Aaand here's another chapter for you lovely people! I wasn't quite sure where to cut this, so it is quite a bit longer than usual but I think you won't mind :D I just wanted to finish the first night at Beorn's with one chapter, so there you go.
happypills27: And I love having Fili tease them :D Kili should really get back at him sometime for that, you're right :D
Yougurholic: Yes, Kili is finally starting to feel a little something, although he isn't very comfortable with it. And I can tell you that she won't stay human forever, I have something planned for her :D
Doodler100: Haha, yeah, who would imagine themselves in Kili's arms? I mean, that's just crazy. xD And yes, dwarves and their bets. It just goes together :D
Teshka: Well, apparently, Kili is not quite comfortable with his developping feelings, but hey, I'm the author here, he'll come around eventually, I'd guess :D
Thank you guys so much for your reviews and also thanks to kaia, for your guest review! I really appreciated and loved reading all of them! :)
And as always, thanks for following and favoriting this story!
Now read the chapter and let me know whether you liked it or not and everything else you'd like to tell me :D
They departed later than usual this morning and Kili tried to push his strange thoughts and feelings back to a corner of his mind when the company started out on the road again, not willing to dig deeper into them. He was not walking far behind his uncle and Gandalf when they started to discuss how to proceed with their journey. He had been listening silently to Nori who was telling Tarya some stories of his days in the Blue Mountains but directed his attention towards the wizard when he spoke up.
"Well," Gandalf said, "I always meant to see you all safe over the mountains, which I have done by good management and no small amount of good luck. I am further east now that I ever meant to come with you, after all, this is not my adventure but yours." The dwarves protested a bit at that but Gandalf cut them off. "I may look into it again before it is all over but for now, I have other more pressing business that I need to attend to."
Kili didn't miss the short look he shot Tarya at that and he frowned deeply at the wizard, wondering what this business of his might be.
"I am not going to disappear this very instant, don't you worry," he told them. "I can give you some more time. We have no food, and we lost most of our baggage, we have no ponies to ride and you don't know where you are."
"And you do?" Thorin interfered a bit grumpily, not happy hearing about the wizard's plans of leaving them soon.
"Indeed, I do." Gandalf replied, ignoring the dwarf-king's annoyed tone of voice, as he did most of the time. "You are still some miles north from the path we should have been following. Very few people live in these parts but I know of somebody who lives not far away. The one who made the steps on the great rock we climbed down yesterday – the Carrock, as he calls it. He does not come here often, however and certainly not in daylight. It would not be wise to wait for him. No, we must go and find him; and if all goes well, I think I will be off and wish you farewell for the time being."
"But you can't just leave us!" Dori called out, saying what they were probably all thinking. The dwarves looked rather upset at the thought of not having the wizard there at all time to help them out of trouble and Bilbo in particular looked positively miserable.
"As I said, Master Dori, I have important business that cannot wait any longer," Gandalf replied a bit crossly, obviously not happy with the way they were nagging about his plans. Some of them begged him to stay then, offering him dragon-gold but the wizard wouldn't change his mind and it would have surprised Kili if he had. As he had come to know the wizard, he stood with a decision once he had taken it. "We shall see, we shall see," he said, waving their pleas off, "and I think I have earned some of your dragon-gold already – when you get it back."
He lead them on then and as Kili let himself fall back a bit to walk next to his brother again, he saw Tarya move forward so that she was falling in step next to Bilbo and Gandalf.
"I don't think she's happy with his plans," Kili muttered more to himself than to Fili when he saw the severe look on her face.
"You're right," Fili replied. "You should cheer her up with a little cuddle."
Kili didn't have to turn around to know Fili had a broad grin spread across his lips. He huffed slightly, sending the blonde dwarf an annoyed look. "Would you stop that?"
"I'd rather not," Fili chuckled. "The face you make whenever I mention it is more than worth it."
"The face I make?" Kili asked, raising an eyebrow at his brother who smirked back at him.
