Isn't it about time that Thorin and Tauriel had more children, you might ask? And so, by popular request, I bring you the story of Thorin and the Baby.

And a thank you to those of you who have written a review. Feedback is really important to me and I appreciate the time people take to read my stories and then to write a comment.

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THORIN AND THE BABY

PT I

Thorin had been back home from his travels in exile for nine months now and he was a happy man. A very, very happy man. He lay in bed with Tauriel as the sun rose and his hand rested on her swollen belly. Ten months pregnant with only two more months to go. She had got past all the dangerous moments of the early months without a miscarriage and the physician reckoned that it should all be downhill from here. He felt the baby kick beneath his palm and a wave of tenderness washed through him. He nuzzled Tauriel's throat and she smiled sleepily, turning towards him a little clumsily and kissing him. "Time to get up?" she asked.

"Not quite yet," he said. "But there's just enough time to find out who this strange woman is lying next to me."

"What strange woman?" she giggled, as his hands began to caress her.

"Well, this one," he murmured. "She just doesn't feel like the woman who used to sleep in my bed and I believe that the whole matter needs a thorough investigation." His thorough investigation took another hour and was enjoyed by both parties.

Tauriel sighed. "That was lovely," she said. "I'm so ugly and swollen at the moment and you make me feel quite beautiful."

Thorin tutted in her ear. "But you ARE beautiful, my love. Never more so."

"Love is blind," she whispered back. "I'm very glad to say." And she kissed him tenderly.

Her pregnancy still filled them both with wonder. They had begun to think that Arion might be their only natural born son. But this new child had been conceived on their journey back to Ered Luin at Elrond's Last Homely House and had slowly become apparent after they had got back home.

"I think it must be something to do with Rivendell," Tauriel said. "It's such a magical place." And her only wish was that Elrond could be at her side to help her through the birth as he had done so expertly with Arion.

They got up then and soon the children and Dog came running into the Hall eager to eat breakfast so that they could go on their treat for the day. As Tauriel got nearer and nearer her time, she had become concerned that Arion and Rose would feel neglected – as they surely would – once the baby was born. And so, every week, she tried to take them on a small "adventure" so that they would remember the good times they had had together and know that, in the end, such times would return again. She deliberately called them the Baby Days so that they would associate them with the coming birth.

But Thorin was becoming more anxious particularly as he had to stay behind and work in his forge. "Are you sure you're up to it?" he regularly asked as the months passed.

"Yes, I'm sure I am," she would say, kissing his worry lines. "I've got the trap now and it's much more comfortable than riding my horse." Thorin had bought her a well-sprung trap with padded seats for them to travel in and he felt a bit more reassured about her journeys. Last week, they had gone for a few days' holiday to the Grey Havens and, next week, they would spend a few more days with Dis in the dwarven settlement, possibly the last time they would see her before the baby was born.

Tauriel had organised a particularly exciting adventure for them to go on this morning which the children knew nothing about yet. "Where are we going for our Baby Day?" asked Arion, looking fit to burst.

"You'll never guess," teased Tauriel.

"No, we won't," said Rose, "so I wish you would hurry up and tell us." And her eyes danced with anticipation.

"It's somewhere you've never been before."

"We don't want clues," said Rose, squirming on the edge of her seat. "We just want to KNOW!"

"Well," grinned their mother, "I'm taking you up to the outpost and we shall spend the day with some of my men." The children screamed and whooped and danced around the table. They knew all about their mother's work as captain of an elven troop but had never visited the farmhouse and had never even met any of the elven lords who manned it. This did, indeed, promise to be a very thrilling experience. Tauriel had not visited herself for a month but had left her right-hand man, Lostwithiel, in charge until after she had given birth. But, it would be delightful to see them all again, even if it was only for a sociable day.

There was a decent track up to the old farmhouse that had become the main outpost for Ered Luin. The weather was fine and sunny and Tauriel thought that the journey there and back in the comfortable trap would not prove too difficult. But she promised that, if she felt too tired, she would stay there overnight and light the beacon at dusk as a signal to Thorin. Now that Gandalf's fireworks had proved such a useful warning system, the beacon there was no longer used to signify danger but was just a useful method of pre-arranged communication.

