This fanfic is dedicated to Kumama, one the most brilliant deviants one deviantart (her Hobbit comics are hilarious XD). In honor of her amazing artwork and many wonderful laughs, I present to you Life String based off of many of her works. I am having so much fun with this character and I apologize if this first chapter seems a bit dry. The rest of this story is going to be complex and, hopefully, brilliant! Not to mention that more will have to written once the next two Hobbit movies come out. There may also be some book-verse in these fanfics (just to keep the realities of Tolkiens world in check for those who are big time Tolkien fans). No Mary Sues here. Constructive criticism is welcome as always, but don't flame me. It burns in many places.

EDIT: Oh, and a quick note, according to one guest they had to read one chapter and thought it wasn't worth it, but persevered and now they love it. Please read at least to chapter three before you toss it aside, because there is SO much more to this story than chapter one suggests (and thank you so much to that wonderful guest for their honesty and for continuing on before judging my story).

Lovest Always, Lady Merridell

Disclaimer: I do NOT own The Hobbit or anything Tolkien related. In fact, I don't even own Kumama! She kinda owns herself and gave me permission to do this. If anything in here is incorrect then inform me in the comments and I promise I'll fix it.

Chapter 1

There was once a young dwarrow, sweet as spring, kind as the shade of a great tree in the summer, and hardy as rock.

A lone figure stood on the little pathway and shifted from foot to foot nervously. The moon was absent that night and wisps of cloud drifted sleepily across the starry seas above. Vast emerald grasslands swayed in the cool night breeze and here are there windows embedded in the rolling hills shone with light. An occasional halfling would could be seen walking in the distance, perhaps coming home from a visit to the local pub or from a hard nights work in the crop.

The newcomer glanced down at their map, squinting. After a moment of silent contemplation they turned the map right-side up and sighed. It's no use. Everything's blurred.

Rolling up the map, wincing slightly as it crinkled loudly and disturbed the meditative silence of the evening. Readjusting their pack, the stranger wandered up the path, searching for any sign. Anything that could possibly aid in their search for a certain hobbit smial.

Up ahead, to their immense relief, glowed the bright blurry blue mark of Gandalf the Gray upon the round green porthole-like door of the hobbit's home. This must be Bag End, they thought, both relieved and excited.

The lights were on, so the hobbit was quite awake. There would be no awkwardly-disturbing-the-burglar's-slumber. And from all the noise inside it was easy to perceive that several members of the party had already arrived, so there would be no awkwardly-trying-to-make-conversation-without-scar ing-the-burglar moments.

Ever since they had first entered the Shire, any and all hobbits that strayed across their path either stared or shied away. One even dared to chase them off with a pitchfork with a clump of straw still stuck in it back at the Marish.

Halflings just weren't used to the sight of such an odd creature.

None of this mattered, if course. This was the anticipated moment come true. All the hard work, all the trials, and determination had lead up to this moment. The chance to prove themself.

Taking a deep breath, the figure wandered up to the little hobbit smial. Heart racing, the figure raised a hand and knocked rapidly, then stepped back and waited with bated breath until the door opened.

In the doorway stood a very agitated hobbit, his sandy curls ruffled as though he had run his hands through it several times. He wore a patchwork robe tied tight with a sash. The hobbit was a bit pudgy and had a slight twitch to him, which must have been a good sign. At least they had a burglar with fast reflexes.

A quick glance at his feet confirmed the stranger's presumptions and then, unsure of quite how to introduce themselves, the newcomer bowed, then quickly shifted to a curtsy, but decided it was much too awkward without a skirt, then changed their mind thinking to give a handshake, decided this was too informal, and attempted to speak. It all came out as a squeak and, overcome, hugged the hobbit.

The hobbit bachelor's eyes widened in surprise at the sudden gesture. "Uh...do-do I know you, by any chance?" he asked, squinting in confusion.

"Yes-I mean-uh-no...I mean if you count-no wait! That wasn't exactly-uh-no, um-haha. I don't believe we've met in person-I mean-yeah," she stammered, waving her hands and gesturing wildly. Bilbo stared at her incredulously. What could she mean? Was she possibly ill?

"Uh, sorry, its just, uh-haha-um...my name's Kumama," she said, sticking out her hand, trying to calm the screams in her head. Durin's beard! I mean, wow! The burglar. The burglar! He's so cute and tiny and- I mean, brave to volunteer. He's quite small. But not as small as I thought-wait!-that's probably because I'm almost his height, but not quite-I mean...oh what am I thinking? I should just-wait! Is that Dwalin in the other room? Suddenly she rushed inside and ran straight for the kitchen.

Bilbo Baggins stared after the girl incredulously and opened then closed his mouth as though unsure of what to say, exactly, and instead shook his head in frustration and closed the door. It was the oddest greeting he'd received thus far.

