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X
A few weeks later the company made camp on a cliff like structure. It was a peaceful evening, and Leila couldn't sleep. Her insomnia was particularly bad this night. She sat up near the fire with Fili and Kili; watching the flames dance, and sharpening her swords and daggers. She saw Bilbo tossing and turning, he had made the mistake of trying to sleep next to Bombur. He stood up and went over to the ponies and began to murmur to Myrtle.
Leila turned her attention back to her sharpening, and without realizing it she began to hum. She looked up after a few minutes to find Fili, Kili, Balin, Dwalin, Thorin, and Gandalf staring at her. She realized what she had been doing and blushed.
"That was a pretty song lass," said Balin tenderly, " What is it?"
" Just a lullaby my Ada used to sing to my sister and I."
"Sister?" Fili questioned.
She went to answer when a peircing shriek split the night. She tensed and placed her hand on Silencer. Bilbo came trotting over looking shooked, "What was that?"
"Orcs." said Kili.
"Orcs?"
" They attack at night. Really quiet, no screams, just lots of blood." Bilbo looked mortified, and Fili and Kili started to snicker.
" You think that's funny. You think a night raid by orcs is a joke?" Thorin said furiously.
" We meant nothing by it." said Kili ashamed.
" No you didn't. You know nothing of the world." Thorin said, turning to walk towards the edge of the cliff.
" Possibly to throw himself off at their stupidity." Leila thought. She had grown fond of Kili and Fili, and all the dwarfs, but they never ceased to reach new height with their stupidity.
" It's alright laddie," said Balin, sympathetically, " Thorin has more cause than most to hate orcs." Balin began to tell the tale, about the battle of Moria where King Thror had been decapitated by The Pale Orc, Azog the Defiler. Thorin's father ,Thrain, had also been lost in that battle. She knew the story well. " There was no feast, no song that night. We few had survived. And I thought to myself then. There is one whom I could follow, there is one I could call king." Leila looked at Thorin with an admiring gaze, as did the rest of the dwarfs.
" And the pale orc?" Bilbo asked, " What happened to him.
" He shrunk back into the hole whence he came," Thorin spat, " and died of his wounds." Gandalf, Balin, and Leila shared a knowing look. They knew that he hadn't died, that he had somehow survived the ordeal.
X
The next day around mid-afternoon the company was caught in the midst of a down pour. Leila seeing that Bilbo had forgotten to bring a cloak, undid hers and draped it around his shoulders. He smiled at her gratefully, she nodded graciously and rode on.
" Mr. Gandalf," Dori called, " can't you do something about this deluge."
" Oh come on Dori," Leila called playfully, thrusting her arms out, " It never hurt anybody." She let the rain drops land on her face, and she felt years younger.
" It is raining master dwarf, if you want to change the weather, you'd best find yourself another wizard."
" Are there any other's?" Bilbo queeried, " Wizards, I mean."
" There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman the White, then there are the two Blue wizards although I have quite forgotten their names."
"Alandor and Pollando." Leila supplied.
" Ah yes. And then there is Radagast the brown."
" Is he a great wizard or is he more like you?"
Leila laughed so hard at this comment she nearly lost her seating.
" He is a very great wizard, in his own way." As Gandalf told the hobbit about Radagast, Leila recalled her own fond memories. Her sister and her had stayed with him for a few years learning about plants, and different animals, what could be used, what was poisonous, etcetera. Cel had bonded with him over their unfailing love of animals, and nature.
A few hours later the company came to a burned down house, and Thorin decided that this was the place to set up camp.
" I think we should move on," Gandalf announced to Thorin, " We could make for the hidden valley." Leila perked up at this.
" I told you I will not go near that place." Thorin said.
" But the elves could help us. I did not give you that map and key..."
" I did not know they were yours to keep." Thorin snapped, cutting him off.
Gandalf stormed away. " I will never understand the stubborness of dwarfs." he half shouted.
" Where are you going?" Bilbo questioned.
" To seek the company of the only one with any sense." At this Leila began to stand up and walk over to him, obviously Gandalf had seen that she was in desperate need of some intellectual conversation.
" And who's that?" Bilbo asked.
" Myself, Mr. Baggins." Gandalf retorted. Leila stopped and watched Gandalf ride away. He thought she had lost her senses. She was half tempted to ride after him, but decided against it, she would just have to give him an earful when he returned.
Leila approached Thorin, " He's right you know." she said, leaning against what was once a door frame. Thorin glared at her. " There is something not right about this place," she continued, " you would be wise to move the company a little farther ahead."
" When I want the advice of a human Ranger, I will ask for it. I am the leader of this company, and if you don't like how I lead you can leave. Don't think for one second just because the wizard hand picked you l, that I trust you." He said harshly.
" Well," Leila replied, " I guess it's a good thing that I have no intention of trusting a stubborn, pigheaded, self absorbed twat." And with that she turned on her heel and stalked away from him.
