A/N: Heey hey, my my! Glad didn't keep you waiting and managed to post a chapter within a week! Feel like a can write again, well, at least it didn't take me ages. This one's probably the last chapter they'd spent in Beorn's, so, dark and creepy Mirkwood chapters ahead! I still can't believe I've come this far.

Thank you for all the follows, favs and reviews! Knowing someone is interested in my story is one of the most powerful things that keeps me going, it's my fuel.

Eleshey: I'm doing much better now! Thank you, glad you like it :) whiteredebony: did my best to come back as soon as I can. :) thanks for stickin' around dear, I look forward to your reviews every time. biddle29: haha the bee part was a real blast for me as well! you'll find another detail of that scene in this chapter. . : i'm beyond glad that you like their interactions. I know I'm taking my time, but I think they all deserve a nice, detailed and well written relationship development. (still didn't achieve the well written part though, but getting there.) daydreamer0001: thank you, they are killing me too! :)

Summary, and a little reminder: In the last one, we saw Fai and Kili trying to hide from Beorn, who had ruined their moment. It's another chapter where my lovely pair had some time to talk about. In this chapter, when Fili refers to what happened in Goblintown, you gotta remember this part:

By. My. Beard. Fili thought, totally stupefied and barely banishing the smile from his lips. His face lit up with enlightenment.
"Are you alright?" Kili eyed his brother questioningly, looking confused and slightly annoyed.
"Yyep, perfectly fine." Fili laughed off. Of course Kili didn't believe it, but honestly, he was in no mood for further investigation.

Thank you so much, there you have it; another chapter! Enjoy. :)


"Please don't beat yourself up, I swear, we've watched you all night. You didn't harm anyone. Anyone Beorn, I swear. I'm sure he's out there somewhere, and he'll definitely return."

It had been a couple of hours since Beorn shifted back and also the sun came up. With Kili and Fai rejoining the others, all the members of the company were gathered by the dinner table, around a deeply devastated Beorn. He was worried sick over one of the cats missing, and he had reasons good enough to think that maybe he might've done something to him. Thinking about the possibility of hurting one of his animal friends was too much for him to bear and all he could do was to sit there with bloodshot eyes.

"I still don't know how I smashed that door open. I've spent weeks perfecting it, yet, here we are. It should not be breaking."

Pouring a big mug of milk for Beorn, Bilbo attempted to say something to sooth him. "Cats are remarkably fast creatures, Mr Beorn, and let me say that they are known for their ability to find their way back home, no matter how far they are."

"That is" Beorn grumbled, determined not to eat or drink anything, "that is only if they are not dead. Or killed, by a worthless creature as myself."

Deeply hurt by his remark, Fai instantly objected.

The Dwarrows were looking just as sad, even though he turned into a bear and spent the entire night totally enraged, smashing around the garden, apart from that he was nothing but kind to them. And honestly, he had no reason to. He didn't have to welcome sixteen people to his home, not to mention thirteen out of that sixteen were eating like pigs. Therefore, they couldn't help themselves but to feel sorry for him. Ori, the gentlest soul of them all was looking like he could cry any moment, even Bifur, one of the though nuts, seemed genuinely devastated.

But that didn't mean the Dwarrows had not have a word with Gandalf. Thorin and Dwalin were furious when they first heard Beorn breaking the door, and they went insane when Gandalf told them what they thought was a bear was actually something else. Someone else, for that matter. It had took Fili less than a second to realize that his brother was missing, and Bofur had stated shortly after that Fai was absent too. In a blink of an eye, the chaos inside was competing the one going on outside. Controlling a group of maddened Dwarrows were by no means easy, even for a Wizard, so Gandalf might have cursed a little on his way doing it.

"Master Beorn," a stern voice heard, and Fai's head immediately turned towards its owner among fifteen others. It was Thorin who spoke in a very solemn manner, and taking him as the leader of the group, Beorn lifted his head and paid attention to what he was about to say.

