Light streamed down through the branches above me, creating beams that cut through the shade of the forest. It was hard to tell whether it was starlight or sunlight, as no sky could pierce through the thick leaves of the canopy.

It was quiet and peaceful as I walked through the forest. There was only me, all alone in this wide expanse of nature. Not even animals were around. No birds. No deer. No mice scuttling through the foliage. The forest was completely silent.

Like it was holding its breath.

I smiled up at the canopy taking a deep breath. It smelled like home. A persistent sense of nostalgia that hung on the air, though for what, I am not sure. It felt like something I'd lost and found once more.

I knew these trees, their deep red wood and sprawling intertwining canopies that stretch on for miles. They towered near impossibly high above me. They made you feel so small; made you realise that you're a part of a bigger world.

I reached out to touch one of them, the bark rough beneath my fingers. I blinked and my hand changed, it was smaller, a childs but still mine. Not seeing anything amiss, I pulled my hand away from the tree and carried on forwards.

I was going somewhere wasn't I?

No, I was just out for a stroll in the woods.

But there was something. I was certain of it. Something cloying, thick and desperate. I had to go somewhere. Was it this way? It was like an itch at the back of my head.

The peaceful forest didn't seem so peaceful anymore. A sense of urgency grabbed hold and I started to stumble, half running through the trees. The quiet of the woods was broken by my panicked breaths.

It was getting harder to see in front of me. The strands of light streaming from above were going out. One by one. Like someone flipping a light switch. Wherever I ran. Blink. Another one out. Blink. Blink. Like someone was turning off the stars.

Something dark and diseased moving through the trees. Like blood in a vein. A pulsing shadow. It was devouring the wood from the inside out.

A sound cut through the soundless night. A snarl. A roar. The revving of an engine. It was like all three mixed into one. One second it was me, alone, in the darkness. The next it wasn't. My mind couldn't even comprehend what it was. It morphed and cracked and shifted. Sometimes it was a large creature with a knife. Next it was a giant wolf. Or a car with blinding headlights.

All that I knew is that I was running from it. Running until it felt like my feet were bleeding and the air burned from my lungs. I could taste the salt of tears on my lips.

It had become pitch black. No light left to show the way. Branches still whipped at my face and roots still clung to my feet. One root seemed to wrap around my whole ankle and I was thrown to the ground.

It was on me in a second. I could feel hot putrid breath on the back of my neck. With a final sob I turned around to face the monster.

It was gone. And the forest was gone. What was once damp earth was now soft snow. Tiny flakes drifted through the air, melting on my cheek. I brought my hand up to touch where it had landed. My tears were gone, as if they were never there.

I stood up, clumsily, wanting to look around. I could see that I was very high up. It must have been a hill of some sort. A very tall hill. To my right was a very sheer cliff, peering over it I got a very strong feeling of vertigo. Like the yawning gap would swallow me whole. The feeling caused me to back away from the edge. To the left there seemed to be the remains of a building–a ruin–buried beneath a layer of snow.

"Leah!"

An agonised cry followed, coming from within the ruins. It was the cry of someone hurt, the cry of someone I cared about.

"Kili!"

My feet were moving before my racing thoughts could catch up with them. I tore my way through the ruins, rounding corners and bouncing off walls. The cries never ceased, they only seemed to get louder, more prolonged as I searched in frenzied desperation.

No, no, no, no. I have to get to him. I can't lose him.

I turned the final corner and slammed to a stop amongst crumbling ruins, feet skidding across the rubble. I was no longer alone.

A monster, over 8ft tall and built like a bear, blocked my way. Its skin was a mottled grey, every inch covered in raised scars and jagged metal pieces. An enormous sword hung from its hand, the blade red with fresh blood. It looked straight at me, with one of its eyes clouded white.

A terrifying smile stretched across its face, baring his teeth, as if it had found its next meal.

"Run!" a cry echoed from behind the Orc.

That's when I saw him, collapsed and shivering on the cold unforgiving ground. All colour had drained from his face, leaving him ashen and ghostly pale. His shaking fist clung desperately to the armour across his abdomen. A stream of thick red seeped between his fingers, a steady rush that would not stop.

"Kili!" I screamed, my throat burning with the force of it.

I had to get to him. He could not die. I had to save him.

No matter how fast I ran there always seemed to be the same amount of space between us. Reaching for the wall I tried to drag myself along it, tried to get closer.

The monster merely laughed at me. "You're already too late."

Before I could even get close, the monster took his sword and plunged it deep into Kili's chest.

