A/N

Hello again! How are you all today? Excited about the new chapter?

First, a special thanks for my reviewers, but you should know that by now.

Saricaykes: YAS! I knew it *dances a little jig* hahahah finally Dwalin admits he's the father, I've been waiting so long for this. Now all he has to do is tell her and it'll be a happy family reunion! xD I can't wait for your next update lovely, and I can't wait for when Dwalin starts going all papa bear on her. :3 Haha, it wasn't that hard to figure out, was it? You had know it from the start, if I remember correctly. But finally, the truth is out! Now, how to tell our dear Frêllian?

Sam0728: I KNEW IT! YES! Can't wait for the next chapter! Well, I won't let you wait any longer! Enjoy chapter 10.

Live4dancing: Ah I am loving this story so much! I cannot WAIT for the next chapter! Hope you update soon! I'm glad to hear you enjoy this story. Hopefully you'll enjoy this chapter as well!

Chapter 10

'I see tracks!'

The young dwarf-prince turns his head, to look at Dwalin. Once the bald warrior had yelled ad Kíli for shooting his daughter – Fíli still needs to progress that piece of information – Bilbo had dashed off after his friend. Worried for his friend.

Fíli himself had followed the hobbit, having grown close to the ferian as well. But as he had rounded the corner, he had found no trace of the she-wolf. But luckily the sand hold a clear set of footprints of frellian, showing him she hasn't climbed up the walls.

With heavy footsteps, Dwalin hurries over to the prince, kneeling down as well. His fingers gently trace over the prints, before looking at his fingers. Fresh blood!

'This is no good,' Dwalin mutters in anger. 'She is losing a lot of blood thanks to that idiotic brother of yours.'

Fíli remains silent, his eyes trailing over to his brother. The poor lad is still pale from the outburst Dwalin had given him. Though Fíli suspects Kíli's paleness can also be partly blamed by the guilt he feels. He had honestly thought Frêllian was about to attack him, so he had fired an arrow at her.

Well, luckily she got hit in the shoulder! If his brother had hit her elsewhere, she might not be walking around anymore. Well, running, Fíli guesses by the distance between her footsteps. But the point is, she is still able to move around, which is probably a good thing. His eyes trail over to the angered dwarf for a moment. It seems Dwalin has calmed down a bit, but just a few moments before he had been blinded by rage.

'Aye, she's losing a lot of blood, brother,' Balin says, placing a hand on Dwalin's shoulder. 'So we better hurry up and find her.'

Nodding, Dwalin stands up, following the tracks. Not that it is hard to figure out which way she has run off too. There is only one path, and that is between two tall cliffs. Fíli takes this as a sign to continue the search party as well and being younger he quickly moves passed Dwalin. The dwarf becoming more and more pale with each passing puddle of blood. Not that the puddles are big, but eventually she is going to bleed out if nothing is done about it.

Then Fíli suddenly halts, scanning the area. No! This can't be! There must be an explanation! He frantically looks around, before turning to face Dwalin.

'Her prints end here, Dwalin,' Fíli informs him, horrified of his discovery.

But Dwalin shakes his head, pointing at a different set of footprints.

'No, she's shifted. She must have had trouble walking in her wolf-form.'

Shifted? Taking a closer inspection on the new set of prints, Fíli can tell it is human like, though small, like a child. He scans the horizon for any trace of movement. Or a ferian.

'And look!' Bilbo points at something in the distance. 'There's the arrow! She must have pulled it out.'

Rushing over to the arrow on the ground, Fíli inspects it. The arrow is intact, but how has she been able to pull it out? True, she has shifted, but the young dwarf has no idea what a ferian looks like when shifted. With Frêllian being the first ferian he has ever encountered, he had a big surprise when they had been attract by full-blooded ferian and their size!

'She must have bandaged up her arm, for the bleeding has stopped from this point.'

Looking over at his brother, Fíli notices the pool of blood right in front of him, changing into drops op blood. But with each step he takes towards Kíli, the drops become less and less, until they have indeed stopped.

'Well, at least that's one thing less we have to worry about,' Dwalin grumbles, pushing Fíli and Kíli out of his way. 'But I promise you, Thorin. If my daughter is dead because of him,' at this he points at Kíli, 'you'll lose an heir!'

Next to him, Kíli shutters at the threat, making sure to keep a safe distance from the angry dwarf. Though Fíli keeps close to Dwalin, carefully tracking the ferian while taking in his surroundings as well. He is even beginning to speed up, feeling a mixture of worry for his friend and anxiety for seeing a ferian in her true for for the first time.

A loud battle cry echoes through the air, causing Dwalin to look up for a moment. But then his attention is drawn back at slaying orcs. It seems the ferien have arrived and not a moment too soon! They are losing the battle!

He slams his axe into the skull off an orc, and another. And as he is preparing to lift his axe for another blow, a grey flash strikes down the orc.

'Thanks,' Dwalin grumbles as the ferian lifts up its head. 'I must have missed that ugly brute.'

If he had glared at the ferian, it quickly disappeared. Letting his mouth drop as he stares at the warrior in front of him.

'Oh I know you had it covered,' she says, wiping her mouth. 'But this one here, well. I just didn't like his face so I wanted to rearrange it.'

He quickly looks over her shoulder only to look at the female in front of him again in shock.

'Besides,' she continues, trusting her sword into an orc behind him. 'You look like you could use some rest.'

