Bilbo frowned, kicking at the loose stones in front of him.

"Oh come now Bilbo it is not that bad." Nimera reached out a hand to stroke the mane of the pony beside them

The hobbit's frown deepened "Thranduil swore my escort would be a cart, not a pony!"

"You really must get over this trepidation Master Baggins." Fili shook his head slowly

"Aye the lad's right." Gloin agreed "Surely you could not have hoped to return to the shire on foot!"

Balin waved a dismissive hand "Leave him be. We all have tasks we are not fond of."

He patted Bilbo's shoulder as Fili led the pony out of the stable "It is only a short journey back to Thranduil's halls. It will be over before you know it."

Bilbo scoffed as he followed Balin out of the stable "I should sincerely doubt that!"

At the entrance stood two elves, each watching the passing dwarves with thinly veiled disinterest.

They stood to attention as the small group approached.

"Master Baggins." The closest elf gave a sweeping bow

Bilbo sighed, turning back to the gathered company "Until next year then."

Thorin stepped forward, placing his hands on his shoulders "Travel well my friend."

Thorin's words were nearly drowned out by the chorus of well wishes as the company said their goodbyes.

"Thank you again Bilbo." Nimera smiled, "I will count the days until next Durin's day!"

Bilbo chuckled "Do try to stay out of trouble until then."

"I will try my best," She glanced back at the gathered company, leaning in closer to him with a conspiratorial look "But with this lot around it may be impossible."

…

Nimera came awake suddenly, the hairs on her neck standing upright as she fought the urge to sit up. She could hear boots scraping on the wood, the flicker of a dim light shining behind her closed eyes.

Slowly she edged her hand under the pillow, wrapping her fingers around the hilt of her dagger. The sound came closer. Nimera tightened her grip as she felt movement by the bedside.

In an instant Nimera rose, bringing the blade up to meet the intruder.

"Easy!" Balin looked down at the tip of the dagger in surprise

Nimera frowned, dropping the knife beside her. "Balin? What hour is it?" She grumbled

Balin placed his taper on the side table "I am sorry for startling you, but it is urgent."

Nimeras heartbeat quickened as she read the worried look on his face. She threw back the covers completely "Balin, what is it? what is wrong?"

"Kili has fallen ill. Thorin is calling for you and Oin."

The color in Nimera's face drained. She was out of bed in an instant, pulling on her discarded clothes from the floor.

"How long ago did this happen?" She asked, grabbing her apron and satchel from the dresser.

Balin held the door open "The lad was not feeling good after his evening meal, but he took a turn an hour ago."

Nimera frowned. "What is wrong with him?"

"He has been sick constantly, must have gone through the entire contents of his stomach by now."

"Are any of the others sick?"

Balin shook his head.

They came to a halt as one of the guards held his hand out to them, the other drawing his sword. "No one is allowed entrance into the royal hall."

Balin frowned in annoyance "Are you going to withhold the healer the King himself has sent for?"

The guard shook his head "King Thorin ordered that no one pass into these halls."

"Let them through!" Fili brushed past the guards, grabbing Nimera by the hand, pulling her past them.

Fili's grip on her hand tightened "I do not know what is wrong with him, he was fine a few hours ago!"

He turned to her with a pleading look "If it is poison… You can help him? Rangers deal with poisons frequently, right?"

Nimera swallowed thickly "I..I have dealt with some."

Fili stopped in front of the chamber door, giving it two short raps "It's me."

The door jerked open. Thorin sighed, catching sight of Nimera.

He ushered them inside "I am sorry for the late hour Nimera."

She shook her head "I will always be at your call."

Nimera peered around Thorin as a retch echoed through the room.

Kili sat up in the bed, his face obscured by the edge of a large bucket. Dis sat beside him on the the bed, one hand holding back his hair while the other ran soothing circles on his back.

"Oin," Nimera crossed the room to the old healer, as she tied her apron around the front.

He looked up, a touch of relief crossing his face "Nimera. I was hoping they would find you. Poison is not my forte."

"Are you sure it is poison?" She cast a glance to Kili as he retched again "What exactly is wrong with him?"

Oin scratched the side of his head "The lads sicker than a drunk. Can barely keep water down."

"Nim?" Kili's voice echoed from the bucket "Is that you?"

Nimera sat on the edge of the bed "Kee?"

His head slowly raised, beads of sweat rolling down his pale face.

"Must be pretty bad if they woke you up." He said with a hoarse chuckle "You are going to lose all of your beauty sleep, looks like you've already started turning back into a troll."

Nimera pressed her hand to his forehead "From what I can see only one of us is in desperate need of beauty sleep and it is not me." She gently pushed his eye lid open further. "Plus you already smell like a troll so you have a head start."

"Hey I cannot…" Kili stopped, shoving his head back into the bucket as his stomach turned again.

