Chapter 18: The Day of Not Feeling So Nice
The boat – from what she can tell – has come to a stop near the port and her concerns begin to grow. All somebody needs to do is lean over the edge and they would almost certainly see the heads of the Dwarves.
The company begin to mumble but Dwalin hushes them. "Ssh. What's he doing?"
Bilbo, who has a hole in the side of his barrel, peeks out through it. He spies on Bard who has left his barge, talking to a man on the dock. "He's talking to someone," he announces. Then Barge gestures to the Dwarves. "He's pointing right at us. Now they're shaking hands."
"What?" Thorin gasps.
"He's selling us out," Dwalin accuses.
"Or bribing somebody," Gailien counters in the man's defence. Bard returns, his footsteps heard by the company. Just as Dwalin is about to give the man a piece of his mind, the company – to their utter shock – suddenly have hundreds of fish being poured over them. Gailien's mouth hangs open, her jaw tucked in as the fish slap against her head, legs, and back. But it quickly shut as the taste from the smell is overbearing on her enhanced senses. All the light she had is now gone and she doesn't dare move, hating every second that the fish rub against her skin.
It is going to take forever to get that stench out of her nose. The only thing that makes this situation a little more so tolerable, is her vivid imagination of what she can assume the other Dwarves' faces are. A king being covered in fish, Dwalin with smoke nearly pouring from his ears, Bilbo likely also thinking about the stench staining their skin.
"Quiet," Bard orders as the Dwarves grumble in protest. "We're approaching the toll gate."
The barge slows down once more and Gailien resists the instinct to push away the fish so she can hear what is going on outside. "Halt!" a new voice commands. "Goods inspection. Papers please! Oh, it's you, Bard!"
"Morning, Percy," bard greets.
"Anything to declare?"
"Nothing. But I am cold and tired, and ready for home."
"You and me both." There is a shuffling of paper before the man called Percy continues. "There we are, all in order."
"Not so fast," another new – almost nasally voice. Outside the barrels, Alfrid, the master's deputy comes stalking out of the shadows. He snatches the paper from Percy. "Consignment of empty barrels from the Woodland Realm. Only they're not empty. Are they Bard? If I recall correctly, you're licensed as a bargeman. Not –" he takes a fish off one of the barrels, revealing the eye of Bombur "-a fisherman."
"That's none of your business," Bard snarls.
"Wrong. It's the Master's business, which makes it my business."
"Oh, come on, Alfrid, have a heat, people need to eat."
"These fish are illegal." He tosses the fish back into the water then turns to one of his henchmen. "Empty the barrels over the side." Gailien's eyes widen as four pairs of footsteps come onto the barge. Two stop right next to hers, causing her stomach to drop. Then she begins to tip backwards along with the barrel. She pushes her arms out as much as she can against the sides to hold herself in place as another barrel next to her is also being tipped while Bard argues with Alfrid.
The next thing she bothers to hear is Alfrid commanding the henchmen to stop as she is already beginning to slide head-first out of the barrel. The barrel flops back into an upright position, the top layer of fish already disappeared but she cannot see any light yet.
"Ever the people's champion, hey, Bard? Protector of the common folk. You might have their favour now, bargeman, but it won't last," Alfrid taunts.
"Raise the gate!" Percy commands and there is the sound of heavy metal moving as the gate is lifted out of the water, allowing the barge and its contents to continue sailing through.
"The Master has his eye on you," Alfrid continues to warn. "You'll do well to remember, we know where you live."
"It's a small town, Alfrid. Everyone knows where everyone lives."
The continue to stay hidden amongst the fish-filled barrels as Bard guides the barge through the water roads. Water, Lake-towns form of defence, seems to be centred around everything. It is what they eat, their jobs, their defence and their entire culture.
It feels almost lonely being trapped inside the barrel, not hearing the sounds of the Dwarves as they stay silent. Not being able to see them is harder. Her lungs crave for the fresh air and she holds back her throat's itch to cough out the fumes accumulating inside them.
Bard pulls his barge into the docking area, scanning the area for any of the Master's or Alfrid's men. There are a few who are suspicious-looking persons who rattle his already on edge nerves. Nevertheless, he walks to the closest barrel, kicking it over. The fish fall out, scattering along the deck, followed by Nori. Bard moves onto the next, kicking out the next Dwarf.
