Merry Christmas everyone! I'm so sorry for the long hiatus. I really just wanted to write for days on end but unfortunately life got in the way.
But you don't want to read my sorry-ass excuses. I just wanted to thank you al for sticking with me and this story.
I really love you random strangers!
The days went by and they could feel the Orks closing in on them. Bronwyn looked up at the darkening sky. They had been running for days now, nights even. She could hardly remember the last time they stopped to make camp and have a proper meal.
"We need to keep going!" Thorin ordered.
"We need to rest." Gloín growled.
¨We need to eat.¨ Oín whined.
¨We don't have time! The Orcks are breathing in our necks. If we stop now they will get to us by dawn.¨ Thorin replied, sounding irritated.
The other dwarves started to growl and Bronwyn could hear Bifur mutter something in Khuzdul what she didn't understand, but it was clear he wasn't fond of the idea of walking another night.
Bronwyn looked down at her now aching feet, thinking that a break wouldn't be such a bad idea when she heard something not far from where they were standing.
¨Thorin this is madness. This quest would be all for naught if we were to drop dead here in the woods!¨ Stated Gandalf, also sounding tired and irritated.
Bronwyn sneaked away from the group and climbed a nearby rock looking if she could determine the source of the sound she heard just moments before.
She peeped over the edge, trying to peer through the darkness. Her eyed had hardly adjusted themselves when she saw a black figure standing on a rock not far from her. It looked like a large beast with long dark hair and claws. Bronwyn tried not to breath while she gazed at a creature she had never seen before.
She tore her eyes from the beast and gazed through the woods looking for a sign of Orcks, witch she found unfortunately. They were still far away but close enough to see them scouting through the woods.
Quietly she lowered herself from the rock and hurried herself back to the group.
¨And where do you suggest we go?¨ Thorin asked, starting to lose his patience.
¨There is a house nearby, in the woods where we could take refugee.¨ Gandalf said calmly.
¨Whose house? Are they friend or foe - ?¨
¨Doesn't matter, we have to go now!¨ Bronwyn cut in, sounding out of breath.
¨What, why? Are the Orcks nearby?¨
¨Yes, that too. But there is something else out there!¨ And she pointed towards the rocks.
¨Did you see it? Did it see you?¨ Gandalf asked firmly while shaking her shoulders.
¨Yes. No - ¨
¨See! Perfect burglar material! Quiet as a mouse, we didn't even notice he was gone!¨ Gandalf clapped excitedly in his hands.
¨Will you listen! We have to go now!¨ Bronwyn almost yelled at the group, who were starting to get on her nerves.
Suddenly the group was interrupted by a loud roar.
Thorin looked at the darkening sky. ¨What choice do we have?¨
¨None.¨ Gandalf replied, grabbing his cane tighter and they all started to run.
They could feel the beast sprinting after them while they ran out of the woods.
"Oh, no! It's closing in on us. Come on lads, keep going!" Bronwyn heard Bofur shouting through the sound of the wind in her ears. Afraid of looking back, she started to move her short legs even faster, when she finally saw a cabin only a few leagues away.
"Into the house. Run!" Gandalf shouted.
The dwarves forced the door open and practically fell through on the floor. Bronwyn quickly jumped up and tried to slam the door shut, but the beast had already caught up with them and tried to stick his head through the door.
"Guys, help me out here!" She shouted while thrusting her body against the door.
The other dwarves joined in and Thorin slammed his shoulder against the heavy door whereby it finally closed.
Bronwyn's legs couldn't hold her anymore and she sank exhausted on the floor.
¨Nice work, Master Burglar.¨ Bronwyn looked up and saw that Thorin had joined her on the floor sounding as exhausted as she felt.
"I do have a name you know." She replied smug, but couldn´t keep the idiotic grin from appearing on her face.
Thorin chuckled. "Nice work, Bilbo." He gave her a small smile and got up, leaving Bronwyn alone on the floor.
Bronwyn's idiotic grin faded for a moment, feeling a sting in her chest. Yes, that was who she was supposed to be, but for a moment she wished she wasn't.
"What was that?" Ori asked, cutting through her train of thoughts.
