Title : Winds and hope
Genre: Romance/comfort
Rated: T – some angst and fluff to be expected
Pairing: Fili/OC
Summary: A warm breeze suddenly rushed into his fair hair and made the skin of his face tingle. His braids moved slightly, and quickly fell back into place as the wind died. Fili had closed his eyes to focus on this pleasing sensation, and soon missed the comforting warmness of this breeze.
Note: This short romantic story starts before the beginning of the Quest to reclaim Erebor. We will not follow step by step the progress of the Company, but the chapters will take the form of glimpses at different times during the Quest. It is written mainly from Fili's point of view.
Slightly OCC Fili, but I think it's not unrealistic the way he thinks and behaves in this story. Or at least, it's one of the behaviours he could have adopted during the Quest. I always thought that the nephews would not follow their uncle so blindly.
Being a huge fan of classical music, every chapter title will refer to a piece and there will be listening recommendations.
I hope you'll enjoy this story, and please review!
Chapter 1: Serenade
I recommend listening to Serenade by Franz Schubert for this chapter.
Sometimes, the air between the stones seemed heavier, and became difficult to bear.
The dwarves settled in the Blue Mountains lived quite close to each other. Their numbers were growing as more refugees had come to settle in Ered Luin, year after year; and the houses were full.
With the preparations for the Quest to reclaim Erebor, the Company had to meet almost every day to plan every single detail of their journey. Fili's uncle, Thorin Oakenshield, the Exiled King, would of course lead the Quest.
But it was made very clear to him, that, being Heir to the Throne after Thorin, Fili was expected to take many things in charge.
Sometimes, he envied his little brother Kili, who did not have these responsibilities. And at other times, he felt bad for him because many of the elder dwarves still treated Kili like a child.
Spring was coming and the Company was supposed to leave in a week.
The members of the Company were to join their leader in the Shire, at the house of a hobbit named Bilbo Baggins. The wizard, Gandalf the Grey, would be there as well, and so the Quest would officially start.
The mood was too serious in Ered Luin for Fili's taste. He was still quite young for a dwarf and even if he would follow his uncle eagerly to reclaim their lost homeland, he was slightly tired of waiting for the Quest to start.
Erebor was important to Fili. It was his legacy, his birth right, the rightful home that had been taken from his family. He fully understood Thorin's need to make this Quest. His mother and uncle had told him tales of Erebor since he was a child. He had grown up with tales of the Lonely Mountain, and developed the pain of the exiled, as was expected of him as a member of the line of Durin.
But, on the other hand, Ered Luin was the only home he had ever known. He had been happy there, with his brother, his mother and uncle, his friends. Erebor remained at times a distant fantasy to Fili. He had not known the plenty, the riches, the gold flowing in the glorious halls of carven stone.
He was happy to go on an adventure with his brother, his uncle and some friends; but he would not say that he didn't like his life in Ered Luin.
Now that the details of their journey were quite settled, Fili wanted to relax and think about something else than the Quest. Kili offered to go hunting in the hills near the Main Gate, and Fili gladly took the chance to leave the mountain for a few hours.
Both brothers were very close and shared almost all their secrets with each other.
Kili shot a rabbit and they found a nice spot next to a stream to light a fire and cook it for lunch.
The days were warming up, and the sun kept creeping out of the clouds, shining on the grass and brightening their mood.
After lunch, Kili decided to take a nap next to the dying fire. He lay down his coat and fell asleep almost immediately.
Fili stared at his little brother for some time, a fond smile on his fair bearded face. Kili was such a gentle and amiable dwarf, always eager and kind, with a simple and untroubled soul.
Fili felt much older than him for a moment, even if there was only a couple of years separating their dates of birth. The elder Durin brother was more serious and more inclined to procrastination.
The blond dwarf wasn't as careless as Kili. He asked himself every day many questions about life, and even if most of the time he did not have the answers, he could not stop wondering.
Fili decided to step away from his brother to smoke, in order to not disturb him.
