A lovely greeting to all my readers! :D

This was probably the fastest I've updated a story in a while, at least two consecutive chapters xD

Hope ya'll have fun with this one :)

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It was natural for Aelin to awake very early the next morning. The sun was not even up yet, but it was evident in the sky that it would soon be peeking over the hillsides. It was also natural for her to not sleep very much at night; therefore she had reason enough to get up early. For many years, she had been plagued at night with nightmares and was scared to fall asleep. Anytime she did manage to sleep, the nightmares would return. It had been a long time since she had had a good night's rest, but it didn't affect her very much anymore.

Since she was up, she decided to make sure everything she brought along was packed and ready to go so the others wouldn't have to wait on her later. She changed into some fresh clothes; a white long-sleeved shirt, a tan felt vest with fur along the collar, black vambraces and dark trousers and her boots. She packed up her things, straightened out her bed along with anything else that got moved in her room and then left. On the way out, the innkeeper offered her a small, warm loaf of bread that the cook had just finished baking. She accepted it, gave him some money for it and proceeded to go outside.

However, as Aelin was on her way to the stables, she could hear faint grunting ahead. Curious, she followed the sound of the noise. Not too far from the stables she could see a lone figure swinging a small sword around.

As she came around a corner, she realized that it was Fili. He was standing out there by himself, with his back to her, and was practicing using two short swords, grunting slightly each time he either tried out a thrust or a parry. Aelin didn't expect anyone else to be up that early, so it surprised her a little to see him out there. She watched him for a moment as he continued practicing. He seemed to be pretty skilled with the short swords he was using. He had been well-trained, she could tell, and he was fierce. She was impressed.

"Excellent swordsmanship!" she cried out as she started to approach him.

Fili quickly stopped his sword-swinging and turned around, startled. "Aelin! Didn't expect to see you so early," he said to her.

She just shrugged. "I'm up about this early every morning anyway. What about you? Why are you up at this hour?"

"I just woke up and couldn't go back to sleep, so I decided to get some fresh air and a little practice in before we leave," he replied, twirling one of his swords.

"I see you practice dual-wielding," said Aelin, acknowledging his blades.

"Indeed. Do you?" asked Fili.

She nodded, patting the two mithril knives on her belt.

Fili grinned. "Oh, that's good to know," he said as he sheathed the swords. "I may have to spar with you eventually and see how good you are!"

"I think that's a splendid idea," she replied. Then she asked him, "Have you eaten yet?"

He simply shook his head.

She then took out the small loaf of bread and broke it in half. "Here," she said, tossing him one of the halves. He thanked her as he caught it and turned it over in his hands.

As they ate their bread, Fili said to Aelin in between bites, "You're quite a brave woman, I must say. No one would ever stand up to Dwalin and my uncle the way you did last night."

Aelin paused, caught off guard and processing the last little bit he said. "Did he just say…?"

"Thorin Oakenshield…is your uncle?" she asked.

"Aye, he is."

Aelin couldn't help but feel slightly disappointed at that confirmation. This friendly young lad was related to the arrogant Dwarf King? How was that possible? That meant that Kili was, too, which was also a bit saddening. However, when she thought about it, they seemed different from Oakenshield. They weren't pompous or stubborn or rude. They both were friendly, charming and fun. Maybe they weren't just like him. Perhaps she didn't have to worry for the time being.

"I sense there is some bad blood between the two of you?" asked Fili.

She sighed and nodded. "Yes, there is," she simply replied.

"I have a feeling he may not want me or my brother around you so much because of that," he said a little shyly, as if he was embarrassed or ashamed to say it.

"I have no objections to you two being around me," she responded right away. "Besides, you're a young adult; you can make your own decisions. He can't control you in everything." She ripped a part of her bread off and chewed it to try and lessen her irritation at the thought of Thorin trying to control his nephews. When she finished, she added, "I also hope he won't try and pull the King card on you."

"No, he's never done that with Kili and me," he answered. Then he grinned. "I think it's because he's afraid of what Mother would do if he did."

