Chapter 7

Home

Thorin was more than capable of carrying Anira back to their home by himself. The hardest part was making sure that her feet did not drag on the ground. She was so lanky and he was stout. It was difficult to keep her held high enough to prevent further damage. She weighed nearly nothing in his arms and he wondered if that was in partial due to their lack of food the last few days. He thought that just a few days forgetting to eat was not enough to cause that much change. Balin and Dwalin both offered to help him, but he refused their offers. Anira was his wife and he was going to care for her. Besides, she had her arms wrapped around his neck so tightly that he thought she may never let go. Her sobs were much softer now, no longer racking her entire body. The pattern of her breathing was still very irregular and pained, but she would not release him. She was so thankful that even at their worst, he still loved her enough to risk his life for her.

Upon arriving home, Balin opened the door for Thorin. Thorin turned sideways to slide through the door without Anira hitting the door frame.

"Clear off the table." Thorin said sternly. Dwalin nodded and walked over to the table beneath the window and placed his arm upon it. He slid his arm across the smooth, waxed wood and knocked all of the contents off. There were only a couple of metal glasses and dust. Thorin laid Anira down upon the table, laying her flat on her back so that her breathing would be easier.

"What can we do…" Thorin whispered to himself quietly, shaking his head as he looked at her. Dwarves were not known for their medical or healing abilities. They could hardly care for themselves medically, let alone anyone else.

"You need…" Anira whispered, swallowing hard as she tried not to gag at the taste of blood in her mouth. Her teeth were pink from the blood. The swelling in her face was already starting to go down, but the skin was still dark purple around her eye. Her cheek had a light purple, yellowish hue to it. Thorin wished he could have done more than just kill the men who had harmed her.

"Balin, get me some water." Thorin said sharply as he leaned over Anira, stroking her hair tenderly. His hand looked so big against her head. No wonder he had broken her arm earlier. She was so fragile beneath his touch. He would need to be much more careful from now on. He was determined not to hurt her like that ever again. Balin hurried across the room and grabbed a pitcher that was sitting beside the fireplace. He grabbed one of the metal glasses from the floor and filled it before handing it to Thorin.

"It won't be cold, but at least it's wet." Balin said gently.

"It will be fine, thank you." Thorin said gently before sliding a hand beneath Anira's head. She winced as he pulled her head up. Everything was stiff and sore from being bound to the tree. He tilted the glass against her lips, pouring the luke warm liquid into her mouth. She winced and swallowed as much as she could before sputtering some of the liquid out of her mouth as she began to cough. Thorin pulled the glass away quickly and sat her up a little bit more. Anira shook her head and placed a hand on his arm gently, squeezing tenderly before she looked up at him. Despite her injuries, the look in her eyes did not show pain. They showed only love and gratitude as they looked upon her husband.

"You are… Going to need to break my fingers again…" Anira said as she held up her hand. The broken fingers were purple and swollen. They were starting to heal, but the bones were not in the positions they needed to be. "You need to break them and then splint them." She said quietly. She laid back down with a small wince. She took a deep breath and let it out. Her breathing was still very shaky, but slowly getting better.

"I… I can not…" Thorin whispered quietly. "I can not hurt you, not anymore… Can we not wait until-"

"I am already in pain, Thorin." Anira said sharply. "Doing it now would be doing me a favor… I do not want to rest and break them later… Do it all now so that I do not have to feel this agony a second day in my life." She said quietly. "There is also a small sewing kit within my bag. You are going to need it to sew my leg shut again. It will not be perfect, but it will last until we reach a city with a medic…"

"Anira… I do not know if I can put you through anymore pain…"

"Then don't…." She said sternly as her eyes shifted to Dwalin. "Let him do it… He's wanted an excuse to cause me pain since he showed up here…" She hissed bitterly as she looked at him. She could not understand why he even helped save her, especially after he had made an attempt on her life when he had first arrived here.

"I can do it, but not because I want to, Lass. I can do it so that Thorin does not have to." Dwalin said sternly as he walked closer to them. "I can not stitch her though. My hands are not steady enough."

"I can stitch her leg." Balin said gently as he looked at the other two men. "This is going to be a group effort, but I believe we can help her."

