Chapter Eight
A day had passed and the group was continuing through the mountain pass. A violent thunderstorm was upon them. The winds blew their clothing and hair all over. It felt like they were in a tornado. There were a couple of times Mariah or Alexis lost their balance and almost fell to their death. Luckily Fili or Kili had a hold of them.
The path they hiked on was very tiny and thin. They had to form a single line and basically hug the mountain so they would not fall to their deaths. The rain made it tough to see ahead or at all. Their vision was blurry and dark.
"Alright, hold on!" Mariah heard Thorin shout. His voice seemed like he was a miles away, shouting at them.
Mariah saw Bilbo slip but some dwarves caught him and stopped him from falling off the edge.
"We must find shelter!" Thorin shouted once more.
It was so hard to hear, because of the loud thundering from the sky and the gust of wind that blew so hard it knocked the breath out of her.
"Look out!" Another voice shouted. To Mariah it sounded like Dwalin.
They all looked up and saw a giant rock flying towards them. The boulder hit the edge of the mountain and shattered around them.
"Alexis!" Mariah shouted and held onto her sister's hand.
"Hold on!" Bifur shouted.
"This is no thunderstorm! It's a thunder battle!" Balin pointed. "Look!"
Mariah looked up to where Balin pointed at. There stood a giant made out of stone. Next to the giant was another, looking exactly the same but had different edges on it. She watched as the giants threw rocks at each other. It looked like they were having a snowball fight but with rocks and giants.
"Take cover!" Thorin shouted as a rock was thrown at them again.
"Hold on!" Nori called out as shards of rock fell down on them, luckily missing them.
As the stone giants fought, the ground beneath the company started to break around them. Mariah grabbed a hold of her sister and pushed her to be in front of her, so she could get away before her. The ground started to separate the group between Mariah and Alexis.
Fili grabbed onto Mariah tightly as he saw that there was no way forward. Mariah and Fili looked over to their siblings. Alexis was crying out for her sister while Kili had a hold of her.
Kili's face looked distraught and afraid. He was afraid for his older brother and his love. She could tell that he wished to be in their shoes instead. Knowing all too well of how much Kili would rather he be hurt than anyone else.
"Mariah! Fili!" Kili shouted.
Mariah held onto Fili tightly, since that all she could do besides look at the love of her life and sister being torn away from her.
"Kili!" Fili shouted; his voice sounding brittle and strangled.
The giant that Fili and the rest were on started to fight with the rest of the giants. It lost and started to fall towards the rest of the group. There was a ledge that was coming up and as they fell, all Mariah could think about was death. This was it. This was how she died.
There was nothing but darkness. Her thoughts were all she had for what felt like a life time. There was movement and she could now hear again. It was like all her senses were coming back to her. She opened her eyes and found Fili tapping her cheek, shouting her name.
"Mariah!" He shouted.
"Fili?" She sounded confused but realized what had happened; they were safe.
Mariah wrapped her arms around Fili, enjoying the moment with her, maybe soon to be, brother. Her heart swelled with joy, knowing that they were a live and okay.
She heard a voice shouting and then Balin shouted back as well.
"We're alright! We are alive!" Balin called out.
The rest of the group came around the corner and smiled with delight, seeing their friends alive. Kili ran over to his brother and his sweetheart, holding them to his body. His hold was tight but shook from being frightened just moments ago.
Mariah placed her head in the crook of Kili's neck. Fili wrapped his arms around his brother and Mariah as well. She was just happy to be alive.
"Mariah!" Shouted a female voice.
She glanced up and saw Alexis. Her face lit up and she got out of Fili and Kili's arms, wrapped her own around her older sister.
She wept as well as Alexis, holding each other. They thought they would have never of saw each other again.
"Where's Bilbo? Where's the Hobbit?" Bofur asked.
Mariah let go and started to look for Bilbo. She saw two small hands on the edge of the cliff. Mariah pointed to the edge and shouted. "There! Bilbo!"
They all turned and saw Bilbo had fallen off the edge of the mountain, holding on for dear life.
"Get him!" Thorin shouted.
"Grab my hand! Bilbo! Come on and take it!" Bofur shouted.
"Mariah!" Alexis shouted, grabbing for her arm but missed.
Mariah went to the edge and held out her hand as well, trying to reach for the Hobbit's coat. "Bilbo," Mariah shouted, her voice was thick with fright.
