The Hobbit / LOTR -oneshots

Iridescence - Fili

Warnings: battle and blood, death of orcs
Word count: 1649
Other: Yeah, the summary sucks big time. Mermaid!Reader.
Requested: by IntenseGaze

A curious woman catches Fili's attention.

When the company arrived at the shore of the small lake, they could not believe their eyes. A young woman, a mermaid, was struggling to get back to the water, but with no luck. Her fin was caught by a rope, secured so tightly around the glowing scales that it was digging into her flesh. The rope had already dug in so deep that she was already bleeding, blood seeping out, dripping onto the ground. Despite the amount of blood she was losing, she didn't cease her struggling even for one moment, the water spattering around her, forcing the orcs to back down. One good hit from her tail could break a neck. They were desperately trying to reign her struggles in by tightening their holds on the ropes around her tail, but the amount of muscle her fin had wasn't making it easy for them, and neither was she. She sensed even a slight falter in one of their movements, her tail was flying again, sending two of them frying straight into the water, where they sunk and never emerged. New orcs appeared, grabbing onto the rope and managing to drag you out of the water with a huge effort, the vast swings of your tail swaying their palace and making it hard for them to hold on, the rope burning their palms.

Gandalf was the first to take action, raising his staff high into the air and slamming it to the ground, sending out a bright blast of light that left the orcs dazed for a moment. That was the moment the dwarves took action, storming into the clearing, and quickly clearing the orcs away. They didn't even know what hit them as the dwarves stormed into the clearing, killing at least a dozen orcs before their presence was fully registered. The orcs scampered for their weapons, but for most it was too late as the dwarves cut through the band of them like knives through warm butter, making their way through the clearing with little effort.

The moment the hands holding the rope around your fin let go to defend themselves, you twisted your body, fighting to get back to the water. It wasn't easy, as you had to dodge feet that threatened to trample you. You also had to cease your efforts to get to the water time after time as an orc got a hold of the rope, and you had to turn around so you could aim the swing of your tail correctly. This orc flew meters back into a tree and didn't stand up after.

You reached the small rocks at the edge of your lake, the sharp edges digging into your sides but you hardly even noticed as you clawed your way toward the water. When your fingertips touched the water, you grasped the rounded rocks on the bottom and hoisted yourself deeper with them. With one last push of your tail, you dove straight into the depths, splashing the water with your tail.

The fight was over quickly, the dwarves congratulating each other for a fight well fought to clang their weapons together, but Fili didn't participate. He was still staring towards the lake with wide eyes, the last ripples of your disappearance already almost vanished from the surface. He kneeled next to the path of mixed gravel you had used to drag yourself into the water. The ground was glimmering with blood, but it wasn't anything like Fili had ever seen before. It was red, but there was a glimmer to it that he had never seen. It was like your blood was infused with thousands and thousands of tiny little diamonds.

- -

You lifted your head above the surface, shaking your wet hair out of your face.
"Gandalf! What brings you to this corner of Arda?" You swam closer to the edge of the lake, as the bearded man turned his attention to you. The dwarves were on high alert when they heard your voice, but slowly settled down when they realized Gandalf was talking with you.
"You know me, Y/N, I cannot stay in one spot for long." You let out a bright laugh at his words, the sun catching your scales under the water, making them glitter, catching the dwarves' attention.
"What a curious band of companions you have with you this time. I thought you usually prefer to travel alone." Gandalf let out a low laugh at your words, sitting on a rock on the shore.
"I usually do, but this was a situation I needed my full attention." You rolled your eyes at his attitude of carrying the whole world on his shoulders. As the two of you started to have a light conversation about what had happened in your lives since the two of you had last met, you settled leaning onto a rock. You were still at the deep end of the lake, resting your head on your crossed arm as they lay on a flat rock. Your fin rested just under the surface, creating ripples as you moved it around to keep your balance on the rock.

As the dwarves slowly approached the lake, the small glitter of your skin caught the dwarves' attention. The small glimmering sheen on your skin wasn't just the water they had thought. Your skin looked like you had been dusted with a fine diamond border, making the sun catch the glimmers as you moved.
"Are you a mermaid?" Bilbo asked, entranced by the way your fin was still rhythmically moving just beneath the water's surface, to help you keep yourself from sinking. You waved your hand in the air dismissively, water droplets falling from your skin, breaking the surface of the water.
"Mermaid, naiad, dryad, water nymph, whatever you call our kind. We have many names even though only a few ever see us in person."
"How do you know Gandalf?" Balin asked, stepping closer to the edge of the lake, making small pebbles drop into the water. You gave the wizard a mischievous smile, lifting your drying hair off of your face.
"It's a long story involving water lilies, a mess caused by a curse, and a whole lot of chanting." Your voice was chipper, and Gandalf let out a laugh, giving you a nod.
"I suppose we are staying here for the night?" Thorin sounded slightly annoyed, but as no one in the company argued with the idea, they started setting up camp.
"If you do, I just ask that don't bathe in our lake. My sisters aren't as understanding or kind with you land folk as I am." You chirped lightly as the dwarves promised they would only take water from the lake, and never strain into the deeper waters. You suspected that it was more out of fear than respect towards your kind, but at least it kept them out of the water.

When the other dwarves were busy setting up camp, Fili walked up to the shore, sitting on one of the rounded rocks there, catching your attention. He was handsome, for a land dweller, and you leaned against your arms again, tilting your head in curiosity.
"Have you lived here your whole life?" He asked, and you smiled, lifting your head to rest on your hand.
"Yes and no. I and my family mostly live in this pond during the summers." That didn't exactly answer Fili's question, and he frowned.
"What do you mean?"
"We live in this lake during the summer. When the heavy rains of autumn turn that small stream into a river we swim through it to the ocean, and spend the winter there. In the spring, when the snow is melting, we use the river to return again." You explained, splashing to chase away the curious fish that had come to nibble at your fin.
"That sounds quite dull if you don't mind me saying."
"I guess it is, but I am hoping that next summer I will go explore another corner of the world. This lake feels so small sometimes." Fili gave a small smile, partly understanding. He had lived in the Blue Mountains his whole life, and while they were vast with plenty to explore within, his heart had always yearned for the outside. And now, with this quest, his wish had been fulfilled.
"I hope that you get to explore the world. There is so much else to it than just one lake."

Fili was about to ask you about your family when a yell cut through the air.
"Fili! Come help us with this!" Thorin's yell sounded from the other side of the camp, and the dwarf sighed, pushing himself to his feet.
"I have to go." He wasn't pleased that he had to leave so soon, he would have liked to talk to you more.
"Go help him. Family can be difficult, especially if they have big expectations of you." You muttered, and something told Fili that you were speaking out of the experience.
"Will I ever see you again?" There was a deep-lying undertone in his voice, emanating sadness and longing, and you smiled.
"Who knows? I might strain into other waters as well. I will go where the currents take me." With that, you dove back into the water. Fili watched as the ringlets expanded on the water and finally disappeared before Thorin's insistent yell forced him to leave the edge of the pond.

I've had this idea since I started this book, and I thought this was a good time to put it to use. Although he end took me a while to come up with (one of the reasons I haven't written this before.