I do not own any of the characters or the Hobbit (just the AU storyline and my OC) those are the work of the esteemed and brilliant John Ronald Reull Tolkien, and without his genius, this and many other fan fics would not be in existence.

Please review! I love getting them-they keep me encouraged! J

Lindir entered the room, his gaze a cross between critical and amused as he took in Kili's rather elven appearance. Kili stared back at him, seemingly unaware of how ridiculous he looked. Then Lindir spotted the bow slung across his back, and he fixed the dwarf with a pointed stare.

"I am afraid you must keep your weapons here, master dwarf," he said, "You will not need them for dining."

"I would much rather keep my bow close to me, given that I am in an unfamiliar place," Kili replied civilly, though internally he wondered if this was somehow a trap, and if the elves planned to ambush him the second he was unarmed. His expression must have said as much, because Lindir sighed in exasperation and shook his head.

"As much as I would love to see you and your kin leave Rivendell as soon as possible, my lord has ordered me to fetch you for supper. He has granted you and your kin the honor of staying in Rivendell as guests for as long as it takes your hurt companion to heal," Lindir replied, then looked the dwarf in the eye.

"He has also informed all of us that you and your kin are his honored guests, and under no circumstances are you to be harmed, no matter how much we may dislike your kind, unless you threaten the safety of our people. And unfortunately, verbal insults do not count towards that," Lindir added, sighing in defeat.

"My kin have arrived?" Kili asked, hopeful. He was both excited and apprehensive, excited because then he could let the others deal with the elves instead of him and be reunited with his brother, and apprehensive at what the company's, and more specifically, his uncle's reaction would be when they saw him.

"Yes, they arrived a few moments ago. They are being shown to dinner, since it is a bit closer to where they are," Lindir replied.

"Why can I not take my weapons with me, when my kin will surely have theirs?" he asked. Lindir sighed again.

"Because dinner is ready, and to come here first will be far out of the way for your kin. Right now, they are closer to where dinner is being served than here," Lindir replied, "however, they will be ordered to remove their weapons before entering the room where dinner is to take place."

Kili nodded, and grudgingly set his weapons down by the bed he had chosen for himself. He didn't bother to inform Lindir that he had taken his knife and stashed it in his boot, just in case. Lindir nodded to him and turned to leave the room. Kili followed, noticing that he was following the same path that he had taken earlier when he had been shown the dwarves' quarters.

They passed the healing rooms, and Kili glanced at the door where the girl's chamber was. He wondered if he would be able to check on her for just a minute to see if she was safe, but Lindir continued to hasten along the corridor, quickly outpacing him. He had to jog a little to catch up, not wanting to get lost.

They passed over a courtyard with a balcony overlooking the valley, and a manservant opened the door ahead of them, nodding his head at Lindir. Lindir entered the room, where Kili could hear flute and harp music playing softly. He followed Lindir in.

XXX

"My lord, the young dwarf has arrived for dinner," Lindir informed Lord Elrond, who was presently speaking to Gandalf as they walked towards the balcony up ahead.

Gandalf looked up and saw Kili, and his face broke out into a grin.

"Ah, Kili. I am glad you have joined us, and I must say the elves have treated you well. I was just saying to Lord Elrond how kind he was to invite us for dinner though we are not really dressed for it, but it seems you at least are," he said, winking. Kili felt himself blush to the roots of his hair, keenly aware of the company's eyes suddenly on him.

Dwalin had been taking a drink of wine when he spotted him, and as soon as he saw the young dwarf the wine spurted out of his mouth and he gawped at him. Several other members of the company stared at him with their mouths hanging wide open, hands paused at whatever they were doing when they saw him. Even Bombur's hand had stopped halfway to his mouth as his eyes bugged out at the sight of their young prince dressed in elf clothing.

Fili had seen him, and did a double take, before jumping out of his seat and rushing to his brother. He grabbed his brother in a bear hug, catching Kili by surprise, making him have to take a step backwards to keep his balance. He pulled away from him, and stared at him in shock.

"Kili, what in Mahal's name are you wearing?!" he asked, making his brother blush even more with embarrassment. Fili sniffed his nose, then a familiar gleam came into his eye. Kili groaned.

"Don't you dare say a word," he growled through clenched teeth. Fili merely grinned, the look on his face promising that Kili would most definitely be hearing about this later. And likely for a long, long time from now.

