Disclaimer: I do not own The Hobbit or anything related. That would be sole property of J.R.R. Tolkien. Which kind of sucks...

Dwarf Names are Not Easy to Remember

When the sun had gone down and the moon rose with the fall of night, Fandria could not have been more happy. They had travelled continuously throughout the day, save for a few breaks to relieve themselves and what not. The peaceful, hidden hills of the shire were far behind now, the soil of which they tread at present was wild. Thorin called the party to halt and they did so immediately.

"We rest here tonight," he announced, swinging off of his pony. "Fili, Kili, get a fire started. Bombur, supper. The rest of you-set up camp."

Fandria thanked the dwarf prince secretly, for she was sure her backside could not handle one moment longer in that saddle. With a painful groan, the blond dismounted her horse, albeit slowly. Fleet turned to watch her with sparkling dark eyes, blowing out of her nostrils softly. Fandria's face screwed up in discomfort as she stood for the first time in five hours.

"Yes, riding, not as fun as it looks. Ow!" she winced, grabbing at her buttocks.

Taking Fleet's reins, the girl hobbled over to a vacant spot to set up her bed for the night. The area they had stopped to camp in was mostly made of tall grass, dotted with a number of dying chestnut trees. It looked harmless enough, though Fandria could not ignore the creeping feeling at the nape of her neck. Once she had claimed her territory, with a trio of dwarves to her left preparing their beds and Balin to her right, already seated contentedly atop his blanket, Fandria tied up Fleet to a short tree limb close by instead of shoving her in the group of dwarf ponies. The horse, who was far more tranquil now, had no problem with this to Fandria's relief.

"You did well today, Miss Fandria, for a first-time rider."

The young girl looked around and found the voice belonged to Balin.

"Oh, thank you," she patted Fleet's shoulder, a smile tearing at her lips. "It wasn't easy. In fact, I think I've lost half my bottom since we departed this morning!"

The old dwarf laughed. "Aye, it seems that way at the start. I would be lying if I said my own rump was not a touch tender."

Fandria nodded and grinned at him, sitting down in the grass close to Fleet's fore hooves.

"So tell me, Miss Fandria, where do you hail from? By your fair appearance, I would have guessed the country of Rohan." Balin asked.

The young woman blushed, shaking her flaxen head.

"You are too kind! But, no. I share no blood with the Rohirrim. My home lay not far from the Shire, as a matter of fact. Walk north for five days from there and you will find the village I resided. At least that's how long it took me to get from there to the Shire. I'm sure that if I'd had Fleet with me then I would have been there in half that time." she leaned back and smiled up at the mare, who was dozing off.

"What village?"

"Taras. I'm afraid, though, you will find it no longer, " she sighed sorrowfully, her eyes downcast. "I imagine it will have been burnt down to the ground by now. You see, that is why I was running. My home was attacked by orcs."

The snowy-bearded dwarf gasped and the trio next door looked over when they heard this, intrigued at last by the seemingly dull female human.

"Orcs?" Balin echoed, eyes as wide as dinner saucers.

"Yes, a large pack too. There had to have been at least twenty of them in all. Most were on great wolves. Some carried torches, which they caught to many of the houses and buildings. Mine was one of them. I remember... waking... waking to the smell of smoke and-and the screams of my neighbors. Oh, bless them! They were so awful to hear!" she blinked at the tears blurring her vision.

"How did you escape?" Balin asked.

Fandria dabbed the corners of her eyes with her cloak, sniffling.

"I don't know. I-I just ran. I tried to look for my father, but he was nowhere in sight. It was sheer chaos encircling me and I was delirious with fear and horror at the nightmarish scene. My home. My village. My people. All of it was just... It was like the end had come to us. To our world. Which I guess in a way it had. My first instinct was to run. And that's what I did. With my father's sword and cloak and b-boots, I fled."

By the end of her last sentence tears were trickling down her face. Balin and the three other dwarves had come to sit in a circle around her and some more were beginning to join as well, having overheard the story.

"It was fortunate you were not tracked and murdered as well," Balin shook his head, features grave. "Orcs are a malevolent and dark race. It is rare that their victims escape, let alone unscathed. Especially one as delicate as you."

The young woman's mournful expression changed to that of indignance.

"Well, I wouldn't say I was that delicate..." she mumbled to herself.

"Was your mother killed as your father was?" one dwarf enquired, his hair shaped in the resemblance of a star.

The human girl shook her head. "My mother died long before any orc could reach her. She was taken by fever."

"Oh, I'm sorry." said the same dwarf.

