Sorry for no update last week, but we are living a very stressful situation and I could not write the chapter. I'm sorry. Hope you enjoy it.

Brine woke up to notice how someone shook her. When she opened her eyes she met Bilbo, who carried his loaded bag behind his back.

"Where the hell are you going?" Brine looked at him suspiciously. Was he trying to run away from there? Was he going to abandon the company to its fate in reconquering Erebor?

"Thorin says we must go our way." Brine felt a little relieved. After all, Bilbo was not going to abandon them. With Bilbo's help, she stood up and began to collect her things. She soon left everything ready. Bilbo guided her to where the others were. Everyone was around Thorin, who was instructing the way forward and the precaution they should have. Brine looked around and realized that neither Gandalf nor Zirb was there. Thorin had finished giving the instructions and had begun to walk outside Elrond's territory. Brine did not think twice and ran to catch him up before he went on even further.

"We are not all!" Brine exclaimed as she pulled on Thorin's coat. The dwarf looked at her before turning his gaze back to the squad behind him. "Don't you dare talk to me like that again in front of everyone." Thorin's look was cold. Brine did not advert her eyes from him.

"Where are Gandalf and Zirb?" She asked. She could see by the corner of her eye Fili muttering something to her. "Where are they?" She asked again. Thorin faced her.

"Gandalf will join us later." Brine did not know why but she did not trust at all Thorin's words about Gandalf. "And about lady Zirb." He emphasized the 'lady'. "It is better for her to rest here until tomorrow when she will go back to her home." Brine did not say a word. "It is everything okay for you, Pip?" Brine did not answer. She just stood there looking coldly at him. She did not like the idea of leaving Zirb behind. About Gandalf, maybe it was the best for her so her secret would be still a secret. Thorin began walking again passing Brine and everyone followed him. As they passed in front of her, they looked sadly at her and tried to comfort her.

"Come on big boy, we have to talk," Fili said as he pushed Brine and made her walk with him. Most of the road it was Fili who talked. He told her Brine that she should not worry about Zirb. "She is very friendly, I know, but you cannot argue with Thorin like that because of her." Brine did not pay much attention to him.

"Only if you know the truth..." She muttered low enough so none listened to her. She walked faster and left Fili behind. For the first time in weeks, she did not feel like to be with him. She needed to be alone with her thoughts.

They walked during hours until the reached a mountain port. A great storm began there and water got to Brine's bones. She was trying to heat herself but it was useless. Suddenly, she heard someone shouting behind her.

"A giants' fight!" Balin exclaimed pointing to a bunch of rocks that moved slowly. Brine looked surprised at the direction he was pointing. She had never seen such a fascinating show. Brine was so absorbed in the slow movements of the giants that she did not see how a piece of mountain fell off the wall. The ground began to shake. It was not a simple detachment.

"We are on one of them!" Kili yelled. At that moment they saw a gap open halfway and part of the company began to separate. Brine and Kili were at one end with Bilbo and Dwalin, while the rest were at the other half. Fili called them but they were both paralyzed. Brine grabbed Kili's arm. She felt fear grow inside her. An instant later, Fili's side collided with them. At that moment, darkness surrounded Brine. When she opened her eyes the rain was still falling on her and Fili was holding her head while calling her.

"Pip!"

"I'm fine." Brine replied quickly. With Fili's help, she got up. "Are you all okay?" She asked in anguish as she looked around. "Where's Bilbo?" She asked scared not seeing the hobbit. Brine started calling him the same as everyone else. It was Thorin who found him hanging from the mountain ledge. "Bilbo!" Brine called him scared and rushed to his aid. She was lucky that Bofur was nearby and was able to grab her when part of the ground started to come loose. Her heart was beating a thousand an hour. She was immobile, held by Bofur, who pulled her towards a grotto where the company had decided to take refuge until it was all over.

Fili and Kili sat next to Brine with a bowl full of hot broth that Bombur had prepared. Brine took it with trembling hands and began to drink it, wishing the heat and fear would go away, allowing her to rest that night. Although it resisted, that long-awaited rest was not long in coming and Brine was plunged into dense darkness from which she woke up a few hours later, although for her it seemed only seconds.