He retrieved his pipe from his pack, walked a few steps, and settled down near the stream, his back to a big white rock. From where he stood, he could still see the shape of Kili's sleeping form, laying still on the ground, and that reassured him.
Fili smoked in silence; his eyes lost on the shimmering surface of the water.
A warm breeze suddenly rushed into his fair hair and made the skin of his face tingle. His braids moved slightly, and quickly fell back into place as the wind died. Fili had closed his eyes to focus on this pleasing sensation, and soon missed the comforting warmness of this breeze.
When he reopened his eyes, someone was seating on a rock on the other side of the stream, staring at him, and mirroring his own position.
It was a small woman. She was not a dwarf, not an elf. No pointed ear. She wasn't a hobbit either, but her small white feet were bare on the soft grass.
She was only wearing a long white shirt that left her arms and ankles bare. Her skin was white and untouched. She had very long blond hair, whiter than his own, and her deep grey eyes contrasted with the softness of her face.
The woman was staring at him, her expression curious and gentle at the same time.
Fili realized he was still staring at her, his pipe forgotten in his hand and his mouth slightly open.
Where did she come from? She was not there a few seconds ago. He had closed his eyes and there she was, stepping out of nowhere.
She carried nothing besides the white shirt on her back and her hands were entwined in front of her belly. She did not seem dangerous, nor hostile.
Fili stood up quickly, and quite clumsily, his eyes not leaving the small woman.
She suddenly smiled and stepped into the stream to join the bank he was standing on. Startled by her actions, he stepped back a little.
The water stroked her ankles gently as she stepped carefully on the slippery rocks. She was staring at her feet, careful not to trip and lifted the hem of her long shirt a little to see the rocks better.
Fili could not avert his eyes and stared at her white soft legs as she finished crossing the stream.
She then stood in front of him, and Fili realized she was a foot smaller than him.
She let her white shirt fall back on her legs, and told him in a singing voice, smiling:
"You smell nice."
Fili blushed immediately, but as he looked at her, he realised her comment was quite naïve and truthful. She had said it like a statement, like she could have said "The weather is nice today".
"Thanks… I guess" he said hesitantly.
"Pipeweed, leather and warmth at the same time. It's really appealing" she stated again simply.
Fili blushed harder, and tried to stare at her face, and not at the way the wind made her shirt cling to her skin, enhancing the soft curves of her small body.
"Hum… who are you?" he asked.
"Selis" she answered simply, still smiling.
"Fili" he said back, remembering his manners, and slightly bowing, "At your service".
"You're a dwarf from Ered Luin?" she asked sitting down on the grass, on the same spot he had just vacated.
"Yes, I am" he said, feeling stupid for remaining standing and talking to her while she was on the ground. But when he had first seen her a couple a minutes ago, it was like his body had become numb.
She stepped aside a little, gliding on the grass, and gestured on the ground, inviting him to join her.
He blinked and sat back down, next to her, with both their back leaning on the rock.
Once he was settled on the grass, he realized that her face was uncomfortably closer to his. She seemed to remain oblivious of that, as if such proximity between strangers was not an issue, nor unproper.
"How is it like to live inside the mountains?" she asked, curious.
He took some time to answer, his eyes distracted by the moves of her pink lips and her deep eyes demanding.
"It's cosy and safe… sometimes dark and some tunnels are cold… but it's home" he stated, returning her smile faintly for the first time.
"Don't you miss the sun? The wind?" she asked again, her voice carrying a sort of fierceness.
"I don't know, maybe at times… but I go out often, and in some halls, there are high windows that let in the light."
She was listening to his every word, a soft and eager expression on her face.
"Can I try this?" she asked, pointing at his pipe.
There was a blank at her request, but he quickly remembered his manners.
"Of course." he said, giving it to her.
She stood there and handled the pipe, observing its every detail, and then she looked at him expectantly.
"You put it in your mouth, close your lips and inhale" he told her, smiling at her. He realized then how adorable she was in this moment. All curious and naïve, the joy of discovering something new written plainly on her face.
She nodded and did as he had instructed. She soon put away the pipe and started coughing repeatedly, her hand covering her mouth.
