✓ | Forget-Me-Not ~ Fili FanFiction / Hobbit FanFiction / Fili FF

「 Chapter 18 」

The dwarves spread coats and blankets on the soft straw. The company had spread out in the stables, but they were all still quite close together.
Thorin had just come in with his nephews and had given orders that everyone should get sleep now. That night Ilèyn intended to stick to it and not let it turn into one of those sleepless nights again. She watched for a few minutes as the dwarfs came to rest one after the other and finally fell asleep, when she too began to prepare her makeshift bed.
The dwarf lay with her back on the straw and covered herself with her cloak, which lay over her like a large blanket. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared at the ceiling.
She didn't want to let her start questioning again what exactly she wanted here because she wouldn't find an answer to it anyway. Her mind flew to last night.
The conversation...
She knew she hadn't answered any of Fili's questions yet. But he always showed up when she wanted to think. Even back then in Rivendell. If he had left her alone, then...
Ilèyn had to swallow.
She had come back because of him.
All along, her mind and soul had refused to admit it.
If he hadn't had this conversation with her, she probably would have just gone as she planned.
But what had the conversation changed? She had gotten nowhere that evening, nor would she want to call it a pleasant conversation.
This dwarf had done something to her.
She closed her eyes. The memories of the last few days appeared in front of her, everything that she had been through with the group in the meantime. The fights they'd been fighting. And every time the relief in Fili's eyes that Ilèyn was unharmed. That she had come back, was with him. The questioning, the worry, and the brief scrutinizing looks when he thought she wouldn't notice.
There.
Yet again.
Her body became numb, as if so many electrifying impulses were racing through her that her heart could no longer process them. As if someone or something were taking possession of Ilèyn's body that she couldn't defend herself against. Her ears got hot as if she were feverish, her fingertips got tingling and in her stomach it felt like thousands and thousands of butterflies were flying up and down, so much that she was seized with nausea. If she wasn't lying down, her legs would have turned soft as pudding and collapsed under her, definitely.
She got goose bumps and pulled her cloak up to her chin. The strange feeling had subsided again and Ilèyn let out a concentrated breath. The processing of this unusual emotional state cost her head a lot of strength and concentration. She felt unable to think of anything else or do anything else when this wave of emotions hit her body.
If she would understand...
Ilèyn slowly turned on her side. Her eyes were used to the darkness by now and she stared absently at her gloved hands. Her eyelids got heavier and heavier until she eventually fell into a dreamless sleep.

Ilèyn woke up to the creak of a heavy wooden door. She opened her eyes immediately. Her existence as a bounty hunter practically forced her to wake up to every little noise.
She peeked cautiously from behind the wooden beam next to which she had fallen asleep. She heard soft and heavy footsteps in the entrance area until she could see a tall figure in the semi-darkness. Nobody around her had woken up so far, the whole company was still snoring to itself.
Ilèyn watched the newcomer let his gaze wander around, as if checking that everything was still in place.
The giant turned to the door to his garden and left the house again outside. Ilèyn looked after him for a moment and did not move. She expected that he would rush in again anytime and shred everyone present.
But nothing like that happened.
With the first few pale rays of sunshine falling through the window into the hut, regular axe blows sounded from outside.
Was he chopping wood?
After a horde of dwarves slept inside his house?
Ilèyn freed herself from her makeshift blanket and crept past the sleeping dwarfs in the direction of the dining area and the garden door. She discovered a small window over a large box. Since everything here was oversized, the dwarf had a hard time climbing up the box quickly to look out of the window.
She looked around the garden until she saw the big man again. Indeed, he was chopping wood. Again and again he hit the logs with a huge axe, which he placed on the stump in front of him.
Ilèyn watched him until she heard the sound of waking dwarfs behind her. She looked over her shoulder, the large windows of the house now let in more and more sunlight, which bathed the rooms in a warm morning light. Dwalin was just waking his brother and Nori out of his sleep, which woke Ori and Dori at the same time. Ilèyn sat on the edge of the box on which she had just been standing and watched the group as they slowly but surely got up. Thorin and Gandalf were awakened by the murmurs and hums, and Oin and Gloin struggled to help Bifur and Bofur get Bombur awake.
"Wake up the two lazy ones." Thorin said to Bofur and pointed to his nephews, who made no move to open their eyes.
Bofur shook the brothers awake, shortly afterwards they too had joined the group that had meanwhile gathered in a heap in front of the entrance door.
One was missing.
Ilèyn sighed softly.
Bilbo.
When she jumped down from the box and approached the dwarfs, who immediately began to discuss how to proceed, the Hobbit got up and joined everyone else.
"Well, I say we should leg it. Slip out the back way." Nori was suggesting.
"I'm not running from anyone. Beast or no!" Dwalin replied grimly. Ilèyn twisted her mouth when she realized that this was where the next argument was looming.
"I will not...!" Nori was picking up when Gandalf interrupted them.
"There is no point in arguing." he said seriously, "We cannot pass through the Wilderland without Beorn's help. We'll be hunted down before we ever get to the forest."
Kili whispered something in Fili's ear, Fili nodded in agreement and quickly looked at his uncle. Ilèyn cought herself looking for his gaze, but Bilbo had just entered and Gandalf continued talking.
"Ah Bilbo." he said "there you are."
Bofur had meanwhile climbed to the window where Ilèyn had just been standing and was peering outside. Gandalf pushed past the dwarfs.
"Now... This will require some delicate handling. We must tread very carefully."
The wizard was now standing next to the door that led into the garden and looked around.
"The last person to have startled him was torn to shreds."
Kili looked uncertainly at his uncle and then at his brother. Neither of them looked very enthusiastic about Gandalf's story.
"I'll go first." Gandalf announced "And Bilbo, Ilèyn..." He pointed to the dwarf and the hobbit "You two come with me."
Ilèyn's heart slipped into her pants. She and Bilbo looked perplexed and a little worried. Fili, Kili and Thorin stood right next to them and eyed them both. The dwarf leader indicated with a nod to the hesitant that they should follow Gandalf and Fili also pointed in the direction of the wizard.
"I-Is this... a good idea?" Bilbo stuttered as he stepped forward, Ilèyn close behind him.
"Yes!" the wizard replied immediately "Now, the rest of you, you just wait here. And don't come out until I give the signal."
"Right. Wait for the signal." Bofur said from his more than meager vantage point.
"And no sudden moves or loud noises, and don't overcrowd him!" Gandalf instructed the dwarves. Ilèyn and Bilbo exchanged a meaningful look.
"And only come out in pairs." Gandalf was about to leave when he remembered something "No, actually, Bombur... You count as two, so you should better come out alone."
Ilèyn looked over at Bombur with a raised eyebrow, who nodded slowly. Then Gandalf motioned for Bilbo and her to go outside.
"Remember, wait for the signal!" he hissed at the dwarfs one last time as he went out. Then he pushed the dwarf and hobbit out the door and into the garden.