Kili gulped, and turned his head toward his uncle. He had never, ever seen such a look of shock on his uncle's face, jaw agape and eyes bugging out as though he could not begin to comprehend what he saw. If Kili hadn't been so nervous and embarrassed, he would have laughed until his sides hurt and tears streamed down his face at the dumbfounded expression on his regal uncle's face. But, at the moment, he wanted the floor to open up and swallow him whole.

"Thorin," he began, but was immediately silenced with a wave of Thorin's hand. His uncle's cheeks turned red and his eyes blazed, and Kili feared that he would be sent home right then and there. But, to his surprise, the elder dwarf directed his gaze at Lord Elrond. Gandalf glanced sidelong at Kili, who returned the glance, and both looked toward Thorin with worry on their faces, if not alarm. Kili didn't notice it, but the rest of the company had turned toward Thorin as well, wondering how their King was going to handle this little, er, situation.

Thorin's voice was surprisingly calm, although edged with steel, as he asked his host, "Lord Elrond, why is my neph—member of my company dressed," here he gestured toward Kili, "in elvish clothing?" His gaze settled on Lord Elrond, seemingly calm, but the elf could see full well that the dwarf king was close to exploding with anger.

"I had my servants provide him with clean clothing so his own could be washed, as it was covered in the girl's blood. The young master did not appear to have any spare clothing with him, and we could not fashion any dwarf clothing for him in so little time," Lord Elrond replied matter of factly, as though it was an everyday occurrence to see a dwarf dressed in elvish clothing.

Thorin's jaw opened as though he was going to retort, but shut again without a word. He clearly hadn't thought of that. The company looked from one to the other, not quite sure what happened. Bofur ended up being the one to break the tension.

"Well, come on and have a seat, laddie. I'm sure you're starving," Bofur called out, motioning to the empty seat between him and where Fili had sat. The tension seemed to lift just then, and Kili and Fili settled on their seats as conversation resumed.

"Can't say much for the food though," Dwalin muttered, "apparently these elves don't seem to fancy meat." He rifled through his bowl again, as though he must have missed it the first four times he had searched, before shaking his head.

The flautist, seeing Oin with his ear trumpet, hovered over him and played louder, causing him to stuff his ear trumpet with a cloth napkin and grin in triumph. Kili and Fili chuckled a bit.

Fili leaned into Kili and slung his arm over his shoulder with a wicked gleam in his eye. Kili sent him a warning glare, but his brother ignored it.

"Well, I must say, Kili, you are looking mighty fine today," he sang out in a lilting voice. Kili glared at him again as the company snickered and dug his elbow into his brother's side.

"Ow!" Fili cried, rubbing his side and returning the glare.

"Smelling mighty fine too," Bofur said with a wink, "just like an elvish maiden."

The entire company erupted in laughter as Kili once again blushed. He had a sudden thought, and secretly reached for a tomato. Casting a glance to the side to make sure Thorin wasn't watching (the latter seeming to be in a discussion with Lord Elrond regarding the sword he found in the troll cave), Kili curved his wrist and threw it at an unsuspecting Bofur, hitting him smack in the face.

He fell backwards head over heels off his seat, landing with a loud cry on the balcony floor, his hat falling off in the process. The laughter doubled, drowning out the music as the elves regarded their "honored guests" with looks varying from disgust to amusement. Bofur sputtered and spit the seeds out of his face, before looking for the culprit. Fili and Kili were trying their best to look innocent, but their dancing eyes betrayed them.

"Oh, it's going to be that way, is it?" Bofur asked, eyeing a peach.

"Bofur!" Thorin shouted. Bofur eyed the king, and retracted his hand, muttering that the "lad better watch his back for the next few weeks". The rest of dinner continued on without any more incidents.

XXX

The dwarves were led to their chamber by Lindir after dinner, and then Gandalf, Balin, Thorin and Bilbo went with Lord Elrond, leaving the other eleven dwarves on their own. Much amusement continued about Kili's new looks and smell, much to Kili's chagrin.

"Say, fair maiden!" Nori smirked, making Kili bristle. "How about I have a dance? I have never danced with an elf maiden before!" He made a sweeping and elegant bow. Several of the company snickered, watching Kili to see how he would react. Kili crossed his arms in front of him and did the best "Thorin" glare he could come up with, before a thought entered his head and he stood as tall as he could.

"You know what they say. Maidens tend to prefer men who are taller than they are," he replied, looking down at Nori, who was shorter than him. An indignant shout erupted from Nori as the company roared with laughter at the look on his face. Kili smirked, until Fili entered his line of vision.

