F I R E B O R N
CHAPTER ONE
The Arrow
OUTSIDE EWARDOR, SIX WEEKS EARLIER...
"Very good, Fíli!" chuckled Kíli from ten yards away, looking down with an amused grin at the arrow sticking out of the ground just two feet from where he stood. "Now, would you like to try and hit the target instead of your brother?"
In resignation, Fíli dropped Kíli's hand-made practice bow into the grass and shifted his weight to his uninjured leg. The position required for the aim to be steady was killing his hurt ankle. He sank onto the ground and stretched out the hurting limp in front of him. A grunt escaped him as he pulled off his right boot, which barely fit because of the bandages that Óin so dutifully had found necessary when he'd deemed Fíli ready to leave the house that same morning.
Within a matter of seconds, Kíli's short frame was blocking the beaming sunlight from in front of Fíli. The younger knelt down to check on the hurt ankle, blinding his brother as the sun reappeared over his shoulder.
"Does it hurt that bad?" Kíli asked worriedly, his dark eyes demanding an honest answer from his brother. "Maybe we should let Óin ta—"
"No," interrupted Fíli, shaking his head. "I'm fine, it's just… so hot out here."
Kíli smiled brightly. Unlike him, who wore loose leggings and an already sweat-soaked tank, his older brother had chosen boots and a long-sleeved linen shirt for their day out in the woods. Maybe, after the week Fíli had been forced to spend indoors, he had forgotten just how hot an early autumn it was. Although Kíli had spent most of his time keeping his imprisoned brother company, their mother Dís had sent him on errands on purpose just to get him to go outside.
For a minute they just sat there, Fíli enjoying the chilling sensation brought to his injury by the ground below, Kíli pulling grass while soft summer winds blew dark strands of hair into his face. Fíli could feel the breeze tickle in the blond stubble that had just begun to grow on his lip and chin. Fíli had longed for this freedom, but Kíli was restless. Soon he rose to his feet, fetched the bow and arrow and held them out for his brother.
"Come on," he smiled. "I know you can do it."
Blue eyes met brown ones and Fíli knew he couldn't say no. Teaching him archery had been Kíli's idea, but he couldn't deny that he enjoyed the challenge it posed. He pulled on his right boot again. Suddenly determined that he, too, could hit the target at least once, Fíli took the weapons and stood up unsteadily. He wouldn't let his balance falter as he nocked the arrow into the bow as Kíli had shown him and positioned himself properly. As soon as the weight landed on his right foot in that particular angle, pain shot up his leg, but he did not waver. Fíli drew the bow, aimed it accordingly as his brother had instructed, locked his gaze onto the target and…
An animalistic roar too close for his liking startled him in the exact moment the arrow was released, sending it way off course into the woods to his right. Kíli barely dodged the arrow which graced his temple as it flew by, instinctively putting his hand to the small cut it left on his forehead. Fíli threw the bow aside instantly when realizing what he'd done, but before he could check on the wound another sound echoed through the trees. This time it sounded like the neighing of a terrified horse, soon followed by a crash and a scream. Both brothers listened intently and, sure enough, they could make out a voice. Or two, to be exact. Over the rustling of the leaves, the brothers' youthful ears could make out two different voices, one much deeper than the other, talking aggressively to one another.
Unconsciously, Fíli's eyes went to his brother's face, a big brother's instincts wanting to know whether the younger was all right, but the look that met his was saying something else. Neither brother needed words to know what the other thought of in such moments, and Fíli shared Kíli's obvious curiosity for the voices and whoever they belonged to. Without warning, Kíli sprinted off across the clearing. After picking up the bow and arrow again, Fíli followed him through the forest, aware not to strain his ankle, but was stopped abruptly not far into it. Kíli sat hunched behind a rock, its dark moss blending perfectly with his raven hair, and spied ahead. Fíli followed his example, and was not late to notice what his brother was watching. Not many yards in front of them was a forest road, and as far as they saw it stretch, it was packed with wagons of all shapes and sizes, pulled by horses all ridden by Men.
"There must be a hundred of them," noted Kíli in a voice that was for Fíli's ears only. Then he pointed towards the front of the wagon train. "I think that's our fault."
It took a while for Fíli to figure out what his brother meant. The small wagon in the very front had been tipped over, spilling loads of fruit and small boxes onto the road. While five Men tried to push the wagon back up, a scrawny Man with a commander's bearing cared for and talked comfortingly to a horse that looked ready to gallop away anytime, obviously scared. The brothers recognized the voice that they'd heard earlier, and it wasn't long before they had a face to the second voice as well. A muscular Man that stood at least thrice as tall as the young Dwarves, was yelling at the scrawny Man, pacing heavily amongst the spilled out fruit, holding a very familiar arrow in his hand. Fíli felt a sting of guilt. He'd fired that arrow.
