HOPE YOU ALL ENJOYED THE MITHRA SEGMENTS IN THE LAST CHAPTER. SO MUCH TO LEARN AND NOT ENOUGH TIME TO SQUEEZE IT IN. HOWEVER, I WANTED TO TRY AND ESTABLISH THE FACT THAT MITHRA IS FINALLY FEELING THE STIRRINGS OF A TRUE ROMANCE WITH THE FAIR-HAIRED PRINCE. AS KILI DOES FOR TAURIEL, BUT IN A SLOWER WAY. SHE'S JUST NOW REALIZING THAT MAYBE...JUST MAYBE...SHE CAN LET HIM-AND HIS COMPANY-IN. LET THEM SEE THE GIRL BEHIND THE HYBRID THEY'VE COME TO KNOW. I HOPE I MADE THAT CLEAR. SHE'S TESTING HER OWN BOUNDARIES, AS WELL, SEEING WHAT'S SHE'S COMFORTABLE WITH AS FAR AS HOLDING HANDS AND SHOWING AFFECTION AND COMMUNICATING.
OH, AND IF ANYONE IS CURIOUS, AILI IS ACTED BY TATIANA MASLANY. A SCRUFFIER VERSION, BUT TATIANA NONTHELESS. AS FOR MITHRA...I'LL LET YOU ALL DECIDE. WHO SHOULD MITHRA BE ACTED BY?
ANYWAY, NEXT UP: BARD THE BOWMAN MEETS THE COMPANY. BARD IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE CHARACTERS AND I LIKE THE THOUGHT OF HIM KNOWING MITHRA AND HER BEING A VISITING-AUNT TYPE FIGURE FOR HIS KIDS. ANYWAY, I DIGRESS. ONTO THE STORY!
GOD BLESS AND GOOD DAY!
~THE LUPINE SOJOURNER.
(A)
I then notice that Bilbo has been clinging to Nori's barrel this whole time, taking the many dunkings as best he could, but the poor Halfling looked near-drowned. I then reach over and pull the Hobbit into my barrel. I am fairly lean and the barrel is large. He slips in gratefully, catching his breath as best he could before we went over a few more waterfalls. I focus on letting Bilbo breath and keeping the barrel upright and let the others worry about the Orcs.
"Are you okay?" I ask. He sighs.
"As mu-much as can b-be expec-t-ted." He replies, shivering. I pat his shoulder and then brace myself as we dunk once more. As we go over waterfalls and through rapids, I am tossed an Orc ax and use it to add as large a slice as I can manage to a log holding three or so Orcs. "Sorry." I mumble. I'd leaned over, regrettably pressing my abdomen against his forehead. Bilbo was such a gentleman, I am sure he was flustered. I was for him and me.
"It can't be helped." He replies in good grace. I smile, then drop it and concentrate.
"Hold on." I caution. "Here, duck down. I'll stand in the barrel and then it won't be awkward." I suggest and Bilbo does just that. I then am free to slice and hack at any Orc in range. I hit a good deal before I am clear to slip back into the barrel, where my balance is a bit better.
Bilbo awkwardly stands up. His cheeks are a little flushed. "Maybe I should get back out?" I scoff.
"And what? Get tossed about by the rapids? No, best you stay in here." I am stunned by the sight of Bombur, whose barrel is a virtual armory (there are that many Orc weapons stuck in it), somehow sent onto the sloped bank. He then careens into several Orcs before it bounces across the river on a log, slaying many more, rolling along without any apparent hindrance. It then accomplishes more middle-fingering physics, Mia laughing and applauding the entire time. Bombur then thrusts his extremities, his hands grabbing weapons as he did, out of the barrel and proceeds to spin and hack away, slaying several more before he dived feet-first into a remaining empty barrel. I then grimace. I could have helped Bilbo into that one. Oh, well. At least he's out of the river.
