This story concerns the private problems that Rose and Telbarad let slip in the previous episode: Thorin and the Fosterchild. I'm sure you'd like to know just a little more about THAT issue! As an interesting side note: a form of fennel which grew in North Africa was used hundreds/thousands of years ago as a contraceptive. It was so effective and popular that the plant was exhausted and that particular variety no longer exists.

.o00o.

THORIN AND THE DILEMMA

Pt I

Arion was working hard up at the outpost. Poppy was spending a couple of days with her Aunt Dis. At the forge, Tauriel was sitting astride Thorin's lap with a look of concentration on her face.

"Don't tug too hard," he said.

"No, I'm being careful," she replied.

The elf had already stood behind him and brushed her husband's hair – a job they both enjoyed. Thorin had closed his eyes and had wondered why it felt so sensuous when Tauriel did it in a way it never had done when he and his dwarf companions had groomed each other on their big adventure. "It's a woman's touch," she had laughed as she had drawn the brush through his long, dark curls.

Well, whatever it was, it felt really good, he thought. It was relaxing but tingly at the same time. And they were all on their own, he grinned to himself. Now she was sitting astride his lap ready to plait his braids in front of his ears. Her face was only inches from his own. She separated out a strand of hair and, with a slightly furrowed brow, she began the plaiting process.

It was morning and they had only just got up. Thorin had pulled on his breeches and Tauriel had wrapped a silken robe about herself and tied the cord. Now, as she carefully wove the lock of hair into a tight braid, Thorin studied his wife's face. Her skin was clear and without imperfections; her mouth was soft and gently curved; her lustrous hair tumbled forward, acting as a frame to her beauty. Thorin couldn't resist her but stealthily undid the cord and slid his hand inside the silken material.

"Stop it, Thorin!" she said, slapping his wrist. "I want to do this properly."

And he did stop for a moment. But, once she started on the second plait, his self-control failed him. He could put up with a wonky plait in return for the pleasure of a tumble with his wife. And he seized her by the hips, pulled her to him and clamped his lips upon hers.

They were so lost in each other that they both failed to hear the horse come into the yard and it was only when the door slammed open that they resurfaced with a startled exclamation. Tauriel leapt from Thorin's lap and hastily pulled her robe around her whilst Thorin grabbed his shirt from the back of a chair and flung it on.

"Rose!" they both yelped in unison, their faces flushed.

But they needn't have worried. Rose scarcely seemed to notice them but swept into the room, her cloak billowing out behind her and her long, black curls tumbling down her back in a dishevelled mess. She flung her pack down in the middle of the room. Her bosom was heaving and her face looked like a thundercloud: "I've left him!" she snarled.

Thorin and Tauriel stood there gaping.

"What? Who? Telbarad?" Thorin asked.

"Who else?" she snapped. And then she ran across the room and, flinging her arms around Thorin's neck, she burst into noisy tears. Then, after she had thoroughly drenched his shirt, she turned to Tauriel and cast herself upon the elf's breast and cried: "Oh, mother! What shall I do?"

She had been riding down from the North for a week now, travelling night and day, scarcely sleeping. She was scared he would catch up with her before she reached the sanctuary of the forge. And the further she rode, the angrier she got until all her emotions had burst in a tidal wave upon her father's shoulder.

They led her to a seat and sat either side of her, each clutching a hand and wondering what on earth could have happened.

"He hasn't hurt you, has he?" snarled Thorin. "Because if he has….."

"No," she whispered. "Of course not."

"Another woman?" asked Tauriel tentatively.

"No," she said, and she burst into tears again.

Tauriel drew her gently into her arms. "She's not ready to talk about it yet, Thorin," she said. "Go and make some breakfast and get her a nice cup of tea."

Thorin withdrew to the kitchen feeling upset and confused. In all the years he had known Rose, he had never seen her in a state like this. What had Telbarad done to her? It must have been something dreadful. And, if Telbarad had been present at that moment, he would have gone for his throat.

When Thorin re-entered with the tray of food and the pot of tea, Rose had calmed down. She sat up with them to the table and Tauriel served breakfast. They had just finished when the door crashed back on its hinges again and Telbarad stormed into the room. He was as dishevelled as Rose and there were dark shadows under his eyes.

