Hello again! A new chapter already? Yes, yes, indeed :D

Sam0728: I'm really sorry! Your last comment on chapter 27 completely slipped past me! You were right with Fili and Gandalf watching Kili (Gandalf's always watching everyone xD) but the third person wasn't Thorin. You'll see whom it was in this chapter, though :D

DwarvenWarrior: Haha :D Well, it's all a bit too much for poor Kili... You'll see what his behavior leads to in this chapter, though I'm afraid you're not gonna like it xD

: Yeah, poor Kili can't quite cope with all that new information... It would definitely be a spoiler if I told you whether this has a happy end or not, so I'm gonna keep my mouth shut and hope you keep reading :D

Doodler100: Yeah, Kili's quite far from telling Tarya how he feels at the moment, though maybe that will change with this chapter... or not... who knows? :D

Scribe of Erebor: Oooh, yes, there's a lot of trouble ahead for Kili and not just because of his uncle... Though Thorin starts to warm up to Tarya in this chapter (at least a bit... a tiny bit...), although I can't tell you whether that will be good for the whole affair in the end or rather bad... Considering that we're talking about Thorin, I'd go with the second option :D

Thank you all for your reviews! Of course, also to ZabuzasGirl, Lillianpost, Karkitty and kaia! I really enjoy reading from all you guys! :)

And thanks again to the lovely people who keep favoriting and following!

Now read and leave me a comment when you're done because I'd really like to know what you think! :D

The forest path was narrow and they set up to walk in pairs of two, so that there was enough room to both sides, following it as it went around tree trunks, leading them ever deeper into the murk of the forest until the small light that was coming from the other side of the gate was nothing more than a small dot behind them and then soon vanished completely.

Tarya's mood had hit bottom as soon as she had made her first step into Mirkwood. She had already felt rather hurt by Kili's unkind treatment and now additionally came the unease of being in this gloomy forest. Tarya didn't feel comfortable and she could see that she wasn't the only one, since the companions' chatter had more or less died down a while ago. For Tarya, it was simply too dark, too stuffy in here and above all it was much too quiet for her liking. It was not an enjoyable quietness that this forest harboured but an ominous one. One that made the hair on Tarya's neck stand on end. There were a few squirrels that sometimes crossed their path with fur as black as the night and the trees along the path were crowded with large cobwebs, much larger than any Tarya had ever seen, though none of them reached out to the path. But what truly troubled Tarya were the occasional scrambling and scuttling noises in the murk of the trees beside the path. She couldn't see what was lurking there but she was quite sure that it wasn't friendly, more than a few times feeling like something was watching her out of the darkness.

"You all right there, little wolf?" Dwalin asked after they had been on the forest path for quite a while already and Tarya had walked silently alongside him while the little light that managed to get through the treetops was slowly fading. She shot the burly warrior a sideways glance. Dwalin's gaze was set on where Thorin was walking with Balin not far ahead of them but Tarya knew he was waiting for an answer.

"I don't like this forest," she muttered, her eyes scanning the trees around them.

"Aye, neither do I," Dwalin replied grumblingly. "Maybe the lads in the back could cheer you up a bit."

Tarya turned her head to look at him and then just shrugged hesitantly, not quite knowing what to say. She knew that he was talking about Fili and Kili but she was truly not in the mood to be walking with them, which was to say with Kili. All that awaited her at the back of the group was a silent treatment that she didn't understand and she could gladly do without that. It would only hurt and anger her more than she already was.

"I'm quite happy with walking beside you, Dwalin," she said with a small smile, though her heart felt heavy in her chest. The warrior looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before his gaze hardened ever so slightly at whatever he was seeing in her eyes. Suddenly, he looked like he wanted to hit something with his axe and Tarya frowned at the burly dwarf. Dwalin's gaze softened as soon as he noticed her look and he patted her shoulder roughly yet cordially.

"Well, I appreciate your company, khael."

Tarya glanced curiously up at him. "Khael?" she asked, raising her eyebrows at the unknown word. Dwalin shot her a small look.

"'Tis Khuzdul," he replied. "It means 'wolf of all wolves'."

Tarya saw both Thorin and Balin shoot them a look over their shoulder out of the corner of her eyes, the white haired dwarf having a surprised smile on his face, but she didn't pay attention to it as she was now genuinely smiling up at Dwalin, feeling bashful and yet deeply honoured that he would bestow a name like that upon her. Dwalin seemed to sense the effect of his words and put one hand on her shoulder to squeeze it slightly. He offered her a small but honest smile and Tarya had no doubt that he had just shown her a rather big sign of affection when he had decided to call her that.

