Author's note: This chapter was a doozy. I ended up rewriting and deleting 12 pages worth of text trying to get everything to come out right. Enjoy.

Special mentions of reviewers: Vaughn Tyler, Ox King, Marina Oakenshield, Vanafindiel, Gyromice89, xxMutantAndProudxx, Lady Shagging Godiva, and EmaWee89

Seasoned ground meat sizzled in a skillet and a glistening black nose sniffed the rim of the burner. I stirred the browning clumps of ground meat, turned down the heat, and pushed Hercules aside. My Malamute sat on his haunches and licked his white peppered chops while I used a spatula to transfer the crisped meat to a plate. Hercules glued himself to my legs, looking up expectantly with his lulling tongue as I waded through him to the table. His claws clicked against the tile floor and he circled the chair I pulled out. I scratched his head when he settled it in my lap and distractedly ate my dinner while turning the pages of my chemistry book. There was going to be a final tomorrow and I wasn't anywhere near ready for it.

The taco mix I made didn't have much taste, or maybe it had no taste at all. I ate too quickly to be healthy and I put up the dishes before made my way down the hall. Pushing Hercules aside so I could shut the bathroom door, I turned on the shower and waited until the room was clouded with steam. I stepped in with a contented sigh as the hot water stung and palpated my back. My muscles, tight from hunching over books all day, loosened and I leaned back to wet my hair. The water cascaded over my scalp and something slick wrapped around my ankle.

I was pulled down with a gasp and plunged into an icy body of water as dark as the ocean at night. Wordlessly I shouted and pried at the slippery tentacle. In the depths of the water a mouth grinned, flashing shark teeth in a triumphant smile. The sunken pits of the creature's eyes glistened red and fear welled up in my chest. A tentacle shot up from the depths and wrapped around my mouth. More slithering tendrils restrained my arms and legs, rendering them immobile.

The restraints tightened and squeezed my throat, forcing my lungs to fill with water. I pushed at the water and tentacles, trying to find the surface. There was no longer an up or down, gravity had abandoned me. A feral part somewhere deep inside wanted to turn around and shred the monster, but I was too afraid to glance look at it.

My lungs drew in air with a gasp and my limbs jerked, tearing away the black curtain that entrapped my body and mind. When I opened my eyes, I was staring at the wooden walls and mounds of hay in the stable of Beorn's home. A horse whinnied in a stall nearby and flicked its tail. Someone was hovering overhead.

"Nightmare?" Fili asked quietly.

I fought off the woolen blanket that had become tangled around my legs and pushed it to the end of the bedroll in a crumpled mess. All of the bedding was Beorn's which he had graciously let everyone borrow.

Fili rubbed my arm, looking solemn as my limbs still shook and my heartbeat raced. "Does it happen often?" He asked quietly.

My voice was distant. "Not really."

He frowned, clearly not believing me.

"I already forgot what it was about." That was lie. It was one of my more vivid nightmares. I could still feel tendrils from the dream lingering at the edge of my mind.

Stretching my leg out, my foot hit the journal that had been previously hidden under the cover. That would be the last time I read it before going to bed.

"Kili, sit down." Thorin ordered and pushed Kili back down by his shoulder when the young dwarf tried to stand. Kili fell back on the edge of Beorn's fire pit, looking thoroughly put out.

"Why am I to be punished for nothing?" Kili had a hard time speaking, everything he said was muffled and airy.

"You know very well why." Thorin turned Kili's head to get a better look at the side of his face.

Yesterday evening when Fili and I had returned it turned out Kili had not been stalling for our sake. Or maybe he was in some twisted and unorthodox way, I couldn't tell. Kili apparently thought it would be a good idea to prance into the flower garden and rouse Beorn's Jurassic bees. I had a feeling someone would get stung sooner or later, I was not surprised Kili was the winner. He sported a massive red whelp on his cheek that shone with salve. At first I was concerned he was allergic and I had a hard time peeling my eyes away from him for the next couple hours to make sure he wasn't swelling up more or having trouble breathing. Thankfully he was not.

The reddened distortion on Kili's face sent Fili into a panic. He had rushed to his brother's side when we returned, forgetting everything about telling the others about…us.

The distraction had been a relief. No one thought our reemergence after so long was suspicious. The Company was overly preoccupied with Kili by bringing him salves and herbal medicine and generally fretting over his wellbeing. Thorin gave Fili a passing grunt of recognition when he ran up asking what happened before Thorin continuing scolding Kili for his 'lack of sense'. Ori was the only one who said hello to me and gave the rundown on what happened to Kili.

Beorn had been absent from the scene of the crime, and he was still missing. It was probably for the best. The dwarves would probably get kicked out faster than teens who crashed their parents' car into the neighbor's mailbox.

"That looks painful," I murmured while watching Kili cringe.

Fili was resting on his knee and I eyed still healing cuts crisscrossing his nose and cheeks, wondering if they still hurt. I was hit with an urge to touch his face.