"That is our host." They al turned their head to look at Gandalf in confusion.
The next day Bronwyn woke up to the smell of freshly baked bread. She stretched her arms above her head and got up from the haystack she used as a bed. That night was the best night of sleep Bronwyn had in a long time. Her feet finally got the rest they deserved and it felt good.
She followed her nose to the kitchen and saw that the rest of the company was already seated around the table.
"Look who finally came to join us." Dwalin said when he saw Bronwyn coming around the corner.
"Good morning Bilbo." Thorin raised his mug and gave her a sweet smile. Bronwyn felt her cheeks turning red and whispered a soft 'good morning' back.
Jeez woman, get yourself together! No need to blush at a name that isn't even yours.
"Mornin' sunshine! Come, I saved you a seat." Bofur piped up excitedly and tapped on a enormous chair next to him.
Bronwyn gladly hastened herself to Bofur and climbed up the chair, barely able to see over the table.
"Would you like some milk?" Bronwyn looked behind her and saw a gruff looking man, holding a huge can of milk.
So this is the shapeshifter Gandalf told us about. It was hard to imagine that this man was the same beast she had seen in the woods, the night before. He was tall, much taller than the average man. His greasy hair had already started to turn grey and his face looked tired, but something in his eyes looked kind.
"Y-yes, please." She shoved her cup closer to the man so he could fill it with milk.
"Bilbo Baggins, sir. Thank you for opening your home to us." Said Bronwyn kindly, not forgetting her proper manners even after travelling with a pack of dwarves for the past months.
The man raised his eyebrows at this. "Beorn. Master Baggins is it?" He replied and Bronwyn nodded.
"And you are the one they call Oakenshield. Tell me, why is Azog the Defiler hunting you?"
After breakfast Bronwyn decided to take a walk in Beorn's garden. She hadn't truly appreciated it before when they were running for their lives.
Beorn had planted the most beautiful flowers and trees she had never seen in a Hobbit garden before, but the most amazing thing was that everything was huge! The flowers were almost as big as herself, even the bees were enormous. Bronwyn could only watch in amazement while the insect were flying around her head.
"Are you enjoying yourself?" Bronwyn hadn't noticed that Beorn was sitting on a bench underneath a beautiful Oaktree.
"Yes, it's wonderful! I've never seen such beautiful flowers in my life." Bronwyn walked over and joined him on the bench and noticed it was actually made of twigs.
"Did you grow al of these flowers yourself?" She asked, beaming up at him.
"Yes." He replied curtly.
"How did you make them so big?"
"You see, flowers are easy. You plant their seeds, give them enough water and care and they will reward you by turning into the most beautiful creations in the world. If you fail to care for them, they will wither and die like most creatures."
Bronwyn took another look around the garden and thought of her brother. He always loved to work in the garden to grow his flowers. Bronwyn on the other hand did not have the patience to grow a single blade of grass.
"May I ask you a question?" Beorn looked down at her.
"Of course." She started to grow fond of the man. Sure, he was big and intimidating, but his eyes looked kind and his voice was soft.
"Why would a woman be travelling with thirteen dwarves?"
"W-what?" She stammered, unable to hide the shock on her face. That was the last question she had expected him to ask.
Beorn suddenly burst out laughing.
"No need to be that surprised, love. I'm not as dense as your fellow companions. I knew you were a woman the moment you walked through the door."
"But, how?" Bronwyn was quite confused. She had travelled with the dwarves for months now and only a few of them noticed and this man only had to look at her once.
"Shape shifters have a very good sense of smell, you know. There is a distinctive difference between a man and a woman's fragrance. You smell nothing like those stinky, hairy dwarves inside." He gestured with his hand towards the cabin.
Bronwyn hadn't had a proper wash in weeks, so she knew that probably wasn't true. She lifted her arm and took a sniff. No, definitely not true.
Beorn's laugh roared through the garden. "No, not that kind of smell."
Bronwyn looked at him quizzically. She didn't know the difference between a man and a woman's smell, but nonetheless he was right. So, she took his word for it.
"So, what is the reason that a woman has to dress up like a man, to travel witch a bunch of dwarves."
