A/N Sorry about the false updates I have reloaded/replaced and deleted chapters because 19 was posting a duplicate. To say the least I am frustrated but this should hopefully fix it all. Should have a real new update this month.
Chapter 19 The Peer Gynt Encounter: Part I
*A/N This chapter was inspired when I was listening to Peer Gynt: In the Hall of the Mountain King. If you are unfamiliar with the tune I encourage you to listen to it because it narrates the escalade of events in the second half of this chapter.
Present Time…
Fili and Thyra sat next to each other while they posted themselves just outside the camps circle as they kept their shift of watch. However, the phrase 'next to each other', was perhaps an exaggeration of accuracy in their proximity to one another.
A large cedar tree, reaching over forty feet in length, lay prone on the ground after falling down from a long ago storm. Several branches had been broken off during its fall to the ground, leaving the majority of the trunk bare. Its uprooted foundation that had once been buried deep within the ground were left exposed, looking like a gnarled mass of twisted and bent fingers.
Sitting on each end of the trees length, were the two dwarves in question. Fili preoccupied the end which once reached for the sky while Thyra took the other end as she sat with her back against the uprooted tendrils.
Thyra's arms were crossed against her chest with her legs stretched out along the trunk, her left ankle crossing her right as she took up a more casual posture than usual. Her dark eyes blended in with the darkness of the night making it impossible to see where her attention was trained. But Fili did not need to see, nor did he look in her direction, to know she was not watching the wilderness.
He could feel her dark gaze on him as the aura emanating from her direction read nothing but vindictive intent. He could feel the constant rhythmic vibrations traveling up the trunk as her foot bounced with pent up agitation. He thought about telling her to stop but then he would have to talk to her. And even if he did make the request, he believed she would only exaggerate the movement to intensify the shaking sensation. So instead he kept his eyes trained on the surrounding trees and underbrush while he tried to ignore the hostility being directed towards him.
While the eagles had granted them the opportunity to put some distance between their hunters, Thorin was not wanting to take any chances now that they were on foot again. With the increase of danger, Thorin was assigning pairings instead of individuals to keep watch at night.
Fili usually never minded keeping watch. In fact, he found it oddly relaxing and pleasant. And with the recent pairings for watch, he found it helped form deeper bonds and comradeship between members of the company. Most of the time his shifts seemed to fly quickly by because of the pleasant conversation.
Dwalin always had great insight into new fighting techniques and helpful critiquing. Bilbo lived such a different life from a dwarf that anything he shared was always refreshing. Bofur and Nori always had a laughable story to share. Sigurd was such an amiable lass that it was always pleasant to be around her. And while Fili was still unsure if he truly liked or disliked Thrade, it was nice to have another male dwarf that was near his age to relate with. For the rest of the company, they too also all had their own perks of being on duty with.
However, there was one exception to that rule for Fili, and that was Thyra.
Tonight was their first time ever being scheduled at the same time. Something that Fili just realized may have been purposely done by Thorin up until now. But certain events had changed Thorin's mind, and Fili was hating every moment of it.
There were no jokes or interesting stories. Not even a surprise snack, a perk to being paired with Bombur. And there was certainly no idle chit chat being exchanged to even try and make the long hours pass by.
Instead there was silence, silence and seething. The hours that usually passed by quickly were prolonged to what seemed like three times the actual amount and Fili hated it. He hated it all. To make it worse, this arrangement was permanent and to be repeated every night until Thorin said otherwise.
At the thought Fili immediately felt his gut tighten with dismay and shame of his earlier actions that had led up to this point. His mind played over the lecture that had wounded his confidence and pride far more than he liked to admit. But it was well deserved now that Fili looked back at his actions though he would never admit it.
He cast a suspicious side glance towards Thyra as if to make sure she did not know what he was thinking. She was mostly cast in shadow but her light hair did well to catch and reflect the moon light enough to illuminate her face. He was not surprised by the presence of a frown on her face, but he was surprised by the cause behind it. For it was not an expression of anger but instead one of deep thoughts. One that made Fili wonder if perhaps see too was reflecting upon the cause of their current situation.
It was an interesting predicament they were in and it was an even more interesting situation that had landed them in such an arrangement in the first place. It had all began earlier that week….
Previously That Week…
Supper had just been cleared away and everyone was settling down after a grueling day of traveling across a rugged terrain. They had spent hours trying to climb up a steep plateau but were quick to discover that there was no possible way back down due to a landslide. So instead they had to resort to taking a detour several miles north before they could find a safe enough spot to make a descent. To make things worse, the ground at the bottom was nothing but broken rocks and loose gravel, making it difficult to travel swiftly across without losing one's footing or twisting an ankle.
Taking pity on his ragged group, Thorin called it a day when they finally reached the first optimal campsite as the sun reached the point to indicate it was only mid afternoon. There was not much done the rest of the day other than the soaking of aching feet in the small stream that they had set up their camp beside.
Supper was then prepared and as the sun disappeared and the moon rose, they all found themselves sitting around the fire and watching the flames flicker and grow small until someone managed to hobble over to throw on another log before it died out completely.
Things were strangely quiet and less lively that night when compared to others. Bofur was too tired to play anything on his flute and no one protested as they were all too tired to have any desire to sing or dance.
