An Even Fifteen (Fili x reader)

(30) First Impressions

It was strangely wonderful to wake up in someone else's bed. Well, at least, one that smelled like Fili.

You had read his thoughtful little note and smiled, though it was no replacement for your Lionheart himself, and began your day. You changed into a loose dress that felt very much like the green robes you used to have. Perhaps you would ask Radagast to send you the spare robe that was still in his house in Greenwood.

After you had made yourself presentable and checked on the Rhosgobels, you sat diligently through a lesson with Balin. When he sent you away for the day, you wandered into the kitchen in search of a meal. You were about to sit down to eat with Ori and his brothers when you asked if they had seen Fili. He had not said in his note where he would be. They knew where he was, but they had not seen him all day. A thought struck you, and you thanked the dwarves before seeking out a small basket and filling it with as much food as the cooks would let you take.

When you found Fili at the forge deep in Erebor, as the dwarves had said, you were not at all prepared for the sight of his bare back rippling with muscle as he brought a hammer down again and again on whatever he was working on. His skin glowed with the light of the fire in the forge, his sweat catching the glow and transforming it so that it was your dwarf shining and nothing else. The curve of his spine, the way he had tied back his luscious hair into a no-nonsense ponytail at the nape of his neck, the practiced ease of his grip on the hammer-- all of it made you weak in the knees.

You almost dropped the basket.

But your grip steadied again as you listened close for the sound that wove between the clangs of each hammer-blow. Was Fili humming? The snatches of melody you heard were beautiful, but unlike anything you had ever heard the elves sing in the forest. This was different, too, from the raucous songs the dwarves sang in celebration. You inched closer, trying to hear the song more clearly, when Fili paused and turned.

After a few awkward moments of struggling for words and clenching your eyes shut, Fili put his shirt back on and you could breathe again. Well, except for the moment he stood so close you could feel his breath on your skin as he traced your face almost reverently.

You offered him the basket brimming with food once you remembered how to speak. The cooks were very generous when they realized you were taking food to their prince. Fili asked you to wait there while he put his project away. Once he had moved his project on the anvil and cleared the work table, he called you over and eagerly unpacked the basket.

"To what do I owe this generous visit?" He asked you, between bites of bread smeared with soft cheese.

You shrugged, picking up an apple slice. "You do so many thoughtful things for me. I thought it might be nice for me to try my hand at the romantic gestures, for a change."

He smiled. It surprised you when he put the bread down to lean over the food and press his lips gently to yours. Tasting the salt of his sweat and the rich flavor of the bread on his lips made your heart quiver. Something in you whispered for more, more, but Fili pulled away and took another bite of his food. He seemed remarkably pleased with the flush crawling up your neck to your cheeks.

The forges were noisy, but you didn't mind. It was pleasant to just watch the dwarves at work with Fili. You enjoyed his company even when he didn't have something heart-melting to say. Kili joined you after a while, making lighthearted conversation beneath the shouts and clangs that rang through the fire-scorched air.

The food was almost gone when Dwalin approached, a remarkable expression on the bulky warrior's face.

"Is he... smiling?" You asked Fili under your breath. Fili snorted, but covered the undignified laughter with a light cough.