Chapter 4: Dinner with elves!
He was very thankful when they finally stopped. All those circling horses were making his head spin.
"Gandalf." an armored dark haired elf sighed, fondness in his warm eyes even as his bearing was aloof as he dismounts elegantly from his horse. Bilbo has no doubt that this is Elrond. He might have never met him in person, but again, his mother's tales were enough, if not the presence the elf exuded and how the other elves deferred to him to recognize him on sight.
"Lord Elrond. Mellonnen! Mo evínedh?"
"Farannem 'lamhoth i udul o charad. Dagannem rim na Iant Vedui." Elrond gave the horse a little stroke as another elf took the reigns "Strange for Orcs to come so close to out borders. Something..." and here he send the wizard a pointed look down his nose "Or someone, has drawn them near." clearly Lord Elrond knew Gandalf rather well.
And Bilbo would readily point fingers. Actually, he did, which drew the attention of Lord Elrond. Giving a cough Bilbo shrugged his shoulders, even as his heart warmed when the dwarrows around him tried to close ranks in response to the attention the elf lord gave Bilbo.
"Absolutely his fault." he imparted with a nod while Gandalf gave him a betrayed look. Thorin nodded alongside him. Must have been the first time Thorin was willing to agree with Bilbo about something. Though he was not happy when Bilbo managed to squeeze out of their group, coming to stand in front of the elves giving a bow to the elvish Lord, while a dwarfish king towered closely behind him.
"L-le suilon, Lord Elrond..." his sindarin was rusty, but... but it was too much of a temptation to actually speak it, even heavily accented from disuse and lack of practice. Even if he could feel the burning looks on his back. It was a wonder he hadn't caught fire yet, which he was sure Thorin was trying with his eyes.
The dwarrows behind him rumbled in discomfort at his use of the language. Elrond just looked a bit surprised to find a hobbit in his home speaking his language. When Bilbo rose Elrond's face lightened up with a smile of recognition.
"Iston i nîf gîn..." Elrond quietly said, eyes light with laughter.
"In eneth nîn Bilbo Baggins. My mother told me a lot about you." this elicited a chuckle out of the Lord.
"Êl síla erin lû e-govaned vîn na vendui. Mae g'ovannen! Gi nathlam hí." Again Bilbo bowed at Elronds words.
"La fael!" Bilbo beamed, after he had taken a moment to translate what had been said to himself and Gandalf chuckled, shaking his head.
"Hobbit's" he said with a fond look in Bilbo's direction "You can learn all there is to know about them in a month, and they can still surprise you years later..."
At this Thorin finally seemed to have enough, stepping forward and slightly in front of Bilbo. At last, Elrond looked at the dwarf leading the company. Whether Thorin wanted to stop Bilbo from conversing any further with the elf, or just got impatient or simply didn't like not having the attention on him was anyone's guess.
"Welcome Thorin, son of Thráin." he gave a slight nod.
"I do not believe we have met." Thorin rumbled and Bilbo wanted to smack him. Gandalf had been right, it would have been better for Thorin to keep quiet. He was attractive as long as he kept his mouth shut. Too bad Thorin was to stubborn to obey and Bilbo could only roll his eyes at his soulmate's lack of manners.
Lord Elrond though didn't seem too mind much "You have your grandfather's bearing." he explained patiently "I knew Thrór when he ruled the mountain."
"Indeed." Thorin said curtly, staring at the elf with barely concealed suspicion "He made no mention of you." Bilbo's hand made an aborted involuntary twitch in Thorin's direction. The back of his head to be exact.
"Nartho i noer, toltho i viruvor. Boe i annam vann a nethail vin." Elrond said, this time a little colder and staring down at Thorin. Bilbo – if he had not been able to understand – thought it a bit rude of the elf too, to speak in a language Thorin obviously did not understand. No matter if Thorin had been bordering on insulting, Bilbo had thought better of the elf lord to not resort to petty tricks, even if it was harmless. Already he could see and almost feel the dwarrows anger being stirred, as they drew together again, weapons rising just a little as the elf continued to speak in sindarin.
"Whaaat is he saying?!" Glóin growled agitated hefted his walking axe even higher "Does he offer us insult!?" already the bristling dwarf was taking a step closer to the elf as if he wanted to chop off his feet to get him to his eye-level. Actually, none of the dwarrows had put their weapons away yet, now that Bilbo looked back at them. With a sigh Bilbo looked up to the sky as if that would help with the situation. Just as he was about to speak Gandalf had the mind to actually cut in, before the situation escalated.
"No, Master Glóin..." there was a healthy dose of exasperation mixed into the tone. Bilbo could sympathize at least a little this time "He's offering you food."
At that – gluttons that they were – Bilbo thought fondly, the dwarrows actually stepped back and rumbled to each other in their own strange language that Bilbo had until now only heard on rare occasions. Clearly food was one way to settle the dwarrows, but then again food was – in a Hobbit's mind – clearly the first step towards peace. Hobbits had it right. Then again, there had been that feud between a Bolger and a Chubb, when one accused the other of overcooking their meal... And the other time when one of the Sackville's had gifted burned cookies at a birthday party of a Brandybuck... and there had been one incident where a Took had 'accidentally' exchanged salt and sugar in a Baggins kitchen...