=#=#=#=#=
(M)
Bombur will always amaze me. From how much he eats to how many foes he kills. That is a Dwarf of many surprises, including defying the very laws of physics in a barrel. I can't help but laugh in amazement and applaud this rotund yet robust Dwarf for his ability to lay absolute waste to enemies when the need arises. Like at Beorn's house, when he surpassed us all in his haste to get to safety.
His barrel rolls along the sloped bank before somehow bouncing across and not falling off a log, rolling along the other side, over Orc after Orc before getting stuck on an uprising of rock. Not done killing by any means, Bombur makes the barrel a makeshift suit of armor and uses a few of the weapons stuck in his barrel to spin and slay multiple foes at once, the rest decimating his barrel. He then performed a surprisingly graceful leap into the remaining empty barrel. In the background of this, I dimly note that Aili and Bilbo are sharing a barrel. I curse under my breath. Poor Bilbo.
I should get him into my barrel. I'm thinner and take up less space than Aili and he would no doubt be more comfortable, but then again we don't have time, most likely. Then, as if to outdo Bombur and show off, Legolas shows up out of the blue and leaps onto the heads of Dwalin and Dori, neither of whom particularly like being a stepping stone for an Elf, lighter than Man or no. He's shooting arrows with pin-point accuracy still, as usual. I swear, that Elf...he's just a big show-off. Legolas eventually hops over another Dwarf I can't name before landing on the bank, surfing a slain Orc down a small slope and continuing to slay left and right. I sigh.
"SHOW OFF!" I call, but I can't show him how it's done without my gear, which is back in Thranduil's palace. He uses the Dwarves' heads as stepping stones again to get to the other side, taking care to make mine one of them. I curse and nurse my now split lip. He is supremely petty sometimes.
=#=#=#=#=
(A)
I now see why Uncle doesn't like Elves. Perhaps he just fought alongside Legolas at some point. He's leaping about on our heads without a care and it's all I can do to avoid him. Not much you can do about steering but lean one way or another, however. I also have a passenger, so that makes it all the harder. Nevertheless, I somehow manage not to get stepped on by that show-off of a prince. Soon enough, we're clear of Orc and Elf alike and drift relatively peacefully along the river. I sigh and relax into the side of the barrel.
"At least it's over now." I muse. "No more rapids." Bilbo nods, but looks rattled and weary. Not to mention cold.
"Don't think I'll get warm again any time soon, though." He replies. I smile.
"If we could get dry clothes and a fire, it would be better." Bilbo sighs, letting his eyes close.
"Ah...fire..." He mumbles contentedly. I scan the area for pursuers and find nothing, smiling.
"Anything behind us?" Thorin calls.
"Not that I can see." Balin replies.
"Me, neither." I add. Bofur comes up from bracing inside his barrel, spewing water from his mouth, his barrel tilting at his movements. I smile.
"I think we've outrun the Orcs!" He cheers. Thorin, however, frowns.
"Not for long. We've lost the current." I look ahead and see a decent landing spot from which we can head toward the mountain.
"Uncle!" I call, pointing to the area. He nods.
"Make for the shore! Follow Aili!" He orders. Everyone agrees and Bilbo and I try to paddle together before I kindly tell the Hobbit that it might be better if only one of us does it. He then scoots down a little to give me more room. I reach the shore and swing myself up and out before giving Bilbo a hand. Poor Hobbit trembles like a leaf in the wind. I can't do much about it, however. As everyone hits shore, as well, I head back to help Bofur get his brother out of the barrel.
"Come on, you big lump you." He notes, grabbing Bombur under the arms and heaving repeatedly. Once that's done, I hear Kili groaning as he presses a wet rag to his wound. Bofur and I lean in to take a closer look before deciding that Oin would be better off treating him. Kili grabs my arm, as I'm closer.
"It's nothing. I'm fine." He mumbles.
"Like Mahal you are." I growl. "Oin needs to look at that."
"On your feet." Thorin orders. Fili turns to him.
"Kili's wounded. His leg needs binding."
"There's an Orc pack on our tail." Thorin retorts. "We keep moving." I frown.
"Uncle, we do that and we may risk losing Kili." I reply, stepping closer to him so Kili won't hear. Probably did, anyway, but I tried.
