Making your favorite Tolkien characters absolutely horrible pt. 2
Tw: Ohhh the plot thickens. Arachnophobia, Raewyn freezing up, mentions/description of knife violence and blood. Mention of being accused of murder + murder trial. Now it's Legolas' and Thranduil's turn to be a bitch. Let's give Thorin a break.
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As Bilbo lifted himself above the trees, a sudden waft of fresh air hit his face, as if a spell had just been broken. As he breathes in deeply, ice blue butterflies flew past his face, surprising him with the mere sight of them. The sun was seen obviously in the sky, its light reflecting on the red leafed trees. The hobbit uttered a laugh at the sight, looking around in pure glee. In the distance, he can spot multiple landmarks and a large-running river.
"I- I can see a lake!" He called to the company below. "And a river. And the Lonely Mountain!" He exclaimed happily.
"We're almost there!"
But instead of shouts of excitement in reply, everything remained silent.
"Can you hear me?" He asked, scared his voice wouldn't reach the dwarves. "I know which way to go! Hello?"
But once more, no replies from the ground. The hobbit looked down in confusion, but a loud thumping in the distance drew his eyes back to the horizon.
"Hello?" He mumbled, though he was mainly speaking to himself now.
In the distance, the trees moved haphazardly under the weight of an unknown object approaching. And it is heading straight towards Bilbo. The hobbit's eyes widened at the sight, his brain screaming at him to run. Without a second of hesitation, the hobbit climbed down again, frantically looking around for his company. But by doing so, he failed to pay attention to where he was placing his feet. And before he knew it, his feet got trapped in one of the spider webs, causing him to stumble, and ultimately fall down.
After bouncing painfully off branches, and yelling in pain, the hobbit finally reached the ground.
"Raewyn?" Bilbo yelled, desperately looking for his ranger friend, hoping for her to be well, and – secretly – hoping for her to keep him safe too.
But just as he managed to stand up again, one of the cobwebs broke, revealing a massive spider. One that he could only have nightmares about. And he hadn't even been that frightened of spiders to begin with. Yet, as the creature showed its fangs, Bilbo yells, taking a step back, stumbling over a rock behind him, landing on his back in an even bigger spiderweb. The poor hobbit trashes around, trying fiercely to get out of the sticky substance, but he remains trapped, forced to watch as the enormous spider approaches him.
——
When he comes to again, he's quick to realize he is trapped inside a spider cocoon. He has been hung upside down, followed by the rest of his company members. Six spiders swarm around them, as if inspecting them in some sort of way.
A sudden tug on his 'cover' rips him out of his thoughts, his fight or flight instinct kicking in. Before either of the two could register it, the hobbit wrestled himself out of his bindings, reaching for his sword. Swiftly, he knocks the spider's head off of its body, sending it flying down. As the creature's body followed its head, Bilbo sneaked behind a tree, now reaching for the ring he had found in the Goblin Tunnels earlier.
Hesitation filled him as he reached to put the jewelry on. Yet, when he saw another spider approaching him, he rendered himself in little choice, putting on the gold piece.
"Kill them. Kill them....." One spider hissed.
"Eat them now." The second followed, looming over one of the dwarves.
"Their hide is tough." The first one resumed, walking towards Raewyn, who had been hung upside down. Bilbo shuddered at the sight, clinging his sword tightly. "There is good juice inside."
"Stick it again! Stick it again! Finish it off!"
The creatures now formed a circle around one wrapped dwarf, ready to attack, but the dwarf kicked.
"Ahh!" The second spider exclaimed. "The meat's alive and kicking!"
"Kill them! Kill them now! Let us feast!"
The other five spiders joined in the chant, simultaneously calling 'feast' continuously. And that was enough for Bilbo to break up the party.
Holding his sword in front of him, he approaches the crowd, cutting down the first spider, before ducking under an impending one, stabbing it in its guts. Before any of the spiders can notice him, Bilbo throws a piece of wood into the woods, hoping to draw the attention of the creatures.
And to his luck; it did. All but one left for the noise, calling incoherent phrases.