"Please…. While they are still mostly numb with pain…" Anira whined quietly as she held her hand out to Dwalin. "Please…" She said quietly.

Dwalin stepped closer to her and gently took her small hand within both of his own. He looked at her with sadness upon his face for a few moments before he wrapped his large hand around one of her fingers.

"Wait!" Thorin said quickly. He closed his eyes and looked at Dwalin. "I can not hear her scream again…" He said quietly.

"You are going to have to… You need to hold her down…" Dwalin said quietly.

"Thorin…" Anira said quietly as she looked up at him. "If you want to help me… Make sure I do not struggle when you attempt to fix my wounds…" She said with a tender smile. Her smile broke his heart. How could she stand to look at him after all of this, with a smile on her face? It was astonishing to him that she was not mad at him. He could not have found a better woman for him if he had even been trying.

Thorin stood at the head of the table and pressed down upon her shoulders so that she could not move.

"Are you ready…?" Dwalin asked quietly as he looked at her, his hand still wrapped around her broken finger. His grip was gentle, not wanting to hurt her any more than he had to. True, she was an elf. He did not trust her and he did not like her. Not one bit, but Thorin did. As long as Thorin loved this girl, he would do his best to accept her.

"As ready as I can be…" Anira said quietly as she closed her eyes tightly. She took a deep breath, doing her best to brace for the pain to come. Dwalin nodded and instantly tightened his grip around her finger and bent it the direction it was supposed to go. The crunching of bone was quiet beneath his hand and was unheard once Anira began screaming. Her whole body jolted with the sudden pain and Thorin pushed her back down against the table quickly. She trembled beneath his hands and it was enough to bring tears to his eyes.

"Just… One more…" Dwalin said with sadness in his own voice. It was rare for the barbarian dwarf to feel sadness and he did not understand why he had such compassion for the elf girl. He grabbed her other finger and quickly broke it the direction it was supposed to go. Anira screamed again, but not as loudly this time. She clenched her teeth as tears slid down the sides of her cheeks.

"I need something to splint them with." Dwalin said hurriedly as he looked around for something hard and straight.

"Use these." Balin said, having fount two knives in a drawer. He handed them to Dwalin along with a few pieces of cloth he had torn into strips while Dwalin was working on her fingers. Dwalin nodded and placed the knives on the inside of her hand and quickly tied one to each of her fingers.

"It's not pretty, but it will work…" Dwalin said gently. He turned to step away from her when her good hand caught his wrist. Her hand did not wrap all the way around his muscular arm, but her grip was hard enough to stop him from pulling away from her. He looked down at her and was about to tell her not to touch him, but he could not. She was smiling at him and she mouthed 'thank you' in silence. He only nodded before pulling his arm from her grasp and turning away from her.

"I do not know how well we are going to be able to stitch your leg…" Thorin said tenderly as he leaned down and kissed her upon the forehead. "None of us is really very good at stitching…"

"Then let me do it…" Anira said quietly as she struggled to sit up. It took all of her strength and some of Thorin's just to sit up. She turned so that her legs were hanging over the edge of the table and she could rest her back against the window. It was cold and felt good against her bruises.

"You are in no condition to stitch your own wounds…" Thorin said sternly as he looked at her.

"What else are we going to do…? Either you have to stitch my wound, or I will do it myself. Either way, it will not be pretty…." She said sadly. Her breathing was almost normal now. She still seemed a bit breathless as she spoke, but not as badly. It did not seem to pain her to speak as it had before.

"Where did you say your sewing supplies were…?" Balin asked quietly.

"They are in my leather sack, in the other room." She said gently before closing her eyes again. Balin nodded and hurried into the other room to search for the supplies.

"Thorin, bring some water to a boil. We are going to need to try and clean her wound before stitching it. I do not want her to get sick." Balin called from the other room.

"Right." Thorin said gently as he grabbed the pitcher of water and dumped all of it into a small cauldron. He hung the cauldron over the fire and turned back to Anira. Her skin was already returning to its pale color. The bruises were fading and the cuts were healing at an astonishing rate. He could hardly believe his eyes as he watched her sitting there.

