AN: Two chapters in one day to atone for an overly long hiatus. (Please forgive me). This was really satisfying to write though. Get ready for a wild ride.

The remnant of the company plunged onward, undeterred. Gimli had said he'd catch up with them by nightfall, but by the time the sky was black and twinkling with stars, there was no sign of him or the others. They made camp on a hill overlooking the beginning of the Great Forest road, and next morning it wouldn't take them more than half an hour to reach it.

"What should we do?" Lifa asked, breaking the silence as they all sat around a roaring fire.

"If we go into Mirkwood without them, we can be sure we won't be seeing them again for a long time," Aki said weakly. He was still recovering from his illness, and his hand shook under the weight of a cup of hot tea.

"Mirkwood has changed. It's not the labyrinth it once was," Falki argued. "They've cleared the path and tended the trees since the War of the Ring."

Lifa turned to her husband. "That may be so, Falki, but Lord Gimli said he would be with us by nightfall, and he isn't. So the question remains, should we stay behind and wait for them, or should we go on ahead?"

"We must send someone to Mirkwood," Holfi replied thoughtfully. "We have promised to be present, and to break that promise would be seen as a great slight to the Elvenking."

He looked around the circle of faces expectantly, waiting for their reactions.

"We must go," said Falki grimly.

"Will Lord Gimli and the others be all right, do you think?" Lifa asked nervously.

"I believe so …" Falki paused, "but I do not know. Nothing is certain. But we must go. We have to complete the task set out for us."

In the end they agreed that this was better than waiting around for who-knows-how-long and possibly missing the wedding, so they tucked in for the night with plans to rise early the next morning and set out on the last leg of their journey.

/

While the company was sleeping soundly, Finna was wide awake. She was terrified of Vignir getting up close and personal, but also she desperately wanted to escape. For what seemed like hours, she chewed on the rope with her teeth until she was bleeding from the mouth. She spat out blood and rope fibres and kept at it doggedly. But in the grey hours of the morning before the sunrise, Vignir came to her with a swagger in his step and a glint in his eye.

"A good dog should obey her master," he said nonchalantly. "But it looks like you've been up to some trouble tonight."

Finna narrowed her eyes at him.

He continued, "Well, if you're such a night owl, why don't we stay up just a little later together?"

"I'd rather die a thousand deaths!" Finna hurled, straining against her bonds.

Vignir smiled wanly. "Too bad you don't get a choice," he whispered, stroking her cheek.

Finna's heart beat faster with adrenaline and her pulse roared in her ears. She could not be a victim again. This could not happen to her again; she would not let it. There was no one to defend her but herself.

Without waiting a second more she raised her clenched fist and punched Vignir full in the mouth at point-blank range. The effect was immediate - Vignir let out a high-pitched yelp and reeled away from her, blood dripping from his chin. He spat out a tooth angrily. "Now look what you've done," he said quietly.

And then he did something that shocked Finna to the core.

Vignir began to cry.

His eyes welled up and big shining tears spilled out onto his cheeks. "Why have you done this to me, Finna?" he asked. "All I ever wanted was for us to be together. Why can't you just love me?"

Finna's mouth hung wide open. "B-because you're a monster!" she cried, aghast.

"You did this to me, Finna," Vignir said, walking closer. "You made me who I am. You brought this upon yourself."

He stayed further back this time, but his voice was low and intimate. "I'll give you one more chance," he said softly. "Love me, and you can save both of us. Reject me, and I'll have to kill you."

"Are you insane?" Finna cried. "What kind of a choice is that?"

"The only choice I can offer you," he replied sadly. "I'm afraid my heart can't take any more pain and suffering, Finna. Look at what I've already become because of you. I'm giving you a chance to fix all of this."

Finna grunted and pulled with all her might on the fraying rope, blonde hair flying and blue eyes flashing. "You're not the victim in this, Vignir!" she screamed. "I knew you were the scum of the earth but I didn't expect even you to stoop this low! What you stole from me can never be regained, and yet you have the audacity to blame me for being overpowered by you!"

Vignir sighed. "More harsh words, my dear? And for once I thought we were really getting somewhere."

"Then you're grossly mistaken!" she retorted, aiming a kick at him that he narrowly avoided. "You wonder why I do not love you, while simultaneously threatening to kill me if I do not! You understand nothing about the world, Vignir."

"Now that is just a bald-faced lie. I understand quite well how to get what I want. I always get what I want," he grinned, taking hold of both of her arms.

Finna clenched her teeth together and kicked him as hard as she could where it hurts the most. He let out a cry and stumbled backwards, cursing in Khuzdul. With all of her strength she lunged forward, finally snapping the rope that had held her captive.

"Then perhaps, for once, you will get what you deserve!" she shrieked, stomping on his right arm. He cried out in agony but she kicked him in the mouth to silence him.

"You believe that I have caused you harm, that I have wronged you, that I have robbed you of your right to be loved!" she said viciously. "But you are a fool. We make our own choices in life. You chose to pursue me, and I chose to not court you. You chose to rape me. Now, watch as I choose to fight back!"

She pummelled him with her fists; she scratched his tattooed face with her fingernails, she kicked him with the toe of her boot. She did not see, did not think, did not feel. Revenge took over her body and filled her with fire. Hate made her wild.

"Stop!"

Finna froze. She knew this voice. This voice meant safety.

"Finna!" he called. She raised her head to see him running towards her in great leaps and bounds, weaving between the trees, over the snowy bank and across the frozen river.

"Gimli," she whispered, staggering to her feet. Vignir lay bruised and battered on the ground beside her, utterly spent. But she too was exhausted. She tried to step forward on her shaky legs.

And then Gimli was beside her, holding her up, speaking softly to her and wrapping his soft warm cloak around her. The world grew hazy and she was barely aware of the murmurs and blurry colours that surrounded her. She faintly saw another face above her but she could not recognize it. "Are you all right?" was the last thing she heard, and after that she remembered no more.