Fili brings luck. Kili brings chaos.
Tw: Mentions of wounds/blood, Raewyn telling Dwalin to grow a pair, Kili and Raewyn lying to Bilbo, brief description of pain. One (1) use of a swearword, but it's in the language of the Ashas so it's not even that serious. That was actually it?
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A cold wind ran over the waters, delivering shivers to the company, who had now all been seated on the boat a bargeman so happened to offer. Raewyn had not been there when they met him, but as far as she could see, he was not really one for conversations. And that soothed her somehow. She truly did not feel like talking to anyone at the moment.
The ranger had been seated with her back against the ramp of the boat, her arms tugged over each other inside her tunic, the sleeves of the fabric hanging down beside her body. Bilbo had chosen to take a seat next to his friend, observing her with much interest and curiosity.
"What are you doing?" He whispered, gesturing towards her arms which were no longer visible to the rest of the company.
"Preserving body heat." She simply stated. "When you come out of cold water and the air doesn't warm you up, you need to get rid of the freezing material. But, alas," She sighed, rolling her eyes as she looked down at Bilbo. "I am here on a boat, surrounded by dwarves and a man. I do not think this would be an appropriate time to strip myself off of my shirt."
The hobbit chuckled at her words, nodding his head once. "So, how do you.." He began, referring to the ranger's earlier statement.
Raewyn smiled at him, returning her arms to her sleeves as she reached for Bilbo's coat.
"First, you make sure you can move your arms freely," The hobbit followed her commands, letting the coat fall off of his body. "And then, you simply retreat your arms to your chest through your sleeve, and you fold them."
Bilbo toyed with the ends of his sleeves, shivering as the cold got increasingly worse, thanks to his suddenly lost layer of clothing. When his arms met each other under his blouse, he looked back at the ranger.
"Like this?
"Just like that." She agreed, carefully draping his coat back around his shoulders.
"This...this is a whole lot warmer than before." The hobbit admitted, shaking his shoulders as he got comfortable, releasing in the warmth his arms were now getting.
"My father always used to tell me that hands were the portals to someone's body." Raewyn spoke up, letting her hands wander back under her shirt.
Bilbo gave her an encouraging look, urging her to continue.
"The poetic way of explaining it, would be because your hands introduce you to everything. They introduce you to fabric, to food, to people. They decide whether you like the touch of something or not." She explained to him.
"But the more realistic statement, is that, when your hands are cold, your entire body slowly begins to freeze up. And when your hands are warm,"
"Your body starts to heat up." The hobbit filled in.
"Exactly." Raewyn nodded.
Bilbo formed his lips in a thin line, thinking about what she had just told him.
"I do believe I like the poetic explanation better." He confessed.
"Oh, I have a book filled with them." The Asha joked, laughing slightly at her own words.
"You do?" Bilbo asked through a smile, though he appeared genuinely interested. Raewyn gave him a knowing look, smirking at his interest. The curiosity of hobbits never once failed to amaze her.
"The eyes are windows for your soul," She quoted. "and your nose is the gateway to your heart."
"That's beautiful." Bilbo gaped. "Though I do think you need to explain that."
"Well," Raewyn smiled, now noticing the tiny crowd forming around her, consisting of Ori, Bofur, Bombur, and - to no one's surprise - Fili and Kili. "You can tell a lot about a person by simply looking into their eyes. You can tell when they're daydreaming, when they're lying, what emotion they are feeling. You can almost assume to know a person by merely meeting their eyes once."
"What do my eyes look like?" Bilbo pushed, truly intrigued by her story.
Raewyn smiled at him, taking a quick look into his eyes, though she did not really need to anymore. She knew him well enough now.
"Curiosity." She answered simply. "It is not a rare look for you."
"It isn't?"
"No." The ranger confirmed. "It is easy to tell this is your first time setting foot outside the Shire."
The hobbit seemed to frown at her speech, not knowing what she meant by that.
"But curiosity is not a bad thing, Bilbo." Raewyn was quick to reassure. "If anything, more people should feel the desire to learn about anything, instead of accusing and assuming the worst. Inquisitiveness is a wonderful thing."
Bilbo seemed relieved with that, letting a quiet sigh escape his lips, somewhat flustered with the compliment he just gained.