"Arrows don't come flying out of nowhere! I'm going to find whoever's responsible," the muscular one growled and strode in the direction of the arrow's launch, oblivious to the hiding Dwarves.
There was nowhere to run that they wouldn't be spotted, and neither brother felt like they could disgrace themselves by running from their actions. Together, they rose from behind the rock and startled the muscular Man. His stopping caught the attention of the other Men as well.
"What do we have here?" the muscular one muttered, eying the Dwarves so intensively it made them back away. "Dwarves, are you? You're barely tall enough to be halflings."
The insult did not pass unnoticed, but Fíli controlled his emotions and willed Kíli to do the same. If they were friendly and apologized maturely, hopefully the Man would soften a bit. But his hopes were tore down the second they were built up when the Man laid eyes on the bow in Fíli's hand. His bulky face turned red with fury.
"Did you shoot the arrow that frightened my horse, you filthy..!" he bellowed and took a menacing step towards the blond Dwarf.
Fíli flinched as the Man towered over him, and he felt how Kíli's body moved a little further in front of him, as to protect his brother. But no attack came, as the scrawny Man appeared beside the muscular one and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Now, now, Beidon, we must be polite with our hosts," said the scrawny Man and placed himself between the one called Beidon and the Dwarves.
Kíli had yet to put his guard down, and didn't relax his stance before Beidon had snorted at them and gone back to the wagon. He decided immediately that he didn't like the muscular Man, and wondered whether he was that way all the time or only when he was upset. Kíli's thoughts were interrupted when the scrawny Man spoke again.
"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding," he said, offering both Dwarves his hand. They shook it politely although the greeting form was unusual to them. "My name is Ric. Am I to believe that it was your misplaced arrow that caused this unfortunate accident?"
Fíli showed the bow to Ric. "It was me. It was a mistake, it wasn't meant to fly that way. I'm so sorry."
"There's nothing to be ashamed of, young Dwarf. May I ask your names?"
Fíli was greatly relieved by the friendly ways of Ric, and bowed respectfully. Kíli repeated the action. "I'm Fíli and this is my younger brother Kíli," he introduced them, ignoring the quick look from his brother at the mentioning of the years between them.
"Pleased to meet you," Ric smiled. "Now, we seem to have lost our way. We're looking for a place to set up camp. You wouldn't know the way to the city of Men and Dwarves called Ewardor, would you?"
The brothers lit up when hearing the name of their home city. "Yes, that's our home," said Fíli enthusiastically. "It's not far, no more than an hour's walk. There's a field just outside the city where travelers can stay. We could take you there."
Ric nodded approvingly. "Perfect! You may show us there, if you would be so kind."
Ric went back to the road where the Men and Beidon were just putting the last of the boxes back in the now upright wagon. As the muscular Man strapped the wagon back behind his horse, Kíli watched him. They seemed heavy, the wagons, by the looks of the deep tracks they left. Some of them were living wagons, some only small supply wagons and carriages. But some were big, with barred windows covered from the outside. Before Kíli knew he had started to stare, the giant Man turned and met Kíli's curious, chocolate gaze with his own green ones. Kíli may have suspected nothing if it weren't for the pure, suspicious disgust in Beidon's eyes as he looked upon the young Dwarf. It was like he had caught Kíli looking at something secret, something he was not supposed to see. Kíli felt utterly small all of a sudden, and it was not because of his size. Under the Man's gaze he felt like no more than mud to be trampled down under a hundred hooves and boots. To Beidon, he and his brother really were no more than just that, and deep down Kíli felt like they should watch their backs as long as Beidon was around.
When everything was back in order, Ric sat up in the saddle of his own horse, and animal much bigger than the ponies the Dwarves were used to riding, and signaled for the caravan to start moving again. Fíli and Kíli walked beside him in the front of the wagon train, with Beidon not far behind them. Fíli did not need to look at his brother to know he was anxious. The younger was constantly peeking backwards, and as soon as Beidon met his gaze, Kíli quickly looked the other way. At first Fíli did not understand why, until he, too, started looking behind his back. It wasn't hard to notice the deprecatory gazes from not only Beidon, but some of the other travelers as well, that soon started to burn in Fíli's back. They did not want the Dwarf brothers there, that much was clear. Still, Ric seemed to have nothing against Fíli and Kíli. Ric merrily questioned them about their home village and the people in it. He asked about the Dwarf forges, the legendary toy-makers of the Blue Mountains and other stuff he found interesting. As long as they talked, Fíli could ignore Beidon and the others.
