AN: Bonjour! I return with a Dwalin/Ori fic to the tune of Safe and Sound. Originally by Taylor Swift and the Civil Wars, but I listen to the cover by Me Vs Gravity. Seriously, it's wonderful. There's also a great cover by Tiffany Alvord and Megan Nicole. I would definitely recommend both covers, if you like the original. This is a T fic, requested by simsfans. I didn't know if you wanted a T or M, but I was in a cuddly mood, so you got T. I don't have anyone to cuddle with, so I take it out on my characters. Enjoy!
OOOOO
Ori was pacing again. He did it a lot, in the aftermath of the Battle of the Five Armies. Everyone had survived, thank Mahal, with only moderate damage. The worst was Thorin, who was still asleep with a fever because of his numerous wounds, but thankfully he was on his way to recovery. Bilbo hadn't left the Dwarf King's side, even though they were all unsure if Thorin was back as himself. The King could wake up only to banish Bilbo again, but the Hobbit was stubbornly staying until the King woke.
Thorin's nephews were also a little worse for the wear. Fili could have permanent damage in his left leg, and Kili was cut from his chin to his navel. It was a miracle that infection hadn't set in, mostly due to that red haired Elf that insisted on being his and his brother's personal healer. She felt responsible for the princes', after their treatment in Mirkwood. No one was going to argue with the fierce Elf maiden either. Especially not the healers who had too much on their hands as it was. Oin especially had his plate full, with eleven other Dwarves and a ridiculously obstinate Hobbit to take care of. He was more than glad to see Tauriel helping Fili and Kili.
Ori himself had made it through the battle with very little by the way of wounds. His left arm was broken, but that was better than it being his writing arm, and he had bruising all over his chest and sides. However it wasn't any of this that was making the scribe pace. It was that thrice damned, bull headed, son of a balrog who refused to let himself heal after nearly getting killed not even a week ago! Ori swore some days that it would be easier to just whack Dwalin over his shiny bald head to keep him in bed. And Oin would agree if it weren't for the concussion already plaguing the warrior Dwarf.
"You're going to drive me to drink brother! Sit down!" Nori called from where he lay reclined on a slightly disgusting cot. Their resources in the wake of the punishing battle were good, all things considering. The fact that they even had cots was unbelievable, but fantastic. Ori pointedly ignored his older brother and kept pacing, his little fist clenched so hard that his nails could have cut his palm if they were longer. "Ori!" Nori finally screamed, and Ori turned on him with a glare that even Thorin would be proud of.
"I am not going to sit down! I am fine!" Ori yelled, and all five of the other Dwarves in the tent turned to him with looks that told him exactly how much they believed him. Sharing a tent with his two brothers would normally be torture for the youngest Ri, because Nori and Dori had a habit of squabbling over every little thing. Thankfully, having Bofur, Bifur, and Bombur there was keeping the childish bickering to a minimum so Ori could worry about one thing rather than three. That wasn't to say that he didn't have more than enough on his plate given the one thing he was worrying about.
"Why don't yeh just go an talk to 'im?" Bofur suggested nonchalantly. Ori snorted.
"He only has ears for the King and the Princes. Anything other than those damned Dwarves and their recovery goes in one ear and out the other! He doesn't even listen to his own brother, why would he listen to me?!" Ori started relatively calmly, but by the end of his little tirade he was shouting like Oin without his ear trumpet.
"Look, Ori, you knew who he was when you accepted his courting. I tried to warn you, but did you listen to me? No." Dori stated, his nose turned up into the air.
"Not this again Dori! He's an adult, he can very well court whoever he pleases! Or rather, whoever pleases him!" Nori was instantly snapping at Dori, before Ori could so it himself. Sometimes he felt like he didn't even need to be within a hundred yard radius of his brothers for them to pick a fight over him. Dori thought he was too young to be out doing potentially dangerous things with potentially dangerous people, and Nori thought he was too old to be mothered by their elder brother. It didn't matter what Ori thought. Not at all.
