Chapter Text
Fíli had finally made up his mind, he would try to court you, his One.
He knew hobbits didn’t have Ones in the same way as dwarrow did, but you couldn’t possibly not see all that he felt for you, the fact was he was a bumbling idiot in front of you most of the time should have made that quite obvious. The question was simply if you felt the same.
Fíli had been stressing for weeks over the initial courting gift. Everyone in his life had heard the prince spiral over what to craft for you, for it was imperative the gift should come from his own two hands. He needed to make something worthy of you, worthy of the life he hoped to share with you, if only he would be so lucky.
One night, after a few too many hours of listening to Fíli’s footfalls as he paced the solid stone floor of the throneroom, Thorin had given up on waiting for him to come to his senses. He sighed. “Just mahiznigî and make something, Fíli!”
“But Uncle, this is the most important thing I will ever craft, if it’s not perfect–”
But Thorin interrupted. “She’s not simply accepting the gift of your craft, she is accepting you. Any fool could see the way she looks at you lad. You have nothing to worry about.”
Thorin’s blunt reasoning was of some comfort to Fíli and after a few more days of planning and researching he had a design he was happy with.
He was aware that you did not value shiny metals or precious gemstones as much as any dwarrowdam would. So instead of giving you the traditional first gift metalwork or jewelry, he had opted for something more personal to you.
—
All you could feel was the warmth of Fíli’s rough hand in yours as he led you through the winding halls of Erebor. He had blindfolded you right outside of your room, asking you to trust him and follow him, and so you had.
You had no idea what this was all about, but your mind reeled with the endless possibilities of what lay in wait for you, feeling both excited and nervous. You were never the biggest fan of surprises, however you trusted Fíli with your whole heart and knew he would not lead you astray.
It felt as though you’d been walking for nigh on ten minutes when Fíli finally stopped you, saying, “We’re here, Ibrizinlêkh.”
Gentle hands carefully removed your blindfold and you were met with a marvelous sight. You were in a room you’d never seen before and, though it appeared to be some sort of watchtower, it had been made up with all the finery befitting a prince. The large windows let ample light in and also happened to provide you with an exceptional view of the surrounding area.
“Oh Fíli, this is lovely!” you exclaimed as you ran over to the window. “You can see the whole lake from up here!”
As you looked out over the water, soaking in the sunshine that was so rare deep in the mountain, you could hear Fíli moving about the room behind you. When you turned he was watching you with a small smile on his face, his hands fidgeting with his cuffs.
“Fíli, come over here, you must see this view!” you exclaimed, attempting to drag him over to the window, but he stopped you.
Clearing his throat, he responded, “Actually, there is another reason I brought you up here, other than the view, that is. Well, that is part of it but–” Fíli cut himself off.
You’d never seen Fíli stumble over his words this much so as he produced a small wooden box, tied with a delicate ribbon, you wondered at what could be preoccupying him.
Fíli handed you the ornately carved box. “These are for you, open it,” Fíli invited, suddenly quieter than you’d heard him all day.
As you raised the lid you were met with the sight of an intricate set of wooden combs, brushes, and pins, with little carved flowers all over. They felt too precious for you to possibly use, but in running your hand over them you could feel that they were built to withstand the wear and tear of everyday use.
“They’re, um, for your hair,” he said, stuttering, as if that even needed explaining.
You laughed. “I know you silly dwarf, they are beautiful!” You smiled. “I almost don’t feel deserving of them.”
“Of course you deserve them, Ibrizinlêkh.” Fíli reassured you. “This gift was crafted by my hands for your heart.”
But in all of your excitement you spoke over him, missing the last part of his sentence. “You made these? I had no idea you could carve like this, they are so lovely. And the details, Yavanna, that must have taken an age to get right!”
“You like them?” Fíli probed uncertainly.
“Like them? Fíli, I love them, they are gorgeous! Are you sure that you wish to gift them to me? Wouldn’t they be more suited to a dwarrowdam of higher standing?”
For a second Fíli looked stricken. “Yes I am certain. They belong to you and you alone.”
“Well in that case, thank you so much!” You practically squealed with excitement. “Would you put the pin in my hair for me? I cannot wait to see how it looks!”
“It would be my honour,” Fíli said, and as you turned, letting your hair down, you heard him suck in a breath, running his hands reverently through your hair.
As the dwarf worked his fingers through your hair you felt a shiver creep its way up your back. His hands were so gentle, almost putting you to sleep as they weaved your hair into a braided pattern before finishing the style with the pin he had so painstakingly crafted.
“And… done!” Fíli said after a couple minutes of careful concentration.
You turned and smiled at Fíli once more and, for the first time that day, it seemed that the tension had left Fíli’s body, and he smiled back without reservation.
“I still don’t know how I can ever repay you for this,” you said again, still in disbelief at the efforts Fíli had gone to for you.
“I should simply hope to adorn your future home with this craft,” Fíli said, the smile still not having left his face.
“Well that would be a bit much, I don’t need a million combs,” you said as you laughed at Fíli’s ridiculous proposal.
Turning away you missed seeing Fíli’s smile fall, but as you raised your hands to your head to feel the pin in your hair you saw Fíli gathering up his things. Before you could ask what was wrong, he said, “Well I’m glad you like it, but I must be getting back to my duties.”
He left before you could say another word, leaving a chill behind him that had not been there before.
Had you done something to offend the prince? Had he regretted gifting the hair ornaments to you? Yavanna, what would you do?
—
“She what?!?”
Kíli’s reaction to his news was of no comfort to Fíli, nothing could comfort him now that his One had rejected him. All of the Durin’s were gathered in the royal wing as Fíli explained the events of the day.
“Are you sure you said the proper words for the proposal?” Dís reasoned.
“I know I did, clear as day! And she scoffed at it!” Fíli snapped, beginning to pace the floor again.
“Hair ornaments are the most personal gift of all! How could she dismiss them so carelessly??” Kíli fumed, still furious for his brother.
Fíli felt numb, how was he supposed to go on knowing his One had rejected him. You had seemed so happy about the proposal but at the moment it mattered, when he asked to adorn your home with his craft, asked to spend his life with you, you had laughed in his face.
“I knew I could have made the pins better! There wasn’t enough detail on the lily–”
“Enough Fíli.” Thorin’s voice echoed through the small but comfortable room. “Nothing good will come of you blaming yourself. This was her choice to make and had nothing to do with your craft.”
“But Uncle, the craft was to prove myself to her, how can I not take personal blame for that?”
Dís would not stand for hearing her son talk about himself in such a way. “I know that this hurts right now, halwkurdu, but you know, it took three proposals for me to say yes to your ‘adad. Maybe the lady simply needs time.”
“And hobbits don’t have Ones like dwarrow,” Thorin added, “So it takes them longer to feel all that we feel–”
“You can still win her over Fee!” Kíli exclaimed jubilantly, cutting his uncle off, but where Thorin would have normally chastised him, he simply sat back in his seat, glad to see Fíli’s spirits picking up.
Kíli barreled over to Fíli, who had paused in his pacing and the two began planning more ways for Fíli to woo you.
Thorin and Dís exchanged a look, the two younger Durins reminding them of their own brother Frerin. Fíli in particular shared many similarities with the dearly departed dwarf, from his hair down to his laugh, but Frerin had not lived long enough to meet his own One and settle down. Thorin prayed that Fíli’s story would end differently.