Dawn (A Hobbit Fanfic)

Chapter 31 - I don't have a witty chapter title either.

For once I didn't have witty, snarky or sarcastic comeback. Not even a regular one. I just stood there, wide-eyed. Like a deer staring down an arrow.
Thorin pulled back disappointed when I didn't return the kiss. My mind cleared when I shook myself. My face and ears were completely red. You know how I regularly wasn't that good at being a well composed Elf?
Well, I'm still not.

Thorin only noticed when my shaking hand gently pushed his chin up.
I pressed my lips against his and held his face in my hands. His lips moved against mine, his beard tickling my chin. One of his hands found my hair, the other remained protectively around my waist, as if someone would drag me away from him.

As it turned out, we should have gotten of the ice before celebrating our success. Thorin yelled in pain and collapsed. I saw that he had been stabbed through the foot, and Azog had not yet drowned. He broke through the ice and pinned Thorin down before stabbing him in the chest.

It all happened so fast that I didn't have time to react. When I finally did, I got up from where I had fallen backwards and grabbed Orcrist from where it still lay on the ice. In a flash of furious outrage I leapt at Azog, who still had Thorin pinned.
I slashed at his good arm and managed a deep cut on his back before I got him off Thorin and facing me. I was terribly outmatched, Azog was about twice as tall and thrice as broad as me. His arms were about the same width as my whole body. I was desperate enough to still try though. If I was to die today, I would take him with me.

Azog seemed to realise how grossly unfair the whole situation was. And he loved it. I yelled louder than I ever had, hacking away at Azog, with a one-handed sword that I had to hold with two. He blocked my most every move. He could have done it with his hand if the sword wasn't Elvish. The only advantage I had was my speed, he wasn't able to get a single hit in as he had to block mine. We spun around each other in circles, careful not to slip on the ice. My only advantage was that my exhaustion had been overpowered by the rush of pure adrenaline that seemed to have replaced my blood.
My superior speed...

I noticed the distance between Azog's legs as he was a bit hunched over as to not let me worm Orcrist into his stomach.
We'll have to see about that...
I dove under his legs as he swung his mace down at me, and I quickly turned, jumped and kicked my daggers into Azog's back. It wasn't deep enough to kill him, but now I was high up enough to attempt another method.
The mace was stuck in the ice, and the sword could not reach me. I reared up, and plunged Orcrist through Azog's back. I gave it a twist and it's blue light started flickering. I pulled the sword out and jumped off him. As he was hunched over to my height, doubled in pain, I stared him in eyes.
The burning cliff battle came to mind, only now I had gained the upper hand. "I kept my word," I growled, before raking Orcrist across his neck and decapitating him.

No one fucks with those I hold dear, except for me.

My fury subsided when I heard Thorin's pained moan. I turned around and ran to him, albeit wobbly and trembling.
He reached out to me with his hand and it dropped before I could grab it.
I tried to keep a level head as I carefully dragged him to the shore. On the way there I was singing all the healing chants I knew of.

When I laid him down his eyes opened for a brief moment and he looked at me in pain. That pain transferred to me and nestled itself as fear deep within my heart. Deep cold dread.
I knelt over him and put my hands on the gaping wound on his chest. I sang everything I even remotely remembered and went over each and every one of the chants and charms twice and even a third time.

I broke out into sobs halfway through the first song, but I continued. The irregular rising and falling of Thorin's chest slowed down gradually, until I wasn't certain that he was even breathing at all.
I wasn't normally afraid of death. Before it took my grandmother when I was younger I didn't even know what it was. But boy, did I fear it now.
"Pull yourself together, Dawn!" I ordered myself, focussing next on getting the chants absolutely correct down to the most minute pronunciation difference through the ages.
After the next couple of songs I was certain of it though. I couldn't face it, seeing him like this. I broke down completely and sobbed loudly into his chest. Even magic could only do so much.