She was awakened by the noise of the dwarves moving rapidly in their sacks. Thorin started ordering them to get out of there but it did not do much good. The abrupt movement of each member of the company caused the ground to detach and the dwarves to fall into an unknown void. The last one fell on top of a platoon.

"Ouch!" Fili exclaimed. Brine felt the dwarf move beneath her, lifting her up without much trouble. "Good thing you are thin," I growl in his ear.

Brine blushed as she put her feet on a sort of platform that had stopped the fall. At that moment some inhuman shrieks were coming.

"What is that?" Brine asked as she covered her ears with her hands. Bilbo imitated her as he peeked out with her on the side of the platform. They seemed to be above an underground city, where strange shapes ran to and from across brittle bridges. The shapes were getting closer and closer to the platform.

"Goblins!" Dwalin shouted, trying to grab his axe. Yet no one had their weapons. They had stayed in the grotto with the rest of the supplies. At that point, the dwarves decided to use their own bodies as weapons and shields. They had little use for them. It didn't take the goblins long to catch them and take them all with them. All except Brine and Bilbo, who had managed to go unnoticed.

Brine looked at the hobbit, wondering what they could do to save Thorin and his company. They set out to follow at a safe distance, but a goblin turned back to them.

"Bilbo!" Brine picked up her little sword and held it up, making a signal to Bilbo who understood it at once. Bilbo picked up his sword, which shone bright blue. The two began to fight the goblin with the best possible co-ordination, but the goblin was a good fighter and ended up throwing Brine off the side of the platform. Luckily for Brine, the training with Fili had achieved more than just improved her swordplay. Brine's reflexes had sharpened and that had allowed her to grab onto a ledge. With all the strength she could, she tried to get back to the platform while shouting at Bilbo to help her. After a while, Bilbo's curly head came out.

"Pip!" Bilbo cried as he bent down to help Brine. He needed to bend down a little more to reach her hand. "Just a little longer," he muttered. At that moment, Brine saw the goblin rise up behind Bilbo.

"Behind you!" Brine shouted with a horrified look. Bilbo turned too slowly and the goblin was already on him, trying to throw him off the platform. Despite the struggle with the creature, Bilbo eventually fell off the platform but carried the goblin with him. The two of them hit Brine, who fell to a shuddering halt.


Brine opened her eyes to the cold stone on her face. Bilbo's sword was a few palms from her, its blue glow slowly fading. Her green eyes fixed on the creature that had fallen with them, and which in that instant stopped convulsing. Bilbo awoke in that instant.

"Where are we?" He asked as he got up. Brine followed him.

"I have no idea." Replied Brine, shaking off the dust. "But we'd better get out of here as soon as possible. We've got to help the company." Brine started to walk down a dark corridor as she continued to talk to Bilbo but stopped when she didn't hear him. "Bilbo?" Worried, she started to run while she looked for him.

"I'm here," Bilbo said beside her. Brine looked at him in puzzlement.

"Don't ever leave my side again." She said coldly. Bilbo smiled and walked back to her.

Brine and Bilbo walked for hours until they finally reached an underground lake where they decided to rest until they could resume their expedition. Brine was exhausted and dipped her hands into the shore to wet her face. A reflection caught her attention, but when she looked up she saw absolutely nothing.

"We should move." Brine said turning to Bilbo just as a creature jumped out at them. Brine could not silence the scream in her throat. It was a dark creature with big eyes and a mouth with sharp teeth.

"What is it, my precious? What is it?" The creature asked. Bilbo and Brine looked at each other before focusing on the creature again. Its large, glowing eyes fixed on them curiously.

"I am Bilbo Baggins."

"Baggins? What is a Baggins?"

"He's a Hobbit." Brine replied, thinking the creature was only curious about them. The creature approached and began to lick its mouth as it assessed them with its eyes. "Could you show us the way out?"

