~Legolas POV~

The dwarf saved me… and Little Bird called out my name… I stared forward as the barrels drifted out of view. My mind raced both from the shock of nearly being killed and from hearing my name from the woman. I didn't know which to be more preoccupied with.

An arrow suddenly caught my eye. I whipped around the find Tauriel battling one of the orcs, her short blade poised at his throat.

"Tauriel, wait. This one we keep alive."

She nodded her head as I went to bind the orc's hands. Gaeldir appeared from the trees. "My lord, we dispatched as many orcs as we could, but there are several who escaped."

I pulled tightly at the ropes, hearing a gasp of pain from the orc before I stood. "We have one captured. We'll get information from him. Gather the injured and dead; I will go on ahead to inform Namben and Adar of your arrival."

"And hopefully get answers myself…"

~Wynter POV~

I sat, quietly shivering in the boat. The dwarves were on the other side, talking quietly amongst themselves and gathering their coin. Bard navigated through the water easily. An easy part of this journey. Thank gods.

"Watch out!" Bofur called as Bard weaved us around old ruins.

"What are you trying to do," Thorin growled, "Drown us?"

"I was born and bred on these waters Master Dwarf. If I wanted to drown you, I would not do it here."

"Where would you do it?" I glanced up at the man, his face trained into a seemingly ever present scowl. He steered for a while longer before glancing down at me.

"Why should I tell you?"

"I'm just looking out for myself, that's all. Should probably know where some strange person would drag me to be drowned."

Bard simply replied, "Then I advise you never acquaint yourself with someone who would."

I mentally rolled my eyes. Geez. The dwarves caught my attention though. They were standing, staring off to our left. I followed their gaze and saw, just barely visible through the mist, a mountain.

"Their home…"

I glanced to see the faces of my companions, excited for them, excited to see how they would react. Ori's eyes were bright, the excitement and awe plainly visible on his face. Fili stood by Kili, both of them grabbing onto each other's shoulders. Kili was visibly tired; his eyes still held the fire of excitement. His brother, clearly proud of where his Uncle had gotten them, had the smallest inkling of a smile gracing his lips. Bofur and Bifur, as well as many of the others stared on in awe.

"By my beard…"

Next to me, Bard looked startled. He rushed forward to the Company, uncertainty in his voice. "The money. Quick. Give it to me."

"We will pay you when we get our provisions, but not before," Thorin rumbled.

"If you value your freedom, you'll do as I say. There are guards ahead."

Through the mist we could begin to make out a dock. Thorin glanced back at Bard briefly before motioning his head towards the barrels. Quickly, the company moved to get themselves back in their barrels. I stood to help Bilbo get back into his.

"Well," the Hobbit muttered out, "we are paying for a smuggler."

"I'm sure we'll be fine," I whispered back to him. My eyes caught a hole in the side of the barrel. "If you're worried, look through the hole. I'll check to see if there's one in any of the barrels on the other side as well."

I quickly walked around, looking for another barrel with a hole. My eyes flittered across the barrels. No hole… no hole… no hole… no-

Oh. There was one. I made my way over to it and looked in. Nori was sitting his body already positioned to where he could look out of the barrel. I knocked lightly on it, "Bilbo has one in his on the opposite side as well."

The star haired dwarf nodded at me and I quickly turned to take my place back by Bard once more. We finally broke through the fog, the dock in front of us much clearer than previously. Bard maneuvered us right next to it. He tied us down quickly before moving down the walkway. Bilbo's voice carried softly as he narrated what Bard was doing. My eyes looked around the docks at the other boatmen, making sure none of them were looking at the boat funny.

"He-e's pointing right at us!"

My gaze snapped right to Bard as he shook hands with another man. Then I finally took notice of where we actually were. A docked fish market. I placed a hand over my mouth to stifle my laughter as a crane machine full of fish began to pour into the barrels. Some of the dwarves made little noises as the fish rained down upon them. A part of me truly did feel guilty… but really it was just too funny to see.

Bard came over by me after pushing us back out onto the lake. Around us came tiny noises of displeasure from the fish filled barrels. Our captain gave one of them a solid kick. "Quiet. We're approaching the toll gate."

The Laketown was huge and impressive, considering where technology currently was. I looked around in awe as we drifted closer to the iron gate before us. With details more clear, though, I saw how shabby the woodwork was on the buildings. By the looks of it, Bard wasn't the only one here suffering in poverty.

"Halt! Goods inspection. Papers pleas- oh! It's you, Bard," the scraggly man seemed nice enough. His warm brown landed on me, "whose that you got there?"

