The dwarves helped support me as we ran through the suspended passageways of Goblin Town. Hundreds of goblins chased after us, shrieking so loudly that it was impossible to remember a time the sound did not fill the air. The dwarves fought ferociously, and not for the first time was I grateful that we were on the same side. Kili and Fili, who were several dwarves ahead of me, fought with unbridled fury that I can only describe as the same protectiveness a mother bear has for her cubs.

As I staggered along, crying out whenever my torn up feet touched the wood, the dwarves shot me glances of concern and guilt, but it was hard for me to see clearly; everything went in and out of focus. I could barely think I was so dizzy, and thick, hot blood ran down my back, arms, and feet. I couldn't even fight. Even had I had my weapons, which I didn't, there was no way I could have held a sword, much less fired a bow.

Gandalf turned around, searching the group frantically. His eyes locked on my nearly motionless form, and I felt the Istari's attention and panic focused almost solely on me. "Quickly!" He yelled, swinging Glamdring and taking off a goblin's head. Suddenly, a goblin leapt forward, about to take off Thorin's head. Without thinking I drew Fili's knife from my corset and threw it with deadly accuracy, sending it spinning through the air and into the eye of one that had been about to murder Thorin. The king's face morphed into that of surprise when he turned and faced the creature that would have killed him. I saw him take in the knife—which only Fili or I could have thrown with such deadly accuracy—and the position the orc was in, and he glanced at me appraisingly before continuing on. The motion had left me alarmingly weak, and I sagged against the dwarf supporting me.

The entire fight began to grow muted, and I felt exhausted. My body grew light as darkness began encroaching on my mind in earnest, the voices screaming to be heard. You will die. You will fail. They will die.

Thorin's controlled voice reached my ears, breaking through the shadows and waking me up. I have to stay awake. "Cut the ropes!"

The dwarf carrying me—I couldn't remember who anymore—stumbled and fell, and I tumbled out of his arms onto the wooden planks of the path. I tried to rise and screamed, stomach acid and vomit spilling out my mouth and onto the ground at the pain that tore through me. The foul air stung my exposed muscles, and I wept with pain, struggling to keep from collapsing. A pair of arms lifted me up, and I opened my eyes to see Dwalin above me.

"Come on, princess," he said gruffly. "We need to go!"

"Quickly!" Gandalf yelled, urging us on.

I fought to keep my eyes open even as my ears rang and my vision blurred. We continued running through the maze-like paths and eventually made it to a section of the path suspended by ropes from above with nothing below but darkness. Dwalin stayed close to Fili and Kili, being unable to fight, until Thorin took me from him, sheathing his sword. The platform was unsteady, and Thorin fought to keep his balance. The dwarves cut through the rope supporting it and the pathway swung away from the rest of the path, approaching a different one on the other side of the ravine. The dwarf king gripped me tightly leapt onto the other platform while yelling for the others to jump.

Several of the dwarves, including Fili, Kili, and Dwalin, managed to jump to the other path where I stood. However, before the rest could, the path swung back like a pendulum to where it started, and several goblins leaped onto the platform and engaged the dwarves again. Fili and Kili stood back-to-back and fought together. One goblin slammed into Thorin, who dropped me through no fault of his own. As I struggled to rise, a goblin slammed the butt of his spear into my temple, then knelt over me and pulled out a dagger. I could barely see or breathe, and I couldn't move. I could do nothing but watch as the goblin's blade came towards me, and I did nothing as Fili's knife buried itself up to the hilt in its neck. It toppled over backwards, dead.

Kili knelt down and scooped me into his arms as the rest of the company managed to jump to the new path. They cut the ropes immediately, causing the swinging path and the goblins on it to fall. No matter how many goblins they cut down, however, there were hundreds more to take their places.

They continued continued running through the tunnels, killing all the goblins in their way. Kili and Fili both supported me, their arms wrapped around my waist and my arms around their shoulders; I couldn't stand on my own. Although this way was painful, at least both brothers were able to fight, and so I did not complain as we continued on.

Soon we approached a bridge between two walls of the cavern. Light was visible on the other side—daylight—and it glimmered and shone so that I nearly began to weep again. The company surged forward, but before we could cross it, the Great Goblin suddenly broke through from underneath the bridge and pulled himself up onto the wooden planks in front of us.

