CHAPTER 27

Kidhuzel cowers beneath Dwalin's cloak for what feels like hours to the youth. It is awkward and they both trip regularly but she does not vacate her spot and he does not attempt to compel her to do so either. The path is clear, for now, and her actions have little affect on that. For this reason, Thorin does not deem it necessary to correct her. It is not until the pattering of rain ceases that she peeks out once more. When she is sure that the sky shall no longer empty itself onto her, she stretches her limbs, looks about and trots on as though she hadn't been clinging to her assigned male for the better part of the afternoon. Dwalin says nothing of it all; finding more than an ounce of satisfaction at having the she-demon under his thumb for a change.

Ori though... he finds it curiously endearing. A romantic at heart, though he'd loath for either of his brothers to hear of it, he can not help but smile softly at the unlikely duo. To think that Dwalin, of all people, would have a One! To think, of all people, his One would be part dragon! It is honestly an amazing match that the dwarrow looks forward to seeing grow. Yes, it is terrifying but its just as amazing and he's curious to see how it all turns out. That, along with the need to ease his mind concerning the enchanting forest, peaks his interest and loosens his tongue.

"M... Miss?" the dam tilts her head curiously in his direction, though she does not look or answer his call "May I ask y-you-"

"What sort of question would you need to ask?" his eldest brother interrupts immediately, causing the youngster to sigh through his nose "Whatever it is, you can ask Master Dwalin instead."

"M-master Dwalin? But-"

"Come now! Leave the lad alone, Dori. She won't hurt him any." looking over at the girl, Bofur chuckles nervously "Well... Not without Thorin's say so at least..."

"Hm. I just do not believe he needs to be engaging with... her."

"Oh aye? And why is that?"

"Well... Dwalin is her One. Let HIM deal with her."

"Oh! Aye! Yes, that is true! Just to be certain though... it's nothin' to do with her bein' part drake then?"

Placing his hands behind his head, Bofur grins ear to ear, enjoying the tease of it. While he has no interest at all in assimilating Kidhuzel into the group, the miner has always had a soft spot for Ori's quest for knowledge. He'd met the brothers years ago but spent most of his days getting into trouble with the middle Ri. It wasn't until he was lost, looking for library, of all things, that he really got to know the youngest brother. Ori had helped him find the library and the correct book. Bofur kept a closer eye on him, from a distance, ever since. Though... he never allows himself to think too much about why. He never said as much but Bofur is sure Nori would never allow it. He settles for sticking up for the lad whenever possible. Messing with Dori has always been great fun too and the miner hardly needs a drake as a reason but it helps. Nori catches on and offers a tease of hi own

"Oi Dori. If you're scared just say so."

"I am NOT afraid-"

"Then let the lad ask his question?"

"... FINE." turning to his brother, Dori gestures in annoyance at the girl "Ask her your burning question."

"Does... Does the rain b-b-bother you?"

"Hahaha!" Nori cannot help but to let out a laugh "Really, brother?"

"... Well..."

"You have the chance to speak to a dragon kin and that is your question?" his middle brother laughs again good naturedly "What weather she likes?"

"Don't be so quick to judge, Nori." Bofur clears his throat, amused as well "It is just a question."

"One I can answer. Clearly she is bothered, Ori." Dori says with a huff to cover his own laughter, not waiting for the girl to respond. Hefting his pack higher onto his back, he grunts at Dwalin's back with a nod "She's hid from it since she was spawned."

"She's a dragon... hm... partly, after all." Bofur chirps in agreement "Bein' wary of water only seems natural. What with the fire an' all. I imagine its probably not very pleasant, aye miss?"

"..." The company has never attempted to speak with El and she finds that she does not know quite how to respond to their chatter. She would not suffer under their scrutiny but their conversation? She has never desired that and does not know what to do. Her eyes flick to her bearer and he thankfully gifts her with the tiniest of nods, providing direction "No. It is not pleasant."

"See there, lad! From the dragon's mouth. Unpleasant."

"I... I don't see... actually." thumbing his sweater, Ori takes a deep breath before nodding to himself and pulling out his notebook. Moving a little faster to move out from the safety of his brothers and closer to El, he walks beside the girl. Bofur is pleased. Nori is impressed. Dori huffs "Your flame is c-cold. Ice. Not fire."

"..."

"Ice is frozen water... Why w-would water be u-u-unpleasant for you? I do not understand."

"..."