"I knew you'd be here!" he shouted. Rose leapt from her seat and stood nose to nose with him. Thorin and Tauriel sat there with their mouths open. They had only ever seen Telbarad in his cool and calm mode and, as Thorin witnessed the fury in the Ranger's grey eyes, he was even more convinced that he must have hurt his daughter, whatever Rose said. He started to rise from his chair but Tauriel grasped him by the arm and drew him down again.

"How dare you run off in the middle of the night like that!" Telbarad yelled. "I woke up and had no idea where you had gone!"

"Well, you must have had some idea," Rose yelled back, "or you wouldn't be here, would you?"

"I had to wait until morning before I could check out your tracks," he snarled.

"That was the whole idea," his wife responded. "I wanted a head start…..And it looks as though I needed it!"

Telbarad seized her roughly by the arms and pulled her to him. "You'll have to run pretty fast if you think you can ever escape from me!" he said grimly.

And, at that, Thorin shook off Tauriel's grasp and, rising to his feet, growled: "Let go of my daughter, Ranger, or you'll regret it."

Telbarad released Rose but turned on Thorin: "She may be your daughter, dwarf, but she's my wife. Keep out of this or you'll be the one to regret things." And he bunched his fists.

"Oh, for goodness' sake!" snapped Rose, and, grabbing up her pack from the floor, she ran to her old bedroom, slammed the door and turned the key.

Telbarad stared after her for a moment and then, collapsing down on a chair, buried his face in his hands and shed tears of despair. "She wants to leave me," he wept.

Tauriel and Thorin had no idea what to do. In the end, Thorin patted him clumsily on the shoulder. "What's this all about, then, Telbarad?" he said in a dwarf-to-man voice.

Telbarad took the elf's offer of a handkerchief and noisily blew his nose. Tauriel poured him a cup of tea. "Has she told you anything?" he asked.

"Well, not yet," said Thorin, sitting down opposite him. "She's only just arrived."

Telbarad gave him a watery grin. "So, I nearly caught up with her," he said. "I've hardly stopped to sleep."

"And?" Thorin persisted.

"If she hasn't told you anything yet, then I don't think it's my place," the Ranger said.

So, the elf and the dwarf had to contain their impatience a little longer. They sorted out a guest room for Telbarad and he lay down to catch up on his sleep. They assumed that this was what Rose was also doing behind her locked door.

.o00o.

Pt II

But, Rose was lying awake on her bed, staring at the cracks in the ceiling. She was feeling a mixture of anger, distress and pain and she was wondering how her relationship with Telbarad had come to this.

Before her betrothal, Thorin had asked her what she would do if she married a Ranger and then had children. She had told him quite calmly and confidently that she would remove herself to Rivendell, as was traditional, and bring them up there. She had been so sure that she would accept it when the time came because it was the way of all Rangers. And then she had married Telbarad and the years had passed and she couldn't face the thought of leaving him, not even for a child.

Telbarad had felt the same way at first. He didn't want to be parted from her either. And so she had drunk her fennel draught and no pregnancy had occurred. But then, only a few months ago, they had taken responsibility for Emily or Cat as she had become known. Both her parents had been Rangers and both of them had died. Telbarad had been wonderful with her and the little girl had become very attached to him. Eventually, they realised that they needed either to give her to the elves of Rivendell or find a foster family for her. Rose had expected her own parents to take her on – but she had been very wrong there. They had fostered her only reluctantly and, in the end, she had been adopted successfully by the merchant, Barnaby Waller.

Cat had had an effect on both of them. Rose became even more convinced that they had to think very carefully before they had a child because what if both of them were to die? It wasn't surprising that so few Rangers had children when there was so much working against a decent family life. But, much to her surprise, his association with Cat only made Telbarad want his own children, whatever the difficulties. He had become very broody, she thought wanly to herself. Almost like a mother hen. He would try to talk about his need for a child but Rose continued to insist that she wasn't ready. And knocked back her fennel draught.