"Alas, but who could resist such a sweet smelling jewel?" he crooned, dropping to one knee with his arm swept out before him, producing a rose he had picked from the bush outside their balcony. Kili decided he had enough and tackled Fili, and the two began wrestling on the floor. The company proceeded to place bets on who would win, most betting on Fili.

Kili ended up underneath Fili again, much to his annoyance. Fili stared down at his struggling brother, and his eyebrows wiggled with mischief.

"How did you become so sweet smelling brother?" he asked with a sly grin. Kili growled at him, before catching him by surprise and knocking Fili off him. Fili went to regain his footing, before tripping on one of their bags on the floor. Kili took the chance to grab him from the back under the arms and dragged him into the bathroom, before tossing him into the water. He reached for the soap and dumped all fifteen bars into the water.

Fili came up sputtering indignantly, and caught the scent of rose.

"Kili!" he shouted, before slipping on a loose bar and falling face first into the bath. The company was a mix of laughter and collective groans as those who bet on Fili had to pay up. Kili smiled triumphantly.

"Who's the sweet smelling jewel now?" he asked, grinning as he casually leaned against the doorjamb with his arms crossed in front of his chest. Fili, who had managed to climb out of the spring soaking wet, glared at him, earning more chuckles from the company.

Kili grinned again, and offered his hand to help him up. Fili looked up at him with a glare for a second, then grudgingly took his hand and stood up, all animosity forgiven. The company undressed and got in the bath, for it was big enough to hold them all. Sighs of relief sounded as the warm water hit their tired bodies. Someone accidentally splashed someone else, and pretty soon an all out water war ensued.

Kili got back in the bath too, not wanting to miss out on the fun. He dunked Fili, who was happy to return the favor, tackling him from behind and pulling them both under the water. The hot water got all over the bathroom pretty quickly, making the floors very slick. Ori got out, having forgotten to take off one of his clasps, when he slipped and fell back into the tub, dousing everyone in the wave. The company continued laughing as they washed their travel grime away, and soap bars were tossed around to those who needed them.

"This elvish soap smells absolutely terrible," Dwalin said, sniffing one of the bars, "No wonder Kili smells like bloody roses."

The splashing suddenly ceased, and the company went strangely quiet. Even those who were laughing heartily moments before (or who were still slightly drunk still from the elvish wine) had all laughter leave their eyes as Dwalin's comment reminded them of the events of that afternoon. Almost silently the company finished their bath, and began to wash their soiled clothing, hanging it to dry on ropes stretched across the balcony.

A few of the company half heartedly joked that they better not run across any of their kin for a while, for fear of them being mistaken for a bunch of women. Gloin wondered aloud whether or not his wife would like the soap and asked no one in particular if they thought the elves would notice if it was gone, but his eyes were not laughing. Each of the company felt the guilt and burden of the day settle on them.

The whole company felt guilty that they were not there when the young heir's life was in danger, and they also felt guilty that they had not been there when the three dwarves they had sworn loyalty to had to face first the wargs, then the elves on their own. A few, such as Dwalin, were very angry that the elvish pathway had been so difficult to exit from, and wondered if that had been some sort of defense to ensure that any enemy seeking refuge could not escape. If Gandalf had not been there to diffuse the tensions, most believed that Thorin, Fili, and Kili would have been taken prisoner, or been killed at the elves' hands.

There were some who felt genuine concern over the well being of the girl, such as Bofur, Fili, Kili, Oin, Dori, and Ori, and all of them felt guilty that a woman had to be the one to save the young heir's life. They lit their pipes and dressed in their underwear, with Kili and Fili also in their tunics, and built a fire on the balcony using one of the elven tables as firewood. Nori had slipped away briefly and returned with a few things he had, well, acquired from the elves' kitchen, and Bofur roasted them over the fire, while many of the company pulled out their pipes. Bombur perched himself atop another table with a plate full of food, and Bifur for some reason decided that maybe if they roasted a head of silverbeet perhaps it would taste better. Bofur heard the table under Bombur creak ominously, and decided to test his theory.

"Bombur!" he said, tossing the sausage in his hand to his brother. Bombur caught it deftly, before crying out as the table crumpled underneath them. The dwarves laughed heartily as Bombur tried in vain to get up without slipping on the food that had fallen off his plate. Bofur was laughing so hard he fell over on his back. But within moments, the company was again reminded of the events of the afternoon, and the laughter died down, leaving each dwarf to their own thoughts.

