A/N: Apologies for the late upload once again; I ended up straining my eyes while rereading some old, original stories of mine I found when looking something up for this chapter, so I had to just chill and not do any writing for a day or two 😂
Anyway, time for some notes! Firstly: This is the last chapter before Baylee, Ori, and Fili (and Ran) head off to Laketown! About time, huh?
Secondly: The little song at the end of this chapter is actually a real song called 'Beyond Dreams and Spirits' and it's sung by James Nesbitt (Bofur's actor) in a different movie of his! I only changed one line of it to suit a certain lass~
Warren let out a quiet sigh as he looked down at the bandaged stump that was once his elbow, his brows somewhat furrowed. He had heard from friends who were amputees that it could take months to get used to the missing limb, leaving him to wonder if it would take him that long—or possibly even longer. They had also told him about the phantom sensations they would get; aches and pains were most common, though a couple of them mostly suffered from phantom itchiness.
He would much rather have phantom pain than phantom itching.
There was a gentle knock on the door and a few seconds later, it opened up. A tired smile came to his lips when he saw his daughter poke her head in. She looked more than a little relieved to find him awake and alert.
"How're you doing, papa?" she asked, pushing the door all the way open. She carried with her a bowl of something as she came fully into the room. He couldn't help but notice how she had stopped halfway to his bedside, diverting herself to go left instead of right.
"I'm doin' alright, lass," he told her as she put the bowl on the nightstand. "Still tired an' sore, but it seems I'll be that way for a while." He grunted as he pushed himself upright a bit, earning a small, scolding pout from Baylee.
"Let me know next time you need t' move, papa," she told him, standing on her tiptoes as she leaned over to help adjust the pillows behind him. "It's only been a day; you're still a wee bit weak."
An amused look came to his face as he was scolded. "As true as that is, love, I'm afraid you wouldn't be o' much help when it comes t' sittin' me up. You're much too small." He nearly burst out laughing when she put her hands on her hips, the pout growing in size.
"That doesn't mean I couldn't go fetch someone t' help," she stated. Then, shaking her head, she sighed and picked up the bowl again, handing it over to him. "Uncle told me to give you this. It's your medicine."
Still chuckling, he took the bowl from her. "Thank you." Before taking a drink of the medicine, he sniffed it first only for his expression to turn into one of disgust.
"Uncle says it smells worse than it tastes," she told him. She went over to the corner of the room, grabbing the stool that sat there.
"Oh, I'm sure it does," he murmured sarcastically. He shook his head before taking a drink of the medicine.
As she brought the stool over to his bedside, Baylee couldn't help but giggle at Warren's look of disgust. "Somethin' tells me he didn't use nearly enough peppermint t' cover the flavors o' the other herbs."
"Not even close," he wheezed. Despite the horrid taste in his mouth, he put the bowl to his lips again and drank the rest of its contents in just two gulps. When he was finished, he stuck his tongue out and thrust his arm out in a silent plea for her to get the bowl away from him.
"I'll be sure t' tell him t' add more in the next batch." As she looked at her father, she did her best to not stare at his bandaged arm—it was hard, though, and she made herself look at the painting hanging on the wall across from her instead.
It was a portrait of their family, painted sometime after her and Will's sixteenth birthday. The artist had done an amazing job in capturing their likenesses: Just like in real life, the painting version of her looked as if she could be Éolynna's twin, just with ashy hair and half a foot shorter. Parts of it were charred and damaged by smoke, but, miraculously, the majority of it had gone unscathed in the razing of Laketown.
'I should show Ori that painting one day,' she thought to herself. 'It would be nice for him to see what she looked like in life instead of as a statue.'
"Are you all ready for tomorrow?" Warren asked, interrupting her thoughts.
"Hm? Oh, aye, I'm as ready as I can be." She quietly chuckled, tucking some hair behind her ear. "I've got my things packed up in my saddlebags an' my spear ready. I'm not so sure Buttercup is goin' t' appreciate the early wakeup, though."
He softly laughed, his brow rising a bit. "I'm sure she'll manage. It's not like the lot o' you will be doin' much hard riding—especially since you'll have ponies in the group."
She nodded in agreement, smiling. "And I'm sure we'll be taking plenty o' breaks along the way, givin' her time t' graze a bit."
"If I'm not awake when you come t' say goodbye, I want you t' wake me up, alright?" he then told her. "No matter how peacefully or deeply I'm sleepin'. I want t' be sure to send you off with a hug."
"You don't have t' worry about that, papa," she assured him. "Once I'm all dressed, you'll be the first person I say goodbye to." She knew he was worried about her; this would be the first time she'd be traveling without a family member present. But she would have friends with her and, should anything happen, the group would be well defended.
