Lady of the Dwarves (Thorin Oakenshield fanfic)

On the Run Again

After our escape from the Orcs, we continued our trek, always mindful of them. Thorin remained the gruff dwarf he was. Though, he wasn't as stubborn and began to heed my advice. However, his fierce protectiveness of me never ceased, which was sweet and annoying. The company welcomed me and even addressed me at times by my former title: Lady Durin, as a sign of respect. Very often, I would see Thorin smile widely at the title when my back was "turned".

We had gone a few months with the Orcs far behind us. However, they finally caught up to us. Bilbo and I scouted ahead over the ridges to avoid detection since we were the smallest. We spotted him across the mountains on his hellish pet before he went further down the hill. I noticed an abnormally large bear and pulled Bilbo close to the wall. The beast didn't seem to notice us so I breathed a small sigh of relief. I quickly dragged Bilbo down to the others so we could inform them of the dangers. When we reached the group, Thorin brought me into his arms before questioning Bilbo.

"How close is the pack?" Thorin asked as he held me tightly.

"Too close, a couple of leagues no more." Bilbo said before continuing "But that's not the worst of it."

"Have the wargs picked up on our scent?" Dwalin asked as everyone focused on Bilbo.

"Not yet, but they will. We have another problem." Bilbo asked which prompted Gandalf to think the worst.

"Did they see you?" Gandalf asked, assuming that was our bad news.

"No that's not it." Bilbo answered as he caught his breath. At the good news, Gandalf began to boast about his burglar selection. Everyone joined in on the boasting except Thorin who noticed my irritation.

"Will you all Listen, just listen." I commanded them which silenced them. They quickly directed all their attention to me.

"We're trying to tell you that there's something out there." I stated which finally caught Gandalf's attention.

"What form did it take? Like a bear." Gandalf asked gravely. Bilbo and I were both confused as to how he knew. I tapped Thorin's arm and he released me so that I could talk to Gandalf. The others began to talk amongst themselves, ignoring Gandalf and I.

"How did you know?" I asked Gandalf as I bore into his eyes.

"There is much that I was going to reveal to you later. Now is not the time to stand around arguing." Gandalf whispered as I marched back to the others. I balled my fist in frustration and rejoined the group at Thorin's side.

"There is a house. It's not far from here where we might take refuge." Gandalf suggested

"Whose house? Are they friend or foe?" Thorin asked as his grip tightened.

"Neither. He will help us or he will kill us." Gandalf answered awaiting Thorin's response

"What choice do we have." Thorin said just as a loud bear roared. Gandalf quickly told us to run and we did promptly. Gandalf led ahead shouting for us to run. Thorin and I were at the back to protect our flank and any stragglers as everyone ran for their lives. I saw a house amongst the plains and ran even faster. I heard the bear closing behind us and drew my bow. I kept my aim steady as I shot stunning arrows but the massive beast kept charging at us. Thorin got the door open and pulled me inside just in time. We barely got inside when the bear pushed against the door to force his way in. The dwarves were struggling to close the door so I threw a fireball at the bear's face. The bear roared in pain and backed away, giving them time to lock it closed. Thorin came over to me and began inspecting me for injuries. He kissed my hands when he noticed that I was fine.

"What is that?" Ori asked as he panted.

"That is our host. His name is Beorn. He's a skin-changer." Gandalf informed us as we all looked star-struck.