Away at War / Left Behind

[damn_my_leg]

 Left Behind: Away at War/Battle

We all know war can be a hard time for everyone but those left behind? It can be torture. Hoping you get a letter or a call, staying glued to the television and cringing at those news stories. Guess what happens to you now? Your loved one has gone off to fight a war (battle, fight, in that ilk of things) and some time has passed. Sadly the letters and e-mails have stopped so you are left wondering the fate of your loved one. What do you do? Do you move on or are you holding on to hope they'll come back?


1. Post as your characters (List whether you prefer to be the one left behind or the returnee).
2. Others go to RNG and roll 1-8 for a scenes then respond.
3. Feel free to make up your own scenes too!
4. Respect others' preferences!
5. Have fun!
6. Angst away!

One: You get a call, or you get a knock at the door. You are told the person you love is dead and you feel like your whole world has caved in. The healing takes time but after awhile you pick up the pieces and you've finally moved on. You've never forgotten them and you know they'd want you to be happy. Then one day you get another call and you feel like you've been punched in the gut. Surprise! Your loved one is alive and has been rescued. What do you do now? Or if you are the one returning home how do you handle knowing the person you love is with another? Do you try to get them back? Or do you let them stay happy and walk away?

Two: You are so relieved to hear that they've found your loved one. You go to the hospital to see them but when you go to kiss them they stop you. Oh...wait...they have a big chunk of their memory gone. Oh no! Can you get them to remember your lives together? Does it hurt too much that you walk away rather than deal with it? You with the memory loss do you try to find yourself letting this person guide you. Do you refuse and walk away? Are those memories ever return, or are they gone forever?

Three: They have come back safe and sound. Though they cringe away from your touch and can be a little violent. Something about them has changed because of what they've seen. They rarely sleep and when they do they wake up screaming. The intimacy seems to be gone because you can't seen to get close to them. Can you handle it? Can you work with them? Or have you had enough? Do you leave? The returnee how do you feel? Do you wish you could just hold them and be normal again? Do you seek help or think you can handle it yourself?

Four: Even before they left it was as if the love was gone between the two of you. Plans have been made to break-up or divorce but after the hell they went through? You feel obligated to stay. You try your best to rekindle what was lost but it's gone. Finally you are at the breaking point and it's time to tell your significant other that it's over. You want to end it. Either one of you has this feeling and are acting to end the charade. Ready to break it to the hometown hero or to your sweetheart that waited for you?

Five: You've lost them and it was just too much for you. People have told you to move on yet you never could. Now you get a call. They've been found but it's unclear if they'll make it. Better hurry and rush to their side just in case. You don't want them to go without you getting to tell them one last time you love them just in case. Alternately you are injured and you know it might be the end and you refuse surgery until you get to see them one last time. You want them to know you love them.

Six: You lost your other half and you still aren't over it. Might be that little one asleep in the other room that has their eyes or smile. You are always reminded of what you lost when you look at that. The sad part is you never got to tell them the good news. Never got to hear their excitement. Or maybe you had an adoption in motion and were just waiting and it happened while they were gone. It still reminds you of what you and your love had planned for their future. Then you get the call they were found, and now you are nervous. How will they get along with their child? Will they still want that life? How do you take it the first time you see your eyes when looking at the child?

Seven: Finally news comes in and they've been found and you couldn't be happier. They were injured pretty badly and had to undergo surgery. They are alive but they've lost a limb or one of their senses. How do you two deal with this? Do you try to work on it together? Do you leave unable to handle it? Or let your loved one go so they can have a normal life? It'll be a long stressful road, can the relationship survive? For better or for worse?

Eight: Make up your own if I've missed something.

Comments

[morethanstubble]

Lay with me?

[His voice is thick with pain.]

[breakofday]

[It's a bit unexpected, and Thorin's caught by surprise. After a moment, however, his expression softens, and he gives him a small nod.]

Move over.

[morethanstubble]

I've not fallen asleep alone in months.

[Dis forced them into separate beds a few years ago but since they've been on the road, Fili's woken with a wild mane in his mouth every single night and has complained up it every single morning. Kili misses it.

He moves away from the edge of the bed and pulls the blanket down for Thorin.]

[breakofday]

[Thorin slips off his light armor and sets it on the chair before settling into bed beside Kili.]

And I've not fallen asleep with someone this close at my side since you were a small boy. [But he doesn't mind. His nephews have a special place in his heart.]

[morethanstubble]

Mister Baggins use to make his camp near you...

[Perhaps he should not speak about the hobbit. Not now. Kili's lips press together as he burrows against Thorin's side. He's just trying to hold it all together.]

