Hi All,

So sorry for the late posting. Things have kind of been busy over the last few weeks but anyway, here is another chapter for all you patient readers. You are the best. Also, a chapter for All Roads Lead Home is currently being written and will be posted soon.

I sense there was some confusion over Athena's animagnus. She was originally a wolf, but as I have her as a wolf in two other stories, I decided to change it and make her a snow leopard, which is one of my favourite animals.

A big chapter this chapter, so strap yourselves in and let's get on with it!

I don't own anything but the story. Everything else belongs to JR Tolkien, Peter Jackson and JK Rowling respectively.


Chapter Seven

Hermione's POV

The sound of the dwarves laboured breathing filled my ears as we ran across vast open aired spaces. Running over hills, rocks and grassy knobs, it seemed that Gandalf was leading us nowhere. All I could see in front of me was grassy hills, rocks and a cloudy sky. Behind me the sound of running heavy feet, thumping boots and panted breathing. The wind whipped against my face, the strong force nearly knocking me over, but I continued, not letting anything stop me.

Suddenly, the sound of howling filled the air and I gasped. The sound of roaring followed after, and my heart quickened as I hear Athena roar in her leopard form. The company then decided to stop, hiding behind a large boulder, and we watched as Radaghast, his rabbits and Athena ran into the vast plains, and I gasped as I saw a pack of Orcs riding wargs following closely behind them but I knew that if push came to shove, Athena would blast the lot away. But she was keeping mum, leading the pack away from us. I had cast a disullionment spell on all of us, and Ginny was currently using the invisibility cloak to shield both her and Bilbo, but despite being next to invisible, I was also worried about the wargs smelling our scent, and with 13 dwarves, two witches, a wizard and a hobbit, we were bound to let off some sort of scent.

Gandalf nodded, his hand on the boulder before suddenly snapping, "Come on!"

He broke into a run, and we all followed. He kept running, jumping over rocks, patches of grass. Thorin had made his way to the front of the group, following closely behind. The sound of growling could be heard, as well as Radaghast's taunting words to the orc pack. I then saw wargs running from different directions to where the duo was and I knew that we could be seen if we kept going in the direction we were going. Pushing myself further, I grabbed a hold of Thorin, grabbing his arm and pulling him to a stop.

"Stop!"

We all stopped, and we watched as both Athena and Radaghast drove by us, followed by the orcs, and it seemed that they had multiplied in numbers, as there were more of them chasing the duo. I saw that Athena had turned her head towards me and I turned around, facing Gandalf.

Gandalf sighed. "Stay together, all of you. I am sure Athena will catch up to us."

We then began running in the opposite direction and Gandalf was leading the company once again. We kept running, trying to avoid being seen by the orc pack. After nearly getting caught again, we had to change direction, and I heard Thorin ask Gandalf just exactly where he was leading us. Gandalf obviously didn't reply and I couldn't help but wonder just where the wizard was leading us.

We kept running, Gandalf leading us. I saw the orc pack, and my heart jumped when I saw a single Orc on a warg stop, sniffing the air and I could tell that he had picked up our scent. Raising my wand, I cast a wind change spell, hoping to lead our scent in a different direction, but it didn't seem to work as the orc was heading our way, bring a few of the other orcs with him. Gandalf lead us to a boulder, gesturing us to lean against it. While we couldn't exactly be seen, our smell would be distinct and would give away our position.

We all stood against the boulder and I tried to level my breathing. The orc walked onto the boulder, the sight of the warg just above our heads. Ginny emerged from under the cloak, wand at the ready and revealing her and Bilbo, making some of the dwarves jump at the sight of them. Suddenly, Kili turned around, pointing an arrow at the warg and fired, its cries filling the air and the Orc on top screaming out. Dwalin lunged at the incoming Orc, killing it swiftly with his axe and then putting the warg out of its misery. I sighed, because now we had given away our existence and soon, the entire orc pack would be near us.

A loud crack filled the air, and the dwarves raised their weapons, only to see that it was Athena in her human form. I waved my wand again, taking the disullionment spell of us.

