Hello again! Already I hope you enjoy this chapter after so long and please drop a favorite and review! Please check out killthepain62's story Welcome Home and thank you to all who have stayed with me so far and please keep with me till the very end!
Disclaimer: I do not how the Hobbit, I do however own my characters and the artwork I do for the series. Also anything that has not been used before or isn't in the existing story is mine.
Chapter Twenty-Seven: Mirkwood
Snow blanketed the barren trees along with the rich soil it sank its roots into, no creature disturbed the smooth surface of clustered crystals aside from the path trudged along the frozen river bank by Elves and Men. Mirkwood wasn't nearly as horrid now that the trees had lost their leaves; you could see the cloudless sky clearly and a crisp smell filled ones lungs with every breath. Lian's mood shifted a bit with the improved weather along with the light hearted chatter Bilbo was providing with her kin; they were never one for quiet riding like the elves seemed to be accustomed with. Only two people road on horses and that is Burv, do to his injury and Thranduil, the high and mighty pain in the ass; he may have gotten his gems but he didn't act the least bit grateful to the dwarves. It's like his feet hardly ever touched the ground; Lian had a theory that it's due to the need to feel superior and therefor sit higher than others.
"-and then I drove my fist straight through the bloody mutts skull! They learned not to mess with my livestock." Gordon finished his extremely gore-pact story; his brown eyes alive with passion while snow dusted his black cropped hair and massive shoulders. Bilbo looked to be horrified yet awed by the story; no doubt he wouldn't have to think too hard to imagine Gordon's huge hands destroying any animal.
"I don't understand; I thought you didn't have livestock in the north and that was why you relied so heavily on the dwarves of Ered Luin?" The hobbit enquired; always the curious fellow.
"That's true to an extent but we don't make enough money to just buy everything from the dwarves; pelts and leather doesn't get you much in nowadays market. We raise all of our livestock indoors since they can't handle the harsh weather; chickens, cows, horses, goats, sheep, pigs, even birds like ravens and hawks. They get us by; especially in the dead of winter when the most brutal storms roll in." Burv replied from his mount.
"We can't house nearly as much as a normal person would though; just losing one cow could mean half a month with porridge to satisfy the grumbles of our belly." Luke finished, walking in between Gordon and Burv.
"I can't imagine living such a way; the Shire has always been a plentiful place, we've never had problems with crops or managing the herd. I guess we're luckier then we know." Bilbo empathized, looking to be truly distraught for them.
"Thank ya for caring, Bilbo. We always get by though, after all; a life with no trials isn't really a life." Lvaire laughed heartily, patting the hobbits shoulder fondly; it hadn't taken long for them all to grow fond of Bilbo after all he had a rather charming personality of his own.
"Well I imagine, I'm sure you're happy to be getting home to the rest of your family along with everyone else." Bilbo chuckled, looking up at the tall man beside him; it never got old to see the small hobbit beside the big burly men.
"Well the rest of my family live in Ered Luin; Lian and I are the only ones who live in Forochel for obvious reasons." The king chortled and Bilbo looked rather surprised by this news; the hobbit had not been around when the young woman had spoken of her past degrading of her mother in Mirkwood's prison cell.
"I'm sorry; I didn't mean to be rude." Bilbo quickly defended, not wanting to offend anyone but Lvaire only laughed at the fellow; it's not like he was intentionally trying to bring up painful memories.
"There's no need for that; Lian's mother died giving birth to her if you're wondering. I may have lost one love of my life that night but she made sure to give me another in her place. I'm not surprised that Lian didn't tell you." Her father explained to the unknowing hobbit who glanced at the young woman seemingly oblivious to their conversation while she walked closer to the front with Nellia.
"Well I can imagine it would be something painful for her to talk about; I don't blame her for not talking about it. Honestly I should have deduced that from the beginning since she never mentioned her mother in the first place." Bilbo murmured, finding that there was more to the woman than he'd originally thought; he had just figured that she was fonder of her father.