"Good morning Percy. I found her washed up on the shore by the woodland realm. The poor woman was half drowned, barely breathing. I thought it'd be good to bring her back to town."

"Well then, besides our new guest, anything to declare?"

"Nothing," Bard's voice broke slightly, clearly exhausted, "but that I'm cold and tired, and ready for home."

He hopped off the stern's ledge and moved closer to Percy. His hands brought out a folded piece of paper from his coat pockets. The dark haired man was looking around past the gate, clearly nervous about something. Percy came back out.

"There we are. All in order."

"Not. So. Fast."

The paper was snatched out or Percy's hands. I followed the hand of the culprit to lay eyes on one of the ugliest men I had ever seen. Even uglier than Grima Wormtongue, which I had once thought to be impossible. His dark, oily hair had clearly not been washed for a long time. What were once probably two separate eyebrows were now one giant hairy caterpillar on his face. His posture was hunched and he looked sickly pale with a rosy hue, like a drunk person moments away from throwing up. As horrible as his appearance was, though, he made me nervous. Very very nervous. By the look on Bard's face, I wasn't the only one.

"Consignment of empty barrels from the Woodland Realm. Only," the man's fat and dirty hands pointed at the fish filled barrels, "They're not empty. Are they Bard?"

As he tossed Bard's papers over his shoulder, his beady dark eyes landed on me. "You've also found yourself a stray now? If I recall correctly, you're licensed as a bargeman, not a fisherman or a procurer."

I shook slightly as the man's eyes roamed over me. Procurer… I had no earthly idea what that could mean, but judging on how he was looking at me, I was certain I was being mistaken as some sort of prostitute again. Bard stepped to the side to block me from his view.

"That is none of your business."

"Wrong," he replied smugly, "It's the Master's business, which makes it my business."

"Oh, come on Alfrid, have a heart. The Race of Man needs to look out for each other. People need to eat!"

"These fish," Alfrid grabbed one and shoved it in Bard's face, "are illegal."

He threw the fish back into the lake before turning to the soldiers behind him. "Empty the barrels over the side."

My anxiety shot up. It took everything I could not to hyperventilate. They're going to discover the dwarves!

"Folk in this town are struggling," Bard began to soundly argue, "Times are hard. Food is scarce."

"That's not my problem."

Geez, Alfrid is a grade A di-

"And when the people hear the Master is dumping fish back in the lake, when the rioting starts, will it be your problem then?"

I could hear the sound of fish being slowly dumped off the side of the boat. I certainly hope Bard knows what he's doing. The two men stared intently at each other for several long Alfrid scowled, shooting his hand up.

"Stop."

The soldiers put the barrels right side up again. I quietly let out the breath I was holding. Bard looked exasperatedly at Alfrid, who fell into what I could only describe as a "I'll get you, my pretty" speech.

"Ever the people's champion, eh, Bard? Protector of the common folk? You might have their favor now, bargeman, but it won't last."

Alfrid walked away, visibly upset. Percy looked between the three of us quickly before yelling for the gate to open. Bard came back to his place beside me, placing a comforting hand on my shoulder with an apologetic face. He began guiding us through the now open canal as Alfrid angrily cried out once more.

"The Master has his eye on you; you'd do well to remember. We know where you live."

"It's a small town, Alfrid. Everyone knows where everyone lives."

Fits of giggles burst out of my mouth at the sass that left Bard's mouth. Sure he was a rough man, but clearly he wanted to do what he believed was right. I took a glance back at Alfrid, who was positively fuming.

As Bard directed us through the canals, my suspicions were confirmed. The houses were mostly in shambles. There were shingles falling off some of them and there were others whose wood was slowly rotting from the moisture. Garbage littered the walkways as stray dogs went around looking for something to eat. I frowned, looking to Bard.

"I understand why you went for fish... "

He nodded, "There are many hard working people here. The Master bleeds us all dry from any decent wage we learn. With the fall of Dale and Erebor several generations back, the only viable trading partner we have are the elves from the Woodland Realm."

His attention was caught by the surrounding people, dressed in threadbarren clothes that were too big for their bodies. Some children were even running around barefoot, their poor toes visibly red from the cold. My heart ached as I looked around.

"All we have are our homes and our families."

We travelled along for a bit longer before stopping off between houses, where no one seemed to be. Bard gazed around quickly before kicking and knocking over a few of the barrels. Dwalin's body popped out of his barrel, growling at Bard before he could ever try to knock him over.

"Get your hands off of me."

