The scorching pain on his leg stung like mad. Billy could only feel this horrible pain, but nothing else, all his other senses locked down. Then he felt a cold touch on his skin and all of the sudden his skin went numb and he felt pain no more for the time being – he drifted out of consciousness once again and felt nothing more.
“Uhh…?” Billy says when he woke up.
“Don’t move. Yer leg is in real bad shape an’ lost a bit o’ blood already.” Said a hobbit lad but Billy couldn’t make him out, his eyesight was all blurry but his hearing seems to have stayed the same – more or less.
“Who…? Were…? ‘ow…?” Billy croaks trying to remember exactly what happened.
“I’m Bounder Boffin. Yer in Scary – I brought yer ‘ere when we found yer being scratched by wolves… So close to Scary as if we haven’t git problems with the quarry…”
“Wat yer did ter me leg? I can’t ‘eel any ‘ain no more…” Billy mumbles.
“Yer leg… Well yer’ll be able ter use it again after a few days – jest needs sum rest. The scars and wounds on yer leg has closed up fer now.”
“Thanks…” Billy mutters.
“Go to sleep now. When yer awaken yer’ll be fully healed.” Bounder Boffin says. And Billy reluctantly obeyed and fell into deep sleep.
______ __________ _______
When he awoken again, he found his eyesight returning, he found that he could move his muscles again. “Yer all right?” said Bounder Boffin. The bounder was a young lad (Billy guessed that this bounder was in his late tweens) with curly chestnut hair and brown eyes; he wore a cap with a feather – the bounder’s cap.
“I am.” Billy replied.
“Good. As I’ve said before yer jest need ter rest yer leg fer a few days. I suspect that yer hungry?”
Billy’s eyes widened, “Aye! I’m starvin’!” Then he watched Bounder Boffin smile and leave the room.
When he returned an hour later, he carried a plateful of food – taters, mushrooms, a few slices of apple crumble, a few sausages and a cup of ale. Billy gobbled up the meal so fast you would have thought he hadn’t eaten for weeks.
“Blimey yer were hungry!” Bounder Boffin exclaimed!
“How long have I been ‘ere?” Billy asks, noting he was in a rather small room with barely nothing except a bed, a table and a few chairs as well as paintings.
“Four days now… We all thought yer were dead when we found yer!”
“‘We?’” Billy mumbles.
“The other folks helped me carry yer ter this house – they helped me healed yer as well, especially me younger brother – Losco.”
“Did yer deal with the wolves?” Billy asked
“Aint need ter. They fled soon as they saw us. Good ting fer us – we’re already git problems with the quarry imagine those wolves too…”
“Wat’s wrong with the quarry?”
“Nuthin’” Bounder Boffin lied. “I gotta go an’ see ter matters… Don’t leave the room please!” Then he left the room and he could hear the front door slammed shut. Billy laid on the bed for a few more minutes before getting up and walking around the room to test his leg. He notes that he can’t run at all without hurting his leg but aside from that his leg was alright.
After he walked around the room a bit, he opened the room door and started exploring the whole house. The house was rather small with only about five or six rooms (three of them were bedrooms and rather small ones too), the rooms were completely filled with paintings and trophies and statues, there was hardly a room without one of these!
Then he heard a scream just outside the house, he walked quickly outside then he saw some hobbits running away from the quarry and one was screaming, “Spiders!”
Bounder Boffin says, “Now, don’t worry folks, we, bounders will sort this out!”
Billy walked up to him and says, “Um, Mr Boffin. Can yer tell me what’s goin’ on?”
“I thought I told yer ter stay in tha’ room!” he exclaims.
“Tha’ aint matters. Please tell me what’s goin’ on.”
Mr Boffin grumbles, “Sum’ of our miners were mining but then they found spiders crawlin’ outta it! Now the folks ‘ere are terrified tha’ the spiders will invade the town!”
Billy mutters, “I’ll take care of it. But I need me weapons…”
“Yer! But yer leg an’ yer jest a boy!” he cries out.
Billy says, “We’re roughly tha’ same age.” Then Bounder Boffin huffed into the house and came back with Billy’s bow and quiver of arrows and his dagger.
“I hope yer know what yer doin’…”
“I don’t. Yet…” Billy grins then he marches quickly to the quarry. But then, fear started to take him over – he wasn’t exactly the bravest lad in the whole Shire and he was terrified of spiders… However, he could not admit that he wanted to help the folks of Scary even if it did mean he was probably going to die in result.
He arrived and he found the mine swarming with spiders, Billy quickly drew out his bow and arrow and shot a couple of spiders but that only brought more spiders on his heels as more dropped dead! He carried on shooting then he realised he was down to his last few arrows - he thought he would a fool to waste these precious arrows when something greater can be lurking in the caves below…
He hastily strolled down the cliff path then as he saw more spiders on his heels, he ran with all his speed, he cried out in pain but he could not stop running without knowing that he will die! He could hear growls and roars of hundreds of spiders behind him – all starving… “Oh, why did I git meself into this mess…” Billy cried out. But then out of all sudden, he hurled himself into the cave’s entrance – hoping to escape from spiders!
Then he heard a noise. A crash, a bang and a growl… Reluctantly he moved forward into the dark, creepy cave – the growls grew louder and louder. He could drops of water behind him as well – Drip. Drip. Drip. He followed the tunnel to the end chamber that was filled with spider webs and dead bodies. Then he heard a roar behind him – he turned around then he saw it.
The most hideous, largest, hairiest spider he ever saw – he guessed this was the spider-queen. She crawled along to Billy but Billy didn’t do anything – he was too petrified, frozen to the spot. The spider-queen growled happily while Billy just turned very pale. “So many tings I never git do so…” Billy starts, “Mum… Dad…” But then, a flare of bravery and courage snapped into Billy as he shook his head and screamed, “No!”
Billy took out an arrow and shot it at the spider who screeched like mad – wounded but not dead. Then Billy did it again and again with a few more arrows by then he was on his last arrow… “Come on… Please…” Billy pleads to his arrow.
He shoots and then the spider-queen drops right dead with arrows sticking out of it. Billy shivers then says, “Really… Really ugly spider…” Then he bolts with swift speed hoping to escape the quarry, when he reached outside, he saw the spiders were still there but a little fewer, he reckoned that a few bounders would be able to deal with the remaining spiders.
He continued to sprint across the quarry and out of it until he was very far away from it and Scary, he then collapsed, his leg was aching with agony. Billy gave a soft smile then laid still on the ground hoping to rest his poor leg. Then he crouched and moved as slowly as he could across the fields without giving his leg too much pain.
When he arrived near a sort-of-stage, he climbed up it but pain and weariness overwhelmed him and then he faints…
