WAR! Arrrgggg fight fight fight fight - just a word of caution, I don't know, it's not really violence but if anyone has a problem...be warned. Eh...also...not quite the end. One more to go :)

Of Mountains and Woodlands Chapter 14

They had waited on the verge of battle; each elf, dwarf and of course Maya, Bilbo and Gandalf silently saying their own prayers of hope, faith and survival. It had not been a long wait, for moments of extreme fear were diminished when Gandalf's small smile lit up his face as a butterfly flew past his blue eyes. Before they knew it, all eyes turned to the sky as the eagles of The Misty Mountains soared above bringing with them dwarves from the surrounding areas that had been in exile same as Thorin, though they chose an even quieter life. Thorin unhooked his arms from Maya as all present stared in wonder as the dwarves approached, one by one kneeling before Thorin and him giving a nod in acknowledgment; completely stunned. Upon looking behind him, he came to realise their numbers had grown a great deal and his company looked stronger, more ready than before. The eagles above, their kin beside them and peace with the elves…the only thing missing was Bard and his men but it mattered not then, for what was before him was a far more moving sight while Gandalf winked knowingly, Bilbo looked slightly baffled and Maya looked lovely (to him) and somewhat out of place amongst a sea of men and armour. Thorin found himself standing before them all where he felt he belonged: his place as a leader. He turned to find the thousands of Goblins, Orcs and Wargs from all over Middle-Earth lined up in crooked form and awaiting the start of the battle same as him. Thorin realised then that if the battle was to end, it would have to begin and it would not begin without someone making the first move. He turned back around and drew his sword allowing the entire army to do the same, each elf, Nymph, Hobbit, Wizard and Dwarf drawing their choice of weapon from its place of dormancy. He raised it high above his head and he didn't say anything but the words that rang in every corner of dwarfish mythology, folklore, fairy tale and now history:

"DU BEKAR!"

And he roared into battle without looking behind him perfectly sure that the thundering madness and the maddening thunder of the air belonged to the troops that rallied behind him, racing towards an army that grinned at them in malice before charging them back to meet them in battle at a point halfway between the two opposing forces. Thorin was roaring so loudly, his rage that he had held in for so long breaking out of its shell as he had had enough of the world trying to keep his home from him and therefor his first swing was the most monstrous swipe he had ever taken, so hard that it felt as if there was nothing his sword actually hit. He fought with his shoulders, heaving his body from one side to another, tearing through flesh and bone and fur as easily as one could with cotton wool. He knew not if it was adrenalin or whether years and years of iron work had made him stronger than he felt but he dared not question it for it was all that kept him from his death.

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Bilbo had run directly after Thorin, ironically being the first one to follow him though he was easily over taken. He was aware of an eagle flying just above him and so perhaps that was what gave him just that much more courage, to charge into battle for a home that wasn't his, for friend's he barely knew, for Gandalf who trusted him more than he trusted himself. He wasn't sure if he had the means to meet an orc head on so he kept a wither eye on Maya and took note on her procedure. Her sword was ahead of her but her actual attack came with an extremely un-lady like shoulder tackle, (though, of course, what could possibly be considered lady-like in war?) bouldering into the belly of her challenger while her sword was merely a tool to remove any obstacle that prevented contact. So Bilbo did the same though his goblin had presumably misjudged his size and swung his cleaver too high and flew over the Halfling's head while he drove his little letter opener through the grotesque creature's gut. It was an effort to pull it out again but at last he did and was onto his next foe, resisting the urge to wipe his hands on his waist coat in disgust. Gandalf was tremendous in his combat skills, surprisingly lithe for someone who was supposed to be "out of business" as he turned and twisted and lobbed and burned and broke and roared! The eagles took death drops out of the blue, plummeting down and rising once more with a misshaped thing in their beaks. Arrows were being shot into the air to fend them off which made it more difficult to fight properly, for one would have to keep peering up at the sky in hopes that no stray arrow was on its way down. Fili and Kili were unstoppable together and what's more, they never left Thorin's side. The rest of the company, including the elves were in full force. Bilbo upon having only a blink of a chance to glance around, felt the unexpected feeling of pride welling up inside of him with the knowledge of fighting with a band so forceful that Bilbo suddenly had a thought that was as inappropriate for the time as it was welcome: if this was to be the end of him and their quest, then so be it. They would have made such an end that no other force would ever be compared and he would be happy with the fact that he was as every bit apart of it as the next dwarf, Nymph, wizard or elf. In that moment, Bilbo felt so brave and so strong that he thought himself infinite – in the space of mere seconds. He shouted, he stabbed, he laughed, he plunged in and out of death's traps and he knocked on the doors of triumph and made them open for him with every goblin he slew. He was no warrior, that was for sure and maybe he was not as physically able as some for each little battle was a glaring competition with his grave and yet somehow to his unyielding surprise, he would come out alive.

