The Hobbit

Subject: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 1:22 am

Kathryn waited on the corner of the street for Bale to show up. He was running late and she was super anxious to check out this bookstore she had been eyeing for a few weeks and didn't want it to close before she got the chance. She tapped her foot a few times and glanced back at the dark oak door. She never saw anyone go in or out, but for some reason the place seemed to call to her. She loved old books and stores filled with antiques. She knew this place would be right up her alley.
Where are you, you nug brain?

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 7:39 pm

Bale wove through the small crowds on the streets, being wheeled down the sidewalks on his longboard. He checked the time briefly on his watch and knew that Kathryn would be waiting for him at the bookstore already. His boyfriend had decided to start a screaming match before Bale walked out the door, which resulted in a final break up. Part of him didn't care, he knew they were better off without each other, but when you spend four years of your life with someone, things can be difficult to let go of.

He shook his head in an attempt to clear the thoughts from his head, and continued on down the road. Just a few rounded corners and dodged pedestrians later, Bale was hopping off his board and looking at Kathryn with an apologetic look.

"Sorry, hon. Derek decided to throw the last four years of our lives out the window as I was walking out the door. I didn't mean to keep you waiting..."

Bale ran his long, jeweled fingers through his hair and leaned up against the wall of the store, taking a moment to catch his breath.

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 7:57 pm

Kathryn frowned at her friend and shook hear head. She had known that their relationship had been on the rocks for a while, but she was hoping the idiot would get his stuff together and realize how amazing Bale was.

"I'm sorry. You didn't have to come if you needed some time." She leaned up against the side of building next to him and let out a long breath. "Well, now you're free game again. You'll fine someone better...eventually."

She looked over toward the front door and hoped that it wouldn't close early due to lack of customers. Maybe some amazing old books would cheer him up at least a little bit.

"I bet you they have old copies of Dorian Gray in there." She smirked in his direction, hoping to distract him.

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:06 pm

Bale's ears would have perked up like a pup's if they had the capabilities of doing so. Since they had seen the portrayal of "The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Ben Barnes, he had become fascinated with the character, in many different ways, and had been wanting to get his hands on a copy of the book to read. He knew this was exactly the distraction he needed, even if it wasn't that book specifically. There was always something calming about bookstores. Maybe it was the atmosphere of tranquility inside their walls, or maybe it was the smell of the all the books, old and new. Whatever the reasoning behind it, he loved going inside them. And this one was uncharted territory.

"Sounds like a perfect distraction to me. Let's go."

He picked up his board by the front trucks and opened the oak door, leading his best friend inside. To avoid being rude, he left his board at the front desk, near the entrance of the shop. He trusted it being kept safe inside this place.

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:13 pm

Kathryn took her time taking in all of the bookstore's charms. Antique chairs sat around for people to relax and open a book, the shelves were even old but held these heavily bound books with unbelievable strength. It was more than she imagined it would be and already felt at home within its walls. She took a deep breath, breathing the old book smell in, and turned to smile at Bale.

"Isn't it the most amazing bookstore you've ever been in?" She beamed and turned to let her fingers run down the spine of a nearby book and let out a small laugh. "Here's your Dorian Gray."

"Welcome. I didn't hear you come in." A small woman stood at the end of the aisle way the two stood in and a smile in their direction made it clear that she was overjoyed to have customers in her store. "Are you looking for anything in particular? Or are you just dreamers coming to get lost in the pages of every book you lay your eyes upon?"

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:18 pm

Bale shot a small glance at the woman and then gently grabbed the book from the shelf, tenderly running his fingers down the front cover. He could feel the age of the book, and wondered how many hands had held this particular copy. It was still in great condition, which made him think not many had had the pleasure of reading this book.

"Personally, ma'am, I've just had my heart ripped from my chest and thrown to the dogs. Getting lost in a book seems to be the perfect escape to me..."

He sighed, eyes closed, and then opened them to look her in the face. He didn't want to be rude and immediately delve into the story, so he tried his best to not fidget and wait for what else the old woman had to say.

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:24 pm

The woman's eyebrows rose and she beckoned for them to follow her. Once they reached a desk in the middle of the room she turned to talk to them once more. She took a few deep breaths before she spoke.

"I must ask you, then." She leaned up against the desk and looked at them both quite seriously, but a hint of amusement was there in her grey eyes. "If you could live in a book, any book of your choosing, would you? And which book would you choose?"

Kathryn had considered this question in her free time many times before, so this was really not a difficult question for her to answer. She smiled over at Bale and didn't wait for him to answer before she could. She crossed her arms over her chest.

"The Hobbit, by far." She thought about the elves, King Thranduil among them, and about the dwarves and hobbits and how brave they were. "I would love to live in Middle Earth."

The woman's eyebrows rose at how sure this girl was. She reached behind her onto the shelf behind the desk and pulled out her best and favorite copy of The Hobbit. She showed it to them, a mischievous smile on her face at the possibilities that could be about to unfold.