Thorin jumps down the side of the cliff, grabbing a hold of Bilbo and helped him up. As Thorin tried to help himself back up on the ledge, Dwalin grabbed ahold of Thorin and lifted him up.
Mariah and Alexis hugged Bilbo tightly, crying into his shoulder. He held them back and patted their head.
"Shh…shh…I'm okay." He tried to calm her.
"Are you…?" Mariah asked as she sniffled.
"Yes I am…"
"I thought we lost our burglar." Dwalin said with a sigh of relief.
"He's been lost ever since he left home." Thorin said in a cold tone. "He should never have come. He has no place amongst us."
Mariah looked to Bilbo and saw how hurt he was. Anger and rage flowed in her. Mariah had enough of Thorin.
"You, Prick!" Mariah shouted and stood up, facing Thorin. "How dare you speak like that, after all Bilbo has done for you and for this company?"
"How dare you speak that way to me, Human?" Thorin shouted back. "Know your place!"
"No! You need to be talked this way to! You need to learn that you can't just say things that hurt and think it is okay, Thorin!" Mariah glared at him. "You need to apologize to Bilbo right now!"
Kili got in front of Mariah as she was about to say more to Thorin.
"Control your woman, Kili!" Thorin shouted at his nephew.
"He doesn't need to control her!" Alexis added.
Fili grabbed her shoulder and shook his head. "Now isn't a good time."
"Don't touch me!" Alexis shrugged his hand off her.
While Alexis was supporting her sister, Kili grabbed Mariah and held her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him. "Mariah, you need to stop. Please…stop." His voice was a hard command but had that caring tone of his in it.
"No! He….he hurt-…"
"I'm fine, Mariah." Bilbo said and stood up. "I'm fine." His smile didn't meet his eyes but she could tell that he knew she cared for his feelings. That meant something to him.
"No…you're not okay. I know you, Bilbo. I've been in your shoes. I know the feeling of not belonging somewhere; I have felt that way before." Mariah looked over at Alexis and then back to Bilbo. "I'm sorry if I overreacted. I can't stand my friends or family being hurt. That's all."
Bilbo moved over to Mariah and smiled. He put a hand on her shoulder. "I know, Mariah. Thank you for caring and understanding."
"Dwalin!" Thorin shouted when he found a cave they could stay in. "Search the cave."
Dwalin went inside and checked out the cave. A moment passed before he poked his head out and spoke to the company. "There's nothing here."
"Right then, let's start a fire." Gloin said as they all went into the cave.
"No, no fires. Not in this place." He placed a hand on Gloin's shoulder. "Get some sleep, we start at first light." Thorin ordered.
"We were to wait in the mountains until Gandalf joined us. That was the plan." Balin added.
"Plans change. Bofur, take the first watch." Thorin said and went off to be by himself.
Everyone was in their bedding, either asleep or just lying there. Mariah couldn't sleep. She was still too upset with Thorin, but she hated to be on someone's bad side. She snuck out of Kili's arms and went over to where Thorin sat. He had not yet gone to sleep.
As she walked over to Throin she glimpsed over and saw Alexis cuddling with Bilbo. He was awake and looked over to Mariah when she passed by.
"Help me." He mouthed and Mariah held in a laugh.
She went over and slowly removed Alexis's grasp around the hobbit. He scooted out of the way and sighed in relief.
"Thank you…I was suffocating there." Bilbo admitted.
"She likes you as if you were her pet, if she gets to be too much just tell me." She whispered and stood up.
There were footsteps behind Thorin and he looked over and he realized it was her, he frowned and looked away.
"Come to insult me more, Child?" Thorin asked. "I do not need more arguing, especially with someone who is with my younger nephew."
"No. I came to apologize." Mariah admitted. "…May I?" She asked, pointing to a spot next to him.
He nodded and still didn't look at her. "I'm not one to forgive so easily, but I do see why you acted the way you did. I let my anger get the best of me."
She sat down and sighed. "It was just in the heat of the moment. We almost lost Bilbo to the cliff and then…you hurt him. I don't like the people I care for to get hurt. If someone would have said something like that to you I would have acted the same way."
She saw a smile appear on his face. It was subtle but still there. "You care for my feelings?"