"Don't you people ever die?" I muttered, immensely aggravated. Kili cracked a small smile, but it quickly disappeared when he turned his attention back to the matter at hand. As the Company paused, hundreds of goblins approached us from all sides, albeit wary of us now that several hundred had been killed.

"You thought you could escape me?" The Great Goblin swung his mace twice at Gandalf, causing him to stumble back and almost fall. The dwarves caught him and pushed him upright again. "What are you going to do now, wizard?"

Snarling, Gandalf leaped forward and struck the Great Goblin in the eye with the pointy tip of his staff. The Great Goblin dropped his mace and clutched at his face in pain, hands scrabbling at his eye. "Ow, ow, ow!" He howled. Gandalf stepped forward and sliced the Great Goblin's midsection, and it fell to his knees, looking down at the fatty intestines threatening to spill out of him. The Great Goblin looked up, bemused, and glanced around at all of us. "That'll do it."

Gandalf once again swung his sword and sliced the Great Goblin's throat, causing him to fall down dead with an almighty squelch. However, the weight of the goblin falling against the platform was too much for the wood to handle. The section of the bridge we stood upon broke away from the rest of the path and began sliding down the side of the cavern. It slid at a terrific speed down the cavern's wall, demolishing everything in its way; the dwarves clung on, yelling in terror. Kili held me close to him, doing his best to protect me. I clung it him, squeezing my eyes shut. My breath came out in quick, short bursts as my stomach rose into my throat.

The bridge jerked to a stop and slid down with ear-splitting screeches until it came to a rest at the bottom of the cavern. The company was covered in splintered wood. Kili passed me off to Gandalf, one of the only one's not stuck in the rubble. I noticed blearily that Kili still had a sack thrown over his shoulder, and wondered what on earth it could be. Gandalf patted my shoulder and went to check on the others as I sunk to the ground, not noticing the blood on his hand.

Bofur smiled and looked around, trying to get a beam off his legs, and trying to lighten the mood, said: "Well, that could have been worse."

A millisecond later, the heavy corpse of the Great Goblin landed on the wreckage, pinning the dwarves further. "You've got to be joking," Dwalin roared, jerking his legs out from under the platform. On a whim, I looked up and saw thousands of goblins running at us, climbing down the walls and shrieking with bloodlust.

Kili, apparently, had done the same. "Gandalf!" He yelled warningly, gripping his brother's hand as Fili yanked him out from under the splintered timber. Once on his feet, he rushed over and picked me up once again, tugging me along behind him.

"There's too many! We can't fight them," Dwalin yelled, helping Balin to his feet and pulling his elder brother along.

Gandalf turned to us. "Only one thing will save us: daylight! Come on! Here, on your feet!" The dwarves got up quickly, helping each other out of the rubble, and we ran away, following Gandalf. Kili, knowing that I was on the verge of unconsciousness, ran as gently and quickly as he could, his breathing labored, murmuring things under his breath that I couldn't hear.

"Aeyera, look!" Kili said, desperately trying to keep me awake. I jerked, opening my eyes. I had been dreaming.

It had been morning, and I had stood at a balcony, my hands resting on my swollen belly. My husband's arms were wrapped around me, and his chin had rested on my shoulder—

Kili's voice brought me back, although I wondered if it really had been a dream. "It's the exit! We're almost out." I opened my eyes further and saw the late afternoon sunlight streaming into the cave, and I wept. Kili continued murmuring encouraging words to me as we broke out of the darkness of the cave and ran down the steep, tree-covered slope. The fresh mountain air was in stark contrast to the pungent, stinking hole we had just climbed out of, and I felt rejuvenated—to a degree—though I still was on the verge of unconsciousness. The run jostled the gaping wounds in my back, and I bit my lip so hard to keep from crying out that I drew blood.