Okay, so maybe for Hobbit's food was … a way to make peace or start war. Mostly peace though.
Really.
At last Glóin slowly lowers his weapon.
"Ah." he had the grace to at least look a little sheepish, but seemed mostly unapologetic "In that case, lead on."
。・゜゜・ ✿ ・゜゜・。
They were led inside. Bilbo could hardly see enough, he loved Rivendell already even if everything was strangely big. It wasn't surprising. Elves, like men, seemed to stretch to reach the sky (nevermind the disappointment that had to go with that impossible task) forgetting the good and proper earth beneath their feet. Was it a wonder they grew bigger than hobbits did?
His gaze kept darting around curiously and he only realized Elrond was watching him when he tried to look around the elf-lord at a statue and instead locked eyes with him. Seeing the fond look Bilbo flushed and tried to compose himself, to at least not act like a fauntling first time in the woods. It was embarrassing to conduct himself so, his mother would have boxed his ears for it for acting so poorly in front of her dear friend.
Actually, it was not hard to loose his excitement. He only had to look at Thorin's stormy face who was also watching him. And obviously not happy about Bilbo's enthusiasm about elvish things. Not happy at all. Bilbo really wanted to change the way Thorin seemed to perceive him. He might have to do some research in that regard, so he made a mental note to interrogate the friendlier dwarrows at the earliest opportunity.
Besides that his saddle sores were making themselves known again. He had gotten used to it, more or less. That didn't mean he wasn't glad to get some time off from riding and it did sound like the continued journey would probably not be on horse-back from now on. Mountain-paths were not for animals after all.
The elves led them to a open dining hall. It was beautiful, if a little big for Bilbo's taste. The rooms opened up to huge balconies on two sides of the room. Delicate but strong looking pillars held the ceiling and at some of them delicate little flowers were working their way up. It was like the elves managed to perfectly balance nature with their architecture and the flowers and trees just blended in and gave the entire place an ethereal atmosphere. Not that the dwarrows seemed to appreciate it as much as Bilbo did. They were sat around a table and were offered food, as promised. Bilbo had no problem digging in, despite being tired, he was starving. After all he had not had supper, dinner, first breakfast, second breakfast OR elevensies. It took a lot of restraint not to stuff the food into his cheeks like a chipmunk but to actually chew his food. Good thing his mother had insisted on instilling manners into his brain that he even feared her coming back from the afterlife if he misbehaved. It also helped that he liked salads just as well as other things that were on offer, so he had a lot to select from. The dwarrows – surprise, surprise – were not very happy about what was being served though, complaining about the lack of meat, and being generally dissatisfied of being in an elvish city.
"Try it. Just a mouthful." Dori's mother-henning attracted Bilbo's attention. He was trying to get his younger brother to eat the salad.
"I don't like green food." Ori whined, trying to shove his plate away. Bilbo was having none of that, glowering at the dwarf and pushing the plate back towards him.
"Eat." he said forcefully, and apparently commanding enough that Ori obeyed wide eyed. Dori was giving Bilbo a proud look. Apparently he had just won over the dwarf as a friend. Dear Yavanna, he was turning into a worse mother hen than Dori...
But he just didn't have the patience anymore to be polite like a Baggins should be. Which was also Gandalf's fault, he was sure of it.
He startled when the chair next to him was suddenly pulled back and blinked in wonder at Nori, who had settled in it and leaned back in a relaxed cat-like manner that bordered on slouching while still having the air of intimidation around him.
"Ori told me 'bout yer Shire-games..." Nori said with a grin tugging in the corners of his mouth, while he snatched up a loaf of bread, giving it a skeptic look before taking a hesitant bite out of it as if it contained poison.
"Oh?" Bilbo wondered at the sudden interest in his leisure activities.
"Oh yes." Nori said, eying him with a glint in his eyes "Said ye have keen eyes and a steady hand."
Bilbo shifted in his seat, unsure what Nori was getting at.
"I... I suppose?" he said carefully, because he had a feeling he was agreeing to something more than was being said here. Even more so when Nori full out grinned at him. Never a good sign.
"Wanna learn some more?"
Bilbo stopped with a bread halfway to his mouth. He blinked at Nori who was watching him, still smiling slightly. Then he tilted his head and considered it. While he did not have a lot to do with the Ri brothers – except maybe Ori in whom he had found a quick friend with several similar interests like books, slingshot-games, knitting, writing – Nori had never said or done anything against Bilbo. It was strange though, for the dwarf he had until now exchanged maybe four or five sentences to offer him to learn a game (and no, Bilbo was not convinced it was a game in the traditional shire sense).
"Why?" he asked instead, not suspicious but simply curious for the reason. Nori shrugged a little, turning to look at Ori and then back at Bilbo.
"Yer a good sort. Ori already likes ya, so tha' 's a point in yer favor." Nori said, then he looked at Ori again, his expression softening the slightest bit.
"Besides, tha' chestnut-shot saved Ori from bein' trampled. Tha' 's good enough reason fer me."
Nori turned back to Bilbo, this time a hint more serious. He leaned closer and in response Bilbo also leaned in to listen to what Nori had to say.
