In Laketown the boatman Bard was out on his usual duties, patrolling the waters and sometimes bringing back food for the villagers. But he would soon come across the most unusual creature.

On the shore close to his village his eyes widened when spotting Brooklyn lying there on his back, his wings splayed out in odd angles, wheezing. Bard brought the boat in to the shore and stepped off after sticking it to the ground. The man carefully went up to the creature, holding a fishing spear in his hands for a weapon.

"What are you?" Bard muttered to himself. The new creature looked very dragon like in nature but didn't look like a dragon at all. Being careful he poked the creature in the arm. That made him groan, struggling to open his eyes.

Brooklyn felt groggy when waking up, gasping at the sight of a real human that wasn't an elf, a dwarf or a wizard. He scuttled back a little, flinching in pain from sore muscles. Bard glared. "You will tell me who you are and what your business is here creature." The human demanded gruffly, his trust issues at an all time high. Brooklyn held up his hands, not wanting to be stabbed by the fish hook, especially after his traumatizing events earlier.

Bard then noted the scratches on the creature's face but his trust didn't change. "Please don't… hurt me… mean no harm, I swear," Brooklyn begged weakly, tears falling down his face as flashbacks of him fighting the wargs and losing his friends came to him. Bard lowered his spear, brow raised at the sight of the creature crying. Well, at least the beak and wings were interesting to him.

"What's your name?" Bard asked softly. Gulping Brooklyn answered. "Brooklyn, am a gargoyle," He mumbled, lying about what he really was since this was an anti dragon town apparently. "Brooklyn," The hybrid replied in a soft voice, still holding up one of his hands in case the human decided to use it. It had been a while since he had seen a human. Bard raised his brow but saw the creature really didn't seem so dangerous, for the moment. He had no idea this was the son of Smaug but noted that Brooklyn was hurt.

He held out his hand. "You need your wounds treated." Bard said. He was one to help ones who were hurt. Brooklyn gulped again, but decided to accept this new human's trust for now, taking Bard's hand and struggled to his feet.

Brooklyn leaned on Bard's shoulder as the man led him to his boat and placed him in. "I'll have to cover you up to hide you when we enter Laketown. Our village especially the governor doesn't take too kindly to strangers," Bard informed him. Brooklyn nodded, wincing from his sprained wing and cuts on his face, gazing out over at the Lonely Mountain, eyes watering again as he was so close to reaching it only to have his traveling cut short again.

….

The two sailed to the entrance of the village where Bard quickly got a tarp and tossed it over his new 'friend'. Brooklyn did his best to remain still, lying there on the floor as Bard went through inspection. He was allowed through thankfully and eventually could come out of hiding again.

Brooklyn limped along as Bard snuck him through the streets to his home. As he opened the door two girls and a boy were there, happy to see their father but the older girl gasped in shock at the sight of their guest.

"Pa? What…?" She exclaimed in disbelief. Bard quieted her. Brooklyn himself blinked a little at the sight of all the children in front of him but still felt pretty weak from all his traveling and action that was happening. Bain's eyes rounded when looking at this strange creature. "Pa, where did he come from?" The boy asked, Bard leading Brooklyn to the nearest bed in the house, placing him there. Brooklyn grunted in pain, happy to lie down properly.

Bard glanced at his son and his daughters. "I found him hurt outside our town but he didn't attack me, so we're helping him. But I will ask questions, for certain." Brooklyn glanced around the house while Bard told his eldest Sigrid to get a blanket and some first aid for Brooklyn. Now that he was closer than ever to his father Brooklyn could feel his presence very near. He cringed, ears flat, the dragon form inside him threatening to burst open again and stay that way forever.

Sigrid placed the blanket around him. Brooklyn looked at Bard weakly. "Where… mother?" He mumbled tiredly, grateful for the blanket. Bard frowned slightly. "She died," The man responded in a normal but somewhat sad voice. Brooklyn felt sorry for him. "I-I'm trying to find my father. Was out of touch with him for too long, raised by my adopted family. "Who's your papa?" Asked Sigrid's younger sister. That made Brooklyn nervous as he shook his head.

"Don't want to say yet," He murmured. Bard put a hand on his shoulder. "Rest for as much as you need to but you can't live here. Who knows what the villagers would do to someone like you." Brooklyn shrugged. "Was only passin' through anyway." He coughed after finishing, Bard telling Sigrid it was her duty to help as much as she could. Brooklyn himself liked kids as he gave her a little weak grin. "Hi." Sigrid looked at him in some surprise but couldn't help liking his voice. She nodded at him while cleaning the eagle scratches.

Bard helped with relocating the wing in its proper position, which made Brooklyn yelp out loud, exhausting him, happy to get medical care though he was sad that he didn't have his Warg buddy, hoping Fangspirit was doing ok with Bilbo and the others.

….

That night he dreamed once again but this time he dreamed of arriving at the mountain and performing a ritual to open it up for him. Brooklyn wandered around the treasure hall, looking for his father. Smaug growled softly when he rose up from the mounds of the treasure he lay in. Brooklyn's ears lay back in anticipation, wanting desperately to see his father out of his dreams.

"I'm so close father, I will be home soon," Brooklyn said in a small voice, as his father's eyes bore into his own. Smaug gave a low rumble of affection as he nuzzled against Brooklyn. Brooklyn's hand petted it. But then he eyed a glowing white gem lying there, glimmering even though there was no sun.

Brooklyn went to pick it up, curious. Smaug's eyes flashed. "The arkenstone…" He growled dangerously, as the stone flashed blindingly, making Brooklyn yelp and suddenly wake up.

