2. But don't you remember? We met before.

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Eryn Lasgalen Expedition

Day One

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The group of five stood across the gorge from the underground palace. Four of them stared at the ornate doorway with a mixture of shock and amazement, while the fifth frowned.

Thorin had wrested an agreement from Dr. Grey that if they found nothing in a month he would be able to cut the expedition short. The team had been prepared to search fruitlessly for that entire time.

Instead, they'd searched exactly three hours and twenty-seven minutes.

"This should not have been so easy to find," Thorin said flatly, sounding almost offended. "I take back every remotely positive thing I ever said about Masters—the man is clearly a blind imbecile."

"What—" Sigrid started, only to be cut off by Kili's surprised, "You've actually said something remotely positive about him? How did I miss that?"

Fili's phone buzzed. "Um, Uncle?" He held it out so Thorin could see the text from Gandalf:

found it yet?

"Damn him," Thorin growled so menacingly that both his nephews started laughing. "Text him back, the bastard, and tell him we're going to make a preliminary survey and we'll contact him when we know what we're dealing with."

"Will do," Fili said cheerfully, his thumbs flying over the screen. "This is kind of incredible, isn't it? Do you think the bridge is safe?"

His brother walked to the edge of the ravine and shoved at it with a booted foot. "Seems solid."

Thorin snapped at him to be careful just as Sigrid demanded, "What bridge? What are you guys talking about?"

Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at her.

"What d'you mean, Sig? The bridge over the gorge." Kili waved a hand out from where he was standing. "Right here. Leads up to the doors."

She shook her head. "There's nothing there, no bridge, no doors."

His brow furrowed. "Dr. Boggins, you see them, don't you?"

The smaller man replied with the air of someone who'd been forced to correct the mispronunciation of his name one too many times. "Baggins, Kili. Bagg— you know what, all of you, just call me Bilbo. And yes, of course I see them; they're right there."

Fili frowned at his wife worriedly. "You really don't see anything?"

"There's nothing there to see!" she insisted hotly. "And if you're all trying to play a trick on me it really isn't funny!"

There was a long moment of silence. Fear sparked through the anger on her face.

"Sigrid," he replied lowly, "I swear to you. We're not trying to trick you."

After lunch and much discussion, Fili carried his wife across the bridge.

"Not going to puke on me, are you?"

"Shut up," she gasped, twisting her fingers into his shirt. "Looking down was a really bad idea."

He dropped a kiss on her temple. "Still can't see the bridge?" he asked lightly.

She shivered, tiny tremors running through her. "No."

"Huh. Wonder why that is, that we can see it and you can't?"

"Don't know, don't care, are we almost off this thing yet?" she asked desperately.

"Your wish is my command. We're off." He tightened his arms around her. "No, stay here. I want to carry you across the threshold."

She reared back to stare at him in disbelief. "Fili, this is an invisible castle of doom, not a romantic getaway!"

"She's right, so if you're not going to be useful get out of the way," Thorin groused, then rolled his eyes at his nephew's cocky grin. The boy moved to the side (though he still didn't set his wife down) so Thorin decided to ignore him in favor of inspecting the doors.

And frowned.

"These are remarkably well preserved," a perplexed voice said to his right.

He looked down at Dr. Baggins, who was also frowning at the doors. "Yes," he agreed grimly. "Too well preserved. Kili, do you have the cameras back out yet?"

"Even with the protection of the overhang…" The smaller man tilted his head to the side, a move that reminded Thorin of… actually, he didn't know who it reminded him of, but it was familiar. "Not that they look new, but they certainly don't look as if they've been abandoned for millennia."

"Here you go, Uncle Thorin!" Kili handed him the still camera and shot a laughing glance at his brother. "Shall I shoot a video of how not to behave on an archaeological expedition or just get right to it?" He pointed his camera at the doorway without bothering to wait for a reply, and frowned. "The doors look… strangely good. Are we going to be able to get in? I doubt the locks have rusted away on these."

