There and Back Again: A Girl's Tale

Chapter 16 Matters of the Heart

Part 2

Chapter 16 Matters of the Heart

The company of Thorin Oakenshield was battered, bruised, and a little worse for wear, but they were alive. As long as they were alive, little else mattered.

They didn't stay long on the Carrock. The climb down was long and hard, for no one had escaped injury. Elwen Greenleaf's sharp, elven eyes watched as Fili and Kili helped their uncle down the rock, her eyes watchful, ready. If they slipped, she would catch them.

Dwalin, too, was ever observant, ready to leap to his king's aid at a moment's notice. He had been silent as the company gazed upon their ancestral homeland. Even the warrior had felt the chill. Erebor. For some of the company, it was their first time to look upon the peaks of what was known as the Lonely Mountain. For others, it was their first sight of home in 60 long years.

Gandalf the Grey was the last to make the descent. He was watching each member of the company carefully, observing how the night's happenings had affected each of them. They were all covered in scrapes and bruises and could use a thorough wash. Nori was favoring his right leg, and Bifur had blood on his face. Otherwise, everyone's injuries were minor, except for Thorin, of course.

Fool of a dwarf, Gandalf had thought hotly when he'd worked to heal the worst of it. Healing magic was not his area of expertise, after all. But what little he did know had, thankfully, been successful and Thorin was able to quickly rise.

Gandalf had been pleasantly surprised to see Thorin embrace Bilbo Baggins. Even the wizened wizard must admit to being shocked by the hobbit's insane act of bravery. He had known all along that Bilbo was capable of great feats, but to face down Azog the Defiler? He'd have never guessed. But isn't that usually the way of heroes? They are often found in the most unlikely of places, made from the most seemingly ordinary of folk.

Elwen Greenleaf, however, had not surprised him in the least.

Elwen had sprung from the tree, sword in each hand, and dispatched several orcs in order to reach Thorin's side. In all his years, Gandalf had never seen an elf stand in front of a dwarf in an act of such fierce loyalty. And yet, he had expected nothing less of her. From the moment Elwen stepped into the bookshop back there , Gandalf had known that she was a young lady out of time. That she was brave, and strong, and not completely human. He knew that she would be the one to stand between the line of Durin and their fall.

When Thorin had embraced her, and intertwined his fingers with hers, Gandalf was still unsurprised.

From the moment Thorin and Elwen first locked eyes, Gandalf had sensed a spark between them. As it happened, fire was his specialty, and he knew it when he saw it. Granted, at first, the possibility of violence was great, but over time the pair had come to see in one another what Gandalf had seen in them both all along. They did not have an easy road ahead, however, and he did not know in what ways their new found bond would be tested.

Gandalf's eyes fell upon Kili. The youngest nephew of Thorin Oakenshield and by far the most impulsive, though his older brother gave him a run for his coin. Gandalf watched as Kili's handsome face fell as the young dwarf observed Thorin and Elwen. He had quickly turned away and stared at the mountain like everyone else, but his dark eyes were unseeing.

The dwarfish concept of finding their "One" was complicated at best. There were so few dwarf females that the men often found themselves competing for the heart of the same woman. It was never easy for the man not chosen, and they usually remained alone for the rest of their lives. Many dwarf men were content without a mate, but not all. Not Kili.