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 Posted: Sat Oct 04, 2014 5:49 pm
By the time Tauriel was certain that she had done all that she could her dwarven guide spoke up. She lifted her head quicker than she ordinarily would have and looked at him in mild wonderment. Imagine that, a dwarf asking for aid and thanking an elf all in one day. She glanced at the stars, this was a day they would all remember surely. Tauriel listened quietly and graciously to the dwarf's words. The wonder was short lived, she was being dismissed already. She could understand his worry but it still seemed quite sudden.
"I will go, but first...your name?" It seemed strange to not know the name of the unusual dwarf that would risk everything for the sake of his brother.
Fili hesitated for the briefest of moments at the request before deciding that her knowing his common name could do no harm. Especially seeing as he'd already given her his brother's. "It's Fili." He paused for a second more. "And yours?" His brother would be disappointed if he had to go his entire life without knowing the name of the elf, of that he was certain.
Fili and Kili. Tauriel smiled. Dwarves did seem to love their rhyming names. "My name? I'm Tauriel." She glanced off up the mountain to the path she would have to take out. "If he worsens... come find me. I'll be near, I promi-" The sound of approaching hooves cut her off. Moving like a ripple on the water she slipped away into the night. It would do no good to get them caught now over a formal farewell. She could only hope that Fili would believe her vow.
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Posted: Sat Oct 04, 2014 6:30 pm
Dis had spent the last days worrying herself sick. Her baby had come home badly wounded. Neither of her boys had been willing to give many details about the venture that had left them bringing one Mr. Bilbo Baggins back to their home a long with a thin trail of blood from Kili's chest. When Kili had first fallen ill Dis had immediately sent for the best healers in their kingdom. When those had failed she had sent for others and others and others still. None of them had done much good. She had spent many sleepless nights watching her baby struggle to sleep wanting to do nothing more but cry to herself.
She had begged her husband to keep their child away from death's doors. Vari had been too young when he had left Dis with two young children and Kili was far too young to be joining him in the land beyond. Every day that passed had only seemed to bring the two closer to reuniting though. The worry and restless nights had finally caught up to her and she had fallen asleep assured that Fili, her oldest, would be looking after his brother. She had woken to find that Fili had vanished along with both her brothers and all of the healers. The only one with Kili had been Onar who had brought him a bowl of water.
Dis had taken over until night fell and everyone returned. Then she had gone to scold them all for abandoning her child in the first place. As it turned out Frerin and Thorin had been out seeking new healers with no success. She had left them by the fire and cried then. She had not been able to stop herself. There seemed to be no end of precious things that she could lose. She had lost her home, her husband, and now she was to lose her youngest son too. It was deep into the night by the time the tears dried up, Kili would either be asleep or facing the dark alone. Dis would not stand by if it were the latter and so she made her way promptly to where she had left him earlier.
When she arrived she found that Kili was not alone. Near him stood Fili and next to Fili... Dis's mouth hung open. An elf. Fili had brought an elf into their midst. Dis could feel a fire flaring up inside of her but it died almost as quickly as it had arrived. Of course. Fili was trying something crazy but it was also something that might just work. Dis bit her tongue and held back to watch from a distance. Once it seemed like they were finished she began her approach, slowly and loudly. There was no reason to let Fili know that they had been discovered. If anyone asked what had happened to help her son she would call it a blessing from Mahal.
"Fili, you're back? How is he?" She said as she came closer. She could see her second son easily enough, he seemed to be resting well, something he hadn't done for quite a while now.
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Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 8:58 am
Tauriel. Fili repeated the name to himself several times as he watched the mare vanish into the night. He needed to at least remember it until Kili woke up so he could pass the information to his brother. The footsteps that had chased Tauriel away were even louder now so Fili turned to see who was approaching. Somehow he wasn't surprised to find that it was their mother. Fili wondered how much she had seen as he moved to greet her. He pressed his cheek too his mothers for a moment before turning back to his brother.