"I am sorry…" Thorin said quietly.

"For what…?" Anira asked in a whisper. Her voice sounded distant and light, like a breeze through the trees.

"For keeping secrets from you… I did not want you to find that book until I knew you could handle it's contents. It was cruel that it opened itself for you when I was not here to explain."

"It does not matter now… You have proven to me that I am worth more to you than just an heir…" She said with a small smile crossing her lips. "You could have left me to die with those men…."

"You could have told them where I was and saved yourself the pain of torture but you did not. Why wouldn't you tell them? Especially after the cruel things I did to you…" Thorin said quietly as he grabbed her uninjured hand, kissing her knuckles tenderly, one at a time.

"They would have tortured me no matter what I said to them… Why would I lead them to you and make you suffer as much as I? That would have been cruelty."

"Cruelty that I would have deserved."

"Do not say such things, Thorin. Your people need you… I need you…" She said quietly, stroking his hair as best as she could with her splinted hand. "Do not ever doubt yourself…"

"I want you to read the rest of the book… Not today, not tomorrow, in fact, not until you are fully healed. You read only the first page and have no idea what your mother was trying to save you from. After you read it, we will burn it, together. We will put all of this misery behind us and try to forget that she ever brought this pain upon us. I should have told her to leave us alone when I spoke to her in the village, but I did not think-"

"In the village..?" Anira asked quietly as she looked at him. "Thorin… What else are you not telling me?"

"The elven queen… The one who called you a whore for marrying a dwarf…. Anira, she is your mother. She is Valessfaeniel. She is the reason that we are still here. This house is hers. She uses it when she needs to escape the control of her husband." He said gently. "She wants to meet you, to speak with you on better terms. I told her that I did not know if you would want to see her. You are her child and she wants to explain why she had to leave you with Krystoff."

"How could you keep this from me…?" Anira asked gently as she looked at him. She looked betrayed, but she did not look mad.

"Would you have wanted to know…?"

"No… I guess you are right. I do not want to speak to her, I do not even wish to see her ever again. She has brought nothing but misery upon us." Anira said quietly as she winced. "Is the water ready yet? Where is Balin?" She whined as she placed a trembling hand upon her still bleeding leg wound.

"I've got the sewing supplies." Balin said as he hurried back into the room, looking at Thorin skeptically as he stood before Anira. He looked down at his hands as he threaded the small needle before bending it into a hook shape.

"Are you sure you can handle this?" Balin said quietly as he looked up at her passed his bushy, white eyebrows.

"What choice do I have…? It's better than losing my leg…" Anira said quietly as she cupped the elder mans cheek tenderly in her hand. "You are a good man for helping me… All of you…" She said as she looked up, smiling at Thorin and Dwalin. Dwalin only grunted and turned away from her, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Bite down on this. It will help." Balin said as he held a thick strip of leather to her mouth. "I was trying to find something for you to bite, that is what took me so long." He said with an apologetic smile. "I saw how much it pained Thorin to hear you scream, so I wanted to make this as easy on all of us as I could."

"You are kind…" Anira said sadly as she opened her mouth and bit down upon the strip of leather. She took a couple of nervous breaths as she prepared herself for what she hoped would be the last of her pain for the evening.

"Thorin, bring the water." Balin said gently as he pulled a chair over and extended Anira's leg over the back of the chair. She winced as the muscles in her thigh moved. She could see them inside of her skin. Raw, red and bleeding. She could also see the white of her bone. Thorin grabbed the cauldron by the thin handle and carried it over to Balin and Anira.

"Let me know when you are ready…" Balin said gently as he looked at Anira. Anira closed her eyes tightly, took a deep breath and bit down upon the leather with all of her might before nodding her head.

"Now, Thorin." Balin said quickly, pushing Anira's dress up to her waist. Thorin quickly dumped the water onto the open wound. Anira cried out in pain through clenched teeth. She balled her hand into a fist and pounded it against the table as the boiling water cleaned out her leg wound. As much as this hurt, she knew that it needed to be cleaned. The dagger likely had blood from others and rust upon it. There was likely also dirt and pieces of grass in her wound. So, this was what it was like to be a traveller. She did not much care for it, not in the slightest. She wanted nothing more than to go to her own home, a permanent home, and not have to travel for as long as she lived.

