Galadriel was the mother of Arwen’s mother, which made her Elrond’s mother-in-law. She looked quite well for her age, which as a matter of fact could be counted in ages. Both things summed up, it was funny to see Elrond making his best to host her properly and make her feel at home despite the bunch of dwarves that lingered there waiting for the right moon.
The three women had their opportunity to get acquainted to her, although not in the firsts days she was there, probably busy with her own family. In the meanwhile, they kept training in the mornings and doing other things in the afternoons. Iris noticed that Lily was having swordplaying classes with Thorin, besides arrow shooting in the mornings with Kíli.
“I thought Thorin said we mustn’t train in the afternoons. Has he changed his mind upon you?”
“Not really, Iris. He just said that if I ever get out of arrows it would be wiser to have a sword handy, and I told him I was a long time without swordplaying, and he kindly offered to lend me a hand to regain practice.”
“I really cannot imagine that one doing anything kindly.”
“See, Iris, he is not that rough man he seems on the surface; you must get to know him better before you judge. He has responsibilities, to his people, to his Company, and now even to us; it can be a heavy burden. But underneath he is sensible, trustworthy, caring...”
“I bet a tuna can you are in love.”
“Iris!”
“Only in a disturbed mental state can you say he is sensible and caring, Lily! I have seen he train you, he yells at you, and then he takes more time scolding you than really training you, or at least so it seems from afar.” Then Iris completed, matter-of-factly. “And the most disturbing mental state possible is being in love.”
“I am sure you are the right person to state this, Iris, because you are really mentally disturbing our hobbit friend, don’t you?”
They both laughed out loud.
“I really... “Iris tried to catch up her breath. “I really believe Bilbo must be somewhat mentally disturbed, for sure! He gets sooo angry when Fíli takes my hand to show how to swings the sword, we begun to make it on purpose!”
“That is silly of you, Iris! Bilbo is so a sweetheart, don’t treat him bad!”
“It is not really treating him bad, it is just that he is so funny when he is angry, I can’t stop myself, nor the boys!”
“By “the boys” you mean Fíli and Kíli, right?”
“Of course!”
“Don’t you think one of them may really be interested in you, and all this you are doing to provoke Bilbo can give them hope?”
“No way! We are made of the same alloy! As we say back in our world, we are birds of a feather!”
“So, you have become Little Sister to them?”
“Sure! That’s why I know none of them is interested in me for anything else, if you know what I mean.”
“I know... but Bilbo, does he know?”
ooo000ooo
Iris was right about Lily, of course. But, knowing how Thorin and Ellen kept arguing with each other, Lily didn’t vent out whatever she felt, not to him for fear of being rejected by the mighty king, nor to her aunt, for fear that she would try to talk her out of her feelings, which she knew was impossible. Old human Lily in another world would be able to forget him, even to find another love, but dwarven Lily had a heart made out of brittle crystal, and it would be broken forever without him. So she kept her feelings all to herself, for if she told it to the already suspicious Iris, then half Middle-Earth would know everything in a week, and the rest of it in a month. Iris was not very good at keeping secrets, most of all Lily’s secrets. So, Lily loved and suffered alone.
The only one who knew something about her feelings was Kíli, for training archery each morning was more fun than anything else, and they more chatted than trained, somedays, especially when Thorin was not in sight. Although Lily sensed Thorin was not really that bad as Iris said, for what they chatted in the middle of the training used to be nothing related to what they were doing or to any scolding, she complained to Kíli that his uncle seemed to be continuously angry at her, and the young dwarf explained that Thorin really used to be that way with the ones he cared about, like him and his brother. It gave her another point of view into the matter.
“Then, I’m not hopeless at all!” Lily smiled at herself.
“Hopeless of what?”
“Ahm, hmm…” She mumbled blushing, embarrassed.
“Is it so important to you if he cares?” He looked into her eyes with his dark emerald curious eyes. There was no mischief in them that she could fathom, but Lily just lowered her eyes, shy, feeling stupid. She would never be so shy in her own world, nor have so a strong need of feeling cared for by someone. “Then, lady, let me tell you that never in all my life have I seen uncle so angry with someone as he’s been lately to you.”
“What do you mean? – Asked a confused Lily.”
“You should ask him, don’t you think so?”
ooo000ooo
Arwen reunited her new female friends for a tea with her grandmother. Despite her great power, at that moment, in the company of her grand-daughter and a bunch of strangers, Galadriel seemed relaxed, as if with them she could be more off guard than usual. They chatted, exchanged family stories, cooking recipes, gossiped about man, all that kind of stuff women use to do when properly isolated from the other genre. Then the Lady mentioned their mind blockage issue, after talking a little about the world transition the three had gone through.
