Star-Crossed Lovers

It was always difficult being one of the royal Dwarf families. However, it was tedious with King Thorin planning to reclaim his throne. Just the mention of that blasted quest had stirred waves of distress in our clan. Especially in women. Every female was losing her cool over 'How Thorin is snatching her husband/brother/son for a suicidal mission'. Even Her Ladyship Dis, the sister of King Thorin and the mother of the crowned Princes Fili and Kili, was not happy about it.

Nevertheless, the most dejected lass in the whole clan was me. I had my own reasons to sulk at the decision of King Thorin. He had commanded me to stay here. He had made it explicitly clear that I would not be joining them in this quest. Even my father and uncles had supported his decision. 'Aye Lass. We are not doubting thy skills. Anyhow, I do not wish to be guilty of putting my daughter in the danger. I need to be focused on this quest. I cannot do it if I had to struggle with whom to protect, the King or you.' My father had effectively crushed my protests. In his absence, I had to take his position of the General of the Army. King Thorin had gladly approved the plan. He was tutoring me about some super-secret protocols, and political relations between other dwarf kins for the last few weeks. When I was not accompanying him, I was in an arena, being trained with all the members who had volunteered for the quest.

Today I had my training with Kili. I froze when I saw him in the arena. I slowly approached him, ignoring the urge to flee. The stern look in his chocolate brown eyes warned me about impending trouble. His stance was already offensive, like a ready-to-pounce panther. Rather a ferocious, ready-to-kill jaguar would have been more accurate. The moment I reached the arena, he snarled, 'Pick up a weapon. We are settling it today. For once and ever.' Had I not been in a company of the King, I would have trembled under orders of the Prince. All these years I had known him, he was never this scary before. I flinched at the cold edge of his voice. I had no idea what we were about to settle, however, if it's something to be proven on the battlefield, it was crucial for him. 'Now' he growled, pulling me out of my thoughts. That possessive snarl shot a fire inside me. I picked up a sword and stood in front of him. He assessed me from hair to toe, calculating his first move. I could feel waves of anger emitting from his body. His lips were pressed into a thin line and the muscles were tense.

'On the count of three,' I prompted mirroring his stance, but my posture was not as unnerving. 'One two three' I tried my best to hide my terror. His blade hit mine with a great force and I backed up instinctively. He took a step back and attacked again, I defended unsuccessfully, earning a cut on my left hand. I tried to sidestep from his attack but he pounced and hit me on the head this time. I staggered even backward. His blade flashed in front of me, however, I ducked dodging his blow. I stood up catching his next blow with my blade. He kicked me in the stomach, sending me flying backward.

'You are declining his proposal' he snarled again as he closed in the distance between us. His face was red with fury and eyes were dilated with some irrational spark. Few things cleared up for me. He was talking about me taking over Dad's position. I gathered my control parring so he would not get closer. His wrath reached to a whole new level, igniting my fury as well. I caught his attack and elbowed him in the chest. He took an involuntary step back. I struck harder landing a hit on his forearm. I moved bringing my sword down abruptly. He tried to block yet received a cut on his leg. Now it was his turn to stagger backward.

'Why? Why would I do that? 'I asked, pointing my sword at his chest. His eyebrows rose and lips were pressed together, they almost disappeared. He replied by deflating my blade closing in for my neck. Hardly had I dodged him than he swirled, kicked me again with a velocity only an aggravated cobra could manage. However, I was prepared this time. I swirled, catching his sword in midair simultaneously hitting him hard on his shoulder. We both grunted at that sound. An angry curse escaped from his mouth and he seized me by my hair. "Because people will not accept you as a leader." He warned me in the taut voice as his blade almost touched my throat. His pupils dilated, making his eyes darker. His grip on my hair was painfully strong. "No one defies King's orders" I muttered struggling to find a way out. 'What happens when he leaves? Do they still follow a maiden?' His voice was colder than ice when he loosened his grip on my hair.

