Saving the Sons of Durin

Thand Neder

~ Part Nine ~

"Let her rest, Radag." A gruff voice said, causing Ellía to stir from her sleep. She slowly opened her eyes and saw a large black nose and big brown eyes in front of her face. "Radag?" she whispered out as a big grin spread across her face. The stallion let out a happy whiny and pawed the ground with a massive hoof. "He arrived at dawn." the voice said, reminding Ellía of where she was.

She gave the stallion a kiss on the nose before sitting up on the soft mat and looking over at the large man. "Beorn, it has been far too long" she said and stood up to give him a hug. Beorn smiled at her fondly as he wrapped his arms around her. "It has, little elf." He responded. The two pulled apart and Ellía looked around the thriving yard. Beorn had had many animals when she had stayed with him for a few days after the attack, but it seemed as though he had even more now.

"I cleaned and redressed your wound. I figured it would be less painful while you were resting. I hope you do not mind." He said with a slight bow of his head. Ellía glanced down and saw she was in a clean blue tunic that fell past her knees. "I do not mind at all. Thank you, Beorn" she said, smiling at him. A soft huff sounded behind her and she saw Radag staring at her.

"What are you doing here, mellon?" She asked as the horse lowered his large head to rest against her own. "He sensed your stress and came to you. Your bond has grown much since he followed you to Rivendell." Beorn explained as he walked over to a stump with an axe lodged in it. Ellía said, "He has become my closest companion. Always there when I need him, whether I know it or not." and gave him another light peck to his forehead before walking over to sit back on the mat in front of the small fire.

The friends were quiet for a few minutes as Ellía enjoyed the peacefulness of Beorn's home and the man chopped wood. Eventually, the man stopped his task and looked at the she-elf with a discerning look. "You have a poor choice of company, Ellía" The shape shifter stated. "I know that you are not the fondest of dwarves and I am sorry for intruding on you, but we had nowhere else to go." she said sheepishly. Beorn arched a brow at her before beginning to chop wood again.

Feeling like she should help their host, she stood and began neatly stacking the pieces of wood he had chopped. "I washed the blood from your clothing and mended it. Should be dry soon. How did you get the wound to your back? "He grunted and swung his axe. "We accidentally found our way into the goblin king's cave. We had to fight our way out." She answered quietly, memories from that night coming back to her.

"Beorn, the pale orc t-that... that hurt my mother and I, was that Azog the Defiler?" she whispered out and looked up at the man. He stopped in the middle of his swing and lowered the axe. "That is who your father says it was." he said hesitantly, knowing people had done their best to shield her from any information relating to the attack. "Why was I never told?" she asked as her hands ghosted over her scars.

"It took quite a while for you to sleep without night terrors when you returned home. And when your mother left, the terrors returned for sometime. Your father did not want you to dwell on what happened, but for you to be able to heal and enjoy life. He thought that the more you knew, the more you would fixate on the horrid event." Beorn explained softly.

Ellía nodded her head slowly in understanding. "I suppose they were right." she breathed, before mumbling the simple elvish incantation and pointed tips replaced the blunt and jagged scars. Beorn had begun to chop wood again when the door to the house swung open and Ellía looked up to see a Gandalf and Bilbo nervously approaching.

The elf smiled at them and stood up, while the shape shifter continued to his chore. "Good morning! Gandalf called and Ellía tired not to chuckle as they both flinched as Beorn swung his axe one last time before lowering it and turning to face them. "Who are you?" Beorn growled out, making Gandalf grow more nervous. "I am Gandalf, Gandalf the Grey" the wizard said with a smile.