A/N: Greetings, my fellow fanfictioners! Thank you all for your support! Thank you to La aL, queenofthefallenfics, Silversun XD, NicoleMcGrath and ShadowTomes for your reviews! :)

In case you're wondering, there won't be any romance going on since it doesn't seem suitable for this story. I introduced an OC, Bilbo's sister, hope you guys don't mind. It won't vastly affect the main plot for now, although I maaay involve her more near the end of the book.

This is currently up on AO3 as well! Huzzah~

Reminders: I have no betas, so if you spot any mistakes, please do let me know! This story mainly follows the movieverse, although I may borrow some stuff from the book (like description). The characters may seem ooc as well.

Reviews and constructive criticism are very much appreciated :)

DISCLAIMER: The characters and the Hobbit universe belongs to J.R.R Tolkien (and the movie company), sadly.

Chapter 5

Radagast burst out of the forest at top speed, catching the wargs by surprise.

"Come and get me! Ha ha ha!" he crowed, waving his hand and cackling. At the sight of the rabbits, the wargs gave chase.

Within a mere span of a few seconds, both Radagast and the wargs were gone from sight.

The Company scrambled across a rocky plane, hiding behind a rock when a warg came too close. Luckily, the warg was preoccupied with chasing the rabbits. Tongue out and snarling happily, it bounded after the rabbits with its full attention.

Gandalf led the way, navigating through the rocks.

"Where are you leading us?" Thorin yelled.

Gandalf did not answer.

They were near the wage scouts when one of them halted halfway, sniffing the air. Turning away from the Brown wizard, it slowly began climbing on top of the rock where the Company was hiding.

The snuffling sounds were getting louder. Bilbo held his breath, the Company pressing themselves against the rock tightly. Thorin nodded at Kili; he nocked an arrow on his bow and readied himself.

Stepping out quickly, Kili released the arrow and the warg fell down the rock. The dwarves were onto them like a pack of wolves on a rabbit. Obviously, the screams of the dying orc caught the ears of other warg scouts, and there was moment of stilled silence.

Then the wargs scouts were onto them instead.

"Move - Run!"

They needed no further prompting as they ran for their lives, wargs hot on their trails, snarling and growling.

"Gandalf! The entrance!" Bilbo called out. Gandalf waved his hand in acknowledgement.

"This way! Quickly!" he stepped towards a rock, not slowing down even when it looked like he was about to collide with the rock. Gandalf continued walking - and simply disappeared into the rock.

The dwarves were too busy trying to keep the wargs away to react. The wargs had caught up, and was closing in on them. The orcs grinned, weapons ready, and wargs lusting for dwarf meat.

"We're surrounded!" Kili cried in alarm as he pelted the wargs with arrows.

"Why aren't you dwarves following Gandalf?" Bilbo yelled to be heard.

"He disappeared into a rock; That's impossible for us!" Fili shouted back.

"He has abandoned us!" Dwalin roared unnecessarily. Bilbo was tempted to leave the dwarves to die. Goodness, have they never heard of concealed entrances? Why was he always stuck with the dumb ones?

"You fools, follow me!" Bilbo snapped, shoving his way through the dwarves, and towards the rock. He stuck his hand into a crack of the rock as a demonstration. "It's a trick to hide an entrance."

Without waiting for a reply, he stepped into the crack which opened up to a dark, small, concealed cave with a tiny path as its only other exit. Sure enough, Gandalf was impatiently waiting for them.

"What took you so long?" He asked Bilbo impatiently.

"Dwarves' ignorance," he muttered as the dwarves slipped into the large crack, Thorin and Kili being the last. Just as they entered the cave, an Elvish horn sounded.

Bilbo had a glimpse of mounted elves catered into the fray, wiping out the remaining orcs. The orcs did not stand a chance.

Gandalf did a quick headcount before ushering them down the steep and narrow path. Having no other choices, they reluctantly walked down the path. It was dark - so dark, even the dwarves could not see past their hands. The dwarves grasped onto the shirt of the person in front of them, the other hand tracing the side of the wall.

