Hey guys! I'm sorry I haven't replied to your reviews yet (do you guys care if I reply? lol it haunts me), but I wanted to get this chapter up. In light of the absolute shitstorm that is the US election, I thought I'd go ahead with an update. Not super polished, but if nothing else, it can be a distraction from the chaos for a minute.
:)
Thank you all! Enjoy!
The Loudest Silence
Chapter Fourteen
Learning the Iglishmêk might have been a tad easier if it was based in, oh, I don't know, the Common Tongue.
Of course it couldn't be that simple. It was based in Khuzdul, the language of the Dwarves, which I had exactly zero knowledge of. Well, no, that wasn't true. I did know 'Du Bekar' and 'Amrâlimê', but that was hardly a sturdy foundation to build from unless you planned on battling your lover.
Even if it had worked like normal Sign Language back home, I still wouldn't have been able to just start jabbering right away. Learning the Iglishmêk out of the blue required me to skip the middle step of learning Khuzdul, and that hindered progress significantly. We simply didn't have the time – or patience – to teach me their entire language system beforehand. Plus, while they were willing to dole out lessons on Iglishmêk, I didn't figure they would be so quick where Khuzdul was concerned.
"Now remember, keep your hand tilted – aye, like that," Balin instructed one afternoon at lunch, as we sat on a big flat rock that was half buried in the ground. We'd been at the Iglishmêk game for nearly a week, and of the few things I learned, one of them was that my hand could cramp in ways I never imagined.
I followed through with the tiny motion, combining it with a stepping stone I was taught the day before. Together, it allowed me to say, 'Tree.' Just, 'Tree.' Nothing else.
At this rate, I might be capable of saying, 'Look out,' right before the impaling began at Ravenhill.
"It's only been a few days since we started, lass. Give yourself a chance," said Balin, taking note of my suddenly glum disposition. "I know it's difficult, but you're doing well given the circumstances."
I forced a deep breath, exhaling slowly and beginning again as the rest of the Company finished up their lunch. Balin was right. I was being too cynical too quickly. It had barely been five days since I began learning and for most of that time, we were riding ponies, unable to really continue the lessons. (While Balin could chill on a pony without using his hands, I was not half as decent a rider and nearly led Stormy right into a creek when we tried. She was… not happy with my guidance.)
It was about time to leave again when Balin was called away by Gloín, so I stood from the rock and stretched a bit. Roughly a day after we started my tutoring on Iglishmêk, an odd feeling had been hovering just underneath my skin, making me weary and yet restless. Whatever it was came in waves, giving me emotional whiplash.
For the first time since this whole thing began, I considered that maybe I was homesick.
Why on Earth would I ever be homesick though? Aside from Hazel and a few friendly coworkers, there wasn't anyone I was terribly attached to, and even though I could desperately use an IV drip of pure internet, I knew I could live without it. I mean, I really missed the internet, but there wasn't much for it. My mother had basically fallen off the face of the planet except when she wanted something, and my aunt… I did miss her, but I wouldn't find her by going back home.
Thinking about these things just made me agitated with myself – dammit, Jenna, you're in Middle fucking Earth! About a million fangirls would gladly trade places with you! – but I knew refusing to accept these feelings of melancholy towards home would just make me more unstable. Which I could do without, thanks.
Don't get me wrong, the Ur family had been a gift from above and I was so glad to have them around. I already felt like Bofur understood me better than most back home, and I couldn't even speak here. Bombur didn't say very much himself, so we were mutual on that front, and Bifur… well, he spoke, it just didn't always make a lot of sense. Even to the ones who understood the language.
The problem was, I could feel the beginnings of affection towards these guys and that terrified me. Only the beginnings, mind you, but I knew my patterns of attachment well enough. Though I was already fond of the characters before all this, getting to know them for real was a different feeling entirely. Like when a friend talks about someone a lot and makes them seem one way, then you meet them yourself and realize you actually didn't know a thing about them, despite the stories you heard.
