Hello! Wow, this chapter is so late, I realise- I'm really sorry!

I hope you're still familiar with this tale, I apologise for my lateness….

Onwards…..

Kili opened his eyes groggily in the darkness, mouth upturned in pain as the wound flourished in his side; his breath hitched in his throat as he moved slightly- a pair of strong, warm hands immediately took his shoulders and gently moved him so he was still, whilst a calming hushing noise sounded in the night. 'You're ok…..you're ok….' Fili whispered, making circles in his brother's shoulder to soothe him.

'Fili?' his voice came out high and breathless, and he clutched the hand on his shoulder, eyes wide. 'W-where are we?'

'Calm yourself, please- I don't want you moving anymore!' Fili gently chastised him, voice hurried but gentle. 'We're back in the camp I presume you've been made prisoner in these past days….' He replied, not taking his eyes off his younger brother. Kili's eyes widened impossibly more, before fear flashed and he sank down into his brother's arms even more.

'Oh,' was all he could mutter. 'I see….'

'Yes, our situation is dire indeed- the Great Defiler is coming on the morrow to claim its prize,' the slight hint of brotherly sarcasm was not lost on Kili, whose mouth upturned slightly in the darkness. 'We must get you out of here before that…' his brother continued, voice dark now.

'Let's go now! I can walk enough,' Kili insisted, moving a little to gather himself and try and support his body; as soon as he put pressure on the side of his body pain flashed horribly and a sick feeling fell into his throat. He groaned slightly but tried to ride it out- quick as a flash he felt a strong hand on his shoulder once more, and soon he was back nestled on the pile of blankets, with his brother hovering above him.

'You can hardly move at all! Just rest and I'll think of a way out….' Fili whispered, looking around in the darkness at the camp beyond their cage- the night air was silent bar the crackling of fire, the barks of the dogs and general chatter. No one was walking around, but Fili was pretty sure that they had not been left unwatched. He looked down to see Kili was leaning into him, hand curled into the hem of his shirt like some sort of comforter- he would have guessed he was asleep had it not been for the light reflecting from his eyes as he looked in the dark end of the cage. He felt a surge of panic and protectiveness mix in his body in a way that almost made him dizzy- he had to get his brother out of here and get him some medical help; he hoped he would last that long.

Bilbo sat away from the fire, knees tucked to his chest, eyes to the ground. The night was growing cold, but the Hobbit knew he wouldn't be able to get warm tonight- Thorin was by the flames, broodily staring into the embers- when he had tried to get near the fire a few hours before the Dwarf had given him a menacing stare, his eyes as dark as the night, and the Hobbit had shrunk back, sensing the danger behind the eyes. He knew- or hoped- that deep down the Dwarf would never harm him, but the way he exuded malice brought home just how Thorin Oakenshield had earned the name, and the respect of his fellow Dwarves. Bilbo sighed as a wind howled through the trees; he shivered, closing his eyes against the cold and to wait for sleep.

'Hobbit.'

The word was quiet, almost inaudible in the night sounds- but Bilbo heard it loud and clear. He stiffened, wondering what was going to happen next, and for this reason he ignored the call, hoping Thorin would give up.

'Hobbit…..Bilbo!' the voice was louder, firmer. He could ignore it no longer.

'Yes?' he muttered, turning around. His voice was high, and he cursed himself for sounding so childish.

'You must be freezing- warm yourself awhile.' The Dwarf motioned the ground next to him, with no expression to his face at all.

'I….well, if you don't mind….' Bilbo muttered, getting up and brushing down his trousers. He walked over to the fire and sat, wondering whether to make eye contact or not.

They sat in silence for a while, before Thorin cleared his throat. 'Listen, I realise I may have been….a little harsh to you back there….'

Bilbo snorted, a high pitched noise came deep from his throat- his eyes flitted to Thorin and he looked sombre once more, looking back into the fire like a naughty child. Thorin ignored the tease, and cleared his throat once more.

'As I was saying- you were trying to protect me, I see that now. I can be very headstrong when it comes to my nephews- they are my responsibility, and to see Kili down like that, and Fili going after him….well, I just wanted to kill each and every member of that camp.'

'I understand- I just didn't want them to take you as well.' Bilbo muttered, nodding his head.

'Aye, I see that- and I am sorry for pushing you; harming you was not my intent, and I apologise if I did.'

'It's alright,' Bilbo looked across at the woodland they had camped next to. 'What are we going to do now?'

'We must follow where the group took Fili and Kili- I wanted you to be warm and rested, because we start within the hour.'

'Within the hour?!' Bilbo yelped.

'Aye, they would not be expecting a night raid.'

'What about the others, back in the camp?' Bilbo asked, standing up.

'It would take too long to walk back, explain everything and then walk to the camp- it may even be too late now.' Thorin muttered, voice low.

'It won't be.' Bilbo said firmly, shrugging his pack onto his shoulders. 'It won't.'

Thorin looked at the Hobbit, and a smile broke through his features. 'I hope you are right- come, we should be there soon if we start now….'

'Right behind you.' Bilbo promised, dumping water onto the raging fire before tentatively following the leader though the darkness, and into the woods beyond their camp.

The night was well and truly in- the darkness enveloped the camp like the winter mists that rolled over the mountain, shrouding everything in its path. Fili brought his brother close, as if the darkness was a beast he had to protect him from. By his reckoning it wouldn't be long till morning- they had to get away from this before then.

Nothing moved, nothing stirred- it was if this place was dead to the world. Fili nudged Kili, and he moved beneath him, moaning lightly. 'Does it still hurt terribly?' he asked, knowing his answer. Kili nodded into his side weakly, not really moving at all.