"Where do we go?" Balin asks.
"To the mountain. We're so close." Bilbo reminds us.
"He's right. I saw it when we went up a tree in Mirkwood. It's close." I then sigh. "There is the lake, though."
"We have no way across it." Balin adds.
"So then we go around." I counter.
"The Orcs will run us down, sure as daylight." Dwalin retorts. I frown.
"If we stick to the trees along the shore...maybe..."
"We have no weapons to defend ourselves, in any case." Dwalin notes. Thorin then gets a look at Kili.
"Bind his leg. Quickly." He orders. I nod, looking for Oin. "You have two minutes." It isn't nearly enough time, but I take it and motion Oin over. I am already tearing a strip off my shirt. Oin takes it and gets to work while everyone either empties their boots of water or rings out whatever they can from their clothes. Mithra, however, goes scouting. Wise idea.
If there wasn't the tall Man standing on a high point on the rock, bow in hand and arrow aimed right at her chest.
=#=#=#=#=
(M)
As soon as we're safe and clear on the shore, I hear someone moving right behind me, but I am too busy ringing out my hair to notice. Suddenly, Fili is in front of me and swinging me around. I have to put my hands on his shoulders just to steady myself and am soon enough put down.
"You've never done that before." I muse, not sure why I liked it so much. Fili merely shrugs.
"Exactly. Making up for lost time." I chuckle.
"...Well, maybe not swing me so fast next time. I'm dizzy." He scoffs.
"No, you're not." Before I can reply, Fili has spotted Aili not far away, gazing at poor Kili's knee with trepidation and worry. Fili scurries over and I don't blame him, but for some reason, I want him back here so I can hold his hand and we can talk and...why am I suddenly getting possessive of him? I don't even...I couldn't possibly...maybe...
Oh, great Valar, I've done it. I think I've let him capture my most prized possession; my heart. This is weird. I've never felt this way...so how could I know if this is love?
I shake myself and move to patrol the immediate area for signs of Elvin or Orc-ish pursuers. Only to bump into a guy standing with the setting sun behind him and arrow pointed right at my chest.
=#=#=#=#=
(A)
Dwalin grabs a branch as we all notice the stranger and prepares to engage.
"Dwalin, no!" I call, but he starts charging forward. The Man fires an arrow into the branch to dissuade Dwalin and then whirls and knocks the rock from Kili hand before returning an arrow to the bow he holds and pointing it again at Mithra. She's stock-still, hands up.
"Do it again..." He growls in an accent I've never heard before. "And she's dead. You'd be next." I swallow.
"Listen." I hear Mithra say in a calm voice. "We're just passing through." She explains. "We'll be gone in minutes if you put the bow down. We don't mean you harm." The Man doesn't move the bow an inch. Balin then glances behind the stranger.
"Excuse me, but, ah, you're from Laketown, if I'm not mistaken." He notes, coming forward with his hands up.
"Balin, don't!" Mithra warns, but the bow is already pointed at him.
"That barge over there," Balin continues, stepping back to show his complacency. "It wouldn't be available for hire, by any chance?" He asks. That seems to relax the man, at least a little, who lets the arrow slide forward again, but he still looks wary and guarded. I suppose anyone would, discovering a mysterious band of Dwarves and a hybrid on a shore, with Elvin barrels nearby. He then strides swiftly to his barge and stows his bow.
"What makes you think I would help you?" He asks tersely.
"Those boots have seen better days." Balin replies. The bargeman looks down at them automatically. "As has that coat." The man doesn't appear convinced, grabbing barrels and loading them onto his barge. "No doubt you have hungry mouths to feed." Balin adds. "How many bairns?" He asks. The man doesn't say a word as he loads the barrels.
"A boy and two girls." He says finally. Balin nods.
"And your wife. I'd imagine she's...she's a beauty." Balin adds. The man frowns as he loads another few barrels. He then refuses to look at us for a moment.
"...Aye...she was." He finally replies. I groan softly. Oh, Mahal...
