Homeward Bound Part One: An Unexpected Journey

Chapter Twenty-Six

I tried to warn you.

I wish I could have made you understand.

Bilba woke up with tears streaming down her face. It felt as though she'd been involved in a passionate discussion with someone but, now, awake she couldn't remember who or what it had been about.

She felt a great sense of sadness, however, and the feeling whatever it was she'd forgotten had been vitally important.

She started to move and grimaced as what felt like every muscle protested. She'd fallen asleep after getting cleaned up and it had allowed her body time to stiffen. Not to mention the fact her clothing was still wet from getting cleaned up and the air in the cavern was cold.

Maybe she could borrow Fili's coat. He wouldn't – memory rose again and sadness welled at the thought of her lost friends. The old her probably would have curled up and cried. A large part of her still wished to.

Now she shut her eyes and took a deep, measured breath. She accepted the pain and then got up anyway.

Thorin's sword was still next to her and she grabbed it as she stood.

She looked to the side and saw, to her surprise, Thorin himself seated only a few feet away. He had his legs drawn up and his arms wrapped around his knees. He gave no reaction to her but stared with dull, lifeless eyes and a blank expression at some random spot in the distance.

Thorin Oakenshield diminished, no kingdom, no heirs and no people.

"I'm going to try and find my sword," she told him.

He gave no response.

Bilba stepped over, laid his sword next to him and left him to it.

She retraced her steps slowly and carefully, hoping the creature hadn't found the blade and thrown it somewhere. She finally discovered it wedged in a corner under mushrooms back where she'd initially regained consciousness. She pulled it out in relief and slid it back into its sheath. She really liked that sword.

She looked around for Fili's knife as well, in the faint hope it might somehow be there, but found no sign of it.

She allowed her fingers to go to the empty spot at her back where the sheath and knife had been for just a second. Then she carefully put her arm down by her side, fingers curled.

She didn't need a physical reminder of Fili. He lived well enough in her heart and mind, along with his brother and all the others.

Turning her back on the mushrooms, Bilba returned to the main cavern. She walked along the edges, looking to see what, if any exits, there might be. As she walked she passed a number of piles of bones and skulls. Many of them were small and she soon realized they were probably the skeletons of goblin children. She knelt to examine a few closer and felt her stomach recoil at the sight of tooth marks on some of the bones.

Granted, they were goblin children, but they were CHILDREN nonetheless.

She suddenly felt even less guilt or remorse over killing that creature.

She continued her search and found a number of tunnels leading out but had no way to know where any of them led.

She returned to Thorin and knelt beside him.

"I don't suppose dwarves have an ability to find if an exit leads to the surface do they?"

He continued to ignore her.

Bilba stood up. She reached down, grabbed his arm and started tugging. She set her heels against the rock and pulled as best she could but she wasn't strong enough to move him.