Fifty-four years later.
.
"Arg! I can't believe we are going through this again!" Lin moaned as Hilaeg helped her step into her dress. "I feel like a prize pig on display for Durin's day."
"If you were, you'd certainly win the gold medal!" Hilaeg teased.
"Not funny! I thought you were my friend!"
"Well, I thought that 99 years of being best friends was enough, time to find somebody new!"
"Don't even joke about that Hil! You know I'd never get through these things without your help."
"Stop worrying. This one can't be any worse than that old dwarf from the Stonefoots. Why ANYONE would have thought you would have wanted to marry him is ridiculous!" Hilaeg laughed as she finished lacing up Lin. "There, you go. Beautiful in blue as always!"
"Blech. I am so tired of Durin Blue!"
"It matches your eyes and is the color of the Longbeards.
"I don't care. It would be nice to wear something else. I do actually like the color red."
"Then go ahead and marry Nain. You can wear red all you want."
"Nain himself is not actually that horrible but marrying him would mean bringing his lecherous father and that odious mother of his under the mountain. Ewwww." Lin shuddered.
"Well, then, let's hope this dwarf is better than Nain. My mother speaks very highly of the Blacklocks and we all know your mother would approve of him sight unseen!"
Lin sighed. "Tell me again why Grandmother made this deal with Stonehelm."
"You know she thought it was the best way to secure your right to the throne, especially in the middle of a battle that we were not winning at the time. Just be glad that she didn't promise that you would have to marry Nain no matter what. She just assumed that you'd find your one before you were 100 and the deal would be off. And you have to admit that she has tried very hard to introduce you to every dwarf in Arda," Hilaeg said as she placed Lin's crown on her head. "Now straighten up, put on a smile, and let's go! Your father, the king, will be quite upset if we're late!"
A short time later, Hilaeg looked on as Lin stood on a dais next to her mother and father at the front of the great hall that was bedecked for a feast. As Grundbar announced the delegation, every eye turned to see Lord Vindler, his eldest son Vandler, and his youngest son Kandler stride forward. Dressed in their traditional black and silver, the three made quite an impression. Vindler and Vandler looked like most Blacklocks, with his dark curls and nearly black eyes. Kandler, though, had inherited his mother's hazel-green eyes, a rare and stunningly handsome combination. There were more than just a few sighs, smiles, and whispers from many of the dams as they walked by. Hilaeg surprised herself at the flutter she felt in her chest. She turned to look at the royal family when she heard Kili, Tauriel, and Princess Dis stifling laughter. The King was frowning at Queen Caileen who was looking away rather sheepishly.
Introductions were made and the evening proceeded as planned. Hilaeg discreetly watched as Lin and Kandler conversed during the meal. She could tell that the princess was sincerely enjoying herself, especially since she never sent Hilaeg the 'save me' look that usually occurred somewhere during these encounters. When the dancing began, Lin and Kandler danced the first together and there were many murmurings of what a fine couple they made.
Eventually, Hilaeg and her family were introduced to the Blacklocks with Vandler requesting a dance with Hilaeg while Kandler faced the scowl of Dwalin after asking Amayla for a dance.
Hilaeg began the conversation during their dance.
"Your brother is quite brave to ask my mother for a dance right in front of my father."
"Aye, he is a brave and very honorable dwarf."
"I'm sure he is."
"He is willing to marry the princess even if she is not his one, despite my objections."
"Why would you object?"
"I prefer he give himself more time to find his one, as I was blessed by Mahal."
"The princess does not have that luxury."
"We are aware. I just want you to know, as the princess' confidant, that if a marriage does occur, my brother would be doing it out of loyalty and respect for the crown. He does not seek fortune for himself."
"You love your brother," Hilaeg stated.
"Aye, very much. My wife and I helped raise him as our mother died giving birth to him and father was overcome by grief. He's become an excellent stonemason. I am very proud of him. And he has a nephew who would greatly miss him if he moved to Erebor."
"And yet you are here with him."
"It is his choice to make. My father may care more about the politics than what is best for Kandler. I am here to support my brother."
"Why are you telling me this?"
Vandler smiled knowingly, "Just in case the princess is unable to give my brother the private tour of Erebor that has been arranged, and you need to take her place."
Hilaeg smiled back, "You have done your research I see."
"As I said, I love my brother," he replied. "Speaking of brothers, what of yours?"
"Ardin? What of him?"
"Does he appreciate what the princess is going through? I couldn't help but notice him scowling throughout the meal."
"Ardin takes his duty as one of Lin's guards very seriously."
"As he should, as would my brother."
.
The dance ended and Hilaeg made her way over to Lin. The princess usually liked to leave early to discuss plans, and this time was no different. They didn't say much as they made their way to Lin's quarters, and once inside Lin flopped down her bed, and screamed out "arrrgggghhh."
"What's the matter?" Hilaeg asked. "I thought you got along well with Kandler."
"I did. He's very easy to talk to and a great dancer." Lin responded, before asking, "What did you think him?"
"I didn't get to speak to him much, but he is handsome."
"Yes, amad thought so too!" Lin laughed.
"Is that why everyone was laughing up there?"
"Aye. As they were walking up, amad turned to me and said, 'If you don't marry him, I will.' Adad was not happy!" she chuckled.
Hilaeg joined in her laughter. "I imagine so! But seriously, there were many remarks about what a good couple the two of you made while dancing and that you seemed to enjoy talking to him at dinner."
"Great! More pressure!" Lin groaned as she pulled a pillow over her face.
Hilaeg pulled the pillow off her. "Am I missing something, Lin? I got the feeling you liked him."
"That's just it! I do like him! He's nice to look at, easy to talk to, politically it's a good match, Amad certainly approves, and he's far better than Nain. I probably should just marry him and be done with it. But there's still a part of me that wants to marry my one, and Kandler is not it!" she cried, turning over on her stomach as her eyes started to well up.
"Don't stress yourself, Lin! We will put Kandler through the paces tomorrow and give you our honest opinions. That might help you see things more clearly," Hilaeg assured her. "Let's get you out of this dress so you can get some sleep and we'll see what tomorrow brings."
.
The next morning, Hilaeg knocked on the door of the Blacklock's quarters. While Vindler was not happy that she was there instead of Lin, both Vandler and Kandler shushed him, barely hiding smirks under their beards.
Kandler stood up from his breakfast and offered Hilaeg his arm, "I would be happy to take a tour of Erebor with you, Lady Hilaeg."
Once again, Hilaeg felt the strange flutter in her chest as she took the arm of the potential husband of her best friend.
As they started down the hallway, Kandler cheekily ask where Lin was.
"The princess' royal duties often call her away on short notice. She is devoted to her people, and always will put their needs above hers. As queen, it will likely be worse," Hilaeg responded.
"I have no doubt that she will be a beloved queen," Kandler bowed in response.
Hilaeg asked where Kandler would like to begin the tour, "The mines, the gem rooms, any of the guild halls, the kitchens, the treasury, the great forge?"
"What about the armory?" he side-eyed her.
"Oh, we'll go to the armory after lunch as I'm sure you're aware."
"And I will get to face your brother in the sparring rings."
"You and your brother are quite well-informed about how this all goes."
"We Blacklocks may be a smaller clan, far off in the East, but we keep informed. And I'll rely on you, Lady Hilaeg, to decide where we start."
"Please, just Hilaeg, and there are new halls being converted into dwarfling classrooms. Perhaps you would be interested in visiting them?" she suggested.
"Very much, Hilaeg. It seems that you also keep informed. And you must call me Kandler," he replied, smiling broadly.
.
Hilaeg led Kandler to the area under construction. Fimuk, the master builder, spotted her and immediately walked over to greet her. "Ah, Hilaeg, please tell me you've come to tell me that you've changed your mind and will come and join us. We could use you!"
"I'm afraid not, Master Fimuk, I'm just here showing Lord Kandler, from the Blacklocks, around Erebor. He is a stonecutter himself."
"At your service, Master Fimuk," Kandler said with a bow, "may I say that this is the most interesting architecture. I'd love to look at it closer!"
