Like...I literally wrote this in one sitting and decided not to edit it. One is because I've upgraded to Windows 10 and my MS Word all turned into WordPad...which is crap without wordcounts and spellcheck. Also because this one was a very...contemplative story. I mean, it was a very strange but enlightening look into dwarrow. At least, I think it was. :P I have another idea about the Ironfists which I will write when I figure out how to start, but for now, have a story about miners.

Oh, and I'm porting over stories to AO3, but I'm waaay to lazy to fix up all the stupid em and strong for italics and bold so it's slow going. If anyone is kind enough to volunteer, I am completely willing to bribe you with shorts or drabbles or even a chapter. XD But I'm warning you, there are a LOT of chapters and I use italics a lot. So...yeah.

Tul was a king of the dwarrow of the line of Durin. Which made him a longbeard, and thus one of the more reasonable sort. Of dwarrow.

Just like every dwarrow, he was suffused with pride. As a King moreso, he was...proud. But just like every dwarrow, he was also struck with the unfortunate inferiority complex inherent to a race that had not actually been created by the great Maker.

(Not-so coincidentally this was also why dwarrow tended to proffess greater appreciation for Mahal, nevermind he'd tried to dash them to pieces when he was first found out. There is very little mention of Eru in their history, though he had permitted their existence and technically saved all their hides from their dear creator. The attitude of dwarrow when faced with other Valar/Maiar was also deliberately less respectful than towards their so-called Maker.

Ratha had made sure to constantly remind Aule of that. He was not that big a blockhead not to feel guilty.)

Inferiority complexes in dwarrow are a twisty thing. Inferiority complex as a whole are twisted things. They tend to cover up with bluster, and in worse cases will try to put those around them down in order to reassure themselves of their worth. In these cases, they will also try to take on more and more responsibilities so as to showcase their ability.

If it turns out they do indeed, have some ability to bear the responsibilities, the complex will be somewhat appeased and these dwarrows will also have some measure of true generosity (coupled with self-satisfaction). If not, they will become depressed. Full of self-doubt and anxiety, they may lash out at the world...or become motivated to pursue greater heights. This has lead to both the greatest and worst of dwarrow.

It is also this inherent complex that has lead to an especially heightened sense for arrogance. Show a single ounce of it towards a dwarf and he will return it fourfold and maybe moon you with his hairy arse too. It was a point of contention between Aule and Orome. Obviously Aule would moon Orome or even Eru if they had not seen each other naked as babes when they were Made.

Anyway, to say the ability to bear such a complex is genetic is rather unfair...but there is truth in it. Durin's bloodline is one that has managed to keep it in check the best.

(The Ironfists have their own secrets...which Ratha has decided not to divulge. Aule had not realized what he had done to Grumpy during his making and why Ratha had chosen him to be named so. It wasn't as if it was that different from his True Self after all, but she had been trying to help.

The Ironfists are a doomed line. That's all she will say.)

Thus when Tul was faced with Ratha's indulging patience instead of lofty disregard...he softened his attitude. Be very clear, if not for this single point-as well as the part where Ratha can destroy an entire race with a blink-Tul would never have given even a sliver of respect.

As it was, he sat with her at the high table during dinner and plied her with foodstuffs as if she was his dearly departed mother. Her appetite and appreciation for simple dwarrow food was observed and he even gave her strips of bacon from his own plate.

In any case, it was the first time someone of another race (for a given value of race) was seated beside the king at the high table but nobody grumbled. No, really, nobody grumbled.

(Coughcough.)

So there. Ratha had a rather satisfying dinner. Sure, she's Wind and can basically taste anything she wants to, but there's something satisfying about crunching meaty chunks between your teeth and the warm glow of ale down your throat.

And then it was sleeping time and...well...Tul was in a bit of a dilemma.

xXXx

"I'm fine with not having a room, dear," Ratha chimed as she picked her teeth with a splinter of wood. (It wasn't really needed, but she liked doing it. So there.) "I don't need to sleep and there's no point giving me a room I don't need."

Tul drew himself up to his full height (reaching her chest), "You are dwarf-friend and the Sky Queen no less. I will not have you disrespected when you have come to us in amity."

