The day passed beyond slowly after she left the lake.

Avalain somehow managed to sneak back into her room without Lindir spotting her. She was proud of herself for her stealth—but when she lay down to take a nap like she'd originally planned on doing, she found that sleep would not come to her. She was much too excited and apprehensive for what would occur that evening… A thought of training entered her mind, but she shut the idea down. She had not trained in so long, and usually when she did, Legolas was with her.

Knowing that reading would not take her mind off of Fili, Avalain sighed and flumped on her bed. What could she do until the evening?

Eventually, Avalain decided that she would take a walk around the city. Perhaps that would help to clear her head.

On her descent to the city, the Elf girl breathed in deeply. Strangely enough, she had come to appreciate the lethargy of Rivendell over the past couple of days. Because a change had come, and because Avalain now found herself incredibly happy, she realized that she adored the ever so constantly chirping birds, the deafening rush of the waterfall. She also loved the sun, the trees, the wind… The air had never smelled sweeter.

As she came across a bench, the She-Elf stopped and sat down for a moment, thinking of what she might say that night. She was sure that there would be a few choice Dwarves—such as Thorin and Dwalin—that would be less than pleased to hear she and Fili had feelings for the other. But, with luck and proper forethought, Avalain was sure that she could sway them… eventually.

It was as she was muttering aloud to herself that she heard a deep voice say, "Avalain Nightshade."

Caught by surprise, Avalain jumped and yelped softly. Her gaze darted to her side, and she swallowed upon seeing none other than Thorin Oakenshield standing before her. Despite her nervousness, said she, "Good afternoon, Thorin."

He did not return the greeting; he only raised an eyebrow and looked over the gardens that grew behind him. Without looking at her, said he, "I must admit, I did not expect to see you here."

"Well, I shall be gone before long. I only stopped to rest a moment from a walk." Although Avalain kept her voice smooth, she felt a tinge of exasperation. After all, this was her home—she had every right to be here.

But that exasperation faded when he replied, "I see. Well, I may as well use the opportunity to thank you for what you've done. I must admit I had many doubts when Gandalf led us to this valley. But you have managed to persuade me that not all Elves are irritatingly noble. The Company and I are grateful for your help."

Avalain blinked—had she just received a few brownie points from the King Under the Mountain?

Well, she thought smugly, not many would be able to boast of that.

Her mouth opened and she responded without truly thinking, "It was my pleasure. I must also say that I had my doubts about Dwarves when you lot arrived. But I am glad to say I have come to appreciate the energy and spirit of your people. It was not until now that I realized how much I missed the company of your race."

Thorin glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, and Avalain caught the slightest trace of a smile. She had to resist gasping—clearly, the half-smirk, half-smile was hereditary, because he looked very much like Fili in that moment.

"That is good to know," said the Dwarf King. It was silent between the two of them then, for neither knew what else to say.

Avalain spared them from the awkward silence by rising and declaring, "I believe I shall continue on with my walk, then. I hope your afternoon passes well." She turned to leave, but then she realized that something had been bothering her—she was curious and slightly afraid to know, but she felt like she needed to. And so the girl asked, "Oh, but Thorin, I must ask you; would you or your Company need anything before you return to the road?"

"No, I do not believe so. I intend to travel again in three or four days, as we now have a deadline. I suspect you've heard about that?"

"I have not. Why do you ask?"

Thorin's eyebrow raised, and he muttered something that suspiciously sounded like, "I thought he would've been pleased to tell you…" But then he cleared his throat and said, audibly this time, "Out of curiosity. Good afternoon, Avalain."

She nodded in acknowledgement and moved away from the bench. It was only once she was completely out of sight that Avalain sighed and put her head in her hands.

The three or four days, she knew, would pass quickly.

But she couldn't dwell on that. Not now.

And so Avalain forced herself to move onward and push the thought aside.

