DISCLAIMER: I do not own The Hobbit or its characters from books and movies. Or any references to other movies. I only own my OC's.

A/N: I tried getting this up as fast as possible! I'm so sorry for leaving you at a cliffhanger like that.

But yay, it's up now and it's early!

Thank you all for reviewing, following, and favoriting! :)

Chapter 36

Lauren's POV

The water was surprisingly pretty cold when Lindir and I jumped in to avoid being burned and turned to ashes. Underwater is quiet and pitch black besides the lights from the fire flying above.

As we plummeted into the ice cold water that stabbed like tiny needles into our skin, my whole life seemed to flash before my eyes. The darkness of this water, the darkness of the night above, and the fire hollowing souls every minute, it just seems that there is nothing but evil and darkness everywhere.

Before I knew it, I felt Lindir grab my hand and we started to swim back up to the surface.

Our heads burst through the surface gasping for air; the smoke, ash filled, cry-filled, and yelling air. At least it was air.

Everywhere feels numb on me; my face feels cold despite all the heat of the flames around.

Lindir pulls me to his chest as we stay afloat with a burnt, floating piece of wood to avoid the dragon a little bit longer.

"I'm sorry Lindir." I whisper not being able to form words from the cold and the bad air I'm breathing in.

"What for, my love?" He seemed to whisper back looking at me the whole time since we re-surfaced.

"This. All of this. If it wasn't for me bringing you into this or if I just never came to this world at all, you wouldn't be in this situation."

"No." He immediately said as he laid his wet hand on my cold cheek. "I brought my own self into this. I wanted to be here with you, I want to be with you. None of this is your fault. And please, don't ever say that."

"Say what?"

"That if you never came to this world." He said holding me tighter. "Are you having second thoughts on going back to your world?"

"No! No, no, no. I want to be here Lindir, I love it here and I love you. You know that. I'm just… cold, worried, and scared."

"I am feeling the same as well." He says. "I know you don't like the cold, but I think we should make our way to land."

"Yeah, I was thinking the same." I look in the direction of Laketown and start for it but he stops me.

"The actual shore. I don't think it is wise to go back to Laketown. We need to get as far away from it as we can."

"My friends though, and the other people that need help. Bard's children are still there." I say looking back at Laketown which most of it is engulfed in flames. It doesn't even look like the town anymore.

"If the dragon gets shot down." I gulp. "He will fall on Laketown, no doubt."

"No doubt."

Lindsey's POV

There is still a company of archers that hold their ground among the burning houses. Grim and angry face with sparks of hope in his eyes, he makes his way up to the top of the building where he can get the best shot at the dragon. The same spot his ancestor, Lord Girion of Dale, once stood almost killing the dragon then.

"The flames are getting closer! You women need to make way to the boats!" He shouts to us.

"Don't worry about us! We're not going anywhere; we are going to help you." Megan says.

Bard just shakes his head and starts aiming the last arrow, the black arrow, at the dragon's chest. Smaug's weak spot.

"Arrow." Bard whispers to himself. "Black arrow. I have saved you to the last. If ever you came from the forges of the true king under the Mountain, go now and speed well!"

Smaug swoops once more lower than ever, and as he turned and dived down, Bard fires the arrow, and it flies cutting through the air.

"Off with its head." Megan whispers, quoting the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland.

This is better than cutting off Smaug's head. The arrow finds its mark in the left breast of the dragon where the weak spot is.

With a shriek that deafened men, felled trees and split stone, Smaug shot spouting into the air, turned over and crashed down from above in ruin. I didn't see the rest because everything seemed to disappear around me.

But I do know for sure that Smaug fell full on the town. And I'm falling into unconsciousness.

Lauren's POV

Lindir and I ended up not swimming all the way to shore; we were pulled up onto a boat by some of the people from Laketown. While there were a good bit of men as well on the shore, most of the people were women, children, and some infants.

Everything else went downhill after that. I saw the dragon fall onto Laketown. Steam rose up from the water just as Smaug hit it, and water splashed up and swallowed up the whole town like it was never there. Lindir told me I fainted after that.

"Lauren—please!" Lindir pleads.

"Leave me alone! I should've been there with them! I shouldn't have listened to you!" I yell to him. That was the first time I yelled at him. I haven't yelled at anyone in a long while.

I walk away from him going further into the land, away from the crowds of people. I don't go far, but I sit behind a tree, collapse down, and start sobbing.

I eventually went back, but I still kept my distance. I didn't see Lindir anywhere.

Everyone gathered on the shore in mournful crowds, shivering in the cold wind. Their first complaints and anger were against the Master, who had left the town so soon, while some were still willing to defend it.

Something horrible reaches my ears, "If only had Bard not been killed, we would make him a king. Bard the Dragon-shooter of the line of Girion! Alas that he is lost!"

So are my friends.

In the very midst of their talk, a tall figure stepped from the shadows. He is drenched with water, dark hair hangs wet over his face and shoulders, and a fierce light is in his eyes.

"Bard is not lost!" Bard cries. "He dived from Esgaroth, when the enemy was slain. I am Bar, of the line of Girion; I am the slayer of the dragon!" He says triumphantly. It is indeed a miracle.

"King Bard! King Bard!" They all shout.

"Lauren." Lindir says coming next to me.

I quickly look up, "Lindir! I'm sorry- I'm very, very, very sorry! You were right, I did the right thing listening to you."

"It's alright my love." He presses a kiss to my forehead, then I heard a cough. I look away from him and see… Megan.

"Megan!" I practically scream and run to her and pull her into a hug, only she doesn't hug back.