"He woke up groaning about his sorry state. I was fetching more salve. Honestly, who rouses a field of buzzing creatures?" Fili held up a bag that had his personal stash of medicine.

He'd somehow hung onto it all through goblin town. Not all that surprising, actually. According to Nori, the goblins only took outwardly worn satchels and weapons. If something was under your clothes, you were safe. It was a good thing too or my wound from the goblin blade wouldn't have been healing as nicely. Oin contributed the most, he had made sure to hang onto several bags of his medicine that was more potent than anyone else's homemade first aid kit, and Beorn was steadily resupplying him.

I pulled the blanket over the journal and swung my legs around, pushing the hem of my pants down since they had ridden up and wrinkled from sleep. "I warned him about bee stings. Did he listen? Nope."

"You told him not to?" Fili scoffed. "I bet my beard that is precisely the reason he was stung."

So basically Kili acted like a teenager and did the exact opposite of what he was warned for the sake of it. Nice one Kili. There goes my slim chance of a theory that he committed stupidity out of the goodness of his heart.

I looked at the bag of herbs Fili clutched and worried the blanket at my feet between my fingers. He watched my fidgeting.

"Why did everyone look at me weird when I asked for soap?"

Fili blinked before his mind recalled yesterday's affair. His mouth twitched upward and his eyes smiled. "It is an expensive commodity."

I hung my head. "It's cheap and everywhere back home. You can't get rid of the stuff."

Thinking of home gave me a fierce longing for modern and more comfortable, clean clothes. And hot showers. It was odd those were the only real things I missed about home, simple hygiene. Oh, and Hercules. At least I knew my parents wouldn't let him starve.

"Do not fret, you are a guest and Beorn saw to your needs." He paused. "You look better than you did the other day. Your color is coming back." Fili commented on my near throw up the other day and pale looks from the one ring incident. He started to stand up. "Kili will be wanting for this salve."

"I'm sorry I called you a bastard." I blurted.

Fili paused and I looked at the ground.

I bit the inside of my cheek. "Kili said I made you upset. I don't mean half the stupid stuff I say, a lot of insulting words don't carry any weight in my world since they are flung around so much. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings. I'm sorry I didn't notice it bothered you. But it's not like it would have been bad if you were an actual bastard, but you're not a literal bastard. So…sorry." Stop talking, I berated myself.

After blinking for a beat, Fili chuckled. "I have never heard you lace so many words together at once."

I was going to say sorry again but stopped myself. Every part of my body felt heated with embarrassment and my chest tightened.

"I was angry for a time," Fili admitted. "Then it became apparent you fling about words the same way a troll flings about the guts of its meal."

"Eww," I said quickly at the mental picture including the dwarves and myself at the troll incident with all of our guts being pulled from our ripped open stomachs.

Fili turned more serious. "You say such words mean nothing in your world but here word choices should be made more careful. They are as good as binding and may anger a less forgiving party."

"Oh," was all I could conjure. Had I really been running my mouth and offending every living being this side of Rivendell, Erebor, or whatever? Probably. Holy hell the things I've said to Thorin and everyone else. I hate myself.

Fili put a comforting hand on my shoulder. "Don't fret. I accept your apology."

A weight on my chest lifted and Fili may have been smiling broader than before.

I sighed through my nose and grabbed his hand, pulling it off my shoulder and holding it. "I still can't believe you…believe me about being from another world."

Fili shifted his weight on his knee. "It's true, is it not? Or were those words false?" There was no anger or amusement but I had a feeling there was lingering resentment. It hurt to think Fili might hold a grudge.

Defensive and afraid he would think my words never carried weight, I said, "It's true. The only things I say that don't mean anything are my random cursing or bashing. They're just extensions of my frustration. That's it. They're expressions like saying an exclamation mark out loud."

"Bashing? Not once have you been able to properly bash an enemy." He was amused that time for sure, and mocking me.

Hotly, I said, "It's a figure of speech."

He leaned in close, smiling with intense hooded eyes and dilated pupils. His warm breath that smelled like his pipe weed brush over my face. "Your have a strange way of making up definitions for words."

Flushed, I said quickly, "It's a living language, the meanings of words are always changing or being added to." I looked over his shoulder. "Go give Kili his meds. He looks like he needs you to rescue him from the wrath of Thorin."

Fili was mirthful. "Indeed he does."

Wait, that was rude, I didn't mean to brush him off. I cringed, offended at myself. "I don't mean it like that."

He slipped his hand out of mine and patted my shoulder, leaving me feeling like a jerk.

While Fili bid his uncle good morning and tended to Kili's face, Thorin was still reaming Kili out. Tight lipped with my brow creased, I washed my face in a bowl of water Dori had made and left out for all of us to use. The dwarves weren't huge on bathing but after goblin town everyone was wanting for some hygiene. Not that a shared bowl of water being dumped out and refilled several times a day was very hygienic, but it was better than nothing.

"Why were you not with your brother when this happened? I ordered no one venture out alone." Thorin turned on Fili. "What if an orc had attacked? Your brother would very well be dead."

