This story is becoming obnoxiously long. It's nearly over, though. I've already started writing the next chapter, so it should be out in a couple days.

I took 's suggestion in this chapter. :)

Reviews were love this time. Thank you, all. *hugs*

wolfsdottir13: Things are darkest before dawn? That's all I can say, lol. And thank you!

EroSlackerMicha: I intend to. :)

kaia: Why didn't tell Thorin or Nori? Because that would either be too easy a fix or have disastrous consequences. They had to be separated for a bit, and this was an efficient way to do it. I'd dropped little hints throughout the story that this would happen, along with next chapter's events, lol. :p Also, I've read that it's not a good idea to make your characters helpless. Therefore, Thorin had to have some hand in fixing this, and that began with figuring things out for himself.

Jollytr: I haven't decided what Dain's comeuppance will be. Any ideas? XD

BeatofHisHeart: My goodness, thank you! And I'm sorry I made you cry. :(

Nicci1234: If it's any consolation, her departure was difficult to write. :/

SnuggleErika: I'm so glad you picked up on that. Yes, Talaitha did what she thought was best for Thorin and Erebor and the dwarves, but, like you mentioned, she'd been feeling guilty for leaving home for so long. That, and she's used to traveling.

An Echo In Time: *puts pillow between head and wall* Time shift indeed. Lol, your unhappy ending won't happen. I think my heart would break if it did.

draegon-fire: Talaitha's leaving does serve a purpose. An important one. Sucks, though.

BlackBaccaraRose: Nifha will be helpful, but not in the way you suggested.

Ammaviel: Thranduil wouldn't help break up Talaitha and Thorin, even though he dislikes Thorin. The letter's legit...sort of.

girl43: Oh yes, Thorin will be mad. I've already written that part. :D

Sesshomaru's Babydoll: Thank you, love. *hugs*

Just4Me: I always have a plan! :)

xxxMadameMysteryxxx: Updated!

LianaDare8: I didn't know she had a sister either. *shifty eyes* Well, I'm glad the chapter wasn't too awful, then, lol.

Disclaimer: Ugh, you know it by now.

(I feel like I'm writing a play with the past three chapters' titles...)


Chapter 50: Intermission

Thorin stood on the wall, bracing himself against the howling wind. Snow swirled around him, the ice crystals tangling in his hair, as he stared unseeingly into the distance. The blizzard had come suddenly and was still unabated three days later, but it hadn't deterred him from his daily sentinel since Talaitha's departure. Logically, he knew she hadn't even reached Nemere yet, but he clung to the fantasy that any day now, he would see her riding up to Erebor.

Not that she would venture outside in such foul weather. Talaitha abhorred the cold. Thorin smiled fondly at the memory of her grumblings in Lake Town. Mahal, how he longed to hear her voice again.

No matter how many tasks occupied his time, his thoughts were unfailingly consumed by the fairy. Where was she now? Was she safe? Did she think about him, too? Would she actually return? His bed was cold without her-a persistent, empty reminder of both his fortune and ill luck in loving a woman not of his race.

And loving a woman such as Talaitha.

For he did love her, he knew. But the realization had come too late.

And so Thorin kept vigil, a hand over his aching heart, until his lips were blue from the cold.

Meanwhile, in a room five floors above, another unhappy dwarf paced, his daughter looking on anxiously.

"It has been two months since the fairy left, and Thorin still will not forget her."

"Why should he?" Nifha asked. "She will return when her sister is recovered, will she not?"

Dain stopped and regarded her with an exasperated sigh. "Do you truly not understand why you've spent so much time in Erebor as of late?"

"Because I enjoy it here," Nifha replied, but her brows furrowed in slight confusion. "I have made many friends in the mountain and in Dale."

"Then you are more naive than I believed." Dain glared at her impatiently. "What is Thorin?"

"A king?"

"And what will his wife be?"

"A queen."

Dain looked at her expectantly, burly arms crossed over his chest, as understanding dawned on Nifha's face.

"You intend for me to marry Thorin Oakenshield."

"Very good, Daughter," he said flatly. "That is now the only way you will be queen."

"But I do not wish to be queen," she protested, voice rising in pitch and volume. "Especially if my husband will not love me. Thorin cares for Talaitha. And I like her."

"Perhaps it was a mistake to keep you from the world, for you lack ambition." Dain moved to stand before her, leaning down to stroke her cheek. "But you are a sweet girl. Thorin can grown to love you. And even if does not, you will be queen and mother to kings."

"But I do not want that!" Nifha cried, her hazel eyes wide. "I want-"

Dain grasped her arms and pulled her up. "What you want is irrelevant. You are of Durin's folk, so you will marry a Durin."

Tears welled in her eyes, but she blinked them away. "You will be disappointed, Father, for Thorin will not have me even should I desire him."

"My cousin believes he is in love, but he will soon see reason." The dwarf released his daughter and turned his back on her. There was something sinister in his voice as he said, "I am sure of it."

After Dain left, Nifha tried to work on her embroidery, but her hands shook too much to follow the pattern. Dain had never been a particularly warm father, but this behavior shocked and frightened her. Her upper arms smarted from where he'd gripped them, and she could still see the determined glint in his eyes. He had always been ambitious, but forcing her to marry Thorin, who was clearly courting another, seemed duplicitous and underhanded.

