Yah thank you ro781727 and Aryabloodlust! you both get the internet cookie! NOM NOM NOM! Enjoy! If you have seen the extended edition of two towers or read the book, you know that Legolas said that if he were to meet an Ent he would indeed feel young again.
Overall we stayed a little over a week with Beorn, using the time to replenish our supplies and have some much-needed rest. After getting used to the company Beorn proved to be a very welcoming host, entertaining the company with many stories about his people and listening to theirs in return. Fili and Kili seemed to be the most interested in the huge man and spent hours listening to him, finding it very hilarious when Beorn nicknamed Bilbo "Bunny," referring to the habit he had of twitching his nose when he was in deep thought. However, they did not think it was quite so funny when Beorn started referring to them and Ori as "Cubs," and treating them, at times, with the same condescending patience of a tired parent.
On the third day there, I sat outside waiting for my clothes that I had washed to dry so I could mend the tears in the trousers from the warg bite. Hopefully, then I could go bathe in the hot spring I had found in a secluded little grove not far from the house.
"So, I take it that they do not know what you are?" Beorn asked, coming to stand behind me as I sat watching some of the company sparring.
I jumped a little at his voice, surprised that someone so huge could move so quietly.
"I take it you do," I replied.
"I may be secluded here, but the dwarves' hunt for your kind was widely known," he said, "There was once a small village, over by the Carrock, of your kind. It was destroyed by dwarves. I got there too late to help. They did not see me, but I saw a young woman carrying a young one of your kind wrapped in a shroud. A young woman with red hair and gold eyes."
I could not help but smile, "Some of the people said that there was a guardian in the woods, in the shape of a great beast. That that was the reason we were able to hide for so long and, if you are asking, yes that was me you saw that day, and no they do not know what I am as of yet. I do not know if I will tell them or not. Old wounds run deep." I said and then got up to grab my clothes.
Beorn only smiled, nodding and then leaving me to my mending. After I had finished, I went back in the house and rummaged through my pack. Grabbing what I needed for my bath, I then set out for the hot spring. What I did not notice was that I had dropped something out of my pack, I also did not see the dwarf that picked it up and, after examining it, looked after me in utter shock.
***Company POV***
The company sat scattered about the house, either mending weapons, clothing, or just simply resting. Kili and Fili were once again sitting and exchanging stories with Beorn.
"So, you two cubs enjoy pulling pranks on the others?" Beorn asked chuckling a bit, ignoring the scowls on the brother's faces at the new nickname, "Sounds like my brother and I when we were younger. I bet they get plenty upset."
Kili smiled, "Yeah, you should have seen how angry Dwalin got when Farren, Fili, and I hid his axes halfway up a large tree over by the Carrock. It was even funnier when he had to ask Bilbo to get them down for him after he fell out of the tree several times, because the branches kept breaking!" Kili said loudly, unable to cover his laughter.
Unfortunately, he did not notice Dwalin's shocked and angry face, as he was sitting only a few feet away and had heard everything that was said. However, Fili did and proceeded to drag his brother outside after making a quick excuse to Beorn.
"What was that all about?!" Kili asked indignantly.
"You can't keep your big mouth shut can you! We were supposed to keep Farren's involvement between us! I am surprised you have not blabbed about us stealing Thorin's sword and dropping it in a lake in the Shire!" Fili scolded his younger brother.
"Hey! There would be no need for keeping it a secret if you had not dropped the sword in the first place!" Kili fired back.
"I would not have dropped it if you hadn't tripped me!" Fili continued to argue.
"I did not…" Kili tried to argue back but was stopped by the sound of a deep, almost evil, chuckle.
Dwalin stepped out of the shadowed doorway that he had been standing in, listening to the argument and the brothers watched him apprehensively.
"Well, Thorin said it would come out eventually," he said with a satisfied smirk, "Now, lads, you have a choice. Either you help me get some payback on the lass or I take this little nugget of information to your Uncle and let him deal with you."