Waking was not a slow dissolving back to reality, it was a crash landing. My lungs convulsed, my diaphragm spasmed. Ragged breath choked down, catching, hitching. A cry caught in my throat and it felt like I was suffocating with it.

It was a dream. No, not a dream, a nightmare. An awful one. It had been so vivid, like I was really there, like I was trapped. My nightmares were never that bad. I could shake those off pretty easily nowadays. But this one–seeing the sword cut through Kili's chest, seeing him die–I couldn't cope with it.

How could I be so stupid? How did I manage to forget Kili's fate? I'd spent the past few months in bliss, just enjoying having one of my favourite characters be real. Somehow I hadn't thought about how Kili's story ended. Until now. Until it was seared into my memory, like the flash of a camera, branded onto my eyes. I could see it even when my eyelids were closed. Kili's terrified, ashen face begging me to run.

Kili was going to die and it was going to be by Bolg's hand. That's who that monster had been. In my dream it was just some nameless thing. But now I was awake I knew who it was. Azog the defiler's son. A savage orc hell bent on ending the line of Durin.

My stomach tightened, twisting nauseatingly. I needed to move. To untangle myself from these sheets. The blanket had wrapped around my legs in the night, now they were constricting me, trapping me. With some effort and shaking hands, I tore at the bedsheets and hauled myself out.

I didn't know what I was doing or where I was going. I just knew that I needed to get away, to leave that nightmare far behind. I stumbled out the door and into the blurry hallway. The door of the bathroom appeared in front of me and I forced my way in. If I was going to be sick then I might as well be in there. The door slammed against the wall and the light blinded me. I made it close to the toilet before I collapsed onto the tiled floor. Cold from the tiles seeped into my legs. It was close enough.

My hands had balled into tight fists, nails digging sharply into my palms. Involuntary whimpers escaped with each breath. A pathetic sound that made me feel even worse.

I don't know how long I knelt there on the cold bathroom floor. After some time I was no longer alone. Arms wrapped around my shoulders and brought me closer, resting my head on their chest.

"Shhh, It's okay. What happened Leah?" they said.

It was Kili.

That realisation made me sob harder. The object of my grief suddenly in front of me. My fingers twined around the soft material of his shirt and clung tightly. Kili rubbed my back with one hand and laced the other in my hair.

"It's okay. You're not alone. I'm here."

Kili shifted, adjusted his hold on me and lifted me into the air with ease. He led me out of the bathroom and laid me on a soft mattress. I protested when he moved, desperate to keep him close, but he did not leave. He laid down right next to me and brought me close to his chest. I could feel his heartbeat pounding through his chest. Alive.

We lay like that until my cries subsided and my shuddering breaths evened out. Once I was composed, I looked up at Kili "I'm sorry," I said, voice hoarse and cracking.

"There's nothing to be sorry for," he said.

His eyes were soft and earnest. He traced his thumb along my cheek, wiping up some of the remaining tears.

"Do you want to tell me what's wrong?" he said softly.

I took a deep shaky breath in "I have these nightmares sometimes. Normally I can handle them but this one was…bad."

"In what way?"

"Seeing people die," I whispered, looking away from Kili's eyes.

"That must have been awful," he said, his hand returning to my hair. His fingers ran comfortingly against my scalp. It was making me sleepy.

"It's over now though," he said "I can stay if it would help you."

I hummed in agreement, suddenly too tired to speak. He should stay. I wanted him to stay. It wasn't long before I drifted off again.

Kili

He had been struggling to find sleep for hours now. Each time he would successfully drift off his body would jolt him awake again. It was infuriating. Sighing, he rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. It had been happening a lot more recently. The longer he stayed in this world the more restless he became.

He needed to get home. He knew he did. But the more time went on the more nervous he became. Was that door a one way trip? Would he ever see his family again? He had been in this world for months now and there didn't seem to be any sign of that gateway returning. Leah and Ellen had been using their 'internets' to search for clues but it was all fruitless.

On the other hand, while he wanted to go home, he also despaired leaving. Thinking about leaving everything he had found in this world made his heart sink. This world was so completely different to his own. Terrifying and exciting in equal measure. So many new experiences to try out. There would always be something new thrown at him.

Then there was Leah. He struggled not to think of her most of the time. They had grown so close over the past few months. He had never gotten so close to someone who wasn't in his family. It was strange, exhilarating and scary. She would smile and it would light up her whole face. Often it would make him lose his breath for a second. He'd never seen such a beautiful smile before.

The thought of leaving her–losing her–sent a sharp pain through his chest.