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Maya was fighting her heart out; though her arms were getting sore and her legs tired. Her lungs were beginning to burn and there was an endless stream of Goblins and orcs and she had had to deal with one too many wargs. It felt like she had been assigned the mission of annihilating all four legged problems as they flowed in a continuous stream until one got the better of her and she lost her footing and in falling, lost her sword. She fell on her back hard, the wind forced out of her lungs, it slowed her down. She couldn't move, she couldn't breathe and she had no weapon that was immediately at hand and due to impact on her head, her vision had been partially impaired though she could feel and no less smell the foul creature as it padded over her body. Everything came right just as it launched itself up in the air, yellow, grizzly teeth bared as it opened its mouth to devour her while she could do no more than cover her face in a petty attempt to believe that if she couldn't see it, it wouldn't hurt. It didn't hurt strangely enough, she had heard an odd scream and a shriek and a slight gust of wind though no harm came to her. She opened her eyes, squinting amidst the dust and blood flying about her; a figure with black hair, high bones, a bow across his back and a hard face though taller than what she expected. When he turned, defending her and him from oncoming beasts, Maya recognised him immediately: Bard!

Her eyes widened and she felt an enormous grin catch her face and relief flow through her veins as hundreds of new feet, new energy rushed passed her. The men of Lake Town had come!

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Thorin saw the whole ordeal and almost died on the spot with the thought of what could have happened sickening him to his core. Maya was world's away from him when she fell to the ground and there had been no way that he could have gotten to her on time though he tried but was cut off. He would never have been more grateful for the arrival of Bard as he was then if he arrived a minute later. That being said, the men of Lake Town were fierce fighters, so Thorin gathered that Bard was either being too humble or he was trying to make himself look mightier than he truly was. It did not matter for Thorin was sure they had abandoned him when they shut the company out of Lake Town and yet, here they were, racing in to save the day and not even at the last minute. The army with which Thorin fought was not depleting in the slightest, Bard and his people had charged in right in the middle of it. It threw most of the goblins, wargs and their little minions when the Men of the Lake came roaring in for it was a side on collision, causing havoc and confusion amongst their foe. It made for a great distraction as Thorin rallied as many as he could for one last wall of power before throwing himself into the panicked commotion before him. Maya (now with her fire once more) and Bilbo to the one side and Bard, Fili and Kili to the other with the rest of their allies behind them, they trampled and crushed the opposition as they tried to retreat. They eventually came to a slow halt as they watched their enemies flee without looking back while Bard ordered his bowman to send arrows to follow them, to help them on their merry way. Before they knew it, before Thorin knew it, it was over. The battlefield was littered with corpses of friend and foe and the Lonely Mountain stood lonelier then than it did when they first arrived but the thought of what lay inside and what didn't was the most wonderful thought Thorin could ever have mustered at the end of such an adventure because this, for all he knew, was finally the end. He turned slowly and laid a hand over his heart and gestured to the dead with his other,

"We have suffered losses this day, friends and some family. They did not die in vain and they shall forever be remembered…I, Thorin Oakenshield, will always remember them. They did not die in vain for we have VICTORY!"

At that he raised both his hands up in the air, reaching for the heavens in exultation receiving a roar of triumph in return as weapons and hands were raised high as a sea of fingers, blade points and spears shook vigorously in the air.

