Well, my dears...this is it. This is the last chapter that I have for this story until "Desolation of Smaug". I know some of you want me to continue into the book, but I know how I am and I know that I would want to change and follow the movie once it's out. Besides, I followed the first movie, so why not do the same with the next one? :P

I'm so sorry it took me forever to finish this chapter. I got a little stuck for a while and then part of me didn't want to finish writing it...but I do hope you will enjoy it :)

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After having a very trying night and emotional morning, the company decided as a whole that they were going to take the entire day to just rest and regain their strength. They figured it would be useless to try and continue when they were all tired and fatigued along with two injured companions, one of them being their leader and King and the other, his daughter. With that being decided, they set up camp—as best as they could, anyway, having not many supplies left. Mainly, some of them went out, gathered some firewood for Oin and Gloin to start a fire later.

Aira had gone back to Oin for him to finish putting herbal salves on her wounds, since she had run off before he could finish before. Once that was through and she thanked Oin, she was suddenly pulled into Dwalin's giant arms and he hugged her tightly, causing her to lose her breath for a second.

"Oh, lass!" he cried softly. "I can't even imagine how horrible it must have been for you to endure the things you did…."

He pulled back and still kept a firm grip on her shoulders. Aira noticed his eyes were wet and a stray tear fell from the corner of his eye, which surprised her a little as Dwalin seldom ever cried.

"But you are a strong one, Airaním Goldenheart," he declared. "You stayed strong and survived it all; you weathered the storm with true Dwarven strength, despite the tragedy of it all. And I promise you this: the Defiler will never get his awful hands on you again or he will have me and the rest of us to answer to!"

Aira chuckled lightly and embraced him again, feeling his hand on the back of her head and resting his head on hers, and said, "Thank you, Dwalin."

It was then Bofur spoke up and said, "That reminds me: there's something you didn't tell us."

"And what was that?" Aira asked.

"Back during the storm, how did the pale Orc find you? Or, more importantly, how did you survive your fall?"

Aira thought back and realized that she had, in fact, forgotten to mention that to her companions. So she explained, "There really is not much to tell about that. I fell into the abyss and, partway down, I managed to grab onto a ledge. However, the rocks broke and I fell again, this time not as far. I landed on another ridge, but I hit my head as I landed and fell unconscious. I don't know how long I was out…but I woke up and then, the next thing I know, I was being grabbed from behind and then the pale Orc was suddenly staring me in the face. He had just found me while going up the mountain. Following you lot, apparently."

It was then Ori approached her. "That must have been frightening for you…seeing the pale Orc again."

She timidly nodded. "Aye, it was."

"It was just as frightening for us, too. We all thought you were dead and then we find out you're not and then he…." Ori didn't want to finish that sentence, remembering how scared he had been seeing Azog torturing Aira.

Aira saw him look away and noticed the fear in his face. "Poor Ori…," she thought. "He may be older than I am, but he is more innocent of the ways of the world. He has never seen torture before. That must have been so terrifying for him!"

Feeling so sorry for Ori, she stepped forward and hugged him tightly. "Don't think about it, Ori," she said softly. "It's like what I told Fili and Kili earlier…and the same goes for the rest of you:" she cried out to the remainder of the company, "Push the thoughts you once had about me being dead out of your minds. I am alive and you never have to worry about that again."

Everyone looked at her, beaming at the happy thought.

Then Aira turned back to Ori and smiled. "And, as long as I have anything to say about it, I'm not going anywhere."

The remainder of the day was rather uneventful. Some of the company practiced sparring, some just smoked their pipes, others sharpened their weapons and then eventually some of them would nap and fall asleep.

For a little while, Bilbo told Aira stories about the Shire and Hobbits. He figured she would want to hear something pleasant and uplifting after everything she'd been through the last couple of days. She was quite fascinated with his wonderful stories and they did, indeed, help cheer her up. As the evening drew near, both of them started to get a little tired and decided they would get some rest.

Bilbo remained in the spot he was at, but Aira got up and moved to another place. She noticed Fili and Kili had started to lie down beside each other on the grass. They saw her coming and Kili, without saying a word, gestured for her to lie down with them. With a smile, she got down on her knees and crawled in between them, resting her head on Kili's shoulder and Fili rested his head on hers. Kili laid one arm underneath her head and Fili laid an arm underneath her waist. Then the two of them crossed their other arms over her stomach, cuddling her close in between them while being careful of her wounds. This, they did to help keep each other warm during the night…that and the relationship between the three young Dwarves was so deep that they didn't mind sleeping in such close proximity to each other.

