A/N: If you've been following Castaways, I've uploaded its sequel "Melamar" which you fill find in my stories. Below is a bit of a preview :) enjoy it!

Imladris, March

"You are worse than Estel."

Elrohir's voice startled Maggie as she reached into the cookie jar. She wondered how long he'd been watching her, no doubt knowing she wouldn't see it coming. Elves, Maggie had learned lately, were just a sneaky as hobbits and dwarves. In fact, since her arrival in Rivendell a few months earlier, she'd become increasingly aware that apart from young Estel, Maggie was the only person in the Hidden Valley without night vision and other heightened senses. Sometimes, it made her more self-conscious, as she knew there was always somebody aware of her movements. On a whole though, moving to Rivendell had been a wise choice, even if Maggie was reluctant at first. Their time in Erebor had been brief in comparison, but still she had many memories with Thorin. To Maggie, leaving Erebor was another way of saying goodbye to Thorin.

For Maggie, the first two months in Rivendell had been the worst of her life. Every night, she would wake up sweaty from nightmares where she lives through Thorin's death over and over again. Each time with some new, horrible twist at the end. Sometimes she heard the Necromancer's voice taunting her and sometimes, Thorin's pale body would ist at her bedside, staring at her with black hollow eyes. Every time she awoke from those nightmares, it was usually Fili who sat her bedside, using his voice to calm her panic as he had done many times before. Elrond would use elvish incantations to send her back to sleep. Sometimes, Oin would put an herbal remedy in her tea at night to help her sleep more easily. In those first few months, Dwalin had taken to keeping a closer eye on Maggie and she'd heard him talking with Fili and Oin about something they called Battle Terror. Maggie could only assume it was their name for PTSD.

If the nightmares weren't bad enough, the morning sickness had reached a new all time high and Maggie still couldn't quite stand the sight of the Oin's rice porridge, even though it was rather good. Poor Estel had been a bit frightened in those first few weeks because he couldn't understand why Maggie was suddenly so different from the last time he'd seen her. He'd even kept his distance from her for a while, which made Maggie feel even worse because above all, she didn't want Estel to be afraid of her. Eventually though, after the worst stages of grief had passed, slowly but surely, Maggie began to feel like herself again. Soon enough, Young Estel was always coming out of his shell and began to seek out her company, much to Maggie's relief. Of course, the heartache was still there and she knew that it would never truly heal. She still loved Thorin Oakenshield and wished more than anything that he was there with her but, like Bard had told her all those months ago, she had to be strong for their child. While the idea of motherhood was still a terrifying reality for Maggie, she was going to give it her best shot.

Nights were still the hardest part of the day and her thoughts were more persistent, questioning every single decision she'd made up until that point. She still cried, usually when nobody could see her and it did help. On those nights when sleep didn't come easily and her thoughts were more annoying, Maggie had taken to exploring Rivendell at night, which is why she found herself in the kitchen.

At four months pregnant, Maggie was already feeling done with the whole thing. The morning sickness was much less prominent but she had no control of her body anymore. Her joints ached more than usual and she was definitely showing physical signs of pregnancy. The most annoying part, beyond the tiredness, was the hunger. Maggie had always thought the phrase 'eating for two' seemed silly but as she was experiencing it herself, it made sense. The cravings were made worse by the fact that she craved food that she knew she couldn't have in Middle-Earth. By some miracle, it turned out that the Shire had something that resembled actual coffee, which Bilbo had promised to bring when he came to visit. To say Maggie was excited was an understatement because if she was anything, it was a coffee connoisseur. Not to mention, being able to have something small that reminded her of home made things a bit easier. Of course, she was looking forward to see Bilbo again too and she missed her friend.

On that particular cold evening in early March, Maggie found herself craving Dwalin's homemade oatmeal cookies, which Elrond had made a habit of stocking in the kitchen for her enjoyment. No doubt the Elf-Lord was well aware that she snuck out at night to feast on the crumbly, delicious treats.

