Bilbo and I walked in on the fourteen dwarves and Gandalf discussing important matters regarding a journey to some far away place. I carefully slunk past most of the dwarves before making myself comfortable on Kili's right hand side closest to Bombur, and the kitchen. Not only was it the best place to be encase I needed to excuse myself for whatever reason, but it was also the closest to Fili and Kili, whom I felt the most connected to. Perhaps it was because of our closeness in age, but I suspected it had more to do with the simple fact that I had met them first and liked them better than the ones that questioned my skill as a parent. I tuned out the majority of the conversation, assuming that is simply did not apply to me. After all I figured I was using this group more as a road map than an active part.

It was not until Bilbo made a loud sound from the hearth where he was perched. I looked over and gasped as he made the loudest shriek I had ever heard.

"Bilbo, are you okay?" I shouted desperately.

"He is just shocked by the dragon." Bofur stated in a knowing voice.

"Dra-dragon?" I stuttered, "Are you serious, that is what you are going after? I don't have to know much of this world to know that this will go poorly. I am just glad I will be hopping off this loony train soon enough." I rambled as I made my way closer to Bilbo.

As I got closer I saw a piece of thick paper resting beside Bilbo's prone body. I picked it up and slowly read what appeared to be a contract.

"This is what you gave him to make him start screaming? Well no wonder, you don't need a burglar, you need a lawyer! You can't go about saying things like 'large possibility of incineration' in the first line." I admonished as I examined the document further. "Who wrote this?" I questioned briefly.

All eyes fell in the old one with a long white beard; I believe his name was Balin.

"What a beautiful way to say almost certain death. Next time stop at two ways to die, and rather than putting both laceration as well as evisceration let's just pick one. Sound good?" I questioned with a snort. "And you can't notarise something before it as been signed, it's just bad business."

I placed the paper down on the table by Thorin and bent over to help Bilbo off the floor and into a soft armchair.

"What would you know of contracts?" Thorin asked as I walked back into the room.

"Three years of Law School and working in corporate America? Yeah I signed, wrote, and looked over more than my fair share of contracts." I laughed without much humour.

"Have you no fears about a dragon?" He asked shortly.

"Well I don't expect to be getting that far. My son and I are headed for the first town I deem respectable enough and stopping there. It doesn't really matter that I don't believe for a second that dragons exist." I summed up with an air of light heartedness I did not feel.

"You and your son?" Thorin questioned again with wide eyes. "You cannot bring a child on this journey. It is neither safe nor practical." He insisted.

I had to suppress a groan as I heard this.

"Seriously? Gandalf already gave me the go ahead! He's the one that invited me on this little trip in the first place. You can act all you like that you are the leader but lets be honest, you don't command much more than the direction of your 'macho man' glares." I stated quietly.

I moved to sit back down and Kili turned his head to look at me with wide eyes.

"There are not many that would dare talk to my uncle that way." He warned with a voice that sounded in awe.

"There are not many whom would deem it wise to anger me." I stated back with a smile.

They continued to talk and the conversations delve deep into the night. At some point Bilbo re-joined the group and began acting as if he knew what he was talking about. Only I, and perhaps Gandalf, could see that he was terrified of what was coming. It sounded as if he agreed to go on the journey and deal with this dragon. It was finally Bilbo that called for everyone to make themselves comfortable and have a good night's rest before the morning. It was not until Thorin put in his breakfast order that it looked as if little Bilbo's head was about to spin off his neck.

"Actually, breakfast is my domain, and in my house it's get what you get and don't throw a fit. Understand?" I glowered at each and every one of them daring them to raise a complaint.

They said nothing.

"Good that's settled then. Off to bed all of you!" I demanded with a shooing of my arms. The mother was coming out in me.

"Lady Catherine, could I have a word?" Fili asked with a genuine smile that made me have to say yes.

I nodded briefly before following him out the door.

"Are you a princess?" He asked suddenly as we stepped into Bilbo's small garden.

