbo did his best to sneak berries to you whenever he had the chance, knowing that you could not survive on bread alone. As a thank you, you sang when you saw him having trouble sleeping. Your song was still beautiful as ever as it flitted through the air, but it was missing the joy. The notes that escaped you were empty. They didn't mean anything, you just let them out to ease your boredom. Just like your song, your once brilliantly blue feathers had lost their color, now dull and lifeless as your wings were tightly tucked against your sides.