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Men, Dwarves, Elves, Hobbits and Nymphs all stood victorious together. It was one of the most amazing experiences Bilbo had ever encountered and what was somewhat more beautiful was the idea that they were all oblivious to that fact; except Bilbo, obviously, for he was the one that realised it. He was flying as high as a kite as he shook his fists in victory; it was now that he was the most thankful for coming on this adventure. He was embraced by Thorin and in turn he embraced those around him; Fili, Kili, Bombur (that was not one of his brightest ideas), Bifur, Bard, an Elf and of course, Maya. She had her shirt ripped at her shoulder and dirt all over her face, a bleeding lip and heavy sacks under her eyes. She looked exhausted but she hugged Bilbo with a warm smile and a strong hold. She proceeded to laugh with Fili and Kili as they launched into her, taking the hands of Bard and kissing his knuckles in thanks while he grinned and japed with Thorin. He watched as she threw herself into Thorin's embrace, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, burying her face into the scruff of his worn cloak. Thorin had dropped his weapon to catch her; enveloping her fiercely, closing his eyes tightly as he held her to him. Bilbo was distracted from his thoughts when a large wrinkled hand placed itself upon his shoulder,

"Well, Bilbo, what do you think of that?"

Bilbo turned to look up at the dirty, wise, old, bearded face of Gandalf gazing down at him. Bilbo chuckled and shrugged,

"Well, I feel quite liberated, my dear Gandalf," he took a breath, "Yes, I think, I can honestly say that I am glad you turned up on my doorstep,"

"Yes, yes, I think I can honestly say that I am too," he winked, "You see, Bilbo, you were far worthier of a place in history than you think,"

"Do you think this is historic?" Bilbo's eyes widened at the thought,

"Oh yes. It is quite an achievement here; though do not expect your name to be a household wonder. Just be content with the knowledge that most will be aware that there was a hobbit who fought in a different battle though equally as important, from the one your great, great, great Grandfather Took fought in,"

"It makes sense, I suppose,"

"Indeed it does, you are every ounce a Took as you are a Baggins and I see no reason why you cannot be both. I remember how that bothered you,"

"I suppose you're right," Bilbo's smile waned a little, yet another thought gently wading its way into his mind, "Gandalf, what am I to do now? It seems strange to think that I am to merely pack up and go home…"

"Pack up what, my dear fellow?" Gandalf teased. But Bilbo's solemn glance made him bend to Bilbo's height, "You do not have to go this moment, Bilbo Baggins. You do not have to worry about what will happen just now. You can worry when the time comes and even then you might not have to worry for I'm sure, that by then, you will be happy with the thought of home,"

"Indeed," Bilbo's face dropped even more as he looked at their surrounding company. It wasn't the thought of going home that worried him, it was…

"Your friends, Bilbo, will always be your friends. They will never forget you just as you will never forget them,"

Bilbo wasn't so sure,

"But will I see them again, Gandalf? It breaks my heart to think that I won't,"

"You may," Gandalf mused, "Then again you may not, but isn't that one of life's great mysteries Mr Baggins? You never know who you might and might not see again. I always find that that makes things just that much more exciting. Life would be extremely bland if everyone took the same road,"

He left Bilbo then, moving on to congratulate and to be congratulated by those who fought by him. That night, there was a huge feast in Lake Town, the gates were opened and left open and there was no sign of the Town Master who, they later were informed of by Bard, had left Lake Town in an angry grump when Bard had arrived at his door with most of his men claiming that they were going to war without his leave because, regardless of whether the company had disregarded them or not, it didn't change the fact that to assist was the right thing to do. He was so enraged at his disobedient townsfolk that he abandoned them and it was probably for the best for he was not missed that night. Bilbo enjoyed the whole evening immensely, getting caught up in long talks with Thorin about what he planned to do about the Lonely Mountains and how to split the gold and what he could use the gold to buy and fix and how he could melt to create beautiful ornaments and build up a whole new city of Dale with his queen-to-be. He was so excited and so happy that it was odd to see him so, for Bilbo had grown used to his scowls and frowns and tempers and grumblings.