The sun had just started its decent behind the distant parts of the Blue Mountains when the first wagons pulled into the selvages of Ewardor. Their presence was already causing a disturbance in the normally peaceful society. Fíli and Kíli watched as their neighbors and acquaintances whispered in wonder as they passed by their homes. The occasional mother called her children back when they ran to settle their curiosities, and the brothers could only wonder if their mother, Dís, would do the same with them would they have been a few decades younger.
When they arrived at the vast, grassy plain where travelers of all times had been allowed to stay, Ric seemed very pleased. As Fíli and Kíli watched impressed, he guided the Men with wagons to line up with accustomed ease. Soon a big camp was beginning to form on the field between the woods and the mountains, with fires and tents and a temporary pasture for the horses.
Since their help wasn't needed anymore, Fíli and Kíli walked over to Ric when he came down from the saddle and bowed once more.
"You seem to feel right at home here," said Fíli with a smile, looking around. "If there's anything you need—"
"Do not worry about it, master Fíli," said Ric, returning the smile. "You have done us great honor in showing us the way. We're thankful."
They said their goodbyes and the brothers were just leaving the camp when a movement on their right caught Kíli's attention. He stopped, looked closer into the shadows between two wagons and found himself staring into the most wonderful pair of eyes he'd ever seen — a dark cerulean shade, glistening in the last rays of sunlight. The face around them smiled slightly at him when their eyes met, but Kíli could make out no emotion. Kíli tensed under the gaze, penetrating his body with unbelievable power.
Fíli had stopped as well, but before he could lay eyes on what Kíli had seen, the piercing pair of eyes vanished into the shadows.
"What is it?" asked Fíli looking over his brother's shoulder.
Kíli's muscles relaxed and he let out a small breath as he turned around. "It's nothing. I thought I saw something. Let's go home."
They left the camp behind them as they walked towards their home just inside the city walls. Although they talked and laughed as they usually did, Kíli could not stop thinking of the blue eyes he'd seen.
"Very good, Fíli!" chuckled Kíli from ten yards away, looking down with an amused grin at the arrow sticking out of the ground just two feet from where he stood. "Now, would you like to try and hit the target instead of your brother?"
In resignation, Fíli dropped Kíli's hand-made practice bow into the grass and shifted his weight to his uninjured leg. The position required for the aim to be steady was killing his hurt ankle. He sank onto the ground and stretched out the hurting limp in front of him. A grunt escaped him as he pulled off his right boot, which barely fit because of the bandages that Óin so dutifully had found necessary when he'd deemed Fíli ready to leave the house that same morning.
Within a matter of seconds, Kíli's short frame was blocking the beaming sunlight from in front of Fíli. The younger knelt down to check on the hurt ankle, blinding his brother as the sun reappeared over his shoulder.
"Does it hurt that bad?" Kíli asked worriedly, his dark eyes demanding an honest answer from his brother. "Maybe we should let Óin ta—"
"No," interrupted Fíli, shaking his head. "I'm fine, it's just… so hot out here."
Kíli smiled brightly. Unlike him, who wore loose leggings and an already sweat-soaked tank, his older brother had chosen boots and a long-sleeved linen shirt for their day out in the woods. Maybe, after the week Fíli had been forced to spend indoors, he had forgotten just how hot an early autumn it was. Although Kíli had spent most of his time keeping his imprisoned brother company, their mother Dís had sent him on errands on purpose just to get him to go outside.
For a minute they just sat there, Fíli enjoying the chilling sensation brought to his injury by the ground below, Kíli pulling grass while soft summer winds blew dark strands of hair into his face. Fíli could feel the breeze tickle in the blond stubble that had just begun to grow on his lip and chin. Fíli had longed for this freedom, but Kíli was restless. Soon he rose to his feet, fetched the bow and arrow and held them out for his brother.
"Come on," he smiled. "I know you can do it."
