Title:

Genre: Movies

Series: The Hobbit

Characters: Bella (Bilbo) Baggins, Thorin Oakenshield, the Company

Spoilers: N/A

Rating: PG13-Mature

Summary: Events didn't turn out as planned, and the ripple effect cascades over all things.

Disclaimer: Not mine.

"Is it secret?!"

Bella,

Your suggestions for improving the harvest were well met by the farming guild, I appreciate your assistance with the matter. The seedlings you sent with the last caravan from Ered Luin have taken to the fields outside the mountain and every day it grows more green. Soon we will rival the Shire.

Perhaps then you will be tempted to visit us. I've already offered to send a company to escort you, you need only request it. Fili was quite disappointed that you were not able to attend his wedding, but he and the company sang a hobbit tune in your honor. At least I think it was a song, it might have been a tavern limerick.

My search continues for an appropriate wife, my council has drafted yet another list of eligible dwarrowdams for my consideration. At your suggestion, I did put my foot down and demand only dams of a certain age be presented. My advisers protested that it would leave out too many, but after the disaster of that last meeting with the lass Kili's age, I couldn't stomach the thought of considering one that young.

After our journey with you, I dislike admitting it, but dwarrowdams do not hold the same appeal. They are so few in number, so revered by my people, they all have an arrogance and pride that I find off putting after growing accustomed to your hobbit nature. Sigrid reminds me of you, she approaches things simply and without ceremony, it's refreshing that she is so straightforward. She would have made a good queen.

I've included a draft of the apprenticeship contract for your Thain. My metalcrafting guild looks forward to sending emissaries to practice their craft in the Shire.

If you feel you must, please regale me with tales of the Shire. I miss your companionship, my friend.

Thorin

"Is it safe?!"

Thorin,

Even now the image of a female Kili flirting with you makes me laugh, you poor old dwarf. Such indignity, can you not tell them no? What is the difference between you being the King in Exile and not having a wife, and being the King Under The Mountain and not having a wife? You have your heirs, they have their wives, eventually they'll have children to be new heirs. This is why I prefer the rule of the hobbits, we choose our leaders by who is most capable and fair.

I am glad that I can assist with the rebuilding of Erebor, even if it must be from a far. I would come to visit, I truly would, I miss you all terribly. I'm actually entangled in a some courtship rituals here in the Shire and if I were to tear myself away my family would be terribly disappointed.

I've enclosed some wheat seeds that should take to the ash covered soil well, and they do not take long to produce. Bombur will be baking bread within a few months, see if you can get me his recipe for sweet rolls in trade? He refused to part with it before I left. Go intimidate him with your kingly manner.

The Thain looks forward to having a blacksmith back in the Shire. There's already a list of requests for repairs or new tools, though do please let them know that as the savior of Erebor, my requests get moved to the top?

I'm teasing, of course. I know that if I ever had even a small need, you'd send one of the company to handle it personally, though that is absolutely unnecessary. I have been taking care of myself for years, before I ran away with a troupe of thirteen dwarves, and after I came back with your nephew.

Speaking of, he and Tauriel stopped by to see me a month back. They look well, more in love than ever, it's enough to make a spinster envious. They were going south when they left, I think aiming for Rohan and Harad. I think if I'd had to listen to one more night of their enthusiasm I might've just packed up and gone too.

No, however, I think my adventure days are over. It seems almost like each day I grow a little more tired, more inclined to stay here in my quiet life.

That being said...I miss you too.

Bella

"Hold out your hand, Bella. It's quite cool."

Burglar,

The king is a boor to be around. Did you steal his sense of humor when you left?

Nori, Dori, and Ori

"What can you see? Can you see anything?"

Dearest sons of Ri,

Not to my knowledge, but it was so small that it might've slipped into my bags on accident.

Love,

Barrel Rider

"Just the same markings as before, that Thorin and I saw."

Bella,

Entangled in courtship rituals? I need more detail before I and Fili will accept that as an excuse for missing the royal wedding.

Bombur has indeed begun to make his baked treats again, but he refuses to part with the recipe...unless you return to claim it yourself. I think he is on the right track, we'll need to bribe you to come back. I could offer gold or jewels, but you were never partial to them. Now that the cave gardens are alive again, there are rare mushrooms that haven't been seen in decades...and you were fond of them, weren't you? Too bad you cannot partake...all the way in Hobbiton as you are...

