Curse of the East (Fili/The Hobbit Fanfiction)

Chapter 8 - Final Farewells

I awoke the next morning to Fili shaking me quite hard, and it took a massive amount of restraint on my part not to throw a punch at his exposed jaw. I sat up quickly, rubbing the sleep from my eyes as he took a single step back; another of his aggravating smirks plastered on his face.

"I'm up, I'm up where's the fire." I mumbled; pushing myself out of bed, and stumbling as I tried to stand. Fili laughed loudly at me; and I glared at him, though that only served to make him laugh even harder.

"Thorin asked me to tell you that we're heading out fairly soon. So you'll need to get ready, we'll have a quick breakfast and then we're leaving." He announced; and the excitement in his voice was more than a little obvious. I was suddenly wide awake and completely alert. I nodded to Fili, letting him know I understood our serious time crunch; he left me alone then to give me time to change.

I stripped off my nightdress, and hung it back in my closet. I stared at it for a long moment, wishing once again that I need not leave it behind; but I finally pulled by gaze away and dressed quickly in the tunic and trousers I had worn so many times when I ventured to Bree to train with Ash. A small bloodstain was still visible at the hem; Ash's blood that I had just never been able to get out. I smiled sadly to myself, wondering what he would have said to me if he knew the crazy thing I had gotten myself into this time. My smile widened when it occurred to me that he would have probably volunteered to come with me; and he wouldn't have taken no for an answer.

I pulled my sturdiest pair of boots out from under the bed; put them on and laced them tight. I decided at the last second to let my hair down, and ran a hand through it to tame the waves as best I could. I took one last look in the mirror, surprised I could even recognize myself in the glass. After everything the had happened, I felt like a completely different person. Somehow the fact that my outward appearance had not changed was a comfort, yet a burden at exactly the same time. I had changed so much, yet no one looking at me would have any knowledge of that. I turned away, refusing to think about it any longer.

I picked up my small bag, and carried it out with me; setting it with all the others against the wall in the living room. I walked slowly into the dining room, surprised to find Bilbo deep in conversation with Fili, and the others eating in silence; though several faces brightened when they noticed I stood in the doorway. Ori raised his head, and when he saw me, jumped off his chair and flung his arms around me; wrapping me in a bone crushing hug.

"Ow. Ori. Can't.... Breathe..." I complained, patting his back. He released me, quickly jumping back; his cheeks bright red and an embarrassed expression on his face.

"Sorry," He mumbled, kicking at the edge of the carpet.

"That's alright," I said, pulling him in for a much calmer hug. He wrapped his arms shyly around my waist for a moment before stepping back again.

"I just wanted to say thank you for the blanket. Thorin said we could bring them with us..?" His voice sounded unsure, and I saw Thorin sitting at the other end of the table; amusement shining in his blue eyes. I nodded, and every face in the room lit up much more than I would have thought. I had never experienced such an intense reaction for doing such a small thing before.

"Of course you can keep them," I said as I walked into the kitchen, filling my plate with bread, fruit and cheese. "It's a long trip, and you'll need as much rest as you can get." I returned to the dining room and seated myself between Ori and Bofur. "It's much easier to sleep when you're warm, don't you agree?" There were nods from all, and I noticed Bilbo staring at me again. "Are you alright?" I asked, setting down my apple. He nodded, but said nothing. "I know something's wrong Bilbo." I said, my voice hard; and void of its earlier humor. "I mean to find out what it is before we leave." He just nodded again, then quickly stood up from his chair and disappeared into the kitchen. I sighed, turning back to my food; finding it much harder to eat now that I had completely lost my appetite. Even the strawberries, which were my favorite fruit tasted like sawdust in my mouth.