A Better Place - The Hobbit Fanfiction

Alternate Entry Twenty-Five - Unexpected Pains

I woke with a nasty little cramp making its home in the top of my belly and groaned. "I hate being a girl sometimes."

"You say something?" Bofur shouted from the kitchen.

"I said I wish I had a penis!"

"You're too young for that, missy."

"No, like I wish I was a boy."

"Do you?"

"Everyone has their bad days."

"You all right?"

"I've got a stomachache. I hate those bastards." I unburied myself from my summer sheets and untangled a pink dress from my wardrobe. I tied my apron only loosely.

"You hungry?" Bofur asked, halfway through his own bacon breakfast already.

"I'll just have some water, please, thank you."

He slid a cup across the table to me. "Did you say you were going down to the market today?"

"First day of summer? Wouldn't miss it. You know they decorate the market specially on the solstices and equinoxes."

"You know I sometimes think you like their celebrations more than you like ours."

"Well they do have more than you. It's remarkable, really, how much they celebrate. Plus I do get tired of being underground all the time, even if it's beautiful here."

It would be my luck that my time of the month arrived at the same time as some illness began creeping into me. To save myself the trouble of having to hork it up later I drank the water that morning but didn't bother even trying to eat anything. Luckily enough I wasn't terribly hungry.

"You're walking like an old woman," said Dain when I walked in that morning. "What've you done to yourself."

"It's not my fault if my stomach is committing mutiny."

"I see. Have you taken anything for it?"

"I don't need to take herbs for absolutely everything; I'm fine."

"Suit yourself. Those letters from your Elvenking come in yet?"

"No but I expect they will soon."

I went and visited my men at lunch but didn't bring any for myself. Both Bofur and Gimli had moved on to other stonemasonry than the statues outside, which had finally been repaired and finished after some six or seven years of work. Both of them shrugged off my lack of appetite, since thankfully they knew I didn't stand for fussing.

The pain moved down to my lower belly before I went to bed, and it hadn't gone away. I sipped some more water though and managed to fall asleep, though it took longer than I was accustomed to.

One of the colder dreams came back that night, making me dream I was being slowly borne down through the sea by an iceberg that was burning through my belly. Strange thing was that when I woke I was too hot—my skin was damp as though I'd just toweled off from a bath. And the pain in my belly had gotten worse. I pulled my sleeping tunic up above my trousers and lightly pressed my fingers to the place, wincing. It was tender, hotter than the rest, and slightly swelled.

"Aw, bloody hells," I muttered, and eased my way stiffly out of bed. I padded down the rug to Bofur's room and knocked. "Da. Da, wake up."

I heard him grumble something as he transitioned from sleep to wakefulness, half-smiled to myself, then opened the door when he called me to. "Whatcha need, Mabyn?"