I have a ton of maths to do for tomorrow which I haven't started yet but I'm posting this first to get my motivation up. Ugggh school, I'm so ready for a holiday.
Anyway, this chapter was rather enjoyable to write, especially after that brain workout with the last two. Hope you enjoy reading it!
"Thorin."
The King Under the Mountain sighed, having been cornered by his sister at last. "What is it, Dis?"
"The Arkenstone. What did you mean when you said it must go?" She folded her arms across her generous chest and gave him a look that meant that he could not avoid the question this time.
"Perhaps this should be said in front of Balin and Dwalin also..." suggested Thorin reluctantly. He might as well explain this just once.
"They're already here," said Dís, and just on cue, the closest friends of the king came round the corner of the royal family's private quarters to stand beside the dwarrowdam facing Thorin.
"Out with it, laddie," Balin said sternly, folding his arms as well.
Thorin took a while to respond, composing himself for what would no doubt shock his companions more than it shocked himself when he had thought of it. However, his internal argument always seemed to come to the same conclusion and there was no denying it: this was for the best. He could deal with the consequences when they came.
"I have decided," he said with conviction, "that it is no longer safe for the Arkenstone to remain in Erebor."
Instead of the gasps he expected, Thorin was met with nods.
"You might have hinted at that," Dwalin reminded him dryly.
"Right," said Thorin, refusing to be put off, "It has no purpose other than to illustrate the greed stereotypical of our race. If this Kingdom is to be as great as the kingdoms of old, it cannot be ruled by a single priceless jewel. The Arkenstone is nothing compared to the worth of the people, and yet others do not see it as such. Too late have I come to realise this. The King's jewel it is no longer. It must be hidden, kept by one who has earned the greatest trust and will never seek to use it to his own ends. It must be taken far from Erebor - no dwarf can be trusted with it, nor any man, elf or wizard."
Dís frowned. "Is there such a person? And who other than a dwarf would you trust with the Arkenstone of all jewels?"
Balin and Dwalin, however, wore disconcertingly identical smirks. Dís turned to them, her brows drawn together. "You know?" she asked.
"Ah Thorin," sighed Balin, "I think that is the most insightful and intelligent thing I have ever heard you say."
Dwalin nodded his approval, and Thorin looked fairly flabbergasted. He had not expected his idea to be well received at all, let alone encouraged.
"Would someone care to explain to me what this is all about?" exclaimed Dís, "If we are handing over the most priceless jewel in all of Arda to a complete stranger, I should like to know who exactly they are!"
"He's not a stranger, Dís," Thorin replied with a sudden expression of hope that his plan might actually work, "Bilbo Baggins is the most honourable, kind, loyal, courageous gentlehobbit you could ever meet. There is no one I would trust more with the Arkenstone."
The dwarrowdam narrowed her eyes. "Is this the one who, according to all reports, gave that exact same stone over to King Bard after stealing it from under your nose?"
Thorin inclined his head. "Indeed he is. Bilbo Baggins proved himself to be wiser than three kings put together. Though I still can't believe that Gandalf had nothing to do with it."
"That wizard," Dwalin muttered, shaking his head, "Always meddling in other people's affairs."
"But where is this hobbit now?" asked Dís, "Has anything been seen or heard of him since...well, since whenever he left?"
"He wrote a letter from Rivendell which arrived not two weeks ago," replied Thorin, "It was dated from the spring though; I expect he has been long back in his hobbit hole now, with his books and his armchair and his second-breakfasts... Yes, there will be no problem of finding Bilbo Baggins."
"It is decided then," the King's sister observed, "The Arkenstone will be given for safekeeping to Bilbo Baggins, Hobbit of the Shire." She suddenly laughed. "Why, that thing will be worth more than the Shire itself!"
Thorin smiled. "I already gifted to him a Mithril vest. He probably walked into the Shire with its worth on his back - though of course, he doesn't realise its true value."
"Oh Thorin," Balin sighed, "You didn't tell him?"
"He would have refused it, or given it back, if I had," defended the King, "It does not matter to Bilbo anyway. It may save his life one day and for that it is worth it."
"But the Arkenstone," Dis stated, keeping them on topic, "If this hobbit is in the Shire, who in Middle Earth will go all the way to take it to him? It's hardly a short trip, and there is never any guarantee that the messenger will not run off with it and make himself a fortune."
"There is not such a hurry as all that," said Balin, "If we were to invite Bilbo to Erebor he could collect it himself."
"Aye, if you wanted to wait twenty years," said Dwalin with a laugh.
