Happy New Year everyone! :) Thanks for the new favorites/follows and the reviews. As always, I am very happy to know that you enjoy this story so far, I am very trying my best to make it as interesting as possible! There hasn't been too much of it for now, but soon things will get a bit more explicit between Kili and Luna.
Enjoy this chapter!

Chapter IX : Storytelling and hidden talents

"Keep your feet apart…yes that's it, shoulder-width. That way, you stand strong against any foe" Luna looked at Bilbo who was positioning himself as she had taught him. He kept a firm grip on his sword, not sure whether he really wanted to do this.

He had thought it was a great idea when the young girl had first talked about it, he needed to learn to defend himself but the first few times they had actually done it, he had just felt ridiculous. It seemed that he would never be able to fight like those warriors he was traveling with, he would forever be a burden who ran out of his home with little silly dreams of adventure.

"Excellent" she said with a satisfied smile then unsheathed her own sword. "Ready?"

He swallowed nervously, of course he wasn't ready, he never was but as he had done the other times they had practiced together, he nodded.

"Block my blows" she said and in an instant, she dived towards him.

The hobbit knew she would never hurt him ; she always stopped the blows he couldn't avoid or hit him with the flat side of her blade.

He managed to block her when she attacked the first time, avoided her second blow by hurriedly stepping away and as he tried to move away from the third, he stumbled and fell backwards.

He let out a little moan of pain as he found himself lying on his back on the ground and gladly took Luna's hand when she offered to pull him up back on his feet.

"We will stop here for today" she said.

He sighted in relief. They had been training for what felt like hours already and his body was aching all over.

"You are getting better" the girl commented, putting her sword back into its sheath. "Your progress is quite impressing"

"No it's not"

She gave him a surprised look.

"It's nice of you to try and encourage me like that but I know I am doing a terrible job"

"What?"

"We have been doing this for at least two or three weeks already and I still lamentably fall to the ground after a couple of seconds. The others are right about me, I am not made for adventure"

"No one says so anymore"

"I know that's what you all think…well maybe not you, but that's because it's you"

"What is that supposed to mean?" she raised an eyebrow.

"You always believe in everyone"

"No, I don't, I only believe in those who are worth it"

The compliment seemed to have no effect on the hobbit though.

"Bilbo, you think you are bad at fighting because you compare yourself to the others but they are all warriors who have been doing this all their lives while you only just started. Trust me when I say that most of them took the same time you took to be able to block three blows just to be able to properly hold their sword"

He just shrugged his shoulders and picked up his blade. Luna watched him with concern on her face. Ever since they had left Rivendell, the hobbit had been a lot more silent and reserved than usual and she knew that he missed the Shire a lot.

"Your neighbours will be quite surprised when they will see you coming back with this elvish blade" she said to try and light up his mind.

"I think they will be surprised to see me come back at all"

"Have you already thought of how you will start your story?"

"My story?"

"Yes, everyone in Hobbiton will want to hear where you ran off to. If you are to tell them about everything that happened to you, you might as well start thinking about a good way of putting it"

"Even now I wouldn't know how to start"

"Well then, you need to think about it. I can help you if you want, I have never been as fond as you of books and stories but I believe that if we combine our efforts we will build a beautiful tale to tell all your neighbours"

"That sounds like a good idea" Bilbo admitted, his lips finally curling into a little smile.

"Great! Come on now, let's go back to the camp"

They made their way back to where they had left the others earlier and found them sitting around the fire, already eating a stew made by Bofur who had kept two bowls for them.

Bilbo was thankful for finally being able to sit down and put something in his stomach. Those training sessions always took all the energy he had left after a day of intense walking in the mountains. Now that they had no more ponies since that night when the trolls had captured them -which already felt like so long ago-, they had to walk the rest of the way to Erebor and the hobbit sometimes found himself wishing for his old ride, no matter how bad he had disliked it at the beginning.

"So for a start…at which moment exactly do you want to start your story?" Luna asked, blowing on her stew to cool it down a little bit.

