"I had expected things to go differently."

Thorin's voice was deep, yet it did not carry very far in the windy evening air. Evangeline sighed, looking away over the balcony. She wondered how far one could see during the daytime from here. The Shire was somewhere in that direction. She supposed she would go there next, see her mother again... Maybe even stay. She didn't want to, but she also acknowledged that her traveling days, at least for a time, were behind her. She didn't want to do it anymore – to wander, to travel, to fight... Living like that was a constant struggle, and she supposed the Harad had stolen the youthful vigor she had possessed before, a vitality of heart which had made that kind of life possible. It wasn't that she felt old, because that wasn't the right word either... She was tired, however, and she freely admitted to that. All she wanted now was something simple – yet for how simple it seemed, home proved rather hard to find.

"I am sorry... If I had known you did not want me to come, or –"

"Evangeline."

His rebuke was so breathless, so consequentially full of sentiment, that her stormy eyes snapped back up to look at him.

"Of course I wanted you to come. Although I had imagined a warmer welcome for you. To meet you when you arrived, a feast... Balin tells me you were almost turned away."

The lines on his face darkened with anger, and Evie had to stop herself from laughing. After everything, that was what upset him!? Thorin Oakenshield had always been a very serious dwarf, but (naturally, she supposed) being a king had made him even more so.

"It does not matter.."

She protested, but he replied strictly,

"Yes, it does."

'You would not be unknown to them.' She remembered his words to her more clearly now than ever before. Perhaps it did matter. Perhaps it was even a necessity. If they were to be together, she would have to be known, and respected. But was that even feasible, for a hobbit in a very proud community of dwarves? What was possible and impossible, in that moment, seemed entirely unclear. Evie embraced the confusion, stumbling forward into the tumultuous space between reckless desire and chaste consideration and throwing caution to the wind (or breeze, more like, on the mountain's chilled heights in the middle of the night).

Evangeline opened her mouth to speak but paused in the action, her eyes searching his face.

"So you do want me here?"

Her voice was embarrassingly meek, chirping from the back of her throat without any force of conviction.

"I do."

His words were firm, but the hesitation on her face made him add,

"You think five years is enough to change my mind?"

She swallowed, feeling his fingertips brush her cheeks. She had not expected the physical contact, especially after the innocent regulations of their earlier interactions... She realized suddenly, as his index finger slid along her jawline, that it was not a display of distance or a way to avoid intimacy with her, but rather was indicative of the fact that he still cared for her – if there was a future in which they could be together the path which led to it involved extreme political care. The realization hit her like an unexpected blow to the chest, shattering her nerves and thrilling her to the very core. If she appeared as anything other than an ideal bride, if their relationship seemed at all unsavory...

But here, alone, with only the moon looking down on them, they were safe from the scrutiny of the other dwarves. They could take full advantage of the precious time they were given to connect and begin to understand each other again...

"I missed you..."

She confessed, her voice only a whisper. Something changed in Thorin's sapphire eyes; she watched it take hold and the sight of it made her knees feel weak beneath her. His gaze flickered down to her lips and then back up to her covetous grey eyes, and the hobbit's breath caught in her throat.

She had not thought; she had not imagined... He had seemed so distant before, so cold and removed... Now he was close, too close – or was such a thing even possible? Her small fingers wrapped around the fur lining of his coat, her lips parting as she stared helplessly into those bottomless blue eyes...

"No..." She whispered breathlessly against his lips, her fear battling with her desire. "This cannot be..."

He made a sound of protest deep in his throat. She shivered, the nearness of him making her body ache with longing. Her fingers lost themselves in the fur of his coat, and she trained her eyes on his shoulder just so she couldn't get caught by his destabilizing gaze again. She did not wish to fight him, to argue about whether or not they should be together when the only place she had ever felt that she truly belonged was in his arms. Now that everything had come to a head, now that the dwarves were making a home in the Blue Mountains and starting a life for themselves, she could not maintain the lie that she did not wish to give in to him, to relinquish her antiquated ideas of what was right or just.

"Why not?"