=#=#=#=#=
(M)
I knew I recognized that accent from somewhere! Bard. Of course. He hasn't aged a day, really, except that grey is slightly more prominent now, especially around his temples. I stand back and let Balin handle it.
If Bard knew I was here, it might complicate things. I'd have to explain myself and probably make everyone question me again. I then watch as Balin makes the mistake of mentioning Bard's deceased wife, though he couldn't have known. The pain is visible to all as Bard tenses. I feel bad, but know to stay where I was.
"Aye, she was."
=#=#=#=#=
(A)
"I'm sorry." Balin apologizes. "I didn't mean to-"
"Oh, come on, come on. Enough of the niceties." Dwalin interrupts. The man frowns.
"What's your hurry?" He asks.
"What's it to you?" Dwalin snaps in reply.
"Dwalin." I hiss. "He may be our only transport. Be nice." He merely glares at me. The man steps closer, not affected by Dwalin's rudeness as far as I can tell.
"I would like to know who you are and what you are doing in these lands." He notes, his arms crossed, bending to rest them on his barge.
"I am Aili and we're-"
"Simple merchants from the Blue Mountains." Balin interjects. "Journeying to see our kin in the Iron Hills." I nod, trying not to betray the fact that this was news to me. That it was a lie.
"Lovely country up there." I add. The man smirks.
"Simple merchants, you say?" He stands again and goes to adjust a few barrels, still smirking.
"We need food, supplies, weapons." Thorin notes.
"Can you help us?" I ask. The man merely fingers a barrel, the arrow marks in particular.
"I know where these barrels came from." He notes.
"What of it?" Thorin asks, looking a little unsettled. There goes our cover story. Should have thought of that.
"I don't know what business you had with the Elves," The man notes. "but I don't think it ended well." You wouldn't be wrong there. I note inwardly, surprised at the shrewdness of this man. Then again, it doesn't take an amazing intellect, just sharp eyes and a little wit, to see that we're wet, so are the barrels, and we're desperate for transport. Won't take much to piece it together. "No one enters Laketown but by leave of the Master." The man notes. "All his wealth comes from trade with the Woodland Realm. He would see you in irons before risking the wrath of King Thranduil." He adds, tossing the anchoring ropes to shore. They end up hitting Balin.
"This isn't going well." Mia notes under her breath. The man's head snaps to her and he frowns.
"Didn't know you had a social side, Earthstrider." He notes, looking directly at Mia, who flushes a little.
"From time to time." She replies. "Nice to see you."
"Sorry I pointed my bow at you. You're usually more...up-kept than this. Didn't recognize you."
"Yeah. Whoops." I frown. "You had the sun behind you. Couldn't see you properly." She counters, almost playfully. Apparently, Mithra is known virtually everywhere.
"Coming to visit Laketown, then?" The man asks.
"No, Bard. Visiting the Iron Hills. Haven't been in a while. Figured I'd follow these fellows." She replies, a little tensely but cordially all the same.
"I'll wager there are ways to enter that town unseen." Balin calls, getting back to the point at hand.
"Aye." The man, apparently named Bard, replies. "But for that, you'd need a smuggler." Balin steps closer.
"For which we'll pay. Double." The man looks at Balin with a sudden interest. I groan under my breath. How on Earth are we going to scrape together that much money? I barely have fifty pieces to my name. Whatever the others have has been exchanged and bartered at various stages of this quest. We haven't spent much, if any, of it though...so maybe...
"Balin..." I caution.
"If you can pay what you say, I can help." Bard offers.
"Thank you." Balin replies. Bard nods.
"Then get aboard. I've lost time. The guards might wonder what held me." Bard orders. We obey and are off through the misty, ice-ridden waters of the lake. It's peaceful out here, I find. Mithra is at the helm with Bard, chatting.
"Mia just keeps getting more interesting." Fili grumbles, looking in her general direction.
"She is known as 'Earthstrider'." I point out. Fili nods.
"Aye, but I thought it might be an exaggeration." I exhale slowly.
"Apparently not."
"No joke." Fili replies. "She's been everywhere."