The hybrid cried out when sitting up in his bed, shaking. Bard's son had come over with a cup of tea for their guest, still rather suspicious about his demeanor but if his father trusted him then he could too. "What's wrong Brooklyn?" Brooklyn looked at the boy then looked away again. He was slowly feeling better since his first week but now he wanted to venture outdoors to exercise his wings.

"Ok, just a bad dream. I really feel like I need to get out and clear my head," He mumbled, taking another drink of his tea after taking it. Bard had heard this when he came back from his duties. "I'm not so sure you should given that the people here have never seen you before Brooklyn. The Master may want to lock you up or put you to death," He warned. Brooklyn glared. "I won't cause trouble, I promise. And besides I won't be hanging out here much longer anyways."

Bard eventually gave in and nodded. "Fine. But you should probably do it around dusk when not many people are around," he stated. Brooklyn nodded as he lay back to rest until then, giving the cup back to Bard's son.

….

Around dusk like Bard said Brooklyn crept out a window, landing on a dock that supported the house, climbing up the wall of another home so he could just walk along the rooftops. It wasn't such a pretty town in his eyes, for he figured these people had seen better days before being left to rot out here on the lake.

He looked down at some of the people who wound up being homeless, giving an unhappy frown, wishing he could help them without scaring them off when Brooklyn spotted an interesting store that had fabric that seemed closed, figuring it wouldn't hurt to take a peek inside.

There were mostly dirty brown quilts and such laying around but that was when Brooklyn spotted a pretty looking blue one hanging up. He took it down and unfolded it for a better look. What he saw, made his ears fall for he didn't expect something like this in a fabric store of all things.

On the quilt he saw what looked like some kind of prophecy that had the dwarves names on it including Thorin's. Where did this quilt come from and how did their names get on? Suddenly he thought he heard some people outside the window talk and quickly hid under the window to listen.

"…rumors going around that a group of dwarves are traveling to the mountain, and that one black arrow remains to murder the one that rules the Lonely Mountain," said one speaker in a gruff tone, while the other laughed. Brooklyn gulped softly as he figured they could only be talking about his father. He had to get out of here, fast!

Upon backing out of the doorway he accidentally bumped into someone dressed in a hoodie robe, grunting in pain. His face and the stranger's face met each other. The human stranger's face looked rather ugly and mean, whose name was Alfrid, the advisor of the Master of Laketown. His eyes popped at the sight of the strange creature before him.

Brook grinned nervously, waving. "Uh, hey," He chuckled. "Just leaving—." Alfrid gave a yell that rang in his ears. "Demon! Dragon! Invading Laketown!" He shrieked, grabbing a rock and throwing it at Brooklyn, hitting him in the shoulder. Brooklyn cried out in pain, rubbing it and running away from the crazy human, hearing more distressed and panicked screams from the town from their homes now that he was exposed.

The son of Smaug quickly went back into Bard's house to tell him. Bard looked pretty mad. "What… happened?!" He demanded. Brooklyn flushed, looking down. "Someone saw me. I can't stay anymore. Thanks for helping me but it is time for me to leave." The two girls near their father looked somewhat sad he was leaving but he had someplace else to be.

Bard then nodded, arms folded. "It is for the best. I figured this would happen anyway," He said in a stern voice, which hurt Brooklyn a bit more than the rock that struck him. Eyes moistened a little he gave a small wave as he left the house, climbing to the roof, no longer wearing his cloak as he had no more need for it anyway, the town screaming further. Some guards shot arrows that narrowly missed Brooklyn when taking to the air, the Master of Laketown watching from his office.

"Stupid dragon for disrupting the peace," He muttered while eating the town's food after Alfrid had informed him, hoping that monster would not dare set foot in his town again.

Brooklyn glided for most of the night, keeping the gates of the Lonely Mountain in his sight, not wanting to stop anymore until he finally reached his home. But deep down, a small fragment of memory of his two brothers Lex and Broadway suddenly invaded his head, hoping he wouldn't forget them and one day reunite with them again.

He eventually reached the mountainside, grasping the sides of it with his talons, climbing up the rest of the way, smelling the air for any kind of entrance.

Upon reaching the near top close to the old gate, Brooklyn couldn't help but admire the artwork and felt himself collapse on the ground for a bit, unable to believe that he had come all the way here at last, shaking slightly.

Brooklyn felt he could almost feel his father's presence through all this stone and began scratching at it to try and break through but nothing happened, making tears fall down his face at not being able to get inside. But that was when the light of the coming dawn began to shine on the stone wall, revealing a riddle written in old dragon language. Brooklyn squinted and was somehow able to read it given his dragon heritage.

"I can be cold or hot, but best with friends with fire I am not," he read out loud, his hands tracing along the writing. To Brooklyn this felt like a riddle, like when he had his riddle game with Smeagol. But what was the answer?

Brooklyn knew then he had to do a lot of thinking for this so he sat down against the wall, taking nearly an hour or two to think of the riddle. That was when it hit him, from whenever Broadway made something that required heating water!

"It is water, so obvious," Said Brooklyn but then he saw another message appearing underneath after solving the riddle. Heirs to Smaug must pay blood tribute to open the door as well as answering the riddle.

That made him cringe a little, his ears falling and picked up a piece of sharp rock, putting it on his wrist and quickly cutting it, making him gasp. Brooklyn wiped his wrist on the stone which began to crumble, and a door suddenly opened. A small smile appeared but now his nerves were at an all time high, knowing he had finally returned home, stepping into the Lonely Mountain.