Your reviews make me so, so unreasonably happy. Thank you all for your support and thoughts on the story. Everyone wants to know so badly what Stonehelm did to upset Thorin, but I can't reveal that just yet ;) At this point in the story, I will be adding a lot of my own events that aren't from P&P, but some things will remain true. A certain event is approaching and it pains me to write about it :(
This chapter was a tough one! I am making some big leaps for my characters, but of course they can't move things along at the pace we want them to, lol. I actually planned to put some other parts in this, but it was just getting too long. I guess that just mean more chapters for us to enjoy :)
"We all know him to be a proud, unpleasant sort of man; but this would be nothing if you really liked him."―Jane Austen,Pride and Prejudice
Three days passed before Signi was finally afforded the chance to speak with her dear friend again. Between hours spent with the king's council and time spent managing Dain's soldiers, Stonehelm was a busy dwarf indeed. The princes were also dutifully occupied in council sessions during this time, leaving Lifa as her source of company. Signi loved her sister, but three days trapped inside with her was unbearable.
On the fourth day, King Thorin took Dain, Balin, and Brasi with him to speak with King Bard. This news was unsettling and curiosity tore at Signi. What did the king intend to do? Was the plan as she feared – a military operation rather than a charitable one?
Undoubtedly, her answers lay with Stonehelm. Shortly after breakfast, when the soldiers were still preparing for their day's training, Signi headed down to camp to seek out her friend. She found him not long after entering the camp, washing up inside the captain's tent.
"Well now, this is a fine morning indeed," Stonehelm said warmly. Bowing politely, he brought her hand to his lips and graced it with a lingering kiss, his eyes never straying from hers.
Signi felt a blush flaming across her cheeks and down her neck. Stonehelm was naked to the waist, something she had seen many times before in the Iron Hills, but somehow his muscled torso and dusting of reddish hair made her mouth dry and a surge of heat shot through her belly. She willed herself to turn away, but her eyes were drawn to him like a moth to the flame.
Stonehelm recognized her distress with a low chuckle. Squeezing her hand gently, he let go and moved away to pull a linen shirt over his head. Signi hoped that the lamenting whine she made when he dressed was only in her mind, but something about Stonehelm's smirk said it wasn't.
"I heard that the ball was a success," He said, moving to pour a drink for both of them and beckoning her to join him at the table.
"It was," Signi answered as she sat. "It was a pity you could not be there."
Stonehelm grimaced. "Aye, I would have very much liked to have been there." His tone was evasive and Signi wondered if there was more to his absence than she was told.
"Kili said that you were detained here at camp," she said, watching him carefully over the rim of her wineglass.
"It is true," he said with a slow nod. "Some of my men got drunk in a Dale tavern and made right fools of themselves. I had to pay their bail and haul them back to camp. They'll be mucking stables and scrubbing latrines until Durin's Day."
Signi smirked at this story. Dain's soldiers were famous for their fierce fighting as well as their drunken antics. "But surely that did not take all night," she said.
Stonehelm fidgeted, hesitating before he answered. "No it did not. I confess, part of me did not want to face Thorin. The more I thought on it, the more I realized that it would be unwise for us to be at the same party for such a length of time. We are both such stubborn dwarves that I am sure that my presence would have resulted in a fight and neither of us is trained to stop before the death of our opponent. You wouldn't want the assassination of King Thorin on my record would you?"
Despite his teasing tone, Signi felt a slight shiver. How easily he spoke of brawling with the king, of killing the king, was unnerving to hear.
As usual, Signi was unable to mask her thoughts. "I am joking, Signi," Stonehelm said with a barking laugh. "Mahal, you don't think I would actually take up arms against the king, do you?"
Signi felt her cheeks burn again and shook her head. "Of course not," she said, attempting to hide her embarrassment.
"Good," replied Stonehelm, standing to refill their glasses once more. "So I also heard that you have refused an offer of marriage." He had continued with his teasing tone, but his words held a clipped alertness that Signi could not identify.
"Don't remind me," she groaned, accepting her re-filled glass. She had not seen Vifil since her refusal, not that she wanted to, but she felt ashamed about her treatment of him. She tried to let him down gently, but his persistence knocked out what few vestiges of her patience that remained. Lifa felt sorry for the dwarf and her father said that the sting of rejection would quickly pass, but Galen was refusing to talk to her and Kara had not visited her since the ball.
Stonehelm smirked from his seat, watching Signi's miserable expression as he reminded her of the disastrous proposal. "I am surprised that you would turn down such a generous offer. If anything it would get your mother off your back about marriage."
