Don't hold my word for updates, I've been very busy. After this week things look like they'll die down. : )
Élarinya had not been to the training grounds before this. Once the two dwarves entered the clearing, she paused to have a look around. It was a wide, open space parallel with the water levels. The cold moon shone brightly over the waters and cascaded shadows from the trees lining the perimeter. It was calm. They had travelled several kilometers north, deep within the forest until reaching the lake again. Lake Town itself was nowhere in sight, nor were there wandering bodies roaming the lands to disturb the session now in-progress. Not even the wind howled to disrupt the growing tension between the two. The female became more anxious by the second once Thorin stepped into the center of the ring of dirt. He turned to face her.
"Is this really necessary?" Éla asked, stepping closer so they were within arm's reach.
"Yes. I want to see if your fighting capabilities have been hindered since our run-in with the goblins in the Misty Mountains." He responded with little emotion, his face blank. "This will be a test of endurance."
She doubted that was why they were out there. Thorin turned one of the blades in his hands so the handle was extended to her for the taking. Éla took it with caution, prepared if he made an unexpected move. "You're not mad about the incident after dinner?"
Thorin started pacing around her slowly, his gaze fixed on the landscape rather than her form. "Not at you. They offended and brought disrespect to my people, and worst of all, to you."
Éla sighed. "It was nothing. I'm over it now. I shouldn't have acknowledged them in the first place. It wasn't...lady-like." The latter sounded bitter, even to her.
The dwarf prince stopped mid-stride and drew his sword so it was leveled with her neck, only a few inches away. His sudden action startled Éla as she watched him apprehensively.
"Standing up for yourself doesn't make you any lesser of a person, or a woman." Thorin said firmly as he repositioned himself so they faced each other. "Don't change who you are because that."
She raised a hand in defense. "I wasn't trying to..."
Now Éla was beginning to fear his next gesture and tightened her grip on the sword in her hand. Relief settled in as Thorin lowered his weapon. The maiden was full of surprises that day and Thorin couldn't help but take minor enjoyment in her fluctuating dispositions. "Did your father train you?"
"Not exactly." Éla became hesitant as he stared at her curiously. "As a child, a few of us would sneak into a secret passage that overlooked the guards' battle arena. We would watch them and later try to imitate their skills outdoors. Of course, we were caught several times and scolded for it."
"You could've gotten in a lot of trouble with the guardsmen." He was intrigued.
She laughed quietly to herself as she looked out over the lake, reminiscing over the memory. "We did. My mother was so upset; she wanted me working with her, not training with the boys. She tried to get my father to block off the passage so we could no longer sneak around, but I believe he enjoyed it as much as the children."
Thorin watched Éla idly examine his borrowed sword with interest. Extending an arm towards their cloaks, he reached inside his and pulled out a smaller weapon. Éla's gaze shot up in surprise to the added item the dwarf now held under the moonlight.
"How did you..."
Eyes focused from the ten-inch blade down to the silver runes engraved on its handle, glinting under the light. Éla searched him as he performed his own inspection.
"The Master requested that our weapons be returned from the elves." Thorin explained subtly. "The shipment arrived this morning."
He handed it over. Éla didn't know whether to take it or not. She already came to terms with never seeing it again during their imprisonment, yet here it was being offered for the taking. No strings attached.
"The rest are being held within the armory until we leave. I was able to take your dagger for training purposes only. Once we return to the gate, you'll have to give it up there."
"Thank you." She said quietly. Her features were grateful and Thorin used the moment to his advantage.
In one swift and sudden move, the dwarf swung his blade at Éla. Her reflexes kicked in and the clash of metal rang through the air as she tossed the dagger to the side, drowning within the forest trees. She couldn't dual wield like Fili and the dagger was in her left hand. She was right-handed. Both paused and bore into the other's body language. Thorin withdrew the contact, looked her over before locking an intense gaze he hadn't seen before and then swung again, this time with more force.
Éla remained in a defensive position, blocking each strike as he slowly backed her up where the ground joined with the water. Thorin's blows were infused with anger and frustration, and Éla could feel it. He was forcing her to take this seriously. Finally, the maiden had enough and dug the heels of her boots into the dirt and not only deflected his swing, but reciprocated the same movements.
