An Unexpected Companion

Chapter 18

Laketown

Tiki sighed as the small rowboat she, Legolas, and Tauriel hired ferried them across the Long Lake. She had to smirk to herself a little. The Long Lake, a thoroughly unoriginal name. But an accurate one. Besides, she couldn't judge. The humans of her home had a long fort called The Longfort, after all.

She stood at the prow, emerald eyes focusing through swirling fog as gray silhouettes of buildings and shacks sprouted from the water. Their ferryman grunted out the name of the town. Esgaroth on the Lake- Laketown to foreigners who didn't bother actually learning anything. No doubt a jab at her and her elven friends. They said nothing about it.

The city had no walls. It didn't need them. The lake was its defense. Its cocoon. No army, no matter how determined, could conquer water without expecting tremendous losses. So, why build a wall? It made sense to Tiki. However, she also noticed everything was made of wood. The structures could float easily, but that meant the other natural defense of water was negated.

Smaug could burn this place to ashes if he wanted to.

The little ferry pulled up to a ramshackle dock. Other ferries moved in and out of the port, transporting crates of furs and pelts, plenty of barrels of fish, and a rare container or two of spices from exotic lands. Nothing precious though. No riches. When Tiki stepped onto the dock, the planks beneath her feet groaned. A gust of wind blew through, causing the buildings that leaned over the port to shiver, flecks of long-dried paint and rotten wood dancing away on the breeze.

"Quite dilapidated," Legolas muttered as he looked around, sharp eyes studying the movements of everyone around them.

The humans that were on the docks gaze at them not with wonder, but with severe mistrust. Dirty glares, glances of concern, and even a hateful look or two were directed at them as they slowly moved along the docks. Tiki heard one man chopping fish mutter an insult: knife-ears. She reached for her own and frowned.

"Quite unwelcoming," Tauriel whispered to Legolas, who nodded in agreement.

The crowd parted ahead of them. Tiki peered in that direction and spied a short, scrawny figure with a bent back and a hobble to his step approaching them. He sneered as he pointed a pale finger.

"It's about to get even less welcoming," Tiki muttered.

"You there! Elves!" The man called. "Who said you were welcome in Esgaroth? Who bade you come aboard our home? Were you invited?" He waited for an answer that did not come. "Nay? Well then, perhaps the Master ought to hear about this then, hm? What say you?"

There was no doubt he meant to address the crowd of wary onlookers, but Tiki spoke before they could air their agreement.

"I care not for any Master, and I do not answer to one," she said, voice sharp, silencing any murmurs in the crowd. She did not have time for this, and she intended for all of them to know it. "I come seeking dwarves. If you know where they are, you will take me to them. If not, then I will scour this place until I am certain they are not here. If you get in my way, it will be at your own peril. Know this; my patience is normally long and enduring, but it's been a trying few days. I'm tired, I'm sore, and I'm unbearably hungry. My temper, infamous as it can be, shall be quick."

The man glared at Tiki. "You dare order us, the men of Laketown?"

Tiki quirked an eyebrow. "I thought this was Esgaroth?"

"It's the same and-" The man huffed, thrown off by Tiki's direct misdirection. "You are not allowed to wander as you please. Not at all. If you were uninvited, you will go before the Master and-"

"I invited them!"

Murmurs rose from the crowd once more. Tiki flicked her gaze to a narrow alley beside the docks. A tall man with long black hair stepped forth. She quickly studied him, noting the bruised and calloused hands along with the dirty complexion across his bearded face. A worker. Fisherman, perhaps? He seemed so unlike the others on this dock. He seemed far nobler and carried himself as such.

"Bard?" The unfriendly greeter growled. "You-"

"They are my guests, and I ask they be treated as such," Bard met Tiki's gaze, "just as the dwarves were."

Tiki's eyes widened. She stepped toward Bard, completely ignoring the crowd and the Master's messenger. "You've seen them?"

Bard didn't say anything to her. He kept his attention on the messenger, daring him to say something, do anything, to try and stop him. When the messenger threw his hands up and marched away, the corner of Bard's mouth twitched.