“Elrond is wise. The knowledge of the future is always perilous, even for mighty ones.” Iris thought that the absolutely unmodest elf was talking about herself. “Sometimes, to act against a foreseen future only grants that it will come to be.”
“But we still remember somethings, my lady.” Lily complained. “As soon as I saw you, it came to my mind that you are the Lady of Lórien, where you dwell with Celeborn, the Wise.”
“And I remember you have something of water, I just can’t figure out what.” Iris contributed. The tall blond elf smiled slightly.
“But what you just told me are things that are. The knowledge you have of this world in not affected, as it is just this, to know about things that already are and are no secret.” She turned to Iris. “That why you can’t remember what about water I have, lady halfling.” She turned to the whole group. “I suppose you won’t remember things that are but that could make you take a different decision from what you would if you didn’t know beforehand.”
“Hmm, it makes some sense. Although the one who guards Erebor’s treasure is there for a long time already, it did not come to my mind as a known thing when I offered my services to Thorin. If I had thought of it then, I would probably fear and back off.”
The Lady narrowed her eyes and looked at each one in turn, Arwen included.
“No one who stands before me right now would back off of anything for fear. Not one.”
ooo000ooo
They heaped the new arrows in a pile and laughed at each other. Instead of the slow and boring labor of making them one by one, they used some basic principles of mass production which gave them speed and quality, even if their assembly line counted only two workers. The time they spared with technique was not wasted, but shared with warm friendly chatting, in the beginning, that evolved into deeper conversation, understanding and, finally, into feeling. Ellen was no kid to ignore Kíli’s masculinity, even if in his dwarf-age he would be a lot younger than her, and he was well aware of the woman behind the leather apron. Each afternoon at the forge they got closer, and few days were enough for them to know they had found their match.
At first Ellen was confused, as she was so long in an “out of business” mode, as she used to say, since the only man who had been her equal in daring to live fully died years ago in a snowboard accident. Before him, and after him too, most man just tagged her as “deserving someone better than them” (which was true), or were simply scared of her. She had her professional life so well resolved, she was so used to be in command, leading people to do what was to be done, that most men didn’t figure out what to do with her. And such men she didn’t need by her side, so she didn’t have them. But Kíli was different.
He feared her not. It was quite simple: everything that made ordinary men perceive her as a menace, made him think of her as someone he could trust his life; where others saw her as authoritarian, he saw someone who did what had to be done; and in what others saw her as weak, he understood she was merciful. But now, how to deal with Thorin, with his irrational mistrustfulness towards elves? Even when Ellen was born human?
ooo000ooo
Iris and Fíli had come to be the best friends one could ever imagine, as he found in her someone to talk about his beloved one, faraway in the Blue Mountains, and she found in him someone to talk about her feelings for Bilbo, who always seemed more disturbed by her presence than happy to see her. A male friend who already knew Bilbo for some time helped her to know more about him, even when he avoided her, as she perceived was happening sometimes of late.
Fíli decided he would help his brother, as usual, and made up a plan to make Thorin agree to Kíli’s interracial crush. He knew Thorin was good willing to Iris and thought of a way he could make his uncle agree to what otherwise he wouldn’t. He managed to get Thorin’s attention at the end of a training morning, when Iris already had headed to her rooms.
“Uncle, I want to ask you a sensible question.”
Fíli bitted his lips as if he were nervous.
“Sure. Go on.”
He was in an exceptional good mood, having past most of the previous afternoon in the company of Lily. The young lass had the gift of settling his mood, making him laugh and to forget the dangerous paths that lay ahead of him.
Thorin was thinking seriously on asking her if she had some feelings for him, but Lily was so much younger than him that he feared to be laughed at. After all, in her dwarf age she was even younger than his nephews. To be rejected by that youthful lady would be death to him, proud king of his people.
Fíli cleansed his throat and begun.
“You see, Uncle, I know you are very serious about what is a proper behavior… and relationship…”
Thorin looked straight at him. That lad was spending a lot of time together with that hobbit girl.
“Yes?”
“… and I was wondering what would be your opinion on a… hmm… non usual... crush…”
He scratched his head, looking down at his boots. He was gaining his uncle’s curiosity, which usually made him softer for novelties.
“And what kind of crush are you talking about?”
“Hmm, well, I, ahmm…”
“You can speak up, son. The worst that may happen to you is hearing a “no”, all right?”
Fíli looked up at him with a sheepish smile.
“Thank you, Uncle. It makes me more self confident to talk to you knowing you won’t throw me down a mountain for asking.”
“It seems very important to you, I see. You can talk, Fíli, don’t be shy.”
The lad spluttered out all at once.
“Would you approve an interracial relationship in our family?”
