"It's not the size of the dog in the fight, it's the size of the fight in the dog."- Mark Twain


Gandalf and Radagast had moved away from us to have a private chat and the rest of us waited for them to finish. I wasn't paying attention to that, I busy trying to stop myself from laughing at Edbert.

Edbert's mind had officially been blown. What was drawing the sled was a team of large rabbits and they waited, attached to the sled, while Radagast talked to Gandalf. Eddy was staring at them in shock and it had taken me a few minutes to figure out why. They were in two straight lines. There was a group of something and they were neatly lined up one in front of the other, side by side. Eddy's brain was not sure how to process such beauty, so he just stood there, staring at them.

While waiting for Gandalf, I found a moss covered rock and sat down on it, finally noticing how tired I was. I hadn't gotten any sleep last night, and I'd almost been killed. I needed a rest. Edbert decided that sounded like a good idea because he jumped up, sprawling himself across my lap. He then continued to stare at the rabbits while I ran my fingers through his fur, picking all the burrs and dirt out of his coat.

Everything was calm until a howl suddenly echoed amongst the trees of the forest. Edbert stiffened straight away and he tried to jump from my lap, but I wrapped my arms around him and pinned him to my chest. He growled and I hissed, "Hush!"

"Was that a wolf?" Bilbo asked as I slipped off the rock, standing up and placing Eddy gently on the ground. "A-Are there wolves out there?"

"Wolves?" Bofur repeated. "No, that is not a wolf."

"Wargs…" I whispered under my breath. The brothers weren't kidding.

Every hair on Eddy's body was standing on end and he was showing all his teeth in a vicious snarl. It unnerved me more than the wargs did because I'd never seen him like this before. I watched Edbert carefully as his head snapped around to stare at a spot above some rocks. I followed his line of vision in time to see a massive creature appeared there, and with a growl it jumped down, bounding towards us.

"Watch out!" I yelled as it charged the group of dwarves, knocking Dori to the ground. Thorin pounced on it, swinging his sword straight at its neck. The metal easily bit through the flesh, taking down the warg in one shot.

My stomach turned a little at the sight and sound of the attack, but it didn't faze me too much. I was used to gory injures – horses always found a way to hurt themselves. I'd seen horses that had ran themselves through fences before, and that was gruesome. There was blood and open flesh everywhere when that happened, and I was usually helping my Papps administer first-aid while we waited for the vets to get there. I'd also seen several horses have to get put down in the past, so I'd long since conquered my issues with death. The way I saw it, they were just going to sleep and not waking up anymore. They were no longer there, and it was as simple as that.

As soon as the first warg wad down, I ran forward and grabbed onto the arm of Dori who was squished under it. With one rough tug I pulled him out from under it, yanking him back up to his feet. Edbert stuck close to my legs as I moved, growling under his breath

"Thanks," Dori panted as another warg tried to jump Thorin from behind. Kili quickly pulled out his bow and arrow, shooting at the warg. His shot hit, but it only caused the warg to stumbled and trip down the hill and into the middle of our group, right near Dori, Thorin, Edbert and I.

It quickly scrambled back up to its feet, snarling and growling and I almost yelled in panic when Eddy placed himself in front of us, challenging the warg with his own growls and snarls. His tail was straight up in the air, all the hairs on it standing on edge as he growled at the warg.

Like the typical dog he was, he was scared of anything but other canines and now he was biting off more than he could chew. The warg jumped towards us, but Dwalin swung his huge hammer at it, connecting it with the back of warg's skull. With a sickening crack the creature fell to the ground, not getting up again.

"Warg scouts," Thorin grunted, yanking his sword out of the first warg. "Which means an orc pack is not far behind."

"Orc pack?" Bilbo exclaimed in disbelief.

I bit my lip, glancing down at Eddy who was still growling. The trip had started out good and now everything was trying to kill us all at once.

"Who did you tell about your quest beyond your kin?" Gandalf demanded, walking towards Thorin.

"No one," he replied.

"Who did you tell!" Gandalf repeated.

"No one, I swear!" Thorin declared. "What in Durin's name is going on?"

"You are being hunted," Gandalf explained, glancing around the area.

"Hunted? By who! Why!" I gasped, biting my lip nervously.

"We have to get out of here," Dwalin commanded gruffly.

"We can't," little Ori yelled, running towards us with Bifur. They were finally back from checking out the camp. "We have no ponies! They bolted!"

I clenched my fists at that news, frowning deeply as a sense of loss hit me. I suspected as much, but being told still upset me. All of those ponies that I got to know… And Greg, my giant, were gone. As easy as that. No goodbyes, no guarantees of safety, they were just gone.