Thorin smirked. "Indeed. I expect Master Baggins has had quite enough of adventuring for the next decade or two. I highly doubt he would leave his hobbit-hole for a jewel. But Balin is quite right, there is no great need for haste. While the Arkenstone attracts wasps of all kinds, it is safe in Erebor for the time being. A year or two at most is all I will need. In the meantime we must dispel all rumours about it, let it pass into legend, say that it was lost in the Battle or something of the kind. I do not want all the filth of Middle-Earth tearing down Bag-End if someone has let slip that the Arkenstone resides there."
Balin nodded in agreement, then frowned. "What do you mean, a year or two at most? To do what?"
The King smiled sagely. "A year or two to have Erebor running smoothly enough for Fili to spend a few months as regent. The practise will be good for him. I intend to take the Arkenstone to Bilbo Baggins myself."
The day finally came when Fili and Kili had to leave for Erebor. While they would both miss their friends in Mirkwood, they were eager to be off home, especially since Kili didn't want to miss the trial of Svithrir, not knowing that he was already too late. There was not much to carry, so Fili insisted on taking the pack for both of them. While Kili was good at concealing his slight limp, it would not do his shoulder any good to have extra weight on it.
They set off an hour after sunrise, and a line of elves stood at the end of the bridge outside the palace to see them off. Tauriel was there, in spite of the despairing pleas of the healers insisting that she was not yet well enough to leave bed, never mind go outside. She had won that argument out of sheer determination rather than validity of points, and now she leaned rather heavily on Legolas' shoulder as the pair of dwarves prepared to go. Cellissel also stood there, having successfully sneaked out of the healing rooms thanks to the small circles of leather tied round the end of her crutches.
Amras stood there also, and beside him Hinnor grinned cheekily at Fili - the young elf had eventually won the game of "invasion" by sheer luck but was taking the liberty of feeling proud of his achievement for a while yet. Brúthor wasn't standing with the others, since he was to accompany the dwarves as far as Dale for the dual purpose of their ensured safety and discussing the trade agreement that Mirkwood had struck with King Bard. Thranduil had no qualms about providing Dale with whatever his own kingdom could spare, for as Bard had pointed out himself, powerful allies are invaluable in times like these, especially when kingdoms lie so close together. Of course, the dwarves were not receiving nearly as much, and had to give more in return, for Elven generosity only extended so far, but then again, Erebor was more equipped to withstand another winter, when indeed it came. It was less a matter of rebuilding than of clearing and cleaning and removing the rubble from the wreckage of Smaug.
"We'll come back soon," said Kili as they stood beneath the canopy of trees, "And you're all welcome in Erebor any time."
"Correction," said Fili to the elves, "Kili will find any excuse to get out of the mountain while the weather is good, and you're welcome in Erebor as long as you tell us first so we can sneak you in without telling Thorin. I cannot tell how things will be when we get back, but after this I doubt our uncle will continue to ignore Mirkwood - sorry, Eryn Lasgalen - as he has done."
"Then I will make sure my father takes extra care," said Legolas, "While he may have more patience for you, I doubt his opinion of Thorin Oakenshield has changed much in eight months."
"Well, if it's possible, I think it would be a good idea to meet up at the outpost with some cadets again some time," said Amras pensively.
Fili nodded his agreement. "The caravan from Ered Luin will have brought a few more young warriors, so perhaps Âlof will not be the only dwarrowdam a second time. It will, of course, take some persuading first."
"That is no matter," Amras replied, "We'll wait until Tauriel is well enough to come." He grinned at his Captain, who raised an eyebrow back then relaxed into a smile as she saw no teasing but a genuine thought about what she would want - which was not to be left behind. Plus, she knew Amras found dwarflings quite the handful when he was on his own. She was genuinely in awe of the positive change she had seen in Amras this past year; he had to be one of the few people to come out of the Battle of the Five Armies a better person than before, and his niceness had only grown since. After the death of Rúthen and so many others in the guard, she could not have asked for a better second-in-command.
"Well then," said Fili, "We had best be off. Farewell to all of you, until our paths cross again."
"And to you," said Legolas, and all echoed the sentiment apart from Brúthor, for whom goodbyes were not yet necessary.
At last they turned, and as they passed through the trees the elves one by one turned and made their way back across the bridge to the Palace. Legolas and Tauriel lingered, and Cellissel was reluctant to return into the smothering care of the healers. The two dwarves and the elf were still disappearing through the trees, but Kili cast one more longing glance behind, and suddenly Cellissel realised what she had to do.
Two crutches clattered to the ground and she let out a dramatic cry of pain as she curled herself into a ball on the ground, moaning. Through the trees, Kili was still visible, and he turned properly now and called for the other two to wait. Good. She increased her moans as Legolas quickly let Tauriel stand unaided in order to kneel by her side.
"My ankle!" she cried, "Quick, get a healer! I don't think I can stand, they'll have to bring a stretcher!"
