For the Love of a King

Chapter Nineteen: A Tale of Old

Lilja

Bard docks his barge. After looking around, he knocks over one of the barrels, and a dwarf falls out along with a pile of fish. Bard continues knocking over barrels. He reaches for Dwalin's barrel, but Dwalin pokes his head up through the fish.

"Get your hands off me." Dwalin says

The remaining dwarves and Bilbo struggle out of their barrels, looking greasy and slimy from the fish. The dock keeper looks on in shock. Bard approaches him and slips him a coin.

"You didn't see them, they were never here. The fish you can have for nothing." Bard says

Bard leads the Company away. I hold on tightly to Thorin.

"Follow me." Bard says

"Da! Our house, it's being watched." Bard's son Bain says

Bard looks at Thorin and looks like he just hatched a plan.

"If you speak of this to anyone, I'll rip your arms off." Dwalin says

"Get off." Dwalin says, I assume Bain tried to help him, oh Dwalin what to do with you?

"Up there." Bain says

Bilbo pokes his head up through the toilet, looking flabbergasted, and Bain helps him out. The rest of the dwarves and I follow and head upstairs.

"Da...why are there dwarves climbing out of our toilet?" Sigrid asks

"Will they bring us luck?" Tilda asks, I smile

The dwarves, and Bilbo are wrapped in blankets, and their wet things have been laid in front of the fire to dry. Some of them shiver. I still have my wet things on, Thorin comes over to me.

"You need to get out of these amralime" He says to me.

I shake my head "I can't, first off it hurts and second I can't have them see, we only showed Bard no one else knows how they look" I say

"Stop being stubborn, you will be fine" Thorin says

Thorin walks over to Sigrid and says something to her.

"It may not be the best fit, but it'll keep you warm." Bard says

Tilda passes out blankets, and Bilbo thanks her when he receives one.

"Thank you very much." Bilbo says

Sigrid walks over to me and leads me into another room and hands me my bag that Thorin had, I pull out and outfit exactly like the one I am already wearing. I take my soaking wet cloak off and Sigrid gasps. I look at myself, some of my cuts are bleeding. Sigrid leaves the room.

Sigrid comes back with Thorin and Oin and some bandages, I groan "I'm fine really" I say

"Lilja, they need to be bandaged. Amralime, it's ok" Thorin says kissing my forehead.

Oin bandages me and him and Sigrid leave, I have Thorin turn around and I change. When he turns he smiles and kisses me. We join the others they stare at me, I hide behind Thorin and we walk over to the window, Bard comes over.

"I'm sorry for acting like I didn't know you Lilja" He says

"Bard it's fine, I wouldn't blame you, I did leave and never gave you an explanation" I say

"All is forgiven"

Thorin looks at us a moment then I kiss him, he smiles. Thorin looks out a window and sees a wooden tower not far away. Atop the tower is a windlass, a giant cross-bow type weapon with four arms. Thorin looks at it in shock.