Where She Went

Fairytales...Are Completely Inaccurate

It had been nearly a month since Talia left home. After the incident with Thorin, she mostly just avoided him. She knew there was no way she'd be able to hold her tongue around him and she absolutely did not want a repeat of riding with him.

The rest of the Dwarves avoided contact with her for a couple of days after it happened. When it seemed like she was over the situation and had cooled down, Kili, Fili, and Bofur began joking around with her again as if it had never happened.

There was no joking today, however. Today, it was nonstop pouring rain. Despite her love for the rain, Talia felt miserable along with the others as the water had completely soaked through their clothes. Even though it was late May, the young woman was frozen to the bone and shivering like there was no tomorrow.​

"Here, Mr. Gandalf, can't you do something about this deluge?" Dori asked.

"It is raining, Master Dwarf, and it will continue to rain until the rain is done. If you wish to change the weather of the world, you should find yourself another Wizard." Gandalf said.

That piqued the young woman's interest. "Are there any?" she asked.

"What?" Gandalf looked at her.

"Other Wizards?"

The old man smiled. "There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman, the White. Then there are the two Blue Wizards; you know, I've quite forgotten their names."

"Who's the fifth?" Talia asked.

"Well, that would be Radagast, the Brown." he said.

"Is he a great Wizard or is he, well...more like you?"

Gandalf gave her a look, obviously offended. "I think he's a very great Wizard, in his own way. He's a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eye over the vast forest lands to the east, and a good thing too, for always Evil will look to find a foothold in this world." the Wizard explained. There wasn't much conversation afterwards, just complaints about being cold, wet, and uncomfortable.

The rain didn't stop for several more hours. A couple of Dwarves had actually cheered when the wet weather finally withdrew. By the time they stopped, they were all dry for the most part. Parts of Talia's shirt still had wet spots, and so did her hair, which she continued to pull up into a high bun.

The company had stopped at what looked like an abandoned farmer's house. "We'll camp here for the night!" Thorin announced, and began to give orders. "Fili, Kili, look after the ponies. Make sure you stay with them. Oin, Gloin, get a fire going."

"Right you are!" Gloin replied.

Talia was helping Balin with the ponies when Kili came up behind her. "So, how does it feel to be dry?" he asked.

Talia smirked. "Um, it feels awful. I miss being completely drenched and soaked to the bone." she cheekily answered. Kili and Balin both laughed at her response. The young woman then noticed that Kili was smiling at her with narrowed eyes. "What?"

"I swear, I will never get over the way you speak!" he declared. Talia was taken aback by this. They'd been on the road for a month, and he was just now pointing out her American accent? She figured that they didn't want to offend her, and she raised her brows.

"What about the way I speak?" she asked curiously.

The Dwarf prince laughed. "It's just...different." he said...was he blushing? Was he seriously embarrassed to be talking about this?

Talia just laughed it off. "That's a good thing, right?" she asked, eyes narrowed.

"Of course it is!" he laughed again.