Amelia quickly donned her clothes after her wash, but instead of heading back to the company like she usually did, she sat at the edge of the stream, letting her feet dangle in the water. It had been just over a month since she had snuck off in the night with them, and since then they had fallen into a comfortable routine.

They rose at dawn, and Amelia rushed through her breakfast so that her training could begin. She spent the morning hours with both Dwalin and Kili, though Dwalin often kept her for longer than his half of the morning if he felt she needed extra practice at some skill. Many times other members of the company would help to teach her to fight, and off to the side they worked on their own skills.

After her lessons with Kili came lunch, which was eagerly gobbled down by the assembled company. From there Amelia generally had the rest of the day to herself. She often found herself sitting against a tree, telling the company various facts about her world. Ori scribbled down everything she told him, often attempting to include drawings. He was quite good at the skill, and despite what Amelia was sure was rather poor descriptions on her part, he managed to capture with near perfection things like airplanes and skyscrapers.

In return, the dwarves told her stories of Middle Earth, legends of glory and battle. Amelia noticed how they carefully avoided mentioning anything of their own quest, and whenever it seemed like the topic might come up Gandalf sent a sharp glare around that silenced whoever was speaking.

Sometimes Amelia would continue to practice her sparring, though it wasn't the brutal instruction then that Dwalin subjected her to each morning. The afternoons she chose to spar, she found herself whirling around the clearing with Fili and Kili, one of the elder dwarves commenting off to the side. Each dwarf took their turn fighting her, even Thorin. Bilbo was closer to her in skill level, and Amelia soon found that she won at several of their battles. Bilbo didn't seem to mind, merely giving her a nod and small smile of pride.

Amelia also found herself learning about the dwarves' culture, and Bifur, Bofur, and Bombur began to teach her Iglishmêk, so that she might be able to communicate with Bifur. Although none dared to teach her the more sacred language of Khuzdul, she sensed that they wanted to. Only the ancient customs of their people prevented them from doing so.

Her routine was comfortable to her, and she had grown quite fond of the company. Still, over the past month a dark feeling had settled in her stomach, a gut wrenching sadness. Caught up in her thoughts, she absentmindedly reached down her hand and picked up an object that had been sitting nearby on the ground, and she tossed it lightly up and down, juggling it with one hand.

She had not turned her phone on since she had first shut it down the day after she had left her family, nor had she revealed its presence to anyone. She didn't think Kili had told anyone about it, and if he had, they hadn't said anything to her. She glanced down at it, wondering, as she wondered every day, what she would find should she turn it on. How many messages had her family left her? What pleas; how had they begged for her to return to them? Amelia's eyes watered as she imagined her family standing around a phone, all sobbing their own heartbroken message to her. The image had lingered in her mind for many days, and she found it suddenly too much to bear.

It took several moments for her phone to turn on, and when it did she received a small buzz that told her she had messages waiting. Her family hadn't bothered with texts, instead leaving a series of voicemails for her.

"Amelia," said the first, left by her mother. "Where did you go? God, please don't tell me you snuck off in the night with those dwarves. Mia, I know that you think you know them from that book of yours, but you don't. You're not safe. Please come back. Please. Mia-"

Her mother's voice descended into tears, which Amelia forced herself to listen to until the message ran out. Immediately, almost frenzied, Amelia played the next message from her mother, which was just as teary as the first. Next came several from her father, as well as Veronica. Even Jack had left a message, and Amelia bit her lip at the fear in his voice as he'd begged for his big sister to come home. With a wet face and more than a little trepidation she clicked the last message, lifting the phone to her ear as it played out.

"Mia." It was her mother's voice, wavering but for the most part steady. "I don't know if you're getting these messages, or if you're listening to them. I don't even know if you're alive. If you are, I know by now that you're not coming home." There was a long pause, during which time Amelia could hear her mother's breath shudder. She then regained her composure somewhat and continued. "Please, sweetie. If you get this, if you're safe, just let me know. Just one call. Please. That's all I ask. Just let me know that you're alive." Now Amelia's mother broke down completely, and her sobs filled Amelia's ear. "I love you," she whispered. "I'll always love you."

The message beeped, signaling its end. Amelia slowly lowered the phone from her ear, feeling hollow inside. Empty. She sat on the edge of the stream, staring down at the phone in her hands. Part of her wanted to call her mother, to tell her that she was alright, to hear her family's voices one last time. She stopped herself just before she hit the send button, her thumb hovering over the screen of her phone.

What would she do when her parents picked up? She couldn't go back; she couldn't put them in danger. Yet she knew that was what they would ask. She couldn't handle that. Listening to their messages was bad enough, but to listen to their begging in real-time, when she might actually be able to respond, would surely kill her. Amelia shuddered and dropped the phone into her lap. She couldn't call her family. She wouldn't.