Not only was my sprouting affection aimed at the Ur family, but also at Fili and Kili, and Bilbo, and surprisingly Oín, who had been taking such good care of my wound. I had been interacting with Balin a lot more lately, for obvious reasons, and he was just as friendly.
And Thorin… Bless him, I knew he was trying to be patient, even if it didn't always work. With him, I couldn't tell if I was actually growing attached or if I was just getting used to his grim demeanor, therefore becoming less nervous around him. He had put a pause on the questions while I began learning Iglishmêk, but I could tell he wasn't going to stop them in general. I just knew he was gearing up for the day when I would be able to form a sentence and explain myself though.
Sure looking forward to that drama.
The more I realized I didn't mind being around these dorks, the more I realized the weight of everything. If this trend of amity continued – if I became actual, genuine friends with Fili and Kili, or even Thorin if hell decided to freeze over – then what would happen if I failed? How would I even begin to forgive myself? The idea left me ill at my stomach, lunch threatening to make a bad comeback.
No, no, you've got this, Jenna. Just calm down and don't throw up. You have time.
That was about when I noticed Nori, meandering my way in a ridiculously relaxed manner. Honestly, he looked like he should've been whistling some sort of upbeat little ditty, and it pulled me from my thoughts.
I was curious as to what he could want. Our interactions had been limited to greetings and acknowledgements so far, and no real substance to whatever was said. Mostly just 'Good morning's and 'Hello there's from him, with nods and waves from me, so this random approach was weird. It was a distraction from my twisted stomach though, so I welcomed it.
"How's it going so far?" Nori asked, nonchalantly.
All I could muster was a shrug and a look of uncertainty, glancing over to where Balin had gone.
"Iglishmêk is a toughy for sure," Nori continued as he looked in the same direction. "Took me ages. Lil' Ori got it in no time flat, though. Languages are his thing, ya see, not mine."
I nodded, wondering where he was taking this. It seemed… normal enough, I guess.
He suddenly looked thoughtful, fiddling with his middle beard braid. "He'd be amazed if… Here, let me just teach you a greeting, eh? They'll all think it's remarkable ya got it so quick."
Honestly, I should have known better. This one was all on me.
Nori made a small combination of figures with his hands, one at a time, until I mimicked them just right. It took a few tries, but he seemed pretty interested in helping – God, again. It was so obvious, I don't know how I didn't know what he was up to.
"There you go. I think you've got it," he approved with a nod, putting a hand on my shoulder and gently shoving me in the direction of Ori with a wink. "Now, go try it out with Ori. They're gonna love it."
It was only about then that I thought maybe, just maybe he was pulling a prank of some kind. For some reason I decided to give him the benefit of the doubt, and hesitantly walked over to where Ori was. The scribe had just readjusted his scarf, preparing his pony with Fili and Kili close by, doing the same with their own steeds. I nodded to them and waved a little, and they nodded back as Fili pulled out a water skin to get a quick drink before we left.
"Hello, Miss Jenna," Ori addressed me kindly.
I smiled to him, and repeated the gestures that Nori taught me, for my own greeting.
The reaction was immediate.
There was a gurgling noise as Fili choked on his water, falling into a coughing fit while Kili smacked him on the back, looking between us all with a mildly concerned expression, like he was trying to figure out what happened.
Ori, however, turned bright red all the way to his ears. And I do mean red.
"M-Miss Jenna, I… why… what do you mean…?!" he sputtered.
Uh… What the hell did I just say? My face heated up too as I glanced around in confusion.
Nori, from halfway across the camp, absolutely lost his shit. He started laughing so hard that I genuinely worried he would not get enough oxygen to his brain, and we might have to retake Erebor with one less member. The guy doubled over with his hands on his knees, practically in tears.
This combination of a choking prince and a guffawing Dwarf attracted quite a bit of attention from those who had not already seen my… greeting. Bombur had seen, of course, and informed his sibling with a heavy blush. Bofur's eyebrows rose straight up into his hat, and he was instantly pulling off his boot and chucking it at the hysterical Ri brother's head.
"Oi! There'll be none of that now!" Bofur scolded. The boot merely bounced off the mass of star-shaped hair and fell to the ground, where Nori was now sitting as he tried to catch his breath.