"Yer gentle-folk Bilbo. Good sort, but fightin'? Not yer cup of tea." Nori said quietly, an amused sparkle in his dark eyes "This quest... it's goin' to be more dangerous as it continues... I'd like ter give ye a fighting chance. And I think I can use yer basic skills and refine them into somethin' more... useful." Nori pulled back a little letting out a little laugh "Besides we thieves gottae stick together, hm? Think I can show yer a few other tricks besides..." Nori pulled back and refocused on his food. Bilbo noticed that it conceded with Dori looking over and giving Nori a flinty-eyed suspicious look, as if he knew his brother was up to no good.
Bilbo thought it over slowly, nibbling on his own bread. Back in the Shire he would have thought it repulsive to even contemplate such an offer. Now though... he had a soulmate. An oblivious-as-a-stone soulmate that Yavanna was already mourning, because she feared his time was going to be cut short. And Bilbo had just encountered trolls and orcs and knew just how... small and helpless he was in face of such enemies.
That's why he clenched his yaw and bit back the protests that wanted to spill forth and considered it. Really considered it. What harm could it do? Yes, no hobbit would think it respectable. It would probably change him, in a little way, but he already knew the journey would change him irreversible, no matter what he did. And he did have the option of not using whatever Nori would try to teach him, so nobody had to know he had acquired some... less savory skill-set.
Basicly: nothing would happen, if he didn't let it. It was just like learning a new skill. He could still decide to utilize it or not, depending on his wishes. The least he could do is look at the things Nori offered him to learn, because it might prove helpful in the future. Bilbo was the first to admit that he was hardly burglar material. And he knew he was not strong enough yet to help Thorin get out of the invisible noose that was slowly tightening around his neck.
No. Bilbo would never forgive himself if something he could have learned would have saved his soulmate, but because he didn't he hadn't been able to prevent his soulmate's death.
Besides, it would be a good way to pass the time on the road.
Giving a sidewards look in Dori's direction he chuckled lowly before nudging Nori with his foot and giving a small nod when the dwarf turned to face him.
It was even more satisfying when Nori blinked at him in astonishment, probably because he had rightly assumed that Bilbo would refuse such an offer on a normal soulmate-free day.
For now though they concentrated on the food laid out for them. Nori with less enthusiasm and Bilbo with gusto.
。・゜゜・ ✿ ・゜゜・。
Bilbo was burying his head in his hands. This was not happening. Yes, maybe the music was a little too calm, but the behavior of the dwarrows was abhorred! How had the situation escalated this quickly? They had just been eating and complaining and now...
"I'm sorry..." he moaned in distress, looking through his fingers at the elven lord who sat stone faced next to Gandalf.
"So, so sorry." he added in a mournful tone as the dwarrows had not behaved this badly even back in Bilbo's home. Throwing around good food. Scowling Bilbo had enough, this could and would not go on! Grabbing a fork he threw it, hitting Bofur square between his eyes and knocking him off the table. Stunned silence followed.
"I'll give you meat from your own backside if you don't stop complaining. Now. Eat. The. Food." if there was one thing Bilbo could not stand it was wasting food. He felt a little twinge of guilt in his stomach for hitting Bofur on his forehead.
Then Bofur grinned. The guilt was replaced by dread that was steadily growing in his stomach.
"Nice shot, Bilbo!" Nori cheered from the other side of the table he had retreated to after Dori had eyed them in suspicion for five minutes straight.
"Food fight!" and Bilbo whimpered and ducked. Had he thought he could actually curb those rude dwarrow-behavior? What a joke. He had not been able to stop them from invading his home, much less get them to do anything else he had wanted them to.
He crawled under the table as food flew over his head, splattering one of the beautiful statues behind him and sighed. At least his quick thinking had allowed him to bring his plate down too. Now he was relatively safe and could continue dinner, feeling miserable. His first dinner in Rivendell. Hiding under the table like a faunt.
。・゜゜・ ✿ ・゜゜・。
The next day Bilbo decided to spend in the library. Consequently it meant that he was spending his time with Ori, who seemed to refuse to leave the library for anything else than eating. Bilbo was half convinced that Ori was sleeping here and it had Dori in a tizzy. He had taken to look at Bilbo in a beseeching manner, as if Bilbo would somehow draw the youngest of the Ri brothers out of the room.
Maybe Dori thought he had some kind of wonderful power for getting Ori to eat something green that one time, but Bilbo was certain that there was no such a thing. He did however note that this could be an opportunity for him. Ori was one of the more open dwarrows so he might actually get some answers to questions that had been bothering for quite some time. The only problem was to get to those questions in a subtle manner, because Bilbo did not want to tell anyone about his soulmate. It was not done in the Shire. You found your soulmate and you courted and got to know your mate on your own, before telling anyone else about having found your mate.
Only Thorin didn't give him any sign of being aware that Bilbo was his soulmate.
"- there are so many books here it's amazing. I think it's one of the biggest libraries I've ever been to and the books look very well cared for. And it's not all in elvish either, there are many books in Westron and I've even seen a few in Khuzdul!" Ori exclaimed in an excited voice as he showed Bilbo around the book-filled halls. It certainly was very impressive. The room was build into the mountain and it was huge. A stairwell was spiraling up the room. They were currently on the lowest floor but if Bilbo looked up he could see several floors above them. It was very impressive and Bilbo was sure he himself could get lost and spend several years here simply reading, without running out of books.
