~ Warning for triggers; there is a funeral in this chapter. Don't read if it triggers anything!
And also warning for book ending. This is the last chapter! (Except for the Author's Note which will end this book officially).
Demup telek menu => Honour acts through you (Translation from the book: Learning Dwarvish). ~
Thorin came running up behind Bilbo. 'Thorin...' the hobbit said, trying to stop him but he couldn't stop the dwarf. His mouth dropped as he watched you pushing your sword straight through Azog's heart. The orc stopped moving as Thorin watched him from afar. His old enemy was finally destroyed. He would never be able to hunt the Durin's down again. His kin would be safe from him. Thorin's eyes moved over the scene below him. A few feet away from the orc's motionless body lay Marriet. With Azog's sword still stuck in her stomach and blood dripping from her wound. You let yourself slip off Azog and stumbled your way towards the rocks nearby. '(Y/N)' Thorin said and rushed down.
You let yourself drop on the ground, trying to catch your breath. Everything that just happened replayed in your mind. Like a story that you had once heard a while back. It didn't dawn on you that this had really happened. You had lost a friend only a few minutes ago. She had tried to protect you while there was no one else who could. Thorin knelt down next to you. He shrugged his fur coat off his shoulders and wrapped you in it. 'Look at me' he said, tilting your head up to look you in the eyes. You could hear his voice somewhere in the distance and you tried to focus on his eyes. 'Thorin?' you asked weakly. 'Are you wounded?' he asked in a choked voice. You pointed at your head. He ripped a part of his clothing to put in on the wound on your head.
'Does it hurt anywhere else?' Carefully he tried to examine your body, looking for more wounds. You slowly nodded your head. 'My body hurts' you managed to say. He sighed deeply and closed his eyes as he hold your hands in his. When he opened them they were filled with tears. You raise your hand to wipe a tear from his cheek. You try to comfort him, even showing him a little smile, but your whole body just hurts too much. 'I thought I lost you' Thorin says. He can still picture himself standing on the other hill, watching as the axe of the orc almost impaled your chest. 'You didn't.' He smiles weakly. 'We owe that to Marriet my love.' You frown and try to sit up, but Thorin gently pushes you back.
'Is she?' you ask, unable to say the word. Thorin nods. The tears are rolling down your cheeks while Thorin wraps his arms tightly around you, trying to comfort you. He was thankful of the girl. Without her he would have lost you, he knows it all too well. He has seen it before. As he presses his body closer to yours he can feel the same strange feeling in your stomach again. It feels like something is moving inside. He pulls back and lifts you up in his arms. 'I think it's best if you warm up as quickly as you can. You need to rest' Thorin says. Bilbo, Kim, Dwalin and Kili all come running towards him. 'Is she alright?' Bilbo asks concerned, hoping that your heart is still beating. 'She is.' A sigh of relief goes around the small group.
Behind you, Fili rushes towards Marriet, checking if she still has a pulse. But it's already too late. With dignity he picks her up. 'Thank you for saving our aunt' he says and carries her back to the others. 'We will bury her with dignity and respect' Thorin says. 'And with white roses' you said. Kili looks at you with a frown. 'Why is that aunt?' 'She told me she wanted that for her funeral. A white rose on top of her grave.' 'Then we shall do that.'
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In the middle of the Company laid a brown, wooden coffin. Bofur and Bifur had made it to bury Marriet in peace. Thorin and you were standing in front of it. You were holding his arm tightly, crying softly onto his arm. Balin stood close to you as he looked at the coffin in front of him. 'We are here today to show our respect to Marriet. A brave young woman who wasn't afraid to stand up for her friends, not even when her enemy was a big, pale orc.' Bilbo was sniffling, holding on to Bofur for support. Dwalin hold Kim in his arms and tried to contain himself. Balin took a deep breath before he continued. 'We shall remember her as a woman with great courage and respect her for her actions. Thanks to this woman we didn't lose our future queen, instead we lost a friend.'
Thorin gently squeezed your hand. Last night, the night after they had won the Battle of the Five Armies, Thorin had confided to you how he truly felt. He had been scared and he had felt hopeless when he saw you laying there. He thought he had lost you forever, that he would never see your smile again. All those emotions rushed through him right now. But he was the King, he couldn't show it to his people. He had to be strong for them. 'It is with respect, and great honor, that we shall lay her to rest beneath this mountain. May your soul find peace and happiness, wherever you go' Balin finished. Everyone put their hand in the air and said: 'Demup telek menu.'
