Greetings again, my dears! Long time, no see!

Let me tell ya, things have been crazy for me lately. First of all, I put my fanfictions aside for a while because I've been working on a novel of my own, which was the second in a series I've had planned since high school. Needless to say, as of September 20th, I have finished my second book! :D I can't even tell you how happy I was, because it had taken me SIX freaking years to write that dang book! I have now moved onto my third book, which has been coming along nicely. However, I'm at a part of the story that I need to think about and plan out, so I'm taking a little break from it and decided I would get back to my fanfictions for a time.

So, here is my first chapter in a while! Last time, I left you all on a sad cliffhanger; Fili, Kili, Bofur and Oin have come across Aelin's estranged father, Norin, and then Aelin has left Erebor, thinking that she needs to end things with Thorin for his own good, which was what Norin convinced her to do. I know that was mean, but hopefully this one may make up for it just a little bit.

Happy reading!

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"Norin...why does that name sound familiar…?"

Fili couldn't help but feel a little suspicious of the Dwarf who had shown up out of nowhere and offered them aid. Initially, he was glad that someone was willing to help them, but this Dwarf seemed to keep eyeing them in a way that was making him feel uncomfortable. More than that, the name "Norin" kept triggering something in the back of his mind, like he had heard it before, but he couldn't quite place exactly where.

"How can you help us, Mister Norin?" Bofur asked the Dwarf.

Norin grinned and replied, "I have many resources at my disposal. I am a member of the Master's household and, therefore, have access to different medicines."

"But the Master just refused to help us," Oin pointed out.

"That may be, but the Master will not question my actions. He trusts me," replied Norin. He began to turn over his shoulder and move towards the stairs as he then added, "Leave it me, lads. I'll get you the supplies you need. Just wait right here."

His gaze met Fili's for a brief moment before he left and it was then Fili took notice of Norin's eyes. They were a bright, emerald green...much like another Dwarf he knew.

It was then Fili remembered exactly where he knew Norin's name from and his feeling of uneasiness only increased the moment it hit him. The only thing he could think in that moment was he had to get his brother and his friends away from Norin and the Master's house.

Keeping a strong hold on Kili, he stated firmly, "Bofur, Oin...we need to get out of here."

Confused, Bofur asked him, "Why do you say that, lad?"

"When Norin introduced himself, I kept thinking his name sounded familiar and a feeling of uneasiness came over me, but now I know why," Fili explained. When he was sure he had both Oin and Bofur's attention, he informed them, "Norin is the thief that stole from the Elvenking, which caused him to throw Aelin into the dungeons."

Upon hearing this, Oin was quick to catch on as he then gasped out partial thoughts, piecing them altogether, "Thranduil also said...which then...that means...Norin is Aelin's father!"

"By Durin, you're right," Bofur said quietly in agreement.

"I also saw his eyes. They were an emerald green, almost exactly like Aelin's, and she told us that she has her father's eyes. It's definitely him," said Fili. "We know what he's done and my gut is telling me that we're not safe with him. I feel like we can't trust him."

"Aye...now that I know who he is, I'm getting that same feeling," Oin concurred.

"We need to get away from here before he comes back," Fili declared.

Bofur then asked, "What are we supposed to do, then? Kili needs help and quick!"

Fili stole a look at Kili beside him, who was becoming paler and disillusioned by the minute. He knew Bofur was right, but so far, no one would help them. Norin was the only one who said he would help, but now that they knew his true identity, he was no longer an option. What was left for them to do?

"There is only one place left for us to go," said Fili.

With that, he turned away, leading his brother along with Oin and Bofur in tow.

Soon, they came up to the door of Bard's home and Bofur quickly gave a loud knock. Seconds later, Bard answered the door. His expression immediately turned to annoyance at seeing the four Dwarves on his doorstep.

"No. I'm done with Dwarves. Go away," he curtly told them as he prepared to slam the door in their face.

Bofur was quick to put himself in the doorway, preventing the door from closing. "Please, no one will help us. Kili is sick. He's very sick," he informed Bard, showing him the poor young Prince, hoping Bard would have pity on him.

