Disclaimer: Even though I've forgotten to put this up in the past few chapters, I thought I'd put it here... I don't own The Hobbit, I'm not that cool... The rights are all J.R.R. Tolkein's and Peter Jackson's. I just like to play with their characters a bit :)

Chapter 4: The Betrothal Part One

Maerwen walked into the hall where breakfast was being served and paused when she saw that the only space left, again, was the spot next to Thorin. She blushed when she remembered the final dream she had the night before as she made her way to her seat. Thorin looked up slightly as Mari sat beside him. He felt the heat rise to his cheeks and kept his focus on his food, not even paying attention to the talk around him.

Thorin was stirred out of his reverie of playing with his food when a boisterous laugh from the other table brought his attention to Bofur who was mimicking being wed off to Bilbo in "ceremonious orc fashion". He snapped into reality just in time to catch the ending of the fun with Bofur wrapping a table cloth around his body and screaming "I am orc, you my man, we make baby orc!" as Bilbo ran into the court yard. Thorin rubbed his temples as the start of a headache came onto him.

Suddenly, Thorin's heart began palpitating when he heard a melodious sound come from the woman next to him. He turned to Mari to see her giggling madly at Bofur chasing after Bilbo. Thorin found himself smiling at her reaction, and when her eyes met his, he couldn't help but begin to chuckle himself. Mari found herself captivated by Thorin's eyes for a moment before they both turned to see Bilbo entering the hall again.

"I really don't think orcs would wed in such a fashion." Bilbo told Bofur who had come up behind him, still wrapped in the table cloth.

Fili stood up with a laugh and said, "Of course not, dear Bilbo." He sauntered over to Maerwen and put his arm around her. "It would go more like this: Fair maiden, most beautiful being in all the land, let us whisk away into the sunset."

Mari couldn't help but giggle at the funny nonsense that was going on around her. She looked down with a questioning look at Gandalf who only winked at her in encouragement. Unbeknownst to Mari, the dwarves were about to start evoking a tradition that dwarves had of "fighting for the woman's heart." Gandalf looked forward to see how the games played out.

Mari's attention was called back to the dwarves when Dwalin walked over to her chair and hoisted her out of it and onto his shoulder. She squealed in protest, unsure of what was going on.

"No, lads." Dwalin said. "It would go more like this: I am orc, this my woman, we make baby orcs now." He took a few steps away from the table when Elrond and Thorin both stood up to speak. Elrond spoke first. "Try this one: I am elf, that's my daughter, let me fetch my sword."

The dwarves all laughed when they saw Elrond smile at the end. Thorin crossed his arms, and trying not to laugh, said, "I've got a better one: I am dwarf, I'm your king, put my woman -down."

Dwalin stood still as he let Thorin's words wash over him, contemplating the repercussions of continuing the fun. Finally, with a shrug, he relented and set Maerwen back down onto the table top. Maerwen, flustered, hopped down to the ground and ruffled out her dress with a pout. "Well, I think that's enough of the fun and games, gentlemen." With that, she left the room and crossed the courtyard and was out of sight.

Arwen stood up from the table as everyone in the hall remained in a stunned silence after Mari made her abrupt departure. "Well, it looks like I'll have to go comfort my sister, since no one else will." And she left the hall in pursuit of her little sister.

Elrond watched Arwen leave and sighed as he sat back down. "Well, it looks like I'll have to tell Maerwen the plans later." He waited for the dwarves to sit back down before continuing. "We have to discuss how the wedding is going to happen."

Thorin nodded. "Yes, I agree. I was wondering when the nuptials were going to take place. Not to insult how great of a host you are, Lord Elrond, but I think we need to be on our quest soon."

Elrond nodded. "That's very true, Thorin. That's why we've thought of a way to speed up our traditional wedding process."

Gandalf blew out the bit of smoke that was in his mouth and said, "Usually, the betrothal would last at least a year, but since we're pressed for time, we've decided to condense it to three days."

Thorin sighed. "Three more days here, that's not that bad."

Elrond shook his head. "No, dear dwarf, three days of betrothal, wedding on the fourth day and then you leave for your quest on the fifth day. Tonight will be the feast marking the first day of your betrothal. Tomorrow, we'll brief you on all the Elfish wedding traditions, the next day we'll work out the dwarfish traditions, and hopefully we'll also have the spell worked out within these days."

Thorin interlaced his fingers, resting his elbows on the table and placing his chin on his interlocked hands. "This all seems to be reasonable enough," he said, still trying to take it all in. "Even five days is better than a year." The rest of the dwarves all looked at each other, wondering how the next few days would play out.

Thorin finally stood up and looked around the room. "Well, it seems I must go speak with my betrothed." He nodded at Gandalf and Elrond in acknowledgement, then left in search of Maerwen.

Arwen found Mari underneath her favorite tree, the apple tree under which her parents had been wed, sitting on the bench and humming to herself. She smiled as she approached her sister and sat down next to her. "You've never told me why this was your favorite spot in the courtyard." She told her sister softly.

Mari shrugged and looked at her sister with a smile. "My parents got married under this tree; it's the last place they were together."

Arwen's eyes grew sad at Mari's answer. "I thought you hated your parents." She told her little sister.

