Author's Note: Thank you for reading! ***I do not own any of Peter Jackson's or JRR Tolkien's works, only my OC's***

Chapter 4 - First Impressions

Everyone rushes to the door, but I lean back agains the wall to take a moment to breathe deeply. These dwarves are no different from anyone new I'd meet back at home. Whatever first impressions they have don't matter, you need to be honest to yourself about your own morals, I coach myself. I step out of the shadows and follow behind the dwarves, my soft footsteps going unnoticed in the commotion. I tighten the ribbon at the end of my braid, straightening my dress and pants nervously. Thorin isn't going to trust you anyway, but you need to stand for what you believe in. I get the feeling that staying honest will impress them all the most. I exhale, don a brave face, and stand at the back of the crowd to listen to the conversation. I'm careful not to get too close to

The door creaks open loudly to reveal a very ominous-looking dwarf. I can't make out much of him in the night besides dark hair and beard as well as a dark cloak. His stance is confident, but also bowed, As if he holds the weight of the world- the weight of his race, on his shoulders… His nose is straight, compared to the other dwarves. Thorin turns his profile to acknowledge those inside.

However, the only person he seems to see is- "Gandalf." His voice is extremely deep and slow. I sniff to myself, He doesn't even take note of any of his companions, he didn't even look at them! I check the expressions of everyone. They all stand in small groups, huddled in doorways or crowding the hall. I notice that only Ori seems a little discouraged by Thorin's lack of acknowledgement, Everyone else may be used to it.

Thorin strides inside with heavy boots, Almost like he owns Bilbo's home!

"I thought you said this would be easy to find. I lost my way twice." Ori and Dori incline their heads to Thorin; Dwalin simply meets his gaze steadily, but I see a glimmer of respect shine in them.

Under the chandelier's light, Thorin's hair is revealed to be almost silvery-black. His beard is well trimmed and braids decorate various sections. He begins to unclasp his cloak, "Wouldn't have found it at all had it not been for that mark on the door."

Bilbo struggles to find his way past Dori, Dwalin, and Ori standing in the kitchen's doorway as Thorin warps up his cloak (revealing yet another kind of fur-vest thing), "Mark? There's no mark on that door, it was painted a week ago!" Bilbo pushes his way into the hallway to inspect his door.

Meanwhile, Thorin turns and smiles at Kili. I grin lopsidedly, He's not nearly as cold-hearted as he'd like to be!

Gandalf quickly closes the door and blocks Bilbo's way, "There is a mark, I put it there myself." I wince at the awkward pause that follows this revelation, but Gandalf moves the conversation along. He gestures towards Thorin, "Bilbo Baggins, allow me to introduce the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield."

I prickle as Thorin towers over Bilbo and invades his space, clearly in an unnecessary attempt to intimidate him. I notice Kili turn to look at Bombur, a wary expression on his face. "So-" I cross my arms when I hear the first word he says to the hobbit drip with a kind of sarcastic disbelief, "this is the hobbit." Thorin circles Bilbo, who stares at the floor like a frightened rabbit. "Tell me Mr Baggins, have you done much fighting?"

Ever the gentleman, Bilbo responds, "Pardon me?"

Thorin plows relentlessly on, "Axe or sword? What's your weapon of choice?" He continues to circle the poor, confused hobbit. The rest of the dwarves grin smugly, clearly in on the joke. I resist the urge to elbow those closest to me.

A warm sense of pride radiates through me as Bilbo attempts to hold his own and inject a bit of humor into the conversation, "Well, I have some skill at Conkers, if you must know," Thorin stops in front of him, crossing his arms. "but I fail to see why that's relevant." Bilbo's confidence fades with the volume of his voice.

Thorin nods, "Thought as much." The dwarf king turns his head slightly to address the rest of the company, "He looks more like a grocer than a burglar."

When the dwarves laugh, I tense up. However, it's when I see Gandalf smile and shake his head that I finally snap, Enough is enough!