"Well, I'm not going to lie…you do intimidate me, but that's beside the point. Kili looks up to you and I see that. He's told me wonderful things about you that even I also look up to you. I've never really had a father figure, but if I did…" She scratched her head. "I guess what I'm trying to say is…I see you as much of a father figure as I can. I don't exactly know what to see in that but from what I understand…"
He chuckled and put his hand on her head. "You do not need to explain to me. I understand." He paused for a moment before adding. "If you were to marry Kili, you would make me a proud king to have you be a part of my family, even if you are a human and not royalty." He frowned and took his hand away.
"Is something wrong?" She asked, worried that she did something wrong.
"I do not normally talk about feelings nor do I speak like this to anyone. It rarely happens yet…" He looked over at her. "It feels like I can talk this way with you. It's odd."
"I have that effect on people. Trust me; I don't see why people tell me everything." She laughed softly.
"Neither do I. You have a big mouth." He teased.
"Now, I know where they get their humor and teasing from." Mariah smiled.
"Yeah, when I was younger I teased them a lot." He sighed. "But they were little shitheads."
Mariah laughed softly. "You helped raise them, right?" She asked and he nodded. "You did a very good job."
"Thank you, Miss Mariah. That was very kind of you to say." He bowed his head a bit. "You need sleep." His eyebrows furrowed, which meant to Mariah that he was in daddy mode.
"Yes, Sir!" She joked and saluted to him, making him smile a bit.
"Sleep well." Thorin said.
"You too, Thorin." She said, standing up and making her way over to Kili.
She laid down and cuddled up close to her love. She felt him shift and pull her closer to him. He smelt of sweat and dirt, but it didn't bother her. It's his smell and she loved everything about him. She even loved his eating habits, which were kind of rubbing onto her.
Mariah woke up to the sound of Thorin yelling.
"Wake up. Wake up!" Thorin shouted.
Mariah moved out of Kili's arms to see what was going on. Kili, as well, sat up and looked around to see why Thorin was shouting. He went to grab Mariah to protect her but as soon as he did that they all fell down into a cavern.
Mariah screamed as she fell down the hole. "Kili!"
"Mariah!" He shouted as he tried to reach for her but failed.
They all ended up falling into a pile in a cage. Before they could even stand up and realize what was happening, a swarm of Goblins came and grabbed them. They all fought against the Goblins, trying desperately hard to get them off.
Suddenly, they were all taken by the Goblins. One Goblin had a hold of Mariah's wrist. She looked at how disgusting the Goblin's hand was. It almost made her vomit. The Goblin's hand had long black nails, almost like claws. Around the thumb area, where it meets the palm, there were boils. Some of them looked as if they were about to pop.
"I bet Alexis is having a great time having these fucks touching her." Mariah thought.
She looked around to see where Kili was. He was over by his brother, looking around to find Mariah probably. Mariah turned to see if her sister was near her and realized that Alexis wasn't even in the group. Neither was Bilbo.
"Where did they go?" Mariah thought as her anxiety started to take effect.
Her breathing became uneven as she thought about her sister and Bilbo, possibly lying dead in the cage. Maybe they didn't even make it in the cage.
"What if they fell off the edge and plummeted to their deaths?" Mariah's vision started to blur and colors started to fade. "An anxiety attack? Now?!"
"…iah…..Mariah?!" She heard a voice call out. Mariah turned to see where the voice came from and who it belonged to. It was Bofur. "You alright there, Lass?" He asked, worry showing in his face.
Mariah shook her head and she leaned against Bofur. The Goblin, that had a hold of her, yanked her so she stood right up. The action almost caused her to lose her footing and fall.
"Stop yanking on her!" Bofur called out and punched the Goblin right in the face, knocking him over the edge.
Luckily for Mariah, the Goblin let go before he fell off. She turned to Bofur with a tired smile that showed how weak and scared she was. All of her strength was gone.
Bofur could see she needed help, so he picked her up and carried her as they walked to who knows where. She heard Bofur call out to Kili and she even saw him turn to the voice. His facial expression showed nothing but concern.
Mariah fought to keep her breathing under control. She fought to get back her body. Nothing worked. She needed Kili. She needed her sister and Bilbo to be alive and safe. She needed everything to be okay.
There was a loud bang and clashing noise, almost sounding like music. A loud voice that was very deaf toned, started to sing.
"Clap, snap, the black crack.
Grip, grab, pinch and nab.
Batter and beat
Make 'em stammer and squeak!
Pound, pound, far underground
Down, down, down in Goblin Town.
With a swish and smack
And a whip and a crack
Everybody talks when they're on my rack.
Pound, pound, far underground
Down, down, down in Goblin Town
Hammer and tongs, get out your knockers and gongs.