"It's beautiful..." he whispered in awe, blinking against the light that spilled though the glass window in the far away window that was placed in the ceiling "I really wish we could have some more time here..." he sighed regretfully, Ori nodding emphatically.
"I know..." he said and wrung his hands "We have so little time here... I do hope I will be able to return someday to get a closer look at the Khuzdul books. Some of them seem really old and we are not sure how much of Erebor's library survived." Ori looked worriedly over to Bilbo "Do you think the elves would mind me copying some of the books at a later point of time, should I get the chance?"
Bilbo hummed and shrugged slightly "I have no idea, but I would think not. Lord Elrond was a dear friend of my mother so I got a few tales of him in my childhood." He knew a lot about Elrond's history, of the wars the elf had witnessed, not only in the first age but the second one as well.
"You do know that in the second war there was an alliance between men, elves and dwarrows. I would think that he is unbiased against your race, but it has been a long time since then..." Bilbo shrugged again, his fingers trailing over the spines of the books in the shelve next to him. "My mother spoke fondly of him, and she certainly was a person who valued judging someone as a person and not discriminating against a whole group of people. I should think that she wouldn't speak of someone so highly, if that person would be that biased." he smiled a little at Ori "So I would certainly think that, if Lord Elrond looks at you and judges you by your own merit, he would not deny you your request..."
He really hoped so. The way Ori beamed at him after his little speech, clearly much more hopeful and taking Bilbo by his word. Gathering his courage, Bilbo turned to face Ori once more. At least they were alone because Bilbo was not quite sure how this talk would go.
"Say Ori... would... would you mind me asking a few questions about... about your culture and... and stuff?" Bilbo hedged carefully, seeing how Ori drew back a little and seemed to shift uneasily on his feet.
"You... you don't have to!" Bilbo tried to assure nervously, raising his palms in a placating gesture "I just... I thought... maybe I would understand you... better and I wouldn't... I don't know..." his shoulders slumped as his courage seemed to leave him and he looked away "I guess I just want to get to know you and... well, we are traveling together and I would also like to understand you better... and we do seem to have a few cultural differences and I guess I would like to avoid stepping on any toes – not that you would feel it with those contraptions stuck to your feet-" a soft touch at his elbow drew him out of his nervous ramblings to see Ori looking at him in amusement.
"I guess I can try to answer a few questions. You have to know that we khazad rarely share our culture with strangers and there are some aspects – like our language – that I'm not allowed to tell you. However... you are traveling with us and trying to reclaim our homeland. You certainly don't count as a stranger in my book."
Bilbo nodded slowly, relief and hope rekindling at those words and already knowing about the 'not-talking-to-outsiders' fact after he had asked Fíli for a translation of a song at the campfire.
"I know. And I don't want you revealing anything that would get you into trouble... just... I thought maybe we could exchange a few questions. You lot don't seem to know much about hobbits either..."
Ori grinned at that and nodded, dragging Bilbo in the direction of a comfortable spot usually for reading or writing. He seemed a lot more enthusiastic now that Bilbo had offered to share some of his own culture with him too.
"So? What are you curious about?" he said even as he settled across from Bilbo on the well-upholstered bench in the alcove they had selected for their talk. Bilbo contemplated for a moment how he should start, without being too obvious about the soulmate issue currently bugging his mind.
"Uh.. general things I guess... how many meals are normal for dwarrows? I think it's a big difference to a hobbits six to seven meals... or is that just on travel?"
Ori's round eyes were answer enough that this was not the case "S-six? Seven? No, no, we have a normal three..." Ori said and shook his head, then paused in consideration. A moment later his eyes clouded with worry "We aren't starving you, are we...?"
"No. I mean yeah, I've not had this little to eat in a long while and I'm... not accustomed to it. I do prefer the regular hobbit meal-schedule but I can certainly go with less..." Bilbo shrugged uncomfortable and decided not to mention that he last time he had eaten this little had been during the Fell Winter. Neither would he tell Ori that he had already lost a little weight. He really wasn't starving and he had been able to find some nuts and berries to snack on, to stave of the worst of the hunger.
"We value food and cheer above many other things... comfort is very important in hobbit culture..."
"I guess..." Ori didn't look like he believed him, at least not completely "I guess you already know that dwarrow value their family and craft. I'm a scribe, apprenticing under Balin."
"Oh... I know a few of the others crafts... Bofur said he was a miner and toymaker, and I don't think I even have to ask what Óins craft ist, nor Bomburs..." Ori smiled at the light teasing "What about the others though?"
"Well... Bifur used to be a warrior. Well, he still is but his injury makes life among men difficult. It's hard for him to get work now, so he turned to make toys with his cousin Bofur. Bombur is a chef." Ori explained "Dori's craft is being a tailor. Nori... well. Uhh..." Bilbo smirked and waved a lazy gesture for Ori to get on with it, which caused Ori to give him a relieved smile while they shared a conspiring chuckle "Then there is Glóin. He's a banker. Óin as you already know is a healer. Uhm... Balin is Thorin's adviser. In his earlier years he was a scribe too. I'm lucky he agreed to take me under his wing." Bilbo smiled as Ori told him all this. While they were only little pieces of information, Bilbo was glad to get to know more. He had already put together some clues from talks around the campfire, but it was good to hear it confirmed.
