Hope and Memory[Thorin Oakenshield Love Story]

[Chapter Twenty Three]

The Skin-Changer had aloud the dwarves, the wizard and the two cousins to come back into his home and offered them food and something to drink. Freya climbed onto one of the chairs and sat between Fili and Kili. The dwarves were on their best behaviour, they dared not try anything to make this man angry as he went around pouring water into their cups.

Thorin stood behind his nephews and the woman, leaning against a wooden pillar, he watched the Skin-Changer as he went around filling the others cups. Freya was nibbling on a piece of bread, she noticed a few mice crawling around on the table looking for scraps that any of the dwarves might have missed.

" So you are the one they call Oakenshield." Beorn finally spoke, after the house had filled with silence. Thorin looked up at him, a little surprised he knew who he was. " Tell me. Why is Azog the Defiler hunting you?" Freya felt sudden chill go through her when she heard that awful orcs full title.

" You know of Azog?" Thorin said in shock and looked back at the Skin-Changer. " How?" Beorn was going around the table refilling the dwarves cups up with water.

" My people were the first to live in the mountains. Before the orcs came down from the north. The Defiler killed most of my family." Beorn explained. The woman felt sad hearing this, she couldn't imagine loosing her family to the Defiler. Bilbo was eying the iron shackles that were on the Skin-Changers wrist, not sure if he wanted to know how he got those. " But some he enslaved. Not for work you understand but for sport. Caging Skin-Changers and torturing them seemed to amuse him." Freya felt sick hearing this, she saw his battle wounds that were now scars that he must of gotten when he fought to escape. She scratched her wound trying to shake the thoughts that now filled her mind.

" There are other like you?" Bilb asked in an unsteady voice.

"Once there were many. " Beorn said glumly as he looked at the hobbit before turning away from them.

" And now?" Bilbo pressed, makin the tall man look back at him.

" Now there is only one." The Skin-Changer stated sternly, and the hobbit sunk back in his seat, thinking he shouldn't have asked now. " You need to reach the mountain before the last days of autumn." The man stated, getting down to the point, looking at the wizard.

" Before Durin's day falls. Yes." Gandalf clarified to Beorn.

" You are running out of time."

"Which is why we must go through Mirkwood." Gandalf stated.

" A darkness lies upon that forest. Fell things creep beneath those trees. I would not venture there except in great need. " Beorn pressed

" We will take the Elven road. That path is still safe." Gandalf insisted. Freya turned to look at Thorin, were they really going to take the Elven road, when he didn't trust elves as it was.

" Safe?" Beorn said abruptly. " The wood elves of Mirkwood are not like their kin. They're less wise and more dangerous. " Beorn said sternly as he watched the dwarf prince walking away, not liking this one bit. " But it matters not." Thorin stopped and turned to look at the Skin-Changer.

" What do you mean?"

" These lands are crawling with orcs. Their numbers are growing. And you are on foot. You will never reach the forest alive." Beorn stated flatly as he stood up and slowly walked towards the prince. " I don't like dwarves. They're greedy and blind. Blind to the lives of those they deem lesser than their own. " Beorn grumbled as he picked up a mouse in his hand and took a few more steps towards Thorin. " But orcs I hate more. What do you need?"

The Skin-Changer was kind enough to offer the dwarves supplies to continue on their journey to the mountain. He gave them food, medical supplies, water and weapons, since a lot of their bags that carried their supplies was lost in Goblin-Town. The Skin-Changer noticed the woman and saw the giant laceration she had across the face and down her neck. He saw it hadn't been properly looked after and was only getting worse.

" You've been marked by the White Warg." Beorn stated calmly as he approached the woman.

" I, just wasn't quick enough." Freya pointed out, trying not to sound scared, but the truth was she still was.

" It looks very painful. "

The woman's hand moved to her wound, and felt it. Just at the touch it felt like her face was on fire. " It, doesn't hurt-- as much anymore." She lied and he saw right through it.

" Your very brave for a woman, to stand up to the Pale Orc and his Warg, but you've been marked, and as long as your alive the White Warg will hunt you down until your dead." Freya looked at the ground, and the Skin-Changer looked at her and thought of something. " Wait here."

She looked at the man confused, wondering what he was doing. She looked around, watching as the dwarves continued to load supplies onto the ponies that Beorn had also was kind enough to lend to them until they reached the forest. The hobbit saw the Skin-Changer coming back, caring a bowl and a clean cloth.

" This should help to clean your wound so it won't get more infected, but I'm afraid the only thing to heal it, is time." Beorn stated as he handed the hobbit the big bowl and the cloth in her hands. He started heading in the other direction.

" Thank you." He turned around and looked at her, and gave her a smile and went to talk with the wizard. The woman went outside and sat by a pond near the house. She placed the cloth in the bowl of clean water, and she rung it out and dabbed at her wound, feeling the burning sensation and she flinched in pain.

Thorin was putting on his coat when he saw the hobbit over by the pond. As he got closer, he could hear her panting from dabbing the cold cloth over her wound. The prince gently took the cloth from her and she looked at him.

" Let me." He noticed her hesitation. " I'll be gentle." He promised as he bent down and put the cloth in the cold water and rung it out and he lightly place it over her eye. She closed her eyes from the sudden burning on her forehead and he felt how tense she went but as he moved down the wound, dabbing at it to clean it, she started to relax. He rung the cloth out a few more times and continued to dab at the wound with the cloth.

Thorin removed the cloth and she opened her eyes. " Thank you." Freya said in an unsteady voice. Thorin was too close too her and she could feel her cheeks were flushed.

" Your welcome. " Thorin replied thinking to himself how beautiful she looked when her cheeks went red like that. " Come on were wasting time. " Freya nodded and followed the prince over to the ponies. Thorin helped the woman onto the pony and he mounted onto his.

The dwarves and the cousins waited patiently for the wizard, who was still talking with the Skin-Changer. The company heard the screeching of birds flying over the trees and they were growing restless, Azog and his pack wouldn't be too far from them now.

" Ganalf," Thorin called out. The wizard looked at him." Time is wasting." He pointed out. Gandalf started walking over to the dwarves to join them when Beorn asked him a question that made him stop. Birds begin squawking again and hear howling next. Freya grew nervous remembering what the Skin-Changer had said to her about being marked. The wizard rushes over and climbs onto his horse and the company rides off across the plain, not stopping until they reached the entrance to Mirkwood.

It was the afternoon and they entered a clearing and the wizard came to halt just at the edge of the forest. Freya took one look at this forest and saw how sick this place looked and didn't want to enter it, knowing what laid in their waiting for them.