Chapter 13 for you guys! Thanks a lot to purple-pygmy-puff16 and Little Bucky for your reviews. Let me know how you like this chapter!


A few days later, Arinna's ankle was still throbbing slightly but she had been walking by herself again as soon as she was able to. Though Fili kept reminding her that he didn't mind, she only let him carry her for a few hours that first day, until they made camp that night. Oin had wrapped her ankle that evening, and she had been on her own two feet again ever since, although she could always feel Fili walking not far from her, no matter what time of day it was or where in the group she was walking, keeping an eye out for her as she hobbled along with the others. He somehow managed to always appear by her side to help her right the moment when she struggled to go down a steeper bit of the path, or when the way was obstructed by roots, rocks or low hanging branches.

It was hard to tell what time of day it was when they finally but quite suddenly came upon a wide fast-flowing river, that cut right through the Elven path, blocking their way. Balin had been leading them along and had now come to an abrupt halt at the sight of the rushing dark water. The sound of the water had also ripped Arinna out of her thoughts, and she slowly made her way to the front of the company, to the edge of the stream. The water looked strange and dark, yet somehow rather inviting, she thought.

"The path continues on the other side," Bilbo muttered eventually from where he stood beside Thorin, pointing over to the opposite riverbank. He squinted slightly into the distance. "Look, there's a boat. Though I think it's tied up."

"We don't need a boat," Ori answered him, a strange lull in his voice as he slowly reached out his hand toward the dark water. "I say we swim it."

His hand was caught roughly and pulled back before it could get any closer to the water's surface. Ori snapped out of his thoughts and looked up to see Arinna give him a warning look, her face set with a serious expression as she let go of his hand. "Don't touch the water," she uttered, before she urgently looked at Thorin. "Gandalf warned me about this river. It carries a powerful enchantment. No one must touch it. Bilbo's right, we have to try and get the boat onto this side."

The dwarf-king seemed to take along time before he registered her words and the druid watched him close his eyes for a moment, seeing his blue irises appear slightly more focused when he opened them again. Thorin nodded and then motioned for Kili. They took one of the dwarf's arrows and tied a rope to the end of it with a strong knot, Gloin's handiwork. Then Kili shot his arrow, hitting his mark, and they managed to pull the thing over to their side of the river with a hard tug and some effort, as it had indeed been tied up. The boat turned out to be rather small, able to fit four people at once, at the most.

"We go in groups," Thorin ordered, assessing the situation as he looked from the boat to his companions. "Bilbo, Dwalin, Balin and I will go first. Then Kili, Oin, Gloin and Dori. Nori, Ori, Bifur and Bofur. And last Fili, Bombur and Arinna. Bombur's fat enough for two, Arinna is the lightest. She'll balance him out."

The druid just nodded her agreement, though she didn't appreciate the derogatory tone the dwarf had used toward Bombur, and they soon began to cross the river one group after the other. The current was much stronger than it had first seemed, and the dwarves struggled each time to get the boat from one riverbank to the other. It took a long time until finally, there was only the last group to cross over to the other side and Arinna took Fili's hand gratefully as he helped her into the boat. She sat down opposite Bombur, who gave her a reassuring smile, and Fili quickly hopped in and took the seat to her left.

The druid sat nervously as Fili and Bombur began rowing the boat slowly across the water, a knot tightening in her stomach as she looked around the tree line and the river bank. She couldn't tell what it was, but something felt wrong, making her skin crawl with goosebumps. They had made it around two thirds across the river, close to the other side now, and Bombur skilfully caught the rope that the rest of the company had thrown them in order to pull them to the bank faster.

It was then that Arinna felt the boat suddenly slow considerably and tilt slightly in its course, and she looked over in alarm to find that Fili had stopped rowing altogether for some reason and was leaning precariously over the rim of the boat. He was staring at something in the water, and was already reaching out his arm toward it.

"Fili! No!" Arinna exclaimed loudly, reaching out and grabbing the back of his coat to pull him back. But Fili reacted oddly, his elbow suddenly coming up with a jolt and pushing her back. The druid was knocked off balance and fell backwards, rocking the boat at the same time that the company had given a hard pull on the rope. The combined force and Bombur's weight on one side were enough to overturn the small boat and Arinna cried out as she fell backwards into the river, her voice drowned by the water as her body was submerged.

