Double posting today, this is the first one. I hope you all like it. Sorry about it taking so long to get it out to you. If you're looking for basic updates on when I'm going to post, my tumbler is thegoddessaille. This is it, the chapter everyone's been waiting for. I do hope you like it.

Chapter Twenty

She laid at the back of the cave they'd found, shaking now that the adrenaline had worn off. Between the giants and near fall to her death, she had to admit she was scared. More scared than she'd been with the trolls, more frightened then when the wargs had been nipping at their very heals, because she'd never been that close to death before. There was something about being suspended over the open air, only hanging on by the tips of her fingers that just made everything, worse. Then Thorin, maybe he was right. Maybe she shouldn't here. Maybe she was lost, and had been since she left Bag End.

Perhaps she should just leave, go back to Rivendell, request an escort back to the Shire. It would be safer for them all really. Then the leader of the company wouldn't have needed to risk his life to save hers. She wouldn't be struggling to tell a wonderful person the truth about who she was.

Yet, she'd made it this far. She'd saved their lives. And damn it all, she wasn't letting the idiot chase her away from the only family she had left. Raising her head a bit, she looked around to check to see if anyone was watching her. When she could see that no one was, she quickly rolled up her blanket and packed up the few pieces of gear she'd taken out earlier. Shouldering her bow, she started to tiptoe over her dwarves, heading over to where Bofur was sitting for his watch.

Barely a whisper, but it sounded like thunder in her ears, "Where do you think you're going?" Well, at least he really took his watch duties to heart. She'd almost expected him to be asleep after the troubles they'd had that day.

"Only this far," taking the seat next to him and settling in, "We need to talk Bofur." Neither noticed as a few bodies turned to watch them as green-brown eyes met brown.

"What is it lass?" She fiddled with the strap of her bag before putting it between their feet, not expecting to move much for the rest of the night. "Lass?"

Taking a deep breath, she looked down at the ground before looking back at him, "I've been struggling with how to tell you this Bofur. I probably should have right at the beginning but it just didn't seem like the right time and with everything that's happened. I need you to know." Yes, so she was stalling, it wasn't exactly the easiest thing to admit.

He gave her a confused look, as if trying to figure her out, "What do you need me to know lass? It can't be that bad." Giving her his trademark grin, trying to make her smile back at him.

Sighing, she clasped her hands together and tried to figure out what to say, "it really depends on how you take it, honestly. I mean Bifur already figured it out. Still not entirely sure how he did honestly..." trailing off and looking over the sleeping dwarrow only a few feet from them.

"My cousin figured it out?" Giving her a broad grin, "he's always been the smart one in the family. Don't let that axe distract you from it."

Iris gave a small snort of laughter and shook her head at him, "He's brilliant, and has been trying to get me to talk to you since the third day in Rivendell, but you disappeared, making it a little difficult to do so." She glanced one more time over the sleeping company and then fixed her eyes on Bofur, steeling herself for a backlash, "I came on this journey with false pretenses. I fully intend to hold up my end of the contract that I signed, but that is not the reason I came." The air suddenly felt a whole lot thicker, "I came," why was this so hard to get out, "I came to get to know my father." She didn't want to break his gaze, hoping to catch his reaction.

Bofur reached out, shock on his face, "What do you mean lass?" The realization starting to appear on his face, "Belladonna," she wasn't sure what his look meant, but she hoped it was a good thing.

She hesitated speaking for a moment to let the news sink in, "Was my mother," she gave him a small smile, the low light catching her cheeks, bringing her quickly growing beard into his focus again, "I wish I could tell you. About how much she missed you. About how long she waited for you to come and get her." She choked up a bit, " About how much I really needed to know you. No daughter should ever be away from her father." She then realized what she said, her nerves getting to her and their leaders unkind words spurring the doubt, "By the Valar, I'm sorry, I didn't..." Tugging on her hood to hid her face from view. No one had asked after they'd settled in and she hoped they'd just thought it was a trick of the poor light.

He reached out quickly and grabbed her hand with one of his own, the other reaching in and cupping her cheek, "By Mahal, a daughter." He lifted her chin, making her look at him again, "And a mighty fine one too."

There was a flash of light from her waist, "What's that?" She followed his line of site and looked down at her glowing sword, quickly pulling it halfway out of the sheath, bathing the room in a soft blue glow.

Immediately, from nearby, Thorin instantly started to get up, yelling for everyone to wake up. Which meant he'd been awake for their conversation.

Before anyone could react, still fighting off the edges of sleep, the floor collapsed underneath them. Sending them tumbling down in to the darkness below. When they finally landed, after several crashes into walls, she found herself on the far edge of the pile, in the center of a large wooden cage.

She instantly found herself being pushed back by the others, as if they were protecting her from the oncoming hoard of goblins. She crouched down, using what little Hobbit magic that had been handed down to her to hide. Doing everything she could to blend into the ground below, to make herself invisible to their attackers. Thankfully it worked, but, her dwarrow also couldn't see her. Except for Nori, he seemed to catch her eye as he got dragged away, and made a look as if to tell her to get away.

Like hell she was going to do that. There was too much at stake to let her dwarrow go. Leaving them when they were safe and resting was one thing, leaving them in danger, well, she was a Took after all

She quickly adjusted her bag on her back, and drew out her daggers, knowing her sword was more likely to bring the goblins on her and slowly started to follow the goblins. It didn't work though, one goblin jumped out in front of her, and rushes her. What little training she'd been getting from Dwalin, kept her from being over powered immediately, but she wasn't used to the terrain that they were fighting on. There was something wrong with how the goblins lived. Nothing was level, everything seemed to be pieced together and somehow, she got to close to the edge. She grabbed the goblin in front of her and they both went over together, and until her head hit the wall and she blacked out, they fought as they fell.

Next Chapter: Bofur's thoughts on the matter