Hello! Thank you for reading this far into my story, I'm on chapter seven and people are still reading so I'm counting that as an accomplishment. Also, call out to BooBoo33 for favoriting the story.
I do not own The Hobbit, which is the overall plot, I just changed a couple of things. I do not own anyone but Jackie or some made up character you might see in this chapter, that is a whole lot easier than saying everyone I don't own.
Thank you for reading! Now on with the show! I really pity those of you who actually read the author's notes.
WARNINGS: language
It wasn't the birds chirping or the sunlight that woke Jackie up. It was the shifting of what she assumed to be a bed under her that really woke her. Lifting her head the slightest bit she tried to take in her surroundings, hissing in a very cat like manner when a stab of pain seared through her body, head in particular. After wiping away the sleep in her eyes she finally began to realize where, and what she was laying on. Her hand admediatly unclenched from the fabric that she had assumed to be bed sheets until now and lifted herself up over Legolas's body, knees and hands on either side of his body. This action just brought another wave of pain down on her body and she collapsed, once more, into the prince's chest.
"Ni am- varda Dornessiti, reallime. (Elvish: I am flattered, Dornessiti)." The prince spoke, his voice rumbling through his chest sending small vibrations through her body.
Looking up she saw just where she fell on him. Her face had landed on his upper chest, just below his collar bone. Her body lay straight on top of his, everywhere except for her legs which were on either side of his. His face was looking down at her's, his trademark smirk already on his face.
Legolas looked at her, wondering what she would do, elf don't usually sleep, they can go week without it, maybe even months if they needed to so he had spent the entire night mulling over her. Now he watched. All she did was bury her face in his chest once more as if when she will bring her head up again it would be someone else or all the bad things in the world would disappear. Not what he expected to happen.
"Cundu Legolas. (Elvish: Prince Legolas)" Jackie mumbled into the prince's chest, counting to ten in her head before she heaved herself up once more, this time successfully collapsing on something other than the prince's chest, which turned out to be the floor. Legolas's chest may have been the better option, putting it being deeply humiliating aside of course.
Legolas rolled himself over on his side to continue staring at her, which she found unnerving. Not as much as her newest position: laying face first on the ground, the only reason her face wasn't a pancake was because she moved her head last minute so it faced the prince.
"I strongly dislike you, your highness." She groaned quietly.
"Ar símen ni ósanwe emme nér starting ana ianna- (Elvish: And here I thought we were starting to connect). " The prince replied quickly, not bothering to lower his voice, sending a splitting headache through her skull.
"You know I'm still here right pointy ears?" The long forgotten dwarf spoke.
"Tha Yol sorry Kili, ill was wrong oz forget othok when othok Nir ath need eron healuroz (Dwarvish: I am sorry Kili, it was wrong to forget you when you are in need of healing)." She spoke softly, for more her sake then his, drawing herself up to a kneeling position she leaned admitetly against one of the branches that made up the flet's walls and began to rub her temples in circular motions.
"Othok ath Nir more need eron healuroz than me karr'a. Tha may not Mer an Elger Ur Tha know yir ovrumm usuroz Anym Manok can Kav oz othok. Tha yol almost well, Tha Zal already walked around da flet multiple times, lare Ghoran from pointy ears ovrumm there eron course. (Dwarvish: You are in more need of healing than me sister. I may not be an elf but I know what over using life energy can do to you. I am almost well, I have already walked around the flet several times, no help from pointy-ears over there of course.)" He added in distaste. "Vos sirk! othok morred da othrumm hand var need at least E few days thoth othok ath well enough oz Kav Vos thuroz near fighturoz. Lare buts. Othok var Zal oz rely morred me Nar pointy ears Yoth E while, got ill (Dwarvish: Any way! You on the other hand will need at least a few days until you are well enough to do any thing near fighting. No buts. You will have to rely on me and pointy ears for a while, got it)?"
He didn't even give her time to voice her opinions on the matter, he knew what his sister would say. She would fight it, try to convince him that it was not needed but she would give in eventually. He could see it in her eyes that she was in pain, and he could not shake the feeling of guilt that she had been so close to dying once again and it was because of him. Just like last time, barely making it out alive from the scrape he got her stuck in.