I laughed.

"No, sir. I'm just your run of the mill heiress, not even the important one. My older sister, Stephanie, is going to take the business when my father passes. We don't have royalty where I'm from." I explained with a laugh. "Why do you ask?"

"The crown you were wearing earlier," He paused to look at me.

"That is a toy. It is made out of cheap metal and fake diamonds. They sparkle like all get out but are worth next to nothing." I pulled out the tiara and showed him the back of it.

He nodded silently before asking another question.

"Why are you coming with us?"

"To find a home. I don't have one anymore and I can't raise my child as a wanderer. Why are you asking all of these questions?" I asked slowly.

"I'm just trying to see if I should become attached to you or not." He stated as he walked away leaving me confused in the middle of a tomato patch.

As I walked back into the house I overheard a muffled conversation.

"You were being so nice to her and her kid, as if you could slip it past me." The voice stated with smugness I could only assume belonged to Fili.

"I was just trying to make her feel better about Alex hitting me with his arrow." The other justified.

"Yes, brother, I am sure you are planning on making her feel a lot better." Fili joked. "How could you even begin to show an interest in her? No beard and taller than you by a fair amount. Did you hear how old she is? Barely old enough to be leaving the house! And she has a son which can only begin to tell you of her past." He continued.

With every word Fili spoke I angered further. First he acts as if he is my friend and then he goes about trash talking me! There was a loud thump and a cry that made me jump and let out a large gasp. They must have heard me as two heads popped out from around the wall with matching guilty expressions. Fili looked as if he was nursing a head wound and Kili was as bright as a tomato.

"Having a productive conversation?" I asked innocently.

"Yes, Lady Catherine." Kili stated with a small bow his cheeks still an amusing colour of crimson.

"Just Catherine." I corrected. "Married and divorced makes me anything but a lady." I snorted. "I am headed to bed. I believe it would be in your best interest to do so as well. Oh and Fili, the next time I hear you talking about me behind my back I won't hesitate to cut off that beard, you are so fond of, in your sleep." I called as I headed down the corridor to my room.

I fell asleep that night mixed between emotions of rage and confusion. The rage was obvious yet I was lost in replaying the conversation I heard over and over as I lay in bed. What did it mean that Kili was showing an interest in me? The way I saw it, he was just one of the friendlier dwarves in the bunch. Perhaps I was misreading the signs, I had been out of the dating world for eleven years, but even if I had I still doubted my readiness to start a new relationship. As I closed my eyes I heard Alex sighing softly as if in the midst of a pleasant dream.

I rose before the sun and quickly moved across the empty halls and into the pantry. I looked around at the mess the dwarves had left and fumed internally. There was plenty of food left for breakfast however it was seemingly buried under empty wrappers and plates. I made quiet work of finding the ingredients I needed and left the mess for someone else to clean.

I hummed to myself as I cracked two-dozen eggs into a bowl and began whisking them around. It was one of the free times I was able to do something just for me. I didn't have to repeat Disney songs to amuse Alex and censor my every other word.

The first song that popped into my head had a light tune and the words spoke of a jazz era where the skirts were short and the booze were cheap. I danced around clumsily as I sung the words with a soft whisper in an attempt not to wake anyone.

I had decided on French toast and bacon to match with the sausages and biscuits. I fried a pound of potatoes and hoped it would be enough. Judging by the last night's display, I highly doubted I could ever make enough food to satisfy them all. At the last minute I second guessed my numbers and added another dozen fried eggs to the menu.

By the time the first dwarf made his appearance at the table I was knee deep in cooking oil and sausage links.

"Morning!" I called cheerfully as I brought out trays laden with meat and biscuits. "You are Bombi, right?" I asked with a questioned with a glance.

"A valiant try." He laughed. "The name's Bofur, Lady Catherine." He bowed slightly.

"Right sorry, the fat one is Bombi?" I asked again hoping at least someone's name was Bombi.

