We continued sailing with no conversation until we reached the docks. I helped Bard tie off the boat and then watched as he began tipping the barrels over, spilling the dwarves and fish onto the wooden planks. Knowing how certain dwarves would feel about this, I quickly extracted as many as I could from the barrels before they were tipped over. The ones who were not dumped unceremoniously onto the dock were Balin, Thorin, Kili, and Bilbo.

All of the others fell out of the barrels with a surprised yell, with the exception of Dwalin, who stopped Bard and climbed out himself, grumbling all the while."Get your hands off me," he barked, swinging his leg over the rim.

One curious townsperson watched as we picked our way around the piles of fish, and I gazed curiously at him until Bard noticed my expression. Walking over to him, Bard offered him a coin, saying quietly, "You didn't see them; they were never here. The fish you can have for nothing." The man nodded, looking shocked and grateful. Bard turned back to the company, his gaze lingering on me. "Follow me."

We began sneaking down different alleyways, keeping careful watch on the people around us. In my personal opinion, hiding in plain sight would have worked best—sneaking always seems to rouse suspicion—but Bard seemed to think that running several yards and then hiding behind staircases for several minutes at a time worked best. I decided not to comment. Besides, it gave me a chance to speak to Fili and Kili, which I hadn't had the chance to do in a while.

"How are you faring, Princ—" Fili stopped when he saw my panicked glance in Bard's direction. "Aeyera," he corrected himself.

"I am doing well, Fili," I replied, leaning against a wooden pole. The entire town was made of wood; if anything were to catch fire, the entire town would go up in flames in minutes. Hopefully Smaug never decided to attack; the village would be ashes within an hour, no matter how much water surrounded it. "And you?"

"Honestly?" the golden haired dwarf replied, glancing at his brother. "I've been better. I much preferred Beorn's place to hiding out in barrels full of fish."

I wrinkled my nose. "Yes," I replied seriously, a smile tugging at my lips. "You do all smell something terrible now."

"Well we can't all go around smelling like pine needles and flowers, now can we?" Kili joked. "We dwarves have to tough it out; you elves seem to radiate the 'essence of the forest.'"

Fili looked up. "Is that why you were so sick?"

"Pardon?" I asked, tilting my head to one side. 'Sick? When was I sick?'

"While travelling through Mirkwood," he clarified, watching me with concern. "You seemed completely out of it. You were very weak, and tired, and we were afraid…" he stopped, looking over at Kili. "We were afraid you were going to die."

"Oh, Fili—" I reached out and hugged the dwarf, surprising him. "It means much to me that you would care so much for my wellbeing. We—elves—reflect the state of our home. In my case, the Green—" I cleared my throat and looked away, focusing on a sizeable chunk of ice floating in the water behind the brothers. "Mirkwood. Because it was sickly, so was I. Elves do not die of sickness, though. Battle and wounds, yes. Heartbreak… most definitely. Not that kind of sickness though; we're stronger than that."

We were briefly interrupted by Bard's beckoning us across the road, but in roughly a minute we had settled down again while the bowman made to check if the coast was clear.

"I saw what happened." Fili said, looking down. I stared at him, startled. "How you protected Kili and were dragged off. And I heard it. The corridors there echo." He shuddered and placed a hand on my shoulder. "I am truly sorry."

I looked down, sighing. "There is nothing for you to be sorry for," I told him. Kili settled down beside me, favoring his right leg.

"He beat you," Fili said angrily, glaring at a knot in the wooden plank beneath his boot as if it had personally offered him offense. "His own daughter. That…" He trailed off from the common tongue, muttering furiously in Khuzdul. Bifur turned to him and responded sharply, gesturing to me. The younger dwarf grew silent, nodding at the elder, who, content, turned away.

"I told her already, Fili," Kili said. "I could not understand either. But that justifies her leaving us, right?"

"Kili!" Fili snapped. I flushed, ashamed, and stared down at my feet. He ignored him. At the very least, he didn't apologize to me.

"So that is why you left," Fili decided, tugging absently on one of the braided ends of his mustache. "I thought as much."

"You weren't listening to us earlier when we spoke of the same thing?" I asked, twisting my brother's ring around my finger.