Bard's expression began to soften as he looked upon Kili, who gazed up at him with sad, sunken eyes. After a short moment, Bard finally bowed his head and told them, "Very well. Come inside, quickly."

The Dwarves quickly ushered themselves into the house and Bard closed the door behind them. He showed the Dwarves to a bed where they could lie Kili down. Oin and Bofur took Kili, who was moaning in pain, from Fili and led him to the bed.

"You wouldn't happen to know a Dwarf in this town named Norin, would you?" asked Oin as they laid Kili down.

It was then that Bard whipped his head around rather quickly, his eyes now wide and wary. "You came across Norin?" he asked, his voice now darker than normal.

"Aye…," Oin answered nervously. "He said he could get us help from the Master."

Bard shook his head. "No. You want to steer clear of that Dwarf. He really is the scum of the earth and the Master is no better. Norin is an untrustworthy con who never does anything without wanting something in return. Did you promise him anything?"

"No," answered Fili. "He had gone back into the Master's house after saying he would help us and we felt uneasy, so we left right afterwards."

Bard sighed. "Good. I can't imagine what that filth would ask of you."

A thought as to what Norin may have wanted came to Fili's mind, which he then spoke aloud, "Our companion, Aelin, is Norin's estranged daughter that he abandoned at birth. I have a feeling that, whatever he may have wanted from us, might have had something to do with her."

"Whatever it is he wants with Aelin, he's not going to get it. He'll die before we let him get to her," Bofur avowed.

"I was unaware of that," said Bard, looking a little uneasy.

Fili had a feeling as to why Bard appeared that way and immediately clarified, "Aelin is nothing like her father, Bard. She is a kind and honest woman who can be trusted; we all trust her completely. She has saved mine and Kili's lives numerous times and put herself in danger for many of us. Thorin has chosen her as his true love and believe me, he would not make such a decision so lightly, especially if she were anything like Norin."

Bard nodded and said, "Aye, I believe you."

Behind them, Kili started to groan louder in pain and Oin cried out, "Quickly, we need something for him. He's getting worse."

"Let me see what I have that may help him," said Bard, taking off down the hall.

Fili moved beside his brother and put his hand lightly on his brother's head, which was getting damp from sweat. He hated seeing Kili in pain. "Hang in there, brother," he said as calmly as he could. "Bard is going to help us. We will get you healed in no time."

The sky was now deprived of sunlight and night had fallen. Back at the bottom of the Lonely Mountain, at the edge of the Long Lake, Aelin was lying on the ground, having cried herself to sleep. Her cheeks were wet with tears, her throat was raw from her sobbing so hard and, the most painful of all, her heart was broken. She had just chosen to leave the Dwarf King that she loved so deeply, along with the rest of the company that she had grown to love as a family, and the pain she felt within her was unfathomable. After wishing for years of her life for a family and a home; for love and a place to belong, she finally got it...and now she had lost it all, but this time of her own accord, and that was what made it even more heartbreaking. Perhaps she was simply meant to be alone; to never belong anywhere or with anyone, seeing as how she was pushing away the chance she had longed for, for as long as she could remember.

Why was she like this, she wondered. Why was her life so miserable and seemingly meant to stay that way? She wished she could pray to Mahal and ask why, but she knew that Mahal had forsaken her long ago. He would give her no answer; he would remain silent, as always.

Aelin suddenly jerked awake, startled by something. She could've swore that she felt a tremor in the ground, but there was nothing around her. In her haziness, she supposed that perhaps it was just her imagination.

She sat up, rubbed at her eyes and, as her vision cleared, she looked out towards Laketown, knowing she would have to go there first. Then she got up and noticed that the boat the company had taken to get there was still on the shore. She pushed it into the water of the lake, jumped inside, grabbed an oar and started rowing.

Her eyes once again looked out to Laketown as she got closer. She would have to pass back through the city on her way out, but she didn't want to. If she did, she would risk seeing Fili, Kili, Bofur and Oin. She didn't want to imagine the hurt and disappointment she would see in their faces when they found out she was leaving, especially from Fili and Kili. She knew it would hurt them the most and she couldn't bear to think of it. The thought of leaving those two wonderful boys pulled at her heart. She had come to love those two so much. They had done more for her than she deserved...and this was how she was repaying their kindness by abandoning them?

