A/N Well, after that little Batman story interrupted my lotr muse, I have returneeeeedddd!
Is it spring yet? I'm ready for spring. I want to plant flowers in my garden and wear cute dresses.
Also who else is coming out of this time change loving the sun being out longer but waking up to their alarm every morning wondering when/where/who they are? Cause same.
I miss Aragorn. You miss Aragorn. Josephine misses Aragorn and is cracking from the stress of the journey. Huzzah!
Almost dragon time, kids. This really is a hurry up and wait kind of story where we hurry to Rivendell, or Mirkwood, or Laketown, and then proceed to sit around for fucking WEEKS waiting for the next thing to happen. In the last story I had to cram stuff into nooks and crannies cause they wouldn't stop going places and doing things. Here, I'm given entire football stadiums of time to work with. The second draft/rewrite of this that will happen someday is gonna be a doozy lol.
Enjoy!
Josephine bunched her shirt against her chest and stared at the far wall of the loft in Bard's house. Oin's healer's touch was effective enough, but not nearly as gentle as the elves had been at slathering her scars in salves. Every now and then he pressed a little too hard on a spot that was a little too deeply scarred and the whole process was getting on her nerves.
"They've healed well enough for what they are. No doubt our time with the elves had something to do with it." He harrumphed. "Not just in one debt to them for their healing but now two in as many months."
"If they're so well healed then why is fighting still so difficult? Why are they still sore?" She had to speak up enough for Oin to hear her with his crushed trumpet and it was hard to keep her voice also low enough to stay unheard by the keen ears of the Bardlings below.
"Lass, that lash bore into ye'r very muscle. Ye'r lucky to be in the shape ye'r in now as it is. Best not expect more. 'Sides, a lady of your stature shouldna' be fightin' anyway."
"Should and need are two different things, Oin. I can't rely on all of you to keep me safe in the middle of a battle."
He gave an offended sort of scoff. "And why is that? Do ye not trust us by now? When we've all had strict orders for months to keep ye safe and done just that when ye haven't gone off half cocked, provoking goblins and elves and all sorts!"
Offended in her own right, she elbowed his arm away and pulled her shirt back down, making for the stairs. "Well maybe if you'd all pull your heads out of your prideful assholes and listen to me things wouldn't go belly up all the time and I wouldn't have to fix so damn much!" She jabbed her finger at him, already feeling regret for the words tumbling out of her mouth but unable to slow down. "I'm here for a god damn reason and every time something terrible has happened its either been because it had to or because somebody here didn't listen to me and don't forget, I never wanted to fucking be here in the first place!"
Her hand shook and her chest heaved as the last bits flew out like barbs and she felt like she deflated as they left her. The house below them had fallen silent. Josephine felt the stiffness in her spine that had served her so well, tightening dangerously. It was shaking from the strain, ready to snap as the end drew closer but not close enough.
Oin's face had fallen, sad but not hurt like she'd thought he would be. She looked away quickly and bit her cheek. "I'm sorry." She said softly, knowing even if he didn't hear her he'd see it on her lips.
Thudding footsteps, carefully placed, came up the steps and Kili's head poked around the corner. "Everything alright?"
"Fine, lad." Oin said with a nod.
He came into the room and looked between them, gently laying his hand on her arm and looking at Oin while she wiped at her eyes. "What did you do?"
"Lass just got upset at somethin' I said is all. Shouldna have said it."
"You're right, you shouldn't have!" Kili snapped, tugging her down into a slightly awkward hug while he glared at Oin over her shoulder. "Whatever it was."
Josephine patted him lightly on the back and slid out of his well meaning comfort. "I wasn't all that nice on my end either so maybe we should just call it even?"
Oin chuckled. "Aye, even we are."
As another voice filtered up from the stairs, they realized the loft wasn't the only place in the house that was in turmoil. This time it was coming from the children.
"Tilda, you're not coming and that's final!" Sigrid snapped. "Braga only just now said they'd let me in to see him."
The three of them made their way back downstairs and found the eldest of the Bardlings stuffing fresh bread and other small morsels into a basket on the table.
"I want to see Da!" Tilda replied.
"You'll see him when he gets home." She said firmly.
Bain joined in next, puffing his chest out. "And when will that be? He's been gone near two weeks now!"
Sigrid tucked a cloth over the top and motioned to the basket. "And just why do you think I'm bringing him all of this?"
"He won't like you going to the jailors alone. I'll take it." Bain bargained. "It's not a safe place for ladies."
"Please." Sigrid rolled her eyes. "All the bad ones are locked up and there are guards all over, I'll be perfectly fine."
Josephine started tucking her shirt back into the top of her pants and cut in. "Sigrid's the oldest, she'll decide if you go or not." The girl was smart enough to know Bard wouldn't want any of them to see him locked up, and the two youngest especially didn't need to see whatever state he might be in. "I'll go with her, maybe I can get some more information out of the guards while she checks on your dad."
'I'll go too." Kili nodded.
