Many, many thanks to readpink, Robinbird79, readergirl4985, ThatOtherWriterGirl, and Aashi for leaving me a review of chapter 37! Thanks also to Athena the Goddess of Wisdom for clicking the favorite and follow buttons, and thanks be to everyone who reads along in silence!

Aashi - Yep, Dwalin will do anything for Larkspur. Making a home out in the valley instead of the mountain is nothing compared to her happiness. Besides, he'll be spending plenty of time inside the mountain in days to come. And oh yes, Thorin is being very stubborn indeed. But don't worry, he will come around. Eventually. ;)

38. A Promise Lives

After showing them to a good stable for their mounts—with a storeroom for the wagon—and a fair-priced inn for themselves, Rejna and her soldiers took their leave.

For this, Thorin was relieved. If she wasn't around, she would not be a distraction. He would not be thinking about her instead of focusing on making plans for his new life here. First, he knew, he was going to have to figure out how they were going to get more money from Erebor—Dáin had said to write ahead of time and then come for it, but that simply wasn't practical. There was still a good portion of the treasure from the troll cave left, of course, but much of that would go to paying for lodging until they had their own homes. Then there was the feed and stabling of the ponies to pay for, not to mention Dwalin would need funds to purchase land, tools, and materials for building his and Larkspur's hobbit hole. Chances were also that assistance would be required in the construction, which meant labor costs.

He, Fíli, and Kíli would work for free, naturally. As kin, they would not dream of taking payment for their efforts, unless it was in the form of food.

As arranged, the family gathered in Thorin's room after getting settled to discuss their next moves. "Your friend the princess mentioned a caravan would be returning south in order to be here for Durin's Day," Thorin said to Dwalin. "We could have a few chests of gold, silver, and gems brought down then."

Dwalin nodded. "Aye, that could work. My only concern would be security. We would have to trust dwarves and Men we do not know to not only keep their mitts out, but also to keep them from being stolen on the way by bandits."

"Or we could trust dwarves we do know," Kíli muttered.

Thorin opened his mouth to argue but his nephew held up a hand to stop him. "I know what you're going to say—we've all heard it before, a dozen times over. Frankly, I'm tired of hearing it. I've just been thinking that, as with Fee and I, should it not be up to them whether or not to take the risk?"

"Kíli's right, Uncle," Fíli added quickly. "Surely we can at least trust the members of the Company—it might even be prudent that a few more than Dáin know of our return. After all, just because we're not in Erebor doesn't mean Sauron's spies aren't."

"I hate to say it, but they've both got a point, Thorin," Dwalin said. "It's an awful heavy burden to put on Dáin alone, not to mention the questions that would arise at his filling large chests with treasure only to ship them south."

As much as he disliked having to do so, Thorin had to admit that they all had a point. With all the people they knew who had already found out, even he had begun to see that the tale of their miraculous return would get out eventually. It was, as Dwalin had said at his wedding, inevitable. Even Elrond had said he believed they would not remain anonymous long. But it took only one glance at his nephews to remind Thorin of why he was holding on to the desire for their rebirth to remain secret—they were alive and well. He wanted them to stay that way.

Still, maybe it would be a good idea to have extra eyes and ears open… Dáin would be too busy running the kingdom to have the time to listen to careless whispers in the dark. Grumblings of discontent or anything of that sort would not be brought to his attention until someone actually did something. Perhaps it would be wise to have someone keeping a watch out for anything that might suggest the dark lord's spies were on the move.

He loosed a sigh and said at last, "I will take your words under advisement. The caravan is not likely to begin their return for another three weeks. I have until then to decide."

At that moment there was a knock on the door. Fíli went to answer it and found Gandalf on the other side. Deciding he wanted the wizard's opinion, Thorin invited him in and explained what they had just been discussing.

"I wouldn't take more than a day, at most, to make up your mind," Gandalf said when he'd finished.

Thorin regarded him with curiosity. "Why do you say that?"

"When is the last time you truly studied a map of Middle-earth? It's a good thousand miles—give or take—from here to the Lonely Mountain," the Istar replied. "A raven flies, on average, only about thirty-five miles in a day. Fifty if you declare your message is urgent. It will take nearly a month just for the bird to arrive."

