There and Back Again: A Girl's Tale

Chapter 29 The Last Light

Chapter 29 The Last Light

The stairs they climbed were tall and steep, each hand carved into the side of a great stone statue of a dwarf king long past. Bilbo groaned as he climbed, sure it was taller than even the stone giants they encountered after leaving Rivendell.

Bilbo entertained himself on this tedious climb by thinking about all of the things he would do when the deed was done. First, he was going to find somewhere to take a very long nap. And a bath! Oh, to have a nice, steaming hot bath where he wasn't in a hurry to finish.

He couldn't help but grin a little thinking about the fact he'd never been so filthy in all his life. How different he was nearing the journey's end versus when it all began. How long until he would see the Shire again? Autumn was over and winter would arrive quickly. Should he stay to help with the rebuild and head for home when the thaw came? Bilbo was surprised to find he was not entirely eager to return home, unsure if the quiet life he'd led before would suit him now that he had seen so much more of the world.

When the group reached the top, a few of the party laughed in relief. No one had enjoyed that climb. Thorin thought of Elwen, how she would have sworn and snarled the whole way up. He bit back a grin, but the urge to smile faded quickly.. She was so angry with him...

He could only hope she would forgive him when everything was said and done.

He had no regrets, leaving Kili behind. There was no way he could have made a climb like that, and he'd have killed himself trying. That was for the best. And now we must find the door.

"This must be it." Thorin moved toward the face of the mountain. "The hidden door." He turned toward his men, presenting them with the key. "Let all those who doubted us rue this day!"

The others cheered happily. There had been many naysayers, and Thorin had proved them all wrong, just like he would prove Bard wrong. The dwarves of Erebor have returned, and none shall force us from this place again.

"Right then," Dwalin said. "We have a key, which means somewhere there is a key-hole."

The warrior patted and prodded the face of the mountain. Thorin looked out toward the sun kissing the horizon. "The last light of Durin's Day..." he turned to Balin, "Will shine upon the key-hole."

But as they searched, no such key-hole became apparent. Thorin sent Nori to assist Dwalin, knowing the dwarf to have a talent for such things. Dwalin struggled, trying to push open an invisible door Thorin knew could not be forced. Nori used a glass and spoon to check for a hollow place, but found nothing. Thorin squinted at the setting sun, feelings of dread and desperation seeping into his bones.

"We're losing the light. Come on!"

Nori complained for Dwalin to be quiet so he could hear, but the further the sun sank, the more frayed the group became.

"Break it down!" Thorin thundered, but even as he gave the order, he knew it would be for not. Dwarves hid their doors with magic; they would not break so easily. But he was desperate, and so he urged his men on as they swung their axes to no avail.

"It has to break," he whispered as he watched the light slip further and further away.

"It's no good, the doors are sealed. Can't be opened by force," Balin cried over the sound of steel on stone. "There's a powerful magic on it."

The defeat in Balin's voice was like a physical blow. The members of the company who had followed him to the mountain stood in shocked silence as the sun gave way to night.

"No!" he cried, opening the map, searching for what, he wasn't sure. "The last light of Durin's Day," he read, his voice wretched, "will shine upon the key-hole." He looked at his men, his friends, beseeching. "That's what it says. What did we miss?"