He nodded slowly, letting his eyes close for a moment. "Who's runnin' the counter right now?"
"Will is. He told me t' take the rest o' the day off so I can be well rested an' relaxed for tomorrow."
"That's sweet o' him…though, I'm sure he has the ulterior motive o' bein' closer to Adela while he's here."
She snorted. "Aye, I kind o' figured that's his ultimate goal," she laughed. "Although, he clearly didn't think it all the way through, since Adela works in the kitchen an' not out on the floor."
Warren managed to shake his head somewhat, tired amusement on his face. "That lad is about as smitten with Adela as I was with your mother," he chuckled. "I bet there're a few young men in the city are jealous o' him now that it's public knowledge he's the one courtin' her."
"Oh, more than just few, I'm sure. With Adela being the loveliest woman in the city, I'd reckon the majority o' single blokes are jealous of Will." Shifting on the stool, she crossed one leg over the other. "I wouldn't doubt it if they're married before the year's over."
"I have t' agree with you on that, love. T' be honest, I'm surprised they didn't run off an' get married in secret before all this nonsense with Mannus happened."
"I'm sure they were tempted to," she half-joked. She then blinked as her father pointed a finger at her.
"Now don't you go thinkin' about runnin' off t' marry Bofur, young lady," he scolded, though he was having difficulties hiding the jest from his voice.
Her cheeks reddened and she blew a raspberry at him. "I'll have you know, we haven't even talked about that sort o' stuff," she told him, crossing her arms. A sigh then left her mouth. "Truth be told, between him an' Bifur gettin' the last touches o' the shop finished up an' me having t' run the counter most o' the day, we haven't had much time t' talk at all, lately. We did get a wee bit o' conversation in yesterday while you—while you were in surgery, but it wasn't very much."
He gave her a pitying look; though she hid it well, he knew that Baylee wished she and Bofur didn't have to be secretive with their relationship. But he also knew that Rán wasn't the only person she was hiding it from: Demelza had been quite vocal in her support of Baylee courting the ranger.
With a small wince, he reached over and set his hand on her knee. "When you come back from Laketown, the Urs will have gotten settled an' used t' runnin' their new shop," he told her, "an' Rán will have—hopefully—given up on romantically pursuing you. That'll give you plenty o' chances t' spend time with your toymaker."
Once more, her cheeks flushed a bit. "I can only hope," she said with a small laugh. She watched as Warren yawned and a pitying smile came to her lips; though he was doing his best to hide it, he looked exhausted. "I should let you get some more rest."
He was about to tell her that no, he was fine, but he ended up yawning a second time. "Aye, that's probably a good idea," he sighed in defeat. "The more rest I get, the quicker I'll heal an' get t' being back on my feet. The quicker I'm back on my feet, the quicker I can get started workin' on some sort o' prosthetic for this stump."
As she stood up, Baylee cocked her brow in amusement at him. "Maybe you'll get an idea for one in your dreams," she joked, carrying the stool back to the corner. "Just don't push yourself too much when uncle lets you out o' bed, alright, papa?"
"I can't make any promises, but I'll do my best," he told her before yawning for a third time. A tired laugh left his mouth when he watched Baylee cover her mouth as she yawned. "Looks like you might be catchin' a case o' the yawns now."
"Even more reason for me t' let you rest," she replied, her tone amused. Standing on her tiptoes once more, Baylee leaned over and carefully gave her father a hug before taking her leave. A quiet sigh left her mouth as she closed the bedroom door behind her and she leaned against the wall for a moment.
'I don't like seeing him that tired and weak,' she thought, 'but even after just a day, his color is better and he doesn't seem to be in quite as much pain. Thankfully, this means he can finally start to actually heal up.'
She ran a hand through her hair before crossing the hall and entering her own room. It was strange for her, having nothing to do. As much as she wanted to go out front and help Wenna and the Lightfoots with the guests, she knew that someone would scold her for working when she had been given the afternoon and evening off.
'I really need to find some sort of hobby that isn't going for a ride or finding chores I can help out with around the inn,' she thought. Going over to her window, she undid the lock before sliding it open. A tender smile came to her lips when, as she rested her arms on the sill and leaned out a bit, she was greeted by the sight of her dwarf sunflowers. 'These little fellows are so cute…'
Letting her fingertips brush against the petals of one, she let out another sigh and lifted her gaze, looking out over the city. She couldn't see too much of it from her window, but the parts she could see seemed to be bustling that day.
