All I've ever known

4

Mivera woke up with the dawn as usual. She rubbed her eyes and sat up, putting on today's dress and shoes. She ran a brush through her hair and walked out the door. She walked down the corridor straight to the kitchen. She didn't like to admit it, but she hated eating in the dining room. It was still a strange feeling to sit alone at a large wooden table in her opinion.

As she was eating a pear she grabbed from a basket, she heard a quiet sniffle coming from the other room. Mivera walked in and looked around. She was very confused, she did not know where the sniffles came from. Just as she was about to leave, she saw the small pair of boots poking out from beneath the large table.

She set her pear down and knelt on the ground. She slowly picked up the tablecloth on the other side. The sniffling stopped and curled into a little ball, was a little dwarf girl. Her eyes were red and puffy, her nose running and she her shoulders were trembling from the sobs. Mivera looked at the girls wet brown eyes,"Hello."

The girl sniffed,"Hello." Mivera tilted her head,"Mind if I join you?" The little girl was confused but nodded and scooted over to give Mivera some room. Mivera crawled underneath the table next to the girl, for once she was thankful for her hobbit-like height. She pulled her knees up to her chest and pulled the tablecloth back down.

After nothing but the sounds of the girls occasional sniffling, Mivera asked,"Are you alright little one?" The girl kept her head turned away but nodded. Mivera kept up conversation,"What's your name?" The girl glanced at Mivera beneath her mess of black hair,"...Dis." Mivera smiled,"That's a lovely name, my name is Mivera." Dis smiled,"Thank you Mivera."

"I don't suppose you could tell me exactly why you are under the table?", Mivera asked. Dis sighed,"I don't have anyone to play with." The sight of the sad girl alone broke Mivera's heart, now hearing the sadness in her voice shattered it to shreds."What about your parents?" Dis shook her head,"Papa is always busy helping grandad with work." Mivera questioned,"Do you have any brothers? Sisters?" Dis nodded,"Yes, I have two brothers. But one is always training with his sword and the other is always with papa or grandad. They don't want to play with me, no one wants to play with me!" Dis began sobbing again.

Mivera put an arm around Dis and pulled her to her side without hesitation and just held her. After Dis had calmed down, Mivera pulled her back to look at her face. She pulled out a handkerchief and wiped away the tears. Mivera tucked the wild strands of hair behind the ears of the sad girl,"I want to play with you."

Dis's mood instantly changed, her eyes became bright with excitement,"Really? You want to play with me?" Mivera smiled,"Of course. I would love to play with you, although, I think we'd have much more fun playing if we weren't beneath the table." Dis giggled,"Yea I guess you're right."

Mivera got out and pulled up Dis and swung her around in a circle before setting her down on the floor."So what shall we play?",she asked after Dis stopped laughing. Dis grew a serious expression and put a finger to her chin, Mivera nearly laughed at the adult-like gesture."We should play seeking hiders!", Dis said jumping up and down clapping her hands.

"Alright! Should I be the seeker or you?", Mivera said with equal excitement. Dis giggled and point at Mivera,"You be the seeker, I'll be the hider. Count to one hundred!" Dis jumped again and ran from the room laughing with glee. Mivera giggled and covered her eyes and began to count.

While those two girls were having a good start on the day, Thorin was not. Not one second after he woke up he was bombarded by tasks to do, some of them were pointless. He had to go check the stock for grain, meat, fruits, vegetable, whiskey, beer, and wine. He needed to practice his elvish, which Thorin believed was a complete waste of his time. He had been everywhere in Erebor before it was even noon!

Finally getting a break, he went into the little wood outside to calm down. Somehow, his mind drifted to thoughts of Mivera. He felt bad because she was probably alone all morning and would most likely be alone all day, not to mention he owed her an apology. His thoughts were interrupted by squeals and loud laughter. Feeling mildly curious Thorin followed the sounds, they led him to a small open area filled to the brink with flowers. What he saw though surprised him immensely.

Mivera was running and laughing as a small figure chased her. Thorin quickly relized that the small figure was his youngest sister Dis. Dis ran up quickly behind Mivera and jumped on her back laughing and smiling, having the time of her life. Mivera stopped running and laughed with a look of pure joy. Still smiling, the two of them walked over to where Thorin Thorin was standing, feeling as if he shouldn't be caught, Thorin quickly hid behind the nearest tree. To his relief they sat down on the other side of the tree.

He heard them talking, but Thorin could not make out their words. He hastily climbed the tree and sat on a branch above them. He looked down to see Mivera and Dis both making each other flower crowns."Thank you for playing with me Mivera.", Dis said smiling. Mivera grinned and stopped working on her crown,"Of course! I absolutely adore playing with you."

Thorin was a bit dumbfounded, he had never seen this side of Mivera. Normally she was either cold, bitter, or emotionless. But now here she was laughing and smiling with his sister, and he admitted to himself that he wishes that was him making her so happy. He snapped from his muddled thought when his sister spoke up again.

With her eyes still focused on the flowers, Dis said,"I want to make one for my brothers!" Mivera smiled warmly,"That's very kind of you, what are their names?" Dis said with a matter-of-fact tone,"Ferin and Forin." Thorin rolled his eyes and suppressed a laugh, she always mispronounced his name. He tried to tell her different, but her being so young she still doesn't quite understand.

"What are they like?", Mivera inquired. Now Thorin was listening, intently. Dis shrugged,"Frerin is fun and very very silly. He taught me how to make yummy treats and ride a pony! And Forin is super fun! He taught me how to read and write! And how to make flower crowns!" Mivera giggled,"They sound wonderful." Dis nodded proudly and Thorin couldn't help but chuckle.

From then on they talked about anything and everything, but he wasn't listening, Thorin was watching their faces. Dis never stopped laughing or giggling, while Mivera was always smiling and laughing with her. With great reluctance, Thorin climbed back down the tree and headed back to Erebor to finish his work assigned that day.