"And the nose?" Bofur asked, seeing his chance to speak up.
"The nose," Raewyn remarked. "Associates certain smells with memories and afflictions. They can make you feel happy, and they can make you feel sad. For example, the smell of old parchment always makes me feel blissful."
"Who told you this?" The Lakeman suddenly spoke up, the first time he had done so for the entire trip.
"My father." Raewyn repeated, trying to keep her voice as friendly as possible.
"Those were words from him?" He tested, giving her a nearly accusing look. One that she did not like receiving.
"Yes. And the words of his father, and that of the one before him." The ranger explained, trying her best to not glare at the man. He was supposed to get them to safety, and she figured it would be best not to anger him. For now.
"Those are words from Esgaroth." He accused, obviously angered by the words flowing from her mouth.
"That's a very realistic possibility." Raewyn deadpanned. "I come from a long line of men and dwarves. It would be no surprise for me to know one of my ancestors came from your town."
At those words, the man's face seemed to shift from annoyance to wonder, his stance unconsciously changing.
"So it is true." He whispered, before speaking up. "You are an Asha? I thought they all died during the orc raid."
Raewyn formed her lips in a thin line, scrunching her nose up slightly. "Yes, well, I fear I have to disappoint those expectations. Unfortunately, I am alive and breathing."
Newfound hope climbed onto the man's face, though he did shift his look back to the waters. "Are there more?"
"Just me." The Asha answered, deflating his expectations slowly.
"How long have you been alone?" Ori wondered, leaning forward in his seat, genuinely interested by her stories.
The woman did not know what to answer to him. It wasn't necessarily a touchy subject, she simply did not enjoy talking about it, for she always considered these talks to be pointless. She would rather sit the entire trip through in silence, but she knew better than to leave the poor dwarf in anticipation. He seemed so curious, so engrossed. It reminded her of Bilbo, who had already heard this story before. But he sat beside her, leaving her with the decision whether to talk or not.
"Ever since the raid, 31 years ago." She finally commented. "I traveled with Gandalf until I came of age, which was 19 years later."
"You traveled Middle-Earth alone for twelve years?" Bofur filled in, quickly doing the math in his head.
"Not completely alone."Raewyn tried to soothe, pointing towards the owl flying through the air behind them. Multiple dwarves had already seen it, but did not question it. Not until now.
"I had her. Farris has been loyal to me for fifteen years now. She was a gift from Radagast."
"That I did not know." Bilbo mumbled quietly beside the ranger, making her chuckle a little.
"Can owls live for so long?" Fili now asked, mainly to himself, though Raewyn did hear him.
"No." She answered plainly. "Barn owls live for four years. But he must have thrown an enchantment over her. It would not surprise me. She seems as young as the day I got her."
Silence fell amongst the company as they now stared at the bird soaring through the sky, her eyes now visibly on her owner, keeping watch of her every movement, ready to land once given the signal. But Raewyn would let her fly for now. In a way, Farris was her companion, and would the company crowd her, she might get disoriented. She would not risk that from happening.
The bargeman himself seemed distracted by the animal too, looking up at her as she kept her even pace, circling around the boat occasionally. A large stone appeared out of the fog all of the sudden, alerting the hatted dwarf.
"Watch out!" He warned loudly, rising from his seat.
The man expertly poles the barge between the rock formations, ignoring the angry looks the dwarves were throwing him.
"What are you trying to do? Drown us?" Thorin fumed, glowering at the man.
"I was born and bred on these waters, master dwarf." He defended. "If I wanted to drown you, I would have not done it here."
"Oh, I have had enough of this lippy Lakeman," Dwalin grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest. "I say we throw him over the side and be done with him."
"Oh, Bard." Bilbo retorted, nearly angered, which seemed to surprise Raewyn. "His name is Bard."
"How do you know?" Bofur asked confused.
"Uh, I asked him." The hobbit replied sassily.
"I don't care what he calls himself, I don't like him." Dwalin mumbled to the group's leader.
"We do not have to like him, we simply have to pay him." Balin shot down, tired of his brother's accusing words every single time. "Come on now, lads, turn out your pockets."
