➼➼➼➼

➼➼➼➼

bold - dwarvish

Alenia hears the door creak open, before a gruff voice sounded.

"Gandalf, I thought you said this place would be easy to find. I lost my way. Twice. I wouldn't have found it at all, had it not been for the mark on the door," Thorin Oakenshield, heir to the throne of Erebor said.

The door was shut again, as the footsteps faded away, back towards the dining room.

"Mark? There's no mark on that door, it was painted a week ago," Bilbo said.

Alenia peeked out from the living room, and saw that there was a large crowd by the doorway to the dining room. She joined them at the back, silently and no one was aware of her presence. Slowly, the dwarves head back to take seats.

Alenia quickly pressed herself against the wall, hiding behind the archway to the room filled with dwarves, as Gandalf replied, "There is a mark; I put it there myself. Bilbo Baggins, allow me to introduce the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield."

Thorin stepped towards Bilbo, his back to Alenia. "So, this is the hobbit. Tell me, Mr. Baggins, have you done much fighting?"

"Pardon me?" Bilbo asked, confused.

"Axe or sword? What is your weapon of choice?"

"Well, I do have some skill at Conkers, if you must know, but I fail to see how that's relevant," Bilbo said proudly.

Alenia failed to stifle a laugh, causing Thorin to turn in surprise.

"And who are you?" Thorin asked, grabbing her arm and pulling her into view of the rest of the Company.

Alenia growled, instantly pulling a knife out of her belt and putting it to Thorin's throat. "First off, no touchy." 

The dwarves yelled at the sudden threat, while Gandalf chuckled. Bilbo just looked alarmed at the violence.

Gandalf looked at Thorin and gestured to let go of her arm. "This is Alenia Damenor. I've brought her as a valuable addition to your quest."

Thorin looked warily to the young woman before releasing her.

Alenia stepped away, twirling her knife and sticking it back in it's small sheath at her waist, before turning to face the company. "Hi. I'm Alenia Damenor, Ranger of the North, and the addition to your quest. Nice to meet you all."

She made eye contact with the younger dwarf from the kitchen and smiled, before turning back to Thorin.

"Sorry to do that to you, Your Majesty. I don't like people touching me before I know them."

"Call me Thorin," he said, turning back to the table and taking a seat. "I'm not a king."

"Not yet, you're not," Alenia said, grinning. "But you will be if I have anything to say about it."

"You're an elf?"

"Half elf, half human." She shrugged. "Didn't grow up with the pointy-ears, so I'm not a complete stick-in-the-mud. Also, not as graceful as you might think."

A lot of the dwarves chuckled, and Thorin smiled tentatively. "I suppose not."

Bilbo brought Thorin some soup, as the dwarves asked about a meeting he went to with the other dwarven clans.

"What news from the meeting in Ered Luin? Did they all come?" A dwarf with white hair and beard asked.

"Aye. Envoys from all seven kingdoms."

The dwarves murmured in excitement, shifting in their seats.

"What did the dwarves of the Iron Hills say? Is Dain with us?" A fierce-looking, balding dwarf asked.

Thorin paused, frowning. "They will not come. They say this quest is ours and ours alone."

The disappointed dwarves started to mutter amongst themselves. Alenia shifted against the door frame.

The mutters died down, as Bilbo asked, "You're going on a quest?" He looked around at the dwarves, before Gandalf tapped him on the shoulder and asked for some more light.

Alenia lifted off the door frame and went to stand by Gandalf, as she was the only one tall enough to look over his shoulder.

As Bilbo came back with a candle, Gandalf unfolded a map onto the table.

"Far to the east, over ranges and rivers, beyond woodlands and wastelands, lies a single solitary peak." The wizard pointed to a mountain on the parchment.

"The Lonely Mountain?" Bilbo read, and glanced at Alenia, who nodded.

"Aye. Oin has read the portents, and the portents say it is time." A red-haired dwarf declared, as he laid a hand on a gray-haired dwarf's shoulder.

The dwarves groaned, probably having heard this before, many times.

"Ravens have been seen flying back to the mountain as it was foretold: when the birds of yore return to Erebor, the reign of the beast will end," Oin said, nodding.

"What beast?" Bilbo asked, interrupting.

"Well, that would be a reference to Smaug the Terrible, chiefest and greatest calamity of our time," a dwarf in a peculiar hat said. "Airborne fire-breather, teeth like razors, claws like meathooks. Extremely fond of precious metals." 

"Yes, I know what a dragon is," Bilbo replied, sassily.

I like this hobbit. Alenia thought, chuckling.

"The task to win back the mountain would be difficult enough with an army behind us. But we number just thirteen, and not thirteen of the best," the white-haired dwarf said.

"Speak for yourself," Alenia muttered. The young dark-haired dwarf chuckled having overheard, as the other dwarves start yelling and protesting at the insult.

"We may be few in numbers, but we're fighters. All of us, to the last dwarf." A young blonde-haired dwarf declared, pounding the table with his fist for emphasis.

"And you forget, we have a wizard in our company," the young dark-haired dwarf added. "Gandalf must have killed hundreds of dragons in his time."

Definitely brothers. Alenia thought, noting their similar noses and mannerisms.

"Well, no, I wouldn't say that I-," Gandalf protested nervously, before Dori cut in.

"How many then?" the gray-haired dwarf asked.

"What?" Gandalf asked, caught off guard.