'Doesn't surprise me. It'll be the busy season soon and Dale will be filled with all kinds of people. I can only hope that Will and the lasses will be able to keep up with it all…'
A bit of guilt started to fill her stomach, making it feel heavy and causing her to frown. 'Don't you go starting to feel guilty, Baylee,' she scolded herself. She rested her chin in her palm while she continued to run her other hand over the soft flower petals. 'Uncle needs to stay here to look after papa, so you're the only one who can make the journey down to Laketown for his medicinal supplies…'
Closing her eyes and furrowing her brows in concentration, she started to recall the various items Richard had shown her to get. Powdered and whole mugwort, two or three bundles of dried fish skins, poppy elixir, tansy tinctures…And those were only a few of the things she would need to get for him.
'I might have to get a cart to bring everything back for him,' she thought with a small chuckle. Pulling away from the window, she moved to leave her room, heading back out to the common area.
Will was still behind the bar, chatting with a few of his friends. She gave them a friendly smile and wave as she stepped behind the counter to grab herself a mug and some cider. As she filled her mug with the drink, she looked over her shoulder to see how full the room was. From her quick glimpse, she found it fairly empty, but when she glanced over her other shoulder, she was taken by surprise.
Sitting with his back to the room, Bard was sitting at a corner table by himself, a bowl of food in front of him. Her head tilted slightly in confusion; normally when the king was at the inn, the place was filled with people.
'I suppose it's because he's sitting with his back to everyone that no one's noticing him,' she thought. 'Well, I'll see if he won't mind a bit of company…' She quietly chuckled to herself as she closed the tap and started to make her way across the room.
"Trying t' blend in with the common folk, are you?" she questioned, coming around the table and setting her tankard down.
Having not heard her approach, Bard jumped slightly, his eyes wide in surprise. Seeing that it was just his friend, however, he let out a small laugh, his brow rising. "I forgot how you're able t' be as sneaky as a mouse, lass," he said, watching as she sat down across from him.
"And t' think, I wasn't even tryin' t' be sneaky," she chuckled. Taking a drink of her cider, she tucked some hair behind her ear. "Speakin' o' being sneaky, how did you manage t' get settled here without attracting a crowd?"
Sitting upright, Bard gestured at his torso; Baylee could see that he was wearing his old, somewhat ratty jacket that he had had since before Laketown's destruction. "People have gotten used to seeing me in finer clothes," he explained, "so when I wear this old thing, I blend in better." Picking up his spoon, he took a bite of his meal.
"An' sittin' with your back t' everyone also keeps people from seein' your face." She took a drink of her cider, an amused smile still on her lips. "I take it you needed t' get away from the palace for a wee bit?"
Having just taken another bite, he nodded. After chewing and swallowing, he replied, "Aye—though, I do have a bit o' an ulterior motive for comin' here."
"Is it t' get some o' Adela's hand pies?"
His brow rose in amusement. "No, but thank you for remindin' me about those. I actually came here because I wanted t' talk with you, but Will said you were giving Warren his medicine."
She nodded. "Aye. Will's told you what happened, I'm sure?"
"Yes. A shame about the amputation…but your da' is strong. Missin' half an arm won't slow him down once he's back on his feet."
"Aye, that's true," she smiled. "So, what did you need t' talk with me about?"
At that, he let out a sigh which, in turn, made her smile falter. "I've already discussed this with Will, but since it concerns you, I thought it best t' talk with you about it, too," he began. "Now that we know Mannus is, more than likely, still alive, I want you t' be on your highest guard when you get down to Laketown." When Baylee opened her mouth to say something, he held his hand up, stopping her. "I know you'll be traveling with soldiers and rangers an' Ori, but we both know how crafty Mannus can be—an' if not him, then his friends down in Laketown. Because o' that, I'm going t' be sending a letter with you." Reaching inside his coat, he pulled out an envelope closed with his royal seal. "I want you t' give this t' Lovisa."
"I'm guessin' its contents are detailing what happened with the Flyin' Hen?" Leaning forward, she plucked up the letter and tucked it into her apron pocket.
"As well as instructions t' keep her eye on you."
Baylee couldn't help but snort at that. "Bard, you know how Lovisa is. You don't need t' send her a letter askin' her to do that."
"Aye, I know," he chuckled, allowing a bit of amusement to come to his face. It faded quickly, however, and was replaced by seriousness once more. "But with the destruction o' the Flying Hen, Mannus has shown not only his craftiness, but also his disregard for the lives of others. I have no doubt he'll go t' great lengths t' try and get his hands on you."
She let out a quiet sigh, her eyes closing for a moment. "Sounds like I may want t' bring more than my spear with me—just in case."
