Thank you all for the reviews! And the follows/favorites! I'm almost to 100 and I'm so happy. I know that I haven't been super consistent with my updates but I promise that in the next few days I will have an update. You all can hold me to it. Also! From this point on, I'll be thanking the reviewers but not responding to them. Nothing personal. I love you all but it does take me a good hour to think up replies. That kind of sound pathetic but it's true. For this chapter, thank you so much to purpleFairy11, megantreat, kenz1717, .Singer, and Ally. Of course, if you do want me to continue to answer reviews than just tell me. I'll defintely bring it back. I love talking to you guys and you always make me happy.


Chapter 6: The Places We Belong

By the time that we made camp on the high hills, we were a good day's ride from the plains and far enough from the Shire that Bilbo had receded into his own shell. He was quiet and at every turn we made, his head would slowly turn to the distant valleys of his home. I didn't understand his forlornness. Even though I was half-elf, it had been impressed upon me that the Blue Mountains were never meant to be permanent. I didn't know what a home felt like, not in the way that Master Baggins seemed to.

"I'm losing my patience with the hobbit," Fili murmured to me as he slid from our pony, his hands wrapping comfortably around my waist even as he kept a keen eye on Master Baggins.

"Why?" I inquired, glancing around at the rest of the company curiously. Aside from the bit of a tantrum that he had had when he had found his pockets devoid of all handkerchiefs, he had been relatively quiet, talking softly with Gandalf when the wizard could afford the time.

At the moment, he was taking diligent care of my pony. He seemed like a kindly sort and although he had inquired quite a bit about when we were going to be having tea and eating. And also showering. And dirt. Basically everything. Still - though he had complained - it wasn't as much as I would have thought. And when he got his answer there was no argument and the topic was put to bed. We could have done worse.

"He will gripe and groan until his head hits the ground," Fili said darkly, his eyes strikingly deadly as he stared across the area at the hobbit, his hands still resting softly around my waist. "Then he will toss and turn and shiver until he's so exhausted that he can do nothing but sleep. And tomorrow he will wake up and the whole ordeal will repeat itself."

I stared up at the golden haired dwarf in front of me, for a moment trying to digest the savage look that colored his eyes to an arctic chill.

"I think you might be being a little hard on the hobbit," I finally said, softening my voice as his eyes snapped to me. Around my waist, I felt his fingers flex as he silently took in my words.

This kind of cowering and griping wasn't the dwarven way and I could understand why Fili was angered by it. The hobbit was torn down by a simple journey - one that would end in a few months, a year at the most - and we had barely left the shire. It had been countless years since the dwarves of Durin's line had been journeying. They had a home but were unable to go back to it. It must have been incredibly agitating to have someone so unreliable to count on something so vital to the final leg of the journey.

"He is risking his life for us, uzbadu men," I added, bringing a hand forward to run gently along his forearm.

For a moment, he didn't say anything, his eyes softening. There was such gentleness there that for a moment, I caught my breath.

"We're all risking our lives," he whispered and my eyes fluttered shut as his fingers skated softly along my cheek. "The hobbit doesn't get a pass just because he found out later than we did."

And then he was moving past me, whispering to the pony as he unloaded her burden. It shook me to the core. My eyes drifted to the hobbit, his eyes forlorn as he took his time with my mare. He looked like he didn't know what to do. He had wanted adventure and now that he had it, it seemed like he didn't really want it.

But everyone needed a friend.

"Master hobbit," I called, taking my pack from the horse and striding toward the startled fellow with a smile. "How are you faring? Has everything turned out as you hoped?"

For a moment, Bilbo eyed me suspiciously, seemingly incredulous at my willingness to talk with him. "...Yes. Yes, very well. Um, er… And yourself, Miss Tori?"

"You have a good memory, Master Baggins." My hands began to pick at the straps weighing down the horse. I wasn't quite sure that he knew how to take down a horse's burden. His eyes were intent on my movements as I took out the bridle, careful of her teeth as she shook her head and huffed. She definitely didn't like the headpiece. "But you seem to be very bad at lying."

