Eruwen (Part 1 & 2)

The Mirkwood

We rode horses for several days and because we were advised exactly when to enter the forest, we rode late into the night. A big black bear accompanied us - he was keeping watch a short distance away and of course, wanted to make sure that we kept our promise and returned his ponies to him.

The once beautiful forest, the largest in the north, looked dark, dangerous, and sickly. 

"Our path through the Mirkwood," Gandalf called as we reached the elven path - it looked different than I remembered it.

I dismounted from Feon and grabbed all my weapons - I didn't want him to walk through the forest with us.

It was a sad sight to see the statue of the queen of the forest realm, who was already dead. King Thranduil had made it so that she would not be forgotten, and so that she could greet everyone who set foot in the forest. Above all, so that she could welcome her king. I used magic to make the plants that almost made her invisible disappear.

"Gwannath a chîr, (Rest in peace)" I said. 

Gandalf finally decided to tell the dwarves that he would not accompany us through the forest. He didn't tell them the real reason, he only mentioned that it was important - I saw it as a reasonable solution. That there was a chance that the greatest evil that had plagued Middle-earth so many ages ago had returned was not the most encouraging news.

"I'll be waiting for you at the lookout on the slopes of Erebor," he spoke before setting off.

"Do you know your way around?" Thorin wondered.

"I knew the forest well, but I don't know how much it has changed," I replied.

We set off and soon felt what Beorn had spoken of. The air grew heavy and the trees more threatening. The dark and huge spider webs were the worst.

"Have you noticed that the webs don't encroach on the path?" Bofur echoed.

"Elven paths are protected by powerful spells," I explained, "whoever walks the path is protected from the dangers lurking in the forest."

It was mostly my doing, the spells. When Thranduil's father, Oropher, founded this realm, I offered him my services, which he accepted.

The magic was especially noticeable at night, when the night was unusually dark, and there were eyes all around us. The dwarves were close by and I carefully guarded the others, as I could see more than they could, and as an elf, I needed little to no sleep.

After a few days, we ran into a problem. The path went over a bridge that was dilapidated and not safe to cross. There were solid lianas that led to the other side.

Kili wanted to try them, but Thorin stopped him.

"Eruwen, go first, you are the lightest of us," he spoke.

"As you wish," I replied, and with a few graceful movements, I reached the other shore.

Bilbo followed, and did a decent job, although he didn't like it. He felt drowsy and confused, and it showed on everyone. The heavy air didn't seem to affect me as much, I may have felt more tired, but I was still sane.

The others took off right after the hobbit and I kept an eye on them just in case. The changes were most obvious on the dwarves. A beautiful white stag appeared from the other bank, and Thorin shot an arrow at it - it missed.

"Are you mad?!" I said.

Suddenly there was a splash. Bombur fell asleep and fell into the water. I pulled him out of the water and the dwarves had to carry him, which they weren't happy about because he was heavy.

"Water, I need water," Bofur spoke.

Supplies were running low, especially water. I wouldn't have dared to use a spell on water from the forest, but my own supply was something to work with, for which they were all grateful.

Bombur didn't wake up for four days, and when he did, he complained about the lack of food. He refused to go on his own, which I wasn't in the mood for. And then the others started arguing, which I didn't want to deal with at all. The climax was when they refused to listen to me - the journey seemed endless and they began to doubt my knowledge.

"I've had enough of you!" I said angrily, "You don't believe me, fine."

"What are you planning?" Bilbo asked.

"The dwarves obviously know everything better than I do, so I'm sure they can manage on their own. I'm off, Mr. Baggins."

I climbed the tree, waiting for Feon to fly by so I could jump on him. I needed the fresh air, it cleared my head nicely.

I didn't leave them alone, I wouldn't do that. I watched them from the sky during the day, but they had to fend for themselves in the evening, I didn't see them. Eventually, they got lost altogether - they went off the path.

I had to go down in that case, as there was great danger lurking off the path, including huge spiders.