Luthien kept walking but she had the feeling that she was moving further away from her destination. She kept changing direction, hoping that luck would lead her back to where she was supposed to the waiting.
She cursed herself for leaving behind her bag and having only her sword.
She hugged herself, starting to feel thristy and starving.
At least no beast attacked her yet, but she kept shivering cold. Those unforgiving lands were becoming her enemy.
I trade all I’ve known for the unknown ahead
She muttered to herself.
To comfort herself she recalled what brought her there.
Just few weeks earlier she had met Halbrand for the first time. And how many things happened in that short time. More adventures than in her entire life!
She obeyed to the words of her favorite song, that had also brought her troubles.
She left everything to follow the unknown.
Sing to me, sing to me lands far away
Oh rise up and guide me this wandering day
Please promise to find me this wandering day
As the sun started to go down, Luthien started to lose hope and to hate that song.
She was going to die in those inhabitated lands and nobody would ever find her. She would become food for the wild animals that went hunting at night.
She also tried to start a fire using her sword and some rocks, hoping to make smoke as a signal, but it was too damp and no fire burned.
Defeated, she sat down, tired also of cursing herself for causing her own ruin.
Her mind recalled the teachings of Master Ben about dwarves. That they were designed by Aulë the Smith to live underground. That they hewed marvelous underground cities and filled them with lamps. But they liked the dark and could see well in it.
She cursed her delirious mind and guessed that she'd never see if those words were real or not.
Suddenly some soft noises startled her and she immediately thought of some wild beast targeting her as an easy prey.
She stood up and swung her sword around but two human eyes looking up at her surprised her and she froze.
Was she allucinating?
"Don't be scared" the strange, short creature said to her with a weird accent.
Luthien stared at the creature with confusion. It looked like a child, covered in grass and natural colors, looking so blend in with the landscape that Luthien wouldn't have noticed it if the creature didn't come out.
"Are you hungry?" the short creature asked, hearing Luthien's grumbling stomach, and handed her something.
Luthien crouched and grabbed the weird food, tasting it. It tasted good enough so she devoured it.
"Yes, you are" the creature said with a big smile, then patted a hand on her chest "I'm Nori".
"Luthien" she replied sitting down and welcoming the flask of water that Nori handed her.
"Nice name. What happened to you?".
Luthien breathed with grief watching as Nori sat in front of her and without much effort started a fire.
Was she a guardian spirit sent to get by some Valar that had pity on her?
"I got lost. I was with..." her heart squeezed with sorry at the thought of what happened to Halbrand in the meanwhile "my friend. He told me to wait while he explored, but I became afraid and I got lost".
Luthien didn't notice her hands were trembling until Nori placed hers on them and she froze at that unexpected gesture.
"It's alright. You will find your way back to your friend" Nori said confidently.
Luthien nodded to believe that, then observed her more carefully.
"Are you a dwarf?".
Nori chuckled "No. I'm a harfoot. And my friend is a wizard".
Nori pointed at her back and Luthien jumped up on her feet so quickly that she almost lost her balance and fell on the fire.
If Nori surprised her for being short, the stranger that appeared at her back towered her.
The wizard smiled at her and offered her a hand, that she shook also to steady herself on her feet.
He waved at her to sit down and sat next to her.
"Do you two travel together?" she asked, unsure on how to react in front of the first wizard she met in her life.
"Yes, we are sharing an adventure" he said shooting an excited look to Nori.
Luthien was reminded of the understanding between her and Halbrand. And she felt guilty for betraying his trust.
"Where are you travelling to?".
"To the east" the wizard replied and took her hand, that laid rigidly on her knee.
His warm touch calmed her a bit.
He seemed to examinate her palm, trying to read it. Then he simply let her go with a smile.
"You are good, Luthien. You will find what you're looking for".
She smiled feeling awkward, but she was grateful for his attempt to comfort her.
"It's getting dark. It means we have to sleep. The sun will come back to wake us up" Nori said covering the fire to extinguish it and fussing around.
Luthien followed the duo by some trees where they camped for the night.
Also she held her sword close to her, she was scared of sleeping with strangers, but she was so tired and the wizard murmured some weird words over and over that helped her to sleep soundly.
When Luthien woke up, the sun was already up in the sky and Nori was sitting next to her.
"Berries?" the harfoot offered her.
