That's again to everyone reading this... here's the next chapter (I own nothing...)

Chapter 4

A new day broke over Hobbiton, and as Katy and Sarah slowly woke up, they half expected to find themselves back in their own beds, and for the previous day to have been an elaborate dream. Their hearts sank when they saw that they were still in Bilbo's house. The hobbit hadn't fully recovered from his shock, and it was Gandalf who found the girls a spare bedroom to sleep in. Not that either of them had slept much. After Thorin had told them that they were to accompany the dwarves on their quest, the girls realised that there was no way of changing the stubborn dwarf's mind. Sarah pointed out that since they had originally been planning an adventure in the first place, they might as well go along with this one until they found their way back home. Katy wasn't convinced, but there was no way that the two of them were to be separated, so they both smiled politely at Thorin and thanked him for the invitation. He merely grunted at them, and walked away. Such a charmer, thought Katy.

The rest of the dwarves appeared to be busy preparing for next day's departure, and while the girls wanted to ask more about the quest, they didn't find the opportunity to continue their chat with Fili and Kili. They spent most of the night musing over what might actually be involved in this quest (apart from the dragon, they didn't remember much from what the dwarves said), and when they had fallen asleep their dreams were full of dragons and wizards. Both of them were convinced that they had heard the dwarves singing at one point.

As Sarah pulled herself out of the bed, she looked down at her clothes and frowned.

'I'm not sure I'm going to be much use on this quest if I'm constantly pulling up my jeans and falling out of my shoes,' she said to her friend.

Katy raised an eyebrow. 'Yeah, sure, because in clothes that fit you'll be a proper Robin Hood!'

'Hey, for all you know we might be suited perfectly for this quest. All I meant was that we should probably find some clothes that aren't hanging off us. It isn't a great look.'

Katy had to agree. 'I wonder if Bilbo has anything that would fit?'

'We should probably ask him first, he was a bit funny with the dwarves eating his food. I doubt he would be thrilled if we came marching out in his clothes,' Sarah said.

'You're right. I'm not even sure that he has anything we'll want to wear.'

Sarah laughed. 'Don't think we'll have that luxury! You'll have to rely on your pretty face and sense of humour rather than your sense of style to flirt with that dwarf.'

Katy blushed slightly. 'I have no idea what you could be possibly talking about!'

'Ha! You are so in denial. At least I'm admitting that I fancy his mate.' Sarah grinned.

The girls opened the door, and immediately heard a chorus of what could only be snoring dwarves. They tried not to laugh as they tiptoed into the kitchen to find something to eat. Armed with some bread and fruit, they were about to make their way back to the spare bedroom when they heard a voice behind them.

'Anything left for us?'

Katy and Sarah both jumped, and turned to see Kili grinning at them.

'Oh, it's you, I thought it was Grumpy for a second' Sarah said, relieved.

'Grumpy?' Kili didn't understand.

'Oh, you know, Thorin, is it? Not exactly a ray of sunshine, is he?' Sarah explained.

Kili nodded. 'My uncle has a lot on his mind. He's determined to win back his kingdom for his people'.

'And suddenly I feel like a bit of a bitch for saying that, sorry…' Sarah trailed off.

The girls and the dwarf were silent for a couple of seconds until Katy realised what Kili had just said.

'Wait, uncle? He's your uncle?'

The dwarf grinned again (God, he has such a cute smile, thought Sarah).

"Yes! Myself and Fili are his sister's sons,' he explained.

'Oh, you and Fili are brothers?' Sarah asked, 'I didn't realise. Ha, Katy – we've never dated brothers before!'

Katy glared at Sarah, but before Kili could ask what she meant, Katy tried to move the conversation on.

'So, are all the other dwarves related to Thorin as well? We've not really been properly introduced.'

Kili shook his head. 'Just Fili and I. I'll introduce you to the others, though! It's about time that they got up anyway.'