"Fine." Jackie spat.
"What were you talking about Dornessiti?" Legolas asked. Who disliked not knowing what was going on in front of him almost as much as he disliked not getting his way, was not going to just lay there while the two had a full fledged conversation in dwarvish in front of him.
Surprisingly, it was the dwarf who answered first, much to his chagrin of course. "Jackie just agreed to rely on us for a while, and you shall help pointy-eared princeling."
Dornessiti herself tried to look as if the conversation was not about her being treated like a child. "Kili, we must find a way to get to the others." She broke in, tired of the glaring contest in between the two men.
"You wish to come with me?" Kili asked, completely surprised at his sister's proposal. Deeply wounding her pride in the process.
"Did you truly think I would abandon you? I will go with you all the way to the lonely mountain and beyond, little brother."
"Thank you. We must be leaving soon then and your state shall quickly become a problem." Kili was speaking quickly, so excited at the prospect of his sister actually coming with him that he forgot his guilt for her being in pain to begin with.
"Halt, your speech. Both of you. What of me? I did not give my consent for this mission." The prince spoke even more annoyed at the dwarf on the bed and the elf against the 'wall'.
"Nothing and no one here ties you to us in the first place prince Legolas." Spoke a ecually annoyed Jackie.
The dwarf flared up. "No no no sister. He shall come with us, whether he wishes it or not. I said he shall help and I mean it. It is his fault also that you are so…. Weak." A wave of over-protectiveness washed through his body. He continued glaring at the male elf who was laying on the floor so casually beside his sister.
"I refuse to be dragged into this dwarf." Legolas growled, although if he was being truly honest with himself a small part of him wanted to go with them, not for the sake of the dwarves or adventure, but to make sure Dornessiti was safe.
"You shall be pointy-ears, if that is what it takes." Jackie just tried to sink herself further into the wood against her back and disappear. Her head was screaming in pain from all the yelling and fighting going on between the elf and her brother. The prince moved himself into a standing position and walked toward the dwarf who was still sitting on the edge on the flets bed.
Kili stood up on said bed, making him around the same height as Prince Legolas. "If you refuse to help us on our quest I will tell all your kingdom that you helped me get well. Your reputation will be destroyed for I know your kingdom's opinion of my race."
Legolas was stunned, never had he been blackmailed before. But the dwarf was right if any one in his kingdom even thought that he had been remotely civil to a dwarf his reputation was done for, and his father, well his father would barely look at him. "Fine. But know that I come only because you hold this threat above my head."
As if in that moment they both realised that Jackie was in the room, the two both turned in her direction. Taking in her position against the wood and palms against her temples guilt plagued Legolas. Reaching her first he slowly took her hands away from her head. He smirked when he heard the dwarf cursing behind him.
"Stupid. Elf. urgh. Bed sheets." And much more unflattering words.
"Dornessiti. Tye are -esse naicele. Apsene- me. (Elvish: Dornessiti, you are in pain. Forgive me.)" He spoke soothingly, as you would to a scared animal.
"Lare-, if ni voro did anything mára ni beg tye ana lare- mahtalë as mime otorno. (Elvish: Stop, if I ever did anything good I beg you to stop fighting with my brother)" She said, her voice so pained that it actually hurt his ears to hear.
"-o nút-. (Elvish: Of course)"
"Well pointy-ears. If you are joining us on our journey to the lonely mountain you must help. I will carryJackie, you may carry supplies you find." The monstrosity announced. Puffing up in an attempt to do what Legolas assumed was to make him intimidating. The fact that he was wrapped in bedsheets from the flets bed ruined the effect.
"No dwarf. I will carry my own kin, you shall carry the supplies." He replied calmly, putting a hand to his face to hide the humor that he was sure was showing through.