"Thank you" Luthien sat up, spotting the tall wizard wandering around "I'm glad you waited for me and didn't resume your journey yet".
Nori tilted her head "You expected us to abandon you here?".
Luthien smiled awkwardly and stood up, hanging her sword by her belt.
"I need to find the dwarves realms. Do you know anything?".
"The dwarves are in the west" Nori pointed her finger in the direction "The mountains".
So their ways had to part, Luthien realized with some sadness.
"I'm really grateful for your help, Nori. I hope to pay it back someday".
"I would like if we meet again one day. So we can share our adventures".
Luthien smiled, her curiosity suggesting so many questions she wished to ask to her new friends, but it had to wait for another occasion.
"Come, let's see if we find other berries" Nori pulled at her sleeve and the woman followed her through the bushes, learning what berries to pick.
She was so focused on that merry activity that a sudden noise startled her.
She thought the tall silhouette on the horizon was the wizard.
But as she narrowed her eyes, her heart started to beat faster.
She forgot about the berries and started to move towards that figure with a new hope and unexpected joy.
She waved her arms up on the air to be seen and when that man ran towards her too, she sprinted to cut that distance faster, until finally her arms wrapped around him and she heard him say her name.
"I found you" Halbrand said holding her close.
"I got lost. I'm so sorry" she said quickly with guilt.
"You're alright. I found you. It's all that matters" he let her go and comforted her with a smile "I've found a trace. We're not far".
Luthien remembered about Nori and looked around, but she couldn't find her. She wished to say goodbye properly, but Halbrand grabbed her hand and guided her to their new destination.
"You know there are seven kingdoms of dwarves. I think I've found the Firebeards" Halbrand said with enthusiasm as they marched.
Luthien was deeply grateful that he didn't mind scolding her for her imprudence, but she started to grow nervous at the idea of actually meeting dwarves.
They weren't known for being the most friendly creatures.
And if Halbrand wasn't quick enough at reacting, he would have disliked the first encounter when suddenly a short bearded creature appeared on their way and swung its axe at his legs.
"You're not welcome here, long legs" the dwarf said with despise.
Halbrand blinked and recovered fast, bowing.
"We want to be your allies. We need to meet your King. A great danger menaces us all".
"We don't care of the wars of Men" the dwarf spat.
"But you live under the mountains. You must have heard of the potent fire coming from the depth of our world, waking dark creatures that haunt your nightmares".
Luthien noticed the uneasiness and fear flashing in the dwarf's eyes, no matter how he tried to look indifferent.
"Let me talk to your King" Halbrand insisted amicably.
"Only if you agree to be blindfolded. We care of our secrets".
Halbrand bowed "It's a little price for a great honour".
Luthien turned to look at him in dismay. The idea of being blinded while being taken underground reminded her of the doomsday, when the smoke and ashes was everything she could see.
"It will be alright" Halbrand murmured to her, taking the piece of cloth that the dwarf handed and blindfolding her.
She stood still, focusing on her breathing, then felt his hand grabbing hers and that became her only anchor in that dark, uncomfortable march to the underground.
She heard other grumpy voices echoing around her, then finally the blindfold was removed.
She blinked to get used to the dim lights of the torches that a group of dwarves were holding.
They were discussing in their weird language, searching through the bags Halbrand had been carrying, then they escorted them down a long staircase carved out of rock.
"Wait here. We will ask our King if he is interested in hearing what you have to say" the dwarves said, leaving a couple of guards to watch over them.
Luthien took the chance to admire the place more freely, all the large halls carved by those little, but strong and stubborn creatures.
Her brothers used to joke about dwarves and she wondered how they'd react when they'll learn that she managed to visit a dwarf kingdom and its wonderd.
The answer came quickly and she and Halbrand were called to an audience with the dwarf king in his dining hall.
"What kind of men dared to disturb me, coming down here in my kingdom?" the King asked with hostility, sitting on a rich chair and wearing a jeweled crown.
"Survivors" Halbrand replied confidently and added "I'm Annatar and she's Luthien. We witnessed the mountain exploding. Secrets have been whispered to us and we believe that it's fair to warn your people too of what is coming".
Luthien stood still and just glanced at Halbrand, at the way his words sounded hypnotic.
The dwarf king hesitated before saying "Let's talk then. Be my guests".
The dwarves showed a better hospitality, offering some guest rooms and wealthy refreshments.
