"Be on your guard," Thorin warned. "We're about to step over the edge of the Wild. Balin, you know these paths; lead on."
"Aye," Balin agreed, taking his position at the front of the column.
Bilbo looked back at the Hidden Valley with longing. He missed the Elves already. Thorin noticed his hesitation and remarked, "Master Baggins, I suggest you keep up."
The Company traveled from Rivendell with haste. Not that they feared the Elves would pursue them, for the Elves had made it clear the only help they would give the Quest had already been given, and the Dwarves were free to do as they saw fit. Rather, they wanted to clear as much of the Misty Mountains as they could before darkness set in, for it was hard telling what sort of dark and dangerous creatures inhabited the hills. While climbing a particularly steep bit of rocky hill, the Company stumbled upon a stranger, also hiking through the Misty Mountains. The Dwarves looked at the hooded foreigner with surprise and warily put their hands on their weapons.
"There'll be no need for that," a smooth, feminine voice spoke from beneath the cloak. "I come in peace."
Thorin pulled his sword, Orcrist, out of its sheath and held it level at the stranger. "I find that hard to believe. These are ne'er traveled paths, known only to a few."
"Master Dwarf," the stranger replied, "I am choosing to trust you. It would be appreciated if you could do the same for me."
"We know nothing about you," Gloin argued.
"I know no more about you than you know about me."
"Then we are at an impasse," Balin, the oldest Dwarf, declared. "I'm afraid you're going to have to leave."
The stranger shifted her posture slightly, a hand going behind her back to settle on the hilt of a dagger. The rest of the Company wasted no time in pulling out their weapons.
The woman unsheathed two Elven daggers and gently placed them on the ground at her feet. "I mean you no harm," she pacified. Holding her hands up, palms facing out toward the Company, the woman assumed a nonthreatening stance.
"I'd find it a bit easier to trust you if I could see your face," Dwalin replied.
"Very well." The woman pulled down her forest-green hood, exposing long, black hair. Brushing some strands from her face, the woman looked up at the Company, her eyes a bold green that intermittently flashed with silver streaks. After waiting for a response from the Dwarves, the woman shrugged and added, "As it seems manners have deserted you, I suppose I should tell you my name. I am called Takiel."
Thorin watched Takiel suspiciously. "What brings you to these parts?"
Takiel stared steadily back at Thorin. Following several moments of uncomfortable silence, she muttered that it would be easier for her to speak freely with people whose names she knew.
Reluctantly, Thorin introduced himself and his thirteen companions. Takiel nodded politely to each of them before turning to Thorin and asking, "May I pick up my weapons now?" Thorin grudgingly conceded and Takiel swiftly rearmed herself with a thoughtful glance at the Company.
"You all seem a bit far from home," she noted. "Searching for something?"
"It doesn't matter what we're doing," Thorin replied deeply. "How long before you can be on your way?"
"On my way?" Takiel's eyebrows rose. "You insult me, Thorin. I've been praying for something like this to happen. I'd like to join your Company."
"No." Thorin motioned for the Company to move out.
Takiel glared at Thorin as he and his companions walked away. "So the Hobbit is valuable, but I'm not even good enough to be considered?"
"You're a woman," Thorin explained, glancing back over his shoulder. "And a small one at that. You'd simply be a burden. I don't need to deal with that."
"Dwarf, I have been through horrors that would curl your beard. I am more than capable of handling myself."
Thorin set a penetrating gaze on Takiel, who glared evenly back. "I don't care if you have been through fire and death. I will not have you in this Company."
Takiel's eyes flashed silver. "Refusing to welcome me as a companion, Thorin Oakenshield, would be a very unwise decision."
"And why is that?" the Dwarf king prompted.
Takiel shrugged. She was infuriated by Thorin's curt dismissal of her and did not intend to explain herself further.
Thorin grunted in disgust and sheathed his sword. "Let's go," he ordered his companions. The fourteen members of the Company turned away from Takiel and continued marching through the hills. Kili and Fili, Thorin's nephews, looked back at Takiel when they had moved father along. The strange woman was standing just where they had left her, her long black hair blowing gently in the breeze. She had an icy yet contemplative look on her face and watched the Company walk on with a calculating stare.
"Don't you think Uncle was a bit rough?" Kili asked his older brother.
"Kili," Fili chided, "she's a stranger we know nothing about. For all we know she could be a spy."
