Fool for u

How to win friends and achieve your goal by almost dying - Part 1

"Lass?"

Periwinkle groaned when something brushed past her cheek.

"Time to wake up, lass. We're leaving in a few."

This time she was gently shaken and finally managed to open one eye. She faintly made out the angles of a funny hat in her blurry view. She yawned and slowly stretched herself out, "What, no breakfast in bed?"

Bofur chuckled and booped her on the nose, "Not if I don't get my legs back."

She frowned and wondered what he meant - then it clicked.

Periwinkle shot upright after realizing she had fallen asleep on Bofur, or on his shoulder at least. She had no idea how she ended up on his lap. All she knew was she was blushing madly and her hair was a complete mess.

"Bofur, I am so sorry." She could hardly look at him, "Your legs must be stiff by now. You should've waked me after your shift ended!"

"Lass, lass, don't worry." He quickly said before she could make even a bigger drama out of it, "Besides, I've never slept better."

Her eyes shifted from his shoulder to the place her head was lying seconds ago. How did she end up there? But her raging thoughts were immediately interrupted when Bofur reached into his coat to reveal Little Thorin, awake and looking ten times better. Periwinkle's face lit up once she had the little thing back in her arms. Like a true mother hen, she checked his leg and made him move around a bit.

"So much better." She breathed in awe and scratched him behind the ear, "I think he's nearly ready to go home."

"Aye." Bofur agreed but wasn't even looking at the bunny. He was looking entirely at her.

She inhaled slowly and finally met his gaze, "Again, I'm sorry for falling asleep on you, especially if I prevented you from moving around. It must have been uncomfortable."

His eyes lit up in amusement as he breathed a laugh. Bofur shook his head, this time grasping her hands in his gloved ones, "Lass, look at me. I don't mind, alright? I am told I make an excellent pillow - don't ask by who, though. What I'm tryin' to say is it didn't bother me. I kinda enjoyed it."

A soft smile made its way on her features as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, "You do make an excellent pillow."

"And that settles it." Bofur replied gleefully, "Now we should really get up. Thorin wants to leave in five minutes."

Periwinkle raked her fingers through her unruly red locks in a feeble attempt to flatten them a bit. When she failed, she shrugged it off and began packing up her things. Honestly, she couldn't wait to get back on the road, to continue the adventure-quest-thingy. Anything to save her from her red cheeks and her overwhelming urge to just blabber nonsense whenever a certain funny-hatted dwarf was near.

The first part of the journey was rather delightful. Apples were passed out for breakfast and washed down with fresh water they found in a nearby stream. The air was crisp and cool, perfect for travelling, and the scenery something one could only dream of.

The spirits were damped when it began raining.

It started dripping as they rode through another forest. In less than minutes, it was pouring rain and everyone was soaked to the skin, uncomfortable and miserable. Bofur couldn't light his pipe in the deluge, and even his usual carefree nature took a hit. And while the dwarves could not really complain of the cold, thanks to their thick skins and usual warm body temperature, Periwinkle fought against the clatter of her teeth and wrapped Little Thorin tighter in her cloak.