Returning Home: A Hobbit Fanfiction

Chapter 74 - Hidden Hurts

~~ Elena  ~~

Celia was almost to the bottom when her grip on the rope gave way and she fell with a cry. Kíli shouted her name, but he and Bilbo were still on the rope above her, and would never have been able to reach her in time. Elena would never have been able to catch her with her injured arm, and she knew it, forced to watch helplessly as her sister fell.

Fíli, however, was more than able and leapt forward, catching Celia just before she hit the ground and dropping to his knees under the sudden impact. He lifted his head and looked her over quickly for injuries, standing up and easily lifting her with him. "Celia, are you all right? What made you fall?"

Celia curled closer into his chest, shivering violently and face paler than Elena had ever seen it. "M-my hands w-went numb," she muttered softly, holding up her hands in explanation.

Elena gasped, her own hands curling in reflexively at the sight. Celia had slid down the rope before letting go, the rough fibers of the rope tearing her palms and fingers and leaving them raw and bloody.

Bilbo and Kíli reached the ground at last, Kíli simply letting go and dropping the last few yards to the ground. Not skipping a beat, he charged over to his brother and the girls, holding out his arms. Fíli carefully transferred Celia over to him without question, and Celia curled into Kíli, instinctively seeking his warmth. 

"Celia, are you all right?" he asked frantically, the others crowding around them. 

She almost didn't respond at first, eyes half-lidded and blinking sleepily. When Kíli repeated his question, she roused herself somewhat, her shivering decreasing - although somehow Elena didn't think that this was a good thing.

"'M just cold," she murmured. "My hands got so cold they went numb. Couldn't hold on. Sorry."

Kíli swore under his breath, looking angry at himself. "No, Celia, don't - that's not your fault, you couldn't help it. I should have gone with you. I never should have let you go down by yourself, I knew you were having trouble." He looked up at the others helplessly. "She's so cold."

Elena bit her lip, looking over at the party from Dale. They were watching their little huddle with worried expressions, and her mother looked a second away from charging over to them. "Well, we were gonna go to the elves anyway, they should be able to help, right?"

"We don't have a choice anymore," Kíli said grimly, glancing over the group. He cast a glance upwards, and Elena followed his gaze to see Bofur and Balin and a few of the other dwarves looking down at them worriedly. He nodded once in farewell, then set off for the party from Dale.

"May Mahal be with you all," Balin called after them.

Fíli lifted a hand, but didn't look back.

None of them did.

Laurel and the others had dismounted by the time Elena's group reached them, and she was clearly restraining herself from charging forward. 

Elena didn't bother with such niceties, and ran forward as soon as they got close enough for it to not be embarrassingly long, unashamed of the tears running down her face. "Mom!"

Laurel's forced calm broke, and she met her daughter halfway, kneeling down and sweeping her into a tight hug. "Elena! Oh, thank the Valar! I was so afraid I was never going to see you again!"

Elena buried her face in her mother's neck, sobs ripping through her as she lost control. "Me too. Oh, Mom, I was so scared! I didn't know what was going on, and then we found out we were here, and then we went on the quest, and then we almost died so many times, and there was the dragon, and Celia and I got hurt, and Thorin got sick, and, and, and -!" She cut herself off before her rambling could devolve any further into nonsense, tightening her hold on her mom as best as she could with one arm.