DISCLAIMER!: I do NOT own The Hobbit or Lord of the Rings in any way - Tolkien has that honor. I have written this purely for amusement-purposes, and I receive no credit. On that note; read on.
The vote results are, at this point; 6 for Bilbo, 11 for Thorin, 5 on Aragorn, 2 on Legolas and one on both Kili and Frodo.
Now! This is the final chapter for the first movie! :D Woop!
"Where is Bilbo? Where is our Hobbit?"
And Tara widened her eyes with fright, looking back up onto the mountain. Was he still in Goblin Town? How long was he supposed to be in there? She remembered something about Thorin giving a little speech beforehand. But what if something went wrong?
"WHERE IS OUR HOBBIT?"
Tara almost wanted to tell Gandalf to shut up. She wanted to listen for Bilbo, hear his little hobbit-feet shuffle around on the earth, rustle the leaves. Even hearing his complaining about forgetting that stupid handkerchief would be better than not knowing.
"Curse that halfling! Now he's lost!?"
"I thought he was with Dori!"
"Don't blame me!"
The Dwarves were being noisy too. Now would be a bloody good time to get a vision, telling her exactly what was going to happen.
"Well, where did you last see him?" Gandalf asked, feeling as impatient as Tara, it seemed.
"I thought I saw him slip away when they first cornered us,"
"What happened exactly? Tell me!"
"I'll tell you what happened," Thorin said. Tara bit her lip, having a feeling she knew what kind of answer Thorin was going to give Gandalf. And she was quite sure she wasn't going to like it one bit. "Master Baggins saw his chance, and he took it! He's thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm half since he first stepped out of his door. We will not be seeing our hobbit again-"
That was more than enough for Tara.
"LIAR!"
"Tara!?" The yell surprised the others, and it was Ori who had come with flabbergasted call. Her eyes were cold as ice, glaring at Thorin with a defiant look on his face. He, of course, was unfazed, and simply reciprocated the glare. She wanted nothing more than to smack him.
"Bilbo would NEVER do that! He might just be lost, as Dwalin said! He'd never just leave us behind like this!" She was certain. There was no way he would do it. Sure, he had thought about it, almost done it. But in the end, Bilbo wouldn't do it.
"He has no place amongst us, and he knows-"
"SHUT UP! I don't believe you! I REFUSE to believe you!" she interrupted Thorin once more, covering her ears with her hands. She felt defiant tears rising up in her eyes, but she refused to cry in front of the others.
"He's gone, Tara!"
"No. Actually, he isn't." Tara felt her heart skip several beats, leaving her drained of air, as she turned around and saw Bilbo behind her. She felt her face crack in the biggest smile she had ever smiled. She knew it! Granted, he seemed a bit worse for wear – and Tara couldn't quite blame him, knowing what he just went through – but he was in one piece.
"Bilbo!"
"Bilbo Baggins," Gandalf said with a relieved voice. "I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life." Tara understood his sentiment completely.
"Bilbo! We'd given you up," Fili said in a surprised voice.
"How on Earth did you get past the goblins?"
"How indeed?"
Gandalf looked around, and Tara knew he had seen the ring being put into Bilbo's pocket. She bit her lip, wringing her hands. And the movement caught Gandalf's eyes. She locked his gaze with hers, shaking her head as discretely as possible.
"Well, what does it matter? He's back," Gandalf said with a sort of awkward smile, hoping to simply push the topic aside. He trusted Tara's judgment enough to delay discussing the problem, at the very least.
"It matters. I want to know – why did you come back?" Thorin asked with a confused look on his face. Tara smiled, crossing her arms over her chest, as she looked at Bilbo. This was the time for Bilbo to prove himself to Thorin. Bilbo seemed to be aware of this, as he looked around himself trying to find the right words.
"Look, I... I know you doubt me! I know you always have." This was his starting statement. Everyone there knew it to be true – Thorin had never been very happy about Bilbo joining their little voyage. "And you're right – I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair, and my garden. See, that's where I belong. That's Home. And that's why I came back, because..." His voice broke off, as he hastily looked at Tara. Her eyes were misty, her heart swelled with pride of that little hobbit. She nodded, trying to keep herself from sniveling and ruining the touching moment. "You don't have one. A Home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can."
