70A/N: Okay, so here is the basic run down on why I started this story. I have been asked to do a Hobbit fic, so I did, but when I began looking through the other hobbit stories to get a gist of things, I realized that almost all of them were pairings... and I was like 'What the Heck?' So, I decided to try something a bit different... Drop a review if you can! Hope everyone had a blessed New Year!
Many thanks to...
Guest186— (Thank you very much for such amazing encouragement!)
The better twin— (I'm psychic?! Ha! Thank you for the awesome review!)
"Middle Earth.', I groaned, tucking my head in-between my knees as I took several deep, calming breaths. "I'm in Middle-freaking-Earth! With a wizard of all things!"
"Yes, my dear, you are."
Birds twittered cheerily in the treetops as the late afternoon sunlight filtered through the green boughs. And I... well, I was curled at the bole of one these trees while Gandalf leaned patiently against his staff, waiting for me to end my pity party. A deep sob tore through my chest as he looked down at me sympathetically.
"So.', I sniffled. "You can't send me back?"
"Collie, the door could only be used twice— once when I came into your world, and twice when you opened it. It was created to disappear as it did. I tried to warn you, my dear."
"But why me?!', I wailed again, rubbing the salty teardrops from my face with the pad of my thumb. I didn't have to look in a mirror to know I looked like death warmed over— that fact was painfully obvious, not only to me, but to anyone else who could have seen me at that moment. My face was puffy and swollen from my blubbering, my eyes were most likely red, and I could feel the snot and tears tangled into my honey brown hair.
"Because you are the granddaughter of Frerin, and his kin are going on a quest to reclaim their homeland. You, Collie, will be going with them."
"Nope! I am not going on a quest with a bunch of—"
"Mister Gandalf? Is that you? We were afraid you would not make it in time!"
I popped my head up from its hiding place to blink hazily at a short man whose long gray hair had been plaited back in several places. He was short, and rather stout, but his most distinctive feature was the beard he sported. Behind him were several others who shared the same basic features, though each of them were uniquely their own. They were, in fact, dwarves.
"Ah, Dori! I am glad you have arrived safely. How was the journey?', Gandalf greeted jovially.
"It was alright, considering we only had a few near brushes with orc packs.', the dwarf replied honestly. "And how was yours, Mister Gandalf?"
"Fruitful, to say the least. I have found what I was searching for."
Gandalf chatted with Dori for a few more moments before giving a polite nod to those behind him and turning towards me, bending down to whisper in my ear, 'Do not speak of your grandfather until I have talked to the company." I nodded dumbly, accepting the hand up that he offered me.
"Who is this?', one of the others asked. He had dark brown eyes that twinkled back at my bright blue ones, and a funny looking hat was askew on top of his brown hair.
"Oh! This, Bofur, is Collie. She is my traveling companion at the moment."
"Nice to meet you, lassie."
Ugh! Not *that* joke again...
He bowed overzealously, making me give a snort of laughter. Bofur seemed to be one of those charismatic personalities that could brighten your day within seconds, which he had obviously tried doing for me after catching a glimpse of my tear-streaked face.
Gandalf seemed to want to keep me close by his side, steering any conversations away from my odd appearance, even going so far as to keep the dwarves from coming too close to us as we walked to some unknown destination.
"Ah!', Gandalf declared as we reached the stoop of a funny looking door about ten minutes after the sun had set. "Here we are!" He gave a heavy knock on the green circle-like door with his tall walking staff, which was followed by a flurry of loud, angry complaints from inside. The dwarves all pressed close, eagerly awaiting the opening of the door.
"Stay close to me.', the wizard directed me in a low voice. "We will sort things out soon enough to satisfy you."
The door was flung open, and a very temperamental hobbit stepped quickly back in order to avoid the heap of dwarves that fell into his foyer. Gandalf ducked his head in order to see inside, while I stepped hesitantly out of the way.
"Gandalf.', the curly headed creature sighed exasperatedly, only to be interrupted by an exclamation of 'Get of ya big lump!', that came from the dwarf everyone called Glóin. A mad scramble ensued as the dwarves dusted themselves off and found the pantry, much to the hobbit's chagrin.