Unfortunately it was still too early for sleep to come easily. While their feet were tired and sore, their minds still hummed for some type of entertainment before being ready to succumb to an unconscious state. A few stories were shared at first but it soon became apparent that they all found themselves at a loss for a new story to share. It was for this reason, Bofur was inspired to address the less talkative of their female companions.
"Thyra," he said in a voice that still held his usual upbeat tone. "I am sure you have all sorts of stories to share that we have not heard. Would you treat us?"
Thyra, who had been staring at the fire without blinking for some time, suddenly moved her dark eyes from the orange flames and looked around to find that all eyes were now on her. It was obvious that Bofur's request had brought a lot of intrigue and curiosity to their comrades. Even Fili had a brief glint of interest in his eyes but upon seeing her attention he schooled them into disinterest.
With Thyra's injury and with them being hunted, Thyra had been keeping with the company during their travels more often. The result of this was an increase of exposure of the two dwarves to one another. This increase easily correlated with an increase of heated disagreements and agitated patience between the two. Thyra still offered advice to Kili despite Fili's request and while Kili had yet to take an initiative and follow through with her advice, Fili was still annoyed.
At first it seemed she would refuse but as she set her eyes upon Fili, there was a change in her continence. A smug smirk stretched across her face as her dark eyes glinted mischievously. It was an action that brought a frown to Fili's face, which in turn made her lips stretch even further upward.
She looked to Bofur and nodded.
"It will not be as good in your Western tongue," she said steadily. "But I will try."
Her aquencence to his request caused a small ripple of excitement around the campfire and several shifted in their seats, looking more alert as they all cast their attention to her.
Bofur smiled and waved a hand.
"That's alright lassie. Many of our stories lost their meaning as well when not shared in Khuzdul."
Thyra nodded then took in a deep breath as she began her story.
Long ago there was a lush land at the base of a tall grass was soft like the fur of a rabbit skin and the water was refreshing no matter how cold or hot the day was.
The sun always shone brightly and when it did not, it was only because the rains poured down their life giving nectar to enrich the earth. But once the earth had been replenished, the sun would return.
A wanderer named Usalaag came across the lands and decided that it was too beautiful for only his eyes to be blessed, so he created the gentle creatures of the world to inhabit the lands. Frogs and fish were given the waters, mice and moles were given the earth, and the warblers and sparrows the trees. He created all sorts of animals. Some with long tails, others with none. There were creatures of the quiet nature like the deer while others such as the duck made a ruckus in the pond. Despite their differences, they all got along and lived in harmony.
Usalagg was happy with his creations and continued to design additions to his collection. For one particular piece of work, he took a rock from the earth and carved it out. Once it was hollow he then took the most beautiful flowers from the grasslands and placed them on the rock before pouring honey over their petals. When the honey had hardened, he took moss from a tree and shined the rock. For three days he rubbed it until it became an opaque crystal that took on a winsome design from the flowers that lay beneath the layer of hardened honey. Usalagg was quite pleased with his work as all the animals gazed with awe at the beautiful rock.
With his masterpiece finished, he walked over to the end of the water and pulled a frog from its depths and placed it into the carved center. When Usalagg had hollowed the rock, he left six holes all around the edge. From the holes, the frog's arms, legs, head, and finally his bottom, which had been pinched into a tail, hung out from the rock. Thus Usalaag created the turtle.
All the creatures praised the turtle for the beauty of his shell and they all cried for Usalaag to make the turtle their king. Usalaag was hesitant as the turtle had not done anything to make himself worthy of such a title but he finally granted the creatures their wish and proclaimed the turtle their ruler.
On the eleventh day of being in the land, Usalaag said he must leave to go up into the mountains. Before his departure, he turned to the turtle and told him that he was placing the care of the animals in his hands and warned him that he should never forget that just because his subjects had chosen him, it did not mean he was ready to rule. Usalaag told the turtle that he must work hard from now on to become a good ruler and not to take advantage of what had been bestowed upon him so easily. With his final words, Usalagg made his journey up the tall mountain and disappeared, leaving the creatures to frolic in their bliss.
At first, the turtle took Usalaag's words to heart but he soon became lazy and arrogant. With his new shell he found he never needed to make shelter when it rained and the beauty of it attracted his subjects so much that they brought him food and water aplenty. Their constant praise of his beauty and power went to his head and soon the turtle forgot Usalaag's words altogether as he easily ruled his lands that never seemed to have worry.
Years passed easily until one day, turmoil came to their lands.
Fanged wolves, swift raptors, clawed bears, and other beasts not of their lands began to ravage their once harmonious estate. The wolves hunted the larger animals in packs, causing their larger beasts to become too few to fight back. Raptors of all size, eagles, ravens, and horned owls swooped down and took the smaller beasts. The bears knocked down the beehives and ate the honey causing the bees to leave. Without the bees, the flowers died and the fruit trees became barren. Then the crows came and ate the sod seed making the once luscious grasslands turn to dirt where it dried out and turned to sand.
The animals gathered together and tried to decide what to do. After seven days of deliberation, it was finally decided that they would seek out Usalaag from the mountain top. No animal had ever ventured to the top before and because the turtle was their ruler they all looked to him. Having been puffed up, the turtle agreed to accept the challenge.
But the turtle had become too egotistical because of his shell. Not only was it beautiful but it had also kept him safe during these times of danger. No beast had been able to hurt him so he thought himself invincible. So he accepted the challenge only because he knew he would not die.
