Rebuilding a New Beginning: Prologue
I thought of this one-shot after DOS and wrote it just before BOTFA. It follows the three movies and is an AU I imagined of what might have happened after the movies ended.
This takes place about a year after the Battle of the Five Armies. Thorin and his nephews have valiantly died and their lives are becoming enmeshed into legend; Dis has moved to Erebor with nothing but the stark formalities of duty to keep her going; Dain is the reluctant but proficient ruler. The remaining Company of Thorin Oakenshield are trying to accept the painful price they have paid. All are determined to see their King's dreams and hopes of a reclaimed Erebor come to life.
There is peace. Dwarves, men, and elves, if not exactly friends, are starting to learn to trust each other again. The dwarven Kingdom of Erebor is being rebuilt and the empty halls are being refilled as more dwarves move back to the mountain. They are dwarves. Built to last and endure, they work to live and live to work but every so often one will start to say a word and realize that the person they would speak to is not there, they will turn when they hear a bellow in the distance, laughter around the corner, and stare at the emptiness surrounding them.
Dain, Dis, and Balin are in a counsel room going over the records of food stores. It is boring work but one that is necessary to make sure that their people are able to survive and grow. Traded and bought goods and grains from beyond Dale, herbs and produce from Mirkwood, cloth and tools from the Iron Mountains – it was all in the meticulous records that they had been going over for the past hours.
A dwarf comes running into the counsel room, not bothering to knock. "A delegation from Mirkwood, Sir, has been spotted. They should arrive at the gates within the hour."
The three looked at each other. The animosity between the dwarves of the Lonely Mountain and the elves of Mirkwood had simmered down from the boiling point of just a year ago but an unannounced delegation was unheard of. Each one hoped that it would not be yet another knotty problem to solve.
They met them in the throne room. Dain seated on the Throne of Erebor, Lady Dis on his right, Balin on his left, with Dwalin and Gloin on the outsides.
The delegation was small, just four elves with Prince Legolas leading them. He bowed to Dain and then looked searchingly at Lady Dis, giving her a deeper bow; he then motioned two of his elves forward.
Lady Dis looked at him and then at the two elves. They were females, each holding a bundle wrapped in blankets. She took a step forward. Then another. The two elves looked up at her and smiled. One of the bundles moved slightly and she raised a hand to cover her mouth.
The Prince was speaking to her. She moved her eyes to look at him fully. He seemed sad. She had never seen an elf look so lost and . . . heartbroken. Although she still mostly detested the cold-hearted and unfeeling creatures, especially his father, she had learned of how the Prince had aided her brother during the battle and her heart had softened towards him. The two elves walked towards her and bowed.
Legolas bowed, again, to her and spoke, "Their mother died bringing their lives into the world. She wanted you to know that they were created in love between her and your son, Kili. She wanted me to bring them to you. She wanted them raised in the love that Kili felt when he spoke of you." The Prince stopped as if unable to say more. She saw his throat move as if swallowing a sob softly, then he continued. "Their father I learned to respect," a pause, "their mother I have always loved."
The two elves uncovered their bundles and Lady Dis gasped.
"I have named them Tauli and Kiriel." His voice was soft, almost a whisper. "Take good care of them."
The two elves handed the bundles to Lady Dis who sat down on the steps, silent tears of happiness and sadness sliding down her cheeks.
The Prince bowed formally to King Dain who had not spoken or moved, then turned towards Lady Dis and bowed low to her with hand over heart. She looked up at him, smiled through her tears, and then looked back to the bundles in her arms and felt love and life returning to her.
The Prince smiled, turned, and the delegation left as unannounced as it arrived.
A/N #1: I always imagined that Dain, ruler of his own mighty kingdom in the Iron Hills, did not plan on or even think that he would be crowned King of Erebor and I thought that he did it out of duty. This AU opens thought on him being able to step down in the future, with respect and honor, when Kili's son is grown. It, also, means that he could be there at the end of LOTR fighting alongside King Brand, of Dale, when the North battles against the Enemy's Northern Front attack at the same time as the South does battle against the Enemy's Main Front force. The only difference is that Kili's son, Tauli, in direct line of descent of Durin, will rule Erebor afterwards.
A/N #2: Lady Dis, as the only heir left of King Thrain, could have taken the crown. I don't know of any dwarven law that would not allow a queen to rule on her own - except for the fact that dwarves historically have always kept their women out of the public's eye for protection as there are few. Plus, I believe that her heart wasn't into it; she had lost all that she held dear to her.
A/N #3: In this AU, I imagine that Lady Dis, a formidable dwarrowdam matron, will take the children, her grandchildren, under her wing and defend them against any and all who would say anything against them. She will raise them in the love that Kili would remember and speak of to Tauriel. She will raise them with stories of their father and uncle, of the wandering until they reached the mountains of Ered Luin, of the proud history of their people, and she will speak of her brother, their grand-uncle, Thorin, and his dreams and hopes of reclaiming a homeland that was taken from them and of seeing the glory of the Kingdom of Erebor return; and she will walk with them under the stars in respect and consideration for their mother who loved her son.
A/N #4: I loved the movies. True, they don't follow canon but we need to remember that movies are the vision of the writers and directors that make them – and I applaud what they created. (In LOTR, I missed seeing Bombadil but I would have screamed if no Ents.) The Hobbit trilogy is, of course, my favourite. I have had a love for Tolkein's universe since I first read the books. The depth of thought just amazes me. I always wished there was more of the dwarven stories . . . but that's what fan fiction is for – to pick up and continue the tales!
Honor, loyalty, and a willing heart – that says it all.