Again, he moves to a third but before he can, Dwalin rises with a hot glare. "Get your hands off me." Bard retreats as the rest of the Dwarves also start lifting themselves out of the barrels. Gailien pushes her hands up, creating a path for her head to follow. She breaks through, feeling the trails of fish slime still on her, along with a few scales and whatever else has come off of her.
This has been a horrible day.
As the Dwarves climb onto solid ground, Gailien has to take a moment to calm her nose which is overwhelmed at the stench of the group. "Never again," she mutters to Bofur who is trying to wipe his moustache clean.
"I hear ya' lass," he replies, giving her a tired expression.
Bard gestures for them to stay low (to which Gailien rolls her eyes at because they are already, quite low) and follow him. "Follow me."
In a single (and a little conspicuous) file, the Dwarves and their two accomplices follow Bard's lead through the Lake-town roads. It is a pleasant town in her opinion, not even when she visited it before.
"What is this place?" Bilbo questions under his breath.
"This, Mr Baggins, is the world of Men," Thorin answers. It has just occurred to her that Bilbo has probably never been in a realm of Men before. They have only been into Elven kingdoms as well as the Goblins and Beorn's.
"Keep your head's down, keep moving," Bard orders as they round another corner. He guides the Dwarves through a crowd.
"How much lower does he want us to go," Gailien mutters, only heard by Bilbo and Thorin.
They try to sneak through a market area, stalls tall enough to almost cover their height but one guard spots them. "Halt!"
Realising that they have been caught, Thorin starts hurrying the company. "Come on, move," he growls lowly. He ushers Bilbo forward, then Gailien before moving forward himself.
The guard continues to come forward. "In the name of the Master of Lake-town, I said halt. Halt!" The Dwarves pick up their pace, more worried about getting away than being subtle as they follow Thorin's lead. The run along a wharf but the guard has taken another route, blocking them off. "Halt! Stop them!"
Thorin halts suddenly, and Gailien who is behind him barely manages to stop in time, her hands moving forward and pushing on his back to stop herself from tipping him over but Dwalin is behind her and does not give her the same grace. She is thrown forward, Dwalin's chest against her back but fortunately, Thorin is already holding his ground, leaning back and stops both their weights. Gailien grunts, being caught between the two as her chest is squeezed but there is no time to complain to the warrior Dwarf as Thorin begins pushing her back the way they came.
They scramble back into the market space and with unplanned precision, one of the Dwarves crouches on the ground as the guard runs around to catch them, he is met with a metal pot in the face. The guard stumbles backwards, tripping over the crouched Dwarf. Another guard arrives but Gailien leans against Dwalin's back, their elbows linking and with his anchor, uses both her legs to kick the guard into one of the thick wooden posts, either knocking him out or rendering him down for the moment.
Bard catches up with the Dwarves, watching as they handle themselves.
Balin uses a paddle to smack against one's stomach and as they bend over in pain, Thorin uses something heavy to smash against his head. The brother's make use of a rope, tripping a guard as he rushes in who is then promptly completely knocked out by Gailien's punch to the face.
Soon, all of the guards that were nearby now lay unconscious on the floor. The Dwarves take action again, pulling the guards out of sight, behind crates and stalls. The people it seems, are not truly upset or overly bothered that their supposed protection now lays useless, though they do crowd around the area.
Someone of importance must be arriving, Gailien realises as she hides in the shadows, as the crowd quickly disperses, going back to whatever they spend their days doing. Raga, one of the guard's leaders arrives, accompanied by more guards.
"What's going on here? Stay where you are. Nobody leaves," he commands. The Dwarves ready themselves, tightening their grips on their ores, pipes. Gailien sits against a crate next to Fili. She looks past him to Kili (being subtle for his sake) but he is still handling himself.
"Braga," Bard greets.
"Sorry?"
"You."
"What are you up to, Bard?"
"Me? Nothing. I'm looking for nothing." One of the townsfolk moves her elbow along a counter-top, knocking off the pot plant as one of the guards begin to arouse. The pot plant breaks against his head, knocking him back out. Braga peers at the woman but she doesn't give any sign of guilt. Not satisfied, Braga brushes past Bard and into the market area but the townsfolk really do not seem to like the guards as the quickly cover them from sight y using baskets and plants.
"Hey, Braga," Bard calls, taking the guard's attention once more. He holds up a cotton corset type cloth. "Your wife would look lovely in this."
"What do you know of my wife?" Braga questions.
