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Chapter 10: The Strong – Part 1

The sisters strode from the enormous black tent and into the cold night air. That had felt much more like an ambush than a welcoming, which in Calandra's mind put the King in an untrustworthy position with her and her sister. They had come to help when word of war crept along the side of their mountains, finding its way to her ears. She had heard it to be Thorin Oakenshield who was on the receiving end and it caused her heart to nearly burst through her chest.

She had remembered Fili's words to her as they had laid curled up in the arms of one another during one of their few nights together, soft covers surrounding them as he had kissed her hair and told her of the furtive and not yet fully determined quest his uncle and companions were possibly to set out on after a few years. Twenty years was a bit more than a few years.

Joelle walked in silence near her sister, her heart fluttering around her chest like a nervous butterfly. When her eyes had found Kili standing in the crowd, her knees had almost collapsed as his gaze roved over her, eyes finding hers as she had pulled her bottom lip between her teeth to keep her herself silent, attempting to concentrate on making Thorin accept their offer.

"Cal! Joe!" The sisters heard their names come bursting out from behind them. Fili's voice nearly caused Calandra to lose all semblance of thought, his fingers against her arm practically making her shiver in delight.

She turned abruptly to Fili, placing a finger over his lips as they continued to be led to the Queen's tent her people had set up for her and her sister. They were good people, strong people. They had come when she needed them, she almost felt unworthy of the power they had handed over to her as they regained their homeland.

After the two girls thanked the wide and grey bearded man who led them to their quarters, they pulled the boys inside. Calandra quickly closed the clasps of it to keep the wind out, turning to Fili who was gazing at his brother and Joelle with a raised eyebrow. Joelle had launched herself into Kili's arms the second they entered a private space, her legs securing around his hips. Joelle's lips closing around his with need and happiness as he grinned against the lips he'd been dreaming about, his tongue parting her lips to deepen the already heated kiss.

When Fili looked back at Calandra, stepping towards her as he lastly took in the thin silver and steel crown atop her head. "Queen, huh?"

Calandra's expression relaxed as she advanced, placing her hands on either side of his face and pulling his lips to hers. The kiss was soft, tender as Cal felt Fili pull her into him, enjoying his touch for she had grown hollow without it.

"I missed you." He murmured against her lips. A smile forming in the corners of Cal's mouth just before he captured her lips again, tasting her as his tongue trailed along hers, causing Cal to press into him harder as a pleasant sigh left her gratified lips.

"I missed you more." Calandra pulled away, her fingers caressing his cheek, coming down along his jaw. "I think your beard grew."

Fili laughed, embracing her and savouring the feeling of her closeness as he felt Calandra's heart beat against his chest. "Atamanel…" His hand came up to stroke the back of his lass's hair, her fingers tightening against the back of his heavy leather overcoat.

She could thoroughly feel her core shattering at his words but she just pushed her sappy feelings aside before drawing away placing a chaste kiss upon his charming lips, his braided mustache tickling her. "We have much to discuss, Fee."

Fili looked into her eyes, watching them darken slightly at the weight of her words and what was to come. He nodded, taking her hand and pulling her outside, but not before looking over his shoulder to check to see if Kili was interested in hearing this. But Fili realized that he might be a little busy as he and Joelle had fallen to the fall wrapped in each other's hold, wrestling around near the warmth of the fire, fighting for dominance like children. He knew Joe would clarify everything for Kili by the time they were both tuckered out.

Reaching back into the tent, Calandra took Fili by the hand and led him out past the sitting men, beckoning a few away from the campfire to go rest for morning was not far behind. They sat hand in hand there; Fili's eye's searching her face as she tried to collect the correct words.

Their rolling about on the ground ended after a long while, the laughing and grunting ceasing when Kili finally had Joelle pinned beneath him, her chest rising and falling quickly as she struggled to catch her breath.

"Get off me you oaf!" Joelle giggled.

"Who are you calling oaf, you miniature troll." Kili grinned mischievously, leaning down to press light kisses along the soft flesh of her neck. To his delight her pulse jumped when he took the skin between his teeth and sucked gently, a gasp leaving her throat.

"How dare you?" She all but sighed, struggling to get her hands free but there was no use under his weight. "I am a princess now and a member of the royal guard and a whole bunch of other things I just can't think of at this moment."

Kili chuckled, leaning more into her until they're hips were flush against one another, his breath leaving him when she rolled hers up against his, causing friction to spark between them. "Aulë, Joelle, you have no idea how much I have missed you."

His hands released hers to come and stroke her flushed high cheekbones, his touch sending warmth spreading through her. Inclined, he brushed his lips lightly over hers, gently parting them to take in her bottom lip, pulling her into the haze of his warm-hearted kiss. Releasing his grip made Joelle smile against his mouth, swiftly rolling over and landing atop Kili, legs astride him.

The heat that pooled within her when she felt his hands run up her thighs to come and grip her hips was immense. Especially when she eased down lower so she was completely pressed against him, her pulse jumping when she saw the way his eyes darkened with want. "And I missed you, Âzyungâl."

Kili could hardly contain himself when he felt her lean down onto him, her lips ghosting against his ears. "I have missed your touch, Kili. It was a long, hard twenty years without you."

When she pulled back she hardly had time to breathe before his calloused hands slipped behind her neck, bringing her to him as he sat up, supporting her in his lap. Joe leaned into his kiss, breathing in his scent, smelling the trees and air on him and the scent of the earth. She had not realized how much she'd been missing. She felt her fingers instinctively going to his chest, tugging off his over coat as she speedily worked the ties of his tunic loose.

But she was surprised when he stopped her fragile fingers from continuing, breaking their kiss. She looked up, confusion in her eyes as she felt herself being denied what she so desperately wanted and needed. "Joe, what happened to you?"