After a time that I couldn't keep track of to save my life, Gandalf paused to count how many dwarves were with him as we stopped to collect our breath. Kili set me down and passed me my cloak and tunic, which he had saved from the goblins. He also had my boots with him, and he wrapped my feet in bandages before sliding my stockings and boots on as gently as he could. I could walk now, although it was incredibly painful still, now that there was no danger of splinters or rocks being wedged in the wounds. I absently listened to Gandalf as Kili tied my underclothes together in a braid-like fashion, Fili helping. I counted in my head as well, trying to concentrate on something other than the nagging pain that encased my entire being. I slid the tunic on over my ruined clothes. "Five, six, seven, eight... Bifur, Bofur... that's ten... Fili, Kili... that's twelve... and Bombur—that makes thirteen. Princess Aeyera… that's fourteen. Where's Bilbo? Where is our Hobbit?" He asked, glancing around. Several of the company jumped to their feet, alarmed. "WHERE IS OUR HOBBIT?"

"Curse the halfling! Now he's lost?!" Dwalin growled.

Gloin looked around, eyes narrowing. "I thought he was with Dori!"

Dori grew instantly defensive, turning to the ginger-haired dwarf. "Don't blame me!"

The angry wizard looked around and captured the grey-bearded dwarf in his piercing gaze. "But where did you last see him?"

Nori looked guilty and piped up, shrinking away from the fuming sorcerer. "I think I saw him slip away, when they first collared us."

Gandalf turned on him. "What happened exactly? Tell me!"

Thorin stepped up as Kili helped me to my feet. Fili wrapped his arm around my waist, supporting my weight as I fought to stand. Kili wrapped my cloak around my shoulders as I began to shake. "I'll tell you what happened—Master Baggins saw his chance and he took it! He's thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm hearth since first he stepped out of his door! We will not be seeing our Hobbit again. He is long gone."

I moved forward, anger fueling my movements even as my knees shook so badly I nearly fell with every step. "Do not speak of him like that," I said angrily. I shook where I stood, and nearly all of my weight was on Fili's and Kili's shoulders. Their arms were around my waist in an effort to keep me from collapsing. My voice, however, did not waver. 'I've had it up to here with this dwarf's arrogance.' "Bilbo took up this quest even though it was not his burden to bear, and you have done nothing but put him down since the moment he joined us. You have no right—"

"I have every right," he bellowed, stepping forward till we were nearly touching. "This is my quest, not his. Neither is it yours, Princess," he added venomously. "Go back to your woodland halls." He turned back to the rest of the company. "As I said before, our Hobbit is long gone. You, elfling," he added, looking venomously at me over his shoulder, "would be wise to join him; he is halfway back to Rivendell by now."

The dwarves looked at each other, unsure of how to react. Kili pulled me gently away and moved me out of the way so I could rest for a bit. My hands gripped his arms and tunic in a vice-like grip, and I held my breath as he eased me to the ground.

"No, he isn't."

I looked up in shock and relief to see Bilbo stepping out from behind a tree. I gasped, nearly laughing in joy. Looking around, I saw that many of the dwarves' expressions mirrored my own. Gandalf laughed as he spoke. "Bilbo Baggins! I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life!" Bilbo strode forward into the group; he patted Balin affectionately on the shoulder and winked over at me, not noticing the blood on my face and hands.

Kili grinned from ear to ear; an identical grin rested on his brother's face as the two of them looked up from where they were crouched next to me on the ground. "Bilbo! We'd given you up!"

"How on earth did you get past the Goblins?!" Fili added.

Dwalin smiled affectionately and stepped up, wonder and curiosity in his voice. "How, indeed."

I tilted my head a bit as I gazed at Bilbo, who appeared to be thinking of what to say. An awkward silence descended on the group, and Fili joined his brother at my side with a medicine pouch from Oin's bag. Bilbo continued searching for something to say, his mouth opening and closing wordlessly.

Fili quickly mixed some of the powder in my water skin and made me drink it; I gagged at its bitter taste, but relaxed as instantly a warm feeling settled over me and the fog cleared from my mind. I sat up, although I did not risk placing weight on my feet. The more time that passed, the better I felt: the pain, for the moment, was gone.

Bilbo gave a nervous laugh and put his hands on his hips, slipping something into the pocket of his waistcoat, which was missing its buttons. I glanced at Gandalf, who looked a bit perturbed, and I wondered if he had caught the glimmer of gold that had slipped into the hobbit's pocket.