Bilbo swallowed the big portion he had been able to fit inside his mouth and thought about it for couple of minutes.

"I guess…at the moment when you all arrived that night at Bag-End while I was just getting ready to have a nice and tranquil dinner" he answered.

She chuckled at the memory.

"Or not, actually it really started when Gandalf visited me on that morning and told me he was looking for someone to share in an adventure. I should have known I hadn't so easily gotten myself rid of him…"

She let out a little laugh.

"Sorry" she said as he raised an eyebrow at her. "Indeed, wizards are quite unpredictable. That sounds like a good idea"

The hobbit didn't seemed entirely convinced yet though and Ori who was sitting nearby caught their pensive looks.

"Excuse me, what are you both thinking about?" he asked in his usual shy voice.

"We are trying to find a proper way for Biblo to start his story when he will go home and his friends will want to know where he went" Luna answered. "Oh, but of course! Ori, why didn't I think of you earlier? You are a very good writer, maybe you can help us"

"Well, I don't know if I'm that good…" the dwarf blushed, "but I can try"

"It's not easy…" Bilbo thoughtfully said. "There are not many books about hobbits, I don't know how to start…We are not usually part of the great stories, I don't even think I've actually ever read one including Halflings"

"Neither have I" Ori shrugged his shoulders. "Hobbits are not really well-known outside the borders of the Shire unfortunately"

"Well that's it then!" Luna exclaimed. "Bilbo, you need to start your story by talking about hobbits. That way, the people of the Shire will be pleased to have a story that actually starts by flattering them and the people beyond the Shire will learn more about them"

"I think that's a good idea" Ori nodded.

"That doesn't sound too bad indeed…Concerning Hobbits…"

"I like the sound of that" Luna said.

Ori took his notepad out of his bag and started scribbling on it.

Bilbo opened his mouth as if to say something but frowned and scratched his head.

"I think there should be something before that though…not a whole chapter…more like a prologue to set the bases of the story" he said.

While he and Luna started to think about what could serve as a good introduction to the tale, Ori wrote some more then looked up at them with a little satisfied smile.

"I think it would be better to start with one hobbit in particular before speaking of the others. We have to set the decor and introduce the main character first. Tell me what you think of this" he cleared his throat. "In a hole in the ground, there lived a hobbit. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole full of worms and oozy smells. It was a hobbit hole, and that means good food, a warm hearth, and all the comforts of home"

Bilbo smiled, more to himself than to Ori and Luna winked at the dwarf scribe who blushed.

"I really like that" the hobbit said in a slightly absent voice. "You do are very good"

"Didn't I say so?" Luna piped in. "Alright, I see that you two are more creative than me when it comes to that, I will let you work on it"

And she stood up and walked away towards where Fili and Kili were sitting not far from their uncle.

The two story-writers watched her go then Bilbo turned towards Ori again.

"May I please take a look at what you've written?"

"Sure" the dwarf handed him his notepad and the hobbit reread the few lines that had already been written. He also noticed at that moment a little drawing Ori had scribbled in the corner of the page and noticed that the dwarf had managed to draw in details a tree in that little corner.

"Hey, that's really nice…I didn't know you could draw that well"

The dwarf looked over Bilbo's shoulder at his drawing and blushed again.

"Oh, that's just a little thing…I can't really say that I'm good but I like drawing, it makes me feel relaxed and at peace during the quest"

"What do you usually draw?"

"It depends of what I see…May I?"

Bilbo handed him his notebook back and the dwarf turned a few pages and started to show him some of his drawings.

"That little tree, I saw it a few days ago while we were walking, I just found it beautiful. There, I drew a flower from the gardens in Rivendell…oh and here, the trolls when they were turned to stone"

"That's amazing…wait, is that my teapot?"

Ori stopped on a drawing of a teapot and blushed. It was indeed one that he had seen in Bag-End.