"Nah," he replied, bumping my shoulder playfully with his. He leaned close to me, glancing over to make sure his uncle was busy in conversation. "I decided to give you lovebirds a moment to yourselves."

I choked, unable to find a suitable thing to say, but before I could think of an adequate response, a boy, probably only a couple years away from manhood, ran up to Bard, panting. "Bain?" Bard exclaimed, stepping forward.

"Da', our house! It's being watched."

He turned to look at us, a guilty expression crossing his face. "There is only one way for you to enter the house unseen," he told us. "And you're not going to like it."

"I s-swear," I stammered, "If I n-never have to enter this lake again, it will b-be too soon."

"C'mon Princess," Fili joked from behind me. "Keep swimming."

"S-shut up," I managed, teeth chattering. He chuckled softly and gave me a gentle nudge forward.

Dwalin climbed out of the lake, growling at Bard's son. "If you speak of this to anyone, I'll rip your hands off." I chuckled, my arms shaking as I tried to tread water. "Get off," he muttered, smacking the boy's hand aside. As soon as he had dragged himself out of the toilet, I followed. Fili and Kili gave me a boost up, and I was more than happy to accept Bain's waiting hand. As soon as my feet were on solid ground, I let out a sign of relief. Water wasn't as bad as being on a cliff, but the concept of hanging over an abyss was the same. "Up there," Bain told me, pointing up the stairs with one hand and pulling Bilbo up with another.

A young woman who looked to be the same age as I was—as I looked, anyway—stood at the top of the stairs, frowning down at us. "Da', why are there dwarves coming out of our toilet?"

Another girl, who was much younger that the first, jumped up to see us better. "Will they bring us luck?" She asked, wide eyed. She suddenly caught sight of me and covered her mouth, jumping up and down on her toes. "Ooh, look, Sigrid, look!" she exclaimed, eyes lighting up as she pointed at me. "It's an elf! She's so pretty, she looks like a fairy!"

"Hush, Tilda," her older sister scolded gently. "It's rude to point."

"It's q-quite alright," I managed, teeth chattering.

Noticing Bain's dilemma—he was trying—and failing, I might add—to pull Bombur from the lake—I knelt, grabbed the dwarf's arm, and lifted with all my strength. It was just enough to get the poor dwarf over the lid and into the house, although I ended up pinned beneath him. My back scraped the floor, and I ground my teeth together as I tried to extract myself from under him. With Bain's help, he heaved himself to his feet, blushing and apologizing profusely.

"Quite alright," I gasped, taking Kili's outstretched hand and letting him pull me off the ground. Noticing the glare he sent in Bombur's direction, I placed my hand on his arm. "It was an accident," I murmured softly. "I'm fine."

Tilda, noticing how close we stood, spoke up again, watching us curiously. "Are you married?" she asked us, beaming. We stepped away from one another, blushing. Fili strode past, winking at me.

"No!" Kili and I both denied quickly. I for one was thankful that Thorin was not yet in the house: we both would be dead.

"Do you want to get married?" she asked, blue eyes shining. Dimples showed in her cheeks, and she seemed to glow with curiosity and happiness as she looked between us.

"Um… I, uh, well—" Kili seemed to have lost the ability to speak coherently. So had I, for that matter. I opened and closed my mouth like a fish out of water, my face heating up. I was extremely grateful when Sigrid suddenly called Tilda away to fetch some blankets for us. With one last curious look, she ran off.

The moment she was out of sight, I sank to the floor, sitting back on my heels with my head in my hands. 'It was always children. Why children? I can't silence a child like I can an adult…' I sighed.

"Are you alright, Aeyera?" Thorin asked, sounding worried.

I nodded, feeling the tips of my ears heat up again. "I'm f-fine," I told him, looking up. "Just c-cold."

He offered me his hand. "Let's get you inside; I need to hear what exactly happened today when we departed from Thranduil's palace."

No small feeling of shame hit me at the mention of my actions at the palace; I felt like slinking away and hiding when I thought of what I had done. I nodded mutely and allowed Thorin to steer me up the stairs and into the living room, where he sat me down in between his nephews. I had a feeling he didn't know of my feelings toward one of them; he surely would not approve. Kili rubbed my back as Fili searched for a blanket for me.

