Thorin looked around the hall at the laughing and chattering dwarves. The platters and bowls were still half-filled but many of the dwarves had already leaned back in their chairs, well-fed and satisfied.
Thorin smiled. More than fifty years after settling in the Blue Mountains and starting a regular life again, Thorin still remembered the sunken faces and the cries of hungry dwarflings. Every day, he was glad their wandering years were over.
He met his sister's eyes. "Are you sure you want to do this this year?"
He had tried to keep the worry out of his voice, but Dís had heard it anyway. She laughed quietly. "I'm not frail, just pregnant. A bit of dancing will harm neither me nor the little one." She raised an eyebrow at him. "In fact, are you sure you aren't simply trying to get out of this yourself?"
Thorin clenched his jaw. He knew that if he glared at her, she would claim he needed to go easy on her because she was pregnant.
Instead of giving her the satisfaction, he stood up and nodded at Dwalin who sat by the gong. The hall silenced immediately at the sound.
"I wanted to thank you all once again for being here tonight. It is always a joy to celebrate all that we have achieved in a year and this year is no exception. We have opened three more coal mines; one in the Northern Tunnel, one in the Old Pine Tunnel and the largest one off Eastern Slope. Thirty four new dwellings were built for families joining us and seventeen dwarflings born. Our trade with Dunland and the Shire continues to prosper and…"
As he continued, Thorin began seeing the subtle shifts of arms and elbows that indicated conversations were being continued in Iglishmêk under the tables. He glanced at Dís who rolled her eyes at him, even if it earned her an elbow in the arm from Víli. She had often teased Thorin that he tended to give lengthy speeches when he wished to avoid things. He suppressed a sigh. She was probably right about that.
"… but I'm sure we will have even more to celebrate next year. Now, it is time for music and dancing!"
He nodded at the musicians, not without wishing to ask the harpist to switch places with him. They began playing a quick and cheerful tune.
He bowed towards his sister and offered her his arm, carefully making sure not to look at Dwalin. "My Lady Dís."
She got up from her seat with an effort.
"Are you really sure…" Thorin asked quietly.
"The child is not on its way out yet; I can dance. But if you ask me that question one more time, I will step on your feet so often that you will no longer be able to. And no," she added as she saw his expression, "that doesn't mean you won't have to dance. Just that you will be in severe pain doing so."
Thorin smiled at her and they began dancing, slightly awkward at first due to her new girth. More dwarves joined them on the dance floor as Thorin and Dís talked softly.
The song ended and Dís grinned at him. "Since you didn't make entirely too much fuss this year, I'll grant you one more dance before I throw you to the wargs. After that, you're on your own and only Mahal can save you. You know I care more about also getting a dance with my husband than about you being ripped to shreds."
Clearly, this merited some revenge. Thorin took a deep breath but didn't even have to start asking the familiar question before Dís glared at him. Thorin laughed and she smacked his arm with so much force that Thorin winced and rubbed it.
"I probably should throw you to the wargs right now," Dís grumbled, a grin threatening to break across her face as she saw Thorin's expression. "Oh stop it. I'm not going to change my mind that quickly."
…
Of course, the dance ended much sooner than Thorin would have liked. He had barely released Dís towards Víli when he was whisked away by Naris. Thorin gave her a polite smile instead of the groan he wanted to. He had been hoping to avoid her a little while longer, if not entirely.
"Naris. How are you this evening?"
Naris beamed at him. "I've never been better, your majesty. I quite enjoyed the feast although I can't help but notice that I would have made a few changes to the decorations if I had been in charge of the evening."
Ah. Subtlety was definitely off the menu, then.
"I can't find anything that's out of place. But if there is, it is surely only because Lady Dís has more important matters on her mind this year."
"Ah, yes, the baby. Of course. I can imagine it won't be easy for Lady Dís to take care of the baby and all the duties of the Lady of the Blue Mountains."
Thorin tried not to grind his teeth. "Knowing my sister, she will have no problems at all coping with that. And she has Víli and me to help her with the baby as much as we can."
Naris shifted closer to Thorin and he desperately wondered how to get her back to a respectable distance without seeming too rude. "Of course you will, and I can imagine you will want an heir of your own once you've spent some time with the little one."
Thorin opted for twirling her and making sure she didn't get quite as close to him again. "Actually, I am more than happy to appoint this child or any other of Dís' future children as my heir."
That was more than he had said of the matter before, but desperate times called for desperate measures. Thorin would rather face battle than a dwarrowdam intent on marrying him.
"Are you sure?" Naris suddenly was even closer than before, fluttering her eyelashes. Thorin could feel her breath on his lips.
Thorin felt a surge of panic. "Yes. Forgive me, I just saw someone I urgently need to speak to."
