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X. Failure

By some miracle, Athena was still allowed to be housed in the Master's mansion for the night with the others. Her previous words had been forgiven even if she had not apologised, and would not apologise, for them. A great feast was laid out before them as well as a seemingly endless supply of wine for their glasses.

"Do not do that again," Thorin said quietly into Athena's ear from where he was seated beside her.

"I do not regret what I said," she responded after she had swallowed the liquid in her mouth.

"I know you don't. You know that I am your friend and that will not change, but still I am your king and in the presence of others I ask for your respect."

No other words were exchanged in their conversation, instead they continued to eat and drink and sing around the table. Long into the night they continued with their festivities, it only dying down when they began to pass out one by one, whether it was from exhaustion or the copious amount of wine that they drank was yet to be determined.

Athena awoke in the morning to a hand gently shaking her shoulder, her pushing her head up from the table where it had lay all night before her eyes landed on Bilbo. "Is it time already?" She asked him through a yawn.

"Yes, you slept late and we're getting ready to head off now," he explained to her before awkwardly reaching out to brush a few crumbs of bread from her cheek that had been ungracefully stuck there.

She thanked him before standing up. Looking around she could see that the others were indeed beginning to leave the confines, her eyes rested on Kili who looked in no better shape than he had done the day before, if anything he looked worse than he did. He was not healing and none of them had any idea why.

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The company, minus one member, was walking along the docks towards their boat as it was being prepared for them. People bustled around them to bid them farewell, the gulls were singing in the crisp morning air, and the sun reflected along the surface of the lake.

"You do know we're one short. Where's Bofur?" Bilbo asked.

"If he's not here, we leave him behind," Thorin replied, Athena now more grateful than ever that Bilbo had had the courtesy to wake her from her slumber.

"We have to, if we're to find the door before nightfall. We can risk no more delays."

As much as she hated to knowingly leave one of her friends behind, Balin was right. It was now Durin's Day, and the last day that they would be able to find the hidden door to lead them into the halls of Erebor. She was the only one who had not changed into finer clothing, none of the clothes seemed to fit her quite as she would have liked and she always found armour to be more of a hindrance to her fighting than a means of protection.

Athena stepped onto the boat with the others, it had just enough room to carry all of them and their supplies over the lake. Her attention was drawn to Thorin when he placed a hand on his youngest nephew's chest to stop him from boarding.

"Not you. We must travel with speed, you will slow us down."

"What are you talking about? I'm coming with you."

"No."

"I'm going to be there when that door is opened, when we first look upon the halls of our fathers, Thorin."

"Kili, stay here. Rest. Join us when you're healed."

She was not sure whether Thorin's words stemmed from concern for his nephew or his desire to retake Erebor, perhaps it was both. Kili was in no state to travel with them or walk for prolonged periods of time, he looked like he was on the brink of death as it was.