New chapter! Yay! It's a bit shorter than the others but that's because the next one will be rather big and I didn't want to make you wait too long again :D
Teshka: Gimliiii, yes. He and Tarya will meet eventually, I'm sure and then we'll see how they get along :D
tartanarmygirl: I'm glad you like the story so much! And don't worry, the wedding scene is not too far away :) Concerning the lemon scenes, or just more mature scenes, I haven't decided on anything yet. It depends on whether you guys as readers would want to read them or not. So, I'm waiting on opinions to make up mine :D
kaia: I understand, I have so many Ori-feelings, you wouldn't believe it. But don't worry, there's something nice for him just around the corner :D
Thanks for your lovely reviews also to TerraMacMillan, Eruwaedhiel95, MaxRideandPercyJackson4ever, Amanda and .Oujo.1967! I really enjoyed reading from you guys!
And thanks to all the favorites and follows of course!
Now, go read and leave me a review if you like! :)
The next morning proved to be the start of a warm spring day, though there was not much to feel from the sunshine inside Erebor's cool halls. Dis was standing together with her oldest son and Dwalin, waiting for her second son to appear. The dwarrowdam wasn't surprised that he was a bit late; Kili had never quite mastered the art of being punctual. But it wasn't long until faint voices could be heard echoing lightly off the stone walls in the distance, and it were only a few moments more until Dis saw Kili round the corner with the black-haired Amarok by his side. He was talking quietly to her and from this distance, Dis couldn't make out the words he was saying; the hand that lay on the small of her back however, she could see very clearly.
"Namadîth," Fili said from his mother's side as his little brother and Tarya reached them, pulling the Amarok towards him into a short hug. "Good morning. We've missed you at supper last night."
"I wasn't very hungry," Tarya murmured against the blond dwarf's shoulder before he released her, a warm smile on his face and silent understanding mirroring in his pale blue eyes. He just squeezed her shoulder in a comforting manner for a moment before he turned to the others who quickly greeted the two newcomers as well. While Dwalin gave the Amarok a short nod and a smile, Dis limited her greeting of the Amarok to a small polite nod. Tarya gave the dwarrowdam a slightly nervous smile in return, and as they started moving down the corridor, she fell in step with Dwalin, walking behind Dis and her two sons as they began their tour.
"So," Dis uttered quietly as they moved along, Fili to her right side and Kili to her left. She shot the blond dwarf beside her a short look. "You are calling her namadîth, then."
Fili just shrugged and nodded in reply, a small smile on his face as he returned his mother's gaze calmly. Dis raised one eyebrow in return but didn't say anything else as Fili and Kili both hooked one of her arms beneath theirs and led her down toward the mines. All the while of their tour around the mountain, Dis conversed with her sons, with dwarves that passed their way, and sometimes she threw a short comment over her shoulder towards Dwalin. The only person she had not spoken a word to even after they had already spent several hours walking was the other woman in their company. After they had visited the throne hall once more and were now heading to the front gate to stroll around the outskirts of the mountain, Tarya and Dwalin were walking quite a distance behind Dis and her sons, and it was then that Kili turned to his mother with a stern expression on his youthful face.
"You could at least give her a chance," he muttered, careful not to raise his voice too much so that Tarya would not hear this particular conversation. She was nervous enough as it was, he didn't want her to relive the feeling of being unwanted after the people of the mountain had only just started to accept her here. Dis merely huffed quietly in reply, causing Kili to continue with a slightly frustrated tone to his voice. "You have not spoken a word to Tarya all day, amad."
"Kili is right," Fili cut in from her other side. "She has done nothing to upset you. It's not her fault that Kili hasn't mentioned her to you, so you may as well stop being so cold to her. She doesn't deserve that."
Dis shot the blond dwarf a surprised look upon his stern words, not used to either of her sons being so serious about something. Fili just returned her gaze calmly, a soft plea in his eyes as they passed the front gate and stepped out into the light of the early afternoon. Dis merely sighed quietly and tilted her head in reply. She was about to say something when noise from down the giant stairs that led up to the gate interrupted her and she stepped forward to see what was happening, Kili and Fili following on her heels. A small group of dwarves was gathered there, making their way up the stairs while carrying two big deer up to the mountain.
"My king!" One of them called out upon spotting the small group at the top of the stairs. Fili returned the greeting with a smile and a nod as the hunting company reached them.
"Ragtri," he greeted the black-haired dwarf with the bushy beard standing before him. "I see your hunting trip was successful!"
"Indeed it was, your Grace," Ragtri replied with a bright smile that made the corners of his eyes crinkle slightly. "It was almost too easy if I'm honest. Those two beauties were quite slow, not even a real challenge."