"This is one of the first major projects in Eerebor after the Battle of Dale. We've spent so much time and effort rebuilding Dale and Gondor and helping establish the Glittering Caves that there has been nothing new done in Erebor over the last 50 years. Here we are taking the quarters that were hastily built for housing the refugees from Dale and turning them into learning centers for dwarflings. Have you designed things yourself, Lord Kandler?" Fimuk asked, as he began to show him around.
"Mostly bridges. First, I had to help demolish quite a few in front of the Easterlings when they were moving west and then we had to go back and rebuild most of them."
"Did you have anything to do with the one in Dorwinion, over the Carnen?" Fimuk asked.
"Aye! That was the one I earned my master's rating on. Although, I'm certain that earning a master's rank in Erebor is far more involved than in our clan."
"It was a fine piece of work, Lord Kandler. I greatly admired it on my one trip out East. Definitely worth a master's rank," Fimuk gushed.
Kandler bowed at the compliment but directed his eyes around the hall. "This architecture is so interesting. It's obviously dwarven but there are other influences, aren't there? I see some features than you usually see in the great halls of men, but then again it is more curved than I've seen before. Is it your design, Master Fimuk?"
"No, not mine, my lord," he shook his head. "I did some of the engineering since the architect was inexperienced. This was her first work."
"A dam? Interesting. I would love to meet her," he replied.
"You already have, my lord," Fimuk smirked as he nodded his head toward Hilaeg.
Kandler's eyes grew wide, as he switched between looking at Fimuk and Hilaeg. "You created this Hilaeg?"
"Aye, but Fimuk greatly understated his role in making this a reality. He translated a simple lass' drawings into reality."
"Nonsense," Fimuk snorted. "It was very well planned out and the reason I wish she would come back and see this project through with me!"
"Hilaeg, it's a wonder! You didn't mention that you were interested in stonecutting!" Kandler exclaimed.
"Princess Lin was learning about it and I tagged along," she shrugged.
"Hilaeg was the most talented student I've had in a hundred years. I begged her mother and father to talk her into making it her craft, to no avail," Fimuk pouted.
"How did you come up with this design?" Kandler asked, still amazed.
"Well, the halls are for teaching dwarflings and I wanted to create a space that showed our friendship with our neighbors in Dale and the Woodland Realm so I incorporated both Elvish and Human styles into traditional Dwarvish styles and this was the result," Hilaeg shrugged.
"It's amazing!" he said shaking his head as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing.
"It will look much better with Queen Caileen's tapestries that are being created for it. Princess Lin worked on the designs too," Hilaeg added.
"I'd like to see those sometime if I may," Kandler replied.
Hilaeg stood back and allowed Fimuk to guide Kandler around the space. She answered questions when asked but mostly observed the two experts absorbed in their discussions. When Fimuk asked if he could show Kandler a walkway project in another part of Erebor, Hilaeg just smiled and tagged along. They included her in the conversations but Hilaeg was more interested in watching Kandler interact with Fimuk and the other stonemasons. She was greatly pleased when Fimuk ordered an apprentice to make copies of the plans for the walkway and send them for Kandler to review in his own time.
.
Hilaeg then continued the tour of Erebor, managing a visit to the weaving halls before heading to the market for a quick lunch.
Kandler was impressed with the vast diversity of the market. So engrossed with taking in the experience, he missed the whispers and nudges of many of the dwarves who knew who he was. She guided him to a lunch spot that she explained was the best pastry shop in Erebor and served wonderful soups for lunch.
"It's run by Lady Bila, Lord Bombur's daughter. I believe you met her last night. She's a dear friend of mine and Lin's. She married a dear friend too, Maylen son of General Galen, so she's practically family," Hilaeg explained.
"She's a noble and runs a pastry shop?" Kandler asked.
"Aye. She doesn't need the money, but she's a master baker. And I think there would be a revolt under the mountain if dwarves couldn't get her creations. She also has two of the most adorable twin lads you've ever met. Since they were born, she only opens three days a week, but she's open today and promised to save us a table."
The shop was packed as they walked in but Bila noticed them immediately and pointed to an open table in the corner with a reserved sign on it. As they settled into their chairs, Bila was out in a flash with bowls of soup and two mugs of tea.
