AN: I've got the golden ticket, yes I've got the golden ticket, oh I've got the golden ticket on my finger! Okay so that last part didn't rhyme but the point is that the man I love proposed to me! It may have only been a couple of days since this happened but I can't stop myself from shouting it from the rafters! So now you all know why there was a slight delay with the posts.

"Alex please, butt in a chair right now. I need you to have four bites and then you can go play." I reasoned without sparing a glance at him as I dug into my own plate.

"Mommy I met a friend today and I want to play with him I like him but he says I am a baby. Which is not true, right? I'm a big boy and I can play with my new friend if I want to." He put his hands on his hips, miming my actions when I got mad.

"A new friend that is your age?" I asked. I had not met any other young children.

"No he is a biggerer boy than I am. He said he was nine and that meant he was all grown up and had to take care of his mommy. That is just like me Mommy! Kili told me that I had to take care of you while he finds us a home, but don't worry Mommy it's okay I can take care of you just like I did for Maxy." He explained as he moved closer.

"Yes you took very good care of him." I pointed to a seat expecting him to plop his butt in it.

"But then the angels took him and now he is in doggy heaven, right Mommy? You said there was a special place that puppies go if you love them very much. I loved Maxy a lot so he is in the special doggy heaven, I bet he has all the neck bones he wants." He looked over at Fili with a proud smirk. "You didn't know Maxy, he was my doggy. When we first got him he did this." He placed his hands on the floor and began walking around on all fours with his butt in the air. He started barking in a loud voice. "And then one day he went out in the street because my First Daddy did not fix the gate like Mommy asked, and a car came like this." He mimed with his hands a fast moving car. "And it didn't see Maxy because he was very little and Maxy got hit by the car and then he started to walk like this." He limped across the room holding his arm. "Then the next day we woke up and he was really sick and couldn't walk and made funny sounds. I took care of him all day. Then I went to sleep and when I woke up Mommy came into our room and told me that Maxy went to doggy heaven, which is just like regular heaven but for dogs. I was really sad but my First Daddy came in and told me that I was a man and men don't cry."

"And what did Mommy tell you?" I asked as I heard his last statement.

"You said that it was okay if I cried because I had an emotional range larger than a bug." He recited almost word for word.

"That's my boy!" I beamed at him before turning to the rest of the group. "That's the Chilton coming out in you, such a strong little man. Now look the sun has gone to bed." I pointed in the direction of the sun. "And it is time for you as well, tomorrow I will take you to find your new friend and you can play then." I offered as I held my hand out to walk with him to bed.

"Are you going to bed too?" He asked as he tried to wipe the sleep from his eyes.

"No Sweetheart, I am going to spend some more time out here, but if you wake up and want to find me I will only be a small distance away." I explained as we walked back to our rooms and opened the door to his room.

"But you will stay here until I go to sleep right?" he questioned with large eyes making it impossible for me to say no.

"Yes I will stay right here." I kissed the top of his head lightly as I tucked the blanket up to his chin.

I hummed a light song as I waited for his breathing to regulate and for his eyes to drift shut. It took nearly fifteen minutes before I was sure he was asleep enough to leave him without reasonable fear that he would wake up. I tiptoed out of the room and shut the door slightly to prevent too much light from coming in. When I turned around to head out and see the others I saw a dark figure sitting on the chaise. I jumped back and clutched at my chest. My heart felt as if it was about to burst out of its cage. I took in one calming breath as I allowed myself to get used to the new light.

"Kili?" I whispered, my voice still betraying how scared I was. "Good Lord! What are you doing sneaking up on people like that?" I demanded as my heart returned to its normal pace and my voice went back to its usual pitch.

"My apologies if I frightened you. I saw you slip away and I wanted to make sure you were okay." He gave me a sheepish smile before standing up and moving closer to me.

"Oh, well I was about to head back out and spend a little more time with everyone." I gestured with my thumb towards the door.

"We could talk here." He waved his hand around the room.