"Well…she hasn't understood the conditions of her mother's death, Dalora couldn't pass a child naturally as we found out nearly half way through the birthing process; they had to cut Lian out of her. Lian survived miraculously but Dalora had lost too much blood and died before sunrise; she died holding Lian in her arms." Lvaire was growing emotional with the reoccurring images of his wife's death; he could never love another woman the same way he did her. Lian acted more and more like her every day and he was proud to see her growing up to be such a fine young woman; if she were a man then she'd be able to rule Forochel with an iron fist if she wanted to.
"I'm sure that she'd understand if she would just stop being so stubborn." The king chuckled lightly, trying to keep the conversation casual. Bilbo couldn't help but stare holes into Lian's back though; why would she act so cold in regard to her own mother? He never thought her capable of being so uncaring towards her own kin, much less her own blood. Perhaps that was just one of the many trials of life for her to overcome.
Lian could hear their conversation clearly from her current position; it's not like she was deaf after all. If only her father knew how she really felt on the matter; she knew her views on her mother had always been unfair and despicable but she had been mad at her mother. Mad for dying and leaving them to fend for themselves; she was supposed to hold on to life and make it through but she didn't. She didn't hold on and so her father had to raise her with a hole in his heart; at one point she thought he hated her for resembling her mother. That also prompted her to try and act as much like the opposite gender as possible; she didn't want her father to be pained when he saw her.
That had been so long ago it felt like; she had still been bitter when she left home but she was coming around in regard to her mother. Life isn't fair and her mother probably didn't want to go just as much as her father; they both knew that fighting it would make things more painful though. Tragedies aren't meant to tear you down forever; you grieve and then rise again stronger than before. Things might have turned out different if her mother was alive and there are many doors closed when others open; Lian much rather things stay as they were though.
"You look rather ridiculous when you think; may it be a new habit brought on by the company of dwarves?" Nellia enquired; one finely shaped eyebrow raised at the young woman's expression; her face scrunched up almost between a scowl and cringe as they walked along the snow covered riverbank.
Lian snapped out of her thoughts and stuck her tongue out at the other woman, having nothing to say in reply to her question. Nellia could tell that the woman had been pouting since they left the mountain and it was almost painful to watch her try and act normal; whatever normal was for the princess.
"I hear saying your problems out loud helps ease the depression; though I'm sure everyone knows just from your entire demeanor. You had to be expecting to come back sometime; you are the princess after all." Nellia sighed.
"I know that!" Lian snapped, annoyed that her problems were being put out into light so bluntly though it's not like she wouldn't have done the same thing if she was in the other woman's shoes. "I've known that ever since Stevvin showed up in Lake-Town; that still doesn't make it easier to leave."
"I supposed goodbyes are never easy with those you've accompanied for so long; your father spoke of future visits though." Nellia reminded her.
"Father also says that with Uncle Tundain and we only see him from time to time in trading season; the last time we visited him was when we had to buy new cows eight years ago." Lian grumbled; a bit put off at the thought of not seeing Thorin until eight years from now.
"Well he is the King; he can't do whatever he pleases even if we're only a small kingdom, he'll have plenty of time for that after he's retired from the throne for the next heir to claim it." The woman explained but Lian didn't feel any better about the situation; she knows these things but she just wished that they could all get together like they used to every year in the fall up until she was twelve. Uncle Tundain and her father had gotten in a fight over too much ale and childhood problems; Father had tried to make things up after he sobered but Uncle Tundain held a grudge like an iron vise; they were on talking terms but they weren't as close as they were before.
Lian sighed and nestled Rowan closer to her chest; sometimes she forgot she was even holding the child, like she had become another limb until her arms got tired from holding her too long. Her cheeks were flushed a bit from the cold and her curly red hair sprung out stubbornly to frame her plump face; she was a perfect picture of health.
They ventured on until finally the afternoon sun was drifting into the west, the sun staining the blue sky crimson as the temperature dropped. The elves had no trouble going on but everyone else was weary from traveling all day with no rest nor meal since they left; poor Bilbo tried to keep up but he was passed out on Luke's back after the man had offered it up to him.
