Hello dear readers! Happy New Year! I'm so sorry that I haven't written in so long, but I'm squeaking this one in under the wire for a holiday present. May 2021 be a year of renewal and relief!
Chapter 87
With no little effort, Potilla contained her fury. "I have the best dwarvish blades money can buy. What have you got?"
Not much besides sitting on her and smothering her to death, so I uttered a short, silent prayer to Mahal. Help! He answered immediately, which told me that he didn't like how Potilla had turned out either. My lips curled into an evil smile.
"We'll meet in the dead of night, you pimpled warthog. No lanterns, no lights. My weapons are a dagger and the dark."
I kept my head high and back as straight as a pole until I heard their outraged voices die away. After the last snarky word, I doubled over and shook so hard that I staggered to find a wall to guide me to the floor. Sky whined and pressed close to my shivering knees until she curled in my lap with her head against my chest. My heart hurt with its pounding, and with every thump, Sky's massive head bounced. Still, her weight was comforting even if I could scarcely draw breath. I didn't know how long I sat on the cool floor. It felt like years, but it must have been only a few minutes because I heard a cheerful voice calling out to me from around the bend.
"Bofur got tied up, Areen, so you'll have to make do with me." Mahal, it was Kili. I knew the moment he spotted me because he chuckled merrily. "What're you doing on the floor? Sky got you cornered? Not paying her enough attention?"
I managed to roll my eyes, which bought me a few moments. I doubted that I could stand, but at least I had a canine excuse. I shifted and Sky pressed harder. She knew I was in no position to get up and decided to keep me safe on the floor.
"C'mon girl," Kili said. "Sitting on your mistress is bad manners, although I don't doubt she deserved it." I mentally agreed with him and managed a wan smile. "C'mon Sky," he said in his most beguiling tone. "We can't have Areen sitting on the cold floor." She wagged her tail but didn't move. "Sky?"
I couldn't look at him and tried desperately to come up with some nonchalant reason for sitting on a cold, granite floor but couldn't. It didn't take him long to come up with his own assessment. He was right and wrong at the same time.
"Are you sick? Did you hurt yourself? Let me get help."
"No! Please don't! I'm not hurt."
He slid down beside me then, and Sky shifted to sprawl across both of us.
"What's going on? And don't tell me nothing's going on. Where are Otha and Kitra? Why is no one attending you?"
I had to tell someone, or I'd burst and splatter the walls with fear and anxiety. It might as well be Kili and since he was a warrior, maybe he could help me. Mahal must have sent him. I leaned against his shoulder, and he put his arm around me.
"What's your most sacred oath, Kili? One that can't be broken for any reason?" He laughed, but I wouldn't trick him into giving it to me. "No, I'm serious. What is it, and will you swear it to me?" He stopped laughing.
"You aren't teasing, are you? What's going on?" He turned wary, and I gulped before plowing ahead.
"I have a problem, and I need to tell someone, but I need it kept a secret." His hair swished back and forth over the leather of his doublet, so I knew he was saying no before the words left his mouth.
"If you have a problem, you need to tell Thorin. I won't keep anything from him or anyone else who needs to know."
"Then I can't tell you, but I need to tell you. I need help!" He drew in a swift breath. "Please believe me."
"Tell me the truth, Areen. If you're truly in trouble, we need to know now. What happened? Sky isn't playing with you, is she?" He took my hand. It was an icicle in his palm. He gasped.
"Tell me what's going on now!"
"I can't. I want to, but I can't. Please swear and I'll tell you everything. I promise." His breathing grew labored as he warred between his honor and loyalty to Thorin and love and concern for me. I knew I had won when he sagged against the wall.
"He's going to kill me, you know. He'll banish me to Mordor."
"I'm so sorry, but if I tell you and you can help me, maybe he won't ever find out, and you'll save my life." His body jerked against mine.
"What do you mean?"
"Swear."
All fight gone, he swore, "As prince of Erebor and on the sacred honor of the Longbeard clan and the tomb of Durin, I swear never to reveal your secret to another soul. Now, tell me everything."
"Well, it started when I wanted to walk out by myself. Everything was fine until Potilla and her minions came upon me." He stiffened and made a warning sound deep in his throat, catching on immediately. "So, skipping to the end, she slandered Thorin, Frerin, and Arif horribly, so I accepted her challenge."
"You didn't!"
"I did."
"Take it back."
"Would you do such a thing?" He sighed.
"When?"
"Before dawn."
"Conditions?"
"Her two swords."
"Against?"
"A dagger and the dark."
With a few stern commands from me, and mighty shove from Kili, Sky moved off, and Kili helped me up. His hand gripped mine.
"Then we don't have a moment to lose, and I hope at the end of this, I'll still have my head."
We talked strategy all the way to the training ring, and thoughts of anything else fled before our united purpose. Thankfully, no one was there when we walked in, and Kili immediately went to the weapons area and rummaged around until he found what he was looking for.
