Disclaimer: I do not own anything. The characters in this story are those or J.R.R Tolkien. All rights reserved. I am merely inserting a character of my own into the story. Please note that while this story will follow the lines of the movieverse, several things will be changed to suit my needs of this fanfiction. Once more, this is a fanfiction. I own nothing but Miss Aydan. I just decided to play with them a bit.

A/N: So this is the first fanfiction I have ever published. Normally I leave these for my own eyes, never to see the light of day, but I have decided to publish it. It is for shear curiosity that I do in hopes people enjoy it. I ask for critiques from any who read this and will take those critiques into consideration when editing the rest of this story. I have already written up to the end of the second movie and will be tweaking things as I publish. You can expect a new chapter every week. :) Thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoy it!

1/4/15- I am working on refining this fic, so be prepared for some changes and additions should you come back to read it again or are in the midst of reading it currently. -S.M

Chapter One
The Fifteenth Member

Laughter and shouts floated out of the seaside tavern, the sounds of travelers getting their fill. Pirates, dwarves, fishermen and barflies a like. Everyone was engulfed in their own world, their own problems. Men who'd had a tough day drowning their sorrows and woes in drink and women of the night floating around attempting to find a companion for the evening. Among them, I sat, a silent onlooker. My eyes watched a small group of dwarves with interest as they were the most interesting in the tavern. Everyone else seemed predictable, boring. I was paid no attention from the patrons engulfed in their worlds. I was unseen, an observant shadow in the corner.

My attention turned from the group and to the barmaid who offered me a glass of wine. A brow arched in curiosity as I looked to her. I'd ordered no wine and had no intention of indulging in spirits within a crowd. "From the gentleman in the corner." She spoke quietly with a sly grin. I frowned and looked to the corner. A tall man in grey sat in the corner and my brow furrowed. I knew him, recognized the old wizened face. It had been a long time since last we'd met. He stood and wandered over to me, sitting across from me and fixing kind blue eyes upon me. That simple action made me realize just how small I was. What an odd compilation of races I was.

"Aydan." He greeted with a small nod of his head.

I dipped my head before speaking, "Gandalf, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I am on my way to an adventure and am looking for someone of your skills to join the company."

"My skills?"

"You are the best mercenary in these lands. I am in need of someone to keep the line of Durin safe should I not be able to." My arms folded across my chest. It was true. Being such a wide compilation of races I had the best of everything. I was light as a feather from my elf and hobbit lines and my weapons skills came from my ranger lines and many years of practice. I was of many and belonged nowhere. No hobbit, elf or man wanted me and thus I sold my skill set to the highest bidder.

"I will not be wanted." I spoke, recognizing the name Durin. No Durin folk would accept my help. I was part elf and I knew they held a great hatred of part of my blood line.

"You leave that to me." I nodded and he handed me a piece of parchment with directions. "We shall meet again."

With that he was gone. I frowned and finished off my wine before standing. I was dwarfed by the men surrounding me, each one of them standing over six feet and me at only five. I was the size of a dwarf. I looked to the directions and pocketed the bag of gold. We were to meet in the Shire in a fortnight. Gandalf sure was confident that I would join the company. How did he know whether or not I would agree? My current life style was one of relative leisure. Being the most sought after mercenary in Middle Earth made me that way. I'd acquired a wealth that made me comfortable.

Grabbing up my intricately carved bow and quiver before heading out of the pub, I wandered through the darkened street. Should I go, should I stay? The line of Durin had put me out of my home with their leader's greed and lust of his treasure horde. I was a mere babe when Dale was destroyed by the dragon. Shaking my head I steeled my resolve. I would go. This was clearly a quest to regain Erebor and I would be the one helping to kill that horrid dragon, the dragon who'd killed so many and put the rest out of a place to call home. I would follow behind the group heading out on this quest if I must.

A fortnight later I perched outside in a tree in the shire. Gandalf was visiting a hobbit and I couldn't quite hear them from where I had hid myself. They were too far for me to pick up their words. The sun shone down on them and I stayed hidden, my muscles stiff and tight with the position I'd put myself in. I was wary of the place I was in and would happily stay hidden in the shadows of the tree until I knew it was alright. Some may call me paranoid, I preferred to think of it as cautious. With curiosity, I watched as the grey wizard marked the door and turned to leave. His eyes moved to the tree as was hidden in with a knowing smile crossing his wizened face. I shook my head and sat on the thick branch, watching him disappear, my muscles protesting at the shift in my position.

