Happy last of September, have a new chapter! Thanks very much to purple-pygmy-puff16, ValarenOfGondor, blasttyrant and Beatrice3 for your reviews. I really loved reading them, short and long! Let me know your thoughts on this one.


They had been walking for several hours, the midday sun shining high above their heads as they made their way along the lake's edge. Fili was now at the head of the group, keeping a steady pace as the others followed behind him. Kili was walking along with Bofur by his side, occasionally talking quietly with the hatted dwarf, while Arinna was making up the tail of the group. She hadn't spoken at all since they had departed in the morning, keeping her gaze to the ground as she walked along.

She was still angry that they had just left the people of Laketown, and especially Bard's children, to fend for themselves. Of course, she understood that the others wanted to join up with the rest of their company, she did, too, – if they were even still alive, that was, though she didn't want to linger on that thought –, but leaving them just did not sit right with her.

"Don't be too angry with him."

The druid looked up at the sound of the voice, finding that Kili had fallen back slightly and had come to walk beside her. The brunet dwarf shot her a sympathetic look as she pressed her lips together shortly.

"What do you mean?"

Kili merely looked at her knowingly. "It can't have been an easy choice for him," he muttered, shooting a small glance toward Fili, who was still walking alone at the head of the group. "You must know that he cares for the safety of those children, just as much as the rest of us. It's just that we have our own family to worry about."

"You say that as though it justifies leaving them stranded on the shore."

Kili let out a small sigh, rubbing one hand over his stubbly cheeks. "Of course, not… I just don't want you to think badly of Fili for it."

"I appreciate that you want to defend him, Kili," Arinna uttered, looking over at the brunet dwarf with a suppressed sigh. "But it's not as though I was the only one disagreeing with him. You weren't very keen on his plan either, if I remember correctly."

"No, but –"

Arinna continued as Kili tried to search for the right words to say. "I just don't understand how he could come away from everything that happened last night without even giving them a second thought."

Kili wasn't sure what to say to that, and so he just let out another sigh, continuing to walk with her in silence. They kept going for another few hours, until they had made it to the other side of the lake, the distant mountain now looming tall before them. Arinna's gaze had by now begun to drift more frequently to the blond dwarf who was leading the way. Not because she felt in any way inclined to talk to him, but she could tell even from this distance that he had been struggling with his arm for a while. It must have hurt ever since they left, but walking for this long with an untreated injury after no doubt being exhausted as it was, would not have helped the situation at all.

"Fili!" Kili called out then, him and Bofur stopping in their tracks in the shade of a few trees scattered along the far edge of the lake, making Arinna stop as well as she came to a halt beside them. The blond dwarf looked back over his shoulder. "Let's make camp here for today. I can't make it much further with my leg, and no doubt your arm could use a break as well."

"I'm fine," Fili replied stubbornly, though he turned around to them with a sigh. Kili just shot his brother a pointed look.

"Alright then," he uttered, pointing to himself and the other two. "You're fine. But we're all tired. So, let's rest for a while, brother."

Fili just nodded in return, and they gathered together in the shelter of the few trees. They had nothing to make camp. No bedrolls, no blankets, no food. It wasn't long before the cold began to penetrate their clothes as they were sat around in a small circle. While Arinna and Fili both remained silent, Kili exchanged a small look with Bofur, who just gave him a nod. The brunet dwarf got up then, closely followed by Bofur.

"We should at least get a fire going," he uttered seriously, as the druid and his brother looked up at him in slight surprise. Arinna just nodded tiredly, while Fili made to stand up. Kili quickly shook his head at his brother. "Bofur and I will go. You need to keep your arm still, nadad. We'll be back in a bit."

Arinna watched the two dwarves retreat into the thicket, letting out a small sigh as they disappeared from her sight. She would be more than glad for a warming fire, she thought, as a small shiver ran through her. She glanced over at Fili, who was leaning heavily against the trunk of a tree behind him, holding his left arm close to his body with his other. His eyes were distant, staring out onto the outlines of the lake. The druid remained quiet for another few moments, just staring at the blond dwarf until he turned his head slightly, as though he had felt her gaze on him. They looked at each other silently for a moment, Fili's blue eyes searching her own, until she finally spoke up.

"Will you let me take a look at your arm?" she asked in a low voice, finally addressing the worried knot that had been twisting in her stomach since the morning.

Fili tilted his head slightly, his eyes not leaving hers. Arinna couldn't quite decipher the thoughts behind his pale blue gaze. "I didn't think you'd want to."

"Why wouldn't I?"

"You've been avoiding me all day," Fili stated, though his voice remained calm, as did the expression on his face. Arinna let out another sigh.

"Because I was angry with you," she uttered. "That doesn't mean that I want you to suffer in silence."

"I'm fine."

The druid barely refrained from rolling her eyes, instead giving him a pointed look. "Fili."