With great cheers from his people, the turtle began to make his way to the mountain. He first came across a bear whose claws were not sharp enough to scratch his shell. Then the wolves came but their jaws were not strong enough to crack his shell. With no harm coming to him, he made it to the base of the mountain.
Unable to consume the turtle, the new predators of the land gave up and glared at the reptile who had only become even more inflated as he began to climb up the mountain.
But there was something that the turtle was too stupid to realize when accepting the challenge. While his shell kept him safe from the large beasts, it did not aid him in climbing the large rocks and slopes of the mountain. The turtle managed to climb up only a single rock before his heavy shell caused him to lose his balance and fall down the slope were the large beasts were waiting for him. All eager for another chance to try for a taste of the turtle.
Seeing these beasts and having lost some of his confidence, he cowered in his shell until nightfall when they had all fallen asleep. With false triumph over the bloodthirsty beasts, the turtle again made his way back up to the mountain. Again he attempted his ascent and again he fell back down the hill because the weight of his shell.
The animals of Usalaag's creation watched and shouted for him to remove his shell and climb up. But the turtle was not willing to discard the gift that he had been given. For the predators had arisen from the sound of the turtle falling down the mountain and were waiting hungrily at the bottom.
Intimidated by the feral beasts, the turtle was too much of a coward to expose himself to the dangers. He also feared that if he should remove it, the animals would remember his true form as a soft and weak frog. So he again made his ascent for a third time and again the foolish turtle fell down the hill. However, this time he landed on his back.
His arms and legs waved in the air but were useless when it came to righting himself. No matter how much he rocked and tried to turn the shell, it was too heavy for him to lift. Usalaag had told him to become stronger, but he had relied on only the gift he had been given for strength and never strengthened himself and thus was the day he reaped to consequences.
For three days the turtle tried to turn himself over and for three days the animals of his kingdom where picked off by the new beasts of his nation. The subjects that he was told to protect were killed before his very eyes while he remained useless in his armored shell.
Too stubborn and afraid to leave his shell to help his people, he pulled in his arms and head and shrank into the dark depths of his shell. From within the dark cavern, he listened to the cries of his people as they were hunted and ripped apart by the hungry predators.
"And that ends the first part of the saga," Thyra announced suddenly. She looked up to the moon which was now high in the sky. "I think it is too late for the other two parts."
When Thyra suddenly cut off her storytelling there was a long pause as no one knew what to say. It was not like anything they had heard. The ending was abrupt, unexpected, and lacked conclusion.
"That is the most futile story I have ever heard." Fili muttered while Kili's foot shot out and kicked him hard in the shin.
"No it's not Fili," Kili reprimanded looking quickly to make sure Thyra had not heard.
"Are you serious?" Fili questioned. "There is no triumph in the end. There was no moral of the story."
Thyra's dark eyes flashed to him, having heard his mutterings.
"The moral is that a ruler cannot just be chosen. They are made and must prove themselves worthy before taking a crown. They must always prepare themselves and never take advantage of times of harmony. The turtle was lazy and selfish. He valued his life more than the call of his duty."
Fili let out a huff but said nothing more.
"Well it was an interesting story all the same lassie and I look forward to hearing the last two instalments," Bofur finally managed to say in an attempt to defuse the argument as he sensed Fili's desire to think up another point to argue. "What is its name?"
Thyra's attention moved to Fili as she answered the other dwarfs question. Her eyes glinted in the fire light as her mouth curved into a self amused smile.
"We call it Skjaldbaka, eðla, og snákur. In your Westron you can call it, The Turtle, the Lizard, and the Snake. This part is known as Feelig: the Foolish Coward."
At the naming of the title, Fili's head snapped up as he glowered at Thyra.
He recognized that name. It was familiar because it was the only thing she had ever called him. Not once over the months since their first meeting had she ever called him by his given name. The first time was during their second encounter just after the trolls where turned to stone and she knocked him to the ground. She had shoved him onto his back and said the name right after she thanked him. He remembered it vividly because he remembered being shocked when she uttered the words in the westron tongue.
At the time he had thought he had just heard her wrong and it was her accent. Then he thought it was perhaps she could not pronounce his name correctly, the way she struggled with Sigurd's name and substituted it with Siggy. But when he realized she did not struggle with Kili's, he came to the conclusion that she did it merely because she knew it bothered him.
Yes, she was purposely calling him by the wrong name. But it turned out it was far worse than simply trying to aggravate him, she had been insulting him.
His hands clenched and his teeth gritted as he made the connection to what she was implying by calling him such a name.
Sigurd could easily tell the tension between the pair was about to become far more tighter. She still did not understand why they had such a difficult time with each other. From what Kili had told her of his brother, Fili did not usually dislike others. And for the few he did, he never openly showed it.
In retrospect, she too found an oddity in Thyra's behavior. Having a person dislike Thyra was nothing new, she never cared if someone disliked her. Or at least she put up a good show of indifference when it came to other people's opinions.
But what the oddity was the seemingly purposeful actions that antagonized Fili. If Sigurd did not know any better she would assume that Thyra wanted Fili to hate her.
With the tension becoming far too strained, Sigurd was worried that it would soon be pulled too tightly. And if that happened, the result would not end well for anyone. With this conclusion, she knew it was time to defuse the situation.
