Slipping the dagger into my side harness, I knocked on the round door. "I can't believe Gandalf asked me to come on this quest. What was he thinking?" I muttered to myself as I took in the scenery around me. If I had to guess, it was around midnight, evidence being the light of the moon and stars illuminating the Shire. Contradictory to most, I felt more comfortable at nighttime. It was easier to hide.
Seeing that there was no response from the door, I whispered a few obscenities and knocked on it again with a little more force. While I was waiting, I thought about what Gandalf had said about this grand 'quest' I was about to partake in.
All the wizard had revealed to me was that a group of men were going on an adventure to reclaim something they lost long ago. I figured it wouldn't be any harm to check it out. Besides, it's not as if I had anything else to do. As a general outcast to Middle Earth, my schedule wasn't exactly full.
Suddenly the door was thrown open by a small, disheveled-looking creature. He looked me over and groaned. "Gandalf, you said there weren't anymore visitors!" I had to stifle an amused chuckle. Who was this tiny man with such a large personality?
I rolled my eyes as a tall figure peered through the doorway. "Master Baggins, you are putting words in my mouth once more. I did not say there wouldn't be another visitor." I lifted an eyebrow as Gandalf gave the hobbit a knowing look before motioning inside. "Won't you come in, my dear?"
As soon as I entered the room, everything went quiet. That's when I spotted thirteen dwarves all staring at me from the dinner table. Great.
"Who are you?" One of the dwarves growled. I assumed this was Thorin Oakenshield, so I temporarily held my tongue. Normally I just solved physical/verbal conflicts with just a punch or two, but something about this situation told me not to.
"Everyone, may I introduce Kyja, one of the last skin-changers in Middle Earth. She will be accompanying us on our journey to the Mountain." Gandalf announced, placing his hand on my shoulder. A few of the dwarves mumbled their greetings, one blonde dwarf nodding his head politely in my direction. Courtesy from a dwarf? I thought. Impressive.
"These are the dwarves of Erebor." The wizard said, gesturing to each dwarf as he stated their name. "That's Fili, Kili, Oin, Gloin, Dwalin, Balin, Bifur, Bofur, Bombur, Dori, Nori, Ori, and the leader of our company, Thorin Oakenshield." I made no effort to memorize the names just yet. I had more important things to remember, and there would be time to remember their names later on.
"I thought skin-changers did not exist." Bofur stated.
"Well you thought incorrectly." I replied coolly. "Amazing how realities change, isn't it?"
A look of surprise passed over each of the dwarves' faces. Either they did not know entirely what a skin-changer was, or I had already offended them. I couldn't give a damn with either outcome, of course. I sighed and leaned against the wall. "Don't mind me, all right? Please- continue." Glancing at Gandalf, I motioned for a change in conversation.
"Ah yes, Bilbo, my dear fellow, let us have a little more light." Bilbo then brought a candle to the table, where Gandalf had spread out a map which was originally in his pocket. "Far to the East, over ranges and rivers, beyond woodlands and wastelands, lies a single solitary peak." He explained.
"The Lonely Mountain." Bilbo murmured.
"Aye, Oin has read the portents, and the portents say it's time." Gloin said, nodding curtly.
"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 interrupted, staring thoughtfully into the fire.
Bilbo squirmed awkwardly and glared at Oin. "Uh, what beast?" He stammered.
Bofur snickered at his question with a mischievous expression. "Well that would be a reference to Smaug the Terrible, chiefest and greatest calamity of our age. Airborne fire-breather, teeth like razors, claws like meathooks, extremely fond of precious metals--"
"Yes, I know what a dragon is."
A dragon? Are you kidding me? Shaking my head, I paced out of Bilbo's home and sat on the front steps. Gandalf was insane if he thought I was going along with this. Hell, I was a skin-changer.
I didn't belong anywhere, especially with thirteen revenge-crazed dwarves. I mean, sure, I didn't think my life was valuable- but I wasn't about to lose it fighting a dragon!
I then pulled out my pipe and examined it closely. Gandalf told me it was carved by my father. To be honest, it wasn't too hard to come to that conclusion, because it was in the shape of a bear. I smoked it once or twice, just to get the feeling of home.
Then again, it's not like I ever had a true home, besides the refuge I had received from a family friend. Typical girl deprived of a family life. I had such a pathetically wonderful sob story....
I clenched my fists and held back the urge to switch into my other form. Control yourself. My mind argued. You don't want another accident. Not like the one back at Bree.
~ Flashback ~
"Another drink?" The man asked. I shook my head, avoiding eye contact. Shrugging his shoulders, he waltzed over to a slumped figure on a nearby stool. The smell of mead and the Valar knew what else contaminated the air, coating everything in a sickly layer of alcoholic drowsiness.
I had never gone to the Prancing Pony that often, and the few times I did go was when I needed to forget a few particularly vivid memories. Mead was helpful in that regard.
"Oy- move over." A gruff man bellowed. I sat completely still, focusing in on the glass in front of me. My finger ran itself over the rim of the glass as I internally hoped this fool would just leave. "Did you not hear me, wench?" He repeated. The pungent scent of sweat and alcohol perfumed his body at an overpowering rate. How lovely.
"I heard you perfectly clear." I stated, carefully choosing my words. "There are plenty of other seats in the bar. Do me a favor and sit elsewhere."
Grabbing my wrist, the man yanked me off of the seat. This dim-witted buffoon did not know what he was getting into. "There!" He exclaimed, obviously proud of himself. What he evidently did not notice were the claws that were growing where my fingernails once were.