"Where are we heading?" Thorin asked uneasily, the dwarves stumbling and murmuring under their breathes.

"Do not worry, this path is safe."

"Gandalf, where are we going?" Thorin repeated forcefully.

Gandalf was silent for a few seconds. "You'll see."

They walks in relative silence for a few minutes until there were hints of light.

"We're reaching the end!"

The tunnel gradually became brighter, and Bilbo felt a slight shift of temperature in the air. He sniffed the air surreptitiously; the smell of pine trees, and home, was getting stronger.

They could see the exit now, a door of light awaiting them. Bilbo quickened his footsteps - the smell, oh how he missed the smell, how he missed his home, he was finally here, finally -

They burst out of the exit. Below them, a valley spread wide. Houses, intricately designed, were built around the pine trees and hills, some even atop gushing waterfalls. Rivendell.

"The valley of Imraldis. The last Homely House east of the sea," Gandalf intoned.

Home, Bilbo thought nolstagically.

Thorin glared at Gandalf. "This was your plan all along, to seek refuge with our enemy."

"You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. The only ill-will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself." Gandalf gently corrected.

"Do you think the Elves will give our quest their blessing? They will try to stop us." Thorin said.

"Of course they will. But we have questions that need to be answered. If we are to be successful, this will need to be handled with tact and respect and no small degree of charm. Which is why you will leave the talking to me."

Across the bridge they went, and into the heart of Rivendell. The elves hardly paid them any attention, but the dwarves were extremely uncomfortable, throwing the elves suspicious looks and huddling together with Bilbo in the centre. Bilbo could not care less; he was brimming with excitement. It had been too long, far too long!

It was Lindir who greeted them, much to Bilbo's surprise. Normally Lord Elrond greeted his guests personally.

"Mithrandir."

"Ah, Lindir!"

Lindir glanced through the dwarves and, catching sight of Bilbo, did a mini double-take.

"Cyadhon? It has been years; What brings you to Rivendell?" He asked in Sindarin.

The dwarves instantly took a step away from Bilbo. He sniffed slightly.

"Oh, this and that. Nice to see you too," he replied vaguely in Westron. The dwarves murmured in distrust.

"You know the elves?" Thorin's tone was dangerous. Bilbo hummed in agreement, barely sparing a glance at the fuming king. He had neither the time nor the mood to mollycoddle the dratted king. Thorn can stuff his prejudice and hatred up his ass, for all he cares.

"I must speak with Lord Elrond." Gandalf interrupted.

"My Lord Elrond is not here."

"Not here? Where is he?" Gandalf asked.

Once again, the Elvish horns sounded. The group of elves who had previously saved them entered

"Ifridî bekâr!" Thorin yelled, and the dwarves bunched up together into a tight circle with their weapons pointed outward. Bilbo rolled his eyes(he had been doing that a lot lately) and extracted himself from the unruly crowd. He would deny any relations with those rude guests, thank-you-very-much.

The elves rode around the dwarves before stopping, parting to allow Lord Elrond to pass through. "Gandalf," he greeted warmly. Gandalf bowed gracefully.

"Mellonnen! Where have you been?" Gandalf asked.

"We've been hunting a pack of Orcs that came up from the South. We slew a number near the Hidden Pass," was the reply in Sindarin. Lord Elrond dismounted, and hugged Gandalf briefly.

"Bilbo," Lord Elrond smiled widely and bent down, and Bilbo totally did not run towards his open arms.

"Elrond! It's been far too long!" Bilbo replied happily in Sindarin. Elrond nodded, scrutinizing Bilbo.

"How have you been, boy? Why are you in the company of dwarves?" His voice was laced with concern.

Bilbo waved his hand nonchalantly. "Long story, will tell you later," he replied airily.

"Indeed. Strange for Orcs to come so close to our borders. Something, or someone, has drawn them near," Lord Elrond stood up and looked at the dwarves, one eyebrow arched elegantly, as he passed an Orc sword to Lindir.

"Ah, that may have been us," Gandalf coughed slightly.