The dwarves begin pulling out their money and valuables, which they managed to hide from the elves during their stay in Mirkwood. Raewyn lazily threw her pouch from the inside of her shirt, before letting her arms return back into the therefore destined sleeves.
"How do we know he won't betray us?" The ranger managed to hear Dwalin whisper to Thorin.
"We don't." The king muttered, before giving his money to Balin, who began counting it.
"There's, um, just a problem; we're ten coins short." The older dwarf remorsefully announced.
All heads turned towards the red-haired dwarf, whose beard had grown all static thanks to the river.
"Gloin. Come on, give us what you have." Thorin warned, pointing towards the small pile of gold and silver.
"Don't look at me. I have been bled dry by this venture!" He argued. "And what have I seen for my investment? Naught but misery and grief and..."
The dwarf's words died on his tongue as everyone began to rise from their seat, staring towards something in the distance. Raewyn stayed down on the ground, her sight obscured by the company in front of her. She could only assume they finally spotted their final destination.
"Bless my beard." Gloin gasped, throwing his gold onto the pile. "Take it. Take all of it."
"The money. Quick, give it to me." Bard urged, gesturing towards the gold.
"We'll pay you when we get our provisions, but not before." Thorin stated, to the great annoyance of both the Lakeman and the ranger behind them.
"If you value your freedom, you'll do as I say. There are guards ahead." Bard threatened, pointing towards the end of their barge.
Begrudgingly, the leader nodded, letting the bargeman take his earned coins.
"Good." He agreed, shoving the objects into his coat pockets. "Get into the barrels."
Swiftly, the company ran back to their barrels. From beside her, Bilbo had gotten his coat back on, looking at the woman who was still on the floor. His eyes scanned over his leg, but quickly looked back up, afraid he was overstepping a boundary after she stated she did not want people to worry about her.
With a tight grip on the side of the boat, Raewyn forced herself up, letting out a painful groan as the wound on her leg tore past her pant leg.
"Can I do anything to help?" Bilbo quietly offered.
"Yes." The ranger answered truthfully. "Get in a barrel and keep out of sight."
Kili walked up to the pair, also glancing down at her leg.
"Are you alright?" He checked, offering the ranger his arm, though she dismissed his gesture.
"I'll manage." She assured, stumbling over to her barrel, her leg obviously bothering her.
"Yeah, no, that won't happen." The dwarf muttered, taking hold of her shoulder as he pulled her back, making sure he was not bothering her leg too much.
"Kili," Raewyn warned, trying to push his hand off.
"She won't make it in a barrel," He spoke up nonetheless, drawing Bard's attention. The dwarf pointed towards Raewyn's leg, the dried blood still visible. "She's injured."
"There is nothing else I can do." The Lakeman argued. "If not in the barrels, I cannot sneak her into Laketown."
"Tell the guards a lie!" The dwarf shot back.
"I am perfectly capable of hiding in a barrel, Kili." Raewyn protested, walking out of his hold, already pulling herself into one of the wooden structures.
The dwarf shot her a tired look, inhaling sharply as he noticed her struggle.
"I will keep an extra close eye on her, if it soothes your mind." Bard whispered towards Kili, hoping to somehow calm him down. But it appeared to have a completely other effect.
"I'd rather you not." He warned. "She can take care of herself, and if not, I can. You just get us into Laketown."
With those words, he turned around sharply, letting himself fall down in the barrel beside Raewyn, resisting the urge to show her a last desperate look. Bard had already disappeared to the back of his barge, ready to steer the company through the gates. All they could do now was wait.
– –
When the boat came to a sudden halt, the dwarves sturred in their barrels, keeping themselves hidden, though they began to become suspicious about the Lakeman's behavior.
"What's he doing?" Dwalin grumbled quietly, hearing Bard's footsteps leave the barge.
Bilbo, who had managed to find a hole in his hiding spot, looked towards the man, scanning his every movement.
"He's talking to someone." The hobbit observed out loud. "And he's...pointing right at us!"
"What?" Raewyn wondered surprised.
"Now they're shaking hands." Bilbo announced, confusion laced in his voice.
"What?" Thorin now questioned too.
"That villain!" Dwalin accused. "He's selling us out."