Fandria shrugged.

"Miss Fandria, if you don't mind me asking, did you have any other sort of relatives? Siblings? Cousins?" Balin said.

"A brother, actually. I had one elder brother." the girl gave a solemn nod.

"What happened to him?" another dwarf asked.

"To tell the truth, I still don't know. He left months before the attack even occurred."

"He left? To where?"

"To return to our old homeland, over the mountains, up in the far north. We did not always live in Taras, though it may have seemed that way to me. I was but a young child when we moved from my birthplace and travelled across the Misty Mountains. My brother, though, he remembered it fondly. He'd always talk about going back. I never cared to."

"So he did." Balin presumed knowingly.

"So he did." Fandria confirmed, a strange note in her voice.

"Well, perhaps there's a chance of seeing him again?" the youngest-looking of the three neighboring dwarves spoke hopefully.

The girl let out a long breath. "I doubt it. Forgive me, but what are your names again?"

"Oh, that's alright! I'm-" but the young dwarf was cut off by the other with the star-shaped hair.

"I am Nori." he nodded at her, smiling close-lipped.

"I am Dori." the eldest-looking of the three spoke next, bowing to Fandria in the same fashion as they'd done to Bilbo.

"And I'm Ori!" the young one burst out, earning disparaging looks from the other two.

"Nori, Dori and Ori, hmm, your names all rhyme," Fandria murmured, then addressed them. "Are you all related?"

"We're brothers." Dori replied, swinging an arm about each one's shoulders and pulling them close.

"Makes sense. Well, you'll have to excuse me, gentlemen, for I don't have the greatest memory for names, so it may take me a while to get them straight."

"That's no problem! We'll make sure to remind you every day until you know us by heart." Ori vowed with eager sincerity, his eyes alight.

Fandria giggled, combing her fingers back through her hair, which was dreadfully tangled.

"I'm sure you will. Thank you for being so thoughtful... Ori."

The enthusiastic dwarf beamed.

"See there! You're learning already!" said he.

Balin leaned in then. "I'm assuming you remember my name?"

"Balin." the young woman said quickly.

He nodded his head and smiled.

"Well, since we're all sharing titles here, I'm Bofur," the dwarf with the goofy hat entered the ring suddenly, a wooden cup in his right hand. "And that hefty piece of work over there is my brother, Bombur. And that's Bifur, our cousin. He's seen better days, if you know what I mean."

Fandria followed his pointed finger to a dwarf with what looked like a hatchet stuck in his head.

She gasped in horror. "Is he-?"

"Shh! He's fit as a fiddle. Mind you, can't speak a word of common tongue."

The other dwarves guffawed uproariously at Bofur's comment, but the human was still too dumbfounded by the disturbing attachment. Her bewildered thoughts were put on hold when two more dwarves walked over to her, both of whom had beards thicker and longer than the rest.

"Gloin, in case you were wondering." the red-haired one stuck out his left hand to her.

Fandria shook it, her mouth stretching to form a polite smile.

"Nice to meet you."

He stepped back and the second came forward, his beard and hair a dark gray. In his right hand he clutched a small hearing horn.

"Oin, at your service, fair lady."

Her smile grew and her cheeks tinted pink.

"Thank you, Oin."

"So, you said you were born up in the north country? Where abouts?" Bofur questioned pleasantly, plopping down beside her.

"Um, well, pretty close to the place you are heading to. Esgaroth, or Lake-town, if you prefer to call it."

"Esgaroth? It is fortunate then that you came along. Perhaps you shall see your brother yet, if he was lucky enough to make the return journey home, of course." Balin said.

"If we make it that far ourselves." Nori muttered grimly.

"Hush! Don't be so pessimistic! We will make it, I am sure. After all, we have a wizard, a burglar and a-" Dori hesitated, his eyes flickering to Fandria.

"A woman," she finished, the smile on her face dwindling. "I know, not much of a comfort."

"Not true, Miss Fandria," Balin dismissed her lightly. "Why, I'm sure you are more than capable of slicing a few enemies with that sword of yours."

Fandria looked down at her father's old, rusted weapon and gulped.

"Uh, yeah," she looked back. "Just leave the slicing to me, ha ha."

"Absolutely!" Bofur elbowed her arm playfully.

Across the camp, Thorin had been keeping a close eye on his kin surrounding Fandria. They were rather engrossed by the looks and it irked him for some reason. What could possibly be so interesting about the scrawny girl? Maybe it was due to her being female? Females of the fairer races of Middle Earth have a knack for absorbing attention like a lily does the sun. Especially from those of his own kind. Was this going to be it? Her creating tall tales and leading them all astray from the path they are set to follow? Thorin would not stand for it. They had a duty to fulfill and no strange seductress of men was going to get in the way of it.