Thorin stepped forward, and the Elven Lord's eyes lit in recognition.

"Welcome Thorin, son of Thrain," he greeted.

Thorin narrowed his eyes at Elrond. "I do not believe we have met," he said curtly. Bilbo hissed softly through his teeth. Such utter disrespect - the dwarf king is such a horrible guest!

"You have your grandfather's bearing. I knew Thror when he ruled over the Mountain." Elrond was hardly perturbed by the hostility.

"Indeed; he made no mention of you."

Elrond ignored him, turning got Bilbo instead. "You pick up fine company, Bilbo, but guests they still are, so they are welcomed here," he drawled in Sindarin.

"What is he saying? Does he offer us insult?" Gloin growled.

Bilbo resisted the urge to roll his eyes again.

"No, master Gloin, he's offering you food." In a way, Bilbo guessed he was. The dwarves immediately settled down, looking appeased.

"Ah well, in that case, lead on."

This time, Bilbo openly rolled his eyes.

Lord Elrond had dragged Gandalf away, promising to talk to Bilbo later. Lindir was supposed to bring the dwarves to the dining hall, but Bilbo suggested doing so instead to save Lindir the trouble, and he gratefully agreed.

Bilbo entered the palace with the dwarves, who were casting distrustful glances in his direction but otherwise remained silent. He tried not to let it affect him as he led the way to the dining hall, occasionally greeting the elves passing by. The elves, most having known Bilbo for years, greeted back warmly. The dwarves, however, were ignored. The elves were cool, composed, and elegant; they seemingly glide instead of walk, and they never run through the corridors.

Which was why when he heard the sound of running footstep, and groaned loudly. Currently he knew of only one person who would run in the corridors.

From the far end of the corridor, a tall female elf was racing towards him. She had dark brown hair, sharp blue eyes ringed with gold just like his, and was dressed in a body-hugging, turquoise dress with the usual absurd long sleeves that was Elven fashion. Her hair, almost reaching her waist, was deftly pinned to keep out of her face.

The grinning mad-elf charged towards him like a bull, hands overstretched.

"Cyadhon! Hanar! Oh, how I missed you!" She cried in Sindarin, bending down and flinging her arms around Bilbo, burying her face into his hair. The dwarves gaped openly at them. Bilbo stumbled back slightly and patted her back, brimming with happiness until she pulled away hurriedly.

"Ewww, you smell putrid; Whatever have you been doing?" She scrunched up her nose in mock disgust.

"Ah, Ryadher nîth, I missed you too." He tweaked at her pointy ears and she shoved him away lightly, pouting.

"That's how you greet me, after not seeing me for years?"

"It's just two years, you melodramatic girl, and you're the one who greeted me with 'you smell bad"," Bilbo replied fondly.

She looked at the dwarves as her (slow) brain finally registered their presence. Her eyes widened slightly.

"You and this elf...?" Bofur stuttered awkwardly, gesturing towards them vaguely as his cheeks burned a bright red. He noticed that the other dwarves were also averting their gazes pointedly. Ah. He smirked.

Bilbo tugged her ear, and she wailed before smacking his hand away.

"This uncouth, ill-mannered elf? I treat her like my sister."

"Oh." The dwarves looked less awkward.

Ryadher scrutinised him: "They don't know, do they?" She spoke lowly in Sindarin.

He nodded. "If they had known, would I still be allowed to be in their presence?"

She growled softly.

"It's okay," he reassured her gently, giving her a look that said tell you later. She narrowed her eyes slightly. You better. His sister was wary of dwarves, but at least she did not loathe them.

Then, in a louder voice, he tutted, "Goodness, Ryad, whatever in the world are you doing? Running down the corridor? Kneeling on the floor? Lord Elrond would be distraught."

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him," she grumbled, but she instantly stood up. Smoothing out her rumpled dress and patting her hair, she cleared her throat and adopted a cool, composed expression.

