RECAP-
"The elf. I want her dead." The darkness grumbled.
"Yes, my Lord."
"Take this." Darkness spun and wove itself into a weapon.
"Use it only for her."
"Thank you, my lord. The elf will be slain."
"Azog. Do not underestimate her."
The dwarves along with Bilbo left Rivendell while the white council was mulling things over. After a heartfelt farewell to her mother and brother-in-law, Valaira left.
Gandalf would follow when he finished a few things with Saruman and Elrond.
"Farewell my child." Galadriel's voice echoed through her daughters' ears. "Stay safe."
Valaira made her way to the mountains which were slick with recent rain, the sky was still cloudy from the thunderstorm that had just recently stopped. The smell of wet Orc permeated the area. The dwarves were being followed. She carefully made her way to where the company was supposed to wait for Gandalf and herself. But no one was there. Odd.
She followed the smell of wet dwarf until she found a cave and within was the sleeping dwarves. She had a funny feeling about this place. It also had an odd odor lingering, she couldn't quite place it.
"What's that?" Bofur had been speaking with Bilbo and he noticed a strange light emitting from his sheath. Bilbo drew his sword, it was glowing blue. That could only mean one thing.
"Wake up. Wake up!" Thorin shouted at everyone. The cave was making strange creaking noises and the floor was trembling. Then they all fell. They fell through tunnels being bumped and scraped along the way and ended up being dumped onto a wooden platform on top of one another. Valaira just happened to fall onto Thorin. Once they had their bearings back, each looked at the other to see who the other was. And then quickly and awkwardly pushed themselves away from each other. The elf's eyes met Thorin cold, stony, and emotionless ones for a moment. But that was quickly forgotten when a troop of goblins began escorting them to an unknown location.
Everyone but Bilbo was pushed and shoved along wooden boardwalks, he smartly hid himself and the goblins were none the wiser.
A disgustingly fat goblin addressed the company. "Who would be so bold as to come armed into my kingdom? Spies? Thieves? Assassins?" His voice echoed through the cave. Uh oh, Valaira thought.
"Dwarves, Your Malevolence." Another goblin answered back.
"Dwarves?" Valaira had met the Great Goblin once or twice before. Neither time ended well for him.
"We found them on the front porch."
She beheaded the goblins' mate the first time. The second, she may have set his son on fire and burned him to death.
"Well, don't just stand there; search them! Every crack, every crevice. What are you doing in these parts? Speak! Well then, if they will not talk, we'll make them squawk! Bring out the Mangler! Bring out the Bone Breaker! Start with the youngest."
"Wait." Thorin stepped forward, earning the goblins' attention.
"Well, well, well, look who it is. Thorin son of Thrain, son of Thror; King under the Mountain. Oh, but I'm forgetting, you don't have a mountain. And you're not a king. Which makes you nobody, really. I know someone who would pay a pretty price for your head. Just the head, nothing attached. Perhaps you know of whom I speak, an old enemy of yours. A Pale Orc astride a White Warg."
Valaira was doing her best to hide from the fat goblin.
"Azog the Defiler was destroyed. He was slain in battle long ago." Thorin didn't believe for one second that his old enemy was still alive and still hunting for his blood.
"So you think his defiling days are done, do you? Send word to the Pale Orc; tell him I have found his prize." The Goblin then scanned the rest of the faces before him. His eyes widened when they caught the feminine face trying to hide from him.
"You!" The goblin snarled. "Restrain her. This must be my lucky day." A pair of goblins grabbed each one of her arms and brought her closer to the goblin king. The dwarves were pushed aside, a bit stunned at the turn of events.
"You thought I'd forget your face? That I would forget what you did to my family? I will make you suffer a thousand deaths for what you did." He grinned dangerously.
"Have you forgotten what I did to your son? And how I did it? I would love to see you try." She smiled back at him. This just made him angrier.
He actually got off his throne and grabbed the nearest torch and held it to her face. A bit too close for her liking.
"I should burn you alive. See how you like it." He moved the torch under her chin, the flames almost licking her skin. Sweat started forming. "But Perhaps I should start somewhere else." He took a hold of her wrist and yanked her arm straight until it was stretched out toward him, he moved the torch until the flame was near her fingertips. "Wouldn't want to start with the head. No. It would be too quick."
That was the worst choice the goblin had made yet. Valaira stretched out her hand even more like she was blowing a kiss and blew at the flame. The result ended in what made her look like she was breathing fire. The flames singed the hairy arms of the goblin and surprised him causing the torch to fall from his hand. He was livid.
"Slash them! Beat them! Kill them! Kill them all!" The goblin commanded his minions. The company was then pushed to the ground, the members beaten and whipped, until a great blast of light knocked the goblins over too.
"Take up arms. Fight. Fight!" Gandalf had finally arrived.
The company scrambled for their weapons and started to slay their captors. "Follow me. Quick! Run! Quickly!" They ran. They dodged arrows. Dodged blades and kept running. That was until the goblin king showed his ugly face one last time.
"You thought you could escape me? What are you going to do now, elf?" Valaira cut off both of his arms. "That'll do it." Then they fell. The platform that everyone had been standing on broke, and it was falling with them on it. But it did slow their impact. Valaira rolled out from underneath the rubble and Gandalf stumbled out and was looking a bit dazed.
"Well, that could have been worse." The goblin king then landed on all those who were too slow to get up. "You've got to be joking!"
Gandalf and Valaira hurriedly helped everyone up and out, hoards of goblins were making their way toward them. "There's too many! We can't fight them."
"Only one thing will save us: daylight! Come on! Here, on your feet! Five, six, seven, eight...Bifur, Bofur...that's ten...Fili, Kili...that's twelve...and Bombur - that makes thirteen. Where's Bilbo? Where is our Hobbit? Where is our hobbit?!" Everyone made it out of the mountain.
"Curse the halfling! Now he's lost?!" Lost? He was just up the hill where they had run down. But there was a strange shimmering light around him. Could the others not see him? Was he invisible to their eyes? Bilbo was making his way toward them and then leaned up against a tree facing away from the others.
"I thought he was with Dori!"
"Don't blame me!"
"Well, where did you last see him?"
"I think I saw him slip away when they first collared us." This was strange. Why couldn't they see him?
"What happened exactly? Tell me!"
"I'll tell you what happened. Master Baggins saw his chance and he took it! He's thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm hearth since first he stepped out of his door! We will not be seeing our Hobbit again. He is long gone."
The strange shimmering light disappeared and he turned toward them and finally spoke. "No, he isn't."
"Bilbo Baggins!" Gandalf exclaimed. "I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life!"
"Bilbo, we'd given you up!"
"How on earth did you get past the Goblins?!"
"How, indeed," Thorin asked, skeptical. The elf caught a glimpse of a shiny object that Bilbo had tried putting in his pocket with little suspicion.
"Well, what does it matter? He's back!" Valaira thought Gandalf saw it as well.
"It matters! I want to know: why did you come back?"
"Look, I know you doubt me, I know you always have. And you're right, I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. And my garden. See, that's where I belong. That's home. And that's why I came back because you don't have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can." Any doubt that was left in the dwarves mind had vanished after Bilbo's little speech. He also gained the respect of Valaira. Something not easily earned.