Pleased to have turned to the defensive, Thorin began a test of several strikes and attempts to disarm her. A smirk threatened to tug at his features as Éla continued to avert all assaults. He was gradually building the force with every swing, and every time they were met with the opposing weapon. Éla mimicked his strength with her own strikes as they pressed on in silence.
It wasn't long after an hour of practice swings when Thorin swung one final blow, releasing the long blade from Éla's grasp from sheer power and skill unequaled. Weaponless, the female recovered quickly and jumped into a roll as Thorin attacked. Éla picked up her weapon just in time to brace their swords, struggling for the upper hand as she kept pushing herself off bent knees.
"Give up?" Thorin grunted as he pressed all his weight onto her blade, halting her progression to stand.
Éla's muscles began to tire under his full capacity, the sharp edge scratching against the face of her sword. She moved one hand to the tip, hoping to distribute his force through both arms, but at the cost of lowering further on her knees. He had noticed the fiery determination in her eyes and it shot a spark through him.
"Never."
Éla couldn't hold onto her position any longer, arms lightly trembling. Thorin lifted the pressure, angling his sword more vertically and forcibly tapped her right wrist with the handle as he disarmed the female. Éla feebly bent forward to push him away but he grabbed both wrists and pinned her down.
"There are still questions that need answering," Thorin said as he breathed heavily, preventing her from moving at all. Both their energy had been burned.
A wild look etched in her eyes. "Then what happened in the cells?" She took a deep breath as he raised a brow. "Why did you kiss me?"
Thorin was nearly stunned by her abrupt question before he could ask any of his own. He had her cornered with no escape. What feared him most: they were alone. "You gave me no choice in the matter."
For a split second, she could have sworn he leaned in a fraction of an inch. "No one forced you to do it." The female wiggled under his hold, but he did not let go. She wasn't taking the time to think before acting, but he made her nervous and it wasn't entirely in a bad way.
"You created a lie, Éla." Thorin stared hard, his deep gaze trailing to her lips. The mixture of emotions made the dwarf unrecognizable as he clamped his mouth shut. He looked torn, divided.
"I did not. The elves conjured up the idea-"
"-you went with it, therefore putting me, us, in a difficult situation."
Thorin loosened his grip, which Éla took to reverse their positions as he was flipped onto his back, the corners of his mouth curling into a smile.
"If what I did was such a lie, then you're just at fault for falsely proving it." Éla got up and held his sword to his throat for a moment before turning the handle to its owner, offering to continue with the session.
Thorin took the sword, stood and collected their things, averting his stare away from her. "Come, we'll continue tomorrow."
It was getting late and both were exhausted. Thorin never got to ask what he had wanted to, but there was no rush either. Training with Éla under the cover of the night sky was a bad idea. He could no longer be held accountable for his actions if they remained alone any longer. Éla was thankful as she suppressed a sigh of relief and followed her future king back to the town of men.
Three knocks sounded from the other side of a door.
"Come in."
A tall guard with long, dark curls pulled the door open and inclined his head in a respectful gesture.
"Master. I come bearing news from your pending investigation."
The Master leaned back in his chair, weaving his fingers together as he crossed his arms over his chest. He waited for him to proceed with his findings.
"The night is not getting any younger." The Master's voice was low and stern.
The guard was fidgeting in place over the strings holding his weapon's belt around his waist. "The dwarf woman left the town with the king. Upon their return, he became protective of her." He didn't like the narrowed look received by his Master, nor that of Thorin prior to this visit. "Some of the guards would advise not to pursue this any further."
With a wave of a hand, the Master irritably dismissed his guard. He was skeptical over this 'King Under the Mountain' and decided he would not interfere with his kin for the time being. "There might be more between them than what is let on. Keep your distance, especially from her. I don't need raging dwarves on my doorstep."
"Understood."
From basic knowledge, the Master mused over whether the female was indeed romantically involved with the dwarf king, or if he was protecting her in a similar fashion to rumors spread regarding their culture. He had heard about dwarves tending to keep their women concealed from the men of other races for they were few in numbers. Élarinya was seasoned, he could see that. No doubt she was older than himself, but her cold, independent persona had caught his attention in the most unusual way. Alas, he would not step over boundaries, especially that which involved this so-called king.
