"Calm yourself."

Sleep came as a blessing to the company for the next couple of days as they lingered around their temporary camp, finally allowing themselves a chance to rest with their destination so close in sight and their pursuers seemingly so far behind them, and it was because of that they were allowed just a few mere moments to simply relax. Nymeria would be lying if she said she wasn't content or secretly ecstatic with such a break, her chaos still winding around her immortal corpse to breathe new life in her, and as the days passed by her so slowly, she finally began to properly heal completely.

Colour flushing back into her cheeks, the once raw wounds that had ripped at her skin like awful art stitching together until she was unblemished and ethereal like she always had been, her hair becoming fuller, her whole being simply shining that much brighter as her magic made its home inside her once more and tried it's best to complete what had been ruined, filling her with its disastrous embrace that only protected her while laying waste to those around her...A blessing, and simultaneously, a curse disguised by what was once good.

And thankfully, it seemed that the others were in good spirits too considering their Kings rather grand mood since the sighting of Erebor, as rare as it might of been. In fact, she was sure that Gandalf had never spoked so much in his long life considering she hadn't seen him without that pipe between his wrinkled lips since they'd first set up camp to sleep, blowing smoke and forming shapes to the dwarves amusement as they chuckled and cheered him on, and then later on whispering and listening to stories of ghosts and humours on the nights when the wind blew just a little colder and the skies a little darker around the fire as it glowed and warmed them.

She even sometimes joined them, curling up at her hobbits side and joining in on their conversations, but mainly focusing on keeping Bilbo warm as the occasional shiver struck his small body, either from the cold breeze that fluttered on by or more probable, the horror from the terrifying stories of bloodthirsty orcs, hungry hounds the sizes of trees, or some other vile myth that had been spread from mouth to mouth for centuries now, simple legends spun by woe and immortalized by fear.

If the company wanted a real horror story, one that was true and disgusting and vile...then she supposed she could of told them her own.

But things weren't all as peaceful as she wished they were...because she'd found out rather quickly that the dwarves well and truly had absolutely no shame when it came to their...well, when it came to almost anything involving them and their bodies. The burping and the farting and the crude jokes she was sure she could handle, and Nymeria could definitely give them all a run for their money when it came to cursing and swearing...but what she was struggling with was their bloody naked arses running past her when they'd throw themselves in the small river hidden in a thicket of bushes just where she lay her head at night.

Admittedly, she was sure she was going to see some nakedness on their journey, after all, there were alot of male dwarves and she knew it would be completely accidental on her part...but she was pretty sure she could draw them all from mere memory alone with how often she'd seen them. And her poor hobbit was just as scandalised when he'd witnessed it, complaining into the late hours of the night as he fell asleep beside her, still muttering and wrinkling his nose even in his unconscious as she chuckled.

However, eventually they were forced from their camp when Nymeria had awoken to her chaos singing in her ears like a terrible warning one night...and she'd known that their time was over as she woke the company, who themselves were soon able to hear the haunting howls in the distance, made to pack up their things and begin their journey once more as the days passed, having no choice but to follow Gandalf to get them out of the thick cluster of land that felt more like a thriving forest...and the faè was definitely thankful for their small break those mere weeks ago, because that was the last time she'd been able to feel her feet.

Which brought them all to that very moment, Nymeria watching with her heart in her throat and with a certain anxiety in her bones as her hobbit who had begun climbing the cliff side by himself because apparantly the dwarves eyesight was almost worse than a bats or something as equally as blind, one large foot of his on top of the other as his toes gripped the rough ground below him, strained grunts slipping out from his lips every so often as the company all whisper shouted their encouragement up towards him as he climbed higher and higher until he threatened to disappear from her view completely as she paced underneath him.