Apart from this one problem, Rose's life in the North was a very happy one. She didn't mind the hardships – they weren't nearly as bad as those she had endured when she was a child. Her job as a Ranger was very satisfying and she was good at it. She also did a limited amount of smithing and the men she lived alongside were very appreciative of her skill. But, most of all, she adored being with Telbarad. She sometimes wondered what would have happened to her if he hadn't seen her and rescued her that night at the Mithril Crown. Would she have married Roger or Darri or Lostwithiel? And she shuddered at the thought. When either of them went off on patrol without the other, she endured it but she found it painful. And the thought of being far away with her children in Rivendell without seeing him, perhaps for months on end, was just too much to bear. And, until Cat had come along, she thought that Telbarad was of the same mind as herself.

Things had come to a head when they had travelled to the forge to persuade her parents to look after Cat. The child had slept between them as they camped on the way down and then her husband had grinned when he saw the luxurious feather bed in the guest room. But as Rose had unpacked her bag, she suddenly realised that she had left her fennel draught behind. There had been a bit of an argument over whether or not they should risk things but she had finally given in when Telbarad had promised that he would look for fennel the next day. It was said that fennel had retrospective action and so she had hoped for the best.

But, the next day, Telbarad claimed that he could find none of the plant in the vicinity of the forge. She had wondered whether or not this was a ploy on his part so, as they journeyed home, she had looked for some herself, had found it on the second day and had taken a double dose. Then, three weeks later, she had experienced the most dreadful stomach cramps. The pain had been very intense and Telbarad, frightened by the state she was in, had called for the help of one of the older women. Rose was in agony all night and had finally had a miscarriage. She had been pregnant and the fennel, taken too late, had worked to terminate the pregnancy rather than prevent it. It was a shock for both of them and they grieved for the child they might have had but Rose felt angry that Telbarad had put her in this position in the first place.

But, she had always been pragmatic and, by the time they had set out again for the forge to see how Cat was settling in with Thorin and Tauriel, she had pulled herself together. She felt sorry for her husband but, at the same time, the question of children was beginning to lie like a shadow between them.

At the forge, they settled Cat satisfactorily with Barnaby Waller and then set off on the journey home. This time, Rose had made sure that she had her fennel with her. But things hadn't worked out well.

"Don't drink the fennel," Telbarad had pleaded with her. "I want a child, a child that looks like you, so that…" And he paused.

Rose knew what the unfinished sentence said. "….so that, when you die, years before me, I shall have something to remind me of what I have lost." And Rose didn't want to think about it.

Things just got worse over the next couple of weeks. And, finally, they had gone on patrol together. On the first night out, they had set up camp, lit a fire, cooked some food and then had got ready for bed. Telbarad spread an elven cloak over both of them and pulled Rose towards him. Only a few months earlier, she would have thrown her arms around him and kissed him passionately. But now, she was full of apprehension. As he tugged at her shift, she placed her hand on his chest and held him away from her. "I'll just get my fennel," she murmured, and she reached for her flask. But Telbarad had seized her by the wrist.

"Please, don't," he had whispered.

But, she had turned away from him and had picked up the flask with her free hand.

Telbarad's eyes flashed. "Is my opinion of no account?" he asked.

Rose didn't respond straight away. Then she answered his question with a question: "Is your love for me less than your desire for a child?"

Telbarad also paused. There were no simple answers. "I love you so much," he said passionately, "that I must have more of you. And a child would give me that."

"But your desire," she said sadly, "is not my desire. I love you so much that I want more of you now, in the present. And I cannot bear to fulfil your desire and then be forced to leave you." And she lifted the flask to her lips.

But Telbarad's lips compressed with anger and he suddenly dashed the flask from her grasp so that it smashed on the ground.

And that's when they both lost their tempers.

.o00o.

Pt III

Tauriel and Thorin were lying in bed worriedly trying to work out what the problem was between Rose and Telbarad. Having eliminated every other possibility, Tauriel finally concluded that it must be something to do with having children. Thorin had to admit that this was the likeliest bone of contention.