In that moment, a thought occurred to her. "Wait!" she cried out loud, pushing her oar against the current to stop the boat and then laying it across her lap. For a minute, she sat there in silence before saying in realization, "I am becoming the kind of person that I hate. I have been abandoned by people I cared about and now I have become the abandoner. What have I done?"

Then, the voice in the back of her mind seemed to respond, "You know this is what you must do."

"Is it?" Aelin challenged aloud.

The voice then said, "If you had stayed, you would have ruined Thorin. You would have ruined everything for him."

"No," she replied sternly. "That's Norin talking. I let his words cloud my judgement. How could I have been so stupid?"

"It is not stupid. You're doing the right thing."

"No...no, I am not. This is wrong. I have to go back."

"You are making a mistake if you do."

"No, the mistake was listening to you and, more importantly, Norin!"

"I am in your head. You have to listen to me."

"I won't."

"You will."

"I will not!"

"I am you! You cannot escape me!"

Finally, Aelin put her hands to her head and just screamed, "I will not listen to you anymore!"

Suddenly, she could hear a loud boom coming from behind her and she whipped around towards the sound. It seemed like it came from the mountain. Then, in the clouds above, there was a dark shape moving in her direction. Aelin watched in fear-stricken awe, wondering what was going on. Then a loud, terrified gasp escaped her throat as the shape passed through the clouds, revealing a huge dragon soaring through the sky.

"Smaug!" she gasped.

A feeling of absolute dread then overcame her. If Smaug was out there...what had happened inside the mountain? Where were the Dwarves?

Her hands then flew up to her mouth and tears immediately came to her eyes as she assumed the worst:

The company had to be dead.

"No...Thorin…!" she wept into her hands.

The dragon's roar took her out of her sorrowful thoughts as it flew closer to the lake. It's eyes were focused ahead of her and the answer of where it was going was clear to her.

Smaug was heading for Laketown.

"Fili and Kili!" she cried aloud.

If the dragon was heading for Laketown, they would surely be killed, along with Bofur and Oin! Bard and his family, too!

"I have to get to Laketown and find them. I have to get them out of there," Aelin declared to herself.

Without hesitation, she picked up her oar and started paddling as fast as she possibly could. Only a short moment later did Smaug soar over her head and got closer to the town, circling it in the air overhead. She was running out of time. Before long, she knew he would surely attack.

The gate to the town had been abandoned and left open, so she had no issue getting in. As she rowed along, Aelin looked around for any sign of the four Dwarves, but could see nothing. Anyone outside were looking up to the sky in fear, watching the shadow of the dragon in the clouds circling the town. An aura of terror had overwhelmed the citizens and the atmosphere of the town that it was almost palpable.

Just then, a voice cried out her name. Her head darted back and forth, trying to find the source of the voice. Then it called out to her again and she realized that it was coming from up ahead. She looked up and saw that there was a section like a skywalk between two buildings with a barred window. Looking through the bars at her was Bard.

"Bard!" she called up to him.

"I'm stuck in here, but don't worry about me! I'll get myself out! You need to get to my home!" he shouted to her, not even questioning why she had returned to the town. Her boat was passing underneath the skywalk, so he moved over to the other side and continued, "Your friends are there! Get them and my children out of here!"

Relief swept over her at hearing that her friends were somewhere safe for the moment, but her urgency took back over, knowing that she had to get to Bard's house quickly. "I will! I promise!" she cried back as she drifted further away.

She had to take a quick second to try and think of where Bard's home would be from where she was. After figuring it out, she started paddling faster to get to Bard's home as fast as possible.

