The battles seemed to have finally stopped, Frerin and Terwyn were happy. Thror seemed to be locking himself up more and more in his treasury of gold. That way he at least couldn't bother Frerin or Terwyn. Thrain was too busy training himself and Thorin as warriors, not leaving himself any time to watch Frerin and Terwyn. Terwyn was safe, for a while. One spring morning, Terwyn suddenly heard the horn of the Iron Hills. Curious as she was, she and Dis ran to the big gate where a number of dwarves from the Iron Hills were now walking in, led by Dain. Dain was immediately greeted by Thrain and Thorin after which they escorted him to the throne room where he also met Frerin and a little later King Thror.
"Lord Dain, long time no see, how are things in the Iron Hills?" Asked Thror immediately after which Dain's smile widened.
"Certainly King Thror, too long ago I would think! But thanks to you and your army, things are better than ever! For which I thank you!"
Thror nodded in satisfaction "Still I am sent to ask one last gift of you my king." Dain continued. Meanwhile, Terwyn and Dis were listening in from the hall. "What more can you expect from us lord Dain?' Asked Thrain then.
"Oh not really an expectation Prince Thrain, rather a suggestion. You see I noticed a young dwarf woman not so long ago, she seemed to get on well with Prince Thorin and Prince Frerin, but I have never heard you say her name. You may know her." Said Dain then causing Terwyn to see Frerin step forward. "Her name is Lady Terwyn." Frerin replied after which Thorin took his brother by the arm and pulled him back in his seat.
Dain nodded briefly when he heard this name "What is your interest in her?" asked Thorin immediately as Thrain and Thror were still looking at the dwarf lord in confusion.
"My grandfather Gror, would like to shelter the girl in the Iron Hills where I will have a chance to get to know her better." Said Dain then causing Terwyn to immediately take a step back as Frerin's eyes grew big and he stepped forward until Thrain stepped in front of him and Thorin grabbed his arm again.
"Lord Dain, she is just a common dwarf woman, not of royal descent, are you sure you want to shelter her in the Iron Hills?' Asked Thrain then after which Dain nodded.
"We insist." said Thrain then after which Thror nodded a not so well hidden smirk on his face. "Then so be it, guards fetch Lady Terwyn." He ordered.
"My king please you cannot do that!" Shouted Frerin then after which he disengaged and walked towards Dain and Thror.
"Why not?" Asked Thror then. "Lord she knows no one there, she is a scared and young girl, not even mature in dwarven years yet. How can she be of use in the Iron Hills?" Frerin then asked as gently as possible.
"She'll have me, you need not doubt her well-being or safety, she is as safe in the Iron Hills as she is in Erebor." Dain assured Frerin though he clearly did not understand how much Terwyn meant to Frerin. "Guardsmen bring her here!" said Thror again.
"Terwyn run! Run away!" hissed Dis then immediately as she was already pulling Terwyn along towards the main corridor to the big gates "Where to Dis? I have nowhere to go?" She mumbled fearfully.
"Go to Dale or something!" She tried but the girl shook my head "They'll find me!" She replied and even before Dis could drag her further outside, they were already surrounded by guards who pulled Terwyn away from Dis and led her to the throne room with Dis at their heels.
"Ah Terwyn, there you are dear child!" Said Thror suddenly very kindly when he saw her. Dis looked up at Frerin guilt all over her face as the young prince looked fearfully from Terwyn to Thorin as if he could save her again.
"Dear Terwyn, I believe you are lucky, out of the number of dwarven women living here in Erebor, you are the one chosen to travel with Lord Dain to the Iron Hills!" Said Thror cheerfully.
Terwyn looked uncomfortably at Dain who nodded at her kindly with a certain gleam in his eyes that Terwyn could not place. "
Lord...' She mumbled but Thror interrupted her immediately. "Go get yourself ready lady, we will see you at the great gates at sunset." The king said after which the guards released her and she bowed quickly before walking away with Dis and Frerin following behind.
As Terwyn prepared her bag, tears streamed down her cheeks. "Terwyn, Terry we will flee! Don't worry we'll go far away from here!" She heard Frerin say as he rushed into the room. He put his arms around Terwyn and made her look at him. Gently Terwyn shook her head.
"Frerin, we can't go anywhere!" She sobbed as she took his hands. "Terwyn I am a prince I will find shelter, people will help us!" He said but Terwyn sighed.
"It's us against the rest of Middle Earth Frerin and once I thought only the two of us were enough, I thought we could handle anything. But we can't go against the will of kings." Terwyn then said in desperation.
"Then I will go with you, we cannot be separated my love! You are mine!" Frerin cried hopelessly. Terwyn pressed her lips to those of her prince. "This is your home Frerin, your kingdom. Stay with your family my dear prince. Who knows fate will bring us together again!" Said Terwyn as she finished the kiss.
"Terwyn..." Frerin still whispered but she silenced him. "You are forever my prince!" The young dwarf woman said before pressing another kiss to his lips after which Dis and Thorin also threw themselves at her.
