Hi! I'm sorry I'm late, school has been crazy busy. So I've been getting a lot of reviews because of the the last chapter. I'm so happy that you guys loved it! I wanted to write that part for a long time!
Thank you to ThePhantominthemists for reviewing this story from the very beginning!
Seasammy13 pointed out to me that it's Orcs not Orcks. I didn't even know I was doing that so thank you for that! And thank you for reviewing my grammar. I was kind of worried about it.
Karana92 - Well yes, that's the question isn't it?! It would have been very possible, they were butt naked after all.
Lalaithiel (guest)- You're right! I didn't even think of that but it is kind of like that scene from Mulan.
Noloxya (guest) - Hello there in Hungary! I'm pleased to hear that you find the story easy to read. I intended it to be an easy read kind of story. I find them more enjoyable to read and their easier to write of course.
Let us continue ~
Thorin was still standing in the bathtub. What had just happened? He brushed his wet fingers across his cheek where the Hobbit had slapped him. It hadn't hurt really. His little hand was so small that you could hardly call it a slap but he was surprised non the less.
No one had ever spoken to him in that way before or would dare to slap him in the face! He didn't had to go with them to reclaim their homeland. He could have just declined and stayed home living his boring everyday life! A life that was safe and away from danger and he dared to call him an asshole while he was the one being foolish!
Thorin was getting irritated. Didn't he see that it was for his own good? If he would continue on this journey he would definitely die or get seriously hurt! The Hobbit had no fighting skills what so ever. He had no chance of surviving.
He grinded his teeth and thought back at the incident that had happened in the woods. How terrified the Hobbit looked when the Warg charged at him. He just stood there paralysed with fear and the beast could easily kill him, right there on the spot. It would have been so easy.
When he heard the Hobbit scream in pain he felt himself getting angry. Angry at the Hobbit, angry at the Warg but also angry at himself... He had failed to protect a member of his company.
From the moment he had laid eyes on the Hobbit he knew that he wasn't Burglar material. He was so fragile and small and could easily be broken. And Thorin knew he had to be protected.
There had been something there, when he opened the door when they met for the very first time. There was a fire in his eyes. His eyes looked strong and confident, only for a moment though, but it was there. The same fire that he saw in the Hobbit's eyes when he had slapped him in the face and yelled at him.
At him! Thorin brushed his fingers through his hair an growled. Why was he getting so agitated about that foolish Hobbit?!
He felt a chill run down his back and he had forgotten that he was still in the bath. He sighed and took one last dip in the water before he headed back to the dressing area.
Bronwyn was laying on her bed. She kept replaying the scene in her head what happened in the bath this morning. She still couldn't believe what she had done. She slapped him in the face and called him an asshole! What was wrong with her? This was not the way to gain his trust at all!
But he had said some hurtful things as well and she just couldn't let him get away with it. She didn't regret the things she said. Except for the asshole part and maybe the slapping part...
She was so caught up in the moment that she had completely forgotten that she was in fact naked..! Her cheeks reddened with embarrassment when she thought about it. She slapped her arms a cross her face and growled in despair. How could she have been so stupid!? He could have seen everything! Literally everything.. What if he had seen it? It was quite possible at this point. He would have figured out that she was a woman by now. She sat up straight and looked at the door in horror like he was about to burst through it and drag her all the way back to the Shire.
No, if he had seen it she would have heard something by now. She eased her nerves and let out a small sigh.
The image of Thorin's bare chest popped into her head. How his long hair fell over his broad shoulders. His skin was tanned and looked very firm. For a moment Bronwyn wondered about how it would feel like to run her hands all over his chest when she snapped back to reality.
No, no, NO we're not going there! What is wrong with me?! She shook her head fiercely to erase the image of naked Thorin and jumped out of bed ignoring her beating heart..
The rest of her day consisted of avoiding Thorin, which was easier then she expected. Rivendell was quite big so it was easy to avoid one another. The only hard part was dinner. He would definitely be there, so she decided to eat dinner in the gardens. She grabbed some food on a plate and mumbled to the other dwarves that she was going to eat outside and left before Thorin joined the company to eat.
She walked through the gardens until she found a perfect spot to eat. She walked across the most amazing flowers and in the middle of the garden there was a large beautiful tree. She planted herself underneath it and rested her back against the trunk. She finished her food and placed her plate beside her. She sat up to enjoy the view for a moment.
Rivendell the place she was going to visit when she planned her first adventure. And now she was here. I made it brother. My dream came true.
But she knew it wasn't over yet. Her adventure was only beginning.
She breathed in the cool fresh air and she could smell the flowers around her. It smelled sweet and herby just like the milky water in the bath. The bath, the bath she had shared with Thorin... Naked...
