Unexpected Help

The Unexpected Visitor

          Night had fallen as a small figure, though not as small as the hobbits around it, approached a round green door marked by a wizard. From inside the cloaked figure could hear a hushed murmur, barely audible if not for the elf ears that adorned them. A small petite hand reaches out from beneath the cloak and gently knocks on the door. Silence falls inside the hobbit home as the soft sound reached those inside, and the sound of footsteps approaching met the ears of the figure outside. As the door swung open, a large man robed in gray stood there smiling down at the tiny creature in front of him. "I was beginning to wonder if you were going to make it this evening my lady." The man said. He quickly ushered the woman inside closing the door behind him. As they entered the dinning room they were met with both curious and heated stares, from the group of Dwarves seated around the table. The dwarf at the head of the table, who looked the angriest, stood from his seat. "Who are you?" he questioned in a dangerous tone. The smooth velvet female voice that answered seemed to shock the room, "Do not fear, Thorin Oakenshield, I have no interest in your treasure or your mountain." This only served to make the dwarf angrier if possible. He quickly grabbed the girl by the collar of her cloak, "How do you know of this quest, who sent you?" He all but shouted. Yanking her cloak from his grasp she responded, "No one sent me King Under the Mountain." Thorin stared long and hard at the new arrival before speaking again. "Who are you?" Small delicate hands reached up and removed the girls hood. Standing before the dwarves was a young woman matching them in height, but that was the only similarity. She had waist length golden brown hair and emerald green eyes that seemed to pierce the very soul. Her ears were pointed as was custom to half of her kind, the elves.

              As soon as the king saw her ears he exploded with rage, rounding on the old gray wizard. "How could you betray us to an elf, we were supposed to be able to entrust you with this quest and now this!" Thorin bellowed. Though neither the wizard nor the elf seemed offended or otherwise moved. "I am not simply an elf, King, I am also part dwarf and there for am looked down upon quite literally." The young girl spoke first.  Before Thorin had a chance to reply she added, "I have been blessed with the same gift as my aunt, the gift of foresight and I wish to aid you in your journey." It was now the wizard's turn to speak his mind, "Trust me in this Thorin Oakenshield, I will not lead you astray." Thorin as fuming by now and pacing the floor. The elf seemed as though she were a million miles away suddenly, and this gained the attention of Gandalf, the other dwarves, and even the small hobbit. Then all of a sudden she exploded with laughter, doubling over and grasping her knees for support. She laughed for a few moments and then composed herself, regaining her seriousness and professionalism. "I apologize I just saw something quite amusing," the young woman said still smiling widely. She then continued, "I suppose I should introduce myself, I am Adrianna niece of the Lady Galadriel of Lorien at your service King Thorin." She bowed her head respectfully. Gandalf smiled knowing that Thorin would argue to his very last breath on the matter of an elf joining, but he also knew that Thorin was intrigued by her size and ability of sight.

            "Very well, but at the first sign of you being a false aid or a hindrance to our quest you will be gone." Thorin spoke rigidly. He motioned for another Dwarf with a kind face and white hair, "Give them both a contract." The old Dwarf handed both Adrianna and the Hobbit a long scroll, without reading it, she signed it immediately while the Hobbit took his time reading it. "Funeral arrangements?" The Hobbit asks shakily. He continues reading, " Cash on delivery, up to but not exceeding one fourteenth," he mumbles out. " Present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as of consequence thereof including but not limited to lacerations… evisceration… incineration?" he questions. One of the Dwarf's wearing a funny hat responded, "Oh, aye, he'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye." This seems to cause the small hobbit quite a bit of shock. "You alright, laddie?" The white haired dwarf asked. The hobbit replied breathlessly, "Uh, yeah, just a bit faint." "Think furnace with wings." The first dwarf chided again. By this point the poor nervous hobbit seemed nauseous and breathless, "Air, I need air." "Flash of light, searing pain, then POOF! You're nothing more than a pile of ash." The taunts continued. The hobbit rested his hands on his knees breathing deeply. Then he stands straight as the others look on, "Hmmm. Nope," and he promptly fainted. Gandalf sighed in frustration, "Very helpful, Bofur."

          The old wizard then went to rouse the young hobbit and helped him into the other room. In the meantime, Adrianna turned to the white haired dwarf, "I'm sorry but I didn't catch your name." "Oh, my, yes we did forget introductions," he replied. "I am Balin and that's my brother Dwalin," he began pointing to a tall, tough looking Dwarf. "Those three over there," he said pointing to the dwarf with the funny hat, a very large one, and one with an axe in his head, "are Bofur, Bomber, and Bifur." He paused a moment to look around before continuing, "The two over in the corner with the hearing trumpet and the red beard are Oin and Gloin." "Next to them are the brothers Dori, Nori, and Ori, the youngest one of our group," he added. Adrianna nodded making sure to remember which dwarf belonged to what name. "Finally, we have Thorin of course, and his two nephews Fili and Kili." He finished with a knowing smile at the look on Adrianna's face as her eyes moved from the blonde haired prince to the dark haired, nearly beardless dwarf. Adrianna let her eyes linger on Kili for a moment longer than she meant to, but was brought to her senses by the argument that seemed to have broken out between Gandalf and the hobbit. "Well, all good stories deserve embellishment. You'll have a tale or two yourself when you come back." Gandalf stated with a smile. "Can you promise that I will come back?" Bilbo questioned. Gandalf's smile seemed to fade a little when he responded, "No. And if you do, you will not be the same." Bilbo sighed solemnly and said, "That's what I thought. I'm sorry, Gandalf, I can’t sign this. You've got the wrong hobbit." He then turns and walks down the hallway to his room.

             Balin and Thorin then begin to discuss the loss of the burglar and the state of the dwarves they have, "After all, what are we? Merchants, miners, tinkers, toy-makers; hardly the stuff of legend." Balin commented. "There are a few warriors amongst us," Thorin retorted. "Old warriors." Balin challenged. Thorin the looked thoughtful for a moment before speaking again, "I will take each and every one of these dwarves over an army from the Iron Hills. For when I called upon them, they came. Loyalty. Honor. A willing heart. I can ask no more than that." Adrianna smiled to herself as Thorin spoke those words and her commitment to the quest was only solidified more, as Balin reasoned that Thorin did not have to do this. Thorin argued that he did and he felt there was no choice for him now that Gandalf had given him the key into the mountain. "Then we are with you, laddie. We will see it done." Balin said smiling with new found conviction. A short time later everyone had gathered in the front room of the hobbit hole. As Thorin entered he began a solemn tune that the others soon joined in on. "Far over the Misty Mountains cold. To dungeons deep and caverns old. We must away ere break of day. To find our long-forgotten gold. The pines were roaring on the height. The winds were moaning in the night. The fire was red, it flaming spread. The trees like torches blazed with light." Adrianna knew the versus from the song well as she had heard it many a time when she was younger.