Fili glared at his uncle then averted his eyes. "It will not happen again."

"No, it will not. You are not to leave this house until we depart, same with Kili."

Kili made a sound of protest, obviously wanting to same something, but grimaced and thought better when talking hurt his face. "Fili, as punishment you will chop Beorn's firewood instead of having breakfast."

Fili wouldn't meet his eyes. "Yes, Thorin."

A small part of me wanted to tell Thorin that was unfair on Fili and Kili's behalf, but then I remembered all the disrespectful things I said to him. Maybe I needed to keep my mouth shut more.

I started to get up to join the dwarves at breakfast then for a moment, I hesitated, remembering my nightmare. Taking Glorfindel's silver necklace out of my pocket, I hung it around my neck and tucked under my shirt. Through the fabric I gripped the bird's shape.

Lugging my tired self up, I plopped down between Bifur and Bilbo. The Hobbit scooted a fraction away and brooded over his breakfast, I couldn't imagine what he was thinking about. Bifur said something in Khuzdul and started making a plate that he shoved toward me. I thanked him and nibbled on the fruit and bread. My stomach was more accepting today.

"So Kili," I said with a smirk, feeling better with food in my stomach. Thorin had gone off to talk with Balin and Fili was situating himself at the table next to his brother. "What did you do to piss off the bees?"

Kili glared instead of speaking since he know how much it would hurt to retort. I smiled broader. Karma is amazing. "How long was the stinger? I bet it was the size of a hypodermic needle." I was still curious about how he didn't die. A bee that large had to have been packing at least 10 ccs of venom. The stinger alone could have killed him if it penetrated his skull with enough force. Either way would be a gruesome fate I admittedly was glad he didn't suffer, even if he was an idiot dwarf who couldn't keep his mouth shut or mind his own business.

"I'm willing to bet he tried to trap one to see how it tastes," Dwalin smirked.

"No, no, he stepped on one and it flew up and jabbed him right in noggin," Nori poked his cheek.

"I wouldn't bet against Dwalin if I were you," Dori said and Nori pouted with a deep scowl.

Kili made an angry noise and threw up his arms in frustration. Dwalin and several others roared with laughter. Kili stalked off to his bedroll where he laid down with his back turned to the room.

"Oh come Kili. I'm sure you didn't mean to get stung. We don't think less of you for it." Bofur's uplifting attempts were ignored.

Ori rung his hands. "I feel quite bad for him."

Fili laughed. "He'll be fine."

For the rest of breakfast I kept stealing looks at Fili interacting animatedly with the dwarves at the other end of the table. He hollered and half sung something at the tail end of a conversation and stood with his mug raised. Dwalin and Gloin joined him. I still couldn't believe he asked me to be his…girlfriend.

I had to wonder if Fili's feelings were a passing infatuation like that guy in high school. The situation, for I could hardly call a one night dinner dating, had been so short lived I don't think I blinked before the guy said he thought we should end it and go our separate ways.

It was too soon to tell, and I had to figure out what he meant to me. I had never been good with feelings other than frustration and fear. Those were easy to identify within myself. With Fili around I felt warm in my core and I wanted watch whatever he did like some creepy stalker. Maybe that's what love felt like, or was I infatuated, or neither. Maybe I was appreciating someone who had lucked out in the gene pool. No, that wasn't right.

There were things I liked about Fili besides his looks. He was more outgoing than I yet he could enjoy the silence. He was fun to be around and concerned for others, especially his brother. He was one of the few who believed me about being from another world, and he was tough on the battle field. Maybe I was infatuated with the idea of him being a warrior. No, that was also wrong, though it was a plus to know he would have my back in an orc or goblin attack.

"Who wants more?! Raise your tankard!" Fili climbed onto the table with a pitcher full of milk sloshing dangerously close to the rim. He used Bombur's shoulder to hoist himself up and the large dwarf nearly face planted in his second helping of breakfast.

The other dwarves cheered and held up their drinks. One would think they were drinking mead with how happy they were for Fili to trapeze over their plates and top off their drinks.

Bilbo grumbled at my side, something about bad guests and dirty shoes. My face was starting to burn I was grinning so much at the scene. Fili's stumbled between me and Ori sitting across the table. He filled both our drinks with the last drops of the pitcher even though my tankard was filled with water, not milk.

"Drink and be merry for we're staying at the home of Beorn the skin-changer! A toast to the good man!" Fili raised his the pitcher that was bigger than his head and I had to wonder if Beorn spiked the milk with something.

The others were more than happy to oblige. They raised their drinks and shouted

"To Beorn and his plentiful feasts and warm hearth!" Gloin said.

"Aye!" Kili, Dwalin, and Nori shouted.

I wasn't very good at letting loose like they were so I contributed by raised my drink during the cascade of praises.

"Say something for the good man!" Fili leaped from the table and onto the seat between Bifur and me, forcing the older dwarf to practically sit in Bofur's lap. Fili grabbed my hand that was holding the tankard up.