"Dwalin is a guard. A warrior. He and Nori did have some... alterations." Ori coughed in his hand and Bilbo tried to hide his smile behind his own. He could imagine those two playing cat and mouse just too well.
"I can imagine Dwalin was very happy about working together with Nori on this quest then." Bilbo said mock seriously and Ori snickered.
"Yes. Well, Thorin obviously is a king, but his craft is that of a blacksmith. He's really good at it too." Bilbo raised an eyebrow and Ori flushed a little "Well... it's not really considered... a... kingly craft..." Ori explained "But with the situation as it was, I guess there was not much of a choice."
Bilbo nodded solemnly. He had heard about the time when the dwarrows had been freshly exiled from their mountain. It was not something the dwarrows talked a lot about but Bilbo could imagine it was not a happy memory for them. He himself didn't talk about the Fell Winter a lot either.
"So... how old is everyone?" he asked instead and Ori launched into another explanation raging from the oldest – Thorin who had been born only 24 years before Smaug arrived as Bilbo had mentally counted with horror – to Kíli the youngest dwarrow in the company, counting only 77 years of life.
To Bilbo it was very surreal that his soulmate was almost 200 years old, and he shook his head in disbelief.
"Hobbit's mature at their 33 year of life. We usually have a lifespan from about 100-115 years..." which was met with wide eyes disbelief.
Finally he gathered enough of his courage to ask in an offhand way "What about your families? Anyone married? Children? Spouses?" which lead to another stunning revelation. There were very few dwarrow woman. Which made children a blessing to anyone.
"Glóin is married. He's got a son, but if you don't want to spend hours listening to him ramble about them I would recommend not bringing up that subject to him."
Bilbo laughed and shook his head a little "I don't think I would mind terribly."
"Yes... well, I didn't either. Until the... fifth time? I think I lost count." they shared a little smile at that.
"Anyone else?" Bilbo was burning with curiosity.
"Uhm... Well, Bombur found his One but she's craftbound. He says he's willing to wait for her to change her mind later on."
"One? Craftbound?" that were words Bilbo was not familiar with and Ori twitched a little, obviously thinking if revealing anything like that would get him into trouble before nodding slowly.
"We dwarrow have something like soulmates. We just call them Ones, because... well, there is only one other half to your soul. It's incredibly lucky to find your One... And even if you find them it can happen that they are, like Bombur's One, craftbound. It means that they are unwilling to start a relationship, because they want to dedicate their time towards their craft. It's an admirable goal and no one would ever speak out against such a decision, not even if it's a dwarrow dam."
Bilbo felt his heart sink a little at the news but he nodded. Maybe... maybe Thorin was craftbound?
"We hobbits have something similar. We call them soulmates, like the elves and men do." he explained, mostly to gain time to sort though his new findings "Elves do have their heartlode... It's fascinating, after meeting their soulmate their sense of home shifts, pulling them in the direction of their mate... it's said that Ilúvatar gifted it to them so they would always be able find them again... do dwarrow have something similar?"
Now Ori was definitely looking uncomfortable so Bilbo hastily backpedaled "Sorry. It's just... I'm curious, if it's something you don't reveal to... to outsiders I would understand..." he said even if it was painful to do so. He really wanted to know if there was a chance Thorin had simply not realized Bilbo was his soulmate.
"It's... well I guess it's not that secret, just not often spoken out to outsiders..." Ori hedged and then nodded firmly. He leaned forward in his seat, mentioning Bilbo closer.
"Dwarrow have dreams. It's said Mahal sends us an image that will help us identify our other half. It is different to every dwarrow and most never reveal anything about their Stonedream..." Ori smiled a little and Bilbo wondered if Ori had his dream already. He managed to quell his curiosity though and was pretty sure that he would have offended Ori with a question in that direction.
"Do hobbits have anything like that?" Ori leaned back a little and this time Bilbo was the one shifting in his seat, before nodding a little.
"Hobbits have... well, we have something called Yavanna's Whisper..." Bilbo said, his heart giving a faint throb as he thought about his song.
"It's... it's complicated to explain and we don't... don't reveal the song to anyone but our soulmate. It's... ah... it's incredibly private..." Ori must have seen something in his face because he let out a startled and sympathetic sound, brows furrowing in empathy.
"I'm sorry, Bilbo. I didn't want to bring up bad memories."
"Ah! No, no I'm sorry. I... my, ah... my soulmate is not..." he cleared his throat flustered "My s-soulmate is alive, don't you worry...! Just... not..." interested? In the know? Bilbo was not exactly sure about that so he couldn't exactly help with the confusion that was building up in Ori. Bilbo was sure he wanted to end the situation now before he made it worse.
"So... I told you about Shire-games, are there any dwarrow-games?" Ori seemed to be just as eager to leave the previous topic behind.
Now Bilbo just had to find out if Thorin's dreams had somehow featured something about him.
Easy, right?
。・゜゜・ ✿ ・゜゜・。
To say Thorin was unhappy about being stuck with elves was putting it lightly, Bilbo thought as he slipped through the empty corridors. He had... visited the kitchens in order to keep his proper eating schedule while he could afford it. Going from six meals to a meager two to three had his stomach in cramps. And while he was already eating less than back in the Shire, Bilbo would use the opportunity provided to get regular meals again for as long as they stayed in Rivendell.
