[IC] The Hobbit/LOTR: Another Age of Evil Beginnings { Elven & Angel }

[The Elvenqueen]

"You're nervous!" Bilbo exclaimed accusingly at the wizard.
"Nervous?!" repeated Gandalf incredulously, shaking his head at Bilbo. "What nonsense! No!" he looked ahead of them to Beorn and called out. "Good morning!"
The skinchanger seemed to pay them no heed, swinging his axe in a wide circle over his head as he cleaved apart another section of kindling.
"Ahem, good morning!" Gandalf repeated louder, after ducking out of the way of the axe.

Beorn finally turned, leaning on the shaft of the axe as he faced them. "What do you want?"
Bilbo had to fight down his nerves as the man spoke, his voice was deep and growly, and rather frightening.
"We simply wanted to eh, thank you, for your...hospitality." Gandalf nodded politely. "You may have noticed that we took refuge...in your lodgings, last night."

[AngelBites15]

Bilbo seemed to have been hiding behind Gandalf once Beorn turned fully around. Things got tense quickly as soon as he spotted the Hobbit. "Who is this little fellow?!", the skinchanger growled in a tense tone of his voice, and it looked like he was ready to take his axe.

Maleficent kept watch from the doorway as she too tensed on the spot, ready to come out if things were ever going to get nasty. Instincts kicking, she suddenly and slowly stepped out into view. "Beorn", she spoke in a friendly voice to try and tame the beast. Clearing her throat, she cautiously made her way over, next to Gandalf.

[The Elvenqueen]

Beorn's gaze flicked to Maleficent and he nodded stiffly in acknowledgement to her, but didn't relax much and he was soon looking back at Bilbo again. "He is not a dwarf is he?!" Beorn growled, lifting the axe a little higher.
"No, no!" Gandalf protested quickly, stepping slightly to the side so Beorn could see the hobbit better. "He is a hobbit, and very respectable! From a good family!"
At this reassurance the skinchanger seemed to relax some, setting the axe down again. "And what brings you here?"

"Well you see, I'm afraid we've had a very bad time of it." Gandalf explained. "Some troubles with goblins, in the mountains-"
"What did you go near goblins for?!" Beorn interrupted, his distaste for the creatures very clear in his voice. "Stupid thing to do!"
"Well, yes, yes, you are quite right!" Gandalf agreed quickly, holding one hand up in the air.

[AngelBites15]

"The signal! Go, go!", Bofur whispered as Dwalin and Balin came into view. Maleficent clenched her clenched her teeth with a groan as she saw them come out from behind. "I must confess...that some of our group are in fact...dwarves", the wizard stammered to Beorn until two more came out.

[The Elvenqueen]

"Dwalin and Balin." Dwalin introduced himself and his brother as they bowed politely to the skinchanger.
"And do you call two 'some'?" Beorn queried with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, no..." Gandalf admitted as he tipped his head to the side and tapped two fingers against his forehead, as if taking time to think. This was the next signal, and Gloin and Oin ran out to join Dwalin and Balin.
"Ah, yes!" said Gandalf merrily, as the two dwarves tried to smile and look friendly; "Here are some more of our happy troop!"

Beorn eyed the wizard skeptically.
"And do you call seven a 'troop'?" he seemed almost mildly amused by Gandalf's blabbering.

[AngelBites15]

"What are you, a traveling circus?!", things were not so clean or safe now. This was getting too much until Ori and Dori came into view. "Dori and Ori, at your service", Ori stammered, trying to be polite. "I don't want your service!" "I absolutely understand that!", Gandalf reassured suddenly.

[The Elvenqueen]

As if it couldn't get any worse, suddenly Fili and Kili appeared as well, grinning and bowing politely.
"Oh, and Fili and Kili, yes...I'd quite forgotten..." Gandalf sighed, preparing for the worst.

[AngelBites15]

The last two just barged out the door, tumbling into each other until they could finally stand up straight. "And we have Nori, Bifur, Bofur...and Bombur", Gandalf finally gave a sigh since there was no more trouble now. "Is that it?", Beorn asked in caution. As if right on cue, Thorin came out alone, making everyone present.

[The Elvenqueen]

Growling softly to himself, Beorn reluctantly beckoned the dwarves to come with him into his house, where the table was set out for them all to sit and eat and drink as they talked.

"So, you are the one that they call Oakenshield." Beorn growled as he poured milk into each of their mugs. It would seem he had at least heard tell of Thorin before.

[AngelBites15]

Maleficent was relieved that her companions were accepted by the great beast, or it could all turn messy very fast. Standing near the wall, just near the twins, the fae was in her thinking stage as she had small bites of Kili's breakfast.

"Tell me. Why is the Defiler hunting you?", Beorn growled to the dwarven Prince.

[The Elvenqueen]

Thorin seemed surprised that the large man had heard of the pale orc. "You know of Azog? How?"
"My people were the first to live in the mountains. Before the orcs came down from the north." Beorn explained as he walked up and down the length of the room. "The Defiler killed most of my family, but some he enslaved. Not for work, you understand, but for sport. Caging skinchangers and torturing them seemed to...amuse him." his voice was low, growling, he clearly had no love for the orcs either.