"Enough," he marched up to the group. "Dinner is ready. Eat and then get to sleep. We leave at first light of the morn."

The dwarves did not argue. They heeded their leader's order without hesitation.

"Coming to dine with us, Miss Fandria?" Balin queried as he pushed himself up from the ground.

Fandria did not look at Thorin, who was staring her down darkly, and shook her head.

"I think not. My eyes are dropping as we speak. I'm going to get a head start on rest. Night, Balin."

"Good night, Miss Fandria."

Letting his glare leave a heavy weight on the girl, Thorin spun on his heel and stomped after the old dwarf, his long, furry cloak billowing behind him.

"What an old crow." said the girl under her breath, watching the dwarf prince take his place among the others around the fire.

"He will be difficult in gaining trust, but I am proud of your warming to the rest. They appear to have taken a liking to you."

Fandria turned her head and saw Gandalf standing there not far from Fleet. His pointy hat was absent from his head.

"I'm glad you think so," she snorted, pulling off her boots for the night. "I won't lie, I could care less of gaining Oakenshield's trust."

"Hmm," the wizard puffed on his pipe. "I did not know Taras was raided by orcs. There was no news."

"Doesn't surprise me. I don't even think we were on the map." she scoffed.

"Why didn't you tell me, Fandria? Why would you ever keep that a secret from me?" Gandalf questioned.

"I guess I just thought it would be better if no one knew. That way I could forget and move on."

"And have you forgotten?" the wizard pressed.

Fandria sighed miserably. "No."

"Of course not! Foolish girl! Where did you plan on running to?" he wondered, all flustered now.

"Some place on the other side of the sea. Where life would be new and I could start over. Fresh." Fandria answered quietly.

"'Other side of the sea?' Why, of all the-" the old man stopped and planted his face in his palm, shaking his head. "What a notion! What in this good world were you thinking, Fandria? Foolish, foolish girl!"

"What did you expect me to do? Stay there?" the girl threw up her arms. "Everyone I knew has perished. Friends, family. I had no one, Gandalf."

"You had me." said he.

"You? And where exactly was I supposed to find you, Gandalf?"

"I'm certain that had you put yourself to the task you would have found me. I believe that you simply had no inclination to do so." Gandalf replied smartly.

"Look, Gandalf, I was and still am terrified of what happened. I've lost my mother, then my brother decides to abandon us and now... Now my father is gone. My mind is past frazzled. I couldn't-I can't think straight. I don't know what's right anymore and sometimes I wish I could go back, far back to a time when I was a small girl and fears like this only ever existed in stories." her voice cracked as tears breached her lower eyelids.

Gandalf's austere face softened while he looked upon her shrinking, shaking form. She looked so much like a child in that moment, he felt he could have hoisted her into his arms and sing her a lullaby as he'd done in years past when things made her scared or sad.

"Fandria," he began softly. "I understand that you are carrying much pain, but you must remember that though all others have passed on, you survived and that was by no mere string of good fortune. There's a reason you are not among the dead right now. Fate has something more for you in store, perhaps even something great. Though I cannot yet say what that may be. Do not let grief hold your heart captive, dear Fandria. Free yourself, for I know that is what your father would have wanted most for you."

"Huh," she rubbed her tear-stained cheeks dry. "I think if that is true, then fate and you must be on the same side for sending me on this silly pilgrimage."

"Don't let Thorin catch you saying that, else the elves and Smaug will not be the only ones on his list of enemies." Gandalf forewarned.

Fandria snorted. "Like I care. Let him loath me. I have no obligation to him. I go for my own sake alone."

"Oh?" the elderly man raised a bushy eyebrow. "Is Bilbo no longer a just excuse for your turn of events?"

"Bilbo? Why, yes, of course!" the girl stammered. "I mean, he's not an excuse, Gandalf. I truly mean to aid the little fellow on this quest."

"Very decent of you, Miss Narand, very decent indeed," Gandalf gave an approving nod. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I think I will go sample some of Bombur's creation."

With a wink, the wizard strode past, making a beeline for the gathering of dwarves about the bonfire. Fandria waited there in the dark with Fleet, watching them silently, a glint of regret showing in her shadowed eyes. Unbeknownest to her, she was also being watched.