Lian was just as tired and her half healed wounds were burning from the strain on her muscles, Rowan was also growing restless and hungry; kicking and crying loudly as she bounced her up and down against her chest. How much longer is it going to be before they reached the elves kingdom? It had been rather quick when they left it in barrels but then again they were also riding the quick rivers tide.
"How much further? Unlike you elves we can't go long amounts of time without food and rest." Stevvin barked, obviously cross and exhausted; the sun was setting quickly and other creatures dwelled within these woods. Rowan's cries were not ceasing and Lian was growing more fearful that they'd attract unwanted attention so she desperately tried to calm the child but she would have none of it.
Thranduil hadn't even halted to let her change the child's wrappings despite the pitying looks several of the elves sent their way; at one point Tauriel had offered to take the child off her hands but Lian refused. She didn't want to part from the child even if her arms felt like they were going numb from carrying her for so long; she wasn't going to let her go again.
"If you're so tired then why don't you just stop; I'm sure that all the creatures in this forest would love to have you for dinner. As for my people and I; we'd like to actually reach our home before sunrise." The elf retorted from his mount, not even batting an eyelash at them and Lian was tempted to chunk her boot at his head if not for her own entertainment.
Stevvin looked tempted to do more than throw a boot at the elf but Lvaire sent him a look that compelled the headstrong man to stay silent as they continued on. About a half hour later the sun had already set past the tree line and over the hills; the moon already lighting up the darkening sky with tiny stars popping up one by one. It would have been a lovely sight against the pale snow if not for the exhaustion; it was certainly an odd sight for the Men to see the moon so clearly against the snow or the moon at all.
It was then though that they finally saw a pale white glow illuminate the trees in almost an eerie glow, what looked to be small crystals dangling off the barren branches and sending glittering spectrums of light dancing across the trees and snow. It was breath taking, that Lian could not deny even in her state of irritation and exhaustion; she had never seen such gems before. The elves followed the strands of gems that looped and dangled off the branches overhead while Lian and her kin marveled at the sight with several hushed whispers of awe; Bilbo had even awoken to stare openly at the scene. Rowan too had calmed her crying to ogle at the beautiful gems; her big blue eyes reflecting their light.
They came upon the entrance to the elves Kingdom quickly after; except this time under different circumstances than the first time. Lian was certainly glad knowing that she wouldn't sleep in a prison cell tonight, though she took it that their king much rather them be there as prisoners than guest. She was still baffled as to why he had even invited them to stay and resupply in his kingdom in the first place; even with her father's smooth talking.
The kingdom was just as grand as she remembered though instead of it being daylight it was night; the underground kingdom lit up by gigantic flower that hung upside down at the peak of the stone dome overhead. A soft yellow glow emitted from the center; resembling an upside down teardrop in the center of the pale petals that flared out beautifully around it. Lian can't believe she hadn't noticed it before but then again she was probably too overwhelmed by the kingdom itself. Small spores fell from the flowers center almost like snow; floating along the invisible breeze it seemed to be riding until it touched the ground to disappear into the ground. Moon light also streamed in through the large windows set in a full circle around the top half of the dome, roots tangling thickly around the windows and covering the entire ceiling to disappear into the void below.
"What is that?" Bilbo breathed, taking the words out of all their mouths; Lian may strongly dislike the elves king but his kingdom was one to marvel at truly. She can only imagine what Erebor would look like once it was fully restored; it already took her breath away.
"It is the Airetaari Losse; the heart of Mirkwood. It was said that in the days of creation that Iluvatar wept a single tear upon the barren lands and the Airetaari Losse came to be; Mother of all growth. It is also said that her roots spread over the earth and from them all growth is made; she only has one sister and that is Nessa Losse in Lorien. Nessa Losse was made so if the Airetaari Losse was ever harmed or even destroyed, its sister could take its place as the mother of all growth. " Burv explained; Lian's brain was growing foggy from the large amount of information it was trying to capture. Burv was always one to read into other cultures that dwelling in Middle-Earth; he was absolutely fascinated by it.