My voice rings out clear and strong, both of which I'm surprised at as well as proud for not hearing even a slight tremor, "Oh yeah? And what kind of answer could you have given when you hadn't seen hide nor hair of combat, Thorin Oakenshield?"

You know, pure silence is a funny thing. It actually rings in the air, like it's almost too pure for it's own good. This silent ringing reaches my ears now. All of the dwarves whip their heads around to look at me, but I notice them squint since I'm still in a quite shadowy portion of the hall (some of the candles had gone out when the door was opened).

"And who dares speak to me this way?" The dwarves part like the Red Sea, leaving nothing in between myself and the dwarf king. Inhaling deeply through my nose, I stride forward as confidently as I can through the two lines and into the light of the chandelier, right in front of Thorin himself. I notice Bilbo looking quite fretful at my rebellion, but I also see relief and gratitude in his eyes. Gandalf only seems to be pensive, watching out first ever interaction. I avoid looking at any of the dwarves, refusing to get distracted.

I take on the stance of a peacemaking calm, gently laying my braid behind me and standing up straight yet relaxed. I tilt my chin up to meet Thorin's gaze, smiling as I say, "I did. If you've got a problem with anyone, at least have an intelligent reason as to why." A sharp intake of breath resonates in the entrance hall, but I refuse to acknowledge it.

Not waiting for a response, I continue, "Now, I'm pretty sure you've been traveling a ways and everyone else has eaten, but I'm sure something can be found." I see Thorin's jaw tense, but I walk definitively around him toward the kitchen. I smile at the three dwarves crowding the doorway. Ori avoids my eyes shyly, a pink hue coming to his cheeks, "Excuse me!" The dwarves make some room for me, but stare in stunned silence along with the rest of the company.

Ignoring their eyes, I walk into the disheveled kitchen. Behind me I hear Thorin speak in a tone that duplicates a steadily rising storm, "Now wait just a minute-"

Fully prepared to have to argue with Thorin, I'm surprised when I hear the swishing of robes and Gandalf's incredibly stern voice, "That's quite enough, Thorin."

Unwilling to let the matter drop, Thorin address Gandalf harshly, "Who in Middle Earth was that?!"

Gandalf refuses to rise to Thorin's anger, his voice reflecting that he's quite amused, "All in due time!" The sound of shuffling feet is heard as everyone retreats to the dining room.

Meanwhile, I'm regaining my breath at the window. I freaking survived, and I basically called Thorin 'stupid'! I think wildly. I've got to remember how I pulled that off!

A voice speaks from my elbow, "Nadia?" I jump almost a foot in the air, but calm when I see that it's only Bilbo. The shaken hobbit seems to have retained some of his color and I smile at him. I place a hand over my heart in an attempt to restore it to a normal rhythm as Bilbo continues talking, "I'm so sorry that I didn't talk to you sooner, I was a bit preoccupied-"

I interrupt the hobbit by stepping forward to give him a hug. He stiffens beneath my grip, but I don't let it deter me. I speak quietly, knowing his large ears will catch my words, "It's alright Bilbo, it's alright!" I pull away and smile at the now very red little hobbit, "You aren't alone, I'll help you clean up this mess when it's all over!" Bilbo looks impulsively at the counter, the window, my shoulder, all very quickly in his embarrassment.

While Bilbo collects himself, I turn to scrounge up some food for Thorin. I might have vaguely insulted him, but I know he isn't a truly terrible person. He's got to be stressed and pretty frustrated with current events, so I may as well play as nice as possible. I turn back and hand Bilbo a bowl of soup (which I had procured from a large pot which Bombur must have made) and a tankard, "Here, give this to him!" I smile at Bilbo encouragingly, I can't fight all of your battles, friend…

Bilbo fidgets with his shirt collar, and mumbles, "Thank you, for- er- well… What you did, it was-" He stalls, seemingly unable to find the words.

