Holy cow you guys, it took me a while but I finally finished writing the chapter! I apologize for the wait! Thankfully it's the slow season so hopefully I'll be able to update a little easier. Now enjoy!
Piper had been officially living with Bilbo for the duration of a month, and she had become close friends with the Hobbit. The Halfling had given her many gardening tips, taught her how to make smoke rings (she could only do small ones), and even gave her pointers to improve her seriously lacking cooking skills. The young woman had even improved in speaking Westron some. She didn't have to concentrate as hard, but she'd occasionally let English slip. When it did, this confused the Hobbit, though he didn't question it. Piper had been hesitant of letting Bilbo get close to her as a friend, but she had decided she had better start making friends unless she wanted her depression to take over her life.
The young woman had a hard time adjusting to this life. Because insomnia was so frequent for her, it pretty much had doubled since her anxiety and stress amplified it. Piper could never handle stress well, so nine times out of ten her personality would either swing to anger or panic. Panic won most of the time, much to her dismay. Dealing with that time of month was also something she had to adjust to; rather than what she was used to, she found that cotton and linen were her best friends since tampons and pads did not exist in Middle Earth.
Bilbo Baggins had to adjust to Piper living with him. She wasn't anything like he was used to. Her personality wasn't something he'd expected and even blushed when her vulgar side came out. She wasn't rude unless provoked, but she was more perverse than anything he had ever encountered. It honestly scared him a bit. Anytime the two went out and were being served in public, he heard her, more than once, comment on a Hobbit in an inappropriate way. However, he also realized she used it as more of a front to keep people from seeing who she really was. She was both kind and loving, but also very thoughtful about everything she did. Not to mention she could be witty if she was feeling challenged. Bilbo could tell that she was afraid of something, but he couldn't quite tell what she feared.
Taking her out to find clothes to wear that were appropriate had been a handful as well; Bilbo had insisted she went with typical clothing for a woman (a dress, or a nice blouse and skirt), but Piper had frowned at the idea of wearing anything but pants or shorts. When the brunette explained what shorts were, the poor Hobbit was uncomfortable with the thought. Bilbo had taken her to a tailor to get her clothing, and he found it to be a challenge to get the girl to agree to a dress. He had tried to bribe Piper with a pair of pants if she would agree to the dress. The young woman had only complied with the terms because she convinced Bilbo to get her two pairs of pants.
Piper had been working more and more with her meditation; not only did it calm her down immensely, it helped her with clarifying the path that layed before her. The twenty-three year old knew mostly what was ahead of them, well if she actually went with the company to reclaim the dwarves' homeland. She knew she was asked to save the line of Durin, but she didn't want to go through all of the trials that the company went through. She did not want to deal with the orcs, she disliked the idea of climbing trees to escape the wargs (she failed when it came to climbing trees), and she loathed the idea of dealing with the spiders. She didn't fear spiders, but she hated the idea of them being near her. Knowing how big these ones were? Piper had a feeling she'd become get arachnophobia by the time they ventured into Mirkwood.
It was April twenty-fifth, and the day started off like any other. Piper would wake up, get breakfast started (if Bilbo didn't beat her to it), and the two would engage in many different topics and then would go outside to smoke a pipe. The young woman was still in awe over Bilbo's smoke rings. Piper watched as Bilbo sent one far off into the distance; she could feel his pride from being able to actually cause the ring to float off like that. The brunette huffed before attempting to outshine Mr. Baggins, but after only a short bit her smoke ring disappeared. 'One day I'll make a god one,' she thought to herself.
It was then that she noticed an older man approaching with a walking stick, long beard, and a blue pointy hat. Piper knew who this was, and she knew she wasn't ready just yet to meet the famous wizard. "Excuse me, I need to powder my nose," the twenty-three year old said before heading into the house. The reason she didn't want to meet him then was because both Bilbo and Gandalf needed to discuss the adventure between the two of them. That, and the brunette needed to figure out how to convince everyone to let her on the journey.
Piper would have to be clever with her approach. Saying she was a seer would potentially get herself into some serious trouble, but she wasn't sure if she had other options. If she were to tell them 'she just knew things' they may take her as a crazy person. The young woman was aware that she needed to gain everyone's trust, but that would take time considering how long it took the company to accept Bilbo as one of their own. Piper was well aware how everything happened in the book, but so much was also left out; for this reason alone, she had to be cautious moving forward. The brunette went into her familiar meditation sitting position and began actively breathing while going over more potential scenarios in her mind.
