Fili did his best to keep up with the fleet footed girl. Swift as a spirit, she traversed the complicated paths of the oak forest alive with summer and midmorning. He could hear Kili struggling behind him to keep up.
"Where is the nymph leading us?" He gasped, tripping over a root and catching himself in time.
"I have no idea." Fili replied, keeping his eyes trained on her lithe form as not to lose her in the maze of giant oak trees.
Cub paused without looking back at them. Fili could hear the cool rush of water nearby as he reached her. He doubled over. Resting his hands on his knees, he looked up at her trying to catch his breath.
"Down this way," She instructed, throwing him an unexpected grin and disappearing in the brush.
The corner of Fili's mouth lifted slightly as he looked back at his brother. Kili lifted a brow, nodding his head in her direction.
"After you, sir." He commented wryly, gasping as well.
Fili crashed through the bushes much less deftly than his guide had. He pushed a pine branch away from his face, sputtering as he came out of the foliage. A hand slapped against his chest fiercely, keeping him from taking another step forward. He realized they were on the edge of a precipice looking over a waterfall. Cub stood parallel to him against a stone wall. She pulled her hand away with a grin.
"Make sure your brother doesn't fall." She instructed, edging her way along the thin ledge.
Kili nearly ran into Fili, almost sending them tumbling down the steep cliff into the rocky pool below.
"Didn't see this one coming." Kili stated, pushing his hair away from his face.
Fili laughed, "I think that was her intention."
They followed, keeping to the stone wall. The temperature was starting to rise as the sun was climbing into the white blue sky overhead. There was no breeze. Under his heavy layers, Fili could feel the sweat gathering at the base of his spine. He wiped the pearls of perspiration gathering on his forehead away. Looking ahead, he could see the girl. She was crouched at the crown of a rock slide, looking down at the forest below.
"There!" She cried over the rush of the water, "See? At the border?"
Fili reached her, standing over her and peering down at the forest. Sure enough, there hung a nasty warg hide stuck to the bark of the dead tree by a layer of dried blood.
"Kili, look!" Fili shouted as Kili reached them.
Kili shook his head and chuckled, "Looks fresh."
"Yesterday." Cub replied, rising to her feet with a rare smile.
Fili studied her as she grinned, finding himself more intrigued by Cub the more he was around her. Cub glanced over at him, her mouth tightening into a line as she noticed his attention. A blush crept over her tanned neck and cheeks. Before he could speak, she untied her belt where her hunting knives dangled.
"What-"
He did not have a chance to finish his sentence as she leaped from the perch, diving headfirst into the deep pool. Kili let out a surprised bark. Fili dropped to a knee, staring at the water's surface. Cub burst from the surface with a gasp, shaking the water from her curls like a dog. She let out a lilting, clear bell of a laugh.
"What are you waiting for brother?" Kili demanded, shucking off his heavy leather coat and tossing his boots to the side.
Without hesitation, Kili jumped in a tight ball over the side of the waterfall. His holler echoed up the ravine as he crashed into the pool.
Cub bobbed up and down in the water, gazing up at Fili. Wordlessly, she lifted a small hand towards him, beckoning him to join them. With a wry grin, he shook his head and roughly pulled his coat from his broad shoulders.
Holding his breath, he stepped out into the extraordinary, beguiling expanse of her world.
I watched the dwarf called Fili step off the cliff above me, dropping feet first into the water. His coarse, braided curls flew up behind him as he sliced through the surface right beneath the falls. His brother let out a whoop of excitement, thrusting a fist into the air.
Keeping my eyes on the place where Fili had dove, I waited for him to emerge. However, it seemed to take a very long time. I sense Kili shift uneasily as he tread water behind me. Suddenly a figure popped up from the water a hand's breadth from me. I gasped as Fili spit a mouthful of water into my face followed by a wry grin.