It was strange, she'd watched the halfling face off against Azorg himself without any hint of fear or terror...and yet here she was, still worrying over his well-being like a fretting mother as she hovered beneath the mountain, ready to catch him in case he fell from the steep cliff and more that prepared to do so with her hands that constantly flickered with red, only increasing when he'd finally made it to the top and she could no longer be him through the foliage of rock and bushew, barely resisting the urge to follow up after him as she huffed and muttered under her breath.

"I wouldn't worry yourself too much. The hobbit seems to be getting on well on his own when you give him the chance."

Fili's familiar voice chuckled as he strutted up beside her, resting a reassuring hand against her shoulders that she almost hesitated in shrugging off, instead reaching up to pat his warm hand once before allowing it to drop as of to cushion the blow of her rejection as she glanced back up towards the sky, as if expecting Bilbo to be falling from it any minute now which only added onto the dwarves amusement as he watched her with an adoration filled gaze, lips twitching into a small smile as she continued to glow like a beacon of light in the darkness that was the forest around them.

"I know that...yet it was only a month ago he was debating whether or not to move out of the Shire in a effort to avoid confrontation with the Sackville-baggins." She grumbled fondly, almost missing the time that their biggest concern was the rather large hobbits that had begun banging on their door at every other hour, loud sounding knocks that almost tore the poor door clean off its hinges as the nosy creatures tried to get a peak of Bilbo's 'lady friend'...though, they'd soon regretted that curiosity when Nymeria had used her chaos to reanimate the plants outside of the garden to chase them off of his property with pointed thorns and rotting leaves.

Her fingers flexed be her side as if her magic could remember such a time, and she had to fight off the urge to grin as she glanced over at Fili...only to see that he'd been staring at her with that soft look upon her face that made her insides feel warm as she cleared her throat, looking back to the side towards the horizon where the sun had begun to peak over the trees while the gaunt apples of her cheeks burned with something she couldn't place, desperate for a distraction from his crystal eyes of stunning blue.

And then she heard a loud, splintering crack that sliced through the air like a blade to butter followed by a familar panicked cry, and she spun around just in the nick of time to catch her hobbit as he fell, the red mist of her chaos lopping through her fingers like mocking rings as it twisted around Bilbo's body gently, lowering him to the earth below with her brows lightly furrowed, and then the moment his hairy feet touched the forest below she was quickly moving over towards him, checking him over for any wounds as he babbled on about something that went in one ear and out of the next, the faè far too busy checking his arms for any scratches.

"Nice catch, lass!"

Bofur called over to them cheerfully as the dwarves turned around to face them, quickly wandering over towards them and surrounding the hobbit, questions upon their lips about the orcs while Nymeria was still searching him over for any wounds, feeling something very strange indeed in the air which was making her all sorts of tense as she flinched with everything and anything, something even as little as a birds claw as it flew by overhead forcing her eyes to flicker red. There was definitely something here, something she couldn't put her finger on, and no matter how hard she tried to sense it, it was like searching through thick fog.

"Will you listen! Will you just listen to me?! I'm trying to tell you that there is something else out there." Bilbo finally snapped, slapping his hands above his head to stop his friends curious fingers from searching his hair, the tips of his ears burning in embarrassment and frustration as he resisted the urge to slam his foot onto the ground in a huff. He knew he seen something, and he also knew that the orcs were going to be the last of their problems if that large looking beast managed to catch up with them, and as much as he enjoyed the company's praise and Nymeria's concern, he really didn't want to get mauled so soon.

"What form did it take?...like a bear?" Gandalf asked quietly, and then the faè slowly trailed her gaze up to glare at him darkly, a dangerous glint in her red eyes as she came to the very quick conclusion that the old wizard obviously knew more than he'd originally let on, her hand tightening over from where she gripped the coat of her hobbit to bring him closer as the rest of the company all began to shift with unease at the sudden tension in the air as Bilbo nodded his head, confusion plasted across the panes of his face as he muttered something about it being very much bigger than just a normal bear.

