"Here you go. If you need anythin' else I'll be right over there." said the innkeeper setting down your plates. You sighed in relief and thanked him as he walked away. "Hey, are you feeling ill? What's the matter?" asked Elína legitimately curious. "Oh, it's nothing." You said, taking a sip of your cider. "Have I scared you with what I said earlier?" she said laughing. You ignored her and started to nibble on your bread but you couldn't help but wonder if that was really the prince sitting in the booth across the room. The common dwarven folk rarely saw the royals, they preferred their privacy, but you had seen them a few times from a distance. What would the prince and future King of Erebor possibly be doing in a lowly inn in Dale? You wondered."He's probably here for important business." Elína answered as if she read your mind. Finally, you began to eat comfortably after you realized no one was coming over to question you. You two began to eat and chat away for a few minutes, until you felt eyes on you. Elína was too busy enjoying her food to notice you shifting uncomfortably in your chair. Setting your tankard down, you carefully glanced over at the important table. The three dwarves now gone, the view was clear and that's when you saw Thorin. He sat there looking at you, not caring if you saw him. You quickly looked down to the rustic plank floor and gave him an awkward nod. You felt as your skin began to get hot and you knew you were turning red. You turned to your sister and she knew what had happened. Rolling her eyes she said, "Alright let's get on with it, get your things." You were more than happy to leave and you quickly stood up and threw your messenger bag over your shoulder. You felt his intense, cold stare but you couldn't bring yourself to look. You felt your skin flush again and felt your nerves overtaking you. You quickly head for the door feeling like a wanted criminal, leaving your sister behind to pay. Feeling concealed walking through the tall crowd; you turn to see if you'll be chased, instead, you see him following you with his gaze. He looked at you in discontent. "Oh for the love of Mahal! Why must I be such a fool?" You cursed under your breath. You almost reached the door when- "Lass! Leaving so soon?" the innkeeper yelled out at you. You hesitated to turn back but you did, "Yes, we must get going now, thank you and goodbye." You said quickly turning to the door. "Oh hold on there! Here, take these, Elína asked for them earlier." He said bending down behind the bar counter. You exhaled and quickly turned to him. Out of the corner of your eye you saw figures stand up from the important table and they were walking right towards you. That's when Elína reached you and asked what the fuss was about. "I'll be outside! You wait for your things." You said as the dwarves reached the bar and you hurried to the door that was only inches away from you. Once outside, you leaned on the building and wondered in what sort of trouble you've gotten yourself into. How could you be so disrespectful to the prince! Your mind was racing with all kinds of uncomfortable thoughts. That's when you heard the door open and you patiently waited for Elína to walk out. Dwarves started stepping out each one giving you a polite nod. To your surprise, they kept to themselves and didn't look at you twice. You politely smiled and bowed your head back at them, and then you realized that Thorin was going to step out of that door any second now. Your heart raced and you tried to look as calm as possible. That's when the tall, dark-haired dwarf stepped out. Dressed in a dark scarlet red tunic, black pants, and immense boots, he looked incredibly handsome. You two made eye contact once again and he gave you a small nod, and before you could answer to it, he turned away and walked over to the others. You couldn't help but stare at him and how majestic and handsome he was, not to mention, how tall he was! "Good evenin' lass." A voice interrupted your thoughts and you look to see a shorter, white haired dwarf, with his long, white beard. You recognized him as Balin, distant relative to the royals; you'd see him walking around from time to time being his typical social self. "Good evening Sir." You smiled at him. You look at the other dwarves, there were six in total and all of them looked like lords or warriors. They stood in the almost empty stone road, chatting away. Elína walks out of the inn, with two jars of honey, one in each hand. You go over to her and grab a jar out of her hand. Two of the dwarves seem to say their goodbyes and walk towards the marketplace while Thorin, Balin, another tall dwarf, and the red-haired dwarf seem to head back home. "You see? You worried for nothing, why would important dwarves see you as a threat?" She chuckled. "Prince Thorin looked angry! It's a scary situation to be in!" You snapped and glanced at Thorin who was now farther from you. He kept walking as if nothing had happened. You observed him as he walked away and wondered why he glared at you like that. Your curiosity was getting the best of you and that's all you thought of for the rest of the day. It was late afternoon and you two were getting ready to leave. Feeling a little brave, you prepared to tell your sister about Thorin looking at you the way he did. "Elína can I tell you something?" You asked hesitantly. "Anything." She said still packing up, and not bothering to look at you. "Prince Thorin, today at the inn…" You said twiddling your fingers. She immediately stopped what she was doing and looked at you with a huge smile on her face, "He's a quite a sight for sore eyes eh?" You couldn't help but smile "Well sure but, I-" before you could finish, she interrupted "He asked about you, you know. He asked if everything was alright with you since he saw you scurrying out like a maniac." You closed your eyes and felt embarrassment wash over you. "Really? Why did you not tell me this before?" You shrieked. "Well yes, I told him the truth! That you were scared of him." she scoffed. "He kind of smiled" she said with a confused look on her face, "though I can't really confirm that it really was a smile….anyway…" "Why would you say that?!" You asked wide-eyed. "Well it's the truth isn't it?! I would not lie to the prince." She finished packing her things and so did you. "Besides, you will probably never run into him again and he has more important things to think about instead of a lowly maid he scared at the inn." she winked. You smiled at her and playfully smacked her arm. She was right though, Thorin had probably already forgotten about your weird encounter. You shook your head and both of you started to walk to the mountain.