We left at daybreak as I expected. I was lagging behind everyone else and trying to keep up.
"Miss Baggins, I suggest you keep up." Thorin almost growled at me. "We're entering the wild." He said and we kept walking. The mountains got steep and soon it began to storm. The wind and rain was pounding on us as the thunder roared in the background. "Everyone be careful!" THorin shouted.
"This is no thunder storm!" Balin observed. "This is a thunder battle!" Then I saw them two stone giants throwing rocks at one another. Kili almost fell and then as he was up I fell trying desperately to grab my footing.
"Where's Bella?"I heard Bofur say and then they all looked down to see me dangling.
"Bella!" I heard Balin shout and then Thorin climbed down and grabbed me. He threw me back up towards the cave we found for shelter. "There, I thought we lost our burglar." Balin said and I smiled, that was until Thorin spoke up.
"She's been lost ever since she left her home! She has no right being here!" Thorin said and I was upset but I would not cry in front of Thorin. We all laid down to sleep as Bofur took first watch. When I was sure he had accidentally fallen asleep I grabbed my things and began for the entrance of the cave.
"And where do you think you're going?" Bofur asked waking up.
"I'm leaving, I'm going to go back to Rivendell." I replied.
"Don't leave we need you."
"Thorin was right Bofur, I don't belong here, I'm a stupid girl, with stupid dreams who never learns." Tears began to run down my face.
"He's wrong, he feels something for you I know it, and I know that you miss your home."
"No you don't understand, none of you understand you don't have a home. And as for Thorin, I was a fool for thinking that he felt something for me. Goodbye Bofur."
"Goodbye Bella, I wish you all the luck in the world."He said and then looked down at my sword. IT was glowing blue which meant goblins. The floor suddenly was coming loose.
"Everyone UP!" Thorin exclaimed but it was too late, we fell through the hole and into a city of goblins. I was able to slip aaway but fell again and into a deeper hole. The goblin that fell with me was dragged away. And then I heard a creepy voice.
"Yes. Yes. Yes! Yes! Gollum. Gollum." The creature said it was odd small, and skinny, wearing nothing but a greasy loincloth. "Nasty goblinses. Better than old bones, Precious; better than nothing."
"Too many boneses, Precious! Nothing of flesh!" The creature said in a different voice.
"Shut up! Get its skin off. Start with its head."
"The cold hard lands, they bites our hands, they gnaws our feet. The rocks and stones, they're like old bones, all bare of meat. Cold as death, they have no breath, it's good to eat!"
"Bless us and splash us, Precious! That's a meaty mouthful. Aaahh. Gollum. Gollum. Ack" I approached.
"Back!" I cried." Stay back! I'm warning you don't come any closer.
"It's got an elfish blade, but it's not an Elfs. Not an Elfs, no. What is it, Precious? What is it?"He asked.
"My name is Belladonna Baggins."
"Bagginses? What is a Bagginses, Precious?"
"I'm a Hobbit from the Shire."
"Oh! We like Goblinses, batses, and fishes, but we hasn't tried Hobbitses before. Is it soft? Is it juicy?"
"What?"I asked myself he neared me." Stay back! I will use this is I have to I just want to find the way out. I'll leave you be."
"Why, is it lost?"
"Yes and I don't want to be lost for very much longer."
"Ooh! We knows! We knows safe paths for Hobbitses. Safe paths in the dark. Shut up."
"I didn't say anything creature." I said confused. He challenged me to a game of Riddles.
"Well, Baggins first."He said and I agreed.
"Thirty white horses on a red hill. First they champ, then they stamp, then they stand still."I replied.
"Teeth? Teeth! Yes, my Precious. But we—we—we only have nine. Our turn. Voiceless it cries, wingless flutters, toothless bites, mouthless mutters." I was confused.
"Just a minute."I said.
"Oh, oh! We knows. We knows! Shut up."He again was talking to himself.
"Wind. It's wind! Of course it is."
"Very clever, Hobbitses, very clever."
"Ah, ah, ah, ah. A—a box without hinges, key, o—or, or lid; yet golden treasure inside is hid."
"A box...and a lid...and then a key... "Well?" It's nasty. Uh, box, uh..."
"Give up?"I asked smirking.
"Give us a chance, Precious, give us a chance!" He begged and then his eyes widened if that was at all possible. "Eggses! Eggses! What crunchy little eggses, yes. Grandmother taught us to suck them, yes." Grandmother? I lost my train of thought and looked down to find a simple gold ring on the ground and quickly pocketed it. "Ahh. We have one for you: All things it devours, birds, beasts, trees, flowers. Gnaws iron, bites steel, grinds hard stones to meal. Answer us." He said as I looked back up.
"Give me a moment, please, I gave you a good long while." I said and he reluctantly agreed. "I don't know this." I panicked I didn't want him to eat me. That was what we agreed to if I lost.
"Is it tasty? Is it scrumptious? Is it crunchable?"
"Let me think. Let me think."
"It's stuck. Bagginses is stuck. Time's up."
"Time. Ti—the answer is time." I said. "It wasn't that hard, not at all.
"Last question. Last chance." I couldn't think of a question and then I felt the ring in my pocket. "What have I got in my pocket?"I asked.
"That's not fair. It's not fair! It's against the rules! Ask us another one."He demanded.
"No you said 'Ask me a question.' Well, that is my question. What have I got in my pocket?" I asked.
"Three guesses, Precious. It must give us three."
"Three guesses. Very well, guess away."
"Handses!"
"Wrong, guess again."
"Fish-bones, goblins' teeth, wet shells, bat's wings ... Knife! Again, shut up."
"Wrong again. Last guess."
"String! Or nothing."
"Two guesses at once; wrong both times. So, come then, I won the game, you promised to show me the way out. Now show me out."
"Did we say so, Precious? Did we say so? What has it got in its pocketses?"He growled.
"That's no concern of yours. You lost." He began to panic. "Lost? Lost? Lost?" Where is it? Where is it? No! Ahh! Where is it? No! No!" Lost! Curses and splashes, my precious is lost!"
"What have you lost? What's missing?" I asked trying to care for the poor creature.
"Mustn't ask us! Not its business! No! Gollum, Gollum. What has it got in its nasty little pocketses? She stole it. She stole it! Ahh! SHE STOLE IT!" He shouted and I began to ran. when I lost him I slipped on the ring and it had turned me invisible. I saw a crack of light and went for it. I saw the dwarves gathering and hid behind a tree.
"Where's Bilbo? Where's Bilbo?" I heard Gandalf asked. Then I saw Thorin and heard him.
"I'll tell you what happened. Miss Baggins saw her chance and she took it! She's thought of nothing but her soft bed and her warm hearth since first she stepped out of her door! We will not be seeing our Hobbit again. She is long gone." I took off the ring and walked from behind the tree.
"No, she isn't." I said looking at the dwarf as the others smiled. Thorin questioned it.
"I want to know: why did you come back?" Thorin asked.
"Look, I know you doubt me, I know you always have. And you're right, I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. And my garden. See, that's where I belong. That's home. And that's why I came back, cause you don't have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can." I said and they all smiled that's when they struck. We saw the orcs on the hill.
"Out of the frying pan..."Thorin said.
"And into the fire. Run! RUN!" Gandalf said and we ran.