"Fat and juicy. Just a little taste." The lingering spider spoke, her body hunched over Bombur.
Bilbo sneaks up on her, striking her on her rear with his sword. The spider hisses in response, turning around to face the one who dared harm her, but found nothing. The hobbit, however, did not yield, repeating his slashing against the creature.
"Curses! Where is it? Where is it?!"
Answering her question, he takes the ring of proudly, delivering a fatal blow to the spider's head.
"Here."
"It stings! Stings!" The creature protested, before falling down the trees, dead on impact.
"Sting." Bilbo smiled. "That's a good name."
When he was sure the spiders had left for the moment, Bilbo went to cutting down his friends, letting them struggle to get out themselves. It wasn't until he finally cut down Raewyn that he lowered himself onto the ground too.
"Where's Bilbo?" Bofur yells, half-awake, yet enough to process his surroundings.
"I'm here!" The hobbit in question answered, helping Raewyn out of her bindings. But something about her seemed off. From the way her eyes looked to how she barely made any effort to get out of the cobwebs.
Just then, a spider jumps at Bilbo from behind him, pushing him onto Raewyn, the creature squeezing both him and the ranger. Bilbo struggled under its hold, his sword not placed conveniently enough for him to kill the spider.
"Raewyn!" He urged, pleading for her to grab his sword. But it seemed as if her body had frozen up entirely. And if she was honest, she still had no idea on how to process any of this happening. All she could do was stare at the one thing that was about to kill both her and Bilbo. Had it been any other circumstance, she would have cut off the creature's head before it could blink, but somehow, she just could not bring herself to move. Not even to lift her finger.
The hobbit let down an uncomfortable groan, struggling to get a hold on his sword. When he held it at last, he stabbed the spider, forcing to fall down on top of him.
"A little help!" Bilbo tried to call, but the rest of the company was occupied with fighting off the spiders too.
"Raewyn," He called again, trying to soothe his friend out of her shock. "I need you to push this body off." He explained, holding his arms out to try to get the weight off.
"You are stronger than me. I cannot carry this thing off." He resumed, but once more, Raewyn's responses were scarce, to none existent.
"Rae- Raewyn?" He wondered, trying to nudge her slightly, but the spider on top of him left him incapable of moving.
"Help!" Bilbo called once more, realizing his friend wouldn't be of much use now. "Can someone help us?"
After a moment of no response, the company of dwarves pushed the spider off of their burglar and hunter, freeing them from the dead creature's hold. Bilbo immediately scrambled up, plucking the cobwebs from his coat as the dwarves continued fighting off the spiders.
"Raewyn, we need to move." Bilbo ordered, offering the ranger a hand, who only stared at it.
"Please." He pleaded, shoving his hand forward more urgently.
Raewyn seemed to snap out of her daze at the gesture, quickly taking his hand in hers, accepting his hold. Though her armor definitely made it more difficult for Bilbo to carry up, they managed.
The Asha shot a look at her surroundings, becoming painfully aware of the spiders crowding them. Whether her mind was still half asleep or simply shutting down, she did not know, but the weight her shoulders held became worse by the second, and judging from the quick-paced breathing escaping her throat, she needed to get out of this place. And it had to be soon.
She took a swift look over Bilbo, noticing the bloodied sword in his hands.
"Are you-" She mumbled, but the hobbit cut her off, shaking his head.
"I'm not hurt." He assured.
"Sting." He followed afterwards. Raewyn shot him a confused look, though half of it was still masked with fear.
"It's what I named my sword." He explained. The ranger offered him a nod in return, though her eyes kept scanning the crowd, trying so badly to not lay eyes on the spiders.
"Kili." She whispered, spotting his brother amongst the crowd, yet it was not the dwarf she was looking for.
"Where is Kili?" She now wondered, her hand unconsciously reaching for her neck, where her necklace would have hung, had she not given it to Bilbo.
"Kili?" She now exclaimed louder; not enough to overcome the voices of the company, but enough to let her friend know who she was looking for.
"H- he was right here." She muttered, turning around, trying to find that familiar mop of brown hair.
