AN: More updates at 3 AM because screw a normal sleep schedule. Again, I don't own Skyrim, LOTR, or most of the ideas for this story (yet.)
Anything Italicized, Bold, and underlined is Dovahzul that I can't be bothered to translate into Draconic and back into English.
Kíli ran as fast as his dwarven legs were able to carry him, tripping on root and rock, skidding whenever he turned too fast on the dewy forest grass. His reckless sprint resulted in several small cuts on his palms when he landed, and a tear in his new(ish) pants when his knees had skidded on stone. Though he knew it was futile in the darkness, he often looked over his shoulder to make sure neither dragon nor stranger were pursuing him.
Though Kíli had been born and raised in the Blue mountains, in his mad dash he had lost the path and it took a good five minutes to regain it. A mixture of panic and rainfall that had begun during his run making it difficult to even see where he put his feet. Still, his speed doubled when he hit the well-cleared, obstacle-free path.
He reached the clearing where he'd last seen Fíli, though his brother was nowhere to be found. Kíli 's heart stopped in his chest as he imagined all kinds of things that could've happened between the beginning of his mad dash and the present.
Maybe the dragon found the clearing, he thought. Maybe it found Fíli. His stomach churned at the thought, and his breath grew short.
Those thoughts were quickly dashed as he heard his brother whistling, and saw the Mahal-blessed shock of braided blond hair through an opening in the cliffside, lit by firelight. Letting out a shaky sigh of relief, he sprinted toward the firelight.
As Kíli crashed through the undergrowth and into the cave entrance, Fíli caught sight of him, hand on his dagger at the noise. Kíli took several deep gulps of air as he tried to calm his breathing, and ended up collapsing on the floor, his legs jelly after the unexpected, extended sprint. His brother stared at him with concern, brushing Kíli's rain-soaked hair out of his face.
"Brother, are you all right? What happened?" Fíli asked, pulling his brother toward the fire.
Kíli tried to respond, attempting to wheeze out warnings as he still hadn't caught his breath.
"Easy, Kí, take your time! I'm not going anywhere," Fíli said as he tugged off his brother's soaked leathers.
Kíli managed to speak, though his lungs and throat seemed to be made of fire. "Fí, Fí, we have to get out of here!" he coughed out.
"What do you mean? We just got here a day ago?" Fíli asked, concern in his voice.
"While I was out hunting, I lost an arrow. When I went looking for it, I saw… someone. A woman, I think. I was curious, because hardly any travellers come out here right? But then she shot her bow, and then she started screaming, like she was hurt, so I went to help, but then…" he trailed off as he saw his brother's disbelieving expression.
"Not that I don't believe you Kí, but what would a strange woman be doing around here? Shooting bows and screaming at nothing - Brother are you sure you aren't sick from the rain?" asked Fíli, even more concerned than before.
"I know what I saw, Fí!" Kíli shouted. "And that's not the worst of it either, she saw me when I went to go help, then she pointed her bow at me!"
"Well, seeing as you aren't hurt, she can't have been a good shot, could she?" Fíli asked sarcastically.
Kíli grabbed his brother by his collar and pulled him close. "Fí, she had a dragon with her."
Fíli blanched, remembering the tales Balin had told of the fall of Erebor. "What do you mean with her?" he stammered out.
"She wasn't scared of it. She- she…" he trailed off, remembering. "She talked to it," he hissed out. "And then she rode it away."
Fíli stared out the cave entrance, trying in vain to see the winged shape of the dragon against the moonlit sky. Still staring, searching, he said, "Rode it away? Nobody's that crazy…" he said, trailing off as a particularly horrible thought entered his mind. "You don't think they're headed to Ered Luin are you?"
Kíli shook his head violently. "They flew off in the opposite direction, and it didn't seem like they were keen on meeting anybody else, much less stealing from or killing them," he said, remembering what the black-clad archer had said before taking off.
The Durin princes were silent, staring out the cave entrance as they thought of how to solve their dilemma. On one hand, if they were to head to the Blue Mountains, they would be able to warn everyone (which would likely be met with disbelief,) but they would miss meeting their uncle in Hobbiton and the subsequent quest to retake their homeland. On the other hand, not giving warning could mean a devastating dragon attack on their own people.