Without really thinking about it, Thorin reached out to try the handle. It turned easily under his hand and the door glided gently open, revealing the pristine hallway beyond.

Fili finally let Sigrid down, but kept one of his arms around her shoulders. "Can you see it yet?" he asked quietly.

She shook her head. "It just looks like a rock face. And trees, up beyond. What do you see?"

His eyes were glued to the entryway. "It's incredible. The doors are open now, and it's perfectly preserved inside. All carved stone and smooth, clean floors. It shouldn't be possible."

"No, it shouldn't," his uncle concurred darkly. "Be cautious, everyone, and stay together for now. Kili, keep filming. I don't know what's going on here, but I don't like it."

Bilbo muttered something that no one could hear.

"What?" Thorin snapped.

The smaller man shouldered his pack. "Nothing, nothing at all. Let's go, shall we?"

Thorin glared, but moved through the doorway with no comment.

The silence was broken by a hastily indrawn breath, and everyone turned to see Sigrid frozen inside the doorway, her eyes wide. "I can see it now."

"Really?" Fili exclaimed.

"Yes." She gazed around the space. "It's beautiful."

"I guess, if you like this sort of thing," he replied. "Elvish architecture isn't my favorite, but it is underground, so that's pretty cool. Different. What do you think, Kili?"

Kili was looking around, a perplexed look on his face, and it took him a minute to realize his brother was talking to him. "Huh? Oh, yeah, it's interesting."

The group turned a corner and the caverns opened round them. Pathways curved in various directions, some carved from stone and some part of a huge, ancient root system.

And all of it was perfectly preserved.

"This makes no sense," Thorin muttered. "There's not even any dust."

Sigrid darted off towards a side room. "Look at the tapestries! All the other hangings! They're perfect!" She pulled on gloves and carefully lifted the fabric away from the wall to look at the back. "I have never seen anything like this. It's obviously ancient; how is it still in such good condition?"

"I want to go to the library," Bilbo announced, and started walking.

"Well, I'm going to go find my weapons," Fili replied. "Kili, where do you think the armory is?"

"Stop!" Thorin bellowed. "Everyone needs to stop dashing off! We are all going to stay together in this accursed place!"

"Well, then we can all stay together in the library, because that's where I'm going," Bilbo said testily.

"You don't even know where the library is!"

"Yes, I do! It's right down that path, next to the secondary reception hall!"

His voice echoed and everyone stared at him, varying degrees of horror on their faces.

"On second thought," he said weakly, "it'll keep."

There was a long silence before Thorin said firmly, "Right. We're all going to go down the main hallway, right there. And we're all going to stay together. Kili, point the camera at something besides the floor."

They went down the hallway in complete silence, and entered an open area. There was a path leading up the center to a flight of stairs, with a throne on a platform at the top.

"This must have been the throne room," Sigrid mused. "I wonder what an elf king would have been like?"

Thorin snorted. "Pretentious, that's what. Swanning around, dramatically waving his cloak." He could see him in his mind's eye, tall and fair and despicably smug. "Arrogant bastard," he hissed. "Probably decorated his throne with the antlers of the elks he rode to death."

He started up the stairs, his hands in fists at his sides.

"Um, Uncle," Kili called. "What are you doing?"

Thorin didn't reply. He reached the top of the stairs and began yanking at the antlers.

"Stop it!" Bilbo shouted. "What are you doing?!" He and Fili dashed up and tried to pull him away, but he shook them off and climbed up onto the seat of the throne to get a better grip.

"Damn him," he was muttering. "Damn him, damn him, damn him…" A small section of antler broke off in his hand and he threw it violently away.

"Uncle, stop, please!" Fili shouted. He grabbed for Thorin's arm again, but missed his footing and fell down several feet onto a lower ledge.