"The story is much better with the second and third part," she said while turning to Thyra. "Why don't you finish the ending? The night is not as late as you suggest, we have plenty of time."
Thyra turned her attention away from Fili to look at Sigurd, then she looked back to Fili as she contemplated.
"No," she said finally. "Not now."
Sigurd's shoulders sagged in defeat.
"Maybe you could tell it Siggy," Kili eagerly offered in an attempt to support her effort to defuse the situation and raise her spirits.
Sigurd let her chin drop to her hands as she leaned forward on her knees.
"No," she said with a heavy sigh. "I would not tell it right."
"Then maybe another time," Balin offered as he gave the girl who was sitting next to him a pat on her knee. Sigurd gave him a grateful smile and nodded.
After that, the tension died down but there were no more stories shared and instead several went off to their bedrolls in hopes to quickly fall asleep and wake up rested. Thorin gave out the nights assignments for watch and the first pair, Bilbo and Kili, made their way to the outer perimeter.
While everyone else settled in their beds for the night, Fili remained unmoved from his upright position as he glared at the flames of the quickly dying fire. His eyes darted over to where Thyra was lying, he could see her collected hair splayed out along her shoulder as she slept with her back to him.
It seemed like a mistake on her part, to easily make herself vulnerable for an attack from someone who possessed bitter feelings towards her. And bitter feelings was only half of what Fili felt he had in his heart.
It annoyed him that she never seemed to pay him any courtesy or respect. While she was not the most welcoming or social person he had ever met, she still managed to get along with the rest of the company.
She was hard on the poor halfling, but her intentions were always good when interacting with him. He thought of her harsh training back when they first started traveling together. He had thought her cruel then but then he had caught sight of the buttons on her bag and the absence of a few of them. It was then he had made the connection of the 'found' buttons she had gifted the hobbit. She had given her own buttons from her bag and struggled with the lack of proper fastenings herself so the hobbit would not. It almost seemed like the purest gesture of kindness he had witnessed yet she took no credit or acknowledgment.
Then there was the almost father, daughter bond that she now seemed to share with Dwalin. Despite them pummeling each other to a pulp, they now bonded with each other quite frequently. Sparing with each other and walking alongside each other when traveling through the days. And while neither of them were overly talkative, they seemed to bond over their silent company.
And then there was the time she had broken from her character to dance with Kili just so he could have the opportunity to dance with Sigurd. He was sure not many had noticed this as her initial intention, but Fili had. He had caught the way she had purposely missed that step which resulted in the switch of partners. He had also caught the smirk and wink she had sent to Kili when he found Sigurd in his arms and not Thyra, more proof that it was all done with good intention.
She had even developed a strange, yet close relationship with Thorin. There were many examples that he had caught throughout the months she had traveled with them all with other members. In fact, he could recall at least one gesture or incident of similar nature for each member of the company. Each member, except himself.
He was not jealous. He could care less if she showed him any attention at all. But it was almost as if she went out of her way to disrespect and make a fool out of him. It was why he was always watching her so carefully. Because he did not trust her. He did not know why, but Thyra had something against him.
As he stared at her back, a strange desire welled within him. It was such a foreign concept that he never thought he would want to achieve such a thing. But here he was, sitting and conspiring. An evil smirk came to his face as he watched the slumbering girl.
Fili almost felt giddy with delight at the thought of getting his revenge. With this in mind he slid down to the ground and lay on his back as he gazed up at the stars. His eyes slowly closed but he did not fall asleep for quite some time as he thought of ways to finally get even. For once, it would be her, not him that would look like a fool.
It took everything within Fili to keep his face expressionless as he passed Thyra her serving of supper the next evening. In truth, even his best efforts were not enough as he felt the corner of his mouth quirk.
Thankfully Thyra was too busy ignoring him that she did not catch it. She took the bowl and muttered something indistinguishable. While logic told him it was most likely an offering of what would pass as an acknowledgment of his existence and in Thyra terms gratitude, his irrational thoughts told him it was muttered insult. Without regarding him any further, Thyra set the bowl down next to her and continued to finish tying off the last bundles of herbs she and Sigurd had managed to collect throughout the day.
Fili made no reply but instead retreated with his own bowl to take a seat directly across from where she sat. Normally he would take a seat beside his brother but tonight, he wanted to have the best view for when his first attempt of subtle revenge came into action. It was a simple, some would even deem it no more than a childish ploy, but Fili did not care. He just wanted the pleasure of seeing her face and reaction when she finally partook of her supper. A meal that he had taken upon himself to make sure was well seasoned. Just a generous handful of salt, discreetly added to her bowl.
He watched, nearly forgetting his own food as he awaited for her to finish. She tied off the last bundle of wild sage and handed it to Sigurd who took it from her. With her hands free, Thyra finally grasped the bowl of stew and Fili felt his heart pound in excitement as she lifted it and spooned herself a mouthful. The anticipation nearly killed him as she slowly raised the spoon to her lips and blew on it. Fili felt himself lick his own lips as he mentally urged her to hurry and take a bite.
As if his mental encouragement did the trick. Thyra opened her mouth and took her first bite. Fili knew the exact moment the food touched her tongue because the reaction was perfection. Her eyes grew wide and her mouth puckered before she turned to the side and spat the contents of her bite onto the ground.