"Yes, of course we can. I was talking about spending time with the others. You don't think we have been snubbing them slightly? Your brother watched my son for the majority of the day and yet I have not even asked him, I don't know, his favourite colour?" My breath hitched as Kili moved even closer and caused my brain to loose its train of thought and my statement came out as a question.

I moved back, matching his moves forward with my retreat. I felt the cool of the wall press against my back and knew that I had lost any argument to go see the others. I was also acutely aware that Kili had no intention to talk. Kili's grin spread across his entire face as he saw the look in my eye that must have mirrored his. Kili did not stop his approach until his body was firmly sandwiching me between him and the wall. His face was centimetres away from mine before he let out a small whisper.

"Blue." I could barely make it out between my own emotions and his shallow breath.

"I'm sorry?" I questioned as my features knotted in confusion.

I felt his hands start tracing my hipbone as I hooked my leg around his, causing our bodies to further intertwine.

"His favourite colour, my brother's, is blue." He responded as he slowly moved one of his hands up along my torso.

"Oh, that's nice, I have always been partial to green." I whispered in return as Kili's lips drew closer to mine. "Wait, stop." I forced my hands up to his chest and half-heartedly pushed him away from me.

He paused with blatant confusion etched into his features.

"I just mean we can't do this right here. Alex will hear something and I can't have him finding us like this. I really think we should go see the others, it would make them think better of me and that's important right now." I reasoned.

My words said one thing while my body said another. Even as I spoke my arms snaked around his neck and drew him closer to me. I heard his chuckle and slowly forced my body away from his. I was reasonable and logical and needed to make a good impression with the family I would be spending my time with. It would make it easier on everyone involved, Alex, Kili, and myself if I were more social. At least this is what I had to tell my arguing brain.

"If we are going to go spend time with the others we should probably get out of this position." Kili muttered with a smirk.

"And we are going." I repeated with slightly more conviction. "We spent the whole day together, you should be sick of me by now. Anyone else would want nothing to do with me." I was rambling as I allowed my brain and heart rate a moment to start functioning properly.

I slowly eased myself out from underneath his gaze and headed towards the door.

"So tell me," I smiled as I felt his large rough hand encase mine. "Whom should I make friends with?" I smirked with a sidelong glance. "With all of three days left, whom would be the easiest to win over?"

"I think you underestimate the amount of respect most of them have for you." He stated in a low voice.

"Sure," I snorted, "and I am the Queen of Sheba." I saw his confusion and clarified only slightly. "A clue, I am not a queen."

"Yet."

"Ever, I never want that kind of power. I have always been much more content to let others make the rules. Besides the point is not my royal status, it's that the others don't like me. They just don't know me, it's hard to imagine that I could travel with someone for weeks and still not know them. But now is my chance to fix that."

As we moved into the room the others had occupied I looked around for a friendly face. Bilbo smiled and waved and I could not help the small amount of happiness that filled me. He had forgiven my outburst and I was thankful that I could count him as a friend; I would probably never be able to trust him completely with my Alex.

I needed another someone. Thorin was out, Fili was the obvious runner up but I really didn't want to push my luck with him. I finally decided that if I could not get the king or the prince to be my friend I would settle for the muscle. Dwalin peaked my interest, he had gotten Alex to stand still for more than five seconds and I was under the vague impression that he played a larger role in Alex's rescue. Alex had treated him differently since coming to this place and I wanted to know more.

He was sitting what remained of a wooden table and suddenly I knew where I was going to be spending the rest of my evening.

"Okay sweetheart, I have found my friend." I pointed over at Dwalin's back and moved to join him at the mess of the table.

As I moved away I felt a rough hand pull on mine. I looked back to find Kili with a look of trepidation plastered across his face.

"Perhaps you should start with someone a bit less tough." He whispered with his eyes trained on Dwalin.

I snorted in an attempt to hide my anger.

"I have seen the way you act around him, clearly he is someone you admire, and I have seen the way he talks to your uncle. If I can get in with him I'm as good as golden." I shook my head slightly at his inability to see the painfully obvious. "Besides he intrigues me." I looked back at the tattoos and muscles.