"She didn't seem like a spy…" Kili replied, unconvinced. He stole one last look at the woman before the Company's path took them around the side of the mountain, out of sight of the mysterious wanderer.
"Be that as it may, Thorin approves any additions t' this Comp'ny," Bofur chimed in from in front of the brothers.
Kili furrowed his brows. "It just seems wrong to abandon her in the middle of the wilderness."
"Lad, you're too sentimental," Balin reproached. "That woman had the looks of a warrior about her. She'll be fine."
Kili mumbled something under his breath but said nothing directly in response.
"Here's as good a place to stop as any," Thorin remarked as the sun began to set. "Prepare to make camp. Fili, you take first watch."
"Yes, Uncle." Fili settled himself against a rock so that he looked out across the hillside. He could see most of the paths leading to their camp and was satisfied that no one would sneak up on the Company while they slept. Setting his dual swords on his lap, Fili scanned the landscape casually.
As night fell, Fili could hear Oin and Gloin bickering about the stew they were making. They had come close to a compromise when Thorin came over and ordered that the fire be put out.
"I don't want anything unfriendly spotting us out here," he explained. "We've been lucky to have only met a harmless traveler since leaving Rivendell."
Bofur couldn't help a chuckle escaping his mouth. Thorin glared angrily at the toymaker, who shrugged innocently. "I would hardly call the woman we met 'harmless,'" he explained.
"She was all talk," Thorin replied. "She could never hold her own in a real fight."
Fili smiled to himself; his uncle never had been one to accept defeat in an argument. He glanced over at his brother. Kili was sitting off by himself, mindlessly sharpening his sword. At intervals, he would look up and stare off into the darkness as if searching for something.
A noise to Fili's left snapped him out of distraction and put the Dwarf on high alert. He watched for movement out of the corner of his eye as his hands slowly grasped the hilts of his swords. Something leapt out of the darkness and Fili jumped to his feet, swinging his blades. One sword contacted the rocks with a resounding clang but the other sliced against something soft.
"Fili! What is it?" Thorin called from the camp.
Fili swore angrily. "It's nothing," he shouted back. "Just a deer."
"Go and get it, Kili," Dwalin ordered. "We can cook it tomorrow morning."
Kili sheathed his sword and went up to where Fili was. "A bit jumpy, are we, Brother?" he asked, his eyes twinkling.
"Just take the deer," Fili snapped crossly.
Laughing at his brother's embarrassment, Kili swung the deer carcass over his shoulders and carried it down to the camp. Fili sat back down, his heart rate still elevated from the scare. As the night wore on, Bilbo was the first to nod off, followed shortly by Bombur and Oin. A few short conversations took place at the camp, but for the most part, the Dwarves had all fallen silent. Most were asleep, glad for a few hours of rest after the long, hard day of traveling. Fili shook his head to keep himself alert. He took sentry duty very seriously and did not want to disappoint his uncle.
A few minutes before Fili was to waken Gloin for the second watch of the night, he had the strange feeling that he was being watched. Again, Fili grasped his swords and looked for any sudden movements. He saw nothing. A cloud had blown over the moon, casting the world into shadow. Fili strained his eyes in the darkness but still didn't see anything out of the ordinary. Just as he was beginning to relax, he felt the touch of cold steel to the back of his neck. A hand covered his mouth, preventing Fili from shouting for help.
"Don't move, don't speak, and I might let you live," a voice whispered in Fili's ear.
The Dwarf's muscles tensed and he gripped his swords, contemplating attacking the person behind him.
"I wouldn't do it if I were you," the voice whispered again. "You'd be dead long before you got one of those swords close to me."
Fili grunted and set his swords down on the rock beside him.
"Good. You've taken the first step toward survival." Fili felt the pressure on the back of his neck lessen slightly and the hand left his mouth.
"Who are you?" he hissed quietly. "And what do you want with me?"
"We've met," the voice rasped. "That's all you need to know."
"Are we going to stay like this all night?" Fili asked.
The stranger remained silent.
"What's to stop me from shouting for help? Surely you can't take on thirteen Dwarves at once."
The pressure on Fili's neck returned and the Dwarf fell silent.
"Is this supposed to help you out in some way?" Fili inquired after a prolonged silence.
"It might. We'll have to wait and see."
"And how was I so lucky as to be chosen as part of your plan?" Fili shifted his weight, trying to find a comfortable way to sit. It appeared his captor was not planning on leaving anytime soon.
"You were conveniently available."