"It wouldn't hurt to keep a knife on your person," he agreed. "I know that's not something you'd like doin', but with how small you are, having some sort o' concealed weapon with you would be a good idea."
"Alright," she said, her tone defeated. "I'll dig out one o' my knives tonight before I go to bed."
Nodding in understanding, Bard finally took another bite of his food. "We can only hope that Mannus doesn't try anything to get ahold of you, but as I said, he has little regard for the lives of other people these days."
"Aye, that's true…" She thought back to just a couple of weeks ago when she confronted the man about throwing his own daughter out into the street. The way he had looked down at her with that mixture of lust and amusement in his eyes made her shudder in disgust. "Is that all you needed t' talk with me about?"
"I have one more thing I'd like to talk about—one that's slightly less worrisome." He scraped up the last bit of stew from the bowl before setting it aside. "Has Will told you about the house he wants t' buy for him and Adela?"
"An' how it'll cost him an arm an' a leg? Aye, he has." She let out another small sigh. "Seven hundred ducats is a lot, especially with how much repair work it'll need."
"Aye, it is…I offered t' have Reginald lower the price, but your brother refused. Rightly so, however. A fair ruler doesn't play favorites—at least, not often. And given that I already gave your family the inn an' the buildin' next door…"
She nodded in understanding. "That's true. I did manage t' give him some money, though. I told him it was an early birthday present an' that he can't refuse it if it was given to him by his big sister."
He quietly laughed, his brow rising. "How much did you give him, if you don't mind my asking?" Picking up his own mug, he moved to take a drink.
"Around one hundred ducats."
His eyes widened and he nearly choked on his ale. "You just gave him that much?" he asked, shocked.
"Aye, I did." Shrugging, she added, "I wasn't going t' use it, so why not give it t' him to be put to better use?"
"You don't happen t' know how much he has now, do you…?"
"I think around two-hundred twenty? He'll be gettin' paid by Bofur an' Bifur tomorrow, so that'll bump it up a bit."
He nodded and closed his eyes for a moment, silently thinking over a few things. As he stayed quiet, Baylee took a drink of her cider and glanced towards the door as it opened. She perked slightly when she watched Bofur step in; Bifur didn't follow, making her wonder if he was still back at the shop or if he was elsewhere in town. When he looked in her direction, she smiled and waved, her stomach fluttering slightly when she saw a bit of a goofy smile come to his lips.
'I'm going to go change, but I'll be back down shortly,' he signed to her.
'Take your time. I'm not going anywhere.' She watched as he grinned broadly and made his way over to the stairs.
"Who will be taking their time doing what?"
Blinking, she looked at Bard to find his brow raised in amusement as he looked at her; her cheeks pinkened slightly. "O-oh, just Bofur. He was tellin' me that he needed t' go change his clothes, but he'd be right back." She took another drink of cider before asking, "So why did you go all silent just now?" she then asked, changing the subject.
"I was trying to come up with a way t' help your brother get the rest o' the money he needs," he explained, sighing. "I don't think he'd be willing t' take on any commissions until you got back, though, an' that wouldn't leave him much time…"
"No, it wouldn't," she agreed with a sigh. "He was thinkin' about possibly carving some statuettes an' sellin' them while he's stuck here all day, but he's not too sure how well they'd sell."
"Given how well he carves? I think he'd be able t' sell a fair amount o' them." Glancing over his shoulder, he could see that Will was refilling some tankards. "The main issue is supply an' demand." He picked up his own tankard and drained the rest of its contents in one gulp.
"Aye, that's true. We wouldn't want him losin' money on buyin' the wood he'd need." Lightly shaking her head, she looked down into her own mug to find it nearly empty. "I need t' refill my drink—would you like me t' refill yours while I'm at it?"
His brow rose slightly in amusement. "I thought you were off o' work the rest o' the day?" Despite his jesting words, he held his tankard up to her.
She pouted as she took the vessel from him. "Just because I'm offerin' t' refill your drink doesn't mean I'm workin', you know. Now, what were you drinkin'?"
"Ale. An' thank you."
Blowing a small, playful raspberry at him, she headed to the bar. By the time she had refilled both tankards, Bofur was coming back down the stairs; as such, she grabbed a third tankard and filled it up with beer.
He wore a grin as he came over to the bar and his brows rose in surprise when she slid the mug across the counter to him. "How'd you know I was goin' t' ask you for a drink?" he asked. Picking it up, he took a small drink.
"Guess I'm finally learnin' your habits is all," she teased. "I need t' take this ale over t' Bard, so feel free t' have a seat an' I'll join you in a minute."