These thoughts swirled and would not leave his head. Kili sighed and made to turn over when a noise gave him pause. A door slammed open and someone collapsed onto the ground with the slap of skin on tile. Kili threw his blankets to the side and inched his way to the door. He put his ear against the wood and listened for more. At first he could not distinguish any sounds but then he caught it. Crying, someone was crying.

Kili opened his door slowly, he did not want to charge into something private or spook whoever it was. The door to the bathroom was wide open and light poured out onto the landing. Leah lay in the centre of it all, hunched in a pile on the floor. Her sobs were inconsolable and Kili's heart broke at the sight.

"Leah, Leah?" she didn't seem to hear him.

Carefully, so as not to startle her, he wrapped his arms around her. Bringing her close to him. Her cries seemed to increase when she realised he was there. She grabbed onto him with a surprising amount of force. Kili hugged her tightly, whispering reassurances into her hair.

The bathroom floor was not the place for this, he realised. If she stayed here, she would probably feel worse. He wasn't sure if she'd be willing to walk though. So Kili looped one arm under her legs and the other behind her back and lifted. She didn't weigh much so it wasn't very difficult.

He carried her into his room and laid her on the bed. For a second he had an internal panic. Why did I bring her into my room? It was terribly inappropriate to bring an upset woman into his bed. What would his amad say? He should have brought her to her own room but it was too late to change it now.

Leah looked very small, curled up with a tear-stained face. He hesitated for a second before deciding to climb in next to her. Screw propriety, he was going to comfort her. Kili brought her close to his chest and held her there, waiting until her sobs subsided.

She told him about her nightmares and Kili sympathised. Having lost his adad quite young, he'd had his fair share of nightmares. But never ones that affected him this badly. Kili reached up and brushed a hand through her hair. Leah's eyes closed and she hummed contentedly. The sound lodged somewhere deep in his chest. It took him a second before he realised what he was doing–touching her hair. An act usually resigned for very close family members. But the way she melted at his touch made him not want to stop.

Leah

I woke to sunlight warming my face, streaming in from the wrong direction. I blinked against it and forced my eyes open.

This was not my room.

What? Where?

That's when I noticed a strong arm wrapped around my middle. Kili's arm. He held me tightly against him, my back to his chest. Oh, now I remember . Memory of my midnight panic attack returned to me and my face heated up. I couldn't believe Kili had to see me like that, it was embarrassing.

Now I was in a very precarious position with Kili's breath tickling the back of my neck. I was suddenly very aware of my own body and where it made contact with Kili's. Our legs entwined together under the covers. One of his arms was under my head as a pillow and the other was firmly wrapped around me. His hand grazed a patch of skin from where my pyjama shirt had ridden up. It shifted with each breath I took. His touch felt like electricity dancing across my skin.

My pulse took off like a horse at the starting gate, pounding its merry way through my body. I needed to move and I needed to move without waking him up. If Kili woke while I felt this compromised, I would undoubtedly say something incredibly stupid that I would regret later.

But I didn't know where to begin extracting myself, with how thoroughly we were bound. I decided to start with the worst offender, the muscled arm encircling my torso. I reached up and grabbed the arm, with a gentle grip. Slowly, so as not to wake him, I attempted to extricate myself. As soon as I went to move it, Kili grabbed me tighter. Christ, this dwarf is strong. He snuggled into me, his nose skimming against my neck. The motion sent tingles down my back.

I tried to be very still, hoping that he wouldn't wake up. After a few tense moments, it seemed like he was still sound asleep, so I went for attempt two. This time I tried to shuffle out from under the arm. After a few excruciatingly long seconds–where I was certain I'd get caught–I managed to escape. Kili didn't wake up as I backed out of his room.

My fingers brushed the back of my neck. There was still a ghost of Kili's breath on the back of my neck. It made it very difficult for rational thought. Shaking my head, I tried to bring some sense back.

I made my way downstairs. The stairs creaked under my weight, making me jump. Calm down Leah. What's wrong with you? I scolded myself.

Tea. I needed tea or at least something warm to settle me down. I walked through the living room and opened the kitchen door, to find Mum already up and nursing a cup of her own.

"Morning," I said, walking over to the kettle. It was still hot so I poured myself a tea.

As soon as I sat down, Mum looked up at me with a very strange, pointed look.

"So," she said, over the brim of her mug "Should I be expecting any dwarf grandchildren any time soon?"

I nearly spat out my tea, "Mum!"

How did she know that I'd slept in Kili's room last night?

"You do realise that Kili's bedroom door was wide open this morning, it's not my fault if my eyes strayed and saw you all snuggled up. You were very cute by the way," she grinned at me.

