Authoress Note: Welcome to Chapter 6 of All For One and One For All. Thank you to those who have left reviews. It does mean a lot to me that you guys are enjoying this. I'm trying my best to have Rin have some more growth through this story, it's just a little bit slow going. I hope that you guys enjoy this next chapter. Without further ado Chapter 6. ENJOY!
Chapter 6
Thorin had sat at the head of the table with food before him and he ate slowly listening to what everyone was saying.
"What news from the meeting in Ered Luin? Did they all come?" Balin questioned looking at his friend and leader.
"Aye. Envoys from all seven kingdoms."
The dwarves murmured amongst themselves in joy.
"What do the dwarves of the Iron Hills say? Is Dain with us?" Dwalin questioned Thorin hoping that there would be good news.
"They will not come," Thorin said, shaking his head.
Rin bit her lip as she listened to the dwarves murmur in disappointment.
"They say this quest is ours, and ours alone."
There were even more disappointed murmurs.
"You're going on a quest?" Bilbo questioned curiously.
"Bilbo, my dear fellow, let us have a little more light," Gandalf said, looking over at the Hobbit.
Bilbo brought a candle to the table, where Gandalf had spread out a map that was in his pocket.
Rin shifted slowly to be near Gandalf.
"Far to the East, over ranges and rivers, beyond woodlands and wastelands, lies a single solitary peak."
Bilbo looked at the map, his brows furrowed. "The Lonely Mountain."
"Aye. Oin has read the portents, and the portents say it is time." Gloin said proudly.
"Ravens have been seen flying back to the mountain as it was foretold: When the birds of yore return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end," Oin said explaining it to the group.
Bilbo paled when he heard the beast and was rather concerned. "Uh, What beast?"
"Well, that would be a reference to Smaug the Terrible, the chiefest and greatest calamity of our age. Airborne fire-breather, teeth like razors, claws like meathooks, extremely fond of precious metals-" Bofur explained to Bilbo.
"Yes, I know what a dragon is," Bilbo said, looking over at Bofur.
"I'm not afraid! I'm up for it. I'll give him a taste of the Dwarvish iron right up his jacksie." Ori said standing up trying to prove himself.
Several of the dwarves shouted happily hearing Ori.
Dori grabbed his youngest brother and tried to get him to sit down. "Sit down!"
"The task would be difficult enough with an army behind us. But we number just thirteen, and not thirteen of the best, nor brightest." Balin said softly, shaking his head.
"Hey, who are you calling dim?"
"Watch it!"
"No!"
"What did he say?" Oin questioned trying to get his horn to hear better.
"We may be few in number, but we're fighters, all of us, to the last dwarf!" Fili said, hitting the table to prove his point.
"And you forget, we have a wizard in our company. Gandalf will have killed hundreds of dragons in his time." Kili said with a smile.
"Oh, well, now, uh, I-I-I wouldn't say that, I- -" Gandalf said sputtering, failing to find the right words.
"How many, then?" Dori questioned looking at Gandalf.
"Uh, what?"
"Well, how many dragons have you killed? Go on, give us a number!"
"Hm." Gandalf, embarrassed, started to cough on his pipe smoke.
The dwarves jumped to their feet arguing about the number of dragons Gandalf had killed.
Rin simply shook her head lightly.
Thorin jumped up in anger and bellowed out, silencing all the dwarves. "Shazara! If we have read these signs, do you not think others will have read them too? Rumors have begun to spread. The dragon Smaug has not been seen for 60 years. Eyes look east to the Mountain, assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected. Do we sit back while others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor? Du Bekâr! Du Bekâr!"
The dwarves cheered.
"You forget: the front gate is sealed. There is no way into the mountain." Balin said, looking over at Thorin.
"That, my dear Balin, is not entirely true," Gandalf said, twiddling his fingers and producing a dwarven key, ornately wrought.
Thorin looked at it in wonder. "How came you by this?"
"It was given to me by your father, by Thrain, for safekeeping. It is yours now." Gandalf handed the key to Thorin as everyone watched on in wonder.
