A few of you are asking about who were the ones to witness Aliena's first kiss. Well, this chapter will not give you the answers that you are seeking. Also, I had someone ask me who it was that Dwalin left the halls with. Well, the answer to that is in this chapter.
WARNING: This chapter is going to be very high T rating. I am refusing to turn this story into an M rating until we reach the LOTR events.
Disclaimer: I don't own the Hobbit or its characters.
Remember that years are approximate and rounded to the nearest quarters.
Count down: 47 ¾ years till LOTR events. Roughly 15 more chapters to go till then.
Aliena- 16 years old.
Frerin & Durin- 10 ¾ years old, look 8 years old.
Kelda- 6 ¾ years old, looks like a 5 ½ year old.
Balder- 5 ½ years old, looks like a 4 ½ year old.
Toril- 5 years old, looks like a 4 year old.
Freya- 4 years old, looks like a 3 year old.
Rìka (pronounced Reeka) & Kilian- 2 ¼ years old, looks like 1 ½ year olds.
King Under the Mountain's Council chambers...
Thorin and Fili watch as many of the council members begin to leave for the evening. All day long they have been sequestered, and debating a particular issue. For you see, Thorin and Balin had been intercepting replies that were being sent by several kingdoms of the race of men. And today, Thorin had thrown his knowledge of their attempts to go behind his back and marry off Aliena to one of the said kingdoms.
"They will never let up, will they?" Fili asks quietly from beside his uncle.
"No, they won't." Thorin answers back in a cold voice.
"I still don't see why you don't just get rid of the ones who are doing this. Replace them with new council members." Fili says as he watches a particular council member, Castor, speaking with Balin.
"If I were to remove every council member who causes trouble, I would have no council at all. And that would create a possible anarchy inside of Erebor." Thorin says as he too watches council member Castor.
Three weeks ago one of Nori's spies, from his network, had been following Aliena. What this spy reported to Nori, and then to Thorin, was that Aliena is currently being stalked. The problem is that this stalker is very good at not having his face, or even hair color, seen. This information has Thorin worried, and he has yet to bring it up with Inara. However, Fili and Kili are also aware of this possible danger to their adopted cousin.
"Do you think that the stalker could be one of them?" Fili whispers quietly to Thorin as he watches his uncle visually study Castor.
"It has crossed my mind. Yet, what motive would any of them have to stalk her?" Thorin whispers back to Fili.
Thorin watches as his nephew thinks over an answer. In this instance, Thorin can't help but notice how much Fili looks like Vrili. This thought causes Thorin to feel a twang of regret in his heart. Tomorrow will mark the 85th anniversary of Vrili's death, and he isn't sure if Dis will be wanting to have a remembrance time or not.
"Perhaps they are stalking Aliena to try to get to you and Inara." Fili says carefully. There is another thought that has crossed Fili's mind, but he refuses to say it to Thorin.
"Or they are hoping to scare Aliena into leaving Erebor by any means necessary." Thorin says to Fili with a pointed look. He too knows of the thought that has run through Fili's mind. That same thought has run through Thorin's mind more often these days.
In the market halls...
Aliena is walking past some of the proprietor shops since her lessons with Dis were cancelled. Her brown skirt billows out as she walks. The winter season is lasting longer than normal. So she is wearing a cream colored shall over her brown and cream colored paisley bodice. Her straight brown hair has a few braids scattered in it, but for the most part her hair is loose.
Bifur is just locking the door to his toy shop as Aliena walks by. He gives her a smile and a wave, which she returns as she comes walking towards him.
"Is Bofur not with you?" Aliena asks Bifur with a smile on her face.
Bifur gestures and lets out a few words to her.
"No. Dis said she wasn't feeling well this afternoon, so I didn't have any lessons. So I decided to wander about, and visit some shops." Aliena says as she pulls her shall tighter to her shoulders.
Bifur gestures some more before giving the young woman a hug. He watches Aliena as she walks away, heading for a fabric shop.
However, in the shadow of a sweets shop, a pair of eyes follows the young woman.
In the hallway outside of the Royal Family Halls...
Dis has been walking slowly back home from visiting the burial chambers. Even though Vrili's tomb holds no body, Dis had gone down there anyways to give her respects. After 85 years Dis still loves her husband, but something has happened that she was not prepared for.