Feeling their arms around her, Aira was overcome with exceedingly great love for the two Princes. When she had first met them, she never imagined that she would grow so close to them and now, she couldn't see a life without them. She felt happy and safe in their protective arms. It was clear that after everything that had happened they needed to be close to her, still cherishing the fact that she was alive.

With a content and joyful smile on her face, Aira drifted off to sleep.

The next time she awoke, it was dark out and nighttime had come. She didn't know how long she had been asleep, but she realized that neither Fili nor Kili were lying next to her. Aira sat up and looked around, seeing that all the other Dwarves were asleep and there was a fire going just a few feet away.

Kili was nowhere to be seen, but Fili was sitting down next to her, staring into the fire and his hand was up by his chest. He appeared very deep in thought up until he saw Aira sit up and move.

"Are you keeping watch?" she asked him.

He shook his head and nodded off to his left. "No, Gandalf is on watch over there a ways," he answered.

Her eyes drifted down to his hand by his neck and saw that he was fumbling with Maori's ring that hung around his neck; the symbol of her love and her promise to wait for him. Judging from the gloomy and far off look in Fili's eyes as he continued to gaze at the fire, Aira could tell right away what he was thinking.

She sat up all the way and inched closer to him. "You miss Maori," she said, more as an observation than a question.

He slightly nodded, but then he hung his head and brought his free hand up to his face, sighing.

"Fili…?" Aira asked, growing concerned.

Softly, he replied, "You know that she gave me this ring as a promise that she would wait for me and I gave her a Dwarven braid as a promise that I would return for her…."

"Yes…?" she said back, wondering where he was going with this.

Lifting his head, he turned and looked at her. He looked worried and his eyes were full of sadness. Something was troubling him and Aira grew even more worried herself.

Then he asked her, "Aira, what if I made her a promise I can't keep?"

"Fili!" she exclaimed quietly. "Don't you dare start thinking that way!"

He went on to explain, "When I thought you were dead, that made me realize just how quickly our lives can change; how fast we can lose someone just in the blink of an eye. One moment, you were there and then the next, you weren't. None of us know what is going to happen to us on this journey…we all think we're skilled warriors and we will survive, but even the greatest can fall…even the mightiest warrior can be slain with just one arrow.

"I promised Maori that I would return for her when all of this is over and we would be together…but I do not know what could happen to me before the end. For all I know, she will be waiting for someone who will never return; someone who could not keep his promise to her."

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" Aira said firmly. "Fili, as long as I am here; as long as Kili and Thorin are here, you will get through this and you will be able to keep your promise to Maori; you will be with her again. You cannot undermine your promise just because you believe you may not survive this. That alone should be enough to motivate you even more to make sure you stay alive."

She laid a hand on his cheek and stroked it lightly with her thumb. "These doubts you have will only get worse if you dwell on them. You must have faith in yourself, dear Fili, and the love you share with Maori to see you through this journey so that it will lead you back to her. There is always hope and you mustn't lose sight of that, for her sake and for yours."

One tear fell from Fili's eye and he smiled as Aira brushed it away. He tilted his head forward and rested it gently against hers. "Thank you…," he breathed in a choked whisper, letting loose a couple more tears into his lap. "You know how to re-kindle my hope when I need it most."

Aira lifted her head and gave him a caring smile before placing a sweet kiss on his temple and rubbing his shoulder comfortingly.

Then she looked around. "Where is Kili?" she asked.

Fili shrugged. "I don't know," he answered. "I'm surprised he didn't wake you, though. He suddenly jolted awake not too long ago and then, when I woke up shortly after, he was running off into the trees. I think something startled him."

Now Aira was concerned about Kili. "I'm going to go find him," she said as she stood up. Fili gave her a reassuring nod and with that, she walked off into the trees.

Luckily, there was enough light from the moon, so she was able to see as she made her way through. She kept looking around but there was no sign of Kili. It didn't take long, however, for her to find his trail of footprints. She followed it until she spotted the Prince seated down on the grass with his back to her, his legs crossed in front of him, and his head placed in his hands.

Right away, Aira could sense that something wasn't right. Carefully, she strode up slowly behind him. "Kili…?" she asked softly.

His head lifted up, but he did not turn back to look at her.

"Darling, are you all right?"

There was a moment of silence until she heard Kili exhale loudly.