"But," he said, "I think that Telbarad is being very selfish. I know that he might find Rose ungainly and unattractive for a few months and there might be some time after the birth when they won't be able to do you-know-what, but he'll get over it like I did. And it's only natural for a woman to want babies."

But Tauriel shook her head. "No, Thorin, I think you've got it wrong," she said thoughtfully. "I think it's Rose who doesn't want children, at least not yet."

"Rose!" snorted Thorin in surprise. "Now why wouldn't she want children? She's a natural mother. Look how good she was with our two."

"Because," the elf replied, "I don't think she can bear to be parted from Telbarad."

"But, if Telbarad doesn't mind being parted from her….You're not saying that he loves her less?" And Thorin sounded concerned.

"No, but he's always been a Ranger and he has grown up with the idea of parting from the woman he loves once children come along. It's a new idea for Rose. And you've also got to consider the disruptions of her early childhood. We gave her the sort of security that she would want to replicate with her husband – we were always there. And I'm pretty confident that she is having trouble coping with the idea of leaving him."

"But," said Thorin, looking confused, "that's just what she's done now. She HAS left him! What's the difference?"

"You just don't understand women, do you?" grinned Tauriel.

No, I don't," said Thorin. "And that's after all these years of living with three of them."

"And by the way," said Tauriel digging him in the ribs, "are you saying you found me ungainly and unattractive when I was pregnant?"

"No, replied her husband. "I've always found you overwhelmingly attractive, whatever your condition – and that was part of the problem during and after pregnancy." And he nuzzled her neck. "Are you feeling sorry for the suffering you put me through, Tauriel?" he continued in his little boy voice.

"Just a tiny bit," she laughed, as he reached over her and turned off the lamp.

.o00o.

In the guest room, Telbarad wasn't asleep either. He had really messed things up, he decided, and now Rose might leave him. In his mind, he had trundled through all the events of the past few months and blamed himself for every wrong turn in their relationship.

He had thought that Rose was everything he would ever want or need – and she was, in just about every way. But when they had been obliged to look after Cat, not only had that been a very enjoyable experience, but it had made him think about his age. When Rose died, he would have, perhaps, another hundred years on his own once more. He knew he would never marry again and it seemed logical to have children. And he smiled as he thought of a little girl who had long, black curls, a child who would ease part of the pain of losing his beloved wife.

And so, he had broached it with Rose and she had said not yet, and, moreover, it sounded to him as if she meant this year, next year, sometime, never. It made him panic a little and push her harder. But the harder he pushed, the more resistant she became. Their love-making was just as passionate as ever but she was always very careful to take her fennel draught.

In the end, on the trip to the forge with Cat, she forgot. Rose wasn't keen to risk things but Telbarad gleefully thought that here was his chance and had brought considerable pressure on her. The next day, he was "unable" to find any fennel, but she found some of her own a few days later. Sadly, she was already pregnant. This had ended in a painful disaster and he had felt very guilty. But, by the time they had visited Ered Luin and Cat for the second time, he had gone back to applying pressure on her again.

Then, a couple of days ago, they had set out on a patrol together and Telbarad had decided he was going to settle the matter once and for all. They were both determined; they were both heated. And, in the end, he had struck the fennel flask from her hand. There had followed the most terrible argument and he played it all over again in his head.

After he had dashed the fennel to the ground, Rose had looked at the broken flask and then back at him. "How dare you?" she cried.

"I dare because I'm your husband," he retorted angrily, "and the matter of children isn't yours to decide alone."

"You sound just like a Rider of Rohan," she snapped. "You should have been born in Rohan and married a Rohan bride. You obviously want someone who bows to your every wish. But I'm afraid I'm not one of them."

Telbarad was insulted. "So, you'd compare me with one of the Rohirrim, would you? If that was so, you would have been pregnant a long time ago and you with no say in the matter." And he felt quite hurt that this was how she saw him.

Rose sat up. "Well, if you think I'm going to sleep with you tonight, you've got another think coming," she said angrily. And she moved to pick up her own elven cloak.

"Oh, no, you don't," he said furiously, grabbing her and dragging her back down again. "If you marry me then you sleep with me." And he pulled her tightly against him and kissed her hard.

