Returning Home: A Hobbit Fanfiction

Chapter 40 - The Desolation of Smaug

~~ Celia ~~

"What?" Celia said incredulously, swinging around to face Thorin.

He met her gaze unflinchingly. "I said, you will not be coming with us to face Smaug. Your purpose here is accomplished. By telling us of his missing scale, we have an advantage we did not have previously. If we can kill him here before he attacks Lake-town, we will have averted  the potential catastrophe you were afraid of. You do not need to put yourself at risk any further."

Celia averted her eyes, wondering whether or not she should bring up the fact that Lake-town was not the 'potential catastrophe' she was worried about. Or, at least, not the only one she was worried about. As it was, she shook her head. "You don't know that. And I bring another advantage in that he won't recognize my smell. It could startle him, be the distraction that we need."

"Or it could just draw his attention to you, and you die needlessly," Thorin pointed out, raising an eyebrow at her. "I would not have you added to the list of lives lost to the dragon."

"I'm not the only one at risk here, you know," she said impatiently, trying to make them see her side of it. "Any of us could die. And if I could make the difference that means innocent people in Lake-town don't die, then I'm going to help. One person should not have more value than dozens of innocent lives."

"Nor should it have any less," Thorin said heavily. "I told you when we started this quest that I expected you to respect my authority, and to fall back when I ordered it. You agreed to that, and I am ordering you now to stand back."

Celia clenched her hands into fists, her nails digging into her palms. "And my sister told you that we couldn't make any promises when it came to innocent lives being in danger. We're here to help prevent catastrophes, not just warn about them. There are some things that we have to do to make sure that other events don't happen, and right now, we haven't done them yet."

"Am I wrong in assuming that you must be alive to ensure your purpose is accomplished?" Thorin asked deliberately. She flushed, opening her mouth to retort, but he cut her off. "You've done what you needed to do in warning us about Lake-town and Smaug's awakening. But you are not to engage with Smaug under any circumstances. That is an express command."

Celia clenched her jaw, willing herself not to let out any of the disrespectful comments she was thinking, which would in no way help her case. She could sense Kíli shifting uncomfortably beside her, but he remained silent, no doubt unwilling to enter the confrontation between her and his uncle. 

Finally, she took a deep breath and looked him in the eye. "My sister is in Lake-town. My uncle is currently scouring among piles of gold for a shiny rock, where he could come face-to-face with a dragon at any minute. Right now, both of them are in danger. And if I can help either of them by facing Smaug, I'm going to. I have to. They're my family."

Thorin shook his head, but whatever he said next was lost as the ground beneath them began to shake, a loud crashing sound filling the clearing. Everyone shot to their feet.

"Was that an earthquake?" Dori wondered, staring at the ground beneath their feet suspiciously. 

Balin shook his head unhappily. "That, my lad, was a dragon."

"What about Bilbo?" Ori questioned, peering at the door. 

They all flinched when they saw a red glow emanating from it, leaving no doubt in anyone's minds as to what was going on. 

Smaug was awake. And angry.

"Give him more time," Thorin said calmly, watching the door. 

"Time to do what?" Balin asked, frowning at their leader. "To be killed?"