She glanced up as Gandalf cleared his throat, drawing her attention. The wizard stood just behind her, watching her with sad eyes. Amelia made no attempt to conceal her phone; it was far too late for that. She braced herself, waiting for the wizard to scold her, but instead he merely sat beside her. For a long minute both were silent, until Amelia spoke.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. She glanced down to where the phone was now clenched in her hands, not bothering to wipe away the tears that dripped down her face. "You were right; I should have left it behind."

Gandalf sighed. "No," he disagreed. "I think you were right in taking it. I thought that you would not be able to resist the urge to call your family, but I see now that I was wrong."

Amelia sniffled. "Fat lot of good that does," she muttered.

Gandalf chuckled. "In time your family will move on, and so will you."

Amelia glanced over at the knowing tone to his voice, taking in the way he was now staring diligently at the stream. What did that mean? Gandalf knew her in the future; did that mean that she forgot about her family? The thought set off a cold feeling inside of her, and she vehemently rejected the idea.

She pushed it from her mind. It couldn't be true, so what was the point in worrying about it? She sighed, glancing over to Gandalf again. The wizard had pulled out his pipe, and was lighting a small flame with his fingers. He took a few puffs, then glanced over. Spotting Amelia's eyes on him, he gave her a small smile and wrapped an arm around her.

"I am sorry," he said. "I do wish there was another way."

Amelia nodded. "So do I," she whispered. "So do I."

They stayed there for a while longer. Gandalf was oddly comforting, in sort of a grandfatherly way. Eventually Amelia relaxed against him, watching the stream rush by in front of her. Finally she stood with a sigh, wiping the last of her tears from her face.

"I'm going to head back," she said. She paused, biting her lip. "Thanks."

Gandalf nodded, making no move to join her. "Of course," he murmured. Amelia began to trek up the path, leaving the wizard to his thoughts. Back at the campsite she set her wet clothes by the fire, then went to go sit on Bilbo's bedroll, which she was still borrowing. Wrapping her arms around her legs, she stared blankly into the fire, her emotions still whirling through her head. Sitting with Gandalf had only calmed her enough that she was able to keep the tears from her face, but now she felt them creeping up again as her hand drifted to where she had stuffed her phone in her pocket.

She glanced up briefly as Kili came to sit beside her, and she absentmindedly handed him her hair tie. He set to work on her hair, as he always did, joking and laughing as he worked. Soon he realized that she wasn't in the mood to talk, and his jokes faded to a sad silence. As he pulled the hair tie through her hair he sat beside her, reaching out to squeeze her hand in his own.

"Do you want to talk?" he asked.

Amelia bit her lip, then shook her head. What was there to say? "No," she whispered. "I'll be fine."

Kili sighed, inspecting her out of the corner of his eye. He knew that wasn't true, but how could he tell her that? Instead of pressing her further, as he once would have done, he merely settled into a more comfortable position beside her, letting her take comfort in his presence. His thumb rubbed soothing circles on the back of her hand, and Amelia soon relaxed at his side.

At dinner that night the company could tell that she was upset, and though they at first tried to cheer her up, they eventually gave up all efforts. They moved their loud storytelling to the side, disturbing Amelia only to bring her food. At some point Bifur joined her, signing a greeting to her in Iglishmêk. She replied with relative ease, and with a small smile Bifur signed something else. Amelia frowned, not able to understand, and Bifur pointed questioningly to her bowl of stew, which remained untouched. Amelia glanced down at it, then gave a soft shrug. She really wasn't feeling hungry. Bifur sighed and gave her a pat on the back, then took the stew and began to eat it himself, deciding that someone might as well. He received an amused chuckle from Amelia, and he fought back a grin, shoving another spoonful into his mouth.

Soon Amelia's chuckles faded, and she sighed softly as she leaned against Bifur. The dwarf made no attempt to engage her in conversation this time, and soon she was asleep against him, exhausted from a day of worrying. Dori hurried over with Bilbo, and soon the two had her tucked into her bedroll. The three returned to their campfire, and the company's voices faded to dull whispers so that they wouldn't wake her.

Amelia was the first to wake, making her way quietly out of the clearing so that she could relieve herself. As she returned Nori sent her a small smile, and she returned it, crawling back into Bilbo's bedroll. The sun soon peaked out over the tops of the trees, and the rest of the company began to stir. Feeling bad for how she'd ignored them the previous night, Amelia made an extra attempt to engage in conversation as they ate. Soon Dwalin had whisked her off for her sparring lessons, Gloin joining in. As they finished Kili dragged her off, bow in hand, and the pair made their way into the forest beyond the clearing.

