A month. We had been on the road a month and it felt like we had gotten nowhere. The only thing breaking the monotony of our daily riding was the rain. It had started when I had woken up and steadily gotten worse. The rain was coming down in buckets now. I had thrown back my hat so I could feel the rain on my face.
"Lassie, I don't understand why you're so happy about this storm. You've got to be soaked to the skin!" Dori had woken up that morning and been most unpleasant the entire day. I turned and laughed.
"You're just jealous because you don't know how beautiful rain is! It'll be growing the flowers in my garden back at home. It'll be growing the food we'll find on our journey. It'll even be growing the grass on the slopes of The Lonely Mountain." Dori huffed and squinted through the rain at Gandalf.
"Mr. Gandalf? Can't you do something about this deluge?"
"It is raining, Master Dwarf. And it will continue to rain until the rain is done. If you wish to change the weather of the world, you had better find yourself another wizard."
"Are there any?" Bilbo piped up.
"Are there any what?"
"Other wizards, Gandalf. " I rode from my customary place between Fili and Kili to trot next to him.
"Yes, my dear. There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman the White. Then there are the two Blue wizards. I think I've quite forgotten their names. Do you remember, Bella? I think I told you their names long ago."
"I don't quite remember. Maybe it was Allatar and Pallando. Then again I could be wrong."
"Who was the fifth?" Bilbo inquired.
"That would be Radagast the Brown."
"Is he a great wizard? Or is he more like you?"
"BILBO!"
"Don't mind him, my dear. I think he's a very great wizard in his own way. He's a gentle soul. He prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eye over the forests to the East. And it's a good thing too. All that is evil in the world will look to find a foothold there."
"Gandalf..."
"Yes, Bella?"
"Why must the darkness always begin where the sun rises?"
"My dear, the dark cannot survive where light thrives. The dark is also never content. It will always strive to strike down its greatest enemy first. But in the end, the dark will always lose and in that we should all take comfort. Oh look, the rain's lightening up." the rain had indeed lightened to a soft sprinkle.
"Uncle, can we stop soon? Fili and I are STARVING! We haven't eaten ALL DAY!"
"OI! YOU'RE NOT THE ONLY ONES!" Bombur had to yell to be heard from near the very back of the line.
"Look, there's even a house up on the hill there. I remember it from when we were traveling to the Shire." Fili, Kili, Bofur, and I quickened our ponies' pace so we could rest and dry our clothes. However, we were only met with a collapsed and charred shell. There was hardly a wall to speak of and what was left of the roof and the frame of the house was black. Bofur scrunched his nose thoughtfully.
"Huh... Must've been a different house." something was very, very wrong.
"We will camp here for the night. Fili, Kili, take care of the ponies. Stay with them. Oin, Gloin, get a fire going." Gandalf seemed troubled. I vaguely heard him murmur something about the house's former inhabitants. From Gandalf's tone, I could tell that they had lived there up until very recently.
"Thorin, I think it would be wiser to move on. We could make for the Hidden Valley." I followed Thorin as he stalked towards Gandalf.
"I have already told you. I will NOT go near that place." I was outraged. I had met Lord Elrond and the elves of Rivendell before. His daughter Arwen was a good friend to me.
"Why not? We could get food, rest, advice..."
"We do not NEED their ADVICE." Gandalf seemed to be floundering.
"Thorin, we have a map we cannot read and Lord Elrond could help us." I stood up as straight as I could so Thorin would take notice of me.
"Help? A dragon attacks Erebor. What help came from the Elves? Orcs plunder Moria, desecrate our sacred halls, and the Elves did nothing."
"Thorin, listen to me. The Mirkwood Elves did not help you that day. The Elves in Rivendell live hundreds of miles from Erebor. If they had tried to muster an army, it would have taken them months to get there. The dragon would have already raided the Mountain and slaughtered everyone inside by then."
"Gandalf is asking me to seek out the very people that betrayed my grandfather. Betrayed my father."
"You are neither of them, Thorin. And besides, Gandalf did not give you that map and key for you to hold onto the past!"
"I was not aware that they were his to keep." Gandalf, with fire in his eyes, stormed off. Bilbo asked Gandalf where he was going.
"I am going to seek the company of the only one around here who's got any sense!"
"And who's that?"
"MYSELF, MASTER BAGGINS! I have had enough of dwarves for one day." I turned to Thorin. I glared at him and slapped him. Hard. Before he could say anything, I turned and walked down to help the rest of The Company unpack.
"Why'd you do it?" Bombur raised an eyebrow as he began to unpack.
"Well, Thorin was being a stubborn, obstinate, pig-heade-"
"Come on Bombur," Thorin touched his hand to his cheek, "we're all hungry."