Alyssae's eyes flashed from Kili to Thorin, who stood in front of each other and could start a fight any moment. "Please, let it go, Kili."
"Stay out of this," Kili snarled, his abysmal eyes still aimed at his uncle. "If you can't stick up for yourself, somebody else needs to do it."
"I can stick up for myself very well!" Alyssae reacted angrily. "But I like to do that in another way!'
"A way that isn't working."
Alyssae broke off Kili's grasp and stood between the two man. "Do not argue about me."
"You think this is about you?" Kili scoffed. "You think it was okay if he had grabbed some other elf by the throat?"
"Other elves didn't lie to him," Alyssae insisted, knowing that Thorin's strong feelings had played an important part, but she knew that was something Kili would never understand.
"Was that his excuse?" he sniffed. "He already wanted to cut you in pieces before he knew you were a liar. You are a moron if you believe his smooth words."
"Don't." Alyssae kept looking obstructively at Thorin, who seemed willing to hit his nephew in the face. She searched for his hand in an attempt to calm him down, but when Kili noticed her movement, he started to laugh. "Ah, does our king needs someone who holds his hand?"
Thorin tore loose and before Alyssae could do anything, he had jumped upon Kili, who dropped down his sword in bewilderment.
"Stop!" Alyssae screamed and she tried to pull the two fighting men away from each other. She however got a punch in the face and fell back in shock. Tears jumped into her eyes, but the dwarves were so ferocious they paid no attention to her.
"Do something!" she snarled at Fili.
"What? Do I have to crash into them as well?"
Alyssae took a deep breath. The eye in which she was hit burnt and she didn't even know who had done that. "Find out for yourselves. You look like two little children," she grumbled, after which the turned her back to the fighting couple and walked away angrily, disappointed in both Kili and Thorin.
She sighed when her room caught her eye and she noticed Thranduin was waiting for her. He was the last person on earth she wanted to talk to right now and she turned around and walked towards the bath house. She got rid of her dress and smashed it into a corner, after which she stepped into the water and went down immediately. Tears burnt in the corners of her eyes. The evening that had started so beautifully, ended with a grisly aftermath. She felt remorse because Fili and Kili had ruined everything, even though they had doubtlessly done that with the best intentions. Now it remained to be seen if Thorin would ever pipe down again and Kili... she had no idea what she had to do with him. It was clear things weren't the same between them anymore.
By keeping things secret she had tried to keep out of trouble, but it seemed like nothing mattered. The truth would be revealed anyway.
She had the feeling she had to choose between Kili and Thorin... her best friend or her lover. The first had always been there for her, but Thorin... she wanted to see him smile so badly. She had had the feeling that Thorin had felt happy tonight for the first time since a long, long time and that was something she didn't want to give up, for she knew it would be for a short time anyway.
And Kili... she didn't like how he was currently acting and although he had shown that he looked more like his uncle than he thought, she wasn't afraid of him. Even more he had others to go to, because there were enough dwarves he considered as his friends. Thorin however carried an enormous responsibility, which involved an certain degree of loneliness. He stood – however they would put it – above his men. He was their king.