Luthien was surprised to enjoy some comforts, but felt the same diffidence she felt at Calandir's castle.
She was eager to learn more of their culture, starting with tasting their foods and drinks.
As Halbrand discussed with the king, a dwarf princess accompanied Luthien in that underground kingdom.
"Your name is familiar to us. It's a blessing hearing it".
Luthien smiled. She was glad to find a female in a world that seemed made of only male dwarves. But she didn't expect them to hear those familiar comments on her name also amongst that race.
The princess was named Bera and it didn't trigger anything to her, she didn't know what to comment about it.
Luthien was saved from that awkward moment when she heard, coming from the caves, echoes of a sound that gave her goosebumps.
"They are singing to the stone. It's like a language we speak with the mountains. So we know where it's worthy to dig".
Luthien held her breath, feeling that music shaking her inner chords.
"It's fascinating. It's like magic".
Bera chuckled and elbowed her to encourage her to resume their stroll "You're not very familiar with stones, are you?".
"Sadly no" she admitted "I've always lived near the sea, next to woods crossed by a river. I've seen mountains only on the horizon. And the only stone I've seen are the ones used for the buildings in my city".
"I bet that it was stone wasted in unsafe buildings, if they were built without knowing certain secrets. My kin say that just a sneeze can make men's houses crumble" Bera frowned realizing that she didn't sound flattering "No offense".
Luthien nodded "I understand. I know there's still so much we need to learn".
"I heard you witnessed the mountain becoming alive".
Luthien halted for a moment "Barely survived it".
"That's how new ores, new gems are born, blessed with the fire from the heart of our world" Bera's eyes shone with enthusiasm "Still, a scary event. I felt how the mountain shaked even here. The old caves collapsed".
Luthien gasped "I hope nobody got hurt".
Bera laughed at her reaction "It takes a lot to hurt a dwarf. They say it's easier to hurt our pride. But at least that mountain of fire is the greatest furnace we have now".
Luthien remembered with uneasiness that hellish place "Indeed it is".
Having proper clothes turned out to be vital to be accepted by the dwarves.
Having no jewels to exibit, when Luthien wore the dress that she took from Calandir's castle, she felt the pressure of the dwarves' merciless stares diminish, until they seemed to finally accept her presence.
While she spent most of the time with the princess, Halbrand kept himself busy in the forges.
"I agreed to repay for their hospitality by helping them with crafting their weapons" he explained when they reunited. He looked so happy like he finaly found his place in the world. Or just that work was made for him.
"You've got a job" she exclaimed with surprise "What can I do to help?".
He leaned closer grinning "The king is happy to see his only daughter enjoying your company. They don't welcome many guests here. And very few men were offered such a honor".
Luthien looked at the dwarves around, not close enough to hear them.
"But they allowed us here".
"We are welcome only because we can offer them what they desire the most. Power" he said softly.
She glanced at him with uneasiness "And they believe we can offer them power?".
"I've persuaded the king to consider the option that without our help, his kingdom is destined to fall too. We need to fight together for Middle Earth. The alternative is being wiped away by the immortal beings that want to rule over us like new Gods".
His confidence persuaded her too, but she couldn't help feel worried like they were playing with fire.
They moved to retire for the night.
"Do you feel your wounds are fully recovered?" he asked eyeing her.
"Yeah, I'm surprised I survived so much".
"You're strong" he circled her, stopping at her back. She stiffened when she felt his hands touching her arms "Try to move your arm like you're holding a sword and sparing".
She lifted her arm and let his hand guide it.
"Now strike" he instructed softly.
She hit an invisible opponent, feeling his fingers test her muscles.
His other hand slipped on her hip.
"Good. We can practice together once we are allowed using real swords" he offered, stepping away from her, while she still felt dizzy for his closiness.
Luthien didn't need to wait for too long.
In the next days he spent most of his time by the furnace, until he allowed her to visit it.
Although she wore protective gear, the heat was almost unbearable and she struggled to fight the panic linked to her traumatic experiences.
"It's alright, you don't have to move too close to the fire" Halbrand said, grabbing her hand and leading her through the vapour until they faced a wall and a table filled with weapons.
The assortment stole a smile from her and for a moment she forgot about the choking heat.
"I knew this was the view that you would have enjoyed the most" he commented grinning at her reaction "I have something for you".