"The kids were nestled on the oak all night as they claimed, watching you closely. If they say nothing have happened, then I would take their word for it. Also, my mighty comrade Dwalin and elder nephew Fili walked around your yard dozens of times. They found no evidence of violence, apart from battens and branches."

Fili looked at Beorn and gave him one of his assuring looks. When it comes to Fili, there was no way to resist the waves of trust he sends, which Fai experienced more than one tine on the first hand. He was the best in these kind of situations, he knew exactly how to calm down someone, or make them feel better. "No blood." he said, with a confident tone, "Promise."

"Does it apply to you as well?" Beorn than asked, looking at Fai and the younger heir of Durin standing right beside her. When Fai made eye contact, his bloodshot eyes depressed her. She didn't like to see him that way; he was Beorn and he needed to make witty comments and laugh. Seeing him sank in guilt was heartbreaking. Despite how sad Fai was, she still managed to smile and tried to set the man's mind free.

"Not a drop Beorn, not on any of us. And this is such an achievement for me, remember how I got here?"

On her remark, Oin couldn't help but interrupt. "I tell you, the lass lives on Ointment."

Couple of Dwarrows chortled then, but Beorn was still as devastated as before. Making sure that nobody was harmed once again, he excused himself to keep looking for his cat in the forest. The Dwarrows didn't say anything, but Bilbo offered his help and got politely rejected. Gandalf however, didn't take no as an answer and followed after the big man as he went out the door. For the first time since their arrival, it was raining.

It was like one of those lazy sunday mornings where you don't want to come out under the covers, and do nothing but drink tea and read. In their situation, it was one of those days where you endlessly plan a war with a dragon and eat leftover honeycakes. Thorin was worried that the break they took was getting too long for their own good, and he also claimed that they should not over welcome their stay. Balin, on the other hand was thinking that it should be extremely rude to leave right after they learned Beorn's origin, which, by the way, Bombur suspiciously agreed far and away. Seeing no use in arguing further, Thorin then went for a bath.

"Also," said Dori while he was draining a mug of milk, "We are still not strong enough for Mirkwood. You know what Gandalf and Beorn think of that place."

Approving nods and inaudible grumblings heard among the company as they had their very belated breakfast with whatever they could gather. Fai sat by Bilbo and let him fill her plate with slices of bread and cake anytime it got empty. There was something she reasoned as fatherly about his attitude that thinking about the life he'll lead with Frodo, she couldn't help but smile.

"Give your doodling a rest now and eat, eh? In couple of day's you'll be begging for a bite!"

It was Dori, nagging a deeply frustrated Ori to eat. There was his journal in front of him instead of a plate, and he hadn't touched his milk, not even for a little sip. Since Beorn left, he was sitting there all hooded over his book, harshly scribbling things that no one could see. Over Dori's scolding, he lifted his head like a cranky child and immediately protested.

"But I have to do this and excuse me, and I'm sorry, but I can't. You should've let me peek."

"What are you talking about?" Kili asked from the other side of the table, holding the giant mug with his two hands. Just as interested, Fai looked at Ori for his answer but as expected, Dori shut him off before he could say anything. His brother's food intake was a crucial issue for Dori, it seemed.

"Oi, he talks nonsense!"

"He is just mad because he didn't get to see Beorn in his bear shape." explained Fili with a sympathetic smile on his face. He was eating at the same time, so his sentence was getting a bit of imperceptible at times but after swallowing a huge bite down, he went on. "Some of us climbed on that rooftop window to look for you guys once in a while, but he was too worried for his own good."

"And now," Ori snapped, "I can't document last night because I can not draw him."

"And no, before you even suggest, drawing a regular bear is not good enough for our precious stargazer." Nori winked then, compared to his brothers, he was looking rather amused by the situation as he soaked a very thick slice of bread in sweet cream. With their day of departure getting closer each day, the Dwarrows had begun to eat for two, if such thing was possible.

Fai had a very simple solution to Ori's unique problem. Apportioning the what remains of her breakfast between Gloin and Bombur sitting right across, she happily stated. "Oh, we sure can describe it to you."