Downstairs the dwarves organized themselves, bustling about before exiting the house with a slam. Éla had gone to the library in hopes for some peaceful reading after luncheon with Ori as he delved into his notebook full of writing and sketches. They were just so loud; she couldn't focus on more than two sentences at a time. Technically, Éla had been stuck on the first page for well over a half hour as the members stomped about in the next couple rooms over, gathering this and that, including themselves.
Closing the book cover, the female raised from the soft chair after the house fell silent and moved into the living space. Bilbo buttoned up his waistcoat before grabbing a longer-sleeved jacket.
"What's going on?" Éla asked, moving closer to the hobbit. "Where did everyone go?"
"They left to train for the afternoon." Bilbo replied in a huff. "Again."
She chuckled, watching him so concentrated on dressing himself for the weather outside. "Are you going too?"
Bilbo nodded as he reached for a wooden walking stick roughly his height, leaning against the wall by the door. "Yes, it's really nice outside but a bit damp from the rain this morning."
Ori pocketed his leather book and quill before turning to Éla. "You should come with us. We could place bets on the rounds!"
She watched the two with great suspicion. They watched as the wheels turned in her head.
"I'll bet on nothing other than who will win. Fair enough?"
"Fair enough." Ori smiled. "No coin involved this time if it's just the three of us."
Bilbo looked her over as if something wasn't right. "You don't plan on joining the others in a dress, do you?"
"Of course not!" Éla laughed over his worry. "I will not participate today. Besides, it's no fun being a lone spectator."
The sun was very hot but there was a cool, autumn breeze rustling through the leaves that afternoon. Bilbo and the two dwarves had casually made their way to the training grounds and sat themselves under the shade of a large tree. The temperature wasn't as chilled as Éla had expected so late in September, but it was a nice change. Ori perched himself on a nearby boulder and lost himself within his drawings, occasionally glancing up to review the scene played out before them.
The field was one big, muddy mess compared to the dry terrain from the previous night. The activity from the dwarves had unearthed most of the soil and dirt from heavy footing and large puddles of murky water pooled in different grooves with the constant changing ground. What Éla found odd after Nori and Bofur's sparring within the ring, was that they trekked over to the water's edge and dunked right in. At first she thought it was to wash all the mud off, but then she realized the sun's rays were beaming down on them. They got a refreshing, quick bath only to get dirty again. This continued for a few more rounds well into mid-afternoon.
Dwalin and Thorin were the last ones remaining in the ring after Fili and Kili were knocked out by the burly two. They stepped off to the side where their companions stood dripping, but overall clean. Everyone was too keen on seeing who would win this match. Ori looked up from his book to watch. Éla took mental notes on each unique fighting style to help improve her own since she was not participating that day. The two were covered waist-deep in mud. Dwalin began circling around his leader, and Thorin followed suit. Éla couldn't help but stare at the dirty sight. No pun intended of course. When the brawn dwarf's back was facing her, dark eyes cascaded down to her lap as Thorin looked over his friend's shoulder directly at the female.
Within seconds the match began, a safe indication that she could watch without his gaze focused on her.
"Everything alright?"
Éla turned to Bilbo sitting next to her. "Yes, why?"
"You're flustered." He said quietly before returning his focus on the fight.
He had caught her off-guard and she slowly became embarrassed. "It's nothing."
The Halfling snickered lightly and left the topic at that. Hobbits were curious creatures in Bilbo's case, but he knew when to leave well enough alone. The same could not be said for Fili and Kili. The two brothers had been lost in a deep conversation watching the match before the older one waved Éla over to the edge of the ring. She walked over with caution, bringing a towel that had been tossed on the grass for Kili who kept rubbing his eyes.
"Thanks." The younger prince wiped his face from dirt and sweat, seemingly appearing much better cleaned.
"You should wash up like the others," Éla suggested, pointing to the clear water and looking at Kili, "and rinse your face to clear your eyes from any irritations."
Fili chuckled whole-heartedly, eyes diverting behind the maiden. "You're beginning to sound like a worried mother."
Éla laughed but soon shrieked in surprise when a heavy arm wrapped around her shoulder.
"Kili!" She pushed him away with her arm, but exposed skin came into contact with his thin, muddy tunic.
Kili picked her up, grinning madly as he carried Éla into the edge of the training ring.
"Put me down!" She huffed with excitement and horror. "This isn't funny!"
