Thorin has felt someone following him for years, little did he know that it was someone who could unite the lines of Dwarves and Elves, and end the centuries old feud, just by existing. But now, thanks to a wandering wizard, this person had joined his quest to see his rightful place as king. Danger and turmoil follow the group wherever they may go and Thorin must make a choice between the King's Jewel and one who has grown close to his heart. But he isn't the only one!
Followed
He knew that he was being followed; he had been travelling with some other dwarfs in search of his father Thrain. He had been missing since the battle with the great white orc – Azog the Defiler. Although Thorin did not know who it was that followed him, there was an occasional sign, such as he frequently saw the glimpses of a shadow, saw an arrow that had been left behind or a piece of a cloak that was snagged by a branch. He always wondered just who this mystery figure was. Was it a dwarf? Maybe not, the shadows he had seen looked too tall to be of dwarf blood. It was too fluid, graceful and silent to be from the line of men. This meant that it could only be of one kind, an elf, and yet despite how much he hated elves, he could not bring himself to hate this one, even though it might not be an elf. That night, after everyone in camp had gone to sleep for the night, and he took first watch, he made a mental note in order to check whether he had gathered all of his supplies, ready for the return to his kin in the morning. Leaning against a tree, he held his sword tightly; he looked out over the dark land before him, which was only lit by the light of a full moon. It was a peaceful night, the only sounds being that of the nocturnal creatures that scurried up trees and ate plants before him. Nothing was there to cause a danger to him or his men and he soon found himself floating off to sleep in the peace and quiet.
However, he jolted awake as he heard the snapping of twigs and the scampering of animals, there was something coming straight towards him! Standing up, he grabbed his sword and unsheathed it in one quick motion, but he froze as he saw a figure stood before him. The only bit he could make out was their eyes, they glistened in the moonlight, and he found himself frozen in place by them. However, as soon as he saw them, the figure ran off, but this time Thorin wanted to know who it was.
"Wait!" He shouted after them, forgetting about the sleeping dwarves around him and as he ran off, after the figure, he ignored the waking up moans of his men.
He continued to run through the forest after the figure, suddenly the sound of footsteps changed to the sound of hooves and no matter how fast he ran, Thorin could not outrun a full grown horse. Breaking into a clearing he stopped as he caught the figure, sat in the saddle of a large horse, fully hooded and cloaked, watching him from the other end of the clearing. In the moonlight he could just make out their swords, their bow and their quiver full of arrows, as well as something on their wrist which looked like a gold bangle.
Suddenly he heard his name being called and the sound of footsteps coming closer, but his eyes never left that of the rider and he watched as they rode away into the mist of the other side of the clearing. There was silence for a few minutes, before he felt a presence behind him and found a grey dwarf beside him.
"There you are laddie." The dwarf told him, putting away his sword and stopping to catch his breath.
"What is it Balin?" Thorin asked, looking at the dwarf next to him.
"You disappeared, and orcs have been sighted nearby, so we need to stick together laddie." Balin told him.
Thorin sighed. "Alright Balin, let's go back to camp."
Together the two dwarves walked side by side, weapons at hand, back towards camp, they were both silent, Thorin contemplating this person, whilst Balin contemplated Thorin.
"Laddie..." Balin started.
"What Balin?" Thorin asked.
"What were you following, lad?" He asked. "Something brought you away from camp."
"I think that I am being followed." Thorin told him quietly, reaching into a pocket inside his cloak and he pulled out the tail end of an arrow, which he handed to Balin. As Balin inspected the weapon end, he too admired the craftsmanship, but then he too became wary.
"Who do you suppose owns it?" He asked, handing it back.
"I do not know, I just know that he isn't dwarven if they can craft items like that." He hid the arrow in his cloak once more. The two got back to camp just as everyone was getting ready to leave and they too started getting ready to return to their people.
Meanwhile, the hooded figure travelled upon a horse through the dense forest until they came to a sign that read for Bree. The faithful horse continued on towards the small town, his body needing rest, but he wanted to make sure that his rider was safe in the town of Bree. Up ahead, he saw the lights of the small town and as they reached the gates, he happily rode through them.
"Good evening young rider." The gatekeeper told them.
"Good evening." The rider spoke, though their voice was muffled behind the mask they wore.
From there they rode in silence, the horse knowing exactly where to go as they went unnoticed by most of the townsfolk, before they came to the stables of an Inn, aptly named the Prancing Pony. Giving the horse to the stable boy, along with some coin for his keep, the rider walked inside the Inn. As they waited at the desk, the Innkeeper walked over, cleaning his hands on an old rag at his waist. The man recognised the rider immediately so he knew exactly what they were looking for.
"Good evening ranger of the North, one room is it?" He asked, already holding out a key.
"Is he here?" The rider asked, taking the key, their voice still muffled by the mask.
"Aye, he is in the tavern, told me to give you this." He held out a letter to the rider, who reached out with a scarred hand and took it, before putting it into their pocket and exchanging it for some coins. When the coins were taken, the rider walked up to their room, where they locked the door and opened the letter. Yet the letter brought the rider no joy, only information. Weapons and cloak still in place, they left the room and headed downstairs and out of the Inn into the tavern that stood across the street. Upon entering, they found the one that they were looking for, sat in the corner was a man in grey cloaks, hair the colour of cooled ash, for Gandalf the Grey was why the rider had come.
Walking over, the rider put the letter between them on the table, and this caused the wizard to look up as the rider eased them self into the chair opposite him.
"Am I speaking with the fire ranger of the North?" Gandalf asked, his voice nothing but a hushed whisper.
The rider simply nodded, remaining hood, cloaked and masked.
"Excellent." He told them, putting his pipe away, he did not ask for the rider to uncover them self for her knew the hidden reasons behind being cloaked in a place such as this.
"What does the wandering wizard wish to speak to me about?" The rider asked, through muffling material that made up the cloak.
"I happen to have a favour to ask of you." Gandalf told them.
"What kind of favour?" The rider asked.
"An adventure to get rid of a dragon." Gandalf continued, and he saw the rider look up at him with eyes full of doubt yet interest.
"You speak of Smaug, the dragon that guards Erebor?"
"Yes, I have found the remaining Sons of Durin."
"What can I do?" The rider asked immediately.
The rider's sudden and immediate interest in the quest, at the mention of the line of Durin, surprised him but he still welcomed it.
"You can accompany us; your skills will be much appreciated."
The rider nodded, not even taking time to think it through. "Bring them to the valley, my wolf will meet you at the house in the Shire of where you planned to meet and guide you to me."
"Very well." Gandalf nodded. "Now, I believe this is where we part ways."
"It is." The rider stood and almost in a blink, they were gone, leaving Gandalf alone at the table. This adventure was not going to be boring at all, the wizard thought with a sly smile.