I left the blanket behind on the boat as the dwarves piled out of the barrels. Bard went over to a man at the dock, putting a coin into his hand. I couldn't hear what he was saying but I got closer as he was about to leave. The man stopped briefly before turning back, "The fish you can have for nothing."

He moved ahead through the Company, scanning around us for any more unwanted attention. "Follow me."

We traveled through shadowy back alleys, moving quickly. Fili came up beside me as we traveled forward.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," I glanced over at him, "Why?"

"I heard what that man, Alfrid, was insinuating about you. I also heard you and Bard talking about the town."

I stopped momentarily, looking down. Fili grabbed onto my hand and pulled me forward with him, quickly mentioning something about getting lost. I bit the inside of my mouth as I thought about my next words.

"Being considered a whore is the least of my worries. I feel bad, though. For a lot that none of us can really help with. Bard, although harsh, didn't want to endanger his town's one source of trade and income and yet he still helped us because he thought of what he could do with the coin to benefit his town. I feel bad for burdening a town that has nothing more to give."

The golden haired prince nodded, "Once we reclaim Erebor, we can help these people. We can trade with them more than just barrels. Erebor has precious jewels and priceless metals. It may take some time for us to regrow; When we do, though, we will be able to benefit not just Laketown, but rebuild Dale and benefit every city this side of the Misty Mountains."

The fire in Fili's eyes showed me that he believed every word. I believed him too. First, though, they had to reclaim Erebor.

"Da!" A young, curly haired boy ran up to us and stopped in front of Bard, "Our house, it's being watched!"

Bard looked back at us and scanned the surrounding area. He motioned me forward to him, "Bain, take this woman, Wynter, with you and grab some food and supplies."

"Aye, Da."

Bain took me around to different stalls in the back alley, grabbing apples, flour, some meats and veggies. "So," the boy, who looked about twelve or thirteen, awkwardly began, "How do you know my Da?"

"He's helping my travel companions."

"You're with the dwarves?" The boy looked at me wide eyed and I had to stifle another giggle.

"I am. Did you just think your father picked me up out of the lake?"

The boy flushed at that, "No, but Da's been struggling ever since Ma died…"

Oh. Oh…

"I'm sure if your father ever met someone that he'd like to have help, he'd let you know in advance rather than bring an unknown woman back home."

Bain threw the sack of flour over his shoulder as he gripped tighter to the basket of apples he had. We went back to Bard, finding the Company nowhere to be seen.

"Where is everyone?" I looked around uneasy, hoping I may have just missed them somewhere.

"They're going through the canals to get to the house. It's the only way we can get them in without being spotted."

I nodded as I followed the father and son. Soon we came upon a stairway that led to a faded blue door. Bain went in ahead of us. Bard was about to follow in suit before he stopped and whistled at some fisherman below. He took an apple and tossed it down to them, making extra sure to grab their attention.

"You can tell the Master I'm done for the day."

I blinked at him surprised before following him in. He knew what the people spying on him looked like? Bard did mention it was a small town though, so I guess it really isn't that surprising.

"Da! Where have you been?"

"Father! There you are. I was worried."

Two girls, one about eight and another probably just shy of fifteen, ran up to hug Bard. They were smiling brightly, even as they caught sight of me.

"Hello," I politely inclined my head as I gripped onto my basket uncertainly. Bard quickly gave his bag to the older girl.

"Could you grab one of your mother's old dresses for her?"

She nodded and showed me where to set down the basket I carried.

"What's your name?" I asked the older girl as she opened a chest and began looking through it.

"I'm Sigrid and my younger sister is Tilda."

"Those are beautiful names," I quietly replied, thanking Sigrid as she placed a cream colored blouse and light blue dress into my hands. She motioned me upstairs to get changed. I hurried up stairs to get rid of my soaked, freezing clothes. As I had just finished taking off my shirt when I heard Sigrid down below start asking why dwarves were coming out of the toilet. I laughed softly as I continued to change.

"Will they bring us luck?" I heard Tilda's voice and laughed louder. Thankfully, Bard was able to quickly recap everything to the children while also having them gather blankets and hot tea for them to drink. Once I finished putting the dress over the blouse, I grabbed my wet clothes and went back down stairs. I laid out my wet clothes in front of the fireplace and sat beside Ori and Fili. Sigrid brought me a cup of tea and I thanked her once more. I saw Bilbo out of the corner of my eye and saw his gaze on Thorin. He moved closer to the dwarf, pausing in his tea.

"You look like you've seen a ghost."