Blue eyes met brown ones and Fíli knew he couldn't say no. Teaching him archery had been Kíli's idea, but he couldn't deny that he enjoyed the challenge it posed. He pulled on his right boot again. Suddenly determined that he, too, could hit the target at least once, Fíli took the weapons and stood up unsteadily. He wouldn't let his balance falter as he nocked the arrow into the bow as Kíli had shown him and positioned himself properly. As soon as the weight landed on his right foot in that particular angle, pain shot up his leg, but he did not waver. Fíli drew the bow, aimed it accordingly as his brother had instructed, locked his gaze onto the target and…
An animalistic roar too close for his liking startled him in the exact moment the arrow was released, sending it way off course into the woods to his right. Kíli barely dodged the arrow which graced his temple as it flew by, instinctively putting his hand to the small cut it left on his forehead. Fíli threw the bow aside instantly when realizing what he'd done, but before he could check on the wound another sound echoed through the trees. This time it sounded like the neighing of a terrified horse, soon followed by a crash and a scream. Both brothers listened intently and, sure enough, they could make out a voice. Or two, to be exact. Over the rustling of the leaves, the brothers' youthful ears could make out two different voices, one much deeper than the other, talking aggressively to one another.
Unconsciously, Fíli's eyes went to his brother's face, a big brother's instincts wanting to know whether the younger was all right, but the look that met his was saying something else. Neither brother needed words to know what the other thought of in such moments, and Fíli shared Kíli's obvious curiosity for the voices and whoever they belonged to. Without warning, Kíli sprinted off across the clearing. After picking up the bow and arrow again, Fíli followed him through the forest, aware not to strain his ankle, but was stopped abruptly not far into it. Kíli sat hunched behind a rock, its dark moss blending perfectly with his raven hair, and spied ahead. Fíli followed his example, and was not late to notice what his brother was watching. Not many yards in front of them was a forest road, and as far as they saw it stretch, it was packed with wagons of all shapes and sizes, pulled by horses all ridden by Men.
"There must be a hundred of them," noted Kíli in a voice that was for Fíli's ears only. Then he pointed towards the front of the wagon train. "I think that's our fault."
It took a while for Fíli to figure out what his brother meant. The small wagon in the very front had been tipped over, spilling loads of fruit and small boxes onto the road. While five Men tried to push the wagon back up, a scrawny Man with a commander's bearing cared for and talked comfortingly to a horse that looked ready to gallop away anytime, obviously scared. The brothers recognized the voice that they'd heard earlier, and it wasn't long before they had a face to the second voice as well. A muscular Man that stood at least thrice as tall as the young Dwarves, was yelling at the scrawny Man, pacing heavily amongst the spilled out fruit, holding a very familiar arrow in his hand. Fíli felt a sting of guilt. He'd fired that arrow.
"Arrows don't come flying out of nowhere! I'm going to find whoever's responsible," the muscular one growled and strode in the direction of the arrow's launch, oblivious to the hiding Dwarves.
There was nowhere to run that they wouldn't be spotted, and neither brother felt like they could disgrace themselves by running from their actions. Together, they rose from behind the rock and startled the muscular Man. His stopping caught the attention of the other Men as well.
"What do we have here?" the muscular one muttered, eying the Dwarves so intensively it made them back away. "Dwarves, are you? You're barely tall enough to be halflings."
The insult did not pass unnoticed, but Fíli controlled his emotions and willed Kíli to do the same. If they were friendly and apologized maturely, hopefully the Man would soften a bit. But his hopes were tore down the second they were built up when the Man laid eyes on the bow in Fíli's hand. His bulky face turned red with fury.
"Did you shoot the arrow that frightened my horse, you filthy..!" he bellowed and took a menacing step towards the blond Dwarf.
Fíli flinched as the Man towered over him, and he felt how Kíli's body moved a little further in front of him, as to protect his brother. But no attack came, as the scrawny Man appeared beside the muscular one and put a hand on his shoulder.
"Now, now, Beidon, we must be polite with our hosts," said the scrawny Man and placed himself between the one called Beidon and the Dwarves.
Kíli had yet to put his guard down, and didn't relax his stance before Beidon had snorted at them and gone back to the wagon. He decided immediately that he didn't like the muscular Man, and wondered whether he was that way all the time or only when he was upset. Kíli's thoughts were interrupted when the scrawny Man spoke again.
"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding," he said, offering both Dwarves his hand. They shook it politely although the greeting form was unusual to them. "My name is Ric. Am I to believe that it was your misplaced arrow that caused this unfortunate accident?"
Fíli showed the bow to Ric. "It was me. It was a mistake, it wasn't meant to fly that way. I'm so sorry."
"There's nothing to be ashamed of, young Dwarf. May I ask your names?"