"Where did he go?"
"Help!" A shout in the distance was heard. Raewyn's eyes immediately followed towards the source of the sound, suddenly spotting elves between the trees.
"Kili!" She shouted back, her voice wavering, though it was drowned out by the voice of his equally concerned brother.
But Bilbo was no longer paying attention. He had also seen the elves amongst the company. And his ring was in the palm of his hand. He could save himself; follow the company from the shadows, trying to find the best time to rescue them. But when he saw the distress and raw fear in Raewyn's eyes, something in him begged him to give the ring to her. It was as if two different voices were fighting in his head over what to do.
"Raewyn." Bilbo suddenly spoke up, tugging on the ranger's sleeve. The woman spared him a second look, but her eyes fell back on Kili, who was struggling against one of the spiders.
"Put this on." He commanded, opening his hand to show the Asha his ring.
"What?" She questioned, taking aback by his command, her breath in her throat as she kept forcing herself to look at Kili. She would have jumped through fire to get to him, but her feet remained planted firmly into the ground, not letting her go.
"Put it on." He pleaded, now forcefully taking Raewyn's hand and dropping the ring in it.
Upon the impact, a heavy feeling entered her heart, as if a ton of bricks had fallen on top of her chest. An overwhelming sense of anger and evil flushed through her mind, and before she could even process it, she dropped the ring, throwing it on the ground.
"What is that?" She whispered, taking a step back from the fallen piece of jewelry.
"Just put it on. Please." Bilbo repeated, quickly picking up the ring and offering it to her again.
"No." She answered. "Do not ever hand me that thing again."
"Throw me your dagger!" Kili's voice cut through the tension between Bilbo and Raewyn.
"Run, Bilbo." Raewyn ordered. "Run as far as you can. I will cover for you."
And with those words, she forced her feet off the ground, running head first into Kili's conflict, completely forgetting it was a spider he was fighting. She reached for one of the hidden daggers in her sleeves, keeping it sheathed.
"Kili!" She yelled, announcing her presence. Upon hearing her voice, the dwarf turned around, his expression of distress turning to one of relief. She quickly threw the dagger his way, knowing he'd be better off handling the creature alone than with her.
"Don't move." Raewyn abruptly heard from behind her, a sharp edge gently connecting with her cheek. She dared to let her eyes wander for a moment, coming face to face with a red-haired elf, an arrow aimed directly at the ranger's head.
Would the situation have been any different, the ranger probably would have made a snide remark. Would she not have been in this forsaken forest. Had she not just been handed the most off putting thing.
Would a dead spider not have dropped in front of her feet that exact moment.
With a surprising yelp, she stumbled back as the legs of the spider rolled out, tripping over the stone behind her. As her back roughly collided with the floor, all air left her lungs for a moment, leaving her wheezing. And giving the dead spider its opportunity to rest two of its legs around Raewyn.
"Search them." She could hear one elf speak.
"Stand up." The elf beside her ordered, her bow still drawn.
"Raewyn!" Kili exclaimed, running towards the ranger, though he was stopped halfway by the same elf.
"Do not come any closer." She threatened.
"She needs help." The dwarf tried to argue, halting his footsteps, his hands in front of him, as if he would fall any second.
"Why?" The elf asked, shooting a questioning look towards Raewyn, before returning her eyes on Kili.
"She-" He began, but swallowed his words quickly, trying to find some way to cover for her. "She's wounded." He told, which, in all honesty, had only been half a lie.
"Her leg...." He went on, gesturing towards the leg Raewyn had gotten shot in only a few days prior. "It has an arrow wound."
Whatever Kili thought he was doing, seemed to work, for the elf lowered her bow, keeping a close eye on the dwarf, before kneeling down next to the ranger.
"On your feet." She commanded, pushing the spider legs off of Raewyn, who just appeared back in shock all over again. The elf wrapped one arm around the ranger, pulling her up with her. As both of them stood with both feet on the ground, she let go of the woman, now grasping her bow again.
