Sorry about the lack of update last week guys! Hope to keep it as regular as possible but hiccups are just in the nature of the game ;) Hope you enjoy this and at the end as a special treat there is a little flashback to give the relationship between Fili and Sigrid a little context.

As a sidenote: I know that it is Fíli and Kíli and that I have been inconsistent about the spelling. I will just keep it Fili and Kili, which is the spelling used in my copy of the Hobbit to keep things easier from now on.

It was a strange tableau to be sure. Two unconscious young dwarves on their cots with only thin blankets and each with a silent watcher by their side. Thranduil had dismissed the healer and took in the sight, feeling like this part was done and he would look to his troops next.

He had not counted on Bard storming into the tent. "Sigrid! I've been sick with worry. What are you..." He trailed off, having caught sight of the Elvenking.

"The Dragonslayer, I assume this child is your daughter." Thranduil addressed the man.

"Y-yes." Bard narrowed his eyes at him.

The Elvenking looked between the two, face stoic as ever. "I would speak with you Bowman. Much needs to be discussed."

Bard nodded, eyes still on his daughter. "Da, where are Tilda and Bain?"

"Bain is running an errand for me and Tilda is just outside. That dwarf with the hat and the one who doesn't speak are with her." He rolled his eyes at the thought of how his youngest was so obviously taken by them.

Casting a look at his oldest though made him realize she may not be the only one. Not by the way she was clutching that blond one's limp hand.

The Elvenking followed his gaze, his face taken on the look of someone who had caught a whiff of something unpleasant, though he did not speak up as of yet.

"I'll watch her, Da. We can stay here." Sigrid found herself saying, trying to hide her blush.

Bard raised his eyebrow, but said nothing, clearly not wanting to have this discussion in front of all those present.

"Why do you care so much about these dwarves, child?" The Elvenking questioned, displaying no tact at all and clearly aware of it, glancing at Bard before entirely focusing his cold gaze on Sigrid.

Behind him, Tauriel sent him a glare, though her attention soon returned to Kili who was squirming a little under her hands though he was too deeply unconscious to be aware. Her hand returned to his sweaty forehead, chanting too low under her breath to be heard by any but other elves.

Sigrid felt herself flush again though this time it was not anger. "He protected my family when he was weaponless himself." She spoke up, trying her best to not seek her fathers eyes and instead meet the elf's.

"And that inspires such loyalty as this in daughters of Men?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, sure that she was being made fun of. "Your majesty understands life debts, surely?" She spoke, trying to keep her voice steady and attempting to sound just as patronizing as he did.

There was an odd twitch of the elf's lip. "I do."

Sigrid swallowed then, realizing that she had been talking to a king. "Thank you." She then spoke but he ignored her turning to Tauriel.

"Legolas has gone to join the Dunedain." Then he swept out of the tent, his guards following. Tauriel sighed at the comment before turning her attention back to Kili, her eyes as pained as ever if not more so.

Bard gave his daughter a long look and appeared to want to say something but then instead followed the elves, the frown on his face only deepened.

"It is a sad world in which help that should, no needs to be given has to be rewarded with thanks and is not common place." Tauriel quietly spoke from her perch by Kili's side once they had been left alone.

"What connection did your king speak of?" Sigrid asked, because the silence that was surrounding them made her uncomfortable and made everything seem even more overwhelming.

The elf looked up to meet her eyes and gave a weak smile. "He was gone." She quietly said. "I thought he was gone and I could not take it. I could not bear the thought of such a warm and lively one such as he…" She broke off and squeezed Kili's limp hand in hers. "I prayed to keep him in this world and the Valar heard my pleas. His life is tethered to mine own. It kept him breathing and his heart beating and will continue to do so until he is well enough to do without it."

"You're giving him from your own life?" Sigrid frowned.

"Yes. My people are blessed with an undying light and injuries that impede breathing are tricky. Sometimes the body simply gives out under the strain." Tauriel's attention had focused entirely on Kili's pale features by that point. "As long as I can keep the bond intact, he will not leave this world."

Sigrid did not know how to respond and even if she did, there were pounding footsteps and loud voices outside that drew their attention.

