Nori spends the next two days making sure that Kíli watches what happens around them, her original plan having been scuppered by a late night message from Balin for Briar. She knows full well that none of this is what Kíli really wants to learn or practice. He believes he is meant to be a thief, he should be learning to pick pockets and locks. Nori knows all too well, however, that those who do not learn to watch do not last long. He is exactly the way that she remembers him being; bright, mischievous and far more intelligent than he has ever wanted anyone to realise.

Unfortunately for him, Nori knows it and she knows how rapidly he is capable of learning.

The two of them entertain themselves, somewhat, in the square near the Merchant's Guild. First, because there is a good variety of people there to examine, and second, because Briar returns there several times over the course of the next day and the one following. She seems happier each time they see her, and Nori notes the way that Kíli will watch her walking past for longer than he should.

It interests her.

In the future Kíli hardly paid much attention to Briar at all, she had been his host in the Shire and her nerves had marked her as easily riled and thus a source of some entertainment. Nori understands why now, of course, but at the time she had been suspicious of this so-called thief who fretted and fussed over dishes and doilies. She has already acknowledged that she saw no indication of regard on Briar's part for Kíli, or his brother, for all her obvious discomfort on that first night in her home; the hobbit had quickly managed to bury the majority of her emotions beneath a mask. Nori's mistake had been to pay the hobbit little regard at all once she had determined that Briar was not at all what the wizard had painted her as. At that point she had become more of a liability than anything else and although the Company had all agreed to keep her as safe as possible, they had also agreed it would be best not to get too close to her. Even Briar's disappearance in the Goblin Tunnels under the Misty Mountains had only brought a slight feeling of guilt that they had not encouraged her to turn back when they had stopped in Rivendell for weeks.

There had certainly been no sign that either of the young princes had been more affected by the development than anyone else. If anything Bofur had felt it the most keenly and even that had seemed to be only marginal. She should have paid more attention, but Nori can freely admit that she had other concerns at the time. What she does know is that if Kíli had shown any interest in Briar during the quest for Erebor she would have seen it. As she has observed before, Kíli has never been good at keeping his thoughts from his face. It is something that she plans to school him in once he gets used to watching everything going on around him.

He flushes whenever Nori reminds him that they are supposed to be paying attention to other things and she wonders if perhaps she should keep Kíli and Briar apart as much as possible before they leave for the Shire. That Kíli is fascinated by her is clear, but Nori does not think that it is something that should be encouraged to progress further until he is deeper into his apprenticeship. She will be asking Briar to teach the lad about poisons and antidotes, in a few years at least, and once he is closer to being of age Nori will give him a little more slack to seduce and pursue anyone he might like.

"Never flirt with your employer, lad," she warns him again as she clips the back of his head. "It gets messy quickly."

"I wasn't…" Kíli starts to argue and Nori raises her eyebrow at him. "She's your employer."

"As long as you're my apprentice she's yours as well," the thief shrugs. "And as a general rule any kind of relationship beyond a working relationship with an employer only leads to trouble."

"It didn't look like a working relationship to me," Kíli mutters.

"I've worked with her before," Nori replies, "and she pays well."

"How did you come to work for her? I've seen you work the last few days, you don't need to take on the work of a guard, so why do it?"

Nori hesitates for a moment. She has no desire to tell Kíli an outright lie, but nor does she want to discourage him from his path either. Much as she cares about Briar of now, and the Briar of the future, she did not simply take on the job for the money that she would earn.

"The job before I met Briar ended badly," Nori sighs, pulling Kíli out of sight and hearing of the masses. "We got the money but… My partner decided to make his way to the Iron Hills and start over there. I decided to come home and live off the money I'd earnt for a few months before deciding whether I wanted to work with another thief again. It takes a lot to trust another of our trade, lad, regardless of the rules, and it can take time to find someone new to put that trust in. While I was in the bar making my decision I happened to spot Briar talking to three Men. As they like to say, it takes one to know one, and those Men did not intend to do well by her, no matter what contract that they may have entered into. To buy myself time I offered to do the job that she was asking of those Men for a fraction of the price. We came to know one another, and we work well together." Then she grins. "And it's always nice to be able to work a job that the guards can't touch me for."

"Doesn't the thought you might get caught scare you?" Kíli tilts his head.

"Of course," Nori nods, "and that keeps me careful. The Guild won't come for us if we get caught, lad, so it's in our interest to not get caught."

She tosses her head, her hair the last few days has been styled in a multitude of small braids after Dori cornered her for offering his services around without consulting him and the wooden beads that he has woven through them clack as she does so. It is a far cry from her usual style, but there is a comfort in it at the moment, especially as she knows that later on she has to go and meet with Thorin.