A low growl rose up from the bottom of my throat, and all that my inner animal allowed me to say was: "I warned you, bastard." The man yelled in surprise when my right hand shot up and firmly wrapped itself around his neck. I dug my claws into his flesh, calmly watching as he screamed and his fresh blood spilled onto my fingers.
The cries of terror and disgust from the other tavern members were mere whispers as I casually flung the man's body onto a table. He crashed into several glass mugs, as well as a few unsuspecting guests. Everyone was too scared to intervene as I nonchalantly approached him and unsheathed one of my spare daggers. "The problem with men like you," I chuckled, pulling back my hood and meeting his gaze with utter disgust, "is that you don't know how to take the word 'no'."
I saw the man's eyes widen in fear as I gave him a smile, my normal teeth having turned into fangs. "When you go to the medic, tell them the monster sent you." With that, I lifted the dagger and slammed the blade directly into his crotch. The cry of pain that erupted from his lips was immensely satisfying.
Since I had removed my hood, I revealed to everyone my true identity. It's not as if women aren't allowed in the bar. It's only when you are in the midst of turning into a panther do people tend to realize you aren't exactly who some would call normal.
"What is that? What are you?!"
"Look at her eyes! What a freak!"
"Get out of here, you monster!"
Scrambling to the door, I caught a glimpse of the man who I just assaulted. His body writhed in pain, but his eyes never left mine as I sprinted out of the tavern.
~ End of Flashback ~
Groaning, I stood up and prepared to enter Bilbo's home once more when I was greeted with a familiar face. "Pardon me." Balin said, pulling out a long piece of paper and handing it to me. "This is the contract you can sign if you want to become part of the company."
Walking inside, I felt thirteen pairs of eyes staring me down as I skimmed the contract. "Let me make something clear." I snapped, facing the group of dwarves. "I know you think I'm an outcast, a freak of nature. I also realize that I am a woman, so there's no need for a physical check-up." Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ori blush slightly. He appeared to be a bit of a younger dwarf as well.
"I hope you know those factors give you no excuse to judge my fighting ability. In all honesty, I could take any of you down if I was in my other form. However, I will let you decide as a group whether or not I should come along on this journey."
Setting my jaw, I turned around and walked down one of the hallways and ran my fingers through my hair. "What have I just done?" I said under my breath. A few minutes later, I spotted Thorin walking towards me.
"We have agreed to let you come with us." He grumbled. I raised my eyebrows in surprise. "However, try not to be a burden. This is a serious quest, and it's nothing to be taken lightly."
Just as he turned around, I grabbed his forearm and yanked him back to meet my gaze. Thankfully I was taller than the dwarf, which added to my intimidation factor. "I would ask the same of you, Dwarf-King." I spat. "But you have already failed that request, considering you just became another individual that effortlessly gets on my last nerve."
Lightly pushing him aside, I headed back to where Balin was and agreed that I would come along with them. "Kyja, welcome to the company of Thorin Oakenshield." I couldn't help but give them a ghost of a smile as the dwarves cheered and whooped a little loud for my liking.
I caught sight of Thorin scowling at me in the shadows. Perhaps I was a bit harsh with him. After all, he'd been through quite a lot. Then again, so have I....
Moments later, the dwarves had all gathered in Bilbo's living room, smoking their pipes by the fire. I would have done the same, but I felt that a woman smoking a pipe would've been too much for some of them to handle.
To my surprise, Thorin began to sing, and I couldn't help but feel the heartache as the others joined in:
"Far over the misty mountains cold....
To dungeons deep, and caverns old....
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."
Quietly I headed to the door, only to be interrupted by the sound of feet. "Where are you going?" Fili asked. I was inwardly perplexed at his question, but seeing as he had not offended me yet, I would be courteous.
"Outside. Figured I need some rest before tomorrow." I replied.
Fili shifted his weight before rubbing the back of his neck."You don't have to do that. We could find you a room in here easily."
"Do not worry, I'll be fine. I'm accustomed to sleeping in the outdoors." Before Fili could argue, I flung open the door and bounded into the night.
The sweet scent of flowers and rain filled my nostrils as I looked for an appropriate tree to sleep in. "Perfect." I grinned, jogging over to a large tree directly above Bilbo's house.
After I checked no one was around to see, I cringed as my hands transformed into two, slender black paws. With these I was able to climb up the tree with no trouble. Settling myself on a large branch, I was able to take in the absolute beauty of The Shire.
Catching sight of the rolling, green hills was quite amazing, even though they weren't as visible during the night. The sounds of different farm animals echoed in my ears, and I chuckled softly.
No wonder I felt so out of place here. It was so peaceful, and calm. The people of The Shire weren't aware of the troubles existing out of their land. I wasn't used to this. After all, my life so far had been anything but calm.
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So, this was my very first attempt at a Fanfiction. The following chapters may be a bit rough, and I apologize for that! Just bear with me. I simply wanted to try something new that was out of my typical routine. Let me know what you thought of it and if I should continue it.
Also, for those people out there that call authors "lazy" for writing fanfictions- I beg to differ with your opinion. Just because someone uses another story and adds a character does not make them untalented. In fact, I view it as a good way for beginning writers to start off. However, I'm not in support of the immense amount of One Direction fanfics that exist on Wattpad. Judge if you like, but there are others who would agree with me.
Thanks again for all the support!
~ Orla