Calm The Fire

38

"We will-"

"You don't know that!" Náriel exclaimed. "I hate to be the one to be blunt on the matter, but you don't know when Dain is likely to get here. He could be here tomorrow, next week, next month...how about next year if we're going to go all out?" Náriel threw her hands in the air truly exasperated. "Does a fight and a defeat have to happen to make you see sense? To see that you are so sorely in the wrong? They're not on about pillaging your home dry, Thorin. They're on about having enough to rebuild their homes and to compensate the wrongs that has happened." Náriel narrowed her eyes and in the end slapped a hand to her face and ran it down. Pinching her nose, she sighed heavily and hung her head.

She continued on; "No one wants to fight," she continued heavily and looked around. "Come on, you may as well all be honest. Though you feel like a grave injustice is being acted out upon you, you don't want to fight." Náriel sighed when all she got was silence. "Mad. You are all mad! Have you forgotten the comrades you made in Lake-town? Lake-town only, I am not even going to bring Mirkwood into this. You would freely fight against Bard, the man who gave you shelter, clothes, food, and you know...looked after you when you were sick and dying, just so you can wallow up here with your pride and tainted treasure?" Náriel crossed her arms and leaned back against the barricade behind her. "I fear that what Bard wishes, won't happen, because you don't want wisdom, sense, or anything, you just quite frankly want to be left alone." Holding up her hands, she moved at last. "I give up. If anyone wants me, I am in the library, I'm not taking part in this fight you've bought on yourself."

"You won't take part, yet you'd hide away in our halls?" Thorin questioned.

"Do you wish me to leave?" Náriel asked while turning to look at him. Thorin didn't answer, Náriel just inclined her head and continued on her way. Space, that was what she needed, space. Hearing footsteps she looked over her shoulder, raising an eyebrow she stopped. "I haven't even got to the library and you've already hunted me out." Náriel said while looking from Bilbo to Fíli and Kíli.

"You can't just go and hide," Fíli said while appearing by her side.

"Out of everyone, you do seem to be one of few who can talk sense into uncle." Kíli said while appearing on her other side, Bilbo stood beside him and looked past him to look at her.

"Sense?" Náriel laughed over the word. "He doesn't want to listen to sense. Nor does he want sense spoken to him. I mean it, left alone with his treasure, that's all he seemingly wants; and that accursed jewel now that I ponder over it." She scrunched her nose up in thought and looked to her friends.

"I have to admit, I don't wholly wish to fight against the people of Lake-town." Kíli piped up suddenly. "It doesn't feel right." He frowned, it wasn't out of particular friendship that he didn't wish to fight. Just, it didn't seem the right thing to do. They had done nothing to warrant a fight, or fighting against. Not only that, he still wasn't in top form, he couldn't fight like he once did, not with his wound still healing.

"So, you all feel the same and you decided to come with me?" Náriel smiled and put her arm around Kíli's shoulder, Fíli nodded slowly beside her and Bilbo just nodded even more so. He for one was getting rather sick and tired of being in this place.

At first it had been wonderful, curious and amazing, obviously after Smaug had gone; but now, now it just seemed like a prison. One which they all had free will in, but like a prison, they couldn't leave. The thought of being here when a fight broke out filled him with dread in some degree. "Maybe between us we could think of a way to get through to him." Náriel frowned. "I'm not one for giving up on people. And for sure I would never give up on Thorin, there's always hope that we can make him see sense."