'I can hear them.'
Alyssae couldn't give an indication of the distance they were still separated from the others, for it was so mouse still every sound seemed to be strengthened ten times.
Kili stared into the distance, but his facial expression made clear he couldn't trust his own judgment.
She was worried. A while ago Kili commented he heard whispering voices and since they didn't bother her, she supposed it was ancient elf magic which tried to protect the woods from intruders. After whispering a few words back, Kili was teased no longer, but that didn't go for the other dwarves. Their voices were audible for everyone with a developed hearing, which meant they didn't care about potential enemies anymore. Something they would only do when they were in danger.
Alyssae and Kili increased their speed until they were running. They didn't pay attention to their environment, especially not when they discerned the group. Relieved she took a deep breath when she counted eleven dwarves. She shook her head when she saw Bombur, who was sitting on the ground and looked moody the other way. Dwalin's face was red and he screamed on-going. And Thorin –
Thorin suddenly stood before her. Kili screamed and pushed her away, by which the sword scuffed her shoulder. Red blood spouted out and Alyssae lost her balance and fell on the ground.
Thorin looked down at her and ignored the protests of his companions. His eyes were bloodshot and his lower lip quivered of anger. Alyssae came upright and she didn't notice the blood that was streaming down her arm. She started to whisper in the ancient language of the elves, but it only seemed to increase his fury.
'Don't speak those obscure words!' he barked. 'You think I don't understand your curses?'
Again he wanted to struck with his sword, but this time Alyssae was prepared and she kept off his strike with her own sword. The smash was so heavy her arm shook and even more blood gushed from the wound in her shoulder. She bit on her lip while they crossed their swords again and suddenly it was Bofur who banged Thorin against his head, which made him fall.
Hastily Alyssae knelt down next to him. She feared the magic was already too deep into his mind. There was a chance he would never return to the man he once had been.
He screamed curses in the tongue of the dwarves and tried to get on his feet, but Dwalin had dropped down next to her and held his king to the floor.
With two hands she held Thorin's face, while she looked deep into his eyes. His face was hot and the hairs of his beard stuck to her hands. She muttered sentences which popped up automatically in her mind and she didn't even think about the words. They came by itself, while she stared into Thorin's mysterious eyes.
The dwarf prince became calmer. His eyes didn't flash from left to right anymore, but he looked straight forward.
His head was so close the heat of his face swept her cheeks. They looked deep into each other's eyes and Alyssae was aware of her lips, which were only a few inches away from his. The urge to kiss him became so strong she withdrew in shock. As soon as their eye contact was broken Thorin seemed to get grip on himself again. He stared at Dwalin, who still pushed his legs to the ground. 'What – in Durin's name – is going on?'
'You almost cut off Alyssae's arm!' Kili answered with an accusative tone.
'And my head,' Dwalin mumbled, who got on his feet. 'But that's forgiven.'
The confusion on his face was so heavy Alyssae felt for him. Helplessly he stared at her bleeding shoulder, but she turned away quickly. Why was it precisely Thorin who attacked someone? And why was she that someone? What did the voices tell him? The truth? Was that the reason he was so mad?
She knelt down next to Bombur and whispered the spells again, while she looked at him. She almost hoped the longing to kiss a dwarf returned, but unfortunately this time the feelings stayed away. Alyssae realized it didn't depend upon the magic of the forest, nor upon the drinks of yesterday.
For some stupid reason Thorin – son of Thráin, son of Thrór, king under the mountain – called up intense feelings.