"Yeah, we've seen more than enough of him." Kili said, and Fai could've sworn that he secretly winked at her. The only one who seemed to notice the exchange was the brother with golden hair, as he laughed under his breath and turned towards his brother.

"Oh, have you now? Come to think of it, we never listened to your side of the story, you know, how you managed to escape from a wild skin changer and stuff."

"Well," Fai piped up, in a tone that makes clear she very well understood the cheeky tone to his voice, "I've managed to keep your darned noisy brother quiet somehow, and we hid on an ancient oak. Thought you already know though, Gandalf sent out a bee and everything."

"Oh that was a long shot." explained Fili, but there was something with the way he said it. He seemed like he was trying to hold back his chuckle. Raising a brow, Fai remained quiet and started observing his mimics closely.

"Gandalf was not sure if the bee could find you. He sent it anyways, well, because he thought that.. Well, nevermind."

"He thought what, Fili?" Fai asked threateningly. Something annoying was going on and she was determined to learn what it was. In the meantime, forming a rough guess on his mind, Kili was already grinning, which made Fai frustrated.

"Uhm.. He thought that you might need a warning, because you know, you are not exactly the calmest of the company.."

And the brown headed brother broke into a bomb-like laughter. In his grand roaring, Fai distinguished some words such as told you so that resulted in making her even more angry.

Between Fai's protests and Kili's knockabout laughing, Fili could find the pause to add something to his words.

"Well, you as in plural, my dear brother."

The laughter and the protesting were now exchanged, as Kili tried to defend himself with floods of words, while Fai was doubled up with a chortle.

"The wizard's rite, y'kids!" Bofur interrupted than, "Thinking about the lad going after trolls and there's also the fact that you lass, have attacked a damn bloody Warg he i-"

"It was only to save his ass!" Fai raged with bright red cheeks, but without having the chance to continue Kili jumped right in.

"Well what was I doing when I fought three giant trolls? Saving you from being a meal of that idiots'!"

"Suppose I would've been safe already, if you managed to keep an eye on the ponies now don't you think?"

"I didn't lose the ponies talking to myself, remember? You were worried about us seen sleeping together."

There was a moment when every single member of the Company got quiet after Kili's remark, but Bofur cheekily whistled and all hell broke loose.

Fai bulged her eyes in disbelieve, as Kili opened his time for couple of times like a fish out of the water, only to let out some little, inaudible word-likes.

"Well.." he stuttered, utterly mortified, "It- it- came out wrong. It came out dead wrong and you- you lads have to trust me!"

The Company was out of control, needless to say that not a single soul was listening to Kili's rambling. They were roistering, throwing food, even. The most annoying of all was the whistling, which Fai felt like she couldn't stand for a split second more. All the while Kili couldn't stop with the stuttering, and his cheeks were so red that his head was definitely radiating. When a slice of bread flew right next to Fai's ear, she fiercely got up and turned to Kili with eyes of burning coals.

"You blithering idiot!"

And just like that, she stormed out to the heavy rain.


The garden was much of a pool then, instead of a backyard. The raindrops were falling so fast that it hurt Fai's bare shoulders, and she wished for a thousandth time to be taken her cloak with her before rushing out. As what happened was not enough, there was also wind, pushing her to the limits. She always found wind rather tiresome and annoying, the lack of control that comes with it was infuriating her. One thing that helped her was the wetness of her hair, which kept it in its place instead of getting in her face.

Walking was meaningless, but the poor girl was up for anything to keep her away from all the fuss. Trying to calm herself down, she thanked all the Middle-Earth Gods that Thorin was absent when that happened. There was a million way to put what Kili said differently, also there was the brilliant decision of not saying anything at all, but being the preposterous Dwarf he is, of course he had to go and do the worst thing there is.

The reaction of the Dwarrows was also unbelievable. Spending so much time with them, Fai was forgetting that they were Dwarrows sometimes. They could easily be taken as a group of cheerful old men, but the situation showed perfectly that their Dwarven nature was irrepressible. By that table, even Balin was whistling and winking, for ducks' sake.