Thorin

"There are very few that can read it. It is the language of Mordor, which I dare not speak here."

King under the Mountain,

Bribery is unbecoming of sovereignty.

It is not an excuse, it is an explanation! My cousin Drogo has begun courting his One, a Brandybuck if you could believe it. I have been designated chaperone, and must be present during the handfasting and courting for propriety's sake. (Though if I may or may not allowed them a moment or two of privacy for a kiss, I'd never tell.)

It is an honor to have been chosen to do so, and one that could not be delegated.

Stop pouting, your highness. You know you're one of the few things that will ever get me back out of this smial.

Love,

Bella

"In the common tongue, it says, 'One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them.'"

Bella,

The five year anniversary of our journey approaches, there will be a celebration and a ceremony honoring our company. If there ever was a time for you to come, it is now.

If I am one of the few things that will get you out of the Shire, tell me and I will come for you.

Thorin

"One ring to bring them all and in darkness, bind them."

Thorin,

Something terrible has happened. Or is happening. Or will happen. I'm not sure. Gandalf has come for me, we must leave the Shire now.

You once told me that dragon sickness was like a shadow at the corner of your eye, always there lurking, waiting for your weakness to slip back in. I didn't know what you meant then, but I do now. It was there the whole time, I just wasn't seeing it. Now I know there are many types of madness in this world, and I am not immune.

Perhaps for the last time...

Love,

Bella

Thorin set the scroll onto the desk, a headache forming in his temples as he reread the words for the third time. It took him only a minute to write out a reply. He gestured for the raven to approach, gifting it with a sizable piece of meat from his dinner and an admonition. "Find her. She might not be in the shire anymore, but she won't be far, not yet."

Bella,

You're not making any sense. Tell me where Gandalf is taking you and I will meet you there.

Thorin

They're on the East West Road, about three days past Bree when her feet seem to fail her. Bella fell to her knees, her palms scraped and her knees bruising already, her head growing lighter as the setting sun blinded her. "Gandalf!"

The grey wizard was at her side in a second, grasping her arm and pulling her to her feet. "You must keep moving."

"I cannot," she denied, pushing at his hold with little effect. "I am so tired."

"It is the ring," he whispered, his voice grave and his eyes sad. "If you stop, you will never move again. You must keep moving."

Bella felt a small hand at her back, then the soft voice of her kin. "I can carry it, Bella. If it will make it easier on you."

"No, Drogo, this is my burden. I will at least see it to safety."

"We can carry you for a while," Primula offered, smiling at her with fondness. "Between us, like a proper chaperone."

It made Bella smile, which felt so strange since she had not done so in many months. "I am not doing a very good job."

"You're the best," Drogo denied, wrapping an arm around her waist as Primula did the same. Bella felt their hands clasp behind her and then they were moving forward again.

"I should not have allowed you to come," Bella argued back, sighing heavily. "What will your parents think?"

"That the Mad Baggins has dragged us off for an adventure," Primula said with glee, "but it's okay, we're young enough they'll shrug it off as the petulance of fauntlings."

Thorin,

You must stay in Erebor, it's not safe. Gandalf thinks there is war coming. I have caused it, accidentally, but still I have caused it. I do not know how I will live with this. It was bad enough what happened to Laketown, I still dream of fire.

This? I do not think I can stand it.

Please? The only thing I could possibly wish for is your safety. Yours, and the company's. Keep my men safe within the mountain. If you can, call Kili and Tauriel back. I do not know how long we will have.

Bella

Balin waited until the sounds of destruction stop before he stepped into the king's rooms. It appeared as if a dragon had gotten loose in there, every shelf broken, every glass shattered, and the king solemn with rage. Thorin's eyes were harder than Balin had seen in many a year.

"I take it the lass did not send good news?"

"She won't tell me what is happening, only that it is so dangerous she flees her home and tells me to lock mine to the outside. Gandalf accompanies her, which tells me she is most likely serious."

"She is right, you have a duty to protect your people and their hard fought for home."

"I..." Thorin paused, and in his silence Balin pushed on.

"Would you leave your people without a leader to chase the lass?"