"Please be careful, my love," murmured Thorin as he kissed her and helped her up into the seat of the trap. And she promised that she would be.

It was such an enjoyable ride. Rose was ten years old now, going on eleven, and Arion was four and they and Tauriel chattered excitedly as they steadily wound their way up into the hills with Dog trotting happily alongside them. When Lithin, the lookout, stopped them and then saluted them and their mother, it made the children feel very important indeed. The visit had been arranged on her last trip there and the family were expected. There was no patrol that day and the whole troop were gathered together to greet the family and to give them an entertaining time forTauriel's sake.

Arion was very impressed by all these fine soldiers and decided there and then that he wanted to become one of them when he grew up. And, if Rose had been starry-eyed when she had met Legolas, then she was quite overwhelmed by all these dashing, athletic, blond-haired elf lords who sauntered out to greet them with their dazzling smiles and who swept her and her mother so effortlessly down from the seat of the trap. They all lined up to salute Tauriel but when she said, "At ease!" they bent over and kissed Rose's hand in that graceful way that had embarrassed her so much when Thranduil had done it in Mirkwood. Only, this time, it wasn't embarrassing but rather nice. And, just as Arion was deciding that he would be a soldier, so Rose was deciding that she was going to marry one of these handsome elves when she grew up. They were immortal: they could afford to wait for her, just as Tauriel had married a much younger Thorin. The only problem was, which one to choose? The shy one, the athletic one, the tall one, the clever one? Ahhh, so many stunning elf lords and so little time, she thought. And she had visions of herself in a beautiful elven gown, wearing a mithril crown and dancing elegantly with an elven husband whilst the while room bowed to her.

Borondin and Rostrel showed the children around the farmhouse whilst Tauriel rested in the comfortable kitchen. Lostwithiel filled her in on various minor things that had happened in the past month and, when the children returned, he served up drinks and a cake that the elves had made themselves. And when they all said how good it was and asked for another slice, the elves looked very pleased.

The idea was that Lostwithiel should take them on a picnic in a pretty glade a couple of miles away whilst the rest of the troop got on with their duties. It was an easy ride and they could take the trap whilst Lostwithiel rode his horse. They would have another little get-together on their return, playing games and competing with their bows, and then, if all was well, Tauriel would drive home.

Soon, off they set with Lostwithiel. Arion wanted to ride with him on his horse and Rose, after studying the elf lord for at least the first mile, came to the conclusion that he might prove to be the one for her. He was tall, well-muscled, VERY blond and rode his horse with an elegant nonchalance. How sophisticated he seemed. And so witty. They laughed a lot as he engaged them in delightful conversation. She made comparisons and decided that Thorin didn't engage in delightful conversation. He was more likely to be telling her off about something or glaring at her from under his dark brows. And black was such a boring colour. She tugged at her own pretty black curls that were now half-way down her back and at Arion's hair and thought about Thorin's. Blond was infinitely preferable, particularly if it were straight. And she looked admiringly at Tauriel's golden mane and at Lostwithiel's hair that was almost bleached white by the sun. Infinitely preferable.

With these entertaining thoughts dancing in her head, they finally reached the delightful glade. What a wonderful place for a picnic, she thought. They were high up and could see for miles. The sun was warm, the sky was blue, the trees cast a dappled shade and Lostwithiel threw a white cloth on the ground and brought some small seats from the back of the trap on which his guests could sit. They built a camp fire and, since both Lostwithiel and Tauriel had brought some dainty treats with them, the chidren were soon demolishing a pile of food with enthusiasm. Then the children and Dog lay upon the ground and listened to the hum of insects and bees whilst Tauriel remained in a seat and Lostwithiel lounged on one arm and recited poetry and sang them songs. Yes, definitely The One, thought Rose.

