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Chapter Text

(Some months before Thorin's Company are captured)

Sam closed his eyes as he heard the scythe whistle towards him. There was a momentary flash of pain and then he felt his entire body yanked upward. When he woke up Sam wasn't sure if he had been unconscious for minutes or hours. He was in a dark room, or what he assumed was a room. The only light was above him but he couldn’t find its source. Sam stood up and began walking slowly, if he could find a wall then maybe there was a door somewhere.

It occurred to him that he had been walking for quite a long time and still nothing. Oddly, the darkness around him never changed and it seemed like the light was only illuminating wherever he happened to be. Sam kept walking and after what seemed like an eternity he saw a pinpoint of light in front of him. It was faint, almost like a distant star in the night. Sam walked and walked for ages until the light grew large enough for him to realise it was coming from a keyhole of a door. Once he reached it, he realised there were thousands of doors in the wall before him, set randomly so that the light from them mimicked the night sky. He had not even seen them as intent as he was on the particular door that had appeared.

He opened the door that drew him there and before he stepped through he looked around. It led to a long bright hallway, in the distance somewhere he could hear people talking and someone was singing. Sam stepped through, but instead of entering the hall, he flailed as he fell through the floor. Sam fell for what seemed like hours, through what looked like a cloud bank until he passed out again. Sam awakened as he hit the ground with a gentle thud. He was in a gloomy forest on what appeared to be an ill-kept path.

He stood and surveyed his surroundings, the area around him did not bode well for its first impression. The stone was crumbling on the trail before him, the trees bordering it were a mix of barely green in some places and rotting old growth in others. Some of the bigger ones were festooned with cobwebs. What was most alarming were the bones strewn under those webs. Rusting swords and buckles from decayed clothing peeked out from under the dead leaves on the ground.

"What is it?" He flinched as he heard a chittering voice carry over the wind. "Is it a man?" another voice answered. "It looks like a man." Sam heard the trees creak around him and he darted off the path to grab one of the swords lying about. "Mm, doesn't smell like a Man. Maybe we taste and see!" Sam barely dodged as a stinger whipped down to impale him. He grimaced in horror as he realised he was surrounded by a group of ugly giant spiders. Oddly, he could hear the sound of many light footsteps moving toward him and he hoped he could hold out long enough for whoever was coming to appear. He also hoped they would be friends and not allies of the voices who had spoken earlier. A hiss nearby told him that he needed to move again, and he swung his sword just in time to cut off another stinger. The shriek that accompanied it stunned him as he heard, "Ah! It cuts! Bite its nasty head off!" It was at that moment that he realised that the voices were the spiders talking. Sam hear the twang of several bows and ducked as a rain of arrows fell upon the spiders. He managed to impale one of them on his sword but could not yank it out fast enough before another spider was upon him. His vision went blurry as he fell to his knees with a stinger embedded in his shoulder but he could make out a group of people in the trees. The last thing he saw before he passed out were two figures, a redhead and a blond, coming towards him.

Chapter Text

"Just because you are stronger and have keener senses than I do, does not mean that you are better than I am, it just means that you are different. And a longer life does not engender greater wisdom or kindness or mercy," Sam said defiantly.

"Why would you think kindness and mercy are important to me?" Thranduil hissed.

"They are important to me, what you think of yourself is your own measure what I think of you is important only to me." Sam paused, knowing that his next words would probably enrage the being in front of him, "and I have no particular care for what you think of me."

"You will care when you have had years to think of it locked in my cells!" He threatened as he looked down upon him from the dias.

Sam laughed, startling the king, no mortal had ever reacted in such a way before, he was beginning to think the man was a little mad.

"Don't threaten me with a good time," he said caustically. "It's been a while since I've been tortured, are you going to grace me with this hospitality as well?"

The king schooled his face into his customary expression of icy disdain, but inwardly he was shocked at the Man's casual dismissal of pain. Before he had a chance to say anything else he heard, "You are mad." he looked over at his son. Legolas was staring at the man in horror and then he turned to his father, "Ada, let me take this Man away, there's no need to listen to the rest of his madness."

"No," Thranduil said consideringly. He stepped down from his throne. Making a slow circuit abound the man he looked him over. The man didn't even flinch when he leaned in close to inspect him like a horse. He did, however, growl when Thranduil pressed lightly at his mind, the king gracefully stepped back when it snapped shut to him like the jaws of an iron trap. "Put him in the Oak room." He looked him up and down again, "Get him a bath," he said, the corner of his mouth twitched up as he addressed the man again, "The hospitality of elves is far less barbaric than that of Men." He strode out of the throne room pausing only to glare at his son when he opened his mouth to protest. Legolas nodded, looking over to Tauriel before he followed his father.

Thranduil cut off his son's inquiry before it even started. "He is not of this world's Men."

Legolas paused before asking, "How is that possible?" He then rejoined with, "It explains how he suddenly appeared in the forest, we did not sense him until the spiders attacked."

Chapter Text

Sam stumbled upon Bilbo leading the dwarves down to the cellar, but when they froze at the sight him he just put his finger to his lips. Bilbo looked at him curiously and Sam simply leaned against the wall, closed his eyes and ignored them. If he were to walk away, they would think he was sounding the alarm. They all eyed him warily as they trouped by him. Bilbo stopped and in a moment of shrewdness said, "You can escape with us too."

Sam chuckled, "Little one, I am only an honoured guest here because I choose to be." Shouts echoed in the distance and Sam sank back against the wall. “Go on,” he said. The dwarves hurried forward but Bilbo lingered for a moment more. Sam cracked an eye open, “It whispers,” he remarked, and Bilbo tensed, “Don’t listen to it. Use it, don’t let it use you.” He closed his eyes again and smiled slightly when he heard the hobbit hesitantly join his companions.

Tauriel flew by him a few minutes later. He grinned innocently as she glared at him. ‘–The king will not be happy.– ’ she admonished him on her way down the stairs.

‘–I am but a single Man. I am no match against thirteen desperate dwarves.– ’ He called after her.