"I know that symbol." Thorin said. "What did you do to get that mark?"
"It is my own affair. Even if you are a king or a descendant of kings I will not answer you." the stranger said.
Thorin began to fume. There was a fire behind his eyes. All the dwarves seemed riled and edgy. At this particular moment Gandalf chose to step in.
"Will you not tell your name to an old man if not to these dwarves?" he asked the woman.
Reluctantly she answered him. "My name is Eleona."
"That was not so hard then was it?" Gandalf asked her.
Thorin looked up at Gandalf and said to him, "This is none of your concern. What we do with are own kind has not to do with you."
"I think it is very much my concern seeing as you dwarves have taken a blade to her throat. What has she ever done to you?" There was silence as nobody spoke up. "Tell me now!" Gandalf rumbled as he grew taller and the room seemed to darken.
"I was banished from the dwarven realm when I was younger. The mark on my forehead is a message to all other dwarves to turn me away." Eleona told Gandalf and Thorin listened unhappily.
No outsider has every known of the custom of banishment that the dwarves still keep. To the dwarves it would be a disgrace to have all of middle earth know that they have people that are not worthy to be in their kingdom. Thus they keep it a secret and nobody but a dwarf would know what that tattoo means.
"Why then were you banished?" Gandalf questioned.
"I can not say." Eleona told him.
"Very well I will not press you more on that matter. Have you anybody you are staying with for the next couple of weeks?"
The sudden realization of what Gandalf was doing hit Thorin.
"You can't possibly be planning to bring her along?" he asked.
"What I plan is none of your "concern" Thorin Oakinshield." Gandalf replied pointedly.
Afterwards it was finally decided that Eleona would come along but the dwarves were still suspicious of her and wholly against it. Bilbo on the other hand thought kindly of her and gave her a comfortable chair to sleep in for the night. In the morning the dwarves had left early and Eleona had gone with them, but Bilbo had slept in late. As he awoke he wondered if last night had been just a terrible dream. Then he remembered all the events of the evening. He panicked slightly that the dwarves had left without him and he hurried to pack his things. Unknowingly Bilbo left his beautifully embroidered handkerchief on his desk. He ran quickly through the Shire and caught up to the dwarves as they were riding along on ponies. Eleona proved tall enough to ride a horse, which seemed odd to the dwarves because most of their kind could not accomplish such a thing. They also had noticed in the morning light a dwarvish bow on her back and a small sword at her side. The bow was skillfully crafted with yew wood and had metal tips. The handle has made of leather that overlapped in a dwarven pattern and there were a few markings on the limbs of the bow. This lay over her long cloak and then small sword at her side was double edged and in a plain scabbard.
"Wait for me!" Bilbo called.
He handed the contract that he had signed last night to Balin and he inspected the signature.
"Everything seems to be in order. Your all set." Balin exclaimed.
The dwarves started off again and Bilbo followed along walking.
Bofur looked back at him and asked, "You don't plan to walk the whole way do you?"
"I'm fine on my own feet." the hobbit replied.
"Give him the baggage pony." Thorin muttered.
Bilbo's protests were useless as two of the dwarves came riding up behind him and picked him up off his feet and placed him on the baggage pony which they had made some room on for the hobbit.
He rode next to Eleona and began to talk to her.
"Do you normally travel alone?" he asked
"Yes normally. I prefer it that way."
"That seems like a very lonely way to live." the hobbit commented.
"Being alone gives you time to reflect on things." Eleona said.
"Such as what?"
Eleona sighed and took a moment before she answered. "Well things like wondering how people can hold on to hate for so long? Don't they ever grow tired of wrath and long for peace?"
She feel silent after that and would say no more. Her thoughts seemed to Bilbo to stray where they probably always did when she traveled alone.