The brunette wasn't sure how much time had passed before Bilbo entered the home. "Oh why did I have to invite him over for tea?" she heard the Hobbit exasperate.
Piper raised an eyebrow as she opened her eyes. "Invite who over?" she questioned despite knowing perfectly well what had taken place.
"Gandalf. He had come over talking about an adventure and then I invited him over for tea tomorrow," Bilbo explained; he was heading towards his calendar to write it down so he wouldn't forget about the wizard's visit.
Piper hummed in response at the Hobbit's answer. 'Tomorrow is when I'll have to have a solid plan,' she thought. 'Everything will be taking place and I'll need to be prepared. Hopefully my knee won't be too much of an issue.'
The young woman didn't hear Bilbo approach, nor did it register that he was now in the same room. The Halfling watched Piper as her face scrunched up as if she was deeply troubled, or trying to answer the world's hardest question. "Are you okay?" he finally asked after a moment of silence.
The brunette's head snapped up at Bilbo's question and she forced out a smile. "Yeah, just thinking..." she answered.
"You look troubled," the hobbit pressed.
Piper chewed her lip for a moment. "I am.." she started slowly. "But I can't exactly say what is bothering me..."
"Not able to share this?"
"No, but maybe eventually...it's just not something I can share just yet."
Bilbo nodded before heading to the pantry to get some cakes; he did have a stressful start to his day.
The following day went by as any day, though Piper was more anxious then she usually was. She was going to be meeting the dwarves today, and that meant that tomorrow she'd be going on an adventure with the company. So many things could go wrong, and she was well aware of that. Piper could tell that Bilbo had completely forgotten about Gandalf until the front door bell rang; the poor Hobbit quickly rushed to put the kettle on, and put out another saucer, cup, and a few extra cakes for his guest. Bilbo remained silent as he opened the door and his face went from smiling to confusion as he stared at the blue bearded dwarf.
Piper was sitting in the kitchen with a cup of tea unable to see the guest, though she didn't need to see to know who was at the door. "Dwalin, at your service!" an unfamiliar voice called out.
"Bilbo Baggins at yours!" was the Dwarf's reply. It was silent for a moment before the Hobbit spoke again. "I am just about to take tea; pray come and have some with me."
Piper smiled at the Halfling's politeness; he was truly a kind Hobbit. The young woman heard approaching footsteps, and she looked up to see none other than Dwalin. The brunette couldn't help but notice the Dwarf's beard tucked into his belt. "Piper Williams at your service," she said with a small smile.
"Dwalin at yours," the Dwarf bowed.
Dwalin and Bilbo joined Piper to drink tea and eat cakes. Piper noticed a few curious glances thrown her way from the Dwarf, but he didn't try to strike up a conversation. Bilbo didn't even get to three cakes before the bell once again rang. This continued for quite a bit while Piper and Bilbo played host to the Dwarves that were showing up in the house. After Balin came the two blonde Dwarves Fili and Kili; Dori followed suite along with Nori, Ori, Oin, and Gloin. Bilbo and Piper were running around like crazy to keep the group happy as the company of Dwarves laughed. Finally, there was a sound that Piper was waiting for: the sound of a walking stick tapping the door. Though she barely heard it over the ruckus in the dining area.
The young woman was too busy to see Bilbo answer the door, and too busy to see the Dwarves fall over each other as said Hobbit opened the door. Piper was running back and forth grabbing drinks and food for the Dwarves as fast as she could. "Now we are all here!" Piper heard Gandalf say. "Quite a merry gathering! I hope there is something left for the late comers to eat and drink! What's that? Tea? No thank you! A little red wine, I think for me."
"And for me," Thorin Piped in.
The other Dwarves continued with their requests, and as Piper darted from one room to the other, she passed by the newly arrived Dwarves; little did she know that the wizard did spot her which caused Gandalf to grow more curious than ever. Not only did the wizard not recognize her from anywhere, but he knew that Bilbo Baggins was indeed a bachelor and she wasn't living there a month ago. Sneaking away momentarily, Gandalf approached the brunette while she was looking for the wine that was requested. "I don't believe we've met," he said; this caused the twenty-three year old to yelp and quickly whip around.
"Sorry, you startled me; um, my name is Piper Williams," she replied. "Bilbo took me in to help me out. I managed to get helplessly lost when I found myself here..."
"Quite an unusual name. Where do you hail from?" the wizard pressed.
