Sìneag made good time, making her camp for the night only a few miles from the place she had encountered Frida and Tófi. She awoke early the next morning, eager to get find the settlements of the new town.

Unfortunately, things did not go entirely as she had planned.

As she reached the shores of the lake, pausing to eat lunch before taking the last leg of her trip, she heard a familiar sound of leathery wings. She glanced overhead, the sky growing dark as a silhouette she hoped she would never see again blotted out the sun. The dragon had returned.

Sìneag screamed and attempted to run away, knowing it was futile. Giving a thunderous roar, the dragon swept down, picking up Sìneag just as he has snatched up her sister. She shut her eyes, unable to deal with the speed and the vertigo without feeling extraordinarily nauseous. The feeling of movement stopped suddenly and she hit the ground as the dragon dropped her in its den.

Huddled on the ground, afraid to move, Sìneag trembled and curled into a ball. She waited, believing that she was only moments away from her death. She waited and waited, her breath coming in tight gasps, but still nothing occurred. Carefully, slowly, she raised her head.

Smaug sat across from her, perched atop a pile of gold in his den.

"You look familiar," he rumbled. "I believe I have encountered your family before."

Tears sprang to Sìneag's eyes but she resolved herself to stand and face him. "You have," she whispered.

"A sister, was it? She looked like you. What did she call herself again? Halfling, I believe it was." The dragon clambered down from his perch and began to circle around her. Sìneag's legs trembled so violently she feared she would fall over. "But you are even smaller than she."

"Yes," she spluttered.

"You are the first of your people I've seen since I destroyed your village. I didn't that there were any survivors."

Sìneag decided against saying anything. Dragons were sneaky devils and their wit was not to be denied. If she lied, the worm would likely be able to tell. If she confessed that people from her village survived, he would likely hunt them down. But if he had found her… well, he would likely assume there were others. This was it. Sìneag was doomed and so were the remaining villagers.

Smaug cocked his head, looking at her curiously. "Have you nothing more to say? I took your sister's life. I destroyed your home. Truly you must have something to say to me."

Sìneag forced herself to look up into his immense, luminous eyes. "There is nothing to say. Nothing that can save my life. Nothing that can change what happened. There is nothing."

"Wise beyond your years," Smaug said, the flicker of something like a smile brimming along the edges of his mouth. "Another thing you have in common with your sister. She was remarkable – for a human. No doubt she is sorely missed."

He was doing this on purpose, mentioning Helena. He was trying to get her to break down, to take advantage of her sensitivity and loss. She firmed her stance and gritted her jaw and, though she stayed silent, she forced herself to try and appear resolute.

"Your sister asked me to give you all a quick and painless death," the dragon continued. "I'm afraid that this is quite painful for you. Dragons are not entirely known for keeping their promises, I suppose."

"Why?" Sìneag heard herself saying, to her surprise as much as Smaug's.

"What?"

"Why don't dragons keep their promises?"

"Why should we?" Smaug chuckled. "We have few enemies. We are beholden to no one. If anyone has an issue with us –"

"You eat them," Sìneag said. "Painfully simple."

"Yes," Smaug replied. "Yes, it is." He stared at her. "Well, this is a great disappointment. You are not frightened at all."

"Oh yes I am," Sìneag cried. "I am struck with fear. It just doesn't matter anymore, that's all."

"And why not?"

"Because you're going to kill me. And then I will have no more fear."

Smaug gave a rumbling laugh. "What makes you think I'm going to kill you?"

"I… I just kind of assumed…"

Smaug laughed again. "You are so small, the effort of catching you does not equal the energy you would supply. I have feasted and for now I am satiated, perhaps for many, many years. No, I did not catch you to kill you, but to provide you with two things: a regret and an agreement.

"I have felt a great deal of… what I can only describe as guilt for killing your sister. I have lived a great many years and few have treated me with the courtesy and honor that she did. I truly did not feel a great deal of joy in killing her. But it is what I had to do."

Sìneag felt a moment of rage at his strange apology. She longed to argue with him, to disagree with him having to kill as he did, for razing their village, for being such a brute force against a population that could never effectively fight back. But it would be a waste of energy. If there was anything a dragon was, it was steadfast in their ways. And after all, dragons were animals. They had to eat. Perhaps they were not the most respectable of consumers, but they had to live to. At least, this is what Helena would have believed. And Sìneag longed to believe it too.

"I… I understand," she gulped. "I understand."

"Thank you," Smaug replied. "And next – an agreement. I am fatigued, little one, and I am prepared to sleep for a great many centuries. I have gained what I came for – the sweet luster of gold. And now that it is mine, I can rest easy. With that, I make you an accord – I will leave your people be for the next one hundred years as long as you make no moves to disturb my slumber. It is that simple. Your vengance, your anger, your brutality and your resolution will have to wait. Can you agree to that?"

Sìneag could not help but give a sigh of relief. "It is all I could ever ask for. Yes, I – we – can agree to that."

Smaug bowed his head and gave a sort of pleased growl. "I thank you, Halfing's kin. You and she have given me hope."

Tears ran down her cheeks as she said, "Strangely enough, great one, so have you."

He bowed to her. "We will not meet again, little one. As meaningless as it may be, know you have my respect."

"It is not meaningless," Sìneag smiled. "Know that you have my forgiveness and my mercy. If I have children, I will teach them not to hate your kind."

"You are just like your sister," Smaug said, shaking his head. He turned away and climbed back atop his pile of treasure. "Fair you well, little one."

"Fair you well," Sìneag said, bowing. She turned and left, walking slowly out of the den, hardly believing that she was leaving alive. Once she had reached some distance, she broke out into a run, dashing back down towards the lake and rushing with relief and glee back home.