"I'll draw them off!" Radagast volunteered as the sounds of more howls got closer.

"These are Gundabad Wargs, they will out run you," Gandalf disagreed.

"These are Rustabell Rabbits," Radagast replied, jerking his thumb towards his team. "I'd like to see them try."


We'd quickly all gone back to camp to grab what we needed from our packs now that we didn't have the ponies. I left all the grooming gear at the camp, grabbing only my cloak and blanket in a pack that was slung over my shoulder. We'd then gotten out of the forest and onto a hilly, grassy plain that was full of rocks, perfect for playing hide-and-seek with the orcs and wargs.

We'd hidden behind a large rock as the wargs and orcs got closer. Edbert was still bristling from the howls and growls around him and I shaking more than I would have liked. Dying by a warg… Being ripped to pieces and eaten whilst still alive… The idea wasn't appealing. At all. And I wasn't about to let Edbert be eaten either.

Radagast and his rabbits were at the edge of the forest, waiting for the wargs to get close to him before he moved. The sounds of their howls got closer but we couldn't see them over the rock we were behind. We had to wait and trust Gandalf who was peeking around the front of the rock.

"Come along!" Gandalf order suddenly we all started running. I had to grab my skirt again, pulling it up so that I could run properly without having to worry about tripping over. I kept up with the dwarves as we ran across the grassy plains, dodging and running between rocks to keep out of the warg's and orc's sight. Occasionally I would catch glimpses of them further off in the plains and I had to look away every time. It was less scary when you couldn't see the things you were running from.

Edbert decided that now was his time to start herding again and he loped all around the running group, going from the back to make sure they all keeping up, and then to the front to try and slow them down so they all ran at the same speed. As annoying as it was, I didn't have the heart to tell him off because he was the only one that would pay attention if someone fell behind.

We didn't stop running until suddenly the warg pack and orcs ran out from behind some rocks, running across our direct path. We all froze but we were far enough away that they didn't see us. They were all still too busy with trying to catch Radagast and his rabbits.

"Stay together!" Gandalf ordered.

"Go!" Thorin barked, waving his arm back the way we came and everyone quickly spun around, running a different way. We didn't get far before we had to stop again. As Thorin went to run out from behind a rock he halted, but Ori, who was running next to him didn't. "Ori! No! Get back!" Thorin grabbed the young dwarf back the back of his shirt, throwing him back behind the rock with the rest of us.

I just happened to be in the right place to reach out and catch him by his arm, king sure he didn't fall over, and then I pulled him back so that he was pressed against the rock next to me. He looked at me with wide eyes and I sent him a shaky smile.

We paused, waiting against that rock for a few seconds before Gandalf gave the all clear, waving at us to move. "All of you, come on! Come on!" And we were off again, running for our lives.

We managed to get a bit further this time before we ran over a hill crest and saw Radagast run past with the wargs and orcs right on his tail. Without needing to be told to, everyone ran over to the closet rock, ducking behind it. We all stood there, pressed against the rock and listening carefully for the sounds of the wargs. Edbert quickly found his way to me, pressing himself against my legs, his chest heaving and falling with his pants. My own chest was tight as my lungs tried to get more air, and my legs felt like jelly.

And then we heard it. The sound of snarling on the rock above us. There was a warg and orc on the top of the rock we were sheltering against. I stopped breathing, freezing like a rabbit as I glanced at the other dwarves to see what they would do.

Thorin nodded at his nephew, Kili, and the dwarf grabbed his bow and an arrow, stringing it up as he stepped out from the rock. As soon as the warg noticed him, it growled and Kili neatly shot the arrow, causing the creature to growl every louder, jumping towards the dwarf. Kili fired a second arrow and hit it, causing the beast to fall to the ground in front of us.

The warg screamed loudly in pain, not yet dead from the two arrows, although it couldn't get back to its feet even when it tried. The orc that was riding on its back jumped up, charging us with his sword raised. Dwalin and Bifur ran forward with battle cries, attacking the orc. Thorin followed them, helping Bifur with the orc, and Dwalin tackled the warg, slamming his hammer down on the beast's skull. Part of me found the attack disgusting, but the other part of me was amazed at the skills and strength that the tiny dwarves possessed.

The sounds of the wargs stopped for a few seconds, drawing our attention at the silence. Then, when they started up again, they were heading towards. The screams of the warg and orc we'd just killed had not escaped their notice, and they now knew where we were.