She places a hand over her mouth, and moves to brace herself against a wall as a violent wave of dizziness and nausea over power her. Taking deep breaths, Dis counts slowly to 15 in her head, and waits for this wave to end.
"Amad!" a voice rings down the hallway.
Dis hears hurried footsteps coming towards her. She knows that the footsteps belong to her youngest son.
"Amad! Are you alright?" Kili asks as he places a hand onto his mother's back. He is quick to note that her face is grey in color, and that she is leaning one arm against the wall.
"I am just a little tired is all, Kili." Dis answers as she feels the nausea go away, but the dizziness remains. "It has been a hard day."
Kili nods his head solemnly as he too knows what today is.
"Would you like me to walk you back to our halls?" Kili asks his mother. His voice has a sad tone to it. He moves the hand that was on Dis's back to the side of her waist, and pulls her body close to his side.
"That would be nice, Kili." Dis says as she moves slowly to take step.
As they walk, Kili decides to question his mother on her health. "You haven't been yourself lately. Should we call for Oin to check on you?"
"I have been under a lot of stress, but I am fine. You, Fili, and Thorin all worry too much." Dis says with a soft chuckle, but has to come to a stop as another wave of nausea over powers her.
Kili stops immediately, and is carefully watching his mother. He notices that this is the second time in only a few short minutes that his mother has been almost sick. However, he is pulled from his study as two pairs of footsteps come towards Kili. Looking up, he notices that Fili and Thorin are watching the situation.
"Namad. Are you ill?" Thorin asks softly as he moves to Dis's other side. The reply he gets isn't a nice one, as Dis vomits onto the floor. He looks at Fili and Kili before deciding on what to do. "Fili. Kili. Take your mother to her rooms. I will go fetch Oin since she is not feeling well."
"Yes uncle." Fili says as he replaces Thorin at his mother's side.
Thorin leaves the trio just as Fili and Kili start to help their mother walk down the hallway.
They finally arrive to the Family halls, and find that there is no one there to help them. So Fili and Kili help Dis navigate the stairs before reaching her rooms. As Fili opens the door to his mother's bedroom, Dis lets out a pain filled groan before vomiting onto the floor.
"I'll clean it up Fili. You just help Amad get into bed." Kili says to his older brother. He let out a soft chuckle at his older brother's squeamish looking face. Fili may be older than Kili, but it is the younger who seems to have the stronger stomach.
Fili helps his mother towards her bed. He can hear Kili fumbling around in the bathing room in an attempt to find some towels to clean up the sick with. His mother stops at the edge of her bed, but doesn't get into it. She simply leans the upper part of her body onto the mattress. Fili stays by her side, and rubs her back.
"Uncle will be here soon with Oin. You will be okay, Amad." Fili says in a calm, soft voice.
It isn't long till Oin and Thorin appear, and the old healer pushes Thorin, Fili, and Kili out of the room. Once he has completed his examination, Oin steps out of Dis's bed chamber and finds all three pacing the floor of the sitting room.
"What is it Oin?" Thorin asks as he stops his pacing. He is worried that this might be an illness that Dis has contracted.
Oin takes a deep breath before speaking. "I need someone to go get Inara."
Both Fili and Kili stop their pacing and move to stand next to Thorin. They have worried looks upon their faces.
"What for?" Fili asks Oin.
Oin takes another deep breath. He is afraid to answer Fili's question, but he needs the help now. "Dis is in labor, lads."
"What do you mean, in labor? Explain." Thorin growls out at the old healer.
"Exactly what I meant. She is in active labor with only an hour or so till she delivers. So I suggest one of you goes and retrieves Inara from the Halls of Healing. And do it quickly." Oin growls back at Thorin.
"How can Amad be with child? She hasn't been with anyone since our Adad." Kili says in a panicked voice.
"Kili go ask Lady Sigrid and Lady Tauriel if they can watch the children tonight. Fili. Go find Inara. I will get to the bottom of this." Thorin growls out with pure anger in his voice.
The two dwarrows leave so that it is just Thorin and Oin in the room.
"You know the laws, Thorin." Oin says carefully to Thorin. "I will try to help see Dis through this, but after that it is out of my hands."