Thorin already guessed something like that. Iris was a good looking girl, although beardless; Fíli was young, but would soon come into an age when he would want to marry. He took in a deep breath and put a hand on Fíli’s shoulder.
“Fíli. My lad. I know I am old-fashioned sometimes, and you know I am responsible for our people. It is not usual to one of Durin’s folk to marry someone from other people, but it has happened before.” Fíli looked at him wide-eyed. He didn’t know of this. “Or where do you think that old song “My Wife has no Beard” comes from?”
The young dwarf smiled broadly.
“So, you think…”
“If there is really love, respect, compromise; if the woman you love behaves as a proper dwarf, honoring our traditions, being loyal to our people; then, Fíli, all I can do is to bless this relationship, and wish for some healthy heirs to Durin’s line.”
They hugged warmly though Thorin didn’t have the slightest idea of what was going on. Then they heard a thud and found Bilbo fallen on the ground.
When the hobbit came to his senses he protested it was all for the heat of the sun on his head and lack of water, but his face was distressed nonetheless. Fíli offered to help him back to the house, but he refused peremptorily, stumping hard out of the training field.
ooo000ooo
Fíli told Iris and Kíli the success of his mischievous plan to grant Thorin’s agreement on Kíli’s flirt.
The three of them were laughing out loud after Fíli mimicked Thorin’s reaction when Bilbo came into the dinning room, the place he felt better in Elrond’s house as there was always something to eat and ease his heartaches. He heard them laugh and almost backed off, not to disturb what he deemed was a merry commemoration for the betrothal he was sure to be happening soon between Iris and Fíli. But Kíli saw him first and was fast to jump up and grab him by one arm.
“Mister Boggins, what a joy to have you here in this moment of rejoicing! Come on, have a pipe and a cup of iced tea, as Master Elrond doesn’t allow us into his cellars while the sun is up in the sky.”
Bilbo mumbled an excuse and tried to flight, but Fíli got his other arm and they dragged him to the table where Iris was seated, smiling at him, fresh from a bath after the morning training and dressed up in a bluish elven gown, which made her eyes stand out so sweetly he almost forgot what he heard at the training field. Almost.
Iris talked to him, bringing his mind back to his suffering.
“Fíli told us you were there when he spoke to Thorin. Have you really witnessed it? His agreement?” She was radiating.
“Yes.” He mumbled.
“Hey, come on, lad, ain’t you happy for us?” Asked a grinning Fíli.
“I understand you might be happy.”
“Bilbo, what is wrong with you?” Iris pleaded. “Does it seem wrong to you?”
“What would it matter anyway?”
“Bilbo, you are our friend, our buddy!” Kíli insisted. “Does it really disgust you so much what I feel for someone who is different from my own people?”
The hobbit was startled.
“Then is it you, not Fíli?”
“Sure!”
“I couldn’t have guessed.”
It made no difference at all which bloody dwarf had the love of Iris. It was not him, anyway. Iris intervened, serious now.
“Dearest Bilbo, do you deem it wrong for different folk to… get together?”
He tried hard to sound reasonable, not to sound too prejudiced, but his voice gave him away as a disturbed person.
“It is not that I think it is wrong, it is just that… there are uses and ways of doing things, and of thinking things, you know, all this cultural stuff…”
“But she said she is willing to learn our ways, isn’t it so, Iris?” Came in Fíli. She nodded in agreement.
“And then, I apologize if I may seem not too romantic, but there is the difference in height, do you know?” And the halfling made a gesture with both hands, signaling about one foot between them.
“Oh, she doesn’t care at all!” Grinned Kíli. “I know it may be strange, people will be staring at us, in the beginning, as she is really tall and I barely reach her breast height, but…”
“What?” Bilbo interrupted, alarmed. “Are you saying she is taller than you?”
“Of course she is!”
“Then…” A glint of hope shone in his eyes. “You were not talking about Iris?”
The two brothers almost fell from their chairs laughing, and Iris blushed almost to the color of her hair when she answered him with a smile.
“No, Bilbo, they were quite not talking about me!”
Fíli was the first one to regain composure.
“Come on, Bilbo, Iris is our Little Sister, don’t you know?”
“No, I didn’t!” He was smiling for the first time in days.
“They are my best friends, Bilbo, but they are not the person I’ve fallen in…” Then she blushed again, much to Bilbo’s delight and new laughter outburst from the boys.
“I really didn’t understand Fíli was not actually talking about him and you, Iris.”
“Nor did Thorin!”
The boys looked at each other and burst into laughter again.
(1) “Cotion of Ponfusion” belongs to the Munchkin card game.
Tópico: [Fanfic 4, cap. 10] Loyalty, Honor and a Willing Heart - Cotion of Ponfusion (1) (Lida 4151 vezes)