Fíli shuddered before speaking. "Even if we went back now, it's two days to Ered Luin. If the dragon were to attack, we wouldn't be able to warn them in time. For all we know, it's there now…" he trailed off at the sobering thought. "And even then, the Blue Mountains are guarded by a much smaller army than guarded Erebor, and we still lost there. What would two dwarves do, other than be added to the pile of the dead?"
"Mother is there," Kíli whispered, staring out into the rain.
"There's nothing we can do now. We'll leave when the rain quits, and at the first village I'll send word to Ered Luin with a warning, and ask that we receive word at Hobbiton that it's been received. In the meantime, rest. You're miserable to travel with when you're sick," Fíli said, unrolling the pair of bedrolls next to the fire.
That night, neither of them got much sleep.
Brænna's POV
Brænna was worried as they flew away from the beach. Hardly a day had passed in Middle-Earth, and someone had already spotted Odahviing. She didn't know this land at all, and knew even less about how quickly news spread here.
The rain bounced off of and trickled down Odahviing's scales as he rumbled out a question. "Mal Dov, los hi beck?" (Little Dov, are you all right?)
Brænna shook her head of dark notions and responded, "I'm fine, but I'm worried for our safety here. The archer saw not only me in my armor, but he saw you. We're lucky that I had my mask on, but I'll still have to wear my normal travelling clothes. Nightingale armor is very recognizable to those who survive encounters.
"Do you think that we will see him again? Our oblaan is far from this place," the Dovah reasoned, as he landed on an otherwise inaccessible crag. (destination)
From the peak, Brænna was able to see the edge of the rainstorm and a dark river to their south, emptying into a large body of water. Using her training as an archer (and no small amount of magic) she focused her vision, and was able to see the lights of civilization at the edge of the lake.
"It's unlikely, but I'd rather be safe than sorry," she said tiredly, rubbing her eyes and dispelling the magic. "We need to find a way for you to travel with the wizard and I without being seen again. I would like you nearby in case of emergency, and I don't want you waiting for me in these strange lands…" she paused, placing a hand on the Dragon's scaly shoulder. "Unless you'd rather return to Keizaal, my friend."
Something between a laugh and a growl escaped the red Dragon. "Do you mock me, Mal Dov? I will follow you to the end of this quest. And still, if you whisper my name, I will know where you are," Odahviing said. "Until then, I will follow, flying from strunmah to strunmah to stay out of sight."
Brænna could tell Odahviing objected to the thought of hiding like a hatchling, but she appreciated the loyalty. She shed her armor, shivering at the cold air of the peak. Donning her black robes and folding the Nightingale set in her pack, she hummed an old lullaby, pondering the road ahead. She crawled underneath Odahviing's wing, unrolled her bedroll, and crept close to the Dragon's chest, his heartfire heating up the crimson scales. As the storm continued to crash against the mountain, she felt Odahviing tuck his head under the wing, his neck curling protectively around her. The two quickly fell asleep.
Brænna and Odahviing had landed in the predawn darkness outside the town, promising each other that they would both be safe. She was able to buy everything she needed from the market stalls, including a map, cured meats and fresh vegetables (having long since abandoned the Green Pact) and two new tunics, one verdant green and the other tannish-white. From another, she purchased a pair of fine archer's gloves, a leather jerkin, a dark green cloak, and two pairs of tough, functional pants.
There was no way in Oblivion that she would give up her enchanted boots, though.
When she asked about her current location from the mapmaker, he had looked at her suspiciously until she had slid a septim across the counter. It turned out, she was at the eastern foot of the Blue Mountains, near where the River Lhûn emptied into the Gulf of Lhûn, not too far from the Shire where she would be meeting with Gandalf. For his information, wares (and silence) Brænna slid fifteen more septims across the counter, which he quickly pocketed, making sure no one had seen the exchange.
It was in this fashion that she spent the rest of the day, wandering the town, listening to gossip, (and doing no small amount of pickpocketing). When night finally fell, she hiked back to where Odahviing had dropped her off, whispering his name.
It only took moments for the mist above to part, revealing the crimson beast. As they flew back to the mountain, he told her some interesting news.