Mortified, I looked around the table despite knowing no one would rescue me from impending embarrassment. Thorin was the only one looking at me, his face impassive as he sat by the fire, observing the joviality. He was too kingly, or broody, to join in. My eyes were wide as I stared at him, the words 'help' etched into my pupils. Thorin just crossed his arms and leaned back to watch. Bastard.

Fili raised my arm up higher and I don't think he knew how hard he yanked, or miscalculated my weight because I flew out of my seat. He had to scramble to catch me around the middle so I didn't fall down with my legs caught under the table. The movement pulled at the bruise around my waist. I sucked in the flash of pain, making sure I didn't betray how much it hurt as it slowly faded.

"Apologies love," He said and my eyes went wider. "What say you to our fine guest?"

"I-uh." It was hard to think with his arm wrapped around my middle. He slid his hand back so he only held my side instead of giving me a one arm bear hug. That did not help my concentration. "Beorn makes really good homemade bread?" I squeaked.

Shouts of "Aye!" rose up and I wanted to crawl into a deep, dark hole.

Fili stepped off the bench and helped me sit back down before rushing to the other end of the table, bounced into his original seat and taking a deep swig of his milk.

"I wish I had my flute," Bofur lamented and Dwalin patted him on the back with his sympathies.

Someone touched my hair and I turned to Bifur who was cradling the hair piece twisted into my braid in his palm and said something in a worried tone. I flushed and ducked away. Bifur let the braid slide away.

"I-uh. I don't know if you understand me but could you keep it a secret, for now?"

Bifur said something else, maybe it was a concern.

"I don't mean it's a bad thing, but, I don't know. Just don't tell Thorin yet. He's still cranky, but then he's always cranky."

Bifur spoke again and knitted brow. I wanted to slam my forehead into the table and hopefully knock myself out. I opted not to since that would just draw attention.

"What are you going on about?" Bilbo asked on my left.

"Nothing!" I said quickly. "Just that I think I need another bath. I'm going to get as many baths in as I can before we leave this place. Who knows when I'll get to have one again?"

Bilbo sighed. "Just as well I fear we will not get to eat so much again for a long while."

"Right," I drawled out. "Don't hobbits eat ten times a day or something?"

"Seven," He confirmed. "No day is complete without seven meals, including tea at exactly 4 o'clock."

"You sound like an old woman."

Bilbo jerkily looked ahead and swiveled his mouth in a twitching habit he had picked up.

I excused myself from the table when the burn of Bifur's eyes wouldn't leave the ornament in my hair. Dori asked where I was going and accepted my excuse of going out for fresh air, the horse hair was wreaking havoc on my allergies.

Outside I blew my nose and longed for allergy meds for the millionth time. In Beorn's pasture out front, a couple ponies I recognized as ones that were stabled a foot from my head the night before were grazing and a white rabbit hopped by. If Beorn was a girl, I would call him snow white. As a guy, he was more like Beast from Beauty and the Beast, only without the talking appliances and furniture. Maybe he was a prince like Beast. It wouldn't surprise me, royalty seemed to be everywhere in Middle Earth.

It was nice to be free of the dwarves, no one had come outside yet. I ventured through the pasture and skirted through the bees to the forest. Despite how much time I'd spent in the woods the past couple months, I still found them comforting to go for a walk in, even if I could hear Thorin patronizing me in the back of my head for wandering off on my own. He could suck it up, he was my boss, not my uncle, and I was off duty.

Picking a direction, I wandered, and so did my mind much like when I first stumbled into Middle Earth. Everything kept coming back to Fili and what he thought of me and what I thought of him. Nothing I came up with was conclusive except that I didn't know much about Fili, like what his favorite food or color was. The basic things. He didn't know much about me, either. How could he be attracted to someone he hardly knew, but then I was the pot calling the kettle black. I sighed in frustration. My mind didn't usually run in circles, it liked to sort itself out then be done with a train of thought for good.

"Oh my, you look troubled, my fair Lady." A silvery male voice said.

"I'm not a lady," I snapped. I looked up in surprise, I didn't recognize that voice. A handsome looking guy stood smiling a few feet away with long black hair messed with weeds interwoven in his wavy locks.

Staggering, I backed into a tree. "Who are you?" Maybe coming out here alone wasn't such a great idea.

"I am Achaius." He said calmly and with a polite smile.

Achaius name sounding like something a person could only pronounce while playing chubby bunny.

"Are you Beorn's neighbor or some random guy?" I asked.

The man was dressed up in what looked like 18th century formal attire. "I am a shape shifter, like your host, though less hairy and more refined."

"That's nice. I'm heading back. Nice meeting you." I wasn't armed. I had left without a knife or any sort of weapon. Stupid, I know. Being around Beorn's home had made me lax enough to think I could stroll around the woods like I did at home without any worries.

"Sounds as if you are angry with me, or is it with someone else. Mind telling me about it? I am always up for a tale."

