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XIII. Fly

The Orc walked closer to the broken king, raising the scimitar above his head in preparation to decapitate him. She was so focused on Thorin that she had not noticed Bilbo passing them all, not until he had launched himself at the Orc about to remove Thorin's head.

"Bilbo!" She yelled, pulling herself up on the branch a little further so that she could watch as he fought with the Orc, successfully coming out of the situation he had braved himself into.

He stood there swinging his sword hysterically at the wargs and their riders that stalked towards him, protecting Thorin with everything that he could offer.

Apparently, she was not the only one that Bilbo had inspired. A determination filled her and those around her as they rose from their positions, not just to protect their king but also to protect their burglar. With a grunt of pain she pulled herself up, grasping at the branches around her to haul herself completely on the top of the branch, a puff of air leaving her when she was successful in her efforts. Ignoring the ache in her arms, she pushed herself to stand before unsheathing her sword and darting towards the Orcs that threatened the lives of her friends, a battle cry leaving the company of Dwarves around her seconds before they collided with the wargs.

She ducked underneath the blade of a riding Orc, swinging her own blade that sliced at the thigh of the malformed creature, sending it toppling to the floor in pain, the warg continuing on without it's rider only to be taken down by Dwalin's axe. Athena turned and thrust her sword into the writhing Orcs chest, killing him before removing her sword again.

Her eyes were compelled to the skies when a squawk that belonged to neither her known friends or enemies pierced the air. Eagles were flying to the aid of the company, picking up wargs and throwing them over the edge, pushing down the remaining trees onto their foes, and using the power of their wings to send an inferno of flames in the direction of the wargs. Athena ducked when an Eagle flew overhead, a warg trapped in its talons before it released it over the cliff and sent it flying to its death.

An Eagle delicately wrapped its claws around Thorin before lifting him from the rock and flying off into the horizon with him, no doubt taking him to safety. A yell left her lips when she felt her feet no longer on the ground, only lightly feeling the grip of the Eagle before she was sent plunging through the open air, her heart dropped into her stomach until she landed on the back of a different Eagle that had flown below her, Bilbo in front of her with a terrified expression that matched hers while they flew off with the others not far behind, her hands resting lightly on the feathery back of the gigantic bird. The fear was soon replaced with awe as they soared away from the commotion and into the horizon, weightless with the world beneath them.

If it were not for the undecided fate of Thorin II Oakenshield she would have enjoyed the ride on the Eagle far more, she would have paid more attention to the rushing waterfalls and the green tops of the trees, the clouded mountain peaks and the freedom that came only with being in the air — but she was unable to do so with her king and friend limply lying in the claws of an Eagle ahead of them.

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By the time they reached their destination the sky was alive with a rosy hue, the turquoise sky signalling that this was the last of the sunrise. As soon as her feet touched the rock she headed towards Thorin who lay facing the sky with Gandalf hunched over him, coming to a standstill beside Bilbo as they watched on with concern. The Grey Wizard waved his hand over the face of the Dwarf, his eyes popping open as he awoke.

"The halfling?" He weakly asked, the first thing that he thought to ask was about the well-being of the one he remembered pushing himself between him and certain death.

"It's all right. Bilbo is here. He's quite safe," Gandalf informed him, gesturing to Bilbo as the rest of the Dwarves huddled around their wounded friend before helping pull him to a standing position, Athena furrowing her eyebrows as he rudely pushed them off him before approaching Bilbo, Gandalf gently guiding her to step over and to the side.

"You! What were you doing? You nearly got yourself killed! Did I not say that you would be a burden? That you would not survive in the wild and that you had no place amongst us?" Thorin remarked, the others tensely watching the scene unfold. Surely Thorin would not still agree with his previous thoughts? This reaction was unlike the Thorin that Athena had met in the Blue Mountains, knowing that she continued to watch the exchange in silence with the hope that he would complete his words. "I have never been so wrong in all my life," he finished as she had hoped he would, engulfing Bilbo in a hug while the others smiled and quietly cheered to themselves at the sight. A smile formed on her face as she watched them hug, the relationship that they all had with Bilbo had developed since leaving the Shire, but none had changed their view more than Thorin had.

"I am sorry I doubted you," apologised Thorin when he pulled back from the hug, standing an arms length away from the Hobbit.

"No, I would have doubted me too. I'm not a hero or a warrior... or even a burglar," Bilbo responded, Athena chuckling with the others at his last statement. His understanding nature only caused her to have more respect for the Hobbit before her.

She turned to watch the Eagles, hypnotised by them as they flew into the distance and away from the company that they had saved, her only regret was that she had not been able to thank them for saving their lives.

"Is that what I think it is?" Bilbo asked from behind her, her looking over her shoulder at him before the rest of her body followed its direction.

The company walked further up the Carrock until they reached the edge, her eyes wide in bewilderment as she saw what they all did. A beacon of hope. There stood the outline of an all too familiar mountain in the distance.

"Erebor, The Lonely Mountain. The last of the great Dwarf kingdoms of Middle-earth," Gandalf observed.

"Our home," Thorin added.

Athena glanced over at him as she pondered on whether or not those words held the same weight for her as they did for Thorin, was Erebor her home? She was unable to dwell on the question that she had presented herself with, a chirping bird taking the attention.

"A raven! The birds are returning to the mountain," Óin pointed out.

"That, my dear Óin, is a thrush," the Grey Wizard corrected him.

"But we'll take it as a sign — a good omen," Thorin suggested, sending a brief glance towards Bilbo beside him.

"You're right. I do believe the worst is behind us," he agreed with a smile.

"Careful, there's still a long way to go," Athena chimed in, moving closer to stand beside Bilbo as she patted his shoulder affectionately and looked down at him with a smile.

Whether the worst was behind them or not was yet to be decided, but they were one step closer to their goal and closer than they had ever been to retaking the Lonely Mountain.