"Will you please all shut up!" Again five pairs of eyes turned to him, this time in surprise. Ori hardly ever showed dominance over others. He was more comfortable letting them lead, mostly because he was younger than the others. But right now, he was more than a little angry and worried and he was surrounded by death and the smell was terrible. He was not in the mood to listen to his brothers argue over his relationship. Especially not when the man he loved was risking his life every second he spent away from a healing bed, pushing himself further than anyone should after what they had been through.
After a few, extremely tense, moments of shocked silence, Ori turned and stormed out of the tent. He passed a few Dwarves he recognized, including Gloin and Balin, but he greeted none of them. And they all seemed to understand that he was not in the mood for pleasantries. Instead he stomped right out of camp and to the little river that flowed a half a mile away. He never relaxed the tension in his shoulders as he went, glaring ahead at the sparse patched of trees like they had personally insulted him, and his mother, and his home at the same time. Finally he reached the banks of the river and there he dropped like a stone to his knees and screamed, all of his frustration pouring out of him as he did.
When he was done screaming and cursing, he just sat. His eyes glazed over slightly as he stared blankly at the gentle flow of the river. He was so...tired. Tired of being angry, and being worried, and being scared! Because he was scared. He was more scared now than he had been during the battle. Because now he was still in danger of losing his One. Why couldn't Dwalin understand that what he was doing to himself wasn't just bad for him, but for Ori as well? Seeing his One so beat up, and resisting healing as well, just made Ori want to run until he never saw Dwalin again. Because he wouldn't be able to bear it if Dwalin died. He just wouldn't.
A slow breeze ruffled his hair, but he hardly noticed. He was letting his mind slow down as the seconds passed. He was feeling the exhaustion of the last week of sleepless nights creep up on him. And for once, he was not thinking about anybody else. He was very fervently not thinking about his One, or his brothers, or his King, or his friends. He was thinking about how beautiful the river looked as it crept by in all its timeless glory. In that moment, he would give anything to be One with the river. It was just as stubborn and awe inspiring and wonderful as Dwalin, but it wasn't slowly killing itself. It wasn't tempting fate. It wasn't mocking the Mahal for letting it live through the battle. No. All the river did was flow. That would be enough for Ori, if it meant life.
The scribe stiffly moved to lay on his side and continued staring at the crystalline blue water. It was so peaceful here. Far away from the Dwarves, both living and dead. Away from the raucous laughter of the survivors and the agonizing moans of those who wished they hadn't survived. It was so peaceful that he slipped off into a dreamless sleep before he even realized his eyes were closing. His exhaustion grabbed him with warm claws and dragged him under into comforting blackness. And he didn't resist it one bit.
OOOOO
"Ori." He moaned and shifted away from the hand on his shoulder, muttering something about wanting to sleep. There was a deep chuckle and now the hand was running through his hair.
"Go away." Ori mumbled, burying his face in his arms.
"Ori, yer on the bank of the river. Come on, let me walk yeh back to camp. Yeh can go back to sleep there." The voice sounded so familiar, and so caring. But he was still too asleep to place it. Instead he rolled away from whoever it was and curled into himself again. There was a sigh this time, and a mutter about stubborn young Dwarves. "Ori." This time the voice was firmer, and he recognized it very quickly because of it. Looking back on their quest, Ori was sure that Dwalin spoke in a firm tone more than in a caring tone.
"What are you doing here?" Ori asked bitterly, but didn't move to get up.
"Why shouldn't I be? Your brothers were worried about yeh, asked me to come get yeh." Dwalin told him, a bit of confusion leaking into his voice. Of course he would be oblivious to why Ori might be upset with him.
"How did they manage to drag you away from Thorin's tent?" Ori huffed, his bitterness only growing. He wasn't mad at Dwalin, really. He was upset that the Dwarf was being stupid and not letting himself heal, and he was scared of losing the warrior. But it was easier to pretend he was mad at the tattooed Dwarf. Dwalin hesitated before kneeling next to his One and pulling Ori up into a sitting position. The smaller Dwarf huffed indignantly and looked about ready to start yelling when Dwalin spoke.