"You should have prevented it." Terwyn heard her prince hiss accusingly at Thorin. This caused her to let go of Dis and move towards Thorin and Frerin.
"Don't let your grief turn itself into hate my dearest prince. Hate makes you blind dear, Thorin is not to blame! You are supposed to support each other, especially now!" Said Terwyn wisely. Thorin shook his head. "He is right, I should have stopped Dain. I also visited the Iron Hills as a child and lived there with Dain for a short time as if we were brothers. I could have changed his mind." Thorin said weakly. Terwyn took his hands in hers "Thorin this is something so much bigger than just the three of us, wait and see what the future brings and above all try not to get caught in your grandfather's net yourself." she said before Thorin hugged her.
"Good luck Terwyn!" Murmured Thorin before Terwyn once more gave Dis a last hug. When the guards came again, Terwyn could not help but jump into Frerin's arms one last time before they took her back to Dain and his company.
Soon they were walking outside the realm of Erebor. Up the hill towards the east. Terwyn dared not look back until she heard a well-familiar voice shout her name one last time. "Frerin." She mumbled as she looked back seeing Frerin standing on the lookout. Thorin had his hand on his brother's shoulder and Dis had her arms wrapped around her youngest brother. Thror watched from some distance away; he had what he wanted. Terwyn who felt tears sting in her eyes again could no longer hold herself strong "Be safe, look after each other and take extra car of my love Thorin." She whispered before quickly looking ahead again and wiping away the tears. "Tough farewell by the looks of it, Prince Frerin seemed quite attached to you Lady Terwy." Dain said almost oblivious to the deep connection the prince and Terwyn shared.
"He...He was a good friend." She said knowing that if she said too much, she would only get herself and Frerin in trouble. "Oh well you'll probably see him again, everyone is welcome in the Iron Hills." Dain then said, "Any dwarf then anyway!" he laughed again. Terwyn granted Prince Dain a forced smile before another silence fell.
Frerin watched Terwyn for a long time. Had Dis not put her arms around her younger brother, he surely would have run after Terwyn, but he just stood there for minutes. He did not yet seem to fully realise what just happened and remained petrified.
Thorin, too, stared into the distance for a long time until, out of the corner of his eye, he saw his grandfather walk back into the mountain, after which he too walked back inside, leaving his younger brother and sister behind with a short sigh. Though the latter two were not on the lookout for very long either.
Soon Frerin came back inside and ran straight to his room, staying there until dinner where Dis almost had to drag him out of his room to the dining hall. During dinner, Frerin could not get a bite through his throat; the tension was too much to bear. Dis shifted uncomfortably back and forth on her chair and Thorin's guilt gnawed deep inside him.
Thor seemed to be the only one happily enjoying his dinner. He was talking about the work the dwarves had done over the past few days. The cellars full of gold were the topic of conversation he could go on about for hours, even though it did nothing at all for Thorin, Dis and Frerin.
What were they even doing with all that gold?
At one point, Frerin was so fed up with the king's bragging that he jumped up and looked around angrily "How can you all sit here eating so quietly while Terwyn wanders all alone somewhere between Erebor and the Iron Hills with Dain and his companions?" He then growled.
"Dear Frerin, there you give the answer already, she is not alone. She is with Prince Dain and his companions, so she finally has someone who is really interested in her. She is safer there than anywhere else." Replied Thror.
"I was really interested in her too! I loved her! You have no right to talk about her like that, you don't know her, you didn't even bother to really get to know her! You only care about your stupid gold and diamonds!" Frerin then shouted furiously. After this, he turned and walked out of the hall "Frerin! Frerin behave like a prince!" Shouted Thrain after him but Frerin ran on.
Arriving in his room, Frerin threw a bag on his bed and grabbed some clothes from the wardrobe, which he immediately stuffed into the bag. With a bag filled with clothes and some gold coins, he quickly walked back down the stairs.
"Frerin!" He heard a familiar voice suddenly call out. "Frerin please wait a moment."
After this, the young prince went still for a moment and turned around "Where are you going so soon son?" Thrain softly questioned.
"I must go to the Iron Hills, chase Terwyn." Said Frerin determinedly with Thrain shaking his head "Frerin, your home is here, your princely duties must be completed son, Terwyn will be fine!" Replied Thrain.
"I belong to Terwyn father! Where she goes I will follow, because I love her, so her home is mine. If she cannot become princess of Erebor then I don't want to be a prince anymore!" Growled Frerin. Thrain sighed for a moment "Love makes blind Frerin. She is not the right girl for you!" He warned.
"Stop it! How can you know that father! How can you judge this! You are just the same as King Thror, since grandfather and you don't have a woman who makes your hearts come alive you have forgotten what it is to love!" Cried Frerin then after which he wanted to run away.
"Guards!" shouted King Thror then from a distance causing two guards to run towards Frerin.
"What is the meaning of this!" Cried the young prince who drew his sword and tried to defend himself, but soon he was cornered and disarmed. The guards grabbed him and dragged him towards the stairs "I'm sorry Frerin." Thrain softly muttered before the guards took Frerin to a small room and locked him there.