Shivering under her cold, soaked clothes she quickly made her way towards the woodland from the other day. Even though finding shelter from the rain had made things better, it didn't take away from her mortification. If it was for her former life, she could always find a way to calm herself down. Cigarettes were the first option then, and it was true that lack of smoking was making her nervous at times in the journey. Apart from couple of drags Bilbo shared, she was smoking-free for days.

Another thing was music. Music was the absolute need. Considering how she was living with her earphones glued to her ears, it was ridiculous not to sing anymore. She absolutely loved it when the Dwarrows sing, in fact she wished for them to be singing more. Their songs were different from what she used to listen, but at least it was music and Bofur's voice was surprisingly good. Wondering what would it be like for him to sing a song of Earth, Fai smiled and decided to teach him one someday, if she ever manage to gather enough strength to rejoin the company, of course.

Walking had become pointless and she was getting tired each second, so she approached the nearest tree and easily pulled herself upwards. For someone who maintained a life of a couch potato for years, Fai's transformation was quite admirable. After nestling on a strong branch on the tree, her fingers spidered on her outer thigh, on the almost healed wound caused by the Dunlendings. She now was a person who got stabbed. Who got tortured. Who survived through more than one near death experiences. And thinking about it all, Fai got stunned from what she realized.

She wasn't nearly as depressive as she was on Earth

Of course they were all feeling traumatic, at least Fai was sure Kili and Ori were, but it was different than what she experienced before. She wasn't alone anymore, which was almost harder to believe than to the fact that she was actually living in Middle-Earth. Whatever she did, there were people around her to share with. When she got hurt, there was someone to tend to her wounds. And when she got sad, the Dwarrows were the perfect to instantly feel better.

Even though they were no different than a bunch of children at times, they were good company. They were family.

Realizing that, Fai felt like she could find a way to be around them again. There will be neverending mockery for sure, but the day Fai rejected Elrond's offer; it was decided that she would be inseparable from the group.

"If this is to end in fire, then we should all burn together." she mumbled, then smiled at her own remark. It was so weird that she couldn't even feel the weirdness of it anymore. It was beyond her understanding. The girl was in the realm she once was obsessed with, it was against all the laws of the universe she knew. If she were floating in the universe, looking everything from a distance, far enough to see both Earth and Arda, how would they look like? Were they in the same galaxy? Were they in the same space, even? What was the meaning of it all?

All the nights Fai couldn't sleep because of the haunting thoughts of existence, it was now even worse. She didn't know where she existed anymore, or if she exists at all. Does she slipped in a coma in her dream, and started to live an adventure her brain created?

"Damn. How will I ever keep my sanity?"

Qualifying her present sanity 'kept', Fai couldn't help but chuckle at the irony. It was then, her wandering eyes caught a glimpse of an orange, furry tail couple of branches above. Its owner was nestled on the branch just like she did, and he seemed peacefully asleep.

"Yeah, what wouldn't I give to be you, you lucky bastard of a kitten!" she sighed, and it took her a full minute to realize who that kitten was.

"Kitten? Well wait a minute!"

It was Beorn's long lost cat! Fai couldn't decide whether she should went back to house and alarm the others, or try to take it back home by herself. Both seemed equally risky, for the cat could go some place else till Fai ran to Beorn's home and then back in the woodland, but he can also scratch the crap out of Fai and run away just as easily. Trying not to make any more sound, Fai started thinking with all she had.

This shouldn't go wrong, she said in her head, I need relieve Beorn from his guilt, I can't screw this up.

The wind was bothering her thoughts again, also, it was making her shiver even more. Her wet clothes were clung on to her skin tightly, and it was positive that she would be burning in flames within a couple of hours. The girl cursed inside, and put her hands in her soaked pockets in a desperate attempt to warm them.

When her fingers met slices of cheese, it was incredibly hard not to scream out of bliss. Of course there had to be food, for that day she was wearing a tunic that belonged to one of the Dwarrows. Normally, Fai would be grossed out by wet cheese but in that moment, she promised to give a real Dwarven hug to the owner of that clothing.

