Bring Me With Her

Unheeded Warning

The rub of his clothes against his shoulders was beginning to burn his skin as he resisted. He didn't care. They had only been on the road for a day, he was nowhere near ready to give in. Thorin always knew that Men were barbaric on the inside, always out for themselves. He had more than enough experience with them, as he slaved away for them just so he could feed his widowed sister and young nephews. No matter what he did, they were never satisfied, and even his finest work could never convince them to pay him what it was truly worth.

And now they were keeping him away from her. They were constantly grabbing at Thorin's shoulders whenever he tried to go to her. They didn't care how much she whimpered and moaned. She already had to stop twice today due to her nausea, and they always picked her right up once she finished emptying her stomach content. Were they blind? Thorin may have thought that Talia's queasy stomach had been a product of paranoia and anxiety before, but he knew better now. It was impossible to deny what he was seeing.

She was ill. The Dwarf king didn't know how long this had been going on. Time was turning into such a blur. Talia had been complaining of stomach pain for...maybe a week or so. Thinking about where they've been, he concluded that she could have picked something up just about anywhere. Thorin shook his head. They had no supplies for this, and they were in nearly the worst conditions they could possibly be in. All Thorin could do was pray that it wasn't anything serious, and that she could hold on long enough to finish this and finally get the attention she needed.

The Dwarf king let out a growl as the Men pulled her along. How could these pig-headed soldiers not see it? How could they continue to drag her through the dirt as if she were faking it? She shouldn't be here. he constantly thought. His Talia should be in bed, getting the rest that her body was begging her for. She should have him by her side, ready to take care of her the way she had once done for him. She needed a healer. She needed medicine. But no. Fate simply had to be cruel, as usual. Talia was out in the wild trying to complete a near impossible task, all while ill, in pain, and comfortless.

He had to get her out of here. They weren't safe with these Men. Once they get what they want...Mahal knows what they plan to do with them. Thorin didn't even care if they took the Ring anymore. That thing would never be worth their lives, given all the trouble it had caused.

Thorin was done with this quest. He and Talia haven't seen a home in months, their survival has gone from depending on a mad, ring-obsessed gremlin to being at the mercy of Faramir and his soldiers. This quest has only caused him and Talia to become torn and fractured like they never have been before. It made Thorin feel like they were losing each other. And the loss. They already lost four members of the fellowship that they know of.

It felt like it had been a lifetime since Thorin had thought about his nephews. Then his mind really got to thinking...about when Boromir died. Were Fili and Kili with him when it happened? Were they outnumbered? W- by Mahal, were his nephews in danger? Even if they survived the fight, where are they now? Where could they have possibly gone to seek safety? There was nowhere to go. Would he ever see them again? Would Thorin ever know their fate?

All of it was too much. This was exactly why Thorin wanted nothing to do with this quest in the first place. It brought nothing but misery, pain, and death. All of this over a pathetic piece of jewelry? It wasn't worth it. It wasn't worth the loss of his friends, it wasn't worth the separation from his nephews, it wasn't worth the sight of Talia declining by the day. No. Thorin would get out of this, and he would take Talia with him. He didn't care if it meant leaving the Ring behind. He was calling it off. The cost of this quest was far too high, and the Dwarf king was no longer going to pay it. Thorin would tie Talia down and carry her home if he had to...the way he should have the day she took off with the Ring.