"We must go! The orcs are heading this way! Could you not have waited? I had things well in hand before you had to go and kill one of them, thus revealing your existence!" She snapped.

"We don't have time to argue. Run!" Gandalf shouted.

We all followed him as the orc pack come into sight. Gandalf shouted directions to us, leading us through long grass and small trees. A strange looking rock came into our distance, and it seemed that Gandalf was heading towards us. Suddenly, the orcs were in sight, getting closer to us and I heard Thorin order them to kill them. I stopped, turning around, only to have Athena stop me.

"No, follow Gandalf. I have an idea." Athena said, reaching into her shoulder bag and pulling out a box. I recognised it immediately, and watched as she replaced her holly wand with the Elder Wand. She then turned to the direction of the orc pack, "All of you behind me now! Get to Gandalf!"

Kili had started shooting at the sight of the orcs, only to stop to see Athena. The dwarves looked to her as the ran past her, getting behind her and holding up their weapons. The dwarves then began to cry out about Gandalf abandoning us, but I knew that wasn't the case. I turned around, seeing that Gandalf was standing on top of the strange rock.

"This way you fools! Listen to Athena!" He shouted, all the dwarves turning to him. One by one, the dwarves jumped behind the strange rock, which lead to an underground cave of some sorts. Then, there was only myself, Gandalf, Kili, Fili, Thorin and Ginny left, and Ginny jumped down, leaving only us. Fili was running towards us, with Kili still shooting arrows at the orcs, and Thorin was calling out to the brothers. I readied myself to jumped into the cave, when a sound filled the air and I stopped.

All of a sudden, the sky was filled with fire, and I turned back to Athena, who was creating a fiendfyre in the form of a large dragon. I could tell Thorin, Fili, Kili and Gandalf were in shock at the sight that had graced us and that they were also curious at the sight. Athena waved the Elder Wand, making the fire dragon grow larger and larger, and the orcs were in fear of the sight, but inching closer to us. Athena then suddenly cried out, pushing her arms forward, causing the dragon to go forwards towards the orcs, causing them to perish slightly in the fire. The orcs screamed out, fire covering their bodies and the bodies of the wargs as they ran toward us, screaming. Athena lead the dragon around the orcs again, trying to diminish all. A few wargs that weren't occupied escaped, fleeing from the scene. The ones that were on fire, thrashed about, and Athena lowered her wand, as the damage was already done. I saw that some of the orcs that weren't on fire had escaped, but they were too far away for me to do anything.

The fire died, and the dragon diminished. The sound of a horn filled the air and Athena turned to me.

"Quickly, all of you." Gandalf pressed and I saw that Thorin had jumped into the cave, along with Fili. Athena ran up to me, and Kili offered his hand out to her, looking at her with a strange look on his face. I sighed, as it seemed that Kili had become smitten with Athena, even though he had only just met her. Athena gave him a look of thanks, jumping over the rock into the cave. Kili followed her and I followed him, sliding down into the cave.

I landed with a thud, and Fili helped me to my feet, so that I could balance myself. The horn sounded again, I heard the sound of arrows flying. It seemed another party had joined and was now taking care of the Orcs that were on fire. We all stood, staring at the opening of the cave, looking towards the blue sky and hearing the sounds. The smell of burnt flesh was strong and it was a little hot. Suddenly, a dead burnt body of an orc dropped into the cave, causing as to step backwards as the body dropped near our feet. The dwarves raised their weapons at it, and Thorin leaned down, pulling out an arrow that was lodged in its neck.

He looked at it, fury etching on his face as he threw the arrow away. "Elves!"

Dwalin then made his appearance, shouting as he emerged back to us. "I cannot see where the pathway leads. Do we follow it or no?"

"Follow it, of course!" Bofur shouted, following Dwalin through a narrow rocky hallway. It seemed to lead down a pathway, but the rocky walls were making it hard to see where it would lead to. Soon, all the dwarves began to follow, leaving one by one. Thorin gave Gandalf one last questioning look and follow his company, leaving only Athena, Ginny, Gandalf and I behind. Bilbo had followed the dwarves, looking back to us but Ginny gestured to him to continue.

