The Half Breed Ranger

Chapter 8: You Matter

"They must have come down from the Ettenmoors." Amanda said as she walked up to Gandalf and Thorin talking. She looked at the troll statues that were about to eat them not but an hour ago.

"Since when do mountain trolls venture this far south?" Thorin asked looking between the wizard and the ranger.

"Oh, not for an age, not since a darker power ruled these lands." Gandalf said looking to Amanda. She knew what he talked about, her mentor had told her stories passed down from those days.

"They could not have moved in daylight." Gandalf spoke in thought as Thorin had a thought himself.

"There must be a cave nearby." Thorin said to them, Amanda nodded and looked between them.

" Indeed, but let us rest first. We have been up all night with very little rest." Amanda said to Thorin who looked down for a moment.

"We have one hour." He told her and Amanda smiled to him. She turned around and walked back around to the others.

" We have an hours rest and time for food." Amanda told them as they cheered happily and started a fire. Bofur went to go and cook but Amanda stopped him.

" I will cook. Kili! Hand me my bag will you." She said a Kili walked over to her with her bag in hand. Bofur helped her with the pot and water.

" We don't have much, but I can make us some soup." Amanda said as she poured water into the pot. She then moved through her bag and pulled out herbs and seasoning. She then began to add them to the soup and cut up some vegetables that they had left and put them in.

" What is in your bag?" Kili asked sitting down next to her. Amanda stopped stirring the soup and looked to the black haired man with a smile.

" Herbs, ointments and healing equipment." Amanda said as she opened her brown bag and pulled out a bottle of blue liquid.

" This stops infection from wounds." Amanda said placing it on the ground. She then pulled out a bottle of green paste.

" You spread this on a wound to stop the bleeding." Amanda smiled as she saw his interest in her bottles.

" This one soothes burns." Amanda said showing him a peachy coloured paste.

" What is that?" Kili asked pointing to a bright clear red liquid held in a larger glass bottle. Amanda pulled it out and looked at it. She bounded it from hand to hand.

" This? This is a poison I am made. Never know when this would come handy." Amanda smiled putting the bottle on the ground. She reached over and began stirring the soup again. Kili saw a bottle in her bag that did not contain liquid or paste. He reached over and lifted it out from the bag seeing that there was three small round ball like diamonds.

" What are these?" Kili asked looking at the gems. Amanda smiled at his face and chuckled.

" Those are Phoenix tears. They took me three years too find." Amanda said as he examined them from inside the bottle.

" Phoenix tears? I thought them of in legends." Kili looked to her amazed.

" As did I, but I fell upon a book that hinted to their location." Amanda smiled remembering the trail she had in tracking them down.

" What healing abilities do they have?" Kili asked handing the bottle to Amanda as she in turn looked at them with a sigh.

" Well, they require a tear to bring them back to their right state. Let's say you have been injured. If I add my tear to one of these and make you drink it, your injuries with be passed to me." Amanda told him in the most understandable way possible. Kili scolded and looked down.

" Why would you want such a thing?" Kili said uneasy. Amanda smiled at him knowing he wanted nothing to happen to her.

" You never know when they may come in handy. Just one is worth more than most of the gold in Erebor." Amanda said putting them back into her bag along with the other bottles.

" Amanda promise me that you will never use them. Not even if it mean saving my life." Kili pleaded placing a hand on her cheek so she would look at him.

" I cannot see you hurt." He whispered to her with a pained voice.

" That is a promise... That I cannot make." Amanda said quietly to him. Kili opened his mouth to speak but was cut off all too soon.

" Is breakfast ready yet?" Bofur called out to the pair. Amanda sighed and smiled gently looking to Bofur. She stirred the pot and nodded.

" Indeed it is." Amanda smiled and stood up to pour everyone their portion of the soup. Bofur got his bowl first and took a sip; his face lit up at the taste.

" This is amazing! You have to teach me it." Bofur told her and drank his soup like it would sprout legs and run away. Amanda chuckled as everyone agreed and began to finished their soup.

" Finish up... We leave in five minutes." Thorin instructed them all and walked over to Gandalf. The company cleaned up fairly quickly and soon were looking for the troll cave.

" Over here!" Fili called as everyone rushed over to his position. There it was, the troll cave was large and smelt really bad. Amanda stuck her nose up at it and turned her back.

" Amanda are you coming?" Thorin asked her but she shook her head.

" No, I rather not smell like trolls. I have already been there." Amanda said stepping back and walking around the cave. Amanda jumped upon a high rock and stood looking out over the forest. Sighing she sat down and looked to the leaf above her.

" Amanda." Kili's voice called behind her. Amanda turned her head gently too look at him with a soft smile.

" Kili, come." She told him patting the spot next to her. Kili sighed and sat down moving himself as close as he could to her. The parts of him that touch her sparked with heat and tingles.

" Amanda... Please do not use those tears." Kili begged her not looking in her directions.

" Why do you care so much?" Amanda asked him looking to his face as he turned his head. They looked into each other's eyes.

" Because I do not want you hurt. You matter to me Amanda." Kili said as he turned his whole body to face her as he placed a hand onto her cheek.

" If anything was to happen to you, I could never forgive myself." Kili said staring into her eyes, showing he was not lying. Amanda felt her heartbeat racing as his large warm thumb caressed her cheek. His words sounded gently in her ears.

" Amanda I..." Kili began as he moved his head forward closer to her.

" Kili! Amanda! Come down! We're leaving!" Thorin call up to them. Kili sighed and looked down; backing away from her reluctantly. Amanda stood up with a heavy sigh.

" I am sorry Kili. But I cannot promise I will not risk my life for yours. Because like you, you matter a lot to me." Amanda said before turning and walking back to the others. Kili sat there stunned at her words. He mattered to her. Only one thought ran through his mind and he was now sure of it.

She loved him and he loved her.