My face burned. This was mortifying.

"It wasn't like that Mum. Get your mind out of the gutter," I said.

Mum giggled, "Enlighten me then."

I took a deep breath, preparing myself to bring down the mood. "I had a nightmare and Kili found me crying in the bathroom."

Mum's face fell. "Oh darling, are you alright? Your nightmares were under control for so long."

"I know, but then I got new ones. Yay" I said, with fake enthusiasm.

"What was this one about?" Mum said.

"I was being chased through the woods by some monster. Then it changed…It was…I saw Kili and he was being killed by an orc."

I stopped speaking. His dying form, sprung unbidden to the front of my mind. If I wasn't careful I was going to start panicking again.

Mum came around to where I was and wrapped her arms around me.

"Oh that's awful," mum said.

I laid my head against Mum's shoulder. "I can't believe I forgot," I said, throat tight. "He can't die, Mum, he can't."

Mum rubbed my arm and I looked up at her "We should probably warn him," she said "we can't tell him everything though because some things need to happen the way they did. Changing those could make things worse."

Telling him, yes we could tell him and warn him. That way he would be prepared and he could survive. A naïve hope surged through me. Kili would live. He had to. The idea of him being gone was simply unthinkable.

He needed to be warned.

Mum's arm dropped from around me as I sat up. She was staring into the distance. Eyes unfocused, not really looking at anything.

"Maybe we should go with him...when he goes back home," she said, her voice just about audible.

Go with him? To Middle Earth?

That sounded like something I would foolishly suggest, not my very rational mother. I can't deny that it had crossed my mind at least once. More than once, if I was honest with myself. Curiosity had lassoed itself around my body and tugged, urging me, begging me to go with him. It felt like we should, like it was the right thing to do. I wanted it with every fibre of my being. But we couldn't do that. Could we?

"You want to leave?" I asked.

Mum shook her head, seeming to come out of her stupor. "Oh I'm just being silly, ignore me."

Then she carried on with her morning routine as if she had never suggested we leave the world we knew.

I decided to wait until Kili had at least eaten breakfast before I sprung the worst news he would ever receive on him. I made him a full english to soften the blow. It felt less cruel that way. He gave me a confused glance when I placed it in front of him but his hunger eventually won out and he tucked straight in.

"Are you not having any Leah?" he said around a piece of sausage.

"I've already eaten," I said, shaking my head. It was a lie, my stomach had tied itself in too many knots for me to even consider food.

Kili nodded and went back to eating. But his concern did not fade and when he finished, he reached over to squeeze my shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"Not really," I said. Here goes nothing. "I need to tell you something."

"Is it about your dream?"

I guess you could say it was part of it. "Yes, my dream is involved."

"What happened?" he said, softly.

Oh, where do I even start ? "I was on some kind of hill, covered in ruins. It was freezing and covered in snow…and I saw you?"

"Me?"

I nodded. My throat felt like it was getting tighter "Kili, I saw you die. Right in front of me and I couldn't do anything to stop it."

Kili wrapped his arm around my shoulder. "Hey, don't worry, it's over now. I'm here, I'm not going to die," He gave me a small smile trying to comfort me.

It had the opposite effect and I broke down "But you are!" I cried, covering my face with my hands.

"What do you mean?" he said, uncertainly.

I took in several breaths in an attempt to steady my racing heart. Then I lowered my hands and looked Kili in the eye. "Do you remember how there are stories here about your world?"

He nodded.

"Well, I think the timeline between our two worlds is different?" I said

Kili's brow furrowed "What does timeline mean?"

"I don't really know how to explain this but It means that we have stories from Middle Earth that happen nearly 100 years in your future," I said.

"But that cannot be right. How can they write about something that has not yet come to pass?" he said.

"It might not have happened to you but it has already happened here," I explained.

Kili paused, deep in thought. "So not only do you know about Middle Earth you also know about my future?" his voice was disbelieving.

I nodded, "The quest that you are about to go on, to reclaim Erebor, has already been written."

I felt Kili's whole body freeze."But word of the quest has never passed my lips. How could you know that?" he shook his head, then he looked at me very intently "Unless it is true. You know how it ends. Please tell me, If the quest is already written then what happens?"

I had never seen Kili look so desperate before. The hand on my shoulder tightened and I doubt he knew he was doing it. His eyes were all but pleading with me to speak.

"Smaug is defeated and Erebor is reclaimed. That's why my tattoo says 'So comes snow after fire and even dragons have their end'" I said with a sad smile.