"My kin? MY KIN?" The dwarf roared. Legolas smirked, using all his self control not to laugh. Dornessiti flinched by his side and he brought her close to his chest, pulling her flush against it where she buried her head there again, in attempts to block out the noise her 'brother' was making he was sure. "YOU WERE NEVER THERE FOR HER EVER! MY KIN MY ASS! COME 'ERE AN' HAVE AN AXE SANDWICH YE RABID PUPPY KILLIN' SNOT RAG! I WILL CARRY MY KIN, YOU STICK WITH YOUR SNOTTY, BEARDLESS, BLACK HEARTED ELF SCUM!"
Jackie could feel herself shaking in the prince's grasp, her face still buried in his chest. It was as if millions of shards of glass were piercing her skin, everywhere. Bugs crawling just underneath it. The ring in her ears was so painful she could scream. And that's what she did. The scream ripped from her mouth, in it all the pain was just flying out of her, but with every little bit that left, every movement she made, noise she heard the pain amplified one thousandfold. Common girl. Be strong. You are just proving that you are weak. Weak like the whispers said. Weak, weak, weak. Stand up. Prove the whispers wrong. Walk. You do not need to be carried. You do not need their pity. Remember last time. Last time and the whispers. You do not want their pity. Their pity is dangerous, dangerous like the whispers. GET UP!
The horrible screaming cut off abruptly. The entire forest was silent. Jackie pushed herself off of the prince's chest and stood up shakily, choosing to ignore the way her body screamed in protest and pain. The two males just stared at her, one utterly confused and the other scared and concerned for his sister. Kili had only seen her lose it like that once, during the… accident. But that was when she was so much weaker, pushed to the limit in every way possible because~ no, you can't think about that. Of course. She had pushed herself by using the spell to heal him more than he had thought.
"S-see b-bo-boys. I n-need n-not your h-help." They watched as she tried to walk across the length of the flet, about 8 feet. She stumbled many times, and had to do more leaning on the branches that made up the wall then actual walking. It was obvious to both Kili and Legolas that every step pained her more and more, not just by the intake of breath at every small moment and lack of colour in her face, but the way her eyes looked, and the flinch that never left. "A-all good. N~"
Legolas and Kili both took a step in her direction at the same time, Kili falling face first onto the floor due to the fact that he was still wrapped like a mummy in bed sheets. Jackie had walked in front of the more flimsy branches that made up the hidden door, mistaking them to be connected like the other branches she had leaned down on them, hence her falling through the trees, as if swallowed by the very branches. Running to the 'door' they brushed aside the flimsy sticks. Jackie lay spread eagled on the ground her eyes so wide it was Legolas almost found it funny. The wounds on her exposed leg (they had still not replaced her ripped pants from where she used hers to bandage Kilis chest), neck and arms had reopened and new ones were appearing everywhere through new ripps in her already destroyed outfit.
Legolas couldn't help it, he let out a very un-prince like snort; "Tye are i image -o eldarin eruanna Dornessiti (Elvish: You are the image of elvish grace Dornessiti)."
Kili glared at the elf beside him but couldn't stop the smirk spreading on his face. "Still Kav not need our Ghoran dear karr'a. (Dwarvish: still do not need our help dear sister)?"
In the end they decided to take shifts on who would carry her because neither would let the other do it the whole time. They had found a change of close for Jackie, light blue elf tunic and white tight, but flexible pants made from a stretchy yet comfortable elven fabric with matching elf boots, tightfiting as well but very breathable, she could barely tell she was wearing them. Her guard uniform was completely destroyed, ripped almost everywhere and blood stained everywhere else. Legolas remained in his usual outfit, a two toned suede jerkin. This is worn over a pale silk shirt and dark suede trousers. Knee high soft boots and wide leather vambraces to match. Kili remained in his own dwarvish grey pants and brown leather boots, but his tuinc, which was in a similar state as Jackie's clothing, had to go. They did find another spare elven tunic, this one a soft grey. A few shades lighter than his pants. The only problem was that it came down past his knees, almost to the tops of his boots.
