Title: Babe in the Woods pt 3
Author: sheraiah
Rating: PG
Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to the Tolkien Estate. The plot and the original characters are the property of the author.
Warnings: some disturbing themes
Summary: Legolas and Gimli make a surprising discovery in the woods during their travels.

                                                  ~

After feeding her guests until they could eat no more, Tess made another pot of tea and they moved from the table to the chairs in front of the hearth. Gimli settled himself in the cushioned chair on the left. Legolas chose to sit cross-legged on the rug by the dwarf’s feet, the baby resting in his lap. Tess filled everyone’s mug again, handing the elf and dwarf theirs before sitting down opposite Gimli.

“Brenna is in very good health, which speaks well of the two of you. How in the world did you manage to find milk for her?” she asked, sipping her tea. Gimli and Legolas grinned at each other before Gimli answered.

“Oh, leave it to an elf to sweet-talk a doe into letting him milk her,” the dwarf said, smirking at his friend. Tess blinked, looking from one to the other before smiling.

“It doesn’t seem to have disagreed with her. I use goat’s milk for babies whose mothers aren’t able to feed them, if I can’t find a wet nurse.” She took another sip of her tea. “I can send one of my goats with you, and something better than a cloth for feeding her, as well as clothing and clouts.” Tess grinned at her guests. “You may need a cart.”

“A pack horse would be better, Mistress Tess,” Legolas opined, wrinkling his nose at the wide-awake baby.

“Aye, you’re right. A packhorse would travel faster. A cart leaves too easy a trail to follow.” Gimli pulled out his pipe and placed it between his teeth. “Don’t give me that look, elf. I’m not lighting it.”

“I wouldn’t mind, my husband was very fond of his pipe. I miss the scent of it,” the midwife said with a sad little smile.

“It stinks,” Legolas stated flatly, his face scrunching in an expression of disgust. Gimli ginned again.

“Only to pointy elven noses,” the dwarf quipped.

“As opposed to numb dwarven noses,” the elf shot back. Gimli snorted, certain that had they not been in the presence of a female, Legolas’ comment would have been quite different. He had found out long ago that Legolas was fully capable of holding his own in a dwarven-style insult contest. Tess chuckled.

“If it weren’t for the obvious differences, I’d swear the two of you were siblings,” she commented, eliciting a frown from Gimli and giggling from Legolas.

“Do not let our fathers hear you say that, should you meet either of them!” Legolas exclaimed between giggles.

“Here, hand Little Bit to me before you drop her, you daft point-ear.” Gimli held out his hands to receive the baby. Legolas handed her over, Gimli’s name-calling only making him laugh harder. The dwarf settled the baby in the crook of his right arm and gave the elf a push with the left. Legolas caught the arm of the chair to steady himself.

“Gimli, can you picture Ada’s face if he heard that?” he asked, trying to stifle his merriment. Then, Gimli began to chuckle along with his friend.

“Oh, aye, it’d be the first time in history anyone ever saw an elf keel over from heart failure,” the dwarf said, still chuckling.

A knock on the midwife’s front door forestalled any further discussion and Tess excused herself to answer the door, closing the door between her kitchen and the main room of the house behind her.
Opening the front door, she breathed a sigh of relief to see Abrum, a blacksmith whose youngest child she had delivered just over year before.

“Good e’en, Tess. Mahri forgot to stop by and get the potion from you earlier today. Wouldn’t do to get another child while we’re travelin’,” he said with a sheepish grin.

“Oh, that’s right, you leave for Laketown tomorrow morning! Here, step inside and I’ll get the potion mix for you. Mind you tell Mahri to mix two spoonfuls with water and drink it every day.” She stepped aside to let him in and took two strides before stopping. The midwife turned, giving her visitor a speculative look and chewing her lower lip.
“Abrum, Kesta had her baby yesterday.” The blacksmith’s face tensed.

“Boy or girl?” he asked.

“A girl, not that it made any difference. He waited until I left and took the child out into the woods and left her there,” she said, scowling fiercely. “Fortunately, a couple of travelers found her and brought her here. She’s doing well.” A look a relief washed over his face, replaced a moment later by one of concern.

“It won’t take long for him to find out she’s here. Best they head out and take her along. If they don’t want to, I figure Mahri’d agree to take her. Tomil was a friend, both of ours and Mahri’s brothers’. They’re goin’ with us, you know.”

“How would you feel about a couple more folk traveling with you? It would probably be safer for all of you to travel together, and they’re going the same way you are.” She watched his face as he considered.

“Well, they can’t be bad folk if they cared enough about a stranger’s baby to take her in,” he reasoned. “Let me talk to ‘em and then I’ll decide.”

“Fair enough,” she said, leading the way to the kitchen.

She passed through the doorway first, stepping side so that Abrum could enter. To her surprise, Gimli still sat be the fire with the baby in his arms, but she saw no sign of Legolas. She startled violently when she felt someone touch her on the arm.

“My apologies, Mistress Tess. I did not mean to frighten you.” The elf gave her a contrite look. “I was merely being cautious.” Abrum’s eyes had gone wide at the sight of a dwarf-warrior sitting in the midwife’s kitchen rocking a small baby, but he was rendered beyond speechless at the sight of the elf. He stared at Legolas for a long moment, the scrutiny obviously making the elf uncomfortable.

“Oh, for Mahal’s sake, if you’re wanting to ask him a question do it, but don’t stare at him like that,” the dwarf grumbled, startling Abrum. “Makes him even flightier than he already is.”

“Peace, Gimli,” Legolas said, moving from the shadows behind the door to cross the room to the dwarf’s side. “He means no harm.” He glanced down at the baby and smiled, stooping to kiss the top of her head before resuming his seat on the rug and ignoring the smirking dwarf.

“Abrum and his family are leaving to travel to Laketown tomorrow morning. I thought it might be a good idea if you traveled together,” Tess explained, “provided that Abrum agrees.”

“Understand, I’ve got my family to consider,” Abrum said, shuffling his feet.

“Of course,” Gimli replied, his scowl disappearing. “Legolas and I have been guarding each other’s backs since the war. We can manage. Don’t trouble yourself about it.”

“Actually, I wasn’t just thinking of that, I was thinking of Brenna,” the midwife said softly. “Abrum’s wife still has one at the breast and she was very fond of Brenna’s father.” She looked each one of them in the eye briefly. “Besides, you and Mahri’s brothers aren’t truly warriors and Legolas and Gimli are.”

“She is correct, there are benefits for both sides here.” Legolas looked up at the blacksmith from his seat. “The only question at this point is one of trust.”

“Tess trusts you because of what you did for Brenna. I have five children of my own to consider.”

“Again, we understand that. Children are precious to both our kindreds,” the dwarf said, laying the now sleeping infant down in her basket.  “There’s another thing to consider, too. With Legolas along, we have a scout who knows the forest like it was his own bedchamber.” He shot an amused glance at his friend. “Don’t let that give you an inflated sense of your own importance, elf.”

“That would be impossible in your presence, Master Stone-cleaver,” the elf shot back smoothly, grinning up at Gimli. “Besides, I must scout to be able to hunt, as you frighten all the animals away with your stomping and grumbling.”

Abrum looked back and forth between the two as they bantered with each other. Their manner reminded him very much of his wife’s brothers and he came to the realization that his decision had already been made.

TBC......