The druid felt her body being picked up by the current as she tried to struggle to the surface, having lost all orientation in the water. It felt like an age before her head finally broke through and she coughed out some water, taking in a greedy breath of air, as she was carried quickly downstream, trying to blink through the drops in her eyes. She couldn't see the company, nor Bombur, but could only hear their distant screams that carried down the river. Her eyes instead caught the sight of a bunch of furs rushing down the river a little distance ahead of her. It was Fili, she realised with a start, floating face-down in the water. Arinna's eyes widened with fear and she quickly made a few powerful strokes toward him, the current carrying her along swiftly. She grabbed hold of Fili's coat as soon as she reached him and heaved his head to the surface, panic filling her heart now when she saw that his eyes were closed and he was not moving. She could not tell if he was still breathing or not.

Arinna tried to swim against the current, back toward the company, holding on to Fili with all her might, but it was no use. The current was too strong, she would not have made it by herself, never mind trying to drag the dwarf along with her. Naked fear filled her again, feeling the current carrying them further and further away, as the cries of her companions died down, when her body suddenly smashed roughly against a large, thick branch that was hanging low into the flowing river. A breathless gasp left her as the current pressed her and Fili against it but she quickly brought up one hand to hold onto it, before they would be swept away again. It took her almost all the strength she had left to even begin to slowly make her way along it, inching her way closer to the riverbank. Her grasp on Fili's furs kept slipping as she tried to keep his head above the surface, and she cried out with the effort of every movement along the branch.

Arinna didn't know how long it had taken her until she finally reached the riverbank and dragged Fili out of the river with her, heaving him out of the water with a final outcry. She had no strength left in her. Her lungs were burning painfully with every breath she drew as she fell to her knees, the soft ground turning muddy with the water that dripped from her. Her legs were trembling from exhaustion. Her arms felt so heavy that she could barely lift them. And yet, she still forced herself to raise her hands to Fili's form, one hand brushing against his open mouth with trembling fingers while the other flew to his chest. A relieved sob fell from her lips and she dropped her head when she realised that his heart was beating steadily in his chest and he was still breathing. He was just asleep, she thought, just asleep.

"Fili," she tried to say, though her voice came out choked and croaky. She grabbed his shoulders and shook him slightly, but he did not move. She tapped her hands against his cheek. "Fili, wake up. You've got to wake up! We've got to find the others."

She felt fear rise in her heart again when he still did not wake, and she shook his shoulders again, harder this time. Fili did not move. "Please, just wake up," she begged helplessly, a lump building in her throat as she looked around her.

"Help!" She then called loudly, her voice echoing back at her from the dark, unmoving trees around her. Arinna stared up the river, unable to see past a few yards as the forest grew straight down to the river's edge. It was quickly getting dark now, and she was barely able to see anything, but she kept shouting into the darkness. "Help! Thorin! Dwalin! We're here!"

There was no answer. The forest remained silent around her while the river rushed past undisturbed. "Hello?! We're here! Help!" She tried again, as loud as she could, hearing her voice tremble and break when there was still only silence in return to her desperation. "Please, somebody! Anybody!"

The druid fell silent as she took a moment to think, shivering in her wet clothes and sniffling quietly in the cold night. She wiped her wet hair from her face, finding that tears had now mingled with the droplets on her face, before she looked back down at Fili, who slept on. Hesitatingly, she slowly brought her trembling hands to either side of Fili's head, pressing her fingertips gently against his temples as she leaned over him.

"Um tam numorto," she breathed, trying to lift the sleeping curse that had befallen the blond dwarf. Arinna closed her eyes, breathing deeply for a few seconds as she tried to slow her heartbeat. Magic and fear did not mix well, she knew. She tried again, concentrating as hard as she could on the magic in her core. "Um tam numorto… um tam numorto."

