MY DEARS! :D
At last, the second installment of "Home Is Where the Heart Is" is up! This one will be following "The Desolation of Smaug" (which, by the way, is FREAKING AMAZING!)
I am sorry it took me longer than I anticipated! I needed to see the new movie a couple of times in order to remember everything that happened, especially for this first scene.
I do hope all of you will enjoy this story as much as the first one and be prepared for a lot of new twists to the story! :D
Enjoy! :)
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It had been a few days since the company of Thorin Oakenshield had left Carrock. After fleeing the Misty Mountains from Azog, the Defiler, they were now on the run. Now, the pale Orc and his Orc pack were chasing them and the company was making their way cautiously through the woods.
One morning, just as the sun was on the rise, Thorin ordered for Bilbo Baggins, the Hobbit and burglar of the group, to climb up onto a hillside and be the lookout; to see if he could spot Azog and see how close the pack was. As Bilbo started up the path, someone else stepped forward and offered to go with him.
It was Airaním Goldenheart; the only Dwarf-woman of the company and Thorin's adopted daughter.
She didn't want her good Hobbit friend to go up alone, just in case he was spotted or if he ran into other trouble. She wanted to go with him to make sure he was protected.
Both Bilbo and Aira made their way up the hillside path until they reached the top where they both carefully peeked over the edge at the other parts of the mountains not too far away. The foothills were colored a dark pink from the light of the approaching sunrise and there were were thick white clouds and mist that draped over them like a curtain.
Sure enough, they quickly spotted Azog and the pack riding along fast on the nearest foothill. Azog halted his followers for a moment and started to look around. Seeing them stop, both Aira and Bilbo silently ducked down to avoid being seen. They stayed there for a moment until they heard the sound of the Orcs and the Wargs riding off again. They hadn't been spotted, luckily enough.
However, they both heard a growling noise nearby and Aira's hand instinctively shot down to the hilt of her sword. The two of them peered around the stone they were standing by and saw a huge, bear-like creature peering over the hillside, growling. In a panic, they ducked down again in case the beast turned to look at them, but it didn't move. Taking that as a cue to leave, they shared a silent glance, knowing they both were thinking the same thing, and took off running back down the hill, hearing the creature let out a loud roar behind them.
As they approached the bottom of the hill, they spotted the company waiting for them down below.
"How close is the pack?" asked Thorin urgently as they came down.
"Too close!" Bilbo breathed out. "A couple of leagues, no more. But that's not the worst of it."
"Have the Wargs picked up our scent?" Dwalin then asked, stepping forward.
Still trying to catch his breath, Bilbo answered "Not yet, but they will…but we have another problem."
Then Gandalf spoke up behind them, "Did they see you? They saw you?"
"No, no, but—"
A proud smile spread across Gandalf's face as he turned to the rest of the company and declared, "What did I tell you? Quiet as a mouse! Excellent burglar material."
The others began to murmur in agreement, ignoring the fact that Bilbo was trying to get their attention and tell them something.
"Will you just listen?" Aira finally cried out to silence them.
Once he had their attention, Bilbo told them, pointing up towards the top of the hill, "I am trying to tell you: there's something else out there!"
The other Dwarves grew concerned and began to look to one another in fear.
"What form did it take?" Gandalf asked hesitantly. "Like a bear?"
Both Aira and Bilbo, along with the others, looked to him in surprise. How did he know what the creature was?
"Y—yes, but bigger. Much bigger!" Bilbo answered.
"You knew about this beast?" Bofur questioned him suspiciously, but Gandalf just turned away, looking nervous.
Aira turned to Thorin standing behind her. "I say we double back," she suggested to him.
"And be run down by a pack of Orcs?" he replied.
Before she or anyone else could respond, Gandalf turned back to the company and said to them, "There is a house…not far from here where we might take refuge."
Something about that statement sounded slightly suspicious to Thorin. "Whose house?" he asked, feeling unsure. "Are they friend or foe?"
"Neither. He will help us or…he will kill us," was Gandalf's answer, which didn't make anyone in the company feel any better. If anything, it made them more nervous.
"That's reassuring…!" Aira thought to herself.
Unfortunately, Thorin could see no other alternative, so he asked, really out loud than to anyone in general, "What choice do we have?"
