The company had been trudging through the open plains and dense forests of Ruhdaur for nearly two days now, setting up camp for a few hours during the night. Even Jasmine, who was used to staying up all night on her various missions back in Bree, was beginning to grow drowsy from the seemingly endless trek.
"Can we rest?" Elle whined, slowly jogging after the company. Dwarves, Jasmine knew, were not natural long-distance runners, and, without any endurance training, could be absolutely burdensome during long journeys. For the entirety of the last few days, Elle had been complaining about the labor required to keep up with the company, and, while her constant whining had grown irritating, Jasmine couldn't help but agree with her now.
"Thorin," Gandalf wheezed, stumbling along a few paces in front of Elle. "We should really set up camp again. We'll be much faster once we have-"
"No," Thorin snapped, continuing on. "We must cross through this land as quickly as possible. I do not wish to have any more encounters with those trolls."
"Forget the trolls," Ori coughed. "My feet are killing me."
"Aye," his brother Dori agreed. "We need to rest, Thorin."
Ignoring his companions, Thorin just kept walking,
Reluctantly, the rest of the company backed down, letting their stubborn, determined leader have his way.
After a few minutes of wheezing, panting and muttered complaints, a great howl echoed across the plains.
"Did you hear that?" Thorin asked ominously, even though Jasmine could tell he already knew that everyone had.
"It sounds like a wolf," Balin said, as a second howl rang through the barren lands.
"Not a wolf," Gandalf corrected, his face grim. "A warg. And more than one of them, judging by that last howl," he added, gripping his staff a little tighter.
"What do we do?" Oin asked, looking frantically between Gandalf and the horizon, as if he expected a pack of rabid wolf-like creatures to come hurdling towards them at any minute.
Which did in fact happen the very next second.
"Run!" Gandalf yelled, new strength fueling his and the rest of the company's legs to sprint further down the plains. A blurred mass of brown fur could be seen approaching them from their right, a sea of mountainous rocks and plateaus to their left. Jasmine just hoped that what little she had heard of wargs' incredible speed was not true-for if it was, they were utterly doomed.
"They're getting closer!" Bombur whimpered, proving Jasmine to be (unfortunately) correct. The wargs were uncannily quick, and they were gaining on them quickly. When she offered the wargs a wary glance over her shoulder, she saw just how ferocious they looked up close. Horrid, yellow fangs jutted out from great jaws, while matted, bloodied fur covered the rest of their bodies. Atop each warg was an Orc, clad in torn cloth and wielding red-stained jagged blades.
"Get behind that rock!" Gandalf shouted, directing the frightened company towards a tall rock slightly to their left.
Jasmine could see the flaws in the old man's plan-if they were fast enough, yes, they would be able to take cover behind the great rock. The wargs were not close enough to them to be able to see them retreat behind the rock, so if they were able to reach if, they would be safe. But, with their weariness, the incredible speed of the wargs, and the inclusive, open layout of the plains, the likelihood of that happening was slim.
Nevertheless, her adrenaline propelled her forward, allowing her legs to pound against the rocky ground so fast that she was quite sure she would lose her balance and trip at any moment.
The company reached the rock in record time, throwing themselves against the back of it so that they were hidden from view of the wargs for the time being.
"We made it," Bombur said, relieved. He was bent over, panting from the excursion of the sprint.
"We cannot linger here," Gandalf said, also trying to regain his breath. "The wargs will be upon us soon. We must make for Rivendell," he said, giving an astonished Thorin a significant look.
Rivendell? Jasmine felt her stomach lurch. They couldn't go to Rivendell. Lord Elrond had known her parents and would likely remember her, meaning that her cover would be blown. For that was why she always wore her dark, shadowed hood-to hide the trait that made her truly recognizable as an elf. Her pointed ears. And if the company ever found out about who she was, if she ever took the hood off, if she ever were to encounter another elf who had known her parents before they died, she would be banished by the company.
"We can't go to Rivendell," Jasmine said hoarsely.
