Ana was completely sure that there was a reason she had never interacted with royalty before. Because in the course of the morning, she had managed to almost kill the prince and cause an uproar in a crowd – before lunch.

It had all started with the staircase of doom. The mountain was painfully silent, and their footsteps echoed eerily across the stone walls around them. He made comments here and there, but she had stayed quiet besides the occasional oh yeah or mmhmm. He was in the middle of a comment about the embroidery on the walls when he abruptly cut off with a loud yell, making her turn to him with wide eyes.

But the prince was no longer standing in front of her, instead he was tumbling down the massive staircase with his cloak smashed onto his face for what she assumed was protection. Pausing for just a second out of shock, she then hiked up her skirt and quickly descended the stairs to where he had – thankfully – stopped around halfway down.

"Are you alright?" she hastily asked, squatting down on the steps to where he was lying. He was somehow on his back, but he was still pinning his cloak painfully on his head. With no response, her heart quickened. "Kili?" No response. Mahal, I just killed the prince. She could feel a panic attack coming.

But then he started to shake, and after a halfway breath of relief in the fact that he was alive, she began to think of all the ways King Thorin could possibly banish her for injuring his nephew. She'd be forced to run and get a guard to tend to the prince, the king would question her, and by the time he was through yelling at her her possessions would be packed up and waiting for her at the stables. She wouldn't even have a chance to say goodbye to her family. Mahal, Prince Kili really did screw up her life, and she'd known him for a week.

Her hand hovered over his face for a second before she murmured, "I'm going to go grab some one." She was able to take one step before she heard her name.

"Ana," he said, the cloak now on his stomach, revealing his face.

Which was scrunched up in contained laughter.

Her face dropped – she could feel it fall. Eyes hard and fists clenched, she stomped back down to him. "What were you thinking?" she quietly screeched at him. "I thought you were in some sort of shock or something! I thought...I thought that I'd be banished because you were injured and all because you wanted to take me out to Dale! Do you know what that would've meant?! I'd never step foot in Erebor again. I'd never – "

She stopped as she looked down at him. If anything, he began to laugh harder, his hands coming back to cover his face and muffle his chuckles. After staring at him as coldly as possible, she began to crack. It started with the twitching of her lips, a sigh, and then a smile. And there he was, practically rolling in laughter on the floor beneath her, which made her heavy heart lighten and the thick air clear.

A wide grin on her face, she told him, "You imbecile, I can't believe you fell down the stairs. That's something a child would do."

Getting a grip on himself, he lifted his torso, now sitting. "It's quite a common occurrence, Miss Ana. No need to hate me for it."

She rolled her eyes, still mildly chuckling at the accident. As he picked himself up, she said, "I thought you were unconscious or something. You know, I heard that you can die from the stairs. Some one back home told me that."

"Psh," Kili waved her off as they – carefully – continued down the stairs. "Even if that was true, it'll take a bit more than stairs to take me down. I like to think that I'd go in an epic battle alongside my brother or something of the sorts. Something majestic, you know?"

"Didn't that almost happen?" she asked cautiously.

"If you're talking about the incident with Azog, trust me when I say it's nothing to bother your innocent little mind about. It wasn't a big deal."

She stopped in her tracks. Right in the middle of the hall, jaw practically on the floor. He paused mid-step and looked back at her. "What?"

"Not a big deal? Are you kidding me?!" she exclaimed, placing a hand over her mouth when she remembered how early it was.

Kili rolled his eyes. "Don't let the tales convince you of a crazy, fight-to-the death battle, Ana. At least it wasn't for me."

He was joking. He had to be. All the stories, all the ceremonies, all the scars that he and his family held...he was lying to her. She shook her head. "I don't believe you. Kili, I've heard the stories from my brothers and they wouldn't lie to me."

"Come on," he grabbed her arm, roughly, and pulled her along; it seemed that he had yet to grasp the idea of gentle. "That's another story for another time." She didn't fail to notice the fact that his voice had grown fiercer in their short battle conversation; and from that she knew that his lie wasn't all that true.

"Promise?" she surprised herself by voicing her hesitant thought.

"Yeah," he smiled back at her, "Of course."

The stables were empty, obviously. They quickly loaded their horses – he with Ogri and her with Kvinn – and set out on the road to Dale. Before they left, Ogri knocked her on the ground when she tried to steal Kili away for a moment to assist with her saddle. The blasted beast was highly overprotective of his owner, even when he was clearly in no harm's way. But after a quick yell at the horse he quieted down and Kili, once again, was at her aide.

"You all right there?"

"Yes, I'm fine," she told him, brushing off her dress. "Just a bit dirty, but that's nothing new."

"Well, if it makes any difference at all, I think you're great even with the dirt," he said as he jumped onto Ogri's back. "It makes you much more...grounded."

She really couldn't help herself. After she heard his words, she burst out laughing, not bothering to keep her voice down in the desolate stables.

The prince gave her an innocent look. "What?" he asked for the second time that day.