He might have conveniently forgotten to ask for permission from the elves but he was almost sure they wouldn't mind.
Thus he had some armful of food he was carrying to his little refuge he had found. He liked staying with the dwarrows, but after years of living alone he also liked the occasional solitude, which he mostly could not have while on the road.
Arriving in the empty guest room he had found he nudged the door open with his foot. For not being used the room was clean enough and had a waterfall just outside of the window. It was beautiful, especially in the morning light when dust particle drifted lazily in the air, catching the light that was streaming through the window. Combined with the relaxing sound of rushing water it was a peaceful place that Bilbo had sought out several times.
If he didn't have a soulmate in the picture now, he could easily see himself spending years in Rivendell, especially after seeing the library that not only himself had fawned over, but Ori too. Rivendell was simply lovely and Bilbo already mourned having to leave the place sooner rather than later. At least a few more nights in a bed would do him some good.
And regular meals.
With a content sigh Bilbo placed the food he had brought on a blanket he had spread on the floor on his previous visits. A few pillows made it more comfortable to eat on the floor, while the blanket gave him the feeling of a strange-kinda-indoor-but-with-great-view-if-he-bothered-to-climb-to-the-window picnic. Smiling a little to himself he spread the food around himself and begun his breakfast in peaceful bliss.
It was several minutes later that Bilbo looked up, sure that he had heard something. He stopped mid-chew, an apple clutched in his hand while he strained his ears for something strange. It was hard to hear something above the rushing sound of water. After a while Bilbo relaxed and turned back to his food, sure he had imagined it.
A moment later his head snapped back up again. There it was again! A strange, scratching sound!
Frowning Bilbo looked to the door, than around the room. Maybe there were some mice that wanted to share his meal?
Again the sound came and Bilbo's head swung to the window in disbelief. What the hell was-
A familiar hairstyle appeared in his window. First the very tips of the star-shaped braids, then the head and finally the dwarf himself. Nori had just scaled the wall to his refuge and swung himself into the room while Bilbo watched in stunned incredulity.
"No-" he didn't even get to finish the name before Nori swung around. Next Bilbo knew was that there was a knife stuck in the apple he was holding. Several clangs sounded as whatever Nori had been carrying crashed to the floor a moment later.
Swallowing Bilbo set the impaled apple down and counted his fingers.
"Mahal's balls! Bilbo! Yer crazy?! Wha' yer doin' here at this hour?!" Nori put a hand to his chest and stared at Bilbo "Nevermind. Yer all right? Stupid thing ter do, surprising a dwarrow like tha'!"
"Well sorry for being here first... how about checking the room you break into first?" Bilbo mulishly snapped, his heart pounding from after shock. Squinting he frowned "Isn't that a candle-stand from dinner? Wait... is that-"
"Yes, yes, yes." Nori interrupted him while stuffing the things back into his pockets that were bulging now. Then he flopped down to the floor just across from Bilbo, clinking and clattering a little with every movement. He slowly reached over and took Bilbo's hand, inspecting it and whistling.
"Yer one lucky bugger, that's fer sure."
Bilbo glowered as Nori laughed and picked up the apple by taking the dagger still stuck in it. He inspected that one too, then shrugged.
"Wanna learn knife-throwin'?"
Bilbo gave Nori a deadpan look, but the thief only grinned unrepentantly. Finally he sighed.
"Sure... whatever... just... give me a moment to stop shaking..."
And that was that.
At least he would be able to (if he ever got the hang of it) slice down apples back in the shire. He might invent a new game too...
But maybe he would use spoons instead of knifes...
。・゜゜・ ✿ ・゜゜・。
It was evening and Bilbo was running late. It had nothing to do with Nori being an utter ass that had wiped the floor with him. While Bilbo was... apparently acceptable at knife throwing (once he had gotten the hang of it at least. It was still nowhere as precise as he could be with his slingshot but Nori said with a little work he would have one very fearsome talent), he was utter rubbish at what Nori had called wrestling and putting said knife to use without cutting himself up.
It was a work in progress that had ended with one very miserable hobbit and a mockingly encouraging Nori. Friendly mocking but Bilbo still pouted. It was not like he had expected to get one up on Nori right away but it was humiliating to be put to the ground repeatedly in under a few seconds. Nor was it comfortable to have the knife you should have used to defend yourself used against yourself.
Despite that he had to admit that Nori was teaching him. It would just take a lot of time and painful effort to get anywhere. Bilbo was not looking forward to it, but when Nori had seen his grimace and asked him if he wanted to quit, Bilbo had vehemently refused. If anything the lessons showed just how much he needed the training if he wanted to be of any use in saving Thorin's ass. Or at least not be a burden. It made him all the more determined to make that work. He would at least be able to fight for himself, not every enemy had troll eyes of the size of dinner plates after all.
He just didn't have to be happy about it. Nor was he happy about having missed lunch (okay, so maybe he had enough food for Nori and himself stored in the room to get by but that was beside the point!), so now he was in a hurry to actually reach dinner. If anyone in the Shire could see him right now, dirty, bloodied up, torn and rumpled clothes, covered in dust... well he wouldn't be very respectable anymore after the rumor mill caught on to that tasty morsel. He was tired and only wanted a quick shower so he could relax his aching muscles that were screaming at the abuse Nori had forced him to contort to, as well as get ready for dinner. He was starving.