But she struggled away from him. "Let go of me," she spat. "I don't belong to you and don't you ever think it!"

But he seized her wrists and rolled on top of her. "Well, let's just see if you belong to me," he snarled. "And if I say we're going to make a baby, we shall make a baby."

"Telbarad!" she cried, and suddenly he realised what he was doing. He rolled off her and turned his back on her, feeling confused and upset. Tauriel seized her cloak and moved to another spot in the glade.

She lay there for an hour, absolutely fuming. She couldn't believe what had nearly happened. How dare he! How dare he! Like Telbarad, she was hurt and confused. How could she possibly stay with a man who thought like this? Perhaps, next time, he really would force himself upon her. Well, she thought, she wasn't going to hang around, waiting for a next time. And, when she finally heard him snoring, she led her horse quietly away, then rode hell for leather to the safety and comfort of the forge.

When Telbarad finally woke up a few hours before dawn, he was ready to kneel to her and apologise. But, when he found her gone, his fear made him angry. Once the light came in and he could see her tracks, he thundered after her. And when he caught her, he would…he would…. Well, he didn't know what he would do but it would have to be something sufficiently satisfying to ease the pain in his heart.

.o00o.

Pt IV

When the four of them got up the next morning, they all sat around the breakfast table in complete silence. After they had finished, Tauriel cleared away the plates and then made the suggestion that she had made repeatedly down the years.

"Why don't you two go for a walk down by the river bank and have a little talk?" she said. Telbarad and Rose glared at each other and neither made a move.

Thorin stood up and snapped: "Well, if your mother says that you're to go down to the river bank, then down to the river bank you shall go!" And he glowered at them until they sullenly rose to their feet and, grabbing their cloaks, stomped out of the room.

"My, Thorin, that's a first," grinned Tauriel. "I've never heard you backing up my suggestion for the river bank before!" And Thorin had to laugh.

"Well, it just might work….. And I don't think I could stand sharing a room with them while they sat in silence for the rest of the morning."

"I don't think it will work," said Tauriel calmly. "They're still too raw yet."

"So, why send them down there, then?" asked Thorin in surprise.

"Because I want you to help me set up the guest bedroom for when they return," she said with a wink.

.o00o.

It was a cold, crisp day down on the river bank and Tauriel was right. They were having an argument again.

"Why did you lock yourself in your room yesterday?" Telbarad snarled. "Anyone would think you were frightened of me!"

"No-one frightens me," sneered Rose. "But it made sense not to take any chances."

"So, you think I would harm you?" And the Ranger's voice was hurt and angry.

"I don't know what I think any more," she retorted. "After the other night, I don't think I recognise you."

Her words cut like knives and lashed him into a fury. "So, what happens next? If you run, I shall follow you. And, believe me, I shall find you. And if you stay here, don't think that your father can protect you from me."

"Are you threatening me, Telbarad?" she asked and she stood inches from him and glared into his eyes.

"Perhaps," he hissed. But, in actuality, he didn't know what he meant. He only knew he wanted Rose back and he wanted things to be as they were before.

Rose turned on her heel. "Where are you going?" he shouted after her.

"Back to the forge," she yelled over her shoulder. "I don't feel safe on my own with you!"

.o00o.

When the two of them got back to the hall, Thorin and Tauriel were ready for them.

"No luck?" asked Thorin, raising an eyebrow.

"Not by a long shot," grunted Telbarad. And Rose glared at him.

"I'm working on a commission in the forge," said the dwarf to his daughter. "Come and help me with the bellows." And Rose flounced past Telbarad with her nose in the air.

"I'm making a cake in the kitchen," said Tauriel to Telbarad. "Come and keep me company." And the Ranger nodded curtly and trotted along after her.

In the forge, Thorin and Rose talked about this and that and, finally, he said: "Tell me about it, Rose."

She stopped working the bellows and, going to the door of the forge, looked out silently. When she turned back, he was sitting on the bench. He patted his knee and she sat on his lap and rested her head on his shoulder.

"It's a bit personal," she said.

"Well, I guessed it must be," he smiled, "but I'm getting quite good at listening to this personal stuff in my old age."