Thorin looked just as moved as Tara, albeit his eyes weren't filled with tears like Tara's were. A big snivel came from Tara, as she bravely tried to keep the tears in.
"Bilbo..."
"Don't look so sad, Tara, I'm here now," Bilbo said with a smile, and Tara giggled, as she began rubbing her eyes to rid them of tears. This, of course, made a few of them escape the corners and trickle down her cheeks.
"I know! Jeez, I know, but... I'm just so relieved," she admitted, and then, a noise attracted her attention, along with the dwarves'. They all looked up.
"Wait – did you hear that?"
It was the sound of Wargs. And Tara was quite sure that was not a good thing. Thorin and Gandalf looked at each other.
"Out of the frying pain-" Thorin began. Gandalf nodded. "And into the fire! Run!"
In the distance, Tara could make out some large shapes running down the slopes, and she slowly backed away from them, but at the same time not daring to look away. She felt a hand grab her wrist.
"RUN!"
She was then pulled along by Gandalf, as the entire company began fleeing as quickly as they could, away from the Wargs. Tara could barely focus on anything besides the colors of the leaves and trees they ran past, and she certainly didn't know where any of the others were. But she was quite certain the Wargs would soon reach them. They were too quick.
Sooner than Tara would have liked, the company was forced to come to a halt. They had reached the end of the cliff, and Tara had to admit that they were quite high up. Dieena held on tight to Tara's hand, pulling it slightly.
"Ainuhe, they're gaining on us," she said as she bit down on her lower lip. Tara looked up at Gandalf, hoping the old man would choose right about now to come up with some sort of brilliant idea. It just so happened that he did.
"Up in the trees! All of you! Climb! Come on, Bilbo! Climb!"
As Gandalf ordered all of them up into the pines, Tara made sure to get Dieena up first. She saw Ori using Dwalin's bald scalp as a stepping stone, and she smiled for a fleeting second, before being pulled up into the tree by Dieena. Not a second too late either, as she would see once arriving at a branch a bit below Gandalf. The Wargs were here.
"They're coming!
Tara looked around, making sure everyone were safely in the trees. Unfortunately, the biggest problem had just arrived.
"Azog!"
Tara heard this name uttered by Thorin, and her head snapped in that general direction. She saw the large Orc astride the White Warg. It didn't exactly help with the sinister part of a Warg's charm making it white. It just looked even creepier. It would probably make a nice fur coat though, Tara thought with morbid humor. Azog took a deep breath, a sadistic smirk spreading on his face.
"Do you smell it? The scent of fear? I remember your father reeked of it... Thorin, son of Thráin."
"It cannot be!" Thorin muttered, and Tara looked at his back, visible from her vantage point. She couldn't begin to imagine what he was feeling right now. She was afraid to find out, too. But she forced her worry into the back of her mind, as Azog spoke once more.
"That one is mine... Kill the others!"
All hell broke loose. The Wargs ran for full speed towards the trees that they were all hiding in, and began jumping up the trunk, their jaws snapping as they tried to grab their prey. Tara pulled Dieena closer, making sure that the Elf wouldn't fall from the branch due to the tremors caused by the large animals.
"Ainuhe! The others!"
Tara pulled her eyes from the weirdly enticing fangs of the Warg beneath her, as she saw the trees before her, with the others in them, falling. The weight of the Wargs was tipping them.
"Jump!" she yelled loudly, and the Dwarves didn't need much encouragement to abandon their spots. Soon, all of the company was gathered in one tree, and Tara could feel the total weight taking its toll on the tree. It was only a matter of time before it would topple over.
"Fili!"
A call from Gandalf made Tara refocus on the more sinister problems at hand, as she saw him pass a burning pinecone to the young Dwarf. Her eyes lit up, as she quickly pulled a pinecone from the branch closest to her.