"I know." Thorin runs a hand down his face. He never thought his own sister would place him in this situation. Just how was he going to banish his sister and her child, if it survives the birth, from Erebor?
In an empty hallway...
Aliena is walking along the corridors that will be leading her back towards home. She had passed the armory just a few halls back, and had greeted Gimli and Gloin as they prepared for their evening patrols of the hallways.
As she turns the corner to walk down another hallway, something out the corner of her eye gets her attention. Before she has a chance to counter the move, she finds herself slammed into the wall. A hand is quick to cover her mouth, and a hard, muscular body pins her in place.
"Well, well, well. What have I just caught? A young lass without her escort from the race of men." The voice says in a hostile tone. The voice belongs to a red haired dwarf who looks almost the same age as Fili.
Aliena tries to push the male dwarf away from her, but the sheer power of his race keeps her from moving. She can't even reach the hidden dagger that Fili had given to her as a birthday present. So she tries to kick the dwarf with her legs.
"You're a feisty one. I like that." The male dwarf growls out as he uses his legs to stop Aliena from kicking.
When the dwarf pushes his face into Aliena's bodice, she bites down on the hand that covers her mouth.
"You wench." The dwarf growls out before removing his hand from her mouth. Without giving her any chance to scream out, the dwarf uses his bitten hand to hit Aliena's face. The momentum of the hit is enough to cause her to go limp against him.
In her daze, Aliena feels her attacker guide her limp body towards the floor. As the fog in her head starts to lift, Aliena feels the dwarf move her hands so that they are above her head. His body is pressed up against hers again, and she tries wiggle out from under him.
"Heee." Aliena tries to scream out, but her assailant is quick to shove something into her mouth. She attempts to scream through the wadded up cloth, but the screams don't sound loud enough.
"No one can hear you, Princess. No one is going to come save you. You are mine." The dwarf growls out as he rips her bodice open. He presses his face into her now open bust as his hand drifts down to pull her skirts up.
With her eyes filling in tears, Aliena tries in vain to find a way to break free. Yet with the dwarf's weight being pressed onto her, there is no way to find an opening. As she feels her skirts being pushed up to her thighs, Aliena closes her eyes to try in an attempt to mentally escape what is coming. The dwarfs' free hand has moved to a place that Aliena doesn't want it to go.
Just as she feels a sharp pain come from the unwanted touch, the heavy feeling from her attackers' body disappears. She hears the scuffling of a fight as she is quick to turn onto her side in an attempt to cover herself. Some yelling in Khuzdul occurs, then she hears a loud growl followed by a groan of pain.
"Oh lassie." A familiar voice says from behind her as a hand gently touches her shoulder, and the gag is pulled from her mouth.
Aliena turns towards the voice, and opens her eyes to see who had rescued her.
"Gimli." Aliena softly cries out as she practically throws herself to him. Gripping tightly onto the back of Gimli's shirt, she presses her face into his shoulder and weeps.
"I suggest you take her to Oin, son." Gloin's voice says before the sound of a grunt is heard. "As for you, Angfel. There is a cell with your name written on the door."
"My Adad will.." Angfel starts to say but is interrupted but Gloin.
"I don't care who your sire is, boy. No male is allowed to force himself on a female. It is against our laws." Gloin growls out as he puts the dwarf in wrist shackles.
Gimli watches as his father drags Angfel away before trying to back away from Aliena. However the young woman's grip doesn't loosen.
"We best be getting you home lass." Gimli says as he gently pats Aliena's back.
"I can't go home like this." Aliena says softly through her tears. "My bodice is torn open."
Gimli's face turns as red as his hair at her statement. "Then you best hold on tight." He gently picks Aliena up bridal style, and he notices that the girl is keeping her torso twisted towards his chest.
Dis's Bedroom...
Thorin enters the bedroom, and finds his sister in a long night shift. She is standing next to her bed, but she is leaning over the edge using her elbows to keep her body off the mattress.
"Dis." Thorin says calmly as he moves to strand next to her. He rubs her mid-back with a hand as he notices that she is going through a contraction. Thorin's mind strays to when he had witnessed Vrili do the same thing when she birthed both Fili and Kili.
"Go ahead, Thorin. Tell me that I am banished if I survive this." Dis says with anger in her voice. She knows that the older the dwarrowdam is, the harder it is for the dam to survive the birth. Especially if the dam is as old as she is.
