Just to clarify, Kelsey's wound in her shoulder will not affect her fighting; it was only a flesh wound and although she was losing some blood, it was the combination of shock and her cancer that caused her to pass out.

Enjoy!

Merilwen…

Her pearl white dress swayed around her legs as she gracefully walked towards a small pond; its water glistening like crystals and yet there was no sunlight. The pond was surrounded by a grove of trees and as Kelsey approached it, she could hear soft voices beckoning her towards it, entrancing her. A woman's voice calling out to her, saying a word that she was unfamiliar with. As Kelsey placed her foot into the water, an icy chill travelled through her, freezing her in her tracks and acknowledging an evil presence behind her. As she turned her head, Kelsey saw a fiery landscape…

Merilwen…wake up…we will meet soon…Merilwen

Kelsey woke with a gasp; the woman's soft voice still echoing in her ears. A slight throb in her shoulder got her to look down at the bandage wrapping around her shoulder and upper arm. Taking in her dark surroundings, she saw several dwarves lying on the ground around a dim fire. Their snores filled the silent air and as she stood up, she noticed one dwarf with red bushy hair sucking in tiny moths as he snored away. Trying not to laugh, she stepped over him towards the voices near the fire.

"Don't mind him, laddie. Thorin has more cause than most to hate orcs. After the dragon took the Lonely Mountain, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient dwarf kingdom of Moria. But our enemy had got there first."

Kelsey watched as Thorin walked over to the edge of cliff looking out over the valley as a white haired dwarf starts to tell his story to Kili, his brother and Bilbo.

"Moria had been taken by legions of Orcs lead by the most vile of all their races: Azog the Defiler. The giant Gundabad Orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Durin. He began by beheading the King."

"Thrain, Thorin's father, was driven mad by grief. He went missing, taken prisoner or killed, we did not know. We were leaderless. Defeat and death were upon us. That is when I saw him: a young dwarf prince facing down the Pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe, his armour rent, wielding nothing by an oaken branch as a shield."

Kelsey held her breath as glimpses of the past flashed before her eyes. A young Thorin fighting off a massive pale Orc with scars running across his face and body; with only an oaken branch. What is happening to me? She thought as the white haired dwarf continued his story.

"Azog the Defiler, learned that day that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken. Our forces rallied and drove the orcs back. Our enemy had been defeated. But there was no feast, nor song that night for our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few had survived. And I thought to myself then, there is one who I could follow. There is one I could call King."

Thorin turned around to find the entire Company awake and watching him in awe, including Kelsey. She barely knew the dwarf but from that story and the strange flashback, she held respect for him. She stepped forward out of the shadows, ignoring the surprised faces and asked a very vital question.

"But the pale orc? What happened to him?"

"He slunk back into the hole whence he came. That filth died of his wounds long ago, Miss Kelsey."

And with that, Thorin strode back to his rock where he had been sitting. Silence fell before the Company, taking in Thorin's answer. Kelsey noticed an eye exchange between the white haired dwarf and Gandalf which meant that not all is what is seemed.

"Miss Kelsey, how are you feeling?' questioned Kili as he came up beside her, slightly touching her throbbing shoulder. His brother and a dwarf with a funny hat also approached.

"My shoulder is throbbing a little bit but nothing I can handle," answered Kelsey, trying to put on a brave face. Kili gave her a small smile and passed over a bowl of what looked to be soup. She quickly grabbed; with new found hunger and slurped it down.

"Let me introduce you to the Company," said Kili as he started to point out to the dwarves. "This is Fili, my older brother and Bofur. Then there is Bifur, Bombur, Oin, Gloin, Ori, Nori, Dori, Dwalin and Balin. My uncle, Thorin is the leader of this Company."

Kelsey's head spun as she tried to register all the names. That's a lot of names to remember.

"Don't worry, Miss Kelsey," laughed Fili, his braids bouncing along his lip as he patted Kili on the back. "It takes time to remember." Bofor gave her a big smile

She sighed in relief as the dwarves settled back down to sleep and wondered what tomorrow would bring. Looking around, she discovered her sleeping roll had moved beside Kili who had just sat back down, obviously on watch.

"Come and have more sleep, Kelsey. You can explain more of your story tomorrow when others are awake to hear. We are all intrigued of how you got here and I'm more interested in what has happened since I last saw you," said Kili patting her sleep roll. With a roll of an eye and slight tinge of a blush upon her pale cheeks, Kelsey slipped back into a deep sleep, where an icy chill and fiery landscapes fill her dreams.

This isn't a 'regular girl falls into Middle Earth'. As you might have noticed earlier in this chapter, something extraordinary but dangerous situation will occur to our heroine. She will find out more of who she is and what her destiny is with this Company. This will also be a slow romance between Kili and Kelsey as I believe that they should have a deep connection of friendship first before going down the journey of romance.

Merilwen = mare-ill-wehn