Thank you very much to the reviewers who left comments on the first chapter! You're very much the reason that this second one is up so fast and I'm glad that you're enjoying the story so far!


They set out early the next morning, without Bilbo. Since her wager with Fili, many of the others had joined in, and those that had bet against him were starting to get more smug with every mile they put between themselves and Bilbo's home.

Arinna was riding near the end of the company, only Fili and Kili behind her, who were talking among themselves. The druid was currently lost in thought, thinking back to the moment last night when she had handed her signed contract back to Balin. She wondered whether she had made the right decision, following them toward the East, or if she should rather have taken Lithen and turned around, riding straight back to the Hills of Evendim. Her pony snorted beneath her, almost as though he had heard her thoughts and agreed. Arinna shook her head to clear her mind, and only then did she realize that Fili was talking to her.

„How long before it's time to pay up?" He asked her with a cheeky smile, having pulled up to ride next to her. „It's almost midday and I don't see the Halfling anywhere."

„You know, I did trust your judgment," Kili chimed up from behind. „But I would really hate to lose to my brother. He's always so smug about it."

Arinna smiled and threw a glance back toward him over her shoulder. „Don't worry, Kili. There's still more than enough time for your brother to eat his words," she said and looked back over at Fili, who was shaking his head but with a smile still playing on his lips. His first impression of the druid had been that she was the reserved, quiet type, an assumption that was quickly turning out to be incorrect.

They rode for another half hour or so and that was when they heard it. A voice calling from behind them to wait. Thorin held up his hand at the front of the company, causing them to halt in their tracks. As the voice grew closer and the dwarves looked over their shoulders curiously, Arinna's gaze was trained on the blond dwarf on the pony next to her. When Bilbo appeared beneath the trees, running toward them with his contract fluttering in his hand, Fili returned her gaze and inclined his head slightly at her smug expression.

„I think now is the perfect time to pay up," the druid smiled and held out her hand. Fili handed her a small purse of coins with a slight grimace.

„I've signed it!" Bilbo called as he ran past them to the head of the group. He handed over the contract to Balin, who inspected it for a moment before he exclaimed that everything was in order.

„Welcome, Master Baggins," he said, smiling at the hobbit. „To the company of Thorin Oakenshield."

„Give him a pony!" Called Thorin, before he motioned for them all to move on. Bilbo stood shaking his head, as the company moved past him, muttering something about having walked all the way to Frogmorton once and that he was sure he could keep up well enough on foot. Arinna merely watched as Fili and Kili rode past her, sidling up to the hobbit on either side and lifting him up by his shoulders and onto one of the two unmanned ponies.

The druid had never seen anyone look quite so uncomfortable on a pony. As they rode, Bilbo kept adjusting his seat and seemed to flinch every time his pony made so much as a sound or shook its mane. After a while, he began to sneeze quite loudly.

„Everything alright, Mr. Baggins?" Arinna called to him from where she was riding behind him and Gandalf. The hobbit shot a small glance over his shoulder.

„Oh yes," he answered. „Actually, please, call me Bilbo. And really, it's just all this horse hair. I think I'm having a reaction."

Arinna nodded as he fumbled for something in his pockets for a moment, before he called out, his voice carrying some alarm. „Stop! Stop!" The hobbit cried, causing the whole company to halt, while they turned to look at him. „We must turn around. I forgot my handkerchief!"

It was Bofur who answered him, tearing a piece of his dirtied brown tunic off and tossing it to Bilbo. „Here, use this!"

While the hobbit looked at the piece of fabric in barely concealed disgust, Thorin called for them to march on and so they did, Gandalf sending the Halfling an amused look from the side. „You will have to do without a lot more than just your handkerchief on this journey, Bilbo. Home is behind you now, the world is ahead."

Though Bilbo seemed a little defeated at that, he merely nodded and put the piece of Bofur's tunic into his pocket. After all, you never knew when it might come in handy.

And so they rode on, crossing through the forest and across the fields. Bilbo's sneezing lessened after a few hours, and indeed, a few days later, he seemed to have gotten used to the horse hair entirely.

„We camp here for the night," called Thorin as they approached a cliff side that night. He dismounted his pony swiftly, calling out orders for the rest of the company. „Dori, Nori, get a fire going, so Bombur can start supper. Bofur and Bifur take care of the ponies. Fili, Kili, you will take the first watch. Dwalin and I will take the second."

Arinna was patting Lithen's neck when Bofur approached her, and she handed over his reins to him with a small smile.

„I know, lass," the dwarf spoke before she could utter a word. „No need to tie him with the others. You know, when you told me this on the first night, I did not believe that he would just stay idly with the rest of them. You've trained him very well."