He finally objected, his lips only inches from hers. She could not bear it – the wonderful, heady smell of him, the closeness of his deep, needy breath rising and falling in his chest. Thorin's abject sentiment filled the air between them, and Evie wanted nothing more than to lose herself in it, in him. Why was she fighting it? What moral ground did she believe she stood on? To refuse him would be a lie, but to give in, to deign to act as his queen and corrupt his line… She knew that such a thing could not be right by his people. While half of her did not care an inch about what the other dwarves thought of their shared emotion (Could she call it love? The very thought made her heart constrict in her chest), the other half cried out against the insult to his race – they would not accept her, or him, for this. Thorin wanted nothing more than to lead his people to prosperity and do right by them, and to interfere with that, to know that she was the cause of his disgrace, would break her heart almost as much as it would to be forced to leave him.

"Do you know of the marriage customs of the dwarves?"

He paused, his eyes searching hers. It made her uncomfortable; she wanted to look away, to remove herself from his embrace, but she couldn't bear it. Ignoring propriety and good sense and everything else which should have held her back, which should have led her toward a return journey to the Shire rather than an extended visit in the mountains, Evie shook her head, launching herself head first into the abyss of her overwhelming sentiment… The recalcitrant hobbit abandoned all logic and forbearance and willingly lost the fight against her own emotional willpower. She was caught there in his arms and, despite all rationality, she wanted to be.

"Many never marry – female dwarves are few in number, and those who would take a husband are often set upon a certain groom or are very particular in their taste. Some refuse to marry at all. It is a complicated matter, but –"

"Thorin Oakenshield, would you tell me truly that there are no female dwarves who would have one such as yourself? A king?"

He shook his head, brushing off her words like they were air. It stirred something inside of her to watch the careless way he ignored her protests. He was a dwarf who knew what he wanted and it terrified her almost as much as it made her cling helplessly to his every syllable.

"I do not know, but it matters not. I would have only one bride."

Evangeline's heart stopped. His words struck her to the marrow, and it must have shown as clear as daylight on her face.

"Evangeline… Tell me it is not what you desire. Tell me you do not wish to have me as a husband, or to take up position within my people… But do not claim to know how others will respond. Do not judge the dwarves before you truly get to know them.

"I will admit that I have spent many other sleepless nights thinking of the ramifications of this act. There will be those who will not accept it, who will deny me. But I never intended to take a wife, to allow myself the pleasure of…" he paused, the distance between them feeling far too great for a moment, "of starting a family of my own, or even simply knowing the gentle touch of one who thinks of me first and only. It was a youthful dream, one I had given up… And yet it seems we are drawn together again and again, and now you have found us a home, at least for now…"

Thorin's dark brow knotted together as he tried to reconcile the pain twisting on her expression with the words he spoke. He thought his justification would please her, and if he had been mistaken… He did not want to contemplate the consequences; the bitterness he knew would ensue. The very thought made his stormy brow furrow in apprehensive worry, the shadows under his eyes darkening.

"Thorin, I…"

Evie trailed off, unsure of how to reply. She closed her eyes, breathing in deeply and listening as her voice cracked in her throat. She could not maintain this lie, this great charade… She was a hobbit and hobbits did not like to be false with others. Besides, she was a terrible actress and playing this virtuous, selfless part was far too difficult for her small heart to bear. She was not so wholly good that she did not wish for more for herself than this, than the rejection of a dream. Especially not a shared one.

Thorin did not have to speak, the lines of anguish running across his face told her clearly enough what was going through his mind. Evie's small, pink mouth hung open, words clinging to her lips like secrets, refusing to escape for fear of taking that great, staggering leap into the unknown. Her petrified grey eyes met his all too certain blue ones, and the fear she saw reflected in his gaze gave her the courage she needed to make her confession. Inhaling brokenly, she wrung her hands together in front of her and allowed herself to anxiously look down at them as she finally (finally!) came out and said it.

"I love you."

She was afraid to hazard a glance up at him, to see whether he was shocked or euphoric or incensed or whatever else he could possibly be feeling (although she knew which she hoped would be his real response, she did not dare believe in the truth of it, not until he could prove it to her)…

It did not take him more than half a moment of stunned elation to demonstrate his reply to her declaration – to show her in every muscle, every bone in her body exactly what his love felt like. He swept her up into his arms, and before she could protest he kissed her, savoring the sensation of her full, paralyzingly soft lips against his as he claimed her next words for a passion which could not be vocalized. She melted into him, her hands folding against his chest and her delicate frame falling into his solid embrace.

