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And they're on their way! Heading straight into danger, peril, fear, elation and possible heartbreak...and that is just between Kili and Tauriel! ha ha.

The rescue mission might be exciting too. ha ha.

Thanks

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Chapter 99

~X~

Barely a day into the journey, Flinn and Frerin were seriously rethinking their decision to stow away. The wagon bumped and jerked with such force that one would think the driver was purposefully aiming for each and every stone in the road as a personal punishment to the lads' backsides. It didn't help that they were cramped and uncomfortable in the small niche they had created at the front of the supplies, and had long since become bored out of their minds.

"How long do we have to hide in here before we can surprise Adad?" Frerin asked, rubbing at his sore bum, wishing he had thought to bring a pillow to sit on.

"Several days at least," Flinn sighed, not having any more fun than his little brother. "I know it's boring now, but just think of all the fun we'll have once we tell Adad we're here. Then the real adventure will begin!"

"All right," Frerin sighed, wiggling around until he could stretch his legs out and lay his head on his brother's lap. "Can you tell me a story?"

"What kind of story?" Flinn questioned, willing to do anything to cheer his nadadith up.

"One about a mighty battle," he suggested, tucking his thumb into his mouth and shutting his eyes.

"I know just the one." And the little blond dwarf proceeded to spin a fanciful tale about heroic deeds and strong warriors. In no time at all, Frerin was sound asleep. Flinn looked down and smoothed out his brother's hair lovingly. He really hoped they had done the right thing by stowing away on this journey. Yet, he knew his adad needed him…and he could never have gone off without his brother! Still, he would make extra sure that nothing happened to Frerin. It was his duty to protect him, and he took that job very seriously.

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Fili and Kili had been riding beside each other most of the day, speaking occasionally, but otherwise keeping their eyes on their surroundings. No orcs had been spotted near the mountain for some time, and over the past few years, it appeared that the enemy had lost some of their interest in seeing the dwarf king killed or captured. Sauron apparently had other concerns weighing on his twisted mind, yet the dwarves never truly let down their guard. Simek had sent along several ravens, just as he had done with Bilbo and their party, to scout out the path ahead, as well as deliver messages back to Erebor if needs be. He had wanted to come along himself, but the leader of the ravens was getting old now, and he tended to leave the scouting to the younger birds these days. Fili had been keeping an eye on the skies, watching the ravens as they circled overhead, quarking now and then and informing them that all was clear.

"Do…do you think I should go talk to her?" Kili asked, keeping his voice low so that her keen elf ears would not pick up their conversation.

"It might be nice if you did," Fili nodded, noting that other than Bain and a few of his soldiers, no one had said more than a dozen words to the elf lass. The young prince of Dale was trying to appear confident in his first mission, yet Fili could see the stiffness in his posture that betrayed his hesitation. They did not doubt Bain's skill or loyalty, nor did they feel Bard's trust had been misplaced. Still, as seasoned warriors, Fili, Kili, and Dwalin had all agreed to keep an eye on the lad. He let his eyes drift back to the she-elf that held Kili's attention. "After all…Tauriel is a lone elf among a company of men and dwarves, she could probably use a friend."

"But…what should I say?" Kili hissed, fear now springing to his eyes. "I have not spoken to her in years. I'm not even sure how to start."

"Ask her how she's been," Fili suggested. "What she's been up to…if she has killed any orcs lately. I don't know, just say something."

"Right…just say something," Kili repeated, nodding his head as he kicked his pony into a trot and moved up beside her as she rode. He had to look up a bit, since her horse was quite large, not to mention the fact that she was a full head taller than him as it was. Tauriel didn't appear to have noticed his presence, keeping her eyes straight ahead, though he was certain that was not the case, her being a trained fighter and all. After a moment he cleared his throat, causing her to turn her head and stare at him questioningly.

