Originally posted on: 11th February 2014
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Young people cursed spectacularly and in the next second, all four aimed at each other with their weapons. There was a moment of tense silent. Siblings of dwarves were looking at siblings of people, and vice versa.
‘I know you!’ the same thought flashed through the minds of them all.
As they were staring at each other more and more, human siblings dropped the guns. Tears filled their eyes and smiles spread across their faces.
“FILI?!” they exclaimed. “KILI?!’
Before the dwarves had time to react, the people ran up to them and hugged them. Too shocked to do anything, Fili and Kili let themselves be held in the long and tight embrace.
“I can’t breathe,” Kili moaned.
“LET US GO!” Fili roared, and so people did. “What’s the meaning of all of this?! Are you spies? How do you know us? How dare you speak in such a way about Thorin Oakenshield?!”
“That's that! And how do you know about the orcs’ plans?!” Kili continued. “What kind of pursuit did you mentioned? ‘A life for life’! What's this?”
Sadness painted on people's features.
“So you don’t remember us,” the boy said .
“Well, how?” Fili snorted.
“Now, eight years ago, our family had been honored to meet yours, oh heirs of Durin,” the lad started. “Thorin Oakenshield himself, together with his sister Dis and her sons, stopped in our village to provide services as a blacksmith. You were our guests for at least a year. Many bad things could have happened to our family, if you hadn’t been there. Thorin saved our father and mother's lifes. In addition ... he forged this wonderful sword.”
Dwarves’ eyes winded.
“It can’t be true!” Kili whispered, slowly realizing who he was talking to.
“I remember the time spent in the village Ettinor but I don’t remember you,” Fili went on stubbornly, not accepting the truth.
“We are ordinary people, Fili, son of Dis,” the lass replied. “The blood of Numénor doesn’t flows in our veins. We grow old and die quickly. Eight years ago I was ten years old, my brother was eight. You likely remember us as the children of Brandon and Cora.”
Brandon and Cora! Fili and Kili remembered those people very well! They had been very polite, friendly and welcoming, moreover, very well educated as for ordinary habitants of a village. Brandon was a hard-working, intelligent man with a great sense of humor and constant desire to do make fun of everything and everyone. His wife - Cora - was a lady, perfect hostess, lovable wise woman and a wonderful mother. It had been hard to believe that no noble blood flowed through their veins. Sons of Dis loved their home. They had felt there as good as nowhere else in the world. They loved their children, too. It had been impossible not to love them. The kids had been so curious, brave, had had fortitude. They had wanted nothing but to learn how to use weapons and set off on an adventure! At the same time they had been so delightfully innocent. Fili and Kili remembered the big brown eyes of these children, full of praise, fixed on them when they had been telling them all these stories at bedtime. For eight years of separation the memory evoked a smile on the brothers' faces. After reclaiming of Erebor they hoped to go back Ettinor to see how was the family, how were those adorable rascals.
But these young people declared that they were those little brats.
Brandon and Cora! Fili and Kili remembered those people very well! They had been very polite, friendly and welcoming, moreover, very well educated as for ordinary habitants of a village. Brandon was a hard-working, intelligent man with a great sense of humor and constant desire to do make fun of everything and everyone. His wife - Cora - was a lady, perfect hostess, lovable wise woman and a wonderful mother. It had been hard to believe that no noble blood flowed through their veins. Sons of Dis loved their home. They had felt there as good as nowhere else in the world. They loved their children, too. It had been impossible not to love them. The kids had been so curious, brave, had had fortitude. They had wanted nothing but to learn how to use weapons and set off on an adventure! At the same time they had been so delightfully innocent. Fili and Kili remembered the big brown eyes of these children, full of praise, fixed on them when they had been telling them all these stories at bedtime. For eight years of separation the memory evoked a smile on the brothers' faces. After reclaiming of Erebor they hoped to go back Ettinor to see how was the family, how were those adorable rascals.
But these young people declared that they were those little brats.
“DORIAN?!” the dwarves exclaimed. “SYBIL?!”
However, they didn’t rushed to hug people. Fili and Kili stood still, shocked at the sight. How was this possible? In such a short period of time, which was eight years, how someone could change so much ?
Kili looked at Dorian. He was only sixteen, so according to the dwarven measures of years, he would have been a dwarfling. But he wasn't. Dorian was practically a grown man, short as for human and stocky, well-built, with a handsome face with the first stubble. Where was the little boy who throughout the day, instead of helping his father, had prefered shirking of responsibilities with incredibly creative excuses, such as the necessity of saving the world from the curtain monster, and to learn swordfighting from Fili? Where was the boy who had been extremely sensitive and wise? Who had been arousing caring instincts in every person he had met? Our small, sweet Dorian was looking scaring with the sword. He become very similar to his father - at first sight, he seemed to be eloquent, yet prone to jokes, certainly brave and strong. Only thing that hadn’t changed was the glint of intelligence in his brown eyes.
