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The bright morning sun broke through the window. I fluttered my eyes open, squinting at the blinding light. I attempted to stretch myself out and sit up, but a pair of massive dwarf arms held me down. I turned my head around to find Kili sleeping peacefully behind me. I let out a slight chuckle and twisted my body around to face him.
I pecked a small kiss on his nose. "Good morning," I whispered. I traced circles with my finger on his back.
His eyes slowly opened, but when they did, he smiled. "Ah, is it that time already?"
I brushed his bangs from his face. "Indeed it is, and today is the big day," I sang with excitement.
"So it is," he muttered. His voice sounded uneasy.
"What's the matter?"
"What if it's nothing compared to what I've imagined... to what I've been told?"
"Nah, you've just got cold feet. I know I cannot speak for the entirety of the kingdom of Erebor, but how could one come up with such stories about something that holds no truth? I'm sure it is beyond what you can imagine, and even more than that." I placed my hand on his face, rubbing my thumb against his cheek. "And Kili, there is no way it can't be everything you've imagined, because it's your home."
He lifted his hand up to grab mine. "What would I do without you?" He kissed the outer palm of my hand.
"To be honest, I really don't know," I teased. "Now come on." I sat myself up, swinging my legs over the edge of the bed. "The boat will be leaving soon."
I reached down to pick up my boots and began to slide them on my feet. Kili attempted to stand, but his infected leg couldn't support the weight of his body. He let out a booming groan and collapsed to the floor. My heart skipped out of my chest at the startling sound of his agonizing pain. I jolted up from where I was sitting and hurried to his side.
I wrapped my arms around my shoulders, trying to help him lift his chest. He pulled his leg out from underneath him and straddled it out in front of him. Both of his hands grasped his leg, letting out cries out pain through panted breaths. I removed the binding from his leg to find a contorted pattern of dark veins surrounding a wound that gushed out black blood.
"You can't go to the mountain," I muttered.
"What?!" He asked in disbelief.
"You can't go to the mountain, Kili! You just can't!" Burning tears started to fill my eyes. "I can't watch you do this to yourself anymore!"
"You have no idea what this means to me, Adina!"
"Kili, I do, I promise I do. I'm just trying to save y-,"
