As soon as Fili saw the hobbit's horrified expression, he had stood and started shoving his way forward. As she absently waved a hand in front of her as she pleaded for air, he stepped up on the benches and chairs to reach her. He could have smacked Bofur upside the head, as his words caused their host such pain.
He had seen similar expressions on his mother's, brother's, and uncle's faces enough times to recognize it. Fear for a family member's well-being. Seeing death come upon a loved one.
He caught her even as her knees buckled beneath her. "Master Baggins!" he called.
"Very helpful, Bofur," Gandalf drawled.
Fili eased Miss Baggins down, but he couldn't leave her on the floor. Not now that he was certain that it was Bilbo Baggins's sister that was hosting them this night. Though, he was a bit curious as to why she hadn't set them straight on the matter.
Gandalf left the table and stepped over to them. "Bring him along," Gandalf said. "It may be best if he wake up somewhere a touch more comfortable."
Fili scooped the hobbit into his arms, nearly shocked at how little she weighed. He followed the wizard into a small sitting room. He settled the hobbit in a soft chair before the fire, careful that she wouldn't slump over. A moment later, Kili was beside him with a shallow basin of water and a cloth.
"Gandalf is having Dori make a fresh pot of tea for when she wakes," Kili said. "Do you think she's alright?"
"I think she will be," Fili answered. "I have a feeling that Bofur's words may have made her start thinking about her brother."
Kili winced. "Doubtfully in a good way." He nodded towards the entryway. "I'll make sure no one but Gandalf comes in here for now."
Fili only nodded as he wet the cloth and started wiping the cool dampness over their host's face. A moment later, warm brown eyes fluttered open.
"Bilbo?" she called, dazed.
"He's not here," Fili said quietly. "But I'm sure that wherever he is, he's currently safe."
She drew in two, deep, shaky breaths. "No dragon?"
"No dragon," he reassured. "It's miles away from us."
She briefly closed her eyes but when she opened them again, they were clearer. Only then did she seem aware of her surroundings. She stiffened a bit.
Fili gave her a small smile. "Kili and I weren't too sure if you were Bilbo or not. There were just little things that made us think that it was more feminine. And," he averted his eyes, "I may have used the dance earlier as a subtle way of confirming whether or not you were a lady."
He peeked up to see her cheeks turning pink as she stared at him in shock. She shook herself before saying, "Never do that again, or there shall be horrible consequences."
"Yes, ma'am," he said. He paused then asked, "Might I have your name? Gandalf mentioned your brother by name, but I don't remember if he mentioned yours."
"Bellarosa," she said. "Everyone calls me Bella."
"Pleasure, Miss Bella," Fili said, "Fili at your service." He gave her a half-bow.
She smiled. "Bella Baggins at yours. So," her lips took on a sly curve, "what was this Dwalin said about you courting me?"
Fili hesitated. "Well, um, about that . . ."
"Master Fili."
The young dwarf turned to see Gandalf standing behind him, a steaming mug in his hand.
"I'd like a moment alone with our host, if I may," the wizard said.
"Of course, Gandalf," Fili said, standing. He gave Bella a slight bow before leaving. But he didn't stray far. He hoped to still have more of a word with her.
Bella took a few deep breaths and slowly released them as Fili stepped out. The images in her mind were just that. Images. Bilbo was still safely in the Shire. Smaug might as well be on the other side of the world.
Then of course Fili had also surprised her with his confession that he knew she was a girl. And that he used the proximity of the dance earlier to check his suspicions. Knowing that left her feeling embarrassed and violated. Then again, she didn't feel totally violated since the dwarf hadn't groped her in anyway. He'd just wrapped an arm around her waist and managed to feel her feminine curves as opposed to masculine flatness.
She numbly accepted the mug Gandalf handed her, sipping at the borderline hot liquid. The smooth, comforting taste of chamomile wrapped round her tongue, easing her racing heart. It wasn't nearly as strong as her earlier cup, which aided in settling her into a warm cocoon of normalcy.
"Bella," Gandalf started.
"I'm alright," she interrupted. "I just need to sit quietly for a moment."
"You've been sitting quietly for far too long," Gandalf snapped.
"What?!"
"When did doilies and your mother's dishes become so important to you?"