"You get all flustered and pink like a bashful piggy," Fili laughed and quickly dodged the hand of his brother that had flown out to hit him over the head, instead trapping the younger one's head in a tight grip, laughing as Kili cursed and tried to get him off.
"You just never learn," Fili laughed, wrestling the younger one into a position he couldn't get out of.
"What is going on back there?" The voice of their uncle rung out and made them let go of each other immediately before they both shot innocent looks towards the rest of the company who had all turned around to look at them after the little commotion they had caused.
"It's nothing, uncle!" Fili assured, trying not to snigger, Kili scratching his head sheepishly next to him. Thorin just looked at his nephews for a moment before he shook his head, turning around to continue after the wizard, muttering something under his breath that had Balin next to him chuckle.
When the attention was no longer upon them, Fili turned to his brother again, his look a bit more serious. "Of course she's not happy with Gandalf leaving, none of us are. But wizard's do as they please, so I guess we will just have to deal with it."
Tarya turned back to the wizard and Bilbo who were quietly walking beside her, as they marched through the long green grass, along high trees, leaving the ford they had bathed in the evening before behind. She didn't know what to think of Gandalf's plans. She certainly wasn't happy with them but she knew he wouldn't stay even if she asked him to. But she wanted to talk to him sooner rather than later, before he would leave them to continue on their journey alone.
"And why is it called the Carrock?" Bilbo asked, breaking the thoughtful silence between the three of them.
"He calls it the Carrock because carrock is his word for things like that. And he calls this one the Carrock because it is near his home and he knows it well," Gandalf replied, his explanation confusing Tarya more than it actually helped.
"And who is it exactly who knows it so well?" Bilbo inquired curiously, obviously not being happy with the wizard's explanation, either.
"His name is Beorn, if you must know," Gandalf said, seeming a bit grumpy for all Tarya could tell. "And you all must be very polite to him when I introduce you, for he can be very appalling when he's angry, so you better be careful not to annoy him. He's very strong and he's a skin-changer."
Tarya's jaw almost dropped at the revelation and she quickly tried to focus her thoughts when Bilbo inquired further, not quite understanding what Gandalf meant.
"What? A furrier?"
Tarya almost snorted when Gandalf hurriedly cried out. "No! No, no, NO! Good heavens! Don't be a fool, Master Baggins. And do not mention the word furrier as long as you are within a hundred miles of his house, he would not take kindly to it at all, I assure you."
As the Amarok glanced over to her hobbit friend, she chuckled lightly at the stupefied look on his face. "He is a skin-changer," Gandalf continued, a bit calmer now. "Which means he actually changes his skin. Sometimes he is a huge black bear, sometimes he is a great strong black-haired man."
"Oh! Oh…" Bilbo muttered, at loss for a good thing to say but Ori spoke up from behind them and as Tarya turned to look at the dwarf, she saw that everyone in the company had been listening in on their conversation.
"Like Tarya, then?" Ori asked and Gandalf frowned slightly at him, while her own interest was now awakened. She looked at Gandalf questioningly, all too aware that he was avoiding her gaze. "She used to be a big black wolf and now she's a black-haired woman."
"Well, not exactly," Gandalf muttered. "You see, some say that Beorn is a bear descended from the great ancient bears of the mountains that lived there before the giants came. Others say that he is a man descended from the first men who lived before Smaug or any other dragons came into this part of the world. I cannot say, though I fancy the last is the true tale."
He shot a look at Tarya then who was listening attentively. "Tarya on the other hand is originally a wolf of the Amarok and does not have any human ancestors as far as I know."
Tarya shook her head to confirm the wizard's words. There were no men in the history of her or her kin, at least she knew of none. They had always been wolves for as long as they'd existed. She wasn't a skin-changer and she knew that quite well. But still, there was this little part in her that hoped she would somehow be able to change back into her true self somehow. And of course, the prospect of meeting someone who was able to change his own form at will sparked her own hopes again.