"Grounded?" she asked. "What does that even mean? That I'm close to the ground?"

Kili hung his head with sigh. "No, Ana. Not at all."

"Then what?" she pushed.

"Just..." his eyes searched the room, looking for answers. "You're much more real when you're in here, dirt and all, you know? I'm not trusted with nice looking things, I tend to break them to be honest with you. I feel better knowing that you're not all polished."

Ana stared at him, one brow raised. She exhaled and said, "I'm sorry, but I'm not following in the slightest."

He nodded to the stable gate at the end of the wing. "Just know that it's a compliment. I'll only insult you if you understand it."

"Oh, thank you for your consideration, your majesty."

"I thought we were past all that 'your highness' nonsense?"

"Well..." her mind embarrassingly died on the spot, and her cheeks burned in shame. "I'm sorry, I have nothing."

He gave a loud chuckle, the light sound lost into the wide landscape that they had just entered. Dawn was just approaching, the orange and pink sun just a sliver at the edge of the horizon, the moon still visible in the sky. Instinctively, she looked behind and around her, just to reassure herself that nothing was there.

She ushered Kvinn to walk just the slightest bit closer to Ogri. "Didn't you say that there would be guards coming with us?"

"Don't worry, Miss Ana, you're safe with me. I promised you." He quickly ushered her unvoiced fear away. She looked over to him, and for the first time she noticed the sword that was attached to his hip. She wondered how it didn't hurt him when he took his tumble down the stairs.

"I'm not doubting you," she reassured him. "I was just wondering."

"I told my uncle, and he wanted two to accompany us for the whole journey, but I convinced him to have them meet us before dark before we head back to the mountain," Kili said.

"The great king is allowing his prince into a city full of humans alone?" she gently teased with a smile.

He shook his head, his dark hair swinging at his shoulders, a grin appearing on his lips. "I'm quite persuasive when I choose to be, Miss Ana."

They continued to lightly talk until they reached the outskirts of Dale, the repopulated city towering in front of her in the early light. It took them less than an hour to leave Erebor and travel under the arch that marks Dale, and the sun was now mostly visible in the sky, but blocked out by passing clouds. A light grey atmosphere greeted the two as they tied their horses and began to walk through the city absentmindedly. Humans were just starting to awaken and tend to their daily business, and it surprised her that they didn't draw much attention to themselves.

She stepped closed to the prince, shoulders not far from touching. "Do many dwarves visit Dale often?"

He nodded. "Constantly. It's not an uncommon sight to see us running around the streets." Looking down at her, he offered a knowing smile and quickly placed his hand on her back for a moment. "Like I said before, you're safe with me. No reason to be on edge."

"What exactly will we be doing?" She kept speaking to him, trying to stop her mind from noticing the eyes that she knew were plastered to her, and Kili, as they approached the market.

She could feel him shrug. "Whatever interests you, and me for that manner. I haven't been here since my uncle took Fili and I a few weeks back, so I'm sure I could scrape up something to do."

"Do you visit often?"

"I like to, yes. We visit Bard whenever it's possible. Hospitality and friendship and all that, you know."

"Who's Bard?"

"The Lord of Dale. He helped us in reclaiming Erebor, in the long run, I guess. Much better relationship now rather than years ago, though. He's an alright fellow. Got a couple of kids to look after, too."

Ana nodded, but stayed silent. They were in the market now; and apparently so was everybody else. Most must have lived on the other side of town, because where they had come in only a few were out in the streets. Her head rotated around, taking in everybody. It had been almost a year since her last visit, and it seemed that she had forgotten just how big the humans were.

Kili seemed to have read her mind. "The market here gets busy early; traders and such, but they're all to busy to pay attention to anything but their business. Was there anywhere you wanted to look? We've all day."

"Um..." she was at a loss for words. When she came with her family, it was only for a short amount of time and for a specific reason. She was never able to go and explore for herself, not that she really wanted to, anyways.

"Or we can just walk for a bit. Stop when we like," Kili offered instead.

"That's fine," she responded, thankful for the fact that he was much more confident in his actions than she was at the moment.

They had barely walked for a minute before Kili caught sight of a trinket stall and dragged her in with him. There were a few children looking about and a woman with, presumably, her elder mother. It shocked her that this was the first place he wanted to look.

"Did you see something in here?" she asked him as he lead her to a shelf of older, handmade objects.

He had picked up a small wooden carving of a boat when he answered, "I've passed this place countless times and have never come in. It's always looked interesting, so why not?"

He had a point, even if it was a small one. She left his side, seeing no danger in doing so, and gave her attention to a pile of knitted scarves and gloves. As she felt the soft, colorful fabric, she could tell that they had been handcrafted by skilled hands. She had never learned to sew and knit, it was something that her mother tried to teach her, but was awfully unsuccessful. Stala took up that job in the family, along with most everything else.

"So tell me about the exquisite life of Ana Hillins," he said to her. The prince was pointlessly grabbing at things, tossing them from hand to hand with a carefree expression. "You said you have four siblings, right?"

