A Shot in the dark (Bagginshield)

Chapter Five

Balin was troubled.

He many things to trouble over in his life. The fates of his scattered people. The safety of his brother and cousins. Their quest to regain their home from Smaug. The safety and state of mind of his friend and king, Thorin. He was even troubled over the decision to bring along Ori, Fíli, and Kíli on such a suicidal mission.

But mostly, he was troubled by Bilbo Baggins.

There was something… off about the Hobbit. Not that he knew much about Hobbits to begin with, but from what he did know they were suspicious folk that preferred their home to travel and unknown adventures. It was very rare that any would ever leave their home in the company of Dwarves for a land far away and unknown. Bilbo Baggins was certainly nothing like the stories suggested.

But it wasn't the Hobbit's unexpected personality that troubled him. It was the way he treated them.

Bilbo treated each of them with a healthy amount of respect and warmth that none of them had expected. From hosting a grand feast in his home to subtly protecting Fíli from the trolls, he had shown nothing but kindness and understanding for them.

And it was beginning to worry him.

None of the Dwarves knew the Hobbit. None of them deserved to be treated so highly. Hell, Bilbo barely knew Fíli and yet he was willing to risk his life to protect him from trolls. No one, no matter how kind or wise or noble, would do such a thing for a stranger.

So why did Bilbo Baggins do it?

Balin didn't understand. He did not understand the strange Hobbit that followed them so easily and fought for them with a fierceness unheard of. He did not understand why the Hobbit looked at them the same way a Dwarf looked at the glory of his treasures.

And that was the most troubling thought of all.

Bilbo was pleased.

His plan with the trolls had gone over well. When he originally thought of how to deal with them, he had been tempted to leave things alone. But as he thought more and more about his situation, he realized that the consequences of his actions could change something significant. So he decided to test things by changing something he knew wasn't too important.

While Bilbo did feel bad about having to poison the trolls—no one deserved to die in such pain, after all—he was pleased with how things had played out. So far everything had stayed true to his expectations—they had found the troll cave, discovered the swords, buried the chest of treasure, and he even got Sting from Gandalf. It was a sign that even though he changed an event, he could still expect some things to stay true to their nature.

Like suspicious Dwarves.

He wasn't stupid. The Hobbit knew his actions with the troll had earned him both suspicion and respect. He had held his own again three trolls and that deserved respect. But the way he had done it—through trickery and deceit—was frowned upon. Dwarves believed that facing ones foes in battle was the honorable and bravest course of action to take. Sneaking around and taking them out from behind was seen as cowardly and weak by every Dwarf in the Company.

Well, almost every Dwarf.

"That was a clever way to take out the trolls."

Bilbo looked up from examining his new (old) sword, and found Nori watching him. With the trolls gone and their cave investigated, Thorin had decided to take a small break before they headed out again. Most of the Dwarves were preoccupied with their new treasures and paid him no mind, but Nori had broken off from the group and had taken a seat in front of him on a fallen tree.