They were all so languid and sleepy that, when it happened, they were totally unprepared. A huge white streak, the size of a pony, charged through the glade, grabbed Arion by the scruff of his neck and disappeared into the trees. Tauriel and Rose screamed, Dog barked hysterically and Lostwithiel jumped to his feet and dashed to his horse. "A warg!" he yelled. "Arion's been taken by a warg!"

.o00o.

PT II

Lostwithiel grabbed his bow and quiver that were hanging from a tree and leaped gracefully onto his horse. Like a real hero, Rose thought. He whistled to Dog who was straining to be of use and the animal shot off on the trail of the warg.

Tauriel struggled to get up from her low seat but Rose stopped her. "There's nothing you can do," she said sensibly. "Let Lostwithiel sort it out." And so, with a pounding heart, Tauriel sat back down again and Rose put her arms around her.

The warg was a female albino. Rejected by many of her kind, she had come down from the mountains to find a suitable place to give birth to her pups. She had discovered a small den and it was there that three of her babies had been born and two of them had died. She was determined that the last of them would survive. She was huge and vicious, with lolling tongue and great, slavering jaws, a wolf in all but size and name. Her surviving pup was also albino and was already larger than Dog but its mother had been searching all day for some delicacy that would increase its chances of survival and she thought she had found it in Arion.

Arion, when he was younger, had been afraid of two things: the dark and monsters under the bed. Now that he had overcome those two fears, nothing else scared him, not even being carried in the jaws of a monstrous, wolf-like creature. In fact, he was feeling very angry and his little face, screwed up in indignation, was the image of his father's when he was in a grumpy mood.

The warg reached her den and dropped her tender morsel on the ground in front of her child, nudging Arion towards it and whining in an encouraging way. She wanted the pup to practise going in for the kill which is why she was now presenting live meat to it - but if the boy had been for herself, Arion would have been dead within seconds of her picking him up. The pup looked at Arion with interest and barred his teeth in imitation of its mother. Saliva dripped from between its huge teeth and it growled, low and menacingly, in its throat. Arion was only partly aware of his danger, but he recognised bad behaviour when he saw it in an animal and, balling his fist, he struck the pup hard on the nose. "Bad boy!" he shouted at him. "Sit!" And he pointed to the ground. The baby warg yelped and blinked in surprise; then it sat down. The irritated mother, angry that this creature had struck her child, was just about to rip Arion's head off when she was startled by the sound of barking and a horse's hooves. She leaped from her den to confront this new danger but was struck down by three arrows that hit her in quick succession before she even had time to assess the situation. Lostwithiel nocked another arrow as the cub emerged and ran, circling and whining, around the body of its dead mother. As he drew back the bow, Arion crawled out of the den, yelling: "Stop! Stop it! I want him!"

"What?" said Lostwithiel.

"I said I wanted him. You've killed his mother and now I think we ought to look after him." And he stood between the creature and the elf's line of sight. The cub hid behind him as if suddenly realising that it was in some kind of peril whilst Dog barked angrily and made ready to attack the warg himself .

"Arion," said Lostwithiel, half in irritation and half in amusement, "you can't make a warg into a pet. It's never been heard of before."

"And no-one had ever heard of an elf and a dwarf having a baby before, but here I am," grinned the boy. And Lostwithiel recognised the stubbornness of his father in his eyes. The only thing to do was to ask Tauriel and so Lostwithiel passed the buck. Arion called off Dog who slunk away in a bad humour and they tied a rope around the cub and pulled him along, rather reluctantly, behind the horse. The horse was very skittery when it found it had a warg snapping at its heels and Dog looked as though he was ready to disobey Arion's commands.

"But, I'm glad," said Lostwithiel, "that I managed to find you in one piece."

"Thank you for saving me," said Arion in a very ungrateful voice. He suspected that the elf would do his best to deprive him of his new toy.

As they approached the picnic glade, Arion was getting ready in his mind a list of all the things that he could say that might persuade his mother that keeping the warg was a sensible idea. His list was very short and he was just gearing himself up for a knock-down fight over the creature when they all heard a cry for help from the clearing. Lostwithiel increased the speed of his horse, dragging the cub along in his wake, and they entered the glade to witness a frightening scene.

