"You brought us /here/?! Of all places, /here/? Why?" Thorin growled, pulling Zephira by the arm.
"Yes. Uh, where are you taking me?"
"I don't /know/!" He stopped, looking around. All he saw was... Women. "How many of you are there?"
"Lots. Well, wait. In what way?"
"... What do you mean 'in what way?'"
"As in, how many /here/, or how many in a grand total-"
"Zephira?!" Came a shriek. "Is that you?!"
Zephira turned, and exclaimed, "Kellain!" She ran towards the girl who called her name and hugged her fiercely. "Oh, /Emer/, I missed you!"
"I missed you too!" The other girl pulled back and looked at Zephira. "You look thin. Too thin, but aside from that, you look..." She frowned a bit. "Are you...?" Her face softened. "Oh, Zephira. Oh no."
"It's fine, Kell. Really. I'm alright." She cleared her throat. "Except, um..." She leaned foreword and whispered in her old friends ear.
Kellains green eyes widened, and then flashed over to where Thorin was standing.
After a minute, Zephira pulled back and looked at her sadly.
Kellain gripped her shoulders and have her a small smile. "I'll go get Lucretia. Tell her you're here."
Zephira seemed to stiffen. "Alright," was all she said.
Kellain nodded and walked away.
As she did, Thorin noticed Bilbo staring at her.
He raised an eyebrow as the hobbits gaze followed her as she past, and he said, "She's rather pretty, hmm?"
"Mmhmm... What!? No! I mean, yes, she was, but I don't... I mean, she's... Umm..." Bilbo looked confused.
Kili and Fili had overheard him and were trying (if not succeeding) to suppress laughter. Finally, Kili couldn't take it anymore and burst out laughing, which turned many heads.
"Sh-h! Kili!" His brother scolded, but he was laughing too.
Zephira walked back over to them. "And just what is so hilarious?"
"B-bilbo! He, he's so..." Fili was at a loss for words.
"I'm so what?" The hobbit asked, still looking confused.
"Clueless!" The brothers erupted into laughter again, with Zephira joining in. Even Thorin chuckled, but he stopped when his eyes met Zephira's for a split second.
He looked away, and the smile slowly fell off her face.
She opened her mouth to say something, but was cut off by someone saying, "Zephira!"
She muttered something under her breath, then quietly said to the dwarves and hobbit around her, "Walk away. Now. Just go. Go!"
Her voice was so urgent that they did, and Thorin thought that she might have used that bit of Syren in her.
Once they were far enough away, Zephira turned, and went to go see Lucretia.
Her Mother Mäläi held her arms open and smiled. "Zephira. It's so good to see you alive and well."
Zephira smiled back and hugged her. "It is good to see you as well."
"Now, Kellain tells me you've brought some dwarves with you?"
"Yes," Zephira said cautiously.
"Where are they?"
"Oh, you know. Out and about." She laughed lightly. "It's hard to keep track of them all at once."
"Mm. And just how many did you bring?"
"Ah, 13. And a hobbit."
"/Fourteen/? Zephira, I must say, I am impressed."
"... You are?"
"Yes! That must have taken much effort to make them all unconscious."
"Oh. Well, Kellain helped a lot."
Lucretia's eyes flickered over Zephira's shoulder. "Who is /that/?"
She looked behind her. "/That/ would be Thorin Oakenshield, son of Thrain, son of-"
"Thror, yes, I know the history." A smile pulled at her lips. "Have you Claimed him yet?"
"Have I-? Oh, no! No no no! No. I-I haven't, um, no."
"Good." She nodded. "I think I will." She turned to walk away.
Zephira's eyes widened. "No!" She winced when she said it, and Lucretia turned around.
"What is it?"
"Uh... What I meant was, I haven't Claimed him /yet/. I was, uh, planning on it, though."
"Well alright then. He is yours." She seemed to be slightly disappointed. "I will... Find another." She gave her another smile and walked away.
Zephira let out a breath and slumped down. She knew she shouldn't, but Mother Mäläi frightened her. A lot.
"Oh, Zephira?" She suddenly called over her shoulder.
"Yes?"
"How long will you be staying?"
"Three days, three nights."
"Perfect, we will have a party on your third night."
Zephira nodded and turned to go find the dwarves.
She found Kili sitting down with a witch- which one she wasn't sure, her back was facing her- and Fili standing a bit off to the side, glaring at them.
The witch had only just sat down, and gave Kili a strange (yet flirtatious) look. "I've never seen a beardless dwarf." She said, and touched Kili's face in her hand. Her eyes traced every inch of his face. "However, it suits you."
Her beautiful eyes pierced his, and he couldn't help the words that came out of his mouth, "I've never seen a women in such little clothing. However, it suits you."
It was true, her dress only covered her chest where it needed to be covered, leaving her stomach bare, and only fell to mid-thigh.
His eyes widened, and the witch laughed. "Why thank you, um...?"
"Kili, at your service."
"Kili." She looked him over again. "You should never offer your service to a witch. She might take it the wrong way."
"Would you?"
"Hmm," Was all she said. After a moment, she said, "My name is-"
"Nex, stop flirting with men you don't know." Zephira interrupted, sitting down beside her.
"Like that ever stopped /you/." She countered. She looked back at Kili. "And he's not a man. He's a dwarf."
"I meant it in the general sense."
"Even so, he's barely a man." She touched his face again, letting her fingertips trail over his stubble. "Hasn't even got a beard." She stood up quickly and walked away, only throwing a casual, "I'll be seeing you later, Zephira," over her shoulder.
Kili stared after her as she walked away, mouth hanging open slightly.
Zephira and Fili both frowned at him. "Close your mouth, Kili. You'll swallow a fly."
He snapped his mouth shut and shook his head. He blinked a few times. "I- what?"
Zephira pursed her lips. "That was Nex. She's a Syren, and a strong one at that. She means no harm, though. She was only having a bit of fun."
"That's not /my/ idea of fun." Fili growled.
"It is to witches. Stay alert, or you'll end up in their beds faster then you can say 'seduce.'"
"But... What happened?" Kili asked innocently, still confused.
Zephira sighed. "She used her voice. Syrens do that. They can make you do... Almost anything."
Kili licked his lips, remembering something she had said earlier. "And... You're part Syren?" He asked slowly.
"Yes. But, my powers /usually/ only work when I'm singing."
"Usually?" Fili inquired.
"Usually,"
Realized that he was getting nowhere with her, he switched the topic. "Should we watch out for /all/ of them?"
Zephira thought for a moment. "Well, Kellain is no threat. And Nex's younger sister, Nox, she's... She's not dangerous at all. Um... Niobe. She's..." She thought. "Safe? It's hard to know, really, which are trustworthy." She sighed. "Realistically, don't trust any of them...Even me." She added softly. So softly, in fact, that the brothers couldn't be sure if she really said it or not.
~~~~
Sorry this one took so long, I wasn't sure what I wanted to have happen... I hope it turned out okay!
I really have nothing to say here, except for the usual 'vote and comment' stuff I always say. So yeah. Vote and comment :)