'Was it a lot?'

Her blue eyes were trained at the treacherous dark water as the dwarf approached her. When he didn't answer, she turned to face him.

'Our price for crossing this lake,' she clarified. 'Was it a lot we had to pay him?'

'There are better ways I could think of to spend that amount of money,' Fíli replied bitterly as he stood next to her.

She nodded in understanding. She might not know much about the worth of money, there was no need for it back at the orc pack. But Bilbo had tried to explain the basics to her once and what each coin was worth.

But she's never had the chance to put it to practice, not that she had any money to spend even if she had wanted to. Even her share of the price had been paid by Dwalin - much to the said dwarf's chagrin.

'What would you have used your money for then?'

With a smile, Fíli told her he would have bought new weapons. He had to leave most of his old ones behind in the Woodland Realm, so he felt a little naked without them.

'What about you?'

The question took her by surprise. Surely he must know she had no money to spend. So there was no reason for her to think of buying things. Everything she needed was provided by nature itself. Food, water, shelter. Even the furs of her prey could be used for making clothes.

'I know you have no money,' the fair-haired dwarf continued, noticing her puzzled look. 'But you'll have your share of the treasure beneath the mountain. Even without a contract, Thorin will definitely give you a share. There must be something you want?'

'Well, perhaps some new weapons as well? A nice sword or perhaps a dagger?'

At this, the dwarf chuckled, earning another puzzled look from the ferian.

'Really?' Fíli questioned, his voice still containing his laughter. 'Weapons? No fine jewellery, nice dresses or other fancy stuff women like? But a sword, or a dagger. Perhaps you want a bow and arrow as well? Kíli is a master marksman. He could teach you.'

But she dismissed the proposal as quickly as he had mention it. Telling him she did not like long distance weapons. No ferian should ever defend themselves with such a weapon. They were a cowards weapon.

According to her, there was no honour in a long distance weapon. You didn't face your opponent face to face. Instead you remained a safe distance like a coward and hope your arrow would hit its mark.

A real warrior would face his enemy face to face. To have a honourable fight till death, a battle you could look back on with pride.

Fíli nodded, but before he could say something, someone squeezes themselves between the pair as the bald warrior now stood in between them. Facing Fíli for a moment, before staring towards the man they now knew as Bard.

'It doesn't matter if he had promised us a safe crossing or not, I still don't trust him,' he stated gruffly. 'Who will say he will keep his word?'

'You don't have to trust him,' Frêllian said, still surprised by his sudden intrusion. 'As long as we reach the other side of the lake with weapons.'

'Frey's right. We need weapons to fight Smaug, which means we need his help.'

Dwalin turned his head to Fíli. And eventhough Frêllian couldn't see his face, she was sure he was glaring at the younger dwarf, for Fíli suddenly looked uneasy.

Dwalin muttered something unintelligible under his breath, before turning his back completely towards Fíli. His eyes now on Frêllian with an unreadable look in them.

'Well, one thing is for sure,' he began, crossing his arms. 'He'll be a death man, if he dares laying a finger on you.'

She couldn't help but notice Fíli, as he seemed to be unnerved by Dwalin's words.

But she didn't notice the quick glance Dwalin threw over his shoulder.

What she did notice however, were the rooftops of what she presumed to be Laketown in the distance. She wondered what the town would be like, for she had never been to any human settlement. But by the looks of it, this town would give her a poor first impression.

'Quickly now,' she heard Bard say. 'All but the ferian needs to hide within the barrels.'

'Why,' Thorin asked.

'The master of town might want to see the girl,' Bard explained irritatedly. 'But with this many dwarves, he might think you mean trouble. Which, personally, I think you are.'

'Oh come on,' Frêllian sighed as no one seemed to bother to listen to the man. Well, with the exception of Bilbo of course. 'Just listen to the man. If he tries anything, anything at all, I'll rip his throat open.'

Though they did obey, they didn't do it wholeheartedly. And not a moment too soon, for the dock was starting to get in sight. Bard made some small talk to the man at the dock and soon the barrels were filled with fish, much to the humour of Frêllian. She made sure to tease them about it for quite some time.