"How long have you known?" Thorin asks carefully. He is shocked to find out that his sister had known, and had withheld the information from him.
"I had my suspicions four months ago."
"Why did you not come to me?"
"How could I, Thorin. If you knew that I was carrying the child of your general, then you would have had me abort it." Dis growls out as another contraction hits her.
Thorin stops rubbing his sister's back when she mentioned that the father of the child was his general. Putting the necessary pieces to the puzzle together, Thorin realizes who the father of his sister's child is.
"You and Dwalin." Thorin growls out. He knows that this situation is going to end badly.
"Don't you dare kill him Thorin!" Dis says through her contraction. "It was me who pushed him into our encounter. I have been lonely, Thorin. My boys are married, and have children of their own. They don't need me anymore. I just wanted to feel wanted again. You and I both know that the reason Dwalin has never taken a wife is because he is still in love with me. Dammit!" Dis lets out a groan as the pain grows in strength.
"You know the political upheaval that will occur if it is discovered that you and Dwalin have a child. Dis, your child could be used to over throw Fili when he is king. Or even Frerin." Thorin shouts at his sister.
By this point, Oin comes back into the room, and shoves Thorin away from Dis. The old dwarf continues to shove Thorin towards the bedroom door.
"You are only causing her more suffering during her labors if you keep yelling at her." Oin growls out after shoving Thorin out the door. Then the old healer slams the door shut.
Thorin punches the door to Dis's bedroom in anger. 'Of all the stupid things my namad has done in her life, this by far is the worst.' He thinks to himself.
"What the hell was that about?" Inara says as she enters the sitting room with Fili, Kili, and Balin right behind her.
Thorin turns and when he sees Balin everything goes red.
"Did you know!" Thorin shouts at Balin as he storms towards the old dwarf.
"Uncle!" Fili and Kili cry out.
"Thorin!" Inara yells as she tries to put herself between Thorin and Balin. However, Fili is quick to pull her out of the way.
Thorin stops so that he is standing in front of Balin with only an inch between them. "Did you know?"
"Know what?" Balin asks cautiously for he has no idea what has caused his king to be this angered.
"That your brother got Dis with child?" Thorin says in a deadly tone.
"What!" Both Fili and Kili say as they look between Thorin and Balin.
Balin's surprised look on his face tells everyone that he is stunned by this news. He steps back from Thorin, and Inara is quick to pull a chair so that the old dwarf can sit.
"Amad is having a child?" Kili asks Thorin with a shock look on his face.
A loud cry of pain comes from the bedroom, which causes all the males to cringe.
"As lovely as it would be to talk about this, it sounds like I am needed." Inara says to everyone. "Keep the bloodshed to a minimum so that it is easier to clean up."
As Inara goes into Dis's bedroom, all four males look at each other.
"I truly did not know, Thorin." Balin says as he looks at Thorin. "If I knew, I would have put a stop to it before hand."
"So Dwalin and Amad are having a child together." Fili says with a calm tone. "Why are you making a big deal about it? It is just a child."
"Because this child could try to overthrow you or Frerin. And because its mother is a princess and its father is a general, there would be a lot of dwarves who would pledge themselves to such a cause." Balin says as he looks towards Fili and Kili.
"But why is everyone so on edge?" Kili asks. "It is just a child. Who needs to know who its parents are?"
"If word got out that your mother had a child without being remarried then the council would petition for her to be banished. The child would then be gotten rid of." Thorin says to Kili.
"But there have been widowed dams who have had children again. They have never been banished." Fili says with a little fear in his eyes.
"But they are not widowed princesses whose oldest son is heir to a throne." Balin says to Fili.
All four of them go quiet as another scream comes from the bedroom. Once the scream is done, there is a soft thud on the door to the sitting room. Kili moves to answer the door and is surprised to see Gimli holding Aliena.
"Gimli?" Fili asks as he sees his cousin standing there with a sleeping Aliena in his arms. Fili moves quickly towards Gimli as he sees that Aliena has the beginnings of a bruise on the side of her face.
"Adad and I were out on patrol when we found her being attacked by Angfel." Gimli says roughly. "He had hold of her on the floor, with her chest exposed and skirts drawn up to her upper thighs. I don't know if we came across them in time, but it is possible that he took her against her will."
