I do not own any of the characters or The Hobbit (just the AU storyline and my OC) Those are the work of the esteemed and brilliant John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, and without his genius, this and many other fan fics would not be in existence.
Please review! I love getting them- they keep me encouraged! J
The company finally reached the top of the ridge on the eastern side of the Anduin, and Bilbo glanced back in the direction they came from. The Misty Mountains loomed to the west, shadowed by the sun setting behind them. Their tall peaks were reflecting the reds and oranges in the sky, the great expanse rapidly darkening as the day drew to a close.
He noticed several brief looks from the dwarves towards the distant peaks as well, but his attention was quickly diverted when Thorin's voice rang up from down below, announcing that they had found a good place to camp for the night.
The hobbit followed the others down a very narrow path until he found the company nestled down in some tall rocks a short distance from the top of the ridge. Gloin was already striking his flint on some dry tinder, and Bilbo could see Dori and Ori gathering dry firewood from the forest floor a few paces beyond their campsite.
Being used to the Shire's smooth, rolling hills, the hobbit was a bit startled to note that, once the sun disappeared beneath the tall peaks to the west, the darkness settled quickly within the span of mere minutes. Shadows grew almost instantly, and he looked upward to note that several bright stars already graced the night sky above them.
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Gloin had the fire going within a minute, and Dori and Ori returned with armfuls of wood and deposited their find next to the bright flames. Dwalin gently set his young charge down near the fire, mindful of his wounds.
"Oin," Thorin called as he crouched next to the unconscious prince. Smoothing a few stray hairs back from Fili's forehead with concern, the dwarf was startled to feel a hand on his shoulder. Turning, his eyes met Dwalin's.
"Thorin, what are we going to do about food?" the burly dwarf asked awkwardly, his voice unusually quiet as his eyes refused to meet Thorin's. "Well, none of us have any way of….well, I-it's, we don't…a-and we need…"
The dwarf swallowed heavily as he trailed off. Silence fell across the camp, each member of the company thinking the same thing as they sadly glanced among each other.
Kili was always the one who would shoot supper.
Thorin felt a great heaviness fall on his shoulders as he looked back down at his eldest nephew, who grimaced in his sleep. He had always sent Fili and Kili ahead to hunt supper once they had stopped for the night, if Kili had not found anything before then, because Kili was the only one passable enough with a bow to succeed in the endeavor. Thorin, while he could shoot during battle if need be, had never been quite as good as his nephew with that weapon, the younger having quickly excelled beyond the elder's ability to teach even while he was still a lad. Blinking back tears, the dwarf king looked up at the company. His eyes trailed over each of them, before coming to rest on the scribe.
"Ori," Thorin said, startling the younger dwarf slightly. "You are the only one who still has a long distance, er…weapon, is that correct?"
Ori's eyes widened slightly as a few eyebrows were raised, and the dwarf king sighed as he was finally forced to admit that the scribe's slingshot might be useful after all, even if no self respecting warrior dwarf would call it such. Ori seemed surprised by the wording as well as he looked down at the implement tucked into his belt.
"Erm, yes," he replied, brow furrowing in confusion. Thorin nodded, not sure he could believe what he was about to say.
"Take Bilbo with you- you said you were good at conkers, right? " He turned toward Bilbo, and the hobbit nodded. Thorin rubbed a hand over his face, sighing in defeat. "Try to see if you two can hit anything hard enough to kill it for supper."
If it hadn't been for the reason behind it, several of the dwarves would have believed that their king had truly gone mad.
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Gandalf had been looking around him with concern as the shadows deepened, hoping that their presence would go unnoticed for the night.
The wizard as of yet had not told Thorin the exact nature of their host, and truth be told he wasn't certain if Beorn would even be willing to help them. The skinchanger was not known to be the most sociable of people. Indeed, he wasn't even known to exist by most people in Middle-earth, and even Gandalf had yet to meet him.
He supposed that Radagast would have very quickly become friends with the elusive hermit, not only being one himself and living fairly near the skinchanger's home, but also because the two shared a love of animals that went deeper than most of the free folk in the world.
