The Fifteenth Member (Thorin Oakenshield/OFC)

Chapter 51

Once again, the pictures are not mine......sadly

Both Thorin and Lord Elrond worked together with everyone else to keep me in bed for the next two days. I was alright with it the first day but only because I was still weak and tired. No one dared to come near me the second day. My temper was worse than Thranduil's patience with the dwarves and I even stooped as low as to try and bride Wani into letting me get up and walk around but she wouldn't let me. I couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for Eleanor though. She was caught in the middle of it all and no older than fifteen. She was very polite and took orders easily but she still wouldn't let me out of bed, apparently Thorin had given her an order not to and she wasn't about to let me undermine that. Eleanor was about my height. She had long, straight, blond hair, green eyes, and freckles. Her normal voice was rather deep for a woman but when she hummed to herself absentmindedly as she worked it was higher than I thought possible for her. Everyone had done as much as they could to keep me entertained but it just didn't work after a certain amount of time.

No matter how long those two days seemed to be, before I knew it, it was the day before the wedding and there was much to do. Thorin and I finished the menu for the banquet in the morning. When afternoon came, Thorin went back to the mountain to make sure those who had arrived for our wedding got settled in their rooms while I went off to Rowena's shop to try on my dress.

"Mereniver! It's good to see you well darling. Thorin isn't here is he?"

"No, should he be?"

"No! It's frightful bad luck if the groom sees the dress before the wedding!"

"Well then it's a good thing that he's not. May I see it?"

"Yes, yes of course! I have it in the back." She opened the door and moved so I could see. I was awestruck when I laid eyes on the dress, it was nothing like I had expected. It surpassed my expectations and even my wildest dreams! It was displayed on a mannequin that looked similar to my size and figure. Although it was made of cotton, the dress looked like silk. It hugged the curves in all the right places and flared out into lace ruffles at the knees. It had sleeves but the shoulders were still exposed, they were attached at the underarm and ran down to halfway down the forearm. There were also lacy patterns on top of the fabric so it wouldn't irritate my skin yet it still looked nice. Rowena had chosen a very pale blue gem color for the jewel pattern that ran under my breasts and around my back. They were the same color as the winter sky but not as blue as Thorin's eyes.

"Do you like it? I can make minor changes of course-"

"Don't! I love it! It's perfect!"

"I'm glad you like it. I took the liberty of making you a lace veil as well."

"For what?"

"Why for you naturally! You wear it until it's time for you to kiss your husband. At that time, he lifts it from your face and initiates the kiss."

"I didn't know I needed a veil! Thank you."

"Think nothing of it! Now, let's see you put it on."

After a few minutes of struggling, I was finally in the dress and everyone else was fawning over how lovely I looked. Arwen was particularly excited.

"Ooooo! You look gorgeous! I know just the thing to do with your hair tomorrow too!" Now I got to see what the others had chosen for their own dresses. Wani's was a royal purple. It had an open back and I halter-like collar that wrapped around her neck. Arwen and Tauriel's were minty green and they both had the same style, only reversed. Arwen's dress had a left shoulder and a slip of the right side that went to just above the knee while Tauriel's was the opposite. Both of the shoulders had a flower woven into them as well. Not a real flower, just one made from the same fabric as the dresses. All three of the dresses went to the floor but Wani seemed to have a problem, she kept tripping over it.