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."Quick! Quick!" he gasped."The door! The tunnel! It's no goodhere."Roused by these words they were just about to creep inside the tunnelwhen Bifur gave a cry: "My cousins! Bombur and Bofur -- we have forgottenthem, they are down in the valley!""They will be slain, and all our ponies too, and all out stores lost,"moaned the others."We can do nothing.""Nonsense!" said Thorin, recovering his dignity."We cannot leave them.Get inside Mr.Baggins and Balin, and you two Fili and Kili-the dragonshan't have all of us.Now you others, where are the ropes? Be quick!"Those were perhaps the worst moments they had been through yet.Thehorrible sounds of Smaug's anger were echoing in the stony hollows farabove; at any moment he might come blazing down or fly whirling round andfind them there, near the perilous cliff's edge hauling madly on the ropes.Up came Bofur, and still all was safe.Up came Bombur, puffing and blowingwhile the ropes creaked, and still all was safe.Up came some tools andbundles of stores, and then danger was upon them.A whirring noise washeard.A red light touched the points of standing rocks.The dragon came.They had barely time to fly back to the tunnel, pulling and dragging intheir bundles, when Smaug came hurtling from the North, licking themountain-sides with flame, beating his great wings with a noise like aroaring wind.His hot breath shrivelled the grass before the door, and drovein through the crack they had left and scorched them as they lay hid.Flickering fires leaped up and black rock-shadows danced.Then darkness fellas he passed again.The ponies screamed with terror, burst their ropes and galloped wildlyoff.The dragon swooped and turned to pursue them, and was gone."That'll be the end of our poor beasts!" said Thorin."Nothing can escape Smaug once he sees it.Here we are and here weshall have to stay, unless any one fancies tramping the long open miles backto the river with Smaug on the watch!"It was not a pleasant thought! They crept further down the tunnel, andthere they lay and shivered though it was warm and stuffy, until dawn camepale through the crack of the door.Every now and again through the nightthey could hear the roar of the flying dragon grow and then pass and fade,as he hunted round and round the mountain-sides.He guessed from the ponies, and from the traces of the camps he haddiscovered, that men had come up from the river and the lake and had scaledthe mountain-side from the valley where the ponies had been standing; butthe door withstood his searching eye, and the little high-walled bay hadkept out his fiercest flames.Long he had hunted in vain till the dawnchilled his wrath and he went back to his golden couch to sleep -- and togather new strength.He would not forget or forgive the theft, not if a thousand yearsturned him to smouldering stone, but he could afford to wait.Slow andsilent he crept back to his lair and half closed his eyes.When morning came the terror of the dwarves grew less.They realizedthat dangers of this kind were inevitable in dealing with such a guardian,and that it was no good giving up their quest yet.Nor could they get awayjust now, as Thorin had pointed out.Their ponies were lost or killed, andthey would have to wait some time before Smaug relaxed his watchsufficiently for them to dare the long way on foot.Luckily they had savedenough of their stores to last them still for some time.They debated long on what was to be done, but they could think of noway of getting rid of Smaug -- which had always been a weak point in theirplans, as Bilbo felt inclined to point out.Then as is the nature of folkthat are thoroughly perplexed, they began to grumble at the hobbit, blaminghim for what had at first so pleased them: for bringing away a cup andstirring up Smaug's wrath so soon."What else do you suppose a burglar is to do?" asked Bilbo angrily."Iwas not engaged to kill dragons, that is warrior's work, but to stealtreasure.I made the best beginning I could.Did you expect me to trot backwith the whole hoard of Thror on my back? If there is any grumbling to bedone, I think I might have a say.You ought to have brought five hundredburglars not one.I am sure it reflects great credit on your grandfather,but you cannot pretend that you ever made the vast extent of his wealthclear to me.I should want hundreds of years to bring it all up, if I wasfifty times as big, and Smaug as tame as a rabbit."After that of course the dwarves begged his pardon."What then do you propose we should do, Mr.Baggins?" asked Thorinpolitely."I have no idea at the moment -- if you mean about removing thetreasure.That obviously depends entirely on some new turn of luck and thegetting rid of Smaug.Getting rid of dragons is not at all in my line, but I will do my bestto think about it.Personally I have no hopes at all, and wish I was safeback at home.""Never mind that for the moment! What are we to do now, to-day?""Well, if you really want my advice, I should say we can do nothing butstay where we are.By day we can no doubt creep out safely enough to takethe air.Perhaps before long one or two could be chosen to go back to thestore by the river and replenish our supplies.But in the meanwhile everyoneought to be well inside the tunnel by night."Now I will make you an offer.I have got my ring and will creep downthis very noon-then if ever Smaug ought to be napping-and see what he is upto.Perhaps something will turn up.'Every worm has his weak spot,' as myfather used to say, though I am sure it was not from personal experience."Naturally the dwarves accepted the offer eagerly.Already they had cometo respect little Bilbo.Now he had become the real leader in theiradventure.He had begun to have ideas and plans of his own.When midday camehe got ready for another journey down into the Mountain.He did not like itof course, but it was not so bad now he knew, more or less, what was infront of him.Had he known more about dragons and their wily ways, he mighthave teen more frightened and less hopeful of catching this one napping.The sun was shining when he started, but it was as dark as night in thetunnel.The light from the door, almost closed, soon faded as he went down.So silent was his going that smoke on a gentle wind could hardly havesurpasses it, and he was inclined to feel a bit proud of himself as he drewnear the lower door.There was only the very fainter glow to be seen."Old Smaug is weary and asleep," he thought."He can't, see me and hewon't hear me.Cheer up Bilbo!" He had forgotten or had never heard aboutdragons' sense of smell.It is also an awkward fact that they keep half an eye open watchingwhile they sleep, if they are suspicious.Smaug certainly looked fastasleep, almost dead and dark, with scarcely a snore more than a whiff ofunseen steam, when Bilbo peeped once more from the entrance.He was justabout to step out on to the floor when he caught a sudden thin and piercingray of red from under the drooping lid.of Smaug's left eye
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