"Its j-j-j-just that you seem so uncomfortable with it but... also use it? I was curious if it was instinct! Or... um... preference? When it rains, you always look like you're in... pain."

The word falls out of his mouth before he can catch then. Pain. That's right. When touched by rain water her face would morph not in annoyance or fear but pain. He'd been wanting to ask the creature so many questions but there was always a plethora of good reasons not to do so. Recently though, those reasons have grown smaller and weaker and his curiosity overshadows them in comparison. Even as he pulls out a transport quill, Ori does not expect El to answer him but he must try. For her part, El eyes the dwarrow in surprise but is not angered by hiis questions. She knew he watched, they all do to some degree, but this was different. Thus far she'd given very little thought to the wollen-clad warrior; lumping him together with the other unimportant members of the group. Yet his simple question is quite brave for his temperament and she deems it worthy of a response. Ori is both petrified and thrilled when her golden eyes turn to him with a response on her black tongue.

"The rain... It does not hurt my body but... it hurts... no... saddens perhaps? I do not have a name for the feeling but my soul strongly dislikes the chill of it."

"Your soul?" Of course, it is not a complete shock that she has a soul. She is Dwalin's One afterall. By default she must have a semblance of a soul to share with him. Hearing her speak of it being pained enough to adjust her physical needs pulls the direct attention of the rest of the company to the conversation "Your soul... is pained by... r-rain?"

"It would seem so."

"... Ah!" thumping his fist into the palm of his hand, Bofur grins as he comes to a conclusion "Because yer part drake. A dragon's soul must be as wary as the body."

"You are mistaken. My soul is wholly of a dwarvish make."

"Ha!" rolling his eyes, Kili sneers at the duo from the edge of the group. He'd been listening quietly but could not contain his disbelief "A dwarvish soul? How could that be? I wouldn't be surprised if your soul was more drake than dwarf but wholly? No. I do not believe that for a second."

"... Are you not aware?"

"Miss?"

"Before dragons being what they are, they were spiritual essences, not physical beings. Once corrupted, they became drakes. As such, they do not have souls."

"Wha..."

"I have a dragon's essence and a dwarf's soul. Neither can be split from the other. If you understand that much, then understand that I cannot house a dwarvish essence or a dragon's soul as those two do not exist in that manner." rolling her eyes and dismissing the youngest Durin, the dam directs her attention to the trees above "It would be the foolish one to suggest such a thing."

"O-Oi!"

"I h-have another question then." not enjoying appearing to be foolish, Kili catches up to the two with Fili in tow as Ori forges forward. His quill streaks across the page in earnest "If you have both, where... hm... where does the soul reside? How are they kept separate?"

"Separate?"

"Yes? They cannot e-exist in the same place, surely."

"Again, you are mistaken."

"Explain." Golden eyes peer into his and he falters "P-p-p-p-please."

"... Before I had thoughts but when I had existence, I understood my soul to exist within the spiritual confines of my dragon's essence." pressing a claw to her mouth, El attempts to put words to a knowing she had before she had a mind to create memory "Similar to... breath within lungs... words in a book... no...these are not quite right to describe it..."

"Trapped." from the back of the group, Nori somberly calls out the word. Bofur stumbles beside him and pauses, looking at him in confusion but he continues with a dark look "The word you're looking for is trapped."

"Hm..." swirling the word around in her mind, the half-drake finds that it does in fact meet the need "Yes. I suppose that is one way to look upon the situation. I do believe 'trapped' or 'contained' could be an acceptable word."

"A...An ACCEPTABLE word?" the thief's face scrunches up in an angry revolution. He spits on the ground while shaking his head "You have a dwarvish soul that is trapped within the confines of your dragon's darkness. There is NO acceptable word."

"...The acceptable word would be 'trapped'. However, it appears you find it unsettling. A phrase then: A bird within a cage. That works as well."

"M-miss?" it is Ori again who redirects the conversation. He can feel his brother's ire rising and he does not desire to lose this opportunity for knowledge. The half-dwarf turns her attention to him once more, not at all bothered by the disquiet she is causing "The rain? I am still conf-f-fused. Why would rain bother a d-dwarf?"

"I cannot say for certain, however I believe it was the 3 millenia trapped in that lake."

"Lake?"

