Flames

PART ONE: Chapter One (1.1)

Azalea strolled leisurely through the forest, her bow slung across her back. She loved to go to the woods to think. The only noise around her was the noise of nature, not the constant buzz of the town she was staying in for that moment. It was quiet, peaceful. No one but her could be seen for miles.

Until fourteen people were seen walking outside the trees.

Azalea pulled an arrow out of her quiver and prepared to shoot. Then, she jumped out of the trees, bowstring pulled back to her face.

"Who are you? State your name and intent!" she demanded, her cold voice loud and menacing.

"Whoa, hold on, miss. We mean no harm. If this area is inhabited, then allow us to find another route," an old man in all gray said.

"You still haven't answered the question!" she exclaimed. "Who are you?! What are you doing here?! Tell me!"

"I am Gandalf and this is the company of Thorin Oakenshield. We are just passing through; we will be gone shortly," the old man said.

"Oakenshield, huh?" she said, eyeing the dwarf who was obviously the leader suspiciously. "I've heard tales of Erebor. I'm sorry for your loss."

"How could you possibly understand, girl?" Thorin growled. He was rough looking. He didn't seem like the type of person who'd invite you for tea.

"I know what's it's like to lose a home," she replied. "It leaves a hole in your heart that cannot be filled. I understand more than you think, despite the fact that I am a girl." She imitated his tone. The dwarf's face turned to the ground; he refused to meet her gaze.

"What's your name?" a dwarf in an odd hat asked.

"I am Azalea. That's all you need to know," she replied. She still had the arrow pulled back, waiting for a reason to let it go.

"Oh, nice to meet you, Azalea," the dwarf said cheerfully.

"I want names," Azalea demanded, "from all of you."

They began listing off their names. Azalea rounded on a voice that didn't match the others. Her observant green eyes scanned the group to find the unnaturally higher voice. She found a Hobbit and became intrigued. She'd never seen a Hobbit before, although she had heard of them. He noticed her staring at him and looked away. She followed suit, surveying the dwarves curiously. They were an odd group, obviously not warriors of any kind. The one named Kili stared at the bow in her hands.

"How good a shot are you?" he wondered. The bow rounded on him.

"How bad do you want to know?" she asked confidently. He pulled his own bow off of his back and fired an arrow into the air. Azalea got the hint, turned, and fired. Everyone watched as the arrows caught each other and gasped when two parts of Kili's arrow fell out of the sky.

"Does that answer your question?" she asked, having already loaded another arrow. Several dwarves and the Hobbit gaped at her. Kili looked impressed.

"We could an archer like that on our side!" one of the dwarves (Bofur, maybe?) exclaimed.

"No. She stays. We move on," Thorin growled.

An uproar began.

"Thorin, think about what you're doing!"

"No one's that good a shot!"

"She could take Smaug out of the sky in less than a minute if she tried!"

"Enough!" Thorin yelled, effectively shutting everyone up. "We do not need another member of our company. She stays. We move on. She probably has family here-"

"Nope," Azalea interrupted. "The only thing that kept me here so long was that I was injured. I plan to leave in the morning."

"Where would you be going?" Bilbo, the Hobbit, wondered.

"Wherever I wanted to," she replied. "I have nothing holding me back."

"No family? No friends? Nothing?"

"Nothing," Azalea affirmed. "I had a brother. Where he is now, if he's even still alive, I..." she sighed. "It's just me."

"Is that the tree of Gondor around your neck?" a ginger dwarf, Gloin, wondered. Azalea felt her necklace burn against her skin.

"Yes. That's where I'm from," she replied. "But I left. I have no intention of returning, either."

"You see, Thorin? She hasn't got a family and she was going to leave anyway. Why can't she come?" Fili wondered. Thorin stared at Azalea, the question raging in his eyes.

"Fine! She can come with us. But if she dies, it's not my fault!" Thorin exclaimed. "Understood?"

"Of course," Azalea said.

Several of the dwarves grinned excitedly.

"Hold on one second," Azalea requested. She dashed over to the forest and grabbed her bag of extra food, clothes, arrows, and throwing knives, and jogged back to the group, not giving them any time to leave her.

"Shall we go?" she asked.

"I suppose so," Thorin replied angrily. He stormed ahead of everyone. Azalea exchanged a glance with Bilbo, and they followed him.