Fili grinned, as the reaction brought the attention of others to her. Her eyes immediately cast to her right where Kili was happily slurping his bowl of food. A look of confusion spread across her face as her face turned and eyes searched. Finally, they locked onto Fili sitting across from her with his mouth spread into the slyest grin he could muster.
Her eyes narrowed and Fili could not help but lift his own bowl in a mock salute before pridefully taking a bite of his own food and making a face of enjoyment as if he were eating the sweetest of cakes. As his eyes opened from his feigned look of savory, he was more than pleased with the deep frown that adorned her face. He knew, that she knew, what he had done. And he was proud.
It was not until Sigurd's instant questioning of what was wrong did Thyra finally mutter a quick excuse of not waiting long enough for her food to cool. The commotion of her reaction died down quickly after and everyone went back to their earlier conversations. It was not the full effect Fili had been hoping for, but he still felt the scale tip ever so slightly in his favor.
He would be wrong to say it did not taste sweet and he was already craving more revenge. But his sweet taste was quickly cast aside when Thyra's lips slowly moved back into a small diabolical smirk. Taken off guard, Fili's own smile faltered which only seemed to fuel Thyra's to lift even higher. Slowly, she took another spoonful and to Fili's disbelief, she brought it to her mouth and ate it.
She ate the entire bowl and Fili could not deny he was impressed with her skill in keeping her composure for the remainder of her meal. However, he still gained some satisfaction when she took a greedy gulp from her water skin after every bite. But his satisfaction would be short lived because in that moment, he was oblivious to the hornets nest he had just thrown a stone at. A phrase in which would become even more ironic as the week went on.
It was the next morning that Fili found out that retaliation would be inevitable when trying to become even with Thyra. And it was unfortunate for the golden haired prince that she easily took his own ideas and adapted them into a more severe punishment. That perolous truth revealed itself when he took his first bite of porridge at breakfast.
At first he had detected nothing out of the ordinary. It tasted like any other gruel one would eat while traveling. But then the heat began to manifest and build.
It was as if he had licked a burning flame as his tongue was enveloped in an excruciating heat. In an attempt to relieve his mouth, he swallowed the food which only proved to be a mistake. As the food slide down his esophagus it left everything in its wake ablaze. All the way down it scorched his insides and when it reached his stomach it too immediately began to burn.
Perspiration began to bead on his forehead and then trickle down his face. He coughed, which turned into a wretch and brought the attention of everyone else as he heaved and panted. He knew he looked like a panting dog as his tongue hung from his mouth but it was the only relief he could muster.
Dwalin slapped him on the back which proved to be unhelpful. Kili proved more helpful when he passed him a water flask. Fili greedily gulped the water until the last drop fell onto his burning tongue.
For a moment the heat was tempered but after the last morsel of water was swallowed, the burning began to intensify. So he accepted another flask offered to him and emptied it as well. But this time it was worse, because now his stomach had something to expel and he dashed away from the circle to the edge of the camp to vomit the contents of his stomach.
If the feeling of the spiked spicy porridge was unpleasant going down, it was ten times worse coming up. Fili let out another retch and this time only acidic bile came up, which seemed to burn worse than normal when his mouth was already tender from the still lingering heat that had only dulled. The tears that had welled up and ran down his face earlier had ceased, leaving his eyes feeling raw and irritated.
He heard footsteps approach him and thinking it was Kili he waved a disregarding hand.
"No more, Kili. I do not think the water is helping."
"Of course not," came a reply that made Fili stiffen.
Slowly he stood upright, a feat only made possible by supporting himself against the tree he had thrown up on. He turned to see Thyra standing against another tree as she casually leaned against the smooth bark and bent her right knee to let the flat of her foot rest against the trunk.
"It makes it worse," she said matter of factly.
"What...did...you...do?" he asked brokenly as he coughed and wheezed between each word of his question.
Thyra's eyes gleamed with mirth.
"We Régínn pay our debts. No matter how small the favor. You seasoned my supper so tastefully and full of flavor I thought I would repay in the same manner. Did you not like it?" she finished with an innocently sweet tone.
"I just put salt in your food," Fili growled. "What was that poison?"
Thyra frowned.
"It is not a poison. It is a dry powder of preserved Dreki pipar, a pepper that is found in my homeland. One of my favorites. Although usually only a small pinch is enough for a pot of food. However, last night, I noticed you must prefer your food more seasoned so I added two to your single bowl. You should be grateful I was so giving because I have nearly exhausted my supply. One that will not be so easy to replenish."
Fili who had bent over again during her explanation to let out a dry heave snapped his attention back to her. He was first tempted to let out his frustration and anger but then he remembered the way she had eaten her food without so much as a word to him last night. Knowing the scales were already leaning well into her favor after such a resurgence, he knew he could not react. So with much effort, he gave her a strained smile.
"I thank you for your generosity," he said through his teeth. "It was quite a treat to experience such flavorful cuisine."
She gave him a smug smile then started to walk away.
"Fresh milk is best for the burning, but as that is not an option, bread is always a nice substitute," she called aloud without turning back. "Though the most effective and my favorite is fresh mint leaves."
As tempted Fili was to experiment if her suggestion would work, he did not not try them. Be it his pride or his lack of trust in the girl, Fili refused to do anything to help with the lingering burn that stayed in his mouth for the remainder of the day.
Instead he let it be his motivation to break even and eventually tip the scales back into his favor consume his mind.