"Move! Run!" Gandalf yelled and we bolted, not worrying about hiding behind the rocks anymore. Now it was a full on sprint to try and outrun the wargs on our tails. My legs felt like jelly and I thought they were going to give out any second, but I kept running. Even Edbert's strength was dwindling and he just stuck to running at the back of the group, making sure that no one fell behind.

We got half way up a hill before Gloin pointed in front of us and yelled, "There they are!"

We all stopped again and Gandalf yelled, "This way! Quickly!" For about the sixth time we changed direction, running in a different way. We were like headless chickens. We managed to make it over another couple of hills before the wargs and orcs appeared at the top of the next hill, staring us down.

I spun around, trying to find another way to go but wherever I looked more wargs and orcs seemed to be popping up, surrounding us. "There's more coming!"

"Kili! Shot them!" Thorin roared as I noticed that everyone was spread out around the area, trying to find a way to escape. I somehow found myself standing with only a snarling Eddy by my side. My once precious friend now looked like a rabid animal, all his teeth showing with salvia dripping down from his muzzle.

"No, no, no!" I moaned, tears building up in my eyes as I slipped my hand in my skirt, resting the palm of my hand against the handle of my small dagger. I quickly blinked them away, trying to think clearly so that I could figure out a way to get us free. I refused to die here. Not right now. And I wasn't about to stand around while my friends were killed too.

"We're surrounded!" Kili yelled and everyone started to make their way towards their leader, gathering back up in a group.

"Lass!" A loud voice bellowed and I gasped when a hand wrapped itself around my wrist. I looked to the side to see Bofur standing there, one hand on my arm, his weapon in the other. "Come on!" Eddy snarled viciously at him, snapping at Bofur's leg. It was at the moment that I realised my lapse in clear-headedness was causing my dog to act like that. He was relying on me for his cues, and when I was giving him none, he relied on his animalistic instincts.

"Eddy! No! Stop! Hush!" I barked my orders out to him and almost instantly he responded, his deep brown eyes looking at me for guidance. As soon as Eddy looked at me with his depending eyes, I felt a wave of calm wash over me. Eddy needed me. I had a job. I couldn't be freaking out right now. "Sorry, Bofur. Sorry," I apologised as I let him drag me back to where everyone was regrouping.

"Where's Gandalf?" someone yelled as Bofur and I reached the main group. The dwarf let go of my arm, pushing me behind him and he stood there, facing the approaching wargs with his weapon in hand.

"He's abandoned us!" Dwalin yelled as he joined the main group as well. The wargs and their riders slowly started to move in on us, and everyone waited, weapons raised. I slipped my hand in my skirt, finally drawing out my small dagger. I held in in my right hand, fingers curled tightly around the hilt. It wouldn't do much, but if I was going down, I wasn't going down without a fight.

Ori drew back his little slingshot, firing a small rock at one of the riders. It hit the head of his warg and caused it to snarl, but it did no damage.

"Hold your ground!" Thorin ordered as they continued to close in. Closer. Closer. Closer.

"This way, you fools!" Gandalf's voice suddenly called out and I spun around to see him standing behind a rock where he'd found a tunnel.

"Come on, move!" Thorin ordered everyone as Gandalf ducked behind the rock.

Bofur spun around, grabbing my wrist again as he dragged me with him towards the hole. When we reached Gandalf and the hole, Bofur pushed me in with no warning which almost caused me to stab myself with my dagger. I let out a sharp shriek as I slid down a rocky slide, everything spinning around me. My skirt even slid up around my waist from the friction, but I was saved by my breeches yet again.

I rolled to a sudden stop at the bottom, quickly scrambling up to my feet when something else came down the tunnel. It was Edbert. He stopped rolling when he slammed into my legs, knocking me back to the ground again. I wrapped my dagger free arm around him, scooting backwards on my butt as more people started to come down as well.

"Go, go, go!" Thorin yelled at the entrance, urging more dwarves down.

I quickly slid my knife back into its cover, wrapping both arms around Edbert as I stood back up. The dog whined nervously in my arms, licking my chin as I took a few steps back out of the road. One by one everyone joined us in the tunnel until we were all gathered there.

A horn sounded from outside the tunnel and then we heard the thundering of hooves and the sound of battle. Everyone stared tensely at the entrance, unsure what was going on. Suddenly something came tumbling down the entrance and everyone parted, allowing it to roll past them. I pressed myself against the wall as it rolled to a stop near me, causing me to stare blankly. It was a body of an orc, an arrow imbedded in its neck. Gandalf decided he needed to poke it with his staff to test if it was alive or not, as if the arrow sticking out of it wasn't obvious enough.