Over the past month Amelia's aim had improved drastically, and now Kili was having her practice firing in rapid succession. As she emptied the quiver for the fifth time she went to retrieve the arrows, Kili joining her.

Amelia stooped to pick up an arrow that had been partially hidden by a bush, and found that Kili had gone for it at the same time. Their fingers brushed, and they both yanked away from the contact, blushing.

"Sorry." Amelia backed up, bending to grab another arrow that was nearby.

Kili shrugged as he plucked the arrow from the ground, shoving it back in his quiver. "It's fine," he promised. He sent her a lopsided grin that made Amelia's heart pound. "I don't mind."

Amelia gulped, turning away. Why had Kili's words set off a swarm of butterflies in her stomach? Why did she feel secretly pleased by them? She shook her head slightly; it could never happen. She was cursed to be on her own, and even if that weren't the case, Kili was in love with someone else. Someone that he had lost, yes, but his heart still belonged to her.

Kili sighed as Amelia turned away. He had been making an attempt to be his old self around her, ever since Fili had drawn him to the side and all but yelled at him a month ago. Kili had at first been angered by the fact that his brother had told Amelia about his failed love attempt, but she didn't know the whole story, so no harm had come of it.

Still, he felt sadness pluck at his heart as she all but ran off. In a sudden feeling of familiarity, he had forgotten that this wasn't his Amelia. He scolded himself mentally; he couldn't keep doing that. It wasn't good for either of them.

When the two returned to the clearing neither let on that anything was amiss between them, and if the company figured it out, they didn't say. Kili threw himself to the ground in his usual place beside Fili, Amelia on his other side. Soon she was wrapped up in a conversation with Bifur in Iglishmêk, and Kili watched her from the corner of his eye, admiring how her fingers waved delicately through the air.

That night found Amelia on first watch. Kili lay awake in his bedroll, all too aware that they were the only ones awake. His heart pounded as Amelia sat in the lookout spot, Kili's bow and the dagger she had been training with clutched in her hands. For several minutes everything was quiet, until Kili gave in to the war raging in his head and rose. Silently he went to join her, and she gave a small jump as he appeared at her shoulder. This caused him to chuckle, and she scowled lightly as he sat beside her.

"Why aren't you asleep?" she asked. Kili shrugged nonchalantly, carefully avoiding her gaze.

"Bombur's snoring is too loud," he said. Amelia gave a small laugh, nodding her agreement as she glanced over to the large, round dwarf. Kili noted sadly that there was a tenseness about her that wasn't there before, most likely a result of his words earlier that day. He wondered if he should bring it up, but quickly decided against it. The topic would likely only make her retreat further, and despite how her presence tore at his heart, Kili knew he wouldn't be able to stand it if she avoided him.

He soon began to tell jokes, and Amelia laughed at each. As she did her tension slowly leaked out of her, and Kili felt things return to normal. At one point Amelia began to laugh so hard that she fell off the boulder she was sitting on, landing on her back with her legs in the air. This only made the two laugh harder, and Kili was surprised they didn't wake the others.

Amelia wanted to stay in her position on the ground. Through the branches of the trees she could faintly make out the stars, twinkling happily above. It was rather peaceful, especially with the campfire still crackling off to the side. Her head lolled to the left, taking in the company. Each was asleep- with the exception of Kili, who was still chortling beside her- and all had weapons lying within easy reach. Amelia's eyes paused as they washed over Thorin and Bilbo, frowning as she saw a blue light glowing by their sides. The same light was near Gandalf, and Amelia's heart pounded as she stood. That could only mean one thing.

"Mia?" Kili stood, noticing how she had risen suddenly, all her laughter gone. She turned back to him, and Kili rose himself as he caught sight of the panic in her eyes. She pointed behind her, towards Thorin and Bilbo's sleeping forms, and only now did Kili see how Orcrist and Sting glowed blue.

"Orcs," Amelia whispered.

For a moment everything was silent, and then Kili began to shout. "Up," he screamed. "Everybody get up!"

Immediately Thorin was on his feet, eyes scanning around him. He automatically pulled his sword from its sheath, and as he brandished the blade about him he caught how it glowed. He spat out a curse, reaching down to pull Bilbo to his feet.

"Back to back," he called. "Bilbo, Amelia, get in the center. Ori, you too."

Ori made to object, but was silenced as Dori shoved him roughly to the center of the group the company was now forming. A moment later they were all in place, holding axes, swords, and in Kili's case, a bow at the ready. Amelia, Bilbo, and Ori, trapped at the center of the circle, put themselves back to back. Amelia hefted her dagger, ignoring the pounding of her heart.

