Disclaimer: The only character that belongs to me is Esme I've borrowed Mr. Dwalin from Tolkien. Hope you enjoy!

Authors Note: Sorry this update took so long I was sick with Covid19 and it took a lot out of me but I'm back feeling ok now so hopefully updates will be quicker. I had to rewrite this chapter 3 times and I'm still not 100% happy with it but hope you all enjoy. Thanks for the reviews, follows and favourites.

Beginning the Journey

Esme's POV

Esme woke with a start in the early hours of the morning. The sun was just starting to rise over the horizon and there were birds singing in the tall pine trees that surrounded her. Esme hadn't woken up to birds singing in years, it was one of the things she detested most about living in a city. Where was she?

Just then it all came back to her in an instant, she'd been in the river, she'd been drowning but that strange man, no dwarf Esme corrected herself, had saved her. It was a dream, or at least it was meant to be a dream. So why was she still here?

Sitting up, Esme looked around the small campsite. The fire which had been blazing the night before was almost out now and the dwarf in question was currently sitting on a fallen tree sharpening his axes. Who even carried axes around with them like that?

Last night she had been sure he must have been some sort of brave warrior who roamed the forests looking for drowning women to rescue, but now that she thought about it, warriors weren't the only ones that used axes. He could have been a wood cutter but judging by the scars and the partial earlobe she very much doubted it. Maybe he was some sort of deranged serial killer who was planning on chopping her up and burying her in the woods. Now that thought was enough for her to feel the panic bubbling up inside of her all over again.

Esme wondered momentarily could she outrun the burly dwarf if she made a dash for the line of trees to her left, but swiftly decided against it. She never was particularly good at track and if this dwarf was a warrior, he no doubt had the speed and strength to catch her before she made it to within spitting distance of the nearest tree. Maybe if she spent some time talking to him, she could distract him and someone would happen along before he had a chance to harm her and she would be rescued.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to remain calm. After all, this dwarf had rescued her from the river last night. Surely, he wouldn't go to the bother of rescuing her just to kill her, would he? She sighed; it was just her luck really that her knight in shining armour had turned out to be a big, scary looking dwarf who thought she looked more like a boy than a princess. At that moment the dwarf in question looked up from his axe and smiled, or at least she thought it was a smile, it was hard to tell with all the facial hair.

"It's time to get moving lass," he said as he stood up. The dwarf strapped his axes back in place and tossed her an apple. "That'll have to do for breakfast I'm afraid but I've been told the house we're going to will have food, and lots of it."

Esme wanted to ask a million and one questions but something told her the grim looking dwarf was not one for idle chit chat, so instead she bit into the apple he had thrown her and followed him into the forest. After all there wasn't a whole lot more she could do. If he intended to kill her then he'd probably have done so while she slept, so she may as well follow him and hopefully find someone who could help her get back home.

Dwalin's POV

Dwalin was glad to be on the move again. The lass had slept a lot longer than he normally would have. He had been hoping to be on his way a lot sooner, they still had a lot of ground to cover and he hoped to make it to the home of Mr. Baggins by evening. At the same time, he hadn't been able to bring himself to wake her any earlier. She had looked so peaceful while she slept. He looked at her again now as they made their way through the forest. He had to admit, while her clothes were extremely strange, they seemed far more suited to walking through forests than the huge ornate dresses the lasses usually wore back in Ered Luin.

"Where did you say you were from exactly lass?"

Her striking green eyes quickly rose to meet his at the question. She was nervous, he could tell.

"Erm, well I don't exactly know how to explain. If this is really Middle Earth and we're really on our way to the Shire, then I guess I live a hell of a long way from here. I don't even know how I got here. Maybe I just fell and hit my head and this is all just a dream again," the lass half muttered the last bit as if she had been addressing herself.

"Your clothes aren't anything like what women wear in these parts. We'll have to get you more suitable attire once we reach Hobbiton."

Her pretty face creased into a frown at that and Dwalin felt the urge to hold her until she smiled again. What was happening to him? He wasn't a young dwarf and there had been many dwarrowdams over the years that had been interested in marrying him. He was after all a renowned warrior. He had never been interested however, believing that he was destined to be alone. Not once had any of them even appealed to him and yet here he was lusting after some young, pretty lass from the race of men who probably wouldn't look twice at him if he was the last dwarf in Middle Earth.

"And just what is wrong with my clothes exactly?" she asked.

Not really knowing what to say without insulting the lass Dwalin just grunted and continued making his way through the trees. He was hoping to make it to the road before noon as they would be able to move along more quickly then.

"You coming or not lass? I haven't got all day."

The lass didn't speak much, he had been thankful for it the night before but there was something about her that made him want to know more about her and he suddenly found himself trying to come up with some reason to talk to her.

"You mentioned your mother last night. You said she was gone, yet you seemed to think she may be here. What happened to her may I ask?"

Esme didn't look at him as she answered quietly, "She drowned. My mother drowned."

They continued along in silence for a while after that. The lass seemed deep in thought and Dwalin really didn't know what to say to her. She had said her mother had drowned but her behaviour from the night before suggested she believed otherwise. Just as they neared the road she spoke again, her voice now full of hurt and sadness.