Both Fili and Kili let out low growls at the news before giving each other a look. Balin lets out a sad sigh from his seat, and looks towards Thorin with sympathy. Thorin lets out a growl before going up to a wall and slamming a fist into the rock.
"Where is he?" Fili says in a dark voice. His chest is heaving as he breaths, and his hands are made into fists.
"In a cell by now." Gimli replies cautiously. He can see that this information has upset this cousins greatly. Hell, it even has him upset.
"Kili. Take Gimli and Aliena to my rooms. Then get Tauriel to stay with Aliena and if possible see if.." Thorin trails off as he starts to pace back and forth like a caged animal. He wants blood. He wants justice to be done for this crime. He is so wrapped up in his thoughts that he doesn't feel the blood dripping from his fist.
"Come on Gimli. I will take you both." Kili says as he leads his cousin out of the room. He takes off his over shit and gently lays if over Aliena's torso.
"Angfel will pay for this." Fili says in a cold voice. "He will pay with his life. He dares to try and harm one of our family."
"Fili. We won't know for sure until Tauriel is able to check." Balin says from his seat. "Until then, Angfel will have to stay where he is."
Before Fili can respond, the door opens to reveal Skuld and Dwalin. Both had run into Gloin on his way to the cell block, and were told of what had transpired. Skuld volunteered to go and check on Aliena, and she had taken Dwalin with her to stop him from killing Angfel.
"Gloin told me what happened. Is she alright?" Skuld asks as she walks into the room.
"You." Thorin growls out as he charges at Dwalin. He meets no resistance as he pushes Dwalin up against the wall.
"My King!" Skuld shouts out in shock.
"Best leave them lass." Balin says as he gets up from his seat.
Before Skuld can ask why, she hears her friend cry out from the bedroom. Giving Balin a shocked look, Skuld can't keep herself from asking. "What is going on? Why is Dis crying out in pain?"
"I will tell you why." Thorin roars out from where he has Dwalin pressed up against the wall. "She is birthing an illegitimate child."
"What?" Skuld says in a shocked voice. Everything starts to make perfect sense as to why Thorin had charged at Dwalin. "Do you think that your sister would appreciate you manhandling the father of her child? Mahal Thorin! Let him pass so that he can help comfort her during her labors."
"He is not permitted in there." Thorin snaps at Skuld without breaking his hold, or to look away, from Dwalin. Then something hits him in the face which causes Thorin to break the hold. Looking down at the object thrown, Thorin can see it is a shoe.
"I do not care if you are the king or not, Thorin Oakenshield. Your sister needs Dwalin by her side during labor. And don't you even argue with me on this." Skuld shouts at Thorin as he grabs one of Dwalin's forearms. She leads the confused looking dwarf towards the bedroom door before opening it, and shoving him inside.
"Skuld." Thorin yells out as he now moves towards the now closed bedroom door.
The dwarrowdam stands in front of the door to block Thorin from going in. "You touch me and Gloin will petition for punishment." She glares down Thorin to the point where he stalks away from her, and walks over to Fili.
Inside of Dis's Bedroom...
Dwalin wasn't sure what was going on, but learning that he was going to be a father from Thorin was not what he was expecting. And certainly the others in this room weren't either.
"Dwalin!" Inara exclaims from her spot next to Dis. "Don't just stand there. Get your ass over here."
Dis looks towards her bedroom door to see the great warrior standing there. A contraction hits her, and she starts to feel the need to push. She doesn't dare move from where she is bent over the edge of her bed.
Oin notices the changes in Dis's breathing, and quickly starts to gather the soon to be needed items. "You best be here to help out laddie. I don't need anyone under foot."
Dwalin walks over to Oin. "What can I do to help?"
Oin looks harshly at Dwalin before answering. "This will be hard on the lady. Dams her age aren't supposed to be birthing a child. You best be praying that Mahal allows her to live. Because I can't guarantee that she will survive this."
"I hate to break up your little discussion over there, but I need some help here." Inara calls out to the two dwarrows.
Both turn to see that Inara is holding a passed out Dis. The dwarrowdams night shift is wet with fresh blood down the lower front.