"Those dishes are the last thing Mama gave me," Bella snapped. Tears came unbidden to her eyes. "If they were any other dishes, I wouldn't care. But . . . Mama gave them to me. She willed them to me." She pressed the back of her hand to her nose, trying to stave off any running. "They are among the last things she gave me." She looked up at Gandalf. "Do you have any idea what it's like to have received a final gift from someone? Knowing that you'll never receive a gift from that person again? Knowing that nothing can possibly replace it?"
Gandalf sighed, sparing her a compassionate eye. "I have a handful of such gifts. I am sorry on that count. I did not know that they held that value in your eyes."
"Few do," Bella confessed. She released a half-laugh. "Imagine, willing them to me, the adventuring Took instead of Bilbo the predictable Baggins."
"But that wasn't always the case, was it?" Gandalf asked. "I distinctly remember two young hobbits who were always running off in search of elves in the woods. Who'd stay out late, coming home after dark as they trailed in mud, twigs, and fireflies. Two young hobbits who would have liked nothing better than to find out what was beyond the borders of the Shire."
Bella sighed. "Bilbo became a Baggins, through and through, satisfied by what he can find in books and maps."
"But you know the world is not in dusty books and maps," Gandalf said, gesturing toward the window. "It's out there."
"And I promised him I wouldn't travel farther than Bree until he was ready to join me," Bella said. "Until that time, he'll firmly state, 'I am a Baggins of Bag End.'" She shook her head. "I don't see him just running off into the blue."
"He is also a Took, just as you are," Gandalf said.
"Did you know," he said, pointing to an old ink portrait, "that your great-great-great-great uncle, Bullroarer Took, was so large he could ride a real horse?"
Bella lightly chuckled. "Of course. Took part in the Battle of Green Fields, charging the goblin ranks. He swung his club so hard it knocked the Goblin King's head clean off, and it sailed a hundred yards through the air and went down the rabbit hole. Thus the battle was won, and the game of golf invented at the same time." She laughed. "Bilbo still holds that the last bit is made up."
"Well," Gandalf said with a shrug, "all good stories deserve embellishment." He settled down in the chair across from her. "You'll have a tale or two to tell of your own when you come back."
Her throat tightened as she recalled Bofur's unhelpful description of the dragon. "Can you promise that we will come back?"
"No," Gandalf answered honestly. "And if you do, the two of you will not be the same."
Bella released a breath. "I thought as much." She closed her eyes. What should she do?
"If it helps at all," Gandalf said, "when was the last time you saw that Tookish spark in your brother's eyes?"
She thought about it before a small smile peeked out. "This morning when you came by and we realized who you were."
"And before that?"
"Not since before Papa fell sick."
"So, maybe he is more ready than either of you think."
Bella took a slow sip of her tea as she thought about it. Maybe he was ready. Neither Bagginses nor Tooks ever did anything half-way. Or, maybe he wasn't. But what about her? She sighed. "I'll think about it, Gandalf. But I can make no promises. It's either wait until Bilbo returns tomorrow to hear his decision, or I risk breaking a promise." She stood to her feet. "And as you can imagine, that is a difficult step to take."
Gandalf slowly nodded, somber.
Bella quietly left the room, hoping to go to bed. She nestled down a bit in her brother's robe, breathing in his familiar scent now mixed with the wild scents of whirlwinds, rainstorms, and . . . what she could imagine a mountain would smell like.
"Mistress Baggins?"
She looked up and out of her thoughts to see Fili waiting for her in the hall. "Yes, Master Fili?"
The young dwarf opened his mouth, silently laughed as he ducked his head in embarrassment, before finally meeting her eyes as he said, "I don't believe that I was able to answer your question."
Bella thought back, recalling her light tease about what Dwalin had said concerning this dwarf and a supposed hobbit ranger. "No, we were interrupted before you could."
"Well," Fili said, shuffling his feet, "this may sound odd, but if you don't come with us, and if I am able to after the quest, I would like permission to court you, if I may."
"That's a lot of if's," she noted with a raised eyebrow.
He gave a sheepish smile. "Well, I can't recall any dwarf ever courting a hobbit, so I am a little unsure how to go about this."
Both eyebrows went up and furrowed at that. "You make it sound as though it's the process and not the two of us that you feel unsure of."
Fili ran a hand over his hair. "I'm not sure how familiar hobbits are with the idea of finding their One."
Bella noted the stress he put on the last word, thus concluded it was a title of some sort. "We don't necessarily have traditions in that way," she confessed. "Though Bilbo and I have read stories where heroes of other races discover their One and pledge themselves to each other."