That night he regained a small amount of satisfaction as he lay in his bed and heard Thyra come to her bedroll after her shift at watch. He kept his eyes shut but listened intently as he listened to her movements.
First he heard her steps stop, followed by the faint thump as she lay down. For a moment all was still except the soft hum of the summer insects, and then he heard it. A panicked scramble of blankets as a suppressed shriek escaped her lips.
He grinned to himself as the sound of a blanket being shaken violently along with the unmistakable frantic brushing of hands against clothing filled his ears. It was like a lullaby that coaxed him into sleep as the happy thought came to his mind: Thyra had found the insects he had spent collecting throughout the days journeying.
Fili could not help but feel a small pride each time he saw Thyra have a spasm and twitch as they walked the next day. With each ant she pulled from her leg or with each centipede she flailed from her arm as it crawled from her pack to travel down her appendage, he felt the scale tip more and more to his side.
But again his satisfaction was short lived.
The company had reached a point where the foliage was particularly thick and was forced to pass through in single file while they used a small deer trail that provided a thin passage.
Gandalf was in the lead and came across a branch that was in their way. He gently moved it and as he made his way onward, he kept ahold of it until Thorin managed to take hold of it himself to prevent it from swinging back into his face. This gesture was passed on to each member until Thyra who was second last, just ahead of Fili, was gently handed the branch from Dori.
The night before Thyra had almost believed that she had ignorantly spread her bedroll on an ants nest. But then she could have sworn she had heard a snicker from the direction where Fili lay. His constant muffled laughs every time she pulled yet another insect from herself throughout the day only confirmed her suspicions. So when she accepted the branch from Dori, she held no hesitation to immediately release it from her grasp before Fili managed to lift his arm to hold the trees limb away from his face.
Like a catapult, the branch snapped back and hit Fili full in the face with a leafy punch. Being caught off guard and with the force being so powerful, Fili was knocked from his feet onto his back with a painful grunt.
Blinking away the tears that formed from the pain, Fili lifted a hand to cup his sore nose and felt the damp trickle of blood began to freely flow from his nostrils. As he lay on his back, half dazed and staring up at the still swaying branch as its leaves danced with mocking innocence, Thyra came into his view as she hovered over him. With a self satisfied smirk that had annoyingly become a frequent sighting, she looked down at him, making no move to offer a hand up.
"Careful Feelig," she said, nearly singing the nickname. "You may want to get your eyes checked. Did you not see that tree? You walked right into it."
And with that, she turned and continued down the trail. Fili sat up just in time to watch her walk away with a slight bounce to her step as she moved to catch up with the rest of the group.
He sneered at her back but the metallic taste of blood freely flowing from his nose forced him to quickly shut it and resort to just scowling. Pinching the bridge of his nose with two fingers in an attempt to stop the flow, he got back onto his feet and followed after her, this time keeping plenty of distance between them.
Following one particularly wet morning, the sun had finally come out by noon and began to dry out the earth. By mid afternoon, the only evidence that there was any rainfall earlier that day was a single puddle left in their path. The majority of stagnant water had already been absorbed or evaporated but it had left a massive amount of mud that could be likened to a small bog.
Dwalin had fallen a small tree to act as a temporary bridge to cross over while keeping their feet from becoming soiled while they crossed over the muck. It just so happened that when Thyra was about half way over, Fili hopped onto the tree and began to bounce on the end to "test" the steadiness of the tree and make sure it would bare his weight. As the tree began to shake and bounce, Thyra's balance was thrown off. For a moment, she staggered and swayed then just as she reclaimed her balance, Fili gave one more forceful bounce and Thyra's footing was lost.
Fili watched and slowly made a halfhearted effort to extend a hand as he was the closest to her. But he had moved too slow and the small Régínn dwarf fell face first into the pit of mud with a messy squelch.
By the time she had managed to crawl her way out of the shin deep mud with her pack, her entire body was caked mud, leaving nothing light in color except for the whites of her eyes which stood our blindingly against the brown mud and her own dark irises She looked like a wraith in the night with glowing eyes as she trudged up to the company who safely and cleanly waited at the edge of the mud pit. She ignored all extensions of aid as she glared daggers at Fili who had crossed over safely while she struggled to climb out of the sinking mud pit.
That night after her clothes had been laundered and hung to dry, Fili found that his entire bedroll to be soaking wet, compliments of Thyra who thought it would be helpful to wash his bedding.
Throughout the week the company all stood on the sidelines and watched as spectators as the two took turns passing on the baton of revenge.
For the most part their methods had been harmless, at least harmless to others of the group. There were no casualties of the innocent, just inward groans of empathy each time a particularly hard blow had been taken. But as the week went on, their vindictive methods increased in both frequency and cruelty.
One particular incident had been when Bombur had asked Fili and Thyra to find him a certain wood to help bring some flavor to the fish being served for supper that night. He had requested some chips of Red Oak. Fili, not wanting to stay anywhere near Thyra suggested they split up.
At first Thyra protested and Fili did not understand why until he noticed her gazing around at the various trees and bushes that surrounded her. Sprouted right before her was a small red oak sapling yet as her eyes were cast upon it, she stared at it for a long moment before moving on. It was then he realized, Thyra did not know what a red oak looked like.