"Better...I think." Fili wrinkled his brow slightly as he focused on the wound. It was still there but it didn't look like it had just a few minutes ago. Whatever Tauriel had done had definitely helped. He just hoped no one would find it that strange. After all, it was hard to see in the dark and a lot could overnight.
Dis looked at her eldest critically before nodding. He wasn't going to say anything about the frankly miraculous healing that had occurred and neither would she. "Why don't you get some food and rest?" Dis suggested nudging her oldest towards the fire where Thorin and Frerin were still gathered. "I can look after him now."
Fili didn't really want to leave his brother alone with their mother. Their mother was sharp, she knew things that she shouldn't. Which of course meant that if he argued she'd definitely catch on. "I'll come back later, Kili." He said to his sleeping brother before giving his mother a half hearted smile and heading away as she requested.
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Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2014 9:21 am
Dis sighed as Fili departed and looked down at Kili. "Whatever am I to do with the pair of you? You risk everything just for the sake of a moment." Slowly Dis lowered herself to the ground directly beside Kili. She rested her head over his shoulders noting that his fever had all but vanished since she had last seen him. "My boys." She said her voice choking up slightly as she closed her eyes. Who was she trying to fool? She would risk everything to save her children if she could. "My dear boys."
Kili stirred as something settled against his side and across his back. His dark eyes, rare in the line of Durin, cracked open and he blinked a few times to clear his bleary vision. He felt warm on one side where something was leaning against and cold on the other where the feverish sweats were drying in the cool night air. What he didn't feel was the searing pain from the infected cat's scratch. Had the dream been to tell him that something had worked?
He didn't get time to reflect on the question. He could hear someone speaking softly sounding both sad and relieved. His ears twitched. "Amad?" He asked, voice rough and tired. It was definitely her voice. He lifted his head to try and turn to look at her.
"Shhhh." Dis soothed as Kili started to move. "It's alright my son, just rest for now."
Kili lowered his head again. It was definitely his mom. He wasn't dreaming this time. "Had a weird...dream..." He murmured before drifting off again.
Dis smiled to herself. "I'm sure you did." She whispered listening to his breathing as it evened out. She would stay here the entire night just to be sure that nothing else happened to her precious child.
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Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2014 10:44 am
--------------------------------- Morning came quickly for Fili. He had intended to return later that night to check in on his brother again after their mother fell asleep. Instead he had closed his eyes for the briefest of moments and when he opened them again he couldn't see anything in the bright sunlight. Someone had left him a pile of food while he was sleeping but it was anyone's guess as to who it had been.
They would be disappointed to find it undisturbed but Fili didn't care to stop for a quick bite. With a determined look set on his face he galloped back to where he had left his brother the previous night. He had left too soon to really know how well Tauriel's magic would work. He needed to know if it had stuck or if it had been only a temporary thing. It had all seemed so hopeful last night but in the morning light Fili found himself fearing the worst again.
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Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2014 1:54 pm
Dis had spent the entire night wide awake simply watching her youngest sleeping. It had been a long night. Little had happened to distract her thoughts and occupy her time save for a few moments when Kili had shifted in his sleep from some dream or another. When the sun began to peak over the horizon casting a hazy blue light over everything her oldest brother Thorin had stopped by to see how Kili was doing.
He had been equal parts overjoyed and suspicious to see how rapidly Kili had healed. Dis had dismissed his concerns calling it blessing from Mahal. He hadn't seemed convinced but Dis had stubbornly shoved his worries aside. Thorin didn't need to know the truth. He wouldn't want to know. Once Thorin had departed Dis resumed her quiet watch over her son.
As the light shifted from faint blue, to pink, to bright blue Dis began to hum softly to her sleeping child.
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2014 8:04 am
Kili, much like his brother, had slept soundly through the night. Whatever dreams had occurred over the course of the evening he had no memory of having in the first place. When he opened his eyes it took him a while to process that he had even been asleep. He blinked his eyes against the light of the sun and waited for his vision to clear.
