After finishing their satisfying hot meals and downing their beer, Gandalf, Bilbo, and eleven Dwarves left to go crawl into hot beds. Dwalin stayed behind with Thorin, who was enjoying his pipe while deep in thought.

Thorin's mind flashed back to Dis, his beloved sister and mother of his nephews Fili and Kili. Dis's beautiful face had been marred by grief and sadness. First she lost her husband, the father of his two nephews, when the stupid Dragon invaded Erebor. Thorin had watched his sister try and hide her grief so she could focus on her two boys; to no avail because Dis's grief had grown worse when Thorin sent word to her how their grandfather, Thror, had been slain, and that their father went missing. In the reply letter Thorin received from Dis, he could just see her lovely face blotched with tears and grief when he took in the pain that his sister wrote in the reply letter.

Thorin was suddenly snapped out of his thoughts when Dwalin put a comforting hand on his arm. Thorin figured his sorrow for his sister and nephews had shown on his face because of the concerned look Thorin read on Dwalin's face. "I'm fine."

"Are ya sure?" asked Dwalin.

"Yes." Thorin really looked at the concern on his friend's face. "Why?"

"Ya had sorrow on yer face when ya were deep in yer thoughts."

"I was feeling sorrow for my sister and nephews; losing her husband and the father of her two boys, then our grandfather and our father." Thorin took a swig of his beer.

"You should have seen her face; marred by grief and blotched by tears not only because of the stupid Dragon, but also because of the stupid Orcs. That is why this quest is so vital."

In understanding, "I did see her face. I lost count of how many times Dis reminded me to look after ya and the lads the night she gave me a final reminder along with this." Dwalin took a very very small brown wrapped package out from within his cloak and handed it to Thorin. While Thorin took the package from Dwalin, his best friend added, "Dis told me to give ya that. She figured it would bring ya hope of some sort since it only brought her bad reminders after the stupid Dragon robbed us of our homeland and killed her husband."

Thorin unwrapped the brown wrapping and found the ring that had belonged to the mother of Dis and him. Thorin remembered seeing the delicate ring being given to his soon-to-be-brother by Thrain, the father of he and Dis. The delicate ring that now lay in the center of the brown wrapping with a small note tucked underneath.

Thorin picked up the note and, keeping his voice down so only Dwalin could hear, read: "'My dear brother, I am a widow now and a single mom. I know you swore to protect my two sons since they are all I have left. I wanted to give you our mother's ring, in hopes you find your love someday, just like I did with mine. I love you Thorin. You and my sons are the only family I have left. Come back safely to me, and bring your love with you after you find her. All my love to you and Dwalin also

Dis.'"

Thorin refolded the letter and then rewrapped the ring in the brown wrapping and handed the very very small package back to Dwalin. "I trust you with this."

Dwalin tucked the very very small brown package back in his cloak. "We may be in a safe place, but no place is safe fer ya. