||Chapter 17||
<|Third Age 2974|>
The next morning is as the days before in all matters, with a full buffet of food awaiting the awoken dwarves and hobbits, and cheer to go along with it. However, for Endor and Thorin, it seems different than any day prior, being united in company for the first non-nighttime event. Indeed, the two receive strange looks from others in the dining hall, never having seen the two together, but it is not like either of the two care. After all, their heads are far too muddled in emotions and yearnings.
As Endor makes it to the end of the buffet line with a pile of strawberries and croissants, she smiles warmly at Bombur in thanks for the meal before heading to sit at the table. But Thorin is not so much planning on spending his morning with others, despite the fact he does this almost every day. It does not feel right that he must share Endor Baggins's attention with his friends, and thus, he grabs her around the wrist before she can run off.
"Hmm?" the girl asks in question, both startled by the sudden contact and awakened from the tingles deriving from Thorin's hand. The feeling that stirs through her at this contact has the potential to magically transform her into a puddle of emotions.
"Let's eat outside," Thorin offers in a commanding style that no one, not even Endor, would question. However, her desire not to rebel against this command derives from her desire to be near him without the distraction of others, not so much her fear of the dwarf king. Little does she know that Thorin feels the same way, for Endor believes this is a simple matter of private business.
"Splendid," Endor grins, turning on her heel and heading in the direction opposite the table and towards the outdoors. Thorin follows behind her without thought, although he spares a look back at the few lingering eyes of the others as they watch Endor and Thorin leave. Of course, his nephews and Dwalin are among them, but he pays more attention to a winking Dis. Thorin can only glare at the meddlesome sister before turning and storming from the room in a powerful stride.
The two settle themselves on a patio near the garden that Endor is planting, obviously at the choosing of the hobbit. Thorin pays no heed to her controlling of his ways, but watches her face light up as they sit outdoors in the warm sunlight of spring. Her cheeks glow pink in the mirroring of the nearby tulips, lips tilting upward like the marigold bushes. And then her eyelashes: as curly as the stems of pumpkins. She is absolutely stunning.
"The lavender is coming in beautifully, if I can say so myself," Endor remarks, shielding her eyes from the sun as she looks over the hillside of growing lavender. With its purple hearts rising into the morning sun, the hill outside of Erebor looks as ethereal as an overjoyed and content Endor Baggins.
"Yes, it is a nice touch. Thank you for planting this. We dwarves are a little rough-around-the-edges, and not so inclined to planting," Thorin remarks, admitting another fault of his with no mind to the matter. Indeed, Endor has come to expect such comments of his, although she notices them on every occurrence. Thorin Oakenshield is opening up to her, and it's enough to put a smile on her face.
"It was no problem. I may not be a normal hobbit, but I still have their skills and manners," Endor remarks, her chin tilted upward in pride. This is just another mannerism that mirrors that of the king himself.
"When you choose to use them," Thorin replies with a slight smirk that prompts Endor to chuckle lightly. But at the same time, she knows that Thorin, nor any of the dwarves, have seen the extent of her etiquette. You could place sixteen textbooks on Endor's head and she'd still be perfectly balanced and smiley.
"Very true," Endor says, looking back at the staring king. "Now, why is it that we are eating here?"
"Is it not enough to have this silence?" Thorin asks rhetorically, believing that Endor thinks differently of this request of his. And indeed she does, as Endor can arguably be considered the sharper of the two creatures in the garden at that moment.
"If you wanted silence, you would have come by yourself," Endor logically replies, knowing that if Thorin wants silence, she will have to leave. Even Endor will admit that she blabbers too much when in the company of someone she adores.
"We must speak on our plans for the journey. Preparations must be made here and abroad," Thorin says, turning to the business side of his choice in bringing her out here. By saying he is simply greedy for her company would be fairly anticlimactic and embarrassing in large sort for the king. And thus, it's always back to business for Thorin Oakenshield.
"I forgot about that," Endor huffs, rubbing her forehead with the base of her palms. Thorin shocks them both as he reaches out as pulls her hand from her forehead, leaning closer to give her a look of care and concern.
"Do not stress. I have everything handled," Thorin says, knowing he just went back on his whole reasoning for coming outside alone with Endor. But at the same time, he'd rather do this than see the girl upset.