"You know what it is." Nymeria said, but it wasn't a question, it was an accusation as she snarled quietly, skin rippling as her chaos began to brim to the surface, feeling her fear and preparing to lash put in kind...but there was also a nervousness forming heavily in the pit of her stomach, no matter how much she tried to ignore it as the dwarves began bouncing ideas off of each other on how to avoid it...and that was because while she was feeling alot better...she wasn't so sure her magic was ready for a fight just yet, not so soon after her back had almost been torn anew.

Catching her hobbit was one feat, it was something so heavily grained into her, into her magic and it had been for years that it was hardly an afterthought...but having to clash with a beast that had even Gandalf looking somewhat frightened? She didn't even want to guess how such a match would turn out as she swallowed thickly with her whole body tense and trembling.

"There is a house, it's not far from here where we might take refugee." The old wizard spoke up once more with his voice nothing short of grave, no longer looking off towards the horizon as he finally turned back around again to address them all, still looking rather hesitant even with the offer of shelter that he'd laid upon them...and there was just something in his eyes that didn't make her any more confident at all as she clutched Bilbo just a bit closer who welcomed the embrace, patting the top of her hand with his shaking palm while she continued to flicker her gaze around them, as if expecting an attack at any moment.

"You don't sound so sure of that...are they friend or foe?" She asked carefully, sharing a look with Thorin who had saddled up beside her, datk brows set in a heavy frown, obviously having the exact same question upon the tip of his tongue as they glared over towards the wizard, a certain tension thick in the air that only grew thicker and thicker with every passing moment that they stood around and waited for something they had no idea how to get past or even fight if it came down to it.

"Neither. He will help us...or he will kill us." Gandalf admitted carefully, but even he knew that there was no way to sugarcoat it as the dwarves began to mutter and curse amongst themselves, unease and fear blossoming, curling around the faè like a mocking embrace as she tried to push their emotions away and focus on her own...which to her own surprise, was a rather strange mixture of rage and stale amusement as she scoffed loudly, tongue digging into the side of her cheek and her fingers beginning to glow to show her displeasure.

"Well that's reassuring. Either certain death or possible death, our options seem mighty fine."

And just as those cursed words slipped from her mouth with far more attitude than any of then had been expecting which she was most definitely blaming on her lack of sleep or perhaps even having to deal with her hobbits sass more often than usual, the sudden sound of a horrifying roar split through the air and made her regret wasting the time fo make such a comment, the fine hair upon her body standing on edge, ears threatening to split and a terrible shiver creeping up her spine...and one, single look to her companions showed the same absolute terror of the unknown as it crashed towards them.

"I am afraid our choice has just been made for us. Run! Run!"

He didn't need to tell them twice as they all quickly dispersed, running as fast as their legs could carry them as the sounds of dangerous snarls and breaking trees echoed in the silence around them, rushing over the foliage of bushes, across clearings and through small streams, and Nymeria watched as Fili almost took a tumble as he tripped over a rock and she quickly grabbed his tunic before he could, hitching him up as she pulled him along, his thanks getting lost in the wind as her hand travelled down while his travelled up until they were holding onto each other, their fingers intertwined as they all finally broke out of the forest with the sounds of the great beast following behind them and obviously catching up.

They ran for what seemed like hours, the sun now firmly in the sky in hues of blue as they ran and ran and ran, listening out for the creature hunting them...and the howls of the wargs that had joined the chase...just to make things that much harder for them as of it wasn't bad enough, the company keeping close to one another just in case, encouragments and calls of each others name dancing around them as they sprinted away.

But then finally, they caught sight of their salvation, a large house sat right in the middle of a large plain of land surrounded by a thick hedge...and the thought of finally being away from the creature running after them spurred Nymeria on that much faster until she was right behind Gandalf with Fili practically being dragged behind her without her knowledge, forgetting their intertwined state as she passed the wizard, her free hand glowing red as she forced the large door open before she threw herself onto the floor, panting for breath that had escaped her with her palms against her knees.