Mari shook her head. "How can I hate them?" She asked, her voice soft and full of sadness. "They're my parents, and I never knew them. I'm just angry that I can't be a real elf. I hate that my mother had to fall in love with a dwarf. I hate that he had to die and make mother die of a broken heart." Mari's eyes had filled with tears by the end of her rant. "I just hate being so different."

Arwen hugged Mari tightly and kissed her head. "Dearest love, I love that you're so different. You make everything interesting. You're so full of life, and freedom, and love. I don't think you would be the same Maerwen that we all love if you had been born full elf." She squeezed Mari one last time and kissed her again before standing up. "I'll leave you here to think, just don't sulk all day."

Mari smiled up at her big sister with tears in her eyes. "I won't be here for much longer."

Arwen nodded and turned to leave. She knew her sister would be okay; she just needed time alone to think about the events that had been happening lately. On her way back to the breakfast hall, she passed Thorin. She stopped when she saw him and gave him a mysterious smile and winked at him before continuing on her way.

Thorin watched her leave, confusion written on his face. He decided to shrug and let it go; he had more important matters to attend to at the moment. He walked into the garden where Mari was sitting underneath a tree on a marble bench, singing. He walked closer to hear the lyrics and was surprised when he recognized the song.

"Far over the misty mountains cold

To dungeons deep and caverns old.

We must away ere break of day

To seek the pale enchanted gold."

When Mari took a breath to continue the next line, Thorin decided to sing along with her. He harmonized perfectly with her beautiful, high pitched voice and their song was completely in sync.

"The dwarves of yore made mighty spells

While hammers fell like ringing bells

In places deep, where dark things sleep

In hollow halls beneath the fells."

Mari had been enchanted in the moment of singing the only song she remembered that her mother sang to her, and the only reason being that Elrond had sung it to her when she was little. She turned when she realized there was another voice singing the song, and she wanted to see who had snuck up on her. Her eyes widened when she saw that it was Thorin who was the owner of the beautiful bass voice that had accompanied her own soprano. She blushed and looked back at the tree.

"Where did you learn that song?" Thorin asked, as he approached the bench and sat down beside her.

Maerwen turned to her betrothed and said, "My mother used to sing it to me before she died. Apparently my father taught it to her. My lord, Elrond, sang it to me after she died so I would have something to remember her by."

Thorin nodded. "You sing very beautifully, my lady."

Mari blushed. "Thank you. You don't sing half bad yourself." She smiled to show him she was joking, but then grew serious. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to see if you were ok," he responded. "You left quite quickly, and you didn't get to hear the plans for our upcoming nuptials."

Mari's heart clenched at the small act of kindness. "Thanks, I'm alright. I just needed some time to think." Thorin nodded in understanding. "So, fill me in on the plans."

Thorin told her what Elrond had decided on so as to allow the dwarves to be on their journey. Mari listened quietly, her heart sinking. "This is really going to happen, isn't it?"

Thorin looked into Mari's sad eyes and felt a need to bring her into his arms and hold her against his chest. Instead, he cupped her cheek with his hand and whispered, "Yes, my dear, it's really going to happen."

Mari stared back into Thorin's eyes and saw an emotion she didn't understand. Her heart was palpitating hard in her chest at the feel of his hand on her face. She felt him leaning towards her and she felt the need to close her eyes, until she remembered the dream she had had the night before. She flushed and stood up, knocking his hand off of her. "I have to go Thorin, I'll see you at the feast."

When he made to say something to her, she turned around and ran all the way into her room, leaving Thorin confused. It had seemed like they were finally getting along. He had been close to kissing her because it had felt like the right time. What did I do to make her flee? He asked himself.

Mari reached her bedroom and sat on her bed, her face still flushed from the incident in the garden. He was about to kiss me! She thought indignantly in her head. And, worse, I was going to let him. She groaned and fell back onto the bed and stared at the ceiling. She really wasn't looking forward to the feast that evening and decided to spend all day in her room, reading.

When the time came to dress for the festivities, Arwen entered her room and the two sisters dressed and prepared together. Arwen helped Mari curl her hair and pull it up off her face with a beautiful pin. Arwen herself let her own hair fall naturally to her shoulders and just placed her usual crown on her head.

The dress that Arwen had picked out for Mari was a white gown with green trim and emerald buttons. Arwen had on a red gown with golden trim. The girls gave each other a final look before leaving the room, satisfied that everything was in order.

Upon entering the feasting hall, Mari noticed that there were a few honored guests at the gathering. She and Arwen approached Lord Elrond who was at the head of the table and bowed to him, then they turned and bowed to his guests on his right. Lady Galadriel and Lord Celeborn had come to Rivendell to witness the union between Maerwen and Thorin. They also bowed to the man on Elrond's left, Sauroman the white wizard, had also appeared for the wedding.

Mari took her seat next to Thorin and the festivities began. She tried to stay optimistic the whole time, but the longer she stayed at the feast, the more her smile began to fade.

Thorin sat next to his wife-to-be in complete shock. He had known she was beautiful, but he never knew that she could be stunning. He spent the whole feast trying not to stare at her, and failing miserably. When Maerwen finally got up and declared she was headed to sleep, Thorin was a bit sad, but decided he had better retire also. The next few days would be very busy, and he needed his sleep.

Both of them walked to their separate rooms to dream of the other.

A/N: I'm so sorry about the delay my lovelies... I've been trying to work on things and also prepare for my own upcoming nuptials :) please review... reviews make me happy and they make me update sooner haha