Looking up the kitten, Fai took out the cheese wished for him to be hungry. With a slice pointed upwards, she spoke through the wind with the sweetest, the most calling whistle she could pull off.

The cat's attention was immediately caught, as his tail suddenly came to a stop and two pointy ears turned in Fai's direction.

"Are you hungry, love?" Fai sang, slowly fluttering the cheese at the kitten. In her mind, she was constantly mumbling.

Please be hungry, please be hungry, please be hungry..

The cat seemed to remember Fai from the times she petted her in Beorn's house, but he was utterly agitated from the night of chaos, so without moving an inch, he just looked at Fai with questioning eyes. His tail was twitching at times, trying to decide whether she was trustable.

But of course he was hungry, growing up with Beorn he was kind of domesticated. He wasn't used to hunt for food, for any time he liked there was something to eat. And spending the night in the woods with heavy rain was definitely a tough ride. So after some more minutes of hesitation, he slowly hopped down to a lower branch, and started with the staring contest again. Fai understood the rules of the game, and didn't move an inch, yet, she kept calling for him with a sweet voice.

It went like that and Fai didn't mind, but her arm was completely numb and it was hard to keep her balance when she shivered so much. But she was determined and eventually, the kitten made his way to the final branch, the right above her. They were couple of feet apart and Fai could reach out and hold him if she wanted to, but that would be nothing but the definition of messing up. The smell of food got more and more irresistible as the cat got closer, and finally, he hopped right on to Fai's lap.

Managing not to fall down was one of the most incredible things she had ever done. At first, he kept his back lifted and his tail tensed as Fai fed him, but within minutes he was purring with gratitude under her touch. The cheese wasn't enough to fill him, but he seemed rather happy when Fai softly scratched between his ears.


"So, you cheeky little bastard.. Need to tell you that I don't buy your little story?"

Two brothers were walking around Beorn's house, one being overly cheerful as the other looked like all the weight on Arda was on his shoulders, and he wasn't quite wrong about that. After convincing the company to a certain extent, Fili wanted to search for Fai, and he took his brother along.

"Do I have to punch you in the face, or will you take my word for it?" Kili grumbled, like it wasn't enough to deal with ten other Dwarrows, he now had to shut his annoying brother's mouth.

"Why don't you admit that you two sneakiest of all had done it. I beg of you, brother, save us the time and trouble."

"But. We. Didn't." he gritted his teeth. He was taking it out from the cloak he brought for Fai, it was held by a death grip, wretched inside his fists.

"Oh, except that you did."

Fili was definitely enjoying himself, as Kili got more and more enraged with every word that came out of his brother's mouth.

"Tell me, how could we have done- you know- it? We can barely maintain a conversation without clasping each other by the throat."

He must've said something wrong again, because if such thing was possible, Fili's grin got even wider over his words. Kili thought the corners of his brothers mouth was about to meet on the back of his head.

"So," the fair headed one started, lingering on the word and enjoying the situation to the fullest. "You admit that you would do it though,if things get smoother between you two."

What Kili roared was unrecognizable, as he was too angry to form a proper sentence. His walk turned into stomping as the poor cloak was now at rupturing point. After growing away from his brother a couple of steps, he grumbled a pair of words without punching the trees alone.

"Leave me alone."

Fili knew he went a bit far, but he couldn't help it, teasing Kili was his supreme duty. And since Fai was in the mixture, it had got even funnier. Trying to wipe the annoying smile from his face, he gave his brother a time to cool off. They walked quietly for a while until Fili decided it was time for another round.

"You like her though, don't you?"

"For Mahal's sake, Fili, what is bloody wrong with you?" Kili squeaked, and it took Fili a great measure of strength to not burst out with laughter on his brother's face. He was surprised that he still hadn't punch him.

"I don't like her!"

"You don't like her?!"

"Well of course I do, but-"

"I knew it!"

"Bloody ashes, just shut it alright? We all like her!"