"For once I agree with the lass," Dwalin said gruffly. "I'm not going to plead for the mercy and aid of the elves."
"Aye," Thorin agreed, his voice dripping with hatred. "We shall find another way to survive that doesn't involve enlisting the help of that murderous, traitorous race."
Jasmine flinched ever so slightly, but quickly regained her composure.
The howls of the wargs were growing closer, and Jasmine could hear the sounds of their paws pounding against the Earth just beyond their hiding place. It wouldn't be long, she knew, before they were found.
"We need to leave here," Gandalf said more urgently. "If you want to make it out of this mess alive, I suggest you follow me without protest," he breathed. "And don't ask questions."
At that moment, a great growling noise from above them caused them all to flinch, and, looking up, the company found themselves looking into the beady, hungry eyes of a warg and it's rider.
Kili whipped out his bow, quickly nocking an arrow and letting it fly at the warg, the point piercing the beast's neck. With a howl, the warg fell to the ground beside them, it's rider tumbling off of it with a groan.
Sensing the opportunity, Jasmine ran forwards and plunged her new shortsword deep into the Orc's chest, the wretched creature's twitching arms slowly stilling as she removed the blade.
Turning back around, she caught Kili's eye, who promptly gave her a short wink. "Great teamwork," he mouthed to her as Jasmine felt her eyes instinctively roll.
"Before more of them come, we must go," Gandalf said again. "Follow me."
The company didn't need to be told twice. After the close encounter with the warg and it's rider, none of them were too eager to have another one.
As they left the cover of the rock, Jasmine shot a look to their right where the warg pack had first originated. The large pack was much, much closer now, but there were a few stragglers that were a bit farther up ahead. They, she imagined, would find them much faster than the rest of the pack would. They must be scouts, she thought, tearing her eyes away from the riders.
They were, she understood, heading for a small cave not far ahead. It seemed as though even Bombur could fit through it's opening, but it would be far too small for any warg to fit through. If only we can make it that far without being attacked, she realized.
"Faster!" Gandalf urged, seeming to sense the gravity of the situation. "We must make it to that cave!"
Another howl echoed across the plains behind them. We've been spotted, Jasmine thought, willing herself to run faster. The sound of the other warg as she and Kili had killed it must have alerted the pack to their whereabouts. What are wargs even doing in these parts?
The sounds of the wargs' paws on the rocky earth grew closer together, leading her to believe that they had sped up as well. Damnit.
They were only about a quarter mile from the cave now, but the wargs were gaining on them, and Jasmine knew that if they did manage to escape through the caves, it would be a narrow escape indeed.
"We're almost there," Gandalf panted, leading them further towards the cave. "Make haste!"
When they finally reached the cave, Gandalf stopped by the opening, shepherding Bofur, Bombur and Bifur in first. They stumbled in, muffled screams and shouts echoing in their wake. There must be some sort of drop or fall, Jasmine gulped.
"You next," Gandalf gestured to Elle and Balin, who jumped into the cave. Elle's shrieks filtered back out through the cave opening. The opening was only large enough, she realized, for one person to slowly squeeze their way through, and it take a long time-too long of a time, she realized-for all of them to get past.
"Quickly, now!" Gandalf shouted, making way for another cluster of dwarves to run into the cave, their shouts following in close pursuit.
Jasmine was beginning to doubt that whatever was going on in that cave was any better than fending for their lives out on these plains.
There was now only Jasmine, Kili, Fili, Thorin and Dwalin left out on the plains, with Gandalf herding the last of the other dwarves into the cave. The wargs were nearly upon them now, although Kili had taken out several with his bow.
"Kili, Fili, Jasmine," Thorin ordered. "Get inside." He brandished his own sword at the oncoming wargs. "We'll try to hold them off for awhile," he said, as Dwalin pulled out his own axe.
As much as she wanted to stay and fight, Jasmine was equally eager to get away from the snarling, bloodied wargs, and quickly sprinted to the cave opening, with Fili and Kili by her side. Fili squeezed through the opening first, followed by Kili, and her last.