Balin quickly stabbed the curve needle into her flesh and did his best to begin stitching her wound. It was not a large wound, just deep. He was able to stretch her skin enough that the wound closed completely. He tied his stitches as tightly as he possibly could before cutting the thread. Anira had done very well in enduring the pain of surgery. Balin took a glass of what was left of the hot water and poured it onto her wound before wrapping her leg in a clean cloth from his own bag. He tied it tightly, almost tight enough to cut off the blood circulation. He did not want it to start bleeding again after all of this effort.

"There we go… You are all done, Lass, you did wonderfully." Balin said with a gently smile as he patted her on the leg. Anira reached up and pulled the leather from between her teeth, flexing her jaw slightly before letting out a deep breath.

"Thank goodness that this torment is finally over. Thank you for your help, Balin. It would have been a tragic sight to watch me stitch myself shut." Anira said with a quiet laugh. Her face was almost completely healed now. Her eye was still purple, but no longer swollen. She could open it all the way now without a problem.

"I think it is time for us to go to bed." Thorin said tenderly as he lowered Anira's leg from the chair. She winced and nodded, not saying a word.

"But… Where are our guests going to sleep?" She asked quietly after a few moments. She scooted towards the edge of the table and slid off. Her feet touched the ground, but her leg gave out as soon as she tried to put weight on it. Thorin quickly caught her and wrapped her arm over his shoulder.

"We will just lay out here, lass. Do not worry about us." Balin said with a small wink. "You need a good nights rest."

"I can't just let you two sleep out here on the floor. That would be incredibly rude of me as a hostess."

"Lass, you have been stabbed, tortured, had your fingers broken twice and had your leg sown shut. I think you need to stop worrying about us and start worrying about your own health." Balin said sternly.

"I… You are right…" Anira said quietly as she looked down at the floor. "I think that sleep sounds like a magnificent idea…" She whispered as she leaned against Thorin. He was so strong against her, like a rock. He did not ever seem to faultier or cower in the most dire of situations. If she had married anyone else, she would surely have died in that situation.

Thorin did his best to help her limp into their bedroom. He did not want to sleep beside her now, for fear of hurting her within the night. He wanted to make her as comfortable as he possibly could. She was one of the strongest women he had ever met. Even when being tortured, she was loyal to those she kept close to her heart. He helped her to the bed and laid her down as gently as he could. She adjusted herself onto her back with a small wince.

"I do hope that you sleep well." Thorin said before tenderly kissing her upon the lips. He did not realize it before, but he was trembling. All of the adrenaline was starting to wear off and he was finally feeling the pain in his heart that made him want to drop to his knees and weep.

"I am sure I will.. I can hardly stay awake now…" Anira said with a quiet smile, placing her hand upon his head, running her fingers through his silky hair tenderly.

"Good night…" He whispered before standing up straight. He turned away from her, but stopped when he felt her grab his hand. He looked down at her and smiled.

"Where are you going?" Anira asked quietly.

"I was going to sleep in the other room, with Balin and Dwalin."

"Please do not make me sleep alone."

"Do you really wish me to lay beside you…?" Thorin asked gently as she turned to face her again. "After all of this?"

"It is because of all of this." She said with a sheepish smile. "Please..?" She asked before slowly struggling to sit up. He grabbed her shoulder gently and helped her to sit up.

"You need to lay down."

"Can you help me out of my dress? It is stiff and disgusting from all of the blood." She said quietly.

"Alright…" Thorin said gently as he swallowed hard. He was finally going to get to see her without her dress on. He only wished that it could be under happier circumstances than this. He sat upon the bed and slowly helped her slide her arms out of the sleeves before sliding the dress down her torso. She laid back upon the bed so that he could slide her dress from around her hips. He then tossed it upon the floor beside the bed.

"Can you help me with my bloomers and my underdress, too?" Anira asked quietly as she looked up at him. She felt nervous about letting him see her naked, but she did not want to be stuck in these stiff, blood soaked clothes. They smelled so horrible and it was making her feel sick. Thorin swallowed nervously again and nodded his head.