Fili just laughed quietly in return before the black-haired dwarf turned towards the rest of the group, bowing slightly towards Dis.
"M'lady," he greeted with a friendly smile. "I'd heard you arrived yesterday with the caravans from the Blue Mountains, it's a pleasure to finally meet you." Then he turned to the rest of them, giving them all a big smile. "Of course, you are all most cordially invited to feast on these two beauties with us."
Dis smiled kindly and was just about to answer when another voice beat her to it and Tarya stepped forward, a worried expression on her face as she looked at Ragtri. "I would advise you not to eat those deer, Master Ragtri," she said, causing the black-haired dwarf to shoot her a rather confused look.
"Oh, but we've spent the whole day hunting them down, lass," he said to the Amarok, surprising Dis slightly with the informal way he talked to her. "What could possibly be the problem?"
"You said they were slow," Tarya answered calmly as she stepped up to him, shooting a short glance over to the two deer that had now been laid onto the floor by the dwarves that had been carrying them. They all looked at the Amarok rather doubtfully, though not in any way unfriendly as Dis noticed. The dwarrowdam watched the scene with silent interest as it unfolded before her eyes.
"Aye, rather slow," Ragtri confirmed with a nod, his bushy eyebrows furrowing slightly as he looked at the Amarok, waiting for her to elaborate her point. Tarya gave him small smile, though her expression was still as serious as it had been before.
"They are sick," she stated. "That is why they were so slow and easy to shoot. Eating them will do you no good, I assure you."
"How can you tell that they are sick?" Another dwarf from the group asked sceptically. "They look fine to me."
"It is not what they look like but what they smell like," Tarya replied without a moment of hesitation. Dis, as well as most of the others, shot the Amarok a confused look, causing her to sigh quietly before she continued. "A healthy deer would smell of good and soft meat, whereas these carry an acrid scent to their furs and flesh. They probably share the same infection."
There was a short silence among the group as everyone stared at the Amarok who in return looked at Ragtri insistently until a deep sigh escaped from the older dwarf's throat and he slightly drew his mouth askew.
"Well, I guess if there's anyone to trust on this, it would be you, wouldn't it?" he muttered with a frustrated glance towards his prey. Tarya shot him an apologetic look as he brought his gaze back towards her, making a small smile reappear on his bearded face as he nodded at her. "Aye, we'll take them away, then. Wouldn't want anyone eating infectious meat."
Tarya just nodded with a smile as Ragtri turned and motioned his comrades to lift the deer. The black-haired dwarf waited for them to go ahead, before he followed them, sending their group a short wave over his shoulder before he disappeared out of their field of vision. There was a short silence among the group after the hunting party had disappeared until Dwalin cleared his throat quietly.
"They should just take you with them whenever they go hunting," he grumbled, patting Tarya on the shoulder. "Would save them a lot of time and effort."
Tarya was just about to answer him, a small smile on her face, but before she could utter anything, she was cut off by another voice.
"Yes, I suppose there is some knowledge to find even in savage communities," Dis spoke quietly, observing the Amarok opposite her closely as Tarya turned to her upon her words, eyebrows raised in slight offense.
"Savage communities?" she repeated, giving the dwarrowdam a stern look as she put her hands on her hips. Dis merely tilted her head in reply, raising her hands slightly in a defensive gesture.
"Tarya, don't be offended," Kili cut in, looking between the two women worriedly. "I'm sure amad did not mean that, it's –"
"Yes, dear, there's no need to get offended. Savage is merely a term. A word to use when you speak of people that are… uncivilized," Dis interrupted her son, seeing him give her a disbelieving look as if to say 'what in Mahal's name are you doing?'. But the dwarrowdam ignored her youngest son pointedly, offering a wan smile to the black-haired woman instead. Tarya merely raised her eyebrows pointedly in reply, her eyes narrowing slightly.
"You think me uncivilized?" the Amarok asked and Dis raised her eyebrows in quiet curiosity upon Tarya's calm disposition. The dwarrowdam observed the black-haired woman attentively as she spoke her next words, waving her right hand slightly to make her statement seem unimportant.
"Well, now, when I say uncivilized, what I mean is –"
"I know what you mean," Tarya cut her off calmly, giving her a knowing look that made Dis think that this was probably not the first time she encountered this particular topic. She was curious as to what the Amarok was to say next. "What you mean is 'not like you'."
Tarya suppressed a snort as Dis' eyebrows rose slightly without her saying anything, giving her all the answers she needed. Shortly, the Amarok wondered if this would ever stop. She wondered if people would ever accept her without her having to prove herself worthy of their respect beforehand. She didn't know, but what she knew was that she had had more than enough of this struggle by now and she was not about to back down and endure some form of silent disapproval without saying anything, even if it meant offending Kili's mother.