"Um... Gandalf?" I weaved through the dwarves as I followed the grey-robed figure through the hobbit hole and to the dining room.
"Yes, Collie?"
"What am I supposed to do?"
"You may relax for the moment, at least. Try not to draw too much attention to yourself, and if you happen to be asked where you are from you may say that you are from the south."
"Okay..."
"Better grab some food while it lasts, lass.', Bofur suggested casually, stuffing another sausage into his mouth. "We dwarves can eat more than you think, and ye don't want to be hungry later on."
Giving a small shrug, I reached across the table and snatched a few pieces of what looked to be fried chicken and a biscuit.
"Ho there! That doesn't seem like it will be enough to fill a growing lass's stomach! You need a bit more if you want to be satisfied for the night! Perhaps some of these... and a bit of that."
Bofur had snatched my plate away, piling it with food until I thought the china would crack underneath all of the weight that was placed on it. When he was satisfied with the amount he passed the dish back to me. I glowered at the large stack of meats, breads, and vegetables while wondering how the heck I was going to eat all of that. The individuals around me seemed to have little trouble with devouring outrageous amounts of grub, and even Gandalf dug in heartily.
My stomach clenched and turned at the complete chaos around me; my brothers' terrible manners would have done nothing for prepare me for a meal with dwarves. They were loud, messy, rude, smelly, and incredibly gassy... the list goes on. All in all, it reminded me of how football season with all of my brothers— basically meaning there was alcohol, hearty songs and cheers, and the ever-popular burping contest. But thankfully for me, with all of the raucous laughter and jokes that were thrown about, I had been mostly overlooked.
Someone lightly tugged on my hair, making me grimace and randomly try to swat the hands away without having to spin around.
"Do not muss up her hair, lads!', Bofur admonished whoever was standing behind me. "There are other ways to get a lass's attention! Simply talking to her would suffice!"
I pulled a face before turning in my chair to raise an annoyed eyebrow at the two dwarves who stood behind me. One was blonde with a braided mustache, and the other had dark brown hair, though he had no facial hair to speak of.
"Fili and Kili.', they stated with a deep bow, their voices low and rich, though still higher pitched than the other dwarves. "At your service."
"Um... Hi. I'm Collie... at your service?', I mumbled around a mouthful of mashed potatoes, awkwardly trying to speak without the food falling out of my chomper.
Things progressed quickly from that point, and Bofur soon found himself scooting over so that the two figures could seat themselves on either side of me. Several minutes later I sent a panicked grimace in Gandalf's direction; his lips twitched slightly when he saw my predicament, as if there was some grand joke that only he understood. I was tempted to stick my tongue out at the old geezer but, upon deciding that I would much rather have him on my side, I thought the better of it.
"Fili and Kili, I would not recommend doing that.', Gandalf warned, drawing the attention of some of the dwarves, who all glanced in my direction. My face burned with embarrassment as many of them elbowed each other in the ribs and sent knowing smirks to one another.
"Do what?', Fili asked innocently, sending a teasing wink in my direction. I crinkled my nose at him while I crossed my arms over my chest and huffed irritably. I can deal with rednecks, but dwarves... I am definitely out of my element.
"Flirt. It is quite rude, because as you can see, Collie is uncomfortable with your attentions.', the wizard explained, though we all knew that Fili knew exactly what he was doing.
"Aye.', Kili grinned. "She knows she could do better, anyway. Everyone knows I'm the better catch."
The company burst into another bout of laughter, while I sent both of them withering glares.
"There is another reason you should not flirt with Collie—" Gandalf's train of thought was impeded when Ori asked the hobbit what he should do with his plate.
"Here, Ori! Give it to me!" Fili grinned mischievously as he leapt from his seat and swaggered into the the foyer. The addressed dwarf handed over the glossed crockery, only to watch in amazement as it was sent sailing through the air. Suddenly all of the dwarves were swarming around like angry bees, catching, throwing, and passing dishes to one another while singing a ridiculous ditty about what 'Bilbo Baggins hates'. The poor halfling looked flustered as his mother's china was thrown with careless precision through his home until they were piled neatly in his kitchen sink.