Piper's face fell and she subconsciously wrapped her arms around herself and looked down to avoid eye contact. "Somewhere very far away... I can't go back... I don't- I just..." she sighed before her eyes landed on the wine. She picked up the bottle along with items that had been requested and began to shimmy past the wizard. "I don't want to keep them waiting..."
Gandalf watched her curiously as she left. He noticed the raw emotion that stood out on her face; the hurt that took over her features was very alarming to him. He just watched as she seemingly shoved her emotions aside to play the perfect host. Dinner went by fairly quickly, and soon the dwarves were singing as they helped clean up. Piper found herself grinning like mad when it started, and she grew curious when they went to fetch the instruments. As the dwarves sang about their homeland, both Bilbo and Piper felt entranced by the song. It was then that the young woman seemed to shove her nerves aside and briefly forget about the fears creeping up on her. She decided she was going to help them in any way she could, even if it got her killed. Again...
Piper's eyes locked on Bilbo as he shakily stood. It was then that the music stopped. "Where are you going?" Thorin inquired.
"What about a little light?" Bilbo had replied apologetically.
Piper blinked as realization sunk in; it was indeed rather dark. "We like the dark," said all the dwarves. "Dark for dark business! There are many hours before dawn!"
"Of course!" Bilbo said as he sat down quickly; however, he missed the stool and sat in the fender, knocking over the poker and shovel with a crash.
"Hush!" Gandalf stated. "Let Thorin speak!"
Piper was well aware of the conversation that was about to take place, and because her short attention span she decided to go into a meditative state as she leaned against the wall. She was content up until Bilbo shrieked causing the young woman to jump and the dwarves to spring to their feet and knocking the table over in the process. Gandalf struck a blue light on the end of his magic staff. There on the hearth-rug shaking was poor Bilbo. the only thing that was heard being said as he knelt was 'struck by lightning'. After the dwarves set him up comfortably in the drawing room, they all went back to business.
The company talked amongst themselves for a while before they began expressing their doubts about the hobbit. They were unaware that mister Baggins was listening to the dwarves sharing their concerns about him. Eventually, Bilbo did indeed wonder back into the room; Piper knew that his Took side had won. He began giving his spell of how he would show them. That was when the young woman decided to chime in. "Well, I may not be a Hobbit, but if Bilbo won't go, I'd gladly take his place," she spoke; her nerves set in when everyone looked at her.
"I'm sorry, but an adventure is no place for a lady," Dwalin declined.
"You'd be likely to slow us down," another dwarf chimed in.
Piper scowled and a dangerous look appeared in her eye at the thought of a challenge. "I'll have you know I've done my fair share of fighting and can take care of myself. Not to mention the path that lays ahead will be nothing short of challenging and you'll need all the help you can get," she snapped crossing her arms. "Like I said, I'm going. Period. You won't be talking me out of it. I'm as stubborn as they com. Even if Bilbo does go, you can still count me in. I'm not afraid of adventure."
Everyone just stared at her which caused her to look down and start fidgeting. "Aside from fighting, I do know a thing or two about traveling..." Piper muttered.
Gandalf studied the young woman for a moment; he was unsure of the girl who seemingly came from nowhere. However, something was nagging at him to let her join them. She had a tell about her that screamed that she knew something. He didn't quite know what she held knowledge to, but the wizard was certain it was a great deal. "Then it's settled. Miss Piper will be joining us on this journey," Gandalf decided.
This caused an argument to break out; the dwarves didn't want Bilbo coming along, let alone a woman who could potentially get hurt and slow them down. Piper nodded in satisfaction about being able to go on the adventure; if Gandalf said it was okay, then she knew she was going. It didn't matter to her if the dwarves approved or not. They were stubborn and would be very skeptical of her until she was able to prove herself among them. Without saying a word, Piper drifted into her room silently and started prepping for the journey ahead. The twenty-three year old pulled out The Hobbit from her messenger bag and flipped to the page where the current events were taking place. Sure, there would be changes to the current dialogue going on between Gandalf and the company, but she wasn't worried about it.
Piper let out a sigh and began packing everything she thought she would need while on their journey. She didn't know if she could be of any help, but she knew the path and the events that would occur. She had to be strong regardless of what could happen in the future. The young woman sat on her bed and chewed on her bottom lip; she was nervous, scared, excited, and oh so much more. Tomorrow would mark the start of an adventure, and along with it came the quest to save the line of Durin.