"I cannot help how I smell currently." He finished as he resurfaced.

Nimera leaned over him, Tripping the bucket towards her as she examined its contents.

"Mahal what are you doing?" Dis balked

Nimera shrugged, swirling the bile around as she leaned in closer. Satisfied she returned the bucket to Kili, slipping off the bed to rejoin Oin.

"Well?" Thorin asked

Her eyebrows knitted together "This looks like no poison I've seen. He's conscious, there is no blood in his stomach, no bleeding in his eyes or ears, his senses are still intact, no high fever. It makes no sense."

She turned to Fili and Thorin "Did you all eat the same meals today?"

They both shook their heads.

"We had intended to, Thorin and I had an unexpected counsel meeting, and our mother ate with her Ladies." Fili looked over at Kili "Can you help him?"

Nimera shook her head "Without knowing if this is poison or illness I can only treat his symptoms."

They both turned as the door opened. Dawlin ducked inside, glancing around at the small assembly, narrowing in on Balin, Thorin, Fili and Nimera, motioning for them to follow as he slipped into the slide room.

Dwalin stood in front of a small table, his hands resting on top. Wordlessly he reached into his coat pocket, placing a small glass bottle down in front of him.

Thorin frowned "What is it?"

Dwalin shook his head "I had the private kitchen closed off and searched after the lad fell ill. We found this hidden nearby."

Nimera stepped beside him, taking the bottle between her fingers , frowning at the blank space where the label had been torn off.

"Can you tell what it is?" Balin asked

She studied it closer, holding it to the light as she examined the small bit of liquid left. She lifted the stopper, holding the bottle close to her nose.

Her eyebrows furrowed slightly. "That cannot be right…" She murmured

"Nimera what is…." Before Thorin could finish, Nimera tipped the bottle to her lips, swallowing the last remnants.

There was a beat of silence before the room erupted with raised voices.

"Nimera!"

"Durin's Beard!"

"Mahal Nimera!"

Dwalin grabbed her by the shoulders, snatching the bottle from her hand "What in Mahal's name have you done?!"

"I…."

Balin cut her off "Sit her down, we do not know when the poison will take hold!"

"I'll get Oin!" Fili yelled, making a frantic turn for the door

"Stop all of you!" Nimera shook her head "It is not poison."

The four dwarfs halted in their tracks.

"It…it is not?" Balin frowned

Nimera shook her head again. "It is not poison, it's ipecacua root syrup."

Dwalin cocked his head slightly "What does that mean?"

She laughed "It is a strong emetic. I mostly give it to dwarflings who have eaten something they should not have to get them to vomit it back up."

"But why.." Fili began

Nimera's face suddenly paled "oh…"

She sprang up from her seat, dashing into the adjacent room, managing to snatch the pail from Kili's bedside. She felt a moment's relief as someone gathered her hair away from her face, the feeling quickly dissipating as her stomach emptied its contents.

She spat one last time into the bucket, trying to clear her mouth of the taste. With a sigh she raised her head.

"So you drank something you knew would make you sick?" Fili asked as he released her hair

"Had to be sure." Nimera rasped

He gave an exasperated sigh "Surely there was a better way."

"There is, but not a quicker one."

She stood, her hand pressed lightly to her stomach as she shuffled over to the table, pulling out a large leather roll from her satchel. She unfurled it onto the table, slipping some of the vials from their slots.

Nimera looked back at Fili, passing him a thin package of dried herbs "Can you boil some water and let this steep for a few minutes?"

She popped open the cork of a long thin vial, pouring half of the milky liquid into an empty glass. She removed the seal of the second vial, coughing as the fumes wafted from the container. She carefully tipped the edge of the vial towards the class, counting as a few drops of the slurry splashed into the glass before swirling the two together, only stopping when the pale liquid took on a murky green color.

She held the glass out to Kili "Drink."

Kili held the glass up examining its dark contents. He frowned, bringing it to his nose.

Nimera caught his wrist, giving him a wry smile "It's best if you just drink it in one go."

He gave her a suspicious look "Perhaps you are the real poisoner here."

"By all means keep adding to your bucket there."

Kili sighed, tipping the glass to his lips. His eyes bulged as he choked on murky concoction.

"Mahal!" He sputtered attempting to spit the liquid back up.

Nimera clamped one hand over his mouth, holding his hands at bay with the other "Swallow it."

She could feel him grimace under her hand as he swallowed.

"Durin!" Nimera turned to see Fili watching them "I thought healers were supposed to be gentle."

She pulled her hand from Kilis mouth. "Sometimes a bit of force can be a good thing."

"Oh aye, I've heard some lads pay top dollar to be treated like that at the brothels in Lake Town!" Kili coughed "You could make a killing Nim."

Nimera's mouth fell open. "I should have let the poison take you." She scowled

"Ow!"