''Aaaargh!'' Bronwyn hit her head against her knees. Why did she had to remember that? She had finally forgotten about it before it popped into her head.
''You okay there lass?'' Bronwyn looked up and saw that Dwalin was walking towards her and joined her against the trunk
.
''You left so quickly. Did something happen? Is it your shoulder?'' He looked at her shoulder with a worried look.
''No, my shoulder is fine, just a bit sore. It's something else... Never mind, it's nothing.''
Dwalin lowered his eyebrows. ''What happened?'' He looked at her with a piercing look.
Bronwyn shifted uncomfortably on the ground. Should she tell him? What if he got angry at her. Thorin was his king after all but he was the only person she could talk to and she really needed to talk to someone.
''Well, the thing is -'' She told him the whole story what had happened in the bath. When she was finished she was to afraid to look at Dwalin. It was quiet for a moment and Bronwyn just stared at her hairy feet waiting for him to yell at her.
''So-'' he began and she jumped a little at the sudden sound. ''You hit Thorin in the face and called him an asshole?'' Bronwyn felt a little scared and gave a small nod. Maybe this wasn't a great idea after all. The next sound took Bronwyn so by surprise that she almost fell over.
Dwalin roared with laughter. He laughed so loud that probably every Elf in Rivendell could hear him. He held his belly and tears were running down his face.
''Yo - you were naked as a wee born baby and he still didn't see you where a lass?'' He finally managed to say while wiping the tears from his eyes.
Bronwyn couldn't believe it. This was not the reaction she had expected.
''I thought you would be angry with me for being disrespectful to your king.'' She said when he was finished with laughing.
''He may be my king but he can be very thick sometimes. But no wonder he was in a foul mood today. I thought it was because of the Elves - '' He stroked his beard looking like he had remembered something.
Bronwyn's heart started to race when she heard that. Was he really that mad at her? Well yes, he probably was...
''Do you really think he didn't noticed me being a woman?'' She asked Dwalin.
''No I don't think so lass. He would be on a rampage by now if he did.''
Bronwyn felt a little relieved.
''I suppose you're right about that.''
Dwalin stood up from the ground and stretched his arms.
''Let's go. Better get an early night. We're leaving in the morning.''
Bronwyn nodded and also got up from the ground , wiping her trousers with her hand.
They almost reached the castle when they ran into an excited Bofur.
''Did you hear that sound just now? I think it was an earthquake!''
Bronwyn held back a laugh and Dwalin just muttered something and pulled Bofur's hat over his face while he walked past him into the castle.
''Mpffh.. Oy why did you do that?!'' Bofur peeled the hat from his face and gave Dwalin a glare. Bronwyn just raised her shoulders with a smile and followed him inside.
Bronwyn couldn't sleep that night. She managed to avoid Thorin today but she knew she had to face him tomorrow when they would leave Rivendell. She could only hope that his mood would improve. She was still brooding about Thorin when she heard a soft knock on the door.
She jumped out of bed and walked towards the door. Who could that be? It couldn't be Thorin could it? Her heart skipped a beat when she thought about it. Her hands trembled when she grabbed the handle and slowly opened the door. Her heart calmed down when she saw the figure in front of her.
''Gandalf! What are you doing here?'' She smiled at the wizard and let him into her room.
''Bronwyn, my dear. I'm sorry I couldn't see you sooner. Meetings are quite a dreadful thing you know. It can take ages until Saruman finishes a sentence.'' Bronwyn chuckled and Gandalf turned around to observe her shoulder.
''I'm so sorry you got hurt like this.'' His eyes were filled with guilt.
''Don't be! It's not your fault and it doesn't hurt that much, so don't worry.'' She reassured him.
''But if I hadn't dragged you into this-''
''It was my choice to come on this quest and mine alone!'' She placed her hands on her hips and gave him a stern look. She couldn't let Gandalf doubt her too.
Gandalf looked down at her and gave her a warm smile.
''Hobbit's really are remarkable creatures.'' He gave her a small pat on her head.
His hand was big and warm and covered up most of her head.
''Oh, by the way Gandalf. Dwalin knows -'' She told him about her talk with Dwalin when she woke up after her attack. Of course she hadn't told him what happened between her and Thorin. It was probably best to keep that to herself this time.
''So, he figured it out, hmm?'' Gandalf stroked his long beard.
''Perfect! I felt a little anxious to leave you all alone with a bunch of dwarves but now that I know Dwalin is there to look out for you I feel quite relieved.'' He said cheerfully and made his way to the door.
''What? You're not coming with us tomorrow?'' Bronwyn asked a bit surprised by his sudden cheerfulness..
''No, I'm staying behind to distract the council while you leave. They are not very fond of our little quest, but no need to worry. I will re-join you when you reach the mountains.'' He opened the door.
''I wish you a good night Master Baggins.'' He gave her a small wink and stepped into the hall.