I press the bowl and tankard into his hands, "It was no problem Bilbo, they've been quite rude tonight, I'll admit! Now I think that talk in there has something to do with why they're here." Taking the hint, Bilbo gives me an exhausted kind of smile before taking a deep breath and walking out into the dining room.

It had been no secret to me that I had been starving for the past couple of hours, having eaten nothing the entire day. I find an apple and contentedly eat munch on it through the argument on the number of dragons that have been slain by the Grey Wizard, until I hear Gandalf's incredibly powerful voice echo throughout the house. I fumble the apple core, raising my hands to cover my ears until it passes. Knowing that things are about to get important, I hurry into the dining room and quietly take up residence in the dark doorway.

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Kili is the only one who has taken note of my entrance. Being one of the first to shake himself from the fear instilled by Gandalf, he says nothing, simply staring at me with still wide eyes. Uncertain of what to make of this and trying not to let Kili know I've noticed, I instead focus on Gandalf's words.

Gandalf has just retracted into himself after his display of power, but speaking strongly, "Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet. In fact, they can pass unseen by most if they choose. And while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of dwarf, the scent of hobbit is all but unknown to him, which gives us a distinct advantage." Gandalf's voice has become remarkably lighter, but Bilbo's stance has become far more strained as the situation begins to spiral out of his control.

Gandalf addresses Thorin in particular now, who looks down at the table in a gruff kind of acceptance, "You asked me to find the fourteenth member of this company, and I have chosen Mr. Baggins." Thorin blinks rapidly and looks down at the table, clearly beginning to regret asking Gandalf's assistance in procuring another member, "There's a lot more to him than appearances suggest, and he's got a great deal more to offer than any of you know-" Gandalf's voice lowers further in an almost fatherly kind of way. He looks at Bilbo and his next words seem to touch the hobbit's heart since they certainly touch mine, "including himself."

Bilbo's body language softens a bit in surprise. I meet his gaze and smile encouragingly from behind Gandalf's back, nodding slightly.

After a moment of silence, Gandalf's ends his speech firmly, "You must trust me on this."

Thorin struggles with Gandalf's words and I roll my eyes in aggravation at his pigheadedness. Finally, he responds gruffly, "Very well. We will do it your way."

Immediately Bilbo begins to stutter his denials, but it's ignored. Thorin asks Balin to give him the contract and the much older dwarf starts into his explanation. A few dwarves laugh in excitement, but I don't turn to see which ones. Balin stands with a folded sheet of thick white paper, "It's just the usual summary of out-of-pocket expenses, time required, remuneration, funeral arrangements, so forth…"

Oh boy, here we go… I pull my braid over my shoulder and fiddle with the base in a nervous twitch.

Thorin accepts the paper form Balin before thrusting it over his shoulder into Bilbo's chest. Bilbo doesn't seem to notice Thorin's rudeness, being far more preoccupied with "Funeral arrangements?!"

I sigh at my friend's distress, resting against a wall and crossing my right foot over my left, Here we go… I don't even bother listening in to Thorin and Gandalf's whispered conversation, knowing that it's all just dramatics.

Bilbo allows the contract to unravel, releasing a very stressed "Oh…". He mutters through most of the contract, sometimes allowing a micro expression to cross his face or raise his eyebrows, "Terms: Cash on delivery, up to but not exceeding one fourteenth of total profit, if any. Seems fair." Gandalf turns away from his conversation with Thorin to smile comfortingly at the rest of the dwarves, assuring them that everything's going according to plan. "Eh, Present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as a consequence thereof including but not limited to la-ce-ra-tions" Bilbo sounds out the last word in disbelief.

Gandalf seems to have a bit of foresight as to what will occur. At the last word, he turns his head attentively towards the brooding halfling. I, myself, step forward gingerly; all of the dwarves (except for Thorin, Bofur, Dwalin, and Bifur who were either too far up the table or facing away from me) finally notice my presence and turn their heads to look at me, but I ignore them.