'What's the deal with the girl?'

At this Frêllian growled in anger, but Bard was quick to explain. Telling him he met a lone ferian who wished to speak the master of town. The man looked at Frêllian in curiosity, amazed to seen a real ferian. But then he nodded and Bard continued the way.

The next stop was the toll gate, as she heard Bard call it after kicking the barrel Dwalin was in. The stubborn dwarf had been muttering quite loudly at his uncomfortable journey. Once there, Bard had to hand the gatekeeper his papers. Then the gatekeeper noticed Frêllian as she stood on board of the barge still. But before he could even ask about her, another man stepped out.

'Not so fast,' he spoke with a scowl as he took the papers from the gatekeeper. Reading them out loud while doing so.

'Consignment of empty barrels from the Woodland Realm. Only, they're not empty, are they Bard?'

Deciding she didn't like this man at all, even within these few second, Frêllian moved over to the men. A glare on her face as she looked at the newest arrival. Her arms crossed as she stepped up next to Bard.

'Of course they aren't,' she told him crossly, while glaring at the worm of a man. 'They are a gift. My gift to be precise.'

'And who might you be then,' the man sneers. 'A lost girl? A dwarf?'

'A ferian, Alfrid,' Bard corrected him as Frêllian growled dangerously at the disrespectful tone the man called Alfrid spoke with. 'Queen of her people, or so she says.'

'Ha,' Alfrid laughs. 'A ferian you say! And a queen at that too! To think you believe such nonsense. How foolish!'

Having had enough of the man, Frêllian quickly transformed, her growl now turning into a snarl, showing her sharp teeth as she moved her head closer to Alfrid.

'Yes, a ferian,' she snapped. Her voice making the men uneasy as a feral sound mixed with her voice. 'And you would do well to let us continue our way. All I wish for, is to speak your master. I do not wish for a fight, too much bloodshed and a waste of my time.'

After that being said, Bard was dismissed and the ferian followed him back on board. Fear still radiating from his body as he poled the barge through the canals of Laketown.

After Bard had effectively smuggled everyone inside the small town and into his home, he turned to the ferian in anger.

'You could have warned me about you turning,' he exclaimed as his children gathered around in interests. 'I was not prepares to face such a beast to stand beside me.'

'Who do you call a beast, human?'

Before either one could say another thing, Bilbo quickly moved in, telling Frêllian she was indeed a fearful beast in her wolfform. Luckily for him, Bilbo could say things like that and get away with it, but this man clearly couldn't.

'Wow, you really turn into a wolf,' a young girl asked, moving over to the ferian and hobbit. 'You really are beautiful. I imagine you are just as beautiful as a wolf.'

Startled by the sudden appearance of the child, Frêllian took a small step backwards, stuttering out a thanks. But the girl was not done with her questions yet, asking Frêllian is she could turn at will. And what colour her fur was. Or better yet, show them what her wolffrom looked like - which Bard was quick to prohibit.

Sensing her unease with the sudden attention of the human child, Bilbo tried to get her attention away from his friend. Which work, only to have the girl marvel over him instead.

She wondered about his feet - 'They sure look funny. Warm, but funny!' - or his appearance. For she had noticed he was not a dwarf.

'Tilda, leave mister Baggings alone.'

At first the girl looked like she was about to protest. But with a warning look from her father, she obeyed.

'That was, er, interesting.'

He paused, looking at the female next to him. The weak smile on his face turning into a confused frown. It seemed Frêllian hadn't heard him. Instead her gaze was still on Tilda, a small smile on her face and a soft look in her eyes.

A rare sight to behold indeed, which made him wonder what exactly was going on inside her head. A moment ago Frêllian had seemed intimidated by all the attention Tilda had given her. And now it looked like she had actually enjoyed it.

Or perhaps it was something else entirely?

It was if she had felt his eyes on her, for she turned her head towards him. Her expression not changing.

'A curious little thing, is she not?'

'Y-Yes, she is,' he stuttered, embarrassed to have been caught staring.