"That was grand though, you've gotta admit! Did you see Ori's lil face?" Nori teased. "Redder than any ruby out there."
Ori had seemed to calm down a bit, realizing that I had no idea what I said and obviously didn't mean whatever it was. He took a deep breath, relieved as he turned his head away with leftover embarrassment.
"Don't matter, ye dirty oaf," Bofur said as stomped over to retrieve his boot. He picked it up, using it to half-heartedly swat Nori once more, who pushed it away with his arm in a playful manner. "Shouldn't be takin' advantage of the lass trying to learn. She don't have need for language like that."
Nori chuckled again as he stood. "Well, she might have need, eventually. She's grown, can make decisions and such."
Oh God. My face was still on fire, especially now that I was gathering clues as to what I might have said. It obviously included themes of the adult variety and I almost didn't want to know. I glanced to Kili for answers, but he seemed just as lost, and Fili wouldn't even look at me, the tips of his ears red. Did Kili not get what was said or…?
Gandalf was just shaking his head, putting out his pipe for the time being, while Bilbo was looking around at the group for answers as well. The Company was just in various states of embarrassment, really. Especially Dori, who promptly came over to Nori and began harping on him about indecency around women, to which the younger of the two rolled his eyes and threw up his hands at, telling him it was just a joke.
I finally spotted Thorin, who was… also, very specifically, not looking in my direction. His pony's mane had just become incredibly interesting to him all of the sudden.
Please let a tree fall on me right about now.
"She's obviously just a child," Dori continued. "I swear you haven't a brain most days."
Nori seemed to be bored then, and looked over to me like he already knew the answer to his next question, nearly sighing. "What's your age, miss?"
I hesitated, but eventually raised my hands and let my fingers lift up and back down til they had cycled twice, and then held up one extra finger.
"Twenty-one years?" Kili asked, eyes large. "Only twenty-one? That's not even a third my age!"
"That's grown for them, Kee," Fili told his brother with a slightly scratchy voice from his coughing fit, though he appeared less embarrassed to make eye contact with me then. "They don't live as long as us."
Kili stared at Fili for a moment, glancing to me for confirmation on this. I shrugged with a short nod, and he suddenly appeared distraught, asking the other prince further questions on this topic as the rest of the group returned to the previous page.
Nori was nodding as he said, "Thank you, young Fili." Then he turned back to Dori, saying, "Perfectly acceptable age for a woman of Men."
Dori was still unhappy about it, and looked between us all with a huff. "That's fine and all, but the poor girl doesn't even know what she said," he pointed out, and his expression changed into one of smugness. "Why don't you tell her, Nori?"
"Erm… tell her?" Nori echoed with sudden worry. I didn't know I was glaring at that point, but I was, so when he met my stare, he was unexpectedly shy about the whole ordeal. He feigned ignorance with an additional, "Tell her what?"
"Tell Miss Hollander what ye made her say to Ori," Bofur agreed. "If ye're too ashamed to tell her, then..."
Dori stepped forward with his hands on his hips, saying, "Maybe we should just do it instead, since it's obviously so difficult to admit what you've – "
"Oh, alright, alright!" Nori gave in with a cringe, stepping a bit closer to me. Well, I say stepping. It was more like a painfully awkward shuffle, and I soon understood why.
My arms were crossed as I waited, simultaneously wanting to know, yet also not wanting to.
Nori finally stopped dragging his feet, and gave a sheepish grin as he mumbled, "You see… what you might've suggested was…"
Oh.
My.
God.
My mouth popped open and stayed like that before the words sank in, the utter humiliation causing my teeth to clack back together as I sucked in a breath through them. I let my hands flail in front of me with no real force, slapping at Nori's arms as he put them up in defense and laughed. Giving one last good smack to his shoulder, I huffed through my nose and scowled at him with a red face.
"A'right, I'm sorry, I get the message," Nori gave in, still looking much too amused. "Deserved a tad better than that, though. Could've mistaken it for a light breeze."