"You think I'm an ignorant savage," Tarya said, staring at the dwarrowdam intently while the three others merely stood next to them, watching the scene with different stages of worry on their faces. "And since you are a highborn princess and I am merely a wolf, I guess it must be so. And yet, I fail to see, if the uncivilized one is me, how can you judge so quickly and act so rudely without having spoken a decent word to me?"
Dis opened her mouth to reply something but Tarya merely raised her hand in a silencing gesture before she continued. "I know of my ancestry. I am neither highborn nor noble, and I am most certainly not a dwarf. I am a wolf of the Amarok and there is no fault in that. As much pride as you find in being a dwarf, I find in my own heritage. And merely because I am not like you does not mean that I am any less worthy of your respect; that is something that even savages like myself live by."
"You are not shy to state your opinion, that is for sure," Dis answered after a moment of stunned silence and Tarya merely huffed, crossing her arms over her chest as she returned the dwarrowdam's gaze.
"I've come to know that it's the only way to react to the stubbornness of dwarves," she said and Dis stared at her for a moment before the corner of her mouth quirked up ever so slightly. It wasn't long until Tarya was met with a rather big smile from Kili's mother, making her eyebrows rise in confusion.
"Well, it seems my sons haven't lied when they told me that you were an independent one," the dwarrowdam said, the small smile still playing on her lips as she looked at Tarya who could merely give her a disbelieving look in return. "Dwarves are a stubborn race, as you have rightly stated before, but they are also proud and strong-minded, and fiercely loyal to those that they love."
Tarya's mouth opened in surprise, though not a sound came past her lips as she watched Dis take two steps closer to her so that they were standing face to face. "My son wishes to marry you, and I will admit that I was not overly fond of the idea when I first heard it. You are not a dwarf and you do not have the ancestry or background that would usually be expected from a consort of a prince of Durin. However, I have heard enough from not only my sons and your fellow companions but from yourself as well to know that even if you are not a dwarf, you certainly have the qualities of one."
"They might simply be the qualities of an Amarok," Tarya replied quietly, observing Dis' reaction closely as the dwarrowdam smiled once more with a short nod.
"Then I have no doubt that an Amarok is enough to match a dwarf of the line of Durin," she answered friendly, a small twinkle in her bright blue eyes as she looked at Tarya intently. "I have seen how fierce you could be on the battle ground when you were training with that boy and I have seen how much compassion you have for others when I saw you talking to Delifra. And now I have seen that you can very well fend for yourself and do not need the help of your friends or your betrothed to fight small battles."
Tarya stared at the dwarrowdam speechlessly for a moment, her eyebrows drawing together slightly before they rose again in confusion. Her gaze shortly flickered towards Kili who caught it almost instantly and gave her an awkward little shrug, an almost apologetic look on his face though it was accompanied by a lopsided smile. Tarya took a moment before she looked back at Dis, crossing her arms over her chest and giving the dwarrowdam a searching look.
"Does this mean that you are welcoming me into your family or are there any more strange tests for me to pass?" she asked, not quite sure what to think of this whole situation. She had been prepared for stubbornness from Dis' side as she had experienced it with so many people before, but this was new to her and completely unexpected.
"It means that I am looking forward to spending more time with my future daughter-in-law," Dis merely said in reply, shortly reaching out and patting the Amarok's cheek affectionately before she cleared her throat and looked at the others, leaving Tarya standing awkwardly after the dwarrrowdam's gesture. "Now, I think I have seen most of what there is to see today and I would quite like to visit Delifra and Rimma as they are having tea together this afternoon. I suggest we cease our tour for today if that suits you all."
Dwalin just nodded while Fili did the same, both of them having other duties to attend to, anyway. Tarya shortly caught Kili's gaze before he smiled towards his mother and answered with a short yes. Dis nodded and turned to walk back towards the front gate and it was just as Kili took a step closer towards Tarya and had already opened his mouth to say something that the dwarrowdam looked back over her shoulder and spoke once more.
"Tarya, if you would like to join us, I am sure the two of them would be delighted to have your company," Dis said and for a moment Tarya merely stood there, staring at her blankly, before she quickly nodded and hurriedly caught up to her, shooting Kili an apologetic look over her shoulder as she followed his mother into the mountain.
"Now, I do hope you like tea, Tarya?" Dis spoke friendly as they walked along the corridors beside each other and Tarya turned her head to look at the dwarrowdam before she gave her a bright smile.
"Yes," she answered. "It was actually Dori, Ori's brother, who introduced me to it during our journey to the mountain. He had a great love for tea and always found an opportunity to offer a cup even in the darkest and coldest nights at camp."
Dis smiled broadly at that, nodding as they rounded a corner.