Dwalin didn't say anything else after that and they walked on in a comfortable silence until Thorin stopped before them. The dwarf-king shortly glanced over the whole company.

"We will make camp for the night. It's too dark to keep moving on and we can't risk losing our way in here," Thorin announced and Tarya quickly let her pack slide from her back, thankful that she could get rid of the heavy weight for a while. And truly, the forest was so dark now that you could barely see your own hand if you held it in front of your face. Tarya didn't know how bad the dwarves' vision was if she already had trouble with her sharpened wolf-like sight.

They huddled together on the path, not daring to move into the trees beside it and Tarya suddenly found herself between Dwalin and Thorin – which was highly unusual but she could hardly just go and sit beside Kili – as Dori attempted to get a fire going. But all too soon, large moths came flying and fluttering about the camp, leaving them no choice than to put the fire out and sit in the all-consuming darkness by themselves as they ate their dinner.

Thorin took first watch that night and as one after the other the dwarves' low talking turned into rather loud snoring, Tarya couldn't find any sleep.

Thorin watched the darkness with one hand on the hilt of his sword. He could barely see anything, which made it hard to keep watch at all. The only thing there was were big glooming eyes watching the camp from the dark beside the path. Insect eyes, Thorin thought, only much bigger than usual. It would be difficult to defend themselves in this darkness in case these things decided to attack them if they couldn't even see where their blows would land. The dwarf-king already started to hate this forest more with every passing hour.

There was slight movement to his right where Thorin knew the Amarok was lying and just a second later, he felt her body graze his leg as she turned on her bedroll. Then there was a sigh.

"You should be asleep," Thorin murmured into the darkness, feeling a bit strange to have Tarya next to him at night, since she usually slept beside his youngest nephew. But the two of them had not spoken a word to each other the whole day, Thorin had noticed, although he didn't quite know why. It seemed unusual, since the two of them seemed to have developed a rather deep bond of friendship. Thorin only hoped that whatever quarrel Kili and Tarya had would not affect the quest or else he would have to step in. He couldn't afford any of his companions to get distracted from the journey, especially now that they were in Mirkwood, which was probably the most dangerous part of the whole quest if one didn't count the dragon waiting at the end of it.

There was a short pause before Tarya's quiet voice reached his ears. "I can't sleep with all those eyes watching me."

Thorin nodded slightly, he probably wouldn't find much sleep either if he weren't on watch anyway. The big yellow glimmering eyes moved around up and down the edge of the path, some closer and others further away but they were all watching the company.

"You should still try to get some rest," the dwarf-king said and there was a long silence before he heard Tarya shift uncomfortably beside him again. He shortly wondered whether anyone else beside the Amarok had so much trouble sleeping.

"Thorin?" he suddenly heard Tarya whisper quietly and he couldn't help but turn his head to look at where he thought her head was. It was hard to tell in this blackness but as he looked at her, he saw her golden eyes glimmer faintly through the darkness.

"Aye?" he replied questioningly, not sure whether he was comfortable with a nightly conversation with the Amarok. They had never actually talked much to each other before the incident at Beorn's and after that, it had become an even less frequent occasion. There was some sort of silent agreement between him and her, Thorin thought, and he was happy to keep it that way, not sure whether a conversation between them would not eventually result in an argument.

"What is Erebor like?" Tarya asked lowly.

Now that took him by surprise and he looked down into the warm gold of her eyes with raised eyebrows that she probably couldn't see in the dark. Thorin hesitated a moment, not sure what he ought to say. But Tarya waited patiently and eventually, he spoke up again, his voice barely more than a hoarse whisper in the night.

"It was beautiful," he said, thinking back to the time before Smaug's attack. "Great halls and mines, hand-carved into the stone, reaching down further than the roots of the mountain itself. Every wall was lined with precious gems and lit with torches that made the jewels in the walls dance with light. It wasn't just a damp dark hole in a mountain, or a city. It was a home."

He heard his own voice fill with resentment as he continued, unable to stop where he should have. "It was a home fit for kings… and it was taken from us." He felt Tarya stir next to him. "We were once a noble people, not tinkers and merchants scraping around in the dirt for copper coins - but dwarf lords!"

"You dwell on the past," Tarya muttered lowly beside him and Thorin huffed slightly, feeling his temper rising at her blunt statement.

"Do not tell me the past does not matter."

"I don't." Tarya said quickly, her voice soft and careful and filled with something that Thorin thought to recognise as dolour. "Our past is what makes us. I merely think it's of no use filling your heart with so much sorrow."

"Are you saying that I do such?" Thorin asked quietly, although he could hear the lurking tone in his own voice. There was no doubt Tarya had heard it, too, for she stayed silent for a long moment in which the dwarf-king wondered what she was thinking about.

"I think your heart is filled with the grief and anger of a whole people," Tarya murmured eventually and Thorin was a bit surprised at the compassionate tone that suddenly accompanied her voice. "And I think that something like that might be too much to bear for one person alone."

The dwarf-king looked into the darkness that surrounded them for a moment, thinking about her words. Tarya was speaking the truth; he knew that, of course. Though he wondered why she seemed to care so much. Maybe it was because her kin had been hunted for decades. Thorin used to have a home but Tarya… she never had the possibility to stay somewhere and build one for fear of being detected, he thought frowningly. The dwarf-king closed his eyes for a moment, before he sighed wearily, unwilling to dwell further on this topic.

"Rest now. You will need your strength once morning comes and we move on," he said then, clearing his throat quietly. "No harm will come to you in your sleep, I will see to it."

Everything he got as an answer was a soft sigh and after a few minutes he heard Tarya's steady breathing beside him, telling him that the Amarok had finally fallen asleep.

A week after entering Mirkwood, Tarya was still walking at the head of the group, mostly next to Dwalin, Bofur or Bilbo. Sometimes she even found herself walking beside Thorin for a while even though they never talked much. But it was somehow quite alarming that suddenly even the dwarf-king would speak more to her than Kili.

She had made two attempts of talking to Kili during the last days, both failing as he stubbornly spurned every of her efforts. It was driving Tarya crazy, it hurt and she was angry, although she tried to keep her feelings to herself as best she could. At the moment, she was wishing she'd never actually joined this quest in the first place and it was all because of Kili. She had tried the nice way, approached him like she would normally do but the brunet dwarf kept brushing her off as if she were nothing but an unpleasant travelling companion. And when Tarya threw a glance over her shoulder and saw him talking casually with Fili, she decided that she had had enough of it.

"What is your problem?" she demanded as she let herself fall in step beside him, causing Fili to move aside for her and walk in front of them after he'd shot the two of them a wary look. Kili looked at her, seemingly a bit taken aback but didn't say anything. Tarya raised her eyebrows at him, feeling her frustration rising steadily. "Have I done something to offend you?" she asked, trying to keep her anger out of her voice.

"No," Kili replied curtly, averting his gaze from hers. Tarya had trouble suppressing the growl that threatened to rise in her throat.

"Then why are you avoiding me?"

"I'm not," Kili answered and the Amarok snorted angrily when he still didn't look at her.

"Then what exactly is it that you're doing?"

When Kili refused to answer, she stopped in her tracks, grabbing his sleeve harshly. That caused him to stop as well and look at her reluctantly as the company moved on steadily without them.

"Tarya…" Kili muttered, suddenly sounding almost pleading, confusing Tarya even more than she already was.

"What's going on, Kili? I don't understand why you are doing this. Are you angry with me? Have I done something wrong?" She heard the slight tremor in her own voice, hoping that Kili wouldn't notice it.

"You haven't," Kili replied shortly, retrieving his arm from her grip quite roughly. And then he suddenly seemed to be getting angry as well, looking at her as if she had offended him somehow. "I simply don't want to talk to you, do you not understand that? I just can't have you near me at the moment, so… so just kindly stop bothering me and use your time for more useful things. Go fetch a squirrel or something."

Tarya took an appalled step back upon his harsh tone of voice. The last time he'd spoken to her like that had been upon their fight on the Carrock and just like then, his words struck her like a punch in the stomach, only harder because this time, she didn't have any idea where they were coming from. He didn't want her to bother him anymore. He didn't want her to be near him because apparently, she was nothing more than a stupid doggy in a human form to him. Go fetch a squirrel, the disrespectful words echoed in her head and she couldn't help the hurt expression that fought its way onto her face. How could he say something like that to her? Friends didn't treat each other like that.

Kili could have slapped himself in the face. How could he possibly have said something like that to her? Go fetch a squirrel? Really?