Just then, they all heard the beast up at the top of the hill roar again and everyone jumped and flinched in fear. They had a feeling that was not a good sign and that the beast was about to come down upon them.
In response to Thorin's question, Gandalf, with an expression of defeat in his face, answered, "None."
With that being said, the company took off running. They weaved their way through the trees and through the meadows in the woods, hearing the Orc pack just leagues behind them.
"Come on!" Gandalf called over his shoulder to those that were falling behind.
Suddenly they heard the roar of the beast again echoing in the trees, this time much louder than before. The bear was closer on their tail than the pack and was gaining on them.
"This way, quickly!' shouted Gandalf, signaling everyone to keep going.
Aira was doing her best to keep up, but she noticed up ahead that Bombur was standing in place, looking horrified.
"Bombur, come on!" she cried, grabbing his looped, braided beard and turning him around as she ran past him.
The continued to run, jumping over rocks and fallen branches in their way, knowing they had to go fast or be overtaken by an angry bear. Soon they came to the edge of the woods and the sun was shining brightly on the open woodland area.
"To the house!" cried Gandalf, pointing forward. "Run!"
Aira looked and, sure enough, up ahead she could see a large gate and a wooden house just behind it. They were almost there! There was another roar just as the group approached the gate. However, to everyone's surprise, Bombur, who was completely scared out of wits, was running faster than everybody and was going to beat them all to the gate.
"Come on, get inside!" Gandalf said, ushering everyone inside the gate.
They were almost to the large door of the house. Bombur was the first to the gate, but found out that it was actually locked when he slammed into it, staggered backwards and fell right onto Aira who had come up right behind him. The two of them fell right to the ground and Bombur knocked the breath right out of Aira as they hit, causing her to let out a wheezy gasp.
"Bombur…!" Aira groaned as the overly-large Dwarf rolled off of her, apologizing. Within half a second, Bofur rushed over to help his brother up and Nori helped Aira back to her feet. As she stood up, she turned to see the giant bear emerging from the woods, growling menacingly, and charging right towards the gate. The others were pushing and shoving the door as hard as they could, trying to get it open.
"Open the door!" Gandalf shouted, clearly in a panic as the bear was gaining ground.
"Quickly!" cried Thorin, who then pushed his way through the company to the door and lifted the latch, unlocking it and pushing the doors open.
The company all scrambled in through the half-open doors into the house as the bear got closer and closer. As they started to close, the bear then started trying to shove through the doors, the force of the beast slamming into the door driving some of the Dwarves to stagger backwards. Groaning and shouting at each other to push, the Dwarves fought back, shoving the door against the beast to try and close them and keep it out as it growled and tried to pry its way through.
Next to her, Aira saw Bilbo unsheathe his sword and point it towards the door boldly in case the bear got through. She could see in his face that he was trying to be brave, but in his eyes, he was frightened. But the fact that he was doing his best to be valiant in the face of danger made Aira proud. She admired the great amount of courage he had for a Hobbit who had never been in battle or faced any dangerous creatures before.
Finally, the others were able to get the door shut and locked, keeping the beast out. Once the door was secure, they all started panting and gasping for air.
"What is that?" cried Ori worriedly, turning to Gandalf who stood behind all of them.
"That is our host," Gandalf answered, earning himself a few shocked looks from the others. "His name is Beorn…and he is a skin-changer."
"A skin-changer?" asked Aira. "I thought they all lived in the mountains?"
"Evidently not all of them," said the wizard. He began to wander around the room, which almost seemed like a stable next to a living room, because there were cows inside and hay on the floor. "Sometimes he is a huge black bear, sometimes he is a great, strong man. The bear is unpredictable, but the man can be reasoned with. However…he is not over fond of Dwarves."
The others all glanced at each other, thinking that the fact they were in the house of someone who didn't like Dwarves seemed almost outrageous.
Ori had moved back over the door and had his ear pressed up against it, listening to what was going on outside. He could hear footsteps growing fainter and he quietly informed the company that the beast was leaving.
But then Dori jumped over and pulled him away, his face written with alarm. "Come away from there!" he commanded his little brother. "It's not natural, none of it!"
He looked up suspiciously at Gandalf. "It's obvious: he's under some dark spell!" he spat out, as if accusing Gandalf of being the cause for Beorn's condition.