Kili's face lit up. He looked like he was about to cry. "We do it, we actually do it?" he said breathlessly.

"But not everyone survives Kili. There is a battle and there's an orc army and..." My voice broke and I could not bring myself to say the words. It was as if saying them would make them true and inescapable.

"Who dies Leah?" he asked, his voice so vulnerable.

Please don't make me say it. It made me sob harder and I struggled to reply.

"Who dies Leah?" he asked, harder this time.

"The line of Durin ends Kili! Your Uncle Thorin dies killing Azog the defiler…and you and Fili die trying to protect him."

Kili's face fell. A physical blow would have hurt less. "No. No. You're wrong. That cannot be," his voice cracked "My brother and Uncle cannot die…I cannot die!"

Kili's anguish felt like my own. A hot knife straight to my gut. "I'm sorry" I whispered.

Kili looked like an animal that had been cornered. In a second he was on his feet, ready to bolt.

And then he ran.

Kili

He did not know what else to do, so he ran. His racing heart refused to quiet and he felt like he wasn't getting enough air in.

Leah had to be wrong. She had to be. If she was right, It didn't bear thinking about. Mahal above, how could they die? Uncle Thorin was so strong, Kili had always thought that nothing could ever fell him. Thorin was a leader, their King, he had been through so much to help his kingdom. He could not die reclaiming his homeland. It simply did not make sense.

A car swerved sharply around a bend and nearly drove straight into him. Kili jumped backwards narrowly missing the machine. He would never get used to this world. Deciding to avoid any more roads he turned and escaped into a copse of trees by the roadside. Trees and fields he could understand better. After a while of half running through the trees, he came upon a fallen log.

All energy seemed to drain out of him and he collapsed into it, head falling into his hands.

Fili, his big brother. They would tease each other but Fili always had his back. 82 was no age at all. He was barely in his majority and had not had a chance to court anyone or find his craft. Then again neither had Kili.

Amad would be all alone. All of her family, gone in one fell swoop. He could not leave her like that, knowing it would destroy her. He remembered what it was like when they'd lost Adad. She was strong in front of him and Fili, never seeming to let the sadness win. But when she was alone, it was a different matter. Kili remembered hearing her cry at night, praying to Mahal to bring him back.

He did not know how long he sat there. Alone in a forest. A light rain started to fall around him, soaking him thoroughly.

He knew could not spend all day out here, wallowing and hiding. He needed to get back. Maybe Leah had some answers for him. If he knew more maybe he could stop all of it from happening.

He walked through the front door. Leah was talking rapidly with her mother, she seemed very panicked. Upon hearing the door open, they both turned around. Relief washed over Leah's face and she rushed over, crushing him with a hug.

"Oh Kili, I'm so sorry. I was so scared when I didn't know where you were," she mumbled.

Kili returned the hug. Feeling better with her embrace. "Please tell me everything?"

Ellen decided it would be better if everyone sat down first. They all sat down on the settees and Ellen and Leah began explaining.

"What do you mean you can't tell me everything? I need to know. Mine and my family's lives are at stake!" he said, half hysterical.

Ellen lifted a hand to try and quiet his rambling. "We don't mean it maliciously Kili. It's just that a lot of things on the quest are critical and have to happen the way they do. If you knew everything, no matter if you intended to or not, you may end up changing something. Then things could change drastically, in ways that we could never foresee. It could end worse. More people could die," said Ellen, then she took a deep breath "This quest ultimately affects more than just the Dwarves. If certain events change then the whole of Middle Earth may suffer."

Kili was speechless. How could reclaiming Erebor affect the whole of Middle Earth?

"Then what can you tell me?" said Kili, becoming desperate.

Leah spoke up this time "You're going to be hunted. By orcs. Azog wants to end the line of Durin."

"But Thorin killed Azog. At the battle of Azanulbizar."

Leah shook her head "He survived. He lost an arm but he still lived"

Kili's face went white. Thorin had told him about that vicious orc, the one that had killed his great-grandfather, King Thror. How could he hope to fight against something not even his Uncle could kill?

"There will be a battle after Smaug is killed. Orcs and goblins will try and take the Mountain back. You, Thorin and Fili will try to kill Azog on Ravenhill but it's an ambush, you get separated...and you die" said Leah, her voice shaking.

He knew of Ravenhill. From the maps he had been shown, it was close to the mountain.

"So if we avoid going up there we might not die?" said Kili, his voice small and childlike.

Ellen gave him an encouraging smile, "We can't know for sure but if you're not on that hill and you don't get separated then there is a big chance you'll survive"

Well that was it then. He was going to save him and family.