"To the rest of your friends." She ushered, pushing the two forward. Raewyn's eyes were focused solely on the company in front of them, her eyes ignoring the spider corpses all around her.
"Your weapons." The elf commanded, nudging the ranger rather roughly, already taking hold of the dagger under her sleeves. Raewyn let out a tired sigh, leaning down to remove the daggers from her legs.
When she stood upright again, she saw Fili, who was also busying himself with removing every single dagger of his. And once more, she would have laughed had it been under any other circumstances.
"Your shoes." She spoke, passing the daggers to another elf. The ranger frowned, but followed the commands nonetheless, far too tired to fight against it. All she truly needed was some time to process exactly what had just happened.
"Enwenno hain!" The elf up front announced, and whatever he had said, it must have meant something close to move, because – as these words were spoken – the other elves ushered the company forth, forcing them to follow their footsteps.
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"This is not the end of it! You hear me?" Dwalin shouted towards the elf that shoved him inside the cell.
The company had arrived at the kingdom of Mirkwood only seconds prior, and right now, they were vacated in the dungeons, locked inside the cells to hold them, until further notice. And knowing exactly how bad Thorin and king Thranduil's relationship was, it was going to be a very long further notice.
"Let us out of here!" Gloin protested.
"Get off me!" Another one shouted.
As Raewyn was shoved inside a cell too, her eyes landed on Fili in front of her, who had been caught with another dagger inside his jacket. Kili was busy being locked next to him, and – according to his stance – Raewyn could only assume he was trying to talk his way out.
"Aren't you going to search me?" He teased. "I could have had anything down my trousers."
"Or nothing." The elf shot back, locking the bars behind him, before wandering off, leaving the dwarves alone with their thoughts. Slamming and protesting was heard against the doors, but all their attempts to escape were futile.
"Leave it." Balin sighed. "There's no way out. This is no Orc dungeon; these are the halls of the Woodland Realm. No one leaves here but by the king's consent."
While the dwarves let out shouts of disagreements, Raewyn had taken her place on the floor, next to the wall. Her armor had been stripped from her, and if she was being honest, it did feel quite naked to her. Her armor had always been worn by her. Even on formal events. It was part of her character. It made her who she was. Or so she was convinced. But now, being without any of it, she felt vulnerable. For the first time in years, she felt vulnerable. And it bothered her to no end.
While her adrenaline had finally sunk down, reality began to settle in. She just encountered giant spiders. Who nearly killed her. Who nearly killed Kili. Who nearly killed Bilbo.
Bilbo. He hadn't been with the company as they were escorted towards the keep of Thranduil. And part of Raewyn felt relieved about that. He was safe. He was out there, finding a safe path for him. Perhaps he had ran back to Beorn. Maybe he could use that weird ring he handed her. It had felt so strange to her. A simple piece of jewelry should be anything but weird. While she had been an Asha, part of her was dwarf, and they could never reject jewelry. So why did it feel so strange?
"Raewyn?" A voice asked, pulling the ranger back to reality. She looked up shortly, trying to find the dwarf who had been calling for her.
"Are you alright?" Fili wondered, looking at the seated Asha in the cell in front of her. He hadn't failed to notice her far-off look. Or the sunken-in expression she had held. He had seen it in the forest, though now she appeared less terrified. Just more......absent.
Raewyn merely hummed at him, her eyes settling on Kili momentarily, but she looked back at her feet when she noticed he had not looked at her yet.
"What do you think will happen to Thorin?" Ori decided to speak up.
"He will be questioned." Balin revealed. "Thranduil would want to know why we passed through his kingdom."
"Do you think he will tell about the quest?" Nori followed up, resting his head against the bars.
"Of course not." Raewyn sighed, distracting herself from the spiders running in her head. "He's pigheaded. Not stupid."
"Careful." Fili tried to joke. "You might give us the impression you actually start to like Thorin."
"The offer of chaining you to that tree is still on the table." Raewyn warned, turning her head away from the dwarves, showing them her back, as she continued to stare at the wall.