The second Jasmine stepped through the opening, she found that there was no ground beneath her feet. Her heart skipped a beat in surprise, and then she felt herself falling, and saw only pitch-black darkness around her. The fall only lasted for a few seconds, and when she landed, she found that it had not hurt much at all.
"Ow," a voice from beneath her groaned. "Did you have to fall on top of me?"
So that's why it didn't hurt, Jasmine thought to herself, quickly getting off of what she assumed could only be Kili.
"Sorry," she muttered, instinctively helping the dwarf to his feet. Wait. Why am I helping him?
"It's alright," Kili said, and even in the nearly impenetrable darkness, she could sense his signature smirk. "You're welcome to fall on me anytime."
"Oh, God," Jasmine moaned, throwing him a punch to the arm. "You're really too full of yourself." Maybe I'll be doing the world a favor by killing him, she thought drily.
Above them came the sounds of Gandalf, Thorin and Dwalin forcing themselves through the cave opening and their sounds of surprise as they fell through the hole that stood right in front of the entrance.
Once they had all made it safely to the ground, Gandalf lit his staff so that the chamber around them was illuminated by a dim, wavering light. It had rock walls and several passages breaking off from the main room that they were in.
"Why were there wargs out there, Gandalf?" Elle piped up. "I've never heard of wargs venturing so far from the eastern lands."
"I do not know what brought those creatures here," Gandalf said grimly. "But it seems as though they were not here by accident."
What the hell is that supposed to mean? Jasmine looked back up at the small circle of light above them that acted as the entrance from the plains and the cave opening down to their cave chamber. The wargs must still be out there, searching for a way to fit their pack through the entrance to the cave.
"But we must make haste," Gandalf said, for what seemed like the hundredth time that morning.
"Where are we going?" Bofur asked.
"Rivendell," Gandalf said plainly, charging ahead down one of the passageways without waiting for confirmation from any of the dwarves. "I've had enough of your silly prejudices and grudges. We need food and rest, and the Last Homely House is nearest to us."
With only a few grumblings from the dwarves, the company followed Gandalf, seeming to have given up on any other means of finding rest. But Jasmine found her stomach knotting as she thought about what new dangers might await her in Rivendell. Lord Elrond. Meeting other elves.
She was pretty sure she would rather take on the ravenous wolf pack waiting for them outside.
Elle breathed a sigh of wonder when she caught her first glimpse of Rivendell.
The Last Homely House was a beautiful, pristine city, with calming waterfalls and gorgeous architecture. Arching bridges and artfully crafted domes decorated the city and it's glittering waterways, and Elle had to stop in mid-step (along with many other members of the company) just to take it all in.
Some, like Thorin, gruffly bore on ahead, but Elle found herself utterly transfixed by the beauty of the city. She had heard of the rivalry between elves and dwarves, but, having not grown up in a traditional Dwarven household herself, she didn't quite understand the grudges held against the elves, and held very few herself.
The company crossed the front bridge, which led to the gates of the city. A troop of elves met them at the gates, a tall, brown-haired, regal-looking figure at the front.
"Welcome to Rivendell," he said, his voice sounding somehow old and young at the same time.
"Lord Elrond," Gandalf said in greeting, bowing slightly to the Elvish man.
"Mithrandir," the man-Elrond-said, a smile gracing his thin lips. He scanned the company, his eyes lingering on Jasmine, an expression of confusion and curiosity crossing his lined face.
"We come asking for food and rest," Gandalf said, and Elrond looked back towards the wizard. "For we are weary from our travels."
"Nartho i noer, toltho i viruvor. Boe i annam vann a nethail vin," Elrond said, turning back to look at the elves behind him.
"What is he saying?" Gloin barked. "Does he offer us insult?"
"No, Master Gloin," Gandalf laughed, looking at Elrond, who was also smiling. "He is offering you food."
"Oh," the ginger-haired dwarf said gruffly. "Well, in that case, we accept."