"Nice to see you again Lord Kandler," Bila said with a big smile. "I would have brought you some ale, but since I know where you're going after this, I thought you should have all your wits about you!"
"Bila makes the best soup in the mountain as well as being the best baker!" Hilaeg declared as she picked up her spoon.
"I'm sure I'll enjoy it," Kandler replied politely, missing the little smile the dams exchanged as Bila left.
Hilaeg took a few bites, looking over her spoon to see Kandler's reaction to the soup. He frowned at the first tasted, stirred the soup around a bit, and hesitantly tried a second spoonful, before grabbing his tea for a quick slurp.
"What do you think? Delicious, isn't it?" Hilaeg asked innocently.
Kandler smiled quickly before looking away, "Yes, yes. It's just a little different than what we have at home," before he gingerly took another sip.
Hilaeg continued eating until they were both distracted by the squeals of two dwarflings, shouting out "Hillen, Hillen!"
The two four-year old red-headed dwarflings launched themselves at Hilaeg, giving her hugs that she quickly returned, until one spied Kandler, pointed, and asked "Who dat?"
"Lads, this is my friend. I know you've been practicing what to do when you meet someone. Can you show him how?"
The two scrambled off Hilaeg, stood next to each other, bowed in sync, stood up and said "serbus" and smiled from ear to ear.
Hilaeg tried desperately to hide her laughter as she coaxed the two to give their names.
"Oh yeah," said one. "I'm Billen and this is Gillen!"
Kandler stood up and very formally returned the bow, "Kandler, son of Vindler, at your service."
As Kandler sat down, Gillen approached him and held out his arms.
Kandler looked at Hilaeg with concern.
"Gillen is the less talkative of the two. He wants to sit in your lap."
Kandler smiled and picked up the youngster who settled happily in his lap and began stroking one of his braids. Billen climbed up on Hilaeg too.
"Did they call you Hillen?" Kandler chuckled.
"Aye," she smiled. "Best we can guess is since my name starts the same as theirs, they just assume that it ends the same way. It's cute, so I haven't corrected them yet. It's not as bad as my brother calling King Thorin 'Mister Yourmajesty' for a year until adad insisted that Thorin let him correct him."
Bila finally came running out, relieved to see her sons with Hilaeg. "I am so sorry that they are bothering you. Amad and Adad were supposed to watch them, but neither were feeling well this morning. I think they imbibed a little too much last night. So, I brought the lads with me," she apologized.
"Soup! Soup!" Gillen started shouting, grabbing at Kandler's spoon.
Before Hilaeg and Bila could say anything, Kandler gave the lad a taste. He immediately spit it out.
"Yucky!" he grimaced, raising his arms to his mother, as his eyes started to tear up.
Bila looked to Hilaeg as she settled Gillen in her arms.
"Bring him a real bowl," Hilaeg said quietly as she slid Billen off her lap too so his mother could take them both back to the kitchen. She looked up at Kandler who was staring at her, tapping his fingers on the table.
"Real bowl?" he asked. "So was this some sort of a test?"
"Aye. Not very nice of us, I know," she shrugged sheepishly.
Bila returned with a new bowl that she set in front of him, "I think you'll like this one better," she smiled.
She watched as he took his first taste. "Aye! This one is very good!"
The two sat in silence for a few minutes as Kandler greedily ate his soup. When he finished, he laid the spoon down and stared at Hilaeg.
"First, the second soup was probably the best I've ever had. But, what was the point of the test?" he asked coldly.
"You are aware that sparring with my brother will be a test. But it's only oneo f several tests today. You've already had many. Today is set up for those of us whom Lin really trusts to test you to see if you are worthy of being her husband. It's one thing for a dwarf to charm Lin during a formal dinner, today is set up to see what you're like among Erebor's ordinary citizens," she explained.
"By giving me bad soup?" he asked.
"To seek how you reacted to it. You'd be amazed at how rude and out-of-control some of Lin's suitors got when they tasted it. This particular test was Lin's idea. She's said that learning to be polite when someone has given her something, be it food or a gift, that she doesn't care for, is a skill that she has had to master. She hates it when someone is rude to someone else."
"Did I pass?"
"Aye, you did. Although you may have to work on your facial expressions a little," she giggled.