She winks at him, before rushing off, leaving a flabbergasted Dwalin behind.

'I've found another set of tracks!'

Dwalin quickly snaps out of his thoughts as he hurries over to the fair-haired prince. To his horror, he sees Fíli is right. There are indeed more footprints coming from the rocks, leading up to Frêllian's. He counts the different sets, counting at least four, following the path Frêllian has taken. Large and canine-like.

'Ferien.' The word has come as a whisper, but hits him like a rock, as his brother inspects them. 'They must have tracked her down!'

'If that's true, then she might be in danger still,' Bilbo concludes as he furrows a brow at the news.

'Then what are we still doing here!'

With that said, Dwalin runs off, following the prints all the way to the cliff. In the distance he sees a settlement, but he doesn't care for it. His child is being followed by those monsters and she has no way of defending herself!

'So, you've made it out alive. And your mohawk has survived as well.'

Dwalin quickly turns at the sudden voice. The playfulness of her voice mirroring her smirk as she looks at him. Her light hair and face now spilled with orc –blood, but apparently she doesn't care.

'Aye,' Dwalin nods, running a hand through his hair. 'Wouldn't want to live without it. And what about you, lass? You're here to see a healer as well?'

His eyes travel down her body, in search of any injury. But to his surprise he doesn't find any severe damage. Only a small cut every now and then. When he meets her eyes again, she has a twinkle in her eyes. Showing two – very sharp-looking – fangs as she smirks at him, almost challenging. She must have seen his quick bodyscan.

Now that's a woman! A strong warrior and not bad-looking either. Dwalin finds himself smirking down at her. A brow cocked and his arms crossed, as he casually leans against the wall. If it is a challenge she wants, then a challenge she'll get.

Her smirk widens as she watches him for a moment. But then she answers him.

'Nah, I'm here to check on my people.' She points at somewhere to the right. 'But then I saw you coming from your healer and thought I would check if you are alright too.'

'Well, as you can see, I am in perfect health.'

Winching slightly as he moves his arm, Dwalin suppresses the urge to reach for it. The ferian before him has seen the slight twitch of his arm and undoubtedly the winch. For her smirk widens a little as she crosses her arms.

'Except for your arm.' It's not even a question.

'Except for my arm,' Dwalin admits.

'Lady Cànna, there you are.'

Dwalin looks passed the female's – Cànna apparently – to see another ferian has appeared from one of the healing tents. On his face a scowl as he moves closer to the pain.

'What do you think you are doing,' he scowls at her. 'You need a check-up.'

'I am fine, Cerfén,' Cànna tells him, but the ferian will not hear it.

'How do you expect to lead our pack one day, when you will not even see a healer when needed,' Cerfén argues as he grabs the female by her arm. 'You will come with me now, young lady. No buts.'

Cànna mutters a 'fine' with a sigh as she allows the male to drag her away. But she turns around for a moment to look at Dwalin.

'Until we meet again,' she says with a wink, before following the ferian to the healing tents.

Flabbergasted, Dwalin watches her leaving form. Had she been… Flirting? With him of all dwarves?

'Don't worry, brother,' Balin says as he places his hand gently on his shoulder. 'The lass is tough, just like her parents.'

Dwalin nods quietly as he looks at the prints before him. Aye, Frêllian had always been a tough one, but that was back when everything had been as it should have. Peaceful. But from what she has told him, she has had a difficult past. Who knows what has happened to her.

'I don't like this, Balin,' he confesses as he trails over the form of a print - Frêllian's print. 'They have ambushed her. She has suffered from severe blood loss and probably has little strength left in her. Look here, she has collapsed and from here on, her prints have vanished.'

'Then they must have carried her from this point on,' Balin says as his eyes trail over the path. 'There might still be hope, for it seems they need her alive.'

But Dwalin has no time to hope. What has hope ever lead him to? The loss of his wife and the kidnapping of his daughter – though he hadn't known it until a couple of months ago. And now he is about to lose his daughter again, right when he had hoped to tell her who he really was.

No, hope wasn't going to get him anywhere! Only action will and that is exactly what he is about to take! Not even caring about the others at the moment, Dwalin brushes his fingers over the hilt of his axe. He will slay them all if that is what it takes to get Frêllian back!

'This has been your plan all along, has it not?'

Thorin has made his way up to Dwalin and looks at the scene as well. But it is not Dwalin he is speaking to. Instead, his glare is fixed on the wizard once he has noticed the settlement in the distance.

'You have planned to take us to the enemy.'

'The only ill-will you will find here, if that which you bring yourself,' the wizard says calmly, as he walks over as well. 'Lord Elrond…'

'How can you say that, wizard,' Dwalin growls dangerously at him. 'My daughter has been taken by our enemy and their tracks lead to the elves. Even the hobbit smart enough to know that to be a token of ill will!'

Bilbo stammers not knowing what to say, but Dwalin ignores him. Instead he turns on his heels and quickly follows the tracks in search for his daughter. Thorin calls after him, but the dwarf is beyond reason as he runs away.

'Hold on, Frey,' he whispers softly to himself as he quickens his speed. 'I am coming for you!'

A/N

Yay, already 10 chapters! Never thought this story would become this popular. Tell me, is it just because it's another Hobbit fanfic, or is it because our beloved ferian?

Anyway, no Frêllian in this chapter. I wonder what has happened to her? Oh wait, I already know! But you will have to wait for a little while longer.

Well, I'll be leaving for now, so until next time!