I do not own any of the characters or The Hobbit (just the AU storyline and my OC). Those are the work of the esteemed and brilliant John Ronald Reuel Tolkien, and without his genius, this and many other fan fics would not be in existence.
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Gandalf led the way through the great oak trees in Beorn's garden until they were well away from the house and the company, before turning toward the young woman. His expression was very grim, and Cirashala's gaze moved down toward the ground. Her heart pounded with fear as she wrapped her arms around her middle.
"Back in Rivendell, I asked you how you knew about their quest," The wizard stated. "You answered by giving me a riddle." He paused, and she looked up to meet his gaze boring into her. "The answer was a book, was it not?"
Cirashala felt her mouth go dry. She honestly hadn't thought of what she would do should Gandalf actually solve the riddle. She was just simply trying to catch up to the dwarves before they left the elven valley without her, and chafed at the delay his question had caused. She'd known from Fellowship of the Ring that he had trouble with riddles, but apparently he was far better at them than she realized. After she and Kili had fallen in Goblin Town, the riddle had been the absolute last thing on her mind as the pair fought with every fiber of their being simply just to survive long enough to find the company. She had honestly quite forgotten about it- until now.
"Was it not?" the wizard asked again, breaking her from her thoughts. The tone of his voice demanded an answer, and she knew she must give it to him. There was no hiding the truth now.
"Y-yes," she whispered, quaking in her boots and feeling altogether very small next to the tall wizard. "I-it was in a-a book." The wizard's gaze seemed to pierce through her very core, and she shrunk back in on herself at the intensity of his stare.
"If it were ten years, or even one year from now, I might believe you," he replied after a long, tense moment. He leaned forward until his face was near hers. She tried to turn away out of fear, but he firmly grabbed her chin and held her face toward him.
"Look at me," he commanded, and she was far too frightened to do anything else. "Did you learn about Thorin Oakenshield's quest from a book, yes or no?" Eyes wide, she nodded ferverently as best she could with his hand on her chin.
The wizard released her, before straightening up as concern and bewilderment laced across his features. He continued to stare intently at her as his grip tightened around the long wooden staff, but she could clearly see worry and confusion in his eyes.
"How is that possible?" he asked. "The quest had barely begun when Fili and Kili found you, and Ori's journal is far from complete as the quest is not yet done. No one else has written anything about it. And yet...there is no lie in your eyes."
Cirashala swallowed heavily as she looked down at the ground. Tears pricked at the corner of her eyes, and she didn't even try to stifle them.
It's all over...they will either think me completely mad, or be extremely angry with me and leave me behind, and it's all my fault.
"P-please...don't say anything to the others," she whispered. Looking up at the wizard, her eyes filled with tears. "I-I'm not lying, I swear on my life! I-they'll think me completely mad, a-and-" The wizard's gaze softened, and he gently laid his hand on her shoulder as she sniffled.
"Cirashala," he began. Her damp eyes met his. "You need to tell me- how is it possible that you have read about a quest that has not yet happened?" The young woman suddenly wavered a bit as she paled slightly, and Gandalf glanced off to the side where a large fallen branch rested on the ground.
"Come," he commanded, leading her to the limb. "Sit down." The young woman did as he asked, before fisting her unbroken hand into the brown woolen fabric of her tunic.
"I-" she whispered, her voice cracking as she fought to keep from completely breaking down into tears. "I r-read...about the quest...in a book f-from...my world. A-a book..." her voice dropped to a whisper. "...that was written over seventy-six years ago." The wizard started at the mention of her world, and her grip tightened on the fabric until her knuckles turned white.
"What do you mean 'your world'?" he asked, his expression one of complete bewilderment, and she swallowed nervously.
"I...am not from Middle-earth."
Silence descended on the small wood. The distant sounds of weapons being sharpened on a freestanding whetstone was just barely audible through the thick trees as birds chirped overhead. The young woman was sure the wizard's stare was burning two holes right through her as his mouth hung slightly open.
"What do you mean you are not from Middle-earth?" he slowly asked. Cirashala was sure her heart was going to leap right out of her chest.
How on earth am I going to explain this?
"Um," she began, brain rapidly thinking of anything she could remember from Tolkien's books to prove that what she said was undeniably true. "I-I'm not sure exactly how to explain it. But...in the world I came from, Middle-earth, well, it wasn't real. It was a myth- a tale to be read by the fireplace, nothing more. A man named Tolkien wrote it all down in books, and I loved them and learned everything I could about it. B-but I...I never thought that it could be real. Th-that you, the dwarves, Bilbo- that this world really exists. At least...not until I ended up here."