"I can help you…" He said quietly as he grabbed the waist of her bloomers and slowly pulled them off of her. He did his very best to keep his eyes upon her face, but it was increasingly difficult. He tossed the bloomers aside before walking around to the other side of the bed and gently lifting her dress off over head, tossing it aside as well. Her skin was perfect and he had to resist the urge to touch her everywhere, to trace his lips across her flawless skin. She looked as though someone had dipped her in a pool of milk and her skin retained the perfect, pale color. He stood before her, staring at her as she lay upon their bed. He walked back around so that he could be facing her as he looked at her. How badly he wanted to take and make a woman out of her. He leaned down and tenderly placed a gentle kiss upon her stomach. His hands were hot against her sides and it made her tremble. Trembling hurt all of her bruised muscles, but she could not help it. She gasped and covered her mouth nervously as he touched her. A hot blush crossed her cheeks as she turned her head to the side. She was too nervous and ashamed to look at him. His facial hair tickled and pricked her skin slightly. It was a feeling that she actually rather enjoyed, which was a good thing seeing as her husband would forever be bearded.

"Thorin?" Anira asked quietly as she reached up and began to stroke her fingers through his hair as best she could. She loved how hairy he was, even though it made her feel like a pervert. She found herself wondering if other women though this way also.

"I am honored to have you as a wife, Anira." He whispered, his breath was hot against her skin and gave her goosebumps.

"What makes you say that?" She asked with a quiet laugh as she placed her hands upon his head. He was being so gentle with her now. He hardly seemed like the same man he was before. She wondered what he was thinking but thought it best not to ask.

"Never has a woman stood beside me through so much trial. All have given up on me well before we reached the point of love…" He said with a small chuckle, looking up at her before gently resting his cheek against her flat stomach. She blushed more brightly and smiled. She did not notice, but her necklace was glowing again. This was the first time since the night Thorin had given it back to her.

"Are you really going to make me read the rest of that awful book from the elven queen?" She asked sadly. She refused to call that horrible woman her mother.

"I do not believe you need to. We are going to be alright from here on out, right?"

"I do not hold it against you. You were only trying to protect me from the truth and I was just to blinded to see that before."

"As long as you are not mad at me… I do not want you to read it. There is no point in putting you through any more pain."

"Thank you." She said quietly before looking up at the ceiling. Despite all that had happened, she felt safe and at home here. She did not believe that it was because of Thorin, but instead, a powerful magic upon this home.

"Why is the queen really making us stay here?"

"She wants to meet you before she has to return to her husband."

"The man who made her give me up?"

"Yes… Him." Thorin said with an obvious distaste in his tone.

"She wants me to stay here… I can feel it. That must be why I love this house so much. Earlier this evening, I had thought of trying convince you that we should stay here a while longer, instead of traveling back to the Blue Mountains. I still want to stay here, despite all of the horror that has happened this evening. I think that it is her and her magic that wants to keep me here. At least, she wants me here long enough for her to come and meet me." She whispered sadly as tears stung her eyes.

"What do you think we should do, Anira?" He asked quietly as he crawled next to her upon the bed, laying beside her and kissing her tenderly upon the cheek. He hated seeing her with tears in her eyes.

"I think… We should burn this house to the ground." She said, her tears trying to choke her voice. "I want to travel light. We take only what we can carry. We leave the caravan and take the horses. I want to make sure that when she comes back here, she will only see the ashes and smoldering remains of her magic. I want to leave her book where she can find it and attach a letter of my own to it. I want to make her regret trying to force herself into our lives." She said sternly, her lower lip quivering.

"Stop…" He said sadly as he leaned over her and tenderly kissed her upon the lips. "Stop thinking about this now. You have had a long night. Go to sleep. You need your rest. I will be here the whole night to protect you, I promise." He whispered quietly before he gently rolled her onto her side. She winced and lifted her legs onto the bed, curling up as small as she could. Thorin grabbed one of their folded blankets from the end of the bed and wrapped it over her. He slid an arm beneath her and curled himself against her back. It was slightly awkward positioning because of their height differences, but he did not think about it. He whispered kind words of love into her ear and layered kisses upon her back and shoulders. He wanted to make sure that even while she slept, she knew just how much he really did love her.