"Pardon my rudeness. I'm Ryadher, a very close friend of Cyadhon, whom you know as Bilbo. You must be hungry; follow me, i'll lead you to the dining hall," she smiled demurely before spinning around and gliding down the corridor without so much as a backward glance. The dwarves exchanged confused looks and looked at Thorin expectantly. He nodded; they followed her quickly, leaving Bilbo behind.

Bilbo spluttered. "Wait up! Hey! My legs are shorter than yours!" He said and jogged after them.

"You're slower than a snail!" She called out, but slowed down her pace for them after that. Walking beside her, Bilbo finally felt a sense of calm and tranquillity. Rivendell had been his home for at least a century, and even after spending a good thirty years as a hobbit, it still felt like home.

Bilbo laughed until his sides hurt when he saw that all the dishes were vegetables.

"Lord Elrond can be so spiteful sometimes," he commented softly to his sister. He was seated next to Balin, at the further end of the table, with his sister beside him. She smirked at him in response. "I want meat, though," he declared, before requesting to the nearest server for actual, cooked meat in fluent Sindarin.

Ryadher sniffed, "You're spoiling our fun." Bilbo wisely ignored her.

The dwarves were ecstatic to see the cooked meat, and shot grateful looks to Bilbo. Good food can go a long way to make people forget about unpleasant things, Bilbo thought; it seemed like most of the dwarves had gotten over their initial distrust and shock of realising that Bilbo was chummy with their nemesis, the elves. Thorin, Dwalin, and a few others still looked doubtful of him, his abilities, and his trustworthiness, but it could not be helped.

Elrond looked slightly put off when he finally joined the feast and saw the dwarves enjoying themselves. He smiled sheepishly when Bilbo stared knowingly at the Elven Lord.

The dwarves discussed their epic swords over their plates piled high with meat, with Bilbo opting to catch up with his sister instead. They spoke in low voices, using Sindarin, to ensure that none of the dwarves would understand even if they eavesdropped.

"How are you, sister? Is everything fine? You look exhausted."

"Everything is okay, although there seems to be evil stirring. Lord Elrond is worried about something, but he refused to tell me," Ryadher frowned in worry.

Bilbo touched her shoulder comfortingly. "He doesn't want to burden you," he explained. His sister sighed impatiently.

"I'm not a child anymore. I'm also one of his fighters!"

"That's what worries me," Bilbo admitted and bit his lower lip. His baby sister was already grown up, but to him she would always require his protection. Although she was probably a better fighter than him, in a non-dragon form.

"Enough about me. Why are you with dwarves? I was so shocked; I never knew you liked them!"

"I don't. But they're on a quest, see, and I'm very interested in it."

His sister perked up. "Oh? So it was not the handsome leader that made you change your mind?"

He scoffed. "You find him handsome? Ooh, is my little sister interested in the Dwarf King? Mind you, he's very stubborn," Bilbo wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at her and she flushed, shaking her head vigorously.

"Just tell me what happened."

Bilbo gave a brief run through of the events that had occurred so far, his tone serious. Ryadher was deep in thought at the end of it.

"Does Lord Elrond know of this?" Bilbo shook his head; he hadn't had the chance to talk to Elrond yet.

"Anyway, I'm glad you're here!" She exclaimed. Bilbo smiled indulgently; she was 29 in human years, yet sometimes acted as though she was 9. Brimming of life, seemingly happy-go-lucky, she also wielded daggers with an ease and possessed a tongue as sharp as her elvish daggers.

"How long will you be staying?"

Bilbo shrugged. "If the dwarves behave and we aren't thrown out, hopefully we'll stay for a week," He mused.

They lapsed into silence for a while, his sister toying with her food and Bilbo relishing in finally having a proper and delicious meal. Bilbo watched the interactions of the dwarves with open amusement; they were occasionally throwing scraps of vegetable at each other, talking and laughing loudly, and letting their guards down. The Elven music had long stopped playing (they were probably feeling under-appreciated and left in a huff, Bilbo mused). The good food and prospect of a good night's rest boosted everyone's mood and created a light atmosphere filled with merriment. It was relaxing.