"Hello…again," he began, his voice catching just a bit as he spoke. "It…it's been quite a while since the Mirkwood dungeons, hasn't it?" As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he felt like a fool. Talk about stating the obvious! That idiotic remark was right up there with his brother's statement that 'if there was a key, there must be a door'. Cringing, Kili looked away, wishing the ground would simply swallow him up.

"Yes, it has," Tauriel agreed, doing her best to hide her amusement. She could tell that he was trying, and decided it was best to help him out. "I do hope you have fared well since then, Prince Kili."

At this Kili turned back to stare at her…she had spoken to him! Directly to him, and not simply because they were discussing battle plans. He quickly searched his mind for a reply, eager to keep the conversation going.

"Oh…yes, quite well," he nodded, his face lighting up with a smile. "And please, just call me Kili…I'm not really keen on all that title business. At least not with my friends."

"And are we friends, master dwarf?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow at his bold statement. "As you say, we have not spoken in many years, and yet you are willing to count me among those you favor enough to address you by your personal name?"

"Well…I had kind of hoped so," Kili stammered, blushing slightly. "I mean…I thought we had built up an acquaintance at least…of sorts."

"Aye, that we had," she agreed, looking forward once more, her expression turning somber. "And then you left, without even a word."

"It was kind of a jailbreak!" Kili sputtered, looking both guilty and indignant. "I could hardly have alerted you to my impending absence without ruining the whole plan, now could I?"

"I see your point," she nodded, trying to hide her little smile. She had of course been only teasing him, just to see how he might respond. Though in truth, she had been rather disappointed when he left so suddenly.

"And it wasn't like I wanted to leave," he continued on, then realizing just how ridiculous that had sounded. "What I meant was, I did want out of the dungeons, but I didn't want to leave you…" Oh, now that sounded even worse! "I mean…" Kili knew he was digging himself into a hole he might never be able to climb out of.

"What my brother is trying to say," Fili broke in, riding up between the two. He had been listening to Kili's nonsensical rambling and sensed that he was in deep trouble. "Is that he hopes you did not get blamed for our escape. It was hardly due to any negligence on your part. It's just that our hobbit burglar is simply the best at what he does."

"So he stole you all away, right from under our noses?" Tauriel laughed, the sound causing Kili's heart to jump in his chest. "He must also be part wizard to have snuck into our keep without our notice. It took us a while to figure out your method of escape, but I have to say, it was very clever to hide in the wine barrels and use the river to make good your departure."

"Clever perhaps," Fili grunted, his stomach automatically turning just a bit at the thought of the wine barrels. "Yet, I for one, will never be able to eat, or even look at, another apple for the rest of my life."

When Tauriel cocked her head quizzically to the side, Kili stepped in with an explanation.

"His barrel had previously held apple cider," Kili informed her, noting that his brother was actually turning a shade of green just from speaking about it. "By the time we had made it to Laketown, the smell, mixed with the constant rocking of the water, had caused him to become violently ill. To this day, the mere mention of apples leaves him sick."

"Please excuse me," Fili said suddenly, pulling on the reins to slow his pony. He fell back just a bit, in hopes of settling his queasy stomach without any further talk of the offending fruit. He found that the swaying motion of the pony beneath him was very reminiscent of the barrel bobbing in the water.

Kili felt badly for his brother, yet he couldn't help but be glad that he and Tauriel were alone once more. Well, at least as alone as one could be when surrounded by dozens of dwarves and men. Still, he had her complete attention, and he planned on making good use of it.

"You didn't get into any trouble over our escape, did you?" Kili asked hopefully.

"No, I was not held responsible," she smiled, touched by his concern.

"Good, I worried about that," he nodded, again, his words possibly telling more than he had meant. "So…what have you been up to for the past sixteen years?"

Tauriel gave him a quizzical look, not quite sure how to answer.

"Do you require a day by day account, or would you prefer a generalization?" her tone was light and full of humor, giving Kili the encouragement he needed to continue.