Dwalin and Balin could hear Anira and Thorin speaking to one another in the next room, but could not hear their words clearly.

"I do not trust her…" Dwalin said angrily as he looked towards the doorway.

"Why are you so distrusting of her? Is it because she is an elf?" Balin asked quietly as he sat in the corner, smoking his pipe.

"Not only is she an elf, she is just a child." Dwalin said angrily. "Thorin hates elves. I think that she must be a witch. How else could she have him wrapped around her finger so tightly?"

"Do not be so unkind, brother. I think it is much too soon to judge her. Besides, if she had magic, do you not think she would have used it to free herself from those men in the woods?"

"Not if she wants us to believe that she really does need our protection."

"Or if she does really need our protection." Balin said sternly, shaking his head sadly. "I think you should give her at least a few days before you decide she really is a bad person. Until then, do not speak a word of this to Thorin. He would be very angry with you. Magic or no magic, starting a fight with him is unwise."

"I give her a day." Dwalin said sternly before he finally went quiet.

The next morning went just as Anira had wanted it to. Her wounds were healing extremely quickly. Her fingers were no longer splinted, though she did have to be very careful with them. She could walk, but only for a few minutes at a time before she would need to sit and rest. The dwarves did almost all of the packing while she wrote a letter to her mother. She had found a quill and ink within their small kitchen and was writing inside of the Red Journal, upon the last page.

"Are you two sure you want to carry those bags? We could always put them on the horses." Thorin said as he looked at Dwalin and Balin, both who were wearing a pack of supplies almost larger than themselves.

"One horse, yes, but your wife is going to need to ride upon the other. There is no way she will be able to walk, nor should she. If she wants to heal right, she needs to rest." Balin said with a small smile. "We will be fine, laddy. Do not worry about us."

"I will repay you." Thorin said with a small smile before he walked back to the Caravan. There was nothing left inside of it. The gold that Vera had given them was scattered within all of the bags for travel, most of which were upon one of the horses. He walked back into the small house and watched Anira shut the journal and pick it up in her hands.

"Are you ready?" He asked with a small smile, offering a hand to her.

"Of course." She said sweetly as she limped over to him, putting as little weight on her wounded leg as possible. She grabbed his hand tightly and followed him out of the house. She stepped back, near the tree line and looked at the small home. Part of her still wanted to stay, but she knew that it was the magic poisoning her mind.

Dwalin stood with a bottle within his hand. It was full of liquid and had a small piece of wet fabric hanging out of it. He struck a match against his bracer and lit the fabric with a devious smile. It took to the flame instantly and flickered around for a few moments.

"You all may want to step back." Dwalin said sternly as he brought his arm back to throw the bottle.

Anira gasped and stepped backwards, tripping slightly. Thorin caught her, wrapping an arm around her waist as he helped her to back away from the house. Dwalin through the bottle and it shattered through the window with a great noise. Within moments, smoke began rising from the window and doorway. Not long after, the bright light of flames followed. Anira could feel the heat upon her face as she watched the flames dancing through the windows.

In an instant, she could no longer feel the magic. The home looked like any other wooden house she had ever seen. It was not lovely and it did not feel like home. She could see all of the horrible memories of this night burning away with the house itself and it made her heart feel lighter. She dropped the book upon the ground and looked over at Thorin.

"I hope she finds it before the water destroys it…" She said sternly before starting to walk towards the horses. "Shall we be on our way then?" She asked with a tender smile as she looked at the other two dwarves.

"No no, you are not walking." Balin said sternly. "Let us help you onto the horse."

"What?" She laughed, shaking her head. "I can walk just fine."

"Just because you can, does not mean you should." Balin said sternly, raising his white eyebrows at her. She looked at him sadly before nodding. She knew that he was right even if it bothered her. It took both Thorin and Balin to try and help her onto the horse without further injury. Finally, Dwalin gave her a final shove that sat her upon the horse. He turned from her quickly and acted like it angered him just to have touched her.