Tauriel was lying on the grass on the now-stained table-cloth, groaning in what was obviously terrible pain. Rose was kneeling next to her, holding her hand tightly. "She's 'aving the baby," she yelled. "The fright over the warg brought it on. Come and 'elp."

Lostwithiel went from being an elegant, confident elf lord to an embarrassed, quaking jelly in five seconds. He looked over his shoulder as if he expected to find suitable help waiting just behind him. He backed away with his hands held up in horror and it was Arion who ran forward to see what he could do.

Tauriel gasped with relief when she saw her son and reached out her hand to touch him.

"Get over 'ere, Lostwithiel," Rose snapped. "You can't deliver a baby from 12 feet away!"

"D-deliver a baby," stuttered the elf. "But I've got no idea..."

"And neither 'as Arion but 'e's showed 'imself willin'," she said sharply. The elf was going down fast in her estimation. Perhaps he wasn't The One after all.

Lostwithiel edged closer. "Can't we get her into the trap and take her back to the outpost?"

"No, we can't," said Rose. "She's in too much pain and it might be bad for the baby. We'll just 'ave to manage."

"Well," said Lostwithiel, seeing a means of escape, "perhaps I should go and get some help."

"From the farm'ouse?" she asked scornfully. "Got any midwives up there, or are they all like you?"

Lostwithiel saw her point and submitted himself to Rose's instructions.

"Have you ever delivered a baby?" he asked Rose.

"I've watched a couple of times," she replied.

Better than nothing, he thought.

She directed Arion to tie up Dog and the warg to separate trees and then to get some water boiling on their camp fire. She then asked Lostwithiel for his knife. "What's the knife for?" asked the elf looking pale and sweaty.

"For cutting the cord," Rose said and Lostwithiel looked paler and sweatier than ever.

"And we need some string." Lostwithiel looked vacant. "What have you got in your pockets, Arion?" she asked.

He dug his hands in his pockets. "String," he said, holding up a few lengths.

"How did you know that?" asked the elf, looking amazed.

"I thought everyone knew that all little boys carry string in their pockets," said Rose scornfully. Did this elf know nothing?

Tauriel let out a loud groan again and called for Rose. Rose knelt by her side and the elf clutched her hand. "I'm frightened, Rose," she whispered. "Don't leave me." And Rose sat by her shoulder and told her that she wouldn't.

"Take off your shirts, you two," she said, "and then you can put your jerkins back on."

"Our SHIRTS?" said Lostwithiel.

"Yes, your shirts," the girl sighed. "We're going to need something to wrap the baby in and to mop up everything."

"Everything?" the elf lord said faintly.

"Yes, everything," snapped Rose. "And stop repeatin' what I say!"

After only a short time, Tauriel's pains were coming thick and fast. She was still holding on tightly to Rose's hand and wouldn't let her go. "I think this is moving really quickly," Rose muttered, "and the baby will be small. It might shoot out pretty fast. Get down there between Tauriel's legs, Lostwithiel, and tell me if you can see the top of the baby's 'ead yet. Get ready to catch it when it pops out."

Lostwithiel just couldn't do it. He knelt down between Tauriel's legs but he turned his head away and shielded his eyes with a hand.

"No time for modesty," Rose yelled. "Look! Now! This minute! What do you see?"

Lostwithiel took a peek between his fingers. "The top of the baby's head?" he suggested cautiously. And then he shouted in excitement: "The top of the baby's head! I can see the top of the baby's head!"

He placed his shirt on the grass and knelt with his hands ready for the catch. It happened suddenly, but he was there. The baby slithered out and he wrapped it in his shirt. "It's a girl!" he yelled and they all cheered. "What now?" he asked, excited but afraid. "Wiggle your finger around in 'er mouth and make sure it's clear and then turn 'er over and rub 'er back until she breathes." The baby breathed and cried and they all took a breath themselves. Tauriel finally let go of Rose's hand and she retrieved the knife from a pot of boiling water, showed Lostwithiel what the string was for and cut the cord.