"Actually…" He glanced over at Will, finding him distracted by his friends. Regardless, he cleared his throat and, quieting his voice slightly, he asked, "Actually…I was wonderin' if we could go up to the second-floor balcony?"
Her cheeks turned a bit red, but she nodded and smiled. "We can," she told him. "Why don't you head on up there while I take Bard his ale?"
"Sounds good to me," he chirped. "Would you like me t' bring your tankard up with me?"
"That's sweet o' you t' offer, but I've got it," she chuckled.
"Alright. See you in a few minutes, then." He gave her a smile before turning and heading for the stairs.
Soon enough, he was taking a seat at the little table on the balcony, both his tankard and his hat resting on the tabletop. He closed his eyes as a gentle breeze wafted by, enjoying its coolness compared to the still warmth of the spring day.
'I'll have to be sure to work a bit harder tomorrow to make up for leaving early today,' he told himself. Leaning back in the chair, he let out a small sigh. 'Thankfully, there's not much left to do. Everything's falling into place quite nicely. With luck, that means opening the shop will go smoothly. I don't want to get too optimistic, though, lest something happen…'
His eyes shot open in surprise when he felt a pair of arms slip over his shoulders from behind and a pair of lips press against his cheek. Turning his head, he grinned broadly when he found himself looking into the green of Baylee's eyes. "Well, aren't you the sneaky one?" he chuckled.
"Evidently," she quietly laughed. "I was able t' sneak up on Bard earlier, too. Not in this same fashion, o' course." Giving his cheek another kiss, she pulled away so she could bring the other chair to sit beside him.
"I would hope not," he snorted, brow rising. Once she was situated beside him, he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and nuzzled her cheek with his nose. "How's your day been, âzying?"
Her head tilted slightly at the dwarven word he had used. "It's been nice an' uneventful. Visited with papa for a wee bit when I had t' take him his medicine…" Closing her eyes, she rested her head against his shoulder. "What does 'âzying' mean, by the way?"
"'Flower o' my heart'," he answered with a small chuckle. "I thought it'd be a good pet-name for you."
Her cheeks turned a bit pink, but she laughed. "I think it sounds cute."
"Well, that's quite a relief." Smiling, he tilted his head back and closed his eyes as well.
"How has your day been?"
"It was busy for a wee bit, but that's t' be expected at this point in the construction." Reaching over, he plucked up his beer and took a gulp from it. "I decided t' slip out a wee bit early, though, so I could come spend some time with you before you have t' leave tomorrow."
She looked up at him, a smile on her lips. "I thought that might've been the reason." Copying him, she grabbed her cider and took a drink of it.
He nodded. "Aye. An' I'm goin' t' have t' make good use o' this cuddling time, because I know that prat is goin' t' try his damnedest t' win you over while you're gone."
Amused, she raised her brow and she set the tankard down. "Then it's a good thing you've already done that, isn't it?" When he turned his head to look at her, she leaned forward and pressed her lips against his.
Bofur smiled into the kiss, letting his eyes drift shut as he returned the gesture. After setting his mug back on the table, he reached over and gently cupped her cheek in his palm. When the kiss ended, he kept his hand there and rested his forehead against hers. "I'm goin' t' miss you."
"An' I'm goin' t' miss you." Though there was a smile on her lips, he could see a bit of sadness come to her eyes. "But I'll only be gone a month. I'll be back before you know it." Her hand rose up and came to rest overtop his, keeping it in place against her cheek for a moment longer.
He quietly laughed. "Aye, I know you will—even if it will feel like you've been gone for far longer." When Baylee finally let go of his hand, he kissed her forehead before sighing in content. She rested her head against his shoulder again and he started to run his fingers through her hair.
The two of them sat in silence for some time, content in each other's presence. Unlike with Rán, who enjoyed conversation quite a bit, Baylee knew she could just sit there—merely existing—and Bofur would be as happy as ever.
It was comforting.
After some time passed, Bofur began to softly hum. In combination with the warm air and the way he was playing with her hair, it almost made Baylee start to drift off to sleep. The humming only lasted a few minutes, however, as he began to quietly sing instead.
If I had money enough to spend
And leisure time to sit awhile
There is a fair maid in this town
That surely has me heart beguiled.
Her freckled cheeks and emerald eyes
I own my heart she has enthralled
So gently rise and softly fall
Goodnight and joy be to you all.
Baylee felt her cheeks grow warm as he sang the second verse; she had a strong feeling he had changed the lyrics to suit her facial features. She glanced up at his face and, upon seeing the small, mischievous smile on his lips, she knew that that was exactly what had happened.