DAVINA ⇝ Thorin Oakenshield

Chapter 16

It was safe to say that no member of the Company was particularly happy when they were finally able to emerge from the barrels of fish, smelling terribly and feeling horrible. Davina was particularly grumpy as Bard held a hand out to help her out of her barrel; she hardly had time to decide whether or not she'd accept his help when Thorin was pushing past him and helping her out himself. Davina didn't question it -- she knew how hard it was to gain Thorin's trust, and she knew that he'd be keeping an extra close eye on any interaction Bard had with her, Bilbo, or the other dwarfs. 

Thorin places his hand on her back and leads her off the boat, following the others. They all pause when the notice the dock keeper staring at them, his jaw agape. Bard approaches him and presses a coin into the man's hand. "You didn't see them. They were never here," he tells him. "The fish you can have for nothing."

Although the Company weren't so quick to trust the bargeman, it was clear that the people of Laketown did; for no one bothered asking him questions about the strange people he was smuggling into town, and they even went so far as to help him hide them when soldiers came around. They looked up to him, that much was obvious. 

Things were going as smooth as they could have gone, until suddenly a boy of roughly fourteen came running towards them. "Da!" He exclaimed urgently, heading straight for Bard. "Our house -- it's being watched!"

Bard froze, his gaze shifting toward the fifteen people he needed to somehow smuggle into his home. He couldn't just back out on his word now; they'd paid him and he struck a deal with them, and he wasn't like that. "Alright," he said to Thorin and Davina, thinking for a moment. "I have a plan... but you're not going to like it."

He was right. Once the bargeman explained what his plan was and pointed them in the right direction, many of the dwarfs began to grumble under their breaths with disdain. Davina wasn't too thrilled herself, but at least she refrained from complaining; it was clear to her that this man was already into trouble with the authority of this town, so he was risking his own hide (and his children's) to help them at all, no matter how much they'd paid him. "Come on," Thorin ordered everyone, and they all waded into the waters underneath Bard's house to find the hole that would take them up through the toilet. 

Dwalin went up first, for although he was entirely unhappy about it, he insisted on both getting it over with and ensuring that Bard wasn't trying to trap them somehow. Bilbo went next, and then Davina. She accepted the boy's help with a grateful smile, shivering due to the cold. "What is your name?" She asked quietly as she moved out of the bathroom so the others could have room. 

"Bain," he answered, reaching to help Ori out. 

"Thank you, Bain," Davina told him before following Bilbo to the living room. There were two young girls, one on the cusp of adulthood and the other perhaps around seven. When they saw Davina they just stared, shocked at seeing a woman with a bunch of dwarfs. The Nymali just offered them a polite smile as she sat beside Bilbo and wrapped her arms around her body to try and keep warm. 

One by one, the entirety of the Company entered Bard's home through the toilet, unseen, and gathered in the living room. After a few moments, Bard and his three children came back into the living room with a heap of clothes in their arms. "It may not be the best fit, but it'll keep you warm," he told them, setting down a pile but keeping a few things in his arms. He approached Davina and cleared his throat, almost reluctant to even hold out the clothes in his hands. "You're a bit shorter than she was, but these will fit you okay," Bard told her quietly.

Her eyes widened slightly, realizing he was handing her his dead wife's clothes. "Thank you, but I will be alright," she declined politely. "I can see it would bother you to see someone else wear those clothes."