Oneshots from different Fandoms

The Hobbit- The Greedy Man's Curse

The Dwarves cursed and shoved, as they were forced into cells in the darkness of the Mirkwood Palace.

"Damn it!" Thorin cursed as he crashed his fist agaisnt the bars of his cell.

"It's no use trying." A soft voice called from the dark, in defeat. Thorin and the others peaked through the bars, craning to see who had spoken. With a limp, a brunette human appeared at the bars of a nearby cell.

"Who're you?" Thorin demanded as he jutted his chin out towards her. The young woman seemed to shrink in on herself, at the harsh tone of his voice. She pulled away from the door, almost slinking back into the shadows, before she found her courage again.

"Lenore. I was locked up for accidentally trespassing as I fled from Orcs." Her voice was timid and shy, but clear enough for the others all to hear. Thorin sighed through his nose, and slunk away from the bars, to the darker corners of his cell. How could he manage to get them all stuck in prison? Their quest was surely doomed now. The King dropped to the cold, stone floor, and leant his head back against the wall.

"I'll wager the sun is on the rise. It must be nearly dawn." Bofur called out to the others as they all sat silently in their cells.

"We're never gonna reach the Mountain are we?" Young Ori replied sorrowful.

"Not stuck in here you're not." Bilbo's soft whisper cut through the otherwise still air, as he held up a large ring of keys, shaking them at Thorin, as he rose his head in sudden hope.

"Bilbo!" Shouts of joy and relief sprung from the Dwarves, and Lenore quickly hobbled to her cell door, spotting the small Hobbit quickly unlocking the cells, as he tried to shush them, warning them of the nearby guards.

Hope rose in Lenore's chest, and she gripped the bars with whitening knuckles.

"Hey!" She whisper yelled, as she watched Bilbo move about the dungeons, from staircase to staircase, freeing his companions. Bilbo glanced at her but was urged forwards by one of the others, towards another cell.

"Hey! Wait, please!" She called again, raising her voice slightly. She drew the attention of the now freed company, as they glared at her volume level. Bilbo looked to Thorin in question.

"Please." Lenore begged once more as she pressed her face against the bars, meeting Thorin's cold stare. Thorin grumbled under his breath before turning away, gesturing back at her. Lenore melted in relief, as Bilbo quickly climbed the stairs to her cell, unlocking it. She couldn't help herself, pulling the halfling into a quick hug. She let him go, and quickly hobbled after the Dwarves, before Bilbo scurried ahead of them to lead the way.

Down and down they went, following the small Hobbit into the Cellars.

.o0O0o.
"I can pay for it?" Lenore shyly spoke up from the back of the group.

They hadn't had much time to ring out their clothes before a Bargeman had threatened them with a bow. The Dwarves had quickly moved to bargin a lift from Bard.

They had almost forgotten the lass was with them. They turned to look at her, before she asked a suspiciously, curious question.

"May I burrow a blade?" The Dwarves, though confused, patted their pockets in search of any weapons the Elves may have missed. Bard swiftly pulled a small pocket knife from his jacket, breast pocket, and flipped the handle outwards, offering it to the young woman with a curious gaze.

"Here." She took the blade with an awkward nod of thanks. Pulling up her sleeve she revealed her forearm. She dragged the blade across her skin, before quickly holding her arm out.

"Quickly now." With curious, and concerned eyes, Bard held out his hand in confusion. Twisting her arm slightly, the group were suddenly shocked to see, liquid gold, dribble from her open wound. The gold began to fill up Bards hand as he quickly moved his other to join the first, before she swiftly pulled away again, gripping the wound with her other hand, careful not to cut herself further with the knife. The gold turned solid and heavy in Bard's hands, he inspected the mass curiously.

"Here, let me." Oddly, Fili was the first to react. Tearing off the bottom of his shirt, to tightly wrap the strip around the woman's wound.

"Thank you." Lenore blushed furiously, and Fili smiled fondly at the action, she was a sweet young maiden. The pair parted as Lenore moved to find a spot to sit and rest her leg. Eventually the others began to settle too, moving to sit around the barge. Fili moved beside Lenore, careful to give her, her space, as she appeared to be in thought.

"How did you come to be this way?" Fili asked softly, breaking her from her thoughts. The question was just loud enough to draw everyone's attention, even if some pretended not to be listening. Lenore looked at the group, scattered around the barge, before sighing softly.

"It's called The Greedy Man's Curse. It's not well known, but near the edge of Mirkwood forest, there lies a Sacred Fountain. The Fountain cannot always be seen, but only under the light of a Yellow Moon, and only for the hour the moon is at its peak. The fountain turns anything, that touches its waters, to Gold." Lenore began to explain as she frowned, the memories of the night rushing to the fore-front of her mind.

"I had just watched my family slaughtered by an Orc raid on our village. I had mistakenly taken refuge in the forest. Tired, weak, and dying of thirst. I didn’t think twice when I saw the fountain." Subconsciously, Lenore moved her hand from her knee, to anxiously rub her lower leg.

"Not only did I touch the water, but I drank from it. You can imagine my surprise when a small golden Faerie, angrily appeared before me. She gave me twelve Yellow Moons. There are two a month, by the time the twelth Yellow Moon reached its peak in the sky, I would be reduced to solid Gold." As she finished she struggled to lift the bottom of her right pant leg. She pulled it up, and pulled down the top of her boot, to reveal solid gold. From half-way up her shin, to the tips of her toes, had become solid, shiny, gold.

"I promtly spent the next four months in Thranduil's dungeons. Arrested for trespassing in the King's forset." Lenore sighed out, as she readjusted her pant leg back over the frozen limb. Sadly, she seemed resigned to her fate, and this concerned Fili.

"You only have four moons left." Balin said softly as they looked at the poor woman, too young to die.

"Aye."

AN: This was inspired by another one shot I read with the cursed water turning them to gold, but for the life of me, I can't remember where I read it. If you figure it out, please let me know.