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VI. Danger

Bilbo and Athena took off running to try and get a view of what was happening back at the Lonely Mountain, jogging out onto a bridge in the city which gave them the perfect view of the Dwarves locked in battle.

"The Dwarves! They're rallying," he remarked, Gandalf appearing behind them after following them.

"They're rallying to their king," the Grey Wizard added on with hope in his eyes and happiness in his tone at the return of Thorin.

"Now those are the Dwarves I've grown to love," she whispered as she watched the battle unfold, only able to see the blurs of the armies and unable to pinpoint who exactly was where.

"Come, the battle is not yet over for us either," Gandalf interrupted their admired gazes before turning on his heel and retreating back down the tower that they had run up.

The Hobbit and woman followed after him as he led them through the streets of Dale which were still ablaze with fighting against trolls and Orcs that invaded the city and threatened the people within its walls.

They came to a halt when a gigantic troll burst through an archway, the archers that had been attempting to hold it off now fleeing from the beast as Gandalf approached it with his staff outstretched, chanting something that none of them could understand, but the staff would not work. Athena watched in horror as Gandalf dodged the swinging mace of the troll, Bilbo clutching onto her arm out of fear for their friend. He thrust the bottom of the staff against the ground in another attempt at making it work, but still nothing happened.

"That's not even his staff," she whispered, finally noticing the differences to his regular staff that he used to cart around with him.

Athena pulled her bow from her back and shot an arrow at the troll, but it bounced off it's tough hide and did nothing to sway the creature's attention from the wizard. She tried again but still it did not budge, her and Bilbo being forced to watch Gandalf evade the murderous troll knowing that they could do nothing to help.

They both flinched back when a figure was thrown into the open mouth of the troll, Alfrid's legs kicking while he squirmed inside the mouth of the beast before it clutched it's throat and fell to the floor in a heap. Alfrid had managed to choke it to death. They stared at the creature for a moment to see if it would move again but the only movement they saw was the flurry of gold that slid from its mouth, Alfrid unmoving in its jaws and most likely dead.

Gandalf looked back at the two of them, Athena only offering a shrug before they continued on their journey through the city.

"We may yet survive this," he remarked, neither of them noticing how Bilbo had stopped following them.

"Gandalf!" He cried out, them turning to see the Hobbit staring at something in the distance.

They hurried over to him in confusion, wanting to hear what he wanted to say, but they didn't need to hear his words to see the four goats that were rapidly climbing up the slopes of a mountain, heading straight towards Ravenhill.

"It's Thorin!"

"And Fili, Kili, and Dwalin. He's taking his best warriors!" Gandalf exclaimed with a smile on his face.

"To do what?"

"To cut the head off the snake."

"May Durin protect them," she whispered to herself, the fate of the battle now resting on the four Dwarves' shoulders.

"Gandalf!" A voice caught their attention, turning to see Legolas and Tauriel riding a white horse towards them with desperation in his voice.

"Legolas. Legolas Greenleaf!" He called before hurrying over to the Prince of Mirkwood.