She felt some of the dwarves' gazes on her and she shortly met Ori's and smiled at him, as he looked a bit bashful for bringing her into the discussion like that. She didn't mind, though. Ori was always the curious one, the one that wrote everything down that happened and that somehow seemed to understand more through his silent ways than some of them did through their constant chatting. She liked that about him.
"Can you tell us anything else about this Beorn?" Thorin inquired and she only realized now that he spoke up that he was standing right next to her.
"Well, he lives in an oak-wood, in a great wooden house. He lives in the company of many animals, though he doesn't eat them, neither does he hunt or eat wild animals…"
Tarya listened as the wizard told them about the great bees that Beorn kept, although her thoughts kept going back to the fact that the man could change into a bear. She had never met a skin-changer before, which would be interesting, and she was really looking forward to be in the company of other animals once more.
Eventually, the dwarves and Bilbo stopped asking questions and they marched on, everyone having enough to think about after Gandalf's explanations. It was quite some time later, already late in the afternoon, when Tarya realized that the landscape was slowly changing. The large trees to their sides were giving way to wide patches of flowers more colourful than Tarya had ever seen, the same kinds growing together as if they had been planted.
"They look beautiful," Bilbo spoke up from beside her and she simply smiled, looking over the fields of flowers, green grass and clover. There was a lot of clover, its colours reaching from deep green over white to light purple. "I wonder what kind of flowers those are," Bilbo continued and she looked at him. "I have never seen most of those."
"I'm not exactly a flower expert," Tarya mused. "But you're right, they do look beautiful."
Then, she became aware of a busy buzzing and droning that filled the air and she felt Bilbo twitch just as he made the same discovery as her. There were lots and lots of bees, making their way from flower to flower of the fields. Gandalf had not been exaggerating when he had told them about the size of them, most being larger than any bee Tarya had ever seen. She didn't particularly like bees, having stepped on one when she was a pup. She remembered her paw hurting for over a week after the animal's sting and that had only been half the size of those that were buzzing around here.
"Oh dear," she heard Bilbo mutter next to her and she turned her head to see the hobbit's worried face. "If one was to sting me! Can you imagine? I would swell up the size of myself again."
Tarya giggled slightly at the image and caught herself an indignant look from her friend. "I'm sorry, Bilbo," she smiled, "but don't worry. Bees don't usually sting if you don't anger them. And they seem busy enough not to be bothered by us at all."
Bilbo still seemed uneasy but as she reassuringly slung one arm around his shoulder and squeezed him slightly, she felt him relax a bit. "And besides, you successfully fought orcs, Bilbo. You won't be upset by a few bees, will you?"
"A few bees? There are about hundreds of them!" he obviously felt obliged to defend himself and Tarya laughed lightly upon looking at his indignant expression. Bilbo tried to scowl at her but couldn't hold it as she winked at him and finally joined her in her laughter.
"Lad, if you don't stop scowling at the hobbit's back, I'm afraid he will have holes in his vest where your gaze rests."
Kili jerked his head around to look at Bofur, who was watching him with a raised eyebrow. Had he really been staring that hard for Bofur to notice? Certainly, he hadn't meant to. He had simply been interested in knowing what had the two of them laughing like that. He didn't want to admit to himself that the sight of her having an arm casually wrapped around the hobbit's shoulder somehow bothered him.
"I didn't mean to," he told Bofur, trying to sound as casual as possible. "I was just thinking."
"Now there's something new," Fili chipped in from his other side. "I didn't know you did thinking."
"I do," Kili retorted. "You should try it, too, sometime. I think you'll find it rather refreshing."
Fili narrowed his eyes at him and the brunette dwarf shot his older brother a cheeky grin, as the blonde was at a loss for a fitting reply.
"Now," they heard Gandalf call out, as they reached a belt of very large and ancient-looking oak trees. As Kili looked up, he saw that they were standing on a little hill and a bit further down there was a huge hedge of massive wood built up that couldn't possibly be climbed by anyone and certainly not a dwarf. "You better wait here. I will whistle for you to come after me when I deem it the right time but don't come all at once, mind you. Only come in pairs with about five minutes between each pair of you. Since Bombur is fat enough to count for two on his own, his pair should come last. That should do."