"Don't be a fool," Gandalf replied with contempt. "He's under no enchantment but his own." With that, he took off his large hat and wandered to the side of the room. "All right, now, get some sleep, all of you," he ordered the others. "We'll be safe here tonight…I hope."
Only Aira heard him mumble the last two words and she couldn't help but roll her eyes and sigh quietly. This whole situation with the skin-changer just kept getting more and more unnerving and it didn't help when even Gandalf was nervous about it.
When the others started putting down their weapons and packs, she spotted Thorin over in a corner, slowly inching down the wall to sit down and his teeth gritted as he moved. She knew exactly why: back on the Misty Mountains he had been badly wounded by Azog as well as his Warg. His wounds had healed over the last few days they had traveled, but his body was still a little sore, especially after all the running they just had to do. She too had received an injury from the pale Orc and had needed the extra time to heal, as well. She was glad they both had had good and smooth recoveries so as to not slow them down or prolong the quest at all.
In a couple swift steps, she moved over by his side and swung one of his arms over her shoulders. At this sudden gesture, he glanced at her curiously.
"Let me help you," she simply told him.
A slight grin curled up on his face and he leaned onto her a little, letting her take his weight as she helped him lower down onto the hay-covered floor. He let out a contented groan as they both sat down and he lifted his arm from her shoulders.
"Thank you, Aira," Thorin said to her as he set his sword, Orcrist, down on the ground next to him.
After giving him a nod, Aira asked him, "How are you feeling, Father?"
Thorin looked back to her and his expression changed to one of both surprise and delight, his eyes suddenly softening and growing brighter than normal; a certain look that she had never seen before.
"What…?" she asked him, confused.
He closed his eyes, shook his head and snickered ever so lightly. "I am still getting used to hearing you call me 'Father'…," he proudly admitted with a smile that stretched across his face.
Happily, Aira returned his smile with a bright, glad smile of her own. That was still relatively new to the both of them. Thorin for many years had been so fearful of admitting to Aira that he really loved her as a daughter and had just barely done so when they were at Carrock, after the two of them had nearly died at the hands of Azog. Aira, in turn, admitted that she viewed Thorin as her true father now, even though her birth father, Rimedur, would always have a special place in her heart. Because of that, she had barely started calling Thorin "Father" and it felt right to the both of them.
Thorin then answered her question with, "I'm feeling all right. How are you feeling?"
Aira simply shrugged and replied, "The same, I suppose."
"Well, Bombur did fall on you earlier."
She chuckled. "Aye, he did, but that's nothing I can't handle. I am, however, a little exhausted from the running."
Then she looked at Thorin seriously as a concern came to her mind. "We need to be more careful," she told him, her voice steady and full with warning. "Every day, the pack is gaining on us more and more and they are travelling fast. Azog has it out for both of us…and if I know him, which I do, he will not stop until he gets what he wants…which is you and me; he wants your head and me as his slave again."
Thorin sat up from against the wall and grasped Aira's face gently in his hands, his blue eyes looking intently into her brown ones. "You know that I will never let that happen!" he told her firmly. "You know that I will never let him come near you ever again!"
As he reminded her of that promise, he remembered her horrible story that she had told him of when she ended up as Azog's slave for a majority of the years she had been gone. The anger he had felt upon hearing that story began to boil up again inside him. It didn't help as images of the Defiler torturing her back in the Misty Mountains flooded his mind. Feelings of helplessness and fury filled his soul and he could feel that he would lose his composure at any moment if he did not calm himself. He exhaled sharply to help relieve the tension and his gaze lowered away from hers.
Aira could tell that he was remembering everything and she reached up and took his hands in hers, lightly pulling them away from her face. "I know you won't," she calmly reassured him, "and neither will I or anyone else in this company. All I am saying is…when we get back on the road, we need to be more cautious. I know that Azog was close behind us as we were running. I would not be surprised if he followed us all the way here and is somewhere nearby."
"If that is true, wouldn't he have tried to come in and attack us already?" Thorin questioned her.
She shook her head. "No, I don't think so this time. That bear, Beorn, beat him here, so he was bound to have seen it. You saw how huge that creature was. He could overtake the entire Orc pack all on his own. No…Azog is clever and knows not to take chances against anything that could potentially beat him in any way. He would not come near this place, not with the beast still outside, who, I would imagine, is still close by someplace."
"Well, let us hope that he is. That way we can keep Azog at bay for a while."