''Good night Gandalf.'' Bronwyn smiled and closed the door behind him. She jumped back into bed, trying to get a good night sleep.
The next morning Bronwyn was roughly awakened by loud banging on the door. She groaned and rolled out of bed. She walked quickly over the cold floor and opened the door.
''Morni'n sunshine. Get ready we're leaving right after breakfast.'' Dwalin said and pushed a piece of familiar cloth in her hands. ''Here. I've mended it.''
Bronwyn lifted up her brothers old coat and saw that the torn fabric was roughly sewn back together with a golden thread.
Bronwyn ran her fingers over the rough stitches and a big smile spread across her face.
''Thank you Dwalin! I really appreciate it.'' She looked up at Dwalin, still smiling.
''Ugh, it's nothing! No need to stand there smiling like an idiot.'' He muttered irritated and quickly walked away covering his reddening cheeks.
She quickly got dressed and gathered al her stuff. She was the last one to arrive at the breakfast table and Bofur gave her a friendly wave and pointed to the seat next to him.
She quickly walked over to the empty seat and tried not to look at the head of the table where Thorin was seated. She plopped down on the chair and mingled in the conversation.
Gloín was complaining about the lack of meat on the table and Nori was busy braiding Ori's hair. Who didn't look al that happy about his brothers braiding skills.
Bronwyn was quite enjoying herself when Thorin rose from his seat. His chair scraped across the floor and their eyes met for a moment. She could feel her heart skip a beat and quickly looked away. Thorin mumbled something to Dwalin and walked out of the room. Dwalin also rose from his seat and ordered the others to follow them.
And so they continued their journey. They left Rivendell behind them and Bronwyn took one last look at the beautiful sight before it disappeared between the mountains. They left the ponies behind and continued their way on foot.
Bronwyn tried to stay on the end of the company. She still had no idea how to face Thorin, so she stayed as far away as possible.
Luckily she had Bofur to keep her occupied. He would tell her the most interesting stories about his home and family. She learned that Bifur was Bofur and Bombur's cousin and that he started living with them when his parents died.
They would get into all sorts of mischief when they were younger, Bofur laughed joyfully when he tought back at those times. Bronwyn could only imagine them running around while their mother chased them with a dough roller. She couldn't help but laugh with him.
''It sounds like she had her hands full. It probably wasn't easy raising you three.'' She gave Bofur a play full nudge in his arm.
''Ay, mum was a great dwarf.'' He said. A smile still plastered on his face. ''She was an amazing cook. She taught Bombur how to cook, you know! They really shared their passion for food. It was the hardest on him when she died.'' His eyes turned sad for a moment when he looked at the back of his brother.
Bronwyn thought back at her own mom. How she would make those delicious cookies on Sunday, They often made them togheter.
''She sounds wonderful.'' She gave him a warm smile and he smiled back, quickly turning back into the cheery Bofur she knew.
It was time to set up camp for the night. They would reach the Misty Mountains sometime tomorrow.
Bronwyn helped Bombur prepare the soup while the remaining dwarves formed a line to receive their share.
Fíli was the first in line and impatiently rubbed his hands together. Bronwyn stooped down to reach the kettle. Fíli looked down and raised one eyebrow.
''You have a very curvy behind for a lad, you know that?'' He said jokingly and slapped her butt. Bronwyn could barely hold in a very girly scream. She quickly regained her posture with red hot cheeks. Fíli and Kíli roared with laughter when she tried to hit them with the wooden spoon.
''Why is it taking so long?'' An irritated voice said. ''I would like to eat before the dragon dies of old age.''
Bronwyn turned around. Thorin stood in front of her waiting impatiently for his food. Her heart started to race and her face grew even hotter. This was the first time she faced him since the 'incident'. Her hands trembled when she took his bowl and filled it with soup and quickly returned it. When she gave it back her fingers toughed his for a moment and it felt like electricity went through her body and she almost dropped the bowl. He scowled at her and walked of to eat.
Don't be such a clumsy idiot! Keep it together! Bronwyn took a deep breath and served everyone their soup.Fíli and Kíli were still snickering and Bronwyn scolded at them. Uncivilized brats.
There wasn't much left for herself but that was okay. She wasn't really hungry anyway. After the whole Thorin 'incident' she practically lost her appetite, what was odd because that never happened before! Not even when she had that awful cold when she was a kid.
Bronwyn slumped down on her sleeping blanket, her feet hurt from the long walk. She felt tired, she hadn't slept at all last night. She decided to get an early night and crawled under her blanket and fell asleep.
Done for today! I really wanted to write a longer chapter but you guys already waited so long for this one so I'm just going to upload it.
Hope you liked the 'after the incident chapter'.
As always your humble servant -dramatic bow-