"By all means, let me do the honors. I've another boot over here that needs to be put to good use," Bofur said while slipping the one he threw back onto his foot.
"Hold your horses, oh noble guardian," snickered Nori in response. He looked a bit thoughtful, then turned back to me and braced himself in friendly antagonism. "Try that one more time."
I paused in my fuming to blink a few times, giving a worried look. Awkwardly and amazingly slow, I reached out and gave his forearm a gentle pat, causing him to appear dumbfounded when he realized I was just playing and didn't really want to participate in a tussle of any kind.
"What – what was that?" Nori gaped.
I just stared, my hands falling to my sides limply.
His posture shifted and his arms dropped as well, with disappointment. "C'mon now, they said you broke a fella's nose. Did you or were they just yankin' our legs?"
As I gave a slow nod, my nose scrunched up. That situation had been entirely different though.
"Well, then, why aren't you givin' a respectable swing?" Nori complained.
I shook my head rapidly while bringing my shoulders up to show my discomfort at the thought of whopping him. Dwarves were a rowdy bunch, but generally, I was not.
"It'd be nothin' compared to the shiner Dori gave me once," he said nonchalantly, taking a step back when he accepted I wasn't going to do anything. "Deserved that one too, actually."
"I'm sure you deserved quite a few more than you've gotten," Dori put in while crossing his arms. The younger sibling only scoffed and gave a dismissive wave of his hand, facing me to say something else, but being interrupted.
"We've delayed long enough," Thorin sharply announced from atop his pony, having trotted over during the discussion.
I nodded in agreement with this and turned to go mount Stormy. From several yards away, I could still hear Kili questioning his brother frantically about the aging of Men, apparently just now getting the news that my kind did not age like trees.
Nori seemed disappointed, but he had already conceded before the interference. "A'right, fine," he sighed, then became upbeat once more, suggesting, "But one of these days, you show me what you've got, eh?"
My frown increased in a comical manner as I positioned myself on the saddle, giving one more sporadic head shake.
"Birâthûna akhalul zain," I heard Bifur say.
Pretty much everyone was back on their pony at that point as we set off again, and Bofur laughed at whatever his cousin said, glancing over to me. "Aye, that she is."
"Unfortunately," Nori sighed as he passed us by.
Bofur said lightly to him, "That's not a bad thing."
When I tilted my head in question, he only chuckled and rode away.
Such translate. Many helpful. Wow. Never thought I'd miss memes…
It wasn't the last time I heard the word 'Birâthûna', though it was only around then that I started actually noticing the use of it.
Bifur said it again, when we settled one evening a few nights later. He was zoned out, fiddling with some medium-sized twig he'd found earlier as he sat by the fire, and the rest of the Company was getting ready to sleep. There was no move to grab his bedroll or anything and I knew he wasn't on watch duty. Bofur was about to stand and go get the sleeping gear for him, but I was already up so I waved a hand at the Miner, telling him to chill and let me to do it. It wouldn't be the first time Bifur forgot what the heck we were doing.
Bofur watched with a slight smile as I retrieved the bedroll and lugged it over to his cousin. As I placed it down beside him, Bifur sat up a little straighter, blinking a few times at what I had brought him.
"Dolzekh menu, Birâthûna," he said with a nod, giving the bundle a pat.
I smiled awkwardly, returning the nod, unsure of what he said but still getting the general gist. Er, I thought, anyway.
A mental notch was made the next day, when I heard him use the word again, and then there was a day when Bofur used it, after I dropped my water bottle and had to watch it roll down a small hill. I caught the tail end of the conversation after retrieving my water, but it wasn't enough for me to piece together the 'Birâthûna' mystery. The whole thing made me endlessly curious.
The next time I heard it after that, though, the situation was a little more embarrassing.
Maintaining my hygiene was tricky while on the road with fifteen males. It was simple for them, because they could just run off, wash up, and it was whatever. I, on the other hand, had the setback of being unable to call for help if something went wrong. Plus, I was pretty sure Thorin still didn't trust me to be alone and not bring back another set of racist morons. I don't know who exactly I would bring back out here except for Smokey the Bear, but it was fine. The goal, in the end, was keeping me (or rather, the map) safe, so I didn't argue. Not that I could have, unless I wanted to call him a tree.