XXX

Kili absentmindedly sharpened his knife as he puffed on his pipe, but he really wasn't paying attention to what he was doing. Sitting on a lounge that had been on the porch, he had his knees drawn up slightly as he leaned back. He was back in his own clothing, thank Mahal. The elvish clothes had felt so smooth that it made him feel strange and uncomfortable, being used to wool and leather.

His thoughts kept returning to the girl, and still he couldn't figure out why she had saved his life. He was very puzzled. Back in the Blue Mountains, there had been some dwarf lasses his age, but his brother usually got their attention, whereas they largely ignored him. He wasn't sure if it was because his brother was second in line to the throne, and as such would be guaranteed to become king of Erebor someday, or if it was because he was built more like a real dwarf and actually was able to braid his beard.

Whatever it was, Fili always caught the lasses' attention, though he turned them all down because he had decided he wouldn't court until Erebor was reclaimed. Kili knew there were a couple of lasses his brother would be more than willing to consider once Erebor was reclaimed, but his duty to Thorin came first. His brother had always taken his responsibility as Thorin's heir very seriously.

Kili, on the other hand, had often been ridiculed by both dwarf lads and lasses alike. His scant beard, small nose, and slight jaw line had earned him a few marriage proposals by dwarf lads who didn't know him and thought he was a lass. He had very quickly set them straight, and one of them had gone so far as to beat him up in his embarrassment. Fili had caught him as he tried to sneak in that night, and demanded he tell him who it was that had hurt him. Never being able to lie to Fili without his brother seeing right through him, Kili had told him, and that dwarf had given him a wide berth ever since. He did not want to know what Fili had done to him, but he was glad that he didn't have to look over his shoulder when he went out alone.

He had also been subject to ridicule by dwarf lasses. He had decided to ask a rather pretty dwarf lass if she would court him, and she had laughed in his face and declared loud enough for all of the people in the busy marketplace to hear, including several of her friends, that there was no way in all of Arda that she would court a dwarf who had less of a beard than she did. Mortified, Kili had turn red faced in shame and fled the market, only for his brother to find him that evening up in a tree outside the gate, eyes red and puffy from crying. Fili had helped him get down, and sat with him on the ground, his arm wrapped around his shoulder, until the sun began to set, then convinced him to come home before it grew dark.

Kili had not dared to enter the market again for a month for fear of ridicule. He had spent a lot of time in that month training with his bow in the archery training room, unable to forget the laughing he had heard as he had fled the market, barely able to hold the tears at bay until he had left the mountain halls. Ever since then, he had not dared to ask any lass in the Blue Mountains if she would court him or dance with him at celebrations, and no dwarf lass ever bothered to even give him a second look, vying instead for his brother's attentions. Kili sometimes wondered if Fili's decision to not court anyone had partially been influenced by the rejection his brother had suffered. He had talked to Fili once about it, but Fili insisted that it was not because of him. Kili had been unconvinced, but he could not force his brother to court, and the matter had been dropped.

So why was this girl not only willing to protect him, but risk dying for him? It didn't make any sense to him, and the more he thought about it, the less sense it made. He felt a hand on his arm, and his arm stilled as he looked for its owner. Fili looked up at him from his perch on the floor next to the lounge.

"If you keep trying to sharpen your knife like that, it will become useless," he said softly. Kili looked at the knife in his hand and saw the unevenness of his sharpening job. He sighed and put his knife away. He would resharpen it in the morning.

He looked around, and was surprised to see that most of the company had gone inside their room. He could hear loud snoring coming from their bedchamber and figured it was coming from Bombur, who had a tendency to keep the others from being able to sleep on the worst nights because of it.

How long had he been lost in thought?

Fili looked up at him and their eyes met. Kili knew that his brother could read him like a book. He always had been able to. Fili's eyes softened.

"Something is bothering you," he stated. It was an observation, not a question. Kili nodded, and looked at his hands resting in his lap. He felt Fili's hand leave his arm and the end of the lounge dip down. He looked up to see Fili sitting at the end of it, and he swung his legs out so he was sitting shoulder to shoulder with his brother.

"It's about what happened today, isn't it?" Fili asked softly, searching his brother's face. Kili nodded, swallowing hard. Fili merely sat and waited for his brother to tell him what was wrong. Years of experience had taught him that Kili would only speak when he was ready, and that all pushing did was make him refuse to talk. After a few moments of gazing out upon the valley as the moon slowly rose, Kili began to speak. Fili listened quietly as his brother confided in him.