"That would be Bombur." He clarified with another chuckle.

"Is there a Bombi?" I finally asked with a blush staining my face.

"Afraid not." He shook his head in amusement.

"Okay so now that I have embarrassed myself enough I am going to grab drinks. I have milk, juice, coffee, and tea. Pick your poison." I encouraged with a smile.

"Tea would be most appreciated." He smiled warmly.

"Coming up!"

I decided right then that I liked him. He wasn't rude and didn't make fun of me messing up their names. He was polite and courteous, all things that went a long way in my book.

I went back into the kitchen and collected enough plates and silverware to set the table and made quick work of the table as I made light conversation with Bofur. As the conversation went quiet I began to hum again. This time it was a more modern song about a stripper. The song was completely inappropriate for Alexander's ears so I very rarely even thought of it. However today it was the first thing that caught in my mind. I stopped as soon as I realised that I had begun to sing the song aloud and was swaying my hips with a little too much vigour to be appropriate.

"Sorry," I apologised with a glance at Bofur.

"You looked like you were enjoying yourself." Came a harsh call from the hall.

I turned to look at Thorin with a glare.

"I was. I see no need to defend myself to you!" I defended with a snort.

As I looked past Thorin I saw that the rest of the dwarves peering around. My face became red as I attempted to move past my embarrassment.

"Well, come on! Breakfast is getting cold." I called and the dwarves all took that as a sign to sit around the table helping themselves to the heaps of food I had made.

I bustled around placing syrup, honey, catsup, salt, pepper, sugar and cream on the table before I grabbed two plates and piled food onto them before covering them both with a towel in the kitchen, It had not escaped my attention that Bilbo had yet to make it to the table or even out of his room. I turned around to see a very sleepy Alex standing in the doorway.

"Good morning, little prince. Guess what we are doing today? We are going on an Adventure!" I stated excitedly.

"Right now?" he asked with wide eyes.

"No, right now we are eating breakfast and I just made you a plate. I think there is a place for you to sit at the table." I smiled.

He slowly tottered his way out to the table and immediately stopped still.

"Mommy!" He called from the doorway.

"Yes, love?" I stopped as I saw that Thorin was looking at my son with the same appraising look he had fixed me with.

I sighed as I scooped Alex up and set him down on my lap with a plate of food in front of us.

"Don't look at him, little prince. Mean men don't deserve much attention." I whispered with a small tickle making him let out a little giggle.

We ate quickly and with minimal talking. I realised most of the dwarves were nursing hangovers from the previous night and I quickly got up and poured them each a small glass of ale.

"Hair of the dog." I explained with a shrug as I moved back to sit down.

Though the expression was met with curious glances all of them drank the amber liquid without complaint. Intermittently there was a grunt of appreciation for the food I had cooked and even a few of them spoke actual words of gratitude which I vowed to remember and think on some other time I was feeling down. As we finished our meal I quickly scooped up several of the plates and dishes and threw them into the sink. I had already cleaned most of the pots and pans I had used and began washing rest before leaving them to Bifur to dry and put away.

As I looked around and saw that there was a fairly substantial mess left behind and slowly moved to clean up the dirt and mud that had been tracked into the house. I cared for Bilbo and did not want him to wake up to a messy house. I scrubbed the floor as the dwarves went about collecting their belongings.

"Why are you doing that?" a soft voice asked from behind me. I recognised it as Kili after a moments thought.

"Because I would feel bad if I left a home in this state, especially after he has been so nice to me the past several days." I explained without looking up from my work.

"No, I mean with your status. Shouldn't you be allocating others to do demeaning tasks like scrubbing floors?" He asked as he leaned on the wall.

"My father wasn't born into money or status. He made it with his own two hands. He taught my sister and me if we wanted anything accomplished in this world we would have to do it ourselves. I don't like scrubbing floors, but I don't see it as beneath me. I may have wanted for nothing but that was not because I got off on others doing the work for me." Looked around at him briefly. "Don't you have something to do?" I asked, not to be rude but rather to get him to stop staring at me as if I was blue with two heads.