Fili craned his neck to look up at the stranger. "Am I supposed to feel privileged?"
It was difficult to tell for sure in the darkness, but Fili thought he saw the stranger's head snap to the side, as if his captor were stifling a laugh. "You should feel privileged to be alive." The stranger's voice remained cold and emotionless and Fili began to believe he had imagined the laugh.
Much to his irritation, the stranger remained behind him all night, keeping the blade pressed against his neck. All of the other Dwarves slept soundly and Gloin never awoke to start his watch. When the sun finally rose, the Company began to stir.
Gloin and Oin lit a fire and began cooking the deer for breakfast. Thorin came over to get his meal and looked searchingly at Gloin. "Aren't you supposed to be somewhere else?" he inquired.
The Dwarf's eyes widened slightly. "I completely forgot. Fili was supposed to come get me. Guess the lad stayed out all night."
"Something's not right about this," Kili interjected from behind them. "Fili never misses a chance to get some sleep."
"Dwalin, Gloin, come with me." Thorin pulled out his sword and moved quietly toward the spot where he had last seen Fili on sentry duty.
As the three Dwarves came around the corner of path, an unexpected sight greeted their eyes. Fili was seated on the ground, his dual swords some feet away from him. Behind him was a cloaked figure who was pointing a very sharp dagger at the back of his neck.
"Stand down!" Thorin ordered brusquely.
The figured continued to stare at Fili. "I wouldn't come any closer. I'd hate for this Dwarf to lose his head."
"You're bluffing," Gloin challenged.
"Am I?" the stranger asked, pressing the dagger slightly harder against Fili's neck. The young Dwarf grunted and Thorin looked quickly between his nephew and the stranger. He had to make a decision. Did he risk attacking and hope the threat was a bluff, or did he listen to what the stranger had to say?
Before Thorin had come to a decision, another voice warned, "Let him go or it's an arrow in your neck." Kili was perched on the top of the rock, his bow drawn and pointed down at the stranger. The Dwarf thought he saw a flash of hesitation in the stranger's eyes when she risked a quick glance up at him, but she looked away too quickly for him to confirm his suspicion. The stranger seemed to survey the situation before reluctantly removing the dagger from the back of Fili's neck. Unsheathing a second dagger, the stranger laid both weapons on the ground. "Congratulations. You beat me," she confessed sullenly.
"Take off your hood so we can see your face," Dwalin growled.
The stranger slowly lowered her hood, revealing a familiar face.
"You?!" Thorin cried out in disbelief.
"Honestly, I'm surprised it took you all so long to recognize me," Takiel replied. "We only met yesterday." She sat down on the edge of the rocks, her legs dangling over the edge. With unexpected nonchalance, she waved Fili away, informing him, "You can get up now."
Fili stood up stiffly and started to stretch out his sore muscles.
"What was the point of holding him hostage?" Thorin demanded.
"He should have been able to overcome me easily." Takiel's voice was falsely bright. "After all, I'm only a small woman." She smiled curtly, her eyes betraying how she really felt.
"Enough." Thorin walked toward Takiel, his face full of anger. "You threatened my nephew," he said. "Give me one good reason I shouldn't end your life right here."
"You wouldn't do that." Takiel stood her ground. She met Thorin's glare without flinching.
Thorin's gaze darkened. He growled, "You're going to have to give a better reason than that."
"Fine. You need me with you," Takiel replied evenly.
"Need?" Thorin snarled. "I don't need you for anything."
Takiel sighed. "Let me put it to you another way." She picked her daggers back up and sheathed them. "You don't have to let me join your Company, but if you turn me away a second time, I will continue to follow you. I'd like to see how well you can sleep when you know I'm somewhere nearby. Which Dwarf should I keep company next? The archer? I'm sure this one really enjoyed staying up all night with me. We had some truly enlightening conversations."
Thorin shook with fury. "I could take you as my prisoner," he growled menacingly.
"You could. However, I wouldn't advise it. I've escaped from more difficult bonds than ropes or iron."
Several other Dwarves came around the corner, curious about the commotion. Bofur took one look at Takiel before commenting, "I told ya she wasn' harmless."
"Thorin," Balin remarked, "maybe it wouldn't be such a bad idea to take on another member. As strong as we are at fourteen, a fifteenth member is one extra warrior."
Thorin shook his head. "Not if the fifteenth member is a woman."
"The fourteenth member is a Hobbit," Takiel interrupted.
