Chapter 6
Before him sat one of the most beautiful women Bilbo had seen in his entire life. She had long brown hair that bordered on being auburn, eyes as blue as the purest water in the Shire, skin pale as alabaster without a blemish in sight except for the scar. There was a large and extremely noticeable "u" shaped scar that started just beside her nose, ran halfway down her right cheek, came back up her face then disappeared into her hairline by her temple. As she reached up and stroked the scar gently with one finger, Bilbo knew that this was the reason she hid her face.
She expected him to look horrified, and like most people to turn away and not look at her. What she didn't expect was for him to reach his hand out and cup her other cheek while having a tender look on his face. "How did it happen? Did someone do this to you on purpose?" Bilbo inquired, looking into her eyes and finding it hard not to get lost. Tears started to run down her face as she realized that Bilbo wasn't going to turn her away in fear or disgust.
"The man I love did this to me long ago." She murmured then hurried to continue as Bilbo began to look horrified and angry. "He was drunk though! He had no recollection of doing it and he still doesn't know. I knew he would never be able to forgive himself for ever laying a hand on me so I ran away. I loved him so much that I left to protect him from his own wrath." Bilbo reached out and took her face in both his hands as he looked at her intensely. "So you left that man to protect him from himself without being sure that he wouldn't forgive himself? You made yourself suffer because of a mistake made by a drunken man?"
She sighed loudly and pulled away from him, resisting the urge to cover her face again. "You don't understand Bilbo. I kept him alive. Any from the race of Men could've justified his actions and we could have moved on together. No, my Dwalin was a Dwarf and we were courting. Dwarven laws frown heavily upon any injury done to women (especially your One) whether intended or not. He would have been put on trial and eventually sentenced to death for marking me so permanently and in so horrific of a way." Kelly said, frowning as she remembered leaving in the dead of night and traveling as fast as possible so that there would be less chance of him finding her.
Bilbo looked on the edge of tears but also confused. When she mentioned this he only asked, "You said you are his One. What does that mean?" At this she smiled sadly and tugged a necklace out from under her shirt collar. The necklace was a beautiful emerald surrounded by the finest gold Bilbo had ever seen and it was absolutely gorgeous with Dwarvish markings all around it. "Dwarves only fall in love once Mr. Baggins. When they do, they know it automatically and without question. There are no doubts, worries, fights, or complications that will keep a Dwarf from his One once he knows where she is. This necklace symbolizes to all other Dwarves that I am taken and am being courted, so any attempt to court me would result in a challenge in battle and fight to the death. I have never taken it off and I never will."
They continued their conversation late into the night with Kelly telling stories of how she met Dwalin and of their courtship. Bilbo seemed fascinated and was constantly leaning forward in his chair like a child too excited to sit still. "I thought Dwarves showed their courtship with braids as well as gifts." He asked suddenly, his eyes searching her hair for any hint of a braid. "Oh they do!" She assured him while nodding quickly. "However, they are usually taken out and redone by the couple each night. They take the braids out, brush each other's hair, then put the braids back in. It is sort of a bonding experience that will bring the two individuals closer to becoming one with each other."
"Once I left however, my braids were too noticeable and I knew that if Dwalin came looking for me, he would hear of a non-Dwarvish woman with braids in her hair. That would set him on the right track so I took them out, though it pained me to do it. I cried for a week after I took them out." She sighed heavily, wishing that things were different. "Then I heard of a horrible tragedy that happened at his home which I cannot speak of. Now I know in my heart that he is gone forever and I will never be able to apologize for leaving him. He probably hated me for leaving, he probably thought I never really loved him and that thought alone is enough to make me wish my existence would end." Kelly immediately broke into sobs, covering her face with her hands and curling in on herself. Bilbo, unsure what to do, rubbed his hand across her back and let her get all her sorrow out for surely she had held all this in for too long.