Addy could recall being lifted by strong arms but nothing more. After having been stuck in the dark for what felt like an eternity she finally found the ability to open her eyes. She awoke in a room in a four post bed with a roaring fire in the hearth. This was not a house she was accustomed to being in. Actually it was the coziest place she had ever been. Looking down at herself she realized that she had been bathed, bandaged, and was wearing some sort of odd night gown. Utterly confused as to where she was and how she had gotten there Addy set out to find some answers.
She could hear a great deal of commotion coming from across the house. Following the noise Addy stumbled upon the most unusual group of men she had ever seen. They all had grand beards, save for one of the younger fellows, and hair that was braided in ways unbeknownst to Addy. And yet there was something familiar about the lot that she couldn't quite put her finger on. Upon further investigation she noticed a very large man sitting at the table as well. He looked to be a giant compared to the rest of them. He had the longest beard she had ever laid eyes on and was clad in grey from head to toe. He had kind eyes she noticed; they were full of wisdom it seemed. Lastly there was a shorter man standing next to the giant holding a candle over a piece of parchment. His features were boyish and his face looked as if he had never frowned once in his entire life. He had curly brown hair and wore the most peculiar clothing consisting of corduroy capris along with a dress shirt and a waist coat. The thing that seemed the most unusual about this fellow were his huge feet. He had the biggest and hairiest feet Addy had ever seen. After having thoroughly investigated the scene from behind a cupboard Addy felt it was time to make her presence known.
"Hi" was all she could think of to say. She had never really enjoyed addressing large groups of people before and there had to be at least 14 of them. They all stopped what they had been doing to look up at the strange girl who had interrupted their conversation. They all stared at her with astonishment upon their faces. It was then that she realized the one with his back to her had been Thorin. Upon turning around he quickly rose and strode over to Addy. The others watched in anticipation.
"What are you wearing? You should know full well you cannot simply come traipsing into a room full of men wearing nothing but your night gown." He said venomously. She was embarrassing him and that made her laugh. If he was offended by the amount of clothing she was wearing in that moment he would have had a heart attack if he were ever to see her in a bikini. Thorin was not amused as usual. Addy wondered if the man was even capable of smiling.
"I'm sorry to offend your eyes so from my lack of clothing" Addy said still giggling. After she realized that he truly was offended, Addy turned beet red and went back to the room she had awoken in. How dare he speak to her in that tone in front of all those men! Who did he think he was the king of the world? In the armoire she was able to find a few peculiar dresses, having nothing else to wear she figured that they would have to do. She picked the least offending of the bunch and gingerly emerged again. This time the giant with the kind eyes approached her to introduce himself.
"I am Gandalf the Grey, and you are? He asked warmly.
"My name is Adelaide Underwood but everyone usually just calls me Addy." She squeaked.
"Well Miss Underwood, we were all just having a bit of supper, would you care to join us?" He mused. Having realized that she hadn't eaten in what must have been days Addy jumped at the opportunity.
"I would be delighted!" She responded cheerily.
"Good, while you eat you can tell us how you came to have these most unusual wounds," Gandalf said as he pointed towards her arm. Addy nodded her head in response to this; had they never seen a gunshot wound before? Surely they must have seen one on television. Gandalf pulled up a chair for her between him and Thorin. Addy completely ignored the proud man to her right and fixed her attention on the bowl of soup that was brought to her by the boyish one with large feet.
"Thank you" she said in response to the meal being put in front of her.
"You are most welcome" he said sincerely. He seemed to be a bit miffed about something but was kind to her all the same. After a few bites of the warm soup Addy began to feel like herself again. Once finished, Addy sheepishly looked up at the men surrounding her. They were all staring at her, probably wondering who this odd young woman was. Gandalf was the first to break the silence.
"Now that you have had some time to restore your energy would you care telling us how you happened to come across Throin? It is very unusual for a young woman such as yourself to be traveling on her own without a companion. " He explained.
"Umm well I can't quite recall." Addy said truthfully.
"Well then my dear just explain what you can remember. How did you get these wounds?" Gandalf inquired.
"Oh you don't want to hear that story, it's a bit of a downer" she explained.
"I'm sure we can handle it." Thorin rumbled gravely.
"What Thorin means to say is that we are interested in whatever you have to share with us Miss Underwood" Gandalf reassured her.