"Well, to quote Gillen, it really was yucky!"
.
.
When they finished, Hilaeg led Kandler to the armory and back to the sparring rings where she spotted her father watching over the activities like a mother hen. He was barking out critiques to the participants whom Hilaeg assumed were newbies based on their fighting skills. After reintroducing her father to Kandler, Hilaeg asked where Ardin was.
"One of the dams got 'injured' again and wanted your brother to escort her to the healing halls," he grumbled.
"Again? Was it the same dam?" Hilaeg chuckled.
"Different one this time, and it's not funny, Hil. It takes away from their training and now I'm stuck watching over them since your mother left out on patrol!"
She smiled and leaned into him for a side hug, "Just imagine how bad it would be if Ardin were half as handsome as you, adad."
Dwalin let his mouth rise slightly before hrmphing and turning to Kandler to find out his weapon of choice. When Kandler said it was axes, Dwalin grinned contentedly, "Very good, then Hilly here can warm you up while we wait for Ardin to get back."
"What? Adad! I'm not dressed for sparring," she complained.
"Lassie, I know how long it's been since you've been in the rings, and even longer since you've wielded an axe. Your mother has extra clothes in the office. I'll get the lad ready. You go change!"
Hilaeg recognized the tone of her father's voice and didn't bother to say a word. When she got back, Kandler was dressed and ready and the warmup began. She found herself enjoying it more than she expected. Kandler was a very capable warrior, his moves were precise, and his strikes were forceful. When her father called a hold, she was slightly disappointed, curious as to what a full-on sparring session against Kandler would be like. When they bowed at the end, she whispered quickly to him, "The test is to see if you can protect Lin, not beat Ardin."
Dwalin frowned at his daughter as she came to his side while Ardin and Kandler took their positions. "What was that all about?" his asked her.
"What?" she answered not looking her father in the eye.
"You did a very fine job of imitating your brother in there, didn't look like yourself. Gave the lad a good idea of what to expect from Ardin."
Hilaeg blushed and shrugged, "Perhaps."
"He's passed all your other tests?"
"Aye."
"Hmmmm."
Father and daughter watched as the two dwarves squared up and began sparring. Ardin held nothing back. He flagrantly attacked again and again, leaving plenty of openings for Kandler to take the offensive, but Kandler never took the bait, keeping his front to Ardin at all times. Ardin's strikes grew stronger and Hilaeg recognized the rising frustration in her brother. Finally, after many long minutes, Kandler started to falter. Soon, he was barely able to raise his axe in his defense.
Hilaeg grew concerned as Ardin pressed on, finally turning her father with a simple cry of "Adad."
Dwalin had noticed too and shouted out "Hold" but Ardin didn't stop. Luckily, Kandler had returned to his defensive stance so when Ardin continued to attack he was able to block the blow, although it knocked him to the ground.
Dwalin and Hilaeg both shouted at Ardin to hold and scrambled into the ring when they noticed that Ardin had raised his axe again. But Ardin froze, glaring down at Kandler, giving his father enough time to get in front of his son and his sister to shield the fallen dwarf.
Ardin finally lowered his weapon, took a few deep breaths, looked at his sister. "He passed," he muttered before throwing down his axe and storming off.
.
After changing their clothes, Hilaeg led Kandler to a private balcony overlooking the front gates, explaining, "This is reserved for the royal family. We can talk in private with no fear of being overheard."
Kandler frowned as he leaned against the wall, "Good. I have a few things I'd like to ask, starting off with what was going on with your brother? I really thought he wanted my head at the end!"
"I know," she sighed. "All I can say is that Ardin is not used to losing. I am sorry. I will talk to him. He owes you an apology."
Kandler nodded and gazed out over the balcony wall, "How many more tests?"
"Just two."
"What are they?"
"One I won't tell you, and the other is happening right now."
Kandler crossed and arms and cocked an eyebrow at Hilaeg. His expression caught her off guard for a moment as she gazed at him.
"Well? Let's hear it!" he said, breaking her out of her momentary trance.
"Why are you willing to give up any chance to find your one and marry Lin?" Hilaeg asked simply.