"Yes, yes forgive me." He muttered as he walked off in another direction.

I sighed realizing I had probably hurt his feelings but returned to my work. I had already packed a small bag with Alex's toys and a spare shirt and pair of pants I had found that would fit him. I was ready to go that minute if they told me too. Bombur came up to me and smiled with warm eyes.

"Excuse me lass. I just wanted to thank you for breakfast. There are few that understand the appetite of dwarves. And it was good too." He complemented. "I actually had a favour to ask you. It was to be my job to prepare the meals on account of I eat so much but I really hate the job." He paused to look at me.

"Well I am flattered that you liked breakfast and I would gladly cook the meals while we are traveling but I cannot guarantee I will be with you for too long. Besides if I were to do the cooking it would mean you would have to watch Alex and make sure he didn't wander away." I warned with a smile.

"It would be no trouble at all. I have always loved children." He rushed.

"Well then, Bombur, I would be happy to cook the meals while we travel." I smiled "Oh you are probably going to need this." I handed him the tiara with a chuckle.

With a confused look he took the tiara from my head and placed it in his knapsack with a soft pat.

We all met outside where Gandalf was leading a small heard of ponies and two larger horses. I looked at them in horror I had been taught traditional English riding skills but had given up on the sport after I was thrown off during one particularly awful practice.

"No I don't ride horses!" I exclaimed emphatically.

"Mommy, Mommy look!" Alex cried. "Pony!" he cried as he attempted to move forward.

"No, no son. You are too small I don't want you trampled." I insisted.

"Can you not ride?" Ori asked with a concerned look.

"I can, I make a conscious decision not to." I responded with a slight shiver.

"Catherine, you will have to ride. There is no other way to get to where we are going." Gandalf explained with a soft smile.

I took a deep steadying breath.

"You could always ride with me." Kili offered. "And Alex could ride with Fili."

"No, I want my kid with me. I can do it!" I tried to smile. "Alex, look we are going to ride a horse!" I spoke animatedly in an attempt to hide my fears.

"Yay!" He cried clapping his little hands.

"Wait, where's Bilbo?" I finally asked as I realised we were all leaving at that moment.

"He has made the decision not to come." Thorin stated briskly.

"What? Last night it sounded like he was coming." I argued.

"Obviously he changed his mind."

I frowned before turning around and stomping into the house. I knew they would not wait for me to wake him up so I decided to leave him a small note to follow after us once he had woken up and placed it by the plate of food I had prepared for him earlier.

When I came back out the rest were all on ponies with one laden with supplies. There was a horse waiting for me and I wanted to be sick a little. I whipped my long brown tresses into a soft bun out of my face and approached the horse. Gandalf came over and gave me a slight boost into the saddle and hoisted Alexander up in front of me so my arms wrapped around him protectively.

We started out at a particularly leisurely pace and I found myself falling in the middle of both Fili and Kili towards the back. It was Kili that started the betting on whether Bilbo would join them or not. He looked at me and I smiled.

"I have faith that Bilbo will come. He was far too interested last night to just forget about it." I stated calmly. "If I had the money I would bet on it."

"You have no money?" Fili asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, I keep my gold doubloons in my other dress." I joked lightly before I saw a small pouch fly over to Balin.

"Two-hundred on Bilbo!" Kili called. "And if I win, we will spit the profit." He whispered to me with a wink.

I was too stunned to say anything for a moment. I was suddenly snapped back to reality when I realised what he was saying.

"And if I am wrong?" I asked as soon as I was able to close my mouth.

"If you are wrong I will be out two-hundred dollars and I will be very cross. I might not talk to you for a few minutes." He joked with a smile.

From the corner of my eye I say Fili shaking his head and muttering something I could not understand.

I decided to ignore it for the moment but I was having a difficult time hiding my anger.