You won't last long on the end of my prongs.
Clash, crash, crush, and smish.
Bang, break, shiver, and shake.
You can yammer and yelp,
But there ain't no help.
Pound, pound, far underground.
Down, down, down in Goblin Town."
As he sang, his fat belly, flabby arms, and even the tumor on his chin and neck area jiggled. He swayed and swished his staff around, making the group and Goblins duck a few times.
"Bofur, I'm scared…" She whispered.
"It's alright, Lass. I'm here for ya." Bofur said as he tried to calm her.
She was slowly getting her vision and strength back. It was just enough to make out more faces and where they were.
In a way, she wished she didn't. The Goblin King, if that's what you want to call him, was utterly disgusting. She hid her face into Bofur's coat more. The smell of the cave was horrid. It smelled of rotted flesh and meat, mold and old dusty caves.
"Who would be so bold as to come armed into my kingdom? Spies? Thieves? Assasins?" The Goblin King asked.
Every time he made the slightest movement, the tumor wiggled and rolled under his skin.
"Dwarves, your Malevolence." One Globin said.
"Dwarves?" The King asked as if he didn't hear the Goblin right.
"We found them on the front porch."
"Well don't just stand there, search them! Every crack, every crevice!"
Mariah peeked out a bit more to see what Kili was doing but made eye contact with the disgusting King.
"Is that a female?" Asked the Goblin king. "Bring her to me!"
"No!" Kili and Fili shouted in unison.
Thorin punched away a Goblin that was coming for Mariah.
"Silence! Bring her to me now or I shall kill all of you!" The King roared, making the cave echo his voice.
Bofur fought a bit before being forced to let the Goblins take Mariah away. She stood and walked to where they wanted her, which ended her up right in front of the group. Standing alone, her legs shook. She wasn't full recovered from her anxiety attack and this wasn't helping. She could feel her chest tighten up again.
"And who might you be?" The king asked.
"No one of importance to you!" Kili shouted.
"I didn't ask you, Dwarf!" He bit back.
"I…I'm Mariah." She admitted, not knowing what to do or say.
"You are not dwarf. Human?" He asked and she nodded. "It's been awhile since I've ate a human. You are not as…chunky as they are. I'll probably just keep you, feed you until you're fattened up and then eat you. Humans have this delicious taste that I enjoy."
Mariah stood there, her face showed no emotion, but her body trembled from the intensity of the Goblin King.
"You will do no such thing!" Thorin shouted with a deep voice.
"And who might you be?" The King asked and then laughed. "Well, well, well! Look who it is! Thorin, son of Thrain, son of Thror, king under the mountain." The king bowed mockingly. "Oh! But I'm forgetting you don't have a mountain, and you're not king." He smirked, knowing he hit a nerve in Thorin. "Which makes you nobody really."
"You're wrong!" Mariah shouted. "He's a-…"
"Mariah, no!" Thorin yelled out to her. "Do not make our situation any worse. Let him speak his words. Soon, they'll mean nothing because he will be nothing."
The king laughed at Thorin's words. "I know someone who would pay a pretty price for your head. Just the head, nothing attached. Perhaps you know of whom I speak, an old enemy of yours. A pale orc astride a white warg."
"Azog the Defiler was destroyed. He was slain in battle long ago." Thorin answered.
"So, you think his defiling days are done, do you?" The Goblin King turned to a goblin scribe. "Send word to the pale orc; tell him I have found his prize."
The Goblin King started to sing as torture apparatuses were brought to torture the dwarves. Mariah was kept over by the Goblin King, away and out of reach to the dwarves.
"Bones will be shattered, necks will be wrung, and you'll be beaten and battered, from racks you'll be hung. You will die down here and never be found, down in the deep of Goblin town."
One of the Goblins went through the groups stuff, coming across Thorin's sword; the Goblin dropped it on the ground and scurried away from it.
"I know that sword! It is the Goblin cleaver! The biter! The blade that has sliced a thousand necks," The Goblin King shouted. "Slash them, beat them, peel them, and kill them all!"
"No! Stop!" Mariah shouted.
She tried to run to the company but was stopped by a Goblin. She struggled against him as she tried so hard to go towards her love.
"Mariah!" Kili shouted as he fought off as many Goblins as he could.
One Goblin grabbed Thorin and the Goblin king ordered. "Cut off his head!"
Suddenly there was a big explosion and Gandalf arrived right in front of their eyes.