It was all he could do not to growl—he hated being backed into a corner. "All right," he barked. "I will send a message to Dáin today. But who should he tell? Who should we recommend he send with the shipment?"

"Your Company should be told, and no one else," Larkspur offered. When they all turned to her, she added, "Dwalin told me what you said to his brother at the start of your quest: that you would take those twelve dwarves over an army from the Iron Hills, because when you called, they answered."

"And when you were ravaged by the dragon sickness, Thorin, did we not all remain with you even then?" Dwalin added softly. "If that is not proof of great loyalty, then I do not know what is."

Guilt and shame of a different sort flooded through him. Thorin then felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up at the wizard, who smiled gently as he said, "You can trust them, Thorin."

He studied Gandalf's face, then those of his kin, before he nodded in acquiescence. "All right, that much is settled," Thorin said after a moment. "But who should be the escorts for our gold?"

"Balin, surely," Dwalin said. "And Nori, I would say. But no more than they, as too many from our Company traveling together would draw unwanted attention."

"I agree. As much as we'd all love to see everyone, they make the most sense," Fíli agreed. "Balin will want to know what his brother's been up to all this time, and Nori's a good source of intelligence."

Thorin nodded slowly. Balin and Nori were excellent choices, and if he were truly honest with himself, he was as eager for the company of dwarrow he knew as were his kin.

So it was that as Dwalin and Larkspur—along with Gandalf and the elves—went to take a tour of the valley to find the perfect location for their home and Fíli went to scout the furniture shops to see which he would care to apply at for work, Thorin and Kíli inquired as to the location of the owlery so they could go and speak to one of the ravens also nesting there. The largest of them was a male called Corax, and after bowing to him (as was proper on a first introduction) and receiving a bow in return, Thorin explained what they wanted him to do. Corax replied he had been rather eager to see Erebor for himself, as his grandfather had been born there at Ravenhill, and that he would be honored to deliver a message to the king of the dwarves.

It was with a mixture of anticipation and trepidation that they bid him farewell, and both Thorin and Kíli stood staring after the raven until he could no longer be seen.

"Thank you, Uncle."

Thorin turned to Kíli to find he looked…relieved. "For what?" he asked.

His nephew looked at him. "I can imagine how hard it must have been for you to agree to let others in on our little secret. Believe it or not, Fíli and I do understand that you just want to keep us safe. We are all you have left of our family, as you are all we have left."

For a moment he could not speak past the emotion that suddenly squeezed his throat, then Thorin managed, "This does not mean I am ready to shout the news of our return from the mountaintops. We will tell no one here who we really are, for they do not need to know."

An image of Rejna flashed across his mind's eye and he quickly buried it—now was not the time for that nonsense.

Kíli snorted softly. "Who would believe us anyway? We've been dead near five years as far as the world knows. And even if folk accepted the truth about our return, they'd only wonder why we're here instead of in Erebor."

Thorin felt a scowl descend over his face. "No doubt they would call me coward for hiding, even though we are closer to the reason for which we do so than we would be in the Lonely Mountain."

He reached over and clasped a hand on the younger dwarf's shoulder. "When the truth does come out, folk may judge me as they see fit—I care not what they will think of me. I am doing as my Maker bid me, and I am doing what I must to see that my sister-sons are safe. That you and Fíli understand is all that matters to me."

He then leaned forward so that their brows touched, and when they parted Thorin felt joy at seeing a smile on Kíli's face.

-...-

Larkspur kept up a steady stream of chatter throughout the afternoon and early evening to cover her increasing nervousness. She hated it anytime she became nervous—it happened to her so rarely, she never knew what to do with herself.

At least she knew one thing for certain: Dwalin would be happy to learn she was with child. They'd discussed the probability of their becoming parents a number of times on their journey, and each time her husband had expressed his desire for a son. A girl would also be more than welcome, he'd said, before confessing he would likely not allow any daughter of his to pick up any blade sharper than a kitchen knife.

