Your reviews meant the world, and thank you so much for the criticism! I'll try to make Thorin a little more OC (I know I've been spectacularly failing at that.), but I can't make any promises although I'll try my best. Once again, thank you all for the reviews! They mean the world! :)

*Aurora's Perspective*

"Kili, can I borrow you?"

After that little talking session, I must admit that I felt significantly better than before, and I couldn't help but laugh when Kili swooped me up into his arms with a flourish and a grin, asking, "Yes, milady?"

"I can't reach the tool on that shelf," I mumbled sheepishly, pointing to a pair of wire cutters.

"Have no fear!" I giggled again when he set me down and puffed out his chest, making his voice low and full of bravado. Giving me the cutters, he tickled my ribs lightly, cooing when I laughed. "See? That's the spirit."

"You know," I started, snapping a wire apart to give me a chance to redo the faulty connection, "by the way this is going, I may have this ready by tomorrow night. Especially by the way your uncle and brother are crafting these pieces. Utterly perfect!"

"We are quite skilled you know, Miss."

I looked up with a grin at Fili's voice, clapping my hands in delight as I saw him and Thorin holding the rest of the bars. I looked at the small family, bouncing on my heels in excitement. "Oh, thank you, thank you! I cannot express my gratitude to you, my lieges!"

"Enough with the titles," Kili scolded, ruffling my hair despite my protest. "It's just Kili to you."

"Same for me," Fili added, setting the curved bars of metal down in a pile before coming to pick me up, once again in spite of my protests.

"Aye. And same for me."

I grinned even more widely at Thorin's voice, unable to help the laugh he elicited from me by gently pinching my nose.

"Now I do hate to interrupt this, but I do believe it's somebody's bedtime…"

We all looked towards the stairs at Bilbo's words, finding the hobbit standing at the foot of the stairwell with his arms crossed against his chest and foot tapping in the classic picture of a scolding parent.

"What?" I asked ridiculously, moving back to my work area lined with tables and plans. "I have work to do! This isn't going to do itself!"

"You are just a little girl and need your rest. Even the company's asleep."

"But I'm not even tired!" I was aware that I was whining, but as I clambered up my stool to look at my blueprints yet again atop my desk, I realized I didn't care.

"Nonsense. You are exhausted, and we can all see it."

"Master Baggins is right, Aurora. You can barely keep your eyes open."

"I'll sleep down here," was my only response to Thorin, yawning into my sleeve as I dragged my pencil across the paper to scribble down equations in order to determine how much power I would need. "Let's see… I need to account for the height and weight of each member including the their equipment and weapons… Now I just give an extra hundred pounds just to be safe… Kili?"

"Yes, Aurora?"

"Scratch what I said about this being done tomorrow night. I need to go buy a generator to create enough power for this to work," I sighed, dragging a fist across my eyes in what I hate to admit was exhaustion. "And buying that involves socializing with other human beings."

I buried my face in my arms, trying not to let all of my despair show as I mumbled, "Lovely."

"One of us could accompany you if you like-"

"I'm sorry, Master Baggins, but that just won't do. If you lot could attack my chandelier, thinking it to be some monstrosity, I cannot even imagine how you will respond to leaving my home and facing the technological advancements out there."

I shook my head after that, aware of an increasing drowsiness filling my body even as I blindly moved back to my blueprints, tiredness clouding my vision even as I did that. I felt two hands grab me by my waist even as I voiced my tired protest, but I soon found myself being held to someone's chest, my head resting against their shoulder as they tucked me in close. I thought I was doing well against that figurative battle between sleep and myself, but then whoever was holding me began humming, and I was fighting a lost cause. Within minutes, I was drifting.