Fili looked at Sybil. He wanted to see the small stubborn girl, always unkempt and grimy. The lassie who hadn't wanted for the life of her to be a little lady and, by doing this, fulfill her mother desires. He wanted to see the girl who had used to read the acquisition of books and had dreamed of going forth into the world. He wanted to see the child who had been learning archery from Kili with such a zeal. But no. He saw a very pretty young woman of small stature, with a lean silhouette. He didn't want to think in this way, but appealling silhouette. Her face was very similar to her mother’s. But her mother was a lady. Sybil was a warrior. Sybil was pretty and dangerous. However, her darkbrown eyes were full of kindness and warmth, just like Cora’s, of which no one would expected any harm.
“You’ve grown…” Kili murmured.
“I'm so sorry to fail your expectations,” Sybil said mockingly.
“But you've changed only a little,” Dorian stated. “Maybe you've finally grown a little bit of beards.”
Everyone burst into laughter at the compliment. Their giggled to tears, wallowing on the ground, no one knew why, really. They felt such a happiness!
“You have no idea how we've missed you, sons of Dis,” Dorian confessed when they calmed down at last.
“We missed you too!” Fili answered. “Even uncle talks about you from time to time, our mother more often ... it happens that she says to us: 'why can’t you be so obedient as Cora’s children?’”
People’s eyes winded.
“Really?!” they almost yelled at the same time
Kili smiled brightly.
"Oh yes, our mother loves you still, I'm sure,” he replied. “Uncle Thorin as well, but he doesn’t want to show it ...” Kili sprang to his feet. “How he will be pleased to see you!” he exclaimed excitedly.
Sybil and Dorian looked at each other.
“We. .. don’t want him to know about us.”
“WHAT?!” dwarven brothers cried incredulously.
“We have a job to do. We need to stop Azog. He knows that Thorin is here. He wants to kill him,” Sybil whispered.
A pregnant silence reigned around them. Fili and Kili thought that Sybil and Dorian had gone crazy.
“Though Pale Orc is dead,” Kili objected. “Thorin killed him in the Battle of Moria!”
“No, Kili, we saw him on our own eyes, we heard as he was giving the orders in this filthy Black Speech ...” Dorian shivered.
Fili was about to say something, but ...
There was a piercing shriek. Orcs were close.
“It’s them,” Sybil groaned. “You must go,” she ordered Dis’ sons who were not used to obey orders.
“But ...”
“You don't understand, they'll kill you if they see you with us!” Dorian said quickly.
“What does it mean?”
“There’s no time to explain, it's all about your safety! By Aulë, I beg you, go away!” Sybil pleaded.
Dwarf cannot refuse a request by Aulë, the girl had known it. When they were about to leave, Dorian barred their way with the sword.
“You haven’t seen anything, right?” he murmured warningly.
“RIGHT?!” seeing the dwarven brothers’ glances, full of restistance, Sybil put an arrow on the string.
During their brief meeting, Fili and Kili had learnt that it was better not to annoy her.
“Yes, but we want you to see again!” Kili persisted.
“Agreed ... the same time, after seven days “ Dorian whispered nervously and lowered his sword.
”I see them already! RUN!” Sybil's voice was filled with such a terror that Fili and Kili obeyed immediately.
They were running without stopping until they found themselves breathless in the middle of the valley.
When they looked back, the fire was gone. They were only screams.
As they returned to the camp, there was decent reprimand waiting for them.
“Finally! What on earth were you doing for so long?” Bilbo hissed wildly. “I’ve been worried! Me and Bofur heard the cries of orcs! Thorin would skin me alive if something happened to you! Did you find anything at least?”
“No,” Fili answered angrily.
Something in his tone made Bilbo not to believe him, but he kept quiet.
***
Dorian was livid. The messengers had arrived at such a happy time. Did they always have to show up at the least convenient moment?
They surrounded him and Sybil from all sides in a tight circle, riding on wargs. When Dorgh dismounted from his monster, Dorian simply wanted to kill him .
Meeting with Fili and Kili had changed everything. He was tired of pretending that he was on the side of those monsters. He was tired of fear for his and sister’s life every time when he had been handing them irrelevant information or had been deceiving astray. That was it. It was high time Azog to see who the children of Brandon and Cora truly were.
Dorian stood face to face with the disgusting commander of the orcs.
“What news will you say to my master?” he snapped in the defiled Common Speech
‘Pick up your weapon at the last resort,' he heard in his head the sentence which Sybil had been installing him.
No. He would not stop himself. Not this time.
He signaled. Dorian lightly hit on his tigh with the sword, three times. Sybil probably was questioning the validity of the decision now. Dorian knew however, that she would obey. She coughed slightly, by what she said that she understood what her brother was up to and she was ready.
Orcs didn't suspect anything.
Excellent dwarven sword pierced easily through the flimsy armor of the commander.
“Tell Azog …” he whispered, watching as the spark of life was escaping from Dorg’s eyes. “That revenge is sweet indeed.”
Then they killed one orc after another, until none of the messengers could bring back the news.
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Now, was it so obvious? Oh dear, of course it was! I'm so predictable! (Well ... maybe only by now).
Yes ... of course, Dorian and Sybil were very close to the heirs of Durin. When the once powerful folk wandered in search of shelter, the extraordinary love and friendship between the races came into existence. In Ettinor, which I came up with, located to the East of the Lonely Mountain, they all shared happy moments. It was just over a year, but they bonded to each other very srongly.
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