Basically, I just wound up with a group of paranoid Dwarves who said they would check on me if I wasn't back in fifteen minutes.
This normally wouldn't have been a problem. I would just hop on out to the creek, or the stream, or whatever we happened to be passing when they decided it was time to bathe, and scrub up with my beloved lavender soap. The average wilderness bath would only last about five minutes for me, honestly. I couldn't shave my legs or my pits, much to my disgust, and I didn't care to spend more time than I had to in the nude, in the middle of nowhere, so the bathing was a lot shorter than it would have been at home. (I realized simple things like this were additional fuel to my burgeoning homesickness, and knew then that I would never take a warm bath for granted ever again.)
We stopped at about midday, a little earlier than we would for our standard lunch. Everyone picked up this indicator of what we'd be doing, so half the guys broke off to go bathe, and half of them stayed to set up camp. Bofur usually dragged Bilbo along with the second group, though the Hobbit seemed to be the only other one who shared my sentiments on birthday suits and wilderness. And Gandalf… I'm not really sure if he bathed. I never saw him leave to do so, anyway, but surely to goodness he took one every now and then.
Regardless, I preferred to go after everyone else, because of one simple reason: wildlife.
Once the Dwarves got through stomping around and splashing all over the place, there usually weren't any snakes or raccoons – or anything, really – left hanging around the water. On this day, naturally, I waited until all were finished so I wouldn't have to reenact an episode of Naked and Afraid.
There was a vast abundance of brambles between this particular creek and our campsite. I nearly got caught up several times on the way to bathe, thankfully managing the small trek without too many scratches, in the end. My routine of washing ensued quickly, so that I could hurry up and get out of the chilly, waist-high water. It may have been the middle of spring, but that didn't mean squat, especially since they didn't have global warming in Middle Earth.
I slipped my clothes back on, though honestly they needed a good washing too, and started back towards camp. That was about when I felt the tickle of an invisible spider web string against my face as I unwittingly walked through it. I sputtered for a moment, stopping to swat the webbing off my nose and mouth, only to see the eight-legged little resident floating half an inch in front of my face. A breeze kicked in and pushed the web he was hanging onto towards me, and in my panic I took several hasty steps in reverse…
Only to trip, and fall flat on my back into one of those bramble bushes.
Immediately I was cringing and gasping at the stinging sensation, as I tried to roll off of my bum, where the worst of the barbs were. Of course, my pants became properly caught up, tiny strings being pulled by each thorn they came in contact with. Then I was panicking because the more I maneuvered, the more I was getting poked by these demon spikes, and it was beginning to actually hurt quite a bit. Not to mention it was really mucking up my clothing.
I felt like an idiot, but I really couldn't get my pants un-stuck while I was in them. So, to save myself from further imitating a pincushion, I kicked off my boots and wriggled out of my sweatpants, then set to work trying to free my clothing.
That was how Dwalin found me, several minutes later. No pants, crouched down beside this damn shrub, meticulously picking my britches out of it.
Perfect.
Thankfully my hoodie was long enough to cover most of my neon pink panties, but I was so far past caring by the time he came around, it wouldn't have mattered. There was a rustling, and I looked over in time to see him push his way through the foliage and freeze, taking in the scene. My hands paused in their workings and I simply looked at him from my position on the forest floor. Not quite glaring, but not quite stoic, I maintained a surprisingly calm exterior.
It took a moment for Dwalin to figure out why in the world I didn't have any pants on, eyes flicking to the brambles, then back to me. He was not usually caught off guard. In the matter of 'constant vigilance', he was nearly as bad as Thorin, so when he finally registered what fresh idiocy I had brought upon myself, he was… amused.
Dwalin's bushy brows pulled together and his lips were in a tight line as he started shaking his head and looked down to his boots. When his shoulders began shuddering a bit, the sound of suppressed snickers through gritted teeth finally reached my ears.