"Yes…I found it quite pretty that night so I drew it. It's for you if you want, it will remind you of your home"

"Th…thanks" he mumbled as the dwarf gave him the drawing of his teapot. "What's that one?" he then asked, seeing another one hidden beneath a few sheets.

"Oh, that's nothing…just a sketch…"

Bilbo raised an eyebrow at Ori's reddening face.

"Can't I see it?"

The dwarf gave a quick, anxious look around then leant closer to the hobbit.

"Then promise me you won't tell the others about this one. Especially not Luna"

"I promise…"

Ori gave one more quick look across to where the young girl was sitting with Fili and Kili and carefully showed Bilbo his drawing.

It was the beginning of a portrait. The details hadn't been drawn yet, only the shape of the face and the first sketches of beautiful curls framing it.

"Is this…Luna?" he asked.

"Well it will be hopefully when it will be over, it's just a start. I want to give it to her as her birthday present."

"I am sure it will look great, what a good idea"

"Thanks. But you won't tell her, right?"

"I promised I wouldn't. When is her birthday?"

"It's in November. As she was born the same day Smaug took Erebor, it is unfortunately never a happy date to remember…but normally, if everything goes well we should have settled back into the mountain for her next birthday, Durin's day being in October, so we will all be in the mood to celebrate for once"

"It's such a great idea, I'm sure she will like it"

Oïn had a little proud smile. He was already looking forward to the day he would be able to give Luna her present.

"I really had no idea you were so talented…this is so realistic" Bilbo exclaimed, taking another look at his teapot.

"Would you want one?"

"A portrait?"

"Yes, would you like a portrait of yourself to go with your story?"

"That sounds a bit narcissistic, doesn't it?"

"It's for future generations, so they will know the face of the hero of the story they are reading"

Blbo chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.

"If you want, why not after all"

Ori gave a little smile and they started talking about books and arts.

A bit later, while night had fallen over the campement and that most of the company were sleeping, four of the dwarves had remained sitting near the fire : Dwalin who was holding the watch, and Thorin, Balin and Luna.

"Everything is going well so far" Thorin said in a low voice to avoid waking the others up.

It wasn't rare that the four of them found themselves discussing about the quest together. Thorin was of course after all, their leader and rightful king, Balin was and had always been his counsellor, Dwalin was one of his fiercest fighters and Luna was to bear the title of captain of the royal guard.

"Indeed, we left Rivendell three weeks ago and there is still no sign of the orcs" Balin agreed in the same hushed tone.

Only Luna bit her lip.

"It is strange that Gandalf hasn't joined us yet" she said.

"He mustn't be far behind us. We won't leave the mountains without waiting for him anyway"

She absentmindedly nodded.

"How is the hobbit's training?" Thorin asked her.

"Actually quite good. He is better than I'd thought and progresses quickly. Of course it's only just the beginning but I believe that he will soon be able to properly defend himself in a battle, shall we encounter any"

The dwarf did not seem very convinced but Balin shook his head with a little smile.

"I don't doubt she is right, you forget it is part of the captain's job to select and train the best warriors she can find to compose the guard" he softy said. "If she thinks he will do good, then he will"

Luna opened her mouth to protest but Thorin nodded.

"I did not forget" he smiled at her. "When we will have taken our mountain back, we will restore the guard. Six of the best fighters amongst our people to follow the captain"

"Five, I'm still here" Dwalin corrected.

Thorin turned towards him and nodded. Indeed, Dwalin was the last member that remained of the last royal guard. The five other guards had died either facing Smaug or facing orcs.

"If the captain will have me, then I'm in" he added for Luna.

She slightly bowed her head but bit her lips. Would that warrior who had obeyed her father follow the orders of a young girl such as her?

"You will be the one to decide first of all if you want me to take on my father's role" she told Thorin.

"I am not asking myself the question anymore" he answered.

She gave him a little nod to acknowledge the compliment.

Balin's lips stretched into a soft smile and he stood up.

"I am going to sleep. We have another long day of walking waiting for us tomorrow"

Thorin nodded.

