Oswin crossed her arms and huffed, stating adamantly, "I don't want to wear a bloody dress!"

Thorin glared back at the smallest dwarf and restated his order, "Put the dress on. At least it isn't the one of white mithril."

Tossing her hands in the air, Oswin cried, "I don't want to wear a dress! Why can't I just remain in what I am wearing now!?"

Dwalin was helping the others unload supplies from the ponies but took the time to point out, "It's a mithril dress. Made of rare green mithril. It'll protect you should we fall under attack, lass."

Kíli walked over and stepped in front of his uncle, trying a different approach, "Ozzy, please put it on. Fíli and I will keep you shoved between us for protection if you don't wear it." That was a better threat, being sandwiched between the dwarf princes. As much as she loved Kíli and tolerated Fíli, they didn't exactly smell pleasant with the lack of bathing on the journey. So she grabbed the dress out of her bag and stomped off behind a tree, changing quickly into the green dress.

It wasn't ideal to her, wearing a dress. She didn't like dresses, and as far as she could remember, she never had. There was no fun to be had in dresses. But Kíli and the others were right, it was mithril and that was the best kind of armor, impenetrable and lightweight to make running easier. Stepping out again, she glared at the company, most of whom were snickering. Dwalin just shook his head at the others, Balin didn't seem to notice, and Thorin was just wearing a satisfied, smug smile that Oswin realized was the same as Kíli's. Now she knew where he got it from.

Kíli gave her a wide smile and she just gave her glare, huffing, "I don't like it."

Gandalf picked that moment to interrupt, avoiding any arguments or fights, and told the company, "I must leave now. Rememeber to stay on the path no matter what, and should you encounter the wood elves, please let Miss Oswin do the talking. It truly is in your best interest. Farewell, and I am sure to see you once you have settled back into Erebor." The dwarves seemed sullen as their magical friend left. Before disappearing into the wood, he yelled back at them, "DO NOT STRAY FROM THE PATH!"

They continued to watch until he was completely out of sight, before Thorin ordered solemnly, "Come, let us make some progress through the cursed elf lands."

The trek through Mirkwood wasn't easy. The first day in the Mirkwood forests hadn't been long, they'd begun half way through the day, but finally stopped at nightfall. The entire company heeded Gandalf's words and they made camp on the path, refusing to leave it.

They all sat quietly around the fire, no one saying much. No one was necessarily sure what to say. Their wizard was gone, they were in a strange territory inhabited by a race most of them didn't trust, and dinner was finished. Oswin, though, broke the silence, "This isn't much of a forest, is it?"

The others looked around and Kíli agreed, "Yeah, it's pretty… dead. Aren't the elves some sort of tree-talking plant lovers?" Oswin made a point to whack him in the arm. She had done it several times over the course of the day, to any of the company who used one of their little nicknames for the elves. She was trying to get them to at least cut down on the use of them, but it wasn't doing much.

"Master Beorn mentioned last night that he'd heard rumors the forest was sick, but hadn't had time to see it for himself," Ori spoke up. They all turned to look at him, making the shyest of them shrink a little, but he did tell them, "I'd just asked him if he had any tomes or maps of Mirkwood, to get better informed, and he did, and as he was getting them off the shelves for me, he told me that he'd noticed an influx of animals in his lands, and learned from a few of his friends that the animals of Mirkwood were migrating to safer homes."

Oswin gulped and asked, "What do you mean by safer?" Ori could only shrug, unsure of what the danger was. They all looked around at each other, before Oswin spoke up, "I'm sure it's just something silly, like a new kind of lizard, or toad."

That lightened the mood, several dwarves chuckling at her little answer. Fíli joined in, "Or maybe they all finally got sick of the flower-shaggers."

Tossing her hands in the air, she interrupted, "Will you all stop with that? If, by chance, we do happen across the elves, you need to be cordial at least. 'Flower-Shagger' and 'Leaf-Licker' aren't even remotely close to civil! For all we know, they could have impossible hearing and could hear us all right now, and I'm telling you, your names for them will not make our journey even remotely easy if they do hear them."

The company continued to watch the small girl, Nori finally asking, "Are you done yet? You sound like my mother."

Poking her tongue out, Oswin came back with, "And obviously you didn't inherit any of your mother's common-sense, intelligence, or looks." The dwarves began laughing, Nori's jaw falling wide open.

"Seriously, this isn't right," Oswin blurted out as they all stood at the bank, staring. The water, it was inky black. Squinting at it, she continued talking, "It's bad enough all the trees and plants are yellow-y and dead. But black water? That's just not right. Not to mention the bloody swamps. We're in a forest, there shouldn't be-"

"Oswin, hush!" Oswin ceased her talking at Thorin's order. Kíli snickered a little, and she smacked him smartly on the arm, pursing her lips slightly. They were all thinking it honestly. They'd nearly been crushed by a tree that had fallen from rot, Fíli had nearly pushed Oswin into a swamp off the side of the path while they were joking about, the smell had gotten numerous acknowledgments. The smell was the worst, because it was so strong and constant.

Looking around, they began searching for a way to cross the river. It was black water, no one wanted to touch it really. Oswin, though, her curiosity got the best of her. While the others were trying to figure out how to make either a bridge or a raft, Oswin crept closer to the stream.

She wondered if it were always black. Maybe it was, because the dirt beneath was pitch black, or rocks, or something else she couldn't imagine at the moment. Or, maybe the elves had done something to it to make it look scary. It was a good idea, keep people away and all that. But that would mean it was probably still normal water… wouldn't it?

With too many possibilities swirling in her mind, Oswin knelt down and reached her arm out, poking a single finger towards the water.

Kíli and Fíli noticed and shouted, "NO!" while dashing towards her. But they were a bit late and the moment her finger broke the surface of the water, Oswin's eyes shut and she was plummeting towards the black liquid.

The boys were on time, however, to catch her and prevent her from toppling in. Everyone panicked, moving away from the stream as Kíli moved her. Oin managed to shove his way through the company and sighed loudly, "She's just asleep is all."

It was true, her breathing was peaceful and slow, her eyes shut easily, and she had that tiny smile she always had when she was sleeping, Kíli noted. They all looked around and Nori stated the obvious, "So the water puts you to sleep."

Thorin shook his head and grunted, "We'll have to carry her. Of all the times for her to do something stupid, she picks the forest of Mirkwood to be the place to do it."

Kíli clenched his jaw, but Bilbo defended the girl first, "At least it was Oswin. She's tiny, easy to carry. Besides, now we don't have to worry about her being shoved into the swamps again." The hobbit shot a look at Fíli, who immediately looked away, finding the trees rather interesting suddenly.

Thorin grumbled something but didn't' argue, knowing the hobbit was right. Gandalf had been very firm with him the night before his departure about keeping the girl safe. The wizards exact words were still burned into his mind: "She will save many, Thorin. Do not let anything prevent that."

As irritated as the dwarf king appeared, he was more relieved she was just sleeping rather than dead. Because he wouldn't prevent that, or let anything else prevent it. But, Thorin thought Gandalf had meant his people, not all of Arda someday.

Authors Note: So, sorry this took so long! I've been gone. In New Zealand. And hell yes I went and toured the Shire! ANyways, my cousin got married and of course she moved to New Zealand cause the guy she married is from there... so I've been gone helping her move. Technically I'm still gone, but my friend emailed me the first bit of the chapter so I could finish it for you all!