Gandalf stared at her, clearly intrigued by this new information, but she could tell that he was not certain whether to believe her or think her completely out of her mind.
"And just how did you 'end up here'?" he asked slowly, and she shook her head.
"I-I don't know," she replied. Her eyebrows scrunched a bit as she tried to remember what happened before she woke up in Middle-earth. Grief swelled in her as memories went through her mind, and she swallowed thickly. "The-the last thing I remember was...sitting by my-my family's grave...then a bright flash and loud thunder- so loud it hurt my ears and I couldn't hear anything else. I must have passed out because I don't remember anything else but...when I woke up, I was in Trollshaw forest." Her wide blue eyes looked up at the wizard.
"I-I don't know how I got here," she said honestly. Her voice sounded small even to herself as she stared at the wizard. "B-but when I saw the trolls in the forest, I knew- I had to be in Middle-earth, there was no other explanation. There aren't any trolls in my world, nor dwarves, hobbits, wizards, or elves, for that matter. At least, not the kind of dwarves you have here."
"And that's all you remember?" he asked, and she nodded.
"Aye," she said quietly, before looking up at the wizard. She could see uncertainty in his gaze, and hung her head in defeat.
"You think me completely mad," she whispered as a lone tear trailed down her cheek.
"Not mad," he said slowly as he eyed her with concern. "Perhaps the herbs Oin found are confus-" She cut him off as a memory from Tolkien's works suddenly entered her mind.
I CAN prove it!
"I am speaking the truth, and I can prove it, Olórin," she said quietly so her voice wouldn't carry beyond them. She had no idea that wizards could be startled, but Gandalf's head flew up so fast at the mention of the name that she was surprised he didn't break his neck in the process. His eyes widened considerably as her gaze met his.
"How do you know me by that name?" he asked, and she could hear a slight bit of fear in his abrupt tone. "I have not used it since-" she cut him off again.
"You left Valinor long ago," she finished, and the wizard stared at her in astonishment. "As I'm a human, not an elf, and not immortal, I could have never set foot on those shores and heard that name. I have never met the other four wizards, other than I think I saw Radagast being pulled by a bunny sled when we ran from the wargs, but I honestly don't remember that day very well, and..." her voice dropped to a hoarse whisper. "I know that you bear Narya, and that Cirdan the Shipwright gave it to you when you first arrived in Arda because he thought you would have more need of it than him."
She had never seen anyone so dumbfounded in her entire life. The wizard was completely speechless as he stared at her with wide eyes, and she could see from his left hand that he was not wearing Narya openly. The young woman knew she had proved her tale to be true without a doubt in the wizard's mind based on his expression, and silently thanked Eru that she had remembered such an obscure detail from the books right when she needed to.
"How?" was all he could muster, and she sighed, looking down at her lap.
"It was in the books," she said quietly. "Tolkien wrote about Eru creating Arda and Aman by singing with the Valar, he wrote about the First Age and the rise of he-that-shall-not-be-named and his fortress at Angband, about Ungoliant and the two trees, about the Battle of Unnumbered Tears, the Nauglamir, the Silmarils, the elves awakening at Cuvienen, the creation of the dwarves by Aulë, Sauron and The Battle of the Dagorlad Plain, the fall of Numenor, all of it."
"And he wrote about Thorin's quest," the wizard finished, realization dawning in his features. "That's how you knew we were here. Only...that's not what you told Kili." She nodded as shame filled her features.
"I-I was afraid," she whispered. "I didn't want to lie, I swear, b-but I couldn't tell Kili how I knew, or rather, hoped, you were here, be-because I...I didn't think he would believe me. I-I thought that he- and everyone else- would think me completely crazy. A-and...I'd be left behind." Gandalf eyed her closely.
"And why is it so important to you that you go with them?" he asked. "Surely you know the outcome of the quest, if the person who wrote the book wrote the whole tale." Cirashala swallowed heavily, her eyes filling with tears as she remembered how the book ends...and who does not live to the end of the tale.
"Aye, I do," she whispered. "I-I was also afraid...that if the company knew-" The wizard's eyes widened as her eyes filled with tears.
"Knew what?" he asked, and she swallowed back the tears that were threatening to escape.
"That...I-I can't say it," she whispered as tears trickled down her cheeks. "I-I didn't want them to know, because...if for some strange reason they actually do believe me, they may...may try to change it, and it might only make things worse. They- things have already changed because of me, and-" The wizard cut her off.