This realization planted a wonderfully dark idea into Fili's mind. Normally he would not be one to help her, a fact that should have made Thyra suspicious of his actions. But her lack of knowledge had forced her to accept his help as he described what to look for before splitting up. When she came back with an armload of the plant described to her and her skin marked with large itchy blemishes to see a smirking Fili, she realized her mistake.
The moment Sigurd recognized the poison oak she warned Thyra to immediately drop the arm load. It only took Sigurd to ask why she was carrying Western Poison Oak for Thyra to realize her mistake. When she noticed Fili's own armload of a much different plant than hers, her suspicion of his purposeful intent to lead her astray was established.
As punishment for his misguidance, Fili spent half of the next day disappearing into the bushes when his tea had been steeped with cascara bark.
It was after that particularly hard round of revenge that Sigurd, Kili, and Thrade came to an agreement that it was time for these exchanges to stop, before someone ended up maimed, missing, or six feet underground. So on the fifth day of the waged war, the three of them approached Fili thinking he would be the more reasonable of the two to accept an armistice. But it was to their dismay that Fili refused.
Kili was at a loss for what to do. He had been so sure his brother would be the adult and call off the childish warfare but to his surprise, Fili would not back down. He had answered with a firm 'NO', before muttering something about the scales still not in his favor and walked away. So it was with a heavy heart that Kili had to approach Sigurd and explain to her that he had failed her.
It was an action that brought a bitter taste to his mouth but there was nothing more he could do. Fili had been adamant in his answer. There would be no changing his mind. So when he returned to Sigurd, who was standing much too closely to Thrade for his liking, he felt a small reproach towards his brother as he let out a sigh and shook his head.
"Fili will not let up," Kili reported in dismay as he noticed the slouch of Sigurd's shoulder. "I am really sorry, Siggy. I tried, I really did, but for some reason Fili has been biased against Thyra since day one. I have never seen him outwardly dislike anyone without them giving him a good reason. I have no idea what is driving him to keep this situation going forward."
Sigurd gave him a small smile and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, which caused his heart to beat with a rapid flutter.
"Tis alright, Kili. I know you did your best and in defense of Fili, I am sure he really is not a malicious person. Thyra is not exactly the easiest person to get along with...at first." She let out a heavy sigh. "If Fili is not willing and he is usually the more cooperative, then Thyra will not even consider it."
They all let out a synchronized sigh. But then an idea hit Sigurd and she turned to Thrade.
"However, you are the son and blood of Asha, she would cease if she were command一"
"No," Thrade frowned and shook his head as he cut her off before she could finish her thought. "I do not like using her oath with my mother against her agency," he answered firmly. "I am sorry but I will not do it."
Sigurd walked up to him and looked at him with pleading eyes. "I know, but this is for her well-being."
It was this that swayed Thrade's decision. Kili could tell that it slightly hurt Sigurd as it was another confirmation that when it came down to it, it would seem that Thrade would always choose Thyra over her.
So with the decision made, Thrade approached Thyra and was none too soon as she was about to place a snake inside of Fili's bed roll. At first he tried just asking but when she went off on a rant about blood having blood, it was with great reluctance that he issued the order by her sworn oath that she stop.
To Kili's surprise the moment Thrade issued the order Thyra nodded and carefully let the snake go free. There was no hesitation or even an expression of begrudgement as she submitted to obedience. It was then that Kili began to truly understand just how strong Thyra was to her word.
And for a day all things went as they had one one week earlier.
It seemed that since Thyra was stopped before she retaliated from Fili's most recent attack, that Fili had seemed to feel he did not need to act out until he felt the score become uneven again. So for one day their company was at peace. Although some members were a little put off as their entertainment had been canceled. But several others took the opportunity to make a few wages as to who would be the one to fall victim next and what method would be used.
Fili was on edge. It had been nearly two days since he had added extra rocks to Thyra's bags. She had carried them for half a day before her aching back caused her to stop and look inside to see why it was heavier than usual. It had been two days and nothing malicious had occurred to him in retaliation.
He was nearly to the point of paranoia as he was expecting anything and everything to backfire on him. He could not sleep, he hardly ate, and he was so hyper aware that the smallest of movement such as the scurry of a squirrel caused him to startle. But no matter how much he agonized over the arrival of Thyra's next play, it never came. That is, until the third day, there was an unfortunate occurrence.
It came in the form of a rock that flew through the air and struck a rotten tree stump near the pathway.
It just so happened that the rock broke through the brittle bark and disrupted the home of a swarm of wasps. And it just so happened that the unfortunate person nearest to the stump was an unsuspecting Fili. So when the angry wasps erupted from their hive, it was Fili who received the wrath of the angry hornets.
They swarmed Fili, angrily attacking him in false accusement for ruining and invading their home. Immediately Fili began to dance around as his arms waved widely around his body in distress. But his act of defense only served to anger the wasps even more as they became more aggressive, crawling into his clothing and leaving red welts over his entire body.
In an act of desperation, Fili suddenly dropped his bag and began to strip down to his underclothing as he made a mad dash towards a small pond not far from them. In nothing but his undergarments, he plunged into the water. With their victim gone, the wasps quickly dispersed and Fili was able to safely emerge from the watery defense. But his torment was not over yet.
For as he climbed out of the pond, several black blobs covered his skin. From afar it looked like fallen leaves had clung to his skin but upon closer inspection one would realize they were moving. What was mistaken as dead leaves were really leeches.