"Are you done with that, lass?', Bofur asked curiously, motioning to my plate with the fork he held in his hand. I glanced down at the large quantity of items still on my plate, frowning as my stomach flipped again. The feeling that something wasn't right began to make my stomach churn, and upon realizing what was really wrong, I nodded and bolted from my chair.
I stumbled through the halls until I came back to the dining room.
"Ah! There you are, Collie!"
I cringed, backing away from the brothers while I waved my hand warningly, motioning for them to stay back. Fili and Kili looked confused for a moment, but that emotion was quickly replaced with worry.
"Are you alright?', one of them asked. I shook my head, covering my mouth as the nausea built up at that small gesture. Gandalf suddenly appeared behind me, laying a firm hand on my shoulder.
"Collie? Are you alright, child? You are looking rather pale..."
"I— I threw up.', I whispered miserably, leaning heavily against Gandalf's grey clad figure. My vision blurred slightly, while a steady throb seemed to pulse against my head.
"Ah. Must be a delayed reaction.', he mulled, chewing thoughtfully on the stem of a pipe he had produced from a hidden pocket.
"Delayed reaction? To what? Should I ask Oin to take a look at her?"
"Calm yourself, young Kili. She will be alright.', Gandalf tutted. "It is only a unpleasant symptom of— Oh! Never mind that! It will pass in a few moments."
A hefty rap sounded on the door behind me, making me give a small start of surprise. Gandalf chuckled, nudging me gently out of the way and directing me to find a quiet place to sit before opening the entryway.
"Do you think we should wake her?"
"Aye. She'll wake up with a sore neck if she continues to sleep like that. And we need the space for the meeting."
"I had thought perhaps we might have the gathering in the dining area, Thorin. There are plenty of seats."
I gave a small, mewling yawn as my eyes flickered open, and I began to stretch as the sleep cleared from my eyes. I had fallen asleep in a comfy armchair, a crocheted throw wrapped haphazardly around my shoulders as I dozed. Now, as the bleariness cleared from my sight, I noticed two dwarves eyeing me with confusion, one whose white beard made him look like a slightly shorter Santa Claus, and the other who held a slight resemblance to Kili and Fili.
"Thorin, am I seeing things or does she—', the first dwarf began incredulously.
"Durin blue.', the other whispered before he hurriedly schooled his surprised and saddened expression into a stern façade and stormed from the room.
"Durin blue.', the white bearded dwarf said underneath his breath, repeating the first dwarf's soft exclamation before he left the room to follow his companion.
'What the heck does Durin blue mean?', I thought silently.
I stayed curled in the chair for several more minutes before deciding I felt well enough to stand up and find Gandalf, who still owes me an explanation. The dwarves had decided on using the dining room table to hold their council, and I entered the foyer that connected the rooms in time to see Bilbo fall over into a deep stupor.
"What did ya'll do to our host? Spike his tea?', I deadpanned as the hobbit literally fell at my feet.
"It appears that Mr. Boggins is easily frightened.', Kili grinned. "Bofur found it necessary to speak of what a dragon is capable of."
"Necessary? Why the heck is that something that's necessary? Dragons don't exist."
"Actually Collie, there are such things as dragons... In fact that is part of the reason you are here.', Gandalf said with a grim smile that I didn't like the looks of.
"I am NOT Saint George or Lancelot or— or any other kind of person who can kill a dragon!', I spluttered in surprise.
"And I do not expect you to do so!', Gandalf rumbled with laughter evident in his gravely voice.
"Gandalf? I thought you said this meeting was to be held in secrecy. Who is this... girl?', the dwarf at the head of the table asked while looking me over with a frown.
"I meant to discuss that with you.', Gandalf began, a weary look entering his eyes.
"Obviously you did not.', came the curt reply.
"Thorin, this is Collie, the granddaughter of Frerin, your—"
"Brother.', Throin breathed out, finishing Gandalf's thought.