Gloin, Nori, Bombur and Dwalin helped with lowering the coffin into the ground. You burried your head in Thorin's fur coat and sobbed. He wrapped his arms around you but couldn't do anything to bring you closure. He could only be here for you in the way no one else could. Like Dwalin would be there for Kim. They grabbed a shovel and covered the coffin with the earth. Thorin rubbed your back. When the last shovel filled with earth landed on her grave, everyone stayed a little longer. Bilbo walked closer and knelt down in front of it. In his hands he hold the white rose Marriet had requested. Gently he laid down on the soft ground. 'Rest in love' he said, a single tear rolling down his cheek.
One by one everyone left, except for you and Thorin. You had untangled yourself from him and now sat next to her grave. Thorin still stood in the same place, his arms hanging beside his body. His eyes were glued to the headstone which read the girl's name in Khuzdul. 'She shouldn't have died' you said. You had pulled your legs close to your body and had wrapped your arms around them. It just wasn't fair. It was you who needed to go on this quest, Marriet was only dragged along by Gandalf. You weren't even sure if she wanted to go in the first place. She had always been nice to you and she was really caring, she should have been given the chance to live a full life. Especially after all the years she spent in the Medina Woods.
'She always looked after me when she didn't need to. She didn't even have to come with me if she hadn't wanted to. I don't understand Thorin' you said with tears in your eyes, looking up at him. He looked back. 'It's not fair! She only tried to protect me!' you were now semi-shouting. Thorin swallowed, it was hard to see you like this. There was nothing he could say to calm you down. He knew that this was hard. It was something you had to go through. To find a place for it in your heart. He could only hold you and murmur comforting things, but it wouldn't stop the pain. 'Remember her how she was when she was alive' he said instead. 'Remember her bravery and her kindness. Think about the times she made you smile. Those are the thoughts that are worth thinking about.'
You turned your head to look at the headstone. It was engraved with gold, the greatest honor a dwarf could show you. You were glad the dwarves honored her like this. Marriet deserved it. 'Can we leave now?' you asked, already standing up. Thorin came closer to you, hooking his arm in yours. 'Only when you leave without letting anything unsaid.' He locked his eyes with yours, trying to get you to understand. Now was the time to tell Marriet anything that hadn't been said before. You shook your head and turned around towards the door. 'I've said anything to her I wanted to say.' Thorin and you walked away together, leaving the four candles lit around her grave.
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Elves, men, dwarves and Beorn lay in the healing hall of Erebor. The elves of the Woodland Realm had fought hard and fierce. Their loyalty to their King had never broke. After Thorin had heard about some severe wounds on the elves he had offered, with a little nudge from your elbow, that they were welcome to heal inside the mountain. Thranduil had been hesitant to accept the offer at first but when he saw the wounds on his kin he knew he had no other choice. The two king's were trying to be as civil with one another as they could be and it was working out pretty well. They tried to avoid one another which was easily done since one of them was busy repairing his Kingdom.
The Company was helping the arriving dwarves to clean the rooms and make sure there was a bed for everyone. Thorin was busy with instructing dwarves to clear the grand hall from all the treasury. He hadn't fallen to the dragon sickness but you had been scared that he would if he saw his treasure everyday. Thorin and Balin agreed that it may be best to put the treasure away in the lower halls. A lot of dwarves were now busy with moving all the gold and jewelry. Beside this task, Thorin had to take care of the food to feed all the hungry mouths. Thankfully there were a lot of male dwarves who were great hunters or had brought some food with them from their home in the Blue Mountains. Everything worked out all right.
Well, almost everything. Thorin had become increasingly worried about your state. He felt like you had lost weight, you were sure you had gained weight, and he tried to get you to eat more. As always you were being your stubborn self and told him you didn't need it. Thorin had made sure you had a bed in the healing hall as close to Oin as possible. The old healer came to you immediately after Thorin had laid you down last night. You thought he was making a bigger scene then necessary but Thorin didn't listen to you. Instead he worried Oin as well. 'She has been feeling sick for almost four months now. Her breath is irregular and Kim already informed about her mood swings.' Your head shot up. 'Mood swings?' you asked, not knowing what he was pointing at.