Currently it was Legolas who was carrying her. Everything was silent except the forest and Kili's of tune singing, leaving her time to think about everything that had happened in the last two days. The dwarves came to Mirkwood, they had obviously strayed from the main path. Why she couldn't tell, it should have been easy enough for them to stay on it. Either way they had ended up with the spiders, who were growing to bold for her liking. She had forgotten her declaration to go to Dol Guldur, she had only told Tauriel that she was going there~ Tauriel.
Tauriel and the rest of the guard! They had got to be searching the entire forest for them by now. If even one elf saw them they would either a). Report back to the palace, or b). Have other elves at hand and attack. It would then be two against whatever amount, if you exclude Prince Legolas, because honestly, he didn't want to be there so what was stopping him from taking their side? Actually it would be one against whatever amount, she was pretty darn useless at the moment.
"Legolas, i other elves ar tauriel, i must n- looking an us. (Elvish: Legolas, the other elves and Tauriel, they must be looking for us.)" She stuttered. Trying to move herself into a better position but Legolas's grip was firm.
"If you must talk, please use speech that we can all understand." Kili yelled from the front.
Legolas just rolled his eyes. The dwarf had been calling out many annoying phrases throughout their long walk. "I am sorry I displeased you Master Dwarf, the next time we rest would you like me to clean your feet as well?"
"That would be appreciated princling."
Turning his attention back to the elf in his arms. "Worry not of the other elves. They would not expect me to even pretend to help a dwarf and a crown traitor." He was still wondering why he was helping them himself.
"I am not a crown traitor. I healed someone, is that so wrong to your father now?" She responded icely.
"It is when the healed person is infact a dwarf and you used a form of magic that is forbidden unless you have permission from someone of high power in his court." He chirped.
He was greeted with silence and a glare that would cut lesser elves in half.
"The dwarf called you sister earlier." He said casually changing the topic.
"Is this your way of asking of my past Legolas?" He smirked, she caught on quick even if she was practically hadicapped.
"If it was, would you tell me of it?"
"No, my past is my own matter."
"I can tell you keep it as a close secret Dornessiti and not even your files are allowed to know it." He spoke, his eyes flicking up to the dwarf who showed no signs of hearing their conversation.
"You have been looking?" She inquired, a steel edge on her voice replacing the concerned one that had been there not moments before.
"Not looking, let's say taking an interest."
"Of my past?"
"Of you." He replied quickly, throwing her off for a second
"As a boring, lowly, Sindarin guard elf I suppose I should be flattered. Forgive me if I say I'm not." She retorted.
"And yet I have the feeling that you are not as boring as you wish to appear." He shot back.
"What do you impose?" She questioned, her curiosity getting the better of her.
"You are not from here." He stated simply.
"Here can mean many different things Prince Legolas. You must be more specific." She countered, refusing to look at his face she concentrated on Kili's back far ahead of them.
"I have the feeling that you know exactly of what I speak." He countered, infuriating her even more.
"Then let us assume that I don't." She retaliated, fighting to keep her voice neutral and devoid of emotion.
"You seemed quite close with the dwarves we captured." He returned.
"You seem to be going in circles." Unable to help herself from the snappy come back she just went along with it, still burning holes in Kili's back with her eyes.
Legolas chuckled a bit, the sound rumbling through his chest and spreading a warm feeling through Jackie's body all the way to the tips of her toes. "You are good Dornessiti, but I am better."
"Better at what? Avoiding a prying elf? You have no proof of this 'connection' you are so clearly saying is there except what a pain delusioned dwarf said and that I choose not to have my past written in ink. Believe me, I have had practise with those who question my unknown past but for as long as I can remember I have been-"
"Scrubbing green goo off your but?" He sniped, she could hear the smirk in his voice.
"How-"
"You know the name of all of the dwarves we had in our cells. Some of those were dwarven royalty; Thorin Okenshield, heir to the lonely mountain throne. Fili and Kili, the twin sons of his late sister." Jackie shook her head the tiniest bit. He was so close but he always came back to the beginning, her knowing the dwarves. He was smart; it was just that he couldn't wrap his head around the fact that an elf actually liked dwarves. If he could realise that she would be discovered faster than she could kill a deer.