It would not be a pleasant experience for anyone to endure but for any spectators it was comical, especially when Fili let out a high pitched screech when he realized what had latched onto his skin. Immediately Fili began to frantically pull the slimy bodies from his skin. Twisting and turning to reach around and pull a few from his back.
The chorus of laughter that filled his ears as he pulled the final parasite from his body caused him to still and look back up to the rest of the group. The entire company was beside themselves as they let out roars of laughter. Both Bofur and Nori were bowed over while Ori was wiping tears from his eyes. Even kind hearted Bilbo was letting out soft chuckles of amusement. While he was able to take notice of everyone laughing at him, there was really only one person that he could fully focus on.
Thyra.
She was clenching her sides as she doubled over in laughter. The sight of it brought forth a pent up rage.
Shaking with fury he stomped back up to the rest of the group. He paused only once to grab his pants and pull them on after shaking free several agitated wasps who were quick to sting him before flying off. But the pain went unregistered as he marched up to Thyra.
"You!" He bellowed in accusation. "You did that on purpose."
Thyra suddenly stopped laughing and gave him a hard look. "Did what?" She bristled in defense.
"This!" He shouted pointing to the bloody rings left by the leech's and red welts from the wasp stings. "This is your fault!"
"I did not throw you into that pond," she snapped back. "You threw yourself into that pond!"
"Only to escape the wasps that you disrupted by throwing rocks into their hive!"
"What rocks?" She asked in a tone that conveyed true ignorance that Fili did not believe.
Fili physically struggled to keep his clenched fist pinned to his side instead of throwing it into her face. All his life he had been raised to never strike a lady. And never in his life had Fili ever been tempted to cause the fairer gender of his species any physical harm. He had never had the urge nor the desire. But at this particular moment, he struggled to obey the words of his mother to never hit a girl.
Thyra was no girl, she was no woman. She was a sadistic barbarian that took pleasure in his pain and humiliation. He had thought her to be one who would proudly own up to her actions but here she was, lying and looking so...innocent.
"The stone you threw at the wasp nest that caused all of this!" He hissed as he pointed to a particularly large welt.
Thyra frowned in confusion.
"I did not throw that stone. You are mistaken, Feelig."
It was the utterance of that loathsome name that caused Fili to snap. He pounced, taking Thyra down with him as he attacked her. Words of Régan escaped her mouth as utterances of Khazad insults left Fili's. The pair rolled around in the dirt, each taking turns on top and below the other. Arms and legs kicked out as the pair wrested around causing the rest of the group to step back, unsure as if to stop them or start taking bets.
Fili felt Thyra's hands push up against his bare chest as he grabbed a fist full of her hair and pulled. She bit down on his arm in retaliation and he moved to push her face into the ground when he felt a sudden yank on his ear and he felt himself become separated from Thyra and forced to stand.
"That is enough!" Thorin barked as he held the two by their ears. "This nonsense stops now!"
He looked to Thyra who was still covered in a red rash from poison oak a few days ago. Then he looked to Fili who was dripping wet and covered in red welts and bloody bite marks. He shook his head from the sight of them. He knew he should have stopped this long ago but he thought the two of them would not take things quite so far. It was obvious now that things had certainly gotten too far out of hand.
"This has gone past just affecting the two of you," he looked to Thyra. "No one wants to be near you because you have been in such a foul mood." He turned his head to look at Fili. "And you, no one can stand being near you because you reek like a skunk."
It was true. Thyra had somehow lured a skunk into Fili's bed by the fourth night and when Fili and gotten into bed that night, the skunk had felt threatened and used its best defense. Since then, Fili had been quarantined to keep his distance on account of his smell. Thanks to a remedy Sigurd made, the smell had faded slightly, but it was still there. And Thyra had been so miserable from the poison oak rash, that she had been unpleasant to everyone. Both of these had made it difficult when it came to making pairings for the night watch because no one wanted to be near them.
"I expected more from you Fili, the fact that you have been pulled into childish ways has been disappointing. I expected you to be the adult and put a stop to it. This is not behavior of an heir to a throne," he chastised, causing Fili to be unable to meet his uncle's eyes. But Thorin moved on to look at Thyra. "You may be young but I know you are considered of age amongst your people so I will not overlook such behavior from you either."
He released their ears and they each took a step back as they raised their hands to nurse the lingering pain of Thorin's tight grasp. Thorin looked between the two. Unsure of how to punish them. He had avoided putting them together thinking it would be best but it seemed that separation was not the answer to making sure the two of them got along. So if separation was not the answer...then perhaps the opposite.
"The both of you will be assigned first watch every night until I say otherwise. You will be partners and you will learn to get along or so help me I will tie your feet and hands together until you are in perfect sync with each other. Am I understood?"
As he finished with a deep tone of finality that warned them of great repercussion should they not listen, he looked between the two as they each vigorously nodded their heads. Content with their cooperation, Thorin stomped away, giving a gruff command to the rest of the company to start moving.
And it was these events that led to Fili and Thyra to sit on opposite sides of a tree as they took first watch. Fili glaring forward as he tried to ignore the feeling of Thyra's eyes searing a hole into the side of his head. It remained that way for the entire night, neither speaking nor moving from their seats until their relief came. The moment Kili and Sigurd showed up, they each stiffly stood up and without regarding the other, they each went to their separate bedrolls and fell asleep.
. . . . . . . . . . . .