I remember when you would fall asleep in the front room in front of the fire. Fili and I practiced braiding on you.

[breakofday]

[Thorin tenses slightly at the mention of Bilbo and doesn't answer. When Kili moves more into him, however, Thorin is quick to allow his nephew into his arms.

It brings back memories, and he smiles a little.]

I remember. Dis insisted I keep the braids in, in the mornings. I would have left them even if she had not said anything.

[morethanstubble]

They were so terrible!

[He sounds more like himself, more like the little boy that use to son pitifully when Thorin had to leave the mountain to make money for their family or work in one of the towns for awhile to secure trade to the Blue Mountains.]

I know we hate the elves but I would have liked Lord Elrond to show me the four strand braids he did.

[breakofday]

[Thorin really does laugh softly at that.] Perhaps. I liked them all the same.

[Despite everything, Thorin's tried to keep a close relationship with his nephews. It's times like this when he is immensely thankful he's done so. If he hadn't been here to calm Kili...he doesn't like to think of what the young dwarf might have done.]

You may be able to figure it out yourself, if you practice.

[morethanstubble]

When Fili wakes up.

[He's trying so very hard to stay positive.]

And when my fingers work.

[Well that makes him smile and he hides it against Thorin's ribs. If Fili doesn't pull through, this might be the last smile he ever has.]

[breakofday]

[Thorin chuckles and absently brushes a hand through Kili's hair.] Working fingers is certainly a plus.

[morethanstubble]

I don't remember... I think they got stuck in my bow string--

[He swallows immediately.]

Could you keep that to yourself?

[breakofday]

[Thorin has the decency not to laugh at that. Battles are confusing at the best of times. Even Thorin's hurt himself a few times over silly accidents.]

I won't say a word.

[morethanstubble]

[There's silence for long enough of a time for Thorin to begin to think that Kili's fallen asleep when the younger dwarf twists uncomfortably next to him. He misses the way his brother smells. He misses the way he stroked his hair.]

Thorin?

When did your beard come in?

[breakofday]

[Thorin can't help but smile faintly.] Yours is coming in just fine, Kili.

[morethanstubble]

Fili's was braidable by the time he was seventy-five.

[Yes. It's always about Fili. Kili is a little bit obsessed.]'

I'm seventy-seven now!

[breakofday]

Fili takes after your father. You take more after Dis. [Thorin chuckles.] She was furious when my beard came in before hers.

[morethanstubble]

[Kili doesn't mind taking more after his mother. She has a beautiful beard and from what he's heard, was courted by many powerful dwarves that wanted her beauty and her name. She ended up marrying for love. His father had been handsome, with thick blond hair and deep blue eyes and a thick crop of facial hair.]

Hers is thick now... So does that mean that mine will be thick one day?

[breakofday]

[Thorin shrugs. His own beard is not quite as magnificent as his sister's.]

I suppose you shall have to see.

[morethanstubble]

[Kili just assumes his uncle keeps his beard short for battle. Even if none of the others do. There is truly no one that Kili looks up to as he does to Thorin. No one.]

If he--

I don't hear anything at all from his room.

[Well, talk of beards had at least been a momentary distraction.]

[breakofday]

[In truth, Thorin keeps his beard short as a reminder of everything he's lost. Perhaps someday soon he'll grow it out again.]

Would you like me to check on him?

[morethanstubble]

[What a dilemma! Kili worries his lower lip.]

Someone will come and get us if there's a change, right?

[He doesn't want to know if Fili's gone.]

Do you...was it because I... I don't want anyone else to bother him.

[breakofday]

[Oh Kili. Thorin's arms tighten protectively around him.] You gave your brother strength, Kili. Did you not see how he smiled at you?

[He's quiet for a moment.] I would not be surprised if he is fighting for your sake.

[morethanstubble]

He needs to fight for his own sake!

[Kili should have known better than to just climb into bed with someone injured and feverish. His own body heat could have sent Fili through the roof. He curses at himself in his head.]

[breakofday]

There is nothing we can do but wait, Kili!

[Thorin's just as afraid as his nephew for Fili, but he knows better than to dwell on that. He bears the weight of a kingdom on his shoulders and has since he was young. His own concerns go last.]

[morethanstubble]

[Had he been older or less sheltered or less optomistic or more realistic, Kili might have understood all of this. He just doesn't. He can't. They've gone so far, faced more perilous dangers and everyone has survived! They seem blessed. It doesn't make sense for this to be happening. Not to him.

Cowed at least by the cry, Kili falls silent. It takes less than thirty minutes for the deep, tearless sobbing to start. How do dwarves endure this?]