"Well, what does it matter? He's back!" Gandalf said lightly.

Thorin frowned menacingly and stepped forward, glaring at the hobbit as though he were a puzzle he wasn't sure how to solve. "It matters! I want to know—why did you come back?"

Bilbo gazed at the dwarf sadly, a slight smile on his face. "Look, I know you doubt me, and I know you always have. And you're right, I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. And my garden. See, that's where I belong. That's home. And that's why I came back, cause you don't have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can." I smiled proudly at the halfling as silence reigned over the company, each dwarf thinking about what Bilbo said. His words healed my heart, soothing the wound Thorin had so carelessly placed there. Bilbo suddenly frowned, catching sight of my hands, which were bright crimson. "Aeyera, what's on your hands?" The dwarves turned to me, and the ones I had befriended looked alarmed; even the ones who had thus far given me the cold shoulder seemed at least mildly concerned.

"I-I just…" I stammered, shrinking back somewhat as Thorin's expression turned murderous. "They… they beat me, in the tunnels, it… it's nothing, just…"

"How did this happen?" Gandalf demanded. "Did no one watch over her?" He yelled, looking pointedly at Thorin as he spoke.

"There was nothing they could've done, Mithrandir," I said softly, wincing as the wizard poked my back to evaluate the full extent of the damage. At the same time, though, I felt a bubbling anger at Thorin for not stepping forward earlier; if he had, I wouldn't have been flogged.

"That is a lie, and you know it, elfling," he said, glaring at Thorin. "But we will discuss that at a later time. We need to get these wounds inspected." He moved my cloak over, and I heard his intake of breath as he looked at the back of my tunic; I guessed the blood had by then seeped through the thick cloth.

"The light is fading," the dwarf king pointed out without sparing me a glance. "We are too close to the goblin tunnels; sunlight is our only protection, and it is fast disappearing."

"It is your own fault she is wounded," The wizard shot back. "However, he is right, my lady," the wizard said, pulling me to my feet. "Don't worry; we'll find help soon enough." As the company began moving again, he spoke quietly in my ear. "Just in case I become separated from the company, Aeyera," he whispered, eyeing the dwarves, "I leave it to you to protect the line of Durin."

I looked up at him in surprise as the dwarves shuffled by, headed down the mountain, startled by the sudden gravity of his request and confused that he did not already know that I had received my wounds for them. "What?"

"I meant to ask this of you when first this venture began, but I did not. I ask this of you now, although you have done a marvelous job of it already: will you protect the line of Durin with your life, should it come down to it?" I stayed silent, considering the gravity of his request and knowing that the wizard already knew that I would have done this anyway; that I had earned the stripes on my back by protecting them. I knew how that particular goblin worked: he could sniff out the youngest and torture them for days on end until finally he killed them, making the others watch helplessly as he did so. In this case, the youngest were Fili and Kili, Kili being the younger of the two brothers. I would never allow them to face torment and death; if I had wanted to stay hidden, the thick-skulled orc filth would not have found me. I let them find me so they would be distracted from the dwarves. I had already saved them before; I knew I would do it again in a heartbeat. "You told me once that you did not have a purpose," he said softly. "Tell me: why are you still here? Why haven't you left?"

"I suppose because I want to help them," I answered, weaving around a large birch in my path. "I know what it's like to lose a home; a family."

"Is that all?" he asked, looking over at the setting sun as we jogged behind the group. His eyes twinkled with eons of knowledge, and I knew that he knew my answer. "Sympathy?"

"No. No one should lose a brother," I said, thinking back to the last time I saw my own brother, thinking back over more years than I cared to count. "I will not allow Fili or Kili to feel that pain. Nor will I allow their mother to deal with the pain of losing another brother or a son; she already has lost her youngest brother and her husband."

He nodded solemnly, a proud smile touching his lips. "I understand. You are wise beyond your years." I nodded, ready and willing to accept this responsibility, however abrupt the request may be. "Aeyera Greenleaf: do you swear to protect the line of Durin, to the best of your abilities, until they release you from your duties?"

"They will not know," I corrected softly, crying out as I jumped over a fallen log and landed on my ruined feet. "But I will protect them until the end."