The Wanderer

Chapter Fifteen

 "If you don't like my burglar, then please don't damage him. Return him to me. You're not making a very splendid figure as King under the Mountain, are you, Thorin, son of Thrain?" Gandalf came rushing to the front after me and I breathed a sigh of relief. Perhaps he could talk some sense into the dwarf.

"Never again will I have dealings with wizards!" Thorin shouted as he let Bilbo go, thankfully not over the wall. I saw a dwarf whisper something to Bilbo and he scampered down the wall. "Or Shire rats!"

I ran to the end of the rope Bilbo was using to climb down and helped him to the ground.

"Mr. Baggins, you are one lucky little hobbit," I said with a smile. He grinned back at me, then followed me to where Gandalf stood. "We ought to keep a better eye on you from now on, yes?" His grin turned sheepish and he nodded.

We turned our attention to where Bard was addressing Throin once more. "Are we resolved? The return of the Arkenstone for what was promised." He paused, but he received no answer from the dwarves. "Give us your answer. Will you have peace or war?"

Thorin was about to give us his answer when a black crow came and landed right beside him. A smirk took its place on his face as he announced, "I will have war."

The sound of marching feet alerted all of us to another presence. I turned and saw a large army of dwarves marching towards us. One dwarf rode on a ram before the mass and he sat proudly. He was no doubt their king because I have never met a king who rode on a normal horse.

"Oh dear," I mumbled to Bilbo and Gandalf, "I believe that would be-"

"Ironfoot," Gandalf finished glumly. I heard the dwarves cheer the dwarf's name while Thranduil ordered his elves and he Lake-town people to face the new threat.

"Who is that? He doesn't look very happy," Bilbo asked, looking up at us.

"It is Dain, Lord of the Iron Hills. Thorin's cousin," Gandalf answered.

"Are they alike?"

"Oh, goodness no. Dain is far more stubborn and quite rude, I might add, but that might be because I'm an elf," I huffed, upset. No matter what I tried, Dain still despised me; his hatred for elves must be very strong.

"I've always found Thorin the more reasonable of the two," Gandalf countinued as the dwarf army marched closer and finally stopped some yards away.

"Good morning! How are we all? I have a wee proposition, if you wouldn't mind giving me a few moments of your time. Would you consider... Just sodding off?!"

The people of Lake-town backed away at his shouting, frightened of the dwarf. They began to murmer amongst themselves when Dain countinued to shout, "All of you! Right now!"

"Stand fast!" Bard cried to his people, his sword out.

"Gandalf, I believe this is the part where you intervene," I whispered to the wizard.

"Right, yes, of course." Gandalf cleared his throat and swiftly made his way to stand in front of Dain. "Come now, Lord Dain."

"Gandalf the Grey. Tell this rabble to leave, or I'll water the ground with their blood," he growled for all to hear. Bilbo, still next to me, looked up with a terrified face.

"You might want to find a place to hide soon enough, Mr. Baggins," I told him gently, putting a hand in his shoulder. He gulped and looked back to Dain and Gandalf.

"There is no need for war between Dwarves, Men and Elves. A legion of Orcs march on the Mountain. Stand your army down." Gandalf stopped in front of him, standing tall despite the ram riding dwarf in front of him.