Silence struck the company as they thought about Bilbo's words, anxiety settling in amongst all of them, pure dread filling the air. Footsteps were heard on the boat again, making the group hold their breaths, ready for what was to come.
However, none of them expected for cold, dead fish to fill their barrels, the stench swarming around their noses as their vision became obscured. Raewyn let out a silent gag, while Bilbo closed his eyes tightly, hoping so dearly those who poured the fish had not seen the company. Or would at least not mention it.
Gloin complained audibly, which was rewarded with a heavy kick to his barrel, the sound of flowing water reaching the company's ears once more.
"Quiet," Bard mumbled. "We're approaching the toll gate."
Raewyn could feel the barge move, its momentum slowing down with each passing second. She knew the gate to Laketown was closer to ever. If she were ever to literally hold her breath, it would be now.
"Halt!" A new voice spoke. "Goods inspection. Papers, please."
Again, Bard could be heard walking over the wood, before they came to a sudden halt.
"Oh, it's you, Bard." The voice addressed, somewhat relieved with the familiar presence.
"Morning, Percy." The Lakeman greeted.
"Anything to declare?" The gatekeeper, or what the ranger had assumed to be the gatekeeper, questioned.
"Nothing, but that I am cold and tired, and ready for home." Bard informed, the sound of rustling paper following.
"You and me both." Percy yawned. "Here we are. All in order."
"Not so fast." A second voice objected, the sound of paper being tossed about ringing through the air again.
"Consignment of empty barrels from the Woodland Realm. Only, they are not empty, are they, Bard?" It nearly taunted. "If I recall correctly, you are licensed as a bargeman, not a fisherman."
Raewyn could hear one of the fishes being picked up from above her. She dared not open her eyes, frightened the animal's salt would infect her eyes, but she knew she was not visible. Not yet, at least.
"That's none of your business." Bard retorted, to which the sound of fish falling down was heard.
"Wrong. It's the Master's business, which makes it my business."
"Oh, come on, Alfrid. Have a heart!" The man defended. "People need to eat!"
"These fish are illegal." The nagging voice concluded, two pairs of footsteps heard back on the barge. But these were not familiar. Raewyn was excellent in recognizing footsteps, but these sounded unfamiliar, nearly threatening.
"Empty the barrels over the side."
"You heard him." Another unknown voice commanded. "Into the canal. Come on. Get a move on."
Raewyn could feel her barrel being lifted slightly, dread filling her system as she mentally prepared on what to say or what to do the second she was discovered. Fish began to fall down into the river below them, and she knew she was running out of time.
"Folk in this town are struggling!" Bard tried to argue, his footsteps now nearing those of the two she did not know. "Times are hard. Food is scarce."
"Not my problem."
"And when the people hear the Master is dumping fish back in the lake? When the rioting starts; will it be your problem then?" Bard debated.
The hold on Raewyn's barrel began to fade, though it had not stopped yet. She dared not risk a sigh of relief yet.
"Stop."
And with that, her barrel was tipped back on the floor, making her let go of the hold she had unconsciously gained on her tunic.
"Ever the people's champion, eh, Bard? Protector of the common folk?" The taunting voice inquired. "You might have their favor now, bargeman, but it won't last."
The footsteps receded, a second sense of relief flooding through Raewyn's body. Bard did hold up his end of the deal. He would get them into Laketown.
"Raise the gate!" The gatekeeper's voice sounded.
The barge began moving again, the gate audibly opening for the Lakeman.
"The Master has his eye on you; you'd do well to remember. We know where you live." The same snake-like voice threatened.
"It's a small town, Alfrid. Everyone knows where everyone lives." Bard sighed, floating past the man who was looking at his barge from the dock. Raewyn did not need to see him in order to know his face was set in a snarl. She could almost feel it.
After only a short while, the boat came to a halt again. Everything seemed to freeze for a moment, before she heard the sound of barrels being knocked over, multiple dwarves complaining loudly.
"Get your hands off me." She could hear Dwalin protest, per usual.
Raewyn forced the fish out of her barrel, clumsily standing up as she felt the salt through her pants, the wound now searing with new pain. Though it was nothing she could not handle, it was uncomfortable, to say the least. All she wanted to do is sit down, find some Kingsfoil and disinfect it. It would get her to the mountain, she was sure of it.
