The Company of Wolves

Chapter 12: Goblin Town

As the night dragged on a little, all the dwarves had fallen deep asleep on their own beddings they made. Ash was laying on her stomach next to Bilbo while Dakota had laid down on her side, using her arm as a pillow. The others were snoring and leaning up against the cave walls with as much comfort as they could muster up with their belongings.

Rhea was going to sharpen her blades but thought otherwise as the noise would certainly wake up the dwarves. Let alone her packmates as their hearing was more perceptive than most of them combined, even in human form. Instead, she sat next to Bofur quietly, just enjoying his company while she somewhat tried to fix some straps on her leather.

Right as she was strapping a piece of her boot a little tighter she heard some nervous breathing coming up close. Bilbo's heartbeat was loud in her ears, and she wondered if he was having a bad dream.

However that was not the case as somehow Bilbo managed to not wake up the girls and get completely packed up again, using his stick to gently walk over the snoring dwarves around him. She furrowed her brows in confusion, seeming to know exactly what he was doing, but why the heck was he doing it?

"Where do you think you're going?" Bofur spoke up before Rhea could fully process that Bilbo looked like he was about to leave them. When the hobbit turned around he saw Bofur and then met Rhea with guilty eyes.

"Back to Rivendell." He answered, watching the look on Rhea's face drop to sadness. She stood up from where she sat and faced him, remembering to keep her voice low even though she wanted to cry out and shake him off of this idea.

"Bilbo why would you want to do that? Why wouldn't you wake the girls? We would go with you!" She whispered, giving him a look of despair. Bilbo looked like he was already regretting it so much.

He shook his head at her, glancing at Bofur who stood next to her. "That's why I didn't tell you. You need to stay with the company, they need you more than me."

"Don't be ridiculous, I wouldn't stay here if you weren't. We only came to protect you, why would you not want us with you?"

"That's not the reason, I do want you with me. But this journey seems too dangerous for me, I can't handle it I only make things worse or slow them down." Bilbo sighed, trying to convince her that he was just a burden.

Rhea shook her head somberly, looking at him with watering pools of hazel. Bofur stepped in this time, "You can't turn back now. You're part of the company, just like Rhea. You're one of us."

Rhea stopped herself from swelling at the fact that Bofur accepted her so much and instead just kept her seriousness in front if Bilbo. She understood why he felt left out, but to leave the girls behind? They only came because of him and he knew that!

Bilbo gave him an exasperated look, "I'm not now am I."

"Don't say such things Bilbo." Rhea warned lightly. If they can somehow get accepted by some, Bilbo must've won some hearts too. Bofur is fighting for him, can't he see that?

"You heard what Thorin said. He said I should never have come and he was right." Bilbo added, shrugging like it was that easy.

Rhea shook her head again, "He said all of us shouldn't have come, not just you. Me and Ash and Dakota too. We are still here though, these dwarves need us. They need you!"

"You're homesick, I understand." Bofur chimed in too, agreeing with Rhea with a couple nods.

"No! No you don't you're dwarves!" Bilbo explained. "You're used to this life to living on the road never settling in one place, not belonging anywhere!"

Bofur just stared at him, and Rhea widened her eyes at Bilbo's audacity. How could he say that after what the dwarves clearly have been through just to have a proper home. They were going on this mission to get their home back, because it was stolen from them. Rhea can't imagine Bag End being taken from her by force, she would be devastated.