He pushed her towards one of the dwarves waiting for a dance at the side of the dance floor.
…
Silently cursing himself for the graceless exit, Thorin quickly walked over to the closest people who looked interested in talking to him.
"Good evening, your majesty," The elderly dwarrowdam in a slightly faded green dress greeted Thorin. "May I introduce my daughter Hilmir?" She pushed forward a young dwarrowdam who gave Thorin a half-hearted smile and bowed. She seemed vaguely familiar to Thorin and he tried to place her.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Hilmir," Thorin nodded at her.
"Hilmir has been looking forward to meeting you," the dwarrowdam said. Hilmir's twitching eye and lowered head told Thorin otherwise. "I always marvel at her skills in running the household since I had my accident." She began listing all the attributes most dwarves thought Thorin would be looking for in a wife.
Thorin watched the way Hilmir was shifting her hands and caught sight of a scratch that looked just like one a slipped chisel would make. Suddenly, he remembered from where she seemed familiar.
"I hate to interrupt you, but I would love to have a dance with Hilmir, if I may?" Thorin asked, addressing both mother and daughter. The older dwarrowdam beamed at him.
"Of course, of course!"
Hilmir nodded, resignation plain on her face. Thorin led her onto the dancefloor.
"Don't you have a small sculptor's workshop on Coal Alley?"
Hilmir nodded, obviously surprised by the question but not missing a step of the dance. "Yes, your majesty, I opened it after my apprenticeship with Master Digur. Unfortunately, it isn't well-known yet and business is a bit slow. My mother worries and wants me to consider other options…" She bit her lip, realizing she had said too much.
The pieces began falling into place.
"What materials do you work with?"
Hilmir relaxed and as she told him about the materials and techniques she used, a smile spread across her face. Finally, she realized that she had got carried away. "I'm sorry. I did not want to bore you with details of my work when you were only being polite."
"Don't worry. In fact, I was not merely being polite," Thorin said as the song was about to end. "I have been thinking about adding several sculptures to the throne room. If you'd like to send me samples of your work, I would be happy to take your workshop into consideration."
Thorin watched as realization dawned on Hilmir about what this would mean for her and her workshop.
She gave him a deep bow. "I thank you for this kind offer! I will send you samples within the next two weeks."
Thorin smiled and Hilmir bowed again before she bade him farewell and hurried off towards her mother to share the news. A few moments later, mother and daughter were both beaming at him.
…
The next few dances were not nearly as pleasant as the one with Hilmir. Thorin had to dance with one dwarrowdam after the other. He hated being the most sought-after dwarf in Middle-Earth.
Occasionally, he glanced around the room to see how his family and friends were faring. Dís and Víli switched between dancing and sitting at one of the tables talking. Thorin couldn't help but smile at the way they were so clearly in love and happy, Víli trying to read every wish from his pregnant wife's eyes.
Thorin's gaze drifted over to Dwalin, seeing him turn down an offer for a dance. A pang of envy and guilt ran through Thorin. Dwalin looked up to see Thorin looking at him. Thorin gave him an apologetic smile, to which Dwalin smiled back with a shrug of his shoulders.
Thorin looked away, aware that the brief exchange had already been more than he should have allowed himself.
His eyes fell on Gloin talking animatedly to a beauty with a luscious beard. She was laughing as Gloin embellished the story he was telling with wide gestures. Both of them were blushing. Thorin suppressed a grin as he thought of the fun he would have teasing Gloin.
As the tune he was dancing to ended, Thorin excused himself from yet another dwarrowdam and headed towards Dís and Víli, eager to have a brief respite. Unfortunately, the familiar red-faced dwarf hurrying towards Thorin did not seem to understand or heed Thorin's intention and so, Thorin was introduced to yet another daughter.
Geris seemed shy and polite, so Thorin sighed and gave in, hoping her attempts at gaining his affections would only be awkward and not shameless. It took him a few moments of polite but distant replies to realize that she was actually talking about the weather. This blatant show of disinterest made Thorin curious and finally, he recalled Dís mentioning something about Geris some time ago.
"Aren't you friendly with young Dolmi? Did he finish his apprenticeship at Varin's tavern yet?"
Geris glanced over at her father. "Unfortunately not yet. He was hoping he might be able to take over the tavern when Varin retires, but now Varin's nephew has moved here and it will go to him." Geris chewed her lip unhappily.
Thorin nodded his head sympathetically. Some dwarves, especially the better-off ones like Geris' father, would not see him as a full member of society until he owned a business or gained some wealth. "That's a stroke of bad luck for you two, isn't it?"
Geris blushed and looked at the floor. "I hope we will be able to think of something," she sounded despondant. "And it will have to be soon," she added in a near whisper before biting her lips again.
