Of Dragons, Dwobbits and Dwarves

Chapter Twelve

Fili strode through darkened hallways, heading toward the dragon levels. It would be another ten minutes or so before Bilba would head out to start wandering the mountain, eventually ending at the battlements to watch the merchants come in.

He didn't meet her at her bedroom because she didn't sleep there. She slept with Syrath.

He didn't have to ask why. The night watch had been alerted by her screams multiple times and had rushed to her room, convinced an assassin had made their way in.

The nightmares made it impossible for her to sleep alone and Dwalin had added a new layer when he'd commented the fact she was under stone, as she had been in Moria, probably amplified them. It had occurred to Fili after Dwalin ahd pointed that out that none of the other Moria survivors lived within Erebor. The realization she did it because it was where he lived ate at him. He'd had an idea about how to help, at least a little, but hadn't had a chance to speak to his uncle about it yet with all the chaos going on over his Coming of Age and his uncle dealing with the dignitaries streaming in.

In the meantime, Bilba had begun going to Syrath. Once she did the nightmares seemed to have stopped.

In the week since Nori had given him the idea of giving up sleep to spend time with Bilba, a more than worthwhile trade in his view, Fili had fallen into the habit of going to the dragon levels and waiting against the wall until she came out. He didn't go in; instead treating the massive room beyond almost like it was her bedroom and giving her privacy until she'd woken up.

He felt the shift in his mind that signified Syrath's presence, the dragon undoubtedly smelling his approach.

She left already.

Fili stopped in surprise.

She did? Where'd she go?

The training room.

Fili frowned in confusion. There's no one in there yet.

I think that was the point.

Fili walked through the door as Syrath finished the sentence. The dragon was near the entrance, curled in a ball with his head resting on his tail. Xalanth was sleeping near him, his head tucked under a wing and his sides moving in the slow rhythm of sleep.

She had a bad day yesterday, Syrath continued, so I think she went to try and work it off before she saw you. She didn't want to take it out on you.

Fili hadn't seen her the day before, with the exception of training in the morning of course. He saw her during the night of course, sometimes earlier, sometimes later depending on his own exhaustion. In the week he'd been doing it, he made sure to be there in time to watch the merchants come in with her at the very least.

She was out with Vanguard yesterday wasn't she? She hadn't been at lunch or dinner. Vanguard didn't go out every day, sometimes they didn't go out during the day at all but went during the night, evening or morning.

It would defeat the purpose, after all, if they kept to a routine that the orcs could learn and then avoid.

Yes, Syrath responded. Dwalin went. They ran into some orcs and Bilba did a good job so Dwalin told her so.

Okay? Fili said in confusion. What's wrong with that?

Syrath huffed, lifting his head to arch over Fili and forcing him to look up. She liked the praise but it came from Dwalin.