Signi sent him a death glare, scowling when his lips twitched in amusement. "Durin's beard, what kind of simpering dwarrowdam do you think I have become?" she snapped.
Chuckling again at her discomfort, Stonehelm reached across the table and grasped her hand in his. "I shouldn't tease. I apologize, my lady."
Signi felt a tingle run through her when his lips pressed against her hand again. Mahal, he was just kissing her bloody hand. It didn't feel like this when Kili or Dain did it.
"Perhaps," he said quietly, still leaning across the table and gripping her hand. "Perhaps you were waiting for another dwarf to make his offer."
This time Signi nearly choked on her own spit. When had she become so transparent? Stonehelm knew her well, but he never could read her mind with such unnerving accuracy.
Stonehelm laughed as he leaned back in his chair and kicked his boots on to the table. "You have something on your mind, Signi. You didn't pop down here to talk about balls and marriage proposals."
It was a kindness he offered, turning the conversation to something less mortifying, but Signi still felt a pang of disappointment when he did not elaborate on his bold assertion.
"Yes, I was wondering what the king is planning to do with these soldiers," she answered brusquely. "You mentioned that he needed them to save his trade routes. I have not heard if he intends to send them to march on Gundabad or if he is attempting to help Dale be rebuilt."
Stonehelm's gaze narrowed. "You seem to know a lot about Thorin's proposals," he said suspiciously.
Signi groaned inwardly. Of course Thorin would not have mentioned that she had suggested both of these things. In fact, she wasn't sure if Dis had even told the king about her thoughts on providing laborers to King Bard.
"Anyone can guess to what he is hoping to achieve," she answered, hoping that the reply would eliminate any suspicion on his part. "And I overheard papa talking to Dain about it."
Stonehelm accepted this with a nod and a sigh. "I am afraid there isn't a charitable bone in Thorin's body. He at least considered helping Dale until I foolishly opened my mouth."
"What do you mean?"
Scowling at a knot in the wooden table, Stonehelm answered bitterly, "I told him that I have builders within my company. Dwarves who work with wood and stone. I said that we could begin construction in Dale and give their men good shelter. If he could secure the coin and supplies, my soldiers would do the labor and leave Erebor's laborers to work in the mountain where it is truly needed."
"But that is a good plan," protested Signi. Surely the king agreed to this.
"Aye, it is," lamented Stonehelm. "But Thorin has spent too much time with that Lord Brasi. I have never met such scum until I met him in Ered Luin. Never would I allow such a dwarf on my council."
"What did Brasi want?" breathed Signi, dread rising in her throat.
Stonehelm scowled deeply as he recounted Brasi's thoughts on helping Dale. It seemed that the dwarf had no desire to help the city, but only wanted to secure trade with Ered Luin. Five hundred soldiers would not be enough to clean out the filth dwelling in Gundabad, but it would be enough to keep the northern pass patrolled and safe to travel along.
Signi's face reddened with anger as her friend spoke. How could the king be so foolish? How could he not see the game Brasi played? If such a thing happened, Erebor would be effectively shut off from trading with any other kingdom in Middle Earth. How could Thorin think of doing such a thing? There was so much that the east offered, why would he turn away from it in favor of isolation?
With these questions racing through her mind, Signi nearly missed Stonehelm's comment in regards to a marriage contract.
"…and Brasi has presented Thorin with a contract of marriage to his daughter, Miri, in exchange for construction of a new laid road."
Signi felt her stomach drop and her heart stop at these words. "Wh-what?" she gasped. The king would be married? To Miri?
"Brasi has presented Thorin with a contract of marriage," Stonehelm repeated, rolling his eyes in annoyance. "He intends for Fili and Miri to be married."
The blood drained from Signi's face as she took in the words. Fili would marry Miri, just as Lifa had feared. The king knew about Fili's interest in Lifa, the whole damn mountain knew about it. Had he truly reached such a low that he would bar Erebor from the outside world for the sake of wealth? If using Dain's soldiers to keep the northern pass clean did not secure all trade with Ered Luin, a marriage with the stronghold's most powerful family certainly would.
Stonehelm's piercing gaze brought her back from her thoughts. "Are you alright?" he asked, his eyes appraising.
Signi quickly schooled her expression. She never hid her thoughts from Stonehelm, but this was something she did not want to share with him. She had told no one of her discussions with the king or his sister, and if she had her way, Stonehelm would be no exception.
"I am fine," she answered finally with a smile. "But let's talk of more cheerful things. I have had enough of Thorin Oakenshield to last a lifetime."