It was still a few hours till the meal would be ready, and Leila had time to kill. She occupied her time sharpening her swords, she had to keep them regularly sharpened, because sometimes at night when she couldn't sleep she went deep into the woods and practiced sparing with the trees. She was sharpening Retribution when Fili happend upon her.
" What's that?" he asked.
" I would think you would know what a sword looks like, master dwarf."
" It doesn't look man made. Nor does it look to be of dwarvian skill either. It is too elegant a blade."
" It was made in Gondolin." She replied.
" By Elves." Fili's face went into a scowl.
" You were admiring the blade not a moment before." Leila raised an eyebrow at him. " It's name is Retribution, the Avenger of Crime. And this one, " she said picking up Silencer, " is Silencer, Champion of the Shadows." She said brandishing it. Fili looked in awe. " The names are a bit too melodramtic for my taste, but I guess the Elves of the first age had a flare for dramtics huh?" Fili just kept staring at her stupidly, so she went back to sharpening, and chose to ignore him.
Awhile later their supper was ready.
" He's been gone a long time." said Bilbo, worriedly.
" He's a wizard," Leila comforted, " I'm sure he'll be just fine."
" But will he come back?" Bilbo questioned, fright threatened to take over his countenance.
As Leila went to answer, Thorin said, " We have no need to concern our selves with the whereabouts of Gandalf. He chose to leave, his fate no longer concerns any of us."
" How can you say that?" Leila snapped, " He is a friend. I will never understand how you can be so pigheaded, and inconsiderate."
" And I will never understand why females need to meddle in everyone elses business."
Leila flared, " I thought I would never understand how the dwarfs had no friends, now I know."
If looks could kill Thorin's glare would probably have killed her a hundred times over. Bilbo was asked to take food to Fili and Kili watching the ponies. Bomber went in for another helping, and Bofur swatted his hands away.
" Here Bombur," Leila said offering him her bowl, " I've lost my appetite." This last part she directed at Thorin. Then she sat off to the side of the group to compose an entry.
' Dearest Cel,
I'm starting to lose my nerve. I know I promised you a long time ago that I would learn to control my temper and my harsh tounge. But alas I am no better at it than when you passed on. I think you would rather enjoy this group of dwarfs though. I think that if you were on this journey with me, you would be enraptured by everything they do, and probably have an answer for me, or at least an educated guess, as to why they are so stubborn and set in their ways. I must admit Thorin especially is getting on my nerves, he doesn't trust me, not that he has any reason to, and he's constantly rubbing off on his nephews, one would think the hatred for Elves had begun when the first dwarf was hune from rock. I almost wish you were here to give him a piece of your mind, and tell him off, he might actually listen to you, as most people did.
Leila'
Leila set her journal aside, to find Balin standing before her.
" May I help you?" she inquired.
" Ye can't be so hard on Thorin lass. Tis not his fault, his Grandfather had the same disposition. He's tried hard to the right thing for our people."
" That does not give him the right to try and command those who are not under his rule." Balin nodded in agreement.
" Yet all the same, Thorin does as best the can. He wasn't taught like many were, the weight of an entire kingdom was thrust upon him."
" Decency is something I figured he would have been taught by now. But I guess he skipped that lesson."
Balin cast his eyes down, " You've lost your kin, you know only part of his greif. He lost his grandfather, and father, then had the weight and lives of an entire kingdom on his shoulders. And he tries to bear it alone, but it is wearing on him, I have seen it wear him down over the years."
Leila looked down, she knew that Thorin had lost much, still that did not give him the right to be such an arrogant pratt. She sighed.
Then Fili and Kili came running through the trees. " Bilbo's been taken!" Kili cried.
"Him and half a dozen ponies," Fili chimed.
Thorin grit his teeth, he was annoyed and dismayed at the hobbit.
" It's trolls." said Fili.
" Trolls?!" Leila asked, confused. Trolls did not come south, at least not for an age.
" Let's go rescue the halfling." Thorin said exasperatedly.
" What is the plan?" inquired Leila.
"Plan?"
" These are trolls, they may be big and stupid, but they are quite a bit larger than we are. We can't just go running in there with swords flailing, and screaming a battle cry. So then I ask, what is the plan?"
" To run in there with our swords flailing. screaming a battle cry." Thorin said seriously. And with that the dwarfs ran off into the wood.
Leila shook her head, " They're going to get themselves killed." She grabbed her swords and ran off into woods, devising a plan.
A/N: Thank you to every one who has followed and favorited this story, you guys keep me going. Please leave a review about what you think, and hopefully I will be able to get into a more constant posting schedule.
Guest: Thank you for your kind words. I am going to be putting more Leila/Fili interactions in coming chapters, I'm just trying to figure out how to word them so they don't seem cheesy, and cliché, but still cute and romantic at the same time.