"Gandalf!" She shouted, breaking free of the shocked Goblin.
"Take up arms! Fight!" Gandalf ordered.
All of the dwarves immediately scrambled for their weapons and began to fight the Goblins. Mariah found her dagger and started to swing at the Goblins. The Goblins all backed away from her when they saw her blade.
"Follow me. Quick! Run!" Gandalf shouted and they all started to run behind Gandalf.
The Goblins chased the company and they tried to run away. Goblin Town felt like a maze to Mariah. There were so many stairs and bridges. She felt a hand grab her arm, tugging her along with them.
"Mariah, you must run faster!" Kili ordered.
"Kili, I'm trying. I…I'm not in shape like you!" She shouted as they all still ran for their lives.
They were stopped by the Goblin King showing up in front of them, blocking their way.
"You thought you could escape me?" He pushed Gandalf and the dwarves back. "What are you going to do now, Wizard?"
Suddenly Gandalf strikes him in the eye using his staff. The Goblin King yelled in pain as the sword Gandalf had sliced open his belly. Falling to his knees as he held onto his belly, he looked at Gandalf and spoke.
"That'll do it."
Gandalf swiftly cut open the Goblin King's throat, killing him. The Goblin King falls and breaks the bridge that they all stood upon, plunging the dwarves, Mariah, and Gandalf down into the deep cavern below.
As they fell, Kili and Fili had a hold of Mariah. She screamed as loud as she could as she watched the ground get closer. Kili embraced Mariah to his chest, knowing the impact will hurt them but won't be enough to kill them.
The bridge had gotten caught between the walls and then broke apart when they were only a few feet in the air. Once they landed safely on the cave's ground, Bofur spoke up.
"Well, that could have been worse."
They all were under debris and then the corpse of the Goblin King came down, crushing the company.
"You've got to be joking!" Dwalin cursed out.
Mariah was below Kili, looking up at him. She could breathe somewhat but she was very uncomfortable.
"Mariah, are you okay?" He asked as he grabbed her face, peering into her eyes.
"Y…Yeah." She blushed and looked down then back up at him. "You're crushing my chest. It's not that pleasant." She said with a slight laugh.
"I'm sorry!" Kili said as he got out of the debris. He grabbed Mariah and took her out of it as well. She went to stand up but her ankle shot a pain up her leg, making her yelp.
"My ankle…I think I twisted it or broke it." She whined out.
"Here let me carry you." He said and got down on one knee, his back facing her. "Get on my back, Love."
Mariah got onto his back, holding onto him tightly. She and Kili both heard a noise and looked up.
"Gandalf!" Kili shouted, noticing the swarm of Goblins coming after them.
"There's too many." Dwalin said. "We can't fight them!"
"Only one thing will save us. Daylight!" Gandalf shouted. "Come on!"
Everyone got out of the rubble and started running down a long tunnel, leading out to daylight. Mariah felt so bad making Kili carry her.
"I really am a burden…" She said into Kili's ear as he and the company ran out into the light, away from the Goblins.
"No, my love!" He said sternly. "You're not."
After leaving the cave, they ran down the mountainside, stopping at a space so they could take a breather. Kili put Mariah down, sitting her on a rock.
"Gandalf, do you know any magic to help Mariah? She hurt her ankle…" Kili pleaded.
Gandalf knelt down and began murmuring something in an old and odd language. Soon enough her ankle was healed but a little tender.
"Thank you…Gandalf." Mariah said with sincerity.
"You're most welcome." He said and started to count. "Five…six….eight."
"Are you alright?" Kili asked and kissed her forehead after he knelt down.
"No…" She admitted.
"What's wrong?" Fili asked, sitting next to her.
"First, my sister is gone and so is Bilbo. Second…" She looked away from Kili and Fili. "I'm a burden. I always get hurt. I always need help. I always need saving."
"Love…" Kili said and grabbed her face between his hands, making her face him. "You're not a burden. It is my duty to protect you. If you are hurt or ever need saving…I'll be there."
"As for your sister…I believe she is with Bilbo." Fili said. "The Goblins didn't notice her or Bilbo. I think it's because they didn't notice his smell."
"But they noticed me. I smell like human just as much as she does."
"You smell like a dwarf because…" Fili looked over to his brother and then back to her. "You've been making out with one for days."
"I-I haven't made out with…I...we…" Mariah blushed and hid her face.