She wished to linger there a little longer, but had to follow Halbrand through a passage that led them to another room.
He picked something enveloped in a cloth and handed it to her.
She glanced between him and the thing she held in her hands, then carefully unwrapped her surprise.
Her heart beated faster as a shining sword appeared. It was lighter than any sword she ever held.
"You forged this?" she asked weighting it on her hand and when he nodded she added "How is it possible? Is it magic?".
He chuckled, moving closer to her "No, it's not simply iron. Our hosts allowed me to use some of their ores, creating this alloy. Lighter than common iron, stronger than any blade you've tried so far".
"It's incredible" she breathed out, feeling his fingers touching her hand gripping the sword "It feels like an extension of my arm".
"I'm glad to hear that. Do you want to test it?" his hand moved to unlace her heavy apron.
She watched him taking some steps away from her to remove his apron too, then picked another sword.
"You still need to teach me some of your tricks" she said, reminding how intense their first duel was.
"I'm afraid there's little I can teach you. You're already a lethal warrior".
She felt flattered and tried to focus as they started duelling.
The lack of practicing weighed on her.
She almost dropped her new sword and hated being so clumsy in front of him.
"You are used to heavier blades" he caught her when she stumbled and lost balance "With this new sword you can even dance".
She looked up at him, aware of the arm around her. She was reminded of them dancing and she craved for that time again.
"Thank you" she said when the silence was becoming uncomfortable.
He bowed his head, then lifted his hand, his fingers tracing her jawline "If I'm given the opportunity I would work every gem to make them become jewels worthy of you".
She froze, burning with anticipation, wishing to say that she didn't care of jewels, but the fact thar he said that filled her with emotions that she didn't know how to handle.
She felt reckless enough to try anything, to expose her feelings, if he didn't take the initiative. The duel and the song that was playing in her heart pushed her towards him.
But she hesitated a little too much and heavy steps warned them of someone coming.
Halbrand stepped back and Luthien almost glared at Bera as she appeared, accompanied by a couple of guards.
She grinned as she announced "You are invoked to Moria. I'll gladly escort you there".
Luthien didn't know much about Moria, unless that they were the most famous mines.
She learned that they were moving to another kingdom.
After packing and being dismissed by the King of the Firebeards, Bera escorted them through long narrow passages until they arrived in the kingdom of the Longbeards.
Halbrand awed also their king and was welcome to work with his smiths.
Luthien followed Bera to meet the royal family.
"I've met more elves than men, but it's the first time that I host a woman here" Disa, the princess, looked thrilled and offered a rich banquet.
It felt like there was competition between the two princesses and Luthien didn't want to be involved, but it was like being at the centre of a hurricane.
"So, how is it that you're traveling with Lord Annatar? Are you his princess?" Disa asked, talking like they were old friends.
Luthien almost choked on the cake she was tasting. She glanced at Bera for help, but she shot her a knowing look.
"No, I'm no princess. We shared some scary adventures that pushed us to fight for Middle Earth".
"Well, you're a brave woman, Lady Luthien" Disa leaned closer to her "But you can trust us. We ladies can bring secerts to our grave, don't we, Bera?".
"I've caught them being very engaged recently" Bera revealed like sharing some crucial information "I felt like I was interrupting something. And she held the sword that he forged for her".
Disa gasped and grabbed the sword that Luthien was allowed to keep by her side "Is it this one? It's like a jewel. And when a man offers you a jewel, or a sword, it just means...".
"That he wants to offer his own meaty sword" Bera concluded.
The princesses started cackling while Luthien wished to dig her own grave and bury herself.
She bet that even her friend Livi would feel embarrassed in front of such talks.
"What's going on here?".
Prince Durin joined the meal and the princesses calmed down, asking him about the projects he was working on.
It was a topic that didn't appeal to her, so Luthien excused herself and retired for the night, trying to sleep on a stranger bed, but her thoughts tormented her for a while, until finally her mind drifted to sleep.
In the following days Luthien tried to blend in with the princesses as Halbrand was the happiest in the forges.
She knew that they just wanted to befriend her and weren't scared of asking intimate questions.
But she knew she didn't belong there. She wanted to keep traveling. And to see the sunlight again.
Maybe it was the lack of sun that affected her mood and she couldn't fully enjoy her time in the dwarves kingdoms.
