On we go! Thanks so much to BrySt1, and guest Xoxo for your reviews! I hope you enjoy this chapter and let me know your thoughts.

Xoxo: I love that you asked about Lithen - the last mention of him was indeed him running off into the wilds with the other ponies but we have not seen the last of him yet ;)


It was already well into the afternoon when Arinna was sat beside Kili's bed, finally finished with her work but not feeling as though it had done the dwarf much good at all. Though she had cleaned out his wound, the infection still seemed to be working its way through his body, and his fever had not gone down over the past hours.

"How is he?"

The druid looked up, seeing Bard standing next to her. His gaze was set worriedly on the dwarf's pale, sleeping face, a small crease between his eyebrows. Arinna sighed deeply, closing her eyes for a few seconds as she dragged her hand across her face tiredly.

"I don't know," she admitted, not knowing what else to say. She looked up to meet the man's gaze. "His fever has not gone down despite the medicine."

Bard gave a short nod, not quite knowing how to comfort her. "Here," he said instead, holding out a cup of hot tea to her. "My daughter Sigrid made it. She thought you could use it."

"Thank you," Arinna smiled, though there was no mirth in her eyes. She gingerly took the cup from his hands and took one sip, slightly burning her tongue, before setting it down in her lap and looking back toward the brunet dwarf. Bard watched her for a few moments before he drew up a nearby chair and sat down beside her, clearing his throat slightly.

"I have been watching you work," he muttered quietly. "You are a skilled healer. I'm sure your friend will recover soon enough. All you can do now is wait for the fever to go down, which I'm sure it will."

Arinna shook her head slightly, though she didn't say anything in return. She didn't share Bard's certainty. There was a silence hanging over them for a while, until Bard continued. "How come you are travelling with these dwarves?"

The druid looked up at him then, knowing that he was just trying to keep her mind occupied and distract her from her worries. Though she could not bring herself to dismiss his question without an answer. "I wanted to see my homeland," she offered quietly. "My ancestors hail from a small village near Dale."

"Then you know the devastation that was brought upon these lands by dragon fire," Bard spoke quietly, and the druid could hear the slight accusation in his voice, though he didn't say anything more. Instead he looked over at Bofur who was telling his youngest daughter one of his many stories, making the girl giggle merrily on the other side of the room. The blond dwarf, Kili's brother, was sat beside him and listening in silence. He looked over at the woman next to him as she took another small sip of tea.

"My ancestors were driven from their homes, just like yours were," Arinna muttered thoughtfully, staring down into her cup before she looked up at the Lakeman who was looking at her with interest. "I joined these dwarves because I felt their goal coincided with mine. But my reasons to travel with them soon changed. I began to believe that they could succeed in their quest, and I wanted them to. I know that… that they can be difficult. And stubborn. But they are loyal and true to their word and I love them like they are my family. And I want them to have their home back."

Bard said nothing in return and once more, a small silence stretched out between them. Arinna's gaze wandered through the room, lingering on Fili before her eyes found the Lakeman again.

"I realise that Thorin's quest is dangerous," Arinna finally said, her voice quiet but earnest as she looked up at him. Bard was listening attentively. "And I cannot argue the points that you made in the square last night. If they wake Smaug, his wrath will be terrible."

"An understatement."

Arinna tilted her head slightly. "Perhaps. But I am also thinking that they do stand a chance to see their quest fulfilled. To reclaim Erebor."

"And its riches," Bard added with a small huff, but Arinna shook her head, her gaze drifting over the unconscious Kili before her, and then over to where Bofur had now enraptured all three of Bard's children with his tales, while Fili sat beside him, still without saying a word. The blond dwarf shortly caught her gaze across the room, before Arinna looked back up at Bard.

"It is not about greed," she stated. "It is about taking back their home. Your ancestors were lords of Dale, surely you know the pain of being driven from your home, living out your life having to take refuge somewhere else."

Bard inclined his head, slightly drawing his mouth askew. Of course, he knew that particular sorrow exactly, but he shook his head anyway. "There are worse lives," he answered.