"I think there's certainly more to her than appearances suggest." Bofur, right beside me, notes. I nod.
"Yes. I agree. But, I don't think she's very open to sharing." Fili sighs.
"Shame. I'm very curious." Because you fancy her. I reply inwardly, but don't feel like kicking that hornet's nest by repeating it aloud. We then let silence reign and watch the water go by and the mist swirl around us as we passed through it. Then, out of the gloom comes a stone outcropping.
"Watch out!" Bofur calls. I place my hand on his, smiling.
"He's sailed these waters before. He knows where the dangers are." I note. Bofur then relaxes.
"Aye." Bard agrees, cutting a sharp turn to avoid another pillar. This must be the ruins of the old town...Escaroth. Before Smaug came. I swallow. There's virtually nothing left.
"What are you trying to do, drown us?" Thorin grumbles. Bard frowns.
"I was born and bred on these waters, Master Dwarf." He replies. "If I wanted to drown you...I would not do it here." He adds. I sigh and head over to watch Balin calculating Bard's payment.
"Oh, I've had enough of this lippy Lakeman." Dwalin growls under his breath.
"He is our transport." I point out. "Please, try to be cordial at least." I add. Dwalin raises an eyebrow at me, but doesn't comment or apologize. I roll my eyes.
"I say we throw him over the side and be done with it." Dwalin notes after a moment. I groan aloud.
"Bard." Bilbo replies before I can. "His name's Bard."
"How do you know?" Bofur asks.
"Uh, Mia addressed him by name. That, and I asked." He replies.
=#=#=#=#=
(M)
"I've never knew you to travel with this size group." Bard notes. I sigh.
"I know. I just...I like it with them." I reply. He chuckles.
"You? Like people?" I roll my eyes.
"New thing I'm trying." I snark, smirking.
"Indeed?" He replies. "I believe it suits you, if you are truly happy with them." I smile.
"I believe I am." Bard nods.
"Good." I then move on to a new topic.
"How are the kids?" Bard laughs.
"Oh, same as usual. Wonderful. Bain is becoming quite the bargeman." I smile.
"Oh? He wants to carry the torch, eh?" Bard nods.
"Yes. He's a natural." I nod.
"It seems you were as well, from what I hear." Bard scoffs.
"Those in Laketown are not particularly fond of gossiping with outsiders." I nod.
"Oh, no. They're not. The Elves of the Woodland Realm find it their chief entertainment, however." Bard sighs.
"Should have known." I smile.
"Suppose you should have." We're then silent until Bofur spots a pillar of Old Dale through the mist and calls a warning. I roll my eyes but refrain from commenting. Bard can handle himself.
"He's sailed these waters before. He knows where the dangers are." Aili replies softly, hand on Bofur's. Ever since that morning after the carrock...they've been getting increasingly mushy. And apparently I've been developing a tolerance to it, because I don't get that gagging reaction I normally do at things like that. Bard gives a curt 'aye' to Aili's words before neatly executing a sharp turn around another pillar. Old Escaroth must have been a sight to see, indeed, if there was need of this many pillars. Too bad it was destroyed.
"What are you trying to do, drown us?" Thorin grumbles. I pinch the bridge of my nose, sighing heavily. Bard glares Thorin dead in the eyes.
"I was born and bred on these waters, Master Dwarf." He replies. "If I wanted to drown you...I would not do it here." I have to give Bard props for that response. Nicely done. I even chuckle before going to check and see if I'll have to contribute to Bard's payment. If not into the main portion, I'd most certainly give the man a little extra. He deserved it. I always brought money with me, extra money, when I knew my travels would lead me toward Laketown. After dealing with a bandit problem once, the Master gave me a free pass to come and go as I please. I felt not quite honored. More...patted on the head, put with more pomp and ceremony. There was a written version, somewhere, of my pass, I'm sure, but I hadn't earned it. Not to me. I feel certain Alfrid, that creepy servant to the Master, had a lot to do with it. He was always nosing into my business when I came here, and I pray we don't run into each other.