"Waa...?" He heard himself ask as he realized someone was humming softly behind him. He turned about and craned his head to see who it was. His dark brown eyes landed on his mother and the events of the previous night came back to him. He still wasn't sure what had been real and what had been dream but his chest no longer burned and stung each time he took a breath.
"Mom?" His head tilted slightly to one side before he glanced down to the wound on his chest. That hadn't been a dream. It was still there but it looked more like he had gone bumbling through a briar patch than it looked like he had gone head to head against a skinwalker. "I'm okay?" His head felt fuzzy. He knew a lot of time must have passed but he couldn't remember it. What he did remember were strange snippets of memory that could have been real or imagined with no way to tell which it was. It was disorienting.
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2014 8:11 am
Dis smiled softly as Kili began to look around and she knew that he was finally waking up. She continued humming until he turned to look at her. She didn't answer his question immediately choosing instead to lean forward and press her muzzle against his neck. She had come too close to losing him and now that she knew for certain that he would be okay she couldn't quite find the words.
After a few long minutes she finally pulled away fighting to blink the tears of overwhelming relief out of her eyes. "You are alright." She confirmed with a warm smile that only a mother could give. "You just... gave us all a fright." She let out a choked laugh just before the tears started to fall. Her baby would be alright. For sure.
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Posted: Sun Nov 02, 2014 8:27 am
Kili's ears flicked back worriedly as his mother started crying. He hadn't ever seen her cry before. Their uncle Frerin had suggested that Dis had cried when their father had left the world but Kili had no memory of it. It wasn't like their mother to cry. "Mom?" Kili asked uncertainly. He didn't know what to do about people crying in general and this was his mother which made it that much stranger.
By the time Fili arrived their mother was in tears and Kili looked like he was on the edge of a panic attack. He had no idea what had happened. "Mom?" Fili asked approaching cautiously. He glanced quickly over to Kili's wound worried that Tauriel hadn't been as effective as they had hoped. Kili looked fine. The injury was no longer swollen and red. It only looked like a scratch from an everyday training exercise that was taking a while to heal.
"It's alright mom." He offered coming ever closer so that he could gently nuzzle her forehead. "It's all alright."
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Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 2:00 pm
------------------- Several weeks had passed since Kili had been on his death bed. It was just enough time for people to have stopped asking how he had managed to survive the infection. They had all come to accept that forces far stronger than what the race of dwarves were capable of had been at work. Thanks to Dis's insistence the dwarven horses all believed it to be a blessing from Mahal and a sign that the line of Durin was meant to endure all challenges thrown at them. It was a lie that the people were eager to believe.
Only three people knew what really happened. Two of them had spent weeks actively lying about what had happened. Dis, however, was the only one that knew they were both lying. She was okay with that. Fili could worry that someone would grow suspicious for a while longer. He'd done the right thing but he hadn't trusted his mother enough to include her in his scheming. This was his punishment for that. She would clue him in that she had seen everything at a later date.
At the moment Dis was looking to clue in a very different participant. Fili had been close to his brother's side since he recovered and the both of them had been kept under close watch. That meant the elven mare had not been informed, nor properly thanked. Dis sought to remedy that, assuming that their unlikely ally was still lurking in dwarven territory as Dis suspected she would be.
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Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 2:31 pm
Against her better judgement Tauriel had lingered on the slopes of the mountain keeping out of sight of patrols. She had promised to stay near in case Kili's condition worsened. She had seen neither hide nor hair of Fili since her departure nearly a month before and all signs pointed to Kili making a full recovery. Yet she still stayed. It was just in case, Tauriel told herself often. If something happened they would not have to come far to find her.
If her own people needed her though?