"Thank you. As experienced as I am with travelling, I am not accustomed to the preparations of a king travelling," Endor remarks, acknowledging the fact that when she travels, she only brings a change of clothes, a knife, and a book to read. Surely, the king is used to more than these mere necessities. He probably has a furry bed roll.
However, Thorin is far too lost in the prospect of travelling with this women not only this time, but again in the future. With her great knowledge of the lands in the West and desire to travel, Thorin cannot help seeing himself there with her in the future. "You'll come into it eventually."
"Will I?" Endor asks, surprised due to Thorin's implication that they will travel again in the future. But furthermore, his words seem to be a promise for her greater understanding and knowing of him in due time.
"It's just a hint more than a normal person's duty. That's what I meant," Thorin catches himself, prompting Endor to hum in acknowledgement. Of course, the king desires to spend an irrational amount of time in the future with the hobbit, but to what extent, he fails to recognize.
"Shall we be bringing anyone with us?" Endor asks, her blue eyes meeting those of Thorin with curiosity. She does hope that others will come with them in order to avoid any awkward encounters with the king due to her brazen tendencies. The last thing she needs is to be alone with Thorin for a long period of time.
"Kili will not allow us to go without him, and that means Fili must come along as well," the King Under the Mountain replies without a second of hesitation. Even though they will pass through Mirkwood, Thorin knows Kili will come in his sheer desire for adventure and trouble. It only helps their cause that Kili and Tauriel still have ties to one another and seem to get along as well as ever.
"You will then need someone to watch the throne," Endor remarks.
"Balin is more than capable. But I assume that Dwalin will like to come along as well," Thorin says, considering what extent he wants to issue an invite to others. He does not need thirteen dwarves, surely, for this adventure, but only a few and close companions.
"Very much so, especially where you are involved," Endor remarks, knowing that Dwalin is as protective over Thorin as Dori is over Ori. Just the mental image of the bald dwarf coddling Thorin makes Endor want to relapse into laughter.
"And you as well," Thorin says, knowing Dwalin might kill the king if anything happened to Endor in their travels. "Now, what about your uncle?"
"His joining will depend on our way of travel. If this is to be a long journey by foot or pony, he will join us simply because we can return to the Shire at the end. If we are taking an eagle, he will not," Endor reasons, though her heart falls at these words. If Bilbo is to leave, then so shall Endor. And the last thing that the female hobbit wants is to leave Erebor and the Company, especially a certain few dwarves.
"The Eagles would be plenty more efficient but I do not know where the Grey Wizard is, and only he can call those birds," Thorin remarks, slightly bitter that he cannot keep track of the wizard. But Gandalf is called the Wandering Wizard for a reason...he will not be chained down by any creature, and especially Thorin Oakenshield.
"Why, is he not meeting with the Istari in Rivendell?" Endor remembers from Bilbo's reminder earlier in their journey. If Gandalf is in Rivendell, surely a letter can be sent to him.
"The session concluded one week ago. I received word from Elrond noting diplomatic changes, though he did not mention where Gandalf fled to," Thorin remarks, thoroughly shocking Endor to the core.
"You are close with the elves of Rivendell?" Endor questions in awe, though she is slightly disgruntled by the fact that Thorin hypocritically yelled at her for knowing elvish. Well, at least she is not friends with the elves.
"Allies. There is a difference," Thorin remarks in his deep and serious tone that makes Endor want to drop the topic entirely. Endor Baggins is not afraid of Thorin in the slightest, but that does not mean she desires to make him angry. The king is almost like a spoiled toddler.
"I assume. So we will have to travel by horse then?" Endor asks, cringing at the notion of the hell-sent animals she so despises. Endor might have just met them, but that does not mean her hate runs shallow.
"Yes, at least until the borders of Mirkwood," Thorin responds, not catching her reaction to the notion of the animals. And even if he did, Thorin would not have cared for her adverse feelings to the animals if it made their journey faster.
"May I simply run alongside you?" Endor asks, sounding vaguely like Bilbo when he first joined the Company. Thorin looked upon this emotion critically in the first encounter, but now Thorin doubts that he could ever think badly of either of Baggins.
"No, but you can ride with one of our group," Thorin says, hoping that she will agree with this so there is no need for alternative modes of transportation. If she hates ponies, then she will surely despise riding a mule or boar.
"Very well. I will talk to Bilbo about these plans, but simply mention your desire to travel as a reason for going," Endor says, thinking nothing bad of her fake explanation of their need to travel soon. However, the look on Thorin's face remarks on his antonymous feeling.