"Yes," she told him. "All older than me, too. So I will forever be looked at as 'the baby' – even when I'm old and grey. My brothers practically had heart attacks when they found out I was going to Dale without them."

"Don't tell me that I have three angry dwarves that want me dead waiting for me when we get back," he said grimly.

She thought for a moment. "Dead is a strong word. I'd say more like...slightly maimed. Even if you are a prince."

He laughed at her. "Well that makes me feel much better. Just another target on my back."

"You sound as if you have before."

She realized her idiocy a moment after she spoke, and she would have slapped herself if she were alone. Her cheeks were red as she hung her head, fumbling out words to cover her tracks. "I mean...you've obviously had...things wanting you – well, dead – but I'm talking about other dwarves wanting to...impale you, or something like that. I think."

He simply shook his head, his famous smirk plastered on his face. "I think I like you, Miss Ana. Even with your ramblings."

She was focused on a necklace that she had found – a silver chain with small wooden pendant at the end. The carving was of a sliver of a moon and part of a sun; two things that don't belong, but are still needed for the greater good of things. She was drawn to the piece of jewelry, even though she was in no place to want or need it.

Kili must have noticed her distraction. "What is it?"

"Oh, nothing," she lifted her hand from the wood and lifted her head to him. "Just a necklace. Are you ready to leave?"

He gave her a momentary strange look before agreeing. "Sure. There's plenty more to see around here. And most of the day, too."

They left the small stall, Kili offering a nod to the man sitting on a stool at the entrance. Out in the street, humans, and she even saw a handful of dwarves, were busy moving from stall to stall, talking, walking, moving, and everything else they could do. She didn't notice it at first, but it became more and more evident that the humans were acknowledging her and Kili with polite smiles and nods. Scratch that, they were greeting the prince, not the girl next to him.

"I didn't realize so many people knew who you were," she quietly said to him as they began to walk down the main street.

"Trust me when I say it gets much worse when my uncle and brother are with me."

"I don't see how you can stand it," she murmured, keeping her head down.

Kili shrugged. "You get used to it, I guess. They're just looking, no harm in that."

"What about the talking?" she asked, hearing the faint mumblings as they passed by.

When he didn't answer right away, like his normal fashion, she looked up at him. He was staring ahead at two young women as they approached them. Before they were in front of her and Kili, Ana practically squeaked, "Do they normally come up to you?" She took a step towards the prince, their arms touching.

"Only a certain crowd does," he whispered back.

The two women, now a few feet away, quickly curtseyed before one spoke to Kili. "Good morning, Prince Kili." The other one smiled in agreement. "My friends and I were wondering what brings you to Dale? And without your kin?"

The woman was extremely straightforward, and when she caught Ana's eye at the end of her sentence, the dwarrowdam looked at her feet and angled herself slightly behind the prince. She was beyond humiliated; she was mortified at the confrontation. She knew why they were coming up to him, but she was too embarrassed to even admit it to herself.

"Just an outing, miss," Kili said to her, not giving her the answer he knew she wanted.

The other one intervened, "But we've never see you here without your king. And never with this dwarf."

Did humans have no respect in the slightest? This was a prince for Mahal's sake. And even if he wasn't, why ask that. If Ana had a distaste for humans before, this just added to it. These women were awful, even more so than some dwarrowdams back in the mountain.

"Just an outing, like I said before," he spoke again with a polite smile.

"Who are you, miss?" the first one spoke. And it took Ana a moment to realize that she was speaking to her, not Kili.

She didn't have a chance to answer, though. The prince spoke for her. "I don't think that matters. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have business to attend to."

Kili, for the second time, placed a hand on her back and began to hastily lead her past the two women. As she passed, she offered them a slight nod of head, but continued to move her legs fast enough to keep up with the prince. She also noticed that beyond the women were a clump of five or six more, now speaking in quiet whispers and hand gestures. Ana inwardly groaned.

They walked up the main street and turned a corner before Kili let her go. Stopping at the side of a structure, he said, "Sorry about that, it normally doesn't happen that often. Are you all right?"

Ana nodded. "I didn't mean to cause any trouble," she admitted to him.

He shocked her by laughing. "You didn't do anything, Ana. But I will say that it will be quite some time before you'll be able to forget about this trip. Word spreads quickly, and I'm afraid that we just started a nice little rumor about ourselves."

She let out a sigh, knowing that his words were true. She should have known that this would happen – he was royalty after all. But that didn't stop her from feeling the dread that crept up her spine.

She'd have quite the story to tell – and explain – once she was back home.

Hey guys! Sorry for the slight delay on getting this out. BUT IT'S HERE. So they're in Dale now. This is the first part of the chapter, part two will be out probably around next Friday. I'd like to do updates on Fridays or Saturdays, whichever works! Lemme know what you think, what you want to happen, and anything else. I WANT TO KNOW!

xoxo GD