Joelle tilted her head, her long tawny hair tumbling around her. "What do you mean?"

Gently, Kili placed his hand over her scarred cheek, gingerly stroking the ever-soft skin before tracing his thumb down her throat and stopping over her chest. "You know what."

His shadowed molten eyes waited for an answer as her own fingers came up to touch the once perfect skin, her cheeks paling at the thought that he may not want her as much now that she was marked. "Battle scars, I presume." Joelle shrugged thoughtlessly.

"How?" Concern filled his now sad eyes, the thought of someone hurting her seemed unbearable. "Who did this?"

Joelle smiled softly, her fingers coming to the top of the leather buckles on her vest as she slowly undid them, pulling it off and tossing it to the ground, then she lifted the light chainmail over her head to reveal her dark grey fitted blouse. Kili didn't know what she was doing till she began unlacing the strings just above her breast and gently pulled the material just enough over her shoulder for Kili so see where the insipid scar ended.

It ran along just past her shoulder halfway down her bicep, and Kili felt all sense leave him. He leaned in to trail loving kisses along the scar, stopping at her shoulder to look back at her. But the eyes that were upon him were not the eyes he had seen a moment ago. These eyes were lost in the depths of thought, as memories flew past her, consuming her.

"Tell me?" Kili asked, his fingers brushing over her lips, bringing her back to him.

After a moment Joe nodded, her fingers playing with the ties of blue tunic in front of her, unable to meet his gaze. "It was when my sister and I took back our kingdom. There had been a man living there," she paused not knowing how to describe that monster. "But he was no longer a man, he'd become evil, what was left of his soul turned black and full of hate and the Orcs just seemed to flock to him like a beacon. Even the drakes from the lands beyond came to him for he held some kind of wicked hold over them, a power I suppose."

She breathed, looking back at Kili, whose brows were furrowed as he tried to imagine it. "We had gathered an armies worth of people who had once been the people of Ered Mithrin, and we led them into battle." Joelle became so fidgety though that she stood abruptly, almost knocking Kili backwards in surprise. She walked over to the fire and stood before it, the warmth licking at her through the air. "It was the hardest thing we had ever done; half way through it all we were unsure if we'd survive. For there were too many Orcs for one to count coming at us in a constant stream, and the battle raged on for many years."

Kili stood, coming towards her with his arms open as he took her in them, resting his chin on her shoulder as he kissed her feathery hair. She took a shaky breath. "My sister and I were inexperienced at best but simply travelling to the Grey Mountains forced us to train. We were separated for days, our camps far off from the fighting; I knew not whether she was alive or dead. But that's when I saw him, the hulking beast of a man; his eyes were beyond reason looking cold and bloodthirsty. His clothes were dithering and blood covered, and he wore the bones of his fallen as armor. I had to use what strength I had left after being lost among the battle front for days…"

It was as if she were back there. The beast headed straight for her, there was nothing for her to do but hold her ground, her knees and arms weak from holding such a heavy sword for so long. Metal clashed against metal as his axe struck her sword, knocking her off her feet with the impact as she rolled and recollected herself before he struck her again; landing her flat on her back and the giant man towered over her before grabbing her by the front of her armor.

"Such a shame, to waste such a pretty thing." The man's voice was malicious, his breath blew in her face, causing her to gag until she felt the blade of his axe running down her face and she screamed, kicking away from him so it sliced further down her skin. But she had kicked him with enough force in the stomach to wind him for a moment or two and she landed back on the ground with a thud.

Joelle scrambled to get her footing, feeling the warm liquid seeping through her clothes and causing her to begin to feel lightheaded. She reached for her sword, gripping it tightly in her slippery fingers. And stood just as the man charged her but he was knocked to the ground by the swift, forceful movement of someone tackling him.

Coughing blood, she had gawked at her sisters still body on the ground after colliding with the monstrous man with such power. The man roared with fury.

"No one touches Rognvald!" His enormous dirty hands grabbed Calandra roughly by her scarlet hair, causing her to wake and shout out in pain.

"Release her!" Joelle had yelled up at the man, venom in her voice, blood ran down her ivory skin as she swayed on her fatigued legs.

"Or what, tiny one?" He bellowed before dropping the girl carelessly back to the floor, she attempted to stand but her knees shook and she fell.

"Baruk khazâd!" Joelle barked aloud before ramming her long sword into the man's gut as he howled in pain, dropping to a knee as he grit his teeth with rage, beginning to rise again until Joe called upon all her strength and raised her sword, bringing it down hard on Rognvald's thick neck with a cry of vengeance. The sound of breaking bone and fast wet metal filled the air as the beast's head hit the floor and rolled onward, his body sinking to the ground lifelessly.

Joelle had stood there looking for a moment as others around them stopped to stare at the blood soaked women who had just beheaded the mountain orcs dark King. They squealed and squabbled fighting hard for a while after until they realized all was lost without him and fled. Joelle had soon after collapsed in her sister's arms, copious amounts of red blood leaking from her body.

"Calandra had thought she had lost me. I had gone nearly white when they finally brought me to the healer's tent; even then it was touch and go for a few days. But I mended." Joelle leaned her head back on Kili's shoulder, feeling him nuzzle her neck. "I have not thought of that day for a long time."

"You are so very brave, Joelle daughter of Aggrift. Although I wish I could have been the one to cut the bastards head off." She felt Kili's warm lips against her skin and turned to face him, her eyes no longer sad but relieved that Kili still found her appealing and now knew what had become of her.

"Do you still love me?" Joelle's thin fingers came up to tangle in Kili's untidy hair.

"Men lananubukhs menu, how could you even ask such a question?" Kili pulled her into him, their lips meeting with soft reassurance, pulling her into the warmth of the kiss as his lips moved to form with hers.