17.
Curiouser and Curiouser

As everyone began to set up their things and get settled in, Aninth couldn't help but wonder where they were supposed to go from here, if Thorin even knew. Clearly, he was upset at Gandalf for leading them to the Elves and to Rivendell so he was changing the plan that the Wizard had laid out for them and with what Aninth knew of it, it was a good plan. Gandalf was wise and perhaps he would have known a better alternative path for them when he saw the storm blowing in that would have avoided them almost losing their burglar and their leader, despite how idiotic their leader may be.

But Aninth couldn't focus on that. It was in the past and there was no point wondering how things could have been when there was no hope of changing them. Instead, Aninth and Ygritte found a spot together where they set down their things and began to set up their bedrolls. It was then that Ryvniss crawled out of the Aninth's bag. Relief rolled through her as she forcibly checked him over and found no more wounds on him than the cut they'd gotten previously. He had managed to stay cushioned among the things in her bag that he had buried himself under.

Ygritte met Aninth's eyes and though she could tell that her friend wanted to say something to her, one look around them made it clear that this was not the spot to talk. The Dwarves around them were not the kind of people one wanted around when talking about anything that wasn't fighting or crafting or even cooking. This was especially true considering that Aninth was pretty sure Ygritte wanted to ask about what had happened with Thorin.

When the other woman did approach her, Aninth worried for a moment that she was going to disregard those currently around them and ask her anyway. Luckily, this was not what the other blonde had in mind. Instead, she guided Aninth away from everyone else and into a corner of the cave where they could speak amongst themselves without being heard. Or at least they hoped they wouldn't be heard.

"Ygritte, this isn't necessary," Aninth insisted.

"After everything with those Stone Giants, I'm not taking any chances," Ygritte replied.

Aninth opened her mouth instinctually to argue, but she remembered who she was talking to and realized that it perhaps wasn't the wisest move. Instead, she sighed and stripped down to her tunic, leaning back against the wall of the cave and lifting it so that Ygritte had access to her wound. She didn't look down as Ygritte began working, unwrapping the bandages and examining the wound. Aninth didn't particularly want to see how bad it was, if it was bad at all.

Ordering her to stay put, Ygritte brought her bag over to them and began digging through it. Aninth watched with curiosity and confusion as Ygritte dug around inside for something. After finding what she was looking for, Ygritte pulled her arm out, a balled-up piece of cloth tied off with a strand of leather in her hand. She unbound the knot and opened the clean fabric in her palm, scooping some paste onto her fingers. She advised Aninth to stay still, and the blonde obliged, watching with mild interest as Ygritte spread the paste across her wound.

A hiss left her lips as she flinched, not expecting the sharp sting.

"Sorry," Ygritte apologized, glancing up to meet her stare for a moment. "Should've warned you about the sting."

Aninth hummed, giving a nod. "What is it, anyway?"

"An Elvish remedy," Ygritte replied, her brows furrowed as she concentrated. "It comprises various herbs from the woodlands surrounding Rivendell. It will sting a little at first, but it will numb overtime and keep the wound from festering." She scooped more onto her fingertips. "Before we left Rivendell, Isobel gifted me with some. She knew that we would need it. As usual, she is correct."

"Is this Isobel family of yours?" she asked, curious to learn more of her friend's upbringing. She only knew of Melisandre and Gandalf, but perhaps there were more who shared Ygritte's blood.

"No," she answered. "But she may as well be. When my mother or father were travelling, I'd often stay at Rivendell under Lord Elrond's care and her own. Isobel was my friend. And she's treated a fair share of my wounds in my youth."

Aninth laughed softly. "I have no doubt you sustained wounds quite often as a girl."

"Your assumption is correct," Ygritte smirked. "I would climb trees, and my father was not always pleased that I would choose the tallest one in the entire forest. I was young and reckless, if not a little naïve. But overtime, I came to conquer every branch and would reach the top. The view was breathtaking from such a height. You could see all of Rivendell from up there. At dusk, it was the most beautiful thing my eyes had ever touched."

