The Company turned to face me with a collective look that said, "I think you may be sick in the head." Bilbo especially looked very concerned. He stared at the large carved wooden chairs as if he was trying to imagine the raging bear outside the wooden door perched in one of those chairs daintily drinking tea.
"His name is Beorn, and he is a skin-changer. In case you were wondering. Sometimes he's a huge black bear; sometimes he's a great strong man. The bear is unpredictable, but the man can be reasoned with. However, he is not overfond of dwarves. I suppose that could prove to be slightly problematic for most of us." I sighed. Ori nodded and pressed an ear to the door.
"He's leaving, miss!" I smiled and moved towards Thorin as Dori pulled Ori away from the door.
"Come away from there! It's not natural, none of it. It's obvious: he's got to be under some dark spell."
"Dori, there's no need to be a fool!" Gandalf sighed.
"Exactly. As Gandalf can tell you, I'm sure, he's under no enchantment but his own. Alright now, get some sleep, all of you. You'll be safe here tonight." as everyone got settled, I pulled out my sword and propped myself up by one of the enormous windows.
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I awoke early the next morning when I heard the door being opened. I slowly opened one eye, expecting to see one of The Company coming back from watch, but I instead saw what must have been Beorn's human form. I decided to stay still and wait to see what he would do. When I saw him take an axe off of the wall, I put my hand on my sword hilt and held my breath. I released that breath when he went back outside instead of deciding to chop us up. I sheathed my sword and crawled across the room to a sleeping Thorin. Just in case if Beorn came back then I could protect him. If he decided to hurt us, of course. I stayed there by Thorin until I heard Beorn chopping wood outside.
I crawled back towards my bag and exchanged my cloak for a chemise, my blue peasant dress, and some hairpins and ribbons. I found a secluded spot and dressed myself. I unpinned my hair that had become a tangled mess of curls and painstakingly brushed it out as I heard the others waking up. I came out of my spot to see everyone gathering to discuss what to do. I walked closer, pinning my hair up as I went.
"I say we should leg it and slip out the back way!" Nori looked around nervously. Dwalin clapped a hand on his shoulders.
"I'm not running from anyone, beast or no."
"There is no point in arguing! We cannot pass through the Wilderland without Beorn's help." Gandalf said with an exasperated tone. I cleared my throat and everyone turned to look at me.
"Gandalf's right. I hate to be a pessimist, but we'd be hunted down before we reached the forest. We barely escaped last time." I began looking around the group and spotted Bilbo sleepily rubbing his eyes next to Thorin. An idea popped into my head and I shared a look with Gandalf.
"Bilbo! There you are. Come with Gandalf and I. Now everyone, this will require very delicate handling."
"Yes it will. The last person to have startled Beorn was torn to shreds."
"Then why, may I ask, is Belladonna going with you?" Thorin asked Gandalf while his eyes locked on me.
"Well, you're not exactly the type of handling a situation, especially a delicate one, well unless it's with a sword."
"She has a point. Belladonna and Bilbo will come with me-"
"Are you sure that this is a good idea?" Bilbo stepped timidly towards me as he spoke.
YOU ARE READING
The Shire's Deadly Flower
Fanfic"He looked rugged and dangerous. He looked like a king." The sister of Bilbo Baggins has been raised to be a high society hobbit woman all her life. However, she has been learning of the outside world just as long. She is particularly interested in...