As much as the sight of it disgusted, I was so shocked that I couldn't draw my gaze away from it - even when Thorin walked over, placing one foot on its chest as he yanked the arrow out to check it. It was the first chance I had to see an orc up close, and I couldn't help but notice how truly ugly they were.

"Elves," I heard Thorin grunt with distain as he threw the arrow to the ground in disgust.

"I cannot see where the tunnel leads," Dwalin called and I looked up to see him walking deeper into the tunnel. "Do we follow it, or no?"

"Follow it, of course!" Bofur replied, walking deeper into the tunnel without hesitation. I dropped Edbert to the ground and followed behind Bofur who was following Dwalin. From there all the other dwarves joined the line as we walked through the small tunnel. Once we exited the main part of the tunnel, the walls shot up for meters and at the top was clear sky. It turned from walking into a tunnel, to walking in a large crack.

It was a relief to not have to run anymore as we followed the path for as far as it took us. There were a few parts where we had to turn sideways and squeeze through, but everyone managed to get through. After a while it opened up to a small path on the side of a cliff. I gasped when I saw what was beyond the cliff.

There, lying in front of us, was a beautiful looking city nestled amongst the valley. There were waterfalls and water running through the whole town, pooling into a river at the bottom of the city.

"Where are we?" I asked in curiosity.

"The Valley of Imladris," Gandalf answered. "In the common tongue it's known by another name."

"Rivendell," Bilbo elaborated, although that still meant nothing to me.


We walked silently down the path that led to Rivendell, walking over a bridge that took us into the city itself. Gandalf led the way and the dwarves followed without saying a word, the tension in the air was almost palpable. I was aware that they dwarves didn't like the elves, but they surprised me with their hostility at the idea of going to an Elven City.

At the end of the bridge was a small circle courtyard with stairs at the end of that. On the stairs, guarding them, were two tall beings dressed in amour. I hadn't seen an elf before, but I was going to take a guess say that they were elves.

Everyone gathered in the court yard, glancing around in curiosity and caution. Edbert was smelling everything in reach and I just stood in one spot, watching him carefully.

"Mithrandir," a voice called out and we all looked up to see and elf walking down the stairs.

"Ah, Lindir!" Gandalf greeted the elf.

In return the strange elf said something in another langue that left me confused. I looked around, and from the looks on the dwarves faces, they had no idea what he'd said either.

"I must speak with Lord Elrond," Gandalf requested.

"My Lord Elrond is not here," the elf replied, using language all of us could understand.

"Not here?" Gandalf repeated. "Where is he?"

Before the elf got a chance to reply, the sound of horns echoed across the area, causing me to stiffen. It was the same horn that sounded when the wargs and orcs had been attacked. Everyone spun around, facing the bridge that we had just crossed.

I heard the beating of hooves and the cry of a horse before I saw them. A line or riders and horses cantered across the bridge towards us. It was Thorin's turn to yell something in a language I didn't understand before yelling, "Close ranks!"

Before I knew what I was happening, someone latched onto the back of the back of my shirt, yanking me back amongst the dwarves as they all squished together in a tight circle. The younger dwarves, Bilbo and I were pushed into the centre. I found the dwarves' loyalty and protectiveness rather endearing, and flattering.

Although I appreciated the gesture of them trying to protect me, it didn't work very well because I was taller and could see right over their heads. Eddy, not wanting to be separated from me, pushed his way between the dwarves' legs before plastering himself to my side.

I rested my right hand on the band of my skirt so that I could easily grab my dagger if need be. The horses came swarming into the platform, forming two trotting circles – one going clockwise and the other going anti-clock wise.

It wasn't the horses I was scared of - if fact, I couldn't help but noticed how beautiful and fine boned they were – it was the looks that the elves were giving us, that had me scowling. Most of them were sneering and staring at us with calculating expressions. There was no sign of welcome on their face. I was starting to see why Thorin and the others hated the elves so much. I already disliked them too, even if their horses were stunning creatures.


Again, not a lot changed (although it'll be a different case in the next chapter). And thank you to ZabuzasGirl, Elrohir Lover, Isildur's Heiress and Zephyr for your reviews. You guys are awesome.

In reply to your review, Zephyr, I must admit that I am confused. Yes, this fanfiction is based off the book, not the movie. Unfortunately, there is no "Hobbit" category in the movies section. So, the book section was the only place I could put this fanfiction - if that's what you mean. :)