Kandler chuckled softly, "That is the question, isn't it? But shouldn't I be discussing this with Lin herself instead of you?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"You've already passed Lin's main test," she said, but as Kandler straightened up and smiled, she quickly went on. "But don't get too excited, her bar is set very low at this stage. Her parents have to approve the match and she has to find you more palatable than Nain."
"Agreed, that is a very low bar. I'm surprised others haven't made it this far then."
"Oh they did. Early on there were several good candidates. I'm not going to give names, but they would have been fine matches for Lin. However, as Lin spent time with them, she grew to like them too much to allow them to give up their chance at finding their ones. And Lin was probably holding out hope that she would find hers. As the time grew short, we decided that she needed to stop caring about the suitors' feelings so much. That's why my brother and her closest friends created all these tests. She's relying on our judgements. So tell me, why do you want to marry her?"
"The truth?"
"Yes, the truth!"
"Would you believe me if I told you that I thought it was Mahal's will?" he replied.
"Mahal's will? Do you mean Mahal's Folly? Do you think that Lin is your one even though she does not believe you are hers?"
"No. Quite the opposite. You see I'm not interested in finding my one. Giving all your love to one dwarf so you have nothing left for anyone else, not even your children? No, that's not for me. But I would like to have children, be able to give them all the love they deserve. Teach them, share their joys and fears. So when my father came up with the idea of me marrying Princess Lin, I ignored everything he said about it being a great opportunity for me to bring honor to our clan and all the riches and power that being married to Lin would bring – all the things he cared about; instead, I thought about him saying that my only duty would be to get the princess pregnant, and since Lin was such a beauty, it shouldn't be too much of a hardship. Despite my father's crassness, I realized that this was probably the best chance of having a child with someone who didn't expect all the pretenses of love."
"And your son being the next king of Erebor has nothing to do with it?"
"Not really. By the time that would happen, chances are good I'll already be in the Halls of Waiting."
"There are those who say that Lin's son should be the next king after King Fili, that a dam should never rule as queen."
"Who says that a queen can't rule? Just because she won't lead the army, doesn't mean she can't rule. With the peace we are enjoying these days, it is far more important to have a queen that can govern through trade and diplomacy, not just a king who can only keep power at the point of a weapon." He paused as a realization dawned on him, "Ohhh wait, would those who say that Lin shouldn't rule happen to live mostly in the Iron Hills?"
"Possibly."
Kandler snorted and shook his head. "That's another reason I'm willing to marry Lin. Mahal help all dwarves if Nain and his family gain the throne!"
Hilaeg smiled in agreement, "But what of your family? It sounds as if your father would like access to the throne. He might want his grandson to rule."
"My father will have nothing to do with any child of mine," he replied, voice dripping with venom.
"You do not have a good relationship with your father?"
"My father has had almost nothing to do with me until this came about."
"May I ask why?"
Kandler sighed and gazed out towards Dale again. "As I've been told, my father loved my mother with everything he was. He could deny her nothing. After my brothers were older, she wanted a daughter. Despite concern that she was too old to have another child, she got pregnant with me. Unfortunately, she died shortly after giving birth to me, right after being told I was a lad. Father was devastated and blamed me for her death. And to make it even worse, I apparently look very much like my mother."
"Your eyes?"
"Yes. My father can't stand to look at me because all I do is remind me of her loss. He barely took care of me. My oldest brother had to step in. He essentially raised me."
"It's a good thing that Vandler's not as big a fool as you or your father."
"Excuse me? You're calling me a fool?"
"Aye. You are a fool for letting your father's foolishness scar you. Love is a blessing from Mahal and shouldn't be shunned."
There was silence between the two for several minutes.
"Does this mean that I don't pass the test?" Kandler asked softly.
"No. Your reasons for agreeing to marry Lin are honorable and sincere. That is what is important. Just because I think they are foolish doesn't matter."
"You would let your best friend and the future queen marry a fool?"
"In this case, yes. But remember, if you ever do anything to hurt or dishonor her," Hilaeg's eyes grew dark and her voice grew icy as she stepped closer to glare into Kander's eyes, "let's just say that Ardin will beat you within an inch of your life, but that will be nothing compared to my retribution."