"Of course we could! We know safe paths for hobbits." It exclaimed cheerfully. Brine looked at Bilbo with relief. They had been alarmed at nothing, after all. "Shut up!"

"We have said nothing." Replied Bilbo in surprise.

"We weren't talking to you." The creature said again as he hid behind a large rock. It was a while before Brine and Bilbo wondered what was happening until the creature's head came out of the rock. Bilbo wondered what kind of game the creature was playing, which made the creature excited and proposed a game to them.

"A game?" Brine asked incredulously. The creature explained the type of game. Riddles. If they won, he would tell them where the exit was, if they lost they would be eaten. Brine lost her colour. How would they be able to get out of there? The fight began tense, but Brine realized it was something the hobbit was not bad at. The riddles were getting harder and harder and there was a moment when Brine thought all was lost. However, Bilbo surprised her again.

"On my signal, run away from here." He whispered as he pretended to think of a riddle. For the first time, Brine did not question him and nodded slightly. "What have I got in my pocket?" He asked, as he put his fingers in his little vest pocket and motioned for Brine to come out just when the creature was not looking. With a sly look, Brine began to walk out of the lake into the nearest corridor. Once inside, she started running towards where her intuition was guiding her.


It wasn't long before she found her way out of a hill. Once outside, she allowed herself to stop and get some air. She felt the taste of her own blood in her mouth and gagged. A murmur came towards her. Brine ran behind a tree and prepared to run away from whatever was coming but the weight on her shoulders disappeared when she saw Thorin's company.

"Fili!" She shouted when she saw the young dwarf appear. His worried look met Brine's and a flash of relief passed through his blue eyes. Brine didn't think twice and ran out to him ready to fall into his arms. At the last moment, she decided that it was not the right thing to do so she just hit him on the back as a greeting, but to Brine's surprise, it was Fili who embraced her.

"Pip! I thought we'd lost you." He murmured against her hair. "How did you get here?"

"It's a long story." Brine smiled as she enjoyed the warmth of Fili's arms.

"Where's Bilbo?" Fili turned away from her and looked at her worriedly. Brine did not know what to say. At that moment, Bilbo's voice rang out in the distance, coming towards them.

"I am here." Bilbo smiled as he put his hand in his pocket. Brine wondered how he had escaped from that strange creature. Would he have killed him? Bilbo linked his eyes with her.

Gandalf rushed towards them as he led the rest of the company.

"We are not safe yet!" The wizard cried. In the distance, there was the howling of dire wolves.

"Orcs?" Brine asked worriedly as they ran in the direction Gandalf was pointing. They came to a dead end where the road ended in a cliff. "What shall we do?" Brine began to panic. They couldn't turn back and they couldn't go on either.

"To the trees!" shouted Thorin as he climbed up to the high branches of one. All the members of the company began to imitate him. Brine helped Bilbo up. Fili was a few branches above and participated in the help as well. It was Brine's turn but the dwarf was barely strong enough.

"Pip!" It was Fili's voice. He had dropped a couple of branches, just enough to hang on to one and grab Brine. The dwarf's strength kept surprising Brine, though she was uncomfortable with the fact that his hands were on her waist. He was almost at the top of a branch when something forced her down, knocking them both to the ground. Fili howled in pain. He had dislocated his shoulder. Brine felt her ankle burn but the pressure was still on her leg. A dire wolf had hooked her and was dragging her into a clearing where a large orc was waiting. Fili cried her name and tried to run to her but it was useless as a pair of orcs blocked him.

"I told you to bring the boy." The orc cried out to the dire wolf as he kicked it. He walked disinterestedly to Brine and grabbed her by the hair as he placed her in Thorin's sight. Brine was unable to understand what the orc was saying. Her greatest concern was whether Thorin or any one of the company would risk saving her. Tears began to fall down her cheeks as a tremor began to grow inside her. She watched as Thorin descended from his branch and walked toward them with his sword raised. The next thing the orc did was to throw Brine, causing her to hit her head on one of the trees. Everything went black for Brine.