He didn't even say anything. He just kept shaking his head and turned right back around, passing through the shrubbery and back to camp. About five seconds later, as soon as he was out of sight, those snickers evolved into a gruff laughter, slightly muffled by distance and forestry.
I sighed, glaring at my trapped pants. At least he was laughing, I supposed.
There was a waiting period as Dwalin composed himself, and I listened as questions were asked, none of them really legible. Then I heard Bifur's voice, though lord knows what he said.
That was when I struggled to hear through the rustling of the trees, Dwalin replying, "Aye, she's fine, alright. Yer Birâthûna might need some assistance before it's all said and done, though."
There was that word again. 'Birâthûna.' He pronounced it like it was a title, but almost mockingly, like he didn't particularly understand or care for it. Come to think of it, I realized then that the other times were in reference to me as well. Had I been… nicknamed?
I didn't get to think on this for too long, because another conversation started, and the wind finally stopped rustling the leaves enough for me to hear.
"And just where do ye think you're going, lad?" Dwalin asked.
Kili was obviously trying very hard not to laugh when he answered, "I want to see if it's as bad as you say it is."
I slapped my hands over my face. Dammit, Kili.
"Did ye miss the part where he said she hasn't any pants on?" Bofur questioned.
There was a long pause. Within half a minute, they were all bickering about decency and allowing me some privacy while I figured it out on my own, while some just said to send Dwalin to help me since he'd already seen it. That was followed by an argument about the amount of time they gave me, and whether it should be adjusted, and then there was something about enabling me if they helped, and it just dissolved into nonsense.
I was tired of my poor fingers being stabbed by these thorns and my cares about indecency had fled in the wake of my impatience. With a scowl, I stood and removed my hoodie, tying it around my waist. It wasn't complete coverage and most of my thighs were still visible in the front, but all the important neon of my panties was hidden, so I slipped my boots back on and trudged towards camp to find a knife or something.
As soon as I came through the trees, the debate on how to handle the situation died on their mouths. I was glad Dori had been sitting, or he might have keeled over, and Ori was the only one who flat-out covered his eyes, though Bilbo's hands fluttered up around his face like he wanted to. In the end, he just settled for ducking his head. Most of the others just averted their gaze, surprised by the fact that I was willing to stomp out there with no pants.
There were a few that, while uncomfortable, were able to pay attention as I attempted to sign what I required. Unfortunately, one of them was Thorin (damn his composed maturity), and it made me incredibly aware of my pudgy thighs and the fact that I hadn't shaved since at least a week before I came to Middle Earth. Not that hairy legs were unfamiliar to Dwarves or anything, but it felt… deeply wrong.
'Need cut,' I said, cringing at my cave-man level language skills and my dwindling burst of confidence. Signing with Balin was one thing, but signing in front of everyone – with no pants on, wet hair sticking out every which way from when I bathed – was a horse of a different color. 'Cut. Tool.' Oh my god, how do you sign 'knife'?
Dwalin was still smirking, like he couldn't quite get rid of the image of me trying to free my clothing from a plant, and my lips scrunched together in embarrassment.
From off to the side, Fili approached with slight hesitation, while trying not to laugh. I was the one who barged into camp half-dressed, but he was acting as if he were breaking some rule by being within ten feet of me. That didn't stop it from being funny, apparently, as Kili was smothering a few giggles as well, some steps behind his brother. The whole thing was just terribly awkward and everyone recognized that.
Fili pulled a small knife from his coat, and handed it over with the handle facing me. "I suppose you'll be needing this, Miss Jenna?" he asked, pretending like he hadn't been chuckling moments earlier.
I nodded slowly, discomfort just slithering off me in waves as I took the proffered blade. I got what I came for, hanging my head so as not to meet anyone's eyes before I made my escape, and shuffled back into the green curtain of the forest.
There was a small surgery performed on my pants, extracting them from the prickly bush without completely wrecking them. A few strings were jank, but they came loose and still looked like pants, so I counted it as a win despite the fuss it caused.