He took the pipe from her, and patted her back, sorry and slightly amused at the same time.
When she had finished coughing, she looked at him, her eyes watering with the smoke and all the coughing.
"That's awful!" she said, frowning for the first time.
"You get used to it" he stated, shrugging.
"I liked the smell better when it lingered in your hair" she said as she wiped the tears from her face. "I've never seen a blond dwarf before. It's not a very common hair colour in your kind, isn't it?"
"No it's not. I have my father's hair actually."
"He must be a very handsome dwarf then" she said, her smile sincere.
Fili's face went blank again. There she was, a small beautiful woman, praising his looks in a very innocent way. He didn't know what to answer to that, so he said in a low tone:
"Thanks. He's dead actually."
This darkened the mood immediately and the air around them felt colder. Selis' smile disappeared, and she had a sympathetic look on her face.
"Oh, I'm sorry." She put a small hand on his forearm "I don't know how it feels to lose a parent, but I imagine it must be quite painful." Her touch was warm, like the sunlight in summer, her fingers small and delicate.
"I was a child when he died. I don't remember much about him" Fili stated, his mind focused on the pressure of her hand on the fabric of his shirt. "Wait… don't you have any family?" he asked, intrigued.
"No, I don't" she answered simply.
"What are you doing all by yourself in the wild?" he suddenly asked, concerned that they were miles away from the nearest human settlement. "Are you lost?"
"I'm never lost" she said still smiling, as if the answer was obvious.
"But where do you live?"
"I live everywhere, in and around, on top and underneath. I go where I'm needed." She stated as if her answer was not mysterious in the slightest. She thought his questions quite strange.
Fili gaped at her, and then frowned, puzzled. They were both very intrigued by each other.
"Your braids are very funny" she said changing the subject, staring at his face, especially his beard braids. She laughed as a sudden breeze made them dance slightly against his face.
Selis' laugh was the softest sound he had heard ever hear. It entranced and fascinated him. Her eyes were shining, her hair scattered by the breeze. Her hand remained on his forearm, clutching him, and they silently both appreciated the feeling of their bodies touching.
These minutes spent in her company were a treasure to Fili, away from the worries of the Quest and the coming dangers they were about to face.
Fili was seized by the desire to tell her how beautiful her hair was, how deep and amazing was the grey of her eyes, the colour of the darkening clouds juts before the rain. But he could not. It would not be proper. He didn't know her.
He just smiled at her, again.
The magic of this moment was broken by the sound of Kili's voice, still a bit sleepy:
"Fili? Where are you?"
Fili's eyes grew wide at the sound, the moment with Selis shattering.
He realised they were sitting behind the rock, and that Kili could not see him. He had a disappointed look on his face when he told her:
"My brother…"
"Go to him" she whispered. "It was nice meeting you, Fili" she added as she moved to leave.
Coming out of nowhere, a sudden panic gripped Fili's chest. She was leaving. He would never see her again. It could not end this way! He did not know why, but he panicked at the thought.
"Wait!" he whispered back, catching her wrist gently but swiftly "Where are you going?"
Selis stared at his large hand enclosing her wrist and then at his worried and concerned face.
She smiled at the gesture and whispered lowering her face to his:
"I'll find you again. I promise".
They could hear again Kili's voice calling for Fili and the sound of feet getting nearer. Selis pressed her other hand on Fili's chest for a second and it was as if she was trying to warm his heart with her small hand.
He blinked and she was gone. He was staring at the stream, his pipe forgotten on the ground, his face startled.
"There you are" said Kili, finding his brother gaping at the stream, leaning on a big rock.
"Are you alright?" he added, concerned by the blank look on his elder brother's face.
Fili shook his head, pressed his fists on his eyes and looked back at Kili.
"Aye. Let's go home" he answered, standing up and picking up his pipe.
"You smoke too much" Kili told him playfully.
The two brothers picked up their packs, and headed back to Ered Luin, under a warm spring breeze. Fili glanced back many times at the stream while they were retreating, wondering about his strange encounter.