"Excuse me, but you're from Laketown, if I'm not mistaken?" Balin asked, his hands held up as a sign of peace. "That barge over there, it wouldn't be available for hire by any chance?"

"No." The man looked down over the company, and then his eyes fell on Agarwaen, who was still bloody and bruised. "You, elf, did they do this to you?" He asked.

"We would never--" Dwalin was cut off by Balin, who knew that it would take Agarwaen's words to convince the man.

"I can get you away from them if you're in any danger, miss."

"O-oh, no, they didn't hurt me. They're my travelling companions." She felt uneasy under his gaze, mostly due to her current appearance.

"Come here." He motioned for her to come closer. She looked to the group warily, before cautiously stepping forward. Thorin stopped her, and looked to the man.

"Put down your bow first, and any other blade you carry." The dwarf ordered. The man had a slightly confused look on his face, but did as he was told. Thorin then let Agarwaen step forward, knowing that the bargeman thought they'd taken her prisoner and were abusing her. This was a matter of which the dwarves could not speak for her.

"I am no fool." The man said quietly once she was near. "A beaten up elf woman travelling with a party of dwarves speaks for itself. I will not let them harm you, should you decide to come with me."

"I did not lie when I told you they were my travelling companions. I have been their guide across the north for months now. I promise you they have not laid a finger upon me. They are my friends." The man searched her face for any sign of lies. When he could find none, he spoke again, still not convinced.

"I find that hard to believe."

"Yet I speak the complete truth." He eyed her, and then the dwarves.

"My boat is not for hire, I'm sorry." He walked away and began loading the empty barrels into his barge. Agarwaen returned to the group.

"What did he say to you?" Thorin asked.

"That his boat is not for hire." She sighed.

"Then we must convince him."

"Chances are, he'll listen to you." Balin looked to the elf.

"Maybe. But you're the diplomatic one." She replied.

"As true as that is, you're a bloodied shivering elven lass in need of help."

"If he agreed to help me, it would probably be me alone. That doesn't exactly work."

"We have to try."

"Fine. I expect you to take over once I start the conversation." She tightened her arms around her chest, and tried to close up the hole in her thin tunic as much as she could. She was about to walk away toward the bargeman, when Thorin stopped her once more, this time however, he pulled his dark blue overshirt over his head and handed it to her, leaving him in just a plain brown tunic.

"Cover yourself up. I don't want you walking around like that with strangers about." She felt herself begin to redden at the situation.

"Thank you." She muttered as she took his still wet shirt and put it on. It was a little baggy in terms of width, and a little short, but it hid her body much better than her tunic did. She continued on, and didn't notice both Balin and Dwalin look at Thorin with raised eyebrows. Not only were Thorin's clothes made specifically for dwarven nobility, but now Thorin, their leader and king was significantly underdressed, even for someone who'd just escaped a prison.

Agarwaen picked up one of the barrels that was left at the riverbank and brought it to the bargeman.

"Here." She rolled it towards him, and he picked it up and set it in his boat.

"You don't give up easily, do you?" He asked, noticing her new attire. He looked at her, and then back toward where Thorin stood, now without his overshirt. The bargeman let a brief expression of confusion pass over his face before he shrugged it off.

"We are in great need for a way across the lake. Please."

"What makes you think I would help you and your friends?"

"Those boots have seen better days." Balin stepped in, which Agarwaen was grateful for. Trying to think about her words made her head hurt. "As has that coat. No doubt you have some hungry mouths to feed." The bargeman looked at them, she could tell he was thinking about it. "How many bairns?" The dwarf smiled.

"A boy and two girls." The man answered.

"And your wife, I imagine, she's a beauty?"

"Aye, she was." Agarwaen's head throbbed again. Balin began apologizing, causing Dwalin to grumble about wasting time.

"What's your hurry?" The bargeman asked with a slight knowing smile. He knew they had trouble with the elves.

"What's it to you?" Dwalin asked.

"I would like to know who you are, what would possess a dwarf to travel with an elf, and what you are doing in these lands."

"We are simple merchants, journeying from the Blue mountains to see our kin in the Iron hills."

"I've worked as a guide for some time now, and many of them have never traversed the east before. A mutual friend introduced us, and I have been escorting them this way since then." Agarwaen spoke up. The man let out a quiet laugh.

"We need food, supplies, weapons. Can you help us?" Thorin asked.

"You," He pointed to the elf, "Are not a very good guide. I know where these barrels came from. I don't know what business you had with the elves, but I don't think it ended well. I would have expected another elf to know to avoid those halls, especially when leading a party of dwarves." He eyed her bloody appearance, and how none of them carried anything necessary for basic survival. "No one enters Laketown but by leave of the Master. All his wealth comes from trade with the woodland realm. He would see you in irons before risking the wrath of Thranduil."

"I'll wager there are ways to enter that town unseen." Balin tried.

"Aye, but for that, you would need a smuggler."

"For which we would pay. Double."

"You hardly look like you carry any gold at the moment." He was proven wrong when everyone dug out coin purses from underneath layers of clothing. Agarwaen pulled hers from an inside pocket in her trousers. When you're a wanderer, keeping your money hidden will do you well when it comes to thieves.

The bargeman sighed, knowing that they really did need help. What kind of man would he be to let them starve to death in the wilds?"

"Climb aboard." He said with a wave. Smiles spread throughout the group as they all stepped forward and onto the barge. Balin negotiated the terms with the man, and soon they were off. Bilbo had just finished introducing himself, when Agarwaen walked over to thank the man.

"Thank you for helping us. It means a great deal to everyone here. I'm Leithiandes." She held out her hand to shake, which he did.

"Bard." He replied. "This whole thing still seems rather curious to me though. Where did you meet this bunch?"

"They passed by Rivendell on their journey, and I was hired to take them through the mountains and through the forest."

"Why didn't you take the old forest road?"

"The marshes at the end have gotten worse. Almost impassible now."

"Around the forest?"

"Too close to Gundabad one way, and too long the other way. The orcs have been getting bolder, and we would be no match if we were subject to a large raid." Bard nodded. "The forest is different from the last I was here though. Hence the run in with the elves."

"I've heard of the dangers lurking there, yes."

"We were attacked by spiders the size of horses before the elves captured us. The barrels were our escape." Thorin overhead her speaking to the man, and was less than pleased that she was informing him of what went down in the forest.

"That's clever. My daughters would love to hear that story."

"If stories are what they like, I have three hundred years worth of them."

"How does an elf come to leave her home and become a guide?"

"A longing for adventure."

"Lass, do you have your coin?" Balin called from the other end of the barge.

"Yes, hold on." She turned back to Bard. "Thank you again. We will be out of your hair before long, I promise."