"Good to see at least one man of Men is well educated." Thranduil commented; not even glancing back at them as they approached the dreadful bridge that connected the gates to the actual kingdom. Lian took deep calming breaths as they walked across, not even contemplating looking down and after what felt like ages they reached the other side, sadly there were several more elevated paths with nothing under them to catch someone if they were to fall other than the ground.
They were halted in the center of what looked to be a garden square with stone pillars weaving around each other along the edges. It seemed even if winter was amidst outside, none of that effected the lush growth of grass, trees and flowers inside this place. Thranduil dismounted his mare and Gordon went to help Burv from his own as two elves came and took the horses away. Bilbo was now standing on his own two feet and stood in between Lian and Lvaire; peering at the elves as they seemed to all but disperse into the kingdom.
"My people shall provide you a quarter suitable for housing you all for the night; do with it what you please and in the morning we'll give you supplies before sending you on your way. Dinner is in an hour; it will be served to you in your quarters." Thranduil told them in a clipped voice before the elf rudely and quickly turned to walk away with Legolas close on his tail. The elf king stopped though by Tauriel; pale eyes looking her over with a mild look of disgust before he spoke.
"You shall depart when they do; be thankful that I am letting you stay here that long." Tauriel looked away, shame coloring her features almost pitifully. Lian felt pity well up in her chest for the she-elf; to be told that she had to leave her own home was unimaginable for her to relate to.
"Father-." Legolas tried to cut in but Thranduil would have none of it.
"If you have a problem with my decision then you can join her." He spat fiercely and Lian nearly took a step back from the sudden shock; his face was twisted in a snarl unlike any she'd ever seen on an elf. What had happened to turn an elf into such a bitter creature? She had always heard that elves were pure creatures; maybe arrogant but never resentful or hateful.
Thranduil held his head high once more before he waltzed away, leaving Legolas and Tauriel along with the others.
"What a jackass." Stevvin grumbled, his thin lips pursed tightly on his worn down features, everyone did but thankfully an elf showed up right then to lead them to their quarters. Their quarters was located on the eastern side of the kingdom and it was certainly different than the dungeon Lian was expecting; okay maybe she wasn't expecting it but she could see it being plausible. The thick roots of trees and the Airetaari Losse were woven and throughout the large dome to make up the kingdom; houses built along the massive trunks of trees that seemed to be thousands of years old. The Airetaari Losse provided an eerie glow to everything so it was a different setting than the dimness of when they first entered the kingdom in the day.
Their housing was right by one of the grand windows against the dome walls; it seemed to be that the house was carved from the massive roots and trees with green moss covering it thickly. They entered and found that it was rather quite grand with an elegantly carved spiral stair case leading towards the upstairs. There was no kitchen nor bathing quarters though so they would have to go to the public baths if they wanted to bathe according to the male elf who had lead them there; asides from that it would fit them all with room to spare.
"Nellia and I are going to the baths with Rowan; don't destroy anything if yer staying here." Lian announced.
"Well he said we could do with it what we please." Luke smirked, tossing a glass vase from hand to hand teasingly.
"If ya break it then I'm going to break yer face." She growled, causing him to only roll his eyes but set the vase back down regardless. With that she and Nellia turned and followed the male elf as he waited patiently for them to come along; he did look nervously at Luke though when he saw him eyeing the bookshelves. No doubt he didn't like the idea of them ransacking the place like barbarians but she was sure that they'd behave.
Of course the bathes were far larger than she'd imagined; pale marble pillars surrounded the large circular pool of water which was filled by fountain in the center. Streams of water flowing from the basins in which the elven maidens held in their stone hands; glittering tiles reflected the waters glow from both above and under the water's surface.
"Elves certainly make everything luxurious; ours look like barns compared to these ones." Nellia commented as they began to strip from their torn and battle worn clothes; Rowan had begun to cry again from hunger and Lian tried to shush her quietly.
"Maybe we should have left her with the others; she's hungry." Lian sighed heavily, trying to calm the kicking infant down as she wailed.
