A/N: Hello! Happy Friday and happy new chapter day! Not much to say about this one, except let's go find Eira! Also, I am terrible at writing action scenes and I apologise in advance.

Enjoy!

Chapter Twenty

Beorn

Beorn was unlike any other creature I'd seen or could have possibly imagined. When he stumbled through the woods and I saw him change from a gigantic bear to a large man, I didn't know what to say. I certainly wondered whether or not he was friend or foe, but when both Maggie and Thranduil greeted him by name, I knew he was no threat to us. A million questions immediately began to whirl in my mind, but there was no time to ask them. All that mattered was Eira and I had a horrible feeling that we were running out of time. Beorn immediately took the lead and knew where he was going. One thing became clear in our hunt for the enemy: these woods belonged to Beorn. He knew every root, bush and tree whereas we did not and I realised how dangerous it would have been, had Maggie and I ventured out on our own. I was grateful for the company of not only Beorn, but also Thranduil.

I wasn't a mother, so I had no idea what thoughts were going through Maggie's mind. I only knew that she had suffered enough loss of family in her life and would do anything to get her daughter back. Even if it cost her own life. Although I was a war nurse, I had no direct experience of war. I had never been out in the field myself and I had never held a single weapon in my life. I didn't know how to fight or defend myself and had no use out here. Yet, I knew I couldn't stay behind in Erebor. A part of me felt guilt, because I was the one who saw Eira being taken and was unable to do anything to stop her. If I had been a little faster on my feet and more alert, maybe Eira would still be with us.

"Stop."

Beorn's command was clear and we crouched behind a dense set of bushes. A strong scent of smoke and cooked meat filled my nose and when I looked ahead, flames from a campfire burned brightly. At first, I thought the dark played tricks on my mind, but when I gazed closer it wasn't humans I saw. At least, some of them weren't. I thought Beorn was a strange enough creature, but he had kindness inside him. I knew at once that these new creatures were foul and evil. Their faces were deformed, with crooked noses and large boils on them. They were much wider than people, but were more akin to animals of sorts. From the vicinity of my eyes, I saw the looks on both Maggie's and Thranduil's face - they knew what they were and did not like it.

"I have been hunting this orc-pack for weeks." Beorn explained "They came into my territory and slaughtered my animals. I picked up their scent some hours ago, just before I heard you three."

"Orc pack?" Maggie asked "We saw traces of humans humans from Erebor, not orcs."

"I sense perhaps a rather unholy alliance has been formed." Thranduil guessed "Orcs working together with humans. It has happened before."

"Well, screw their alliance. I'm getting my daughter."

To my surprise, it wasn't Thranduil who stopped Maggie, but instead Beorn placed his enormous hand on her shoulder. The queen of Erebor didn't protest, instead she only exhaled a sigh and backed down from her stance.

"I know your daughter is there." Beorn empathised "But, we must proceed with caution. If we charge without care, we risk her life."

"If we wait for too long then we also risk her life." Maggie said "I will not return to Erebor without Eira. Millie, you should stay here. You have no combat training and I do not wish to see you hurt. Besides, we could use your skills."

I nodded in agreement, not wishing to join the fight. My skills were with healing and not in armed combat. The conviction in Maggie's voice was clear and nobody argued with her. After that, everything happened so quickly. On Beorn's mark, he, Thranduil and Maggie charged towards the camp. Up until that point, I'd never seen an elf in battle, but as I watched Thranduil - I couldn't help but be awed. While it was easy enough to see that Maggie had been trained to defend herself, however Thranduil was born with the grace of a warrior. He swung his blade with such effortless motion that it seemed as though he was dancing. The camp didn't know what hit them and while I saw the three of them fighting their way to Eira, I was the one who saw a chance. Eira was sitting on the edge of the camp, with her hands bound and unable to move. The orcs and humans were too busy fighting to see her and so I took my chance. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared - in fact, I was terrified, but I put my fears aside and focused on Eira.

The terrain ahead of me was difficult. I was born and raised in the city and had mainly only spent time in the countryside on weekends and holidays. I pushed past the sharp branches and knew I'd have several scratches to deal with later and as I approached the camp, I saw and heard Eira. She screamed for her mother and cried out of fear. Luckily, I was able to approach her without being noticed and when she saw me, her eyes widened. I removed the cloth covering her mouth and quickly untied both her hands and feet. As soon as she was free, Eira threw her arms around me.

"Millie! You found me!" Eira sobbed "Where's mummy?"

"Your mummy will be right behind us." I assured her "We must go, right now. Hold on to me."

Eira grabbed my shoulders tightly as I got up on my feet, ready to run back to our hiding place. Unfortunately, I didn't get very far before a large man with broad shoulders and short, nearly white hair. Seconds later, he pulled out his sword from his sheath and aimed it right at me. With each step that pressed into the ground, my heartbeat increased and I began to feel scared. Despite my own feelings, I would not allow Eira to come to harm on my watch.