Half an hour later, it was all over and Arion's shirt had been used to mop everything up. I see what she meant, thought Lostwithiel. Tauriel was sitting propped up against a tree with a tiny, golden-haired daughter in her arms. "You were wonderful," she smiled at Rose. "What an amazing little girl you are!"

"And Lostwithiel was pretty wonderful too," grinned Rose, "when push came to shove, so to speak. And Arion didn't lose his head either. What a team, eh?" And she grinned across at Lostwithiel who was sitting propped against another tree with a rather dazed expression on his face.

When Tauriel felt able, they helped her into the back of the trap with the baby and Rose, then the horse, the dog and the warg were tied behind while Arion with Lostwithiel got into the driving seat. Tiredly, they made their way back to the outpost.

.o00o.

PT III

Bedrolls had been replaced by proper beds at the farmhouse some months earlier, so at least Tauriel had somewhere comfortable to lay her head. There was so much excitement when they all returned with the baby and there was a constant queue to visit the newborn and her mother until Rose finally put her foot down and, shutting Tauriel's bedroom door behind her, insisted that they let them both alone so that they could get some sleep. Then she went to the kitchen where decisions were being made.

Thorin had to be told immediately, the elves decided and, although he was tired, Lostwithiel felt that it was his duty to convey the message. He and Thorin wouldn't return for four hours at the soonest, so Rose took a bedroll and, placing it next to Tauriel's bed, also got some sleep. The unflagging Arion went outside to train his pet warg. He tied up Dog so that he wouldn't interfere but Dog was very jealous and whined so much that Lithin took him into the house to feed him some treats.

The elves were fascinated by the warg. It wasn't every day that any of them got to see a close-up of this terrifying animal. The cub was white and fluffy with a heavy ridge of hair around its shoulders. It looked very cuddly until it opened its mouth and then you could see the large, razor-sharp teeth. It was as big as a normal wolf already even though it was only a baby and there was some discussion over whether or not Arion should be allowed to mess around with it in the yard or if it made better sense to lock it in the stables for the moment until Thorin arrived and made a decision. But when they watched the little boy interacting with the pup, it soon became pretty clear that Arion had established himself as pack leader. The warg whined and fawned about him and obeyed every command. They found it quite amazing to watch. So, in the end, Arion was allowed to continue his training sessions while a couple of the elves kept an interested watch.

Down at the forge, Thorin was packing his tools away. He got himself a beer and then went out to sit on the bench to watch for the beacon in case it was lit. He hoped it wasn't. He hoped that Tauriel was already on her way home with the two children. He was really getting unhappy about these expeditions. Somehow, it almost came as no surprise when he heard the beat of hooves and Lostwithiel came charging into the yard. Thorin leaped to his feet and suddenly felt very afraid, and he ran to seize the bridle of the plunging and rearing horse.

"It's alright! She's alright!" Lostwithiel shouted as he saw the look on Thorin's face. And he slid off his sweating steed.

"The children?" Thorin's thoughts flew elsewhere.

"No, they're alright too. The warg did no harm," gabbled Lostwithiel, trying to seize Thorin by the arm in a reassuring grasp.

"The warg? What warg?" cried Thorin in desperation.

"The warg that ran off with Arion...But don't worry, I killed it!"

"Lostwithiel!" yelled Thorin, taking the elf by his shoulders and shaking him. "Make sense!"

"The baby! The baby's come! I delivered it!" he managed to gasp.

"YOU delivered it?" shouted Thorin. You mean, you got down between my wife's legs and..." He drew back his fist.

"Oh, for goodness' sake, Thorin," snapped Lostwithiel, batting his fist away. "No time for that! Now focus! Just focus! Didn't you hear me?" And he seized him by his plaits and stared him in the eyes. "THE BABY HAS BEEN BORN!"

"The baby has been born?" whispered Thorin.

"Yes," grinned Lostwithiel, "and it's a little girl with golden hair."

"A little girl with golden hair?" echoed Thorin, and Lostwithiel could understand Rose's annoyance at his constant repetition of her words.

"It's a girl!" yelled Thorin. "And you delivered it, Lostwithiel!" and he clapped the elf on the back. "Tell me about it!"

