Freya had no idea how long it had been since the dwarves had gone into the woods to fight the trolls that had a hold of her cousin and thought they would be back by now. She wasn't sure how much longer she could wait. The hobbit had begun to dread terrible thoughts that the trolls had captured the dwarves, and would become the trolls dinner; if they haven't been already.
The hobbit finally couldn't sit around any longer, not knowing if the dwarves and her cousin were alright. She ran in the same direction as Thorin and the others had run into the forest to rescue Bilbo. Freya could smell the stench of troll and as she wondered a little further into the forest she could see the light of a fire going.
She ran towards the light and hid behind a tree and sure enough her worst fear had been realized. The dwarves had been captured by three monstrous troll and tied up in sacks, while another group was tied on a log above the fire. On the brighter side at least her cousin was alive, but for how long? Knowing she was their only hope of getting out of this alive, her immediate reaction was feeling around for her sword when she remembered Thorin had taken it from her.
Freya crept over to a tree closer to the trolls and the dwarves. The hobbit glanced around the area and saw the dwarves weapons were in a pile next to the fire, including hers. If she could get to the weapons without the trolls seeing her, the Halfling might just be able to free these dwarves before they become troll food.
" Wait! You are making a terrible mistake." Bilbo shouted to the trolls making them stop to think and look at the hobbit that spoke.
" You can't reason with them, they're halfwits!" Dori pointed out, who was just one of the few dwarves tied to the log over the fire that was being turned by two trolls.
" Halfwits? What does that make us?"
Bilbo manages to stand up, although still tied up in a sack. He faces the tolls, trying to stall them.
" Uh, I meant with the, uh, with, uh, with the seasoning." Bilbo pointed out, as the trolls looked down at this tiny person who had so dared to speak to them about there cooking.
" What about the seasoning?" The cook questioned, as he came closer to the hobbit. Making Bilbo stumble back.
" Well have you smelt them? You're going to need something stronger than sage before you plate this lot up." Bilbo insisted as the dwarves started yelling and cursing at Bilbo.
" Oh no, Bilbo. Don't encourage them." Freya whispered to herself.
"What do you know about cooking dwarf?" Another troll snapped as he continued to turn the log of dwarves, who were getting hot from the heat of the fire and struggled to get loose.
" Shut up, and let the, uh, flurgaburburrahobbit talk." The cook told the other troll as he turned his attention to the hobbit waiting to know what they were apparently doing wrong.
" Uh, th-the secret to cooking dwarf is, um" Bilbo stuttered, trying to find the write words to say.
" Yes? Come on?"
" It's, uh" Bilbo continued and Freya waited wondering what her cousin was trying to say.
"Tell us the secret." The cook urged, wanting to know what this secret was.
" Ye-yes, I'm telling you, the secret is....to skin them first!" Bilbo exclaimed seeming please at first that he had come up with a wonderful idea, hoping to save these dwarves and his expression changed when he realized what he had just done. Freya's hand flew to her face as she shook it, wondering what in Middle-Earth gave her cousin this idea, as the dwarves continued to utter threats of what they would do to him, if they managed to escape this terrible situation they were in.
" Tom, get me the filleting knife." The cook insisted, intrigued with trying this idea.
" What a load of rubbish! I've eaten plenty with their skins on. Scuff them, I say, boots and all." The other troll stated as he looked at the cook. A smaller troll started stomping over to the dwarves that were tied up in sacks.
" E's right! Nothing wrong with a bit of raw dwarf! Nice and crunchy."
The troll grabbed Bombur and dangles him upside down over his mouth about to eat him. Freya had to help her cousin get them out of this mess quickly.
" No-not that one, he-he's infected! I wouldn't do that if I were you!" Freya shouted from behind the tree. The trolls all went silent wondering where this sudden voice came from.
" Who said that!" The cook demanded as he looked among the dwarves, still puzzled where this stranger was.
" Yeah, He's got worms in his tubes."
" You what?" Tom questioned as the other troll dropped Bombur back into the pile of dwarves in disgust. Freya sighed in relief that what she said at least stopped them from eating the dwarves for now.
" In-in fact they all have, they're in-infested with parasites. " Freya stated as she watched from behind the tree the startled looks from the trolls as they stood there rethinking about cooking these dwarves for a meal.
" It's a terrible business; I wouldn't risk it, I really wouldn't" Bilbo added to his cousin's idea. Which did not go well with the dwarves being told they had parasites and began denying they had any and Freya rolled her eyes at how stubborn they were. Thorin, understand Freya's intentions, kicks the others, making them all go silent. Understanding now and go along proclaiming the idea of being riddled with parasites.
" I've got parasites as big as my arm." Oin insisted.
" Mine are the biggest parasites, I've got huge parasites!" Kili exclaimed never more thrilled to have parasites then he was now. The trolls were looking at them bewildered by this, wondering if these dwarves were indeed riddled with parasites.
" We're riddled."
" Yes, we are. Badly!" Dori chimed in.
" Who is that!" The cook yelled, wondering where the strange voice in the shadows was coming from. Freya had an idea.
" Over here!" Freya yelled as she watched to see what the trolls would do.
" Over where?" The smaller troll questioned. The woman ran over behind another tree that was closer to the pile of weapons.
"Behind you!"
She watched as her plan so far was working the three trolls wondered into the forest. Freya ran into the clearing and the dwarves cheered to see her.
" Shhh!" She said as she went over to the weapons to grab a sword to release the dwarves from the sacks.
" Freya! Look out!" Bilbo shouted. The hobbit turned around to see one of the trolls starring right at her. She backed up only to trip over a rock and she was lifted into the air looking right in the trolls eyes.
" What is a Freya?" The cook asked as he came out of the forest, back into the clearing with the other troll right behind him.
" It's a woman." The other troll pointed out.
" Can we eat the Freya?" The small troll wondered. As he went to snatch the Freya out of the cooks hand. Only to be flung in the air and gripped tighter by troll that held her, making it harder for her to breathe.
" Hold on a minute!" Freya yelled. The cook turned to look at the hobbit.
" You what?" The cook snarled.
" You can't eat me either, I have giant parasites as well." Freya stated seriously to the troll. The trolls sighed in frustration hadn't had a good meal all night and dawn was creeping up slowly behind the trees.
" What would you have us do, then, let 'em all go?" The troll questioned the Freya.
" Well..."
The troll squeezed the hobbit tighter making her yell in pain as the troll shook her. " You think I don't know what you're up to? This little ferret is taking us for fools!"
"Ferret?" Freya repeated bewildered by this accusation she was being accused of.
"Fools?" The cook stated, wondering if the Freya had been playing them all along. Freya continued to try and get loose from the tolls grip on her.
" The dawn will take you all!"
The trolls all turned behind them to see who had spoken. " Who's that?" The cook wondered as he still had a hold of the hobbit.
" No idea" Tom insisted, as he could careless who he was.
" Can we eat im too?" The smaller troll asked as the wizard strikes the rock with his staff, splitting it in half, allowing the sunlight behind it to pour into the clearing. The trolls instinctively threw up their hands to cover their faces from being touched by the light. The troll that held Freya dropped her, making her shriek as she landed on the pile of dwarves, panting from almost being squeezed to death.