Quickly, the prince took in the situation. To carry Cellissel back himself would be to leave Tauriel alone, yet he could not help them both and Tauriel was in no state to run for help. He would have to do as Cellissel advised.
"I won't be long," he said urgently, then sprinted back across the bridge and into the palace.
As soon as he was gone, Cellissel uncurled herself and called into the forest, "Kili, you can come back now! I'm not even here." She picked up her crutches and hobbled into the forest to explain to Fili and Brúthor what the delay was about. As she passed Kili on the way, she grinned at him, only to receive a puzzled expression in response. Oh well. He was grateful really.
Kili came back into the clearing around the palace entrance where Tauriel was standing alone, and cast a curious glance back behind him, though Cellissel was nearly obscured by the trees now. It was just him and Tauriel here. And he could say a proper goodbye.
"It won't be for a long time," he mumbled, speaking as much to himself as to the elf before him.
Tauriel just reached forwards and took his hands, which had been fidgeting with the hem of his tunic, and looked into his face.
"I know," she said. "You would hardly have it otherwise."
"But I promise," Kili insisted, "I will find an excuse - any excuse - to return here as soon as possible. There are things I must do in Erebor, otherwise I would be staying here longer, but once they are done I'll come back here and find you."
Tauriel smiled fondly. "I'm hardly so injured that I cannot find an excuse of my own. After all, your uncle will have all the more reason to keep you in the Mountain after this and I will not blame him for it."
Kili rolled his eyes. "Don't pretend your King won't order the healers to keep you in bed for a month, you're not going to get away any easier than I am. And I don't want you hurting yourself again."
Tauriel sighed and felt Kili squeeze her hands comfortingly. She replied, "You are right, I fear, about my King. But I can't stand the thought of being imprisoned in those healing rooms doing absolutely nothing, and even if Cellissel is there to keep me company, it's just...it's not the same. I will miss you. But," her eyes glinted and she suddenly grinned "Don't you preach about recklessness! Don't worry, I know my limits. I won't hurt myself, unless some other idiotic rebel decides to stick me with a knife, and then they'll be dead before they can say a word in their defence - you wouldn't believe it, but Legolas told me that his father was so furious at the exiles who survived when they were brought before him that he actually lost his temper and drew his sword. In all my life, I have never seen King Thranduil lose his composure. Though those two, Arradon and Ulunnor, are now locked up in the deepest dungeons of the palace, Legolas thinks that if another elf were to harm me he would show no mercy."
"Good," said Kili, "Though my only regret would be that I could not finish them off myself."
Tauriel laughed and bent down to pull him into a hug. "Silly dwarf. Don't you worry about me."
"Send me a raven," Kili said, a note of worry still threading his tone.
"I'll send you a raven every day," replied Tauriel, resting her head on top of his, "I'll probably spend so much time writing to you that I'll run out of things to write about. If I sprain my hand it's your fault."
Kili chuckled, and replied "As if that's possible."
"How would you know, you've never written more than a sentence in your life!" teased Tauriel, pulling back and ruffling the dwarf's hair.
"Hey!" said Kili indignantly, "That's not true! But if you don't want me to write back to you, fine, I'll just leave you in the dark -"
As he made to turn away, pretending to be offended, Tauriel took a step after him quickly and turned him back around to face her; his eyes, wide with feigned innocence, met her serious gaze.
"Be careful," she said, "And please do write back to me. If you don't I might worry enough to come after you before I've healed."
"I promise," said Kili, "I'll be careful, and anyway, I have Fili with me. Nothing can happen to me when he's about."
"And you'll write?"
At that moment a call came from through the trees - "Kili! Hurry up would you?"
The dwarf in question glanced behind him, then shrugged and turned back round to face Tauriel. "Much more than a sentence," he grinned, "As you seem to doubt my abilities."
"Good," said Tauriel, satisfied. "Now, be off with you, dwarf. Thy brother awaits." She bent over and pressed a short kiss to Kili's forehead, laughing as he blushed bright red in surprise.
"I'll come back soon!" he promised again as he began to walk backwards in the direction of the call.
"Farewell, then, for a short time," Tauriel smiled back as Kili waved and turned away. She watched him until he was out of sight, and only then did she notice that Cellissel had appeared soundlessly beside her. The young elf grinned cheekily up at her.
"Legolas should be back any time now."
"You are going to be in big trouble," Tauriel reminded her.
"From who? Not from you," Cellissel laughed, "The Prince maybe, but it was worth it."
"Worth it for what?" the Captain of the Guard wondered. What had Cellissel gained in the ordeal?
The shorter elf merely smiled knowingly and shook her head. Tauriel could get no more out of her.