„I did not train him particularly, Bofur," the druid replied, running her hand down Lithen's neck another time before she stepped aside. „He is simply a most loyal friend."

Bofur just shook his head in slight disbelief as he led the pony away to where the others were, though another voice chimed up when Arinna sat down near the fire that had been lit by now.

„I have heard that druids are good with animals," said Balin to her right, while another dwarf, Dwalin, sat down to her left. „Tell me, is it a magic bond you share with your steed?"

Kili's eyes shot up curiously at the mention of magic and he listened to their conversation from where he was sat opposite them.

Arinna laughed quietly and shook her head. „No, Master Balin. I have merely had him ever since he was a foal. He was a gift from my father and has been my companion for many years. There is nothing magical about it."

Balin just smiled and nodded his understanding. It wasn't long then until supper was served and soon after, the company slowly dispersed a little around the clearing and laid out their sleeping mats, while Fili and Kili kept the fire going for the watch. Only a few others were still awake as well, among them Gandalf, Balin, Arinna and Bilbo, who was currently sneaking off to feed an apple to his pony, Myrtle. Gandalf was smoking his pipe, as was Balin, and Arinna was keeping her hands busy by bundling some herbs she had gathered along the way.

It was then that a sharp shriek echoed over the fields of grass down below - piercing and inhuman. The companions looked up sharply, Arinna's hand reflexively flying to the hilt of her sword.

„What was that?" Bilbo asked, quickly walking backwards toward the company, while his gaze was trained on the lands below.

„Orcs," came the answer from Kili only a few seconds later and he exchanged a small look with his brother as Bilbo turned toward them hastily, repeating his words worriedly.

„Throat-cutters," agreed Fili, seeing that his little brother was trying to play a trick on the poor hobbit. „There'll be dozens of them out there. The lowlands are crawling with them."

„They strike in the wee small hours, when everyone is asleep," continued Kili. „Quick and quiet, no screams. Just lots of blood."

Arinna flinched slightly at the dwarf's words, though she didn't think anyone noticed, while Bilbo looked around fearfully. And then Kili laughed quietly, looking at his brother who grinned, as well. Arinna's eyes darkened at the sight and Bilbo's face fell, realizing that he had been mocked.

„You think that is funny?"

Now Kili and Fili both flinched at the unexpected voice of their uncle, who had woken up during their antics. His voice was dark and disapproving, causing them both to incline their heads in shame. „You think a night-raid by orcs is a joke?"

„We didn't mean anything by it," said Kili quietly but was swiftly interrupted.

„No, you didn't," Thorin growled, stomping away towards the edge of the cliff. „You know nothing of the world."

Balin then spoke up quietly, his eyes first trained on the two young dwarves before his gaze fell on Arinna, whose hand was still clenched around the hilt of her sword. „Don't mind him laddies, Thorin has more cause than most to hate the orcs… Lass, are you alright?"

Arinna was pulled out of her thoughts by the old dwarf's voice, her eyes flicking to him and noticing the concerned look on his bearded face. Then the druid looked down at her own hand, unwrapping it quickly from her sword. She kept her eyes on the ground for a moment before she looked back up, meeting first Balin's gaze and then those of the others around her.

„Yes, Balin," she said softly. „I was just… lost in thought. I believe everyone who has ever come across an orc would hate them. What is Thorin's cause?"

Though Balin suspected that the druid was merely asking the question to distract from herself, he sighed deeply and began his story anyway. „After the dragon had taken Erebor, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient city of Moria. But our enemy got there first…"

Arinna listened with horror and awe as Balin retold the battle for Moria, his words echoing within her heart as she saw the events take place before her inner eye. Azog the Defiler beheading Thorin's grandfather, his father going missing, and Thorin - the young dwarf prince that had seen so much peril already - standing alone against the Pale Orc, wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield and cutting off Azog's left arm.

„And I thought to myself then, there is one I could follow," Balin ended on a solemn note. „There is one I could call king."

The camp was silent for a few long moments, except for Bombur's snoring. Arinna shook her head, gathering her thoughts as she looked at Balin.

„And the Pale Orc?" She asked quietly. „What became of him?"

„He slunk back into the hole whence he came," answered Thorin coldly as he walked back toward his place by the fire. „That filth died of his wounds long ago."

Arinna merely inclined her head as he walked past her, though she shortly caught Gandalf's eye from across the camp. The wizard's blue eyes were clouded with an unreadable expression that caused the hairs on the small of her neck to stand.


A few days later they were riding through another forest, capes drawn deep over their heads and faces and huddling over on their saddles as it was raining down hard upon them. Arinna didn't particularly mind the rain, even though it had been going on for hours now, and neither it seemed did Bilbo. In fact, the hobbit did not even have a proper cloak to protect himself from the rain. The dwarves, on the other hand, did not seem to be very keen on this kind of weather.