"Ex-excuse me." I leaned around the horse to give him a reassuring smile. He looked like he was being hunted.

"How are you faring? Truly?" We worked in silence for a moment; me removing piece by piece of packs and straps and Bilbo setting them neatly near the tree that the mare was tethered to.

The hobbits mouth opened and closed as I waited patiently, brushing a hand through the mare's main. "It's very far from home," he finally whispered, sounding close to tears.

"There's still time to get out of this," I whispered for his ears only and out of the corner of my eyes I saw the gray figure of the wizard tip towards us. All the others had begun to set up camp, laying out their blankets and starting a fire. Across the camp, Fili's eyes caught me and I could see the quiet criticism there. I focused down on brushing out the mares fur, watching as her eyes went drowsy. "If there is a single doubt in your mind - one bit of resistance to our cause - then you should air it. And leave."

Calmly, I met his scared eyes. He didn't know why I was telling him this, I could see that swirling through them. And more than that, he was beginning to realize that he was involved in something that he didn't fully understand.

"Why does this mean so much? Is it the gold? The honor?" I pursed my lips at the questions.

"I suppose it has something to do with the honor." I smiled. "The gold isn't anything to scoff at either… But… But more than that, it's about home. Our home. Some place that we feel safe. Some place that we can own rather than borrow. We just want what everyone else is born with, Master Baggins. Not to rob or to take or to fight and die without ever knowing what security feels like. What you've come home to every single day, away from the rain and scorn and worry."

I finally looked up from the mares soft fur, meeting his soft eyes with a half-hearted smile. "I'm sure you can understand that, can you not, Bilbo?"

Finally - There would be a place where we could rest away from the world just for a little while. I could taste the sweetness of it on my tongue, lulling a part of my mind that I had ignored for a very long time into a start of blissful ignorance.

"Yes - Yes." The hobbit coughed, looking away from my invasive stare quickly. His voice was so choked that for a moment I felt sorry for him. He didn't know this kind of pain. It was a longing that very few had to experience. He turned, facing in the general direction that we had traveled. The sun peaked over the bends, whispering through the trees to die them the color of burning coals. A warm kind of coolness entered the air as the final gasp of the day receded with the sun. "Yes, Miss Tori. I can understand very well."

Perhaps all was not lost on our burglar after all. Nodding, I slung my bag over my shoulder and started in the direction of my brothers.

"Wait!" I turned, glancing back at the hobbit who had his head bent over his pack in concentration. Briefly, his eyes flicked up to meet mine, a few curls falling across his forehead. "Before you go… I've been meaning to ask you… Do all dwarf women look like you?"

Shock made my eyes go wide, my muscles seizing up. Quickly, the hobbit hurried to correct himself. "No - I mean - You are very pretty! You are -"

"No," I cut him off, stopping him as his face went a fiery red. I blushed, looking away. "No. Not all - Um… There are no others that look like myself, Master Bilbo."

And in that moment I felt so alone and lost that I could have burst into tears.

Before he could ask anymore uncomfortable questions, I hurried away, going to the small bit of space that my brothers had decided to take up. It was located just to the right of a massive overhang that would shade the fire from water. On the other side there was a cluster of trees, shading the hillside.

"Are you okay, Tori?" Ori gently inquired, his eyes concerned as he stopped me, pausing as he rolled out and organized our three sleeping blankets. Dori was already fluttering around Bombur who was heading the cooking for the evening. Both rather adept with herbs and shared the same zeal for the kitchen. Nori was either off gathering wood for the growing fire or hunting with Kili and Dwalin who were all wonderful. "You don't look too good."

"Um, yeah." I blinked, trying to calm myself. I had always known my place. I had also never really discussed it with anyone else. It was just a lot more invasive than I thought it would be. I placed a reassuring hand on my brothers arm, quickly moving past him to roll out my pack. They had left a spot just big enough for me, nearest to the overhang.

And also just beside Fili who was watching me with a critical expression.

"What did he tell you, Tori?" I didn't look up at his words, spoken harshly. Distantly, the wind whistled through the cracks and dips in the mountain, rustling the few trees around us. The sun had set faster than I had expected, the fire already cutting through the dim light. "Amrul?"