Gandalf, who was looking at the back of Thorin with a strange look on his face, sighed. "I think that would be wise. My dear Athena, thank you, for that rather wondrous display of your magic. I have never seen such a trick before."

"It's called a fiendfyre, a magical being completely made of fire. It can be used to destroy or to scare. Its only when I wield the Elder Wand, I am capable of holding the spell for as long as I did. My magic is powerful, but when wielding this wand, I become more. I figured I need to use it if we are here to help you and your company." Athena told him, holding the Elder Wand in her hands.

"Might I ask why it is more powerful than any other wand?" Gandalf asked.

"Because it was created by a being that is more powerful than life, and I am, unfortunately, its servant. But that's a story to tell over lots of wine and a lot of firewhiskey. I don't think we've properly met, Mr Gandalf. I am Athena Potter. It is a pleasure to meet you, after hearing so much from both Hermione and Ginny." She held out her hand, and Gandalf smiled, taking it. All of the sudden, he gasped, and looked at Athena, who frowned.

He shook his head, and smiled ever wider. "No my dear, it's a pleasure to meet you. I think your presence here is going to be remarkable."

0*0*0*0*0

Athena's POV

Gandalf seemed to know something I didn't, and while that would make me curious, I had come to expect the unexpected while in Middle Earth. When he had grasped my hand, I could tell that he must have seen or saw something that made him trust me. Whatever it was, would have to wait, as walking through small and tight rocky pathways to open space was tiring and it seemed that the rocky pathway was leading us nowhere. Ginny had walked ahead of me, walking with Bilbo and Hermione was behind me, staying near Gandalf.

Kili was also in front of me, and every now and then, he would turn to look at me, before staring straight ahead. I remembered the moment that had passed between us when he had helped me into the cave. He grasped my hand and I felt the electricity that emerged from our touch. As much as I wish to act on it, I was in a new world and starting something would not be the best idea. I could tell the Kili was already intrigued with me, but I knew that I need to put a stop to it.

The incident with the necromancer had me worried, and using the Elder Wand again lessoned some of the rising anxiety but I was still worried about just what it meant. The last time something like that occurred was when Voldemort was alive and in power. And the fact that the pain was tensest around my scar had me worried. I hadn't told Hermione or Ginny about that part. While they knew about just what had happened in the old fortress, until I got to the bottom of just exactly what it all meant and what could happen.

There was a rustle through the company, and I looked up from the ground to see that the rocky pathway was opening up. I kept walking, watching as the path opened to reveal a stunning sight. As we were standing on some type of cliff, what I saw was remarkable. I could hear Hermione and Ginny gasp, as well as Bilbo as we all took in the sight. Ahead of us, was a small city among a vast forest and mountain. Small waterfalls fell from cliffs on the mountain behind the city, and it was truly a beautiful sight to see. The city itself was crafted from what looked like silver cement and I could see ancient drawings crafted into the columns. There were small buildings, being led by a pathway that intertwined throughout the entire city.

"Merlin's Beard…what is this place?" Ginny mumbled, staring at the city in awe.

"The Valley of Imladris." Gandalf announced. "That's it's elvish name. However, in the common tongue, it's known by another name."

"Rivendell." Bilbo murmured.

"Here lies the last Homely House East of the Sea." Gandalf spoke, coming to stand next to me, giving me a smile. I smiled back at him before frowning as Thorin approached us with a scowl on his face. This man was really starting to get on my nerves, and despite what Radaghast had told me about him, and what he had gone through in his life, that still didn't give him the right to treat others with disrespect.

"This was your plan all along…" Thorin snapped. "To seek refuge with our enemies."

"You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. The only ill will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself." Gandalf snapped, annoyed.

"You think the Elves will give our quest their blessing? They will try to stop us." Thorin muttered.

"Of course they will. But we have questions that need to be answered and situations that need to be solved. After all Thorin, it is not just your quest that will be an issue. I am sure that the witches would like to try and find a way home, so really, it's not just about you." Gandalf remarked. He sighed. "If we are to be successful in finding the answers, this will need to be handled with tact. And respect. And no small degree of charm. Which is why you will leave the talking to me, and the witches. Unlike you, they have respect."