"How many dragons have you killed?" Alenia replied, smirking at him, already knowing the answer. "Go on, give them a number!"

Gandalf glared at her, cheeks growing red with embarrassment, before he started choking on his smoking pipe. 

Thorin rose out of his seat during the wizard's hacking. "Silence! If we have read these signs, do you not think others will have read them too? Rumours have begun to spread. The dragon Smaug has not been seen for sixty years. Eyes look east to the mountain, assessing, wondering, weighing the risk. Perhaps the vast wealth of our people now lies unprotected. Do we sit back as others claim what is rightfully ours? Or do we seize this chance to take back Erebor"" the dwarf cried. "To arms! To arms!" 

The other dwarves cheered, lifting their fists in excitement, pounding the table.

"You forget, the front gate is sealed," the white-haired dwarf said in frustration. "There is no way into the mountain." 

"That, my dear Balin, is not entirely true," Gandalf said, twirling a key up from the folds of his sleeve. Thorin looked at the wizard in astonishment.

"How came you by this?" Thorin asked.

"It was given to me by your father, by Thrain, for safekeeping. It is yours now," He handed the metal key to the dwarf, who took with a careful reverance.

"If there is a key, there must be a door," the blonde-haired dwarf mused excitedly.

Gandalf pointed to some runes next to the mountain symbol on the map. "These runes speak of another passage into the lower halls."

"There's another way in," The dark-haired dwarf exclaimed, looking up from the table.

Alenia rolled her eyes at the dwarf's statement. "That's stating the obvious, don't you think?"

The dark-haired dwarf stuck his tongue out at Alenia, and she chuckled.

"Well, if we can find it, but dwarf doors are invisible when closed," Gandalf said, glancing between the pair, amused. "The answer lies hidden somewhere in this map and I do not have the skill to find it. But there are others in Middle-earth who can. The task I have in mind will require a great deal of stealth, and no small amount of courage. But, if we are careful and clever, I believe that it can be done." 

"That's why we need a burglar," the youngest dwarf said.

"Hmm, a good one too," Bilbo said, peering at the map. "An expert, I'd imagine."

"And are you?" A dwarf asked.

"Am I what?" The hobbit asked, glancing up from the map, confused.

"He said he's an expert!" Oin cried, laughing.

"M-Me? No, no, no, no, no. I'm not a burglar; I've never stolen a thing in my life," Bilbo said.

"I'm afraid I have to agree with Mr. Baggins. He's hardly burglar material," Balin said, shaking his head.

Bilbo nodded in agreement, satisfied.

"Aye, the wild is no place for gentlefolk who can neither fight nor fend for themselves."

Bilbo continued to nod, even as his face scrunched up at the insult. 

Gandalf scowled, before standing up in the corner, a shadow growing and taking over the room. "Enough! If I say Bilbo Baggins is a burglar, then a burglar he is."

Alenia smirked as the dwarves swallowed nervously, before she reached out and touched the wizard's shoulder, causing him to return to his normal state.

"Hobbits are remarkably light on their feet," Gandalf continued. "In fact, they can pass unseen by most if they choose. And while the dragon is accustomed to the smell of dwarf, the scent of hobbit is all but unknown to him, which gives us a distinct advantage. You asked me to find the fourteenth member of this company, and I have chosen Mr. Baggins. There's a lot more to him than appearances suggest, and he's got a great deal more to offer than any of you know, including himself. You must trust me on this."

"And what of the girl?" The balding dwarf asked.

"Alenia is a powerful warrior, and has travelled far and wide as a Ranger, which gives her a lot of experience and wisdom." Gandalf answered, narrowing his eyes at the dwarf.

The half elf smirked. "Plus, I'm smart, which is probably more than most of you lot can say."

The brothers smiled at that, shaking their heads.

As Thorin agreed to what the wizard had said, the girl caught the eyes of the pair, winking.

"Give them a contract." Thorin said, gesturing to Alenia and Bilbo.

Balin pulled a roll of parchment and handed it to the half elf. "It's just the usual summary of out-of-pocket expenses, time required, remuneration, funeral arrangements, so forth."

"Danger, possibility of death in various ways, a dragon. Yep. Sounds like fun," Alenia said, signing the contract after barely glancing through the conditions.

The dwarves chuckled, and decided that they liked this sarcastic she-elf.

Alenia handed the contract to the hobbit, who took it and started reading through it carefully. "Terms: Cash on delivery, up to but not exceeding one fourteenth of total profit, if any. Seems fair. Eh, Present company shall not be liable for injuries inflicted by or sustained as a consequence thereof including but not limited to lacerations ... evisceration ... incineration?"

"See? Lots of ways to die," Alenia muttered, as the dwarven brothers sidled up to either side of her.

"Fili," the blonde-haired dwarf said.

"And Kili," the dark-haired dwarf said.

"At your service." the pair said together.

Alenia smiled at both of them. "Alenia Damenor at yours. It's nice to meet you both."

No sooner had their greetings been exchanged when Bilbo fainted, falling to the ground of his own home.

➼➼➼➼

a/n: 

just like i promised! a much longer chapter! also the story will be moving forwards now, and this is where the movie really starts. (technically, last chapter was part of it, but this has plot now. *yay*).

anyway, vote/comment if you want. or don't.

have a great rest of your day, and i will see y'all on tuesday :))

- ash xx