"Well then I guess I'll start with what happened a few days back. I was at a bonfire with some friends from work. It was in the woods right outside of the ski resort we all worked at. I had been drinking so when Lucas, my ex-boyfriend, arrived I was not as responsive as I usually am in that situation. The second we locked eyes I knew what he was there to kill me. So I ran. I ran into the woods as fast as I possibly could. Looking back it was probably a poor decision but I was drunk and didn't want to bring my friends into the whole mess of a situation. I kept running until I came to a ledge. The usual quarreling ensued, ending with him pulling a gun on me. I don't quite remember how everything went down, it's all a bit blurry to be honest. From what I can remember he put the gun up to my throat while leaning in for one last kiss, luckily this gave me enough time to pull out my knife. While he was distracted I stabbed him in the chest. He then hit me across the face and we both staggered away from the precipice, I tried my best to get up and flee but Lucas was fast on my heels. He then proceeded to pick me up by my throat and threw me against a tree. He wrapped his hands around my throat and tried to squeeze the life out of me. He had almost succeeded when I took the knife out of his original wound and stabbed it deeply into his stomach. After that he dropped me and I ran. I ran for all that I was worth, but obviously you can't outrun a bullet. He shot me in the arm but I kept on running, I ran until I was suddenly stopped and then I don't remember anything after that," she explained honestly.
"What is a gun?" One of the men inquired.
"You don't know what a gun is?" Addy said shocked. How could there still be people in the world that didn't know what a gun was? Thinking of the best way to explain such a thing Addy proceeded to say "umm you know what a bow and arrow is right?" All the men agreed in unison. "Well just imagine a bow and arrow but the arrow is million times faster and smaller. If you have a piece of paper I might be able to draw it."
Just then one of the men produced a notebook along with a pencil. Addy began sketching, to the best of her abilities, a hand gun similar to the one Lucas had used on her. She showed them where the bullet went in and how it would shoot out of the opening in the front when the trigger was pulled. A dark look crossed Gandalfs face as he realized the sheer power one could wield by merely owning one of these peculiar "machines" as she had refereed to it.
"If you don't know what a gun is surely you didn't know to look for a bullet in the wound, did you?" Addy asked Gandalf.
"No my dear, I am afraid we did not," was his reply.
"I think you have to take it out in some way, otherwise I might become very sick." Addy explained sheepishly.
"And how do you propose we do this?" Thorin asked.
"Well I supposed you'll have to cut it out," Addy said with far more courage than she truly felt.
"Oin, you are the healer you shall accompany Gandalf in doing so." Thorin commanded.
Oin and Gandalf got up to begin preparing for the procedure as Addy slowly felt the blood drain from her face. If they did not know of guns here they surely did not know of anesthesia. They had already cauterized the wound meaning they would have to reopen it and dig around in hopes of finding the bullet. Upon request Addy drew a picture of a bullet as well to help in the search. Gandalf led her back to her room for the operation. He held her hand while intoning some unknown language. Suddenly Addy found herself drifting off. What seemed like a minute later Addy was awoken by Gandalf.
"The deed has been done my dear." He reassured her.
"You actually found it?" Addy croaked out while suppressing a yawn.
"Yes, it took quite a while but we managed. Now we have a few things to discuss." He looked at her solemnly.
"Okay." Had been her response, which seemed to confuse the gentle giant; he proceeded nonetheless.
He began "you are not from this world Adelaide Underwood, for we have no weapons such as these 'guns' as you called them. What I wish to know is where exactly are you from and why such a young woman as yourself would have so many scars littering her body?" It all made sense to her now; had she been in a better mental state she would have surely figured it out much sooner.
"Growing up I lived in country called America, but because of my ex I was forced to flee and find refuge elsewhere, that is what brought me to New Zealand you see. That was where I was living when he finally found me. And then all of a sudden I was here." Addy explained.
"What were you fleeing from?" Gandalf inquired.
"Oh you know, everything. When I was five my parents died in an accident of sorts and ever since then I have pretty much been on my own." Addy decided to skip the details about cars, figuring they most likely didn't have those either. "When I was eighteen I met Lucas. At first he took care of me, which I was not accustomed to since I had never really been taken care of before that, however after a year of being in a relationship he began to change. It was as if a demon possessed his very soul. He was no longer the caring man I had grown to love, he was a monster that would beat me for no reason at all. Once he beat me for chewing too loudly; that particular bout put me in the hospital for a week. But I kept going back to him because I had nothing and no one else. As the beatings escalated so did my visits to the hospital. The doctors and nurses suspected what was going on but without my consent they couldn't do much. I had wanted to tell them but knew that if Lucas were to ever find out he would simply kill me and whomever I had told. However, there was this one nurse that I had become very close with while at the hospital, her name was Laura. One night she had gotten me drunk and managed to bring me to the police station to show the recent wounds Lucas had inflicted upon me. He was arrested that evening, but was out the very next day. I had warned Lauren not to meddle but she hadn't listened. I had been staying with her when Lucas showed up to bring me home. Lauren and I knew that if he managed to actually get me there he was going to kill me. Lauren did her best to protect me that evening, but Lucas's rage quickly overpowered her. He was seconds away from stabbing her when I interjected. The knife planted itself directly into my heart. After that everything went black. I awoke in a hospital a week later to find out that Lauren had been killed and Lucas was nowhere to be found. So I began moving from town to town in hopes of keeping Lucas at bay. I actually became very skilled at it, until just recently when he found me. And now I am here, wherever 'here' actually is."