"Are we finally ready?" Thorin asked sternly as he put on his cloak and then his own leather pack.

"I think so." Balin said as he began walking towards the South.

"Good." Thorin said sternly as he grabbed the ropes on the horse and pulled gently. The horse began walking and it took Anira a few strides before she regained her balance. She could only imagine how falling off of the horse would impact her current injuries. Dwalin walked on the other side of her, beside Balin. She looked down at him and could not help but to smile.

"Thank you for helping with my fingers last night." She said gently.

"I did not do it for you." Dwalin snapped quickly, not looking up at her as he walked. "I only helped so that Thorin did not have to do it himself."

"I know." She said with a sad smile. "That's why I am thankful… I do not wish that anguish upon anyone. It was hard enough on him that he had to watch me go through so much. I wish I could have been stronger… So that he did not have to be."

Dwalin looked up at her now, but he still would not speak to her. He looked back at the ground and shifted the pack on his back. Perhaps she really was not a witch after all.

"How far do we have to travel?" Anira asked as she turned to look down at Thorin.

"About four days to the nearest down, and then almost another month until we reach the Blue Mountains." He said as he tried to think about their journey. He was not the greatest with directions. Good thing that Balin had showed up. He would end up navigating most of this trek. "There are a few other towns that we will stop in to grab more provisions, but that's about it."

"How far until we are out of the reach of the elves?"

"That I do not know. I used to think they never left their woods, but seeing the queen within Osterberg… I am not so sure how far they travel now." He said honestly before looking up at her.

"I just hope we are out of her reach before she finds the house." She said gently. "I do not want to see her now, or ever. I want her to find the book she ruined our lives with and go back to hiding within her forest."

"I hope so too, but only time will tell." He said with a sad smile. He almost felt pity for Valessfaeniel. All she wanted was a chance to be a mother. The mother she should have been from the very beginning. It was not unreasonable for Anira to be as cold as she was. She had been hurt and lied to. In her mind, every trial with Thorin was rooted from the Journal that had been given to him.

They traveled all day and into the night. Stopping only when they found a cave to seek shelter in for the night. The air was getting colder and colder each night. They hoped to reach the next town before it got too bitter outside. Stopping for the winter was not an option now. The risk of being caught by the elven queen was enough to make all of them want to face the freezing air. Anira sat beside Thorin within their cave and looked out into the darkness. She wondered if the woman had found the book, or if it was even still there. She wondered if the magic kept the house standing, or if it was just a pile of ash upon the ground by now. With a deep sigh, Anira closed her eyes and leaned against Thorin, hoping that sleep would quickly take her so that her thoughts would stop racing.

Valessfaeniel walked quickly through the blackness of night, trying to make as little sound as she possibly could. Her dark cloak was wrapped around her tightly and her hood was covering most of her face. She had forced her guards to wait for her within the woods, with the horses. She did not want them to know that the young elf maid was in fact her daughter. If Thranduil found out what she was doing, he would be more than furious with her. He would likely never forgive her for the rest of their immortal lives. As much as she hated him, she did not want to cause this kind of lasting argument. He always had the last word and would likely lock her within his dungeon if it was the only way he would win. Valessfaeniel did not understand why he hated her daughter so much. She was only a child when he had met her. He did not even tolerate her existence for a year before forcing Valessfaeniel to chose between giving her daughter away, or killing her. He was the cruelest man she had ever met and he had a heart as black as death. She wondered if his last wife had taken his happiness with her when her life ended. It seemed very likely, but Thranduil would not ever speak with her about such things.

She entered into the clearing then and nearly screamed in horror. The house was no longer standing. There were pieces of hot metal still glowing and there was smoke rising from the ashes.

"What on earth happened here…" She whispered to herself sadly as she looked around at everything. She walked closer to the wreckage, her heart beating wildly within her chest. She feared that someone had burned down the small home with Thorin and Anira inside of it.