Sarah and Katy then followed Kili back into the living room, where all the dwarves slept. Kili proceed to kick each of the sleeping dwarves in turn while shouting their name at the girls.

'That's Oin…this here is Bofur…Nori…I think you've already met Dwalin…this is Bombur…that's Ori and then that's Gloin…he's Balin…that one is Dori…this is Bifur… and you know Fili!'

Kili saved the biggest kick of all for his brother, who woke up with a shout and lunged for Kili. The girls looked on in amusement as Fili tackled his brother to the floor before Dwalin tore them apart.

'Enough!' he bellowed. 'Let's get some breakfast.'

Giggling, Kili and Fili picked themselves up off the floor and began to follow the rest of the dwarves into the kitchen. Fili stopped, noticing Katy, and gave a shy wave.

'So you're joining us on our quest, then?' he asked her.

Katy nodded. 'Looks like it! Unless you're uncle suddenly decides otherwise. I'm not sure we have much choice in the matter…'

'Well, let's hope he doesn't change his mind,' Fili said, smiling.

Katy blushed.

'So, er, what else can we expect on this quest? Are you travelling far?' she asked the dwarf.

'Hopefully we wont run into too many problems, and it should only take a few weeks to get to the Lonely Mountain.' Fili replied.

Katy was about to ask what he thought constituted a problem, but Thorin called on his nephews to help prepare the ponies, and smiling at Katy, Fili made his way outside with his brother.

'Ah, you're smitten, aren't you?' giggled Sarah from behind.

Katy turned to her and smacked her lightly on the arm.

'Not as smitten as you are!'

Sarah grinned. 'Come on, Gandalf is going to sort out some clothes for us.'

Bilbo was still asleep in his bedroom, but Gandalf assured the girls that the hobbit wouldn't mind them wearing the pieces that he laid out in front of them.

'Not bad, Gandalf, we can work with these!' Sarah grinned, holding up a short pair of trousers and a belt.

'Hobbits don't wear shoes, so you'll just have to either make do with your own or go barefoot. I'm not sure that the dwarves have any to spare.' Gandalf said, as he left the room.

Once they were changed, Katy scribbled a note to Bilbo, thanking him for the clothes and for letting them into his home yesterday.

'I feel a bit bad, not saying goodbye.' She said to Sarah.

'Yeah, he was a bit odd, but I liked him. Who knows, maybe we'll meet him again. Maybe there's a sequel to that book!' Sarah laughed.

'Please don't even joke about that, let's just get through this quest in one piece,' Katy said as she went out the room.

The girls made their way outside, and found all the dwarves sitting on ponies, waiting for them. Two small packs were sitting on the ground in front of them, which Thorin gestured to.

'Put those on and climb onto that pony, you'll need to share one. It was supposed to be for the hobbit but clearly he wont be needing it.'

'And good morning to you, too!' Sarah said brightly as she and Katy picked up their packs.

Katy could see Fili and Kili trying not to laugh.

Packs on, the girls spent about five minutes trying to climb onto the pony before Bofur helped them up.

'Up you go, lassies! Have you never ridden before?' The two girls shook their heads. 'Don't worry, it will come naturally to you!'

Sarah gripped her friend tightly around the waist as Katy held the reins, not really sure what she should be doing.

Thorin shouted at them to start moving, and the ponies took off at a gentle pace, which was still a little too quick for Katy and Sarah. They found themselves near the back of the group, and soon Kili and Fili had made their way to either side of their pony.

'Are you enjoying the quest yet?' Kili asked them eagerly. Katy caught Fili rolling his eyes.

'Erm, yeah, it's not bad so far, not too keen on the ponies, but we're managing.' Sarah replied, as she tried to move Katy's hair out of her face.

'Our uncle asked us to keep an eye on you, make sure you don't get into trouble,' Fili said to Katy.

'Oh really? And what kind of trouble does he think we'll get ourselves mixed up in?' she replied, smiling sweetly at him.

'You are so flirting with him…' she heard Sarah whisper in her ear, and Katy gave her a sharp poke with her elbow.