That reinforced Thorin's decision.
"If it's any help to you, I will be more than happy to vouch for Varin when he asks your father for your hand."
Geris froze and stared at Thorin. "You would?" She asked, her eyes wide.
Thorin nodded and found himself with an armful of dwarf.
"Thank you! Thank you so much!"
He patted her back awkwardly and glanced around the room. Quite a few eyes were on them. Geris' father blinked in surprise at the scene playing out before him. Then Thorin caught sight of Dwalin, standing in the crowd and scowling.
Gently, Thorin pried Geris off him. With one last thanks, she hurried off, presumably to find Varin.
Thorin looked back towards Dwalin, only to see his back as he strode towards the exit. Thorin cursed inwardly. It would not do to go after him now, especially not with so many eyes on him. But then again….
Thorin took a step towards the door only to find Dís blocking his way and gracefully pulling him into another dance.
"Don't," she said quietly.
Thorin's mind froze. "I need to… I wasn't… what?"
"It's alright," she said, gently squeezing his shoulder. "I know."
"What are you talking about?" Thorin asked, hoping she wouldn't sense his panic.
"You know what I'm talking about. And don't worry, I don't think anybody else knows, but I'm sure quite a few would have drawn their conclusions if you had left just now."
Thorin swallowed.
"Really, it's fine." Dís gently squeezed his shoulder. "I doubt there's anybody who would be more loyal to you. We've already talked about my first-born son becoming your heir and if this is the reason and not being too devoted to your work or people, then that makes no difference to me. You're obviously happy and you've more than deserved that."
Thorin swallowed again, for entirely different reasons this time. "Thank you," he whispered, "that means a lot to me. It's much more than I hoped for, with the laws…"
"You do know that as king, you can change those laws?"
Thorin shook his head sadly. "You know what Adad always told us about being a good ruler. Don't change the laws for yourself, only for your people. Perhaps others would profit from it as well, but it would cause conflict. We need all the unity and support we can get. Maybe one day, when Erebor is reclaimed, but until then, we have to keep up pretenses." He sighed. "I just hate having to do this to him. He deserves better."
"I'm certain he understands, even if he can't always stand to watch. You know what I always say about him having had a sense of duty at birth already. Besides, I think things will get quieter once you officially announce an heir. And in case you're worried he didn't get to dance, I pulled him onto the dance floor for a spin earlier. I may have started a few rumours…" She giggled.
"You don't think I might have a few things to say about that?" Thorin asked, trying to glare at her through his amusement. "Víli might too, for that matter."
Dís fluttered her eyelashes at him. "I'm pregnant, remember? I might break if somebody only looks at me askew."
They both burst into laughter.
…
Thorin was glad when people finally began going home. He had suffered through several more dances and his feet were hurting. He let his gaze drift across the crowd one more time, grinning when he saw Gloin and his bearded beauty swaying on the dance floor in a close embrace. Dís and Víli had already bid their farewells since Dís easily tired, no matter what she claimed.
Seeing no more dwarrowdams waiting to dance with him, Thorin left the hall. The slow music followed him down the corridor. Thorin thought wistfully of all the couples now dancing. Dwalin would probably be in his own dwelling, asleep or in a bad mood, not sharing Thorin's bed and room like he sometimes did when opportunity allowed. Dwalin's position as guard allowed it more often than otherwise possible without raising suspicion.
When Thorin reached the royal quarters, he creased his brow. There was no guard at the door. He needed to have a word with the guards to let them know that it was in no way acceptable to neglect their duties in favour of the ball. There had been too many attempts on Thorin's life to take these matters lightly.
Thorin saw the dim flickering of a single candle from underneath the door. Tiredness forgotten, he reached for his sword, glad that he rarely went anywhere without it. He inched open the door, trying to minimise the creaking. There was a dark figure in the entrance room, shadow looming large from the light of the candle. Thorin snuck up behind the intruder, ready to put him at swordpoint, but at the last moment, the dwarf twirled around and his axe met Thorin's sword. With a start, Thorin recognised Dwalin. Both breathing heavily, they let their weapons sink.
"For Mahal's sake, Dwalin! Don't sneak in here like that! I could have killed you!"
"Or I you," Dwalin replied as he put their weapons aside and pulled Thorin into a hug. Thorin let his head sink against Dwalin's shoulder.
"I'm sorry about tonight."
Dwalin grunted. "I know. It's the same every year. I know it's something that needs to be done. Doesn't mean I have to like it, but I don't blame you."
He pulled Thorin even closer and they stood like that for a long moment as the music drifted in from the hall.
"I was hoping for a dance with you," Dwalin finally mumbled.
Thorin laughed softly into his neck. "That's the only dance I have been wanting all evening."