"Silence. You have no say in this."
"I've been around Hobbits before. They're peaceable and—,"
"What part of silence do you not understand?" Thorin took a menacing step toward Takiel.
"Uncle," Kili ventured hesitantly, trying to keep the peace, "maybe Takiel has a point."
"Why are you arguing for her?" Thorin asked, rounding on his nephew. "She held your brother prisoner all night."
Kili shrugged. "That took nerve. Someone like her could be useful. Obviously she doesn't back down easily."
Fili looked up at his brother, annoyed.
"How do we know we can trust her?" Gloin questioned.
"You don't. You just have to take my word for it," Takiel admitted reluctantly. "I can't force you to trust me; I can just ask that you give me a chance."
"Stay there," Thorin commanded. "We need to discuss this more privately."
Takiel inclined her head politely. "Nothing wrong with that." She put her elbows on her legs, rested her chin on top of her hands, and watched the Dwarves walk back in the direction of the camp.
As much as the Dwarves tried to argue quietly, Takiel could hear almost everything they said.
"I'd cut off my beard before I travel with that woman!" Gloin swore.
Balin attempted to be the voice of reason. "I don't think Takiel had evil intentions when she held Fili captive."
"How could she have possibly had good intentions?" Fili exclaimed. "She held me at knife-point all night!"
"I agree with Fili," Dwalin announced. "That woman cannot be trusted."
Kili argued, "We were kind of rude to her the first time we met. Maybe she just wanted to prove herself."
"Kili, you're new to this, so I don't expect you to understand, but people don't do things like that to prove themselves," Gloin explained. "This woman is no better than the dirt we stand on."
"Since it sounds like we don' want her with the Comp'ny, what exactly do you plan on doin' to keep her from followin' us?" Bofur asked.
There was no response.
"That leaves us with only one option," Balin said finally. The other Dwarves looked at him for enlightenment. "We allow her to join this Company, but we tell her we reserve the right to send her off if she makes one wrong move."
There was much grumbling and complaining amongst the Dwarves, but as no one could come up with a better solution, everyone eventually agreed on Balin's idea. With Bilbo in tow, the Company walked up to where Takiel was sitting.
"Well?" Takiel asked impatiently.
"You may join us. However," Balin cleared his throat, "if at any time we feel you've done something wrong, we will force you to leave."
"Seems fair enough," Takiel replied. "I've made worse bargains."
Thorin added, "I am not responsible for your survival."
"Nor would I expect you to be." Takiel pulled her hood back up and got to her feet. She gestured contemptuously at the path ahead. "Lead on. We don't have all day."
Thorin stormed past Takiel and began trekking up the hillside. Takiel fell in line behind two of the Dwarves she believed to be Thorin's nephews.
Takiel kept to herself for much of the trip; she could feel the anger emanating from the Dwarves. Very few of them were pleased with the decision to admit her to the Company. With no one to talk to, Takiel spent a lot of her time observing the members of the Company, trying to get a fix on their personalities. She felt pretty settled on her judgment of Bilbo: gentle, kind, homesick, but fiercely loyal. As she studied Thorin's two nephews, she couldn't help eavesdropping on their conversation.
"You must be getting some gray hairs in your beard, Brother," Kili remarked. "First you're startled by a deer, and then a woman takes you by surprise."
Fili looked over at his brother. "The same thing would have happened to you," he assured Kili.
Kili shook his head. "I'm not so easily fooled," he promised. "I would have heard her coming."
"Would you?" Takiel whispered into Kili's ear. The Dwarf jumped in surprise and Fili let out a short bark of laughter.
Takiel fell back in line behind the brothers, a small smile dancing across her lips. Encouraged by Fili's response, she tried to make conversation with the nephews, but Fili turned a cold stare on her.
"Just because I laughed doesn't mean I've forgiven you for last night," he cautioned her.
"That's because you don't understand why I did it. Ask your brother; he's got the right idea."
"You leave my brother out of this," he growled, "or I may forget to be civil toward you."
"Fili, I can take care of myself," Kili interjected.
Fili looked over at his brother. "I know, Kili, but I don't trust this woman. "
"You don't have to be so unforgiving," Kili argued.
Fili rounded on his brother. "Will you quit defending her?! She held me at knife-point all night! Just so she could use me to convince Thorin to let her in the Company! There is nothing about that that is honorable!"
"Then I guess we disagree, Brother," Kili replied tautly. He walked away from his brother and went to stand with Bofur.