Gandalf turned to look at her with a great deal of pity in his eyes. Addy loathed pity, it always made her uncomfortable. She had adjusted to the sorrows in her life and didn't need others to feel remorse for her. She was sick of always feeling like a victim, she just wanted to feel like a normal person for once.
"You have had to endure a great deal of pain and sadness in your short life Miss Underwood. I can see that it has altered you some, but not as much as one might expect. Thorin spoke of how you came to his aid while fighting the Orcs. He was most impressed with your skill. Is sword fighting common where you come from? I find it interesting that sword fighting still exists when a gun seems to do a great deal more damage with a lot less effort." Gandalf probed.
"No it is not common. When I fled I had to take odd jobs here and there to survive. My first job was working with a blacksmith that specialized in making blades. He never asked how I came to be there, which was the main reason I began working with him in the first place. He taught me how to protect myself with and without a sword. I practiced as much as time would allow. I found comfort in it. I am nowhere near the skill of Thorin though." Addy admitted.
"Oh my dear not many can claim that they are, he is nearly two hundred years old so he has had quite a deal of time to perfect his skills." Gandalf said while chuckling. Glad to finally be off the subject of her past Addy smiled up at the caring giant. It felt odd on her face; she couldn't even recall the last time she had genuinely smiled. All of a sudden what he had just told her sunk in. Thorin was two hundred years old? Seriously, where was she?
"Well Miss Underwood it is my personal belief that you were brought here to us for some cosmically unknown reason. I trust that if you were to join us on our upcoming journey we might be able to find answers as to why."
"Journey? What sort of journey are you going on exactly?"
"I believe it would be best for the leader of the company to explain it to you." With that Gandalf rose from his seat next to the fireplace and went to the door. Gandalf proceeded to open it to find all of the dwarves milling about, obviously having just been caught eavesdropping. Addy could feel herself begin to blush, hoping they had not heard the whole of their conversation. She hated people knowing her past. Once they knew they would treat her differently, like she was made of glass or something. It infuriated her.
"I hope you all have not been snooping just now." Said Gandalf to the group strewn about in front of him. They all started shouting at the same time claiming they were simply there to see if the pair had wanted any refreshments or dessert. Gandalf knew they were lying but didn't bother reprimanding them, there was no time for that.
"Thorin we require your presence." Gandalf relayed.
Thorin gave a slight nod and a pathway cleared before him so that he could enter the room. Upon entering he noticed that Addy looked a great deal paler than she had during supper. This worried him. Thorin had carried her for three days straight to bring her to the Shire. He had done his best to keep her wounds bound and clean, but much to his dismay she had so many that she never seemed to cease bleeding. Then to hear that they were to reopen the worst of them all had almost made him lose his temper. He didn't know why he felt so strongly on the matter. It was probably because she had helped him a great deal during the fight. Going into it he knew he had no chance of winning and just hoped that the girl would find her way to safety, but instead she fought along with him. He felt responsible for her in a way now.
"Hello" Thorin said upon entering. He smiled timidly at her knowing she was more than likely angry at him for reprimanding her in the dining room earlier. He didn't mean to be so harsh with her but he saw the way his nephews were staring at her and it angered him greatly. He decided his best approach would be to apologize. She had been resting her eyes and hadn't noticed his presence until Gandalf stepped back into the room.
"Oh, hi." She said meekly. She felt weak and tired but was sick of constantly being asleep.
"How are you feeling?" Thorin inquired.
"Sore and tired but I'll live." She tried smiling then but the cut on her cheek began to reopen and she decided it was better not to.
"Are you in much pain?" He asked seeming genuinely concerned. This confused Addy, hadn't he just yelled at her in front of all those men? Why was he suddenly concerned about her well-being?
"Only every inch of my body, but I've lived through worse." She explained. A dark shadow crossed over Thorin's face then. She couldn't decipher it exactly but what she had said seemed to anger him greatly. What an odd fellow he was turning out to be.
"I'm sorry to hear that." Thorin began but was interrupted by Gandalf, who didn't seem to have time for such pleasantries.