Four dwarves entered, three of which utterly froze at the sight before them. Ori who still looked a little green could not help but smile as he stepped forward. "What did I tell you?"

"It is true then." The eldest, Balin spoke up in a voice that sounded more worried than relieved.

"Will they live?" He asked Tauriel who straightened a little when addressed. "We should wait till dawn for more certainty, but their chances are certainly better than your healers left them with."

"Dain's healers you mean." The tallest, fiercest looking dwarf muttered though his brother quickly shot him a sharp look.

"I was sorry to hear your king passed on the battlefield." The elf graciously ignored the comment.

The dwarves looked grieved at that reminder, then moved a little closer to their princes.

"We shall keep quiet about this until the morrow then." Balin announced and apparently satisfied left along with his brother, Ori trailing behind. Bofur shot Sigrid a smile. "See, lass. All will be well." He said.

###°###

The company took turns staying in the tent with their two Princes. Only for the time of Thorin's funeral did they have to leave and Dwalin did so reluctantly even though it was his childhood friend who was to be given over to the Mountain.

He knew that Thorin would not begrudge him his hesitation since he had seen these troublesome lads grow up. Much like their uncle, he had been there when they had taken their first tottering steps, at their first attempts at sword and axe fighting and picked them up to bring them home when they had gotten into trouble.

He was also dubious about the tall elf at Kili's side, always holding his hand or resting her own on his forehead. Neither of the Princes had woken yet and it did not sit well with the old warrior to rely solely on elvish medicine however much Oin reassured them that they had done what he would have found impossible. There was also the other constant presence in the tent that was weighing heavily on Dwalin's mind.

The daughter of the man who had brought down the dragon was sitting at the older Prince's side and had yet to move. Her sister had come to sit by her side or would animatedly ask questions of the Company while the brother only ducked in to check on them. Bofur and Bifur both seemed happy enough to have the child around, having a love of children of all races.

Dwalin himself did not approve and worried about the familiarity the older daughter of Man displayed towards the unconscious heir of Durin. If Fili had foolishly dallied with the girl, not only would it be a political mess, but there were also those in Dain's entourage who would use it to discredit the potential next king under the mountain.

Finally he tore himself away, knowing that it was his duty to accompany his shield-brother on his last journey.

###°###

Sigrid was not going to admit it, but she was exhausted and her whole body was aching. She had just woken up once again from falling asleep curled up next to Fili's cot.

It had been only a few hours since the elven healer had assured her that the dwarf would not die in front of her eyes, that if he had lasted this long, things were looking less dire, but that had not been enough to persuade her to leave his side. The poison should be wearing off by now, the antidote doing it's work. It was only a matter of time.

She startled when the object of her thoughts stirred as if on cue, groaning softly.

She looked up to find Tauriel's eyes also intently focused on the blond Prince from where she sat, her hand buried in Kili's sweaty hair as if to anchor him to her.

Sigrid silently cursed the shaking of her hand as she reached for Fili's bearded cheek, hoping it might bring him to awareness somehow.

When he leaned into the touch, eyes only sliding open halfway to look at her blearily, she whispered his name.

First there was no recognition, glazed eyes searching her face before there was a weak twitch of a smile, though only a shadow of his usual cheeky, dimpled grin.

"S-Sigrid." He croaked, barely audible.

For a moment, she was almost ready to collapse over him and cry but tried to collect herself to get him a cup of water.

Before she could get her body to move and turn away from hazy blue eyes returning her gaze, Tauriel appeared by her side, reaching to help the dwarf lift his head a little and drink from a water skin.

When the elf took it away and retreated again, he looked more aware, eyes a little clearer though still heavy with the need for more healing sleep.

"Kee?...Kili?" He started to shift more restlessly. "U-uncle?"

Sigrid quickly reached to hold him still. "Shh... Don't move to much. You'll tear your stitches." She tried for a calm voice, but she was deeply afraid he would tear the damage to his insides again, bleeding to death without them knowing until it was too late. He had precious little blood left as it was Oin had told her. He would have died within minutes had the elf not acted as she had.