'That's awfully lot thinking for someone who is not sticking around' I retorted, punching him on a nose. I didn't let go of the element of surprise. Quickly I kneed him and freed myself from his hold. I took a step back going defensive, expecting him to charge again. But he stood there like a statue, staring me down. He opened his mouth trying to say something, still no words came out. After long thirty seconds, he took a step towards me, causing me to stumble till my back touched the wall.

I was so fixated with his eyes that I couldn't move. My instincts were telling me to raise my sword, but my heart couldn't bear the pain hidden in those eyes. In the heat of battle, I had asked the wrong question. I felt as if I had stabbed an innocent little rabbit and left it to die. That haunted look lasted for a few seconds before he covered the distance between us. However, our swords were long forgotten.

'I am sorry... I didn't mean...' I stammered. He covered my mouth with his hand, effectively cutting off my apology. 'Never ever say that again Adyna. I can't stay here, you know it very well' His deliberate words and his rough voice were overwhelming. I averted my gaze, unable to meet cocoa-colored orbs. I studied him instead. His chest was heaving, the aftermath of our little fight and his fury. His muscles were still tensed, but his anger had subsided. The situation had taken a different and terrifying turn. I didn't want to be there; locked in his arms with nowhere to escape. I desperately searched for something to say. I desperately wished we would just resume our fighting because I was afraid of doing something stupid.

I didn't want him to go on that suicidal quest. Though there was no way I could stop him. He was a warrior. He lived his life for the glory of a battle. So was I. I was raised to be a warrior too. A warrior princess. I knew what he felt and understood it. The only right thing to do was letting him live his destiny. He sensed it too. We had always avoided this moment. One of the declarations of our love. It was always there, in our every conversation, in our every fight and in our every glance. But we had never acknowledged it. We had always danced around it leaving it unspoken between us. It had reached an intensity that we couldn't ignore it anymore. It had turned into something more than just us. More about our kins. It felt an opportune time to seal the deal. To break each other's hearts...

"Adyna... I want to reclaim the throne. How can I do that when I am worried about you? I want my princess when I come back. I need to protect you for sake of my sanity' He whispered. His voice etched a burning sensation in my heart. 'If you come back.' I whispered back and his sigh echoed a confirmation.'It is not fair...' I continued, daring to look into his eyes. They were filled with sadness and a strange hope. I pressed further before he could say anything.'It is not fair for the rest of them... You are the crowned prince Kili... You shouldn't... We shouldn't do it to them. .' He couldn't argue with that. He knew it was a truth. He couldn't pick a single person's safety over the wellbeing of the whole community. It was the first and foremost lesson drilled into our royal brains. Yet I knew he wouldn't give up pursuing me.

He had balled his fingers into a fist. I gently took his hand in mine and tried to convince him. 'I need to do this Kili. You know it. I have to keep all of them safe. They need a guardian. All I want is people waiting for my triumphant Prince when he returns' I all but pleaded. "If he returns.." he added dejectedly.He squeezed my hand, conveying things he couldn't speak aloud. I ached for a comfort. I didn't know when I would feel his warmth again. I didn't know if I would ever get another chance to be with him again. I wanted to lash out at someone at the sheer absurdity of it. Instead, I decided to voice our feelings and put end to our mad dance.

The warrior inside me knew our feelings didn't matter. The first lesson of loving a heroic warrior is to let him find his own destiny. However, at that moment I was just a valiant lover who was in an embrace with her Prince charming, waiting for the magical kiss. I lifted my head just as he leaned in; our lips crashed. Those things people searched in the stars, I found them in his sparkling eyes. I poured all my fears, all my grief, all my joy in that kiss and he gladly accepted it all.

We didn't have a love story; ours was a story of a war. A war against our love with our lives at stake. We were star-crossed lovers. The Princesses of tragedy. We were just a game, well played by the fate. However, the most important thing was; it was no longer Kili and Adyna resisting their fate, it was 'we' fighting for a chance to be us.