Well don't you think you're perceptive? "Nothing's wrong. I was thinking, and now I'm done."

Grass rustle, Achaius was following me. "Oh? Whatever were you thinking about?"

"Life," I said. Who knew what this guy wanted, I didn't care to find out.

"There are many things about life worth thinking of, like the smell of the sea or the feeling of sand between your toes. Do you like the ocean, my Lady?"

Turning on him, I put my hands on my hips. "My name is Meg, not lady. What is it you want?"

Achaius put his hand to his chest. "Meg? So short, so limp of life. Surely there is more to your name?"

"I'd rather not say." This guy oozed more flamboyance than my cousin who was a theatre major.

"You must tell me why." He moved around, placing himself between me and Beorn's house and stepping closer than I liked.

"Since you're bugging me about it I definitely won't tell you." Achaius might have sensed my aversion as he backed up a couple steps.

He bowed. "Of course. It was rude of me to continue pestering. Instead of your name, would you care to continue your walk with company? I was on a stroll myself and I don't often encounter others in these woods who can converse about life."

Maybe he wasn't as dangerous as I thought. Usually people with ill intent would have tried to kill me by now. This whole journey was written down in a book on earth so it was possible this character was meant to randomly pop up and give sagely advice while simultaneously being slightly creepy.

"Alright. I'll walk with you for a little bit." Maybe he had something important to say, or maybe I was walking into trouble. I would flip a coin if I had one.

"What brings you to this humble part of the world?" Achaius asked. He walked slightly ahead, leading the way.

Such a broad question, I wanted to turn around and leave right then. "I'm traveling with dwarves," I told him. I didn't see the harm in that tidbit of information.

"Dwarves?" Achaius was blasphemous. "It's odd for a human to travel with such stubborn folk."

I shrugged. "They aren't that bad. I kind of like dwarves."

Achaius slowed so he was next to me. "Even stranger." He had an eternal smile plastered on his face.

A few minutes passed before Achaius started talking again. "I did not always live in these woods. I used to reside in a place that was warmer with a constant breeze. I miss my home dearly."

He relapsed into quietness and I hoped he would stay that way. I could sense he was waiting for me to say something. "Where did you used to live?" Might as well take the bait.

"It does not matter anymore."

Funny, get me talking then give me the same cold shoulder.

I was about to call him out on his bull when the trees gave way to a lake. Its waters were still as glass and black as obsidian. Something about it was off. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end. I looked behind me, feeling hungry eyes. There was nothing. Achaius had disappeared.

"Ah, this is my favorite place in the forest. It isn't quite the same as home, I prefer the sea, but I have made due. It is cozy, is it not?" Achaius appeared close to the water's edge and I felt two raindrops hit my arms. I looked up. Nothing. Not even a cloud in the sky.

"I sense the lingering's of an enchantment on you. One that is attached to a peculiar ring. Its touch called and roused me from my slumber." Achaius' eyes changed from a brilliant green to a murky shade and his pupils rotated to horizontal, soulless slits. He looked at me over his shoulder, grinning in a way that was no longer friendly.

My skin prickled with a shower of invisible raindrops and a shiver of fear. When I rubbed my arms, no water came off, nor did I feel anything wet. His eyes were freaky.

I started trying to turn about the ring I always wore and quickly remembered I gave it to Fili. There was no way he meant that piece of jewelry. There could only be one other ring he was talking about in this world. The one ring to rule them all.

Achaius tilted his head. The air about him shimmered like heat coming off hot pavement. "You would not happen to know where this artifact is, would you, little human?"

My coin flip had come up on the wrong end. This guy was not a friend.

"I don't." I was hyper aware of how defenseless I would be if he shapeshifted into a bear or some other creature and decided to maul my face.

Achaius came closer. "Liar." His voice warped into a deeper, malicious tone. "The rings were not meant for mortals. They have been made impure. Hand it over or your flesh shall be feasted on."

The sensation of rain increased to large droplets and I stepped back. "I don't have it."

He sniffed the air like a dog and his voice returned to normal. "Yes. You are right, it is no longer on you. Tell me, where have you stashed the ring?"

"I don't know where it is." I repeated.

"I am no longer in the mood for games." He sneered with a hint of his more menacing voice lingering just below the surface.

"I know who has it but I don't know where they are at this very second so technically I don't know where it is." I said with a bubbling sense of panic.

Achaius narrowed his unnatural eyes. "Never mind the ring for a moment. I want to know how it is you, a simple human, came to Middle Earth. Are you lost, little sheep?"

At the word 'lost' I stopped fidgeting with my gold necklace that I had unconsciously defaulted to messing with. "No?" I meant to make my answer a statement, damn it.

I didn't think I could get back home but I knew where I was, I wasn't physically lost. I was in Middle Earth with Thorin's Company. They were all back at Beorn's cabin and I planned on going there, if I lived through this. I cleared my throat. "I'm not lost."

"It is curious how a lie can so quickly become a truth."

