ATE: Well, I got some good news! Recently I finished writing Chapter 18, which marks the end of the first movie segment of this story (although I'll need to go back through and watch the movie as I fix a few mistakes). So that means I've started writing up the outline for the Desolation of Smaug segment for this story. Anyways, big thanks go out to VG fan1, Boston Rider, and Eruwaeheil95 for their reviews and anyone else still reading. I know this chapter is shorter than it could be, but it's enough to cover until next week.
ALSO! I wanted to point out that this chapter takes place when the Dwarves are roasting food over a fire they made from the Elves' furniture. I'm aware that in the extended version of An Unexpected Journey that this scene takes place AFTER the scene where Elrond and Lindir find the Dwarves swimming in one of their fountains, but there's a reason why this happened! The reason was that I was doing this from memory and got the order of those two scenes mixed up, and by the time I was writing up Chapter 15 and went back to watch the movie did I realize that I realized this and the damage was done. I have no way of going back and fixing these mistakes because I would have to change a vast amount of the content I've already written up. Seeing as this is a fanfic I can actually get away with this, and I'm sure you all understand this simple mistake on my part.
Declaimer: I don't own The Hobbit or LOTRs and never will! I only own my OCs.
~*~Chapter 12~*~
Just as she promised Silvia had joined the Dwarves that night in the area they were staying in (she would've gotten lost if it hadn't been for hearing the sound of the Dwarves' merriment). She was surprised that the Dwarves created a fire by burning the broken pieces of a wooden chair, but by this time there wasn't any point in making a deal out of it. She could see Bofur sitting by the fire cooking sausages with Bifur close by holding some lettuce over the flames. Bombur sat on top of a bench eating while the rest of the Dwarves sat around the room, some of them smoking their pipes as they relaxed. What Silvia noticed was that Thorin, Balin, and Bilbo were missing, which she voiced to the others.
"They went with Gandalf to discuss something." Dwalin told her simply.
So that explained where they were (which was the main reason why Gandalf had them come to Rivendell). Silvia eventually found herself sitting beside Bifur in front of the fire, in which she received a greeting from the Dwarf.
"Hello, Bifur." She replied with a smile.
Bifur responded with a smile and spoke enthusiastically in Dwarvish. He then gesture towards her and Silvia felt confused.
"Something about me?" She asked.
He nodded before proceeding to lift the fabric that made up the dress she wore, to which she realized what he was trying to tell her.
"My dress!" Bifur nodded and said something. "You like my dress?"
"Close, lass." Bofur said, causing Silvia to turn to him. "He's trying to say you look pretty in that dress."
"Oh." Silvia blushed but was glad the light of the fire hid this fact. "Is there a reason Bifur can only speak Dwarvish?"
"The correct term is Khuzdul. As for the reason Bifur had a bit of an accident, hence the axe in his head. He's perfectly capable of understanding you, but if you want I'll tell you if your guess is close."
Silvia nodded before turning back to Bifur. Even if she couldn't understand his words she was capable of guessing with this little game of charades.
"So you actually eat green food despite what Dwalin said yesterday?" She asked.
Bifur nodded before holding out the piece of lettuce he'd been roasting to her. She laughed.
"Normally I would accept, but seeing as I don't have the same appetite as you Dwarves I must decline. But thank you for offering."
"So that means you wouldn't be interested in some sausage then?" Bofur asked, taking one of the links off the stick he'd been using.
"Sadly, no."
Bofur glanced down at the sausage in his hand before glancing over to Bombur.
"Bombur!"
Bombur successfully caught the sausage Bofur tossed his was, but the bench stated groaning before breaking underneath the fat Dwarf's weight. Everyone busted out laughing at the sight (for Bofur it got to the point where he fell over on his side during his hysterics) and even Silvia joined them. When everyone calmed down she got up and wandered over to stand before the banister to gaze down at the clearing below, realizing that it was the same area where the festival took place last night. So this is what the Dwarves meant when they claimed to have seen her dancing last night. It was strange how last night felt like a dream but she knew it wasn't.
"May I interest you in some tea, Lady Silvia?"
Silvia turned to find Dori holding out a cup of tea to her.
"Yes." Silvia replied, gingerly taking the cup from the Dwarf. "Thank you."
