The Hobbit OC Story - The Unexpected Scout

Don't get distracted

Gwen opened one of the cupboards in Bilbo's kitchen. "Alright. Could someone please pass me the plates?", she asked without looking back to the dwarves. They all were currently busy cleaning up the mess that they had produced. Actually, it had been just the dwarves' fault, but she didn't mind helping.

At the next moment, she heard a few things hurtling right behind her. Without turning her head, she easily caught the objects with her hands and some even with her tail.

"Guys.", she sighed. "I didn't mean it literally. Please give them to me as every other person would." Shooting them a chiding glimpse over her shoulder, Gwen shook her head and began to put away the "handed over" plates.

The dwarves just laughed at that and apologized. Then they started to help out normally just like she had asked them to. "Say, lass.", Bofur suddenly asked as he gave her another pile of clean dishes to be placed back into the cupboard.

"How come that someone like you is wandering around like that instead of being settled down somewhere nice and living a peaceful life? Surely there must be a bunch of lads who would gladly spend the rest of their lives with you." He gave her a smirk and raised one of his eyebrows in a knowing way.

Gwen just chuckled at that as she took one plate after another from his hands to put it back where it belonged. "Maybe there are. And it would be a lie to say that such thoughts never crossed my mind. But you know . . ." She paused for a moment, thinking carefully about her next words.

"Would you believe me if I would tell you that I don't really have high hopes to live such a life?" He knitted his brows at her answer and stared at her in disbelief. "Don't get me wrong. It really would be great. But . . . I just can't imagine myself doing it."

She closed the now filled cupboard and turned her head to look at him. On her lips, she had a smile, but there was a hint of sadness in it.

Now Bofur was even more confused, and so were the rest of the dwarves in the room, who had listened to their conversation as well. Everyone was silent and just gazed at her. Their faces spoke volumes. All of them wanted to know what made her think that way.

Cogitating how to explain it to them, Gwen slightly cocked her head, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. "There have been a lot of guys from other races and my own kin, who had asked me to stay with them, I can't deny that. But as nice they all had been – most of them at least – I couldn't say yes because I don't share their feelings."

She sighed and went over to the table to fetch the cutlery to put it away too. "Furthermore, there are a lot of people in my homeland, who wouldn't approve if I would make such a decision frivolously. They would be highly disappointed."

The dwarves looked among each other quietly. Her words had only raised even more questions. They all were curious but sensed that Gwen didn't really want to go into any more detail than that. It must be a real tough situation for her at home. Maybe that was the reason why she was traveling?

"So . . . you have never really met someone, who made your heart go boom?", Kili asked right beside her to help out by handing her the remaining cutlery that had still lain on the table.

Thankful for his assistance, Gwen took them and sorted them accurately back into the drawer. In doing so, she answered his question with a shake of her head.

"And that is why you already have given up on it?" Kili raised an eyebrow as he dug deeper. He couldn't really believe that she didn't think that she would ever be happy with someone.

She sighed and was about to explain it to him, but the sudden touch of a hand on her shoulder kept her from it. Turning her head to the other side, her red eyes met the blue ones of Fili. He just smiled at her hearteningly as his thumb gently stroked her shoulder.