I narrowed my eyes, angry at his condescending tone. "It depends on your perspective."

Achaius sauntered forward. "You have tried my patience. I am not kind like others of my ilk."

He was going to kill me, there was no other intention in his step. I bolted. Achaius followed and the sound of rustling grass behind me turned into pounding and heavy snorting. I stumbled back to avoid being trampled as a glistening, giant black horse with weeds tangled in its tail and mane cut off my path.

"Answer me. Where does a portal yet exist in this world?" Achaius' voice whinnied from his horse mouth that was lined with sharp teeth. The air about him shimmered more violently as he backing me up to the lake.

I couldn't outrun a horse, and I was defenseless, so I did the only thing I could. I screamed. "Help! Help! Someone!"

The back of my foot slipped into lake's water. My heart leapt in my throat and I reached forward instinctively to keep from falling backwards. My flat hands smacked the pecks of the horse. My chest burst with heat and I tried to pull away but my hands stuck fast to Achaius' fur, something sticky was seeping between my fingers. The shimmering about Achaius sloughed off like decomposing skin. I twisted and yanked but I stuck fast.

Achaius was no longer a beautiful man nor a beautiful horse. He head was long and bony, nearly a skeleton like the rest of him. His teeth were almost the proper shape of a horses at the front, but still sharp. The rest of his mouth had long canines and serrated teeth like a crocodiles. Swept back gills had grown out over his hollowed out cheekbones and by his flaking hooves. His ears were so long and twisted that they looked like gnarled branches growing from his head.

My pupils shrank to nothing.

"Help!" My voice cracked. I desperately wanted to tear my own hands off just so I didn't have to touch the demonic creature. Mucus oozed down my arms from his sickly green fur.

"Helllp!" I had to be locked in a nightmare, I was asleep and this wall all a really bad lucid dream. The creature in front of me was all in my head. Not real. If it was real I would be going to an insane asylum, if I lived.

"Where is the ring?" Achaius licked his lips that were permanently receded over his front teeth and pounded his powerful tail that his back legs had morphed into and propelled the both of us into the lake. .

"Why don't you go crawl somewhere and die!" Was my last curse before plunging back first into the lake.

Water warm as a summer's day and stagnant as a forgotten well surged all around as Achaius slammed my back into the lakebed, rushing air from my lungs. Teeth sank into my arm and pulled, ready to rend flesh. Blinding light flashed brilliantly through my tightly closed eyes. My chest felt hot as the monster gurgled a scream. My hands came free when the Achaius pulled away and artificial water currents whipped about in a frenzy.

Water rushed by like wind as he flailed. More turbulence stirred and his tail painfully pounded me further into the dirt. He trashed, banged his tail near my head, feet, and side repeatedly. I heard his faint screams travel through the water. I needed oxygen or I was going to pass out.

I struggled upward, or where I hoped was upward, as my head lightened and sparks erupted behind my eyelids. I didn't want this to be it.

The surface of the lake broke and I gasped for breath, belching up water stuck in my larynx. A giant paw slammed a jet of water near my head and I started swimming as two massive creatures tussled, plunged, and resurfaced. Rolling over and over dangerously close. They snarled and snapping at each other as I dragged myself onto shore and plopped down on the grass, panting. In the lake Achaius' ugly head reared from the water and his tail slapped the surface. Beorn lunged from underneath him and grabbed him around the underside of his thick neck and sunk his fangs into the horses' sickly green fur. Achaius screamed and blood poured from the puncture wounds.

Beorn shook his jaws to try and break Achaius' neck and he used his powerful paw to bat and claw at Achaius' sides, leaving long gouges in the horse's gaunt shoulders. With one quick jerk of Beorn's head, Achaius went limp. Beorn dragged the body through the lake and onto shore where he started ripping into the carcass like wild animal caught in a frenzy.

I had a feeling Beorn wasn't going to recognize me and I was lucky he hadn't noticed where I was. Quietly as I could, I hauled my soaking wet and battered body off the ground and limped to the trees, using a large trunk to catch myself. My arm was bleeding from where Achaius bit me, the same one the goblin had slashed. My hip was aching where it had been pushed into a rock in the lakebed, and I was feeling my not quite healed bruises from Goblin town. My waist was hurting the most. The ripping sounds of Beorn tearing flesh and his bear grunts and growls gave me the energy to limp into the forest, coughing water as I went.

For an undetermined time I stumbled through the trees and tall weeds. Despite the blindingly hot, sinking sun, my uncomfortably soaked clothes had hardly dried. With each step I took my feet squelched in my boots. I stopped walking when I promptly admitted I was lost. Tears pricked my eyes and blurred my vision until it was impossible to see anymore. I sat down and cried. I wanted to go home, I wanted a hot shower, and I wanted my bed.

"Meg?!"

Sniffing, I looked up, thinking I had heard my name in a muffled, far away call. My heart raced.

"Miss Meg!"

Fiercely I wiped away the tears and not trip over anything in the process.

"Please if you're out here, answer!"

