Once Upon a Time

Into the past

This is the one Kili put in Ecko's hair. I drew the picture and it took me awhile so please don't take it! It's down lower that's what I think the clasp looks like. I think this is the longest one. I'm not very good at writing a long chapter but here is a longer one. Also at this point if it looks different from normal it means something. I'm just lazy (and apathetic) if you get that I love you :)

I wake up with little to no air in my lungs. I had the worst nightmares I've had in awhile. Why did I first dream about Kili? Could he be my mate? my star? We can only have one star so I hope it's him. I should explain what a star is though. Later. I got out of bed and picked up my pack. I open the door as quietly as elvishly possible and turn to walk into the living room. I see Thorin waking everyone up and I run into a masculine figure and find Kili coming towards my room, probably to wake me from my short slumber. He wasn't expecting me so he startled and we both fell down, causing a loud thump to sound. The small conversation that had arisen quickly stopped and I began to feel an odd heat in my cheeks. Am I blushing? I've never blushed before, I don't think. His hands are on both sides of my head and I'm under him, our faces are wearily close. We both look away and he gets off of me. I start getting up when a hand appears in front of my face I grab it and Kili helps me up. Once we're both on our feet I grab my fallen items and go back into the living room. Kili followed me, I heard his heavy footsteps although they weren't quite the loudest. I'm not quite sure what was happening until some said my name and all the dwarfs looked at me. I looked up from the ground and acknowledged Bofur, who was trying to get my attention. " you alright there lass?" Bofur asks when noticing my red hot face and some of my scars poking out of my sleeves . You see, I can perform illusions, causing it so I can hide the scars on my face. I just nod, assuring that I was okay and I was just a little hot. Fili is quick to comment on the scars along the length of both wrists. Thankfully you can't see them much so it's only my wrist you can see. " What are those lass?" Bofur questions pointing at my wrists. I quickly glance down then back up then I just nod a silent, reassuring nod. Several of the dwarfs nod and smile at me. When we get outside Gandalf is already preparing his horse and Thorin immediately begins the process of getting his horse ready. I don't have a horse because I think they didn't know I was coming. Bofur offers me the reins to his pony and I just shake my head, refusing the ride. "I'll walk, it's alright." I replied with a small smile tugging at my lips. He nodded and gave me a small, sad smile. I grabbed my pack and my dagger along with a few water skins, I didn't have a lot to begin with so I knew I'd be fine. Not sure how long we're going to be gone. Might as well stack up. These thoughts had clouded my brain the night before as well, telling me something bad was going to happen, this was going to take longer than expected, neutral thoughts most of the time. I shake off those thoughts and I finish packing up the last of my things. Everyone was done getting the ponies ready by the time I was done and outside. I had made sure everything in the house was in order and it was clean, making it seem like no one was there at all. Everyone had gotten on their pony and we started on our way. Thorin in the front, Gandalf on the side, and me in the back. Walking wasn't my favorite but I liked it enough that this wasn't the hardest walk I've been on. I hear several of the dwarfs place bets on whether or not Bilbo would come, then Bofur perks up and questions, "what about you lass? Do you think he'll come?" All 13 heads turn to look at me, I just shrug my shoulders and utter under my breath, loud enough the dwarf closest to me could hear, "he will come. I'm sure of it." Bombur was at the end with me a few feet in front of me and he just nodded as all the other dwarfs went about betting and even I offered a pretty penny. 50 gold coins. That's how many I had and that's also how many I bet. I bet against Thorin surprisingly enough. I know dumb idea but I did it anyway because I was bored even in the company of dwarfs. My mind kept wandering to what would happen if I saw my family and friends again. I want to but I wasn't sure if I would stay with the dwarfs or not. Sure I had signed the contract but I still could be released from "duty". I heard the horses having a conversation. I'm the queen of the animals after all. "The queen won't let us take her!" Whined one of the Shetland ponies. The other replied with a more tired and aggravated tone, "I know but I think we might be too small." Of course to the others it just sounded like they were whinnying and of course Thorin yelled at them to keep quiet. After that the ponies are quiet and they turn back to look at me and so I give them a soft smile that doesn't quite reach my eyes. They give a quick whinny and go quiet once more. 5 minutes later and we all stop at the sound of a pair of feet running on soft ground and the shouting voice yelling, "Wait!! Wait!" Once Bilbo had caught up he pants as he hands the contract to Balin and breathes out, "I signed it." He has a difficult time saying it due to the lack of oxygen reaching his lungs. "Everything appears to be in order. Welcome, Bilbo Baggins, to the company of Thorin Oakenshield." Balin all but quotes. It wasn't very noticeable to many people but the way he said it made it sound like he had said it a million times over. "Get him a pony." Thorin's sharp voice proclaims after he was done sizing Bilbo up. Bilbo blushes and starts stuttering an excuse as to not needing a pony. "N-no I think I'll be quite alright." Thorin ignores him and nods at the two dwarfs behind Bilbo who just so happen to be Kili and Fili. They both grab Bilbo by the arms and place him on a pony, where he grips onto the reins with his pointer and thumb. I look down and I hear the tossing of coins and a few grumbles. I look up at Thorin and he turns to look at Bilbo but instead turns and makes eye contact with me instead. He looks at me and his eyes widen, he turns his back quickly; startling people behind him. Bofur looks at him and then looks at me, raising one eyebrow and questioning what I did to make him so scared. "Pay up your majesty." I chuckle out. All of the