"He was right? You did the right thing by listening to him? That's why you disappeared! You were both cowards! You escaped while you could." She yells up at me with a look of anger and betrayal on her face.

My mouth drops, "NO! It wasn't like that! We were not cowards, we—" I didn't get to finish what I had to say because Megan, the little dwarf, jumped on me and started clawing on me!

Out of the corner of my eye, Lindsey shows up and stumbles to us, pulling Megan off of me after Lindir grabbed her and threw her off of me.

"Megan, calm down!" Lindsey yells to her.

"No! I'm sick of it! I'm sick of Lauren! I'm sick of hearing what she has to say. Nothing is the truth of what she says." Megan hisses to Lindsey and looks at me. "She's been a coward since the beginning. Doing nothing but staying in Lindir's arms and staying in Rivendell."

Lindir pulls me to him in a tight grip, his face has darkened to anger hearing Megan.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Look who's talking! If it wasn't for me staying behind, we all would've died for certain! And besides, I haven't seen you do anything useful since putting on our 'awesome armor' the first time! All you did was throw your swords into trees and whine about Kili loving someone else!"

"No! I got a scar from that Goblin King!" She says back.

"Yeah because you weren't paying attention, from what I heard, you made jokes throughout the whole thing."

"Megan why are you doing this?" Lindsey says to her.

"Because this needs to happen now. Lindsey, the reason they fell behind was because they were cowards and they escaped while they could—"

I'm on the verge of tears, "No! What are you talking about! None of that is what even happened! How could you just say that when you weren't even—"

"Because I can read you. I can read you like a book." Megan says.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing, "Well. I guess you don't know me that well then. That is not what happened, you are wrong."

She steps closer to me, "Then believe as much as where your imagination and daydreams take you. But I know." She walks away from me.

"No you don't!" I yell at her retreating form.

Tears fall down my face and onto my clothes, "Lindsey—you—"

"I believe you Lauren. I do." Lindsey looks up at me and we hug.

Lindsey's POV

During everything that happened between Lauren and Megan, there was argument between the Master of Laketown, the citizens of Laketown, and Bard.

Lindir heard most of what they talked about, he filled me in on what is happening.

The Master of Laketown reminded everyone the dwarves were the ones who aroused the dragon from slumber, and gave them dragon-fire and ruin. And from whom should they claim the recompense of the damage, and aid for the widows and orphans.

In other words, they are all hating on the dwarves now. I sigh. I personally don't think dwarves are that bad, not because I am one now, but they aren't that bad. The only ones that are bad are the ones who are blinded real bad by greed and power, and are mean to others.

Bard was ordering around people who are starting to set up camp, until he stopped in his tracks and looked in front of him.

I look in his direction and see what I wasn't expecting to see.

Fili, Kili, Sigrid, Tilda, and Bain.

"Father!" His children all shout and smile relieved running to him.

"My children! My beautiful children!" He hugs them all at once and kisses each of them. "Thank you, thank you." He whispers above.

"Fili!" I shout running up to him and he runs to me. We clash together into hug and he kisses me.

"I'm sorry I-" I start.

"No, you did right. I'm glad I listened to you. If it wasn't for you telling Kili and I to stay behind, they would've drowned and died. I love you Lindsey. I'm sorry I left you the way I did."

"It's alright, I admit, I was hurt by that, but its ok, I understand how you felt." I say. He smiles making his blue eyes sparkle. His blonde hair and braids are in a disarray and wet, but he still looks good. I smile back.

"Fili and Kili saved us. They were with us the whole time." Tilda says with her sweet, big, blue eyes looking up at her father.

Bard looks at her then turns to Fili and Kili.

"Dwarves." He mumbles under his breath to where no one could hear.

Fili and Kili walk up to him and bow their heads.

"They are of the line of Durin, Father." Sigrid says.

"They are the nephews of Thorin Oakenshield. But they are nothing like him." Bain finishes.

Fili and Kili felt like they were punched in the gut when Bain said 'they are nothing like their uncle.' All their lives they looked up to Thorin. They thought he was the greatest dwarf who ever lived. But now getting a point of view from Laketown, they aren't so sure anymore.

"Is this true?" Bard steps closer to them, eyeing them.

"Yes." Fili and Kili say in unison looking at Bard.

Bard nods to them, "And I believe you." He looks back to his children, "You saved my children. They are all I have left; I treasure them more than any gold in Erebor. In the world."

"But you and your people deserve the gold. We will give it to you." Kili says.

"Kili means to say, if it were our decision, we would most definitely pay you back. What we can do is try to convince our uncle to do what's truly right." Fili adds.

Bard genuinely smiles at them. He takes each of their hands and raises them, the people all turn and stare.

"Fili and Kili, of the line of Durin, nephews of Thorin Oakenshield. They are not their uncle. They are on our side! They will help us! Help give us what is rightfully ours!" Bard announces. The people's mouths hung open for a while, not entirely believing it at first. But they do follow Bard. They will follow him North when he makes them their new settlement for whoever will go. They will follow their King, and they trust their King.

The people smile and erupt into cheers. Even Fili and Kili smile proudly.

Things started to turn up and feel good again. But the knowledge Lauren, Megan, and I have of what is to come, this good moment won't last long. At least until the Elvenking, Thranduil, arrives.

But is it bad? Maybe it is good?

A/N: Thranduil will be in the next chapter, yay! Smaug is dead, yay! I think that is good, Smaug is evil, but don't worry, Benedict Cumberbatch still lives! lol! I hope you liked this one. Sorry about all the drama, but it was planned since the beginning. As I said, this whole story, especially this third part to my story, will be something unexpected. Just be aware of that. Please review! :)