"Brilliant idea!" she announced, as she attempted to mimic the old wizard's trick. It took a few tries, but slowly the cone began smoking. A few more suggestive breaths of air on the cone made it flare up, and Tara quickly passed the fire onto another cone, which she handed to Dieena. "Take this, make as many firecones as you can!"
Dieena did as she was told, and the other dwarves were already working around the clock to provide projectiles. A bombardment of fireballs was instigated as the company used the feral beasts as rather large targets. Sure, it scared them away, but it also had one other effect. One that Tara really should've remembered.
"Uh-oh," she announced, as she saw the fire spreading on the ground beneath them, and felt the tree begin tipping. Dieena heard her, and she briefly stopped her assault on a particularly nasty Warg, in order to focus on Tara.
"Ainuhe?"
Tara looked at Dieena with a panicked look on her face.
"Hold onto me, this might be a bit rough," she ordered, and not two seconds passed after this had been said before Dieena understood what she meant. The tree roots began giving in to the fire consuming them, and Dieena hastily linked arms with Tara, as they both made sure they were in position to grab onto the branch they were sitting on.
Tara couldn't quite stop herself from screaming as the tree fell, and she found herself wondering if the tree would fall completely. When she'd think of it later, she'd realize it was a just worry. After all, her presence had added two extra amounts of weight to the poor tree.
When the tree had fallen to a completely horizontal position, Tara had her fair share of difficulty hanging onto the branch. She attempted heartily to pull herself up, so she could get into a sitting position on the branch and pull Dieena up too. As mentioned, more difficult than it sounded.
"Mister Gandalf!"
This yell made Tara forget about her efforts for a moment, as she practically turned her head 180 degrees. It was Dori who had yelled, and as she saw his fingers slip, she feared for his life and the life of Ori, whose only lifeline was his cousin.
"Dori! Ori!" she yelled, as Gandalf quickly lowered his staff, saving the two Dwarves from a long fall, and Tara breathed easily for a short moment. She should know better than think that anything would get any better in this company. Not long thereafter, it was Dieena's turn to give her bad news.
"Ainuhe, the dark-haired dwarf is doing something crazy."
Tara was afraid to look, but she felt like she had to. Thorin had gotten onto the trunk, but rather than help the rest of them up as well, he drew his sword. He was completely absorbed in the presence of his old enemy, and she saw him run forward.
"THORIN! NO!"
He was insane. There was no way he'd win this time! First off, there was no oaken branch to act as a shield for him. Secondly, Azog had a Warg this time! Tara fought harder to get onto the tree, swinging her legs back and forth at the same time. Why was this so hard!? She felt tears enter her eyes in frustration the more futile her efforts seemed, and as she looked up at Thorin once more, her eyes widened as she saw Thorin being knocked to the ground by the large white Warg.
"NO!"
"Thorin!"
The one to share her scream was Fili, and Tara felt hope slipping away from her as Azog looked to one of his lieutenants, ordering him. "Bring me the Dwarf's head." While they all called for Thorin, Tara saw a glimmer of movement in the corner of her eye. As a result, her head turned slightly, and her eyes widened.
"Bilbo?"
The small Hobbit had climbed up as well, and he looked down at her, briefly. He attempted to smile at her, but it wasn't a very well done gesture. His nervousness and fright wasn't ideal for smiling. Then, he charged. Tara felt tears slide down her cheeks, as her mind quickly conjured up the most dreadful possible outcomes of this scenario.
"No! NO! Stop it!" she yelled, as she clawed at the tree, fighting her way up. She saw Bilbo charge into the Orc, ready to cut Thorin's head off, and thereafter killing it by stabbing it repeatedly with Sting. She shook her head. That wasn't it's name yet. He then jumped to his feet, stepping between Thorin and the white Orc. He was much too brave for such a small fellow. Hobbits were like that. As the orcs closed in on Bilbo, he made a few unbalanced swings of his sword.
Azog grinned maliciously.
"Kill him."
Tara finally got up on the trunk, and remembered pulling Dieena up a bit. The young elven female gasped loudly, as her human friend began running onto the cliff.