"You could have offered your help sooner," he said quietly, though he nodded for her to come closer at the same time. Arinna got to her feet and made her way over to him, giving the dwarf another weary look as she kneeled down at his side.

"You could have asked," she pointed out, causing Fili to tilt his head once more, this time in agreement. He hummed quietly as she made to open the clasps of his coat.

"The stubbornness of dwarves," he muttered, drawing an unwilling smile from the druid despite herself. He groaned quietly as Arinna helped him out of his coat, removing his garments one layer at a time until he was sat in his undershirt and she could get a good look at his arm. His shoulder was swollen and covered in a large bruise, and Fili hissed as Arinna prodded it lightly with her fingertips.

"It's dislocated," she concluded, shooting him a small look as she grabbed hold of his arm and angled it slightly. Fili was watching her with a clenched jaw. "This is going to hurt."

Fili just nodded, bracing himself and still crying out in pain as the druid popped his shoulder back into place in one swift move. Arinna laid her hand on it as he let out a shuddering breath. "Sorry," she muttered, but the dwarf just shook his head at her, taking a few deep breaths. His shoulder was throbbing but feeling better already than it had all day.

"Thank you," he uttered quietly, looking at her earnestly as she sat back on her heels.

"I don't have anything to fashion you a proper sling," she replied, a small frown creasing her forehead. "You'll have to keep it as rested as you can. Don't make any sudden movements with it, no lifting anything heavy with it, no –"

"I get the gist," Fili nodded, giving her a small smile as she fell silent. She gave him a jerky nod, remaining sat on her heels, seemingly not quite knowing what to do with herself. Fili sighed quietly, his smile fading as he searched her face. "I know it was difficult for you to leave today."

Arinna twisted her hands in her lap, shaking her head slightly at his words. "It didn't seem like you understood."

"I do," he assured her with another sigh, sitting up slightly against the tree behind him while Arinna twisted in her position, sitting down on the ground with her legs folded beside her. He reached out tentatively, putting his hand over hers in her lap. She didn't pull away this time. "Of course, I understand. It was difficult for me, too. For all of us. But there was nothing left for us to do –"

"You mean after waking the dragon that destroyed their home and killed their father."

Fili's gaze dropped to the ground for a moment at the bitterness of her words, feeling guilt bubbling in his stomach. He thought for a moment, knowing that her words were harsh but nonetheless true. He still wasn't sure whether leaving Bard's children had been the right decision, though he had spent the day trying to convince himself of it.

"We could not have known what would happen. Thorin –"

Arinna shook her head, interrupting him once more as she pulled her hands from his grasp. "This quest was always going to end in death, Fili. We were just too blind. You cannot… you cannot steal from a live dragon and expect it to go smoothly. Thorin took that risk, we all took that risk, ignoring the fact that our decision could destroy the lives of hundreds, even when Bard warned us. Even when we knew of the prophecy."

"You said yourself that prophecies are fickle things," Fili answered slowly, unsure of how to respond. He could see in her face the guilt that she felt, for he felt much the same way. "How were we to know that this one would come true?"

"We should have known," Arinna whispered, wiping at the tears that had gathered in her eyes and were threatening to fall down her cheeks. The sight sent a sharp sting through the dwarf's heart. "We should have known, Fili."

Fili reached for her once more, grasping her arm tightly when she tried to evade his touch again. She didn't struggle as he pulled her closer, sinking into herself as she dropped her head. The blond dwarf reached up to wipe at her cheeks, before he gently grasped her chin between his fingers, forcing her to look at him as he spoke.

"Arinna, listen to me. What happened last night was terrible, and yes, it was our company that woke the dragon. That is a mistake that can never be rectified. But we cannot change that now. We can't change what happened. All we can do now is to try and make amends. We go to the mountain, we find Thorin. He will make good on his promise to the townspeople and they will be able to rebuild their homes. Bain, Sigrid and Tilda will be able to rebuild their home, that's what we can do for them."

Arinna sniffled quietly, shaking her head as she spoke in a small voice. "It's not enough."

Fili let out a deep sigh, his heart heavy as he took in her sad, helpless expression. "I know," he muttered honestly. "But it's all we can do."

Arinna said nothing as Fili gently ran his thumb across her jaw, her eyes still watery when the noise of Kili and Bofur coming back to camp broke through the silence. Arinna pulled away from Fili's touch, though she stayed sitting beside him as the two dwarves arrived in their midst, wiping at her eyes one last time.

"Everything alright?" Kili asked as he put down some dry wood on the ground in their midst, noticing the druid's reddened eyes. She gave him a tiny smile, nodding her head to appease the worried look on his face. The brunet dwarf watched her for another moment before he gave a small nod, and while he and Bofur continued to set up the fire, Fili put his discarded clothes back on, fastening the clasps on his coat just as the fire sprang to life.