"In general would be just fine," he laughed, though in truth, he wouldn't have minded the more detailed version. "Have you gone on any trips, engaged in many battles lately…perhaps gotten married?" Kili did his best not to sound too desperate when asking that last question, but he really wanted to know.

"I have battled many orcs, as well as spiders since our first meeting. The vile creatures are a continuing threat to our woods, especially to the south, near Dol Guldur. I believe this is where they are spawning, yet we have not yet discovered their main nest," she informed him, her tone telling him that she was angered by this. "I have also gone on several missions for King Thranduil, one to Rohan, three to Lothlorien, and then the one just recently to Rhȗn, where I encountered Lord Glorfindel." She paused there for a moment, causing Kili to hold his breath in anticipation. "And no…I have not yet chosen to marry."

"Oh," he murmured, looking away so that she would not see the wide grin on his face.

"And you, Prince Kili?" Tauriel began, then catching herself she amended her words. "I mean…Kili. Have you taken a wife since reclaiming the mountain? I was informed that your brother, as well as your uncle, the king, have since married."

"Who, me?" Kili gasped, looking almost fearful that she might actually think he was taken. "Oh, no…not me!" he stated adamantly. Then, realizing that he might be sending the wrong message, he cleared his throat and added with an air of indifference. "That is not to say I haven't considered it. My uncle has had many lovely dams brought to the mountain in hopes that Fili and I would find a compatible mate…but I have yet to discover the one for me."

"I see," she responded, also turning to look to her right so that Kili would not notice her pleased smile over this news.

"However," Kili continued. "After seeing how happy my brother and uncle are, I can't say I'm opposed to the idea of finding a lifelong mate. I mean, it is after all my duty as a prince to take a wife and sire heirs. Not that any of my children would ever inherit the throne, with Fili already having two sons and a daughter to pass the crown to."

"Two sons?" Tauriel questioned. "My Lord Thranduil often mentioned a dwarfling prince, saying that he was quite enraptured by the lad. Was he one of the two I saw off to the side in the throne room the other day?"

"Yes, that would be Flinn. He was the older one with blond hair like Fili," Kili laughed, recalling how confusing it was for his brother, and his uncle, to think that the elf king had taken a shine to the lad. "The dark haired one was Frerin, his younger brother by five years."

"And yet I did not see either of them today when we left Erebor," Tauriel reasoned, thinking back to when they departed the mountain. She had seen Prince Fili with a lovely dark haired dam, and a little blond lass, but there had been no male dwarflings bidding him farewell.

"Flinn and Frerin joined some friends of ours on a trip to Esgaroth," Kili explained. "They left early this morning, so they weren't there. Perhaps you will meet them when we return, they are quite the characters, those two. Many people say they remind them of Fili and I when we were young. I'm sure you would find them very entertaining."

"Yes, I'm certain I would," Tauriel laughed. She couldn't recall ever having been around a dwarfling before, and she found the idea very appealing. And if these little ones were in any way like Kili had been…she was indeed most interested to make their acquaintance.

It was just then that one of the scouts they had sent ahead came riding back, causing Fili, Bain and Dwalin to draw alongside Tauriel and Kili.

"There is a good place to make camp about an hour's ride from here," the man of Dale informed his prince. "Near a water source and with adequate cover should the weather turn on us in the night."

"Excellent work, Dunner," Bain complimented. "Any sign of orcs or goblins about?"

"None, my prince," he said with a shake of his head.

"Good. Yet we best make for this campsite quickly, for the sun is setting and traveling by night is not safe, for us or our mounts," Fili stated, patting Storm on his neck affectionately. "We do not want any of them to step in a rabbit hole and turn up lame."

"I will alert the company that we will be quickening our pace," Dunner said with a bow of his head, pulling his horse around as he headed back to the troops.

