Daughter of Lothlórien. Lady of the Elements.

An Old Friend

Bilbo was sent out to see where the orcs were. We knew they had been following us. What we didn't know was how close they were. "How close is the pack?" Thorin asked Bilbo as he came back from scouting the area. "Too close, couple of leagues, no more. But that's not the worst of it" Bilbo replied. "Have the Orcs picked up our scent?" Dwalin asked. "Not yet, but they will do. We have another problem" Bilbo said as he looked around at the company. "Did they see you? They saw you." Mithrandir said not waiting for the hobbit's answer. "No, that's not it" He said and shook his head. "Good, what did I tell you? Quite as a mouse. Excellent burglar material" Mithrandir said as the company agreed with him. "Will you just listen!" Bilbo said getting the attention of the dwarves. "I'm trying to tell you there is something else out there" He said. "What form did it take? Like a bear?" Mithrandir asked. "Ye...Yes, but bigger. Much bigger" Bilbo replied. Everyone's attention was brought to Mithrandir. "You knew about this beast?" Bofur asked. Mithrandir didn't reply. "I say we double back" Bofur suggested. "We'll be run down by a pack of Orcs" Thorin said. "There is a house, it's not far from here, where we might take refuge" Mithrandir told us. "Whose house? Are they friend or foe?" Thorin askdd concerned. "In the form of a bear neither. But in human form he is friend only to our elven princess" Mithrandir said and smiled at me. "If he is in the form of a bear he will kill us" Mithrandir said. "What choice do we have?" Thorin asked. We heard the growl of a bear. "None" Mithrandir said. "Quickly!" Gandalf yelled. We ran towards Beorn's house but stopped as we heard him getting closer. "Quickly inside!" Mithrandir said as we ran inside his gardens.

The dwarves started banging on the door to get it open. Thorin was the only smart one who lifted the latch to open the doors. They swung open and everyone quickly got inside shutting it tight as Beorn's nose got caught between the doors. Once we finally got it closed and locked everyone sighed. "What is that?" Ori asked. "That is our host" Mithrandir replied. "His name is Beorn and he is a skin-changer" I replied. "Sometimes he's a huge black bear, sometimes he's a great strong man. The bear is unpredictable but the man can be reasoned with. However he is not overfond of Dwarves. But if you will lucky he will take into consideration the fact that Thorin is Aran's true one" Mithrandir said as he looked at us. "Get some sleep all of you. You'll be safe here for the night..I hope" Mithrandir said. We all set up our beds for the night. I laid down in mine next to Thorin. He laid with his head propped up on his arm. I looked at him and smiled. "Thorin Oakenshield" I said as he kept looking at me. "You are staring" I said making him laugh a little. He reached out and pulled my blankets with me still on them closer to him. Thorin wrapped his arms around me. I burried my head into his chest and sighed. "Goodnight my true one" Thorin told me. "Goodnight Thorin Oakenshield" I said and smiled. When we woke in the morning we were half greeted by Beorn. There was breakfast for us already on the table. "So you are the one they call Oakenshield. Tell me why is Azog the defiler hunting you?" Beorn asked. "You know of Azog? How?" Thorin replied. "My people were the first to live in the mountains before the orcs came down from the north. The defiler killed most of my family. But some he enslaved. Not for work, you understand but for sport. Caging skin-changers and torturing them seemed to amused him" Beorn said. "There are others like you?" Bilbo asked. "Once there were many" He replied. "And now? Bilbo asked. "Now there is only one. You need to reach the mountain before the last days of autumn" Beorn said as he took a seat next to me. He reached out his hand and patted my head, laughing a little as he did. "Stop it" I whispered and pushed his hand off my head. "Before Durin's day falls" Mithrandir replied. "Yes. You are running out of time" Beorn said taking a small note of my attention drifting to Thorin. "Which is why we must go through Mirkwood" Mithrandir said to Beorn. "A darkness lies upon that forest. Fell things creep beneath those trees. There is an alliance between the orcs of Moria and the Necromancer in Dol Guldur. I would not venture there except in great need" Beorn warned. "We'll take the elven road. That path is still safe" Mithrandir told him. "Safe?" Asked Beorn. "The wood elves of Mirkwood are not like their kin. They're less wise and more dangerous" He said. I noticed Thorin get up and slowly start to pace. "But it matters not" He said catching Thorin's attention. "What do you mean?" Thorin asked. "These lands are crawling with orcs. Their numbers are growing and you are on foot. You will never reach the forest alive" Replied Beorn. He stood up. "I don't like dwarves. They're greedy and blind. Blind to those they deem lesser than their own" Beorn said as he picked up a small white rat that was crawing on Bofur's arm that he pushed off. He walked closer to Thorin. "But orcs I hate more. And you are accompanied by the elevn princess of Lothlórien. What do you need?" Beorn asked Thorin. "Ponies and supplies. We lost both when we were being chased by orcs" Thorin replied. Beorn nodded. "Aran" Beorn said as he kept his eyes locked on Thorin. "Beorn" I replied. "Speak with me" Beorn said before walking out and into the garden.

I followed him and walked next to him. His land was beautiful. Before any of my journeys Beorn's house was one of the few place I had gone. The flower and trees surrounding his house were beautiful and reminded me of home. "Why are you in the company of dwarves?" He asked as he pet the rat. "For a quest" I said as Beorn sat down on a bench. "Sit" He told me. I sat next to him and looked up at him. Beorn placed the rat on my head and laughed. "Beorn" I said as I sat the rat down on my lap and pet the top of his head. "I saw the way you look at Thorin Oakenshield" Beorn said to me. "The wizard tells me you are a true couple" Beorn said as I looked up at him. I nodded. "You will take care of him on this quest and if ever in need you know how to call me" Beorn said. I nodded again. "I missed you friend" I said as I placed the white rat on his leg. Beorn put a large arm around me. "I missed you too. My elevn princess" Beorn told me. "You have been family to me" I told him and smiled. "You are an elv who respects nature as much as I do. You are family to me. I have watched you grow and helped train as a warrior" Beorn said. "Be safe on your journey" Beorn told me as we made our way back to his house. He agreed to let us have the ponies but we had to send them back once we reached the entrance of the forest. "Take care of Arandur and don't put her in anymore danger than necessary" Beorn told Thorin. Thorin nodded. "You have my word" Thorin said as he slightly bowed to Beorn. We got on the ponies and fixed the bags so they wouldn't fall. "Go now while you still have the light. Your hunters are not far behind" Beorn told us. We took off and made our way to Mirkwood.

Once we reached the elven gate we sent back out ponies. Mithrandir got on his horse and left us. There was much argument about him leaving but either way he would've left. "Stay on the path!" He yelled. Once we were in the forest we lost the path. Of course, what could be worse that stubborn dwarves. Maybe stubborn lost dwarves? "Find it quickly!" Thorin yelled. The forest soon started to mess with our heads. I kept seeing things that weren't there. My eyelids started to grow heavy. The next thing I knew we were attacked by spiders and wrapped in their webs. There was a giant gap in my memory but then I felt the hard ground below me and Thorin's voice as the webbing was being pulled off me. "Aran!" Thorin yelled as he gently shook me. "Arandur! Wake up" Thorin said. "Five more minutes" I said and rolled on to my side. "Spiders!" Dwalin yelled. My eyes snapped open and I quickly got to my feet.