Evie could not mentally cope with the impossible reality of this instant. The fantasies she had harbored, close to her heart, of a moment like this… But it could not be real – he could not be real. It was too perfect not to be a dream. Yet as his arms wrapped around her waist as if she was meant to fit against him and his lips fervently enveloped hers, promising more affection than any one lifetime could hold, it all felt too real to be false. She had found paradise at last, and it was not a physical place but a feeling, one which filled her up to the brim and suggested that such unlimited bliss never had to end.

.

Her fingers buried themselves in his dark, tousled hair, winding through the strands of it as he took her into his arms. She felt the pads of her feet leave the earth as the king picked her up, his sturdy, eager arms cradling the hobbit like he would never let her go. She savored the sensation, let her body feel it in every sinew; committed it to memory like a page out of a story book.

"Marry me."

Evie opened her startled grey eyes, unsure whether she had imagined his appeal. Thorin set her down, his arms surrounding her in the security of his embrace. His sapphire eyes were alight with purpose.

"What?" She asked, her breath warm on his lips, sending shivers down his spine. The dwarf smiled to think she was surprised.

"Will you, Evangeline Took, marry me? Years ago, when I gave you my ring, I meant it as a promise. Now that we are finally reunited, I would see that promise fulfilled. I would see you become my wife."

Evangeline couldn't breathe. She could not remember how to perform such a simple, necessary action, let alone recall how to form the proper words to accept his offer. She felt joy like she had never experienced before rise up in her very soul like her heart was about to take flight – bliss in its most pure, unadulterated form spread through her trembling body with uncontrollable force. Her legs threatened to give way under her, and she leaned into Thorin's embrace so she could remain standing. This was it – this was what she had been waiting for all those long years they had been separated. He had promised her this day would come, it was true, but she had refused to fully believe that such a thing could ever come to pass. She could not touch or feel or taste a promise – yet here he was, standing before her with his blue eyes searching her face for a sign of her answer, and he was more real than anything she had ever known.

Happy tears sprang to Evie's eyes as she tried to relearn the talent of speech, but it was completely lost for now. The only thing her elated, fluttering heart would allow her to do was lean forward and kiss him again, to taste the sweetness of his lips against hers and the heady rush of him pressed against her. Her small, quivering hands went to his face, her fingertips running along his jawline through the bristles of his beard. She was thankful for his steady arms around her, holding her up and pulling her close. The delight pounding through her heart was unbearable; tears cascaded down her round cheeks. As their lips parted, Evie managed to breathe, "Yes," and that was all it took for Thorin to lift her off the ground again, spinning her around him and drawing her close. It was all too perfect, too sublime – Evie felt as if she was living out one of the stories her father used to tell her of faraway princesses and the kind of love wars were fought over. She had always dreamed about what that could be like, and now suddenly she knew exactly what it was to feel so strongly about another person that nothing in the world mattered as much as being together. She pressed her cheek against the dwarf's shoulder, her arms wrapping around his neck as she shuddered against him, overwhelmed.

"Evangeline…"

The emotion in his tremulous voice assured her that he was experiencing the same overabundance of feeling – surely they were being offered more happiness in one moment than anyone could expect from an entire lifetime… Evie didn't know how to bear the blissful burden of such abject pleasure. Thorin pulled away from her, his large, calloused fingers moving to her face and brushing away her thick tears. His lips tugged into a smile, and she could see the sentiment fighting to escape his control and break through the stoic bearing he so vigorously maintained. The dwarf took one of her hands in his, kissing the top of it as he always did as if this signaled the reality of their commitment. He grinned against the soft skin on the top of her hand, and Evie had to close her eyes for a moment just to dam the irrepressible rush of her elation. They had pledged themselves to each other – they would wed, and nothing could remove him from her side. For as long as they both lived, they would be together. It was an idea beyond imagining.

