Hey guys! So, this chapter might be a bit shorter than the rest, so i'm sorry! i have uploaded it earlier because i am going on holiday and may not have any WiFi :'( *sob* (cue dramatic music). Anyway, please, please, PLEASE review, as i want to know what my fellow authors think of the 'Powers' and tell me what you think should happen next! XD Enjoy! :P

Chapter 4

"When Thorin was a boy," Kili began, staring into the forest, "his father – Thrain II – went away for a while, on what he said was 'business'. He was gone for months on end; his only way of communication was to send a foot soldier with a message. When he was away, he missed his wife so much that words couldn't describe it, that one day he met a woman who reminded him of his wife in so many ways. He ended up having an affair with her." Kili paused, his eyes trained on the forest ahead, and you could tell he was thinking deeply. "After, he realised what he had done was wrong, he broke it off, and she ran away. About a year later, her body was found. She was… uh…" He struggled to say something, and his eyes were darting everywhere.

"Well?" I asked. "She was what? Come on, tell me!"

Kili sighed. "She was dead." He said quietly.

My eyes welled up with tears, and I struggled to swallow the lump in my throat. I never knew her, but nevertheless, she was still my mother. I think. "How?" I whispered my voice croaky with grief.

He looked at me for the first time, and I noticed that he really didn't want to be telling me this. "You should ask Thorin." He said.

I shut my eyes, and a tear slipped out. I brushed it away quickly. "Please." I begged. I needed to know the truth, and I didn't want any more secrets or lies.

Kili sighed again and shook his head. His long hair flung around his shoulders. "The doctor thinks it was a goblin attack. He said she was either pregnant, or had just had a child. There was a knife to her chest and heart." He looked down, and we sat in silence for a minute or two.

"Oh." I finally replied, as any more would have had me in tears. After a few minutes, I felt calmer, so I decided to ask a few things.

"When did Thorin found out?" I asked.

He scrunched up his eyes, as if he was trying to remember. "I think it was a couple of years was having a conversation with his – your – father, and it slipped out. At least that's what he said, but it might have been different. He sighed and I suddenly realised I hadn't asked one important question.

"Who are you?" I asked "And why did Thorin send you to speak to me?"

He raised his eyebrows at me, and the corner of his mouth tilted upwards a bit in a half-smile. "I am Kili, son of Dîs, nephew of Thorin. And to be honest, I don't know why he sent me. Maybe it was because he was afraid that you might have one of your wolves bite his head off." I laughed quietly, and looked at Hunter and Bandit lazing around on the floor.

"They only do that if I asked them to." I said. "Have I met him before?" I asked. When he raised his eyebrows, I quickly carried on. "When I saw him, I felt like I had seen him before, but I don't know where from. Maybe it was just an instinct."

"I don't know. Maybe you should ask him yourself." Kili said, standing up. He held out his hand to help me up, but I shook my head.

"I think I will stay here for I while," I told him. "You know, let myself cool off a bit." I looked down, nervously, and could feel the blood rushing to my cheeks for no reason whatsoever. Well, at least no reason I could think of. I felt funny. Like I had ten songbirds dashing round like lunatics in my stomach. Kili smiled (he has a really nice smile), and turned back towards the dark forest, taking long strides until he disappeared completely from my view into the darkness and cover of the trees.

I don't know how long I sat there. For all I know, it could have been one hour or one minute. I had a lot of thing – questions – on my mind right now. Who was the man I had grown up calling Papa? And why didn't I know sooner? But the biggest questions of all are: How do I feel about this? and will this change who I am?

Luckily, I knew how to take my mind off the billion (okay, maybe more like four…) questions that were whirling around in my head right now. Checking to make sure I was alone, close my eyes and concentrated on my breathing. Once it was calm and even, I summoned blackness away from the spot near my heart, where my powers were held. Being now in control, I concentrated on my senses. The feel of the hot, energetic flames licking around my body, the smell of the burning fire, the sight of the fiery red and golden flames swirling and leaping in a deadly but breath-taking dance, and the sound of the crackling and flicking flames as the dance up and down. I clicked my finger and a single flame appeared on the tip of my index finger. I stared at it in wonder. I had done this when I was a young girl, but as soon as Papa discovered my 'talents' he banned me from doing it, and seeing the pure terror in his eyes, I had obeyed. Even when I had fought creatures worse than the ones that lurked in the corners of your mind, I could not bring myself to do it. But now, I felt as though fire was my only friend. Of course, it wasn't only fire I could control. It was all the elements. Air, Water, Earth and Fire were all at my command.

I let the fire spread to my hand and felt it tickle my skin. It didn't hurt me – it wouldn't dare. I had no idea how or why I had this, but sometimes it felt like a curse. After a minute of letting it burn within me, I felt the coldness inside me turn to warmth, and let the fire die down until it was only a small flame. Then it vanished, and I let it return to the place by my heart, and covered it with the blackness to make sure it stayed hidden. I knew full well what it could do if I let it roam free inside me.

Standing up, I banished the last of the warmth from me, and realised that Hunter and Bandit had disappeared suddenly. It didn't bother me; they were always doing that, but I felt safer when they were by me.

It took me 20 minutes to walk back to the dwarves' camp. In all my anger, I hadn't realised how far away I had gone. As I walked into the clearing, I wiped my eyes on the back of my hand, to get rid of the last tears I had so freely wept. Gandalf was talking to some dwarves as I walked back in, probably something along the lines of 'don't stare at her when she comes', because, sure enough, as soon as I came closer, they all looked away, and I couldn't help smiling to myself. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad here after all…