„Mister Gandalf!" Called Dori to where the wizard was riding at the front of the company with Thorin. „Can't you do something about this deluge?"

„It is raining, Master Dori," replied Gandalf matter-of-factly. „And it will continue to rain until the rain is done. If you wish to control the weather, you should find yourself another wizard!"

Arinna chuckled quietly at the grey wizard's retort, though she did not listen very attentively after that when Bilbo asked if there were other wizards apart from Gandalf, for she already knew the answer to that.

„Can you change the weather?" Asked someone from beside her then and the druid looked up to see the two dwarf brothers, Fili and Kili, riding either side of her. It was Kili who had asked her the question, his eyes shining with curiosity.

„No," she answered simply.

„But you have magic?" Kili pressed on, his eyebrows drawing together as he tried to read her face. Arinna just looked calmly at him, slightly cocking one eyebrow. She found Kili's curiosity quite amusing. „They say druids are magic folk. Blessed with long life and strange gifts."

„None to speak of," she finally said.

„That is a yes, then," said now Fili from the other side and the druid glanced over at him, his blue eyes studying her curiously. Arinna couldn't help but smile slightly at the brothers' inquisitiveness. Finally, she inclined her head in what almost looked like defeat.

„I have some magic, if you would call it that," she explained, her voice drifting softly through the noise of the rain. „Really it is nothing more than a certain affinity with nature-bound things, such as animals and sometimes the elements. It is not great magic like Gandalf possesses. My skills pale in comparison to those of a true wizard."

The two dwarves let that statement settle for a few moments and rode beside her in silence. Fili's face was set in a small frown, as he was thinking about her words, wondering what exactly it was that she could do and whether she would be willing to show them someday. She hadn't seemed very keen on telling them about it in the first place, so he didn't want to press the matter further. His little brother had no such qualms.

„So, what can you do? Could you conjure up a snow storm?" He asked.

Arinna shook her head, though she seemed quietly amused. „No, Kili."

„Could you send fire out of your staff?"

„I do not have a staff, Kili," chuckled the druid. Kili nodded quickly, then looked around, trying to come up with another question. Fili just shook his head at his brother's antics, though he was still listening with interest.

„Could you make a flock of birds attack Dwalin?"

Fili looked over at the druid woman when she hesitated for a moment, his eyebrows rising as he realized that the answer was yes. She could do that.

„Why would she want to do that?" He commented quickly, drawing Kili's attention away from the woman. The brunet dwarf just shrugged his shoulders, grinning slightly.

„It's a hypothetical scenario, of course," he replied. „Though he did step on me when he got up for his watch last night. Which, in fact, I have not yet had the time to yell at him for. If you will excuse me."

And with that, he gave his pony a nudge and rode off to the head of the company, calling out to Dwalin from afar. Fili chuckled and shook his head again.

„He's very lively, your brother," Arinna stated then and Fili looked over at her once more, noticing that there was nothing but approval in her voice. He nodded and she gave him a friendly smile.

„Aye," he said with a smile of his own, pulling his hood a little further over his face as the rain continued. „He's always been the whirlwind of our family. Thorin says he's like our mother that way. Apparently, she used to get into all sorts of trouble when she was our age, much like he does."

„And you take more after your father?"

Fili's smile faded slightly at her question and he could feel the familiar lump in his throat at the mention of his father. He cleared his throat, feeling her gaze rest on him questioningly.

„So they say," he finally answered and Arinna immediately noticed the change in his tone. Though he tried to keep his voice light, there was an unmissable feeling of grief weighing it down. She immediately regretted asking the question. „My father died when I was little. Kili had only just been born, and I was about five years old. There had been some trouble in one of the mines and he went down to check. The tunnel collapsed and he and his party never returned."

Arinna looked at the young dwarf with empathy, reaching across and squeezing his forearm with her hand. The gesture made him look up at her in surprise and he gave her a small but kind smile. „I am sorry," she said as she retrieved her hand and grabbed Lithen's reins again. „No pain compares to losing someone you love. I know it all too well, myself. I'm sorry I brought it up, Fili."

„It's fine, really," he answered. There was a sad look in her green eyes, making them appear darker in the pale light that fell through the grey clouds. Of course, Fili would have liked to know the meaning behind her statement, though he did not dare ask. Such things, he knew, could not be talked about with just anyone at any moment. So he just shook his head at her, mustering up another small smile to give her. „It has been a very long time since, and you didn't know."

Arinna was grateful that he did not ask her about her own loss and gave him a nod as they simply rode on in a companionable silence until the rain finally let up.