The elves led Jasmine and Elle through the halls and gates and paths of Rivendell, all the while, Jasmine finding herself utterly uncomfortable. She remembered visiting Rivendell as a child with her parents, and being back here was bringing back a whole wave of unwanted memories.
I just hope we'll get out of here soon, Jasmine thought to herself.
The two of them had separated from the company, supposedly being led by their Elven guides to the women's quarters while the rest of the dwarves and Gandalf would be led to the men's. Jasmine, despite the aching pain that came with seeing Rivendell again, was relieved that they would finally be able to rest and eat again.
"Here is your room," their two Elven guides said in unison once they had reached a small structure.
"Room?" Elle repeated. "As in, we're sharing?"
"Yes," one of the elves said, obviously confused.
Elle opened her mouth to say something, but, deciding otherwise, stepped into the room, Jasmine following reluctantly in her wake. They would be sharing a bedroom? She doubted that they'd both make it out of there alive.
The room was spacious, and, judging by it's size, seemed to take up the entirety of the structure they had just seen. There were two large beds on either side of the room, the areas around them fully equipped with lightly colored pine furniture. Jasmine heard the guides enter the room behind them.
"Lord Elrond has arranged for an official dinner to be held in your honor," one of the elves said. "You'll find that the proper attire has already been placed in your closets," she added.
"There's fresh bathwater waiting in the tub over there," the other guide continued, gesturing to a wooden tub in the corner of the room, sheltered by a movable screen.
"We'll leave you to get ready," the guides said, watching as Jasmine and Elle took in the room. "Please be in the Great Hall within the hour."
They left, closing the door with a soft click behind them, leaving Jasmine and Elle alone in their new quarters.
"I'm not wearing that," Jasmine said firmly, for what had to be the tenth time.
"Oh, Jasmine, don't be ridiculous," Elle sighed. She was holding out one of the dresses that their Elven guides had left for them to wear to the dinner-a light blue floor-length gown with a daring neckline and a voluptuous, ruffled skirt.
"What's wrong with this one?" Jasmine asked, holding out the modest, peach-colored one she had selected herself. She had never been one to know (or care) much about fashion, and was confused as to why she even had to wear a dress in the first place.
"It's too… nothing," Elle said, scrunching up her nose.
"Why do you care?" Jasmine groaned.
"Because Thíngwen and Gelluinith would be so terribly disappointed in me if I let you go to the dinner wearing that."
"Who are Thíngwen and Gelluinith?" Jasmine asked with a snort.
"Those two elves we met earlier," Elle said, as if it were obvious.
"You know their names?" Jasmine asked, stunned. "How?"
"I asked them. Duh," Elle smirked. "You were probably too busy sulking to pay much attention, though."
Rolling her eyes again, Jasmine settled back into the pillows she had propped up on her bed's headboard.
"You're wearing this dress by the way," Elle said, sounding more like a stern mother than an all-knowing maniac.
"No, I'm not," Jasmine laughed. "It's ridiculous."
"You're ridiculous," Elle retorted, throwing the dress at Jasmine, who caught it out of instinct. "And you're wearing it. Or else I'll tell the company that you're a you-know-what."
Gaping at her, Jasmine said, "The deal was that if I didn't tell, you wouldn't either."
"You should have known better than to make a promise with me, Jasmine," Elle said sweetly, giving her annoying, tinkling laugh. "I am the Sage after all."
"So you're going to keep threatening me into doing what you want?" Jasmine asked, her voice taking on a dangerous edge.
"Oh please, Jasmine," Elle sighed, waving Jasmine off with a swish of her hand. "It's just a dress."
Growling, Jasmine snatched up the dress and stormed behind the folding screen at the corner of the room. She knew Elle wouldn't give up easily, and it would be easier for her to just give up sooner rather than later. With a sigh, she peeled off the nightdress that she had thrown on after her bath about a half an hour earlier, and slid, tugged and grunted her way into the garment.