And the elf lord told him the whole story as calmly as he could whilst Thorin kept grinning and punching him in the shoulder.

"And if you think that I had any romantic notions whilst I was down at the business end of someone giving birth, then you're more stupid than I first thought," he added indignantly.

Thorin embraced him. "That was an amazing thing you did," he said at last and there was real emotion in his voice.

"It was awful, actually," was the response. "Rose was the amazing one. She's a real jewel. And she knows how to boss people around," he laughed. "She really bullied me into helping out."

"Was Arion afraid?" asked the new father.

"No. I was more frightened than he was. He's a gutsy little boy. He didn't seem concerned at all about the warg or his mother giving birth – he was too busy training up that warg pup."

"Warg pup? What warg pup?" Thorin started to say. But then he marched to the stable to saddle his horse. "Don't tell me," he said, holding up his hand. "I don't think I want to know."

.o00o.

Up at the farmhouse, Tauriel and Rose had both woken up from their nap. The baby was still fast asleep. "She's bound to be very sleepy – she's come into the world a bit early," the elf said.

Rose studied the baby closely. She was very, very tiny but, at the same time, looked strong and healthy. She was utterly charming. Her hair was curly like Thorin's but a pale gold like her mother's. Tauriel gazed down at her with such a look of love that Rose wondered sadly if her own mother had ever looked at her like that. She doubted it.

Rostrel brought in Arion for a few minutes to see his new sister. Arion thought to himself that a baby warg was much more interesting. He sat next to Rose on the bed. "She doesn't look like my sister, does she?" was all he said. Then he wandered off in search of food. Rose went to fetch Tauriel a tray and then sat outside with a plate of food to wait for Thorin.

.o00o.

When he came at last, Rose leaped to her feet and ran to meet him. He dismounted quickly and patted her on the head in a rather distracted way. "I hear you did well, Rose," he said and then disappeared into the house. She ran in behind him.

In Tauriel's office-cum-bedroom, she felt out of place. Thorin embraced his wife with a passionate tenderness and kissed her on the lips. The baby was in a make-shift cot, a drawer by the side of the bed, and he bent down to pick her up, his eyes glowing. "She's beautiful," he said, "really beautiful. How could a great lump like me be the father of such a lovely, exquisite child!" And he sat down on the bed and they gazed together at their new offspring. "Thank you, Tauriel," he breathed. "Thank you." And he kissed her again and then he kissed the child. They didn't seem to notice Rose, standing there silently in the corner. The young girl felt intrusive and uncomfortable and crept quietly out of the room.

Thorin and Tauriel gazed into each other's eyes for long, tender moments. They thought this day would never come. And now it had come and it was more wonderful than either of them had ever imagined.

"Rose was truly amazing," said Tauriel at last. "I don't know what would have happened if she hadn't been there. Lostwithiel went completely to pieces until she had a good shout at him." And she laughed.

"Lostwithiel called her a jewel and I think he's right," said Thorin. "One of the best things we ever did was to make her a part of our family." And although he always found it difficult to say the word, he turned to Tauriel and, taking her by the hand, he said: "I really love her, you know, as if she were my own."

And Tauriel stroked his cheek and said: "I know you do. And I love her, too. I knew what we had found that first time you brought her home – and so did Arion, even though he was little more than a baby." And she pulled a plait. "It was you who couldn't see the pearl cast in your way."

"I think I did," he replied quietly, "but you know how reluctant I am to acknowledge any depth of feeling." And he kissed her again. His lips were very soft against hers and his beard felt silken against her cheek.

"You've been working on it," she smiled. "I think you're nearly there. Now, just tell me how much you love me again."

.o00o.

Out at the front of the house, Rose sat sadly in the warm summer twilight with her back against the wall and her chin resting upon her knees. Lostwithiel emerged from the stables having tended to the horses and, seeing her, came and sat down next to her.

"What's the problem, then?" he asked.

"They don't want me no more," she said, and a tear ran down her cheek. "They've got a daughter of their own now and they don't need me. And," she added, "Arion don't need me neither. He's got his baby warg to play with and look after."