"Fili is more than capable of ruling until I return," Thorin pointed out, kicking a broken table out of his way as he resumed pacing back and forth.

"He is also capable of going after her himself, and he wishes to."

"No."

"He owes her a debt, the same as we all do."

"I do not go for debt," Thorin yelled, slamming his fist upon the last thing still standing in the room, his desk. With a loud crack the Greenwood creation split down the middle and fell to the floor as well.

Balin smiled, the stern facade fading as he held up a scroll. "Good. I believe I know where they are going."

King Thorin of Erebor,

I hope you and your kingdom are well. I congratulate you on five years of prosperity and hope that it continues for many years.

Still, there are ill tidings rising. On the 25th of October, I have called a council of all races to address a grave problem that could mark the end of Middle Earth. I ask that the race of dwarves join us. I would more than welcome an envoy of your kin if you should choose to participate.

Lord Elrond

The wraiths found them near Weathertop, or as Gandalf called it, Amon Sul. They had made camp at the base of the tall cliff, using a small overhang as protection from the wind. Primula and Drogo curled up together by the fire and though Bella knew she should send them to separate pallets she did not. She figured it best to let them take what comfort they could gain, there were still many miles between them and Rivendell.

She didn't remember the last adventure taking so long. It had felt like that time flew past but perhaps it was the forming friendships that had sped time along. She'd spent the days getting to know the thirteen dwarves, learning their culture, their songs, their likes and dislikes. She'd taught Bombur recipes, and learned pickpocketing from Nori. Balin had quoted her dwarrow poetry, and Dwalin had taught her how to wield a sword, though she'd never really taken to it. She'd mothered Fili and Kili, tending to the holes in their clothing with an indulgent smile.

She'd avoided Thorin in the beginning, he was such an intimidating figure. Still, she'd learned of him through the others. She heard them tell each other of how brave he was, how fair when dealing with conflict, and how clever he could be when the mood took him.. They would follow him to their death if he asked, and their loyalty slowly created her own. She trusted her friends' judgment so even when he was cruel or cold, she knew that it was not truly him. He was a battle hardened King, the likes of which she had never seen and would never have seen if she'd stayed in the Shire where at one point he said she belonged.

Everything had changed with time. He became Thorin, still a king but also her friend. She became Bella, savior of Erebor, no longer just a hobbit. As much as she loved the Shire, it no longer felt like home. It was an ill fitting dress, the right shape, the right fabric but tailored together all wrong, rubbing at her in spots best left alone.

Bella was musing sleepily, her eyes drifting open and shut, one of Thorin's last letters crumpled in her fingers. She didn't see them come out of the dark. Gandalf had wandered off shortly before sunset, and she herself was supposed to be watching, but she was so tired and the air so cold that she just drifted off. Then the shadows converged into robed forms and the dark shine of a blade reflected firelight onto her face and she was awake and screaming.

They didn't fight, Drogo and Primula didn't know how, and Bella was of no state of mind to do so. They ran, dodging between the taller forms frenetically but still that could only do so much. She fell, yelling for the two younger hobbits to run even as they faltered and turned to come back. She reached for the ring and it slid onto her finger with a slick feeling that spread out over her skin. Goosebumps raised all over her body, her skin quivering under that feeling.

Nothing could compare to the sheer sharpness of a blade slicing into her shoulder. She had never felt such pain, radiating along her arm and chest until every beat of her heart seemed to send it further and further into her body. The last thing she saw before she slid into darkness was a bright light approaching, and a long gray robe flaring in anger.

Thorin,

Ride swiftly, Bella is not well and I believe she could use your strength.

Gandalf

His horse was not even stopped before he was throwing himself off and to the ground. "Where is she?"

The fair haired elf glared down at him. "The Lady Hobbit rests. I believe Lord Elrond would see you first, to explain what has happened."

"He can explain to me at her side, I will see her now," Thorin commanded, thrusting his horses reins at Dwalin and stomping into Rivendell with the arrogance of a King. Lindir followed but his displeasure was clear on his face. The King was not behaving as a proper guest, but Lindir was not of high enough rank to chastise him. He'd leave it to his Lord to do so.

Lord Elrond did no such thing, however, merely frowned at the dwarf's impudence and motioned to the door to Bella's room. "I do not believe she will wake today, but I have hope for tomorrow."