Dwalin is quick to get to Inara and Dis. From all the battles that he has fought in, he knows that too much blood loss isn't a good sign. Helping Inara get Dis onto the bed, Dwalin moves to sit on the bed too. Once he is settled, he moves Dis so that her head is against his chest, and one of his arms is tucked under hers.
Oin and Inara move quickly to try and stop the bleeding. Both healer and midwife give each other a knowing look.
"She is hemorrhaging." Oin says softly to Inara. "I don't know what we can do now to save Dis, or her child."
"I know of a way." Inara says. She knows that C sections are unknown to Middle Earth, and preforming one here would be very risky. "Back in my world, if something like this was happening, the healers would perform a C section. In other words, they would cut the child out of the mother."
Both Oin and Dwalin give Inara a look of disgust and shock.
"That sounds barbaric." Oin replies.
"But it is the only option I know of that could save Dis and her child. Do you want to be the one to tell Thorin that his sister is dead? Or tell Fili and Kili?" Inara says with a growl in her voice. She can see Oin is not too keen on doing either of those, so she makes the decision. "Dwalin. We need a knife."
In Thorin's bedroom...
Both Kili and Gimli are standing watch by the door as Tauriel finishes checking on Aliena. The young woman was giving a sleeping draught that Tauriel had made. As the elf maid settles the blankets onto Aliena, she places a kiss in Aliena's hair. She carefully get up and walks towards the two.
"So." Kili whispers to his wife. His nerves aren't sure if he wants to know the truth or not.
"There was some light tearing which shows that she was violated. The tearing is from whatever he used to penetrate. That is what caused the bleeding. However, her barrier remains undamaged." Tauriel says sadly.
"That is good then, for her. I hope justice will be done to that ruffian." Gimli says before he leaves the room.
Tauriel watches her husbands' face, and she can still see his anxiety. "What is it?" She asks as she guides him out of the bedroom.
"I don't know. It just seems like bad things are always happening to our family." Kili says as he walks over to sit on the settee.
"Is there no word yet on your mother?"
"Not yet. It has been over an hour since I left, and I can't help but feel lost. If Amad survives she will be banished from Erebor along with my new sibling." Kili looks down at his hands with a sad look upon his face.
"Then we will go with her. We will take the children with us, and leave with your mother." Tauriel says confidently.
Kili looks up at Tauriel in shock. "And take our children away from their cousins? Tauriel, no. I couldn't do that to them."
A knock on the door silences whatever Tauriel was about to say. Fili enters the sitting room quietly, and makes his way over to his brother.
"It is a girl. We have a sister." Fili tells Kili solemnly before letting a smile appear on his face. "And it would seem that we also have a brother. Amad is doing well, but she will be on bed rest for a while."
"Are you serious, Fili? Amad had twins?"
"It is true, nadadith. And Amad will not be banished." Fili says as his smile gets bigger.
"How?" Tauriel asks since she can see that her husband is in a state of shock.
"Inara challenged Thorin to a dual to the death if he was to banish Amad. You see, our laws says that a dwarrowdam cannot challenge the king for his title. But Inara stated that she is not a dwarrowdam and has every right since she is a citizen of Erebor. She knew that Kili and I would leave with our Amad. Then she told Uncle that he would not live long enough to see Frerin become king. So she effectively found a loophole in our laws and exploited it."
Kili stood up and pulled Fili into a hug. As the two brother held each other, Tauriel smiled at the affection between the two.
"Do our siblings have names yet?" Kili asks as he pulls away from Fili.
"Our namad's name is Karys. Our nadadith's name is Fergys." Fili answers with a smile on his face.
In a dungeon cell...
"It won't happen again. Please. Don't do this! Nnnoooooo!" Angfel screams out until a blade finds its mark.
As the head of Angfel rolls away from his body, a hooded figure wipes the bloodied blade on the clothes of the now deceased. This figure cuts a braid hair off of the head before leaving the cell. The figure knows that the King or one of his close kin will be here soon. So the figure hurries off into the shadowed corridors of the dungeons of Erebor.
Gave you all a bit of a shocker, didn't I? I do hope you all enjoyed this chapter. If not, that's okay. The next one will have more action to it. Also the physical descriptions of Dis and Dwalin's twins will appear in the next chapter.
Karys is pronounced (K-ar-is) and Fergys is pronounced as (Fer-gis).
Reviews are welcomed. Even the negative ones.
Selene