At least the dwarves were well-behaved enough(or not intoxicated enough) to not belt out bawdy songs in an obnoxiously loud voice.

"They're a rowdy batch, aren't they?" Balin, who was next to him, commented. Bilbo agreed whole-heartedly. Balin scrutinised him like he was a puzzle he could not solve; Bilbo tried to ignore him, and instead focused on the dwarves.

Kili and Fili were arm wrestling on the table as the rest egged them on; Thorin, Elrond and Gandalf wisely ignored them.

Balin was staring at him. He could feel it.

Kili's chair toppled, and both siblings fell into the floor.

Balin was still staring.

The dwarves guffawed loudly as the siblings re-emerged from under the table, rubbing their bruised heads sheepishly.

Bilbo glanced at Balin from the corner of his eyes. Yes, still staring, in that unblinking manner. It was frankly getting a bit disconcerting.

Bilbo sighed, and asked him with thinly veiled annoyance, "Can I help you with anything, or are you just admiring my good looks?"

The entire table fell silent and stared at him.

Oh dear. He may have said that a little too loudly. Awkward. Bilbo flushed, and his lovely sister snorted.

Balin laughed, taking no offense. "Pardon me, Master Bilbo. I was simply wondering how you knew of the elves, if you don't mind me asking?"

Oh.

"My mother, Belladonna Took-Baggins, was very adventurous. She often brought me to Rivendell for visits. That's when I met Ryadher, and we played together. I grew up with her, and we became close friends. In fact, I think I spent practically half my childhood here, under Lord Elrond's care," Bilbo fibbed smoothly. Ryadher, going with the flow; Bilbo felt a rush of gratitude for them. Most, if not all, of the dwarves were listening to him. Even Thorin, with that piercing gaze of his.

Balin looked thoughtful. "Forgive me if I'm being rude, but I heard the elves address you by another name?"

Bilbo nodded. "Yes, it's 'Cyadhon'; that's my name, in another language." It was not an outright lie; that was his name since birth, in his own native language. 'Bilbo' was but another name he had picked so he would fit in with the hobbits.

"Oh, no wonder you can speak Sindarin fluently, you practically grew up here, right?" Ori exclaimed. Bilbo nodded.

"That's why you move like an elf, all graceful and girly - no offense to Lord Elrond," Kili mused out loud, backtracking quickly when he realised he had just insulted the elves in front of their lord. Elrond inclined his head in understanding.

"Um," Bilbo said very eloquently, "Girly?"

"Yes, the elves can pull off the glide-walk thing they do since they're tall, but you only manage to look a bit girly, because you're, you know," Kili gestured vaguely at Bilbo, "a lot less, uh, tall?"

There was a sudden silence. Ryadher looked as though her birthday was here early, Lord Elrond and Gandalf were smirking, and Thorin was groaning in a very unkingly manner while burying his face into his hands.

Bilbo was too stunned to reply.

"Um," he eloquently repeated, cheeks flaming.

Ryadher kept a straight face for about 10 seconds before her badly muffled giggles gave way to full-blown, hysterical laughter which set off the dwarves into tiny giggling fits as well. Soon enough, the entire table except Kili, Thorin and him were chuckling. Even Elrond was smiling secretly.

Kili was pleased with himself for his 'witty' remark. Their uncle, on the other hand, looked genuinely mortified. "Kili! Apologise!" He chided. Kili did, sounding very solemn, but the impish twinkle in his eyes just screamed 'insincere'.

Bilbo sank into his seat and hoped he could find a hole in the floor to hide. What did he ever do to deserve this?

"Brother, you're already 'a lot less tall', if you try to slouch down even more I'm afraid you'll simply cease to exist," his sister crowed.

Bilbo shoved her, hard, off the chair. She toppled to the ground, but continued laughing at his expense.

Evil, evil sister.

End of Chapter 5

nîth - sister

hanar - brother

Mellonnen - friend

(I used a translation website, but if the Sindarin is wrong, do tell me.)

That's all for this week! Is Bilbo's lil sister likeable? Reviews and constructive criticism will be great~~

-littlesparrowkeet