"Is your mother his sister?"

"Yes, indeed. She may be younger than my uncle, but she can make even him feel on edge at times."

"Really?" asked Aelin inquisitively.

"Oh, yes. She's a feisty one, my mother. Not afraid to speak her mind, stubborn; a spitfire, for sure. You remind me a bit of her."

"Do I now?"

Fili nodded gladly. "No one aside from my mother would have had the nerve to stand up to Uncle or Dwalin. You're not afraid to speak your mind like her and it doesn't matter to whom you speak when you do. I think that's admirable."

Aelin smiled. "Well, thank you, Fili. You have quite the spirit. Your mother should be proud to have you as a son."

He nodded gratefully at that. Then he got a curious look on his face. "If you don't mind me asking, what happened between you and my uncle?"

She sighed again. She knew that question was bound to come up sooner or later. "I wish I could tell you…but I can't," she told him.

"Why not?" he asked.

"I saw how you looked at him last night when he spoke," she told him. "You love and admire him. I can't ruin the image you have of him, not when you're still fairly young. I like you, Fili; you seem like a good lad and that's why I can't do it."

Aelin meant every word she said. Despite how much she would always be open to bashing Oakenshield to other people, she just felt she couldn't do it to his own nephew, who really did seem to have a high regard for him. She wasn't heartless; she wouldn't ruin that image for him, not now. Perhaps someday he would see the kind of person his uncle was, but right now he was young and revered Thorin, so she wouldn't take that from him.

"Well, when did it happen?" Fili asked.

"If my memory serves correct, a hundred and forty-two years ago."

"Then it's been long enough. I'm sure that whatever kind of person Uncle Thorin was back in that time, he's changed since then."

She shook her head. "Fili, you are young and perhaps still a bit naïve…know this: people don't change. You clearly don't know everything about your uncle."

"And you do?" asked Fili, raising his eyebrows.

"I have seen his true character," Aelin said back.

"You don't know that," Fili told her. "Back then, that may have been true, but it's been well over a hundred years. He's a different person."

"You don't know what he did to me," she replied in a low voice, hoping deep down that he wouldn't ask about it.

Luckily, he didn't, but he did say, "You're right, I don't…but I do know this: people make bad choices when they're mad or scared or stressed. Did you ever stop to think that maybe Thorin was going through something bad at the time that could've led him to do hurtful things he wouldn't normally do?"

Aelin opened her mouth to respond, but found herself at a loss for words. In all honesty, she never actually had taken the time to consider the thought that maybe Thorin had been going through something all those years ago. As much as she didn't want to admit it, Fili had a point. Back when the events had occurred, she had just been so caught up in what was going on that she never took the time to think of that. Although, Thorin didn't do the same for her…

"Well…even if that was so…," she said, "he never did the same for me."

Fili just closed his eyes and shook his head. He had a feeling he wasn't going to get the truth of her bad blood with his uncle out of her easily nor was he going to get her to change her mind about him so easily either. She was definitely stubborn, that much was certain, but he was fine with that. Given time, she would maybe open up a little more and he wasn't going to force her to tell him anything.

Seeing that she was immovable on the subject, he decided to change it. "Do you use any other weapons besides your knives?" he asked her.

She knew he was changing the subject on purpose, but she couldn't deny she was glad that he did. She nodded at him. "Yes, I do. I am quite skilled in archery and I'm…decent in swordplay. I'm not as well-learned with a sword as I am with a bow, but I can still hold my own in a fight. My knives are my primary weapon of choice and a bow is right behind it."

The young Dwarf lad was impressed. She sounded like quite the skilled warrior. He glanced down at the gold hilts that were protruding from the sides of her belt. "May I?" he asked, gesturing to them.

She bowed her head. "Be my guest," she replied as she took one of the knives out and handed it to him.