She snorted at the word, "Honestly, you Children are adorable. You realize that an old lady like me doesn't really care if I'm disrespected or not, right? I have watched you all since the beginning of Creation and Age after Age there's always someone who thinks that the gifts they have been given come from the Void or something."

The king deflated slightly, suddenly questioning his skill in smithing.

"Oh don't be so down," Ratha patted him on the head, "We may have given you the potential but if you never use it nothing will come out of it. The things that come from your hard work are purely yours, for how can we claim credit for things we did not make? We could have, yes, but we didn't, and therein lies all the difference. Do not look down on the power of choice."

Tul huffed, but felt better. He played with his Durin braid as he had not done in a century, "You truly do not wish for a room to stay? The people will talk. And-and I wish for your comfort while you stay here."

"You are just adorable," Ratha cooed, even as she swatted his hand away just as his mother had done. "Give me one if you want to, but I won't be staying in it. I'm going to wander the range for a bit but I'll be back in the morning. It's been some time since I've been under a mountain and I want to see what changes you have wrought. And there should be plenty of night sentries on duty to keep me company."

Tul scowled, making her coo even louder. He stuffed his hands in his breeches, "If you will not use the room, there is no point giving you one. Since you will be seeking other company, I will bid you a good night and see you on the morrow for breakfast." He stomped away to bed.

Ratha burst out laughing, prompting him to stomp faster and louder.

The guards in the room wondered who they were supposed to follow.

xXXx

"Now, missus," Figli son of Brimli son of Gorfi gestured at the wall of stone in front of them. It glittered at intermittent points, reflecting the light of the oil lamp he was raising. "See these little gems? This here's a gold vein, you can see the colour rising from the rock. While this one," he tapped on a rock with specks of green, "is an emerald. The two've come together right here," he tapped another spot, "And we gotta sort them out."

He nodded towards another dwarf who was hunched over a table full of rocks. "Usually we cart the stuff up for the jewellers and goldsmiths to make sense of, but we don't do much mining in these late hours, so those of us as got some eye for finer detail'd have a go." He reached into his sooty shirt and took out a carefully wrapped bundle of cloth which he gently opened to reveal three polished gems of white stone.

"I found these little beauties in here," he whispered, eyes fond as if he were looking upon his own children, "These are all different stones, and people may say they're not as rare as other colours, but I've always been partial to it."

Ratha picked up the thumb-sized white star sapphire and admired the twelve rays on its surface. Figli had polished it to perfection and it was round and unmarred by a single chip.

She smiled and returned it, before picking up the moonstone. It too, was as large as her thumb, and though she knew a stone of such size could fetch a high price even in this Age, what was even more precious was the echo of devotion she could feel through it. Figli had buffed it with his own hands.

If regular stone could love, this one adored him.

The last was a regular diamond. Except it wasn't quite regular. Cabochon diamonds were rare after all, but this one was smooth and transparent like glass. There were no cuts, and so it did not glitter, there were no facets, and so it did not sparkle. It, honestly, looked like a glass bauble.

Ratha turned it over and over again and again and could feel the strength of diamond and how this small gem could endure the pressure of a mountain. She pondered over it and decided to give it its own glow.

But wind is wind, and it does not glow. Oh, Ratha could gather the particles of a fire or capture a ray from the sun, but it would not be her power imbued. Besides, it wasn't white. She impressed upon the stone the faintest wisp of breath and told it to turn here and there, making faint illusions and patterns. A mirage in a tiny desert, it coiled and breathed.

When she returned it to Figli, his eyes went wide, for the stone gave out a faint gleam. It winked along the trails of the wisp, showing him strange dreamlike figures and landscapes. He pressed it to his ear when the Sky Queen told him to and could hear the faint whistle of wind through stone.

Oh, his face went slack with wonder as he heard hints of his True Name.

Strength, the stone and wisp murmured.

Devotion, it insisted next with a little hiss.

Unusual beauty, listener, faithful...careless, clumsy, stubborn

Figli listened and smiled and blushed. He looked at Ratha and understood the gift she had given him.

The diamond would tell him and any dwarf who would listen the truths of their Names. It would help reveal the one secret that every dwarf sought to uncover. It would affirm the reason for their existence. It was a gift of the highest order!

