The Fifteenth Member (Thorin Oakenshield/OFC)

Chapter 17

Thorin's POV

I watched as Mereniver pushed through the Company and ran down the rock.  As soon as she was out of sight, my nephew turned and started yelling at me.

"How could you do that uncle?  That girl loves you, with all her soul!  She thought you were DEAD!!!!! She shed TWO resurrection tears because YOU were hanging limp in the talons of that eagle!  She healed you because she loves you and can't bear to see you in pain, she didn't even WINCE when that blade cut her skin, she only cared about YOU and the first thing you do when you wake up it scold her for healing you, you treated Bilbo better than her!  How could you do that to your One?!"  I didn't get a chance to reply because a scream rippled through the air.   I knew that voice!

"Mereniver!" I whispered in horror before running in the direction she had gone in.  I discovered giant stairs had been cut into the rock but I didn't pay much attention to them.  I could've taken them two at a time, but I decided the risk of falling was too great.  Suddenly, I realized what must've happened to my love.  She was going to fast and fell.  This only made me go faster and I rounded the last corner to see her sprawled out on the ground, her eyes barely open.  As soon as our eyes met, her head dropped to the stone and she stopped moving.

"NOOOOO!" I ran to her side and put my head to her chest, listening for a heartbeat.  It was just barely audible.  She was alive.  That was when I noticed the blood pooling around her head.  She must've hit it against a rock of her way down. "OIN!  GET DOWN HERE!"  Our healer appeared a few moment later, looking rather flustered.  His face paled as soon as he saw Mereniver.

"Thorin...is she..."

"No, but she has a head wound.  I need you to heal it."  Oin didn't need telling twice.  He knelt next to her and lifted her up carefully.

"You'll need to hold her so I can take a look."  I nodded and took her upper body into my arms, holding her head so Oin could examine it.  After a few minutes, he pulled back and took a deep breath.

"She'll be alright but, I don't want her moving for a few days, one of us will have to carry her.  The cut is not deep so it should heal quickly but I think she hit her head pretty hard.  There's a little swelling and the flesh around the wound feels softer than normal.  This will slow our pace and we need to make sure she has plenty of food and water."

"Will there be any permanent damage?"

"Not that I can see, she is very lucky, not even one in a million would get off with this little injury, half of them would no longer be alive!"  I froze thinking about just how close I had come to losing her.  It was at that moment that I promised myself to never go a day without telling her how much she meant to me, no matter what.  Mereniver began to shiver so I removed my coat and wrapped her in it.  With that, I lifted her with great care into my arms.

Mereniver's POV

The first thing I became aware of was the smell, like Thorin.  The smoke, the trees, the masculine scent.  The next thing I noticed was the pain.  My head was pounding, every little sound seemed to make it worse.  The third thing I picked up on was the fact that I was engulfed in some sort of moving warmth.  When I opened my eyes, the setting sun greeted me harshly, making me squint.  Silhouetted in the bright light was the person who meant everything to me.  Thorin Oakenshield.

"You're awake." He sounded relieved, "You've slept the day away, I was beginning to fear you would never awaken.  I'm so sorry for what I said to you."

"Shhh, you were worried for me, I understand that.  But you need to understand as well that I cannot stand idly by while you are suffering and I can stop it.  I... I love you."