"Drop the child." said the stranger "It would make it easier for us both."

"No, I won't." I protested. "If you want her, you'll have to go through me."

A nasty grin tugged at his lips, as though he was pleased with himself.

"Oh, sweet girl." he chuckled "That shall be easy."

Eira dug her nails into my shoulder, where she also buried her face. Slowly, I backed away, until I found myself bumping into someone behind me. I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, thinking my moment had come. Instead of a sword at my throat, however, the touch of a familiar hand squeezed my shoulder. I was glad that Eira looked behind me, because before I knew it, a sharp sword cut through the body of the man in front of me. Maggie's expression was blank as she retrieved her sword and exhaled with relief.

"Malhas…" she whispered

"You knew him?" I asked "How?"

"Let's just say we go way back. It's not the first time that he's tried to take a child of mine. Some people don't like the fact that there are half-human, half-dwarrow children."

It shouldn't have come as a surprise to me. Prejudice towards different races exists back home as well, it just didn't occur to me that it would exist in Middle-Earth. Eira was only a child and couldn't help who her parents were.

"Naneth!" Eira cried out as Maggie walked towards us.

Eira practically jumped into Maggie's arms and I exhaled the breath I'd been holding. It was over, I hoped and we could return.

"My house is close." Beorn revealed "It would be wise for you to stay there tonight and return to Erebor in the morning. I have food and empty beds for you to sleep in, but we should hurry."

None of us argued.

I don't know what I expected from Beorn's house, but once again I found myself in awe. Beorn's house was surrounded by oak trees, a large thorny hedge and a high wooden gate. Once we stepped inside, I saw a garden unlike any I had ever seen. There were bee-hives spread out and a vague scent of honey seemed to linger in the air. As I studied our host's home, I also noticed there were stables nearby and several patches of grass where sheep grazed. In the dark, fireflies lit up the sky and I couldn't help but to stare.

Beorn invited us inside and for the first couple of hours, Eira refused to let go of Maggie. I wanted to make sure she didn't have any major injuries and when I was certain Eira would be alright, if a bit shaken, Maggie tucked her into bed.

"You are not of this world." Beorn said. "You carry the same air as young Queen Margaret."

I nodded, realising there was no point hiding anything from Beorn.

"Yes, I am from Maggie's world." I explained "Although, I come from a different time. I was born in 1914 and I found myself in Middle-Earth, it was 1940. Maggie was born 1993, almost 100 years from my birth."

"I gather the Valar sent you?" Beorn guessed "To fulfill a quest?"

"That's what I'm told, not something so grand as to fight a war, though."

"All quests are grand in their own way. You need only find its purpose. Here, drink this."

I accepted the metal tankard Beorn passed to me and from its chamomile smell, I guessed it was some sort of tea. I allowed the tea to linger in my mouth before I swallowed it. Chamomile tea was something I used to drink back home and it was nice to have a sense of familiarity. Without a sound, Beorn retired to what I assumed was his own chambers and I was left alone with Thranduil. My shoulders stung and as I briefly pulled down the fabric of my dress, I saw marks from thorns and from the way it burned, I assumed it was some kind of poison or ivy.

"Pass me that cloth, will you?" I asked "There's some water in a bucket as well."

Thranduil grabbed the cloth behind him and as I studied my injuries, I knew they would be hurting for a while.

"Ow!" I cried out "I can do it myself, you know."

"I know," Thranduil said "But, I shall."

Carefully, Thranduil dabbed the wet cloth on the wounds and I bit my tongue. For being a nurse, I had a low threshold for pain and much preferred to deal with my own injuries to spare others. After the past few hours though, I had to admit it was nice to have company and not alone in Beorn's quiet hall. I didn't mind that while Thranduil's used one hand to clean the blood off my skin, his other hand rested on the other side of my shoulder. His thumb gently stroked the skin under my ear and whispered quiet words in Elvish.

This was not the same Thranduil whose threshold i had stumbled upon months ago and what scared me the most is the fact that I didn't mind.

"Eira is finally asleep and-" Maggie said as she walked into the room and stopped when she saw us. "I'm so sorry, I clearly interrupted someth-"

"No." Thranduil intervened "Not at all. In fact, I think it is perhaps wise that we all retire for the night. I am sure Fili is anxiously waiting for us to return, so I suggest we leave at first light."

"That is a great idea." I agreed "I'm exhausted, Maggie why don't you show me where the sleeping quarters are."

Maggie nodded and I could tell from her expression that she had several questions in mind, but they would have to wait.

She wasn't the only one.

To be continued….

Not an amazing chapter, but a chapter nonetheless. Next one will be longer and more interesting. I know they haven't kissed yet and I'm waiting for the right moment. I'd love to know how you feel about their relationship right now? Does it feel realistic at all? Please leave a review/comment.