A/N: Just a quick shoutout to all those who already alerted this story, and to the wonderful person who left her mark as first reader to review. It really is a pleasure to write for people. :)


3. A merry gathering


I started seriously freaking out as soon as the doorbell rang.

I was about to meet one of the characters I fangirled about the most in a book.

Bilbo was one thing. The dwarves...a whole other...


"Miss Ari? Could you answer the door? It probably is Hamfast Gamgee come to talk about plants and bushes and things."

I dearly wanted to tell him that I didn't think this was Hamfast at all, but still...

I put my hand onto the handle, and turned.

As soon as the door turned, the dwarf pushed past me and inside.


Dwalin was bold, indeed, but wore no tattoos on his skull. He was taller than me by a head, yes, and seemed to be heavily muscled under his dark-green tunic.

He hung his dark-green hood to the nearest peg, then turned to me, and his eyes widened.

"Dwalin, at your service!" and he bowed.

I bowed back. "Ari...at yours."

"I was under the impression you would have been male."

I chuckled darkly. "I am not Bilbo Baggins. He is currently in some other room."

Dwalin didn't say a word, and stood there for a loooong moment.

Until Bilbo hurried from the guest room. Then he bowed again and re-offered his services.

"Bilbo Baggins, at yours." Bilbo eyed me suspiciously, but I shrugged, clearly meaning I didn't know anything about this unexpected guest. Which was little true, though. Bilbo, being who he was, couldn't stand a silence for too long. "We were about to have tea; pray come and have some with us."

I followed the tall dwarf into the kitchen, where he sat and seemed to like the tea he was offered, along with one, two, three cakes.


Sometimes I wondered if Hobbits were heavily rich or something. I would have bought one cake for tea, not three!

And then, the doorbell rang again.


I gestured Bilbo to stay where he was. "I've got the door, Bilbo." Muttering between my teeth that I hoped Balin was half as nice as he was in the books and movies.

I opened the door, and my eyes widened.

Balin was old-looking, yes, but he was so kind-eyed that I wondered how he could even be a warrior. He would easily pass as someone incapable of killing even a fly.

"Ah, I see they have begun to arrive already" he hung his red hood next to Dwalin's, then bowed to me. "Balin, at your service!"

I bowed back. "Ari, at yours. Please follow me, Mister Bilbo is tending to his other guest in the kitchen."

To my surprise, Balin didn't press the matter of my presence any more. He was already proving to be cunning.

Balin bowed to Bilbo once more, then smirked to the other dwarf in the room.

"Hello there, brother!"

Dwalin stood, and went to stand by his older sibling, taking his head between his huge hands, and banging his forehead against Balin's. "Brother..."

Bilbo seemed properly frightened at that, which made me laugh, but only a little.

"Please, have some tea with us!"

Balin shook his head. "A little beer would suit me better, if it is all the same to you, my good sir. But I don't mind some cake – seed-cake, if you have any."

"Lots!" I chuckled at the look of horror on Bilbo's face as he realised what he had said. Then he hurried to the pantry.


I sat back down and sipped on my tea – which was threatening to be cold soon – when Balin started staring at me in obvious wonder.

"Are you a dwarf, Miss Ari?"

I nearly choked on my tea, and shook my head vigorously. "No, I'm not. Last I checked, I was human, but seemingly shorter than usual."

"Yes, indeed." He seemed to be deep in thought after that.


Bilbo came back from his pantry and put the beer and cake in front of his new guest, when the doorbell ran twice. "Gandalf for certain this time."

I was impressed he even put two with two at the arrival of unknown dwarves.

But apparently, he had remembered his meeting with the old wizard.

That's when I started hyperventilating. Gandalf. The wizard.

What would he make of me?