When she had put it on, she turned to look in the mirror behind her and nearly screamed. With her signature black cloak stripped away and replaced by this odd, blue dress, she could hardly recognize herself. Having never been one to ogle at herself in the mirror, she never had never truly known what she looked like (or rather, she had, but not very well), and having her face and body so utterly exposed made her feel like she was looking at a stranger.
The dress, Jasmine reluctantly admitted to herself, was quite pretty. The ruffled skirt gave her unshapely body some curvature, and she found that the neckline of the dress wasn't nearly as daring as she had originally thought, making her feel much more comfortable in the outfit than she had anticipated. I look pretty alright, she thought. Not drop-dead gorgeous, but nice.
"Did you put it on?" Elle called from the other side of the screen.
Stepping out from behind the screen, Jasmine watched as Elle's eyes widened. "Jasmine," the dwarf said, a smile spreading across her face. "I truly do hate you, and I hope that you know that," she began, giving Jasmine a pointed look. "But, I have to admit, you look good."
Jasmine rolled her eyes. "You're the worst at giving compliments," she groaned.
"Like you're one to talk," Elle retorted. Circling Jasmine, she added, "We need to do something with your hair, though."
Rolling her eyes, Jasmine gave another groan. "Honestly, Elle, why are you even helping me?" she muttered. "There's nothing in it for you."
"I enjoy helping disadvantaged teenagers such as yourself," Elle replied sweetly, pulling Jasmine over to the vanity. Picking up a strand of Jasmine's still-damp hair, Elle whispered, "Besides, we need to disguise your… ears."
"I forgot about that," Jasmine flinched. Without her hood, there was nothing to disguise her pointed Elven ears that would surely blow her cover if they were seen.
"Don't worry," Elle laughed, fingering another strand of Jasmine's hair. "As much as I want you to get caught by the dwarves, it's been fun having an opponent to play against," she giggled. "Without you, Jasmine, this would all be too easy." She pulled and braided Jasmine's hair into some sort of elaborate updo, with pieces pinned securely down to hide Jasmine's ears.
"Thank you," Jasmine said slowly, running her hands over her hair when Elle was finished. "I…"
"Just think of it as a favor," Elle said with a dismissive wave of her hand. "From one thief to another," she said with a small smile. They made eye contact in the mirror, Elle's huge green ones meeting Jasmine's dark brown. They were meant to be nemeses, she knew, to destroy the other. But in that moment, Jasmine knew that neither one of them could imagine doing such a thing.
"I feel like we've been this way before," Kili said, sighing as they passed a series of columns that seemed identical to one they had seen mere moments earlier.
"Everything looks the same in this blasted place," Thorin muttered. "Leave it up to the elves to build something this confusing."
"I don't think we've been this way-" Kili began, before stopping dead in his tracks. Thorin saw his nephew's eyes widen as he took in the pair of women, one short and the other tall, make their way towards them. The shorter one Thorin recognized immediately as Elle, only… she looked different. A long red ball gown highlighted her shapely figure, an intricate set of braids and curls piled atop her head seeming to give her already glowing face a surrounding halo.
Why am I thinking like this? Thorin thought furiously to himself, shaking the wonderment from his mind. "Elle. Jasmine," he said at last, once their two burglars had reached them. He was nearly as surprised upon realizing that the other woman was in fact Jasmine, for, without her hood, she was utterly unrecognizable.
"Thorin!" Elle cried joyfully, in that confident, yet childlike way that she had. As her grin broadened, Thorin felt his own brow furrowing. Why does this woman have such an effect on me? "We were looking for you!"
"You were?" Thorin choked out, hating how flustered he sounded.
"Jasmine and I were just talking about how confusing this Elvish architecture is," Elle said, with a quick laugh. We were just talking about that too, Thorin thought, amused. "We can't seem to find our way to the dining hall."
"We weren't talking about that," Jasmine interjected, confused. When Elle gave her a quick, but still noticeable kick, the taller woman suppressed an eye roll, but was quiet.