Once her walk was completed, Avalain eventually decided that with or without Legolas, she was going to train. Even though it was normally an activity she reserved only for when he was present, she knew that nothing else would occupy her otherwise. And so the Elf girl grabbed her bow, her quiver of arrows, and proceeded to sneak into the innermost sanctum of the gardens, where she and Legolas had hid a target about five-hundred years past.

It took her less than five minutes to find it, despite her not visiting the place for nearly ten years. The clearing was exactly how she'd remembered it—trees looming inward, shielding her from any observers, orchids blossoming all around. She sighed, not realizing how much she'd missed the place before that moment, and nocked her first arrow.

THUMP!

Avalain was pleased to see the arrow impaled the edge of the bulls-eye.

Clicking her tongue in dissatisfaction, she tried again. Her second attempt was met with a little more success.

She continued on as such for about twenty minutes before hearing the first brush of leaves. Alarmed, Avalain whirled around, praying to the Eldar that it was not Lindir or her father or even her sister.

Luckily, the place seemed deserted. All the same, Avalain remained wary as she returned to her task.

Two more arrows were launched before she heard another rustle. There was no mistaking it this time.

"Who's there?" called Avalain. Although her Elvish vision was impeccable, not even she could see through leaves or trees.

There was silence in response. All was silent for another moment until the third crackle.

The She-Elf pinpointed the sound and darted over to it. She brutally whipped aside the leaves only to find an empty tree trunk. Astonished, she gazed around—but there was no one.

"Odd," she whispered to herself.

WHUMP!

With a startled cry, Avalain whirled around to see Kili shooting an arrow into the target, his brother standing behind him. Kili's aim was true; it flew straight into the bulls-eye. Seeing the success of his shot, the Dwarf turned around and bowed cheekily to the Elf, a smug grin on his face. "Top that."

"I believe I can," retorted Fili, and he withdrew a throwing knife before launching it at the target. It scraped Kili's arrow and shared its spot in the bulls-eye.

Avalain paled; she had never, ever been discovered in her training spot before. Were they going to tell someone?

"Oh, Fili, Kili," gasped she. Their smiles fell as she threw her hands up to her face in worry—"Please, don't tell anyone… if my father were to find out…"

"What?" asked Kili in confusion. His previously complacent grin was replaced by a scowl. "What do you mean, tell anyone? You're amazing! Sure, you might be a little rusty, but I'm sure you'll be smacking the bulls-eye in no time…"

"No, it's not that," whispered Avalain. She moved closer to them and murmured in dismay, "It's that women in Rivendell are not allowed to fight. It's considered improper here! I say that's poppycock, but still I would be mortified of my father's anger if he should discover this…"

Kili frowned outright. "What a stupid rule," he grumbled, marching back to the target and retrieving her arrows for her.

She thanked him and quickly replaced them in her quiver.

"How long have you been learning?" asked Fili.

A small smile threatened to come over her face. "Nearly five-hundred years, though I must admit I have not touched a bow in nearly twenty. As you can tell, my skills are a little untoned."

Kili shrugged. "No matter. I'm sure Fili and I can fix you up in no time."

"You and Fili are archers?" gasped the girl, amazed.

Kili's boyish grin returned. "I am, more so than he is. He's more the axe or throwing knife kind of guy. I'm the archer. But he's relatively good at it… sometimes." This last was added with a knowing smirk, which made Avalain laugh and shake her head, especially since Fili had exclaimed in outrage and was beginning to contradict his brother.

"The competition ensues," she murmured to herself amusedly.

"Always," replied Kili, breaking off from the argument and bowing again in earnest. His expression grew a tad self-righteous.

Avalain shook her head, but had nothing else to say. So she hesitantly returned to shooting arrows in the target, though she was quite self-conscious at this point, knowing that the two Dwarves observing her were more than skilled at the activity.

Her next arrow was closer to her intended target, but it was still not quite there. With a huff of disappointment, Avalain reloaded—

"You're not keeping your elbow close enough to your body," interjected Fili quietly. "Don't let it move quite so far away. Then you'll have truer aim."