Was it any wonder that he did not see the person hiding behind a corner until he ran smack first into him?
"In a hurry, Master Baggins?" Thorin said, his voice only having a hint of mockery and disdain that instantly raised Bilbo's hackles. Then the dwarf blinked in surprise, mouth opening in astonishment as he took in Bilbo's appearance. Self consciously Bilbo rubbed his palms on his trousers, even if that only lead to him spreading the dirt and durst instead of getting is hands clean. He shifted uncomfortably in front of the towering figure.
"Uhm... k-kinda?"
"What happened?" Thorin unhappily rumbled, a frown passing over his face like a sudden storm-cloud appearing on a previously clear sky. Well, almost clear at least. A hand grabbed his and pulled his limp up, ignoring Bilbo's startled protests. The callouses from handling a sword carefully traced the cuts that marred Bilbo's hands and the frown deepened, a feat Bilbo had not thought possible.
"It's... it's uhm..." Bilbo squirmed, but froze when Thorin's clear blue eyes suddenly pinned him with one of those intense looks Thorin did not even seem aware he possessed.
He was damn attractive and certainly bad for Bilbo's heart that was palpitating and faltering in irregular intervals.
Oh gods he was having a heart attack and Thorin was still staring at him, obviously expecting an answer and completely unaware that his thumb was stroking mesmerizing circles on the back of Bilbo's hand and stealing the hobbits breath in the process!
And then Thorin had to open his mouth and ruin everything.
"Was it the elves? They dare hurt-"
"No!" Bilbo barely suppressed the urge to roll his eyes, because then they would start to argue again and he wanted to get to know Thorin. This was the person he had waited for so, so long, it shouldn't be that hard to manage at least one normal conversation!
"What happened then?" Thorin questioned, he was already bristling and was towering even higher than before. Probably in reaction to the way Bilbo had sharply snapped the 'no', when he had insinuated that the elves had attacked him.
"It's... I ran into... I was..." Bilbo huffed and crossed his arms "Okay, you know what? I was clumsy. I tried something new and probably stupid and I might have gotten hurt a little in the process." It's not like Thorin's opinion of him wasn't already low enough the dent the floor. And he did not really want to explain himself to Thorin, he was... shy about flaunting his weakness even more. Even if it would probably come out anyways once they hit the road again and Nori continued his training. He shuffled a little and was in the process of hunching his shoulders too, before he shook off the urge and straightened up, facing Thorin directly.
"I know dwarrow and elves do not get along, but they wouldn't hurt a hobbit. They have no reason to, besides, as you know: My mother was Lord Elrond's friend. I am certainly safe here..." at Thorin's skeptic look that passed once more over his scrapes and cuts he sighed and combed his hand through his hair. It's not like he could make it worse.
"I was just exploring." he admitted, which was a half-truth after all. For now he wanted to keep Nori and their little lessons a secret. At least until they left Rivendell or he no longer hit the ground 3 seconds after their spar started.
"Hm." Thorin did still look a little unconvinced but he gave a reluctant nod. Bilbo was hyper aware that their hands were still linked but Thorin seemed oblivious to the fact. Somehow Bilbo did not want that little contact to end yet, which he knew it would as soon as Thorin became aware of it too.
"So... I mean, I know dwarrow and elves dislike each other on principle but... you seem even more suspicious than... well..." Bilbo hesitated but a small spark of amusement ignited in Thorin's eyes. Then he noticed their intertwined hands and quickly pulled his own back as if burned, much to Bilbo's disappointment.
"Elves cannot be trusted." Thorin rumbled with conviction, his blue eyes hard like ice chips with dark shadows lurking in their depths. Memories long past but not forgotten. Bilbo took a small step back so he was leaning against the wall and mustered his soulmate, who took a few steps back himself and now stood at the beginning of a balcony that opened on the other side of the corridor. He was certainly beautiful, and had a very intent presence about him. Bilbo still thought that a real smile, or a honest laugh would suit Thorin very well indeed. He wondered if he would ever get the chance to see it.
"I believe in valuing a person for his deeds. And judging each person by their own merit." Bilbo said quietly but with conviction, trying not to let his thoughts show on his face too much.
"Master Baggins... you are... new to this world in a way." Thorin sighed and turning away a little as he looked out across the valley in direction where Erebor probably lay.
"I have seen much. My people were torn from their homes and the elves did nothing but watch their suffering." Thorin turned his head back to stare darkly at the hobbit. Bilbo shuddered under the weight of this gaze. Dark memories indeed. He suddenly felt rather small and unprepared to deal with this. All of a sudden the age difference seemed really obvious, because Thorin had lived through so much already. Yes, if they looked at the timelines there were about the same age, maturing differently. But Thorin had still seen many winters more than Bilbo, and endured much through them. The difference he suddenly felt left him untethered and floundering.
"I have not forgotten their suffering. Nor will I forgive those that allowed it."
And what could he say in response to that? Bilbo frowned at his soulmate and weighed his words carefully.