My deviant thoughts are interrupted as Bilbo reads on, "... evisceration," Bilbo reaches a word which causes him to lower the contract, lean forward, and enunciate the word to the dwarves, "Incineration?"

Bofur takes it upon himself to answer, pulling his pipe away from his lips, "Oh, aye, he'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye." The tips of the ear flaps on his ridiculous hat continue wiggling after his head's gone still. I would have laughed at this, but Bilbo begins to get a bit pale. He mutters something inaudibly, nodding a bit to himself.

Balin's face has an expression of acceptance when he asks "You alright, laddie?"

Bilbo leans forward and puts his hands on his knees. He inhales a sharp wheeze which can't be healthy, "Uh, yeah… Feel a bit faint." I reach a hand out hesitantly, though I'm still a distance away.

He manages to straighten, but Bofur speaks up again, "Think furnace with wings!" Bilbo puts a hand on his chest close to his throat, almost in an attempt to coax oxygen back into his system.

"Bofur!" I reprimand, "He doesn't need a description of a dragon! It's the knowledge of what it is that's making him ill!" The entire company clearly hears me, those with their backs turned jump at my voice. Thorin glances in my direction, taking note of my firm expression as I continue to bore holes into Bofur's hat.

Unfortunately Bofur doesn't seem to have heard me, "Flash of light, searing pain, then Poof! you're nothing more than a pile of ash."

It's too late now! Knowing what will come next, I leap quickly into the hall. Bilbo doesn't even seem to notice that I'm in front of him, he simply gets paler and paler.

"Nope." I bend my knees and catch Bilbo under his arms. Unfortunately I had forgotten that I'm a bit smaller in this world and his weight is too much for me. I hiss loudly as my knees slam into the floor, but I refuse to let my friend fall. I slowly lower him to the floor before wheeling on the company.

My first victim is the instigator. I huff angrily, fists resting upon my popped hips, "Well, Bofur, that was quite helpful. At what point did you think that your explanation was assisting him? Was it when he stopped to tell you what a marvelous help you were being? Or was it when he lost all of the coloring in his face?" Bofur slowly sits back down sheepishly, not meeting my eyes.

I look around at each member of the company, eyes as wide as plates stare back at this strange girl confronting them all. Finally, Fili seems to put a few pieces together, "Wait, how did you know Bofur's name?"

I think on a dime, glad that I had thought of this slip up when I was hiding earlier that evening. I cross my arms in front of my chest (which probably wasn't the best decision since it's a classic defensive position), my eyes widen in feigned innocence, "I overheard you all shouting and hollering each others' names so I think I know you all better than you know each other by now. I came out in the hall to witness the fine mess you've made in a stranger's home."

Before I can get riled up any further, I close my eyes and exhale. "Look," I glance behind me to check on Bilbo before walking into the shadows of the dining room. I come to a stop to the right of Thorin so I can address everyone. I allow my line of vision to slide easily over all of their faces, refusing to stop on any one in particular, "You all look like some pretty serious travelers and the roads can't be easy." Some of the dwarves mouths (mostly the younger of the group) pop open in astonishment at my sudden change in tone and understanding words. "But you can't just come parading around someone's home! It's what they feel is safe and you've all invaded that privacy without so much as a truly polite word!" I'm silent for a moment before I recall something.

I find Ori in the group and give him a smile, "Except for you, Ori, I know that Bilbo appreciated that you asked to clean up your plate!" Ori's face goes to bright scarlet in a matter of seconds, but he looks pleased nonetheless.

After my last words, you could hear a pin drop. Now finished with my piece, I shrug and turn, ready to tend to Bilbo. I have just lifted a foot slightly off the floor to walk away when Kili whispers, "Who are you?" Something inside of me jumps a little at the question.

I have no explanation for what happens next. I turn automatically to address the speaker and I lock eyes with him. Something clicks. Kili's voice didn't hold a note of malice, anger, or disgust. It was almost awed, like he couldn't quite believe in my existence. Though his eyes are a dark color, I see them light up as he continues to give me undivided attention.