I made a huge racket as I stumbled to my feet and the familiar voice stopped calling when I snapped a particularly large fallen and rotting branch under my foot.

"Bless my beard." Sympathy tumbled from Bofur when he saw my slouched shoulders, the dried blood and smeared dirt trailing down my arm, my wet clinging clothes, and puffy red eyes. "We've been looking fer ya for hours, lass."

He walked over and put a gentle, guiding hand on my shoulder, standing at my side as if waiting for me to collapse. "It's good to see you standing." He was smiling on my behalf and I could tell he wanted to ask what happened but thought better of it.

Embarrassingly, I started crying again. The kind of tears that are silent but roll fat down my cheeks and refuse to cease.

"Come now. Don't cry. It'll be alright." Bofur led me through the forest as I angrily wiped at my tears, desperate for them to stop. "The others will be glad to see you."

His avoidance of asking what happened made me want to say something, but I knew if I tried to speak, I would break down into sobs.

"Any luck?!" Dori's voice floated through the trees.

"Here!" Bofur called so loud that I cringed.

I was still scrubbing my eyes with my sleeves and unsuccessfully willing the tears away when Dori came huffing through the trees.

"Do you mean here you have found her or here you have found a trace?" Dori asked in exasperation. His question was answered when he saw me and Bofur. "What in the halls of the mountain. Orcs?"

I shook my head. Orcs would have been better.

"It's best if we wait until everyone can hear." Bofur didn't let me stop and moving so Dori fell into step.

Dori was low and stern. "Take her back to Beorn's residence, there are those waiting for her return. I will let the others know she has been found."

He broke off and Bofur and I stumbled toward Beorn's. Bofur provided encouragements as I slowly lost my strength. I leaned heavily against him halfway there, feeling every ache and pain by the time we finally reached the cabin doors. I didn't flinch when a bee buzzed past my face while Bofur struggled to shoulder the doors open while supporting my weight.

They flew open and Fili, Kili, Ori, and Bilbo jumped to their feet. They looked at the two of us, stunned.

"Don't just stand there," Bofur said, snapping the three from their spell. "She needs help."

Fili rushed over and took me from Bofur. I sagged against him and started crying, loud and unrestrained. He was stiff and unsure, then he hugged me back. Wet clothes, blood, and all. I had never been so terrified in my life. I wanted to sink into his arms and never resurface. I didn't know how much I wanted to hug him until now.

Fili scooped me up like I weighed nothing and took me over to a bedroll where he made me sit. I curled into his chest, soaking up his warmth, and he started humming. When my sobs turned into small hiccups he gently pushed me back to assess the damage. "Mahal. What happened?"

"Who did this to you?" Kili looked as furious as he could with the bump on his cheek. Ori was behind him looking frightened.

Sniffing I told them, "I don't know." That thing wasn't like any creature I had seen or heard of before.

Bilbo stood back with his arms crossed, he would only glance at us in intervals. "Orcs?" He strained, having the same mind as Dori.

Shaking my head, I offered, "A shape shifter of some kind."

The doors slammed open, making all of us jump. Dwarves poured inside. Bofur leapt to his feet and Bilbo made a hasty retreat with him. Ori made like a skittish cat and ran around the table. Kili and Fili remained close by.

Thorin led the way and he made a b-line for where I sat. Even he paused upon seeing me.

"What happened?" He ordered sternly with no preemption.

"She says something about a shape shifter," Bofur provided.

"I was not aware you spoke on her behalf," Thorin said harshly.

Bofur quailed and Bilbo crumpled a frown.

Sniffing again to rid my nasal passage of snot, I drew attention from Bofur who had done nothing but shown me kindness. "A guy turned up in the woods who turned into a horse, then a horse-demon thing with a tail. I think it tried to eat me."

Quietly, the doors opened and Beorn, covered in Achaius' blood, stormed in, looking bestial and tight with tension. His eyes were narrow slits.

"Stay your blades," Beorn's said gruffly at Dwalin and several others who had drawn their weapons. "It would not be wise to rouse my temper at this moment. Where is Gandalf?"

"Where else would he be but not here?" Thorin said contemptuously and moved to stand between Beorn and Fili, Kili, and I. Fili copied Thorin, placing himself in front of me and Kili.

"Send him to me if he returns. I require a word with the wizard." There was growl in Beorn's voice that wasn't all human.

Thorin was pensive. "I shall, but only if you tell the tale of why you are covered in blood. What foe have you slain?"

Beorn watched Thorin as if debating if he were worth his time and patience. "On my patrol for orcs I smelled something I had not before, strange magic and sea water. There was a horse with a tail that dove into a black lake that had once been blue. I took chase and killed it in battle." He strained to retain his anger, growling deep in his chest as if fighting not to change into a bear.

"What of my companions? Did you see anyone of them at the lake with this horse?" Thorin asked.

"I would not know. I smelled the horse creature, a foul, evil smell, and I killed it for straying into my territory. That was all."