"What happened?"

"She has carried a great burden for far too long, and it's taken it's toll."

"What burden?" Thorin asked, stumbling to a stop as her bed slid into view. She looked tiny in the large elvish bed, and though he knew part of it was just the size difference he couldn't help but feel a surge of protectiveness upon the sight of her. She was pale, her skin sallow next to the golden color of her hair, and even under the heavy blanket he could tell she had lost weight. Her shoulder was just above the blanket and the white of bandages was marred by fresh blood. "What happened to her shoulder?!"

"I was going to explain all to the gathering," Lord Elrond started, sighing before explaining, "she carried the One Ring. According to Gandalf, it came into her possession in the Misty Mountains, on your quest for Erebor. She carried it all these years, but it was only when Gandalf became aware of it and began to bring her here that it attacked her like this. It called the Ring Wraiths to her, and they tried to reclaim it for their lord, poisoning her during their attack. Yet still...she persevered. She brought the ring here, trusting that we will be able to destroy it and prevent Middle Earth from falling into darkness."

"This is my fault," Thorin discovered, sinking into the chair at her bedside with a heavy thump. "If I had left her in the Shire as I'd intended, she'd never have found it."

"Fate is a tricky thing, Thorin Oakenshield. The ring ended up exactly where it wanted to be. It may be that it was always going to be that way. Do not blame yourself for things out of your control. I know that she does not blame you."

"She blames herself."

Lord Elrond smiled, "You know her well. Stay with her, I think that even in her dreams, she wants you here."

"She told me not to come," Thorin admitted, reaching out and laying his hand over her's, ignoring the small shake that twitched his fingers.

"She cares very deeply for you," Lord Elrond replied, leaving them to their privacy.

She didn't wake that night, as Elrond had predicted. She slept until well past elevensies the next morning, and he was watching when she finally opened her eyes.

"I told you to stay in Erebor." Her voice cracked as she spoke and she swallowed heavily as she fought to keep her eyes open.

"I told you I would come for you."

She grimaced, reaching up and trying to press at her shoulder but he caught her fingers before she could do so. He leaned close, studying the color of her face and deciding it was marginally better than when he had arrived. "It's not safe, Thorin."

"I know," he agreed, leaning over to assist her with sipping at the cup of fresh water. He waited until she'd drank her fill before standing to pace the length of her room. "We would be no more safe behind Erebor's walls than we are here. There is no hiding from Sauron."

"I didn't know about the ring. After I returned to the Shire, I never even thought about it. It was just...a memory tucked away in my pocket. Then Gandalf was there and he said it's name and it...was awake. It was in my thoughts, I could feel it in my chest, and I can feel it now. Where is it?"

Thorin studied her for several minutes. "I am not sure."

Bella immediately nodded, her eyes sliding shut and a small tear sliding out. "Don't tell me. I don't want it near me. Please, Thorin, don't tell me."

He was moving before she stopped speaking, kneeling at her bedside and taking her hand. "You need not ever see it again, ghivashel."

She smirked at him, her expression lightening for the first time since he'd arrived yesterday. "You shouldn't call me that."

"It is a title that has belonged to you for longer than I was willing to admit."

She brushed her fingers over his beard, tugging at the ends gently. "You need to rest, too. You're saying more than you ever would, were you not exhausted."

"I may not be the most verbose of dwarves, but that doesn't mean it's not true," Thorin clarified, smiling at her but releasing her hand and heading to the door anyways. "Oin will want to take a look at you now that you're awake. I will gather you something to eat. I imagine you're quite hungry. You've missed...seventeen meals in the last two days."

Bella groaned, "Don't remind me. Just feed me."

Bella was astonished to find that most of the company had jumped at the chance to travel to Rivendell and come to her aid. Fili had been left behind to rule in his uncle's place, Balin stayed to advise the younger lad, and a few like Ori and Bofur had stayed behind for various reasons, but they had all sent letters offering support and begging her to return home to Erebor.

She didn't know when Erebor had become "home" but it didn't feel wrong. Without the ring near her person, she could tell now how out of place and lonely the Shire had felt. She had her friends and her family, but at night she'd sat in an empty smial and thought of Thorin and her friends. She'd made their favorite foods and wished they were there to share it. She'd read dwarven books and wanted to debate their meaning with those who'd read them too, instead only able to write letters and it just wasn't the same. Bella had gone to bed, and heard only the whistle of the wind when she was truly listening for the soft snores and quiet murmurs of the company.