"Do you need help to hold the watch?" Luna asked Dwalin who shook his head.

"No, don't ye worry, go get some rest, the lads haven't obviously been able to wait for you" he chuckled.

They all looked over at where Fili and Kili were sleeping, rolled in their blankets with an empty space and a third blanket prepared between them for Luna to come and do the same.

Balin's grin grew wider and even Thorin couldn't keep his lips from curling into a little smile.

"It's nice to see that some things never change" the old counsellor declared, remembering very well the time when Luna had lived with Dis and her sons and how the three little dwarflings always used to sleep snuggled against each other at night.

Luna's cheeks slightly turned pink and she simply shrugged her shoulders. After bidding the others a goodnight, she walked to where Fili and Kili were and indeed, crawled between them, pulling the blanket over her. Both were slightly snoring but that didn't even matter to her, she would never sleep anywhere else that close to them. Just like when she was a child, she always felt safer and even her nightmares were scarcer and didn't seem as scary when she was near them. In addition now, she also felt like it would be easier to protect them as well from any harm should they be under attack during the night.

Kili mumbled something inaudible in his sleep and she subdued a little smile from her face before falling asleep in her turn.

Keep walking, she had to keep walking. If she stopped, she would die, according of course that she wasn't dead already…no, that could not be, if she was dead, it wouldn't be so hard to keep going. If she was dead, her family would be here with her ; her father, Lunkin,…, Logan and maybe…yes, maybe even her mother that she had never really known as she was dead the day of her birth, killed by a dragon.
She had been the first to die, Luna bitterly thought, and she would be the last. Whether she would fall in a few years or in a couple of minutes, it seemed that her line was doomed.

No, she couldn't think like that, she had to keep going. The orcs weren't far behind. They knew she was alive, they had found her once already in the forest, a few days after the attack in the hidden valley. Once again, she had barely escaped with her life. How, she did not know, but she had seen the teeth of their wargs from very close…far too close actually.
She raised a hand to her middle on which the jaws of the monster had closed and winced in pain. She had bandaged the wound with a strip of what had once been her nightgown but that was now just a dirty torn rag. She hoped it would be enough until she reached her friends, in the meanwhile all she could do was to keep walking, no matter the pain, no matter the exhaustion and no matter the cold of the winter that had settled in the blue mountains.
She was clutching to her father's sword, never daring to let go of her grip on it. If she hadn't had it when the orcs had found her, she would be long dead by now. She wasn't sure how she had found the strength to push them back, she had probably been lucky : they had been only five or six and hadn't expected to find her at all which had given her a small advantage. Then, the rage of what they had just done had taken over and she had let it all out against them. She hadn't killed them all though, two had gone away and she did not doubt they had gone to warn the rest of their pack that she was still alive. Ever since that moment, she expected to see them appearing front between the trees at anytime, after all they hadn't put in so much effort to find and kill her father and brother just to let her go like that. She…

She suddenly stopped. She hadn't caught on time the movement between the bushes and her eyes sharpened when an horrible-looking orc stepped from behind a tree and smirked at her.

"Are you finally ready to die?" he smirked. She could hear the others all around her, they had circled her. She risked a quick glance behind her shoulder and was surprised to see that despite what she had thought, there weren't more orcs than the last time.

"How many tries does it take to kill me?" she spat at the orc in front of her.

"The third time is the one"

He cursed in black speech and all of them suddenly threw themselves at her.

Luna pushed one of the bodies that was lying on top of her away and rolled on her side, moaning in pain. She slowly forced herself on her knees and looked around her. All the orcs laid dead.

"Maybe…next time…" she muttered at the one who had talked at the beginning.

She looked down at herself, she was in a very pitiful state and when she saw the blood covering her clothes, thought it better to not take a closer look at the wounds she had gotten. There was nothing she could do now…She stood up and almost fell when she put her weight on her right leg that had been severely injured. Biting her lips to avoid screaming, she picked up her sword. Snow was starting to fall.

Keep walking, she had to keep walking.