Beorn stared hard at Thorin, seemingly on the verge of lunging, then he broke eye contact and went to the back where his room resided.

Ori asked to the room, "How can a horse be evil?"

"I doubt it was a horse. That is two who claim it had the tail of a fish. That is not right, I tell you." Nori said sneered.

"It twas a fae creature." No one had heard Gandalf enter and none were not surprised by his sudden appearance. He was just removing his hat and placing it on the dining table. He held his staff in both hands and tiredly leaned on it, displaying mental fatigue rather than physical.

My chest tightened. That was a fae? I looked at Fili who returned my gaze with confusion and worry.

"Creatures from the stories mum used to tell?" Kili asked, his voice distorted by his golf ball size cheek. The swelling had only started to go down.

Thorin left no room for argument. "They do not exist."

Bilbo twiddling with something between his fingers. "It's said that a Took once married a fairy."

Everyone looked at him. Bilbo's eyes went wide and he hopped on his heels when he found himself the center of attention. "Tooks," Bilbo sharply looked down then back up. "One would think they would be the ones drawn into such an adventure as this."

Gandalf smiled wryly.

Bilbo wilted under Thorin's pinning stare. "Fairies, or fae as they are sometimes called by older folk, are not unheard of in hobbit society. They live in the woods bordering the Shire. Many who venture there never return. Only Tooks have been able to move in and out at will. Nasty creatures they are, fairies. They will trick you out of your groceries as quickly as your life."

"It is only a story," Thorin said firmly.

Quietly, I said, "It wouldn't be the first fae that tried to kill me."

Now I had Thorin's attention, and Gandalf was no longer smiling.

"Dear, foolish human. Sleep, let the waters lay your weary head to rest. Return to where you belong, return to nothingness." I could hear fae's voice from the river, her sweetly spoken words were burned into my mind.

Haunted, I recalled, "That night when it was raining by the river and Fili fell in," Fili tense at the memory. "I heard a voice when I was dragged under the water and tentacles or something long and slippery tried to drown me."

Fili's face skewed upward. "I do not recall a voice or ropes."

"What did the voice say?" Bofur asked in a mix of soft coaxing and quiet fear.

"That I was a fool and I should give up and die."

Thorin fingered the hilt of his sword. "Your foolishness is not new information."

Gandalf darkened and I scowled.

"Uncle-" Fili began disapprovingly and was cut off.

"However, you proved to not be a coward. You did not give up." Thorin was sporting a small smile.

Bombur groaned. "Do we have fae to worry about now as well as orcs and wargs? I like to eat dinner, not be dinner." He lamented.

"Nay, my good dwarf. Not all of us. Only our companion here need worry about fae." Gandalf directed his gaze at me.

Well wasn't I just the special snowflake. "Why?" I asked before anyone else could.

"Do you still have our peace of mind?" Gandalf asked pointedly.

For a moment I had no idea what he was talking about, then I remembered. Fishing in the front of my shirt, I pulled Glorfindel's necklace over my head and dangled the pendant between my fingers for everyone to see. "The stone's changed color," I realized. The opal stone at the center of the bird had changed from white with flecks of multi-colors to mostly green with mingling blue.

Fili and Kili leaned in curiously.

Dori was affronted. "That is of elven make."

Gandalf looked pleased. "That the stone changed color means its purpose has been fulfilled."

Thorin was glancing between Gandalf and me, looking betrayed. "What purpose does this necklace serve?"

Gandalf sat down and stretched his leg by the fire. "The necklace captures a fae's power to weaken them. It only had the strength to work once and bide the user time to escape."

"Why did you not tell us Meg was being hunted?" Fili angrily inflated and put a hand on my leg.

Nori almost talked over Fili. "Why did she not say anything about fae before?"

"We are all being hunted," Gandalf pointed out and waited in silence for someone to object.

Thorin paced, glancing at his company, his eyes strayed on Kili and I. "All the more reason to leave in the morn."

There was an uproar of protest. The dwarves had only two days' rest, they couldn't be faulted for wanting more time to gather themselves after traveling so hard through rain, fighting mountains, goblins, and orcs.

"I agree," I said and was probably the only one, for once. My reasoning was selfish. The fae was dead but the lake was too close for comfort, and there was something about Beorn's house that was making the walls seem smaller than before. There were too many people living under one roof.

Thorin nodded at me and Gandalf raised his brow with his mouth hanging open as if to say something, but then closed it. He must have had the same sentiment as Thorin and I.

Fili's mouth pressed into a hard line. "How can we move so early when many still have wounds to tend to?"

Thorin looked hard between Fili and I. "We move in the morning."

"You cannot-"

Thorin cut Fili off. "Come with me. We need to speak. Oin, see to Megara's injuries."

Fili rose slowly under Thorin's gaze. He looked down at me and I nodded, straining a smile, coaxing him to go. He reluctantly followed Thorin outside.

Author's note: In case you're wondering, the fae was an Each Uisge, a more vicious cousin of the Kelpie.