dwarfs could hear us and some of them started laughing while Bilbo just looked on with a concerned look. "Stiildus hinmaar Bilbo. Uv I'll dreh nii dimaar." (Calm yourself Bilbo. Or I'll do it myself.) I spoke in dragon's tongue but all the other members of the company looked at me funny. "That was no elvish tongue." Thorin pointed out in an angry tone, while I shook my head and stopped completely. "It's a....type of elvish I believe. Not one I'm familiar with but I've heard spoken by woodland elves I think." Gandalf rushes out an excuse, speaking hurriedly. I decided to just tell them with some excuses still, "No you haven't. It's dragon tongue. I learned it while with the orcs. Those were the only sources of entertainment. And the other prisoners who are now dead." Thorin nods and we are told to go in before Bilbo sneezes and stops us again. "Stop! Stop! Stop!" "Whatever is the matter?" I've forgotten my handkerchief!" That conversation went on for a minute before we continued. "You will have to do without pocket handkerchiefs, and a great many other things, before we reach our journey's end, Bilbo Baggins. You were born to the rolling hills and little rivers of the Shire, but home is now behind you. The world is ahead." Gandalf responds
to his lamentations. He just nods solemnly and we continue on our trek. We walk. We walk and we walk and walk. I notice the horses are beginning to become restless as we continue walking and some of the dwarfs keep glancing back towards me with worried expressions. I also come to notice that Thorin keeps giving Bilbo weird side glances so I run up to Bofur's horse and call out to him while he just looks down at me. Barely. "15 coins their falling for each other, Bilbo and Thorin." He just looks back up and nods while I smile and fall towards the back again. We finally make it up a hill and by that time it's already dark and foreboding. Thorin announced we would stop here for the night and I took some of the ponies to be tied up at a nearby tree. Once I got back everyone was either asleep or still rolling out their bed rolls. When everyone was asleep except me, Bilbo, Kili, Fili, and Balin I saw Bilbo take an apple over to Myrtle, his pony. I saw that even though he was trying to be discreet and chuckled to myself in a soft tone. When I heard a scream I took my dagger out while everyone else just looked up. I really need to get my sword back. "Orcs." I hear a voice mutter over my shoulder. I'm standing at the mouth of the little rock formation we're camping in. I see Kili with a grave look covering his face, same with Fili. "Blood thirsty. They always attack in the middle of the night. No noise just lots of blood." Bilbo looks petrified so I clear my throat to correct them but Thorin had woken up and beat me to it. "You think that's funny? You think a night raid by Orcs is a joke?" Kili is quick to respond, "We didn't mean anything by it." And Thorin shoots right back at him, "No you didn't. You know nothing of the world." He walks off towards the edge of the clif and Balin comes walking towards us, "Don't mind him, laddie. Thorin has more cause than most to hate Orcs. 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. 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; the young dwarf prince facing down the Pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe, his armour 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 or songs that night, for our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few had survived and I thought to myself then 'There is one I could follow. There is one I could call King'." I saw his father in the dungeons. He was the first one killed to strike fear in our hearts. But I still had no idea he had to go through that. "I have no right to apologize but I will anyway. I know what that's like." I blurt out and Thorin turns around quickly with an angry expression and he all but shouts, waking the others. "You have no idea what that's like!" I didn't react kindly to his yelling. I flinch hard and everyone sees but I compose myself and yell back, "DON'T YOU DARE SAY I HAVE NO IDEA! I'm the last of my kind and my father is an evil man who has also been near killed. You think I'm just an annoying elf but I'm more than that, what I am you'll find out." I get several pitiful looks. "I don't need pity." I walk away with clenched fists and I go to the edge of the cliff with no dagger and sit down. I had thought of jumping off and scaring them but I hadn't used my wings in so long so I didn't know what would have happened if I tried. They would hurt to stretch for the first time probably. It wasn't the first time I had thought of leaving them to go find my own family.  Sing a song in elvish with some words going from dragon back to elvish. I look back while singing and notice some of them have fallen asleep while others where just staring those being, Kili, Thorin, Balin, and Bofur. I finish singing and am quickly pulled by the arm by an unknown source but I hear chuckles so I'm not much worried. I look and I see Kili had moved quickly to grab my arm. When we were far enough that people couldn't see or hear he presented me with a stone. "It's a promise stone of sorts. If I give it to you, you have to promise to do something to come back to me." I just nod and pull something like that, out from one of my pouches. "A dragon claw. I found it in a cave I was exploring. I was scared when I found it because I thought there was a dragon there, so I grabbed the claw and ran. It has a certain importance to me. Kind of like your promise stone. Here." I hadn't actually found it. I had chipped one of my claws and it broke off so I turned it into a claw necklace. I handed it to him and he looked from it to me. "Then you take this. If where ever separated it's our promise to come back to each other." He handed me his stone and I smile, thinking of the dragon courting bead I had in my safest pouch. I always had it on me because I was ready to court. It wasn't uncommon for dragons to mate with other creatures I guess you could call them. Dragons also court with beads and marry with rings but we braid them in each others hair. They are made of gold and I had emeralds embedded into mine. And a special Aquamarine because you always put your birth stone into the hands of the carving. I had a dragon elf hybrid carved into mine. I want to court him. We don't talk but I want to court him. He's my star.