Bilbo hurried into the kitchen where the girl was speaking-blubbering, actually-with the other dwarves that had arrived, so far being only the two who called themselves Balin and Dwalin. Dwalin frowned at her as though he might make her disappear merely by staring whilst Balin listened, smiling politely.

Kumama had dark brown hair, a blue farmer's shirt that looked as though it had been stitched in several not-so-discreet places to fit, brown breeches, brown eyes, and looked as though she couldn't quite see clearly. She had the trademark hobbit feet though they were slightly smaller and looked a bit paler than they should, as though she wore shoes on some occasions. Kumama, herself, was a bit taller than most hobbits should be, and her ears were only slightly pointed as though caught between human and elf. The poor child looked caught between races.

Bilbo had heard of mixed beings though they were rarely seen and often times discouraged from society. Of course the Tooks cared little for that sort of high society and, being a Took, Bilbo decided against mentioning it. Besides, it was impolite to discuss mixed breeding amongst guests. Unless, that is, they were unwanted guests.

He hurried towards the group, opening his mouth to say something when there was a knock on the door. With a frustrated growl he changed course.

He opened the door and was greeted by two more dwarves.

"Fili," said one with honey-colored hair.

"-and Kili," added the darker-haired one.

"-at your service," they declared with a bow.

"Are you Mister Boggins?" asked the dark-haired one.

"I believe you have the wrong house," he piped, "good day," and then made to close the door when Fili stopped him.

"Has it been canceled?" he asked.

"Canceled? Nothing's been canceled!" Bilbo exclaimed, knitting his eyebrows. Much less planned.

"Well that's a relief," Kili said, grinning widely. The two opened the door easily, much to Bilbo's dismay,

and began removing their cloaks and various weaponry.

"Careful with this, just had it polished," Fili said, dropping a rather hefty sword in its sheathe into the job it's arms. Kili began scrapping the mud off his boots on-

"Excuse me, don't do that, that's my mother's glory box, can you please not do that," he called, trying to be as polite and hospitable as a proper hobbit should be.

At that moment the great tattooed giant of a dwarf stomped in, thankfully distracting Fili and Kili.

"Mr. Dwalin," Kili greeted cheerfully.

"She's here," Dwalin rumbled quietly.

"Who?" Kili asked. His question was answered when suddenly a dark-haired creature whipped around the corner and smacked into both dwarves.

"Oh, I'm so sorry," she exclaimed. Dwalin just grunted while Kili waved it off.

"No need to be sorry. I take it you are Kumama?"

"Yes, how did you know?!"

"Your name precedes you," he replied. Suddenly there was knock and a shout from down the hall.

"No, there's nobody home! I have enough dwarves in my house as it is. If this is some kind of joke-"there was rather annoyed laugh-"then it is in very poor taste."

The door was opened and Kumama witnessed a tidal wave of dwarves spill onto the carpet, groaning and complaining as they attempted to extract themselves from the tangled knot. There, in the hallway, stood the one who had gathered together these dwarves, who offered to aid in the return to Erebor, who had selected their burglar, and invited Kumama along with the promise of a place to belong, to discover what she truly was, and a chance to prove herself.

"Gandalf," Bilbo sighed.

"No please, put that back! Put that back!" The hobbit weaved through the crowd, attempting to put a stop to the raid on his pantry. Of course, it was all quite fruitless.

Meanwhile, amid the chaos, Gandalf attempted a head count.

"Let's see...Nori, Ori...Dwalin...ah, Kumama. You came," he rasped, his blue eyes twinkling kindly.

"I did, Gandalf. I'm so excited for this! It's going to be the best adventure-oh!" Kumama, in her excitement, stumbled back and collided with a dwarf, who at the moment was carrying a plate of tomatoes to be baked. He turned to look down at the young... hobbit? No, possibly human? Either way, she was on the floor.

"My apologies, lassie. I didn't see ye there," he apologized, extending a hand to help her up. Kumama, however, stared at him in awe. He just beamed at her. "The name's Bofur. And yours?"

Eventually Kumama took his offered hand and felt shocked at the warmth that spread through her hand and to her toes. What is this? He pulled her up and steadied her. My name...my name?! Um, what is my name-no, what am I thinking...uhm...

"Kumama," she finally said, still a bit dazed.

"That's a nice name, Kumama. Where are you from, lass?"

"Exile," she answered, mind still numb, then suddenly realized what she had said. "Oh! I mean, uh, the Blue Mountains."

"The Blue Mountains, ye say? You must have been at the Council for the Quest," Bofur said.

"Oh, no, I mean yes-well, sort of," she sputtered. Technically she was there…

"Wasn't able to make it, Bombur and I," he sighed. "We were conveniently missing that night. Speaking of which, you haven't met my brothers! Come, I'll introduce ye."

Gandalf chuckled as the two wove through the current and continued his count.