Fili took the knife from her and held it carefully in his hands, examining it. It was a beautiful weapon unlike any he had ever seen. The hilt was twisted and made of gold and the white blade was brightly glittering in the morning light. He was quite intrigued by the weapon. He also noticed there were gold runes inscribed on both sides of the blade. Unfortunately, the runes were ancient ones and his knowledge of those was not very extensive as of yet.

"What do the runes say?" he asked Aelin. "I can only make out a few letters but I'm afraid I don't know enough to read it."

Aelin smirked. "Wouldn't you like to know?" she replied to tease him.

Fili smirked back. "You're quite a secretive one, aren't you?"

She simply raised her eyebrows mischievously, a smirk still etched on her face.

He snickered and shook his head. "All right, I suppose I'll find out eventually," he said, accepting she wasn't going to tell him right away.

He turned the knife over in his hand again, still amazed at the sparkle of the blade. There was only one substance he knew of that glistened like that.

"Is this mithril?" he asked.

Now that she was willing to answer. "Aye, it is, indeed."

"Remarkable!" he exclaimed. "Mithril is Mahal's gift to the Dwarves. How did you ever come by such weapons?"

"Stole them, would be my wager," said a deep voice from behind them.

Aelin and Fili turned around at the sound of the voice. It was Thorin walking up behind them, looking bitter like always. Aelin immediately felt her grin vanish and turn into a frown upon, not only just seeing him, but hearing him make such an assumption about her. Already she could tell this was how he was going to be towards her on this journey: always assuming she stole or would steal everything. He would treat her like she was just a thief and nothing more than that, only furthering the reasons why she despised him.

Fili wasn't really amused by what his uncle had said, but said nothing about it. Instead he simply said, "Morning, Uncle."

"Fili…," Thorin replied, nodding his head toward him. Then he looked to Aelin, his expression hardening as he muttered in Khuzdul, "Uthrub…." ("Thief…")

Aelin in response just cocked her head to the side and replied in the same manner, "Mazam…." ("Brute…")

Thorin wasn't pleased that she was able to retort to his statement, but nevertheless said nothing in return. He only glared at her briefly before turning back to his nephew. "Fili, I do not want you associating with this woman. She is dangerous," he told him.

"Dangerous?" Aelin asked before Fili could reply. "When have I ever done anything to you that was life-threatening?"

Thorin stared at her for a moment and was unable to respond, so he turned his head away.

"Exactly!" said Aelin, feeling successful in proving her point. "Don't make a claim about me unless you have evidence to prove that it's true."

Fili then looked to Thorin. "Uncle, I see nothing wrong with her," he told him. "I have no quarrel with her like you do and I think I am free to associate with her if I wish."

"You know nothing of what she's really like," said Thorin bitterly.

"Why do you two act like you know everything about each other?" asked Fili, starting to get annoyed at them acting like that. "I don't even know what happened between you and yet I can clearly see that you both are blinded by prejudice and think you know the true character of the other. This is ridiculous!"

Both Aelin and Thorin were silent as Fili chastised them. They just glared at each other disdainfully.

Just as Fili was about to go on, someone else suddenly popped up between him and Aelin, draping his arms over their shoulders, and cried out, "Good morning, everyone!" It was Kili, who was chipper and optimistic that morning, excited to be going on an adventure. He hadn't heard any of the conversation the other three had been having and they decided to drop it since Kili hadn't been a part of it.

Aelin was the first to quickly move on by gently nudging Kili in the side with her shoulder his arm was on and replying, "And likewise to you, Kili! I see you're quite bright-eyed and bushy-tailed this morning!"

"He's always like that," said Fili. "It's a wonder he even slept last night, he's been so excited for this."

"It's an adventure! Who wouldn't be excited?" exclaimed Kili with a happy grin.

Aelin chuckled at the young Dwarf's enthusiasm. Judging by his giddiness, she had a feeling that this was his first adventure.

Then she heard more commotion behind her and realized that the rest of the company was coming from the inn to the stables. They all seemed ready to go; some of them had extra rucksacks or weapons left with them to pack up on their ponies.

"You two had best get your ponies ready. We will be departing here shortly," Thorin told his nephews.