From the moment he collapsed on the ground, Bilbo Baggins hadn't moved an inch, for he was wearied liked he'd never been wearied before. Like the human, his buttocks throbbed sore. In fact he was sore all over. He even found himself too jaded to get up and eat anything. Having chosen a spot nearby Fandria without knowing it, the hobbit, by no decision of his own, had heard the young woman's tale. He would have never guessed she'd been through so much. Driven from her very home and losing her entire family, what a terrible thing to imagine. And here he thought she was a worthless vagabond. How incredibly wrong he had been. Bilbo, after a long while of eying, got to his feet and padded over to the girl.

"Ah-ahem. Hello, Miss Narand." he said in a quiet voice.

The human jumped, head snapping around towards him.

"Bilbo? You startled me! I thought you would be eating? Are you not hungry?" she questioned, peering at him through the dark.

"Sorry! No," he shook his curly head, sticking his hands in his pockets. "I think my stomach is asleep or-or something. What about you? You're almost skin and bones!"

"Not quite, Mr. Baggins, not quite!" a warm laugh erupted from her. "I shall eat tomorrow, for I am much too sad to think about food at this time."

"Yes, I-I heard." the hobbit admitted shamefully.

"Heard what?" she tilted her head to the side.

"All of it. Your story, I mean. The orcs, your family, your plan..." he trailed off into an awkward silence.

"Oh..." Fandria pulled up her legs to rest her chin on her knees.

"I just wanted you to know that I am deeply sorry for your unfortunate circumstances and for my misjudging you. If I had known-"

"It's alright, Bilbo." she cut across him quickly.

"But-"

"Really! I'm fine," she gave him a gentle smile. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Miss Narand." he nodded, rocking his weight from one foot to the other.

"Fandria."

"Huh?"

"Please, call me Fandria." she insisted of him.

"Uh, yes, of course. Good night, Miss-er, I mean, Fandria."

He made to leave her then, but was rendered to a halt by her voice.

"Bilbo?"

"Hmm?" he turned back to face her on a dime.

"Do you regret your decision?" she asked.

"For coming?" he thought for a moment. "I suppose not. Though, it's only been a day."

"True."

"What about you?" he returned the inquiry to her.

"Not anymore. If anything, I feel blessed."

There was a pause between them, filled with the plethora of night sounds. The crickets and frogs were exceptionally loud here, their trilling calls enough to make anyone sleepy. The dwarves were chattering on to each other as they ate, laughing, some even breaking into snippets of song, only to be swiftly silented by Thorin. The scent of boiled cabbage and sausage wafted through the chill air from where the dwarves were huddled around the fire, finally having reached the human and hobbit's noses. They both sniffed at it, tempted, their bellies growling demandingly. However, neither were truly up to a meal tonight in the end. After a minute, Fandria yawned and broke the silence. She was terribly tired.

"Good night, Bilbo." she spoke in her gentle tone again.

The hobbit's mouth twitched. "Good night, Fandria."

The second day of travelling was just as uneventful as the former, save the fact that the company now held a higher regard for the human female. They were more awake now and even more intrigued by her than they'd been the evening last. Thorin, of course, was not included. He remained aloof when it came to the girl, passing words with his kin and Gandalf only. Though he treated Bilbo with clear disdain, he tolerated the hobbit far more than he did Fandria. This scarcely bothered Fandria, who was having a splendid time of getting to know all of the others, though some of the names were still proving difficult to commit to her memory bank. She began to like them all, though there were still those she clicked with easier than the rest.

Balin, for one, was certainly her favorite, because he had showed her nothing but kindness since upon meeting. Dwalin, his brother, had revealed to her that despite the rough, intimidating exterior, he was actually a real gentledwarf beneath, which Fandria admired. Both Fili and Kili were equally good fellows, although their instinctual male competitiveness got to be annoying a lot. Then there was Bofur. Oh, he was an odd dwarf, but his comedic disposition was his saving grace. Nori, Dori and Ori were funny as a team, Dori being the responsible one, Nori the slacker and Ori, the clueless youth. Fandria found Ori to be the most endearing of the entire flock for that reason. Oin and Gloin were just as kind as Balin-Gloin in a more rustic, fatherly way, Oin like a grandfatherly sort. Bifur was... Well, he was just Bifur. He only spoke dwarvish, so Fandria could not understand but six words of his rolling speech. Though, he was a tad spastic. Lastly, Bombur. Even for the fact that he and Bofur were brothers, one would never know by outward appearances alone. Bofur was on the smaller side with thick, black hair and brown eyes. Bombur was far larger (in width, at least), with flaming red hair and blue eyes. They were quite the opposite of each other, except for one thing: they were both lovable clowns.