"Where my father found you." It is the first sentence Thorin has spoken since the conversation began and it is not a question. He remembers when his father found the ring gem. He remembers the secluded lake and the icy chill of the water. To have spent a day alone would have been enough to drive one mad. He frowns at the knowledge, not liking how his chest pinches at the knowledge the girl provides. Ori fears that he will end the session here and now, but to his surprise, the monarch appears almost curious "Continue, Kidhuzel."

"Alright. My draconic lifeforce sustained my dwarvish soul for much longer than it was meant to endure... In conditions neither were meant to exist in. According to my research, he only dragon in that part of Arda around the time my soul was created was Anaconogolan the Black. My abilities seem to mirror his, which supports that claim though when or how I was conceived I am unsure."

"If the stories are a fraction of the truth..." softly stroking his beard, Balin hums to himself "His death was over 3000 years ago."

"Goodness." Bilbo shutters at the thought. Having heard the name only in night stories before, he fears "Dwarves... Surely... They do not live that long, do they?"

"No. I cannot be certain but my soul has been stretched for about that length. The majority of it was spent at the bottom of the lake. My mind was not yet formed but my soul was attached to the half formed version of myself and it... hm... It felt."

"Felt?" the hobbit, now inching closer, asks "Felt... what?"

"All."

It is Dwalin who answers. He grits his teeth hard enough for Thorin to hear them creak. When he reached for El's soul at Beorn's he'd been hit with so much emotion, he'd nearly lost his way without even moving. The soul connected to his own is so stretched thin that it has all but shattered. Kidhuzel's consciousness had been born from the wreckage but she knew nothing better. The screaming agony of the beings at her core are no different than a bird's song to her but for Dwalin... He recognizes the pain for what it is and aches for his soulmate in a way she cannot do for herself.

"Cold. Wet." Alone, she does not say, but it is true. There is nothing she fears more than being alone "I do not like those things. As such, I do not like the rain. It makes my soul remember."

Ori has no response for the admission, nor does anyone else in the company. Only collective sadness. No one was prepared for such a heavy answer to such a mundane topic. The youth feels saddened for having broached the subject but enthralled by it nonetheless. To think that at her core, is a tortured dwarrow, one that may very well never be set free, is pure madness. How long would it last until the dragon overtook it? Her soul may be Dwarvish but is she anymore? Was she ever?

El has already moved on, peering once more into the trees above them. To her, the dwarven soul is her heart and the dragon spirit is her blood. She can differentiate between the two but she needs both to live. There is little she can do to make either side more comfortable and does not wish to waste energy making accommodations for either. Her dwarvish soul weeps in the rain. Her dragon spirit rages against walking the earth. It is her way. Although El moves on quickly from it all, the others falter and remain on the worrisome topic. It is Bombur who speaks, finally breaking the silence.

"Is there... Is there nothing we can do?"

"Concerning the rain?"

"Ah, no." Fili sighs, pulling his pouting brother along "Concerning your trapped soul."

"Ah, no." she echos, quite liking the sound "The lot was cast on this pairing long before any of you were born."

"So we are to leave her trapped then?"

"For lack of a better word, yes."

"B-but t that's awful! Surely w-w-we must do something!"

"... Your afront is confusing. I cannot separate myself from myself, therefore you cannot 'save' this idea of 'her'. While not all aspects of my being fit perfectly together, they all collectively create the being that is myself."

"But..."

"You cannot save me from myself."

"Kidhuzel."

Feeling the rising agitation from the group, the king ends the conversation and calls for the wayward girl. Immediately turning towards her bearer, the being flutters back to the front of the group. The king eyes her cautiously and for a moment she thinks he may chastise her but he does not. The moment is gone and she forgets it, simply happy in his prceence. Quite a few of the company find the idea of a dwarf being trapped by a dragon distressing. No dwarf could hear such a tale and not envision a poor dam imprisoned by the suffocaing darkness of a drake. Given their journey, quite a few take the knowledge to be unacceptable. Yet, Kidhuzel is right. They can not pull her soul from her body. It also reopens the topic on how El has been treated thus far. If her soul can be distressed separately from her dragon's essence, then would it be hurt by the treatment she's received by her 'kin'? Is there a way to seperate the two without evicting the soul? If not, can the soul be soothed? These questions circulate the group until Thorin has enough and demands silence.

"Quiet! Concentrate on keeping on the path. All else can wait!"

"Aye..."

"Kidhuzel."

"Yes?"

"When we break, you will tell me more of your soul's plight. Until then... Speak no more of it. For now, fly above the trees and scout for any danger. Keep out of sight."

"Alright!"