"What about Mr. Boggins?" asked Kili.

"Baggins," Fili corrected him.

"Right, Mr. Baggins," Kili said. "Isn't he coming with us?"

"If he is, then he will come join us before we leave," Thorin answered. "Go now and make ready to leave."

The two young Dwarves nodded in comprehension. Fili handed back Aelin's knife to her as he left, giving her a courteous nod as well. As the brothers left, Thorin and Aelin were left standing uncomfortably across from each other.

Thorin took a step towards Aelin, narrowing his eyes at her. "You would do well to stay away from my nephews, woman," he warned her.

"You heard Fili. He has no quarrel with me and can associate with me if he wants," Aelin said back defiantly. "You have no control over me and you cannot control everything your nephews do. If Fili or Kili want to be around me, then that is their choice and their business, not yours."

"It is my business. I am their guardian on this quest and I know what is best for them," Thorin growled at her.

"I don't know if you've noticed," replied Aelin, "but they both are old enough to make their own decisions and know for themselves what is best for them. Just leave them alone."

Thorin shook his head and began to walk away, but then Aelin added, "And leave me alone while you're at it, Oakenshield." He gave no response to her after that and continued to walk to the stables, where she followed behind him from a distance.

As he went into the stables and found his pony, Thorin looked back and saw Aelin walk to her own pony just a few stalls down. He continued to watch her as Nori approached her and started talking to her as she readied her pony's saddle, strapping a quiver of arrows and a bow to it. Her face seemed to brighten when her best friend came to her. When her head turned more toward the light, he caught a glimpse of the white scar that ran down by her right eye down to her cheekbone. Something inside him squirmed a little at the sight, wondering how she came by it. What could've happened to her that earned her such a mark? Perhaps while committing a crime? That seemed more likely. Or was it perhaps something else? Something that maybe happened to her as a child or an adolescent before she became what she was? His jaw tightened at the thought of someone attacking a young girl or doing anything to harm her. What had Aelin done? What had happened to her? He couldn't help but wonder. It was a shame that someone had to mar such a pretty face….

It was in that moment when Thorin mentally slapped himself back to his senses. What in Durin's name was he doing?! Why was he having such thoughts about this woman he detested? He didn't like her in the slightest, so why was he experiencing this? Yes, she was perhaps a bit attractive, but why did that matter? In conclusion, it didn't! He would not let such thoughts about this woman plague his head like that.

"What's on your mind, laddie?"

Thorin's mental chastisement was cut short when Balin's voice came from behind him. He flipped around to see the smaller, older Dwarf looking at him curiously.

"Nothing," he quickly answered, acting like he was tending to his pony, Minty.

Balin raised his eyebrows at him. "Thorin, do you really think you can lie to me?" he asked, tilting his head. "I saw you staring at her."

Now Thorin was caught and he had to quickly think of a good, more sensible reason to give as to why he had been staring at Aelin. "I was simply making sure that she was readying herself so that we all can depart soon," was his reply and he hoped that Balin would believe it.

Unfortunately, he didn't. "You stared at her for longer than it would've taken to figure that out," he said to Thorin, giving him another inquisitive look.

Thorin was quick in his mind this time with a response. He leaned in closer to Balin and said in a hushed voice, "I'm merely keeping an eye on her, Balin. She is trouble and I will not have her causing any problems for us…and more importantly, me."

Whether or not Balin actually believed that, Thorin couldn't tell because the old Dwarf just gave a short nod and walked away. That had been a close call and Thorin couldn't risk anything like that again.

He stole one more quick glance back at Aelin, who was taking her silver pony out of the stable and stroking its snout while smiling gladly. He had never seen her smile before…and he had to admit, it was kind of nice to see. Indeed, she was lovely to look upon…but that, however, changed nothing. The Dwarf King still despised her and who she was and her looks would not be enough to persuade him otherwise. With that final thought in mind, he called for the company to make ready to depart.