The Elf girl blinked and did as he suggested. When she let her arrow fly once more, she was somehow not shocked to see that it embedded itself almost in the very center of the bulls-eye. With a bemused smile, she then turned to the Dwarf. "How did you know?"

He grinned. "Just as you once taught Elvish children the constellations, so I once taught them how to shoot arrows. That is, before their fathers decided it was an Elvish sport." His mouth turned down in distaste.

"An Elvish sport? Hardly," replied Avalain. "Perhaps our kin, the Greenwood Elves, would take pleasure in this activity, but here in Rivendell, we are more of a peaceful folk. As dull as that may sound," she added with a laugh as she noticed Kili's expression of utmost shock.

"No wonder you've been so bored," he remarked mildly before turning to shoot at the target.

With this, Avalain smiled sadly. She would be just as bored once the Dwarves left… what a miserable thought! "Yes, no wonder…"

Kili nodded; after a silence between the three of them, he bowed and said, "At any rate, Avalain, I must be going. I have business to attend to."

With a mischievous grin that made Avalain think she should've told her father to hide his extra wine, he stalked off, leaving her and Fili in the clearing.

Once he was gone, Avalain shook his head. "Your brother certainly is a spirited soul."

"Too spirited for his own good," confirmed Fili, a knowing smirk on his face. "It takes me, Thorin, Balin, and Dwalin to subdue him sometimes. After all, he's little more than a child."

"How much are you his elder?" asked Avalain. With a shock, she realized she did not know much about the young Dwarf before her. She hoped to find out more about him before he was to leave, even if it would make it harder for her to accept his departure once it actually happened.

He thought for a moment and then responded, "Five Dwarvish years. He is barely eighteen at this point. It's strange to think about; that he is of age now. He's always been my little brother."

Avalain smiled. "I wish I could understand the feeling, but I am the young sibling here, and so I can only tell you what young siblings feel—if it means anything, Kili certainly looks up to you. He aspires to be very much like you."

"I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing," muttered Fili, which made Avalain laugh.

"I'm sure it's a wonderful thing."

He shrugged. "Perhaps, but I would rather he be Kili rather than Fili's younger brother."

The Elf girl was moved by his obvious care for his brother. She had not seen the two of them together much, but it was clear that their bond was stronger than many others. Said she then, "That is beyond a wise thing to say…"

She turned her attention back to the target and went to retrieve Fili's throwing knife and her few arrows. Once she returned them, asked Fili, "How did you begin training?"

With a sly smile, said she, "I guilt my best friend into teaching me eventually. It took a few years."

"Well, he's done a very good job," responded the Dwarf. There was something in his tone that Avalain had trouble identifying—but once she deciphered it, she was almost taken aback in shock. Was he impressed?

"I'm glad you think so," she answered sincerely. After a pause, she added, "I did not know how you would feel about it, honestly. I feared you would see it as un-ladylike or rebellious…"

There was no mistaking the disbelief in his voice as he repeated, "Un-ladylike or rebellious? What madness is that? I'm beyond glad to see that you've been training—it shows that you are independent and skilled, and it is nothing short of impressive. It is a relief to discover that you're able to defend yourself. Besides, I personally find 'ladylike' rather dull. You are certainly much more interesting—not to mention lovely—than any other Elf I've met here."

Hearing this high praise, Avalain flushed. She had indeed not expected anything of the sort, and knowing that this was how he felt sent her heart soaring. She was trying to think of what to say when he asked, "Would it be all right if I were to begin teaching you how to throw some knives? You might need something a little more closer range."

Avalain was nothing short of delighted. "I would be very excited to do so."

He smiled and moved forward to begin instruction—for the next two hours, they trained as such. It was only when dusk arrived that they ceased, and they moved away to find the others of the Company, knowing that it was high time they told them the truth about what they felt for the other.