"I don't think so; they would try and let her play their weapons or something on that scale." Nellia explained, taking the kicking child from Lian so she could strip her own clothes off after taking the thin blouse off Rowan; they had no baby clothes so they had cut off the arms and bottom half of Burv's extra blouse for her to wear.
"Well father wouldn't let them do anything too reckless plus Gordon should really learn how to handle a babe since Torien is due to give birth any time now." Lian reasoned, picking up one of the basins beside a pillar so she could fill it with water. She dumped her filthy clothes in the basin of water; kneading and squeezing the grime out of the fabric worn fabric. After finishing she laid the clothes out to dry on the polished floors beside the pool of water; Nellia followed soon after handing her Rowan. Lian stepped into the lukewarm water of the pool; the water reaching just above her breasts when she stood.
"Didn't your father try and feed you a whole chicken leg when you were barely a toddler?" Nellia asked as if to prove a point.
"That's different, he didn't know back then but I'm sure he does now." She defended but from the raised eyebrow the other woman sent her way it wasn't a convincing one.
"Maybe; either way she needed a good cleaning. She's filthy." Nellia chided as she held the squirming infant firmly between her thighs and gingerly poured water over her bright curls on the edge of the pool. Rowan didn't seem to want to cooperate though as she screamed and kicked; she was no doubt hungry and tired.
"Here." Lian took the squirming child from Nellia after climbing into a sitting position on the pools edge to let Nellia take a turn in the water. Rowan was having a fit; snot and tears running down her red face as she wailed. Already she could feel her own distress knitting her brows together as a headache began to pound against her skull.
"Oh."
Both women turned to see a slender she-elf with golden hair braided down her back carrying what looked to be clean clothes for them to wear. She obviously had not been expecting an infant to be with them and looked into the big teary blue eyes with her own.
"Just a moment, please." She spoke, her voice like tiny bells chiming in the wind; she set the clothes down and abruptly turned to walk away. Nellia and Lian shared a look shrugging it off and continued to bathe; sadly they weren't getting much done with Rowans temper tantrum and so they had to both make an effort to clean her properly with the bar of soap found with the towels. Lian was just drying off the infant when the she-elf returned with what looked to be baby robes and a jar of something she couldn't identify.
"I went and fetched your baby some fresh clothes and something to eat so maybe she'll calm down." The she-elf explained.
"Thank ya, that was very generous of ya." Lian thanked her with gratitude; taking the clothes and what seemed to be baby food.
"I can feed her while you bathe if you want." The she-elf offered and she could tell that the elf was dying to hold the baby from the glimmer in her eyes when she looked at the sniffling infant. Lian hesitated a moment but ended up handing Rowan over to the she-elf; she was going to be in plain sight of her and she needed to have both hands free so she could wash herself properly.
Both she and Nellia bathed in silence, watching the she-elf intently; ready to jump out of the pool if something were to become amiss but the elf seemed harmless enough and the food had calmed Rowan down tremendously. They were soon out of the pool and dressed in the clean clothes that they were given; of course it was dresses the she-elf had brought. Lian was tempted to go back in her old wet clothes but Nellia elbowed her sharply when she voiced the idea out loud.
Nellia looked comfortable enough in the somewhat loose silver dress on her lean figure but it was ridiculously form fitting on Lian like the last elven dress she had no choice but to wear; the green silk clung to ever curve and dip of her figure. Rowan had a lovely purple dress on that flared out at the waist to drape over her chubby bare feet; she was obviously shorter than any elf infant.
"You look rather fetching in that dress." Nellia commented and she couldn't resist the urge to cringe; the worst part was that the other woman wasn't even joking.
"I feel like breathing will tear the seams open." Lian spat and attempted to twist her torso and bend over in the dress; thankfully the dress was a bit loose around the waist and covered the bandages still wrapped around her ribs though her ugly bite-mark was visible.
"Beauty is pain they say." The other woman chuckled.
Lian took Rowan away from the she-elf, thanking her once more before the two women left with their damp still damp clothes to return to their quarters for a hot meal and nights rest. Tomorrow was no doubt going to be the start of a long tread home.