"Why did she do it?" Kili asked, "why did she save me?" Fili looked lost as he shook his head.

"I don't know, brother," he replied. "Maybe it was because you carried her when the wargs chased us." Kili shook his head.

"I don't think so," he said, then remembered how confused he had been that she had seemed to know what's going on before it happened. "She seemed to know what was going to happen before it did. It was so strange. She was so frightened of us in the cave, and could barely walk, and yet she ran with us from the wargs instead of the other way." Fili nodded, his face showing the same puzzlement Kili felt.

"And when we were backed up to that rock, she fought me hard and even punched me in the chest until I put her down, then moved away from me," he continued, "it was almost as if she knew that the orc and warg were coming and that I would have to shoot them." Fili shared another puzzled look with him.

"And while you were shooting the wargs, she refused to get into the hole," Fili added, then looked his brother in the eye. "She refused to take her eyes off you, and when Bofur and Thorin tried to make her get in, she wouldn't. It was as though she knew you were going to trip and fall."

Kili nodded, and looked at his lap again. Fili leaned his head back against the wall and sighed, then got down and knelt in front of Kili. Kili looked up in surprise as his brother's eyes filled with tears.

"I thought I was going to lose you, Kildár," he whispered, speaking Khuzdul and using Kili's inner name. "I thought I was going to have to watch you die, and not be able to do anything about it-not be able to save you."

The tears streamed down Fili's face, and Kili got off the lounge and knelt in front of his distraught brother, placing his hands on his shoulders. He leaned in and gently touched their foreheads together, and Kili looked in his brother's eyes.

"It was not your fault, Filán," he replied, tears welling up in his own eyes. "I was clumsy, and I wasn't watching where I was going. It is my fault, not yours. Please don't blame yourself, brother."

"How could I not blame myself? I failed to protect you. I failed to protect my younger brother, and he almost paid with his life," Fili stated, voice wavering and his shoulders shaking as he tried to hold back his sobs.

"We both failed." Both lads started as Thorin emerged from the shadows, his shoulders slumped as though he bore a great burden. Both young men looked at each other confused, wondering how long Thorin had been standing there. He came to kneel down in front of the two, and held his arms open.

And for a brief moment, he was not their King. He was their "Uncle Towin", who chased the monsters out from under their beds, who held them when their father died, and who let them crawl into his bed when they were terrified of the lightning storms, shaking and shivering as they argued about whether or not Fili was actually scared or whether he was just there because Kili was, and Thorin knew better as he felt both boys shaking next to him.

Fili and Kili looked at each other, before lunging into Thorin's embrace, burrowing their faces in his tunic. He wrapped his arms around each of them as their shoulders shook with suppressed sobs.

XXX

For a few minutes, he contemplated on whether or not he should send them home. They were still so young and inexperienced, and today had been the first time they had truly faced danger. (Like Kili, he preferred to forget that the troll incident ever happened). Today, for the first time, the reality hit them that they may very well die on this quest. And it terrified both of them. He almost regretted chastising them on the cliffside the other night when they had joked about orc raids to scare Bilbo, but now he wondered if they had simply been trying to laugh off what may have been a very real fear in their minds.

He knew that they could not possibly have truly known how dangerous this quest would be. But some part of him had hoped that they would have been right and that they would not encounter danger until they reached the mountain. But today had proven his concerns to be valid, and he too may have been guilty of slightly underestimating the danger involved. Today, for the first time, the very real thought that his nephews could die on this quest had entered his mind the moment Kili fell. For the first time since their father's death, he had watched those he held dear to him nearly get killed. And the fact that it had been an injured woman who saved his nephew instead of him made him feel even worse.

He looked down at both of them, their tears lessening and their mouths yawning. No, despite the danger he could not send them home. They had already come quite far, and to send them back home now would bring them shame. He honestly was a little bit afraid that if he sent them home, they would just end up turning around and following them. And he would much rather have them protected by the company than on their own with the possibility of orcs on their trail.

What he could hope for was that they had learned an invaluable lesson today, and they would be far more cautious in the future. And he hoped that Kili would be very careful to watch his step from now on. For he could not bear to stand there again while his nephews were in danger and know that he could not reach them in time to save them.

The very thought alone was terrifying.