The Girl With Fire For Hair

Lukhudel

The Company had stopped for the night near a cave, where Y/n, Fili, and Kili were. Y/n smiled at the fire in front of her, a calming sensation washing over her. Fire always calmed her down for some reason. The sound of crackling wood was like a lullaby, and the flames were a night light.

Bilbo sat up, not being able to sleep due to the snoring of some dwarves. Y/n could understand him not being able to sleep, she couldn't sleep either. Bilbo stood and wen over to his horse, sneakily feeding her an apple. Y/n could hear him whisper to the horse as he did so, and it made her smile. A loud screech filled the air, frightening Bilbo. Y/n jumped slightly, subconsciously placing her hand on Kili's. He glanced down at her hand on his, smiling to himself while Fili stated at the two with a small smirk. Bilbo turned to face Kili, Fili, and Y/n - who was wide eyes and glancing around, her hand still on Kili's.

"What was that?" Bilbo asked quietly.

"Orcs," Kili answered.

Bilbo repeated, "Orcs?" Thorin began to sit up after hearing the noise.

"Throat cutters. There’d be dozens of them out there. The low lands are crawling with them..." Fili said dramatically.

"They strike, in the wee small hours, when everyone’s asleep. Quick and quiet, no screams. Just lots of blood..." Kili copied his brother's tone of voice, chuckling slightly at a worried Bilbo. Y/n scooted closer to Kili, scared. She very rarely got scared, but orcs didn't sound like something you'd want to meet in a dark alley.

Thorin looked at the brothers, a glare on his face. "You think that’s funny? You think a night raid by orcs is a joke?"

"We didn’t mean anything by it..."

"No you didn’t. You know nothing of the world. Look at the girl... She's terrified." Thorin shook his head, going to the side of the cliff, looking over the horizon.

"Don’t mind him, laddie. Thorin has more cause than most to hate orcs," Balin began. "After the dragon took the Lonely Mountain, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient dwarf kingdom of Moria. But our enemy had got there first. Moria had been taken by legions of orcs, led by the most vile of all their race, Azog the Defiler. The giant Gundabad orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Durin. He began by beheading the king." Y/n gasped softly at this.

"Thrain, Thorin’s father, was driven mad by grief, he went missing, taken prisoner or killed, we did not know. We were leaderless. Defeat and death were upon us. That is when I saw him. A young dwarf prince facing down the Pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe. His armor rent, wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield. Azog the Defiler learned that day, that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken. Our forces rallied, and drove the orcs back. Our enemy had been defeated, but there was no feast, nor song that night for our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few, had survived. And I thought to myself then, there is one who I could follow, there is one I could call king," Balin finished. By now,all the dwarves had stood, looking at Thorin with respect.

"And the Pale Orc? What happened to him?" Bilbo asked.

"He slunk back into the hole whence he came. That filth died of his wounds long ago," Thorin told him. He went back to where he came from, laying back down to sleep. Y/n stood and walked towards the forest, placing an arrow on her bow and aiming towards a tree. She hadn't done archery in a few years, so she felt it best to practice. The snap of twigs alerted her to a presence near her. Spinning around, Y/n aimed her bow towards where she heard the noise, only to see Kili with his hands up in surrender.

"You gonna shoot me?" he inquired, smirking. Y/n sighed, lowering her bow.

"No. I've just got to practice. It's been at least three years since I've held a bow like this. I fear if forgotten how to use it." Y/n faced the tree she was aiming at before and drew the bow string back. She fired, and it went to the side of the tree, only to hit another one. "Ugh." She walked over to the other tree, pulling her arrow from the bark and returning to original position. She drew back her bow and aimed at the tree once again. Only, this time, she felt a pair of hands on her shoulders.

Kili placed his face right next to her ear, and whispered, "Imagine the tree is someone you very much dislike. Think about where you want to hit them with an arrow, and picture it on the tree." Chills ran down Y/n's spine as he said this, and she pictured Katie's face, taunting her. Y/n let loose the arrow, and it hit directly where Y/n pictured Katie's forehead. Y/n lowered the bow and sighed in content. She turned her face to look at Kili, who was smiling at her.

"Thank you," Y/n uttered.

"Of course, Lukhudel." Y/n raised an eyebrow.

"What does that mean?"

"Does it matter?" he smiled softly. "C'mon. We should get some sleep." Y/n nodded and followed him back to camp, wondering what he had said.

*TIME SKIP*

The next day the Company had packed up and went on their way. Y/n riding next to Kili and Fili, as usual, with Gandalf and Thorin leading the way. It was raining, and Y/n pulled a dark cloak over her head, hoping to keep herself dry as much as she could. Not that it worked.

"Here, Mr. Gandalf? Can’t you do something about this deluge?" Dori called, annoyance in his voice.

"It is raining, master dwarf. And it will continue to rain until the rain is done! If you wish to change the weather of the world, you should find yourself another wizard."

"Are there any?"

"What?"

"Other wizards?"

"There are five us. The greatest of our order is Saruman, The White. Then there are the two blue wizards. Do you know, I’ve quite forgotten their names."

"And who is the fifth?" Bilbo quizzed.

"Well, that would be Radagast, The Brown."

Bilbo glanced up to the gray wizard, "Is he a great wizard or is he…more like you?"

Gandalf seemed almost offended at Bilbo's question, but answered regardless, " I think he’s a very great wizard, in his own way. He’s a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eye over the vast forestlands to the East, and a good thing too, for always evil will look to find a foothold in this world."

"The company of animals seems comforting. He sounds very nice, Gandalf," Y/n said.

"He is indeed, my dear." The Company continued onward, through the rain, though there were many complaints from some of the dwarves...

"Are you cold?" Kili asked quietly.

"Not in the slightest. But i still want to know what you called me last night, if you would mind me asking?" A smirk crossed his face as he urged his horse forward a bit.

"Kili...? What does it mean?"

"You'll find out later." Y/n rolled her eyes, sighing to herself.

🗡️🗡️🗡️

A/N: HELLO AGAIN!! So, if what I found was correct, Lukhudel means Light of all Lights. If this is wrong, please correct me! 😣 If it is wrong, please tell me what is is so I can correct it. Anyways, I hope this story is enjoyable, and I literally cannot stop writing it.