"You cannot sleep?"

She's not surprised that he's returned to her room, even though it is the middle of the night and most everyone else would be asleep. "I'm cold and my dreams are not pleasant."

"I will bring you another blanket," Thorin offered, stepping from the shadow cloaked corner chair and moving to the door.

"I'd rather you didn't," Bella offered, holding out her hand in a plea for him to come closer. "Will you hold me?"

"That...is probably not appropriate."

"You called me your One earlier, and you laying with me is not appropriate?" Bella countered, laughter tickling the air. It fell silent too quickly, though, and her solemness returned. "You make me feel safe. Please, Thorin?"

She could see that he fought his first instinct to come to her immediately. Not because he didn't want to, Bella knew that he was drawn to her as much as she was to him. He touched her easily now, in a way he had not that last time they had been together. Casually, his hand in her's, tugging on a curl of her hair, brushing his fingers over the curve of her cheek with a look of affection that she couldn't deny made her toes curl. When his company had come to visit her that afternoon, they had seen the new way he treated her and made their own conclusions as to their King's intentions.

Thorin sighed and began to pull off his heavy coat, laying it across the foot of the bed and toeing off his boots. He looked at her balefully, clearly thinking this was a bad idea but giving in to her request anyways.

"The shirt too," Bella requested, grinning at him when he froze. "I'm very cold."

He pressed a hand to her forehead. "You don't feel feverish." He shrugged and pulled his tunic off, sliding under the covers on her left side. He jumped when she slid closer, curling under his arm and laying her head in the hollow of his shoulder. Her fingers curled into his chest hair and she smiled when he shivered under her touch.

"Are you comfortable?" She inquired, whispering her question as she tilted her head back to glance up at him.

"I have dreamt of being with you like this," he admitted, running his fingers through her hair. She yawned and tucked herself against him tighter.

"When did you know that you felt more for me?" Bella asked, refusing to fall asleep until she had some answers from him. Things were moving so quickly lately that she feared she was missing things, important information that she needed. This was one of them.

"A few years after you'd left. My council began to insist on my meeting dwarrowdams, but they always seemed lacking. They were not you. You challenge me, even from the Shire you test my patience and question my decisions. You make me laugh, make me happy. I began to regret not asking you to stay in Erebor."

"I could tell you hated the idea of taking a wife," Bella pointed out. "I could see it in your letters."

"I don't hate the idea of taking a wife, I hate the idea of taking one of them."

Her breath stuttered before rushing out. "Thorin-"

"You need not say anything," he interrupted, "but I needed to say it. At least once."

Bella reached up with her good arm, cupping his face and forcing him to look at her. "I love you, too."

Their first kiss held none of the passion they both felt, and instead was soft and gentle. An affirmation in the dark night that they both desperately needed. It took being apart for them to really find each other, to understand that the connection that had formed between them under dire circumstances had flourished into something entirely new. Something well worth the wait.

They're awakened the next morning when a young dwarf throws himself on the bed, laughing boisterously as his uncle and the hobbit are jerked from sleep. It's only Kili's fast reflexes that keep him from being impaled by Thorin's dagger, but not even his uncle's patented glare could tear the smile from his face.

"Uncle! Bella! Nori tells me we've a wedding to plan!"

"He hasn't even asked me yet, Kili," Bella grumbled, pressing a hand to her forehead and pushing the weight of her hair away. "Is it breakfast time?"

"You haven't asked?" Kili asked, completely scandalized. "You're in bed together!"

"I am not going to ask. We are going to be wed."

"It's tradition to be asked," Bella said with a small bit of irritation.

"I am a dwarf," Thorin argued back, smiling at her and leaning down to brush a kiss across her nose. "And I believe we are beyond questions now."

"That is more that I needed to know," Kili commented, jumping off the bed and striding to the door. He pulled Tauriel inside from where she stood outside, her smile more reserved but no less happy for them.

"What are you doing here, Kili?"

"We received your letter that we should return to Erebor," Tauriel explained, seating herself in the very chair where Thorin had kept his vigil the last two days.