"No." Josephine said. "They're suspicious enough of us all, bringing one of you along will put them on the defensive. Besides," She grimaced. "The Master likes me. Maybe that'll give me some favor with the guards."
"He'll favor you right into another banquet more like." Bofur grumbled.
She grabbed her cloak off the hook and handed Sigrid's coat to her. "Well if he does, then I give you all strict orders to come and rescue me.
The weather outside was the same as it had been since they arrived, except for maybe getting even colder if that was possible. It was still only October and the ice floats were so thick they could've fooled her into thinking it was the dead of January. They were so far north it was only going to get worse as the days went on.
Sigrid walked beside her, nerves apparent in her hands which grasped the handle of the basket, but her face was stony and stern. Josephine would've liked to say something that might make her feel better but everything that came to mind was some cliche platitude that Sigrid would have no reason to believe.
The jailor's was one long building built like a bridge over one of the canals with tiny cells on either side. Bars opened to the hallway and the prisoners got the privilege of a small barred window near the top looking outside, with a thin wooden shutter that barely kept the cold out but kept every bit of the stench in.
The smell of half a dozen cells with unemptied buckets and unwashed bodies made their noses curl. The guard pointed them to the fourth cell on the right and waited at his post. Josephine put her hands on Sigrid's shoulders and guided her down, keeping an eye on the cells they passed in case a hand reached out for the basket or either of them.
Bard was in the same spot they'd probably had him in for the past two weeks. His hair was limp but his smile was bright when he saw his daughter.
"Sigrid!" He rushed to the bars of his cell. "Darling, this is no place for you to be."
"It's alright Da, Josephine came with me." She reached into the basket and passed him a roll. "Here."
He shoved half of it in his mouth and smiled gratefully.
"Have they said when they'll let you go?" Josephine asked.
Bard swallowed and shook his head. "When the Master wills it they say. But don't worry, Sigrid, he'll get bored of me soon enough. Don't let your brother and sister worry."
"There's no helping that. I almost couldn't stop them from coming with me to check on you."
"No, no I'm glad you did. They shouldn't see me in here. Are they well?"
More food passed between her basket and his hands as they talked.
"Just worried, but we're quite safe. Miss Josephine and the dwarves have been looking out for us. They even managed to fix the roof after-" She trailed off and tried to pretend she hadn't said it.
Bard frowned. "The roof? After what? Was there a leak?"
"Well, there was a leak," Josephine interrupted. "And Bofur went up to look at it and well, he fell right through onto the table. It was really our fault."
His eyes narrowed at her but he didn't press the matter, since everyone seemed okay and it was taken care of for the moment. "Well then you have my thanks." He reached out and stalled Sigrid's hand as she held out another roll. "This will be enough for now, thank you, Sigrid. Now go and give the rest to the guard, a little bribery certainly won't hurt."
"Are you sure?"
"Quite sure, darling. Now go on, and tell you brother and sister I love them."
He watched as she skirted back down the hall, waiting until she was out of ear shot and sharing the rest of the provisions with the guard before turning back to Josephine.
"Thank you for coming with her. And for looking after them. Has your friend recovered?"
"He's good as new, but we won't be able to stay forever. One way or another we'll need to get you out of here."
"Difficult to achieve when the Master's plan seems to be leaving me here to rot."
"Yeah, well…" She lowered her tone. "I'm not above breaking you out so don't give up hope just yet." With about a week left before Durin's Day, she'd be doing something.
"Why does that not surprise me? But it's a terrible idea, they'll just arrest me again. This town isn't big enough for a fugitive to hide."
"So what's your plan then? Rot? Look, if I have to I'll go talk to the Master." She'd really been trying to avoid it for the obvious reasons, but also to keep from drawing too much of his attention to them all still staying there.
"What does it matter to you when you have a dragon to battle?"
"I told you, it's not about treasure but you don't seem to listen to me. I'm not leaving your kids here without a father. If it comes down to breaking you out, I have a plan, you'll just have to trust me."
He frowned. "I suppose since I have little other choice, I'll have to."
They left the jailor's with an empty basket and no answers from the guard that could help them.
"I hate seeing him in that awful place." Sigrid confessed as they walked back. "And what if the Master never lets him go, what if he gets sick? Tilda and Bain have already lost Mother, they can't lose Da, too. How am I to become both for them?"
Josephine pulled her aside and wiped the fresh tears off Sigrid's cheeks. "You won't have to, I'll figure this out."
"How will you do that? Soon you'll leave to join your friends and we'll still be here. If the Master wants Da locked up, nothing will stop him."
The desperation on Sigrid's face just about broke Josephine's heart. She wished there was a way to console her and make her believe that one day they'd be living in Dale, the Master slinking off in disgrace while their father became King. But that was a taller tale than she could pull off even if it was safe to reveal it. So she did the only thing she could do, and tugged Sigrid into her arms and brushed back her hair. "You're not alone, Sigrid. Leave the business between your father and the Master to me. It won't be like this by the time I'm gone. I promise."