"Are you sure you're alright?" Kili asked softly. "Did Thorin hear Tilda?"

"I'm fine. I don't think he heard her, but… he wants me to explain what happened at Thranduil's palace. How we got separated."

His eyes widened as he glanced over at Fili, who sat down beside me, draping the blanket over my shoulders. "Uncle wants to know why she wasn't with us today," he muttered, leaning over me. "How she got out before us."

Fili's blue eyes widened. "He must know it was not her fault," he said, leaning forward as well so the three of us were shielded from any who wished to eavesdrop. "He knows what Thranduil, the bastard, did to her, does he not?"

"I think he does," Kili decided. "You will be fine, Aeyera. Besides, it is unlikely that he will confront you about it here."

Bain suddenly came over to me and offered me my extra pair of clothes, which had been drying in front of the fire. "Thank you," I told him, standing up.

Sigrid offered me the room she and her sister shared to change in, which I gladly accepted. It was no easy task to change, and I had to enlist the young woman's help. To her credit, she did not blanch at the sight of my ruined back, although she started and winced in sympathy. Nor did she question me when I asked her to remain quiet about it. She did help change my bandages, however, even going so far as applying a poultice to the wounds, which burned at first and then soothed them. She helped me dress the wounds, wrapping the bandages around my back whilst I wrapped them around my torso. She then helped me into my clothes with the promise to have my other ones cleaned by morning.

"Thank you," I told her, grasping her hands.

She smiled gently. "Of course," she said softly. She then led me out of her room and into the main room, where all the dwarves sat in a circle. They were silent as I crossed to sit in between Fili and Kili, and Thorin only spoke once I had regained my seat.

Sigrid disappeared out the front door. Bard had gone to the market with his children and would not be back for a while, giving us plenty of time to discuss the day. My stomach clenched, and I thought I might be sick.

"Princess," Thorin said, his icy blue eyes finding mine. "We all are wondering what happened this morning. You were gone when Bilbo found and rescued us. Where were you, and how did you find us at the bridge?"

I remained seated. I feared that if I stood, I might faint. "Most of you know of what my father—what Thranduil did to me," I told them. "After we were captured, he spoke to Thorin. Afterwards he spoke to me. He told me that he would reinstate me as the princess of the Greenwood if I betrayed you and spied on you. When I refused, he slapped me. When I fell, he kicked me and shoved me down the steps, and my ribs broke on the stone. Every day I was there, he would take me from my cell and beat me." I stared down at my hands, which were shaking violently. "Yesterday, it was worse. He had me flogged while he watched. He told me that if I did not give him what he wanted, he would kill you. And then he would kill me. He dragged me back upstairs and threw me in a cell, then left. Last night, my brother came to me, telling me that Thranduil had asked for me. The king struck my brother when he questioned his actions. My brother was going to take me to him but let me go instead. I ran. I was so afraid of being caught by Thranduil, so afraid of being tortured again…" I paused, my heart aching. I had forgotten that most of the company, including Thorin, did not know of my imprisonment and torture at the hands of Azog the Defiler. I continued, pretending not to have slipped up. "I was so afraid he would hurt you to get to me. I am sorry for leaving you behind, but I had no choice. When I reached the cellars, the barrels had not been loaded onto the platform that leads to the river. I exited that way and was swept away by the water. My brother found me at the bridge and promised me he would protect you, and then gave me his blessing. As I left…" I remembered my vision and decided to skip over it, at least until our wizard rejoined us. "I must have passed out, for I woke up just as you reached the bridge. While I helped Kili after he was shot, my brother must have opened the gate. I have been with you ever since."

"Again?" Thorin mused. I cursed the attentiveness of dwarves, closing my eyes. "You were tortured before?"

Kili's hand found mine, resting on top of it. His skin felt hot—too hot—but I thought little of it. "By Azog the Defiler and the Necromancer in Dol Guldur," I said harshly, glaring down at the floor of the house. In response to the shocked silence that filled the room, I looked up into Thorin's eyes, which were wide with shock and pity. "This was worse," my voice broke. "Because it was at the hands of someone who was supposed to love me. Forgive me. I was not eager to face death and torment again." Without receiving permission to leave, I stood and exited the room by way of the window. I climbed hand over hand, hauling my broken body up the side of the house and onto the shingled roof. Finally I made it to the top, where I perched reveling in the knowledge that none could see or speak to me.