"I... I won't say I understand, because I don't..." he said, drawing Thorins attention once more "But... ah." again he rubbed a hand through his hair trying to find the right words "I guess I'm just... looking for the best in people. I can't... I don't want to …" he pressed his lips together and locked his eyes with Thorin.
"Maybe it's because I am a hobbit. We are peaceful folk and while some of us are squabbling and rumor mongering annoying little pests... I guess when it comes down to it we can still work it out somehow..." he took a breath "I don't think peace can come through force. Great wars and... and violence always leads to more fighting. That's... that's why I think that unity and happiness of a race, or between races, can only happen through understanding and the will to work through problems together."
Thorin opened his mouth to inject something but Bilbo was not finished yet.
"I know that your races do not get along. I'm sure both sides do have their own points as to why that is. And... and you probably more than any. But someone does have to jump over their shadow someday."
Bilbo crossed his arms and tried not to look too nervous. Thorin mustered him, as if seeing him for the first time and Bilbo was not really sure what to think of it.
"... Those words are naïve..." Thorin sighed "In a perfect world, maybe it could work. But in our world?" he heaved a tired sigh "It's not that easy."
Bilbo pressed his lips together, because he could hear the undertones of Thorin dismissing his opinion quite well.
"Why... why do you like the elves so much?" he asked "It's no just the general dislike... your is... it's personal, isn't it?" it garnered him a sharp look from Thorin, the dwarfs muskles tensing as if preparing for a fight and his teeth clenching in anger that had festered for a long time. Bilbo felt his heart sink at the sight.
"Elves... When Smaug came to out mountain, we had treaties with them." he slowly recalled, turning back to the balcony again, leaning against the doorframe "The elves had a whole host, when the dwarrow of Erebor were forced out of their home. Women and children, coughing from the smoke and with horrible burns from dragonfire." Thorins mouth twisted downwards "A whole host that watched as my kin, injured and shocked with only their clothes on their back stumbled out of the mountain as the dragon forced his way in, doing nothing."
When Thorin turned back to Bilbo, Bilbo almost shrank away from the burning feverish gaze of Thorin's blue eyes "I've lost count how many died in the following days from injuries. The elves retreated back to their woods, safe and sound while my people starved to death, succumbed to their injuries, froze in the cold. Children and babies!" Even recalling it had Thorin vibrating with rage.
"This is nothing that could be worked through by talks of peace! This is something I will never forgive."
Bilbo couldn't find words to counter that, to horrified by what his imagination was painting him. He was not happy with this, not happy at all but... he did not know if this would ever be a topic he and Thorin would agree on, so he nodded slightly.
"I... I see." he whispered a little hoarsely "But... I can't agree. It's not in me to hold someone accountable on actions of another." he flinched under Thorin's steely gaze, but was also unwilling to lie to Thorin to appease him "I'm sorry." Sorry that Thorin had to endure all this, and to do it alone. Sorry that this was probably only the tip of the iceberg. There was much of Thorin's history that was still unsaid.
He wanted to know about it. All of it. If he had anything to say about it he would.
"You are..." Thorin sighed and lost some of his anger, his shoulders relaxing a little "You are a kind soul, Master Baggins." troubled eyes looked at the hobbit with one of the by now familiar frowns that Bilbo was secretly becoming fond of. A little.
"I do hope you will not loose that trait. Our journey is likely to be... rough. Tread carefully and... do keep an eye out. There are many who would use your nature against you."
With that Thorin turned away and stalked off, leaving Bilbo staring after him in bafflement. What had that been? A...compliment? Warning? Something else?
Shaking himself out of the stupor he hurried to get to his rooms to have a quick wash. When he saw Thorin again at dinner, the dwarf wouldn't look at him.
Notes:
Sindarin:
Mellonnen! Mo evínedh?
= My friend! Where have you been?
Farannem 'lamhoth i udul o charad. Dagannem rim na Iant Vedui.
= We've been hunting a pack of Orcs, that came up from the South. We slew a number near the Hidden Pass.
Le suilon, Lord Elrond...
= I greet you, Lord Elrond...
Iston i nîf gîn...
= I know your face...
In eneth nîn Bilbo Baggins
= My name is Bilbo Baggins.
Êl síla erin lû e-govaned vîn na vendui. Mae g'ovannen! Gi nathlam hí.
= A star shines on the hour of our meeting at last. Well met! You are welcome here.
La fael!
= Thank you. (undertones of: You are generous.)
Nartho i noer, toltho i viruvor. Boe i annam vann a nethail vin.
= Light the fires, bring forth the wine. We must feed our guests.
。・゜゜・ ✿ ・゜゜・。
Okay. So... Happy Christmas I guess? Sorry it took so long but then again, I do have another story to write and something called a real life which some of you might be familiar with ;)
This chapter just didn't want to end. I actually wanted to put the whole rivendell-stay inside but I guess the map reading and leaving will be taking place in the next chapter then. As it is, this chapter has gotten way too long (longest I have ever written)
Aaaand I guess this is where I will start adapting stuff to suit my needs :) So... while I will still bring some movie related scenes and I guess you know the general outline of the story, you will also be in for quite a few surprises :)
I can't wait for this story to be finished so I can get to the sequels that keep bugging me... Yes, sequels as in plural :P