His eyes widened as he realized what he'd just done. He saw the hurt expression appearing on Tarya's face and immediately wanted to apologize, wanted to take his words back. He hadn't meant to say any of those things. Mahal, he was just so angry. Angry with himself for not being able to get his feelings under control. Angry with the Valar for putting him into this misery. Kili was angry at the whole world and now he had taken it out on the one person that meant the world to him.

"I – I'm… I didn't mean – " he stuttered, taking a step towards her but Tarya cut him off before he had the chance to formulate his apology, holding up her hand to stop him from coming any closer.

"Very well," she interrupted, her voice cold and yet trembling with suppressed emotion. "I will not bother you any longer. I'm sorry my company is such a nuisance to you."

She turned away from him then and made to head after the company who had gotten quite far already.

"Tarya!" Kili called weakly after her, not able to fight the desperation that suddenly flooded his body and mind. He'd just wanted to distance himself from her in order not to ruin their friendship and now he'd managed to do just that. The Amarok turned back to him for a moment, only to give him an icy glare that felt like a punch in the stomach to Kili.

"And never tell me to go fetch something again, ever." She growled before she turned her back on him and jogged to catch up with the rest of the group.

Kili just stood there for a few seconds, running his hands through his hair in complete frustration as he watched her move back to the head of the company and out of his sight. "Now you've done it," he muttered to himself, kicking angrily at a tree root before he headed after the others as well. He reached them quickly, seeing Fili shoot him a questioning and worried look over his shoulder as he saw him approaching but before Kili reached his brother, he suddenly felt himself getting gripped roughly by the collar of his coat and pushed painfully against a tree.

A surprised and slightly pained grunt left Kili's mouth and as he looked up, he saw himself confronted with Dwalin's face mere inches from his, the bald warrior staring down at him as if he was about to ram his axe into his skull.

"What have you done?"

"I – what?" Kili choked out uncomprehendingly, eyes wide as Dwalin pressed him up harder against the tree trunk.

"Tarya," Dwalin growled dangerously, having seen the hurt expression with which the Amarok had basically fled from Kili. "What did you say to her?"

"I – that… I don't want her near me," Kili stuttered helplessly, fearing that if he would make an excuse, Dwalin would know and he would surely get a punch in the face by the angry dwarf before him.

Dwalin narrowed his eyes at the young prince. "You're a fool," he all but spat. "You're trying to fight it. You can't fight it."

Kili just looked at him, not understanding what Dwalin was talking about. The big dwarf growled in annoyance before he let go of Kili's collar, causing the young dwarf to fall with his back against the tree with a slight huff.

"You listen to me now," Dwalin growled, raising his index finger to point it warningly at Kili. "If Tarya truly is your One, then you can't fight it. It won't go away just because you distance yourself from her. The only thing you will achieve with that is to cause pain to both you and her."

Kili's eyes widened in horror as he processed the dwarf's words, completely shocked that Dwalin was able to pinpoint what had happened so easily, something that did not go unnoticed by the bald warrior. "I saw you when they talked about it. It was written all over your face, lad."

"I didn't…" Kili trailed off, not knowing what to say, not even able to sort out any of his thoughts at the moment.

"She's not fully wolf, Kili," Dwalin continued, obviously still angry with the young one in front of him but determined to give the prince a piece of his mind. "She's much more than a normal Amarok – in every way. But I will tell you one thing, and I'm telling you once only."

Kili's eyebrows rose in question as Dwalin paused a moment, glaring dangerously at him.

"If you take your problems out on her once more, if you hurt her again… you will answer to me."

And with that, he stepped away from a completely confused Kili and quickly moved to the head of the company again. Kili's eyes were still wide and his mind whirling with thoughts when he finally willed himself to step away from the tree and catch up with Fili who was the only one to have noticed the incident from his spot at the very end of the company.

"What in Mahal's name was that?" Fili hissed agitatedly, taking in his brother's flabbergasted face.

"That was… a very angry piece of advice," Kili muttered quietly, unconsciously rubbing his neck, unable to fight the small flame of hope within him that had rekindled upon Dwalin's words. It was true; Tarya was not an ordinary Amarok. Maybe she was able to return his feelings. She'd said Amarok didn't build strong bonds, since they didn't even live in packs but Tarya had developed very deep bonds with all of them. Himself especially, Kili felt. She trusted him enough to transform in front of him, for Mahal's sake. Maybe there was still hope for him to be with her, Kili thought. That was, if she would ever speak to him again.