It was a long evening and Bilbo had stayed for two extra days after the elves had gone on their way, wondering around Erebor and listening in on the discussions between Bard and Thorin as they went about trying figure out how they were going to rebuild Erebor, the Arkenstone safely in his possession though Bilbo didn't know where he kept it, nor did he care.

"Bilbo," Maya jogged up to him, her skin clean, her cuts clean, her scar clean and she was glowing, "Bilbo,"

"Maya," Bilbo hugged her as she bounded up to him. She was barefoot again and her earthly pants rolled up to just below her knees. She had unravelled her arms to reveal her scars there too. She was well and truly glowing. He laughed at her,

"What on earth are you grinning about?"

"Life, Bilbo. Come; let us go for a stroll. I quite fancy the idea of wondering about without the threat of being attacked by something terrible. In fact, I quite fancy the idea of going for stroll without worrying about anything, really."

She grinned at him again and off they went on their way; stopping by the lake, wading in and out of the water. Bilbo sat on the pebbles as she stood, merrily wiggling her free toes in the cool of the water, her grin widening even more,

"I take it your grins are Thorin based?" he ventured but she merely winked and sighed,

"The end of it all came and went,"

They moved on from the lake and wove in and out of the trees of the Forrest. Though they didn't dare venture too far in for fear of getting lost. They talked and talked late into the evening and Bilbo told her of his fear and she laughed wistfully at him,

"Bilbo, why would you think that? You can visit any time! Send letters, I assure you we'll send you some. I'm pretty sure I can get Thorin or someone to come with me to see you. I'll have to be going in and out too,"

"Have to?"

"Yes, I've seen too much to remain in one place," she stood up straight, "I declare myself a traveller,"

Bilbo smiled and declared himself the same though not in so many words but he figured she knew that from the very beginning. Their merry chats quietened down until they were just sitting in a comfortable silence opposite each other, both leaning against their own trees. It was a good while into their silence when a rustle from the bushes and a low almost inaudible growl came from behind Bilbo. He looked up at Maya in question, his ears perking up but Maya had frozen and her eyes had grown wide with fear and panic as whatever was behind Bilbo made its appearance. Bilbo's last breath caught in his throat as Maya suddenly launched at him - over him, drawing a hidden dagger from her seams. There was an incredibly loud bark, a scream, a yelp and two relatively harsh thuds followed by a soft, dying groan and Maya's ragged breathing,

"Bilbo,"

He spun around: The last warg from the forest lay dead at his feet, Maya's dagger sticking out of its head. Maya, however…Bilbo hoisted her up and ran as fast as his short legs could carry him, panic rising in his head, his heart pounding against his chest and his thoughts racing. He shot through the gates, his legs cramping; one name escaping his lips,

"Gandalf!" he called, "GANDALF!"

Gandalf appeared out from a doorway with a frown but upon seeing what Bilbo carried, his frown dropped and he made haste to assist. The exchange was quick and deft and Gandalf laid her onto a bed in the first house with an open door,

"Bilbo, go find Thorin," he glanced up, his mouth open as if to say something more, which he did, though Bilbo got the feeling it wasn't precisely what he meant to say, "You know what to do,"

Bilbo shot out the door and arrived at the doorstep of the Town's counsel house doors just as Bard and Thorin had opened them to exit. Thorin stopped dead at the site of Bilbo's ghostly white features and fearful eyes,

"What is it?"

"It's…" Bilbo wasn't sure if he could say it without a broken voice, "It's Maya, Thorin. We were sitting and…a warg from -"

"Where is she?"

Thorin started out and upon being pointed in the right direction, he sprinted to her side Bilbo and Bard not far behind him.

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Thorin burst into the room where most of the company had already arrived. But he could not see Gandalf or Maya through the wall of people that stood around in dismay. He could hear the faint plea of a woman who was desperately trying to get the crowd to go and wait outside for the risk of infection would be high. Thorin wasted no time and roared far above the mutters of the people,

"GET OUT! NOW!" he started shoving his way through, "Move! Get out! Bard!"