The warm rays of the sun fell on Ilèyn's pale skin and blinded her somewhat. In front of her and the other two, a small gravel path led to the tree stump where the giant was standing and splitting the logs with powerful blows of the ax. The closer they got, the better the dwarf recognized the tall figure. He was only dressed in pants and like a kind of fur seam that ended with the hair on his head ran down his back.
"You are nervous." Bilbo said at that moment. When Ilèyn turned her head to him, she realized that he was referring to the wizard. This now looked down at the two.
"Nervous...?" he muttered, puzzled. "What nonsense..."
He didn't seem to be really convinced of it, any more than Ilèyn and Bilbo. All three were now getting closer and closer to Beorn when Gandalf said a happy "Good morning!"
Beorn didn't respond. Suddenly he swung the axe so vigorously that Gandalf had to move backwards with one step.
"Good Morning!" he called again.
Beorn paused.
"Who are you?" His voice sent a small shiver down her spine. The skin-changer's back was covered with scars, welts, scratches and other old wounds. Bushy eyebrows, below them large, light brown eyes that looked skeptically over the shoulder.
"I am Gandalf. Gandalf the Grey." Gandalf introduced himself in all kindness and bowed deeply.
Beorn turned to the three of them. His chest was also littered with scars, as Ilèyn now discovered. A remnant of a handcuff with a remnant of chain was attached to his left wrist.
"Never heard of him." Beorn growled.
Gandalf's little disappointed murmur was barely audible. He straightened up again.
"I am a wizard." he explained shortly "Perhaps you've heard of my colleague Radagast the Brown. He resides in the southern borders of Mirkwood."
"What do you want?" Beorn asked menacingly.
"Well, simply to thank you for your hospitality. You may have noticed that" Gandalf pointed to Beorn's house, "we took refuge in your lodgings here last night."
Ilèyn and Bilbo peeked cautiously from behind Gandalf's wide cloak. Immediately, Ilèyn felt the startled look of the skin changer.
"Who are these two little fellows there?" he asked immediately and wanted to raise his axe defensively.
"Oh well, this would be Mr. Baggins." Gandalf began to explain quickly, "From the Shire."
The wizard put his hand on Bilbo's shoulder and pulled him a little beside him.
"And that's Ilèyn." he continued. "She's..." Gandalf paused.
"A trader!" the dwarf added right away, "I'm trading... far west of here."
Bilbo cleared his throat and looked at the ground, Gandalf turned back to the skin-changer.
The latter eyed Ilèyn and Bilbo with an expression in his eyes that Ilèyn found difficult to read. A lot of suspicion and a lot of vigilance, but also a small glimmer of fear, she thought she had noticed.
"They're not dwarfs, aren't they?" he asked, his grip on his axe tightening.
"Why, no. No." said Gandalf soothingly. Bilbo also let out a short "No" and Ilèyn carefully shook her head.
"Mr. Baggins is a Hobbit. A good family and unimpeachable reputation." Gandalf patted Bilbo on the shoulder appreciatively, as if praising his young son.
"And Ilèyn, I promise you, nowhere will you find a more honest trader and more sincere company." said Gandalf confidently.
Ilèyn smiled up at the giant, more than tortured, knowing how many lies were in that one sentence of Gandalf.
"Two... halflings and a wizard." Beorn said, who in the meantime had put the axe down on the ground and was leaning on it, "How come you here?"
"Oh well, the fact is, that we've had a bad time of it from Goblins in the mountains." Gandalf answered.
"What did you go near Goblins for? Stupid thing to do!" the skin-changer interrupted.
Ilèyn and the Hobbit looked down indifferently, as if they feared Beorn's piercing gaze.
"You are absolutely right." Gandalf said, moving his hand up and down reassuringly "No, it was terrible..."
Before the wizard could finish speaking, Ilèyn heard footsteps on the steps behind them.
"Oh no..." she mumbled to herself and slowly turned around in foreboding.