"Coward," Bard muttered.

"That he is, but we can rant about that fact later," Tiki replied, drawing his attention. "Dwarves? Here? When? Where?"

Bard flicked his eyes to Legolas and Tauriel. There was hesitation in his eyes. He might have saved Tiki a lot of problems, but he still possessed the same wariness as the rest of his countrymen regarding the elves. Nevertheless, he swallowed his reservations and nodded for Tiki to follow him. When he turned, he muttered something that caused her to snort.

"I'm glad you're here to get them. They left a bloody mess."

Bard wasn't kidding. Tiki wrinkled her nose as she smelled the rotting food, stale mead, and overall rancid smell coming from his home. Then there was the stench of blood wafting to her, making her hair stand on end, and she realized that Bard was being quite literal.

Before anyone could say a word, she surged forward, not even allowing Bard to invite her into her home. Her heart jumped to her throat when she saw Kili lying on the kitchen table, blood seeping from a wound on his thigh. He hissed and writhed on the table, hands tightening into fists as he endured pain she could only imagine.

"Would someone please get me some hot wat-" Dori barreled in, carrying fresh rags. He dropped them when he saw Tiki. "You're alive!?"

"You know her?" Bard questioned as he shut the door behind her.

Dori opened his mouth, but any reply died when he saw Legolas and Tauriel. "You two!" He exclaimed, pointing a finger.

Bard raised his brow. "You know him?"

"Questions later," Legolas replied, nodding toward Kili. "What happened?"

"You know bloody well what happened," Dori fumed. He picked up the rags, marched to Kili, and dabbed one against the wound. "Orcs, and your idiot kin closing off our escape route forcing this idiot to act the hero." He finished, jabbing a finger at Kili. When Kili groaned again, Dori twisted. "Children, that hot water if you would please! And you lot, don't just stand there. I could use some help."

Tiki didn't say anything. She rushed to Kili's side and inspected the wound herself. A curse tumbled from her lips when she saw the inky veins throbbing from the bloody gash.

"Poison?"

"Would you expect anything less from an Orc?" Dori asked.

Tiki grimaced. "What I would give for a vulnerary." She hummed and looked around the small kitchen. "Bard, any herbs?"

"Anything useful has been used, including the Kingsfoil."

"Athelas," Legolas nodded, causing Bard to give him a sidelong glare.

"That's what I said."

"Then he needs elvish healing," Tauriel said. "Stand back dwarf."

"Not you!" Dori stamped a foot. "If Kili needs to be healed by an elf then there is only one I trust." He nodded at Tiki. "She can do it."

Tiki blinked. "Um… actually-"

Dori groaned. "Oh, leave it to Gandalf to find an elf who can't heal anybody! Of course! First the giant bear-man, then wood elves, spiders, orcs, and crazy lake people. Next thing I know, Smaug himself is going to knock on the door. Fine, she-elf! Do what you must."

As Tauriel moved to Kili's side, Legolas grasped Tiki's arm and beckoned her to step out with him. Tiki hesitated. Then, she heard soft whispers coming from Tauriel. A quiet chant, as beautiful as the songs she heard in Rivendell. She stole a glance over her shoulder, her eyes widening as she swore she saw Tauriel glowing. She tore her gaze from the sight, unsure if it was something she should ever witness. The others had already given Tauriel and Kili space, after all.

So, Tiki followed Legolas outside Bard's home, onto a small balcony overlooking one of Laketown's winding canals. A cold wind swept in from the north, carrying bits of frost. Tiki blinked. Was it nearly winter already?

"The dwarf will be alright," Legolas muttered as he leaned against the railing of the balcony, his sharp eyes studying the water as it trickled through the canal.

"Is Tauriel a good healer?"

Legolas shrugged. "We all know healing, to a certain extent. Some are better than others."

"So I should be glad she's in there and not you?"

Legolas chuckled. "Perhaps." He folded his hands and bowed his head. For the first time, Tiki saw an elf looking weary. Her brow furrowed, but before she could speak, he whipped his eyes to her. "You're not one of our kin, are you?"