"And let's also hope that he, as a human, can be reasoned with as Gandalf claims. I didn't like hearing how uncertain he was about that."
"All we can do is trust that the wizard knows what he is doing. Do not fear." Thorin leaned forward and tenderly kissed her brow like he always did.
Aira turned her head and watched the others settling down. Some of them, like Oin, Gloin, Bombur and Dori were already lying down on their blankets and either relaxing or falling asleep. Others, like Bofur, Ori, Dwalin and Balin were wandering around the room and examining the workmanship of the walls and the furniture. She spotted Bifur wandering aimlessly around, looking completely lost, and she couldn't help but giggle. Then she spotted Nori fingering some things on a shelf and she shot him a warning look, knowing that he was scanning for any potential items he could pocket away. In response, Nori rolled his eyes and moved away from the shelf.
Then she spotted the remaining two of the group; her two best and closest friends, Fili and Kili. Fili was pretty much Aira's older brother and she was just as much a sister to him. And then Kili was the love of her life. They had been in love practically their whole lives but never realized nor admitted it to each other until they had taken refuge in Rivendell. Only a few nights previous, Kili had asked Aira to marry him once the journey was over.
"Go on," Thorin told her, grinning and gesturing to his nephews. "Your fiancée is waiting for you."
And the best part was that Thorin and the rest of the company were told of the news the following morning of Kili's proposal and they were beyond joyful. The two of them had received very hearty cheers and well wishes from Bilbo and Gandalf and then many "congratulations" and "it's about time's" from the other Dwarves. Thorin and Fili, however, had been the most happy and excited upon hearing the news. Fili had actually tackle-hugged his brother to the ground and the smile that Thorin had became too large for his face; it had been perhaps the biggest, happiest smile anyone in the company had ever seen from him. He couldn't have been more proud of his nephew and his daughter.
Aira gave Thorin a quick kiss on his cheek, got up and then walked over to where Fili and Kili stood, both of them grinning as she came over.
"Are you all right, Aira?" Kili asked her, taking her hand. "You took quite a spill with Bombur."
She nodded. "Yes, I'm fine. He didn't hurt me. Just winded me."
"It's a good thing that bear is gone and isn't chasing us anymore," said Fili, looking very relieved. "That beast was scary."
"That, he was," Kili agreed.
"Let's hope that the bear once he's human again will be less terrifying," said Aira, "and that he'll be willing to help us."
"I'm sure he's not as bad as Gandalf makes him out to be," said Fili as he got out his bedroll and laid it out on the ground.
Both Kili and Aira followed his example and got out their own bedrolls, laying them down by each other. The two of them laid down on the ground facing each other and their hands entwined as they gazed fondly at one another.
"Are your wounds all healed now?" Kili asked her.
She gave him a nod. "I am still sore at times, but I've learned to ignore it." Then she gave him a mock-serious look. "Now, don't you go and get wounded on me," she told him, lightly poking him in the chest.
He just laughed. "Please, Aira," he scoffed, "I'm untouchable!"
She cocked an eyebrow at him in response to his comment.
His hand came up and cupped her cheek and his gaze softened. "Don't worry, Aira," he said reassuringly, "I will do my best to not get hurt. And I know that I have Thorin and Fili and the others to protect me and I have you."
"And you know I won't let anyone hurt you," Aira said back. She shifted closer to Kili and gently pressed her forehead to his. "It's not just your duty to protect me. I have to protect you, too. We are to be married eventually which means we both must put in more effort and do our best to keep each other safe as well as looking after ourselves."
Kili wrapped his arms around his fiancée and pulled her close, kissing her hair and breathing in her scent deeply. His dear Aira never ceased to amaze and move him with her loyalty and love for him. There was no doubt in his mind that she was the one he was meant to spend the rest of his life with. She was everything he ever dreamed of.
"You are my future, Aira," he whispered to her. "I will do everything I can to keep you safe and I promise to look after myself."
"As do I...because you are my future, too, Kili," she whispered back.
They shared a gentle, loving kiss before snuggling close to each other, ready to get some rest, both of them glad to be inside a safe place away from the dangers that waited outside.
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And now, let the journey continue! :D
I do hope that was a good enough start for the story for you all :)
Please leave a review or send me a PM, as per usual, with your thoughts and/or comments! :D
Happy New Year, everyone! :D