I'm still a bit starstruck when Gandalf clears his throat and answers for me, "Thorin," The company turns its attention to their leader who looks just as astonished as the rest of them. "You asked me to find a 14th member of the company, but I have found yet another who will prove to be incredibly useful and necessary. Nadia," Gandalf gestures his hand towards me, his sleeve just missing a candle's flame, "is a fire mage."

My mouth opens slightly and a whoosh of air escapes. The first response I hear is a dark chuckle. Looking down at the dwarf king's profile in the harsh light, I see his shoulders working to the rhythm of his laughter. The dwarves automatically cringe away as they all see the thundercloud forming in my features.

Thorin finally manages to speak, "A fire mage? Those are the stuff of legends, nothing but fairytales! There are no folk who can truly master the element of fire," Thorin rises to his feet and turns to face me. He still has a grin on his face and a sneer on his lips, much like he did when he walked into Bag End, "let alone this girl who seems to have lost half of her manners and clothes!"

All of the stress and exhaustion from the prior night and that day rises in my chest. I speak almost in a hiss, stepping into Thorin's space this time. Not used to people getting this close without his permission, Thorin stops laughing, "First off, let's address the most ridiculous point of your argument." I grasp Thorin's hand in mine before shaking it firmly.

I stare into Thorin's eyes as I continue to shake his giant calloused hand, "Hello, I'm Nadia and yes I have arms. Look you have them too, how strange!" I make a mockingly surprised face, "Imagine that! Now can we get past that stupidity?" Without awaiting an answer, I nod and release his hand, "Good!" Thorin's eyes are wide in confusion at the crazy tiny girl in front of him. A few of the older dwarves (Balin and Oin mainly) shift uncomfortably at my shameless attitude.

But I'm not done, Oh no, it's far too late for me to stop now! I place my fists on the dark green fabric covering my hips again, "Let's review the facts, shall we?" I narrow my eyes, leaning towards the dwarf king and lower my voice to a whisper, "You may be called 'King Under the Mountain'" Thorin's face goes dark with anger, a storm brewing on the horizon.

But it isn't just his expression. All of the candles are acting strangely, burning very low. I don't care, continuing on my rant, "but you don't have that mountain, do you? You were never 'King', only 'heir'. Your kingdom was lost to all of you" I throw out an arm to gesture to the company, narrowly missing Bofur's hat in the process, "But the point is that you don't have it. You are asking people for help, turning to anyone! So what's the problem if a hobbit and a girl offer help? You've made it clear that we don't matter to you so what do you have to lose?"

My mouth curls into a snarl as I step back a bit into the hall away from them all. The candles are almost out at this point, but it doesn't matter. "I don't appreciate you harassing my friend and treating everyone like dirt." I'm already over being tossed from place to place for some vague destiny, I won't be treated like this! I can almost feel the air crackling as I whisper, "If you want me to respect you," The candles douse to a cinder, "then you will respect ME!"

At the last word, the candles leap with a vitality they hadn't known before. The flame leaps right off of the wicks, spiraling into an inferno which burns around the ceiling. The dwarves duck and cover, some raising random objects as weapons (most notably tankards full of alcohol and a scone).

I'm just as surprised as the rest of them, my fury gone in an instant. Without my support, the fire quickly disappears into thin air.

The company comes back out from hiding, all either staring at the ceiling or me. Kili clambers off of the bench quickly, pushing past everyone.

I wonder if he'll run away, I think bitterly. I can't think much else because my head is full of cotton. I feel very weak, my face pale and my head spinning. The shadows in the dining room seem to grow as energy quickly drains from my body. I turn slowly to the wizard in confusion, "Gandalf?"

The wizard looks concerned, but I can't analyze anything else because the darkness is eating away at my vision. Kili darts around Gandalf as I fall. Strong arms sweep me up before I can even touch the floor.

"Nadia? Nadia!"