Bombur reacted rather indignantly to this statement, not at all happy with the prospect of having to come last but Gandalf wouldn't change his mind and when Thorin spoke up, saying that he agreed with the wizard, the large red-haired dwarf resolved to state his anger with an annoyed huff here and there.
"Well, then, come along, Mr. Baggins!" Gandalf said and the hobbit quickly hurried after him as he made his way along the fence in search of the gate.
They sat down on the grass and beneath the trees then, waiting for Gandalf to make his sign. Kili took a seat with his brother, the both of them tugging out their weapons to sharpen them under the shadow of a large oak. Kili watched for a moment as Tarya turned around herself, seemingly admiring the view before her gaze settled on Ori who was leaning on a tree trunk, scribbling into his notebook, which he had set on his knees. She walked over to him then, crouching down next to the young dwarf and a moment later, Kili saw a slight blush spread on Ori's cheeks before he slightly turned his notebook so that she could take a look at it.
He forced himself to look away and concentrate his gaze on the sword in his lap, when an amazed smile spread on Tarya's lips. He was internally scolding himself. Was he actually jealous? Jealous of Ori?
It took a while and they didn't hear of Gandalf, leaving them to wonder what was going on down at Beorn's house and Kili almost twitched when suddenly a shrill whistle echoed over the fields.
"Dori, you will be coming with me," Thorin called out. "Then Ori and Nori, Oin and Gloin, Bofur and Bifur, Fili and Kili. Dwalin, you will go with Tarya and Balin with Bombur."
The companions all nodded in agreement before the dwarf-king walked off together with the oldest Ri-brother.
Kili felt someone slump down beside him then and as he turned his head, he saw Tarya sitting there, a small smile still playing around her lips. The brunette dwarf tucked his sword back to his belt and looked at her questioningly. "Did Ori show you his drawings?"
"Yes," she smiled brightly and he felt his mood lighten ever so slightly. "Did you know he made a picture of us?"
Now he raised a surprised eyebrow at her and she quickly continued. "When I was still a wolf," she said. "By the fire. You were bandaging my ha - … my paw."
"Oh," he muttered, remembering the evening in question. He had seen Ori drawing in his book back then. It was kind of strange to think back to it. "Well, what did you think of it?"
"It was brilliant," Tarya beamed. "He is very talented. He captured you on paper like… you looked so much like you, Kili." He smiled at her excitement, while he watched Ori and Nori leave the company towards Beorn's house.
"And what did you think about yourself?" he asked her, smiling directly at her when she shrugged slightly.
"I look a bit different in it," she chuckled and Kili grinned.
"Just a bit," he replied, nudging her slightly with his shoulder and Fili chuckled beside them as well.
"A little furrier," the blonde dwarf stated and Tarya grinned at him as he stood up, getting ready to leave for Beorn's house as well. As Kili looked about, he saw that apart from them, only Dwalin, Balin and Bombur were still around. He quickly got up then, shooting Tarya another smile before he trailed after his brother.
It took them a few minutes until they reached the gate and as they passed it, they saw some horses browsing the grass a few metres away. The brothers walked along the pass then until they saw a big wooden house behind which were other buildings made of wooden lodges, such as stables, barns and sheds.
As the both of them rounded the corner, Kili could hear Gandalf calling out. "Ah, and there they are. Fili and Kili."
As usual, they bowed low, greeting the really huge man, smiling courteously and inclining their heads as he looked at them. They had just opened their mouths to greet him with the usual 'At your service', but Beorn cut them both off before they could even inhale the breath to say the words.
"Yes, yes, I don't need your service, thank you. Sit down and be quiet."
Kili slightly raised his eyebrows in surprise and exchanged a glance with Fili but he just shrugged and let himself plump down on the wooden floor of Beorn's house, Kili following his example not a second later.