So when the words "kill it for supper" sounded behind him, the wizard was quick to turn around and lock eyes with the two hunters in question.
"Bilbo, Ori, you will do nothing of the sort," the wizard sternly commanded, drawing the attention of every single conscious member of the company, and causing the pair to freeze.
"Why not?" Thorin asked, rising to his feet and meeting the wizard's gaze. Gandalf however was not intimidated in the slightest, though the dwarf king's stare would have had lesser beings waver.
"Because our host does not eat any animal whatsoever, nor does he kill them," the wizard replied, before the tone of his voice dropped low. "And if you value your life and that of the members of your company, you wouldn't dare to hurt even a fly as long as we are in these lands."
Eyes widened considerably at that, and both Bilbo and Ori immediately sat down in their chosen places, their faces paling slightly even as some stomachs growled audibly.
"Then what would you have us eat?" Thorin hissed, moving nearer the wizard so as to keep his voice low. "We haven't had anything since dawn, and if your friend does not eat meat, then what else is there to be had?"
"He keeps bees, so there is an abundance of honey, amongst other things," the wizard replied testily. "You will not starve, that I can assure you, though you may have to wait until tomorrow. It is far too dark to search for anything now, and it would be best that we remain here until morning."
With that, the wizard set himself down and leaned against the rock, tilting his hat over his face and settling his staff across his knees, not saying another word.
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Bilbo tossed and turned, finding himself unable to sleep. He still felt uneasy, as though they were being watched, but there was no sign of anything save a few fireflies in the night.
A rustle sounded behind him, causing the hobbit to frown and turn over. Balin stood with a sigh, the old dwarf having taken the spot behind him, and greeted Dwalin on watch, before heading back up the path they had come down from earlier that day.
Eyebrows furrowing in confusion, as Balin had already taken his watch, the hobbit rose as well. Stretching his sore muscles, he mumbled something about visiting the bushes to the burly dwarf. Dwalin nodded curtly, before continuing to sharpen his axe, the warrior having fortunately managed to keep his two weapons through the goblin tunnels, along with his whetstone.
His hairy feet plodded silently up the path, eyes following Balin's back, until the dwarf stopped at the top of the ridge. The elder stopped, before sitting down on a rock facing the distant mountains and bowing his head with a deep sigh.
Unsure of whether or not to mention his presence to the elder, the hobbit tarried for a moment, until wizened eyes suddenly met his own. Realizing that Balin had seen him, Bilbo moved out of the shadows and stood by him, fidgeting slightly as he saw the dark mountains in the distance. Their silhouette was only visible in the night sky simply because that was where the stars ended and darkness began.
"You wonder why I came back up here?" Balin said quietly after a moment, causing Bilbo to jump slightly. Turning toward the old dwarf, he nodded. The elder sighed.
"I have known those two lads since the day they were born," Balin began, and the hobbit could hear the sadness in the other's voice. "Fili was certain that the bairn was going to be a boy, despite all of us trying to tell him that it could well be a girl. But he would have it no other way. He was going to have a little brother, and his name would be Kili." Balin paused for a moment, and the moon reflected off of tears falling down his face. Bilbo watched as the salty drops disappeared into the long white beard, before turning toward the mountains again.
"When Kili was born, you should have seen him," Balin continued, a sad smile gracing his face. "His eyes widened, and he immediately reached for the babe. Their father told him no, that Kili was far too little and he didn't want him to get hurt. But Fili insisted loudly, until Kili began to cry. The second that wail was heard, Fili became very quiet, before reaching over and taking his baby brother's hand. And Kili stopped crying, just like that." Bilbo's eyes widened a bit, before nodding.
He had seen firsthand how close the two brothers were. They were always together, never apart, and the horrific expression on Kili's face as the stone giants separated the pair told him that they had never been forcibly separated before.
"Fili quickly declared himself Kili's protector, and would even stand guard if anyone but their mother or father held him," Balin recalled fondly, a smile gracing his cheeks amidst the tears. "We could hardly understand half of what Fili could say, but when he said Kili it was as clear as crystal. And whenever Kili would cry, his brother would be there to quiet him. When he was old enough to leave his mother's bed, Fili insisted that they share one so Kili wouldn't get scared, and we have never been able to separate them since."