Fili mercifully stopped moving, though she was not sure if it was not simply that he had already worn himself out. "Where...Kee?" He managed breathlessly, fear taking over the glassy eyes and Sigrid feared he would try to move again.

Again Tauriel came to her rescue. "He is right here, Master Dwarf." She told him and moved aside, giving Sigrid a gentle nudge so that his line of vision was cleared and he could watch the elf returned to his little brother's side.

He sucked in a painful breath at the sight of the inert form of him. "I-is he..."

-"We are keeping him asleep a little while longer so his lungs have time to heal." the elf smiled at him in reassurance. "You are both on the path to recovery."

Sigrid noted that though he seemed relieved, he was still agitated. She hesitated, only having dared to do so while he was unconscious but then moved her hand to brush over his matted hair in a way she had always used to soothe her younger siblings.

When his tired eyes found hers again, she could not help the tears anymore. "It's alright. You can rest now. You're both safe."

He did not need to know about his uncle's fate whose funeral was being held at this very moment. There would be time for that when he was better, when he was stronger.

Fili finally appeared to relax at that, though his hand crept down towards the stitches at his front. Sigrid quickly caught it in hers. "Don't touch it." She soothed, though still a little teary, a happenstance she cursed inwardly.

He seemed to register her distress for the first time then, frowning and squeezing her hand with the little strength he had.

It was clear he worried for her and she did not want him to. Yet, it was ingrained in both their nature, so she forced a smile for him and carried on stroking his hair softly. "Sleep. We're here to watch over Kili and you. You don't need to worry. You're both safe." She repeated, knowing he would try to stay awake to watch over his brother.

After scrutinizing her a little longer, he nodded the tiniest bit and allowed his eyes to close. On a whim, Sigrid leaned over to kiss his forehead. "Sleep." She urged again, "I'm here."

She sat back, with his rough hand still in hers, feeling a little reassured, though there was a dull pain deep in her gut at the way things had turned out. She felt like decades had passed since he and his company had invaded their small house.

So she sat and watched him sleep.

###°###

"Here." A soft voice behind him had Fili jump.

They had just discussed how short their time was running and he had for the first time in what he thought to have been weeks, found time for himself to think. He had rather not, because he found himself standing by the warming fire (he also felt like he had not been warm in an age) chewing on his pipe with any pipe-weed the elves had not taken from his far too wet to even attempt lighting up with.

He looked up to find the Bargeman's eldest daughter giving him a warm smile as she held out a small pouch.

"You've been playing with your pipe for so long, I thought you might actually like to use it. Da won't mind if you take a pinch."

"Thank you." He smiled in return, surprised at the fact that she might notice such a thing when they had clearly overwhelmed the poor family with their arrival.

"It's no trouble. Just don't let the others know or you'll leave none, this will be our secret. Da doesn't smoke much anymore anyway so…" She suddenly blushed. "I'm sure you don't care for me blabbing on. You look like you have enough on your mind as it is."

She made to turn but he reached for her arm. "No. I mean, I don't mind. And I wish to thank you for aiding us and feeding us. I'm sure it was a bit of a shock." He told her, hyperaware of her birdlike bones under his thick fingers and how he had to look up to smile at her a little.

She laughed. "Only a little. Though I have to say, it is the most excitement we've seen here apart from the Master's raids."

Fili frowned. For one that was a troubling thought and secondly he felt appalled at how he noted people were treated in the world of men.

"Oh, don't worry. They haven't been back in months. They have embarrassed themselves everytime, looking for weapons and such nonsense." She was quick to tell him.

"Is that a normal thing in towns like this?" He asked, packing the pipe and handing her back the pouch.

She took it with a nod. "I wouldn't know. I grew up like this, see. And I have never left this place. I shall leave you to enjoy your pipe, Master Dwarf."

-"Fili." He told her quickly and putting his flint down quickly, holding it along with the pipe in one hand, sketched a quick bow. "At your service."

She blushed again and laughed. He decided the combination suited her. "Sigrid. At yours and your family's." She curtsied before she bustled over to the hearth where a soup was merrily bubbling which she had seemingly created in no longer than a heartbeat to feed the company.

tbc...