'I think it is refreshing to see something this small, this fragile, to be curious off me,' Frêllian admitted as she turned her head back to the three human siblings. 'Though I must admit, I was cut of guard by her curiousity.'

With a smile of his own, Bilbo told her he found it refreshing to see Frêllian like this. Though he could see she had her guard up, she had a certain calmness around her.

She nodded, before her attention was turned towards Thorin as the dwarf called out her name. Excusing herself, she walked over to the dark-haired dwarf. Curious to know what he wanted.

Bilbo continued watching her from his spot. A smile spreading across his face as the ferian said something, a smug look on her face as she did so. Which resulted in a glare from Thorin of course. They may get along now adays, but that didn't mean Frêllian had stopped testing her limits around the dwarf.

'It's good to see her like this, isn't it?'

A startled shriek escaped his throat as he turned to face Fíli. Though the dwarf prince wasn't looking at Bilbo. Instead his blue gaze was on Frêllian, a strange look in his eyes.

'Y-yeah, I guess so.'

He glanced over to Frêllian for a moment, only to look back to Fíli. Bilbo knew Frêllian has some sort of interest in the golden haired dwarf. Though whether she was fascinated by the warrior, if it was a small crush or something else, he was not sure off.

But up until now he had thought the two young princes had only been fascinated by the fact Frêllian was a ferian. But it seemed Fíli's interest might run deeper than he had anticipated at first. Though it seemed he himself wasn't aware of it yet.

Yet it worried Bilbo. Deep inside he knew he and Frêllian would never have a chance of being together. And he had already having given up on that. But still he held onto that tiny spark of hope, where she wouldl return home with him after all this was over. To have everything back to normal, just the two of them.

'How was she back at the Shire?' Once again Fíli invades Bilbo's train of thoughts. 'Was she like this as well?'

'Well,' he started, thinking back. 'In the beginning, she was very feral. Even more so than what she was at the beginning of this journey. Growling at every sound and even a sudden move from me would set her off. Truth to be told, I was afraid of her. And not to mention the night terrors she had.'

He gave a weak at this. The beginning of their friendship is not one of his most fond memories.

'But soon she started to change,' he continued. 'Although it took a while for her to reveal her true form. But her manners got better and she seemed to be more at ease around me. She'd even let me pet her - don't look at me like that! I didn't know anything about ferien!'

Fíli chuckled softly. Telling him he couldn't blame him, for he himself had wanted nothing else but to pet her thick fur.

'She's come a long way then,' he concluded, when Bilbo doesn't continue. 'From scared, feral animal, to a elegant young lady.'

Bilbo nodded in agreement. Yes she had. He had even noticed her to have dropped her guard at times. Something she'd never done back home.

A sudden groan caught their attention as the two turned to look at the youngest dwarf prince. Kíli was pale and his face was covered in sweat as he gripped his leg. Fíli had pulled out the arrow and bound the wound the best he could, before they Bard arrived. Though Kíli tried to keep up a brave face, it was clear the dwarf not doing well.

Next to him, Fíli frowned at the sight of his brother, before he turned to look at Bilbo again. A heavy hand fell on his shoulder, as Fíli spoke.

'She is lucky to have you as her friend.'

With that said, the dwarf turned around to tend to his wounded brother.

Though the moment the dwarf left, Bilbo looked down in sadness. A friend. He was lucky to have Frêllian as his friend. The first true one he has ever had. She had made him feel special, feel loved by someone - other than his parents that was!

But was she lucky to have him as her friend? He had held her down. Taken away her freedom stopped her from her initially search for her father. True eventually faith had brought father and daughter together, but still Bilbo couldn't help but wonder if she had found him sooner if she hadn't stumbled upon Bilbo.

And the worst part? Secretly Bilbo still wished he had never met the dwarves. That they had kept living their peaceful life together. Laughing and having fun. Enjoying the warmth of his hearth during the colder days. What friend wished for such selfish things?

A bad one.

And then there were his feelings. Would they have developed the same way as they had now? Would he have fallen for her anyway? Or would he continued seeing her as only a good friend?

All these question kept repeating in his head, even as Bard his eldest daughter Sigrid served dinner.