Nymeria honestly couldn't remember a time that she'd ran so much in her life, hearing the others as they charged, hurrying the stragglers along as more and more if the company filled into the home, making relief settle in her bones, knowing that they were finally going to be safe once more and more than happy with the thought...however she should of known by now that the moment the faè started hoping for something good to happen fate seemed to conspire against her to make sure the opposite happened as she heard everyone scream in horror.

She looked up sharply, searching over their heads for their cause of alarm...and froze as her gaze found the youngest member of the group of dwarves fallen onto the floor, desperately trying to scramble up as she caught sight the creature that had been chasing them, taller than any warg, any creature she'd seen thus, far covered in dark fur and fury as it gained on Ori who screamed...and the faè felt her jaw clench in frustration as she pushed herself through the company and out of the doors to where safety was, hearing them call her name in terror behind her, but she'd already made her decision.

And just as the bear was about to bare down upon Ori and send him into his death far soon...Nymeria leapt over his head and collided with it, small body blessed with chaos and dangerous rage forcing it back as she landed upon the ground on her hands and knees and snarled at it, swiftly throwing her hands left and right as the glow of her chaos smashed into its face, its body, anywhere she could reach with wounded and angry roars ripping itself from the beasts jaws as she ducked it's terrible paws and frothing mouth, her own teeth bared and eyes nothing short of feral as they charged towards each other again and again as it tried to get past her.

But it wasn't until she heard a desperate call of her name alongside the pounding of footsteps did she look over her shoulder to see Fili about to run towards her, sword in hand and gaze nothing short of determined, did she remember why she'd left to battle this thing in the first place...and that was to protect them.

So whispering an apology, a curse, a prayer under her breath, Nymeria lashed out with her free hand, her magic hitting him harmlessly in the chest and throwing him back into the safety of their temporary shelter and then she forced the doors to slam shut with an echoing bang behind him as their gazes caught for the last time, just in time it seemed for the beast to tackle her into a thicket of bushes as she screamed viciously, and lost herself back into the thrill of the fight with her teeth bloodied and eyes red...all the while the company she'd left behind stared helplessly at the doors that refused to budge in front of them. "What was that?"

"That would be a skin-changer named Beorn...and if he manages to survive the night...he would also be our host."
_______________________________________________

The home was warm when night had fallen once more and the fireplace bathed them all it its amber glow, the soft sounds of the wildlife outside muted as the company snored comfortably, seemingly completely content after Gandalf had assured them it was safe to rest their heads, and, after a few hours of worrying for their still missing companion, they'd all eventually went into an uneasy sleep...all of them except Fili, who continued to stare at the large door that had been infused shut by Nymeria's chaos, unable to rest, unable to even try until he knew she was safe as worry continued to gnaw at his gut.

Originally he hadn't been alone, because Bilbo had obviously shared his terrible fear, sitting down next to him and nervously rambling on about how she'd be alright, because he was pretty sure that even death itself couldn't take Nymeria unless she allowed it and honestly, the prince actually thought there was some truth to his words...but eventually the hobbit had succumbed to his exhaustion, sleeping by the door with his brows furrowed and face twisted still, as if even in his unconscious he was feeling for the girl, his protector, his guardian, his something.

Fili almost envied him as he continued to glare towards the door, thick fingers absentmindnessly rubbing his chest where her magic had hit him, still feeling the tingling under his skin that had numbed him to any other embrace, that warmth, that nip of pure power that was something so completely and utterly her that he wanted to feel it for the rest of his days, that sharp sting of her chaos that was the closest he'd ever come to feeling her overwhelm him.

Because the truth of the matter was that Nymeria could take any form, she could haunt him for the rest of his days, she could burn the world and he'd watch, scream and deafen him, drive him mad if she so wished it...but as long as she'd look at him like she had before, with that soft glow of red in her eyes, that small curl of her pretty lips, he'd take it gladly because and in the end she could do all of it and more, she could even simply take him by the throat and his heart would pound and his eyes would sparkle at the mere inches between their lips.