Kili had been about to ask Beorn a question but he stopped as the skinchanger mentioned slavery, suddenly noticing the large iron shackle that was still clamped around his right wrist. The chain had long since broken off. The young dwarf looked down sadly, and busied himself with eating the bread and cheese Beorn had served to them.

"There are others like you?" Bilbo asked as he looked at him curiously.
"Once there were many." Beorn smiled sadly.
"And now?"
"Now, there is only one." he finished. Clearly he meant himself.

[AngelBites15]

"You need to reach the mountain before the last days of autumn", it was a statement, not a question. "Before Durin’s Day falls, yes" "You are running out of time" "Which is why we must go through Mirkwood", Thorin was hearing too much as soon as Mirkwood was being said. That was the last time he had to hear the elves come into play.

Maleficent stood close to Kili as his head was being bowed down, laying a soothing hand upon his forearm.

"A darkness lies upon that forest, fell things creep beneath those trees. There is an alliance between the Orcs of Moria and The Necromancer in Dol Guldur. I would not venture there, except in great need", Beorn told the wizard of the dangers within the forest.

[The Elvenqueen]

"It is the quickest way." Gandalf insisted. "We will take the Elven road, that path is still safe."
"Safe?" Beorn scoffed, shaking his head. "The Wood Elves of Mirkwood are not like their kin, they are less wise, and more dangerous."

Kili swallowed nervously. He wasn't sure he liked the idea of venturing through some elven forest any more than Thorin did.

[AngelBites15]

"It doesn't matter, since these lands are crawling with Orcs, their numbers are growing and we are on foot", Maleficent stated from her position next to Kili. "We will be facing enough danger at this rate" "You will never reach the forest alive", Beorn growled before standing up at full height. "I don’t like dwarves, they’re greedy and blind, blind to the lives of those they deem lesser than their own", he notices a mouse on the table and picks him up. "But Orcs I hate more", he growled in anger to himself. "What do you need?", he asked the dwarven Prince.

Later, the beast was kind enough to let the group borrow his horses from the barn on their way to the forest. The fae helped Kili upon his horse by lifting him. "Go now, while you have the light. Your hunters are not far behind", Beorn warned them before they left, with Maleficent, sitting behind the youngest upon his horse for the first time.

[The Elvenqueen]

The group stopped as they reached the edge of Mirkwood, dismounting from the ponies. Bilbo glanced back and saw the huge black bear watching them from the hills. Beorn was making sure that they didn't take his ponies into the forest.

"Set the ponies loose." Gandalf ordered the dwarves. "Let them return to their master."
"A shame to lose them." stated Kili as Maleficent helped him down to the ground, patting his pony's neck. "They are fine beasts."
"Yes indeed, but Master Baggins has noticed what you have not." Gandalf grumbled, pointing his staff at Kili briefly as he spoke. "Beorn has been watching us, and he will be very angry indeed if we do not keep our promise."

[AngelBites15]

"If only you saw the creatures living within Fangorn", the fae spoke to Kili after she heard him say that the horses were fine creatures. "Mighty things they are", she sighed as she thought about her home while stroking its beautiful mane. She softly smiled at the creature before her.

Bilbo looked upon the dark forest before them. "This forest feels sick, as if a disease lies upon it. Is there no way around?", he felt uncomfortable just by seeing the forest. "Not unless we go two hundred miles north, or twice that distance, south", Gandalf answered before he stepped through the Elven entrance.

[The Elvenqueen]

Pulling an old clump of vines off a stone statue, Gandalf saw that a large eye had been painted on it in red war paint. Galadriel's voice spoke to him in his mind.
"If our enemy has returned, then we must know. Go to the tombs in the mountains."
"The High Fells. So be it." Gandalf swallowed, turning quickly back to the group. "Not my horse, I need it!" he called.

"...You're not leaving us!" gasped Bilbo in horror.
"I would not do this unless I had to." Gandalf answered as he got onto the horse's back again. "I have business that needs attending to, and it cannot wait. No matter what happens, stay on the path!" he reminded them, before riding away.

[AngelBites15]

After watching Gandalf desert them, Thorin starts to walks towards the entrance of the forest. "Come on, we must reach the mountain before the sun sets on Durin’s Day; we’ve got one chance to find the hidden door", he told them as they all entered the forest.

Maleficent used her elven stealth to allow herself to walk more quiet since the forest itself was eerily quiet. Something wasn't right, she knew. It didn't feel normal. She couldnt help but almost see one of the twins lose their footing.

[The Elvenqueen]

Fili lunged forward and grabbed hold of his brother by the cloak to steady him so he wouldn't fall. It wasn't long before the enchantment, or the heavy air caused by the sickness of the trees began to affect the group.

They began to walk slower, their speech began to slur, they were hallucinating and disoriented, and they began to feel light-headed but they forced themselves to keep going. Bilbo looked down at his feet and was alarmed to see that he appeared to be walking backwards. As he looked behind him he was even more disturbed by seeing an image of himself, shaking its head at him.

[AngelBites15]

She didn't know what she was seeing, but Maleficent knew that the group was already falling into the enchantment of the sickness. Apparently, she noticed that she herself wasn't being affected like everyone else. It was perhaps her Elven nature that was making her resist the darkness of the forest. The cloak that was covering her catsuit and wings was somewhat being dragged behind as she stepped over trees and roots.