A moment later the first warg burst through the trees, and Kili brought it down with an arrow. Fili dashed forward and beheaded its rider before it could stagger to its feet, then rushed to rejoin the others. Almost immediately several more orcs and wargs burst into the camp, and the company leapt into action. Amelia's hand grew sweaty around the dagger, and she switched hands just long enough to wipe her palm on her jeans. In that time the circle formed by the company was yanked apart, and Amelia found herself staring not at Balin's white hair, but at the snarling face of an orc.

It swung its sword, and Amelia ducked instinctively. She stabbed upward, her dagger going through the orc's neck, and black blood squirted over her arm. With a yank she dislodged the weapon, and even as the orc fell to the ground Amelia stepped forward to meet the next one. Dwalin's training was kicking in instinctively, and she whirled to the side to avoid a swinging blade.

"Mia!" shouted Kili.

Amelia ignored him, stabbing at another orc. This time she was unable to dislodge the dagger from it, and had to throw herself to the side, weaponless, as another orc charged her. She scanned around her for a weapon, reaching for a fallen orc blade. She barely managed to lift in in time, and grunted as the force of the attack drove the sword towards her neck. The blade came to a stop inches away from her skin, and Amelia's arms began to tremble as she struggled to hold it in place. A moment later the orc let out a roar as it was struck from behind, and Amelia took the opportunity to stab at its exposed back. She stood, sending Ori a smile of thanks as the dwarf loaded another rock onto his stone-thrower, and darted back into the fray of the battle.

Soon it was over. Amelia scanned around her as the last orc fell, making sure that there were no more left. Around her the others were all panting, but they seemed unharmed.

"Bilbo?" called Thorin. "Bilbo!"

The king was staring around him in wide eyed panic, unable to find the hobbit. He stumbled in a random direction, dreading spotting Bilbo among the bodies of the orcs.

"I'm here," Bilbo said. Thorin spun as Biblo spoke; the hobbit was standing only feet away, stuffing something back into his pocket. Thorin had no idea how he hadn't seen him, but he really didn't care. Relief surging over him, he grabbed Bilbo in a fierce kiss that had Bilbo standing on his toes to better lean into it.

The pair yanked apart as Amelia gave a startled cry. She was standing nearby, staring down at her own body in terror. She was glowing blue, the same color that was now fading from Thorin's sword.

"What- what's happening?" she asked. She held her hands up, eyes widening as the blue glare exuded from her skin. Her gaze yanked up, searching for the one person among the company who she had always found comfort in, who she had, over the past month, come to depend on.

"Kili?" she asked.

The dwarf's mouth was wide open, and he was pale faced in horror. As Amelia's eyes met his he regained control of himself and stepped forward, grabbing her hands in his. His heart was sinking in his throat, but this time he would not freeze. He needed to say it this time, even though he knew she would never say it back.

"It's alright," he promised. "It's alright, amrâlimê."

Amelia's eyes widened, recognizing the word from The Battle of the Five Armies. Kili gave her a soft smile, and he squeezed her hands once before forcing himself to step back. He whispered something in Khuzdul, and even though Amelia couldn't understand it, she was able to guess what it meant. I love you.

Before she had a chance to respond, to find something to say through the sudden rack of emotions running through her, there was a bright flash of blue light. Amelia cried out as the flash went outwards, and she squeezed her eyes shut.

When Kili opened his eyes a moment later, the place where Amelia had stood was empty. There was no sign that she had been there; it was almost as though she had never existed. He glanced down at his hands. He could still feel her fingers in his palms, her skin warm against his. Tears came to his eyes as her loss washed over him for a second time, and he sank slowly to the ground. He made no attempt to stop his tears, barely noticing as Fili knelt beside him, pulling his little brother into his arms.

"At least he got to say it this time," muttered Bofur. He too was staring at where Amelia had just been, almost unaccepting of her absence. He sighed as he watched Kili dissolve into sobs; it hadn't done any good.

"Do you think we'll see her again?" asked Ori. His eyes were wide, holding onto hope against all else. Gandalf sighed as he reached out to pat the dwarf's shoulder, offering a grim smile of comfort to the company.

"Perhaps," he mused. "If we're lucky. The world works in mysterious ways, and there is none more mysterious than the Phoenix."

He was unsurprised when a moment later they began to glow blue. Their job in this world was done. Amelia had been guarded until her work could begin, and now it was time for them to return home. As the blue light exploded through the clearing Gandalf closed his eyes, sending a silent prayer to the Valar. For Kili's sake, he begged, let us see her again.

A/N: Thank you all for sticking with me. I promise now we'll be getting to the quest to Erebor, and we'll see just who Amelia becomes as the Phoenix. I hope you've enjoyed my story so far, and that you will continue to.

Amrâlimê: My love (Khuzdul)