After a long day of travelling, the company made it into the rocky foothills beyond the borders of the Shire and decided to make camp for the night in a small clearing on one of the cliff faces. They hadn't gotten very far from the Shire when Bilbo Baggins had finally caught up with them, waving the contract and having decided to come with them. Most of the Dwarves didn't believe that the Hobbit would decide to join them but were proven wrong.

Once they all finished their evening meal that Bombur, the biggest Dwarf of the group, had so nicely prepared, most of them laid out their bedrolls and went to sleep, preparing for the next day. Fili and Kili were up taking the first watch by the campfire and then Gandalf and Balin were sitting silently smoking their pipes.

Aelin also was awake, lying on her back on her bedroll and staring up at the stars. She was thinking about many things, but the main thing she thought about was a part of a conversation she had had with Fili and Kili shortly after Bilbo had caught up with them. It had been about a part of her past…and it didn't really end on a quite pleasant note. After a little time, she was starting to feel bad about how she had spoken to them.

Earlier that day…

Once Fili and Kili had hoisted a reluctant Bilbo up onto a pony, they urged their ponies forward a little to get by Aelin, who was just ahead of them riding behind Nori and Bofur. They both were curious about this woman and wanted to talk to her and know more about her. The two of them came up by her and the three of them struck up a conversation about each of themselves.

At one point, Fili asked, "So where is your family?"

Aelin replied, "Well Nori and his two brothers are the closest thing I've had to a family in a long time. As for my blood family…." She was silent for a brief moment. Then she shrugged and answered, "I wish I knew."

"What do you mean?" asked Kili.

She pursed her lips and answered, "I never knew my parents. My father left my mother when he found out she was with child and then my mother gave me away after I was born."

Both of the brothers look stunned and slightly embarrassed. Aelin could tell that that was not the answer they were expecting and that they felt bad for having asked.

"Oh…goodness, Aelin…I'm so sorry," Fili said to her, looking sad.

Aelin nodded to him. "My mother, Aela, was very heartbroken at my father leaving her the way he did. Once he found out she was pregnant, he wanted nothing to do with me or her and it tore her apart. They had only been seeing each other a short time when it happened and she believed that he would do the honorable thing: to stay and help raise me. But he betrayed her and then she was left alone. When I was born…she realized that I reminded her of him. Apparently, I have my father's eyes…and she just could not bear it. She thought I would only be a constant reminder of the Dwarf who abandoned her and ruined her life and she couldn't live with that. So she gave me to her brother, who had no children of his own, and was never seen or heard from again. Her brother; my uncle Amar, was the one who named me and told me all of this."

"And what about your uncle? Where is he?" asked Kili.

Aelin sighed sadly. "He's dead," she answered forcefully. "He was killed when I was just a child."

Now Fili and Kili looked even more awkward and guilty for even asking.

She looked at them with just a casual expression, but they could see pain hidden in her eyes. She went on, "After Amar died, I ran away…and I lived on the streets for the longest time after that, until Nori took me in."

"Does Thorin know about this?" was the question Fili then raised.

"Why would he know?" Aelin asked back.

"Well, perhaps if you told him that about yourself; if he knew and understood that about you, then perhaps he wouldn't be so harsh to you."

"I do not need his pity!" she suddenly snapped crossly, startling the brothers. "I am not some poor helpless girl whom everyone needs to feel sorry for! I do not need sympathy from anyone…especially him! And I certainly don't need any pity from you two either!" She then nudged her horse in the ribs and sped up away from them.

As the day had gone on, Aelin began to feel guilty about snapping at them the way she did. It had been unnecessary and she didn't know why she did it when they hadn't done anything wrong. They were just young curious lads who were only trying to help. They hadn't deserved that. Neither of them had said anything to her after that and she began to worry if they were angry at her for being so needlessly cross with them.

She knew that the two of them were up taking watch, so she decided to get up and join them and also apologize for her actions.

"Care to have another set of eyes on watch?" she asked as she approached them.