A few minutes later, Fili glanced back at Takiel.
Takiel met his gaze calmly. "What's on your mind?" she asked.
"Was that whole performance today really necessary?"
"What? Threatening to kill you?"
Fili nodded.
Takiel pondered her answer for a while. At last, she said, "Yes."
"Care to explain?" Fili requested.
Takiel shrugged. "There isn't much to explain. The only way to convince you pig-headed Dwarves that I am more than capable of being a member of this Company was to be, for lack of a better term, rough."
"I think that's a bit of an understatement," Fili corrected gruffly.
"If it helps, I thought you handled yourself very admirably under pressure," Takiel acknowledged.
"It doesn't," Fili disagreed.
They lapsed into silence again.
"You know, you remind me of an Elf," Ori remarked from behind Takiel.
"Do I?" Takiel asked. "I can't imagine why."
"Well, you're a lot shorter than the Elves I've seen, but there's something about you that just seems Elf-like." Ori stared at Takiel, deep in thought. "I can't quite place it," he admitted after a while.
"Where did you get those Elf-made weapons if you are not an Elf?" Dwalin asked from behind Ori.
"Perhaps the same place Thorin got his Elf-made weapon," Takiel replied, her expression guarded.
"If you're an Elf, you may as well leave now," Dwalin cautioned.
Takiel looked Dwalin squarely in the eyes and said, "The Elves banished me. I have no more love for them than you do."
Everyone looked at Takiel in surprise. Dwalin dropped the matter. From up ahead, Thorin shouted for everyone to move faster so the Company could find shelter before dark. Takiel watched the Company walk away before pulling her cowl more closely about her head. She slowly fell in behind the other Dwarves but her face displayed her hesitation to follow them.
Up ahead, Fili and Kili had ended up next to each other again. The atmosphere between the brothers was still tense from their earlier argument.
"Fili," Kili tentatively broke the strained silence. "About earlier…"
"You don't have to apologize, Kili," his brother replied. "I was wrong to get angry with you."
"No," Kili corrected, "I was wrong to defend a stranger before I defended you."
Fili ruffled Kili's hair. "You did what you thought was right. Besides, you've always been impulsive. I can't hold that against you."
Kili smiled at his older brother. "You never could hold a grudge for very long."
From behind them, the brothers heard Bofur ask, "So, lass, why'd the Elves banish you?"
"Why does it matter?" Takiel asked exasperatedly.
"Well, being Dwarves, we're not particularly fond of Elves," Bofur explained, "and clearly neither are you. I'm curious about your story."
Takiel stopped walking. "My story isn't important."
"Oh come on," Bofur argued. "I'm not askin' for a book about it. Just tell me what you did to make the Elves so mad at you."
"I'd rather not." Takiel looked away uncomfortably.
"Don't be bashful! I'm sure, whatever it was, they deserved it," Gloin pressed. He seemed to have forgotten his previous attitude toward Takiel in his eagerness to hear how she had done the Elves wrong.
"When I say I'd rather not, I mean I'd rather not," Takiel snapped, irritated by the Dwarves' persistence. She tried to dodge the interrogation by walking away.
Dwalin grabbed Takiel by the shoulder and held her back. "Answer the question," he ordered.
"I've forgotten what the question was," Takiel replied.
Dwalin glared menacingly at Takiel. "You are trying my patience," he snarled.
"Why did the Elves banish you?" Bofur asked again quickly, attempting to pacify both parties.
"I killed their Queen," Takiel muttered after a long pause.
"I'm sorry…you what?" Bofur was dumbfounded.
"You heard me." Takiel shook off Dwalin's hand and strode away.
The next couple of miles passed in an uneasy silence. As the afternoon turned to evening, Fili and Kili rejoined Takiel. Takiel scoffed, "I thought I scared everyone off."
"Scared us off?" Fili asked.
"With that comment you made?" Kili added.
Takiel looked searchingly at Fili. "I thought you were still cross with me."
Fili shrugged, smirking slightly. "I had a change of heart."
"Joy." Takiel sped up, attempting to leave the brothers far behind her. Unfortunately for her, Fili and Kili easily matched her pace and prodded her for an explanation.
"Why are you two so fascinated with me?" she asked at last. "I've threatened both of you multiple times. Shouldn't you be avoiding me?"
Kili and Fili looked at each other before Kili explained, "We're curious about you. Neither of us has met anyone quite like you before."
