Big thanks to Eruwaedhiel95 and ashuntis for following/favouriting.

Rachetg – Yeah he's going to be a bit of a creep. But happy endings are my thing so there's always that.

Eruwaedhiel95 – Haha! Well done on catching up! Yeah I did get inspiration from Outlander. I'm the romantic sort who would love a man who did that. And yeah the last chapter I wanted in for the story to flow even though it's a bit filler.

Guest – I love Kili so much. I say it all the time but he's just so sweet and I'd love someone like him.

That my Friend, Is a Dragon

Soon the weeks turned into months. Even though Fira knew she hadn't fully been accepted into the company it was clear they were far more trusting of her than before. For the first two weeks since leaving Weathertop Fira's pains had stopped her sleeping at night and so Kili had managed to sneak a sleeping draft from Oin to help her. He even handed her his spare set of trousers – although Fira had never used them in case the others noticed it. The fact that he was lending them to her was enough.

But even when her bleeding had stopped the ache in her stomach didn't go away. Sol's threats had never left her mind and once the woodlands became replaced with thick forests; Fira knew it would only be a matter of days before the ambush. And every time she looked around at the dwarves she was met with the same conflict. Should she tell them and take whatever punishment they threw at her? Or should she keep quiet and pray Sol wouldn't carry it out. She knew of course the chances of that were slim to none. When Sol made a promise he would always carry it out – no matter what it was.

"Who are you thinking of?"

Fira blinked at Kili's voice. Yet another foolish hope had been that her feelings for the prince would soon vanish. But instead they had done the opposite. Fira hadn't been able to keep her eyes from him and several times she caught Fili, Bofur or Bilbo sending her sly grins. Licking her dry lips she turned to face him. Even though there was laughter in his voice she also caught a hint of worry.

"What makes you think it was a person?"

He shrugged, "My mother is the same when thinking of our father."

Fira raised an eyebrow, "What's he like? You keep talking about this famous mother of yours but never your father."

Kili's face went white and he gave Fili a nervous glance. Straightaway Fira knew she had put her foot in it. But it would be too later to go back now and so she would just need to put up with it. Kili gave her a smile but this time it didn't reach his eyes.

"I never knew him," he whispered, "He died before I was born."

Lowering her head Fira took his hand in hers and gave it a soft squeeze.

"I'm sorry. I wouldn't have asked if I had known. I know what it's like not to have a parent around."

"No," Kili said sharply, "No you don't."

Fira tried to force down her anger but it was too late.

"And you know this how? Do you think you're the only person in the whole of Middle Earth who grew up without a father? I never knew mine existed until a few years ago – not that it made any difference as he died long before I was born. So funnily enough Kili I do know what it's like."

Turning away from him Fira snatched her hand from his before he could take it. Looking over she saw Fili give her a weak smile before ushering his pony forward. As Kili's arm slid around her waist – pulling her against him – Fira tried to ignore his torso pressing against her back. His breathing sending shivers through her body.

"I'm sorry," his lips couldn't be any closer to her ear, "I shouldn't have been so harsh. But when most people say they know how it feels they never do. It was just a force of habit and I'm sorry."

Fira didn't reply. She had no need to. Instead she simply took his hand and squeezed it.

"It's okay. I shouldn't have gotten so snappy myself. But most of the times I can't control my temper no matter how hard I try."

Kili snorted, "You don't need to tell me. You might not say anything to Thorin but I see the glares you give him when he snaps at you and barks orders at you."

"Well he does treat me like the companies slave."

Kili gently stroked her palm, "He'll come round. I know it might take a while but trust me. He won't be like this forever."

Nodding Fira turned around in time to see Thorin glaring at her. Looking down at her hand in Kili's she hurriedly let go of the prince and narrowed her eyes at Thorin. He nodded at her before drawing his pony to a halt.

"We'll stop here for an hour."

Lunch didn't even take that. Within forty minutes the entire company had finished eating and were now sitting back – taking advantage of the extra twenty minutes. Brushing the dirt and horsehair from her clothes Fira looked up in time to see Kili sitting beside her. Glancing over his shoulder she was aware of Fili sending her several smirks. Shaking her head she turned her attentions back to Kili. His bright eyes sparkled and as he gave her that soft smile of his Fira tried to stop her insides melting.

"I'm sorry for earlier," he whispered, "I didn't mean to upset you."

"Kili it's fine," Fira rubbed his shoulder, "You've apologised once already."

He nodded, "I know but…I just don't like seeing you upset."

Unsure of how to take this Fira said nothing. Instead – as ever – her mind flew back to Sol's words that night. Glancing up at the sky Fira could have sworn she saw something moving through the clouds. But as everything settled she shook her head – aware of Kili saying her name.

"Sorry, what did you say?"

He grinned at her, "I was just saying your mother must have had it hard – raising you alone. Our mother had Thorin to help and she still struggled."

Fira shook her head, "I never knew her either. She died giving birth to me."