Then he spoke in a deep voice, full of contempt, "I'm going to kill him."

Aira was taken aback and stopped where she was. "Wh—what? What are you talking about? Kill who?"

"The pale Orc!" Kili responded, tossing away a small twig angrily. "I dreamt of him torturing you again... The next time I see him, I'm going to kill him for what he did to you, back on the mountain and in the past."

There was great anger and hatred in his voice. Aira didn't even know he was capable of sounding so full of disdain. She continued walking up behind him and said in return, "I wouldn't be too sure. I believe your uncle has already called that shot."

"Then I will help him," said Kili as she sat down beside him.

Aira laced her hands around his arm and clung to him. "Please, Kili," she pleaded, "do not continue to dwell on what Azog has done to me. It will only make you dark and bitter. I can already hear that in your voice."

She brought a hand to his cheek and turned his face to her, looking deeply into his eyes that were flashing with an inner fire. "My love, do not let your anger blind you. You saw what happened to your uncle. His hatred and need for revenge nearly got himself killed." Her voice began to tremble. "It was horrible for me to watch that happen to him. I could not bear it if you suffered the same fate."

Kili saw her begin to shake and then his anger was forgotten, replaced by concern and care for Aira as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him for comfort. As she snuggled her head into the crook of his neck, he rested his cheek against her hair and kissed her brow.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, feeling bad about causing her worry and knowing she was right about letting his hatred blind him. Of course, he remembered seeing his uncle charging down the tree and then being beaten by the pale Orc. He was just glad that he, Fili and Dwalin were able to make it in time to help save him, Bilbo and Aira.

The two young Dwarves stayed like this on the grass in silence, unsure of what to do or say but glad nonetheless to just be together.

Aira slid her hand across Kili's lap and grasped his hand as she said to him softly, "I suppose the things you know about me and my past now changes everything."

Taken aback at her statement, Kili sat himself up to look at her. He gazed intently into her suddenly sad eyes. "What are you talking about?" he asked, surprised. "What on earth would you make you think that anything you told today changes anything between us?"

Aira looked down at their joined hands and opened her mouth, but no words came out, trying to find the words to explain what she meant.

But then she looked up at him, her eyes tearing up, and she said, "Kili, I am not the same Aira you once knew. I am not the same girl that you grew up with and have loved all of your life. You heard me say it: I changed when Azog held me captive. I lost my mind; I went mad. I am scarred physically as well as mentally. The woman you see before you is merely a shadow of the woman I was before I left. I may seem the same on the outward appearance, but inside, that girl is no more; replaced by a woman tainted and scarred…. And besides…how can you still want me, Kili, when I am no longer a virtuous woman? My virtue; my honor was taken from me by the Wild Men. How could you still love me and want me after learning that about me?"

Kili was wide-eyed, astonished that she was thinking such things and asking such questions. She thought he shouldn't love her because of the things the Wild Men did? There was nothing that could make him question his feelings for her, not even that!

He took her by the shoulders and looked straight into her eyes firmly. "Aira, that does not count!" he stated. "Those Wild Men forced themselves upon you against your will. Your virtue would only be lost if you gave your consent, to which you did not. That could never make me not want you anymore. As far as I am concerned, your honor still remains and you are still the same virtuous woman you have always been!"

She shook her head. "But, Kili—"

"Why do you do this?"

"Do what?"

"Every time you do something or something happens to you, you suddenly deem yourself unworthy of me; of my love and you try to push me away. You tried to do this back in the Shire, questioning why I did not hate you for leaving, and now you are trying to do it again now that I know of your past."

"You don't understand—"

"No, you do not understand, Airaním! Listen to me!" Kili cried out, giving her a slight shake to get her to be quiet. She was having doubts about him and he was going to get through to her. There were things he wanted to say and she needed to hear.

When he was sure she was listening, he went on, "There is nothing…nothing in this entire world that could ever change how I feel about you! I love you…I always have and I always will.

"You are right: you have changed…you are more beautiful than last we met and stronger, braver and smarter. I have never met a more courageous woman than you! And you think the fact that you are physically scarred changes things? If anything, that makes me love you even more! They are the symbols of endurance, showing that you are a survivor of despicable cruelty. And you told me yourself that your scars helped make you who you are; that they are a part of you. I may loathe the fact that you were ever hurt and subject to such horrible things, but the reminders you have of that do not change how I feel. I love every part of you, your scars included."

Slowly, he raised a hand up to her cheek and she leaned into his touch, tears gradually falling from her eyes. His endearing words overcame her with such love and she could sense he felt the same.

He continued in a firm, affectionate and unwavering voice, "From the first moment I knew you, all I've ever wanted was to see you happy. When we met, you were stricken with grief over your father's death and I hated seeing you so miserable and sad. From that moment on, I took an oath to make sure you would be happy again and that you would always be happy.

"You mean everything to me, Aira. I care for you to the deepest part of my soul. I will always be with you and will protect you, no matter what. Do not ever think that there is anything that will make me question my love for you in any way, because there is no power in all of Middle-Earth that will ever cause me to do so. I love you with all that I am and my heart belongs to you. It always has. My life is with you. My future is with you, Aira!"

Unable to hold back any longer, Kili leaned forward and kissed Aira hard yet lovingly and wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her against him. His kiss was so full of his emotions, more than ever before. Aira's cheeks were wet with tears from listening to his words of devotion and they fell onto his face as she raised a hand to his head and pressed his lips closer to hers, sighing into his kiss.

She had been so wrong to think things between her and Kili could ever change. Why had she ever thought her past would alter his feelings for her? He had told her countless times that he loved her and proved it time and again. How could she still doubt that?

Kili was the love of her life. She was the love of his. He was devoted to her in every way and he had been since they were children. His heart was hers completely. There was no one else like him in the world and Aira was so thankful that he was hers and that she was his.

As much as she didn't want to, Aira broke the kiss, breathing heavily, and she wrapped her arms around Kili's neck, hugging him closely.

"Oh, Kili, I am so sorry!" she gasped as he hugged her back. "I don't know why I always doubt you or the love we have together. I've been through so much and sometimes I question whether some things in my life are truly real…like you. Being with you has changed my life in so many ways in such a short time and I continue to wonder what I ever did to deserve you. I don't deserve you, Kili…and yet you stay with me and I with you. I love you…so…so much…and my heart is yours forever. You are my life and I was wrong to think that things between us could ever change because of what happened to me. Thank you for proving me wrong."

Kili chuckled. "That may be the only time I'll ever hear you say that," he said jokingly.

A small laugh escaped Aira's mouth at his remark, remembering just how much she adored his wit. She then laid her head down on Kili's shoulder, taking in his natural warmth, and he rested his head on top of hers, placing gentle kisses in her hair.

The two young Dwarves stayed like this in each other's arms. There was nothing else but the two of them together and their love which was strong, unyielding and true.

However, there was something that was running through Kili's mind; something that he had been thinking about earlier that day and had come back to him after every word he had just said to Aira. It was one last thing he wanted to say, but he wasn't sure just how to do it. It was something he had never done before and he thought that maybe it was too soon.

Just then, Aira lifted her head and Kili looked into her beautiful, loving brown eyes that were sparkling in the moonlight…just like they had the night in the Shire...the night it all began.

He knew then that the moment was right.

Kili touched his forehead to Aira's and took a deep breath before speaking two simple yet very powerful words that took every ounce of his courage to say:

"Marry me."

Aira quietly gasped, thinking her mind was suddenly playing tricks on her. Her heart stopped and then shortly began to race again.

"Did he just…?" she thought to herself.

She pulled back and gawked at him, wide-eyed. "Wh—what…?" was all she could stammer out, being too surprised and caught off guard.

He smiled brightly. "Marry me, Aira," he repeated fervently.

All she could do was stare at him with her mouth hanging slightly open, unable to speak.

To fill her silence, Kili kept talking, suddenly finding the courage to speak of something he had been so unsure of and hesitant to ask about earlier. "Yesterday, I thought I lost you and I could not see anything in my future without you. I realized that a life without you with me is one I don't wish to live. I want my future and your future to become our future." He took her hands in his. "I want to have a life with you. We have already spent a majority of our lives together…why stop now? Why not spend eternity together?"

He lightly ran his hand over one of her braids by her ear and then kissed her softly. "When I first thought about this, I had planned to ask you after we reclaimed Erebor…but then, as I said, yesterday I believed all chances of that were lost and it nearly destroyed me. Then after that awful scare, I was so relieved and overjoyed that you were alive and I just realized I don't want to wait any longer. I need to know if this is what you want, too."

Closing his eyes, Kili pressed his forehead against Aira's again and said, "I love you, Airaním…and I ask you: when we take back Erebor…would you wish to spend the rest of your days with me…as my wife?"