Her worry came from two sources, the first being having to perform in front of others. Oh, she knew she didn't have to, but Rejna's idea was a good one, and the song she'd thought of was really beautiful. She found herself actually wanting to sing it, and had hope that revealing her condition this way might alleviate some—if not all—of her nervousness at whether or not Dwalin would be angry she'd kept him in the dark for over a month.

They were in the dining room of their inn now, and folk were drinking and eating merrily. Kíli seemed in one of his brighter moods, which was a relief to all of them. Gandalf and the elves also seemed to be enjoying themselves, with Glorfindel and Elrohir being objects of curiosity. No one—not even the dwarves they had met—had showed any animosity toward them. This was yet another worry off of everyone's mind, as though they planned to stay only a few days, at least they did not have to worry they were unwelcome.

"Until Uncle and I went to the owlery, I hadn't realized there are actually three entrances to this mountain. I'm actually rather impressed with the castle," Kíli said then, drawing Larkspur from her reverie.

"Oh, so was I!" she said. "Was it not fascinating how they have that face carved into the mountain above the balcony?"

They spoke of the residence of Dwarrowvale's royal family. It was indeed a castle, carved straight from the rock of the mountain, with a high wall boasting several towers that wrapped around a courtyard. The head of a dwarf had been hewn from the stone as well, with the mouth serving as another entrance of sorts, this one leading out onto a balcony that overlooked the yard below. Kíli revealed then that he had asked their innkeeper about the castle, and the older dwarf had explained that what they saw on the outside of the mountain was only a portion of the full residence. The dwarf whose visage overlooked the courtyard and the valley beyond was that of Tors, the king who had embraced the idea of intermarriage.

"Come to think of it," Fíli put in, "there were a lot of guards at the front of the mountain, when Princess Rejna showed us the valley. I wonder why they put their home up front instead of deeper into the mountain?"

"Accessibility, I would imagine, Master Fíli," said Elrohir. "Their status as royalty means the home is naturally heavily guarded, but perhaps they desire their people feel that they can be approached at any time about any subject."

"The princess was very friendly," Larkspur said. "I rather like her very much."

As she said the words, the noise in the room fell to almost nothing and many chairs scraped the wood floor as patrons stood. Larkspur turned her head to see that Rejna had arrived, bringing with her four other dwarves that included Árni and a very pregnant lass who held on lightly to the soldier's arm.

"Lads, ladies… Don't mind me," Rejna said. "Go on as you were, I'm just here to see some new friends."

Conversations picked up again as the dwarves and men returned to their seats. Rejna and her party made their way toward their table and the hobbit could not help thinking how perfect it was that another female with child was with her. The princess winked in her direction as she approached, and Larkspur replied with a grin, hoping it was enough, for now, to let her know how much she appreciated the help.

"Good evening. How are you all finding our fine kingdom so far?" Rejna asked.

"Most impressive, Princess," said Fíli. "There are shops inside the mountain as well as out for anything and everything a dwarf could want or need."

She and her companions chuckled. "You could hardly have seen them all in one day."

"Certainly not! I'll likely be filling the next two weeks with visiting them all!" the blond dwarf said with a laugh.

"And the castle!" said Kíli. "If the inside is as incredible as the outside, I can't wait to see it!"

"I'm sure that can be arranged," Rejna told him with a grin, then turned to introduce the dwarves who were with her. Árni, of course, they knew. The lass was his wife Sindri, and the others were her brothers Solveg—who was Sindri's twin—and Jormun. The two brothers were members of the King's Guard, and it was revealed that Árni himself was more than just a soldier.

"He is the guardian of our beautiful princess," Sindri said with a smile.

"Not that she has need of one—you've all seen her fight," remarked Árni with a laugh.

"Her skills in battle are most impressive," Thorin said. "But that was a mere skirmish. I should like someday to see how she handles herself against a stronger, smarter opponent."

"Like you?" Rejna challenged. Larkspur could see she was fighting a grin.

Thorin raised an eyebrow. "If you like."

Árni, Sindri, and her brothers all snickered. "Doesn't know what he's asking for, does he?" Solveg muttered.

"Indeed, brother. Poor bloke's gone and done it. You should not have baited the beast, mate," Jormun said to Thorin.

Rejna's answering smile was wide. "Come now, fellas. You know I like a good challenge. A sparring match can also be arranged, and shall be in good time."