"Do not make it sound like wanderlust," Thorin growls, wishing not to be illustrated as a young human wishing to explore the world. He is the King of Erebor, not some mere man.
"I'll try my best," Endor replies sarcastically, rolling her eyes at Thorin's anger. "When shall we leave?"
"Give me three days to gather and prepare," Thorin says, prompting Endor to nod at the reasonable time frame. But as Endor prepares to leave, standing from her chair and grabbing her plate, Thorin's hand grabs her wrist, pulling her to a sudden halt.
Thorin is not quite sure what prompts his actions, though his mind still muddled in Mirkwood is the best reasoning. The threat of Thranduil still hangs over his head whenever he is next to or far away from Endor. And if they are to travel through the forest, Endor will be in more danger than ever before. "One more thing. When we go through Mirkwood, I do not want you leaving my side for even a second. Understand?"
"Is that a command?" Endor asks, slightly baffled by the words and wishes of the King Under the Mountain. Sure, he can command her to always stay with another person, but to always be near Thorin specifically is strange to her ears.
"Yes," Thorin growls, as if threatening the elven king himself. Endor can only look to the tense and concerned look within the eyes of Thorin, realizing then that Thorin cares for her to some extent. She is no longer just an acquaintance, but a good friend of the king.
"Then very well. I will not leave your side," Endor promises, relieved when she sees the smile of the king rise slightly beneath his beard. His hand drops from her wrist, allowing her freedom, although as she walks away, she cannot help looking back on numerous occasions. And each time she does, the king is looking at her with a strong emotion she does not understand. But at the same time, Endor believes she feels the same emotion in her heart.
<||>
So as Thorin Oakenshield heads off to make preparations with the kitchens and Balin, Endor heads deeper into the maze of Erebor in her search for the illusive Bilbo Baggins. It's a game of equally matched skill, the cat and the mouse, though they both are as silent as mice and Endor has no wish to eat her uncle. Last time she checked, she was not a cannibal.
Turning the corner in one of the massive caverns of the Lonely Mountain gives her a view of a nearby bridge, accompanying and aiding the travels of her uncle. He seems to be in less than a hurry, wandering to-and-fro as if adventuring the lands he should know so well. Then again, Erebor is large and Endor doubts it is possible to see every corner of this fortress. "Bilbo!"
Her voice echoes through the lonely corridors, bouncing off the walls to finally hit the eardrums of said hobbit. The uncle's head whips around at that tone, watching as his niece runs up a nearby staircase to come meet him in his travelling and wandering ways. And though he could do with the silence of these hours, Bilbo smiles at the great company of his favorite and only niece. "Endor. How are you on this fine morning? I heard the birds calling all the way from my room. Such a lovely sentiment to wake to."
"It is simply marvelous. I can feel summer blooming in the air," Endor responds, wondering when her uncle has been outside today, but too focused on her question to ask. Thorin will want to know of Bilbo's answer immediately in order to prepare the correct amount of rations and packs.
"Yes, it's in full blossom," Bilbo smiles in his daze, before snapping back to the reality of her rush. "Now, you were calling for me?"
"Oh yes. Thorin wants us to accompany him on a trip back to the troll cave of your journey. It seems as if he is taken in a state of wanderlust at the moment, so I did not argue with him. Now, he wants to know if you will come?" Endor asks, looking at her uncle with innocent eyes that distort the true maturity of her identity. But just like Thorin Oakenshield, the baby-blue color is a false pretense and facade for the pain hiding behind the mask. Bilbo is one of the few people that can see this, and one of the few people who sees this connection between Thorin and his niece.
"How will we be travelling, as I see no purpose in travelling that far on eagles, only to come back then set off again? That could be deemed animal abuse," Bilbo mutters, thinking over the poor eagles who always seem to be carting dwarves and hobbits all over the lands of Middle Earth.
"By foot and pony, Thorin said. We can simply split from the group once they've arrived in the cave and head back to the Shire," Endor remarks, cringing at the notion of returning "home." As much as she wishes to see her brother, Endor does not know if she can deal, mentally, with a full-time life in the home of her parents.
"Now that sounds worthwhile and nonabusive. Tell Thorin that I will come, but I might need a few days to pack. I will not be forgetting my handkerchief this time," Bilbo says with a smile, prompting Endor to laugh at the pettiness and continued innocence of her uncle. He is truly humorous to the young girl.