The brothers looked at each other, trying to decide between the lesser of the two evils. On one hand Thorin would probably kill them for stealing his sword and kill Bilbo as well for helping them cover it up; but on the other Farren would definitely exact revenge.
"Well, it's just another prank." Kili rationalized, and Fili then nodded.
"Right, lads, then here's what we are going to do," Dwalin said rubbing his hands together and then spelled out a plan.
"Oh, that's good!" Fili said with his own evil smile.
***Farren POV***
I made it to the hot spring, laid my clean, mended, clothes on a large boulder next to it, stripped off my filthy clothes, then side-stepped a large amount of mud and slipped into the warm water with a sigh. It would not be as good of a bath as I had in Rivendell, but it sure beat washing up in an ice-cold river. With a sigh of regret, I released my hair from the braids that Thorin had done and began washing it.
"You could always ask him to put them back in," I thought, then shook my head, "NO! No, don't go there!"
Then I dunked myself under the water one last time, to rinse my hair then started to climb out and reached for the drying cloth I had left on the boulder next to my clothes. To my surprise it was no longer there and the next thing I noticed was that my clothes were gone as well.
"What in the…" I started to say, when I heard smothered laughter and dove back behind the boulder.
However in the process of getting back behind it, my foot slipped in the mud and I wound up falling on my rear with a loud squeak. That was when the laughter exploded and I could tell who the culprits were.
"Fili! Kili! Dwalin! What are you doing?! Give me my clothes back!" I screamed at them, getting back to my feet now halfway covered in mud.
"Well, so much for getting clean!" I though angrily, peeking out from behind the boulder and seeing them standing some twenty feet away in the bushes.
"Not nice having your things stolen, is it?" Dwalin yelled back between gales of laughter.
"I am going to k…" I started when I was interrupted.
"What's going on here?!" a deep voice demanded.
Apparently, my screaming and the others laughing had caught Thorin's attention. I screamed and dove back behind the boulder again, intending on diving back into the spring. However, my foot slipped again and I wound up landing face down in the mud with a loud "splat!" This sent the other three off again in loud gales of laughter.
" I AM GOING TO KILL YOU THREE!" I screamed at them.
"How… how are you going to do that lass, when you are as naked as a wee bairn?!" Dwalin said between loud bouts of laughter.
"What do you three think you are doing?!" I heard Thorin rage at them.
"Ow.. OW!" Kili yelled.
"Uncle… Uncle that hurts!" this came from Fili.
"Now Thorin, don't over react. The lads and I were just having some…AAAK!" Dwalin tried reasoning with him.
I looked over to see what was going on and saw that Thorin had grabbed both his nephews by the hair at the back of the neck and had just delivered a hard kick to Dwalin's backside. With a hard push, he sent Fili and Kili stumbling away.
"Get out of here, all three of you! I will deal with you later!" Thorin yelled.
I groaned, looking down at myself and realizing that I was now covered from head to toe in mud.
"Farren," Thorin said quietly and much closer than I had thought he had been.
With another squeak, I quickly rolled myself back into the spring.
"Don't you come any closer!" I tried to sound threatening.
"I am not going to look, but here are your things." He said and approached.
I watched as he walked toward the spring, keeping his eyes firmly on the clothes in his hands, and was surprise to see his face was bright red as if he was as embarrassed of this situation as I was. He finally set them down and quickly turned his back.
"I will see you back at the house," he said and quickly went to leave.
"Thorin," I called before I could stop myself.
He stopped and appeared to be listening.
"Thank you." I said simply. He merely nodded and then left me to clean up… again.
Whoo hoo two chapters in two days! The creative juices are flowing!
Thank you to Piper Emerald for lending me the use of their story Of Swords and Almost Drowning (But Not Actually).
For more background on what Fili and Kili are referring to with stealing Thorin's sword, please read Piper Emerald's story.
As for timing I am figuring it happened somewhere between Hobbiton and when Farren caught up to them at the Trollshaws.
Thank you for reading! Until next time!