'I guess the kind that got you lost in the first place!' Fili laughed.

'Well, that was kind of Sarah's fault, really-'

'MY FAULT?' Sarah blasted, 'How was it my fault?'

Katy tried to turn around on the pony to face her friend.

'I believe your words were, Fancy finding out if we're going to meet Mr Right on our travels, and then that woman started talking about wizards!'

'Damn, you have a good memory,' muttered Sarah.

Katy smiled gleefully. 'Who knows, maybe Gandalf is your perfect match!'

Kili and Fili were watching on in amusement, not really sure what to make of it all. Such strange creatures, they both thought.

They continued on in silence, with the girls concentrating on not falling off the pony while Kili and Fili wondered just who Mr Right was, until shouting was heard behind them. The dwarves and the girls stopped their ponies.

'Wait, wait! I signed it!'

Katy and Sarah smiled at each other, recognising the voice.

'It's Mister Boggins!' exclaimed Kili.

'Bilbo, you decided you join us!' Katy grinned.

'Either that or you want your clothes back…' said her friend.

Bilbo handed Balin the piece of paper he was carrying, and the old dwarf checked it through quickly and nodded.

'Everything appears to be in order. Welcome, Master Baggins, to the company of Thorin Oakenshield'

All the dwarves but Thorin gave a little cheer, and Katy and Sarah gave a loud whoop of delight. Finally Thorin spoke.

'The hobbit can have the females' pony. Kili, Fili, you can share your ponies with them instead. They're just about falling off on their own.'

Sarah huffed loudly as Bilbo started talking about his walking holidays.

'We aren't that bad, are we?'

Katy gave her a nervous look.

'Speak for yourself! We need to get off this pony first!'

The dwarves and the hobbit watched in pained silence as one at a time, each girl tumbled off the pony.

'Thanks for all the help, guys! Much appreciated!' Sarah said, with more than a bit of sarcasm.

Bilbo was still protesting against using a pony, and was only quiet when Kili and Fili lifted him on the girls' pony. He didn't look comfortable in the slightest.

Thorin glared at the girls.

'Hurry up and get on behind my nephews, we're wasting time'.

For once Sarah didn't have any good come-backs, and she and Katy scrambled up onto Fili and Kili's ponies as quickly and gracefully as they could.

'Hold on tight,' Kili said to Sarah with a grin, as she wrapped her arms around his waist. Katy did the same behind Fili, and the girls smiled at each other as the ponies started to move again.

Soon, bags of coins were being thrown from dwarf to dwarf.

'What's all that about?' Katy asked, as a bag almost hit her as it passed between Nori and Oin.

'We took bets on whether the hobbit would show up or not,' replied Bofur.

'Yeah, some of us are short of a few coins thanks to Bilbo!' Dori muttered, as he flung a bag of coins to Bofur.

'But at least we've got our burglar!' the dwarf grinned.

As the ponies trekked on, Fili turned to look at Katy.

'So, come on, then. Tell us who this Mr Right is that you're looking for?' he said to her.

Katy wasn't sure if he was joking or not.

'Um, no one. It's just a figure of speech from where we're from,' she said, a tiny bit embarrassed.

The dwarf looked confused, then shrugged.

'I see. So what did you do, before you got lost?' he asked.

It was strange – up until that point Katy and Sarah hadn't really thought too much about what they had left behind. They had focused so much on how they were going to get home that thinking of the actual place and the people they had left behind made them a little bit sad. And also a little guilty for not feeling it sooner.

Sarah cleared her throat before answering.

'We were studying to become teachers. We were planning to travel around the world a bit before getting a job.'

'And then we came here…' Katy whispered, a little tearfully.

Kili and Fili exchanged looks, realising that their questions we're upsetting the girls.

'Don't worry, Gandalf is a wizard. He'll find a way to get you home. He's helping us reclaim ours, and he'll do the same for you,' said Kili, giving the girls an encouraging smile.