Takiel replied. "You don't want to know much about me."
"Don't bother, lads," Dwalin warned as he walked past them. "She's a loner. You'd be more likely to get a kind word from a goblin. Might as well give it up."
Takiel said nothing in response to Dwalin's obvious insult, but Kili thought he saw sadness flicker briefly across the woman's face.
Thorin had the Company stop at a valley between two small hills for the evening. The Dwarves and Bilbo set themselves up in a circular arrangement for sleeping. Takiel distanced herself far from the rest and sat in silence, staring up at the night sky. She was so lost in thought that she didn't hear Kili come up behind her until he gently tapped her on the shoulder. Takiel snatched Kili by the arm and had a dagger at his throat before she realized who it was. She quickly let him go and shakily sheathed her dagger.
Kili sat down next to Takiel, seemingly unbothered by his near death experience. "Why did you kill the Elves' Queen?" he asked.
Takiel removed her cowl and looked over at Kili. "Doesn't it bother you that I almost killed you?"
"No. You wouldn't do that," Kili argued.
"I wouldn't?" Takiel asked. "And why is that?"
"For the same reason you weren't going to kill Fili this morning."
"And what reason is that?"
"You care."
Takiel's eyebrows rose. "What in Ilúvatar's name would make you say that?"
"I saw you hesitate. I was watching before I threatened to shoot you."
Takiel bowed her head. "I didn't think anyone noticed"
"Why were you so desperate to join us?" Kili asked.
"I've been alone for…years…" Takiel began. "I haven't belonged anywhere for even longer than that. When I came across you all…I guess I hoped you'd be more accepting to outsiders."
Kili smirked. "Then obviously you've never met my uncle."
"Not in person, no, but his reputation precedes him. I may not have revealed myself if I had known it was his Company…" Takiel closed her eyes and inhaled deeply. She looked intently at Kili. "Why did you defend me so strongly today?"
"I don't know," Kili admitted. "Something about you just seemed…vulnerable."
"Vulnerable?" Takiel laughed. "That isn't a word people usually use to describe me. They typically go with things like callous and disagreeable."
"Are you always so gruff toward people the first time you meet them?"
"Yes. With a history like mine you can't afford to act any other way."
"Does this have to do with being banished?"
Takiel nodded, her body tensing at the mention of her banishment.
"How so?"
Takiel's green eyes sparkled in the moonlight and in a small whisper she replied, "The Elves were like family to me."
"Then why did you kill their Queen?" Kili asked, thoroughly intrigued.
Takiel sniffed and shook her head, drawing in a deep breath. Two tears slid, unbidden, down her face and Takiel hastily wiped them away. She wasn't discreet enough, however, and Kili noticed her sorrow.
"You didn't want to kill the Queen?" he verified.
Takiel shook her head again, closing her eyes to let two more tears slip out. Without thinking, Kili gently wiped them away. Takiel flinched at his touch and her hands immediately went to her daggers. She then remembered where she was and took her hands away from her weapons. "I'm sorry," she murmured, "I'm easily startled."
"What…?" Kili began, but he let the question drop off unfinished.
"I've led a hard life," Takiel answered, surmising what Kili had been going to ask her.
Kili looked searchingly at Takiel and chose his words carefully before speaking. "We've got another long day of travelling ahead of us tomorrow. I think I speak for Fili as well when I say you can feel free to travel with us and get any burden off your chest that you need to."
In a barely audible voice, Takiel managed to say, "I'll remember that."
Kili went back to join the rest of the Dwarves around the fire Gloin had lit. Everyone looked at him curiously and Kili eventually asked what he had done.
Thorin answered first. "You are far too friendly with that woman. I do not trust her, and neither should you."
"Get to know her before you judge her, Uncle," Kili retorted.
"Are you forgetting that she almost killed your brother?" Thorin reminded his youngest nephew.
"No, but she's not as terrible of a person as you pretend she is." Kili sat down, picked up something in his hand, and proceeded to start carving on something on it.
"Lad, she killed an Elf Queen," Bofur said. "We may not like the Elves, but don't you think killin' them is a bit extreme?"
"I don't think she meant to," Kili maintained.
"Is that the lie she told you?" Thorin asked. "How many times must I tell you she cannot be trusted?"
"How many times must I tell you she isn't that sort of person?" Kili countered.
"Get some rest," Thorin ordered, effectively ending the argument. "We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow."