I forgot to mention, in chapter 12 (and possibly others) and this chapter, there may be a few lines referring to what happens in the BoFA indirectly.

So, here's the next chapter. I am actually quite happy with it (besides the ending) and I hope you like it (sorry if it is a bit short).

Chapter 14: When you're afraid

Nightmares haunted the dwarfish woman's sleep, graves, tombs and bodies all rolled into one massive dream of death. Fire too starred in Dis' visions, the red-hot flames she conjured up in her mind seeming as real as they could possibly be. As it was, she did not have a restful sleep at all that night, and waking every so often after her dreams in fright became too much to bare, so she just gave up.

Lighting a small candle, Dis watched the dim light flicker on the walls, vainly fighting back the shadows which encircled her. Bringing the flame closer to her face, the dwarfish woman stared into its depths, mesmerised. It seemed to reach towards her, glowing an orangey-red. Moving a finger hesitantly closer to the flame, she brushed her finger past the tip. It tickled but didn't burn, her having barely touched the small fire.

Working up her courage, she tried again, further down the flame this time.

"Argh," she cried as she burned her finger, not loud enough to wake her sons, but loud enough for Thorin to come rocketing into her room, having, presumably, been awake, as Dis dumped the candle flame side up into the small bowl of water on her nightstand.

"What have you done?" Thorin asked, taking her by the shoulders and inspecting her for any injuries, a frantic note in his voice. Dis pulled away from him, not meeting him in the eye exactly.

"Nothing. I just burnt myself is all," the princess of Durin said, gesturing to the candle now floating in the bowl. Thorin squinted his eyes to make out the scene in the darkness. He then turned his squinted eyes onto her.

"What are you doing up this late at night?" he questioned.

"I could ask you the same thing," Dis replied. The pair had a brief staring contest in the dark, which Dis lost because she was still unable to look her brother directly in the eye.

"Why are you up?" the dark haired dwarf in front of her asked again. Dis sighed.

"I could not find a peaceful sleep," she answered.

"Why?" Thorin said, refusing to leave it.

His sibling looked away, not wanting to talk about it, to admit her weakness. Thorin would not let up however, and he stood there waiting for the moment she would break down an tell him. His presence, to Dis, was overpowering and it was something she could only stand for so long in the broken state that she was in.

"I am afraid," the proud dwarfish woman finally admitted, her eyes downcast as she waited for her brother to say something.

"What are you afraid of?" Thorin asked gently. Dis took a shuddering sigh.

"I'm afraid that you, Fili and Kili will leave me alone in this world to fend for myself without you," she breathed softly, as if she were speaking of something that should never have even been uttered, "I'm afraid of being alone, being abandoned, just as Rhorin abandoned me, intentional or not. And I am afraid of every time death comes to takes a life in this settlement, and for the lives of the dwarves who make their homes here."

She ended her speech, tears now streaming quietly down her face as she held her head in her hands. Thorin gave her a few moments to regain a hold of herself before responding the only way her knew how.

"It's okay to be afraid."

Dis looked up at him, surprise briefly crossing her face. Her tears began to cease as she saw her brother through new eyes.

"It's okay to be afraid, " he repeated, "Because being afraid is something that is a part of life." Closing his eyes, he continued on, "If a warrior was not afraid in the face of a great battle, then he would be most likely to act rash and get himself killed only a few moments in. A warrior who is equally afraid, afraid of losing, of dying, will be more likely to survive because he will keep fighting to ensure his fears do not become a reality. Your fears can lend you strength, but they can also drown you if you allow them to overwhelm you."

His younger sister stared at him, her eyes as wide as saucers as she realised the wisdom of her brother's words. Dis had only heard Thorin speak like that several times, and never directly to her. Through the darkness he gave her a small, encouraging smile, something which only bewildered Dis even further.

"When did you become so wise?" she asked, no malice or joking behind the words. Thorin retained the smile as he leaned against the wall.

"Since I learned that there are things in this world that I cannot hope to overcome," he answered, his voice not dead serious, yet still solemnly resined as if he had a lot of time to think about this.

"I feel a lot better now that it is out, and no longer pulling me down," Dis said after a short while of comfortable silence between the two. Thorin allowed his small smile to finally drop as he stood and stretched.

"Then you should get some sleep," he answered, pulling the door closed as he exited her room. The soft thump of the door shutting was the last thing Dis heard as she laid flat on her bed, watching as the now welcoming shadows danced across its frame.

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