Oin nodded, understanding what he meant. 'I've noticed it too. Lass, is there anything else that is abnormal?' Your mouth dropped. 'Abnormal? The only thing that is abnormal here is worried dwarves when there is nothing to worry about! I'm feeling just fine!' you shouted. And there was the strange feeling in your stomach again. You laid a hand on the spot while you tried to hide it from Oin, but he had already seen it. His frown disappeared and he went back to his chamber. Soon after he returned, carrying a small package with him. Suddenly the doors burst open and Kim comes storming in, Dwalin following her, shaking his head. 'I couldn't stop her' he apologized. 'What is wrong?' Kim asks worried as she sits down next to you.
'Nothing at all...' you start but Thorin interrupts. 'She has been feeling ill for months now. We need to know what is wrong' he says, looking at you with a stern expression on his face. 'Why didn't you tell me you were ill?' Kim asks. You roll your eyes. Great, more people who thought you were ill. Honestly you didn't feel great but it could be a lot worse. You looked at Oin and what he held in his hands and raised an eyebrow. 'Where did you get that from?' you asked confused. In his hand, Oin held a pregnancy test from your world. Kim turns around and blushes when she sees the test. 'Kim? Did you forget to tell me something?' you question. She looks at you and narrows her eyes. 'What is that?' Dwalin asks.
Oin unpacks the pregnancy test and gives the empty packaging to Dwalin. He reads the description. When he is reading it, his eyes grow wide and he looks up at Kim. 'Don't give me that look. I was about to bring it to a friend before we were transported to this world' she huffed. 'You mean Katie?' you asked. Kim nodded. 'The test says that you have to catch the pee in a glass and put the stick in. Is that right lass?' Oin asks. You shrug. 'I don't know. It's not like I have done a test like that before.' Dwalin hands the empty packaging over to Thorin who doesn't hesitate to read it. He almost drops it when he reads the first two words. 'You think she is...' 'We will know after the lass has taken the test.'
You grab the pregnancy test and walk towards the room that is used as a bathroom for now. You do your thing and put the test in. You walk out of the room only to see three faces looking expectantly at you. 'It does take a few minutes before it shows the result' you state and lay back down on the bed. You may not feel ill but your back was still hurting. Thorin started pacing around the room. He tried to hide the small smile on his lips but you could see it from your position. You patted on the back, signaling him to sit down. He obliged and you sat up, turning your back to him. He got the hint and massaged your back with a light force. It felt heavenly. Your back had hurt you more then you had told him.
A few more minutes passed by before Kim cleared her throat. 'I think the results are in now' she said. Thorin stopped massaging your back and you looked back at him. He didn't know how the test worked so you had to read it first. You took a deep breath before you stood up and walked back into the make shift toilet. Before you reached down to get the test you stopped your hand mid-air. Did you want to know the result? This is what you had always dreamed off. To start a family with Thorin. But now when it was so close you were uncertain if you wanted to know already. You could choose to not read it and wait for a few more weeks until your stomach would start growing or not.
Thorin was standing close to the doors which lead to the toilet. He wanted this more then anything. If only Mahal would bless him with his own child. You walked out the room carrying the test in your hands. Thorin stood in front of you, his face showing no emotion. 'And...' You smiled. 'I'm pregnant.' Thorin's smile was beaming and you didn't have the chance to prepare yourself before he lifted you up and spun you around. He was laughing out loud, his eyes sparkling as he looked at you. Carefully he placed you back on the ground and kissed you, his lips back to where they belonged. 'Am I really going to be a dad?' he asked. 'You are' you answered. Thorin let go of you and walked towards the doors of the healing hall. He threw them open and screamed: 'I'm going to be a father!'
You laughed and Kim threw her arms around your neck. 'Congratulations' she whispered into your ear. Thorin came back and claimed you again, wrapping his arms around you, making sure it wasn't too tight. Fili and Kili came rushing in, both of them smiling brightly. 'Are we going to have a little cousin?' Fili asked. You nodded and they both hugged you to congratulate you with your pregnancy. 'I'm going to teach it how to shoot an arrow' Kili said, already making plans to set your child up to mischief. Thorin placed his hand on your stomach and placed his forehead against yours. 'I can't wait to find out whether we will have a boy or a girl.'