"Are yeh angry with me?" Dwalin asked, his eyebrows lowering in concern. Ori jerked out of his grasp and jumped up, headed heatedly back to camp. And oh, the words he had for his brothers! Sending Dwalin to retrieve him, even knowing how he felt about the Dwarf at the moment! The gall of his kin was astounding! He would like nothing better than to tie their beards together and see how they liked being forced to interact with each other! "Ori! Ori wait!" Dwalin called, easily catching up to the scribe. "Will yeh talk to me? Please?" That stopped him rather effectively and the glare he leveled at the Dwarf could make Smaug cringe.
"You want me to talk to you?! Oh that is rich! Coming from the Dwarf who has only existed during the last few days to pine by his King's bed! You're worse than Bilbo!" Ori shouted and kept walking. Dwalin was stunned into stillness for a few moments before he rushed after the ginger Dwarf.
"That's what yer angry about? That I've been watching over Thorin?" Dwalin refused to shout back at Ori, keeping his voice relatively calm even as his One steamed.
"Oh, watching over him, is that what you call it? You never leave his side unless you're unconscious and being dragged back to your tent! I didn't even think you still knew there was life beyond his tent!" Ori vented, his scathing words coming effortlessly in his rage. He knew that just beneath that anger was hurt and concern and fear, and that if he let even an inch of it show, Dwalin would know. He just had to stay mad long enough to get to camp.
"Ori, stop." Dwalin grabbed him by his shoulder, halting him sharply. Ori turned to snarl at him, and a thick paw covered his mouth. "Yeh need to calm down. Yer not thinking clear right now, I can tell." Ori's cheeks burned with righteous indignation "Now, what's really bothering yeh?" Dwalin asked, in his infuriatingly calm way, and he slowly took his hand away from Ori's mouth. But the younger Dwarf didn't say anything. He just glared at Dwalin, trying to keep himself composed. He would not break in front of the warrior Dwarf, not after Dwalin had made him worry himself half to death over the last week, and now had the nerve to act so suave and calm and rational! Ori was practically shaking with anger. Although, it could also be because he was trying desperately to hold back his tears.
"You...don't get to ask me that." Ori hissed quietly, Dwalin nearly recoiling from the malice in his tone. But Dwalin knew his One well enough to know that such anger, such emotion, only meant one thing. Ori was trying so hard to cover up his real emotions, and anger was the most reliable cover. It was why Dwalin was able to stay so calm. Because he knew that his One didn't in fact despise him, but was only trying to bottle up his true emotions. If he thought for one second that Ori was really, truly angry with him, he would yell right back. He wasn't in the habit of laying down and being yelled at. Not for anyone but an upset Ori.
"Yeah, well here I am. Askin'." Dwalin said stubbornly, his hand on Ori's shoulder squeezing slightly. For a good half a minute, it seemed like Ori was going to make it. That his facade wasn't going to break. But then Dwalin got this look in his eyes, like he was a kicked puppy, and it was like a dam was bursting. Suddenly Ori couldn't handle it anymore and just broke down into deep, heart twisting sobs. Dwalin instantly brought the distressed Dwarf to his chest and slowly rubbed his hand up and down Ori's back while the scribe wept.
"I hate you!" Ori hissed between his sobs.
"No you don't." Dwalin replied calmly. Ori cried into Dwalin's chest for a good while before he started to calm down. He sniffled lightly, still burying his face in Dwalin's tunic rather than chance looking at the bigger Dwarf. "What's wrong Ori?" Dwalin asked after a few minutes of silence. Once again it appeared that he wasn't going to get an answer from his One, but then Ori sighed.
"I almost lost you." Ori whispered.
"But yeh didn't." Dwalin pointed out.
"But I still could! All you do is sit with Thorin and run errands for the royal family and you're never letting yourself rest and heal! You may not be running onto an Orc's sword, but you're still killing yourself!" Ori shouted, worming out of Dwalin's arms. "You made me nearly die of fright when I found you on the battlefield, and you're still scaring me! Every second of the day I worry that you're going to die because you won't let yourself get better!" Dwalin was a little shocked. He hadn't expected Ori to be mad about that. He thought the younger Dwarf was probably just upset because Dwalin hadn't spent much time with him after the battle. He never imagined Ori was worried about him dying.