"Well," Fili said, "from the moment I saw you earlier this evening, my heart," he pressed his hand over it in emphasis, "my heart told me that you are my One. I think that may have been even why when I first heard about the ranger hobbit, I wished to potentially court you."
"You just wanted to be sure that the ranger hobbit was really a girl," Bella guessed with a small smile.
Fili nodded. "So, will you at least think about it?"
She smiled. "I would have to consider it for awhile anyway. Hobbits prefer to know their suitors before agreeing to a courtship. So, if I don't decide to go on the quest, you'll need to do something for me."
"What's that?"
"You must write me as often as you can. You can even get your brother in on it. Between the two of you, I believe that I can gain the information needed to make my decision."
"I promise on my word of honor that I shall write you, Mistress Baggins."
"Bella. I'm no 'Mistress Baggins.' I don't have the age or grey hairs for it yet."
"Very well, Bella." Fili reached forward, slipping a warm hand against her neck, fingers buried in the braid running straight down her back.
As he leaned closer, she raised a hand to stop him. "What exactly are you doing?" she asked.
He smiled, tenderly. "I know better than to steal kisses from the rumored hobbit ranger," he said. He closed the distance, resting his forehead against hers.
Bella had no idea how to react. While it was innocent enough and nothing improper about it, for a hobbit lass who had never received a passing kiss from anyone outside her family, this felt strangely intimate. She allowed her eyes to drift closed, just took in her other senses.
He was warm. His hand, calloused yet so gentle. His breaths were deep and even, matching hers. She was almost certain she had now found the source for the new mix of scents on her brother's robe. She was also aware of how her heart seemed to sing at his touch.
He drew away, and only her Baggins propriety kept her from grabbing him and pulling him back. She opened her eyes to find the beginnings of love and longing in his blue eyes. "Good night, Bella," he said softly. Then he was gone.
Bella could only watch him as he quietly walked down the hall to join the other dwarves. For that short moment, she could have sworn that she had experienced what she had only read about. She shook herself. She may no longer be a tween, but apparently her emotions could still run rampant. Though Fili was the only suitor that she had seriously started to consider. "Fool of a Took," she murmured to herself. She would have called herself a lovesick fool, but it was much too soon for that.
She forced herself to continue on to her bedroom. But before she could slip into her nightclothes, a rich deep voice started to float throughout her home. It was sorrowful and full of longing. A song that near broke her heart and yet woke her wanderlust even more than Thorin's impassioned speech.
"Far over the Misty Mountains cold
To dungeons deep and caverns old
We must away ere break of day
To seek the pale enchanted gold.
"The dwarves of yore made mighty spells,
While hammers fell like ringing bells
In places deep, where dark things sleep,
In hollow halls beneath the fells.
"For ancient king and elvish lord
There many a gleaming hoard
They shaped and wrought, and light they caught
To hide in gems on hilt of sword.
"On silver necklaces they strung
The flowering stars, on crowns they hung
The dragon-fire, in twisted wire
They meshed the light of moon and sun."
There was more to the song, Bella was sure, but the deep, rumbling, and mellow notes slowly coaxed her into sleep. Her dreams were full of mountains, forging dwarves, and jewels formed from tamed dragon fire and soft moonbeams.
Arthur's Note: Well, Bella's considering a courtship now, as well as trying to decide what to do about the promise to her brother.
Bella's sentiments concerning her mother's dishes are based on my own feelings. While it's now been three years since my grandma passed away, I consider most everything I have from her to be very precious, especially the items I received from her the last Christmas she was with us.
"Far Over the Misty Mountains Cold" was the first to become my favorite when the movies came out, simply because it was part of the teaser. Not to mention it gives me a special thrill to hear the rumbling tones of the dwarves sing. And while the film took the song straight from the book yet again, they only used two verses of the ten or so Tolkien recorded. But I found a full version that I fell in love with. It is performed by Clamavi De Profundis and twenty minutes long. Admittedly it also includes the "Song of Durin," a ballad about Thorin's ancestor. I highly recommend that you check it out either on Spotify or Youtube. It's beautiful.
So, any thoughts on Fili and his potential courtship? Do you think he's being a gentleman or a bold rogue? ;-) Please, share with me your thoughts about any part of this story. Even theories about what will happen the coming morning. I'll be waiting to hear from you.
Oh, and I at least try to answer each of your reviews when I am able. So be sure to check your messages. Until next time!