"Now go on, Gandalf," Beorn demanded and the wizard did. Kili listened as he recounted their journey to the skin-changer, telling him about their fight in Goblin Town, their flight through the lower gate, until he came to the point where they had found out Bilbo was missing.
"You cannot imagine our horror, when we became aware of it. We counted ourselves and found that there was no hobbit. There were only fifteen of us left!"
Beorn frowned deeply. "Fifteen! That's the first time I've heard one from eleven leave fifteen. You mean ten, or else you haven't introduced all of your companions to me yet."
"Well, yes, apparently, some of them seem to have been shy to come along and lingered behind. But – oh – here they are!"
Kili turned his head to look over to the massive doorway where Dwalin was just rounding the corner together with Tarya.
"Dwalin and Tarya," Gandalf announced.
"And Bombur and Balin!" The remaining two dwarfs called out, puffing up behind. Gandalf frowned at them a bit, not content with them not sticking with the plan of leaving a few minutes between the pairs. But what was there to do about it now?
Beorn didn't seem to care. "Well, finally, you seem to have all of your companions together, Gandalf," he told the wizard, huffing slightly, while Dwalin, Balin and Bombur were bowing low before him.
He then shifted slightly in his chair and Kili swallowed tightly when he saw the massive man's gaze settle on Tarya.
Tarya looked up at Beorn, rendered speechless by his huge figure. He was extremely tall, easily towering over even Gandalf who was not exactly small himself. His arms were thick-muscled as well as his legs. A big, fuzzy black beard was covering the lower half of his face and his bushy eyebrows drew together as he looked down at her. She had no trouble imagining this person as a tremendous bear.
She felt the others bow beside her but she couldn't bring herself to do the same for two reasons. One, it was not her way to bow to someone in order to greet them and second, she was too dumbstruck to actually do anything else than awkwardly smile up at him.
"Now that is not a dwarf," Beorn announced and Tarya was not sure whether he was talking to Gandalf, although he was still looking at her, ignoring her companions' polite greetings.
"Indeed, she is not." Gandalf said. "Her part in this journey would be another rather long tale to tell, interesting though, nevertheless."
"It seems most of your tales are rather long, Gandalf," Beorn huffed, watching Tarya as he spoke. She felt highly uncomfortable under his scrutinizing gaze and she almost sighed in relief when he finally looked away from her and back to the wizard. "For now, finish the one you have been telling me, for there should not be any further interruptions now, I take it."
Tarya only listened with half an ear when Gandalf finished his story, telling Beorn how they had fought the orcs before the eagles had rescued them and carried them to the Carrock, finishing with how they had come to his house for help.
"Well," Beorn said, when Gandalf was done telling. "That was a rather good tale, although you might still be making it all up. But I'd guess you have at least earned supper for entertaining me this evening. If you like, you can find shelter here for tonight and I will serve you something to eat."
"Yes, please!" some of the dwarves and Bilbo called out and Tarya smiled thankfully towards the huge man who only sent her a short scrutinizing glance, before he stood up and led them through the hallway of his house until they reached a large dining room where the table and chairs were quite big but still low enough that Tarya and even the small Bilbo could sit on them comfortably. As she took a seat, she found herself quite near the head of the table, where Beorn sat down on a much larger wooden chair, fit for his massive form. The skin-changer clapped his hands together then and as if on cue, the doors were pushed open and in came – to Tarya's utter surprise – white fluffy sheep with trays on their broad backs that were loaded with mugs of mead, as well as plates and bowls. She watched as more animals came in. Large grey dogs, walking on their hind legs, carrying trays with various foods, as well as forks, spoons and knives, setting all of it on the table in front of her companions, which were looking just as stupefied at the sight as she felt. But quite soon, animated chatter started to fill the room, a big warming fire was lit and she felt herself relax slightly, seeing that even Beorn seemed friendlier now that he had decided to let them stay. As dinner went on, he started to tell tales in his deep rumbling voice of the wild lands on his side of the mountains and about Mirkwood, which they would have to pass in order to get to Erebor.