"Anira? Thorin?" She called loudly as she continued to try and step closer. That's when her foot slipped on what she assumed to be a rock. She gasped, catching her balance before looking down. Her heart sank when she saw the red leather beneath her shoe. She stepped back and dropped to her knees, picking the book up from the cold ground. She held it for a few moments before the lock clicked open. Everything was still in tact, but something did not feel right. She flipped through its pages quickly, making sure that everything was there. This book would be the death of her if anyone found it, especially Thranduil. That's when she found it, the last page of the book. The handwriting was not her own and she knew that it must belong to Anira for it was too neat to be any dwarf.

"Valessfaeniel,

You have ruined my marriage, and my

childhood. I hope you are proud of what

you have done to your own child. I grew

up listening to lies and being raised to be

a bride for an evil man who only saw me

as an object. You are no mother to me.

You have no power over me and I do

not now, nor ever, want to see you again.

I am not going to let you poison either of

us any longer. Enjoy eternity.

-Anira"

Valessfaeniel began to sob as she read the last page within her own book. This was not what was supposed to happen! They were supposed to be reunited with love and longing. She was supposed to be a good mother and care for her child the way she should have. She was going to leave Thranduil and beg the dwarves for refuge from his cruelty. All of these hopes and dreams were not shattered. Anira hated her and wanted nothing to do with her, all because of this stupid journal. Valessfaeniel cursed herself for ever writing it. She should never have given up her child. She should have fought against Thranduil and made him let her keep her only child. She had never once had a problem with his child. Why did he care so much about hers?

"M'lady!" A female voice called from behind her. "M'lady, we must go. We must go now!" Raveena said loudly as she hurried towards the woman. "Why on earth are you on the ground?"

"Never mind." Valessfaeniel hissed as she stood up and turned to face the young girl. "Why are we leaving so quickly?"

"Thranduil."

"What about him?" Valessfaeniel asked quickly, her face going pale as she realized she may have been found out.

"The others are distracting him, but he is here." The young girl said, still nearly breathless as she looked at Valessfaeniel. "He realized that you should have been home days ago and says he came looking for you. He knew you had a house in these woods for when you desired to leave the realm, but he has finally found it." She said before looking passed Valessfaeniel, her eyes locked on the smoldering heap that was once a small home.

"There is no longer a refuge here." Valessfaeniel snapped angrily as she walked passed the girl and into the forest. Thranduil never left his realm unless he absolutely had to. This arrival here meant only that he was infuriated with her. The only way to fight his anger was with anger. Submissiveness would get here absolutely nowhere.

"Where is she?" She heard Thranduil demand in the darkness, just a few trees ahead of her now.

"I told you, she did not say where she went. She told us to wait here and said she would be back."

"I think you are all lying to cover for her. Do you really fear her wrath more than my own?" Thranduil asked with a bitter tone.

"We do not… We do not fear her." One of her guards said quietly.

"Oh, be quiet." Valessfaeniel called angrily before walking into sight. Thranduil turned and looked at her. His face grew hard instantly as he walked to her and grabbed her by her arm and tugging her. He pulled her as if she were being a disobedient child.

"Where on earth have you been and why have you not sent word back to me of your delays?" Thranduil hissed quietly as he looked at her. His blue eyes were piercing with anger as he scanned her face.

"My business is my own." She hissed angrily as she glared at him. She rose her arms and shoved him away. "Do not touch me." She warned quietly.

"Are you giving me an order?" Thranduil said with a bitter laugh as he stepped closer to her. He grabbed her by her shoulders and shook her slightly before glaring at her again. "Did you forget? I own you!" He shouted before releasing her and stepping away. "Come now, we are going home. I'm going to see to it that your refuge will no longer be standing after tonight." He threatened quietly.

"You do not have to worry about that. Someone has already burned it to the ground." She said coldly as she began walking again, disappearing into the darkness. Her daughter must have felt the magic within the house, the binding spell that was meant to keep her there. That must be why it was burned down. Perhaps Anira was the luckiest of all involved in this horrible life. She was the only one who found love, acceptance, and soon, a permanent home. Valessfaeniel let out a deep sigh as she looked up at the stars. She watched them flicker through the leafs of the trees for a few moments before a tear slid down her cheek. Anira did not know how lucky she was that she did not have to grow up surviving the company of Thranduil. She wished that fate upon no one. He was her husband by law, but she had always hated him.

She would always hate him.