Stonehelm grinned widely at her words, happy to oblige. "Have I told you about your sister, Elin? She is quite determined to wield a sword, but she is absolutely useless on the training field. She can't possibly hold it without the arms of a soldier around her to help her hold it aloft."
It was a little before noon when Prince Fili sought out Lifa and begged her to come with him for a walk outside. She wondered, as they walked hand in hand toward their favored oak, if they would be enjoying another picnic lunch. The idea thrilled her as she pictured their previous cloud watching following the meal to be replaced with those sweet kisses that Fili shared so freely with her.
As they approached the eastern hill, Fili steered them away from the tree and over the grassy slope. Below them was a flat stretch of land and two targets. Lifa considered rolling her eyes when she realized that this was planned in response to her admission to shooting an orc, but seeing Fili's silly grin was enough to make her smile in return. Obviously the prince was just too excited not to see her in action.
As they moved to where two bows and quivers waited, Lifa wondered if perhaps she should give the prince fair warning to cushion his pride. Archery was not a sport she took lightly and as far as she knew, Fili preferred blades to arrows when fighting.
But a few comments of promising to go lightly on her in this competition nipped any kindness on her part in the bud. Too bad the prince foolishly spoke before he saw her in action.
"So what are we playing for in this competition?" she asked lightly, slipping the leather arm guard that Fili handed her over her wrist.
Fili's smile was smug, and had she not been incensed by his words, Lifa would have blushed at the thoughts he undoubtedly had. "If I win," he said finally, "I get to teach you how to wield a sword."
"Fair enough," Lifa shrugged. "And if I win I get to teach you how to knit?"
Fili made a face but nodded in agreement. "If you win."
Lifa bit her lip to keep from laughing. They were competing with stationary targets. This was the sort of thing she did as a dwarfling.
The bow he handed her was a beautiful, Erebor-made recurve bow. It did not have the deep curve of the bows used by the mountain's soldiers, but it did not need that kind of force for what they were shooting. She ran her fingers along the side, admiring the layers of yellow yew and dark horn and sinew. It was a bow made for beauty as much as utility. Even the arrows with carefully engraved mithril points seemed too lovely to pierce flesh.
"Do you like it?" Fili asked, his breath tickling her cheek. Lifa did not notice him moving so close to her, but she enjoyed it just the same. In fact, she was finding it very difficult to not lean into his closeness.
"I do," she breathed, running her fingers again over the polished limbs. "What does this mean?" she asked, running her thumb over the runes on the grip. She recognized her family's insignia as well as the house of Durin, but there was one she had not noticed before.
Fili's arms moved around her as she spoke and his hands joined hers on the bow. "This is my emblem," he said gently. "It is how our crest would appear once we marry."
Lifa's breath stopped. Once we marry, he said. Once we marry. She must have heard him wrong. She tried to ask him to repeat it, or to at least clarify it, but the question stuck in her throat.
Fili's chuckle vibrated through her back and she felt the brush of his mustache against her cheek before he pulled away.
"I will go first," he said, picking up his own bow and nocking an arrow. "Try not to get too intimidated," he teased with a wink.
Lifa shook her head to dispel her momentary shock. Mahal, the prince was in a teasing mood. There was no chance of her letting him off easy after that trick he played on her.
Fili fired arrow after arrow until his quiver was empty. He was a good shot, Lifa begrudgingly admitted, but a few of his arrows had hit the target off center. In battle, he would be an asset with a bow. But Lifa was better.
"Your turn, my Lady," Fili said, bowing gallantly as Lifa approached her mark.
It was not easy to keep her smirk at bay as she steadied her hand and drew back the string. Taking a deep breath, Lifa carefully sured her aim and released the arrow. As she expected, the arrow landed dead center on the target. Out of the corner of her eye, Lifa could see Fili's shocked expression as she prepared to fire again.
When every arrow in her quiver had been fired, each hitting the center of the target, Lifa turned to gloat. "I believe I won that round," she teased the wide-eyed prince. "When would you like to begin your knitting lessons?"
"Mahal," breathed Fili, his gaze a combination of admiration and surprise. "I had no idea you were such a good shot."
Lifa shrugged. "You never asked."
Fili furrowed his brow in determination. "Let's go again. Best out of three is the winner."
"Do you really want to be beaten three times?" she asked, chuckling at his tenacity.
Fili's eyes darkened at her words, but his expression was one of pleasure rather than anger. "I would be gladly beaten by you if I get to watch. Seeing you draw the bow is the loveliest I have seen you yet."