Balin paused again as memories came quickly, and chuckled slightly.
"The mischief those boys would get into," he said, shaking his head. "They got to where they didn't even need words- just a look was enough. And we all learned that when that look was shared, it didn't bode well for someone! But we could never tell who the victim was, until it happened." The smile left his face then, and Balin let out a shuddering sigh.
"The second they knew that Thorin was going on this quest, they began to beg to come. They did whatever they could to try and convince their mother and uncle to let them go," he continued, voice wavering. "They trained harder, they trained longer, and they did whatever was asked of them, and each night it would be the same- can we go? Please, we're ready." Balin's eyes filled with tears, and Bilbo hesitantly laid a hand on his shaking shoulder.
"They weren't ready," he said quietly, swallowing heavily. "They were ready for battle, ready for adventure. But….they weren't ready to die. No…Fili, he-he wasn't ready to lose his brother, and Kili wasn't ready to die. Not at all."
"So many lost to those mountains," the old dwarf whispered. "Far too young. Frerin, and now Kili. And Cirashala. And two elder brothers who will never forgive themselves for it."
Balin's wise eyes bore a deep sorrow as he fell silent, and Bilbo recalled the story the old dwarf had told early on in their journey of the sorrow and loss among their people after the battle of Azanulbizar.
"Who else lost their younger brother?" the hobbit asked, his voice barely a whisper, and the old dwarf turned toward him, his eyes glistening.
"Thorin."
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A response to guest reviewer Julia: I apologize if you don't like them, but they aren't filler chapters. They are important to the subplot I have in mind. If it were a novel, the chapters would be FAR longer, and I wouldn't be alternating between the company and Kili/Cira's POV with every couple chapters. The plot will get a bit more exciting next chapter, and hopefully everyone will see where I'm going with this. I also wanted to give the indication that a decent amount of time has passed (a week) since they were separated from the company, and also show just how far it is to Beorn's from Goblintown- 50 miles (well, the Carrock, and Beorn's is a couple miles north of it). Because they're injured and exhausted, it's taking them a bit. But don't worry- there will be more variation starting next K/C chapter on their end (next story chapter will probably be company's POV). And as I mentioned last author's note, there is a very important thing that will happen that influences quite a bit of the storyline within the next few chapters, so I do need to finish it the way I've planned or it will throw everything off.
A response to guest reviewer Ri-chan: I have a lazy eye (amblyopia) and an astigmatism :) I'm not sure what strabismus is. He isn't a bad cook when he pays attention ;) He often will have his laptop on the counter and listen to movie commentaries, so he can get distracted from time to time. But overall he isn't bad. I will be careful with the quilt, and as for pictures- well, I don't really do photobucket or anything (and my facebook, which I rarely visit anyway, is set to private) so about the only way I could do a picture is if I sent it via regular email. You would have to send me your email so I could send a picture of it when I'm done (might be best to wait until I mention that I am done, otherwise it will get forgotten- my memory isn't the best). I wish I could send it via FF, but they're super picky about anything not FF related :( Also- if you don't want your email on my reviews so as for it to not be made public, I will gladly delete it from your review before I allow it to be posted :) I can modify guest reviews :) I hope to update soon as life allows :)
A response to guest reviewer Kaia: Here you go :)
A response to guest reviewer itsaguestyay: Yup, finally managed to spare the time to write :) Don't worry- the reunion will happen soon ;) I don't want to spoil it for others who might read the author's notes and don't want to be spoiled, but it won't take too much longer story-time wise (have no idea on life/writing time wise though ;) I am glad you like it! I do love constructive criticism/praise because it lets me know what I need to keep doing and what I need to work on, so would you be able to tell me what you liked (so I can keep doing it?) Thanks! :D
A response to guest reviewer guest: Don't worry- it will happen soon story time :) I don't want to say specifically in an author's note, simply because some readers don't want spoilers. But there's one more thing that has to happen before then, and it's REALLY important to the sub-plot I have going on, then that can happen :)
Thanks to all who review, favorite and follow- you guys are so awesome! :D :D :D