Kili rubbed at the back of his head where Dis had cuffed him

"And how would you know what services are being rendered at the brothels in Lake Town!" Dis fumed

Fili touched Nimera's elbow lightly, drawing her attention back. "Do you still need this?" He asked holding a steaming mug out to her.

Nimera tapped her chin in mock thought "I'm still debating."

"On?"

"On if I am still feeling generous towards your brother." She sighed, reaching out to take the cup from his hands "Although his theory is tempting to go test out. At least those men wont whine about their treatment."

Fili's grip on the cup tightened as a dark expression flashed across his face. "I would take the hands of any man who would try to touch you in such a way."

Nimera gave an exasperated sigh, prying the cup from his grasp. "Just because your brother made a joke does not mean I am off at first light to become a whore Fili."

She stalked off to the bed, passing the steaming liquid to Kili, who eyed it suspiciously.

"Just drink it." She gave a long, pained sigh "It is restorative tea. You should be able to keep it down now."

He turned his suspicious eye to her "You are not going to try to drown me in it?"

She rolled her eyes, shoving him lightly as she stood.

With a slight jerk of her head Nimera beckoned Thorin to her "I put a small dose of sedative in it." She said, glancing at the empty cup in Kili's hand, "He should be asleep until midday. Someone should stay with him to ensure it has cleared his system."

Thorin nodded "Thank you."

He joined Dis at the side of the bed speaking quietly to her as he placed a comforting hand on Kili's shoulder. Dis glanced back at Nimera, giving her a short nod.

Dawlin placed a hand on Nimera's arm, motioning for her to follow. The pair quietly slipped from the room.

Dwalin leaned against the passage wall, retrieving the small vial from his coat pocket, turning over in his hand. "I should have been more careful."

Nimera sighed "You could not have anticipated every possible attack. What matters is we caught it early…"

She paused as the door behind them creaked open. Thorin and Fili stepped out beside them, Balin gingerly shutting the door behind them

"The lad is asleep." Balin nodded to Nimera

Thorin glanced around them, "Come, we have much to discuss."

..

Nimera slumped into one of the overstuffed chairs lining the room of the small council chamber, suppressing a yawn.

Balin took up the seat beside her, setting a steaming mug in front of her place "I thought you could use something to settle your own stomach."

The large oak door groaned open as Dain took a hurried step inside, his brow etched with concern as he looked about the room.

"Mahal," He breathed, placing a hand on Thorin's shoulder "Is the lad alright?"

Thorin nodded tiredly "Aye he is resting for now."

Thorin took his place at the head of the small table, motioning for the rest to follow.

"What do we know?" Dain asked

Thorin ran a hand down his face, seemingly almost reluctant to start.

Nimera placed the small vial in the center of the table with a soft clink "Dwalin found this in the kitchens, it is from the medicinal storage. Likely stolen by our earlier visitor."

Dain frowned, taking the bottle between his fingers "Attempted poisoning then?"

Dwalin nodded "It would seem so."

"But who was it intended for?" Stonehelm glanced between Thorin and Fili

"It would have most likely been intended for Thorin, and Kili seems to have been caught up in the crossfire. Though we cannot rule anything out for certain." Balin sighed

Nimera frowned, listening half heartedly as she ran a finger along the rim of her cup. She stared at the vial, attempting to work out the problem that was gnawing at the back of her thoughts.

"Nimera what is it?" Fili's voice broke through her thoughts

She looked up, Fili's question bringing the others' discussion to a halt.

"Something doesn't feel right.." She tapped the top of the bottle "Ipecacua is no poison, it is rarely lethal even in large doses."

Balin hummed "Perhaps they were unfamiliar with medicinal herbs."

"Then why take it in the first place?"

"Perhaps their plot was not finished. Could the syrup be combined with another to make a poison?" Fili pointed to the vial "You said Bailor was attacked in the passage? Maybe interrupted their search before they could find what they were looking for."

"It is possible…." Nimera relented

"It is likely they will not stop here." Dwalin tapped his finger on the table irritably "We must prepare for the next threat."

Balin looked to Thorin "We could double the guards posted by your quarters."

"We cannot be certain the threat does not come from one of our own." Dawlin shook his head

"I will assign some of my personal guard to you." Dain tapped the Iron Hills crest emblazoned across his chest "They are some of my most trusted soldiers. Though they are few in number."

Nimera glanced across the table "Stonehelm, should help as well."

Stonehelm shook his head "I am sworn to you already."

"It is clear there is no threat to me. We must focus on keeping the line of Durin safe."

Dwalin tapped his chin in thought "I hate to agree but she is right."

"Until we find those responsible we have little choice." Thorin looked around the table, the mask of calm slipping for a moment revealing the anger beneath "The line of Durin will not be broken so easily."