"True," Arinna agreed quietly, remembering the life she had led in Evendim before she had joined Thorin's quest. It had been a good life but there was always that small voice in her head telling her that something was missing. "But would you not want to give your children the chance to see their homeland, to connect with their heritage? To build their future in a newly prosperous Dale, rather than in this forsaken town?"

Bard remained silent for a few long moments, thinking about the future that awaited his children here. He had thought about it before, knowing the prospects to be slim. All this town offered was petty trade and fish. It was not a future he wished on any of his children.


On the other side of the room, Fili was sat with Bofur, not paying much attention to what the dwarf was saying. He was telling one of his many stories, one that Fili had heard several times before, and though it was mesmerizing to the children, it was not enough to pull his own mind away from his little brother. He was staring over at the spot where Arinna was sat talking with Bard, while Kili slept on. He could only hope that her efforts were paying off, and that Kili would wake soon, healed and regaining his strength. Fili couldn't even bear to think about what would happen if he didn't.

He was angry with his little brother for how recklessly he had concealed the gravity of his wound. He should have known. Kili was always eager to appear as the strong one, invulnerable by petty things that would impede others. He was always ready to prove himself ever since he had been a child. Fili wished that he hadn't tried to appear so strong this time. Perhaps they would have been able to help him sooner then, and he would not be fighting for his life right now.

"Fili."

The blond dwarf jerked out of his thoughts, looking over at Bofur, who was giving him a concerned look. It was only then that Fili realised that his friend must have been trying to get his attention for a few moments already. He looked around in slight confusion, noticing that the three children had dispersed now and were no longer sat around them.

"Is everything alright?" Bofur asked, the concerned frown still placed on his face. Fili gave him a jerky nod, clearing his throat slightly.

"Aye," he said. "Just… lost in thought, is all. Sorry, Bofur."

The hatted dwarf shook his head, following Fili's gaze over to the other side of the room. He let out a deep sigh. "Nothing to apologise for," he uttered. "I'm worried about him, as well. But I'm sure Arinna is doing the best she can."

"I know," the prince answered quietly, trying to reassure himself with the knowledge that Arinna was one of the most capable healers he had ever met.

Bofur was watching him from the side, drawing his mouth askew as he noticed Fili's gaze growing distant again. He was trying to think of a way of getting his mind off his worries for at least a few moments, knowing that it would do the blond dwarf no good to just sit and dwell. There was nothing they could do at the moment but wait for Kili's fever to go down.

"Speaking of," he finally said, loud enough to rip Fili out of his thoughts once more. The blond dwarf looked over at him questioningly and Bofur sent him a small smile. "I was just wondering about that thing that the Master's man mentioned earlier."

"What thing?" Fili asked, not following.

"That you are her husband."

Bofur raised his eyebrows slightly as he noticed Fili falter for a moment, his gaze flicking toward the druid before he cleared his throat and looked back at the hatted dwarf. "Oh, that," Fili muttered, stiffening slightly in his seat. "That's just… I just thought that would make things easier."

"Marrying her would make things easier?" Bofur asked with a suppressed grin.

Fili quickly shook his head, glad for the beard that was covering his flushed cheeks. "No, pretending to be married."

When Bofur just raised his eyebrows in question, Fili continued with a sigh, trying to sound as nonchalant as he could. "We arrived here in the middle of the night, dirty and alone. The guards were already suspicious of us from the start because of your escape from Mirkwood, so I said that we were husband and wife, travelling to visit relations in the Iron Hills. It just made it easier to avoid unwanted questions."

"I see," Bofur muttered, nodding his head slightly as he looked from Fili to Arinna. "And they believed you?"

"Yes, of course they did," Fili answered with a slightly confused frown. "Why wouldn't they?"

Bofur gave a small shrug, giving the blond prince beside him an earnest look. "Well, I don't know. I suppose your side of the story seems plausible enough. But I think everyone would see that she could do much better."

Fili rolled his eyes as Bofur ended with a grin, which turned into a merry laugh as he saw the blond dwarf's disgruntled expression. Fili reached out and pushed him by the shoulder, almost knocking Bofur out of his chair, though he just continued to giggle to himself. The prince shook his head, muttering to himself as he got up.