"Dwalin, tell Bofur and Nori that we need to speed up if we want to enjoy a hot meal tonight," Fili instructed, watching as his cousin rode back to do as directed. Fili then shaded his eyes against the setting sun in hopes of spotting a raven. When one came into view, he rode a few yards from the others and held up his arm, beckoning it to circle overhead before it came down to settle on his leather gauntlet.

"Hello, Telk," Fili greeted, quickly recognizing the raven by the slightly deformed toe on his left foot. Many of the black corvids sported a distinguishing feature that allowed them to be easily identified. The two dwarf princes had worked hard to memorize all their names, never wanting to insult their feathered allies by addressing them incorrectly. "Would you please fly ahead of us for a bit and make sure the way is clear? We hope to camp for the night in about an hour. Let us know if it is safe to do so." He then pulled a few nuts and seeds out of a pocket and held them out to the sleek raven. After gobbling down the treat, the bird bobbed his head in gratitude and then took to the skies once more, eager to please the blond prince.

Tauriel, who had been watching the exchange between the dwarf and corvid, was amazed.

"I had heard that your people use the ravens to send messages, as well as scout for danger," she whispered, leaning in slightly so that only Kili could hear her. "Yet that is the first time I have been witness to such. Do all dwarves know the secret language of the ravens?"

"No…not all," Kili told her, pleased that she was showing interest in his people and their culture. "Only dwarves of the Longbeard clan seem to have the ability to hear the birds speak, and for the birds to understand them in return. But those with the Durin blood in their veins find it the easiest to discern what is being said. For that reason, the royal family does most of the communicating with them, yet there are a few others who are trained from youth in the speech of the birds, and are assigned as the raven keepers. It is a very prestigious and coveted position."

"I can understand why," Tauriel nodded.

"There are others, of course, who can hear them as well," Kili continued. "Like Gandalf, Beorn the skin changer, and apparently hobbits. I have also heard tell that some elves, like Lord Elrond or Lord Glorfindel, are also able to communicate with them."

"Yes, that would be logical," she agreed, knowing full well that the high elves would have been granted this special gift. She of course was only a lowly Silvan elf, and could understand them no better than the men of Dale could…which was not at all.

Fili returned from speaking with the raven and gave the order to press on, with everyone pushing their mounts just a little bit faster. Their sore backsides and growling stomachs eager to arrive at the place they would make camp. Kili did his best to keep pace with Tauriel, having thoroughly enjoyed their time speaking together. He would have to think of more interesting subjects to ply her with that evening around the campfire, as well as the following day. They had made good progress thus far, or so he felt. She had given up using his title, and was simply referring to him as Kili, and they both knew that the other was unattached. That alone was a great boon to the dwarf prince's ego. Tauriel was free and unencumbered…he still had a chance!

"A chance for what?" he asked himself, causing Kili to frown in thought. He truly did not know where this all might lead…and yet, he had spent the past sixteen years unable to purge her from his mind. That had to mean something, right? And after speaking to her for the past few minutes, he knew for sure he wanted to do so again and again. But that was all he would allow himself to contemplate at the present time. For now…it was enough.

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Several hours later, Flinn and Frerin sat inside their wagon, still hidden away and undetected by all. Yet their little faces were sad and their tummies growled mercilessly as they caught a whiff of the delicious stew the dwarves and men were cooking. Looking down at the simple dried meat, bread, and cheese they had brought with them, they almost wanted to cry.

"Are you sure we can't go out and ask for some supper?" Frerin begged, crawling to the canvas cover and peeking through a small hole. He could see many of the Dale men sitting around a fire, eating and drinking, and having what he thought looked to be a very fun time. Yet here they were, stuck in a wagon, unable to move around or have a decent meal. And to top it all off…Frerin missed his ama.

"No, we can't be discovered yet," Flinn insisted. "We are still far too close to home…they would send us back in the blink of an eye. We must wait."

"Fine," Frerin sulked, flopping down on the floor and staring up at the canvas covered ceiling. "I wish we could at least see the stars. It would feel more like camping if we could see the stars."