Dark fell when the first dwarf showed up. I had moved closer under the cover of darkness, to the bushes outside the door so that I could hear well. The door opened and the hobbit from earlier was revealed, looking confused. "Dwalin, at your service." The dwarf bowed low and the hobbit's look of confusion grew. My curiosity peaked further as I watched the exchange in silence. Had the grey wizard not told the poor hobbit about the gathering he'd planned?

"Bilbo Baggins, at yours." I lost sight of them as they walked into the hobbit hole and my frown deepened. I didn't hear the rest of the exchange as the door shut, effectively muting the conversation being held within. It was only moments later that a second dwarf showed up. He knocked and I had several moments to examine him before the door opened.

"Balin, at your service."

"Good evening."

"Yes, yes it is. Though I do believe it will rain later. Am I late?"

In comparison to me, they were both very late. I had been there since sun up, scouting, my cautious nature setting. I was waiting for Gandalf to show before I made myself known, he knew why I was there and to be honest, I was worried what reaction my presence would get. Leaves rustled slightly as I shifted my spot, trying to relieve my sore muscles as two young looking dwarves made their way up the walkway.

Dark eyes cast to the bushes for a moment in curiosity and I had time to examine him fully. He was very young looking and had stubble coating his face rather than a full beard that the dwarves so often sported. He was handsome, extraordinarily so, in my opinion and he'd fully captured my attention. The blonde who stood next to him only grabbed my notice for a moment before I was looking back to the dark haired dwarf. After settling with some explanation of my noise, the dwarves raised their fists and knocked firmly on the door. It swung open quickly to reveal the hobbit who was looking thoroughly frazzled.

"Fili." The blonde said.

"And Kili."

"At your service." They said this in unison and bow deeply. The exchange between the hobbit and the dwarves was lost as I focused in on the dark haired dwarf called Kili. I shook my head. These were not the thoughts of a mercenary. The door shut behind them and I frowned, losing sight of the handsome dwarf and regaining my usual train of thought. When was the wizard going to reappear? Finally he did, with a large group of dwarves. I watched in silence as they fell through the doorway, Gandalf staying a safe distance behind, a smirk gracing my lips as the incident. Groaning and cursing could be heard as they attempted to disentangle one another and Gandalf cast my spot a meaningful look before entering the hobbit hole.

I stayed in my spot for some time more, still unsure as to whether or not I should actually present myself to the dwarves. At the sound of merriment from inside I finally made the decision. Stretching out of the bushes, I moved to the door and knocked loudly, rolling my shoulders and neck to try and rid myself of the kinks that had taken place. The merriment stopped and I waited, nerves settling in the pit of my stomach. I'd never sought acceptance from anyone but my mother and now I was looking for acceptance on the quest they were to embark on. Gandalf opened the door and I stood there in silence, taking in the surroundings. I probably looked fierce or at least I hoped I did. My long, curly black hair was pulled back into a high pony tail and my sage green eyes were sharp. I wore all black. A black tunic covered with a tightly laced black corset. Treated black deer skin pants and tall black boots. Over my shoulders draped a long black cloak under my quiver and bow. You could hear a pin drop as I stepped into the hobbit hole, the soft leather of my boots making no sound.

"Ah, the fifteenth member has arrived." Gandalf exclaimed and I bowed low, allowing my long hair to spill over my shoulder before pulling off my weapons and setting them down. My hands reached up to unbuckle my cloak and I looked around in silence, waiting to hear rejection that I'd come to terms with in my life. Of course, just because I had come to terms with it didn't mean that I wasn't still hurt when it happened. I tried to let it roll off me like water rolls off a duck, but after a life time it hadn't gotten any easier. What did get easier was concealing my feelings on the matter, remaining impassive and hard on the outside even if it felt as if someone was sticking a knife in my gut with each rejection and ridicule.

"Aydan, at your service." My soprano trill echoed through the still air as I looked to each of the dwarves. My eyes landed on Kili once more and I frowned. Gandalf's instructions had included him and in brother in my protection. Nephews of Thorin. It had taken until I'd cleared my mind of its girlish fog to remember the careful instructions the grey wizard had written. I had a gut feeling this was going to be far harder than I'd originally anticipated.