Only a few people knew the truth about her birth – and none of them knew that she knew. Kili blinked at her for a second and as the pity crossed his eyes Fira braced herself for the sympathy he was going to throw at her. Sure enough Kili took her hand.

"I'm so sorry."

At the genuine tone of his voice Fira stopped herself from saying something harsh. Instead she leant against him and allowed him to hug her. Kili squeezed her arm.

"Not having a father is bad," he sighed, "But I can't imagine not having a mother as well."

"It's fine, really. I never knew them so I can't miss them."

Kili looked like he wanted to say something else when Fra saw his brother hurrying towards them. Behind Fili she saw several other dwarves sprinting towards them. Narrowing her eyes she jumped to her feet as her nose pricked at the scent of smoke. Kili stood behind her and Fira watched Thorin hurry towards the dwarves who were now puffing and panting.

"What's the matter?" Thorin's face was amazingly calm. Dori shook his head.

"There's a huge fire not more than a couple of leagues away."

Fira swallowed down her gasp as the rest of the company gave each other hurried glances. She was aware of Kili taking her hand and pulling her against him but Fira decided now wasn't the best time to comment on it. Thorin opened his mouth when they heard something rush through the treetops. Fira gave the dwarf king a nervous glance and his face paled.

"It's no fire," his voice croaked, "It's a dragon."

The seconds that followed Thorin's words seems like hours. Looking around Fira noticed everyone had gone pale whilst Thorin's face was unmatchable anger. Gandalf locked eyes with her and Fira bowed her head – not caring if anyone saw. This was her chance. She could run and leave them to die. But as Kili put a reassuring arm around her Fira knew she wouldn't do it. She couldn't let them die even if half of them still hated her. Glancing up she caught sight of Sols tail and she gave a small shudder.

"What do we do?" Ori squeaked. Dori held him close and Fira would have answered when a huge shape rushed at them from the sky. The company scattered as hot white flames shot down at them. Fira would have run when something pushed her down onto the ground and lay over her – shielding her from the fires. Kili's hands dug into her shoulders and she could feel his mouth brushing against her cheek. Not daring to move she waited until Kili glanced down at her – already his eyes were red from all the smoke.

"Are you alright?"

Nodding Fira allowed him to pull her up. Where there had been forest was now walls of flames. Several of the dwarves were doing their best to restrain the ponies whilst Thorin had Gandalf kept their eyes on the sky. Smoke entered her lungs and burned the back of her throat. Bending over Fira coughed violently – aware of Kili doing the same. He still had hold of her hand.

"Come here."

She had no time to protest. The smoke would affect her but not as much as the others. However Fira found herself letting Kili pull her against him. Wrapping his coat around her he did his best to stop her breathing in more smoke. Fira could still make out the others and when she saw Thorin marching towards her she instinctively grabbed Kili.

"You!" Kili's grip was strong but Thorin's was stronger. He pulled her from his nephew and shook her roughly.

"You say you can help us. Well now you will."

Nodding Fira glanced around. If they were on their ponies they could possibly outrun the fire. But it would be too dangerous for them all to stay here. She nodded at Gandalf before looking back at Thorin.

"Tell the others to ride on," she hissed, "If they stay here they'll die."

"And you?"

Fira shrugged, "I'll try and stop the dragon. Assuming he hasn't already gone."

She was almost certain Sol had gone. He wouldn't want to stick around in case things went badly for him. However Thorin shook his head.

"I will stay with you. I wouldn't put it past you to run away."

"Fine," Fira threw her hands into the air, "You know what Thorin I really don't care. Right now you need to keep them alive and I'm the one who can do that. Trust me or don't trust me I really don't give one. But don't put them at risk because of it!"

He blinked at her and Fira waited for him to strike her. All around her she was aware of the others coughing and as the flames gradually drew nearer she knew they had minutes left. When Thorin nodded she breathed a sigh of relief – regretting it instantly as more smoke filled her lungs.

"Right, Dwalin lead the others away. Wait for us the second it's safe to do so and not a moment before."

Fira knew Dwalin wanted to stay; but he was holding a struggling Balin against him and she knew which dwarf he was going to put first. As the others mounted their ponies she watched Bilbo sticking close to Gandalf whilst Fili was supporting a struggling Kili. For a second Fira wondered if he was more injured than she first thought. But only when he freed himself from his brother did she realise. Kili hurried towards Thorin – his eyes dark.

"Uncle this is madness! Are you trying to get her killed?"

Her? Fira blinked at Kili who avoided her gaze. Thorin raised an eyebrow before shrugging.

"She claims she can tame dragons and right now we have a dragon trying to kill us."

"But…"

"That is enough Kili!"

Kili nodded before stepping back. Thorin nodded and turned back to Fira who could see he was doing his best not to cough. As the others rode past them she rubbed her increasingly sore eyes – knowing that Thorin could easily be using this to get rid of her. However, when she opened them she saw the king smiling at her.

"Do what you need to do."