"Then why are you laughing?"
Fili followed his younger brother while the rest of the company stood on the sidelines, watching in utter amusement that their leader hadn't noticed yet what his nephew had done.
"Would you do this to your mother?!" Éla hung onto him, not wanting to be dropped. She could deal with a bit of dirt, but tried to avoid being covered at all possible.
"Nope," he replied in confidence, "but you're part of the company. Dress or no dress."
She hit his chest lightly to show she wasn't fooling around. Kili's footing slipped into a puddle as he carefully walked further in the ring. The sparring match came to an abrupt halt as Thorin was not impressed by the unveiling scenario, being tackled by his friend in the process. When Kili tried lifting his boot, it was stuck and he stumbled forward, falling while trying to place Éla back on her own feet. The maiden's balance wasn't the best with such a long skirt, but at least the garments were not a full-blown gown. Thorin had walked over and tried to steady Éla out of the area, but with her skirts it was proving to be a challenge.
"I got it." She protested, much to everyone's bitter amusement and snickering.
Thorin grabbed hold of her forearm while sending a nonverbal warning to his youngest nephew. "The ring is not meant to accommodate your attire."
Éla rolled her eyes as he knelt down to loosen a boot, hand resting on the dwarf's shoulder for support. She pulled up her skirts to make the walk easier, but with no luck. The weight was dragging her down. Her boots sunk further into the mud as she stepped forward and she fell, bringing the ever sturdy Thorin with her. The grin on Kili's face was wiped off and replaced with hysterical laughter.
"What are you laughing at?" Éla grabbed a handful of mud and threw it towards the two young brothers. Thorin had broken her fall, if one would describe it as such. It was more of a tumble where he side-stepped her so he landed on his back and not the female.
She could feel the rumbles in his chest under the palm of her hand as Thorin chuckled.
"And what are you laughing at?" Éla looked down amused, grabbing another two handfuls and sprayed it over the sitting leader beneath her. Once he realized what was happening, Thorin had enough time to turn his face away from the attack and attempted a nab at her wrists.
"Free-for-all!" Kili shouted as he stood and started firing mud-shots at the other dwarves.
They began wrestling each other into the center. A devious look shot through his features as Thorin hoisted Éla in his arms and brought her to the edge of the fighting ring, closer to the middle of the muddy pit.
"Thorin, don't you even dare!" She squirmed but held a fistful of his shirt a bit tighter. He would be dragged down with her if he tossed her anywhere.
"This was your own doing."
Her actions became more frantic, forcing him to set her down as the maiden put up a fight to get away. Éla yelped as her boots got stuck and dropped to her knees. Again, in a dress, she couldn't move as freely. Thorin grabbed her shoulders, turned and pinned her in the cool mud on her back. The thick, earthy substance oozed around her body as she sunk a little ways.
His face was so close to hers that she felt his warm breath, causing heat to radiate up her neck and face. A hand still clutched his shirt, afraid yet enthralled by his next move. Upon realizing it, she let the fabric go and stealthily reached for another handful of mud to her side. No luck was to be had on the second attempt at victory with the dwarf's keen evasive skills.
"Nice try." Thorin allowed a smirk to graze over his face, almost enjoying himself in their little game. He grabbed the maiden one final time, slung her over his shoulder and headed towards the water's edge.
She screamed in laughter while hitting his back. "Thorin Oakenshield, put me DOWN!"
The dwarf leader treaded in the lake knee deep then tossed Éla into the cool water. He was dragged down with her from her hold on his shirt. She would have it no other way, for revenge was becoming very sweet. The rest of the company ran in afterwards. As refreshing as it was, Éla felt both relaxed and nervous by their extremely close proximity. The pounding in his chest was in rhythm with the splashes caused from the others. The noise and divided attention were drowned out by the pounding drums in her ears. Thorin brought her closer to him and she assumed the inevitable.
"You don't plan on heading back like that, do you?" Bilbo hollered from afar as he peeked out from behind a tree where he had taken refuge from the mud fight. The group of dwarves settled and started filing out of the water towards the Halfling.
Éla was glad they separated. There were too many close encounters with Thorin continuously making her heart race from each touch. If she hadn't buried emotions and refused to acknowledge the truth, Éla would have picked up on his quickened heart beat that day from her own physical contact and what it meant.