"It's a black dagger that we confiscated from an Easterling. Rather clever in its design, but the part that matters is that it's made from black steel, so she won't be able to see it. For that matter, we need to find black clothing to cover the mithril chain mail you'll be wearing." Bless him for his quick mind!
"Now," he continued. "Once the fight begins, I want you to drop to the ground. She'll be aiming high, expecting you to be at her level, but drop to the ground and wait for her to come to you. You'll have added help if she's wearing her awful perfume, and I expect that she will."
"She will?"
"Aye, she's that vain and will be over-confident of her victory. That'll be her biggest weakness."
"So, she's a fighter? Do I have a chance, Kili?" My voice wobbled on his name, and he drew me into his arms.
"You have every chance, Areen. Look how well you manage in everything. You can do this."
"What exactly am I going to do on the ground?"
"You're going to stab her foot or stab her in the leg. She won't be wearing greaves because she'll expect the fight at eye level. It's best if can you hamstring her. Above or behind the knee would end it. She'll hit the ground, and in her shock and pain, you'll have a chance to reach her throat."
"You make it sound so easy. But..." and I gulped, "will I really have to kill her? I don't think I can do that, even to someone as awful as Potilla."
"No, but she'll have to take back everything and consent to leave Erebor."
"Do you think she will?" He snorted.
"To save her hide? She will. She'll make some excuse and drag her sorry ass of a father out the gate."
That made me feel better. Still, next came a part harder than the fight to come.
"So how do we keep this from Thorin?" I asked. Kili groaned.
"Mahal, he's going to kill me, but he'd kill me deader if I let anything happen to you."
Thorin had just finished an interminable council meeting and rescheduled another if favor of a mid-morning meal with Areen, but word came to him that she had rescheduled a meeting for that very hour. He stared at the hapless attendant who squirmed under his king's baleful glare.
"Did she say when she'll be available?" The sweating attendant bowed low.
"She didn't say exactly, my lord, but I overheard that she would be busy for the rest of the day and to have food brought to her."
"I see."
"Will, will, that be all, my lord king? Thorin waved him away with a flip of his hand before turning on his heel and marching off to the dining hall, his mood thoroughly ruined. He met his company in the middle of their meal, but Kili was missing.
"Where's Kili?" Fili waved his fork at the door before finishing his chew.
"He's finishing up some work."
"What about?"
"He didn't say," Dwalin offered. "Have you seen Arif lately? Bested Kili in training formation." His face shone with pride. "You'd hardly know he was blind. That reminds me. When will the dogs be here?"
"Soon enough, although I haven't had a raven yet," Thorin said absentmindedly. "If their journey is smooth, they should be here within three weeks."
For the rest of the day, Thorin tried to find Areen, but she just as nimbly evaded his pursuit. He had just missed her at one meeting and, no, she didn't say where she was going next. Kili was also tied up all day with this and that. Everything sounded proper, but Thorin's suspicion was aroused after he asked for her day's schedule and came up empty. Her maids had been given the day off, and that furthered his concern. Where was she, and who was she with? Just when he had decided to send his personal guards in search of her, she appeared with Kili. Both were flushed. Areen wiped her damp temples and upper lip with a handkerchief. She seemed happy to see him but distracted as well.
"I looked everywhere for you," Thorin said with his hands on hips, his pleasure at seeing her tempered by his concern.
"I'm so sorry, Thorin," she said. Usually, she tried to find his face when he spoke, but she made no effort now. "Some things came up, but I'll be happy to eat with you now if you haven't already." Kili nodded with an easy grin, but Thorin noticed the merest twitch of his sister-son's eye.
"I would be glad of your company as well, Kili."
"You're not leaving me out," he replied with a rub of his belly. "I'm starving."
Thorin watched them as they headed to the dining hall, but the pair betrayed nothing. Once there, Thorin noted that Areen filled her plate as usual but then ate little, although that fact was hidden by Kili jokingly raiding her plate from time to time.
"Are you well, Areen? I see that you're not eating." She jumped at his touch and immediately scrambled to fork a large portion of mashed potatoes. The others stopped eating, their forks hanging in mid-air.
"We should have Oin check you out," Bofur said. "Not like you to fuss at your food." The others agreed.
"I'm fine," Areen said. "So much to do is all." Thorin covered her hand with his own.
"I don't want you wearing yourself out. Cancel the rest of your day." Areen blanched before catching herself.
"The rest of the day? No, no, I can't."
"It is my wish." She gulped hard, and Thorin's looked at her through narrowed and assessing eyes. She nervously tugged at her bodice.
"Of course, I will if you command, but I gave my, my word to some events. I don't want to go back on my word."
Cocking his head, Thorin studied her. She looked tired but strangely flushed as well. Still, one's word was not lightly broken.
"Very well, but I insist on your resting before the evening meal and going to bed early." Areen perked up.
"Yes, yes, exactly what I need." She squeezed his hand. "Thank you for taking such good care of me." He kissed the back of her hand and each knuckle with warm lips.