She winked at Thorin then, before turning around and ordering Jormun to go and fetch some drinks for them as Solveg and Árni pulled two tables closer and the group joined theirs. Sindri sat next to Larkspur, who was more than happy to answer her questions about hobbits.

"Oi, Larkspur!" Rejna suddenly said. "Why don't you sing us a song, eh?"

With a start, Larkspur turned to her. The princess' nod was almost imperceptible—this was it.

"Now Princess, I know she delighted us with her lovely voice on the way here," Dwalin said, "but sadly my lady wife does not care to perform for others."

"But she has such a lovely voice—you do have a lovely voice, Madam Hobbit," Rejna said then. "I so want to hear it again."

Because her voice was carrying—on purpose, no doubt—the inn began to quiet. Larkspur could feel the many pairs of eyes on her, making her nerves dance. Oh, she was so nervous! At a glance toward the princess, she received another nod of encouragement, and then with a glance at Dwalin—seeing encouragement and even hope in his eyes—she stood.

She could do this. She could sing one song in public, and her husband would know her happy secret at last.

A sudden idea popped into her head as she took a deep breath to shore herself up, and then as she began to sing, Larkspur walked around the table where her friends and kin were seated.

"May it be an evening star shines down upon you," she began, lightly touching Elrohir on the forearm. "May it be when darkness falls, your heart will be true." Here she gave a sweet smile to Gandalf. "You walk a lonely road," the hobbit sang, briefly pausing to give Kíli a hug about his shoulders, before moving on to Thorin and laying her hand on his. "Oh how far you are from home."

Larkspur continued in this way through the next lines, making sure to stop by Sindri to place a hand on her belly as she sang the words, "A promise lives within you now." She then moved around the next couple of tables as she sang the second verse, making sure she was again by Sindri when the line about a promise came again. As it repeated to finished out the song, here was where she had known to change but one word, and as she sang she stepped up to Dwalin and took his hand, placing it over her belly.

"A promise lives within me now."

Silence followed as her voice trailed off. Dwalin's eyes grew large and his mouth fell open as his gaze moved from her face to where she held his hand and back again.

"A…a bairn? We're going to have a wee bairn?" he asked.

Larkspur nodded and smiled, and now that the truth was out at last, she found herself overwhelmed with emotion. Tears slipped down her cheeks as Dwalin stood.

"You're sure? You're sure you're going to have a baby?" he asked.

She nodded again, then jumped with surprise when he threw his head back, raised his arms, and shouted in Khuzdul. Only then did the patrons in the inn erupt in cheers and applause, which grew louder when Dwalin swept her into his arms and kissed her soundly.

"Oi, none of that now—'tis what got you in trouble in the first place!" teased Fíli.

Larkspur laughed as they parted, and was further surprised when her husband—starting with Thorin—made a circuit around the room saying the same words in Khuzdul that he'd said before, right before head-butting every single dwarf in the place.

"What is he saying?" she asked as she finally took her seat again.

"Dwalin is expressing his surprise and joy at the news you have imparted, Irak'nana'," Thorin told her. "He is saying 'I am going to be a father'. Congratulations, Larkspur—and thank you."

"Why are you thanking me?"

"Because you have brought my cousin more happiness than he had ever dared to hope for," he said.

The sincerity in his words brought a fierce blush to her cheeks and Larkspur was forced to look away from him. She was then swept up for a moment in accepting congratulations from the female patrons, including Rejna. Dwarrowvale's princess embraced her tightly and whispered in her ear, "I knew you could do it. And what a perfectly beautiful song you chose."

"I don't know that I could have done it this way had you not encouraged me. Thank you, my Lady," Larkspur replied.

"I'll have none of that now," Rejna scolded her lightly as she sat back. "We are friends, you and I. It's just Rejna."

Larkspur felt her eyes widen in surprise, but she was unable to respond as just then Dwalin returned to her; he dropped to one knee and placed his hands about her waist.

"Mahal be praised," he whispered, and when he looked up at her, she could see a thin sheen of tears. "I love you, Kardûna."

"And I love you, you big oaf," she replied softly, then touched her brow to his.

"May It Be" written by Enya.