I let out a breath I had not meant to hold, feeling shadowed madness creep along the edges of my mind. Oddly enough, the voices seemed to dissipate whenever Kili was around, but any other time they haunted me, dredging up my worst thoughts and memories. I looked out over the town, pulling one leg up so that my arm rested on my left knee while my right leg dangled over the edge of the rooftop. The sun was beginning to set, lighting up the sky and the mountain with streaks of bright golden light. Violet clouds and glimpses of a pale blue sky filled the empty spaces between the gold. 'Perhaps it is a sign,' I thought wryly. 'A sign that gold does not satisfy.'

"Let me speak to her, Uncle."

I sighed, leaning back against the shingles of the roof. "What, Fili?" I asked softly as soon as he was seated. I sat up and turned so that we now were side by side, two pairs of legs hanging off the side of the roof.

"You didn't tell me," he said. I chanced a glance at him. He wasn't looking at me, but at Erebor, staring at it sadly.

"What?" I asked, positive I knew the answer.

"About what happened. The…" he didn't seem to want to say the word.

"The torture," I finished for him.

He nodded. "Yes. Did Kili know?"

I closed my eyes. "Yes, he did."

"I was wrong, you know," he told me. I looked over at him again. His blue eyes gleamed in the dying light. He looked so much like his brother, like Kili. "About you, and about him. He loves you, I know that now. And you love him, don't you?" I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. He reached up and touched one of the braids in my hair, one of the few that were left. "Kili gave this to you, didn't he?"

"Yes," I answered, confused. "Why?"

"Hair and beards are important to our people," he told me. "Braids especially. Different ones symbolize different things." He gestured to his own. "For example, I am the crown prince, the eldest brother."

"What—do these mean something, then?" I asked, touching one of the braids in my hair. "They came out in the river, when I fell—Fili, what do they mean?"

"It is not my place to tell you," he said, smiling grimly. It was odd, but Fili reminded me somewhat of a lion. His golden hair, sad eyes, and strong figure added to the image, not to mention his ferocious fighting and undying loyalty to those he cared about.

I suddenly felt the need to tell him what I had been thinking for a long, long time; since I had first seen him at Bilbo's hold in the Shire. "Fili?" I said softly, looking him in the eye. The sun had nearly set by now, and the world around us was cast in shadow. "You will be a great king."

"I'm not the next in line, Princess," he said, chuckling a bit and looking a bit confused. "Thorin is."

"I know that," I said irritably, smiling slightly. "I meant that if and when the time comes for Thorin to step down… you will be a great king, I know it."

His lips curved upward for a moment. "Thank you, Aeyera. For now, though, I am content to be a prince, not a king. Now come," he said, rising slightly. "I believe we were promised weapons, and I had half a mind to spar with you once I retrieve enough blades to do so."

I smiled brightly. We hadn't had a chance to spar since before our ordeal in the Misty Mountains, and I was eager to fight him again. "I look forward to it," I told him honestly. "And perhaps we could finish our throwing lesson? I still am not a master, like you promised."

He chuckled. "Deal. Oh, one more thing—" he leaned over and whispered in my ear, "I know about the kiss."

I blinked, blushing, and crossed my arms over my chest. "What?"

He backtracked quickly. "You're good for him. He's happier when he's with you. Now go talk to him, Princess, since he's too stubborn to let me help him with his leg."

I let out a breathy laugh before ducking inside. Most of the company was spread out on different chairs or, as was more common, in select spots on the floor. Kili was one of those on the ground, and I crossed over to sit beside him, ignoring Fili's wink in my direction.

"You brother is quite wise," I told him, feeling my heart lift at his smile. His injured leg was stretched out before him, and he winced whenever it moved. "Although you are a fool if you think I can not see how much your leg pains you." He frowned. "Please, Kee. Let me help you."

