Chapter 34: More Horrid Fish

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 Swiftly becoming sick of dwelling on tragic things, the hobbit and I light a torch and decide to explore Erebor for a little while. We wander for a while in silence, taking a left, then a right, down stairs, over bridges. The floors and walls are polished smooth as glass and I run my fingers over the stone as we walk.

"To think it is so beautiful, even after all these years..." Bilbo mutters.

"Yes, but I am not a lover of captivity." I reply.

More solemnity. Suddenly, Bilbo stops walking.

"What is it?" I ask.

"Do you hear that? It sounds like water."

I pause.

"I hear it now! It sounds as though its coming from down that way."

And so, lacking anything better to do, my companion and I begin following the sound of the water, away from the treasure-trove and down into older caverns. The air gets mustier and the passage narrower until it finally stops at the foot of a slippery stair case. I hold the torch out to get a better look at what is bellow us.

"Well here we are Me-Lady. An underground river." Bilbo announces.

His voice echoes. Peering into the murky water I can make out wriggling shapes.

After a moment's observation the hobbit exclaims,"Fish! There's fish! Wouldn't Thorin and the rest be pleased if we brought something decent to eat?"

I nod in agreement and we go about trying to catch a few. It was not as difficult as I expected, the creatures were apparently blind and so long as we didn't disturb the water before hand, we could just pluck them out of the river.

We spend several hours at the river when another sound catches our attention. A muffled horn. Perhaps the dwarves of the iron hills have arrived. Quickly collecting our things, we scramble to see what is going on above us. As we climb the stairs, another bellow from a horn echoes through the halls. We pick up our pace. We are nearly half way back when the scraping noise begins. Its so loud I drop my bag to cover my ears. It permeates the walls and the entire passageway shakes. Then, all is silent. Blibo picks up the bag. Eager to escape from the now rickety-feeling hallways, we set out at a dead run. The scraping starts again, but this time louder, and with more force. Dust falls from the century-old ceilings as we clamber up the worn stairs. Then the booming starts. So loud that it knocks me to my knees. Rocks cascade from the ceiling behind us. I run as fast as I can but Bilbo isn't keeping up. I grab his hand and drag him along. I can see the newer, sturdier passage up ahead.

We're almost there.

I trip over a fallen rock. Bilbo and I huddle together, covering our heads just in time as the passage collapses.

When I open my eyes, everything is black. Our torch has gone out.

"Bilbo, are you okay?" No response. "Bilbo?! Are you hurt?" I call, louder this time. Still nothing.

I try to explore my surroundings as best I can by feel. Going forward met me with a pile of rubble, I feel around but I cannot find an opening. Then I methodically crawl backwards, running my hands over the ground, calling for Bilbo. After several minuets, my hand touches something warm.

Bilbo!

Upon further inspection I find the warm something to be the hobbit's arm. I follow it up to his chest, and lay my ear over what I guess to be where his heart is.

Ba-dum, ba-dum.

He's alive. Thank god he's alive. What's wrong with him?

I can't see and it makes it extremely difficult to determine what is wrong with my hobbit friend.

          

I shake his shoulder gently, "Blibo. Blibo, its Larien."

I receive a slight groan in response. I feel warm fluid drip onto my hand.

Oh god he's bleeding.

I quickly find the source of the blood, the back of his head is bleeding. I press my hands to the wound, preparing to heal him.

I don't have the athealas! Can I heal without them?

I do not want to experiment on Bilbo's head. Luckily I don't have to make that decision because at that moment the hobbit groans loudly and starts to move.

"No, Bilbo, don't try to get up." I instruct, sounding calmer than I am.

"Oh god my head..." He moans. "Am I blind?! I can't see a thing!" He begins to panic scrambling to his feet.

"No! No! The torch went out is all! Its okay Blilbo!" I stand and feel for him.

He looses his balance and falls on me. I stumble and then ease us down in a sitting position.

"Just stay still. They will notice we are gone and Kili will come for us." I whisper reassuringly.

"Thorin too?" The hobbit asks, almost child-like.

"Yes, Thorin too." I respond.

We sit in silence for a while before I begin to get nervous.

"Bilbo, you still awake."

"Aye."

"Are you sick of fish too?" I ask, with a slight laugh, trying to cheer him up.

"They are all kinds of trouble. huh?" He responds. "First those dreadful barrels and now this!" He laughs painfully.

I need to keep him talking, so I'll know that he's okay.

"Tell me about how you ended up here, Blibo. How did you get in league with the dwarves?"

I interrupt the hobbit's subsequent tale every five or so minuets to shout "Help!" at the top of my lungs. Hours must have passed by the time Bilbo began to tell me about the spiders in Mirkwood. Just as the hobbit described their hideous language I hear something.

"Shh! Listen!" I whisper excitedly.

There it is again!

Faintly I can hear someone shout "Lari-sar."

"Kili!" I scream at the top of my lungs. "Kili, here we are! Help!"

Then I hear a booming voice, louder than the first "Bilbo! Where is my burglar!"

"What did I tell you?" The hobbit says, a bit too weak to shout back. "I knew Thorin would come for me."

I laugh.

"Kili! Down here!" I shout when the voices get closer.

There in a great commotion on the other side of the rubble. Slits of light peak out from the cracks in the stone.

"Kili! Kili! We are in here!"

"Oh thank god you're alright!" He responds.

"Bilbo?!" the king calls.

"I'm here Thorin!" The hobbit cries.

Instantly I can hear rubble being thrown off the block. More join in the rescue effort. Soon the rubble begins to shake and Bilbo and I scramble to get out of the way as it topples over to reveal the company, plus a few more. Apparently the dwarves of the iron hills did arrive.

"Lari-sar!" Kili shouts, rushing to me. He wraps me in a tight hug and spins me around. "Thank god you're okay." He whispers into my hair. I hug him back tightly.

I look up at the sound of Thorin's booming voice.

"Bilbo!" He bellows, "You stupid hobbit! You could've gotten yourself killed!" He starts to shake the poor hobbit by his shoulders. "Don't you EVER do that again! Do you hear me?!"

"Stop it!" I shout, "Stop it, stop it, stop it!" I rush over to them. "Don't shake him so hard! He's hit his head!"

Thorin's expression completely changes and he lets go of the hobbit. However, poor Bilbo is so woozy from the entire indecent he would've collapsed onto the floor had I not caught him.

"Be gentle." I snap.

Thorin reaches out and brushes the bloody hair from Bilbo's eyes.

"My dear burglar... I'm so sorry. Just, don't ever scare me like that again." He whispers.

The hobbit attempts a small smile. Thorin hugs him gently.

"Here, Larien, let me carry him." He pleads.

The first civil words I've heard from the dwarf-king.

I help the little hobbit onto Thorin Oakensheild's back. The crowd of dwarves part for their king as he carries his burglar up to the main level. Kili takes my hand gently and we follow. However, as we pass the last of the dwarves one grabs my wrist.

"Tari?" The red-haired dwarf asks.

I don't know this dwarf.

I wriggle my hand out of his grasp.

"I'm sorry. You must be mistaken." I stammer and hurry away.

Tari? That was my mother's name.

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