The rest of the night passed in a blue. Kumama met Bombur, who was the gentle giant with a refined taste for food, and Bifur who spoke an ancient form of Khudzul, which Kumama had failed to learn unfortunately, though she did know a few words. None of which, of course, Bifur used. Her dictionary included the words for no, my, sheep, stop, off, no, vase, broken, no (there were many interesting variations for that word), and a few choice words that she dared not even think about.

The rest of the dwarves Kumama knew fairly well. She also knew they didn't quite approve of her presence, with the exception of Fili, Kili, Ori, and Balin. Fili and Kili found her clumsy nature humorous and didn't seem to understand why the senior dwarves were cross. They continued to ponder why they recognized her, but seemed content to do so at a distance. Ori was too polite and innocent to care and Balin was, of course, Balin. Excepting of everyone.

Bofur, too, couldn't quite figure out what it was about her that caused even Dori to sigh in exasperation. She was enthusiastic, loyal, and ready to take back Erebor at all costs, like everyone else there (well, okay, most of them). Sure, her race was not certain, but when did that stop Nori? Perhaps in time he could-

"Bombur, catch!" One of his comrades tossed a strip of chicken and Bombur caught it, resulting in a raucous cheer and much stomping.

Kumama eventually found herself seated next to Bofur, who merrily chatted about anything and everything. Bifur was clearing the table and most of the dwarves had begun stomping. He was easy to talk to and only laughed if she said something strange and waved it off as though it were nothing.

"Here, follow our lead," Bofur whispered, interrupting her thoughts. He handed her a pair of butter knives and began stomping and clanging them with the dwarves across him. At first Kumama had a bit of trouble trying to keep up.

"Here lass, like this," he murmured gently, and slowly stomped and clanged, making sure to exaggerate the movements so she could get it right. "There ye go!"

Kumama smiled widely as she stomped and clanged and almost stopped when the hobbit came in.

"Please don't do that," he cried, "you'll blunt them!"

"Oh, do ya hear that, lads," Bofur exclaimed, winking at Kumama, "he says we'll blunt the knives."

"Blunt the knives, bend the forks," Kili sang, grinning mischievously.

"Smash the bottles and burn their corks," Fili added, bouncing plates off his elbows.

"Chip the glasses and crack the plates," the dwarrow all chorused.

"That's what Bilbo Baggins hates!" Body shouted.

"Cut the cloth and tread the fat!

"Leave the bones on the bedroom mat!" Kumama improvised, earning a grin and nod from Bofur.

"Pour the milk on the pantry floor!

Splash the wine on every door!"

Kumama attempted to balance the large pile of plates Ori had handed her. She managed to dodge Bilbo, who was staring up at the pile in horror. Suddenly her foot caught on the foot of a passing dwarf, sending several plates crashing to the floor. Thankfully they were caught by Bofur, who kicked them up to be caught by Oin and tossed to Bifur.

"Dump the crocks in a boiling bowl;

Pound them up with a thumping pole;

And when you've finished, if any are whole,

Send them down the hall to roll!"

Bofur pulled out his pipe flute and played along with Dori and Gloin, who banged and played a teapot.

"That's what Bilbo Baggins hates," they all finished with a shout. Kumama laughed along with the others, thankful for the lessening of the tension. However the festivities were short lived when there was a resounding bang at the door. For a moment everyone glanced at one another, then focused on the emerald green porthole.

"He's here."

EDIT: Quick note here about half breeds. No, I am not going to reveal Kumama's heritage, however I would like to discuss the subject, however rude or taboo it is. We're not hobbits, so I suppose it would be safe to say we are not being rude or imposing in the slightest. I have seen and read a few chapters of many fanfictions for The Hobbit in which the OC is half elf half hobbit, half hobbit half human, etc. It is almost uncommon to find any normal Middle Earth OC out there since most have mingled with elves to give the air of "perfection" or to avoid having a dwarf OC with beard or a Man which I'm sure most want a break from or even a hobbit with those great big furry boats for feet (although I fail to see what's wrong with them; I think they're dead useful for sneaking around since those feet are softly padded and can cover more ground in one step). I do take mixed breeding lightly. Many seem to forget how very different these races are and how uncomfortable it would really be to be a mix of them. Somehow the majority of mixed-race OCs manage to be graceful and fine as though there is nothing about their heritage that bothers them. The one exception to this, I think,is Half-Elven (the combination of Men and Elves). Tolkien states that Men and Elves can breed (thus Elrond and Arwen being Half-Elven). However nowhere does it state that Men and dwarves can't breed. The fact that Tolkien has not confirmed this leaves the idea that it is plausible, but not recommended which is where poor Kumama comes in. I haven't simply created Kumama simply for the fact of looks, but because it's all part of the story. I think I will have to stop there and let you mull that over. I'll save the rest for Kumama's mixed breed situation (yes, I have already written the explanation and can't wait to expose it :3 but it does sadden me since it may be a while yet to come)