'Let me look at it…' he muttered, deft hands turning his brother a little to inspect the wound- Kili hissed in defiance, hands weakly scrabbling at this brother's sleeve in protest. 'Don't…leave it…' he moaned, eyes squeezed shut.

Fili shushed him gently and continued, fingers roaming under Kili's loose shirt- he gently pressed the wound where the arrow had hit it, heart fluttering as Kili jerked upwards in pain and let out a groan.

'Steady…' he whispered, eyes narrowing as he felt hot skin beneath his palms; he hoped infection hadn't taken hold. He brought his hands back, and held one up to the moonlight- his palm was red, but the blood was dark, congealing. He thanked Durin for the small miracle.

'How-how is it?' Kili muttered, breath hitching in pain. Fili gave him a smile and put his hand on his forehead to comfort him. 'Better than I thought,' he replied, knowing he needed to be truthful.

'But we need to get you out of here soon, or else infection will spread.' He finished, eyes travelling back to the cage door.

'Stay here a second….I won't be long.' He muttered, before gently detangling himself from his brother; Kili almost whined in protest, fingers scrabbling at Fili's sleeve. 'Don't leave me…..' he moaned, and Fili heard the child his brother had been, desperate for someone to cling onto.

'Be still, brother- I'll be just a little ahead of you.' He whispered, and without another look he moved himself away, and quietly walked over to the gate. He inspected the lock, saw it was just a normal iron padlock with a space for a large key- one of the men must have it, maybe Liddry, but Fili guessed Addric was the one with the key. There would be no point looking for it- he had to use something else. A stick wouldn't really work; it would probably snap and alert someone….something else then.

He suddenly had an idea, and reached into one of the boots on his feet; he always kept a small knife with a wooden handle in a special compartment in his boot he made himself. No one else knew he had done it, not even Kili. He was glad he had now. He took the knife and gently reached around the bars of the cage, before using the narrow blade to root around the lock, as quietly as he could- after a few seconds he had a horrible sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach; this wasn't going to work. But suddenly- click. The lock came free with a high pitched noise, and the cage door became slack in his hand. He looked up, holding his breath. Not a sound…..

He sighed, feeling dizzyingly elated as he crept back to his brother.

'Kili- wake up, I've done it…..we must go!' he whispered, gently pushing his brother's shoulder a little to rouse him.

'Huh….' Kili muttered, eyes drooping as he looked up.

'I'm sorry, but you don't have time to sleep; come on….' Fili replied, scooping his brother up by the arms and gently heaving him upright- Kili hissed in pain and leaned heavily into him.

Fili suddenly had the horrible feeling that they weren't going to make it, but pushed the fear from his mind. 'Come on…..' he repeated, taking tentative steps forward, relieved when Kili followed, putting on a brave face. 'It's….not so bad….' He groaned, attempting a smile.

Fili wrapped his arms around him, letting his brother put as much weight on him as he needed- they made it to the door, and he looked around at the silent camp, trying to spot any of the men, or even the dog that was here before. Nothing. This suddenly made Fili very uneasy- now he thought about it, this all seemed very easy….almost too easy. He tried to push the niggling thought from his mind, but as he and Kili gingerly made their way around the skirting of the camp, with Kili hitching in every breath, and groaning quietly, it began to worry him even more.

'We should hurry….' He whispered urgently, trying to pick up the pace; but Kili was lagging, feet dragging on the floor as he struggled to keep upright. 'H-hurts…' he muttered, head lolling onto his shoulder.

Fili nudged his brother's cheek with his forehead, as his arms were full- 'Stay awake, please brother….I cannot do this alone…..' He whispered, before walking them into the shadow of the trees. After walking for a couple of minutes he found a large oak with a small alcove in the middle- he gently put Kili down and pushed him into it, sitting close by.

'We'll stay here for a w-'his voice was drowned out by a dog barking and baying in the darkness. He looked up, putting a hand on Kili's leg as he listened hard. Men's voices rushed out, shouts and curses were carried in the night wind. Footfalls could now be heard, and Fili huddled close to his brother, praying to everything he believed in that they would be safe, that they would miss their hiding place. Kili moaned under his breath, and a clammy hand arched around Fili's wrist and squeezed lightly.

Fili looked in his face, which was illuminated by moonlight- his features were bathed in a sheen of sweat; Kili looked up, eyes full of pain- suddenly his eyes widened, and Fili frowned before a sickening pain hit the back of his head. He keeled to the side, hitting the wet grass with a groan.

Kili looked desperately down at his brother, using all his strength to lean over him so he wouldn't get hit again- pain erupted in his side, but he pushed it out as Fili lay beneath him, helpless for once.

A pair of hands reached for him, and he tried to move away before they grabbed his shoulders and hauled him up- he yelped in pain as they threw him to the floor on his wound, and he curled into himself as more hands grappled around him.

'Thought you could get away, did you?' a dark voice muttered, before he was jerked up by his hair and roughly stood upright. 'Thought you could run away from us?'

Kili supressed a frightened cry as Fili was picked up from the ground; hands slapped his face, and he came to, groaning. Eyes wide, Kili watched his big brother being manhandled by the hands, jeered by the disembodied voices.

A face leered in, breath stinking of meat and mead. 'You shouldn't have run away, Thorin Oakenshield- you really shouldn't….' seconds later, Kili's world went black.

To be continued…..

I hope it was worth the wait! Action will come in the next chapter, with the night raid and Azog finally making his appearance!

Thank you to everyone who has stuck with this- and new readers, of course. I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Please review!

xx