She opened her eyes, finding Fili's still closed, his chest rising and falling with deep breaths as he slept on. The druid let her head drop in despair, her forehead resting on Fili's chest for a few long moments as she cried silently, trying to gather herself. It was no use. Her power was not strong enough to lift the enchantment. No one had heard her calls for help, or answered, and she couldn't go looking for the others and leave Fili here alone. And she couldn't carry him either, the dwarf being much too heavy for her to drag along by herself. And even if she could, they were by now so far off the path that they would hardly be able to find their way back to it.

Arinna let out a shuddering breath, lifting her head and looking out into the darkness of the forest. She would have to wait until Fili woke up by himself. And until then, she was alone.


"FILI!"

Thorin's voice rang loudly through the trees as he stalked through the bushes and thick foliage, using his sword to cut down anything in his way. The rest of the company was following behind him, calling out to their lost friends.

"Arinna! Fili!"

"LASS!"

"Fili!"

They had been looking for them for what seemed like hours already. After they had managed to pull a sleeping Bombur out of the river by the rope that the fat dwarf was still clutching in his hand, they had left the path and followed the riverbank as far as they could until the forest had grown too thick to pass alongside it, the foliage almost impenetrable as spiky roots and branches blocked the way. It had taken them far too long as it was, as they now needed to carry Bombur. Now they were wandering through the forest, hoping that they were still going in the right direction, without a way of knowing, while there was still no sign of their two missing companions and the trees grew dark around them.

"It's no use, Thorin," sighed Dori eventually, shrinking back from the dark look the king shot him upon his words. He spoke carefully, but honestly. "We've lost them, we've lost the light and now we've lost the path."

"What are you saying?" Kili growled dangerously at the older dwarf, before Thorin had the chance to reply anything, quickly taking a few menacing steps toward him as he raised his voice. "That we should abandon our search? My brother and Arinna are somewhere out there! What if they're hurt! What if they need help?! You would just leave them to their fate and crawl back the way we came? What kind of coward are you? What kind of friend?"

Dori stumbled backwards as Kili seethed at him, not knowing what to say.

"What if it was Ori?" Kili continued his verbal assault on the grey-haired dwarf, unable to keep the fear he felt from turning into anger. "Would you have us abandon Ori in the forest? Or is that different, since he is your brother?"

"Of course not," Dori stuttered, shaking his head. "I did not mean -"

It was Bilbo's voice that rang out over the commotion, speaking over a frightened Dori. Bilbo caught Kili's stormy gaze, and sent him an understanding but helpless look.

"The problem is that we do not know the way back, Kili," he said gently. "And we don't know the way forward. We are completely lost. We have been looking for them for hours now and if we were going the right way, I'm sure we would have found them by now. It's this forest… I don't think it wants us to find them."

Though the hobbit's voice had been kind, Kili's eyes sparked with fury as he stepped toward the smaller man. "You would leave them to their fates as well?! You! You treacherous little -"

"KILI!" Thorin shouted over his nephew's voice, making Kili stop in his tracks as his head suddenly seemed to clear. He realised he was standing much closer to the hobbit than he had thought, his collar held tightly in his fist. He was not sure what he'd been meaning to do. The young dwarf quickly let go of Bilbo, who stumbled a few steps backwards, before he turned to his uncle, stepping close to Thorin who was looking at him with tired eyes. "Stand down."

"No, we must keep looking, uncle," Kili pleaded and Thorin closed his eyes shortly at the sight of his nephew's desperate gaze. The brunet dwarf lowered his voice. "I cannot leave him out there, Thorin. I cannot! He's my brother."

"And my nephew," Thorin murmured, lifting one hand to put it heavily on the young dwarf's shoulder as he continued, his words leaving a sting in his own heart, as he saw his nephew's face fall. "I won't abandon Fili. Not for anything, not ever. But we have lost the light. We'll continue our search in the morning."

Kili shrugged off his uncle's hand roughly, though he made no other move to step away, he could not bring himself to do anything, Thorin's words leaving a bitter taste in their wake. Thorin gazed at his younger nephew sadly, trying to give him some courage, and perhaps himself, as well. "He'll be fine, Kili. They'll both be fine."

Kili didn't say anything, and indeed, he never found out if Thorin had been right, for they did not get another chance to look for their companions the next morning. They were attacked that very night by a pack of enormous, black spiders, which had been waiting for their chance to pounce on the company ever since they had left the Elven path that day.