"You might have a point there, my friend," he said, not bothering to look at Bofur before he walked over to where the druid was still sitting with Bard.

The Lakeman had been about to say something else to the druid when he caught sight of the blond dwarf slowly making his way over to them. He cleared his throat and got up as the dwarf arrived at their side, quickly excusing himself to go over to clean up a few things in the kitchen.

Fili watched the man go, before he took his seat, his gaze drifting over his little brother's sleeping form. His hand unconsciously reached for Arinna's, his thumb tracing slowly over the back of it. She hardly even glanced over at him, her eyes roaming over his brother's leg.

"What were you talking about?"

Arinna looked up at the blond dwarf at his question, giving him a slight shrug as she glanced over at Bard for a moment. "The possible consequences of this quest," she muttered. "Good or bad."

"He really is a naysayer," Fili uttered gruffly but Arinna shook her head in response, sending him a thoughtful look.

"He's afraid that the company will wake the dragon and bring its wrath down upon this town," she said, causing Fili to incline his head slightly. "And while I do believe that they will succeed, I understand his fear. This is his home, their home. His children are here. Would you not be afraid for your loved ones if faced with such a situation?"

Fili let out a small sigh, tilting his head in acceptance of her words. "Aye, you're right," he answered, giving her hand a small squeeze. "I know he is a good man. He didn't have to help us after everything that's happened, but he did."

Arinna nodded and they remained silent for a few moments, the late afternoon letting in red sunlight through the small windows of the house. Fili watched as the druid got up eventually, drawing her hand away from his touch to take the damp cloth from Kili's forehead. She dunked it into the bowl of cool water beside her, wringing it several times before she put it back on Kili's head, her fingers tracing over his hot cheeks before she retrieved her hands completely.

"How is he doing?" Fili asked quietly as she kept standing beside the brunet dwarf, her gaze wandering over his pale, sweaty face. Worry pulled at his heart as she seemed to hesitate with her answer.

"I need to do more," she murmured finally, her voice tense, and Fili looked up at her with a tired sigh. "His fever should have gone down by now. Instead it seems only to have worsened."

"Perhaps the medicine needs more time to take hold?" Fili suggested, though his words didn't even convince himself. He could tell by the look of him that Kili was doing worse than just a few hours ago. His thoughts were confirmed when Kili, still unconscious, let out a low painful groan. "What else can you do?"

Arinna was chewing her lower lip anxiously as she watched the brunet dwarf writhe in his sleep, feeling an awful certainty settle in her heart as she gazed down at her injured friend. She had to do something, or else Kili's infection would worsen. And Arinna did not want to accept the thought of what would happen then. She thought of what the druid elders in her colony would do in such a case, realising finally that it could be no ordinary poison that was wrecking Kili's body. And against such things, no ordinary medicine would be able to help.

"Bard!" She suddenly called, the volume of her voice carrying through the small rooms and causing not only the Lakeman but also his children and Bofur to look over at her in surprise. The druid glanced down at Kili once more, before she moved forward and made a few steps toward Bard. "Do you have any Athelas?"

"Athelas?" Bard repeated, his hand reaching for the small bags of herbs he kept in the kitchen, though he was frowning at the dark-haired woman. "I don't know. What is it?"

"Kingsfoil," Arinna said, remembering the common name for it. Bard's eyebrows drew together in even more confusion.

"Kingsfoil," he muttered, shaking his head. "I don't have any. It's a weed, we feed it to the pigs."

Arinna's face fell at the same time that another pained groan fell from Kili's lips as his eyes fluttered slightly, though he did not wake up. The others were staring at the bed, taking in his worsened condition, when Bofur suddenly jumped up from his seat.

"Weed," he was muttering to himself, nodding several times in a row before he looked up at Arinna and Fili. "Pigs. Alright. Pigs. I'll get it, you stay here and look after him!"

He was running toward the door before anyone could say anything, and Arinna barely managed to call after him before he had vanished from their sight. "White flowers! Look for white flowers!"