The Prince and the Apprentice Ch 8: Fili x Reader

When Thorin returned with Balin and Bilbo from his council with Lord Elrond he immediately noticed the absence of his nephews.

“Where are Fili and Kili?” he asked.

“They left a while ago I can only assume to see if (Y/n) is awake yet,” Ori replied.

Thorin nodded and headed to the room you had been moved to. He pushed the door open and let out a quiet sigh at the sight in front of him. You were still sleeping, and like Ori had guessed Fili and Kili were at your side. Fili was sleeping next to you with his arm wrapped around your middle with his hand resting on your hip, mindful of your injuries. Kili was snoring softly on the other side of the bed and had his head lying on his arms. He crossed the room and sat down next to Kili and rubbed his hand over the back of his youngest nephew’s head. He heard the door open behind him and turned to see Gandalf standing in the doorway.

“They have certainly become fast friends,” Gandalf commented, gesturing to you and the boys’ sleeping arrangement.

Thorin nodded, “I had a feeling that it would happen, though this,” he nodded towards you and Fili, “was not expected.”

“I assume you are aware of Fili’s feelings towards (Y/n), correct?” Gandalf inquired from the doorway.

Thorin turned to the wizard and then back to you and Fili.

“Yes, I am aware,” he sighed.

“Are you opposed to this?” he asked and pulled up a chair across from Thorin and sat.

He thought over his words carefully before replying, “Though I wish they had not formed during the quest I cannot say I am against it.”

“Nor am I. They both seem to be a good match for the other if I must say. And having acted as a father for (Y/n) for most of her life I can say that if Fili approaches me about the subject, which I am sure he will do so in time, I will not hesitate to comply with his feelings. He and Kili have been nothing but kind and welcoming of her. Though I know Kili sees her as a sister he has been pushing his brother forward with this since we began weeks ago. I know that Fili has developed deep feelings for her, and (Y/n) is quickly beginning to feel the same way about him,” the old wizard replied and held back a heavy sigh.

 Though he was glad that someone as kind and noble as Fili had fallen for you, he could now understand the feeling that fathers were said to have when they gave their daughter’s to another. “And if Fili approaches you, Thorin, what will you say?”

 “I will allow it, as long as they don’t try anything until this is all over,” he added.

“Agreed,” Gandalf huffed, “They grow up too fast.”

Thorin chuckled and nodded. They sat in silence and Thorin went through the events of the day in his mind, which always went back to the incident on the plains when you had shifted in front of his very eyes.

“When was she planning on revealing her ability as a shape-shifter?”

“In her own time, but she deemed the company’s safety far more important than the security she had in secrecy. She has in fact demonstrated the skill before you, but you were not aware of it,” he smirked.

Thorin thought over any encounters that might have been you, and smirked when he remembered the incident from the early days of the journey.

“The sparrow,” he replied and Gandalf nodded.

“She was born with the ability to change her form, but we only learned of it when she found herself in the unfortunate form of a small hedgehog at the age of ten,” he smiled fondly at the memory and laughed.

Thorin looked over to you and a smile tugged on his lips at the thought of you being a young dwarfling turning into such a small creature. When he glanced at you he noticed something else. Near your ribcage a spot of red was beginning to bleed through your tunic.

“Gandalf, something’s wrong. (Y/n) is bleeding.”

Gandalf looked up in alarm and was immediately by your side. He lifted your shirt and saw the red spot spreading over the bandages. He felt your forehead with the back of his hand and recoiled with a frown drawn on his features.

“She’s developed a fever. You stay here with her and I will go and fetch Elrond,” he directed before he strode out of the room.

Thorin felt your forehead like Gandalf had and frowned. You were still pressed against Fili’s chest, which he knew would prove inconvenient when Elrond arrived. He gently shook his shoulder and Fili cracked his eyes open.

“Thorin is something wrong?” he yawned, still half asleep.

“You need to let go of (Y/n). Her injuries are bleeding again and she has a fever. The Elf will be here soon to see what he can do, but you need to move so he can help her,” he replied.

Fili’s eyes shot open at the new information and he looked down at you. Small beads of sweat were beginning to form on your brow and your face was flushed. He carefully slipped his arm out from under you and sat up.

“Fee?” you groaned out in a raspy voice, “What’s going on?”

“I’m right here. Something happened to your injuries so Elrond is going to come in and check on them, just go back to sleep,” he said softly and pushed back the hair that was sticking to your face.

You nodded and turned onto your back with a grimace and your hand shot to your side. Fili cast a worried glance at Thorin whose eyes kept flicking between you and the door. He shook Kili awake when Elrond came in behind Gandalf not long after. Elrond was immediately by your side.

“What did you notice first?” he asked while he gingerly pulled up your tunic.

“There was blood spreading from the area where she took the warg’s claws to her side. Gandalf noticed the fever.”

He nodded, deep in concentration. Gandalf helped you sit up while Lord Elrond unwrapped the bandages from your torso. Fili and Kili had stepped forward, ready to help, but Thorin made them move away to the side of the room to give you space. When your injuries were revealed at last their condition had worsened. Earlier they had looked like they would heal well and without problem, but no more. The skin was puckered and inflamed, and there was a mixture of blood and something else seeping from the wound. Thorin knew that it was an infection, and a bad one at that. He heard Fili and Kili approaching from behind him and turned around and guided them out of the room.