My teeth sunk into my lip as I beat out my pillow. Why was it so hard to say? Why did it feel so idiotically embarrassing? Gentle fingers skimmed along my jaw, drawing my attention up into deadly blue eyes. He was angry. I gulped, softly pushing his hand away and rolling under my blankets.

"Tori-"

"Stop," I whispered, shutting my eyes. I didn't want to talk about this. I didn't want to have to tell the prince of Erebor, the heir to the throne of Thorin Oakenshield that I wasn't sure what would become of me after the mountains were reclaimed.

Maybe I would leave again. Maybe Tori would fade out just like she had so many years ago.

"You can tell me-" I hated the gentleness in his voice. I hated it because in that sweetness was an ignorance. He would still be the sweet prince - that would never change. But me - what the hell was I?

"Nothing happened between me and the hobbit," I snapped, turning my back on the rest of the camp so that all I could see was open air and distant mountains. "And even if it had, it is my problem. Good night, Fili."

And with that I shut my eyes and tuned out the quiet shuffle of the rest of the camp.


The next day dawned with rain in the clouds.

"Eat," Fili whispered, grabbing my hand to shove an apple into it. His hair was a ruffled mess and his eyes seemed to be tired and drawn.

"I don't-" I yelped softly as his hands curled around my waist and lifted me effortlessly onto the horse, his gaze unflinching as he stared up at me.

"Eat it, hamamul amrul." There was no give in his stare as one of his hands curled around my thigh and gave it a small squeeze. He had been very drawn all morning, his eyes lowering to the ground every time that Thorin past by. Briefly, I wondered what had happened while I slept last night.

As I watched Fili, his eyes moved restlessly about the camp as the others took everything down and stopped on the hobbit. Slowly, his eyes narrowed, striking through with an angry grey as his mouth thinned. Bilbo looked to be excessively edgy this morning, his eyes flicking around and dark circles already apparent. As Kili laced up his horse beside the hobbit, I saw the little man edge away, pressing into the horse's side.

"Did something happen, my prince?" I asked softly in Khuzdul, drawing his eyes back to me. I didn't like this expression on his face. He looked more like a king with his own world of troubles than I had seen before. I didn't like the lines that marred his brows or the darkness to his usually playful, mocking eyes. "You seem… Is everything alright?"

Before I could think better of it, my fingers were traveling along his cheeks, the stubble shadowing his jaw tickling my fingertips. Astonished, I watched as his eyes drifted shut and he leaned into the touch. My heart constricted. In that moment, I wanted him all to myself. I wanted - I wanted something I shouldn't.

"I just made a mistake," he finally whispered, tipping his head down so that it rested warmly against my thighs, my fingers sliding into his honey hair. "A stupid mistake."

Confusion furrowed my brows. It was odd hearing the boy who had declared his own greatness when we were children say that he had done anything wrong.

"I'm sure it wasn't that bad, Fili," I finally whispered, dragging a hand gently through the soft strands and braids. "If it was really something that terrible than I would have been woken, no?"

He chuckled as I nudged his ear, his eyes flashing up at me. And then he made something that made my breath catch. He turned my hand and pressed a gentle kiss to my palm, whispering something so softly that I didn't catch the words. As it was, the only reason I knew that he was speaking at all was because I could feel the soft flutter of his lips against my skin.

"What?" I asked as he pulled away, trying to catch his gaze but only seeing the slight tip of his lips as he straightened the packs on our mare.

"I said that you need to eat," he said, swinging up behind me and reaching around me to grab the reins.

"You're very bossy," I mumbled as he tapped the apple and I rolled my eyes, finally taking a bite. Until that moment, I hadn't realized how hungry I actually was. "Next time, I'll let you cry and won't come to your rescue like I did today."

"Mm," he murmured and I shivered as I felt the words slide along my ears. "I highly doubt that. But it's cute that you think so, amrul."

I huffed. What a snotty prince I had gotten myself involved with.


As always, I hope that you liked this chapter and if you did, you know how to let me know!

Uzbadu men: My lord

Hamamul amrul: little love

Amrul: Love