Daughter of Beorn: The Hobbit Fanfiction

(Epilogue Pt. 3) Come Home, My Dove

A year and a half had passed since the wedding. Truly, time had flown by faster than Fili and I had ever anticipated. We had learned in a matter of months that marriage was no cakewalk. Some days were more stressful than others, and Fili and I tended not to see exactly eye-to-eye on various topics. Nevertheless- we had committed to one another and therefore refused for arguments to escalate into severe conflict. Even the times where I seemingly drove him mad- as he did for me, on some occasions- we managed to come to an equal settlement.

Fighting the enemy forces was a subject in particular that we had a similar opinion on. The both of us would take turns in going out of the Mountain and battling whatever Orcs were nearby. We would never fight until the point where our lives would genuinely be in danger. Neither of us could afford to be reckless. With that being said, however, beating the life out of Orcs served as an amazing stress reliever. This particular day, it had been my turn to go out and have a little fun. Dramona had accompanied me as we had left early Friday afternoon. Now we were on our way back from a spectacular killing spree, walking amongst the nearby trees occupying the forest we always fought in.

The last of the sun was setting, and its orange-pink light was mingling with the cool blue of evening. Dramona wiped a bit of semi-dried Orc blood from her chin and grinned at me. "Thirty-seven in one night, eh? I gotta say, it's no'h bad!"

I shot her a smile. "Not bad at all. We've gotten higher numbers before, but we took these bastards out on an ambush." My expression then hardened slightly. "I thought that I'd never be surprised by what Orcs would do. But seeing them attack a group of refugees, half of them being children? It made it all the more enjoyable to kill each and every one of those fools."

A snicker escaped the dwarf's lips at my words. "Aye, you're right! I'm just glad the wee ones are safe, ya know?" Our conversation momentarily faded as we continued walking, only the gentle rustling of the leaves filling our ears. Dramona cleared her throat after a minute and looked at me. "So... speakin' of children... when are you an' Fili- if ya are plannin'...." In the future, I replied in my head. Fili and I had actually visited an alchemist and received an herb that drastically lowered the chances of becoming impregnated.

I gave her a reassuring smile. "It's all right, Dramona. You're allowed to ask." A wave of relief washed over me when I saw that we were approaching the edge of the treeline, and I could make out the Mountain in the distance. I sighed before replying. "Fili and I do want a family in the future... we wanted to wait for at least a year. It's just with what happened with Mira. Not physically, I- I've healed from that. I just hate that... a part of me is still worried about fully protecting my future little ones. Maybe that's selfish- to hesitate to have children because I'm too cowardly to face the fact that to a degree, their lives will be out of my control."

When I lifted my head, I saw that Dramona's expression was more soft than I had ever seen it. She rubbed the back of her neck momentarily. "Kyja... I don't undastahnd ya- and I'm no'h tryin' ta be mean. I'm just no'h a mother. But I will say this. You're no'h cowardly, all right? You just want the best for your children. An' no, you won't be able ta protect 'em all the time, 'specially when adulthood comes. My own Da 'bout lost his marbles when he found tha'h out." She shook her head. "I don't wan' ta sound cruel, but it's a risk ya have to take."

I bit my lip and nodded in reply. "No, you're right... having kids in this age is dangerous for any family. I'll talk to Fili about it later." Soon we walked through the entrance of the mountain and had to depart ways. Before she could fully leave, however, I set a hand on the dwarf's shoulder. "Thank you. And get cleaned up. You look like hell." I teasingly raised my hands up in defense when Dramona pretended to punch me, the both of us chuckling as we walked to our rooms.