"That still proves nothing. Elven kind can be civil with dwarves. It is not unheard of." She smirked, repeating what she knew bugged him the most because it was true. "You still have no real proof of any connection"
"By the time this is all over I shal." He growled.
"You sound so sure you will be there at the end." She baited.
"I assure you Dornessiti, of the two of us I will be the first there and back." He replied.
At this she frowned, thinking of what had been on her mind since she learned where her family of dwarves were going. "No my prince. I will be the first there, you will be the only one back."
Thorin and his company were all looking out of the back of Bards boat towards the river and Mirkwood. Mist was quickly blocking their view, one by one they all turned their heads away. Each one grieving for the loss of Kili in their own way. Thorin was rubbing his temples, a single tear slipped out that was quickly wiped away with none to follow. Kili is with Jackie, he had to remind himself. She will take care of him. Fili was pacing the width of the boat back and forth, angrily kicking fish overboard, one smacking Bombur straight in the face sending him toppling off the bench like thing he was sitting on and into a stray pile of fish.
"You look troubled Fili, what rests so heavily on your mind?" He asked as an attempt to make the young dwarf feel better, mentaly strangling himself when he realised his choice of words. Of course he was troubled, he just saw his twin get shot by an Orc arrow in the chest while opening a route for them to escape.
"We just left them! Kili and Jackie both in the hands of the pointy-ears and Orc blooded!" He yelled, aiming a particularly strong kick at one of the fish, missing, and hitting the side of the boat instead. Cursing he turned seething toward Thorin.
"I know! But what are we going to do about it?" He shouted back, the stress and anger from the past few days finally let loose in this screaming match.
"Go back and get them! Or are you too much of a coward." Fili spat.
"We can not go back and get them now you idiot!" Thorin bellowed.
"Why not?" Fili sneered.
"Do you not see where we are child?" Thorin cried out, waving his arms around him to prove his point. "We are so close!"
"At what cost Uncle? My brother, who is your niece, and our sister! Is that worth it for you?" Fili asked, aghast.
"I am with Fili, Thorin." Dwalin intervened, hefting his huge battle axe in front of him. "It would not be the same without Kili and I am sure that Jackie would rather be with us then the rest of her-"
"Kin" Thorin leered, a fury of rage washed over him, turning him against even his own sister.
"We are her kin Thorin." Fili said, appalled. "Or have you forgotten the countless hours she spent sharing an ale bottle with us, with you?"
Thorin scoffed, the weird anger still holding him in a horrible place. "I am sure you and your brother care deeply for her, what is she to you? Your long lost mother?"
"I suppose so, yes." Fili said quietly, still staring Thorin straight in the eyes.
"Thorin, that was uncalled for. I really think we should go back for them." Ori said softly.
"We can not!" The anger gone as soon as it came, he tried to speak as nicely as he could but still get the point across. "They would not want us to forfeit our quest for them."
"How would you now Thorin?" Fili questioned, an unfriendly edge guarding his voice from all fronts.
All the dwarves left of the company were staring at him now. They all wanted the answer to this question. Bard was being nice enough in pretending he couldn't hear the very very very loud voices behind him and keeping his eyes on the winding path through the water before them.
"They are loyal to me and our quest." He said after a long pause.
"He's right Fili." Balin said soothingly, resting a hand on the young dwarfs shoulder. "We must keep going, they would want us to keep going."
Fili just shrugged off his hand and stormed off to the front of the boat. Everybody on the boat, including Bard, knew that Fili was not agreeing with it willingly.
"You made the right decision Thorin." Balin whispered once all the others went back to whatever they were doing.
"I hope you're right Balin."
"We are nearing lake town! Into the barrels, all of you." Bard called from the front, tired of the tension that was growing between the easily angered dwarves behind him.
Thorin's last thoughts before they were all drowned out by the smell of fish were for Jackie's and Kili's well being. Wherever you are. Be careful.
What did you think? It's one of my longer chapters I know but I'm proud of it and I stayed within the once a week posting limit with two whole days to spare!
Thank you for reading, please continue to read. Follow, favorite, it would mean a lot. And if you can review!