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VI. Dawn

The sky. The Dwarves. The fire. The trolls. That was all Athena could see, over and over again as the spit moved in a circular motion over the flames, the ropes constricting her movements while she was trapped with the other Dwarves the trolls were trying to cook, a pile of them resting in sacks to the side as they waited for their turn. She didn't have it in her to cry out in anger like the others did, instead just shifting uncomfortably at the boot wedged into her lower back.

"Don't bother cooking 'em! Let's just sit on 'em and squash 'em into jelly!" One of the trolls suggested, Athena's eyes widening in panic at the thought of them dying so suddenly, at least this way they had a chance of finding a way out before they were cooked to death.

"They should be sauteed and grilled with a sprinkle of sage," another rejected the previous one's ideas with his own, the other changing its mind and figuring that it would be nice.

"Never mind the seasoning, we ain't got all night! Dawn ain't fair away, let's get a move on! I don't fancy being turned to stone," the troll stated as he helped turn the spit, one moment she was warm and the next moment the chill of the night air bit at her skin. And so the cycle continued.

At the revelation that they'd be turned to stone should the sun rise Athena looked over at Bilbo with desperation and mouthed 'do something' in his direction before being turned from him once more, her eyes now forced to stare at the dark clouds which hung over them.

"Wait!" Bilbo cried out to stop their movements, the trolls looking over at the Hobbit that spoke up, "you are making a terrible mistake."

"You can't reason with them, they're half-wits!" Dori yelled to Bilbo as the spit began to move once more.

"Half-wits? What does that make us?" Was Bofur's retort, and he did have a valid point.

"I meant with the uh, with the seasoning," Bilbo clarified what he meant earlier as he hopped towards their position from within his sack.

"What about the seasoning?" One of the trolls asked as they bent down to look more closely at the Hobbit.

"Well, have you smelt them? You're gonna need something stronger than sage before you plate this lot up!" He exclaimed much to the dismay of the Dwarves beside him which began to protest and kick at him.

"What do you know about cooking Dwarf?"

"Shut up and let the flurgerburber-hobbit talk."

"What on earth is a flurgerburber?" Athena asked herself as she passed the fire that was slowly roasting them.

"The secret to cooking Dwarf is um," Bilbo paused as he attempted to think of what to say next, the trolls urging for him to continue while he continued to search his head for anything he could use.

"Tell us the secret!"

"Yes I'm telling you. The secret is... to... skin them first!" Initially he was proud at his outburst before the shouts and yells of the Dwarves and woman entered his ears, only now realising what had actually come out of his mouth. It seemed that everybody was now sending threats the Hobbit's way and Athena was no passerby in the threats, telling him that she'll skin him herself.

"Tom, get me the filleting knife," one of the trolls ordered, Athena now knowing that trolls actually had relatively normal names.

"What a load of rubbish I've eaten plenty with their skins on. Scoff 'em I say, boots and all!" a different troll retaliated, a sigh of relief leaving her as being eaten whole sounded a lot less painful than the alternative of being skinned alive.

"He's right. Nothing wrong with a bit o' raw Dwarf," Tom added on, picking up Bombur from his position with the other sacked Dwarves, "nice and crunchy."