"For someone that never wishes to rule, you have learned the game." He smirked.

"I am a woman, ladder climbing skills are useful regardless of ambition." I smiled and walked away to let him think about what I had said.

I walked up to Dwalin and plopped myself rather gracelessly on the bench neck to him.

"Next round's on me." I stated with a gesture to his almost empty glass.

"It's free." He grumbled with a cold glance in my direction.

"If the price is right, right?" questioned with a grin, one that he did not return. "Okay so I'm going to give you one opportunity to ask me anything. One time offer and after I leave the table the offer is gone. Basically you would have to be the biggest idiot in this room not to take the deal, something I highly doubt." My eyes followed several of the other dwarves.

Dwalin remained silent for several minutes. I had almost given up hope on him and I was about to get up and find someone that would at least acknowledge my presence when I heard him finally ask a question.

"Why did you come?" he questioned as he looked down his mow empty glass.

"I wanted to find a home for my son." I responded quickly. "Honestly I was expecting a bett -" I was cut off by Dwalin's harsh bark of laughter.

"You are lying to me, this conversation is over." He snorted before moving to get up presumably to find himself another drink.

"I don't know what you're talking about. That is the truth, granted it might not be the most interesting of stories." I protested.

"Then you do not even know that you are lying and that is even more pathetic." He sneered.

"Look, I get it." I held my hands up in an attempt to stop him from leaving. "Okay, there is more to it than what I told you but it's a long story and it has a lot of emotions that I would rather not feel. Let me get you something to drink and let's start this over." I reasoned with pleading eyes.

He seemed annoyed but relented as I mentioned drink and turned towards me again.

"Okay so what are you having, wine maybe?" I questioned as I motioned for one of the elves that lined the room. Dwalin's eyebrows rose sceptically. "Right, right, a big guy like you I imagine you are a beer man." I backtracked slightly with a smile.

I looked over at the elf that had stepped forward slightly. She looked terrified and her calm façade was hardly convincing. "Come here!" I beckoned with a wave of my hand. "Honestly, we don't bite and I need you to get this man another drink." I smiled trying to cover my anger at the girl.

She nodded and seemingly floated out of the room. I could not supress the roll of my eyes as I looked back at Dwalin.

"I get that they aren't fond of you but you would think that they could hide their distain better." I muttered before realising that Dwalin had fixed me with an expectant stare. "Fine, I wanted to come along because this has been the first time I have been able to make decisions for myself in a long time. Alexander's father was a good man but he liked rules and propriety more than I ever did. This is a chance for me and my son to start over again, I'm not about to waste it by forcing myself somewhere I don't want to be." I raised my eyebrows, challenging him to question my sincerity this time around.

"And Kili?" he snarled.

"Is the complete opposite of Stephen, looks alone could justify that, but really it's their personalities. Stephen was much more reserved in his actions, unless he was drinking, and he loved working which was funny because he worked for my father."

"It's nice to hear your opinions on some man I have never met, but I was referring to why you are pursuing a relationship with him." He clarified with a grunt.

"Oh, well I guess I just like him." I shrugged with a frown. I saw Dwalin's look of disbelief and my frown only deepened. "And he likes Alex and I think he likes me."

"Why not one of the others? Fili or Ori, both are young enough." He questioned.

I felt my mouth drop.

"Because, Cupid, I wasn't just looking for someone that met the age requirement. Besides neither of them is really my type. Ori is cute but really the cardigan makes him look like one of my old professors and Fili made it clear early on he thought I was a freak."

"Right." He grumbled.

"Now I have a question for you." I stated as I leaned back onto the table.

"I don't answer questions." He stood up and threw a glare at the elf that had returned with his drink.

"You are going to answer this one." I replied confidently. I watched his retreating figure for a minute until he was in the middle of the room. "What did you do to my son?" I shouted loudly for the rest of the room to hear.

Every head swivelled in our direction and I smirked in satisfaction as I saw Dwalin's face turn an angry red and his features distorted to show his anger.

"I told you." I mouthed at him as I saw him start to make his way back over to me.