"Where is he?" asked the elf.

"In one of the stables," she said. "He's taken a bedroll in there and he's gonna sleep with the pup. We used to share a bedroom, you know," she added, and she brushed away the tear quickly with the heel of her hand.

"And where are you going to sleep?" asked Lostwithiel. He suddenly realised that, in all the fuss, no thought had been given to the children.

"Oh, I'll find a bedroll from somewhere and go and sleep in the barn or somefink," she said. "I can't sleep in the stable with Arion because the warg keeps growling at me."

"Well," smiled Lostwithiel, "if I don't want to get into trouble with Tauriel for neglecting you, I think you'd better take my bed and I'll sleep out in the barn."

She protested but he insisted and at last she gave in. He put his arm around her shoulder and they sat there companionably for a while, enjoying the warmth of the wall against their backs, until it got cold and they went in.

.o00o.

Pt IV

The next morning, they made Tauriel stop in bed whilst they got organised for their journey home. There had been a bit of a confrontation over the warg but, finally, Thorin made a decision. When he first saw the creature, he had been amazed. He had fought with and killed many of them at the Battle of the Five Armies, but, to see one trotting along quietly at his son's heels was quite disturbing. He had the urge to draw Orcrist and kill it there and then.

"I know what you're thinking, father," said Arion, as he saw Thorin's hand twitch above his sword, "but this warg answers to me because he knows I'm in charge. Look!" And he demonstrated the creature's obedience in a series of trials.

"I want to be a soldier when I grow up like you and Lostwithiel," the child added, "perhaps even working up here at the outpost." Thorin nodded in approval. "And I want to be a warg-rider," he continued. "Just think how useful that would be in a fight or when we're tracking."

Thorin was nearly convinced. "So, where are you going to keep him at home," he asked, "if I say yes?"

Arion had it all worked out: "Well, he'll be like a cross between a horse and a dog, so I think it best if I keep him in one of the stables."

"And what if the horses can scent him and don't like it?"

"Then I shall have to train the horses, too, and teach them how to get along with him," he replied calmly.

Thorin stepped forward and the warg growled. "Well, I would say that you're the only one he likes at the moment," he said. "But, I'll give you two months to train him to get along with all of us – including Dog – and, if you succeed, then you can keep him."

Arion punched the air and said, "Thanks, dad!"

"Do I get a hug, then?" asked Thorin.

"No," said Arion. If I touch you, he might just try to bite your head off."

Thorin could see two rather difficult months ahead.

.o00o.

On the way back down to the forge, with Thorin driving the trap and all the other animals tied on behind, they discussed names.

"So," said Thorin to Arion, "what are you going to call this new pet of yours?"

"Warg," said Arion.

"Of course," said Thorin. And then they discussed a name for the baby.

At first they played around with variations on Lostwithiel's name since he had been the child's midwife. Both Tauriel and Rose liked "Thiel" but, in the end, Thorin threw in his veto. "If we name her after Lostwithiel, every time I say her name, I shall think of what he was up to in order to deserve the honour. Not a nice image," he said.

Then they thought of dwarven names from Thorin's family tree but they sounded too harsh in Tauriel and Rose's ears.

Then they thought of the women in Tauriel's family but, since they had rejected dwarven names, this seemed unfair.

Arion suggested "Baby", of course, as something pretty obvious, but then Arion would, and they all groaned.

"How about Poppy?" suggested Tauriel as they passed by a field of poppies. It will remind us all of the time when she was born and this happy trip back down to the forge."

"And," said Thorin, "I suppose it ties in nicely with Rose's flower name and she was one of the midwives, too." And so, Poppy it was.

.o00o.

There was a certain amount of chaos when they got back. Arion's old cot had to be got out of the barn because the baby hadn't been expected for another two months and this was set up in Thorin and Tauriel's bedroom for the moment. They still hadn't worked out what to do once the baby was old enough to sleep in a room of her own. They had the two children's bedrooms which were accessed through the playroom and Arion and Rose finally agreed that they would give up the playroom so that part of it could be walled off to make a bedroom for Poppy.