"I know her as well as any man in this town," Bard answers simply. Now infuriated, Braga snatches the clothing article from Bard's hand, throwing it back onto the stall. Once Braga and his guards have well left, Bard returns. "Come," he urges, ushering the Dwarves back onto the path.
At least they don't have to worry much about the townsfolk, she thinks. Gailien ends up near the front again with Bilbo, keeping a watchful eye for any more guards that may appear but the Dwarves seem to have both summoned and knock out any present in this part of town.
A young boy (but still taller than the entire company) jogs out of another path, running up to Bard. "Da, our house!" he hisses. "It's being watched." The young boy looks past his father, eyes widening as he sees the line of Dwarves. He resembles his father – the same hair and face but Gailien realises that he must have his mother's eyes. As the boy's eyes land on her, she timidly raises her hand, giving him a slight wave and smile – the Dwarves must look a little threatening. The boy slowly raises his own hand and with wide eyes, gives her also a small wave while Bard scans the area, looking for the next option.
Bard changes their direction, now with his son following them as well and the company take more backstreets, stopping every now and then until anybody Bard suspects as a spy either passes on, or he changes their course.
The Dwarves congregate around the back of a house, the wall on one side, the water on their other. Bard begins explaining what he wants them to do. "You want us to what?" Dwalin exclaims, quickly hushed by Thorin. Bard grits his teeth.
"It's the only way into the house that's not being watched," he presses. "The Master has spies all over the town."
Gailien looks down to the water, mournfully noting the small ice caps floating around. Cold, wet, and still hungry. Not to mention she isn't dressed for the cooler months, her cloak and jacket lost. Her arms shiver just thinking about jumping in. "Come on," she growls. "What choice do we have?"
Bard nods, leaning back around the corner of the building. "Wait underneath until I give you the signal." Then, with his hand on Bain's (his son) back, Bard and his son straighten themselves, walking around the corner back onto the main path.
Gailien walks to the edge of the barge along with a few of the other Dwarves. Dwalin walks up next to her, scowling as he looks at the water. Gailien rolls her eyes and her hand rests on Dwalin's shoulder, giving it a forceful shove. Dwalin yelps in surprise as his body falls into the icy water. He splutters, his arms creating waves as he keeps himself afloat. He's been mighty rude these last few days and Gailien won't lie in saying that she got pleasure from doing so.
Dwalin growls at her as she stands on the edge of the dock. "I will murder you in your sleep," he warns. Rolling her eyes again, Gailien sits down on the edge, turns herself around and lowers into the water. The iciness sends harsh goosebumps over her skin. The others begin jumping into the water as well, creating much larger splashes than her. She eyes off Kili, but he manages with his leg to stay afloat easy. She also watches Bilbo, not sure if he can swim but the Hobbit, albeit reluctantly, joins them in the water.
Feet and hands knock against each other as they use their limbs to stay afloat, directing themselves underneath the wharf as the building rest on lifted structures. Following Bard's instruction, they swim a few buildings over, having to duck their heads into the water to swim under a few structures.
It's disgusting and Gailien struggles to determine whether this is worse or not than the fish. There is no telling what their bodies are brushing against, and knowing exactly where they are heading to, it isn't anything pleasant.
They make into underneath Bard's house and the ground underneath them rises until they can stand, the water rising to their chests. They circle underneath it, waiting for the signal. The entire company looks as miserable as they feel but she knows that Bard's house must have a fireplace at that is the only thing she can bring herself to think about. Her teeth begin to chatter, knocking against each other loudly. She hugs her arms, trying to keep her warmth as she knows how obnoxious the sound can be.
"We'll be out of here soon," Thorin whispers from her side. When he got there, she'll never know. Gailien nods, looking up to the hole in Bard's floor as they wait for their signal. Her heart stops for a moment as two large hands rest on either of her upper arms. She glances down at the hands and as odd as it is, even to herself, she knows exactly whose hands they are. His chest presses against her back and his hands begin moving up and down. Every muscle in her body aches for her to just lean back and she does, ever so slightly to let him know that his offer of comfort is welcomed.
Her chest aches with how hard her heart is beating – to both keep her blood pumping against the cold, and the body behind her. Though her arms are mostly underwater, she lets her left drift backwards, not sure where exactly it is search but her fingers come into contact with fabric and softly, she presses her hand more in its direction, finding solid skin.
Then from above them, there is a loud knock against the wood of Bard' bathroom.