Although he had started when I referred to him as "Kee," he still moved. I like to think that he was going to let me help him, but before he could show me the wound, Thorin entered the room. He looked shaken, for some reason that was unknown to me, but his voice was steady regardless.

He scanned the room, counting the company members. Once he reached fifteen, he cleared his throat. "It is time to go," he told us. "With the exceptions of Bilbo's sword and Aeyera's weapons, we are defenseless. We need weapons, and if the only way to get them is through breaking into Laketown's armory, so be it."

We all stood, some groaning as they stretched their stiff limbs. Kili hissed in pain, leaning against a wall to steady himself and ignoring the concerned looks Fili and I sent his way.

Bilbo passed me my sack. "I don't think we'll be back," he said. "So I packed your things for you."

I took the bag gratefully and slung it over my shoulders, thankful for its familiar weight even as I winced as it rubbed against my back. "Thank you, Bilbo," I said, smiling gently at him.

We followed Thorin out the door, pushing past Bain, who tried in vain to prevent us from leaving. I gave him a regretful half smile as I passed him, truly sorry for leaving so abruptly. However, I had made a promise, one that I intended to keep: to protect Thorin and his family. Though if Thorin continued to risk his life for something as silly as a sword, I might change the deal to simply protecting his nephews.

"Shh! Keep it down," Dwalin hissed. Ori and Nori ceased their whispering as Dwalin turned his angry glare on them.

"As soon as we have the weapons, we'll head straight for the mountain," Thorin whispered. He held out his hand, stopping us in our tracks. "We're here."

Most of the dwarves rushed forward and dropped to their hands and knees, forming a sort of staircase with their bodies. Thorin gestured to the pile and to the closed window, turning to me. "Ladies first."

Giving him an exasperated glare, I ran up the dwarvish stairs as lightly as I could, pausing at the top to slip my knife through the crack in the shutters and lift the latch. Once it was done, I opened the window and climbed through. I was in.

It was late now; however, to my eyes it was barely dusk. Even in Mirkwood I could see, which was saying something. Thorin's hoarse whisper came from below. "Go, go, go!"

After several seconds of grunts from the dwarvish stairs, Nori's head appeared at the windowsill, and I pulled him in. Thorin's voice again came out of the darkness. "Next!"

In this way, I soon found myself raiding the armory with Bilbo, Thorin, Kili, and Nori. We rushed around as quickly as we dared. Thorin, I noticed, was making Kili hold the weapons. How he managed to make it up here, I did not know, but I could see the strain on his now pale face as Thorin added another sword to the pile.

"You alright?"

Kili shifted the pile of weapons. Had his uncle had my sight, he would not have allowed his nephew to come here at all. However, he did not. Nor did he notice the sweat dripping from Kili's brow. I did. I also noticed the way his leg shook as if it was about to buckle beneath him. I began to rush toward him, heart racing. "I can manage. Let's just get out of here."

I reached him right as he came to the edge of the stairs, somehow ending up in front of him. I grabbed his arm to steady him. Right as reached the top of the stairs, his injured leg buckled, causing him to plow into me and send both us and the weapons crashing down the stairwell. The noise was enough to wake the entirety of Laketown, but it was the last thing I was worried about. Oh, no. I was worried about one thing: Kili, whose skin was chalk white.

"Kili?" I breathed, touching his face. "Kili!"

He had landed on top of me, so I could not move when a group of guards appeared, weapons drawn and ready for use. One of the soldiers held a knife to Kili's throat, and I froze.

"Run!" I heard one of the dwarves outside yell. A mad scrambling ensued, and then stopped. I could only guess that they had been captured.

I gripped Kili's hand tightly, and he gripped back tighter. I felt fear ensnare my heart again, fear of capture, of torture. "Aeyera." I looked at him. He looked guilty and sad and afraid, but also strong. "I'll protect you, I promise. I will never let anything happen to you. I will not let you die."

The guards rushed forward and tore us apart. One yanked my arms behind my back, tying my wrists together. I yelled as they twisted my shoulders back roughly, grinding my teeth together against the pain. Thankfully though, they did not remove my weapons or my pack. I struggled as if for my life, and I heard him repeat his words as I gasped for air like one who was drowning. "I promise."

And suddenly the weight of the world was on my shoulders.