"Estel has the right idea." Maggie replied as she turned around to Elrohir, who stood leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. "I'm starting to think that maybe I should have gone with Bilbo to the Shire. At least hobbits have the right idea about food."

"I shall be sure to let Lindir know you think we are not feeding you enough." Elrohir teased

Maggie stuck her tongue out at rolled her eyes in jest. Spending time in Rivendell had allowed her a chance to get to know Elrohir and Elladan properly and she enjoyed their company. In some ways, their mischievous nature reminded her of Fili and Kili. She recalled those nights with the Company when they'd been drinking Elvish wine and Riley had told them stories of drunken escapes. At the thought of Riley, Maggie let out a sigh and wondered where he was. For a while, they'd been able to correspond with letters but the further into the wilderness, they travelled, the longer the distance between letters. In her heart, Maggie knew Riley as well as the other were fine, but she still missed her brother.

"What are you doing here, 'Ro?" Maggie asked, after a while. "If you've come for the cookies, tough luck, I'm keeping them for Estel and I."

"I couldn't sleep, so I decided to go for a walk." Elrohir replied "When I suddenly heard footsteps heading in this direction, I thought perhaps Estel was on another nightly burglary mission, but instead I found you. At least now I know who my brother's criminal companion is."

"If you ask me, he's the real mastermind behind the operation. Did you know he tricked 'Dan out of bathtime the other day?"

Elrohir chuckled. "Tricking Elladan is not difficult, but Estel has learned from the best."

"Seriously, though." Maggie sat on the countertop and let her feet dangle as she munched on another cookie. Only one more, she reminded herself, otherwise she would have to explain to Dwalin why the batch he'd made only a day ago was already gone. "Why can't you sleep? Is it because of Talathel?"

At the mention of the elf-maiden, Maggie saw Elrohir's ears turn pink and she grinned. Talathel was one of the elf-maidens who had helped Maggie settle into Rivendell. Maggie missed Brenna back in Dale, but it was nice to have another woman around to talk to and Talathel had introduced her to some of the other elf-maidens of Rivendell. Some of them were a bit shy still but in general they were friendly. It was no secret that Elrohir fancied her and always sought out an opportunity be near hear. Maggie also figured that Talathel felt the same way because she clearly enjoyed Elrohir's company as well as giving him a hard time when he was being ridiculous, which was often.

"You have to tell her how you feel, 'Ro." Maggie said "Life is too short to doubt and second guess things"

That was certainly something Maggie had come to accept lately. It wasn't her business to meddle in the affairs of others but she liked Elrohir and saw both him and Elladan as her friends.

"What if my advances are unwanted?" Elrohir asked nervously. "If she does not desire me in the same way, I will be humiliated and 'Dan will never let me forget about it."

"If Elladan gives you a hard time for following your heart," Maggie said, "I will kick his sorry arse."

While Elladan and Elrohir were twins, their personalities were different. Elrohir was the calmer of the two and the one who considered his options before acting on them. In that sense, Elrohir was more like his father. Elladan on the other hand, was more impulsive and quick to act without thinking, which sometimes got him in trouble. His heart was in the right place though and Maggie enjoyed his company as well his counsel, which she had sought from time to time.

"Now that I would very much like to see." Elrohir said

He grabbed a cookie from Maggie who was just about to eat it. "Too much sugar will make it difficult for you to sleep. Come, I'll see you to your room."

Maggie admitted defeat and Elrohir helped her off the counter, which really was much too tall for her short-arse self. They walked through corridors and Maggie found that she enjoyed these nighttime escapades and they were always full of surprises. The other night, she'd run into Glorfindel and as they walked the gardens in the starlight, he told her stories of his youth and the many adventures he'd had before even Elrond was born. Finally, Maggie and Elrohir reached her room, which was the same one she had used during their first arrival in rivendell, all those months ago.

How things had changed.

(End of Preview: For the rest of this chapter, go check out 'Melamar', I'm sure you'll like it)