"This is not Erebor," Thorin replied dryly, standing and reaching for his tunic. As he dressed Bella could almost physically see his kingly persona slide over him, the easy authority and the stern demeanor.

"And miss out on a new quest, not a chance," Kili vowed, shifting aside as the rest of the company trickled in to join them.

"Has it been decided there is a quest?"

"No, no quest," Bella said firmly. She pulled the blanket up to her armpits, sitting up and pouting at them all. "We are all going home, no quest for us."

"Home?"

"We?"

"Yes, we. Me. Home. I mean, Erebor," Bella answered, smiling shyly when the company shifted their eyes from her to the King and then back again.

"It's about time," Nori blurted, exchanging a small pouch of coins with Dwalin not at all furtively.

"Everyone out," Thorin announced. "The council gathers in a few hours, any decisions will be made then." He turned back to Bella. "Would you stay here, or would you like to join? It...will be there."

She sighed heavily. "I think I will go. With you there, I think it will not have as much an affect on me."

They applauded when she walked onto the balcony and she blushed when Lord Elrond described her actions as brave and important. She hadn't felt brave during the rushed journey from the Shire, it had felt like self preservation of the highest need.

Primula and Drogo sat by Gandalf, a friendship that had formed fast and anew on the East West Road and though Gandalf indicated she could sit at his side as well, she instead moved to Thorin's. It was an unintentional announcement of her allegiance, but she didn't regret it. Her King laid his hand upon her knee and they listened to Lord Elrond and Gandalf explain what must be done.

Bella knew she couldn't do it. They hadn't asked her specifically, but even the thought of it turned her stomach. She gripped Thorin's hand so tightly that her knuckles turned white and he made a small noise. He breathed words of comfort into her ear as the entire gathering devolved into yelling, but it was the small voice of a hobbit that stunned them all back into silence.

"I will take it."

"No!" Bella screeched, surging to her feet. "You will not."

Primula stood and gestured to the ring where it rested. "You started this journey, Bella, I will finish it."

"We will finish it," Drogo rejoined, standing and taking his betrothed's hand.

It was easily one of the worst things Bella could ever have imagined happening. Her baby cousin, still plump with baby fat and only just learning what life was about, endangering his life in such a reckless way. He'd only just handfasted with Primula and now the both of them wanted to run off to Mordor.

"Our arrows are yours," Kili pledged, he and Tauriel standing and joining the hobbits and Gandalf.

At her side Thorin stood and she could feel him shaking in restraint as he fought to hold in his initial reaction. Finally he spoke, taking Bella's hand for support. "You are not a child anymore, and this is a very dangerous quest."

"I can handle it, my King. This must be done."

Thorin nodded, ducking his head and refusing to look up. Bella could see that his face was torn, his eyes suspiciously shining but he drew back into himself within seconds and the vulnerability was gone.

Several of the Men present volunteered, a lord of Rohan and the steward of Gondor among them. At the end of the meeting, thirteen had volunteered including Gandalf. It was a small group but both Elrond and Gandalf thought stealth was very important. Sauron did not have his full armies at his back, the battle of Erebor had happened too recently and not enough time had passed for the Orcs to replenish their forces. That did not mean he was not still incredibly dangerous. He had many creatures and magics at his disposal and with the ring back in the open anything and everything could happen.

Bella gathered her kin close and she cried, not even trying to stop. "Oh, Drogo. Prim. How could you do this?"

"How could we not? You cannot carry the ring any longer. It will kill you. But Drogo and I? It holds no draw for us," Primula explained, allowing Bella to hug her tight even as the older hobbit's strength pinched.

"It doesn't call you now, but you have not been with it very long," Bella tried to sway them.

"I carried it when you fell on the road, bleeding and fading," Drogo asserted, pulling Primula out of Bella's arms and grasping his cousin's shoulders. "We are not fauntlings any longer, we will do this. It must be done. For the Shire. For Middle Earth. For you."

"What will I tell your parents?"

Prim grinned at her. "Nothing, you're not going back to the Shire, remember? You're going to Erebor."

"I am still accountable for your safety and health!"

"Tell them we eloped in Rivendell and decided to honeymoon abroad," Drogo suggested, pressing a kiss against Primula's hand. "And we'll make at least half of that true."