"How have things changed because of you?" he asked.
"K-Kili wasn't supposed to fall in Goblin town," she said quietly. "Fili- he wasn't supposed to get hurt at all. Kili wasn't supposed to trip outside Rivendell either- he wasn't in the same place he was supposed to be because he carried me since I didn't have any boots!" Gandalf's eyes widened as her head fell down to her knees.
"It's all my fault," she sniffled. "I-if only he hadn't found me in the troll cave...I-I honestly don't even know what's going to happen now. Things have changed too much. Kili almost died-twice-because of me!"
"We don't always know why things happen," Gandalf said softly. "The book you read may have been wrong, and he may have tripped or fallen whether you were here or not. But rest assured- had it not been for you, he would have died out on that plain." He rested his hand on her shoulder, and she looked up to meet his gaze.
"I do not know how you came to be here in Middle-earth any more than you do," he stated. "But I do know this. There are other forces at work in this world beyond my own, some seen, and some unseen. I do not know what Eru has in store for you, but it does seem that you were meant to come here, and Kili was meant to find you in that cave. I've never heard of such a strange thing happening before, nor have I ever heard about a world separate from this one. But I do know that things always happen for a reason, whether you see it or not." His gaze suddenly became dead serious.
"And if you believe that your presence has changed things, and that you honestly aren't certain what is going to happen, then that is a fortunate blessing," he said very quietly. "If what you say is true, and I believe it is, then the things you may know about this world and those in it must be guarded and never leave your lips unless in dire need, and then only to those whom are deemed trustworthy beyond any doubt whatsoever. You may not realize it, but great harm could come to those who bear items of great importance should others become aware of the knowledge you possess."
His message was loud and clear as his eyes met hers, and she nodded.
I cannot tell anyone of the ringbearers, or any other secrets that could fall into the hands of enemies.
"I won't speak a word," she whispered. "I swear on my life." Gandalf's gaze met hers, and he nodded.
"However, the secret you bear may not always remain so," he said quietly. "The dwarves may not be the wisest of all whom dwell in Middle-earth, but they are by no means stupid. Someday, they will find out that you know more than you reveal, and you will be forced to either lie to them and bring about the ruin of your friendship, or speak the truth." Her shoulders slumped.
"I know," she whispered, before looking up at him with fear in her eyes. "But...if they ever find out...if they do believe me, they will be so furious that they will never speak to me again, I'm sure of it." Her voice cracked as it dropped down to a whisper. "And...I'll lose the only friends I have left." The wizard smiled as he rested his hand on her shoulder.
"I think you ought to have more faith in your friends," he said quietly. "You may know that dwarves have long memories of injuries, but...they also have long memories of those whom have treated them with great respect and kindness. Few are those who are willing to look beyond prejudice and readily befriend those whom are different than themselves, and that is especially true of dwarves. Men have not treated them kindly since Erebor fell, but you have shown them greater kindness and respect than most, and they will not forget that." He stood up and offered his hand to her, and helped her to her feet.
"You may not realize it, but you have far better friends than you think you do. Dwarves are loyal to a fault, and if they have accepted you as one of them, that is a very great honor indeed."
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A response to guest reviewer Kaia: Thanks :) I figured it was about time someone faced the "facts of life", as it were, for females on a long journey. Too many fics ignore such...ongoings, and it would have a rather significant impact on someone from the 21st century who isn't used to dealing with things that way. Many writers ignore the, for lack of a better word, culture shock/differences between our world and Middle-earth, but realistically it would happen if things fell that way. And yes, poor Fili and Kili didn't have very comprehensive education in that regards ;) And nope- Bilbo and Ori wouldn't explain it even if they were promised all the gold in ME! That subject is somewhat embarrassing and taboo NOW- think about how much more so it would have been in ME type cultures! And yup...she's got some explaining to do ;) Thanks!
A response to guest reviewer Guest: Thanks! I'm trying, but real life is quite hectic right now (I'm hosting Thanksgiving for over 20 people this year, due to a single story house and someone needing a walker so can't climb the stairs at the usual house, plus homeschooling and winter sewing and mending a fence that fell down in a windstorm). But hopefully more updates when the craziness dies down! No guarantees, but fingers crossed!
Thanks to all who review, favorite, and follow- between part 1 and what exists of part 2, I have well over 1,000 reviews, and out of all that, there was only one negative one since I began it! You guys are the best! 3