Tarya listened to him while Nori, who was sitting opposite her, next to Fili and Kili, kindly held out a small basket of buns to her and she smilingly took one of them before Dwalin, who was sitting to her left next to Thorin, handed her another tall mug. To Tarya's right, Ori had taken a seat next to his oldest brother and was listening to Beorn attentively and Tarya had no doubt that everything he experienced here would be written down in his notebook as soon as possible.
A large long-bodied grey dog came up to her then, setting a tray with honey and cream on the table before her, with which she would be able to eat her bun, before it let itself sink down on all four paws, looking up at her confusedly. She returned the dog's gaze and smiled slightly, when it cautiously took a step closer, sniffing at her hand before it let out a small yelp, making Ori twitch slightly next to her.
Tarya didn't pay attention to him though, or anybody else, when she answered the dog's question with a nod and it came closer again, obviously still confused but interested as he let her cautiously stroke his head. It was really strange for Tarya to stroke an animal. She had never done so before and she wondered whether her own fur had felt as silky and fluffy as this dog's.
"What's your name?" she asked him directly and the dog barked once, quite loudly. Tarya smiled broadly, not being aware that he had torn a lot of attention towards them. "Arvo," she acknowledged, as the dog was now smiling back at her, his tongue hanging out of his mouth, "'Precious'. It's nice to meet you, too."
"You understand what he is saying," a deep voice rumbled near her and she quickly raised her gaze to look into Beorn's eyes who had apparently stopped his conversation with Gandalf in order to watch the exchange. The skin-changer was looking at her with barely hidden surprise but there was also some scepticism in his gaze. As she glanced around, she noticed that every conversation around the table had suddenly ceased. There was a heavy silence over the table, gazes shifting from Beorn to Tarya and back.
"I do," she answered, looking back at Beorn who narrowed his eyes at her.
"How?"
"I listen," she simply said and he raised a bushy eyebrow at her.
"You are no dwarf, neither hobbit, nor man. What are you exactly, girl?" He questioned, almost growling and Tarya felt the small hairs on her neck stand on end at his tone but not because she was scared. It was because she felt threatened and she didn't like it.
"Tell me. Now!" Beorn ordered gruffly and watched her closely. She couldn't help a small growl leave her throat and she felt Arvo nudge her hand lightly with his nose to call her to her senses, yowling quietly to tell her that his master was of no danger to her. It worked and she quickly glanced down at the dog before bringing her gaze back to Beorn who had now both his eyebrows raised.
"You're a wolf," he muttered and Tarya raised her head slightly, confirming his observation, as he leant back in his chair, swiping one hand over his beard, looking at her thoughtfully.
"An Amarok," she told him, after Gandalf had nodded slightly at her, and Beorn stared at her for a moment, completely silent. It was a few seconds until he broke into a rumbling chuckle and Tarya raised her eyebrows at him in surprise.
"Now, it would seem like your story is an interesting one, indeed. Tarya, daughter of the Amarok."
Beorn had her explain then and after a moment of hesitation she did, all too aware that also her companions were listening to her when she told him about her origins, how she had stumbled upon Thorin and Company. Gandalf supported her in her tale after a while, telling Beorn how she had transformed in Rivendell.
"This one?" Beorn asked, pointing at Kili, when Gandalf mentioned the commitment that had taken part in the story. The mentioned dwarf looked a bit irritated at being pointed at as if he were a funny choice. Kili crossed his arms over his chest, raising a challenging eyebrow at the skin-changer. Beorn grinned in reply. "Interesting."
The tale went on then while they were eating and eventually they found themselves in front of empty plates, bowls and mugs. Tarya felt slightly dizzy and she didn't quite know why, although it probably was because of the amount of mead she'd had been given to drink. But nevertheless, she answered Beorn's questions as well as she could, since the skin-changer had by now leant forward over the table to listen to every word of hers attentively. When he asked her about the fight with the orcs, she hesitated, though, and only when she caught Kili's reassuring gaze across the table, she spoke up again.
"I have fought to protect my friends," she told Beorn. "And to avenge the murder of my mother, committed by Azog's kin."
