The Undecided Title Of Sara Miller *Hobbit Fanfiction* (Thorin/OC)

Chapter 16: Heart Sister

In which Bofur spills the beans.

The next two days passed relatively quickly for Sara, she had visitors regularly but none more frequently than Dori. Nori had offered to tell off his brother for her, but after a few visits she had grown accustomed to his fussing and sometimes even found it a but enduring, sometimes. Occasionally Ori would come with him and bring his journal and sketchbook and show Sara the drawings he had made in Rivendell. Thus far, Sara had only seen as much of the Hidden Valley as was visible from her window, and she very much enjoyed perusing through Ori's sketches for the young dwarf was quite skilled and it was delightful to see Rivendell if only through his eyes.

Between Dwalin, Balin, Nori, and even occasionally Gloin, there was almost always a dwarf on watch outside her door despite her protestations. Sara suspected that when Nori was on guard Dori was turned away as often as not, the thief making up one excuse or another. Because of this guard, Sara only ever saw one other elf besides Lord Elrond, the elf maid who brought her meals, and she never stayed to speak. Sara couldn't say she blamed her though because whenever Bofur spotted her he made it a game to try and get the elf girl to blush, flirting shamelessly with her.

Bofur had after the first day become almost a permanent addition to Sara's room spending much time in her company claiming that no one came to visit him in his room save Bilbo and his brothers on occasion. So it was that Sara found Bofur often hobbling into her room on a crutch which Bifur had made for him, complaining merrily about this or that, or teasing whoever happened to be on post outside her door. Fili, Kili, and Bilbo too were regular visitors, and even Gandalf made an appearance or two in her room however short lived they were. In fact there was only one person from the company Sara had not seen since she had woken, but she did not ask after him knowing Kili would only tease her for her curiosity.

After Elrond's visit the second day Sara was cleared to take a bath and with the help of the elf maid she was soon soaking in a warm bath. Sara could not however find any soap other than the small cake she used to wash her hands and her small bottle of three in one had been long since empty. She made do with a little bar scrubbing vigorously at her skin until she glowed pink like a new baby. Sara had not had a real good soak in warm water since the hot springs outside of Bree, and even with her arrival in Rivendell she had only been given a sponge bath, so it was a very clean and satisfied Sara who slipped into her own clothes and beneath the sheets of her bed.

During the third day in the elvish infirmary, Sara and Bofur could be found playing with a set of cards Sara had made out of some folded paper from her journal. She taught him to play Crazy Eights, Speed, and Blackjack, but the game that really lit up his eyes was Poker. It took a few minutes to explain the rules to him but by the time he had played a few rounds he was becoming rather adept at the game. While Sara shuffled the floppy paper cards she told him that poker was usually a gambling game and he had liked that idea and quickly suggested they play for favors since Sara had no money. Sara had been a bit hesitant but with his assurance that the favors were to be small things that either party could veto, she agreed. Several minutes later Sara revealed her hand to a rather disappointed Bofur.

"Alright lass, what be yer favor from me?" Sara had been pondering this for the last few minutes and had an answer ready.

"I want you to tell me all you know about what a heart sister is," she said. Bofur looked at her blankly before blinking.

"Have those two scamps not told ya yet?" he asked, as she collected the cards and shuffled them.

"To be honest, I keep forgetting to ask," she admitted. "That, or someone else is around, and I'm tired of waiting to find out. Besides, I don't see why it should matter who tells me. I just want to know why everyone's acts like it's such a big deal. Why is Thorin so against it? I mean he said he wouldn't stand in the way of a friendship between me and the boys so I don't see why it matters if they nickname me their heart sister. It's not like they're actually going to be my brother's," she said, holding the cards out to him.