The sky had grown dark by now and the fire radiated a comforting light in the darkness, giving off warmth that they all needed. They had gathered closely around it, Arinna and Fili still sitting together, though they had both fallen silent once more, while Bofur and Kili sat on opposite sides of the fire. They spoke little all evening, all of them still reeling from the events of the previous night and day.

That was, until Bofur, who had been fidgeting with something in his pocket for almost an hour now, finally cleared his throat rather loudly, causing the others to look at him with raised eyebrows. He smiled, directing his gaze toward Fili, who was giving him a questioning look.

"Here," the hatted dwarf said, pulling the two objects out of his pocket and throwing them to the prince, who caught them mid-air with his good arm. Bofur watched as Fili opened his palm, his smile widening into a grin while Fili's expression turned from surprise to utter confusion.

"Courting beads?" Fili uttered, his eyes wide and not understanding as he stared at Bofur across the fire.

The hatted dwarf nodded. "Aye," he answered, his gaze falling on Arinna, who looked at the small silver beads in Fili's hands and then at Bofur, as well. "I think you have much better use for them than I do."

A silence hung over the camp as Fili stared at the small silver clasps in his hand for a few long moments, before he turned his gaze to the druid beside him. She returned his gaze with a surprised one of her own, though her features were soft, her expression calm. Fili let out a heavy breath as he looked at her, feeling his still heavy heart give a slight flutter.

"If she'll still have me, that is," he muttered quietly, staring at Arinna expectantly while the others stayed quiet. The druid couldn't help but smile slightly, nodding her head at him.

"Of course, I will," she replied softly, knowing that although she was still unsure what to make of their argument, one thing couldn't be changed. "I love you, Fili."

Fili returned her smile softly, his fingers closing over the beads, before he braved to lean forward and press a small kiss to the druid's lips. "I love you, too," he murmured against them as he pulled back, his heart feeling a little lighter in his chest all of a sudden.

"Oh, go on then!" Kili called, a big smile plastered on his face, as he gave his brother an encouraging look. Fili cleared his throat slightly, unsure of what to do. He really wanted to put his braid in Arinna's hair, did not want to hesitate any longer, but –

"I should really talk to Thorin first," he said, though his voice lacked any of its previous conviction when he uttered the thought this time. He had been certain that talking to Thorin was the right thing to do when he had explained as much to Arinna in Laketown. But that had been before they had all almost died in the dragon's firestorm and he had come close to missing his chance with her completely.

Kili rolled his eyes at his brother's words, while Bofur just snorted.

"I'm sure he'll understand, lad," the hatted dwarf exclaimed with a wave of his hand. "Besides, we could all do with a bit of happiness right about now. And you two have been dancing around each other for months, Kili and I deserve this. We need closure."

"Closure," Arinna repeated with a small shake of her head and a smile. Bofur just gave her an emphatic nod. She exchanged another look with Fili who was smiling to himself, and he just gave her a small nod. He positioned himself beside her then, and she sat still as he brought up both his hands to her hair.

"I told you not to use your arm too much," she uttered as he carefully and expertly plaited together strands of her hair behind her left ear. She could hear the smile in his voice as he answered her quietly.

"This is worth it."

Despite the painful throbbing in his arm, Fili finished his braid within minutes, proudly finishing it off with one of the silver courting beads. Arinna's efforts took a little longer, as she was rather out of practice with braiding another person's hair. She plaited together Fili's blond strands while Bofur and Kili encouraged her along the way, the blond dwarf himself just sitting in silence as he let her work with a smile on his face. Arinna gave her finished work a small tug after she had fastened the second bead around the end of the braid. Fili looked up at her with a raised eyebrow and the druid laughed quietly at the pointed look on his face, reminding her of what he had told her about such actions.

The druid smiled and leaned in for a kiss, which Fili was happy to return. They broke apart with slightly red faces as their two companions began to fill the camp with claps and laughter. Arinna leaned her head against Fili's uninjured shoulder after they had calmed down again and the group had fallen into a comfortable silence.

"So, Bofur," Kili finally said with a raised eyebrow. "Are you going to tell us why you've been carrying courting beads around with you all this time?"

A wistful smile played on Bofur's face as he shook his head slightly. He thought for a moment about the dwarrowdam that he had meant to give the beads to. How he had carried them with him to the tavern that she worked at in the Ered Luin on the day of his departure for the quest, and how he had chickened out when he had seen her through the window, thinking that he would just wait a bit longer. That perhaps he would be more worthy of her when he returned home a hero, after they had succeeded in taking back Erebor. But he said nothing of that out loud.

Instead, the hatted dwarf just grinned at Kili and shrugged, taking a moment before he spoke. "Ye never know when a lovely lady might cross your path, do ye?"

"Indeed not," Fili agreed with a rumbling laugh, entwining his fingers with the druid's as he shook his head to himself.