"Ainuhe!" she yelled in worry, and Tara felt her body drawing magic from the air before she had even decided what magic to cast. Her hair became charged with energy, and she felt her cells vibrating with power.
"Leave him alone!" she called, and she could've just imagined it, but she could swear she heard her voice echo. She blew her hands out from her body, and the biggest shockwave she had ever made exploded from within her. She stumbled a bit on the spot from the sudden draining of power, but she vaguely saw numerous outlines blur past her. When the black dots finally disappeared from her vision, she saw that those outlines had been her friends. At least, those who made it up to the cliff again. Dieena was in front, wielding a sword like any elven warrior Tara had ever seen. Sometimes she forgot Dieena could fight.
"Bilbo!" she muttered to herself, as she looked around. Evidently, the shockwave had also made Bilbo tumble to the ground, and Tara quickly ran to his side.
"Bilbo, are you okay?" she asked, as she reached for the small Hobbit. When he saw her face, relief became visible on his dirt-stained face, but he quickly nodded and shook her worried hands off of him.
"Yes, I'm fine. See to Thorin!" he asked as he grabbed his sword off of the ground, and quickly ran to the aid of his Dwarven companions. Tara smiled shakily, feeling a whole other level of pride for the changes the hobbit had gone through since their journey's beginning.
"Okay!"
Tara looked around, quickly seeing Thorin's apparently lifeless body a few feet away. The shockwave had jolted him a bit, but otherwise effortlessly ignored him as it passed above him. She ran to him, falling to her knees at his side.
"Thorin! Thorin, if you're conscious, do something! Can you hear me?" she asked, as her fingers carefully removed some strands of his hair from his creased face. She felt her heartbeat speed up with dread, as there was no reaction to her question.
"Thorin?" she whispered, raising his head a bit, so she could see his face clearly. Nothing. Not even the smallest contraction of his eyelids. She put a hand to his cheek, as she heard the battle between her as if through water.
Then came the eagle screams, and she woke up. Her head shot up as she saw these majestic beasts pick Wargs up into their claws and throw them off the cliff. They toppled trees and the wind created from their wings made Tara's hair whip around her face.
When a suspiciously strong wind blew into her back, she turned around. One of those giant eagles approached her and Thorin, and she quickly, yet gently, released Thorin onto the ground, and backed up a bit on her own. As soon as the eagle's claws closed around his body, Tara quickly climbed onto it's back by grabbing a fistful of it's feathers and swinging her body nimbly onto it. She heard Azog's angry roar as the eagle flew into the night sky, but no more than that. The wind around her and the eagle cries deafened her, and she closed her eyes, burying her face into the soft feathers beneath her.
What she would not give to just be able to fall asleep now.
How long had they been in the air? Tara opened her eyes, feeling surprisingly light-headed. She hadn't seriously fallen asleep, had she? Yet she felt as if she had just shed off all the fatigue of the previous night. She sat up properly, seeing the sun rising on the horizon, and her face cracked in the smallest of smiles at the sight.
"THORIN!"
She widened her eyes at this yell, coming from behind her. She looked back over her shoulder, seeing multiple eagles meters behind her. She then proceeded to look down, hoping to catch a glimpse of Thorin. But the eagle was, to no surprise, in the way, and she bit her lip. She just hoped it wouldn't drop him.
She looked around her as they flew, and she found that she could see so much of Middle Earth. She could see the great forests, the wide plains. Was that Rohan? But at the edge of the world, on her right, she could also see a place so grey to her. She was uncertain of where it was. From their current position, it seemed to be north of the long Grey Mountain-range. What was up there?
She felt fear in her heart at the sight, and she widened her eyes as the world disappeared from her eyes. The light disappeared, leaving only darkness, yet she still felt the eagle's feathers beneath her hands and the wind blowing against her face. Only when she looked around did she see nothing but blackness.
'Blood flows through these lands'
Tara's head snapped up at this voice. Or, was it a voice? She didn't remember hearing a voice, yet those words were not of her own thoughts.
