That's Another Story For Later

Not Again

"Iridian. Are you alright?" Kili said. I nodded.

"Just a little dizzy." I answered. "Hey Kili?" His head tilted at my voice. "Thank you, for standing up for me. For trying to get me down. I'm sorry I landed on you." His head shook.

"It's alright. You're alive, and safe. That's what matters right now. I told you we'd make it out alive." He said, his grin becoming infectious. The corners of my mouth tilted up as well. I wriggled off of Kili, after the other dwarves had moved. The others proceeded to get the ones on the spit down. Thorin came over and freed Kili, before going to collect his weapons.

Kili knelt down, about to untie me, when he stopped, and smirked down at me. "What the hell? Let me go!" I growled, trying to kick at him from the sack.

"I don't know. I almost like you like this. You're feisty, but you can't do anything." He said. He picked me up over his shoulder like a bag of potatoes.

"Kili! What're you doing? Put me down!" I wriggled under him, but he was to strong and I was still immobile for the most part.

"Nah. I like this. Again you can't do anything. You're so cute when you're frustrated." I froze, ceasing my struggles for a moment. I shook away the comment, blaming on the blood rushing to my head as I watched him walk the few paces he did.

"Then who's going to save your dwarf arse from trolls and whatever else we meet? Besides. I need to tell Gandalf about what I saw." Kili's smile dropped and he set me down, untying me. I wriggled free, and slapped Kili on the arm. "Little bastard." I grumbled, but I couldn't keep my face straight, or from blushing. I stood up just was Dwalin was freed. The dwarf ran over, and started to inspect me, like a concerned mother probably would.

"Dw-Dwa- Dwalin!" I shouted, slapping his hands away. A little distance away, the two brothers were watching, amusement clear in their eyes.

"I just wanted to make sure you're alright, lass. You were beaten up quite a bit as that was your first fight."

"Don't worry. I was just a little out of breath from falling. Kili protected me, though I didn't need it that much until I was hoisted up in a sack." Dwalin smiled, and ruffled my hair lightly.

"You and Kili seemed to be quite the team. I watched you two fighting. You two really work well. And he really was adamant about your safety when that troll had you." He said, looking over at him. I followed his gaze to see Kili's face sheepish almost. "He'll never hear the end of that for a couple days. Now, go get your weapons." I nodded, and walked off toward the pile of weapons, where I quickly found that they weren't there. Panic wormed its way through my mind. Those were my weapons. I loved them. 

"Looking for something?" A smooth voice said behind me. I whipped around to see Kili holding my swords in his hands gently. I took them, our hands brushing, and I resheathed them.

"Thank you. Come on, let's go." I walked up to Gandalf, the brothers behind me, almost backing me up.

"Where did you go to, if I may ask?" Thorin asked the wizard.

"To look ahead."

"What brought you back?"

"Looking behind. Nasty business. Still, you are all in one piece."

"No thanks to your burglar." Thorin looked at Bilbo with disdain.

"He had the nous to play for time. None of the rest of you thought of that." Thorin's face was very repentant. The two then went and examine the statute of the trolls. "They must have come down from the Ettenmoors." Gandalf continued.

"Since when do mountain trolls venture this far south?" Thorin's eyes looked up at the man standing above him.

"Not for an age, not since a darker power ruled these lands." The two switched a glance that spoke a thousand words. "They could not have moved in daylight."