The morning found Tauriel staring in the direction of her own home. She was so far away. If they needed her she would never know. She could return. Really, Tauriel knew that she should return but she also knew what would await her. King Thranduil would not take kindly to her prolonged disappearance... again. No excuse would improve matters and the reality of the situation would only make things worse. The longer she stayed away the less of an option returning seemed to be. The worst of it all was that she still didn't know if she had been right to leave.
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Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 3:06 pm
Just as she thought she would, Dis found the mare still on the mountainside. She looked different in the light of day. Her coat was a warm brown and far from one shade. Her horn resembled some of the metals the smiths worked with or perhaps just a dark tree. She was pretty in the strange elven way, Dis supposed. There wasn't much hair on her, not even the slightest bit of beard along her jaw. Her normal coat seemed rather thin, and somewhat silkier than the course hair the dwarves were known for. She was also impossibly tall and slender.
Dis cleared her throat to catch the elf's attention. "Good day." She said keeping any hint of emotion out of her voice. She was curious to see how this mare would react to being caught on their land.
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Posted: Mon Dec 01, 2014 3:17 pm
Tauriel had been too lost in thought to notice the stocky mare coming up upon her. To her credit Tauriel did not leap out of her skin at the mare's sudden appearance. Instead she shifted fluidly into a battle stance before taking in the situation. A dwarf. She had been found by a dwarf as she let her mind wander. It had been sloppy of her. Tauriel wasn't being attacked though. The dwarf was just standing there, greeting her casually. Tauriel's ears twitched, was this some sort of trick? It was clear that this one was no warrior, they were dressed with jewels and gold and the whites of the coat still gleamed like freshly fallen snow. This one was nobility. What was less clear was whether they were male or female.
Like all the other dwarves she had seen this one had a beard and a rich voice. It was somewhat higher than Fili or Kili's but it was difficult to tell from that alone. Tauriel would have to wonder, guess, or hope that the other would identify themselves.
"I am on your land." Tauriel said softly. It wasn't a question, it was an apology and a request for peace. "I mean you no harm."
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2015 2:10 pm
Dis chose to observe the mare in silence for a moment more. She hadn’t responded haughtily as Dis had suspected she might. For an elf she seemed downright humble and not at all like the ones that had turned her people away all those years ago. There was no denying that she was likely part of Thranduil’s bunch; they were the only ones Dis knew of with hair like this mare’s. Auburn rather than corn silk or some shade of dark brown. There was also no denying that this mare had done right by Dis and her own.
“I know you don’t.” Dis replied breaking what had been growing into a tense silence. “If you had meant to do us harm I suspect you would have done so several nights ago when you were tending to my son.” Dis leveled the mare with a stony gaze raising a single eyebrow just enough to ask for an explanation. Thanks could come later but most certainly would come. It was only right.
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Posted: Thu Jan 01, 2015 2:49 pm
Up until now Tauriel had not been sure that there was such a thing as a dwarf with patience. They had always seemed quick to act, even rash and reckless. This one seemed content to stand there, still as stone, staring at Tauriel in complete silence. Tauriel had just begun to wonder if she needed to worry about reinforcements coming when the dwarf finally decided to speak once more. What was said answered many questions Tauriel had had but it also brought new troubles to light.
“Kili.” Tauriel breathed knowing immediately the identity of the aforementioned son. He was the only one that Tauriel had helped. This was his mother… or possibly his father? Had Fili told that he had smuggled her in? It seemed unlikely; Fili had wanted to make sure that she wasn’t discovered just as much as she wanted to keep her presence secret. It wouldn’t make sense for him to say anything now that, so far as he knew, there was no chance of her being discovered. That meant that the more likely scenario was that she had been spotted while she was looking after Kili.
Tauriel took a breath, the dwarf was waiting for an explanation and Tauriel was certain that one was owed. They had already been found out. There was no point in denying it.
“I wanted to help him.” She said earnestly meeting the sharp blue eyes of the dwarf. “His injury came from a beast he aided me with. When I learned… I could not leave him to suffer. I could not leave him to die.”
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