Gandalf grabbed his staff and walked ahead, so that he was in front of the group. Ginny nodded, and followed him, before giving both Hermione and I a look and turning back, with Bilbo following her.

"I get that the Elves have not treated you kindly. But Gandalf is right. We are stranded here, and perhaps these elves would find a way for us to go home or just why we are here. I'm sorry." Hermione murmured.

"Elves consider themselves a higher race. They don't care about other races, including our race and the mortal race. They consider themselves superior and they are cruel…and stubborn…" Thorin growled.

I scoffed. "Oh, that sounds like someone we know. Oh wait, it's you. Have you ever considered that maybe you're the stubborn person? I mean, from what I've heard you haven't exactly accepted Hermione or Ginny or even Bilbo."

"Athena!" Hermione gasped.

"Hermione..." I looked to her before turning back to Thorin. "I don't know what exactly happened between you and the elves, but I've come to find that everyone is different, no matter their race and that you shouldn't judge a person or creature based on experiences in your past. I am sorry for whatever the Elves did to you but not everyone is the same. Trust me, I learned that the hard way and I'm still paying for mistakes I've made every day."

My eyes burned into his, and he lowered his gaze. I rolled my eyes, stepping forward and began walking off, when suddenly, Thorin grabbed my arm and I whipped around to face him. As he was on the step above me, we were face to face, he being a little higher than me.

"You do well to know your place. I am a king, and you need to learn respect and know your place." Thorin sneered.

I pulled my arm from his grip. I could tell that the company had stopped walking away and were now looking at us. Hermione was looking between the both of us, wondering if she should interfere. I shook my head, gesturing to her to stand down.

"And you would do well to remember that I am creature of magic and I don't take kindly to threats. You may be a king, Thorin Oakenshield, but I am much more powerful than a king. That display you witnessed earlier only showed some of my ability with magic. Do not grab me like that again." I growled.

"Okay, let's break this up." Hermione stepped in between us. "Athena, Thorin, let's not kill each other today. Let's have peace…if such thing exists."

Hermione grabbed me, pulling me away from Thorin and she locked arms with me, and we walked past the company, following Gandalf, who stood staring at us, leaning on his staff. His eyes twinkled and I sighed.

This was going to be a long day.

0*0*0*0*0

We had arrived at what looked like a courtyard in the city of Rivendell and I was in awe of the beauty surrounding the place. I was still little hot headed after my exchange with Thorin, but he was keeping his distance and Hermione was making sure I wouldn't go near him. She had me locked, her arm entwined with mine and I could tell she was trying to keep me calm. The nerve of that man, thinking he could threaten me? Oh please.

But we had arrived and I took in the sight of the city, the columns and the vast drawings and graphics embedded in the buildings. If I was honest, Rivendell reminded me a little of the first time I ever walked Diagon Alley with Hagrid. I was in awe of seeing a new world I knew nothing about and here I was, in the exact position, but only with different people. It was exciting, discovering Rivendell. I wondered what the elves would be like, as I could tell that they were going to be different than the elves I was used to. I thought about Dobby, and wondered what would be his reaction if he found out that there were different kind of elves. My heart panged a little when I thought of the little elf, and I shook my head of the memory.

We walked across a bridge, and I saw that down below was a river, and looked up again. In front of us, was Gandalf and Dwalin. Thorin had also made his way up the front, and Hermione had moved us near Bilbo, who was walking with Ginny and Bofur. Ginny kept turning around to give us looks and I knew that we all shared the same excitement.

We all gathered upon the courtyard, creating a small circle and I watched as the dwarves readied their weapons as a tall man walked down a set of marble steps, heading towards us. I saw that the man had pointed ear tips, long brunette hair and I realised that this was Middle Earth's version of an elf. And, they were beautiful and so much different to our short and big eyed version of elf.

The elf was wearing a long silver robe, continuing his way down the steps. Once he had reached the bottom, he called out a strange name, and I frowned.

"Mithrandir…" He spoke, his voice loud but soft.