"I know, and they are up there," Flinn assured him, lying down at his side. "We will see them again soon enough. Just another day or two and then we will get to leave this wagon. You can't give up now, Nadadith. We have come so far."

"I won't," Frerin nodded, though he didn't sound as convincing as Flinn would have liked.

"Here, we best eat something," he instructed, handing some bread, cheese, and one of the few remaining pieces of dried meat to his brother. "Even if it is not warm stew, it will fill our bellies and help us sleep."

"I slept all day," Frerin whined, reluctantly taking a bite of the food. "I'll be up all night for sure."

Flinn sincerely hoped that was not the case, for with nothing to do to pass the time, hours spent sitting awake in the dark would be unbearable. At least when the sun was up they could play games, or peek through the canvas and watch the scenery go by.

"Well, let's try at least," Flinn said, attempting to sound encouraging. "Remember, time passes so much faster when you are asleep. And that is what we need…time to pass."

"All right," Frerin nodded, reaching out to pull one of the blankets over him, sharing one side of it with his brother. "Will you tell me another story?"

"Of course I will," Flinn grinned, now barely able to make out Frerin's face in the darkness. "How about I tell you the one about Spark…the tiny dragon?"

"Yes! I like that one," the dark haired dwarfling agreed, his tone one of eagerness.

"Me too," Flinn laughed. "So, once upon a time, in a land far, far away, there lived a tiny dragon named Spark, and this is the tale of how he found his flame…."

Awww, nice to know that Thranduil's story still comes on handy.

And it appears that the lads are not as excited about coming along as they once were...too bad, you are stuck now.

So, how did Kili's first flirting attempt go? He did find out one very important thing...Tauriel is still single!

Now the next chapter will be #100. I don't think I've ever written such a long story before, so I was wondering if everyone who is reading it could please send in a quick review and let me know exactly how many there are of you out there. The FF site says that 369 are following, but I have no idea if that is accurate, ha ha. But maybe just this once...on chapter 100, could you please make yourself known, even if it is as a nameless guest and you only type one word (one nice word, please, ha ha) Thanks.

Guest Reviews:

Aranel Mereneth: I love writing about Fili and his family...but I have to keep reminding myself that this is Kili's love story. ha ha. And Kili will always be Dis' baby boy.

abc: Yes, goodbyes are sad, but they make the welcome homes all the more sweet. Freya is very confused...why is everyone going bye-bye? Tauriel wasn't laughing AT him...but with him, she probably found it sweet and adorable. Girls judge a man by how he treats his mother, and how she treats him. I think Tauriel liked what she saw. Honest conversation? This is a Durin you are talking abut. Did Fili try honest conversation with Sier? Did Thorin do so with Marigold? Maybe Kili will be the black sheep of the family and do it right. ha ha.

Guest: Yes...yes they will. I hope they realize they have it coming. ha ha.

Emrfangirl: Dwalin is a big old softie when it comes to his little lass. ha ha.

Feu d'Argent:Bonjour: Welcome back! Hope you enjoyed playing catch up. I had to laugh when you said you wanted to squash all the cute kiddies...you sound like the three trolls and how they wanted to squash the dwarves into jelly. ha ha. Gobsmacked is a good word for what Kili is. I am currently writing chapter 124. Yes, I decided Bilbo needed a wife...and really, it will do nothing to mess up the whole LOTR thing if he got one. They still named Frodo as his heir. Have fun learning elvish! I did so love that line in DOS..."or nothing" just killed me. Oh, no, I was never a mischievous kid...so maybe I am tapping my inner bad child when I write about Flinn and Frerin doing such a bad thing here. ha ha. Living vicariously though them. Of course I would never give little Freya a reason to cry like that...what kind of monster do you take me for? ha ha. Yes, Red-shirt deaths will be a must...I'm sorry, but this is kind of like war and stuff, and orcs are not known for their gentleness. Thanks for reviewing for every chapter!