Kandler's eyes grew wide as he stood frozen for a few moments staring down at Hilaeg, until another dwarf came bounding out onto the balcony.
"Oh here you are, Hilly! Your father told me I might find you," Bhana chirped sweetly, talking to Hilaeg but batting her eyes at Kandler. "Princess Dis sent me to find you. She wants you for something and said to hurry. I'd be happy to continue Lord Kandler's tour for you."
Hilaeg had known that the beautiful Bhana would be showing up wearing something that accented her curves and green eyes, but she found herself slightly perturbed at how low her bodice was and the way Bhana had immediately attached herself to Kandler's arm. That's the plan, Hilaeg reminded herself. If Kandler can resist Bhana, he can resist anyone. But why does it annoy me so?
"Thank you, Bhana," Hilaeg replied politely, before looking at Kandler. "Here's an important lesson for you Kandler, if there is one person in Erebor that you do not keep waiting, it is Princess Dis. I'm sure Bhana will be an excellent tour guide. You still have to see the great forge, I'm sure you'll enjoy it."
"Oh I just love going to the forges," Bhana purred as she led Kandler away. "It's so very hot in there!"
.
.
An hour later, Hillaeg joined Lin, Rhana, and Billa in Lin's quarters as they waited for Bhana to return.
Lin was standing with her back to the door, staring into the fire. "Where's Ardin?" she asked.
"He's not coming," Hillaeg replied. "He said to tell you that Kandler passed his test and since he didn't need to be involved beyond that, that he was going to the Woodland Realm to visit aduadar."
Lin said nothing, raising her hand to her face to wipe away a tear before it fell, and turning as Bhana came bounding into the room.
"You wore that to the forges?" Rhana asked her twin.
"Just because Bolger doesn't like you to flaunt what we've got, doesn't mean I can't, sister," she sneered. "Besides, the whole point was to see if I could entice Kandler, and I can't do that in my guard clothes!"
"And?" Lin asked.
Hilaeg found herself tensing up to hear Bana's answer.
"Well, I tried," she pouted, throwing herself in a chair. "Very hard. But he passed. He had perfect manners."
"Why so upset?" Lin asked. "Were you hoping he'd fail? Do you think he is your one?"
"Nah. But I wouldn't mind spending one night with him!"
"Bhana!" Rhana scolded. "Don't talk like that! Lin is probably going to marry him!"
Bhana sat up and looked at all her friends in the room, "Do you mean he passed all the other tests?"
All but Lin, who was had turned back to stare into the fire, nodded. They remained silent sharing glances between them until Hilaeg finally spoke up.
"What are you thinking, Lin?" she asked softly.
Lin slowly turned to face them all, brushing non-existent folds out of her dress, "I think I need to go talk to Kandler before we go tell our parents the good news." She put on a brilliant smile, but her friends could see that it didn't reach her eyes.
Hilaeg gave her best friend a big embrace before tapping her forehead to the Lin's. "Mahal's blessing on you both," she choked out, before brushing a few tears from her eyes. "He'll make you a fine husband."
.
.
After dinner, Hilaeg tried to settle down with a book as Dwalin paced the floor.
"Amad will be fine, adad."
"Aye, I know, but I like it better when she is under the mountain at night. She's not as young as she thinks she is."
Hilaeg side-eyed her father.
"I never said that! And don't you DARE tell her I did!"
Hilaeg got up and gave her father a hug. "How about I make you some hobbit cookies tomorrow. That's will make you feel better!"
Dwalin smiled back at her, "Aye, it would. And with Ardin gone I can have the whole batch to myself!"
A knock on the door interrupted father and daugher, and when Dwalin opened the door one of Princess Dis' guards was there asking for Hilaeg.
"Is there something wrong, laddie?" Dwalin demanded.
"All I know is that the Princess wanted me to fetch Lady Hilaeg," he responded.
"No worries, adad," Hilaeg said as she got between the two. "Why don't you go make certain the front gate is secure, since I know you're anxious to do that. I'm sure Princess Dis won't keep me late." She gave her father a quick kiss on the cheek and walked off with the guard.
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****************************** Author's Notes ***************
Wouldn't it be a shame for Lin marry someone she's not in love with?