Slowly but surely they all made their way down the narrow pathway to the Elven dwelling. Coming to an even narrower bridge they were forced to cross it in pairs, all the while taking in their surroundings and gawking at its wondrous beauty. The dwarves still had their weapons drawn for fear of attack, they were unnecessarily on edge if the elves had wanted them dead or captured they would have done it already.
The only ones of the large group not agitated and fully relaxed and unarmed were Gandalf, Bilbo and Braerka. She watched as Bilbo looked around enthusiastically, his head flitting from left to right, his eyes wide; he didn't want to miss a single detail. She admired his keen interest; few people who travel stop to take in the beauty around them, she was glad he was taking all of it in.
They finally came to a stop in the open courtyard across the bridge and she was glad for it. She could barely stand and felt that she would collapse soon. The dwarves remained on edge and suspicious of the inhabitants; they kept their weapons drawn.
They waited a few moments before an elf greeted them, "Mithrandir..." he said loudly, descending the stone steps.
"Ah, Lindir" replied Gandalf, thankful someone he knew had come to welcome them; his eyes however where searching behind the elf.
The entirety of the group behind the wizard watched the exchange intently with keen eyes, wary of the elf; they instinctively drew closer to each other. Braerka by now had moved up to the front and stood beside Gandalf; Lindir turned to her.
"Well, well, if it isn't the Shepherd of the Forest!" he said snidely, she didn't appreciate the surprised tone and ignored him when he raised his hand to shakes hers.
"Nice to see you too, Lindir!" she answered, glaring at him and allowing his hand to drop back to his side. She had never liked him he was too self-centred and cared not for others opinions. Although it had been 25 years since their last meeting, she could clearly see the unease with which he still regarded her.
Slightly shaken, the dark haired elf returned his attention to Gandalf. The wizard took a second to acknowledge what had just happened; he viewed Braerka with confused eyes. She knew he had many questions now, as would the dwarves. She would have to answer to them sooner or later; later seemed ideal.
Lindir began speaking in elvish, to keep the dwarfs out of their conversation, but Braerka knew the language well and listened.
"We heard you had crossed into the valley, why?" the elf began.
"We must speak with Lord Elrond..." replied the wizard, speaking in the common tongue to give the dwarves a little reassurance as to what was being said.
Lindir sighed, "He is not here..."
"Not here? Where is he?" asked the wizard, not about to turn around and leave.
It was then that the familiar sound of elven horns sounded. Turning sluggishly Braerka felt unsure of what would ensue; she was anxious for the dwarves and how they would respond. Gandalf turned with her as the sound of clapping hooves grew nearer. Braerka noticed the company tense and move closer again.
The smile that had decorated Gandalf's face quickly faded when he saw the approaching band of elves showed no sign of slowing.
Thorin was then immediately shouting orders to them, "CLOSE RANKS!"
All the dwarves moved into a very compact crowd, an unsuspecting Bilbo was yanked to the centre and the others bundled around him.
The mounted elves galloped across the narrow bridge and began circling the small group, looking down on them. Braerka thought them cruel to do so, what they were doing now was far from welcoming and more threatening; they knew rightly of the strained relations between dwarf's and elves and they were only making it worse.
YOU ARE READING
A Place to Belong
AdventureBraerka was a daring young girl, who survived the wrath of Smaug and was adopted by Thorin Oakenshield. Now almost two centuries later as a trained assassin, and somehow still young, she has been tasked with ending his life. But will she? As she get...