She felt the companions' piercing gazes on her as she said it and after a moment, she brought herself to return them shortly but quickly averted her gaze back to Beorn when she met Thorin's incredulous blue eyes. The black-haired man growled and clenched his hands into fists.
"Filthy orc pack," he snarled. "Your kin are respectable and dignified wolves. Murdering one of them is an abject deed."
Tarya just inclined her head slightly; acknowledging his words, before she quickly finished her tale by saying that she greatly enjoyed being around animals once again, dogs especially, since they were of almost the same kind and she was able to understand them even in this form.
They had changed their positions by now and were seated on comfortable logs or on the floor near the fire in the room. Arvo was lying by her side and Beorn shortly observed his dog, before he nodded.
"They know of your significance," he rumbled and Tarya inclined her head slightly, knowing that dogs naturally felt tributary to her kind. "And he does enjoy your company, it would seem."
Arvo grumbled lightly in agreement to his master and Tarya smiled.
There was a short silence then, before Beorn sighed slightly and stood up. "You are welcome to stay the night," he announced. "You can sleep in this halls safe and sound but I warn you: You must not stray outside until the sun is up, on your own peril."
And with that, he stood up and Tarya watched as he left the room quickly, the door slamming shut behind him loudly.
Kili, who was sitting on a log with his brother, could see that most of the dwarves shot glances over to where Tarya was sitting in a corner. Another dog had joined her by now, one with slightly darker fur than Arvo and she was seemingly enjoying their company, separated a bit from the rest of the company.
All of the companions were still digesting her story, the news about her mother, especially and Kili couldn't blame her for avoiding their questions or their pity by sitting further away. He had seen how much it pained her to even think about it and he had been rather surprised that she had actually told Beorn about the whole affair. Kili could see that especially Thorin had been rather taken aback by her confession and the young dwarf would have liked to know what his uncle was thinking at the moment. The dwarf-king was broodingly sitting next to Dwalin who also had a deep frown on his face.
But they all accepted that she didn't want to talk to them at the moment and so they contented themselves with enjoying the warm fire, telling stories, drinking some more mead and puffing on their pipes. For once, no one had to keep watch and they felt safe for the first time since they had left Rivendell.
It was already dark outside, the night already having fallen over the lands when the first few dwarves and Bilbo decided to go to sleep, snuggling up in the beds made of mattresses of hay and warm woollen blankets.
And it was then that Tarya decided to join them. Kili almost didn't hear her, only the light tapping of the paws of the dogs that were still by her side, made him look up when she sat down next to him on the floor.
"You seem to have a way with them," Balin mentioned, watching as the two dogs lay down next to her crossed legs, one beside her and the other in front of her.
"Arvo and Kol are friends now," she told the old dwarf with a small smile and he looked at her interestedly, when suddenly Ori piped up from across the fire.
"You said Arvo means 'precious'," he said and Tarya looked at him, nodding slightly. "How do you know that?"
Kili saw that he had his notebook open in his lap and shook his head slightly, although with a little smile, when Tarya answered with a calm voice.
"Dogs and wolves, as well as wargs, speak a language of their own," she told the young dwarf who listened attentively to every word she said. "We understand each other and we all have names that are given to us by birth. You can name a dog Bill and it will listen to it if it decides to but it will always know its true name and to understand its meaning, you either have to be canine yourself, or you have to be told it by the animal itself."
They all looked at her rather stupefied and Kili looked down at the second dog to her side, when Ori inquired, "Does the meaning hold… well, importance?" Ori asked and Tarya slightly tilted her head.
"Depends, really. Sometimes a name refers to outer attributes only, sometimes to characteristics and sometimes both."
"Then what does Kol mean?" Dwalin asked, now also intrigued by the conversation that was going on.
"Kol means 'dark'," came the Amarok's answer and the mentioned dog with the dark fur huffed slightly as if to confirm her statement. There was a short silence then, as they looked at the dogs, before Kili couldn't hold back his question any longer.