"Here? Now?" Prim asked, clearly surprised at the turn of events.

"Better now than possibly..." Never. Bella knew that was the word he didn't say and she felt her heart breaking just a bit.

"You'll need armor. And weapons," Bella decided, turning to Dwalin. "Do we have anything suitable for a hobbit? I could give you my sword and my armor. Thorin, do you mind?"

He shook his head. "It is for a worthy cause. I can always make you new armor."

"Done," she nodded, turning to Gandalf. "Can you ask Lord Elrond about the wedding? If we're going to do it, we're going to do it right. We'll need flowers, and food, an archway of wood. I can write down the traditional vows..."

The fellowship left at first light three days later. Bella stood at Thorin's side, waved goodbye, and when they were out of sight sank to her knees and said a silent prayer to Yavanna. Thorin held out his hand and helped her to stand, leaning down and dusting the dirt off her skirt.

"We'll leave today as well. You may ride with me on my horse."

"I am not so weak that I cannot ride alone," she told him, wrapping her arm around his as they started to make their way to the room they now shared.

"I would rather have you close."

"I can understand that." She pressed a kiss upon his cheek. "Are you sure you wouldn't rather marry here? Get it all done before we head back?"

"I am willing," Thorin replied with a smile, "but my council would still require a royal wedding in front of our people."

Dear Gorbadoc and Mirabella,

I have surprising but fantastic news. As you are aware, Drogo and Primula accompanied me in my ill health to Rivendell to seek out the Elven healers. It seems that they have caught a bit of the Took restlessness, for they decided to marry here and explore Middle Earth! I was as surprised as I'm sure you are now.

They wanted me to reassure you that they are hale and hearty and will make their way back to your loving arms in time.

I apologize for the breach in protocol, but not even my presence could dim the love that Yavanna has blessed them with. In recompense and in light of my circumstances, I am bequeathing them Bag End as a wedding present. They are not aware, but I'm sure you'll find this letter as legally binding as needs be.

If you have any concerns, please...I can be reached in the Dwarven kingdom of Erebor. The raven shall bring any letters you wish to write.

Love,

Bella Baggins

The sun was at its peak in the midday when the two riders made their way up the mountain trail and approached Erebor's gates. They were dressed roughly, raw leather and coarse cotton tunics stained slightly with old blood. The couple had clearly had a rough time but had come out on the other side with only a few new scars.

The guards were instantly on alert, standing higher, gripping their weapons tightly. Dwalin approached the wall, studying the figures as they came closer but it was only when they were less than fifty feet away that he realized who he stared at.

He recognized her red hair first, though it was at least two feet shorter than the last time he'd seen it, when the lady elf had gone riding off with the young princeling.

It took less than ten minutes for the courier he'd sent running to return with the Crown Prince and the King, their wives just feet behind them. Slowly their closest friends and kin filtered to the gates, completely silent and in awe of the return of the prince and the elf.

"There had been no news for over a year," Thorin called out. "We feared the worse."

Kili slid off the horse, grimacing when his feet were on solid ground once more. "And the worst happened, but we survived...and the Ring did not."

Fili walked forward, unable to reach for his brother when he'd long lost hope of ever seeing him again. "Your beard finally came in."

Kili ran his hand down the length of it almost sadly. "Aye, but Tauri is going to make me cut it." Kili grinned at his brother and within seconds they were together, arms wrapped tightly around each other until neither could breathe yet still they were unwilling to part. Dis flew through the crowd, pushing dwarves aside like chattel until she too was wrapped up in them, lifting them off the ground in her elation.

Thorin joined them slowly, clasping a hand on Kili's shoulder. He smiled at the man, "I am very proud of you, my nephew. More than you will ever know."

Kili smiled and reached back to assist Tauriel from her horse. She cradled a small bundle in her arms and her dismount was awkward. "We have something for Bella. We were tasked with bringing it to her."

At the sound of her name, she came forward. The Durinson family parted around her, and slowly Tauriel unwrapped the bundle before placing it in Bella's arms. She was shaking as she accepted, fearing the worst and knowing that if they had sent her this...then it had happened. "Drogo and Prim sent a letter, they said it would explain."

Bella used her teeth to break the seal since her hands were full, reading the short scroll through tears that blurred her vision.

His name is Frodo.

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