Upon reaching the side of the bed he gave Bard a warning look to which he responded by ordering the departure of all those present, including himself. Though Thorin saw him seat himself on the doorstep against the wall.

When all was empty and it was but him, Maya and Gandalf, he looked upon her form. It was torn and bloodied. A gaping wound tarnishing her finely tattooed figure that seemed to bring pain to breathing and paleness to her skin – she had lost a lot of blood, perhaps too much. He knelt down at her side and glanced up at Gandalf who was crushing herbs into a bowl, muttering spells under his breath, lighting it up so that a warm aroma would waft over them all. He dabbed lightly at her wound and she winced, taking in a sharp breath at contact. The ordeal lasted for many hours until Gandalf simply stopped, putting his herbal, spelled mix down with a sigh. He shook his head,

"Elrond warned me,"

"Of what?" Thorin's head snapped up, "What are you talking about? Why are you stopping? What's happening?"

"She's lost a lot of blood," He nodded at the door towards a single head peeping around the corner. On cue, the company gently shuffled in, placing themselves around the bed, all hats removed, "Thorin…she will not survive,"

Thorin gazed at him blankly before looking down at Maya in disbelief who was breathing raggedly. Each new breath she took was harder than the one before. She was frowning in concentration, trying to counter the pain. Thorin grasped her hand and she smiled a bloodied smile,

"T-Thorin," she coughed, "Mis-s-stake,"

Thorin frowned and shook his head in disbelief,

"Gandalf-"

"Don't 'Gandalf' me, Thorin, please. Just let it be,"

Thorin looked down again and she was still smiling at him,

"Well, here is a difffferent end," she winced and tried a chuckle but failed. Thorin felt his cheeks dampening, his grip on her hand tightening, his heart…

His heart…

"I wanted to – e-explain something to you," another sharp breath, "Maybe there is no end,"

Thorin's breath caught and there was a terrible lump forming in his throat and he didn't understand.

"Thorin…Gandalf?" Bard entered with a strange expression, tearing Thorin away from his dying love, "Uh, someone's here for you,"

Thorin looked up; frustration rising in him but the little being that entered after him brought his anger to a barrier it could not pass.

"Thorin Oakenshield, I am a guardian from the Wood of Nirvara. We are here for Maya,"

Thorin remembered her telling him about them…he hadn't said a thing and he wasn't about to give away the fact that he already knew about them just then either,

"What do you mean?"

"We heard of her perils…we have come to her aid,"

"How did you know of this so soon?" he was looking at the little man with suspicion, "How did you know?"

"This," the Nymph took a step in, his lilac eyes glinting in the fading light of the sun…dark was coming, "I did not see, My King, but of her other perils, your quest. Though now seems a good a time as any to take her home,"

"To Nirvara? She doesn't belong there,"

"There are few places left in the world where our kind belongs, Thorin. Too few," The Nymph dropped his eyes a moment but a short sharp breath drew all their attention, Thorin's eyes widening in fear. The Nymph who had just entered placed himself by his side, a hand on his shoulder and another upon Maya's, looking deeply into her eyes as she began to fade,

"You will go to the West where the undying lands await you, My Lady, your body buried beneath the Yellow Wood Trees in our woods and your love will linger here," he squeezed gently, "Your time is over, dear one. We are all here,"

Maya's turquoise eyes flickered to Thorin, to Bilbo, to Gandalf, to Bard and back to Thorin,

"I love you forever, Thorin" she smiled, her blood smeared teeth somewhat a pleasant sight and as she said that her gaze drifted past them all to the darkening window, the sun in its last moments too, "I've always wondered about the mysteries of the dark…

And here it is,"

With that the sun set, leaving the room dimly lit by a mere candle on a table a little way off from the silent group. Gandalf bowed his head and gently did the same as the Nymph by Thorin's side, his hands on the shoulders of those now apart in body,

"Go well."

KillerKadoogan, I think you deserve an apolagy - I am sorry. :( I was thinking of changing it all, but then I'd planned it for so long and then and then and then writing this...I wish I hadn't, anyway...moving on.