It was one hundred and seventy-one years since the fire-drake, Smaug, had taken Erebor and burned the city of Dale to ash. It was the year 2941 of the Third Age- in the early spring- and Thorin Oakenshield had gathered his companions and started a long journey and quest to reclaim their home, with the aid of the great wizard, Gandalf the Gray.
Gandalf walked with a large number of dwarves, accompanied as well by the young elf maiden, Halien. She walked in silence, standing nearly shoulder-to-shoulder with the wizard.
"Halien, my dear, are you alright? Will you be able to handle being in the company of Thorin? It has been quite some time since you last saw him." Gandalf asked as they approached Bilbo Baggins' home.
The elf nodded. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear as it slipped out from underneath her shawl. Her hair tended to be a distraction, so she wore a shawl to try and hide it away. She smiled as Bofur beckoned to her, asking if she was alright. She nodded and she realized how comfortable she truly was with some of the dwarves, having known them for a time some years before, but she had not seen Thorin since the day she had left the Blue Mountains. She smiled when they reached the door into the hobbit hole and the dwarves knocked, all of them falling upon each other when the door was pulled open.
"Oh, Bombur..." she said and helped pull the dwarf off of his kin, her shawl falling off of her head.
Looking up, the elf saw the hobbit standing there in dismay, completely confused until he saw Gandalf.
"My, have you grown, Bilbo," she said, lowering her shawl.
Bilbo looked at her, recognizing her. "Halien! You're the elf that came through the Shire when I was a lad. I would remember that unusual hair of yours anywhere." he said, a playful smile on his lips as she lowered her shawl.
Halien nodded and hugged him. "It has been a long time, Bilbo. You aren't the adventurous tyke you were. And besides," she added, "What's wrong with my hair? It makes me unique does it not?"
Bilbo smiled and was glad to see a familiar face- other than Gandalf's. He welcomed them in, begrudgingly, and watched in horror as the dwarves raided his pantries. Halien pulled her shawl back up and stood out of the way. They passed the food around, brought out the dishes, and began to sit at the table to eat and drink.
While she watched the dwarves enjoy themselves, Halien took out a small book from her pack and a charcoal stick- a specially made charcoal that didn't smear. She set off to the side, by herself, and began to draw the dwarves and Gandalf, all of them together. Halien had always had an artistic side to her- she was a great storyteller, a great singer, and she was very skilled in various forms of art: drawing, painting, and the likes. She began to accurately sketch the dwarves and Gandalf, having a clear view of each of them. Bofur looked over and smiled when he saw her concentrating on her drawing. He always saw her sketching in her book. It was a small book, but she had to have made several dozen drawings in it already.
After some time, the dwarves finished eating and began to clean up. As they did, Kili- one of the brother dwarves- began to sing about Bilbo's dishes. The others joined in- including Halien- and started to toss the dishes back and forth to each other until they were all stacked together and completely clean, unharmed much to Bilbo's surprise. Everyone laughed and at that point, there was a knock at the door and Gandalf was the one to answer it.
Thorin Oakenshield was the person waiting outside and when he entered, he looked up at the wizard.
"Gandalf." He said. "I thought you said this place would be easy to find. I lost my way, twice, and I'd have not found it at all if not for the mark on the door."
"There is no mark on that door, it was painted a week ago!" Bilbo said.
"There is a mark, I put it there myself," Gandalf replied. "Bilbo Baggins, allow me to introduce the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield."
Thorin handed his cloak to one of the dwarves and crossed his arms. "So this is the Hobbit." Circling him, Thorin took a good look at Bilbo. "Tell me, Mr. Baggins, have you done much fighting?" he asked. "Axe or sword? What is your weapon of choice?"
Bilbo, bewildered for a moment, replied, "Well, I do have some skill in conkers, if you must know, but I fail to see why that's relevant."
Thorin scoffed. "Thought as much. He looks more like a grocer than a burglar."
The other dwarves laughed at the joke, but Halien wasn't pleased.
"Is this how the great Thorin Oakenshield treats his hosts?" She said and stood.
"Why is an elf here?" Thorin retorted, turning to look at her and knowing she was an elf by her height and her slender body. He was not happy to see her.
"Halien is an ally," Gandalf explained. "She has an incredible healing gift- among other gifts that she possesses- and she is a very skilled warrior, which will be a great and necessary addition to our company." When Thorin glared at him, he continued, "You would be wise not to toil with her nor send her away."
Thorin looked at Halien as if he recognized the name. Halien lowered her shawl and bowed, her eyes to the ground. Thorin's eyes widened, but he said nothing as her braid fell over her shoulder, the mithril and obsidian strands neatly woven together. When she stood up straight, Thorin glared at her and went to the table to eat his portion of the meal made. As he ate, he and the other dwarves discussed their plans for the quest with Gandalf as he took out an old map. Behind them, Halien had finished her sketch and smiled contently, despite her encounter with the dwarf king. She was pleased with her work and placed it off to the side, still open. Halien stood and stretched as she left the dwarves to themselves and went to check on their mounts.