"Thorin I asked you in here to discuss what is to happen to Miss Underwood. It has become clear that she is not from our world. She is from some distant place that up until this evening I had no idea existed. What I wish to find out is why she has been brought to us. I plan to accomplish this on our upcoming journey, which would mean she would have to accompany us." Gandalf clarified.
"Out of the question!" Thorin thundered. This surprised Addy so much so that she actually jumped out of the bed. Both men were at her side in an instant to help her back in. Feeling far too coddled Addy waved them off and got back in herself.
"And why not? You yourself said she was skilled with a sword, that reason alone should be enough to let her accompany. We need all the fighters we can get if we are to make it all the way to Erebor unscathed." Gandalf reprimanded.
"You have seen her wounds. There is no way she would make it alive! I am not going to slow down our journey and risk her life just so we can figure out why she has been dropped into our laps." Thorin retorted.
"God save me from the stubbornness of Dwarves!" Gandalf bellowed. Dwarves, so that's what these men were. No wonder they were so stout.
"This is a mistake and you know it Wizard!" Thorin roared back. And Gandalf wasn't a giant after all, he was a Wizard. How peculiar this whole situation was turning out to be. Addy was in the middle of a fight between a Dwarf and a Wizard. Maybe she was dead after all. Finding the humor in the situation laughter began bubbling out of Addy before she could cease it.
"And what do you find so entertaining Miss Underwood?" Thorin snarled.
"I'm sitting in a room with a Wizard and Dwarf fighting over my fate. How can I not laugh at that?" Addy queried.
"Well, where you find it humorous I merely find it a bother. I will not have her on the journey. It would be a danger to us all. She is better off staying here to mend with your so called 'burglar'." Thorin said with a tad bit of superiority.
"How about we ask the rest of the company? They too are risking their lives on this journey to reclaim your homeland, they might as well have a say in the matter." Gandalf snapped.
"I am the leader of the company and I say no!" Was all the Dwarf was able to get out before Gandalf whisked Addy up into his arms and brought her into the sitting room where Gandalf deposited her into a large leather chair and wrapped a blanket around. Once that was done he turned to address the Dwarves that had begun to gather around behind him. Having heard snippets of the heated conversation the Dwarves were interested to hear what both men had to say.
"Now I am sure most of you heard what our conversation was about. Miss Underwood has been brought to us by some unknown force and I feel we cannot turn our cheeks on the matter. She is here for a reason and we must find out what that reason is." Gandalf said. The group of men then turned to Thorin waiting to hear his side on the matter. These men really seemed to look up to the gruff dwarf Addy noticed.
"I find it would be all together a poor decision. Merely three days ago she suffered some terrible injuries and now she sits here in even worse condition than she was in before. We would be forced to travel slowly to make sure her condition doesn't worsen and even then if she was to heal it would take a great deal of time. What if she was still in poor health by the time we arrived at Erabor? She surely wouldn't be able to face a dragon in such a condition." Thorin explained. Dragons? What the hell kind of journey was this anyways?
"Don't I have any say in the matter?" Addy interjected. They were speaking of her like she wasn't even in the room.
"Yes of course my dear." Gandalf said.
"Now what exactly does this journey entail?" She asked.
"They are going to venture across all of Middle Earth to fight a dragon in hopes of stealing back their homeland of Erebor." Said the shortest one laced with cynicism. Addy deduced that he was not to be joining in on the adventure.
"Well that is the abbreviated version but true all the same, thank you Bilbo." Replied Gandalf warmly.
"Well that all sounds very interesting, and I don't want to seem rude but what would be in it for me if I were to join?" Addy inquired.
"Well you would be given a portion of the gold of course, that is if we were to actually be successful on our quest." Said one of the Dwarves with a magnificent white beard.
"We might also be able to find those that would know a little bit more about your predicament. I suggest we seek the council of Saruman, he is the greatest wizard in all of Middle Earth. He is bound to know something." Added Gandalf.
"Well seeing as I have no idea where I am and how I came to be here that offer is very generous. I suppose since I have nothing better to do at present I could come along. Only if Thorin agrees to it of course." Looking at Thorin, Addy continued "If you truly believe I would be that great of a burden I will not join. But as you saw I can wield a sword and I can cook as well. I will do as you say and will try my best to be as low impact as possible." Addy pleaded with Thorin. So much was running through her mind at present. What if she never did find her way back? What would she do then? How would she survive in this foreign land? She would need some means of living and from what the white haired dwarf had said they would be coming across some sort of treasure, which would take care of that issue at least. She really hoped Thorin agreed. She gave him the most heartfelt look she possible could.