'Five will be. Five must let their blood flow for the Great Rebirth, and One will lose everything'
"The Great Rebirth?" Tara whispered to herself, as she felt her heart sting. Then, it was over, and the darkness returned to the north, and the light came to her. Just in time, it would seem, as the eagle she rode descended towards the large pillar she recognized from the movie screen.
The eagle almost touched the pillar when releasing Thorin onto it's surface, and Tara quickly descended as well, resolving to put her experience in the back of her mind for later reviewing. Was that even a vision? She hadn't passed out, to her knowledge.
She fell to her knees by Thorin's side, paying no notice to the other members of the group gradually coming off their own eagles.
"Thorin... Thorin, listen to me. Don't die, don't go and die on us now. I can see Erebor, do you hear me? We're so close," Tara begged, as she lightly patted the Dwarf's cheeks. No response. She bit the inside of her cheek, trying to keep herself from panicking, as she put her ear to his chest. There was no heartbeat. She felt her grasp on her calm slipping, as she sat up again.
"Thorin, please," she muttered, as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She looked up, as she saw her mentor kneeling beside her.
"Move over, Tara."
Tara did as she was asked, and she was soon pulled to her feet by Dieena, standing behind her. She was unable to keep tears in for much longer as Dieena gave her a hug, despite she knew Thorin was going to make it. Once more, she had to acknowledge that the experiences of this world were much more intense in reality.
"Thorin! Thorin," Gandalf called, trying to get through to the Dwarven King. They all looked upon the scene with held breaths, as Gandalf let his hand run over Thorin's face, whispering an incantation in the meantime. Tara couldn't hear what he said, and she was sure she wouldn't be able to understand it, even if she could. But it did the job, and they saw Thorin's eyes open.
A large, happy sound escaped Tara's throat, as she put her hands over her mouth. It felt like a rock fell from her heart, and Dieena smiled widely, feeling as relieved as the Seeress.
"Thorin," she greeted, patting Tara's back. Thorin's eyes were glazed over with grogginess, but he mustered up the strength to talk.
"The Halfling," he called, and Gandalf nodded.
"It's all right. Bilbo is here. He's quite safe," he said, as he stood back up. The rest of the company straightened up as well, and Tara widened her eyes as she saw Thorin get ready to stand up. She took a step forward herself, her hands reaching out.
"Ah, you should-" She was pulled back, and she turned around. It was Dieena, and the elf shook her head.
"Ainuhe." The message was clear enough, and Tara turned her eyes back to Thorin, as he violently shrugged off Dwalin and Kili's helping hands. His burning eyes turned to Bilbo, who was shaken by the power in Thorin's body language.
"You! What were you doing? You nearly got yourself killed!" Thorin's voice was loud and harsh, and Dieena widened her eyes. She certainly had NOT expected that. She felt her patience with the brash dwarf wearing thin, and she put her hands on her hip.
"Yes, to pro-" she began, intenting to tell Thorin off, but this time Tara was the one to do the interrupting. She put a hand on top of Dieena's mouth, holding a finger to her own lips.
"Ssh."
"Did I not say that you would be a burden? That you would not survive in the wild? That you had no place amongst us?" Thorin said loudly, approaching Bilbo all the while. Bilbo became disheartened at this, and looked down onto the stone on which they stood. The rest of the company looked amongst themselves, obviously all wondering if they themselves should intervene.
Then, Tara couldn't hold in the smile, as Thorin took that last step, and threw his arms around the dejected Hobbit.
"I have never been so wrong, in all my life!" he admitted, and Dieena's jaw fell, as she turned to Tara.
"You knew!?" she accused in a shrill voice, pointing a slim finger at her friend. Tara nodded, combing her hair with her fingers in order to keep her hands too occupied for emotional fidgeting. She strongly suspected herself to do something stupid, now that her heart felt full of rainbows and butterflies.
"Of course I did. I am a Seeress," she reminded her friend with a very proud voice, and Dieena couldn't stop herself from giving Tara a good slap on the backside in reaction. And Dieena had been so worried too! The other Dwarves reacted with the same relief the elf felt in her heart, and they all slapped each other's back while laughing merrily. Bilbo's face lightened up considerably as well, a great smile dawning on his features. Thorin released him, and his face immediately took on a rather humbled expression.
