Chapter 3: Back In The Mountain

Bilbo had collapsed again, but this time Thorin had managed to wrap his arms around the small hobbit before he could hit the ground. He wasn’t sure what to do, so he went to lay Bilbo down on the ground until he started convulsing and foaming at the mouth. Panic tore through Thorin like a knife, and he could hear Fili and Kili yelling in Khuzdul. He shot his head up at Gandalf as the wizard spoke, “We must get him to the elfs, they are better prepared than we are!” Protests broke out from the dwarves, until Gandalf silenced them, “Would you rather Bilbo get the help he needs, or watch him die in Thorins arms?” Thorin lifted the burglar into his arms, before turning to Dain. “I will need your pig to reach Dale faster, go to the others and inform them what has happened.” Dain gave a stiff nod before helping Thorin lift the hobbit up onto his war pig, holding him in place until Thorin was able to mount as well. Bilbo’s mouth was no longer covered in foam, but he was still convulsing slightly. Thorin looked down at his kin, “I will stay with Bilbo until he can return to the mountain.” With that he took off towards Dale, praying to Durin that the elfs could help.

Kili turned back from watching his uncle ride off with Bilbo, facing Balin. “Do you think Master Boggins will be alright? I mean, he has to be, right? He survived a dragon, what could a small dart do at this point?” The prince chuckled nervously, trying to help lighten the mood. Balin just looked at him with a sad expression, a mix of pity and concern behind his eyes. Fili threw his arm around his younger brother’s shoulders, shaking him slightly as if to help reassure him. “He’ll be alright Kee, like you said he survived a dragon! I’m sure the elfs will find some magical nonsense to help him. Let’s get back to the others and let uncle worry about Bilbo.” With that the five dwarrows and Gandalf set off to the mountain. As they passed by Dain’s army, he informed them to stand guard in case of any more surprise attacks.

Once they were back inside the mountain, they were met with the rest of the company. All at once, they started asking a million questions. Where were Thorin and Bilbo? What did those pesky elfs want? What happened out there? Balin stepped forward, putting his hands up in front of him to quiet the others. He looked at the dwarves in front of him before sighing and rubbing a hand through his beard. “Thorin agreed to help the people of Dale with rebuilding, and give them what they were promised for helping us. He also agreed to..” he paused before continuing, bracing himself for the anger he knew would come, “He also agreed to giving Thranduil the gems of Lasgalen, as King Thror had promised.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the dwarves were in an uproar. Even Dain had joined them, as he did not know of the agreements made. The older dwarf pinched the bridge of his nose, grumbling about dwarrow stubbornness. Once the group had settled back down, he continued. “Once Lord Dain arrived to our little group, some.. Not so kind words were exchanged between him and Bilbo.” Some of the company turned to glare at Dain, including Bofur and Ori. “Bilbo started to act odd, and it seemed as though the lad was struggling to control himself. He collapsed again and began to seize, so Thorin took him to Dale to see if the elfs could help. Tharkun assured us that they would be better equipped to help than we would be, considering we still aren’t sure what little medicine we have is still good.” Oin grunted at this, upset with himself that he might have done more harm than good to their burglar.

The dwarves began to mutter between themselves, causing Gandalf to raise his eyebrow in confusion. When they seemed to have reached a consensus, they turned to Gandalf before Ori spoke up. “We’d like to go visit Master Baggins, to help make sure he’s not alone. We can all take turns sitting with him, and maybe help Thorin keep his cool around the elfs!” Ori rubbed the back of his neck as he finished, knowing as well as everyone that Thorin did not take kindly to being surrounded by elfs. If going by how uneasy Thorin was with the elfs at Rivendell, and being locked in the dungeons in Mirkwood, it would not be a fun time for anyone involved while he was in Dale. Gandalf chuckled at this and ran his hand through his beard, as if thinking over the matter. “I suppose it would be a good idea to go visit our dear burglar. It would also be wise to start the discussions that Thorin must have between the men of Dale and the Mirkwood elfs, so someone may watch over Bilbo while he is busy.” He had a mischievous twinkle in his eye and a smirk as he spoke, as if he was the only one in on a secret. If the dwarves took notice, they didn’t mention it as they were more busy trying to come up with a rotation on who’d be with Bilbo and when, and what the others would be doing while trying to help with Dale.

Dain spoke up with a gruff voice, “I suppose I can return to my men, and we can keep watch over the mountain while you lot take care of Thorin and Bilbo. Will ya let him know I am dreadfully sorry for what I said? It’d be much appreciated.” Balin patted him on his shoulder, reassuring him that he would talk to Bilbo once the hobbit was awake. Dain turned and left to return to the army outside, leaving the company to their planning. Ori began scribbling down the plan for watching over Bilbo, and any areas the dwarves could focus on to help start rebuilding Dale. It was agreed that Balin would spend most of the time with Thorin, making sure he didn’t try to kill Thranduil. Fili and Kili called dibs on being the first two, and it was settled that Nori and Bofur would swap out with them after. They decided to stay in pairs, making sure one was by Bilbo’s side while the other helped with the elfs if need be, or getting him anything he needed once he was awake. They were debating over how long each group would stay, until it was settled they’d each spend an hour with their dear hobbit. This allowed the groups that weren’t with Bilbo to get more work done with the men, and explore the city when they took breaks.