Bronwyn felt a slight panic, knowing that she needed to make sure that Beorn wouldn't expose her secret, especially to Thorin.
"Well-"
"Please, do enlighten us."
She froze, her breath was stuck in her throat. Oh Eru please tell me that wasn't the voice she thought she heard. Please tell me it was just a talking cow with a very deep, angry voice.
She slowly turned around and there he stood with his arms in folded in front of his chest. Desperately she searched his face for any trace of kindness he had shown her the past few days, but there was nothing. His piercing blue eyes, she knew so well, glared back at her.
"Thorin, I can-"
"I heard you and Bofur talking in the goblet cave, but I thought I probably must have misheard."
"I'm sorr-"
"Because how could my company possibly betray me like that?"
"They didn't kno-"
"How could there possibly be a woman in my company without me knowing?"
"Why, because woman aren't worthy to be in your company?" Bronwyn spat, knowing that he had every right to be angry with her and this was probably not the time, but she couldn't stop the irritation building up in her stomach.
Thorin looked taken aback for a moment, but quickly recovered himself.
"That has nothing to do with it."
"Oh, really. So if you knew I was a woman you would gladly take me on your quest?" The sarcasm was audible in her voice, already knowing the answer to that question.
"No, of course not."
"No! Of course not!" She repeated.
"But not because you're a woman!" Thorin was starting to lose his cool.
This woman was infuriating! How did he not notice it sooner? The way that he, she had annoyed him for the last couple of months. Only a woman could make his blood boil like this! Infuriating, just like his sister. How many times had he forbid her to come hunting with him and Frerin. And how many times had she sneaked after them until they had no choice, but to let her stay with them.
"Should I remind you that i did not even want you to come with us, even when you were posing as a man?" He said, trying to regain his cool.
Now it was Bronwyn's turn to be taken aback.
"We needed a burglar. Not a poor excuse of a man who could not even reach his own cupboards, let alone lift a sword! If I had known you were a woman I could- "
"What, you could have protected me?" Bronwyn was appalled. Did she not fight along side with him? Did she not safe his life? Did he not tell her that he was wrong about her? Hadn't she proven herself enough?
"That's not what I meant!" He took a step forwards towards the Hobbit, but his path was blocked by Beorn. Bronwyn had completely forgotten about the shape shifter and clearly Thorin too, by the look on his face.
"That's enough master Dwarf. It was a long day for al of us and you need to rest for your journey ahead."
Thorin glared at the giant, but calmed himself when he remembered that Beorn was their host and not a man he wanted to fight.
Beorn turned to the little Hobbit and Bronwyn gave him a reassuring nod before he made his way back to the cottage. She watched the giant walk away, feeling kind off embarrassed that he had to see two strangers fight in such a manner. A quiet voice tore her eyes back to Thorin.
"You lied to me." Finally she was able to read his face, she saw the face of a betrayed man. His voice sounded so hurt that the sound stung in her heart.
"We had no choice. Gandalf was sure you wouldn't let me come if you-"
"That bloody wizard! I kne-"
"But I never lied to you!" Bronwyn cut him off.
"Everything else, everything I did was the truth. I really want to help you and the others find your way home. Please understand." She begged.
"You know me." She said softly.
It was quiet after that. Thorin looked at the ground in front of him, refusing to look at her. The dead-pan silence was nerve wrecking and Bronwyn tried to think of other things to say, but her mind failed her.
"Your journey ends here." Her heart jumped at the sudden sound.
"We will leave for Mirkwood first thing in the morning and you will return home." He turned away from her and made his way back to the cottage.
Bronwyn tried to go after him, yell at him, anything! But what was there to say anyway. It was only a matter of time before her secret would be revealed.
And a happy new year! Sorry for the cliff-hanger, but I really wanted to post a chapter before the end of the year.
So, Thorin finally found out and that ended in quite a debate. I could made Bronwyn all apologetic and sorry, but that just isn't her character.
I hope you guys enjoyed it and hopefully it was worth the wait.
As always please favourite/follow and review! Love to hear from you guys.
See you next year!