"My mother had a book about this place; she kept it in a locked desk in her study. I read it once when I was younger, just a few pages when she was busy in the garden. I didn't see any harm in it. It was just a book. She was so angry when she found me. That was the day... it was the last day I saw her. It was my fault."

Dwalin stopped and looked back at the lass who had stopped moving now.

"I've never told anyone that."

Her eyes filled with tears again as she stood looking at him. He stepped closer to her, wanting to help her in some way but not really knowing how. Just as he was reaching out for her, she shook her head and wiped her eyes.

"It's just a silly memory. I'm fine."

With that she pushed past him and made her way towards the road.

Esme's POV

Was he for real? Esme stood staring after Dwalin as he stomped off through the forest again. It was bad enough that he thought she resembled a boy but now he had the nerve to insult how she dressed too! She looked down at herself, she was wearing her best jeans and a fitted black sweater and her best pair of boots. Ok her jeans were a little stained and her sweater was a bit creased but she'd almost drowned last night, surely, he didn't expect her to look perfectly put together. She frowned as she looked up to see him stopped a few meters away from her, leaning against a tree.

"You coming or not lass? I haven't got all day."

Ok, so maybe he was just an ass and she shouldn't care too much about what he thought of her. Shrugging, she continued behind him, determined not to speak to him again unless absolutely necessary.

Instead, she trudged along behind him trying to make sense of what was happening. Was she really in Middle Earth? If she was then maybe her mother hadn't drowned like they said she did. Maybe, she might find her again here. As if he could read her thoughts the dwarf chose that moment to ask about her mother. She looked down at her boots and repeated what her uncle had constantly drilled into her growing up.

"She drowned. My mother drowned."

They continued walking, but Esme couldn't get her mind off it. Did her mother really drown? That's not what she had remembered but her uncle had insisted on it. So had the police and the many different shrinks she'd seen over the years. She'd drowned, but they'd never found her and as her uncle constantly reminded her, it was her fault. Suddenly, she found herself telling Dwalin all about the day she'd lost her mother. Suddenly, she realised what she was doing.

"I've never told anyone that before."

What the hell was wrong with her? She barely even knew this dwarf and she had just told him one of her most closely guarded secrets. She'd spent years in therapy trying to get herself to be able to open up and couldn't and here she was telling this brute of a dwarf everything. She had spent so long building up her walls and the thought of this warrior being able to break them down in less than 24 hours was disconcerting to say the least. She shook herself out of her shock quickly though, and dismissing what she had just told him, pushed her way past him and kept walking.

Soon the forest began to thin out around them and she could see what looked like a road just ahead of them. Dwalin had walked along in silence again once she had made her way past him and for that she was incredibly grateful. She still didn't know what it was about this gruff warrior that made her open up to him like she had never done with anyone before but whatever it was she didn't like it. Maybe once she got to The Shire, she could find someone who could get her back home again and away from the dwarf that had broken down her defences so easily. Now that they were on the road, they moved along far more quickly and very soon the road gave way to cobble stone pathways. Before she knew it, she saw, stretched out before her a beautiful, picturesque landscape dotted with strange hill dwellings and well-tended gardens.

"Where exactly are we going? You mentioned a house last night, whose house? Are they friends of yours?" she asked.

Esme didn't know anything about dwarves but looking around at the quiet little village, she just couldn't picture someone like Dwalin living in a place like this, or even being friends with someone who did. The dwarf shifted uncomfortably beside her at her questioning.

"No, not a friend. It's just business."

Dwalin's POV

Dwalin was glad the lass didn't ask him about what business he had here in the Shire, he didn't think Thorin would take too kindly to him telling a stranger all about their quest and he really didn't want to lie to her. Hopefully, Gandalf would know what to do with her and how to get her back home and he could forget all about her and get back to fully concentrating on the quest to reclaim their homeland. He was surprised to find he didn't really like the thoughts of Esme leaving at all though. If he was honest with himself, he didn't think he'd be able to forget her in a hurry either. There really wasn't any other option though. It wasn't like he could go dragging the lass halfway across middle earth with him, was it? Not that Thorin would allow it even if he wanted to anyway. If he did, she more than likely wouldn't want to stay with him at the end anyway. He took a sideward glance at her as she walked along admiring the scenery. She really was beautiful to look at, there was no way she could feel the same about him and he felt a fool for even entertaining the idea.

They spent the day wandering around Hobbiton looking for the smial Gandalf had instructed them to meet him at. Dwalin's sense of direction above ground wasn't the best and each road in these lands looked frustratingly alike which resulted in them losing their way with frustrating regularity. It was getting late, the sun beginning to sink below the horizon, before they started up the side of a large hill and he finally spotted the mark he'd been looking for.

"We're almost there lass. There's no need to be frightened. The people here are timid at best, and our host won't harm ya."

Esme simply nodded. She looked tired and he wondered if he'd pushed her too hard today considering everything she had been through the night before. She stumbled slightly and he caught her before she fell. Looking up at him she smiled and thanked him, giving his hand a gentle squeeze as she did so. He stood frozen for a moment as he realised just how much he wanted to kiss her again in that moment. Well, that settled matters; she needed to get her back to her own world and fast.

TBC