Warg and Dog were eyeing each other up bad-temperedly all the time and, in the end, they had a scrap in the yard which, surprisingly, Dog won. This, happily, determined the pecking order and, even when Warg was fully grown, he still let Dog lord it over him. And, now that Dog understood that Warg knew his place, he began to treat him good-naturedly, playing with him and even snuggling down with him when they both felt sleepy.

But, Warg was made to sleep in the stables. The horses next door were restless and unhappy and Arion agreed to start working on that straight away. That night, Warg was shown his bed and a blanket was thrown on the hay. He looked very miserable and just circled around on it, chasing his tail, not able to get comfortable. When Dog realised that Warg was going to be abandoned outside, he voluntarily went to join him and the two settled down together. And when the horses realised that Dog was next door, they seemed a lot happier, sensing that he was in charge.

Well, that's one unexpected advantage, Thorin thought. At least it looks as though we can all sleep on our own without Dog now.

Everyone seemed happy, except Rose. No-one had any time for her. They were all dashing around doing all sorts of important and busy things and she just felt in the way. And when there was a bit of time and calm, all that Tauriel and Thorin wanted to do was coo over the baby, as if she, Rose, no longer existed; and all Arion wanted to do was train up Warg; and all Dog wanted to do was play with Warg and Arion.

And, all Rose wanted was for it to be just like it was before Poppy was born.

.o00o.

It was, in fact, just like going back to square one. Tauriel was in the house looking after the baby; Thorin was in his forge hammering away and Rose was in the yard kicking stones.

"For goodness' sake, Rose," yelled Thorin, "stop fidgeting around out there and come and lend me a hand!"

Part of her was pleased and part of her was grumpy: "Rose, come here and do this! Rose, come here and do that!" She seemed like everyone's skivvy, only valued for what she could do for them. She expected Tauriel to call her into the kitchen soon to help with the cooking. She stomped into the forge and gave Thorin a glare.

Thorin igored her glare because he understood what her problem was. He had often experienced jealousy in his life and he recognised it when he saw it. Poor Rose! He knew the pain of the emotion and he would help her get over it.

Much to Rose's surprise, Thorin didn't want her help; he wanted to teach her something. "How would you like to be a smith like me?" he said. Rose looked up with surprise and her eyes glowed. Ever since Thorin had first demonstrated to her how a sword was made more than two years ago, she had been fascinated by the whole process. She had an innate creative urge which was desperately looking for an outlet and the moment that Thorin asked her if she wanted to be a smith, she knew that this was, indeed, what she wanted to be.

"But, can a girl be a smith?" she asked. "Are girls strong enough?"

"Well," he grinned, "you'll just have to build up the right muscles. And, anyway, you don't have to specialise in beating out iron farming tools – you can concentrate on making jewellery instead." And he brought out some of his beautiful commissions and, for the rest of the afternoon, they worked on them together.

.o00o.

That night, Tauriel and Thorin got into bed with a tired sigh. Poppy slept in the cot next to them and they spoke in quiet whispers.

"We must be mad to start this business all over again," said Thorin. "Did we really think hard enough before becoming parents for a second time?"

"Of course we didn't," laughed Tauriel. "If anyone actually thought about it, Middle-earth would be full of one-child families."

"But she IS very beautiful," said Thorin glancing over at the cot.

"And, in only a year, she'll be sleeping through the night," grinned his wife.

"Do I remember having this conversation before?" Thorin groaned, pulling Tauriel gently towards him.

"On numerous occasions, my love," she replied.

"Well, I suppose," he said, "it gets easier the second time around."

"And number twelve will be a piece of cake," she chuckled.

"Number twelve?" his eyes widened. "Did I say that?"

"Yes, in one of your silly moments, you did."

"Mind you," he said, grinning wickedly, "working hard on producing all those children could be an awful lot of fun. When can we start?"

"Not yet, my love," she said, wincing. "Definitely not yet." And then she seized him firmly by his plaits and gave him a thorough kissing just to make up for the hiatus in their love life.

.o00o.