There was nothing to describe how overwhelmed with emotions Aira was in that moment. She was happy and positively ecstatic, yet at the same time she was nervous and a little scared, hesitating to answer right away. Of course she wanted to have a life with him, but what if she promised to marry Kili and then something happened to either of them before it could come true? They both would be making a promise they potentially wouldn't be able to keep.

But then, Aira remembered her conversation with Fili from earlier on and how he had had the same fear concerning his promise with Maori. Then she recalled the words of advice she had given to him:

"You cannot undermine your promise just because you believe you may not survive this. That alone should be enough to motivate you even more to make sure you stay alive."

She realized that she was right and now, she needed to follow her own advice.

Something else that she had told Fili came to mind, but then she changed a few words to make it fit for her situation as she thought, directing it to herself:

"You must have faith in yourself, Aira, and the love you share with Kili to see you through this journey so that it will lead you back to him…and back home. There is always hope and you mustn't lose sight of that, for his sake and for yours."

With those few words in mind, Aira was no longer afraid to give her answer.

She lifted her head, met Kili's adoring gaze and smiled perhaps the brightest he had ever seen in his life, causing his own lips to twitch upward in anticipation.

"Yes…," she breathed with a cheerful tone. "Yes! Yes, Kili, I will be your wife!"

With his heart about ready to burst with pure happiness, Kili cried out joyfully as he shifted and stood up, picking up Aira around the waist and spinning her around in circles. The both of them were laughing and crying happily as they clung to each other.

What they once thought to be the unthinkable had happened. Kili and Aira were engaged; to be married after the journey was over.

Soon, Kili got dizzy, lost his balance and collapsed back down onto his back in the grass with Aira right on top of him. The two of them continued to laugh as quietly as they could so as to not startle or wake anyone in the company way back in the camp.

Aira, with a smile still on her face, bent her head down and pressed her lips to Kili's with a great deal of passion, feeling his strong arms slip their way around her back and waist.

She pulled back, letting her mouth hover slightly over his, and nuzzled his nose. "You make me the happiest Dwarf-woman in the world, my Prince," she whispered endearingly.

Kili smiled. "And you make me the happiest Dwarf in the world, my Princess," he replied in the same manner.

Then his smile faded. "I'm sorry I did not ask you properly with a ring and everything…," he said timidly.

Aira grinned and shook her head. "Kili, when have you ever known me to fuss over anything as trivial as jewelry?" she asked rhetorically. She smiled down at him again. "I do not need a ring to know that you love me and wish to be my husband."

"But I will see to it that you get one eventually when all of this is over," said Kili, smirking.

"We still have a long way to go."

"I know…but I am not afraid. I have everything I need to help me get through this journey: my friends…Uncle Thorin…Fili…and you."

Aira shook her head again and then kissed him once more before laying her head down on Kili's chest, hearing his pounding heart inside.

His heart…that would always belong to her and was hers eternally.

She could feel the tendrils of sleep starting to take hold on her and, judging by Kili's slower breathing, she could tell it was the same for him.

Cuddling right up against him, Aira whispered to Kili, "You told me this once and now I will say it to you: you, Kili, are all I need to be with forevermore."

She felt him tenderly kiss her temple and whisper back to her before they both drifted off to a peaceful sleep in each other's arms,

"Forevermore."

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And that is the end of Part 1 for "Home Is Where the Heart Is". As a result from the votes on my poll, I will complete this story and then start a separate Part 2 story that will follow "Desolation of Smaug". Don't you worry, lovelies, this storyline is far from over! it will only just be on a 4 to 5 month hiatus and will continue in the Part 2 :) I do hope none of you will judge me for that decision or won't be too sad.

Thank you, first of all, to ZabuzasGirl for helping me through a good majority of this story with ideas and giving me advice!

Secondly, thank you to mrsmiawallace88 for being my most loyal reader, reviewer and friend throughout this entire story and for always encouraging me :)

And lastly, of course, to all of my other loyal readers and reviewers! I would thank each of you individually, but that would take a long time :P lol Thank you so much for your support! You all are super awesome and I'm so glad you all liked and followed my story! I never thought it would be so well-received! But, as Thorin says, "I have never been so wrong in all my life!" ^^

If you'd still like a story of mine to follow while waiting these next few months, I have my Thorin story "Love Is Patient" that I'll be focusing on! :) And who knows? Maybe another fanfic idea will come about! Anything's possible xD

Until December, my friends :) Du bekar!