"Fili!" Sigrid shrieked, unable to see where he'd fallen to. She and Kili ran for the staircase.

Thorin froze, his face stricken, and jumped down from the throne to pull his nephew up off the ledge and into a rough hug. "Fili, are you alright? I'm so sorry!"

"I'm fine; are you okay?" He grunted as Sigrid crashed into his other side. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her head without breaking eye contact with his uncle. "Uncle Thorin, what was that?"

"I…" he trailed off helplessly and shrugged. "I don't know. I don't… I was just suddenly so angry."

Worse, he could still feel the rage coiled deep in his belly, and see the Elvenking leaning over him, chin out-thrust and hissing in his face. And none of this made any sense whatsoever.

He took a deep, steadying breath. "I think we've seen enough for today. Let's make camp outside and we can investigate more tomorrow.

"Yes," Sigrid agreed fervently.

"Let's get the hell out of here," Kili concurred.

They headed back towards the entrance much more rapidly than they'd entered it. Bilbo, Thorin, and Kili were already out on the bridge when Sigrid came to a sudden stop on the threshold.

"Oh, sorry," Fili exclaimed. "Here, I'll carry you again."

She shook her head. "No need," she replied. She felt a sort of distant pride that her voice didn't shake. "I can see it now."

"Oh," he said quietly. "Well. Let's get out of here then, shall we?"

He took her hand as they crossed the bridge. She didn't tell him when his grip became uncomfortable; she just clutched his hand all the tighter.

When Thorin first began running his own expeditions he'd instituted a practice of always ending the day with something that, for lack of a better name, he called Team Review. Both recorded and videotaped for later reference, each member of the team had an opportunity to comment on things they found significant. Normally, given the different specialties and personalities of the people working with him, he found this to be a very useful tool. But then normally, he didn't hear things like:

"This place is creepy as hell and we shouldn't go back in there."

"We have to go back in there, Fili! I've never seen tapestries in that condition—"

"You couldn't even see the tapestries until you got inside the door!"

"Neither could you, since you can't see them from the door!"

Fili dragged a hand over his face and ground out, "Sigrid, don't you think it's strange that you couldn't see anything until after you were inside?"

"No stranger than the fact that all of you could!"

"This place is not normal," he hissed. "Bilbo shouldn't have known that there even was a library, much less where it is, and we all saw Uncle go crazy in the throne room!"

"I did not go crazy!" Thorin snapped, offended.

"Beg to differ," Bilbo cut in abruptly. "You were ranting about the Elvenking and trying to tear apart the throne. What would you call that?"

"I wouldn't call it crazy!"

"Well, I would! And I think I know crazy when I see it!"

They glared at each other. Thorin looked away first, an unexplainable shame roiling in his gut. "Kili, you're being very quiet. Do you have anything to add? Kili!"

"Hmmm?" he replied distractedly. "Oh, sorry. Is it my turn?"

Thorin fought the urge to roll his eyes, and summarized the (really, unprecedentedly preposterous) conversation. "Your brother thinks we should leave this place. Sigrid disagrees. Dr. Baggins thinks… well, never mind that." He ignored Bilbo's sniff. "What do you think?"

Kili shrugged. "Part of me wants to leave." His eyes drifted back to the doorway to the Halls, barely visible in the half-light. "The other part… well. There's never been anyplace like this, and there's still so much to see. I think we should stay."

"Fine. Fili, I agree this place is strange, but we're here to do a job and we're going to do it. You and Sigrid have second watch, so get some sleep. Kili, you and I are taking first. Get the camera stowed away."

Bilbo frowned as Thorin rose to his feet. "What, am I not taking a watch?"

"Not tonight," he replied tersely, and strode away.

A/N: I'm going with the idea that even though Sigrid became the Lady of Dale she never actually visited the Elvenking's Halls. Chapter title from Prince Phillip making moves on Briar Rose in Sleeping Beauty. Chapter 3 will be up tomorrow!