Lifa felt a silly giggle threatening to surface. The prince's words were intense and she felt the fluttering in her stomach rising into her throat at the heated gaze he was giving her.
As predicted, Lifa won the next two rounds with ease. It was not a lack of effort on the prince's part. Lifa even took it upon herself to help his aim, using the opportunity to slyly slip her arms around him and lift his bow holding hand and steady his elbow. Fili knew what she was doing, but did not object as she pressed against his back.
Lifa was sure that Fili would have insisted on a few more rounds, best out of five, if a servant had not arrived with a basket of food. Moving to their picnic spot, they were left alone once more to enjoy lunch.
After their meal, Fili laid down on the blanket and motioned for Lifa to join him. Eagerly, she moved across the blanket and curled against his side, his arm pulling her tight against him. It felt so natural lay beside him. Everything about their time together felt right and Lifa found herself thinking once more about his comment before. Once we marry.
Fili seemed to be thinking along those lines as well when he finally broke the silence. "I meant what I said before."
Lifa's breath caught. She dared not hope. "You said many things before," she teased lightly.
With a low chuckle, Fili turned on his side and wrapped his arms around her waist, turning her to face him as well. "I meant what I said about when we marry," he explained, watching her expression carefully.
Lifa tried to compose herself, but her lips parted in a wide grin and her cheeks flushed rosy pink. She did not know what to say. He was not asking for her hand, he did not want a reply, but he seemed want some sort of indication that she wanted the same. If her ridiculous grin did not tell him what he thought about it, she did not know what would.
The prince's smile was as wide as her own as he watched her happy expression. "I intend to make you my wife," he said softly, bringing his forehead to rest against hers. "But it is bad timing."
Frowning, Lifa pulled back slightly. "Bad timing?" she asked, almost afraid of the answer.
Fili scowled as he answered. "Aye, the king has begun a project that is a massive undertaking. He will demand that I put off an engagement until it is over or near completion."
Lifa sighed. She knew that is was too good to last. Fili would not defy his uncle's orders, even when it came to marriage. "I have heard that the king has entered negotiations for your marriage," she said, her voice barely a whisper. There was no need to hide her worries now.
His hands tightened, gripping her waist as he rolled above her, his body pressing against hers. In any other situation, Lifa would be scandalized, but with Fili it was too good to resist.
"I will not be forced into a marriage contract based on trade," he growled, cupping her cheek to keep her from turning away. "My uncle may seem harsh, but he will not force me into anything I don't agree to. He will ask me to wait, which is the least I can give him. I just hope that you can wait with me."
Lifa felt her heart twisting at his words. It pained him to ask her to wait, she could see that in his expression, but it pained him even more to go against his uncle's wishes. Fili was to be king and the kingdom must always come first, this she understood.
I intend to make you my wife. Oh, how those words thrilled her. With Fili none of it mattered: the gold, the crown, the whole damn mountain. It could all be sitting in the bottom of the lake and Lifa would gladly lie in his arms on the shore and listen to those words again and again. I intend to make you my wife.
Fili's nose nudging her cheek brought her back to the present. Capturing his face in her hands, Lifa fixed her fierce gaze on his. "Of course I will wait with you," she said with determination. Pulling his mouth to hers, she sealed her affirmation with a bruising kiss.
The prince was all smiles when he finally pulled away, "Praise Mahal," he said gently, trailing kisses along her jaw. "I will speak with Thorin…and your father."
The boys swore it was an accident, but that did nothing to sate Thorin's anger. It was his second day of negotiations with Bard and the king did not think that his head could hurt any more than it did upon returning to Erebor. How wrong he was as he paused in the entrance hall with Balin and Brasi, his attention caught by a shout behind him.
He had been displeased enough when Kili, and Gimli learned about Signi's skill with the sword and begged him to allow them to spar with her. He couldn't imagine what might have happened that would cause injury to befall Signi, but here he was, just returned from Dale, when Kili came running across the bridge carrying her limp form in his arms and Gimli trailed behind him. The blood that dripped from her head wound onto the black marble floor sickened Thorin to the point that Balin actually had to intervene and hustle them to the healing rooms in his stead.
Lifa soon caught wind of Signi's injury and she immediately made her way to see her sister. In the hall she pushed past Thorin, lacking any sense of propriety (not that he noticed in that moment),as he paced the floor in worry. Kili and Gimli had made themselves scarce at Balin's advice, but that didn't stop Thorin from imagining the throttling they would be receiving when he found them.