"It seems that the wizard wishes to speak with you. Before you called for me, a white moth that stunk of foreign magic flew up and spoke to me, though I could not hear what it said," Odahviing recounted.
"Hm. Do you have any ideas what he wanted to say?"
"Niid."
They passed the rest of the trip in silence, landing at the crag. A white moth fluttered off of the ground in the turbulence of the landing, before landing on Brænna's outstretched hand.
In the wizard's voice, the moth whispered, "We meet in four days. Look for a magical symbol on the door of one of the houses in Hobbiton to find our meeting place," it said, before fluttering off.
"It seems that our quest is progressing rather quickly," she remarked to the dragon, who let out a small huff of smoke before settling down for the night.
Naturally, she arrived the very next day in Hobbiton, familiarizing herself with the town, the residents who all gawked at the strange-looking elvish traveller, and making sure she had all the materials prepared for the first leg of the journey. In order to keep her conspicuous friend as inconspicuous as possible, she ended up buying a horse to travel in the open, and would only meet with him once night fell.
Brænna rode the strong black horse in her travelling clothes, her hair loose to cover her pointed ears just as the sun began to set. She was beginning to lose faith in the moth's message when she sensed magic off to her right. Looking up toward the hill-home of a rather strange Hobbit named Bilbo, she saw the blue glow of a magical symbol. She spurred her horse up toward the hill, grumbling to herself. She'd tried visiting Master Baggins before, though as soon as she had mentioned a quest, he had all but shoved her out the front door!
She tied up her horse, which she had named Vokun, up at a fence post (far enough away to not eat Bilbo's flowers and shrubs) and strode up to the door, giving four solid knocks.
She was rather surprised when the Grey Wizard didn't answer, but Bilbo instead, in his nightshirt and robe, looking rather peeved at the interruption.
Visibly composing himself, he asked, "Mistress Brænna, how may I help you?"
Bowing slightly, she asked, "Is Master Gandalf here?"
Paling, Bilbo said, "I'm very sorry, but unfortunately, Mr. Gandalf is not here. Should you have stopped by this morning, you may have been able to catch him."
Muttering again about the various defects of Gandalf's character, she said, "Do you mind if I stayed for supper? I know it's rude of me to impose, but…" she trailed off as Bilbo's instincts as a host took over.
"Not at all, not at all. This way please, I trust you remember where the dining room is," Bilbo said, hurrying off to the pantry.
Brænna smiled as she removed her boots and hung her robe up on the hook, having left her weaponry and supplies tied to Vokun.
After a few minutes of pleasant conversation, throughout which they had silently agreed to not discuss the topic of quests or adventures, the doorbell rang. Frowning at the thought of another unexpected visitor, Bilbo excused himself to answer the door. Hoping it was Gandalf, she started collecting her plates, expecting a quick departure.
Down the hall, Brænna could hear Bilbo open the door, and a gruff, strangely-accented voice say, "Dwalin, at your service."
Brænna sighed as Bilbo stammered out his own greeting. It seemed like Gandalf would be a no-show after all.
Deciding that she would rather be helpful than unwelcome, Brænna removed herself from her seat and got up to help her diminutive host.
"Dwalin" greeted her the same as he had greeted their host, before settling himself down at Brænna's seat, digging into her meal wholeheartedly. She frowned, displeased at the man's lack of manners as Bilbo said, "It's just that, um, I wasn't expecting more company," Bilbo said, looking to Brænna for help.
Before Dwalin could reply, the doorbell rang again, causing Bilbo to blanch.
Unpleasantly, Dwalin said, "That'll be the door."
As Bilbo raced around, trying to gently evict the men from his house, the doorbell rang again. Brænna had half a mind to leave it shut, seeing the state of her host, but Bilbo's head peeking around the corner with the most pitiful look on his face forced her hand. However, what she saw at the door caused her stomach to drop and her heart to leap into her throat.
Standing there were two men of the same stature as the two guests, though obviously younger. She tried to smile, but her hand tightened on the door handle at the sight of the man on the right - clear as day the very man who had seen her and Odahviing the week before.
And by the way he was staring, she had a feeling that she had been recognized.