Coming back to camp was the worst. Even after I had replaced all articles of clothing back to their rightful places on my body, the damage had been done. Bofur was one of many left with a face of amusement and I glared at him half-heartedly as I returned, but he merely laughed at my disgruntlement.
"What? Wasn't gonna say a word," he told me with a smile.
I shook my head and ignored him, heading towards Fili to give him back the knife. The young princes were the definition of cheeky upon my arrival and I almost wanted to just set the knife down and run away. Far, far away.
"I hope this is not a habit of yours?" Fili partially asked as he took the blade, sheathing it in a tiny pocket inside his coat.
At that, I truly did narrow my eyes in warning.
Fili was still grinning when he gave an apologetic look that was almost a wince, though Kili was unabashedly entertained as he said, "Should we be on guard for treacherous plants from now on? Only for our lady's wellbeing, of course."
My nostrils flared as I huffed in fake, exaggerated annoyance, crossing my arms. I couldn't help the smile that played at my lips, however, as these two dorks continued their shenanigans.
"Perhaps we should create a signal? A warning for Miss Jenna, when we catch sight of a particularly ominous tree," Fili joked. I rolled my eyes, uncrossing my arms to give him a light shove.
Kili snickered, wrapping an arm around the other's shoulder. "Now now, we wouldn't want to be a thorn in her side, brother," he said, poorly suppressing another laugh at his own hilarity.
On that note, my hand flew to my face of its own accord with a resounding smack. Dammit, Kili.
There was an accompanying round of chuckles from Bofur, who was a few yards away helping to pack up from lunch. He threw in one of his own, grinning, "Lads, for your own safety, ye might want to leaf her alone for a while."
I stared at him, astounded, which only caused him and the princes to hoot even more. There was no escape from puns, not even in Middle Earth!
"Come on now, we've all heard that one before," Kili said to Bofur. "Try to branch out a little."
While they were distracted with cracking up again, a spur of the moment decision emboldened me. I licked my finger and side-stepped over to Kili, sticking said finger into his ear quickly. Of course, just like it worked on Bilbo, it worked on him as well. I was two for two.
Kili's hand flew up and rubbed at the victimized ear as he made a distressed groan, turning to see me standing there with a mischievous grin plastered on my face. He tried to play disgusted, but wound up smiling anyway as his expression morphed into a teasing scowl.
"You enjoy doing that much too often," Kili said with a shake of his head, as if he could throw off the feeling left in his ear.
I smirked at his accusation. I'd only given two wet-willies so far, thank you kindly. I felt lighter than I had in a while at that point though, and I realized that day's events were helping to pull me out of my funk. Embarrassing? Totally. But was it worth it, in order to banter with these nerds at the end? Yes.
After a pleasant lull in the conversation, there was a sudden jabbering in Khuzdul, and we looked over to see Bifur heading our direction. I gave a curious look to Bofur, who was listening intently as his cousin bypassed him. Whatever it was that Bifur said caused Bofur to nod, raising his eyebrows in agreement with the words as he glanced down at something Bifur was holding. I couldn't see what the thing was, Bifur's hand motions being too quick and brief, and I only understood simple bits like 'the' and 'at'.
My skill in Iglishmêk was absolutely awe-inspiring.
Before I knew it, Bifur was standing before Fili, Kili, and myself, holding out a small, wooden, cylindrical object.
It was a little longer than my index finger, and a little wider. There was a hole in the top and on each end were two smaller holes, and it took me an embarrassingly long time to figure out that it was a whistle. An extended bit at the end had a hole whittled through, and in it looped a lengthy cord of leather, tied together to effectively turn it into a necklace.
I stared at it for way too long, glancing between Bifur and the whistle.
"Khajam," he said, jutting his hand forward more. "Jalâkhrum mahtash'mariya."
There was a long moment of blinking involved before anyone said anything.
"He wants you to take it, as a gift," Kili said, seeming slightly surprised, but genuinely happy for me.
Bofur nodded, joining us beside his cousin. From his tone, I could tell he hadn't any idea that Bifur was making such a thing for me, as he said with amazed eagerness, "Aye, in case ye run into any real trouble or we get separated, just call. We'll be there in a jiffy. Quite a clever idea, Bifur..."