Fíli was greatly relieved by the friendly ways of Ric, and bowed respectfully. Kíli repeated the action. "I'm Fíli and this is my younger brother Kíli," he introduced them, ignoring the quick look from his brother at the mentioning of the years between them.
"Pleased to meet you," Ric smiled. "Now, we seem to have lost our way. We're looking for a place to set up camp. You wouldn't know the way to the city of Men and Dwarves called Ewardor, would you?"
The brothers lit up when hearing the name of their home city. "Yes, that's our home," said Fíli enthusiastically. "It's not far, no more than an hour's walk. There's a field just outside the city where travelers can stay. We could take you there."
Ric nodded approvingly. "Perfect! You may show us there, if you would be so kind."
Ric went back to the road where the Men and Beidon were just putting the last of the boxes back in the now upright wagon. As the muscular Man strapped the wagon back behind his horse, Kíli watched him. They seemed heavy, the wagons, by the looks of the deep tracks they left. Some of them were living wagons, some only small supply wagons and carriages. But some were big, with barred windows covered from the outside. Before Kíli knew he had started to stare, the giant Man turned and met Kíli's curious, chocolate gaze with his own green ones. Kíli may have suspected nothing if it weren't for the pure, suspicious disgust in Beidon's eyes as he looked upon the young Dwarf. It was like he had caught Kíli looking at something secret, something he was not supposed to see. Kíli felt utterly small all of a sudden, and it was not because of his size. Under the Man's gaze he felt like no more than mud to be trampled down under a hundred hooves and boots. To Beidon, he and his brother really were no more than just that, and deep down Kíli felt like they should watch their backs as long as Beidon was around.
When everything was back in order, Ric sat up in the saddle of his own horse, and animal much bigger than the ponies the Dwarves were used to riding, and signaled for the caravan to start moving again. Fíli and Kíli walked beside him in the front of the wagon train, with Beidon not far behind them. Fíli did not need to look at his brother to know he was anxious. The younger was constantly peeking backwards, and as soon as Beidon met his gaze, Kíli quickly looked the other way. At first Fíli did not understand why, until he, too, started looking behind his back. It wasn't hard to notice the deprecatory gazes from not only Beidon, but some of the other travelers as well, that soon started to burn in Fíli's back. They did not want the Dwarf brothers there, that much was clear. Still, Ric seemed to have nothing against Fíli and Kíli. Ric merrily questioned them about their home village and the people in it. He asked about the Dwarf forges, the legendary toy-makers of the Blue Mountains and other stuff he found interesting. As long as they talked, Fíli could ignore Beidon and the others.
The sun had just started its decent behind the distant parts of the Blue Mountains when the first wagons pulled into the selvages of Ewardor. Their presence was already causing a disturbance in the normally peaceful society. Fíli and Kíli watched as their neighbors and acquaintances whispered in wonder as they passed by their homes. The occasional mother called her children back when they ran to settle their curiosities, and the brothers could only wonder if their mother, Dís, would do the same with them would they have been a few decades younger.
When they arrived at the vast, grassy plain where travelers of all times had been allowed to stay, Ric seemed very pleased. As Fíli and Kíli watched impressed, he guided the Men with wagons to line up with accustomed ease. Soon a big camp was beginning to form on the field between the woods and the mountains, with fires and tents and a temporary pasture for the horses.
Since their help wasn't needed anymore, Fíli and Kíli walked over to Ric when he came down from the saddle and bowed once more.
"You seem to feel right at home here," said Fíli with a smile, looking around. "If there's anything you need—"
"Do not worry about it, master Fíli," said Ric, returning the smile. "You have done us great honor in showing us the way. We're thankful."
They said their goodbyes and the brothers were just leaving the camp when a movement on their right caught Kíli's attention. He stopped, looked closer into the shadows between two wagons and found himself staring into the most wonderful pair of eyes he'd ever seen — a dark cerulean shade, glistening in the last rays of sunlight. The face around them smiled slightly at him when their eyes met, but Kíli could make out no emotion. Kíli tensed under the gaze, penetrating his body with unbelievable power.
Fíli had stopped as well, but before he could lay eyes on what Kíli had seen, the piercing pair of eyes vanished into the shadows.
"What is it?" asked Fíli looking over his brother's shoulder.
Kíli's muscles relaxed and he let out a small breath as he turned around. "It's nothing. I thought I saw something. Let's go home."
They left the camp behind them as they walked towards their home just inside the city walls. Although they talked and laughed as they usually did, Kíli could not stop thinking of the blue eyes he'd seen.