His hands trembled as he put it down. But Ratha wasn't done.

She took up the star sapphire again and blew over it until the star flashed mutely. Wind wasn't especially flashy to look at, the only visible signs were the effects on other things. Which was why wind had one of the greatest effects on things. The little star shimmered and thrummed with the force of a breeze.

Star Sapphires are still sapphires, and sapphires are stones of wisdom. This little one was no different and as she poured the force of summer breezes into it, it thrilled and allowed them to drag small furrows through it. The star in it became more and more defined and finally, it seemed as if it would pop out of the stone itself.

This one, she pressed to his hand gently. It was cool, less like stone and more like a living breathing thing. He held it breathlessly as she did the same with the moonstone until he could almost hear it speak.

Not it, he realized soon later. Her.

Ratha had given him children. A boy and. A girl.

A star and a moon. He blinked tears away.

He completely forgot about the truth-speaking diamond and, with shaking hands, beheld the two jewels.

"Thank you," he gasped out, falling to his knees. His head pressed against the earth, two tight fists in front of it. He thought that surely the Sky Queen must be able to read hearts, for how else could she have known that his dearest wish was to have a child? But with him, poor and uncouth low-born miner that he was, how could he hope to catch the eye of a dwarrowdam?

He sobbed as he kowtowed at her feet, "Thank you! Thank you!"

The nearby dwarrow raised a cry, gathering a crowd that promised to help raise the children, that they would want for nothing. Miner's children that they were, they would be children of them all. Figli was the best of them, they felt, slightly self-deprecatingly, and deserved every little bit of this fortune. He was cheerful despite his circumstance, and always had a helping hand for everyone.

Ratha chuckled, but picked up the forgotten diamond and waggled it.

xXXx

There are secrets that the miners of Ered Mithrin keep. Indeed every miner keeps secrets only miners know, but this is one of their oldest. It is this: a small, uncut diamond that whispers to hearts.

They are miners, the lowest, the poorest, and the kindest. They know the gift of generosity, for the little diamond tells them they are worth more than they think. That they are beloved children of Eru no matter their creation. They are not the ugly, mean creatures the wise elves disparage them to be, for even elves are Children and can thus be foolish. They are not worth less than Man because of their height, of their stocky frames, of whichever sets them apart from the shapes Eru favours.

This secret is not simply one of Ered Mithrin, though it is kept at Ered Mithrin, in the hands of a line of dwarrow who have been miners for Ages. The line is blessed with more children than even the Royal line of Durin, and with girls as plentiful as boys. Miners from all the seven Fathers will visit Ered Mithrin at least once, to listen to the truth of the diamond, and listen to the whispers about their Name.

How do you find this story on miners? Are the Ur brothers' kin? Is the Ur line descended from Figli? Who cares? The diamond is for all miners anyway. And yes, the Ironfist dwarrow miners make the 'pilgrimage' too. We're always hearing stories about how awful the Ironfists are but I kind of find that it's mostly the Lords and Politicians who cause that type of trouble. Miners? We just deal with stone, what do we care about taking mountains from people and grudges of Ages? It's not like they insulted our family line anyway. (Okay, my Ironfist story kind of turns this to moot, but lets just say that most miners are like Bofur, okay? They're cool. They're the bedrock foundation of all dwarrow.)

And maybe most readers will also realize that a lot of Thorin's behaviour was kind of explained. Sure, he has plenty of reasons to be what he is...but not all of them have to be noble. Inferiority complex is not noble, but it's also a little uncontrollable in this case...although it also falls onto Thorin because he chose how to express all that. (I know I've indicated all dwarrow, but all the dwarrow chose to act that way...hence why Ratha decided to fix it in miners. Not sure why she didn't decide to fix the royal line, but I think it might be that she just favours miners. ;P)

I did some research on gems, yes. But not too in depth. Nobody has ever seen cabochon diamond, I don't think, because face it, it'd look like glass. Which is basically what the white diamond looked like until Ratha injected hallucinatory air in it. (Colours of the wind indeed) It glows a little, and there are little sparks along the breath. Very pretty.

And you know what? I think I'm gonna write an elf story soon. Oh boy oh boy. Look forward to it!

Memory25