Bilbo appeared in front of her, offering her a helping hand with the fish as she managed to stumble out of the wooden structure.
"You didn't see them. They were never here. The fish you can have for nothing." She heard Bard mumble to a bystander. She smiled briefly, knowing he could have betrayed them already, but he was keen on keeping his promise.
"Follow me." The man now spoke, drawing the company's attention to him.
All fifteen company members followed the man, looking around the town the entire time with each turn they made. Bard himself seemed suspicious of his surroundings too, Alfrid's words echoing in his head.
"Da!" A boy suddenly announced, running up to the group.
"Our house; it's being watched!"
– –
Had they not suffered enough already? The company had been frozen to the bone, yet, there they were; climbing through the sewers of Laketown.
"I don't like this." Dwalin complained.
"None of us do." Raewyn sighed. "But you'd rather still be in Mirkwood?"
"No." The bigger dwarf answered gruffly.
"Then shut up and grow a pair."
Surprisingly, that finally seemed to shut him up. She could have told him sooner, she realized. But perhaps now was simply the perfect time. If she had to listen to one more complaint running from his mouth, she might have actually ripped his tongue out.
"Um, Raewyn?" Bilbo whispered, clumsily running over to his friend. "Your leg is...leaving a trial."
He pointed down to her injured leg, the ranger following his gaze. And lo and behold, her wound somehow managed to open again, and it was indeed making quite a trial for itself.
"Kitum." She cursed, but did nothing about it.
"Should we be concerned about that?" Kili now asked, having appeared out of nowhere behind them.
"According to Bard, we are nearly there, so no; not concerned enough to bind it again now." Raewyn finalized.
"Should we be worried about the poison?" Kili muttered quietly.
"Poison?" Bilbo gasped, his voice slightly higher than before.
"No. No!" Raewyn protested. "I am not poisoned. Kili just likes to overreact." She justified, giving the dwarf a pointed look. One that - luckily - went unseen by the hobbit.
"Ye- Yes." Kili nodded. "But I'm simply saying, if it was poisoned, we should probably be extra careful just in case."
"But it's not." The ranger countered.
"But it could be." Kili mumbled.
"But it's not." She spoke harshly.
"I know, but we should not take our chances." The dwarf tried to continue. "With the number of times you have been injured this far, you already got poisoned without your knowledge. Alas, we should be-"
"But it's not." Raewyn hissed sternly, each word pronounced slowly as she gave him an accusing glare.
"Okay," Kili whispered, agreeing immediately, his eyes casting to his feet.
In front of them, a light shone from above, signaling them to enter the home. As Dwalin climbed up first, Kili saw his chance again.
"We should just bind it to be safe. If it is poison, who knows how fast it will-"
"Kili." Raewyn warned, her voice lower than usual, almost making the dwarf shrink in his shoes.
"Shutting up." He meekly replied.
"Are you poisoned?" Bilbo wondered hushed, obviously concerned now.
"No." The Asha told. "If I was, I would know. There is no need to worry about me, Bilbo. It is a mere flesh wound."
Though still worried about his friend, he seemed to trust her words, nodding slowly. The dwarves in front of them had climbed up at a rapid speed already, leaving the three of them down in the sewers. Raewyn offered Bilbo his climb first, to which he swiftly agreed.
"After you." Kili gestured, making room for the Asha to move.
"You know I won't fall down, do you?" Raewyn questioned, though she took his offer.
"Just to be safe." The dwarf justified, before climbing up behind her.
"Da...." One voice spoke as Raewyn emerged from the toilet.
"Why are there dwarves climbing out of our toilet?"
"Will they bring us luck?" A young girl asked, walking down the stairs while the company climbed up.
"Only the blonde one." Raewyn whispered to her, following suit in the dwarves' trial.
"Only the blonde one?" Kili mocked from behind her. "What about me?"
"You bring chaos." She mumbled.
"I do not."
"Then how come, in my twelve years of living on my own, this had been the first time I have bled out from my leg twice in two weeks?"
"That's not my fault." The dwarf objected quietly.
"Sure it isn't."She mused sarcasitcally.
"It's simply a very obvious coincidence."
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Kitum: Damn it/Shit in Asyr (Language of the Ashas)
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