Kili looked at the woman in front of him, gaping. Jasmine? Without her hood, he hadn't recognized the woman in front of him as the secluded thief he had grown to know until he had heard her recognizably naive, sarcastic voice.
He had never seen her face, since it had been concealed by her hood for the entirety of their journey so far. Kili tried to take her appearance, but found himself utterly overwhelmed. Her chocolate-colored eyes were rimmed by unimaginably dark eyelashes, her lips turned up at one corner in a smirk. Her dark brown hair was pulled up in a knot on the top of her head, with curled pieces hanging down to frame her face.
Jasmine, who had previously been regarding Thorin, turned to look at him then, and he immediately felt himself flinch. When her huge eyes met his, it felt as though she was staring through his very soul, seeing his fears, his dreams. Every time Kili had spoken to her, it had always felt like speaking to a shadow, someone who he couldn't see or read. But now, it felt like he was seeing the real Jasmine, the one who didn't hide in the darkness.
She held his gaze, a slight blush rising in her pale cheeks, her eyes widening with every passing second. Not wanting to be the one to look away, hardly daring to look away, Kili looked back at her, his heart pounding faster and faster.
Next to them, Thorin and Elle seemed to be speaking about something, with Thorin nodding gruffly as Elle babbled on animatedly. Out of the corner of his eye, Kili saw them begin walking ahead of them, leaving Kili and Jasmine alone in the courtyard.
They stood staring at each other for a moment, neither one of them wanting to be the one to break the silence.
"Do you want to start walking?" Kili asked, his voice strained and thin. He coughed to clear his voice.
Jasmine nodded quickly and, just as quickly, turned to begin following Elle and Thorin. But as she did so, her foot caught on the long fabric of her dress, causing her to stumble over one of the flagstones on the ground. Kili quickly caught her hand before she fell.
"Thanks," she muttered, steadying herself. "It was Elle's idea to make me wear this stupid dress," she said with an uneasy laugh, her eyes drifting down to the ground.
"You look nice," Kili said, before he could stop himself.
Jasmine turned to look at him, his eyes scanning her face again. He could see some sort of conflict on her face, something that made her brows furrow ever so slightly. With a sharp intake of breath, she tore her hand out of his grasp and, pulling up her skirts so as not to fall again, hurried forward after Thorin and Elle.
Kili ran to catch up with her, falling into step beside her. He looked over at her, and found that she was looking the other way, avoiding his gaze.
"My uncle seems smitten by Elle," he observed, looking up ahead to where the two dwarves were talking.
Jasmine snorted. "You can say that again," she said, watching the couple in front of them as well.
"There seems to be something about her that makes me uneasy," Kili began, squinting at Elle's back. "I feel like her affection for my uncle isn't genuine, if that makes any sense."
Next to him, Jasmine stiffened. After a moment, she said, "How can you be sure that any affection is genuine affection?" she asked softly.
Kili hesitated. "I don't know," he said at last.
Wow, that was a really long chapter. I technically could have broken it up into 2 chapters, I guess, but was too lazy to. :P Clearing up a few things:
1. In this part: "'We weren't talking about that,' Jasmine interjected, confused. When Elle gave her a quick, but still noticeable kick, the taller woman suppressed an eye roll, but was quiet." Jasmine is confused because she and Elle truly hadn't been talking about that, but Elle was just eager to try and relate to Thorin that she claimed that they had been talking about the same topic he and Kili and been conversing about.
2. Jasmine is a Rivendell elf (as were her parents) and she spent most of her early childhood growing up there (which is why she has such strong memories of the place and was so hesitant to go there). When her parents died (killed by dwarves-more on that later in the story), she fled to Bree, not wanting to be reminded of their life together in Rivendell. She knew Lord Elrond, which is also why she was wary of returning, out of fear that he would recognize her (also, more on that in the next chapter... hehe).
Thanks so much for reading! Please favorite, follow and review! Reviews truly do encourage me to keep writing, and I read and appreciate each one of them!