They both smiled back, and all four of them fell into a comfortable silence.

After what seemed like a lifetime, Thorin called for the company to stop in a clearing on the edge of a cliff.

'We'll camp here for the night. Fili! Kili! Watch the ponies. Bombur – prepare some food for everyone.'

The two young dwarves helped Katy and Sarah down from the ponies, and both girls felt stiff from riding all day.

'Oh god I can't feel my bum!' Sarah cried, hitting it with her hand.

'Tell me about it. And my legs are aching,' Katy replied, slowly making her way over to a large log. She looked at the hard surface, before pulling a blanket out of her pack and using it as a cushion.

All the dwarves seemed to know what tasks were needed to set up camp, and the girls and Bilbo felt awkwardly out of place.

'Do you think we should offer to help?' Katy whispered to them both.

'To be honest we'll probably just get in the way,' Sarah reasoned, and Bilbo looked to agree.

Before long, Bombur had made a thick stew, and the camp was silent but for scrapping of bowls and chewing of food.

Sarah noticed Ori scribbling on some paper.

'What are you writing?' she asked him.

He looked up, a bit startled.

Bofur chuckled. 'Don't worry, lad, she don't bite!'

Ori gave a shy smile to the girl.

'I'm keeping a record of the quest. Thorin asked me to,' he said, proudly.

'Yeah, you really should. My mum asked me to write a diary when I went travelling,' Sarah told him, but before she could get sentimental Katy came over to where she sat.

'Are you ready to get some sleep? Kili has saved a spot for you.'

Sarah gave her friend a small smile.

'Too cute…'

She said goodnight to Ori, and went over with Katy to a small patch of grass next to a large rock where Kili and Fili had set up their sleeping mats.

'I'm guessing you guys need to keep an eye on us while we're asleep, eh?' Sarah said cheekily.

'Aye, girls, they'd hate for you to run off into the wild without them,' Balin answered, as he closed his eyes. The two dwarves looked a bit sheepish.

Thorin must have heard him.

'Kili and Fili, you two have first watch!' he barked at his nephews.

Katy and Sarah laughed as they tried to find a comfortable position on the ground.

'I hate camping,' muttered Sarah.

The girls couldn't tell how long they had been asleep when they heard a scream from somewhere in the distance.

Katy was instantly awake, and sat up quickly, shaking Sarah.

'What the hell was that?'

Bilbo had also woken up, and come scuttling over to where she sat.

'You heard it too?"

Both girls nodded.

'Orcs,' Kili whispered, from where he sat next to them.

Katy hadn't even realised both he and Fili were still awake.

'Orcs? What the hell are orcs?' asked Sarah.

'Throat-cutters,' said Fili. 'There'll be dozens of them out there. The lowlands are crawling with them.'

Bilbo, Katy and Sarah looked at one another fearfully.

'They strike in the wee small hours, when everyone's asleep. Quick and quiet; no screams, just lots of blood,' Kili told them.

'And you didn't think to mention them before?!' Katy practically screamed at him.

Fili and Kili stayed silent, and then suddenly started laughing at the looks on both the girls and the hobbit's faces.

'You think that's funny?' Thorin interjected, wiping the smiles off the dwarves faces.

'You think a night raid by orcs is a joke?'

Kili couldn't look his uncle in the eye.

'We didn't mean anything by it,' he mumbled.

'No, you didn't. You know nothing of the world,' Thorin spat, before walking off to the edge of cliff.

Katy and Sarah didn't know what to say to Kili and Fili, after their harsh reprimanding from their uncle. They gave them both a small smile to show they weren't annoyed at them, and then tried, unsuccessfully, to get back to sleep.

Balin came over to where they lay.

'Don't mind him, laddie', he reassured Kili. 'Thorin has more cause than most to hate orcs,'

The old dwarf continued to tell them about Thorin and the Pale Orc, and Katy and Sarah drifted off into a fitful sleep, wondering what the hell they had got themselves mixed up in.