"If there is a key, there must be a door," Fili said softly in wonder.
Gandalf pointed at the runes on his map with his pipe. "These runes speak of a hidden passage to the lower halls."
"There's another way in!" Kili said, putting his arm around his brother's shoulder and leaning forward with a smile on his lips.
"Well, if we can find it, but dwarf doors are invisible when closed. The answer lies hidden somewhere in this map and I do not have the skill to find it. But there are others in Middle-earth who can. The task I have in mind will require a great deal of stealth, and no small amount of courage. But, if we are careful and clever, I believe that it can be done."
"That's why we need a burglar," Ori said softly.
"Hm, A good one, too. An expert, I'd imagine." Bilbo said thinking.
"And are you?" Gloin questioned looking at Bilbo.
"Am I what?"
"He said he's an expert! Hey hey!" Gloin said loudly.
Several of the dwarves laughed.
"M-Me? No, no, no, no, no. I'm not a burglar; I've never stolen a thing in my life." Bilbo stuttered.
"I'm afraid I have to agree with Mr. Baggins. He's hardly burglar material." Balin said shaking his head.
Bilbo nodded his head in agreement.
"Aye, the wild is no place for gentlefolk who can neither fight nor fend for themselves," Dwalin said, letting out a breath.
Bilbo continued to nod his head in agreement.
The dwarves suddenly began to argue with one another.
Gandalf, growing angry, raised to his full height cast darkness over the group, and started speaking in his powerful voice causing everyone to go silent. "Enough! If I say Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then a burglar he is." Gandalf went back to his normal self. "Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet. They can pass unseen by most if they choose. And while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of dwarf, the scent of hobbit is all but unknown to him, which gives us a distinct advantage. You asked me to find the fourteenth member of this company, and I have chosen Mr. Baggins. There's a lot more to him than appearances suggest, and he's got a great deal more to offer than any of you know, including himself. You must trust me on this."
"Very well. We will do it your way." Thorin said, looking at Gandalf.
"No, no, no," Bilbo said, shaking his head.
"Give him the contract."
"Please."
"Alright, we're off!" Bofur said with a smile.
Balin handed Bilbo a long contract."It's just the usual summary of out-of-pocket expenses, time required, remuneration, funeral arrangements, and so forth."
"Funeral arrangements?" Bilbo questioned his head shooting up to look at Balin.
Thorin leaned towards Gandalf and whispered to him. "I cannot guarantee his safety."
"Understood."
"Nor will I be responsible for his fate."
"Agreed."
"Terms: Cash on delivery, up to but not exceeding one-fourteenth of total profit, if any. Seems fair. Eh, Present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as a consequence thereof including but not limited to lacerations ... evisceration … incineration?" Bilbo's eyes went wide as he began to feel his heart pounding in his chest.
"Oh, aye, he'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye," Bofur said oblivious to what was going on with Bilbo.
Bilbo looked a little bit breathless. "Huh."
"You all right, laddie?" Balin questioned looking at the hobbit.
Bilbo bent over, nauseous and pained. "Uh, yeah...Feel a bit faint."
"Think furnace with wings," Bofur said, trying to help.
"Air, I-I-I need air."
"Flash of light, searing pain, then Poof! you're nothing more than a pile of ash."
Bilbo breathed heavily, trying to compose himself as the others stared at him. "Hmmm. Nope." Bilbo fell onto the floor in a dead faint.
"Ah, very helpful, Bofur," Gandalf said, shaking his head lightly.
Rin took a soft breath as she easily got up to her feet and moved past the dwarves, hoisting the hobbit up easily into her arms and she carried him to a chair where he could rest comfortably in. She slowly came back into the room biting her lower lip softly.
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This is the end of Chapter 6. I hope that you guys enjoyed this chapter. I do apologize that there isn't enough Rin development, but I promise there will be some development soon. It's just taking some time for me to get there. Please leave a review and let me know what you think. Reviews keep me going in writing the story. I'll try to update as soon as I can. Until next time.