He did not try to understand this emotions coursing through him. Anger was there, anger he knew, but there was also worry and dread. There was no reasonable explanation for his panic. Signi was just a girl living under the mountain. Just as there were many other young ladies living under the mountain. But as he paced the hall outside the infirmary, Thorin admitted to himself that he would not react this way if Miri or Lifa were injured. Mahal, he probably wouldn't feel this sick if his own sister had been hit over the head, but that might have more to do with the fact that her skull was made of same Durinstone as his.
When the door finally opened and Oin announced that the lass would be fine, Thorin pushed past him failing to hear the part about the mind addling herbs she had consumed to dull her pain.
The scene before him took his breath away. Signi lay on the cot with her dark hair splayed across the white pillow case. A bandage was wrapped around her forehead, and he felt his stomach turn when he saw the darkened stain just where her injury had been. Lifa was sitting beside her on the other side of the cot. She nodded silently to Thorin, but Signi did not notice nor did she see the king entering the room. Instead, her unfocused gaze was trained on Lifa's face as she recounted what happened.
"…And then Kili shouted 'Here comes Thorin'. I couldn't help it. I was hoping he would come watch us spar. I turned to greet him at the same moment that Gimli swung his sword. He didn't mean to hit me, I was distracted."
Once more, Thorin was enraged. Kili had played one of his silly pranks and she fell for it. How he wanted to box the dwarf around his ears for his foolishness. A glimmer of a thought surfaced as his mind recanted what she said. She was hoping he would come watch. If anything, he thought she would be glad to be free of his company for once.
He started to step forward to assure her that the boys would be punished for their actions, but she began to speak again.
"I hope Thorin is not angry with them. He can be so stern. "
"Shhhhh. You need to stop talking and get some rest," murmured Lifa as she cast Thorin an apologetic look.
But this seemed to spurn Signi on as she giggled and continued with her stream of thoughts concerning the king. "You know, when I first met him, I thought he couldn't smile. Have you ever seen him smile?"
Lifa's face was bright red as she pursed her lips and stiffly shook her head no. Thorin rolled his eyes, but made no move to interrupt her.
"I've seen him smile and it is radiant. He looks like the whole weight of the kingdom has been taken from his shoulders and he is finally able to breathe." Signi paused as she lolled back her head and smiled as though she was reminiscing. "He is quite handsome when he smiles."
"Is he?" Lifa said, her teeth clenched with annoyance at Signi's chattiness.
"Mmhmmm," Signi murmured. "But that isn't his most handsome feature. Can you guess what is?"
Thorin raised his eyebrows, but continued to listen silently, frozen in place as though he had been caught doing something he shouldn't. Was Signi actually recounting to her sister how handsome she thought he was?
"It's his eyes," She finally answered after Lifa refused to make a guess. "His beautiful blue eyes. They have such depth and they have seen worlds we have only heard tale of. He can say so much with just his eyes. It takes the breath from me when he turns them upon mine."
Lifa groaned as Signi continued discussing Thorin's eyes, each description more poetic than the last.
"When I think of his eyes, I think that song we used to sing all the time. Remember that? 'I'm thinking tonight of my blue eyes…'" she sang, a dreamy expression on her face as she closed her eyes and continued to hum.
Thorin finally decided that he had heard far more than he should have at that point and it was time to clue her in on his presence. Clearing his throat loudly, he took a few heavy steps forward so that there was no mistaking that she was not alone with her sister.
Turning her head toward the sound, Signi graced Thorin with a smile. "My king," She said, reaching her hand out for his. "We were just talking about you."
"Were you?" he asked with eyebrows raised in feigned surprise. Eying her hand wearily, Thorin finally decided that it was safe to take it lightly in his own.
Her smile widening, Signi squeezed his hand and then released it. "All good things of course."
"I think it is time that Signi got some rest," Lifa said pointedly at Thorin.
Nodding in agreement, Thorin turned to squash any protest that Signi was undoubtedly forming. Reaching out to brush her hair softly away from the bandage, Thorin allowed his hand to rest briefly on her cheek. "Get some sleep, Signi," he said softy. "You can tell me all about it when you are well."
Beaming up at him, Signi leaned briefly into his touch before rolling onto her side and pulling the covers over her shoulder.
In the hallway, Lifa waited nervously for the king. Thorin stopped in front of her and gave her one of his famous glares.
"You will speak of this to no one," he growled. "Not even Fili should hear a word of this. Do you understand?"
"Of course, my Lord," She whispered, refusing to make eye contact as he glowered at her. Satisfied with her answer, he swept past her to go find the responsible party for Signi's newest scar.