"I'm just kidding…" He laughed.
"He is right though. It's because you smell of me." Kili added and sat down next to Mariah.
"Yeah I have been sleeping next to you. Alexis has been sleeping close to Bilbo." She thought for a moment. "Then you should smell like me, a human." She said with a questioning look.
Kili and Fili laughed. "Darling, my manly dwarf smell overthrows your human stink."
"Great so I stink now?" She teased.
"Always." Kili teased back and kissed her nose.
"Where did you last see Bilbo?" Gandalf asked.
"I saw him slip away when they collared us." Oin said.
"What happened exactly? Tell me!" Gandalf demanded.
"I'll tell you what happened. Master Baggins saw his chance and took it! He's thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm hearth since first he stepped out of his door." He looked to Mariah who was giving him a cautious look. "We will not be seeing our hobbit again. He is long gone."
"No, he isn't." A voice from behind Mariah said.
She turned around and saw it was Bilbo. Her face lit up but then looked around for her sister who then peeked out from behind the tree.
"Is it safe?" She whispered.
"Alexis?!" Mariah called out and immediately stood up, running to her.
They both hugged one another, crying out of happiness and relief.
"Mariah, I thought you were gone forever!"
"You…you suck so much! I'm so glad you're safe, but you still suck!" Mariah cried out and they both laughed.
Kili, Fili, and Bilbo gathered around the girls, patting them on the back.
Mariah slowly let go of her sister and looked at Bilbo. "And you, Hobbit! Don't you ever scare me like that again! You had me worried to death." She scolded but nevertheless hugged her hobbit.
"I apologize, Mariah…" Bilbo said with a small smile.
"How did you get passed the goblins?" Fili asked.
"How indeed?" Dwalin added.
Mariah let go of Bilbo so he could speak. She noticed that he became nervous and put something in his pocket. She wondered what it was but thought if he wanted them to know he would tell them.
"Oh, what does it matter?" Gandalf said and Mariah looked over at him with a questionable look. "He's back."
"It matters." Said Thorin. "I want to know. Why did you come back?"
"Look…" Bilbo started to say and looked towards Thorin with a determined look. "I know you doubt me. I know…" He sighed and tried to think of words to say. Mariah put her hand on his shoulder and he smiled at her. Bilbo turned to look at Thorin again when he spoke once more. "I know you always have. You're right, I often think of Bag End. I miss my books, and my arm chair, and my garden." He smiled a bit. "See, that's where I belong. That's home." He looked from one dwarf to the next. "And that's why I came back, because…you don't have one, a home. It was taken from you, but I will help you take it back if I can."
Mariah beamed at Bilbo before looking towards Kili. Kili looked back at her and nodded. She reached out to touch his hand but heard a loud roaring sound from up the hill.
The dwarves, hobbit, wizard, and humans all looked up the mountainside, seeing wargs and orcs. One orc, who seemed to be the leader, was pale white and missing an arm. He ordered something in an unknown language before a couple of wargs ran down the mountain.
"Out of the frying pan." Thorin said in a shocked voice.
"…And into the fire. Run. Run!" Gandalf added and ordered as they all started to run away from the wargs that chased after them.
As the wargs were catching up to the group, Bilbo kills one of them with his sword. Other dwarves managed to kill a few before they reached the end of the cliff.
"We're trapped!" Shouted Alexis.
"Up into the trees, all of you!" Gandalf commanded as he helped some dwarves into the trees before climbing in one himself.
Mariah and Alexis couldn't reach the branches. They tried and even jumped for them. Kili and Fili both jumped up at the same time, grabbing onto a branch. Kili reached out for Mariah while Fili reached out for Alexis.
Alexis grabbed onto his hand with a glare. "Don't think I owe you for this, Dwarf."
"Oh, but you do." Fili said with a smirk.
Mariah grabbed onto Kili's hand, bringing herself up and into his hold.
"Mariah, I want you to climb higher. Okay?" He said sternly. "I'll be right behind you."
She nodded and reached up for another branch, slowly pulling herself up the tree and Kili followed. Every once in a while he boosted her up by using her butt.
"You know if it wasn't for the wargs attacking us, I'd say you would be enjoying the view." Mariah teased as they reached a branch where they could stand together on and be safe. "Not to mention you get an excuse to touch my butt."
Kili chuckled a bit and winked. "Who said I didn't like the view anyways?"