"He has," Balin started, moving closer to the Dwarf King and his Burglar, "The last time we saw such a weapon, a city was on fire. It was the day the dragon came. The day that Smaug destroyed Dale. Girion, the Lord of the city, rallied his bowman to fire upon the beast... but a dragon's hide is tough, tougher than the strongest armor. Only a black arrow, fired from a wind-lance, could have pierced the dragon's hide, and few of those arrows were ever made. His store was running low when Girion made his last stand."

There was a pause before Thorin spoke, "Had the aim of Men been true that day, much would have been different."

"Different doesn't always mean better," I whispered quietly, drinking deeply from my mug as I felt both Ori and Fili briefly lean on me.

"You speak as if you were there," Bard spoke, looking interested in the conversation.

"All dwarves know the tale."

"Then you would know that Girion hit the dragon," Bain added, moving closer to his father, "He loosened a scale under the left wing. One more shot and he would have killed the beast."

Dwalin laughed at him, telling Bain that it was only a fairytale. Thorin obviously wanted to move on from this topic of discussion. The dark haired dwarf moved closer to Bard.

"You took our money. Where are the weapons?"

"Wait here."

Thorin came over to us. "Fili, Kili, I need to talk with you. Ori, Wynter, leave us. Please."

We nodded and moved to the other side of the cozy house. I looked out to where Bilbo and Thorin were looking previously. The windlance. It was a giant contraption that looked similar to a crossbow, housed in a tower. I sipped quietly on my tea.

Bard's footsteps thumped up the stairs before he placed a wet plastic tarp on the table. I watched from afar as the dwarves gathered around. Bard unveiled crude weapons that the dwarves eyed wearily and inspected briefly.

"What's this?" Thorin angrily grabbed a long rounded looking spear thing.

"Pike-hook."

"Okay a pike-hook."

"Made from an old harpoon."

Kili grabbed a mallet looking weapon, "And this?"

"A crowbill, we call it, fashioned from a smithy's hammer. It's heavy in hand, I grant, but in defense of your life, these will serve you better than none."

The Company went up in arms about the quality and availability of the weapons. I shook my head, sighing as I continued looking out the window. I wasn't going any further than here, so it wouldn't be my concern.

That thought made me stop though. What was I supposed to do? I couldn't stay here and impose on Bard and his family. I silently bit and worried on my bottom lip, unsure of what I had for options anymore.

"Thorin," Balin's voice sounded through the chatter, "Why not take what's been offered and go? I've made do with less; so have you. I say we leave now."

"You're not leaving," Bard's voice wasn't quite a yell, but anger did make it louder. I'm sure between their seemingly corrupt leadership and some embarrassment on what he was able to provide, Bard was experiencing some emotional distress. Quietly, I watched from my spot by the window.

"There's spies watching this house and probably every dock and wharf in the town. You must wait till nightfall."

Bard stepped outside soon after. I watched as Kili struggled to sit down, hovering his hand over his injured thigh. Quickly I stood up and touched Oin on the back. The hard of hearing man looked at me slightly confused. I motioned my head towards Kili.

"We need to check up on him."

The healer nodded and made his way over towards the dark haired prince. I was about to move to help Oin out when Nori called out my name.
"Wynter…"

I looked at him, surprised to hear my name when most of them referred to me as Little Bird. "Yes?"

"It's just an observation of mine, but… you seem very comfortable lying."

The Company looked over at me, some of them with distrust. Bilbo and Ori were both looking between me and the Company. The two of them were clearly trying to think of a lie or excuse to help me out. I took a deep breath and looked straight at Nori.

"The things that I've experienced would require you to be good at lying too."

Clearly Nori wanted to push the conversation farther, but Balin quickly interrupted.

"We all have stories we'd like best to never think of again. The lass also isn't under contract with us and even if she was, she wouldn't be forced to disclose anything that was irrelevant to the success of our journey."

He smiled reassuringly at me. I could tell that there were those in the Company divided on this. Most seemed to err on my side though. I smiled back in thanks before moving to see what I could do to help Oin. Now hopefully if I ever see Legolas again, the Company won't be around to hear the long conversation of "Who are you and how do you know my name?".

A/N: I hope you're all staying safe. Unfortunately, for some reason, working customer service at a newspaper is considered essential in America in my state, so I still haven't had much time to work on this as I would like. Slowly and surely, though we're making head way, although I don't know how OOC Wynter is or different the writing is feeling. As always, though I appreciate your thoughts and feelings.

Much Love and Appreciation,

Secret Moon Princess