Both of their heads jolted up as she spoke to them. Fili was sitting against a rock wall smoking his pipe and Kili was whittling on a small stick with a pocket knife.

"Aelin! Shouldn't you be resting?" Fili pointed out.

Aelin just shrugged. "I hardly sleep anymore," she said as she sat down across from them. "I was just lying awake over there and thought I'd be better off doing something useful. That and I also had something to tell you both."

"What is it?"

She hung her head, fidgeting the edge of her long shirt sleeve. "I wanted to apologize."

"What do you have to apologize for?" Kili asked, curious.

"For the way I spoke to the both of you earlier," answered Aelin, now lifting her head. "I did not mean to be so short with you. I know you were only trying to help, even if your idea was something I didn't agree with…but I should have handled it better; I should not have been so cross." She paused for a second, brushing some hair back behind her ear. "I just don't want to others to find out how and where I grew up and then see me as helpless or weak."

"There's no need to apologize," Fili told her kindly. "It wasn't really our place to speak of such things."

Aelin exhaled. "You're young and curious lads. I don't really blame you."

She then heard movement and a low grunt behind her. When she turned around, she saw Bilbo was now awake and was walking over to his pony. Aelin found it a little funny that at the beginning of the day, Bilbo seemed quite nervous and almost scared of his pony and now, at the end of the day, he loved the sweet creature. She noticed him sneak something red out of his pocket and put it in her mouth and knew that he had snuck an apple for her.

Gandalf seemed to have faith in the Halfling that he would fulfill the role he had in mind for him, so Aelin had to take his word for it, but still she feared for Bilbo. This small individual who knew nothing of war or battle and the hardships of the world seemed too innocent for such a feat. At the first sign of a fight, she imagined he would likely try to flee and he would be right to do so. How long would this Hobbit last on this journey, she wondered.

Suddenly, there was the sound of a loud, animalistic shriek in the distance, down in the lower parts of the valley. Aelin, Fili and Kili's heads all shot up in surprise.

"What was that?" asked Bilbo, walking towards them.

"Orcs," answered Kili with an ominous tone to his voice.

"Orcs…?" Bilbo repeated, starting to panic slightly.

Off to the side, Thorin, who had been sleeping on a large rock, tensely jolted awake at the sound of the word "Orcs".

Fili then stated, "Throat cutters…there'll be dozens of them out there. The lowlands are crawling with them."

Kili added, "They strike in the wee, small hours when everyone's asleep. Quick and quiet, no screams…just lots of blood…!"

Poor Bilbo looked so nervous, Aelin was almost sure he was going to faint again. The brothers started to snicker mischievously at their teasing, apparently pleased with themselves.

"Do you think that's funny?"

Thorin stood up from his rock, giving his nephews a hard look and their chuckling ceased right away. "You think a night raid by Orcs is a joke?"

"We didn't mean anything by it," Kili apologized, looking sorry as he hung his head.

"No, you didn't. You know nothing of the world," Thorin darkly said to them, striding away towards the cliff's edge, keeping his back to everyone.

"Don't mind him, laddie," said Balin, coming up to them and standing by the wall. "Thorin has more cause than most to hate Orcs."

Fili, Kili, Aelin and Bilbo all sat together and looked intently at Balin, waiting for him to explain or tell his story.

"After the dragon took the Lonely Mountain," Balin began, "King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient Dwarf kingdom of Moria…but our enemy had got there first. Moria had been taken by legions of Orcs, led by the most vile of all their race: Azog the Defiler. The giant Gundabad Orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Durin. He began…by beheading the King. Thrain, Thorin's father, was driven mad by grief. He went missing…taken prisoner or killed, we did not know. We were leaderless…defeat and death were upon us. That is when…I saw him; a young Dwarf Prince facing down the pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe…his armor rent, wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield. Azog the Defiler learned that day that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken. Our forces rallied and drove the Orcs back…and our enemy had been defeated. But there was no feast nor song that night…for our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few had survived. And I thought to myself then…there is one who I could follow. There is one…I could call King."