"And… what does your name mean?" he asked quietly and he saw that they all shifted their gazes to his black-haired friend, as they had all been wondering the same thing. Very subtle, he thought.
Tarya turned her head to look at him and once more, Kili was fascinated by the way the fire made her eyes shimmer like melted gold.
"Tarya means 'the guardian', 'the powerful one'," she said a bit sheepishly and Kili raised his eyebrows hat her.
"That's…"
"… interesting," Fili finished for him and leaned forward slightly to get a better look at the Amarok who shrugged slightly. "Has your mother give you your name?" the blonde dwarf asked, although he felt a bit uneasy bringing her mother into the conversation. But Tarya didn't seem to mind, she just shook her head slightly.
"Amarok are given their names by their fathers," she explained. "Normal dogs and wolves get them from both their parents or just the mother, sometimes."
Fili nodded slightly, sending her a smile, which she returned, before the conversation took another turn and the ones that were still up started talking about what they knew about Mirkwood and wondered how it would be to set gaze upon the Lonely Mountain once more, at close range. They had seen it reaching up on the horizon when they had been up on the Carrock and all of them had felt closer to their goal than ever, closer to their lost home. But they couldn't help but wonder what the dragon had done to the lands and Balin told them a bit of his point of view, how he doubted that there was much left of its former glory after the Smaug's attack. It was this mood of longing and of melancholia that had them begin a song, their deep voices droning over the fire.
"The wind was on the withered heath,
but in the forest stirred ne leaf;
there shadows lay by night and day,
and dark things silent crept beneath.
The wind came down from mountains cold,
and like a tide it roared and rolled;
the branches groaned, the forest moaned,
and leaves were laid upon the mould."
Kili hummed and sang along with his companions, staring into the fire, lost in his own thoughts. He kept imagining Erebor, never having seen it and only ever having heard stories, with its great halls, the glory it had once possessed and the deep riches that lay there. Gold and gems and – of course – the Arkenstone, protected by a dragon. The young dwarf wondered shortly whether they were rushing headlong towards their ruin, attempting to defeat a dragon but he quickly put that thought aside. No, they would succeed in their quest and they would restore their homeland. They had to. It was what their people deserved, it was what Thorin was striving for and after all those years, ages, he deserved to truly be the King under the Mountain.
"It passed the lonely Mountain bare
and swept above the dragon's lair:
there black and dark lay boulders stark
and flying smoke was in the air.
It left the world and took its flight
over the wide seas of the night.
The moon set sail upon the gale,
and stars were fanned to leaping light."
Kili suddenly felt a weight on his leg and as he looked down, he saw that Tarya had fallen asleep and her head had come to lean against his thigh. He smiled slightly and slowly bent down, cautiously picking her up in his arms. He caught the gazes of Dwalin and Thorin when he got up to his feet, his uncle nodding at him slightly before Kili bid them all goodnight.
As he turned and carried her over to a bed, he felt Arvo and Kol follow slowly. He lay her down on the hay mattress and covered her with one of the blankets. He stayed beside her for a moment, looking down and studying the soft features of her sleeping face, before he gently wiped a stray strand of hair from her forehead. He sighed slightly, trying to ignore the little tug in his chest as he got up and turned to his own bed, leaving the two dogs to settle down to sleep next to Tarya's bed and seeing Fili already sitting on the edge of the one next to his. Although Kili didn't admit it to himself, he knew that he was starting to feel something more than friendship towards Tarya. But there was no good in letting these feelings develop any further. They were friends and nothing more, that's how it was supposed to be and that's how it ought to stay, otherwise things would become very difficult very quickly.
Fili eyed his brother silently when he lay down, frowning at the sight of Kili's brooding face. There obviously was something bothering him and Fili didn't have to be a visionary to know it had to something do with Tarya. Fili knew that there was something between them, there had been from the start and to Fili it had always been quite clear that Kili could maybe develop feelings for the Amarok. And as it seemed to the blonde Durin heir, his younger brother was slowly starting to do so.