Lian's eyelashes fluttered open when the pale morning light streamed in through the small circular window; she slowly lifted her head and felt Rowan's weight on top of her chest. The infant was out cold with light snores while drool soaked into the woman's sweater; her red curls were aglow under the pale light of the morning sun. She laid back and let out a deep sigh as she softly stroked the wild curls atop of the child's head; she felt a moment of peace for the first time since she left Erebor.
Last night had gone by quickly after they ate; all but crawling up the stairs to the sleeping quarters and into the beds lining the thickly bunch walls of roots. Now she was surrounded by her sleeping kin and Bilbo with Gordon's loud snores reverberating through the otherwise silent room. She sat there for a long moment just seeping in the out of place warmth form the sun despite it being winter.
She couldn't help but wonder how Thorin and the others were doing right now; last she heard they were going to burn the rest of the orc bodies and then Dain and his army would go back to the Ironhills for supplies to bring back. Letting out a sigh Lian finally sat up and swung her feet over the edge of the bed; her bare feet dangling nearly five inches from the ground. She hopped down with Rowan limp in her arms as she padded over to the window; she could see the barren forest of Mirkwod outside with snow still blanketing the ground.
"Dalora?"
Lian whipped around, seeing her father's tired expression as he tried to blink away the sleep from his green eyes; sitting up on his bed for the blanket to fall off his chest.
"Oh, Lian." He snapped out of his momentary daze and looked around as a loud yawn left his lips. "No one else is awake?"
"Obviously, I just woke up myself. We should probably wake everyone else up though; I don't know how long our visit is welcomed." She advised with her lips tenderly pressed into Rowans curls; she loved the soft smell of butter pecan soap that emitted off her along with just the general scent of baby.
"If we're lucky we'll reach the Misty Mountains before dark; the daylight is limited now that winter is here which means more creatures will be about. If we use the moon for light then we might be able to cover more ground at night; but we should still try and cover as much ground and not stop for camp while on the mountain range. Goblins are crawling all over those mountains and I'd like to not have another encounter." Lian explained.
"We're going to have to travel southwest towards Hoarwell river and follow it across the mountains until we come out at the Ettenmoors; from there it's a straight path northwest to Forochel."
"That sounds like a reasonable plan; we can't risk taking the easier route along the Longwell, even if the mountains are less steep. If we make good time we should be back home within a month and a half." Lavaire hummed, rubbing his palm against his scruffy beard; they all had bathed last night and his worn face didn't look nearly as old as when he was dirty.
"Home…" Lian murmured when a wave of nostalgia overcame her; how would it feel to finally be home again after so long? After all that had happened. She always found her home to be quite beautiful and entertaining enough but now it all seemed to fall a bit flat compared to everything else she'd seen. No wonder everyone thought it was boring when they'd seen all of that their whole life. She did miss the familiarity of it though; her own bed, room, weapons, horse and tub to soak in alone. How would she handle it?
Lian and everyone were gathered at the gates of Mirkwood; surprisingly enough Thranduil was there along with Legolas and Tauriel. The elven king was silent as he watch Tauriel approach Lian's kin with her own pack to take with her; Legolas didn't looked pleased at all.
"May your journey be safe when returning to your lands; you're welcome to visit…all of you." Thranduil spoke, his eyes flickering towards Tauriel and shocking them all.
"Father?" Legolas gaped but his father raised his hand.
"I said visit, not stay; don't get ahead of yourself." With that he turned and walked away; she had a feeling he did that when he was flustered more than arrogance. Who knew though? The Elf had a heart after all; even it was just a small one.
"Ready to go on another adventure?" Lian asked Bilbo with a small smile on her lips.
"It can't get any worse than the first one." Bilbo chuckled.
With that they were off; Tauriel turning towards the Lonely Mountain and them towards the Misty Mountains. Maybe things were going to be as bad as the thought, after all; life always has a way of surprising you.
Thranduil be like: (눈_눈)