A moment of silence passed through the air. The company had come to peace with the reality that they would not get out of these cells unless Thorin manages to make them some sort of deal. Both Fili and Kili had tried to get Raewyn's attention, but when minutes passed and she had yet to talk, they just assumed she went to sleep. Something she did deserve after all the rough travels.
"So, you are the one they call Tolmiró." A smooth voice spoke up.
Raewyn's head rose at the sound, looking towards her door, where a blonde elf was standing.
"Have we met?" She asked, truly unbothered by his presence.
"Not yet." He admitted, sitting down in front of the bars.
"Legolas Thranduilion." He introduced, his face stern, and nearly angry.
"Thranduil's son." Raewyn noted, turning her head back against the wall.
"They say you are an Asha. Is that true?" Legolas continued, ignoring Raewyn's observation.
"Who is they?" She side-tracked, stretching her feet out in front of her.
"Are you an Asha?" He repeated sternly.
"Would the outcome of my answer be positive or negative?" The ranger wondered, casting him a look that was nearly taunting him.
"That depends on the answer." He spoke.
"I do not like those chances." She answered back, shaking her head.
"You are an Asha."
"Keen observation." Raewyn revealed. As she had spoken these words, Legolas stood up proudly, grabbing the keys around his belt, beginning to unlock her door.
"You will stand trial for your deeds." He disclosed, grabbing the woman's arm roughly, jerking her upright.
"Wh- For my what?" She gaped, pulling her arms out of his grasp, pure confusion washed over her face.
"Come with me." He deadpanned, ready to grab her arm once more. Upon noticing the skin contact, both Fili and Kili shot up, protesting loudly as the elf continued to dismiss them.
"Beg your par- No! I will not!" She argued, taking a step back, swatting his hands away.
"What deeds?" She demanded.
"You will come with me or you will get your sentence here." Legolas concluded, now taking hold of her arm once more.
Raewyn paused at his words, now letting her arms fall down.
"Wh- what sentence would that be?" She dared to utter, not liking the cold look he was giving her.
"Death." The elf revealed. "By stoning."
And that was when Raewyn's heart dropped. At those exact words. The shouting on the other side of the dungeons only increased, but Raewyn had shut the sound out, now solely focused on the words Legolas had spoken to her.
"Let her go!" Fili shouted, slamming his hands against the iron bars.
"What?" She all but whispered, inhaling sharply. "I don't understand. What did I do?"
"You will come with me now or you will serve your sentence here." The elf objected, his face cold, as if he was sure of his case. And he probably was.
So she decided to go with him. She'd rather stand some sort of a chance, than to die right away. But the footsteps traveling through the halls had begun to sound like a death march, and the stone gaze of Legolas had begun to imprint itself into her brain. And she could not bring herself to figure out what she had done.
"Raewyn!" Kili yelled, trying to reach for the woman as she passed his cell. His hand briefly connected with hers, but she was pulled away by Legolas before she could bring herself to grasp it.
"I'll be fine." She tried to assure him, but she felt as if she was talking to herself more than to the dwarf that had shot her such a desperate look.
"Don't leave." He pleaded, his voice becoming more distant as Raewyn continued to follow Legolas.
"Raewyn, no!"
Multiple shouts of disagreement were heard throughout the dungeons, but the more the two walked, the less able she became of recognizing the voices, and making out what they were saying.
——
How long she had been walking beside Legolas, she didn't know. But she knew, the second she came face to face with Thorin, and his sorrowful look, something was about to happen. And he knew of it.
"Thorin?" She tried to ask, but the ranger got pushed forward again.
"Raewyn Asha, Tolmiro; ranger of the west. Apprentice of the grey wizard, daughter of Raegon Asha of the Clan of Six." A smooth voice addressed. An elf, who she could only assume to be Thranduil, king of Mirkwood, walked down from his throne, leaning down to look at the woman in front of him.
"That is your title, is it not?" He wondered.
"Yes." Raewyn spoke hesitantly, casting an unsure look towards Thorin.
"Good." Thranduil called.
"You are on trial for the murder of Eluriel Nenluin."
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Enwenno hain: Take them in Sindarin (Elvish)
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