Gandalf beamed, "Ah, Lindir!"

Gandalf surged forward, and Lindir bowed his head, and made his way to the wizard. I heard Thorin mutter to Dwalin a joke about the elf and I sighed. He was once again getting on my nerves. I watched as Lindir spoke to Gandalf in strange language and I was glad that I wasn't the only one confused at the two exchanging words. Suddenly, the sound of a horn, the exact same one that I heard back at the cave filled the air, and the sound of horses thumping on the ground followed. The dwarves huddled even closer as Thorin yelled at us in a strange language and I looked to see a group of men, riding horses and heading towards us.

The dwarves raised their weapons and my hand itched closer to my wand but I didn't pull it out. Ginny had her wand in her hand, and Hermione pulled hers out, resting it by her side. The horses circled the group, and I saw that Thorin was holding onto his axe with a tight grip, ready to attack. I impulsively grabbed his wrist, moving my hand down so that it was on top of his, trying to calm him and he turned to me, confusion on his face. I ignored the heat that ignited between our touch and tried to mentally assure him that things would be okay. He nodded, and relaxed his hold, but still kept a hand on his weapon, and my hand was still on his hand.

There were elves upon the horses circling us, and I noticed a male elf, wearing a maroon coloured armour and a silver crown around his head. He seemed delighted at the sight of Gandalf and slowed his horse to a stop as he came upon us.

"Gandalf!" He beamed.

"Lord Elrond!" Gandalf greeted. He then bowed his head, greeting his friend in the same language that he had spoken with earlier. The pair continued to speak as Lord Elrond dismounted his horse and gave Gandalf a hug.

"Strange for Orcs to come this close to our borders. Something or someone has drawn them near. But what was more puzzling was the sight of a dragon made from fire. Such magic hasn't been seen for years. Have you been practicing your magic Gandalf?" Elrond questioned, holding up an Orc blade and looking at the company as he walked around the group, giving the blade to Lindir. He looked around, before his eyes feel upon Hermione, Ginny and myself. He turned back to Gandalf and spoke again in the same language they spoke with earlier. Gandalf appeared to be assuring Elrond and Thorin cleared his throat.

Gandalf sighed, before turning to us. "Perhaps that discussion would best be private. But yes, the arrival of the Orcs was on our part. And as for the fire dragon, you'll have to ask the conjurer herself."

I saw the circle break apart, and Elrond's eyes rested on me, before resting on Thorin, who had begun walking towards the Lord. I sighed when Thorin had held up his axe for protection against the Elf and was looking at him cautiously.

Elrond looked amused but nodded his head. "Welcome, Thorin, son of Thrain, and his guests."

"I do not believe we have met." Thorin spoke, his voice low and brooding.

"You have your grandfather's bearing. I knew Thror when he ruled Under the Mountain." The Elf informed him.

"Indeed? He made no mention of you." Thorin remarked. I cursed under my breath at the dwarf's rudeness and that got me the attention of Lord Elrond. He nodded to me, before turning to Gandalf and speaking in language. I then realised that it the language must be some form of Elvish, because all the elves were listening to their leader with attention. This action however, irked the dwarves and they became restless.

"What is he saying? Does he offer us insult?" Gloin, who was behind me, growled at the sight. He pushed past me, making his way through the dwarves. It caused them to cry out, and they all began arguing among themselves, and at the elves. I turned to Hermione, who groaned under her breath and crossed her arms. Ginny rolled her eyes, giving me the same look I had on my face. Dwarves…ugh

Gandalf had also had enough. "Enough! No, Master Gloin. To answer your question, Lord Elrond is actually offering you food."

The elf in question smirked at the dwarves, before shaking his head. Hermione scoffed under her breath and I could tell Ginny was trying to hold back her laughter. I was beginning to like the elves, especially Lord Elrond. I heard the dwarves murmur among themselves, talking about the offer before turning to back to Gandalf.

Gloin cleared his throat. "Well, in that case, lead on!"