Thorin looked at her with her beaten and battered face and something in him couldn't refuse. He could only imagine what it must be like for her in this strange land so far from home. He had encountered the very same thing at the age of 24 when Smaug the Terrible forced his people out of their home of Erebor. After a moment of contemplating the pros and cons Throin had finally come to a decision.
"You may come," was all he said before abruptly leaving the room.
The whole room erupted with cheers from the other Dwarves. Apparently they hadn't minded the thought of her joining as much as their leader had. They ambushed her with all of their names then. From what she could remember there were thirteen of them including Thorin. They had very odd names that seemed out of a fairy tale. There was Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Ori, Dori, Nori, Fili, Kili, Oin, Gloin, Dwalin, Balin, and finally Thorin. Trying to remember their names made her feel as if she was Snow White and she had just stumbled upon the seven Dwarves. Feeling relieved that the matter had been decided Addy finally relaxed into the chair and accepted a cup from Bilbo.
"It's tea." He told her reassuringly while handing it to her.
"Thank you so much for your kindness, Bilbo was it?" She said genuinely. He appeared to be the owner of the house, and didn't seem too happy that he was presently entertaining thirteen rowdy Dwarves.
"Yes. Yes it is. Bilbo Baggins, in fact. And you are most welcome. I am glad to see that you survived whatever it is that they did to you in there, sounded like nasty business." Bilbo said with a shudder.
"Are you to be coming with us on the journey as well?" She asked of him.
"Oh no, I'm afraid not. Adventures are looked down on in Hobbiton and I don't wish to bring shame to my family name." He explained. Bilbo knew he was lying, he honestly didn't care what others thought about his actions, he just didn't want to leave his hobbit hole. It had all of his favorite things and he found no particular need to part with them.
"Are you sure you should be venturing out in such a state?" Bilbo asked of Addy.
"I've grown accustomed to pain. It doesn't bother me much anymore honestly. And I do hope to find out why I was brought here. Maybe I could find a way back home even." She said in response before taking a sip.
"Not to be blunt, but it doesn't sound like you were really enjoying your life wherever you came from Miss Underwood." Bilbo said sheepishly.
"Oh no worries, I'm perfectly aware that my life thus far has been depressing to say the least, but now that Lucas might be dead I might finally have my life back." Addy said hopefully.
"Well I sure do hope you find the answers you are looking for." Bilbo said smiling at her.
"Me too Bilbo." Addy said doing her best to try and smile back without it being too painful. It must have looked as funny as it felt because Bilbo suddenly burst out laughing. Addy joined in realizing that she was actually having fun in this strange world. She finally felt free of the shackles that had bound her to the constant misery that was her life for so many years.
It was then that Thorin strode back into the room. He looked at the pair laughing by the fire and Addy swore she saw the hint of a smile reach his lips. When he noticed her looking at him his face changed back to the mask of austerity he constantly wore. Thorin made his way to the fireplace and began smoking his pipe.
Addy must have drifted off for a bit because when she awoke Bilbo was gone and the room was full of Dwarves. They began humming a hypnotic tune that she did not recognize. Thorin began singing words to go along. His voice was intoxicating; it filled every crevice of the room. Addy watched him from her chair finally having a moment to further investigate the stern dwarf. He was extremely handsome she concluded, every aspect of him indicated strength. It was his eyes that captured her attention. They were crystal blue with a hint of sadness behind them that only intrigued her more. Laura had said the same thing about her once. She said no matter what expression Addy wore you could always see the pain she had to endure behind them. It was then that Thorin caught her staring at him. Addy couldn't look away from the pain in his eyes, it was so raw. They kept eye contact until the song abruptly finished and Addy quickly looked away, suddenly embarrassed by the intimacy they had just shared.
Gandalf then came into the room and told them it was time to go to bed for they were to rise early. Thorin then walked over to the chair Addy was in and picked her up. She hadn't been expecting this and a tiny squeak escaped her lips. Thorin immediately set her down.
"I'm sorry did I hurt you?" He asked.
"No you just caught me off guard that's all." She explained.
"Well now that you know what my intentions are do I have permission to carry you to your room? Or do you wish to try yourself?" Thorin said with a mocking tone as he smirked at her. He was toying with her. Surprised by his sudden playfulness Addy replied.
"As you wish," she said while waving her had toward him as if she were royalty. Picking her up again he carried her ever so gently to the room she had been sleeping in before and set her down.
"Sleep well Lady Underwood." And with that he was gone. This guy was such a mystery! One second he would be bellowing at her for some miniscule reason only to go and do things like that! Addy didn't have any more time to relish on the matter since sleep finally overcame her.