Aelin couldn't help but catch her breath multiple times throughout the story. Mainly it was just the thought of Thorin facing the pale Orc alone. She had heard many things about the Defiler and she knew that he was a force not to be reckoned with. At first, she thought it was reckless of Thorin to have gone against him like that…but as the thought about it, there was one thing that kept coming up in her mind as to why he would've done such a thing: he had to have seen his grandfather being killed. He had to have witnessed it as it happened. Why else would he face such a terrible foe alone? Vengeance was the only answer.

Then she began to feel sorry for him. She knew how horrible it was to lose a member of your family and worse, to see them die with your own eyes. It was nothing no person should ever have to endure.

She looked over as Thorin turned back around, looking composed yet sorrowed. She imagined that that battle was most likely something he did not discuss very often. In his eyes, she could spot a slight glisten, as if he had been tearing up listening to the story. She could tell that he had been reliving those horrific moments and a tiny feeling of remorse began to creep in her heart.

"And the pale Orc?" Bilbo asked Balin. "What happened to him?"

"He slunk back into the hole whence he came," Thorin answered in a bitter tone as he walked back. "That filth died of his wounds long ago."

Aelin watched Thorin as he went past the rock he had been previously sleeping on and stood once again at the edge, gazing off into the distance with his hands held behind his back. He was standing almost perfectly straight in a regal position.

"He may not always behave like a King…but he certainly has an appearance of one," she thought to herself. For reasons unknown to her, she found that she had been unable to take her eyes off him from the moment he turned back around to face everyone to that very moment as she watched him standing at another part of the edge. A small voice inside her kept telling her to go to him…but what on earth was she going to say? And why would she go to him anyway? Before she even realized what was happening, she was suddenly on her feet and quietly walking over towards Thorin. As she got closer, she had an idea of what she would say to him. She came up beside him quietly and didn't say a word at first.

"What do you want?" Thorin inquired bitterly as he noticed her approach and then turned back to looking outward.

Aelin glanced off towards the distance as well. She was silent briefly and then, still without looking at him, told him calmly, "I just wanted to say that I am sorry for your loss. I knew King Thror had fallen in battle…but it was how he fell that I did not know."

"I do not need sympathy from the likes of you," Thorin then spat with a harsh tone of voice.

"That's what I get for trying to act civilized to this stupid Dwarf…!" Aelin thought, frustrated.

"Very well, then I shall not give it," she replied firmly, now looking at him. When he remained quiet and refused to look at her, she went on to say in the same manner, "But know that you are not the only one who has lost a family member or someone they cared about to a horrible end; you are not the only one who had to witness their deaths. You can stop acting like you're the only person who has ever had to suffer such horrors and losses. Not everything is all about you."

Knowing that still would not influence him, she started to walk away. But then she stopped and looked back to him, even though he still would not turn around.

"You are not alone."

Aelin had no idea what had compelled her to say that last statement to Thorin. There was an inkling of a feeling that told her she had to tell him that; to let him know in a more polite way that he wasn't alone in what he had been feeling and that she understood that, in a way. But she did not give much thought to that before returning back by the fire with Fili and Kili to continue the night watch.

Thorin, too, had been a bit taken aback at her final words and had felt a slight sting in his heart. Why had she said that? She had said things chastising him for his bitterness and then had been…civil towards him, which was quite unlike her.

Both the Dwarf King and the young thief cast all those thoughts away, thinking it was all just in their heads and that, by morning, they would be back at each other's throats as usual and all would be back to normal.

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How about that? xD A lot of mixed feelings happening here with the Dwarf King and the thief...and you got a small glimpse into Aelin's past...just ya'll wait, there's gonna be a couple more surprises in store in upcoming chapters, so stay tuned xD

I don't know when the next update for this story will be, but I'll do my best to not take too long :P A huge thank you to all who have been reading and reviewing, that sure means a lot to me :) You guys are all the best!

Comments or questions? Review or PM me and I will be happy to address them! :D

Until next time! ^^