The dwarves began to move and I did too, before Gandalf shook his head, gesturing to me to stay behind. Hermione stood in her place as well. Ginny had walked forward, but turned back. She walked back to us. Bilbo turned back to us, but I gave him a look of assurance, and he nodded continuing on with the dwarves. We walked up to Gandalf, who turned to Elrond.

"Elrond, allow me to introduce you to Hermione Granger, Ginny Weasley and the Lady Athena Potter. Each one of these ladies were found on the journey here. The three have been very helpful to our trip." Gandalf introduced us. "And as I mentioned earlier, Lady Athena here is the responsible for the conjuring of the dragon. They mean no harm Elrond."

Elrond nodded. "I can see that. I was wondering when I would meet the disturbance. A while ago there was a change of some sort in the air. I could not figure out what kind of change would disrupt the air but now I see."

"Wait, you knew that we were here?" I asked.

"In a way…" Elrond asked.

"Like the Force? Disturbance of the Force?" Hermione blurted out. Gandalf and Elrond looked confused at the Star Wars reference and Ginny frowned, giving her a look.

"The Force? I do not understand." Elrond murmured.

"Never mind…muggle thing. So you would know how we got here? And how we could get back, right?" Hermione asked.

"Yes and no. That is a question that would be better answered once I have gathered the council. Your arrival here was not a coincidence. And I'm afraid, given the circumstances of how you got here, there may not be a way for you to return home." Elrond informed us.

"So we may never be able to go home?" Ginny murmured sadly.

"I am sorry…but do not give up. Until then, join and dine with us. And later, at the council meeting, we shall discuss your arrival and how we could help. Gandalf has informed me that you are witches, but of the good kind. Your help would be much appreciated in this world. But that is another matter. Come, let us dine." Elrond spoke softly.

"It will be alright. You are safe and well in our hands." Gandalf assured us. "And I am sure the dwarves will adopt you all if it turns out you cannot go home. They love you already."

I nodded. "Thank you. Any help is much appreciated. And I am sorry about the dragon. It was the only thing I could think of at the time to stop the Orcs from following us."

Elrond laughed. "No, don't be. It was quite impressive. Your magic is powerful and I look forward to seeing more of it."

He turned around placing an arm on Gandalf, before talking to him in his Elvish language as they made their way up the grand stone staircase. I turned to the girls and they both had sad looks on their faces. I too, was sad at the possibility of never returning home but I had come to accept this world. There were too many memories back home, and painful ones. As much as I wanted to return home, I saw this new world as a chance for something new. But Ginny had her family, and I knew Hermione had her work. I had one half of my family here, and that was the girls. But at the same time, I felt guilty too. It was kind of my fault that they were here, as the deatheaters that casted the spell on us were after me. Hermione and Ginny were caught up in it.

"Look, we kind of knew that this happen, you know, that chance that there may not be a way for us to go home. I am so sorry for bringing you here. I know I don't make much sense but, I feel guilty. It was my fault the deatheaters sent us here. They were after me and you two were caught up in the fight." I muttered.

"Hey! It's not your fault. I kind knew that this would happen too. And, I speak for Ginny as well because I know she's with us, we're with you till the end of the line Athena. And if worse comes to worse and we can't go home, we'll deal with that. But I've been thinking…if there is a way, we should wait. We should help the dwarves reclaim their home and then go home, if there is a way. If there isn't, then it's good we're helping. I know the dwarves accept us so and by helping them, we're helping our chances of this world being our home." Hermione remarked.

"I agree. And I know that I have my family back home and I'd be lying if I said that this wouldn't affect me but we'll deal with it. So, with that saying, let us go join our dwarves before they eat all the food. I'm starving after all that running and I want to eat before the dwarves eat it all." Ginny stated, causing Hermione and I to giggle. I looped my arms between Hermione's and Ginny did the same on the other.

If I was to be here for the rest of my life, I was glad I had the girls. After what had happened in the fortress, I had the feeling that I would need them more than ever.


So…we are now in Rivendell…things are getting a little interesting. Again sorry for the late posting, and I will try to update more often. But please like, follow favourite and review. If you have any criticism, I'd like to hear it, good or bad. Any review helps me write better.

Until next week,

Love,

bNd…