In Bard's home, there hadn't been a shortage of ill events throughout the night. First, they had felt the tremor from the mountain and knew immediately that the dragon had awakened. Bard had revealed he had a Black Arrow of old, the only weapon that could kill Smaug, hidden in his home and with it, he had gone off to load it into the town's windlance and be prepared to defend the town. Shortly after he had left, the party of Orcs the Dwarves had fought back in Mirkwood and had followed them since had attacked Bard's house. In the midst of the attack, Tauriel and Legolas had appeared and saved them, having followed the Orcs. Legolas had then left to deal with the remaining Orcs, but Tauriel had chosen to stay and, with her Elven abilities and a cluster of kingsfoil Bofur had found, she had healed Kili. Now, they were all standing around in terror after hearing the dragon leaving Erebor. Tauriel had stepped outside to see where the dragon was and to gauge perhaps how much time they had in order to make a quick escape.

"We have to time. We must leave," she told them all as she came back inside.

"We're not leaving. Not without our father," Bain argued.

"If we stay here, your sisters will die. Is that what your father would want?" Tauriel countered, silencing the boy.

Everyone moved as quick as they could, getting coats for the girls and moving towards the back of the house where Sigrid had said a boat was tied up that they could use.

However, as they started filing out the back, they found themselves in shock.

There was no boat.

"Where's the boat?" asked Tauriel.

"It was out here, I swear!" Sigrid

Just as Fili exited the house with Kili behind him, there was suddenly a loud growl behind them. Something jumped up behind Kili, put one arm around his neck and held a knife up against Kili's throat. Everyone whirled around in panic and Tauriel withdrew one of her knives, putting Tilda behind her. Bofur and Oin positioned themselves protectively in front of Sigrid and Bain.

The figure holding Kili at knifepoint moved from out of the shadows…and the face of Norin appeared.

"You're all not going anywhere…," he hissed.

"You!" stated Fili.

"Don't hurt him!" Tilda cried out.

"Hush, child," Tauriel ordered her calmly.

Norin was chuckling ominously. "You thought you could escape and I wouldn't find you again?" he asked rhetorically. "You really don't know me."

"We do know who you are," Fili countered. "You are Norin, a wretched conman who stole from Thranduil and also fathered and abandoned our friend, Aelin, before she was even born, condemning her to a miserable life on the streets. You are a disgusting excuse for a Dwarf."

"I have now come for Aelin," Norin said.

"You'll die before we let you anywhere near her!" Kili spat back.

Norin warningly pressed his knife further into Kili's skin, causing him to wince. Tauriel took a step forward, raising her knife, but Norin looked right at her and said, "Don't even think about it." She stopped immediately. He continued, "If any of you make a move, then this little lad's blood will stain this dock."

They all remained still in intense silence.

Then Norin turned his attention back to Fili, his eyes narrowed. "Now...this is what's going to happen: you are going to get me out of this town before that dragon roasts us, you're going to take me with you back to the Lonely Mountain and you are going to take me to my daughter."

Fili stood his ground, holding an unwavering, stern gaze with the maniacal Dwarf before him. "You're mad if you think I'm going to agree to those terms," he stated.

"You will if you want to keep your brother alive," Norin responded, pushing up against Kili as a threat.

Then Kili cried out, "Don't do it, Fili! Don't give him what he wants for me! We can't give up Aelin!"

"Shut up!" Norin yelled in his ear. He looked back at Fili again. "You will take me to Aelin!"

"Never," Fili replied immediately.

"Take me to her or your brother dies!" Norin said even louder.

"You're getting what you want, Norin! Now let Kili go!"

A voice they weren't expecting to hear suddenly cried out nearby. All eyes turned to see Aelin coming up on the water in a boat. She was standing on her feet with a bow and arrow drawn, aiming it directly at Norin.

"Aelin! What are you doing here?" Fili demanded in astonishment.

"Why aren't you back at the mountain?" added Oin.

"It's a long story for later," was her simple reply.

Norin turned to Bofur and commanded him, "Stop the boat."

Bofur slowly crouched down, reached out and put his hand in front of the boat, stopping it in its place as Aelin stepped up onto dock, her eyes still focused on Norin and her bow and arrow held fast, still aiming at him.

"Well...what a surprise to see you here, daughter," Norin said with a grin as he moved around to face Aelin, putting his back to Fili.

"I'm not your daughter. I never was," Aelin shot back in a low, angry voice. "What do you want with me, Norin?"