And so she told him all about their difference of opinion and how she had accidentally got pregnant and then had lost the child. He hugged her tightly then and she had a little weep. "Your grandchild," she whispered.

"There'll be others," he said.

"Will there?" she asked. "I'm not so sure about that."

"So, you're serious about leaving Telbarad, then?" he asked.

There was a long pause before she told him what had happened between them while they were on patrol. "He was going to force me, father," she said, weeping once more.

She felt Thorin tense and he hesitated before saying, "But, he didn't, did he?"

"No, but he's just made all kinds of threats down by the river."

Thorin stroked her hair and poked a stray lock behind her ear: "He's angry and upset," he said. "Just like you."

And then he told her something that had always been his secret. He told her how his unfounded jealousy had made him abandon Tauriel for a year until Bilbo had made him see sense and he had found her, pregnant with Arion, in Rivendell.

"I thought I was a bad man," he sighed, "and a bad husband."

Rose gaped. "Of course you're not," she exclaimed. "You're the best dad and husband ever!"

He gave her a crooked smile. "And how do you know?" he asked.

"I just KNOW," she said fiercely.

"And what do you KNOW about Telbarad?" he asked.

There was a long pause. "I know he's a good man and I love him," she said finally. "But that doesn't resolve the issue of children."

"Well," said Thorin. "There's always a compromise. I was ready to make a pretty big compromise when I thought that Arion wasn't mine. And I reckon Poppy will have to reach a compromise when she chooses between Roger and Lostwithiel.

Rose clapped her hands gleefully. "She's bound to choose Lostwithiel,"she laughed. "She said she would have him."

And then she looked serious again. "So, what compromises must I make with Telbarad?" she asked.

"Well, let's just say," said Thorin, "if you ever have children, there will always be a welcome here for you in this forge. It's a lot closer to the camps than Rivendell."

Tauriel was having a similar conversation about compromises with Telbarad in the kitchen. But his handsome face was troubled. "She's got to forgive me first and let me back into her bed before we can talk about compromises."

The beautiful elf smiled at him and patted his hand. "Well, I think we can help you out there. But you must have patience and she'll come around to the idea of children in the end. She's got all the makings of a mother."

Then it was lunch which was still a pretty silent meal. But Rose and Telbarad no longer glared at each other but gave each other sidelong glances instead. Thorin took Rose back out to the forge all afternoon until it was time for the evening meal. This time, they said polite things to each other like, "Pass the bread, please."

After they had all helped to wash up and tidy things away, Thorin took Tauriel firmly by the hand and said, "We're having an early night and so should you two. And, Rose," he said, turning to her, "your old room isn't an option."

Rose nodded and followed Telbarad meekly off to the guest bedroom. When they opened the door, they gasped, because the room was full of flowers and the bed was strewn with petals, like a bridal chamber.

"I think my parents want us to start from the beginning again," smiled Rose shyly.

"And, no pressure," said Telbarad, pointing to a flask of fennel that Tauriel had left by the side of the bed.

They undressed and climbed onto the soft mattress. Rose took a drink from the bottle and they lay down and wrapped their arms about each other. "Not yet, Telbarad," she whispered. "But soon, I promise you, soon."

.o00o.

Tauriel and Thorin lay in bed. Tauriel kissed her husband gently. "Now I thought, my love, that in six months or so, Poppy would make her choice and be off our hands and then we were going to enjoy being on our own at last. After all, wasn't that why you were so reluctant to take Cat?"

Thorin sighed. "It seems you can't always get what you want in life and I shall have to compromise too for the sake of a daughter I love. We shall have some time on our own at least. She's not going to turn up on our doorstep with a baby any time soon. Well," he grinned, "at least not for another nine months."

"Thorin," she whispered, "you are the best person I know and I thank my lucky stars every night that my horse cast a shoe a few miles from this forge all those years ago."

"I thank them, too," he smiled, gazing out of the window and up at a glittering constellation in the night sky.

"Well," she said. "You'd better get a move on. We've got a lot to fit in before those babies arrive."

"I'll do my best," laughed Thorin and drew her tenderly into his arms.

.o00o.