She was not gentle, nor was she soft or kind, she was like a rose bush, stunning to look at, beauty that could take your breath away but condemned with prickly thorns that tore into your skin if you got too close...And yet he craved all of her, thorns and all, he'd take anything she could give him...and wasn't that such a strange absolution.

"You should be sleeping, Fili. We all need the rest."

Thorin's rough voice broke him out of his thoughts as the blonde startled in abrupt shock, looking up with wide eyes to see his uncle making his way towards where his nephew sat, strides purposeful, powerful and nothing short of regal as he came to a stop and sank down beside him with a quiet grunt, broad shoulders brushing against his as he sighed, dark gaze passing over the hobbit, and then back over towards the company, before they lingered at the door that still glowed red. "You shouldn't worry yourself about the lass...we all know by now that she can handle herself."

And while Fili greatly disliked the fact that he was seemingly so transparent, his jaw still tensed at his uncles idle words, unable to help the small bubbling rage, the unease, the feeling of being completely and utterly out of his depth as he sighed heavily, bracing his forearms across his thighs as he glanced up at Thorin with his brows set in a hard frown that spoke volumes. "But for how long? She heals fast, it's true...but you saw what happened with the goblin hoard, she barely got back up."

Mahal, he'd hated that moment, unable to do anything but struggle and shout as she was thrown onto the floor, tortured in front of him, watching as her blood leaked out from under her body in rivers, soaking the ground as the goblin king forced his staff into her back over and over again until he'd been sure there was no chance she'd survive it. He'd seen her fight orcs, fight trolls, even seen her fight a mountain itself with her magic that took to prisoners as she cast it...and yet it was a goblin that had brought her to her knees and him alongside her, feeling so terribly helpless and knowing that her screams would haunt him for years to come.

However, while he was thinking back to that day, face set in some kind of devastated grimace as he thought back to the stuff of nightmares, Thorin had continued to simply watch his nephews face as it twisted painfully, his heart sinking with every passing moment as he narrowed his eyes in suspicion, a question already heavy upon his tongue bur knowing he already knew the answer as he broke the uncomfortable silence that echoed around the home once more.

"I'm starting to think that this concern goes further than worry for a fellow member of the company, nephew."

The prince swallowed thickly but didn't deny the gentle accusation, instead glancing up at the doors again and then slowly trailing his gaze up to look his uncle in the eye, straightening his back as he awaited something, anything as the King under the mountain just continued to stare at him blankly...before his face broke into a wide grin as he chuckled quietly, clapping the lad on the back with his shoulders shaking in amusement. "I see the way you look at her, we all do...and I can't say I blame you, that lass is a force of nature, headstrong and stubborn and loyal...she'd make a fine wife to someone one day if they manage to tame her fire."

Fili smiled softly, looking down to the floor with the tips of his ears becoming hot at such a thought. However, such daydreams were quickly crushed when Thorin continued, his voice rough and almost pitying as he stood up, looking down his nose at him in every sense of the word and sighed. "If only things were different, I'm sure that you both would of made a good match." He muttered, taking no pleasure from the truth as his nephew blinked up at him in confusion with his brows furrowed and restless.

"You have a duty Fili, to marry, to birth an heir, to become King...and none of that would be possible with her by your side. Our people wouldn't accept her, she's no dwarf, she's nothing even close. I wish things were different, truly, I do, but you cannot allow your...admiration for her to cloud your judgement. You will have plenty of suitors waiting for you when we reclaim Erebor, and soon, you'll forget all about her." Thorin said strongly, assuredly, looking the lad in the eye as he clapped him on the shoulder once more, a certain seriousness heavy in the air as they looked at each other...before Fili bowed his head.

"I understand, uncle."

"Good. Now try and get some sleep, Mahal knows we all need it."