"I love you, Evangeline. I have loved you for far longer than perhaps I should have…"

He paused, his sapphire eyes meeting hers and holding her there with his gaze. Evie's heart stopped in her chest. Hearing him say the words, hearing that perfect phrase in his voice… It was all too much for her to realize.

"There is no one else I would have at my side. As my queen."

The word felt so foreign to Evangeline – she had not truly measured what all this would mean. Yes, of course she had thought about how she was unsuitable to be a queen and that the dwarves would never accept her as their leader, but she had never actually considered the possibility accepting the position. Of becoming a queen. It was not just something in her father's stories about the Lady of the Wood or the leaders of men… This was real, and it was for her. She would not only be marrying Thorin, but she would be taking up the mantle of his people and ruling over them. Ruling… It too was a strange word for the hobbit. She had been largely independent in her life, and had rarely been given domain over anything other than the other healers she had coordinated in Gondor or the companies she travelled in… She was no queen. And yet, it seemed, perhaps she was to be one.

Yet all that, the hobbit imagined, would come in time. If she was meant to be queen, so she would be. If it was something which could be learned, she would learn it. And if it came naturally… Well, she hoped she would be capable, because there was no force in all Middle Earth strong enough to take her from Thorin's side, not after tonight.

Unable to leave the seclusion of the balcony together for fear of being seen yet equally unable to part from one another, the couple remained there for a few minutes more, wrapped up in each other's arms. Evie could not feel the cold night air when Thorin held her to him. She closed her eyes and rested her head on his chest, savoring the sensation of him so close and, for once, not feeling as if it were stolen. She felt his lips at the crown of her forehead and smiled, enjoying the awareness of his fingers running through her golden hair. He tucked her curls behind her ear and his fingers skimmed across her soft cheek, tipping up her chin. She responded to his touch and looked up at him, her grey eyes reflecting a contentment she had never known before. The corner of his perfect mouth tugged up into a smile, and he kissed away the corresponding one which bloomed on hers.

"We should go… We cannot be found here."

He mumbled into her lips, and she moaned softly in protest, which was almost his undoing. The dwarf took a deep, shaky breath, trying to master himself.

"I will speak to Belinir in the morning, and begin making arrangements for… For the wedding."

Hearing him stumble over his words was thrilling for the hobbit; to know that she had finally unraveled that faultless demeanor. That she had truly arrested him, heart and soul, and that her love sick suffering had not been solitary. She grinned up at her future husband, her joy uncontainable. If she had not been able to sleep before, there was no way she could do so now, away from him. The idea that he might someday be in bed beside her, and for the rest of their lives… It was an exhilarating thought, one which proved almost too much for her to bear the avid expectation of.

"I love you…"

He murmured, and claimed her lips once more. Evangeline unfolded against him, unconsciously moving to her toes so she could get even closer. Her fingers wove into his dark hair, twisting into braids and tugging at soft tangles. They broke away slowly, each afraid to breathe as they felt the moment pass, knowing that the next would bring their separation. Evie was still in his arms, sighing as she felt him step away.

"Until tomorrow."

He acknowledged, and she nodded despondently. Yet there was a calm in her heart she had never felt before; the feeling of stability and of incomprehensible peace. She was indelibly grateful for it, and for him, and as she watched him walk away she thanked Durin himself that a day like tomorrow might actually come, and that there would be so many more tomorrows after that.

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Author's Note: ! I don't have much to say, other than that I absolutely can't believe we've finally gotten here! This is the major turning point in the story, and it's something I've been working towards almost since the beginning. And after six months… Here we are! But there is so, so much more in store for Evie and Thorin, and I hope you'll stay with me and discover it as I do. I can't thank you enough for following along, and for my commenters- I can't tell you how happy I am to hear from you. Every time I read your comments it makes my day, and you inspire me to keep writing when I hit blocks and do more research to make sure everything is as faithful as it can be and I really can't thank you enough for your encouragement and your support. I hope this chapter is everything you wanted it to be- it has gone through soooo many rounds of editing and I'm actually really happy with how it turned out. It's a little more 'shameless' than I usually try to be ( ;) ), but I thought they (and you!) deserved it. In any case, thank you for reading, and don't worry, there is much more to come! Xoxoxo!