With a wide step, Fili got on Kili's way. His angry, red and radiating head was looking even funnier up close. Pushing him to the limits like that, of course Fili felt a bit guilty but he wasn't doing that for fun. Well, not only for fun. He knew like he knew his own name that Fai and Kili weren't up to anything. He also knew that what his brother said was a hundred percent the truth; the duo had a problem with communicating without a quarrel.

But recently, the lion prince could tell that something is definitely wrong with his brother. If not wrong, then different. Most of the time he was in a fight with Fai and thus; most of the times he was enraged. He was a total pain in the ass when he and Fai didn't spoke for a week. And at the times the pair was in peace; he was utterly happy. After the Eagle incident, Fili had caught him humming a song e few times, and the smile on his face was nearly idiotic. As for his older brother, he needed to get to the bottom of it and make sure what he figured right after the Goblintown was true.

"Yyep, we all like her, but none of us have spent the night under a cloak with her."

Maybe his way of doing it was a bit wrong.

"Why are you doing this to me?" Kili finally gave up, with the most weary expression on his face. There wasn't any strength left in him to curse, to fight back, to give a proper answer.

"Because lately, you are only happy when you two can get along, and I want to know why."

He already knew why, so there was really no need for Kili to answer. He was asking, because he sort of thought it was time for Kili to think what he figured out.

"Look," Kili sighed, but not in a cranky kind of way. He looked upset. "We've sort of become friends, and I may have screwed it up by telling what I've told today."

Anger was alright, but seeing him devastated was totally unexpected for Fili. His brother was sulking before him. He was usually a tough nut to crack, even with Fili he was. He didn't like anyone to see him upset, he didn't like to get help, he didn't like to feel useless or weak. After annoying with him for all those time, Fili suddenly felt like he was in dangerous waters. Turns out, he had underestimated the golden headed girl's impact on his brother. Too soon, he thought, suddenly deciding to not push things any further, this still requires time.


It was nearly afternoon when everyone safely got back to Beorn's house. Fai was the first to come back, violently shaking with Beorn's cat in her arms. At the time she had return, the brother's were still searching for her outside, and it took Beorn and his company another hour or two to finally give up and return.

Beorn was beyond happy to find his cat home, looking at him, he had smiled for the first time that day and immediately went back to his usual self. He thanked Fai at least ten times, and when he finally realized that she had a terrible fever, he made the fluffiest bed out of hay and tucked her under layers and layers of blankets and cloaks. Just as expected, she was horribly sick. And she wasn't happy about it even the slightest, but at least Beorn was taking good care of her. Also, it meant lots and lots of honeyed milk and the girl had no problem with that.

All Fai wanted was to sleep but the worried Company were determined not to leave her alone. They were coming and going, keeping guard like they had made a secret pact to not leave her alone while she was asleep. At one of the times that she opened up her eyes, she saw Dwalin sitting on her bedside, with his brother Balin standing right beside. Two people in the company who are more than just 'close' to the king, Thorin Oakenshield. Her mind was washed with the haze of her fever, but there was no way she could forget such incident; she remembered what happened in the breakfast perfectly fine. Did they already spoke to Thorin about it? Was there any way for Thorin to hate the girl more?

In panic, Fai tried to straighten her back in the bed, and immediately got dizzy with the effort. Moving would not be her gig for a while, it seemed. Laying back to the bed, she held Balin's gaze and attempted to speak up, but her voice was way too weak and her throat was sore. Ever so understanding, Balin caught on her trouble and kept her from talking.

"Shh now, it's alrigh' kid." he smiled under his beard. "We'll make sure that Thorin stays oblivious to this issue of yours and the lad."

Her eyes searched Dwalin's for a sign of approval, for it was unbelievable for him to cooperate against Thorin. It was relaxing, for that meant the Dwarrows' weren't thinking of what happened more than a joke. If they were to take it seriously, Dwalin would be the first one to talk to Thorin.

After torturing her with silence for a couple of minutes, Dwalin finally spoke up.

"Well, we will, if you promise to make that delicious cookies of yours again." he grinned, and looking at each other, Balin and Fai started giggling like school children.


E/N: Review if you like, it is always appreciated! :)