But what could she do? Everyone was stranded inside Erebor until the blizzard abated, so she couldn't even go home and seek council from her tutor. She might tell Thorin, but she knew her father would react violently if his plan were revealed. Either he would die by Thorin's hand, or the king would by Dain's. Nifha wanted neither.

A knock sounded on the door, pulling the girl from her ruminations. As she opened it, she smiled slightly at the blond figure standing before her.

"My lady," Fili greeted, with a short bow. "My brother and I were concerned you may be growing bored and wondered if you'd like to join us in a game."

Nifha glanced back at her ill-fated embroidery, considering. "What sort of game?"

"We are recreating the events of the quest with some of the others, and now that Talaitha has left, we are short a female." Fili took her hand and smiled at her. "I know you'd rather be exploring outside, but we can pretend to explore inside. Say you will join us."

She laughed. "Of course I will."

Fili grinned, and Nifha thought his dimples were far too endearing for his own good. Kili was prone to laughter and teasing, which most dwarf maidens her age would find charming, but it was his brother's more subdued smiles that Nifha preferred. The golden-haired dwarf was calmer and more sincere, and she felt butterflies in her belly whenever those blue eyes gazed at her.

"Shall we, then?" He held out his arm to her and placed his hand over hers when she took it.

Nifha's worries faded during the play, replaced with mirth as Bifur, pretending to be Gandalf, struck down the Great Goblin, portrayed by poor Bombur. And the howling of the blizzard became the howls of the wargs.

#

In another part of the mountain, Thorin sat with Dain. He'd lost count of how many goblets of wine they'd drunk, for there was little else to do. The alcohol helped numb the constant pain in his chest since Talaitha's departure, and Dain hoped it would make him more amenable to his plans.

"So, Cousin, have you considered marriage yet?" Dain asked congenially. "I'm sure there are plenty of women who would consent."

"I...have," Thorin replied, shifting in his chair. He silently cursed Dain for bringing up the one subject he'd wanted to avoid. "But a wife demands too much attention. And thanks to Dis, I have heirs in Fili and Kili."

"But would you not like children of your own?"

Thorin's stomach dropped. Of course he would. How many times had he imagined Talaitha swollen with his babe? How many times had he seen her interact with children and wish they were theirs? Until she'd left, the prospect had seemed promising, but now it only filled him with regret.

"I'm too old for children, Dain," Thorin answered smoothly, despite his inner turmoil. "I remember what Fili and Kili were like as dwarflings. Always getting up to mischief." He smiled briefly at the memories. "I have neither the energy nor the time for that anymore."

"Perhaps you would have a daughter," said Dain. "Nifha was an easy child. Still is."

Thorin refilled his goblet and took a long drink. "No. It now falls upon my nephews to continue the Line of Durin. They are young and lack my cynicism. They would be better husbands and fathers than I."

"Do you not think Erebor deserves a queen? You may unite the dwarf clans with the Arkenstone, but the King under the Mountain must also lead by example." Dain saw the scowl slowly forming on Thorin's lips but continued. "Your grandfather knew this, as did your father."

"Marriage is impossible." Thorin's tone was tinged with bitterness. "For the only woman I would marry is thousands of miles away."

"Talaitha?" Dain questioned, feigning surprise. "I had assumed she was a dalliance." Thorin's eyes flashed with anger, so the other dwarf amended his previous sentence. "I just thought that since she was no longer here, your relations with her were over."

"Family matters called her away," Thorin said brusquely.

"Ah, I was mistaken, then. Forgive me, Cousin." Dain backed off. He had pushed too much and could not risk alienating Thorin.

But little did he know, his interrogation had reawakened Thorin's doubts in himself and in Talaitha. He had often wondered what she had seen in such a stubborn and cantankerous dwarf. Deep down, he'd feared the day would come when she would regain her senses. Perhaps the letter from her mother, about a sister she'd never mentioned, had been Talaitha's chance to escape a relationship she'd realized was doomed before it had even begun.

That was not to say she hadn't cared for him. Thorin knew she had. But he also knew Talaitha was pragmatic and restless, not content to remain in one place for very long. Her confession the night he'd thought she'd run away had been a warning, but he'd been too blinded by his fondness for her to see it.

Yet Thorin was also blind to Dain's machinations.

#

The seasons passed. Winter became spring. Spring became summer. And still Talaitha had not returned. Thorin had received a letter from her, informing him she'd arrived safely in Nemere, and though her words were affectionate, they were also guarded. She wrote that she missed him but made no mention of the future-of their future.

Nifha had become a near-constant presence in Erebor, much to Thorin's increasing discomfort. He sensed that Dain was pushing her towards him, which, upon reflection, did not surprise him. His cousin's ambitions had not waned; they'd merely taken another route. But he also sensed that she and Fili had grown close, and pitied the girl. Thorin would not marry her, but he feared Nifha, too, would suffer Dain's wrath for his refusal. Short of having Dain imprisoned, he knew not what to do.

Adding to his concerns was the chronic ache in his chest. He'd assumed Talaitha's absence had caused it, but instead of fading with time, it intensified. Did he love her so much that being separated from her physically hurt? Or was the pain unrelated? Thorin knew that elves could die of a broken heart, but he had never heard of the same occurring to dwarves.

The mystery was dispelled only when Gandalf arrived for an impromptu visit.