"It is my honor."
Areen slept lightly and was up well before Kili's soft knock at the door. She stepped outside, and he inspected her appearance. She was dressed head to toe in a black wool cap, shirt, and trousers with mithril armor underneath. The armor covered her head, leaving only her face free and running down to her ankles and the back of both wrists. Kili wore a dark cloak.
"Where are the guards?" she whispered.
"I sent them on an errand. Quickly now."
Down they went through Erebor's hallways, dodging into rooms or hiding in odd places to avoid being seen.
"Are we in the loo, Kili?"
"Whatever we have to do, Areen."
Down they went until they reached the training ring. Torches revealed a gaudily armed Potilla with her axes gleaming in the orange light. One of her homely companions stood close by.
"Well, well, well," Potilla said with a smirk. "I was wondering if you'd chicken out. This is my cousin, Aretta. Who is that with you?" Kili threw off his cloak with a flourish, and Potilla stepped back as if struck. "You, you brought a member of the royal family as your second? That's against the rules!"
"Is it?" Kili said, those two words straining at the seams with contempt. "You brought a member of your family, and she brought a member of hers, or have you forgotten that she is a member of the royal family? Know this well. If tonight goes awry, you'll answer to me for your slander."
"You can't prove anything!" Potilla said shrilly. Kili chuckled without mirth.
"I don't have to prove anything. As a prince of Erebor, my word is enough." Stepping back to Areen's side, he leaned over.
"That should unsettle her. Remember what we trained for. I believe in you." He gathered her in his arms for a bracing hug. "Pretend that she is Lord Boron and that this is your chance to take your revenge." He felt her spine stiffen.
"I'm ready." He smiled at the steel in her voice.
Thorin awoke sometime after dawn, his mind troubled. He had been plagued with bad dreams about Areen throughout the night and slept badly. Something was wrong, but he couldn't place what. She and Kili were elusive at the midday meal. Elusive. That was the right word to describe them, and elusive meant secrecy, and secrecy meant that they were hiding something from him, and hiding something from him meant that something was afoot.
He threw back the fur coverlet and started pacing. If whatever she was planning was a happy event, she would eat as normal, but she barely ate anything. Pieces of a puzzle started moving into position. So, whatever it was, it wasn't something she wanted him to know, but Kili was involved as well. What were they up to? He went over to her bedroom door and listened in. Sometimes he soothed himself by listening to her readying for bed or talking to herself about this or that. It was a guilty pleasure but one he greatly enjoyed. Sometimes he'd even sit by the door to listen to her snore. She most often sounded like a kitten purring, although there were sometimes strange whistling sounds when her nose was stuffy.
He listened in but heard nothing. Confused, he poured himself a goblet of fine, red wine and continued pacing.
After Kili recited the rules, he guided me into the ring with an enraged Potilla cursing behind us. I had been terribly frightened, but as soon as he mentioned Lord Boron, a calm determination settled over me. I would avenge myself on both. I wiped my slick hands on my thighs, feeling the comforting chain mail underneath. Potilla chortled at what she thought was an act of desperate fear, but I knew better. I was preparing for the black dagger. Kili had altered the grip to fit my palm exactly, and I didn't want sweat interfering.
"Are opponents ready?" Kili asked. I nodded and supposed that Potilla did the same. "Seconds out of the ring." I heard him and the cousin moving off. "As soon as the torches are extinguished, the challenge will commence." He had told me that there were six, and I marked each douse. After the last one went out, I heard a noise of confusion from Potilla before I hit the ground and scuttled back.
She recovered her composure with admirable speed, and her axes whistled over my head. After about a minute of fruitless swinging, she started cursing wildly, calling me a coward, and stomping around the ring, perhaps trying to flush me out. Her noisy breathing was too far off for me to make a move, so I waited for her to come to me. Her obnoxious perfume would let me know when she was close.
After three goblets of wine, Thorin decided to check on Areen. He had never opened her door after she was in bed, but he couldn't shake the notion that something was amiss, so he lit a candle, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door. A moment later, he knocked harder. Was she ill? Frightened, he opened the door and called out to her, but she didn't answer. All hesitation gone, he strode to her bed, but it was empty. His lips pressed together in a thin line before he hastened back to his room. There was only one reason why she would be gone and why Kili no doubt was with her. He threw on a pair of breeches and stuffed his night shirt inside the waistband, not bothering to tie the laces on his chest. Next came his boots and a royal coat to give his tousled appearance a bit of propriety. Grabbing Orchrist, he ran down to the training ring, praying desperately that his wife was still alive.
So here's my first gift to you this year. There will be others coming soon. Sorry that it's a cliffhanger. Well, not too sorry. I hustled to get this out, so let me know if there are errors. I'll also pose a challenge. How do you think the duel should end? This is an interactive story, and your help is always welcome! Oh, and, by the way, please check out my Thorin/Darcy story, and let me know what you think. It's another experiment.
