✓GLITTER AND GOLD⁰ ━ the hobbit

eleven.

"That's a long way." Bard says, as he hands me a piece of bread. I munch it gladly, hunger that had gone unnoticed finally being sated.

I shrug. "I have time."

We're interrupted as the door knocks frantically. Bard gets up to see, before slamming the door again. "I'm done with dwarves."

I'm confused, wondering who it could be. The question is soon answered as Bard allows Kili, Fili and Oin and Bofur into the house. Kiki has taken a turn for the worse, his skin a ghostly shade of white and he hair lank and frayed. He can barely walk.

We spend the day trying to slow Kili's fever. At first it was a small change, eyes breaths turning raspy and drawn. Then he started to jerk around on the table, as he moans. The wound itself is black, with dark veins running around it.

"What kind of poison is it?" I ask, confused. I've never seen this before.

Oin sighs, looking grim. "He was shot with a Morgol blade, the poison is in his blood. There's not much to be done. I can slow his fever - I need herbs."

Bard searches, listing his herbs, none of which are any use.

"Do you have any kingsfoil?" Oin asks.

"Kingsfoil? No, it's a weed. We feed it to the pigs."

Bofur mods, muttering to himself as he runs out the door, as I grab a cloth and mop Kili's forehead, trying to cool him down. "Perhaps we should amputate?"

Both Oin and Fili look at me in disgust at my suggestion, horrified. "No!"

I begin to argue my case, knowing that cutting out the root of the poison may at least slow down Kili's death, but there is a sudden earthquake from the mountain. Not an earthquake, a dragon.

Oin and Fili looks scared, but I know that there's nothing we can do, not without abandoning Kili, as he continues to moan.

"Da?" Sigrid says, worried.

"It's coming from the mountain." Bain runs to his father, worried.

"You should leave us. Take your children; get out of here."

"And go where? There is nowhere to go."

Tilda looks frightened. "Are we going to die, Da? The dragon, it's going to kill us."

He shakes his head, reaching up to pull a black arrow from the ceiling. "Not if I kill it first."

Bain and Bard leave the house so quickly, to do what, I have no idea. Bending down, I turn to Tilda. "So you have the hairpin i gave you?" She nods, reaching up to where it holds her hair. I smile, at the matching Oin in my own. "Anyone tries to touch you, drive it into their eyes, and run." I tell her, as her and Sigrid look around frantically. "Is there anywhere that you can take shelter? Hide?" I ask Sigrid, as she begins to pack food.

Tilda shakes her head, scared. "What about Da?"

Sigrid goes out to look for him, but as she returns, an orc jumps out. She screams, and I grab Tilda, whispering for her to hide under the table as I grab the one of the two knives I hid in my boot.

Another orc comes through the door, but is knocked out by a well placed plate from Oin. Another breaks through the roof, so I grab a bottle from a shelf and smash it's face, as black blood begins to ooze out.

Another orc comes at me from behind, but I dodge it, driving my knife into its neck as it does quickly. I'm getting better at this, I think.

More orcs appear, one flipping the table the girls were under as they scream, and I grab another bottle, throwing it as hard as I can. It hits the orc in the face, and breaks, spewing some kind of liquid and glass everywhere. On hindsight, that wasn't my brightest idea.

All of a sudden, Tauriel appears in the window, jabbing he knife into an orcs neck with a grace I couldn't hope to compare with. She kills another orc, as I watch in shock as Legolas appears too, killing the orcs easily. "Are you just going to stand there?" He asks me, as I stand still.

That jolts me awake, as I grab my knife again, stabbing the orc closest to me as it swings it's sword I duck, cutting it's leg. Another orc takes it's place, but I swing out it's legs, and as it falls, drive my knife into its heart.

The orcs begin to fall back, for no reason. I follow them, adrenaline pumping. As much as I loathe to admit it, killing the orcs does feel good. I can see why people like it.

Legolas strides out and I follow, as he kills three more orcs with his usual ease. Another orc rushes up the stairs, so I throw my knife, glad that i had tried to practice as much as I did, as the knife flies into the orcs head.

Legolas looks slightly impressed, but not much. I suppose he's only surprised because I was so had at sword fighting. He turns, heading back towards the house. "There are others. Tauriel, come." He waits, as Tauriel hesitates, and I know that she knows this is her choice : Legolas, or Kili.

Legolas turns, as suddenly Kili moans. "We're losing him!" Kim cries, feeling his temperature.

"Tauriel." Legolas says again, looking pained. It's clear he knows what he choice will be. He looks to me. "Raelyn, come." With that, he strides out the door, as I hesitate. I don't want to leave Kili, but I can't save him. I might as well do something useful, so I follow Legolas.

Legolas and I track the dwarves across town, as Legolas kills most of them, with me throwing my knives to any who get away. Eventually we see the orcs at the edge of the lake, grouped. They see us, and run, while the bigger orc and two smaller orcs head for us.

"Take the two orc, draw them away." Legolas says. "Quickly."

I climb onto the roof of a house, as the two orc head straight for me, climbing up too. I run in the opposite direction, leading them as far away from Legolas as I can. Gandalf once told me that the secret to winning a battle is choosing the right location, so I do, finding the steepest roof I can find. My slight clothes and elven blood will steady me, while the orcs while be off balance and heavy.

I stop and wait for them to catch me, as they leap into the roof, unsteady. I have a knife in each hand as I take a deep breath, trying to remember everything I know about hand to hand combat.

The first orc swings at me so fast I barely have time to judge, and I'm sent down the roof, barely catching my balance. Perhaps this wasn't my best idea. Still the orc looks unsure on how to move, so I get to my feet, and climb the roof again, slowly, as I make a plan.

I swing my knife down at the first orcs legs, as it steps back, which is what I anticipated. As it does, I swing my leg, knocking it's legs out from under it. It's heavy, and I'm weak, so I can't do the move completely, but I add momentum to the already unbalanced armour as I shove it, hard in the chest. It falls down the roof, painfully.

I know I've not bought much time, but fighting one orc is much easier, so I quickly lunge, where the armour is weak, at the neck. The orc stumbles, and though it isn't a killing blow, it's painful, and if drops it's sword to clutch the wound. I grab my knife, drawing it in a thin line over its neck as I slit it's throat, and it bleeds out slowly.

The second orc has climbed back up, and looks quite scary,, as if swings it's sword at me, as I barely dodge. I can't get close enough to lunge, as I try to evade the blows as best I can.

Eventually I have a crazy, stupid idea, as I tackle the orc, as we both fall down the roof. The building is high, and a call from this height might kill me, but I make sure that the orc falls first and takes the impact, like a shield. It's dead, quickly, as I roll of the body, quite proud of myself, when I hear my name.

Looking upwards, I see a familiar face. "Bard?"