"Ori...love, I'm not going to die. It would take far worse to put me outta commission. Yeh don't need to worry about me." Dwalin spoke gently, soothingly.
"You don't know that! When was the last time you let Oin check your wounds? You could have four different infections and not even know it because you've been obsessing over Thorin's infection!" Ori seethed.
"I just had him check them today. I'm fine Ori. And, Thorin woke up today as well. Yeh should have heard the words that Bilbo had for him. Right after the tearful confession of love they both gave." Ori let himself be distracted for a moment, a small smile curling up the corners of his lips at the thought of their little Hobbit yelling at Thorin. But then he remembered that he was upset and he schooled his face into a glare.
"You've made me worry myself ragged! And now you just want me to forgive you because you say you're fine?!" Ori huffed, and Dwalin didn't know what to say. He knew Ori was more emotional then he was, and because of this, Dwalin didn't quite know what to do in this situation. Sure, he knew he had to comfort his One, but he didn't know how to go about it. Then an idea struck him. He was not as bad with words as everybody thought. Ori had a gift with them, yes, but Dwalin wasn't exactly inept.
"I remember tears streaming down your face when I said, 'I'll never let you go'. When all those shadows almost killed your light." It had been the first thing he had managed to say when he woke up on the battlefield, with an armful of sobbing Ori. The ginger Dwarf had been so upset, so traumatized by the war he had just survived. Only Dwalin could calm him down. The scribe remembered as well. "I remember you said, 'Don't leave me here alone'. But all that's dead and gone and past tonight." The battle was long over, Ori didn't have to worry about it anymore. Dwalin carefully approached the tense Dwarf and enfolded him in a hug. Thankfully, Ori accepted it. "Just close your eyes, the sun is going down. You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now. Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound." Ori sighed heavily, his entire body reacting to Dwalin's promise. The warrior Dwarf smiled and placed a soft kiss on his One's forehead.
"Don't you dare look out your window, darling everything's on fire. The war outside our door keeps raging on." Ori sniffled, his head still swimming with images of the dead and dying, of all the races.
"Hold on to this lullaby, even when the music's gone. Just close your eyes, the sun is going down. You'll be alright, no one can hurt you now. Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound." Dwalin reassured his, holding him tighter. Nothing was going to hurt his Ori. He just wished Ori believed that. He hummed wordlessly for a while, feeling a rush of relief when Ori finally fully relaxed in his arms. "Just close your eyes. You'll be alright. Come morning light, you and I'll be safe and sound." He promised one more time.
He hummed wordlessly again for a little bit until finally Ori looked up at him. The scribe's eyes were red and puffy from tears, but they were soft and open as opposed to a few minutes ago. Ori sniffled and wiped his nose on his hand, something Dori would probably faint at. It made Dwalin smile. Ori looked so young sometimes, especially right now.
"I'm sorry I've worried yeh. It was never my intention." Dwalin whispered, wiping away whatever wetness remained on Ori's cheeks.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you." Ori reluctantly responded. Dwalin chuckled fondly and shook his head.
"I had it coming. I have been neglecting you, and myself. But, I promise, I'm fine. And now, I'll stick by your side until you get so annoyed with me that you send me away." Dwalin promised, his heart souring when Ori giggled.
"I could never get that annoyed." Ori said stubbornly. Dwalin brushed red hair away from his One's eyes and leaned in to kiss him gently.
"Come on. I'm exhausted." He nodded towards camp, and Ori nodded.
"It's about time you thought about yourself." He huffed but twined his fingers in with the warrior's and walked beside him. Ori felt so much better, just being near his One. Seeing that Dwalin was okay, if not 100% healed. He felt safe. Safe and Sound. And though Dwalin would never admit it to anyone else, he felt it too.
OOOOO
AN: Yeah, I'll probably use this song later to do a Bilbo/Thorin fic. But it fit so well for Dwalin and Ori in my head. I just love couples like them. A huge buff gentle giant, and a little adorable book nerd. It just makes me happy. Hope you liked it.