His eyes grew mischievous as he answered, "You know exactly what I want."

"I will not be your personal assassin or involve myself in any of your cons," she resisted.

"Suppose I simply wanted to be a father to you?" he proposed, his voice riddled with fake innocence.

Kili then groaned, "You are so full of troll dung…!"

Norin pushed the blade even more into Kili's neck and Aelin could see a red droplet of blood slide down his skin. Her hold on her bow tightened in anger.

"One more word out of you, boy, and I will cut your throat!" Norin threatened.

Out of the corner of Aelin's eye, she saw slight movement. She switched her gaze over to see Fili slowly bending over towards his right and ever so carefully slipping Tauriel's second knife out of its sheath. He then gave her a subtle nod of the head. Before Norin could suspect anything, she swiftly diverted her eyes back to him.

Her estranged father directed his attention b back to her. "You know you cannot rid yourself of me now that you've found me," he taunted her.

She grinned. "I could kill you right now and then be rid of your forever," she said back.

He chuckled. "If you try to kill me, then I'll slide my dagger right across this lad's neck and he will die with me. I'm watching you, Aelin. I will know when you're going to attack."

"And that's where you've made a big mistake," she said.

"What mistake?"

"You're watching me too closely...instead of paying attention to what's behind you."

As Norin gave her a confused look, Fili leapt forward and plunged Tauriel's dagger deep into Norin's back. Norin's body stiffened as a small, breathy gasp sounded from his lips. Feeling his hold lessen, Kili pushed away from him and flew towards Aelin, who dropped her bow and arrow and took Kili into her arms. Bard's children all hid their faces in shock.

Fili, while still holding the knife in Norin's back, leaned forward so he was speaking into the Dwarf's ear, while simultaneously looking into his shocked face. "That's for Aelin and everything you've done to her," he boldly proclaimed, a tone of fury laced in his voice. "My brother warned you...you would die before we ever let you get to her...and the sons of Durin always keep their word."

Just as Fili sharply withdrew the knife and Norin dropped to his knees, there was a deafening roar and an explosion of fire just to the side as Smaug went flying through the air above them. Everyone flinched or withdrew in fear. Smaug had begun his attack on Laketown.

"We have to end this and get out of here," Fili said in haste as he approached Aelin. Unexpectedly, he held out Tauriel's knife to her. When she pulled her arms around Kili away and gave Fili a look of uncertainty, he said, "You can end it all right now. You should be the one to do it."

Hesitantly, she took the knife from Fili and turned towards her wounded father, who was now bleeding from the mouth. He spit out some blood and began cackling.

"You claim you're nothing like me...yet you are about to kill an innocent, defenseless Dwarf," he stated.

Aelin glowered down at him. "You are far from innocent, you scum," she replied darkly, "and you held a knife to my friend's throat. You aren't defenseless. You deserve this."

Breathily, he spoke, still with an eerie grin spread across his face, "Just know this, Aelin: I will always be a part of you...and I will haunt you for as long as you live."

"Know this, Norin…," she retorted, "...I have denied your existence as long as I've been alive. I will have no issue denying you even when you're dead. I want you to have these last words ringing in your ears before you meet your end." She bent over closer to his face, leaned forward so her nose was nearly touching his and said in a humiliating manner, emphasizing every word, "I. Loathe. You."

She heard the others tell the children to look away and, as they did so, Aelin thrust her arm out to the side, sending the knife straight through Norin's neck, causing blood to spurt from the open wound. His eyes were wide with shock and he gasped in vain for air as his body collapsed and slipped lifelessly into the lake. After a brief moment of taking in what she had just done, she heaved a sigh of relief, looked to Fili and then he took her into a strong, tight embrace.

Norin was now dead and Aelin was free, at last.

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...did you see that coming? ;)

Surprise!

Originally, I was going to have Aelin go back up to the hidden door to Thorin after feeling the first tremor and be a part of everything that happens inside the mountain, but then I thought that having her go to Laketown to get to Fili and Kili instead would make for a more interesting story and will be cause for some more heavy drama later on. Some more to look forward to xD

Stay tuned for what's coming next! Leave a review or PM me! Love you guys!