Nodding Fira shut her eyes, ignoring the flames around her. The fact that her gift allowed her to control any form of animal meant that if Sol was still in his dragon form she would have no trouble communicating with him. With a gasp she opened her eyes.

"It's still here," Fira looked up at the sky whilst stepping in front of Thorin. Even through the thick smoke and flames she could see Sol. His huge black form towered over the charred trees and at the hunger in his eyes Fira gulped. Rubbing her hands together she locked eyes with him.

"Go away." She whispered the words but she knew Sol would hear them in his beast form. The dragon sniffed and she nodded.

"I said go away!"

With a roar the dragon lunged but then stopped. Fira raised an eyebrow as it tried and tried to move closer.

"Go back to where you came from foul beast!" she knew Sol would kill her for this, but she didn't care anymore.

"I will not allow you to harm him. Go now before it's too late!"

For a second she wondered if it would be enough. The dragon continued to hover before them for several seconds before snorting and then turning mid air. As it flew away Fira let out a shaky giggle before turning to Thorin who gaped her at her.

"I didn't believe it at first."

Nodding Fira suddenly remembered where they were. In the middle of a forest fire. Without stopping to think she grabbed Thorins hand.

"We need to run. Like NOW!"

Thorin needed no encouragement. Letting go of her hand he ran side by side with her. The flames were getting a lot closer now; close enough to feel the heat pushing against her skin. Ducking underneath a rather low burning branch Fira realised Thorin was starting to get ahead of her. Trying to ignore her smoke filled lungs she put in another burst of speed. All the while trying not to think of the consequences of what she had just done.

"THORIN!"

He didn't hear her. Instead Fira threw herself into him; knocking him to the ground. He landed a few feet away from her, rolling to a stop. Fira would have gotten up when a sudden weight landed on her back, pinning her to the ground. She didn't have to look to know what it was; the few burning embers left on the branch began burning holes through her clothes. Resting her head on the ground Fira could see the figure of Thorin standing over her. She gave one final cough before everything went black.

Kili couldn't stop pacing. It hadn't taken them long to outrun the fire and as soon as it was safe enough they'd stopped at the edge of a river. Oin had done his rounds; making sure everybody was okay. Ori had a small cut on his head and Bilbo had a few minor burns on his arm. But other than that everyone was fine. Kili had taken drink after drink from the river yet his lungs still felt like they were burning. Every so often he would bend over coughing – leaving Fili looking more and more worried by the second.

"Kee?"

"I'm fine," he rasped before glancing over. He could still smell the smoke and as each second ticked by with no sign of Thorin or Fira, Kili couldn't stop the worry building in his chest.

"Kili, they'll be fine," Fili whispered. Kili nodded absentmindedly. Fili said something else but Kili payed no attention. Instead he watched as a small figure stumbled out of the forest. For one horrible second Kili wondered if either his uncle or Fira hadn't made it. But as the figure got closer he realised they were holding someone in their arms.

"Thorin?" Kili wished he could share Dwalins cheer. But he couldn't keep his eyes from Fira's limp body. Thorin sank to his knees and gently laid Fira out. He tried to talk but Kili noticed he had to stop and cough every few seconds.

"We…we were…running. She…saved my…life!"

As Oin hurriedly checked Thorin over Kili took the opportunity to sit beside Fira. Her skin was pale and covered in dirt and grime. As her chest rose and fell her could hear her wheezing – no doubt from the smoke she had inhaled.

"What happened to her" Kili didn't take his eyes from Fira, instead gently stroking her face. Thorin coughed one last time before getting to his feet.

"A branch fell and trapped her. I think her back might be burned but I'm not certain."

"Let me see," Oin sat on Fira's other side and gently eased her onto her front. Kili could see the odd black spots on her tunic and as he saw the holes he shuddered. Without waiting for Oin he rolled up her tunic – freezing at the blackened burns that dotted her lower back. Oin gave a small nod.

"Nothing too serious. I imagine she passed out from the smoke rather than her burns. With some salve on them they should heal well enough."

No one said anything as Oin worked. Dwalin and Balin checked the ponies – all of whom were fine if very skittish – whilst the others waited for the healer to be done. As he wrapped a thin bandage around her lower back Oin got to his feet and let Kili lower her shirt.

"She'll come round in a couple of hours lad don't worry."

Kili nodded – knowing Thorin was sending him sharp glares. Not even bothering to look at his uncle he gently scooped Fira into his arms and laid her on Minty. All around him the others were nervously mounting their own ponies with Gandalf being the last to do so. Kili pulled Fira so she was sitting against him with her face pressed against his coat and her knees brushing his. Pushing her hair from her face he gave a sad smile and – before he could think about it – placed a gentle kiss on her cheek.

He had risked losing her today. He didn't like the way that made him feel.

So after a couple of fillers I just casually throw this at you! More lovely Fira/Kili moments. Plus there will be more information to come about her parents – this is just a tease. Plus Fira got to be the hero and save everyone! Let me know what you all think xxx