Aninth smiled at the fondness in her friend's voice. The way Ygritte spoke of Rivendell reminded her of her fondest memories of parties in the Shire with her father and the games of hide-and-seek she would play with her mother in the seemingly neverending halls of Erebor and the longing she felt to have that sense of home back. 

"That sounds beautiful. Perhaps one day you could show me this view?"

"Of course."

Silence fell over them for a long moment as Ygritte continued her work. As her friend worked, Aninth's gaze went to the rest of the cave and ultimately landed on Thorin. He was conversing in low tones with Balin and Dwalin about who knows what, presumably about what their next move was going to be now that they weren't following Gandalf's plan. Gazing at him, she couldn't help that her mind wandered back to wondering about what was going on between them. Her one moment of vulnerability seemed to have shattered any balance they had been working towards and she worried that they would never be able to find it.

"Curious," Ygritte said, causing Aninth to look her way.

"What is curious?" Aninth questioned, shaking herself out of her thoughts.

Ygritte tilted her head and gave her a knowing look. "Do you really think I have not noticed the change in you both?"

Aninth's cheeks burned at her friend's words.

"It's strange," Aninth began, unsure of what to say. How to put into words her confusion and her worry. "When we spoke at Rivendell, he did not grow irritated that we were alone together like I thought he would. He allowed me to speak, at length even... and he listened to my every word."

Ygritte raised a brow. "Are you certain all you did was speak?"

Aninth's brows furrowed for a moment, unsure of what her friend meant. She wondered how she knew about how she'd broken down into tears and he'd comforted her, but after a moment, she realized that her tone didn't imply that and what Ygritte was actually instituting. Her cheeks flushed, and her eyes grew in size. She reached forward, playfully hitting Ygritte on her arm, which caused the woman to laugh.

"Ygritte!" she scolded, glancing around and hoping no one had heard. Ygritte burst into fits of laughter. "Nothing happened," Aninth was quick to say.

"I seem to recall Thorin admiring you from afar."

"I'm sure he was staring at the waterfall."

Ygritte rolled her eyes, a smile on her face. "Yes, for why would he ever look upon a beauty such as yourself you with admiration."

Aninth stood rather quickly, cheeks flustered. "We should rest."

Quickly gathering her things and moving back to her bedroll, scooping up Ryvniss from where he'd burrowed himself inside and climbed in herself and closed her eyes. The blonde woman laid with her eyes closed and opened them after a moment to find Ygritte smirking at her.

The blonde groaned. "You, my friend, are becoming insufferable," she grumbled while turning her back on Ygritte in an attempt to find sleep.

Aninth found it hard to get to sleep. While the cave was fairly warm with everyone packed inside of it, they had no fire and there was a chill in her bones that she couldn't shake. Besides, she was still sore from not only her initial wound but from being thrown around on rocks. Ryvniss curled up on her chest for some extra warmth and he always fell asleep so easily that he was out within moments.

Dwarves were snoring all around her, Ygritte was laying next to her, looking like she was sound asleep. Yet Aninth couldn't get her mind to relax and allow her to sleep. With a calm moment after all the craziness that had been following them, her mind kept drifting back to those weird moments that she had shared with Thorin-- the ones where time seemed to stop until one of them blinked or looked away and the moment was shattered.

It was strange... Something that she'd never experienced before and that made her wonder why. Why it was happening, why with Thorin of all people, why now all of a sudden after they'd already been travelling together without incident ── meaning something like this happening, in this case, not incident in general because they'd certainly had another incident. 

A sigh fell from her lips as she lifted her arm over her eyes, hoping it would help ease her to sleep. On a journey such as the one they were currently on, one could not afford to not be as well-rested as possible. Every moment of sleep was important. Aninth took a deep breath and did her best to clear her mind, hoping she would soon fall into unconsciousness.