"It's only courteous that I offer." Dori told her.
She nodded in agreement before taking a sip of tea, the hot liquid helping in warming her up.
"I'm guessing that you're the eldest brother when it comes to Ori and Nori?"
"You would be correct. It's my job to look after them, especially when it comes to Nori."
"Why is that?"
Dori sighed.
"He… has a tendency to get in trouble with the authorities. I thought it'd be good for him to be on this quest when it came to his habits. As for Ori I wanted him to become more open to new things.
"I noticed how Ori tends to keep to himself most of the time."
"He's always been a shy lad, even as a Dwarfling. I assume you've seen him with his nose in that journal of his."
"Many times. It wasn't until yesterday that I'd been given the chance to look at it. Your brother is talented when it comes to his drawings and writing."
Dori chuckled.
"You're the first to actually get him to show you his work aside from myself and Nori! I'm quite impressed seeing as he didn't want anyone else to see it until its completion. What I don't understand is what you mean by his writing."
"He read to me how you all met Bilbo in Bag End since I couldn't read the Dwarf Runes he wrote in. He told me how only a rare few outside your race were capable of reading and speaking…Khuzul, was it?"
"Khuzdul, lass." Dori corrected. "And the reason for that is because it's a secret language among our kind. We only teach it to only the most trustworthy of people outside our race, such as Mister Gandalf himself. Believe me when I say that there aren't many we deem so trustworthy."
"What about me? Am I trustworthy enough?" Silvia asked.
"We do trust you, but not to the point that we'd willingly teach you our language. Maybe someday you'll be able to learn Khuzdul, assuming you're still alive by that time."
Silvia wanted to tell Dori that she'd be around by that time but decided against it since they still thought she was human. She laughed in response (in order to cover up her initial thoughts) and smiled.
"Let's just hope that I'm still around when that day comes, Dori."
"Aye. We can only hope you live a long and prosperous life to the end of your days." Silvia was surprise by how somber the Dwarf beside her suddenly became. "With how much your presence has already affected our lives, it'd go without saying that your death would be considered a huge loss to us, given the mortality of Men. You'd be greatly missed, Lady Silvia."
Even though Silvia knew that wouldn't happen as soon as the others thought she couldn't help but feel sad for the Dwarves she traveled with. She'd been aware that they'd grown fond of her, but not to the extent that her own death would have such an impact on them. And the worst part was that they haven't known her for long. She couldn't imagine how devastating the result would be if they knew her for longer than a week. It didn't matter if they believed her to die prematurely when the truth was she wouldn't, it was the fact they felt that strongly for her that made things all the more harder for her, especially when they found out what she really was. True they might be glad that she wouldn't die when they thought she would, but then they would notice she wouldn't be capable of aging past a certain point in her life, which would lead to them asking questions concerning her 'mortality' before they realized she was half Elven. Knowing how much they disliked Elves she knew that the trust she would've built up by that point would be completely destroyed and more than likely exile her from the rest of them.
Her heart clenched at the thought of leaving the Dwarves and felt tears threatening to fall from her eyes.
"I'm sorry, Lady Silvia! I didn't mean to upset you!"
"No, no. You didn't upset me. I didn't realize how much I meant to all of you, and I'm touched. "She lied, rubbing her eyes in an attempt to get rid of the tears but they were easily replaced with more. "I think I should go. Thank you for the tea, Dori."
Silvia made her way across the room after passing her cup to Dori. She could hear the Dwarves voicing their concerns and questions as to where she was going but she ignored them all.
She needed to be alone for a bit.
After watching Silvia leave everyone turned to Dori before asking him what happened. The Dwarf had the decency to look ashamed as he explained what he told the woman. He sighed quietly before silently slipping out to follow her; he made sure to follow at a safe distance to avoid being seen. He knew she probably wanted to be alone, but he couldn't help feeling concerned for her.
'Dori, you fool!' He thought, feeling somewhat exasperated.
He was aware at how the race of Men could sometimes be sensitive when it came to their mortality seeing as they lived to be 100 on average. But the fact that Dori told her about how much they'd miss her when she eventually passed on from this world probably upset her. She was still fairly young and had her life ahead of her, but it didn't stop any or them from realizing how short her existence would be when compared to that of a Dwarf. Which made him painfully aware of how hard it'd be to say goodbye when the time came to do so.