"Can I borrow your shears, Master Gloin?"

They had come to stop for the evening in a much more wooded land than that of the two nights beforehand, and Fandria felt slightly more at ease because of it. Though she had lived on hilly plains and farmland, the girl had a great liking for trees. Sleeping out in the open created vulnerability, which Fandria hated beyond anything else, while sleeping under trees in forests provided shelter and protection from prying eyes.

"Hrrmph, for what, may I ask?" the redheaded dwarf grunted.

"Actually, I was going to trim my horse, Fleet's hair. She's a bit untidy you see-"

The dwarf's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "You want to use my good shears on your beast?!"

"Well, y-yes, if I could." Fandria fiddled with a strand of her hair.

"Sorry, but you can't-"

"Gloin, please, be generous with the girl," Dwalin interjected just as he passed them by. "By the looks of it, I'd say her needs are justified. The thing is beginning to resemble a woolly oliphant!"

Gloin growled in reluctant defeat, passing the tool over to Fandria in the most slowest way possible.

"Thank you so much, Master Gloin. And don't worry, I'll have them clean and new for you once I'm done, alright?"

He waved her off and turned away to face his brother.

"Okay, girl, let's get you cleaned up." the human female scampered up to the mare excitedly.

For most of the evening on the third day Fandria had spent grooming Fleet. The mare had a complete make-over by the girl; from hacking off all the knots in her mane and tail, to polishing her hooves and rubbing down her body with a damp rag, because Fleet refused to wade in the river close to their camp. By the time supper rolled around, she was just finishing her project. Gandalf, who had been observing from afar with amusement, strolled up while the girl was fixing fine braids into what was left of the horse's mane. He stopped a few feet back and watched for a moment before speaking.

"Spectacular job, Fandria. She looks worthy of the Mearas."

Fandria's lips curled upward at the praise by the wizard. She finished her last braid and stroked Fleet's smooth neck.

"Thank you," she said, reaching down in her cloak's pocket. "For being such a lovely lady, I give you this-"

A second later she held out a perfect burgundy apple to Fleet. The horse snorted and bobbed her head in delight, snatching the juicy fruit from her rider's palm. Fandria tapped her nose.

"You had better be more careful! You almost got my fingers!" she reprimanded, though not entirely serious.

"Is that one of the apples I gave you?" Gandalf inquired.

"Yeah, but I think Fleet deserves a treat. She's been so good!" Fandria reasoned, adoration for the animal glimmering in her eyes.

"Hmm, it appears that your spoiling of Fleet has attracted another's attention."

It was then that Fandria felt a light push at her elbow and she looked around to find a goldenrod pony waiting patiently for the next apple to come to her.

"Well, hello there, Mrytle! I thought you were tied up with the rest?" Fandria took the pony's face in her hands and kissed the bridge of her nose.

Mrytle's large eyes blinked and shone with desire. She ripped her head from the human's grasp and snuffed at Fleet, her nostrils puckered forward as she picked up the sweet scent of the apple. Fleet did not appreciate the pony's intrusion and dropped the last half of her treat to snort back threateningly. When Mrytle stayed planted to the spot after her first warning, the ebony mare stamped her hooves, threw her head up and neighed loudly. Fandria jumped aside as Fleet charged at the smaller equine. Mrytle let out a shrill whinny of fear and turned tail, closely pursued by Fleet through the campsite.

"See what your doting has done? Now they shall ever be adversaries of each other." Gandalf clucked his tongue as he shook his head at the two animals disturbing the dwarves at their supper.

Author's Note: Let me start off by apologizing PROFUSELY! I, admittedly, got sick of The Hobbit fandom for a while (gaspeth!). Even so, that gives me no right for taking so long to update this story, a story that I have come to love dearly. When was the last time I updated anyway? *looks at date* APRIL 22ND 2013! Okay, yeah, I am so, so, so, so sorry, my dear readers! Really I am. I appreciate all of you so much, you have no idea. This has actually been my first real successful story on this website and I would like to keep it going that way, though I would not blame any of you who had long abandoned this thing. I'm a jerk. I really am. Well, I hope that you all at least enjoyed this chapter, which was more of a filler than anything, although I did have the decency to add some new info on Fandria. I was going to write more, but I was just too eager to get up something tonight for you guys/gals! I promise to make the next chapter much longer and less filler. I won't make any promises on when I will update next, because my life outside of here has become crazy busy since last I updated, but I promise you all that this story will NOT be forgotten, okay? So stay tuned! ;)