Mariah shook her head and rolled her eyes. She felt the tree shake and she held onto Kili. Looking down, Mariah saw some wargs bashing themselves against the tree.
The tree began to crack and that made them have to hop from one tree to the next. After a couple more trees fell down, they all gathered onto the last tree. The last tree was so close to the edge of the cliff, that if the tree fell they all would parish.
"Fili!" Mariah heard Gandalf shout.
She looked up and seen a pinecone that was set ablaze. They all found pinecones and set them on fire as well, using the one being thrown to Fili. Mariah and Alexis couldn't hold the pinecones without being burnt. The dwarves were fine because their skin was touch and made for the fire.
One by one, the pinecones set the ground on fire, and even the collapsed trees. The wargs started to back off and soon the comapny all cheered, thinking they won. Kili kissed Mariah on the cheek in celebration, making her smile with glee.
Suddenly, the tree they all were on started to break from the ground. Mariah held onto Kili and looked to Alexis who held onto Fili. Fili's face had the look of determination while Alexis looked like she wanted to punch her savior in the face.
"Hold on, Love!" Kili shouted and held onto a branch as the tree toppled over.
The tree fell and hung from the cliff. Some dwarves were starting to fall, but the ones who had a good grip on the tree saved them.
Mariah looked around to see if all the dwarves were okay but saw Thorin stand up. Her eyes widened and she cried out for him. "Thorin, no!"
Kili turned his head and so did the rest of the company. They all shouted after their king, telling him to stop, but he didn't listen.
Thorin was making his way towards the orcs. Thorin attacked the pale orc but was easily defeated, thrown aside.
Mariah heard the orc call out something. Even though she had no idea what he was saying, she had a guess. He was going to kill Thorin and something had to happen. Mariah saw Bilbo running to the fight, killing an orc with his sword, effectively saving Thorin.
After killing the orc, he now faced the leader, who Mariah thinks is Azog, the orc Thorin faced long ago. As the orcs moved in on Bilbo, Mariah ran out along with the rest of the group, attacking the orcs.
Mariah made her way to Thorin, tapping his cheek and placing his head on her lap. "Hang in there, Thorin."
Thorin's eyes opened but she knew he wouldn't be awake much longer. Mariah smiled down at him and rubbed his face.
"You're going to be fine. We will make it out of here. There's no way I'm letting them kill you or anyone in this group!" Mariah said determined.
Thorin just nodded slightly, his eyes slowly shutting. But before they came to a complete close an orc started to charge Mariah and Thorin.
She turned and saw the orc, not knowing what to do but knowing she had to save him; Mariah moved so that the orc would attack her instead of Thorin. The blade pierced through her skin. She felt it hit her side, missing Thorin. She looked down and saw Thorin's eyes were now closed. Mariah screamed in pain and felt warm liquid ooze out of her body.
"Mariah!" Kili shouted.
Mariah collapsed onto Thorin, her head on his chest. She felt a tug at her arm and was flipped over. It was Bilbo. She noticed blood on his face, but it wasn't his. This blood was thicker, probably orc blood.
She thrashed around uncontrollably as the poison from the sword started to take ahold of her body. Mariah felt another tug and saw Kili leaning over her.
His mouth was moving but nothing was heard. Her vision slowly began to blur. She could see that he was still calling out to her. Alexis was nowhere to be seen, even as a blur.
"Am I dying?" She thought to herself, the pain wasn't there anymore. Her body was still but the warm liquid wasn't coming out anymore. Someone was probably holding her wound so she didn't bleed out. "If I am dying, I wish to die in the arms of my love. Oh, Kili…we were doing so well."
Her eyes drifted up to look into the eyes of Kili. She tried to force a smile on her face but she couldn't tell if she succeeded or not. Soon blackness took over her vision and soon she felt nothing, heard nothing, and saw nothing.
A/N: I had to leave a cliffhanger in this chapter since…they all were…hanging off a cliff before. Ha…ha…ahem. Well, I hope you enjoyed my chapter and please tell me what you think! :D Also I am thinking about making another story involving these characters. It would just be chapters about the group doing things. Chapters that I didn't really know how to fit in this story. So they would I guess be fillers? Oh! And I am also thinking about doing different endings because, I'll be honest here, I want to do all the endings but have one be the true ending. Those ending that I didn't put in the story would be put in this story but be titled Bad Ending or Worse Ending…ect. Or I guess I could put them in my other story that would be full of crap. Lol I am continuing this story though, beyond The Hobbit book.