“Uncle-,” Kili started, but his Thorin hushed him.

“Go back to the company and wait. I will inform you when she is well enough to have you visit again,” he directed as he led them down the halls.

“Will you at least tell us what’s wrong?” Fili asked.

Thorin sighed, “It’s an infection, I do not know how bad it is yet, but I will find out soon”.

The boys hesitated for a moment, but they turned and walked down the hall silently when Thorin gave them a stern glare. He turned back into the room and stood beside Gandalf.

“Is the infection treatable?” he asked while Elrond continued to look you over.

“It is serious, but it should be. It will require her to stay in my care longer,” he replied.

Thorin sighed and Gandalf came up to his side.

“Are you willing to sacrifice an extra day or two so that she can remain with the company?” he inquired.

Thorin nodded, “For her sake we can spare a few days more, but we will have to leave soon”.

Elrond nodded in agreement and turned back to tending to you. Knowing that there was nothing more that he could do for the time being, Thorin left and headed back to where the company was resting. Upon their return, Fili and Kili had informed everyone of your situation so Thorin was not surprised when he was greeted by silence and expectant looks.

“It’s an infection. If she is to continue the quest with us then we will have to stay a few days more until she is well enough to travel.”

“But will she be alright?” Bilbo asked.

Thorin nodded, “She should be, but for now it seems that she has been rendered unconscious for the time being. I do not know how often the Elf will be with her to tend to her so I suggest taking shifts to keep an eye on her in case anything changes.”

Kili and Fili perked up at that moment and stood, volunteering to take first watch (and every watch after that). Thorin shook his head and sighed, but nodded and watched his nephews dash off down the hallway.

“They have grown remarkably close to each other over the past few weeks, haven’t they?” Balin smiled and Thorin let a ghost of one appear on his face as he nodded in agreement.  

Fili and Kili took turns watching over you and there was never a moment when you were alone, one of them was always with you. They sat by your bedside for two days as you lay unconscious and only moved when Elrond came in to change your bandages and check on how you were healing. By the second day you had improved significantly, but the boys still looked away when they saw the angry red skin that had been stitched together. By the second night Fili had moved from sitting by your bed back to stretching out beside you on your good side.

“Fee why don’t you go take a walk around? I know you’re worried about her, we all are, but you can’t stay cooped up in here until she is well again,” Kili sighed when he walked back into your room to see Fili in the place he had been when he had last seen him. “I’ll look after her. She will be fine if you leave for an hour or two.”

Fili looked up at his brother and nodded reluctantly. He gently eased himself off of the bed and allowed Kili to take up his previous position. He made his way to the door and hesitated.

“Fili, go. If you take an hour for yourself I won’t pester you about it anymore.” 

Fili nodded one last time and shut the door behind him. He wandered the extensive halls of Rivendell until he found his way out to a garden with a stream running through it. Off in the distance he saw some of the company taking advantage of the time they had to rest to train. He closed his eyes and laid down in the grass, thankful to an extent that Kili had managed to convince him to get outside.

“You care about her greatly, don’t you?” 

Fili jumped at the sudden intrusion and let out a breath when he saw that it was only Gandalf. He nodded, knowing exactly who he was referring to.

“But you do not know how she feels about you?”

“No, I don’t,” he sighed.

The old wizard nodded thoughtfully and took a place on the ground beside the young Dwarf.

“I can assure you, I doubt it will be long before the feeling is returned,” he grinned.

At this Fili perked up, “How would you know, has she told you something?”

Gandalf smiled, “I have been her guardian for nearly seven decades. I believe I am capable of knowing these things before she even realizes it.”

Fili sat back and let the information process before a smile appeared on his face. Gandalf put his hand on his shoulder and smiled at him reassuringly.

“I know it would have happened sooner or later, but if it means anything to you I give you my permission to come forward to her about your feelings. Though I suggest you give her time, she always has been slow to realize these things.”

Fili nodded, “How do you think she sees me now?”

Gandalf pondered the question for a while before giving a less than clear answer.

“I would guess she sees you as a brother, like Kili, but she sees him as a little brother. I believe that is because well, you know your how Kili is; he tends to be on the reckless side. You on the other hand did not approach her as an older brother at first, but as someone who showed a friendly, approachable interest towards her,” he explained thoughtfully, “You are loyal, kind, caring, brave, and wise Master Fili. From what I know about her, those are traits she most certainly admires about you.”

Fili bowed his head, “I guess that’s as good a place as any to start,” he said nervously.

Gandalf smiled softly down at him and stood.

“Whatever unfolds between the two of you in the future I wish you the best,” he winked, “and if I were you, I might want to go and see if she’s awake.”

And with that he was gone; leaving Fili to mull over the information he had just been given. He was to jump for joy, but at the same time he had no idea where to go from there. Shaking his head he stood up and brushed himself off, hoping that you had woken up in the time he was away so that he could talk to you properly. As he walked back to your room he was stopped when Kili grabbed his arm and pulled him in the opposite direction.

“Kee, what is it? Is something wrong?”

He shook his head, “I don’t know. All I know is that (Y/n) started to wake up and Thorin demanded to speak with her alone.”

Fili stopped dead in his tracks, “(Y/n) is awake! How is she feeling?”

Once again Kili shook his head, “I can’t answer that. It was almost as if Thorin was waiting for the moment she woke up to talk to her. Whatever it is that is so important I hope it’s not serious.”