"And I am sorry I doubted you."
Bilbo quickly shook his head, and Tara smiled.
"N-No, I would have doubted me too. I'm not a hero, or a warrior. Or even a burglar." They all chuckled a bit at this last bit, and Tara walked to her small friend.
"You're a hero in my book, Bilbo Baggins," she said, as the eagles began circling around them. The others in the company watched this with awe in their eyes, while Bilbo looked at the red-headed human with wide eyes.
"Y-You think so?" he asked with an embarrassed stutter, and Tara gave Bilbo a hug of her own, nodding.
"A kind-hearted hero, who saved a Dwarven King," she whispered in his ear, and his eyes widened. He called the story Tara had told her at the dinner table in Rivendell, and his smile only widened.
"You!" he said loudly, and Tara laughed, as she released him and stood to her full height.
"I did a rather good job of pretending not to know, didn't I?" she teased him, as Thorin furrowed his brow. Not knowing what?
"Guys, there's something you might like to see."
It was Dieena's voice who now called for their attention, and they all turned towards her. Thorin's face was forced into an expression of surprise, and Bilbo looked as well. He couldn't see much in the beginning, just the horizon. It was rather flat, compared to the mountain range, but he did see a single, solitary peak... His eyes widened.
"Ta-Tara, is that... What I think it is?" he asked, as they all moved to Dieena, who stood at the very edge of the pillar. Tara smiled, looking down on the Hobbit who had assumed his seemingly natural position at her side.
"Erebor," she confirmed his suspicions.
"The Lonely Mountain," Gandalf introduced, as they all looked upon the gray shape in the distance. "The last of the Great Dwarf Kingdoms of Middle Earth."
"Our home," Thorin said with a voice, filled with emotion, and Tara smiled, nodding. Their home. She sure hoped they'd get there soon. She had had enough excitement for a lifetime already. They all looked up as they heard a bird tweeting, and Dieena's face was split in the silliest smile in a long time at the sight.
"A raven! The birds are returning to the mountain!"
Tara shook her head with a smile, as she felt Dieena's hand slip into hers.
"That, my dear boy, is a thrush," Gandalf announced, and Thorin looked up at Tara. Tara blinked confused, until she smiled and nodded.
"Stand by the grey stone when the thrush knocks," she remembered, and Dieena looked at Tara, confused.
"What do you mean?"
"It's the moon runes on the map to Erebor. It told us to stand by the grey stone when the thrush knocks," she explained, making Dieena stare after the bird.
"But we won't make it for that thrush!" she complained, making the entire company laugh heartily.
"Well, I assume it is not the only thrush in this area, Lady Elf," Gandalf comforted her, and Thorin nodded.
"Well, we'll take is a sign. A good omen." He looked to Bilbo, whose entire face shone with hope at this. He was, no doubt, looking forward to less stressful times. Tara would quickly agree that simple pleasures would be preferable right now. Just the thought of sleeping in a real bed again!
"You're right. I do believe the worst is behind us."
"I do wish you wouldn't say stuff like that, Bilbo," Tara complained, as the group prepared to descend the pillar the eagles had dropped them off on.
"No jinxing, Tara! At least let's get to the bottom of this pillar before you begin seeing our doom," Ori complained, as he began pushing Tara. And while Tara immediately began defending herself, saying she didn't foresee their doom THAT often, her mind returned to that vision she had on the eagle. What had that been?
Unbeknownst to Tara, the vision had lasted exactly 126 seconds.
There! :D FINALLY! I am so sorry it took so long :( But now I'm ready for the release for the next movie. This leads me to these news:
The vote will soon be over! You heard it right. I will give you EXACTLY one month after I publicize the next chapter. In that time, you may still vote. But after that, the vote is final. I will also allow you to change your votes, if you so desire. But remember the deadline! :)
And with those words, have a good time until the next chapter, that will handle the first part of the next movie! Can't wait!