Tiki drew back. Those words were like a slap across the face. They stunned her to the point where she almost fell back down some rickety stairs to the wooden walkway below. She shook her head.

"I-"

"If your ravenous craving for meat wasn't enough, there is also your curious behavior," Legolas continued. He stood up straight. His hands weren't reaching for any weapons, but Tiki knew that the elf could draw one in a flash. "And then there was your reaction to my questions about your past. About-"

"There are some things that should be left alone," Tiki warned, her eyes narrowing on instinct. "Past relations of mine are one of them."

"Why?"

"Because…" Tiki trailed off. Why indeed? "I don't fully understand much of this myself. Those dreams, nightmares, whatever you and I think they are. They are clues for me."

"But you don't treat them like clues," Legolas replied. "If they were clues, then you would seek help deciphering them. You treat them far more precious than that. Perhaps they are not mere dreams, but memories?"

Tiki's jaw tightened. "I've considered the possibility. But what does this have to do with me not being one of your kin?"

Legolas leaned back; eyes alight. "So, I am right."

Tiki snorted. "You elves are too perceptive for your own good." She stepped around Legolas, moving to the far end of the small balcony. The side that gave her a good view of the Lonely Mountain in the distance. "So, what now? You don't appear worried or alarmed? Has my deception not put you on edge?"

"Originally, yes. Same with Tauriel," Legolas replied. "She noticed it first, in fact."

Tiki closed her eyes. She recalled the sharp words she snapped at Legolas when he pressed her about Robin. The sudden stony look on Legolas' face sat in her mind. A bitter huff left her lips.

"I need to learn Elvish," she muttered. Her brow furrowed as she became more puzzled. "You admit to knowing I was lying to you, your father, and others. So why are you still helping me?"

Legolas drew in a deep breath. "I wasn't very old, by elvish standards, when we lost my mother. I do remember her." A wistful smile creased his lips. "I remember her smile, so soft and gentle. It was enough to bring warmth even during winter's bitterest chill. Her presence provided light to every room. Back then, my father's halls were not so dim." His smile began to fade. "Then she was gone, and I witnessed grief for the first time in my life. Something my father still carries with him." He met Tiki's emerald eyes. "I saw that same thing in you when you awoke from that dream. To me, if anything can love so much that they are burdened with such pain, then they cannot possibly be from evil."

The corner of Tiki's mouth twitched. "You continued helping because you had a good hunch, you mean?"

"If you want to call it that, yes," Legolas replied. He joined Tiki's side, gazing at the Lonely Mountain as the last rays of sunlight behind the gray clouds dipped beneath the horizon, casting a deep shadow across the lonesome peak. "Now, I have a question for you, Lady Tiki."

"And that is?" Tiki asked, her worries abated as she stared across the lake to Erebor.

Her ears twitched as she heard cries of relief from Dori and Bard's family within the house. Tauriel must have been successful. That was a relief. Tiki did not have to worry about Kili now. She could focus on the actual goal.

"What are you?"

Tiki said nothing. Her focus remained on the Lonely Mountain. As she stared at it, her heart began to race. Within those gargantuan halls of rock and stone rested a creature that claimed to be a Dragon. A wyrm that dared to desecrate the very species that had shepherded humankind in Archanea and Valentia. Smaug, destroyer of Erebor and Dale. Smaug the Terrible. Dubious titles that spoke of a being capable of great power and destruction. She had not faced a foe like him in some time. Not since before she arrived in Middle Earth.

Could she face him?

She drew in a deep breath and nodded to herself. She had faced dragons before, and now another would challenge her.

We shall see.

And chapter! Hey, it's been a minute, and yes, this is a short chapter, but let me explain... I've finished this story. No, this is not the last chapter. I'm saying I decided to complete the entire thing before posting anymore. Now that is done, I'm gonna be posting a new chapter every day until done. Not much left to go actually, so this should be quick and hopefully a lot of fun!

Anyways, let me know what you all think of this chapter! As always, I hope you all enjoyed it. Have a nice day!