"Uncle has already said that they won't be able to do much if I get caught," Kíli mumbles. "And he was furious when Ma said that I was finally being trained. He says the fact that I'm supposed to be a thief is an embarrassment to the line."

"He's one to talk," Nori snorts derisively, although she knew that the sentiment was going to come up. Kíli stares at her. "His grandfather's greed brought a dragon down on Erebor and drove our people from the mountain," she points out, "if anyone should be considered an embarrassment, it's him." Kíli huffs a laugh, his lips twisting a little wryly at her statement and Nori silently congratulates herself on avoiding accidentally revealing something of the future to the lad. The expression fades quickly, however, and she sighs. "His opinion isn't unusual, lad, we both know that. My Ma… my Ma wept for three days after I told her that I was called to this. My brother likes to argue that it contributed to her death, but the truth is her lungs weren't right after Erebor fell, the dragon fire did something to them."

Kíli nods, it is not unusual to find that those dwarves who managed to survive facing the dragon have suffered with their breathing in the years following. It had taken his own father in the end, she knows, although Fesli had never been directly involved in facing Smaug, he had been nearby.

"It killed my Da too," he says softly.

"I know, lad," Nori lays a hand on his shoulder, "I was in town when the announcement was made." She wasn't, but he doesn't need to know that she found out because Dwalin told her one day in the future. A day that will not happen now.

A bell chimes from the nearby Merchant's Guild, most of the time in the town is set by them as the Guild insists on strict timekeeping for the purpose of contracts, shipments and deliveries. Nori sighs, time to go and see Thorin.

"Are you really going to meet with him?" Kíli asks as he bounds after her.

He routinely leaves in the middle of the afternoon to attend weapons practice and lessons in the myriad subjects that a prince of the line needs to be aware of. It cuts deeply into the time that Nori has to train the lad. Sadly for Thorin and Dís, Nori knows that Kíli learnt the majority of everything he needs to know years ago and all of this is mostly a refresher, probably to stop her from teaching him everything that he needs to know.

"Why wouldn't I?" She asks.

"He's Thorin," Kíli hisses softly, glancing furtively around him and Nori internally laments that she has not yet been able to get him out of town, he desperately needs to learn the role of Cadan.

"So he is," Nori shrugs, "but that doesn't mean all that much to someone like me, lad, except that his purse should be a richer prospect."

"He doesn't think you'll come," Kíli informs her.

"Well, then he's bound for disappointment," she grins, in more ways than one no doubt. She suspects that Thorin is hoping that if she fails to meet with him the Thieves Guild will declare her an unfit mentor. That is not how her guild works.

She walks with her head held high, and she suspects that she looks far more confident than Kíli expects her to. Even in her previous life Nori had never marched through the streets around Thorin's home. Her job was to remain unseen and gather what information she could to keep the royal family safe. This time, however, her job is to train Kíli and that means that the people here will need to become accustomed to seeing her with him. Although the sooner that they manage to give him a more easily altered appearance the better.

Dwalin is waiting for them when they arrive, and she probably should have expected to see him but it is still a shock all the same. She has spent so long trying not to think about him and the past she has with him that he does not remember that the slamming of her heart at the sight of him is entirely unexpected. She only saw him a few days ago, after all, but the more time she spends with Kíli the more she feels like the person she became in the years between starting to work for Thorin and the quest. She cannot afford to be that person at the moment. That person is not the rough and ready thief that Dwalin, Dís, and Thorin expect, she is not the sister that Dori knows so well. That person, in fact, is the one who, until meeting Briar and taking on Kíli, has only ever been seen by Ori.

"Your Ma's waiting," Dwalin says to Kíli, apparently oblivious to Nori's sudden inner turmoil. "I'll take your friend to your uncle."

"Sponsor," Nori corrects, "we don't want this coming across as anything other than what it is."

Dwalin frowns and she catches Kíli glancing between them warily.

"Maybe I should come too," he offers.

"No, lad," Nori shakes her head. "I have no doubt that things are going to be said that you're better off not hearing. By all accounts your uncle has a harsh tongue on him. And there's no sense in upsetting your Ma more than we have to. Off you go, I can handle myself." Kíli hesitates for a moment longer.

"I'll stay with her, lad, don't worry," Dwalin tells him gently. "I gave my word she would leave in the same condition she came." Kíli waits a moment longer, then nods and heads inside. "Shall we?" Dwalin asks her.

"Lead on, guard."

A.N: Early this week on account of assignment deadlines, studying and more D&D. Always with the D&D.