"That is no matter. He needs three days to prepare anyway," Endor remarks, relapsing into memory of their morning together. And Bilbo happens to see this, watching his niece with both understanding and question, wishing to know what she thinks of Thorin Oakenshield and what he thinks about Endor.
"Now, I've noticed you're spending a great amount of time with Thorin...is there something going on between you two?" Bilbo asks, genuinely questioning the extent that their relationship goes. He was one of the few to notice the king's obvious care for her this morning, which is such a strange sight when it comes to Thorin Oakenshield. The dwarf is almost as gruff as Dwalin, but then again, look at what Endor has done to that warrior.
"Of course not. I spend as much time with Fee and Kee as I do with Thorin. It is no different," Endor remarks, avoiding mentioning their search together as it makes this matter no different. There is nothing going on between Endor and Thorin, at least in the eyes of Endor and Thorin. To others, these words are false.
"Hmm, I suppose you are right. But on the same note, you've become close to these dwarves, Endor. Do you expect to return with me again?" Bilbo asks, worried about the girl and the dwarves when it comes time to leave. Endor has had a massive impact on all of them and she obviously holds them all dear. Leaving might just be a tragedy and her breaking point.
"It depends on whether you will have me," Endor replies, silently pleading that Bilbo will allow her this small luxury. To think about never seeing her dwarves again is heartbreaking, and especially in regards to one specific dwarf. Endor cannot imagine a future without them, as it would surely be a dark and depressing time.
"And that is hard. The Tooks are not taking so warmly to Frodo's adventurous spirit, and I plenty well fear they will no longer take him in so we may visit 'strangers' and 'outlanders.' You might have to stay with him next time I come," Bilbo says, both wishing that Endor could come with him again, yet knowing it might be better that she does not. Time is bound to break them apart at some time, so would it not be easier on everyone if Bilbo forced this sooner rather than later?
"But Uncle, Frodo is plenty well old enough to come along," Endor actually pleads this time, tears starting to form in her eyes. She wants to see Erebor again, and she wants Frodo to understand the power of worldliness and friends. He will find neither of these things in the Shire, and that is her true fear in life.
"I do not need another rambunctious child to watch over. If I have any say in the matter, Frodo will be a proper Baggins," Bilbo honestly remarks, knowing the pain that being an outcast brings. Endor knows this as well, but Bilbo supposed she is too muddled in her thoughts of herself to make the right decision for her brother.
"You will not give him a choice?" Endor softly asks, looking up at Bilbo as tears stream down her face. It seems like a nightmare to the girl: the uncle's desire to protect the nephew forces the niece to live a life in hell. Does Bilbo not realize the favoritism of his choices?
"I will let him live as he pleases, but he will see how both you and I are isolated due to our friends abroad. He will learn from example," Bilbo says in a strangely serious and non-quirky tone that does not fit him at all. But this serves as the breaking point of his niece, a split to the heart as she is strung above the sharks of her own making. She has forced herself into hell by coming here, though it was only made possible by Bilbo's new stunt.
"You disappoint me, uncle. I did not think I would be the bad example within my own abode," Endor says, knowing this is his implication. The girl held only small pain at the fact that the hobbit mothers used Endor as a bad example for raising their children. But for her uncle to practice this in her own "home" is cruel in every sense of the word.
"Maybe it is better that way...for Frodo's sake," Bilbo mutters, feeling sorry for his niece as she openly cries in front of him. But at the same time, he know he deserves the pain her tears inflict upon him, as his choice has brought her heartache. If only there was another way...
But what Bilbo does not know is that Endor's heart has finally been broken by the horror of her situation. It was not by a lover, the Shirefolk, Frodo, or the dwarves. No, Bilbo has finally broken her heart within her realization that he is right: Frodo deserves a brilliant future, and only her heart's sacrifice can give him that.
So she nods in agreement and walks away, thinking over the mess she has caused and how the dwarves will react...especially one in particular.
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Before you kill me for adding this new roadblock to Thorin and Endor's relationship, let me tell you that this is the last actual roadblock. There will be repercussions, of course, from this happening, but the two will become closer in the following chapter. Expect an actual relationship within the next ten chapters.
Anyways, I need a ship name for the two, if anyone wants to (and has the time to) come up with one.
Please vote and comment!
xo
Patagonian