Suddenly I remembered the other night, when I brought Bifur's sleeping gear to him. He'd been messing around with a stick the perfect size to make this with. Had he been working on it since then?
I met Bifur's gaze and he nodded again in reassurance, so I gingerly took the offered whistle. The object was surprisingly smooth as I turned it over in my hands, though the smoothness was interrupted by an intricate carving on one side. I ran my fingers over it, realizing they were tiny runes, and my brows furrowed with interest at the symbols.
"Birâthûna."
My eyes snapped up to Bifur's upon hearing that word once more. What…?
"Birâthûna essentially means 'Girl of the Map'," Fili provided from beside me, gesturing vaguely to my shoulder.
My eyebrows rose a bit and my mouth popped open in understanding, a silent 'oh' having formed. That made sense.
"Bifur thought it suited you. Been callin' ye that since the Company set off," Bofur informed me.
It took a second to really sink in. This was… really super sweet, holy shit, guys. My heart felt like it might explode at how thoughtful it was of Bifur to make something like this, specifically for me, to call for help if I needed it. I even had a nickname engraved on it? Like, how was I supposed to function?
There was an exclamation from Bifur, making the others chuckle. Kili was the one who finally said, "Go on, he wants you to try it out."
I pushed back the emotions bubbling in my chest in order to cast a quick look around. The rest of the Company was either watching or at least partially aware of what was happening in our corner, so I wasn't too worried about scaring anyone.
It crossed my mind, when my eyes scanned over Thorin, that he might be adverse to me having an object with Khuzdul on it. He had been eyeing the whole interaction as per usual – like a suspicious, paranoid bird of prey – and didn't appear too keen on the engraving. It also crossed my mind that I didn't really give a flying fuck, because this whistle was a super thoughtful gift, dammit.
A short, astoundingly loud TWEEE rang out. Fili and Kili flinched, being the closest ones to me, with Bofur and Bifur following suit. I gave an excited snuffle of a giggle, lowering the noise-maker from my lips.
Bofur laughed, saying, "Works pretty well, if ye ask me."
With that statement Bifur looked quite proud, and I grinned at him once more. I slipped the leather cord over my head, the whistle resting on my chest, and attempted a very rough signing of 'Thank you'. Though my hands moved torturously slow and I probably butchered it, Bifur got the message all the same, satisfaction in his eyes as he nodded.
Warmth gathered in my chest at all of it. I felt like things were looking up, like things could really be changed with these guys on my side. Even though my Iglishmêk wasn't that great yet, I felt like they understood me. I felt welcome. Like the future was –
Blegh!
My hand immediately came up to my ear as I used my hoodie sleeve to wipe off what I knew was saliva. That is, if Kili's howling was anything to go by. I whipped around to see the youngest prince attempt to collect himself in time to speak as I glared at him.
"Two can play at this game, Miss Jenna," he cautioned with a bubble of laughter.
Fili was looking much too smug as well, chiming in, "Only two?"
My eyes shot back and forth between them, realizing what kind of a war I had started. Off to the side, I noticed Dwalin shake his head and give the heaviest of sighs as he overheard our buffoonery.
"When you least expect it, we'll be there," Kili said, raising a finger to make his point.
I could only smile at the absolutely disgusting game I had just initiated.
Oh, it was on.
Probably one of my less polished chapters, and not much Thorin in this one, but rest assured he returns in the next for more interaction with our Jenna. ;D
Thoughts on this chapter? Still enjoying? What part did you like most? Be sure to let me know! I will never get tired of hearing from my dear readers. You are all rays of beautiful sunshine and you light up my life. Seriously. I'm allowed to be corny for a minute!
Agh, thank you all so much! Stay safe, be brave, and as always - until next time!
Birâthûna akhalul zain - Girl-of-the-Map is a peaceful female. Sort of.
Dolzekh menu – Thank you
Khajam - Gift
Jalâkhrum mahtash'mariya - Call us to protect you.