"I think it's the first time that a project brings together all the seven kingdoms" Disa commented as the three of them visited some mines "Your friend is very persuasive or we are just suddenly so desperate".
Bera shuddered "A mountain erupted fire and also something else woke up. Aren't we all just trying to survive?".
"What else woke up?" Luthien asked softly, controlling her breathing as the talk sank so quickly into dark topics.
"We do not speak of it. A creature of nightmare" Disa said with a certain solemnity and Luthien didn't dare to insist.
Halbrand appeared from the vapours of a forge and called to her.
Luthien joined him, leaving behind the princesses and their spicy comments.
"Have you already seen the jewels they craft?".
She nodded, recalling how unpleasant it was to listen for hours how Disa praised them and the story behind each piece of the collection.
"I bet they haven't introduced you to this one" he led her to another forge cave where no dwarf was working "It's an ore, not a jewel".
He picked something and handed it to her.
It wasn't a small piece of stone, but Luthien instinctively felt it as something special. Like something fallen from the moon.
"What is this ore?" she asked looking up and realized how he was leaning close to her.
"Some call it mithril" he whispered staring at the ore she held "It's said that it was created when a powerful elf and an ancient dark creature duelled over a tree, channeling their essences in it, until a lighting hit the tree. And it created a power of pure light and unyielding strenght".
Her hand trembled a bit as she imagined the amount of power involved in the creation of mithril. And she believed it, like the ore in her hand was confirming it.
"I'm not worthy of holding this" she murmured, handing it back to him, but he wrapped his hand around her fingers, pressing the ore into her palm.
"The dwarves are growing obsessed with this new discovery. The other realms agreed to work together because they are attracted by its power. If we are not giving them a reason to fight together, there would be a war over this mine".
She shivered. His hold on her hand wasn't strong, but the weight of his words and his closiness made her dizzy "This place is too magnificent to be destroyed".
"It won't be destroyed" he assured her and opened her hand, so the mithril shone again on her palm "This power can heal Middle Earth".
Luthien stared at it mesmerized. It was like holding hope in her hand.
Delicately she dropped the ore into his hand and he placed it back amongst the other ores.
"We can't stay here any longer" he announced "The enemies will learn that I've been here and I don't want the cause a conflict with our generous hosts".
Luthien stiffened, but welcomed the news. She was impatient to leave the mountains, although the kingdom was beautiful.
They packed and exchanged goodbyes with the dwarves, before taking a long march that brought them out of the mountains.
Finally they were in the open air again and Luthien looked up at the colorful sunrise sky, the emotions building in her bringing tears to her eyes.
"I've planned to go north, but I'm afraid we need to move south to understand what's going on" Halbrand paused and moved closer to her "Is it a problem for you? Or do you want to go back home".
She shook her head, blinking to fight back her silly tears.
"Then what is it?" he asked placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I've always dreamed of travelling, seeing the world. And now this dream come true. Thanks to you" she confessed.
A smile blossomed on his face "I'm honored to be travelling with you. I just wish it's a more pleasant travel, without dangers and duties".
She lowered her hand to the handle of her sword "I've survived the unthinkable, I can fight the dangers awaiting us. I'm ready for any new adventure".
He nodded grinning "Then let's go".
A/N
Tuesday 6th December 2022
🎵 A fate unknown, the Arkenstone
What was stolen must be returned
We must awake at break of day
To find our song for heart and soul 🎶
I wish I had some time to rewatch the Hobbit movies, I needed some more dwarf vibes.
At least I had this song accompanying me while writing part of this chapter.
I'm sorry if it took longer for this new update 🙈
So it's been quite a tranquil journey, although dwarves are weird company.
I tried to indirectly quote Durin when he said "Give me the meat. Give it to me raw." 😂
And the fact that he enjoyed forging with the dwarves was suggested at the beginning of the chapter, when recalling that dwarves are a creation of Aulë, and Sauron was his best apprentice.
So probably forging with dwarves he recalled that good time of his origins? 😍
Although he was forging the seven rings...
And I'm happy of that brief encounter with Nori and the wizard (Galdalf?), but yeah, it couldn't happen with Sauron around 😅
So again, this was a relatively merry chapter. I expect the next ones to be darker 🖤
Luthien's uneasiness in Moria is linked to something happening above in the open air... or should she be more worried of who she's travelling with? 👀