He eventually followed Silvia to what he assumed was the room provided to her, and the sound of her weeping confirmed his suspicions. His heart clenched as he listened in, wanting to go inside and comfort her himself, but he resisted the urge and instead quietly slid down the wall next to the door as he sat against it. All he could do now was listen and wait, knowing that this was something Silvia need to come to terms with.
Because in reality no one wanted to die. It was only natural to fear death or the unknown regardless of how long a person's lifespan was. At some point one would accept their own death in time and even their loved ones would too eventually. But he couldn't see himself accepting Silvia's death even if she were to die of old age. Maybe holding onto the memories he'd make over the upcoming years would help ease the pain of her passing. At least he hoped so.
Eventually he heard Silvia's sobs go quiet but he waited a few minutes before deciding to enter the room. He found her lying on the large bed still clothed in the gown she wore that day with her back turned to him as she lay on her side. Walking around to the other side revealed she was now asleep, the moonlight coming into the room from the balcony making it easier for him to assess her face. He could see the trail of dry tears streaking down her cheeks from when she'd been crying and that her eyes were (most likely) red and puffy as a result. Her lips were slightly parted as she breathed while her form steadily rose up and down. He couldn't help noticing how beautiful she looked in the moonlight as she slept.
His heart ached at the sight before him. He wanted to blame Dori for the state Silvia was now in, but deep down he knew the Dwarf hadn't meant to upset her at all. In a way they were all to blame for becoming so attached to her in such a short amount of time.
'Tears don't suit you.' He thought, a sad smile gracing his lips.
He recalled how Silvia had been last night, smiling and dancing as she enjoyed the night. A smile suited her so much better than tears, especially the ones that seemed to make her face light up as they expressed her joy. He reached forward and gently brushed a strand of black hair away from her face.
'Sleep well, lass.'
And with that he silently left the room, quietly shutting the door behind him.
ATE: Explanation time!
(1) Bifur: Bifur was interesting to write and seeing as I haven't really written any form of interaction between him and Silvia (the only time was back in Chapter 5 when he work her up) I thought that this would be a good time as any for her to do so. Sorry I don't have much to say on him than that.
(2) Dori: I have Silvia interacting with Dori for the same reasons I had her interacting with Bifur. In all honesty I didn't know how to go about his character since the movies don't show us much as far as his character is concerned (all we really know from the movie is that he likes fine food and the mother hen when it comes to his brothers Nori and Ori), but I did read from tolkiengateway and lordoftheringswikia that he can be cynical, which shows in this chapter. I also felt like that she should learn a little more about his family, so yeah.
(3) Khuzdul: Since Chapter 7 Silvia learned from Ori a bit about the language the Dwarves use, but due to him not elaborating on the correct term of their language and only telling her of Dwarf Runes Silvia assumed that their language was called Dwarvish. I had to really do research on Khuzdul to get my information right. I know that Khuzdul is a secret language, and the only reason I had Dori tell Silvia that only people they deemed trustworthy enough could learn the language is because I assumed Gandalf knew Khuzdul since he was able to read the Dwarf Runes on Balin's Tomb in Fellowship of the Ring. We all know that Gandalf is a REALLY old fellow and because of that he probably learned how to read and speak Khuzdul at some point in his life. For the same reason I didn't write any Elvish dialogue in this story so far, I won't write down any of Bifur's dialogue or a conversation in Khuzdul since I don't want to do the research and, again, I'd screw up the grammar of the sentences.
(4) Silvia's dilemma: So by this point we're all aware of the conflict in Silvia's mind concerning her being half Elven. I want to show that this is an issue that she's really worried about and who can blame her? For the longest time she's believed herself to be human (from what she can remember) so learning that your not human...well it's not easy to wrap your mind around something like that, let alone cope with being told such information. Such things aren't easy for me to explain, but you should have an idea what I'm going for, right?
Sorry about this chapter being shorter than usual, but there wasn't much I could do with this part.
So I've been thinking of posting an image of Silvia's dad Richard up on DA. Who all is interested?
Anyways, what did you all think? Any questions? Please remember to review! ;D