"Is that so?" She looked to Bale. "And what about you?"

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:33 pm

Bale held the copy of "The Picture of Dorian Gray" in his hands but knew this wasn't the world he would most like to live in. Like Kathryn, he was obsessed with the characters of "The Hobbit" and always dreamed of Middle Earth. He always imagined himself to be a Dwarf, out of the many races of the world. He wasn't the tallest man in their own world, just being 5'7", so he figured it wouldn't be a shot in the dark if he were one.

"I would have to agree with my friend here. I couldn't imagine being anywhere else. The place is just..." He closed his eyes, remembering how the filmmakers had captured the heart of Middle Earth on screen, "majestic."

He looked at the book closer and noticed how perfect it seemed. Old, but still perfect.

This lady really takes care of her shit...

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:42 pm

Kathryn beamed over at her friend and then took a closer look at the edition of The Hobbit that the bookstore owner was holding. It seemed almost unnatural. Almost as if it had a faint glow to it. Of course, this wasn't possible, but still played tricks on her eyes nonetheless. She looked at the woman again and smiled.

"Being an elf would be amazing." She whispered, looking back down at the book again. Try as she might, it was hard to look away.

The woman placed the book into the young girl's hands and patted her shoulder. She knew that she had found the next people to go on an adventure here in her store. She motioned for them to follow again and led them to a nice sitting area where they could both sit down.

"You'll enjoy that book. It's always better when you read the first edition." She winked and walked away, leaving them to it.

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 8:46 pm

Bale eyed the woman curiously as she walked away from them, leaving them alone with the book and chairs. He looked down at the book that Kathryn was holding, examining the cover further. He had such a hard time looking away from it, there was always something catching his attention.

He turned to Kathryn and saw that she was having the same issue.

"Well are we going to open it? I can't imagine us both reading it at the same time, unless you wanted to read it aloud to me. I'm good with that."

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Sat Jan 03, 2015 9:03 pm

Kathryn smiled. She had always loved reading out loud to others. It gave her comfort in a way. She opened up to the first page and found that it was blank. She creased her brow and looked over at Bale questioningly. She had no idea what was going on. Was it a fake book?

The book which she had thought was glowing before was definitely glowing now. She looked down into it and saw what looked like a lake on one page and a forest on another.

"What the-?"

Next thing she knew she was laying next to the lake, feeling disoriented and confused, and looking around she didn't see Bale anywhere. She wanted to scream but no words came out.

What the hell?!

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Thu Feb 05, 2015 8:52 pm

Just a moment before, Bale had been patiently waiting to hear Kathryn read the words from the book in her hand, now he was in a shack that was a sad excuse for a shelter. There were crooked boards and holes throughout the place, a bed in the far corner that seemed to have a bed of a straw beneath a thin sheet, a pillow, and a thin quilt. The room he was in was indeed small, maybe six by six in measurements, and it seemed to be the only room in the shelter because there was a foul smell coming from a dugout in another corner. A small hole served as a window, and there were bars mounted within it.

... Bars? Is this a cell?!

He moved his gaze to his legs and noticed chains around his ankles, scabs and dried blood around where the shackles lay. There were burns around his wrists where he thought maybe ropes had once been, dirt and other things dried underneath his too-far-grown-out fingernails.

"This can't be happening to me..."

He frantically searched around, trying to figure out where he could be. There was dim light coming from the window, so he knew that wherever he was, it wasn't far out in the open like the making of the cell made it seem. The only thing he could think to do was scream in hopes that someone would hear him.

"IS ANYONE OUT THERE?!... HELLO?!"

He noticed that his voice came out in a deeper, rougher tone, and had a slight accent to it. Something that he could only describe as Scottish. He shook his head and took a closer look at himself, realizing he was much shorter than he used to be. His hair was a bit longer with a few braids throughout, beard was thicker and longer as well.

"Am I a... dwarf?! Oh my god..."

Subject: Re: The Hobbit Thu Feb 05, 2015 9:01 pm

Kathryn quickly stood, disoriented and confused, and began to take in her surroundings. She was in a meadow with beautifully colored flowers unlike she had ever seen before. She bent down and ran her thumb along an orange petal that was specked with black before standing back up and peering over toward the stream she could hear and realized suddenly that she was indeed very thirsty.

How did I get here? Did that crazy book lady do this to me? And where the hell is Bale?!

She walked toward the stream and looked down at her feet as she walked. She was wearing boots that came up just below her knees and they were the oddest looking boots she had ever seen. She patted her pants and shirt and realized that they too were abnormal to her. Her hair was black, as it had always been, but it seemed far straighter and shinier than she was used to.

At the stream she bent over to scoop up water when she caught her reflection. She narrowed her eyes, trying to get a better look, and gasped. Her skin was flawless, which she noticed from the start, but her ears were what had her mind reeling. They pointed.

Like an elf...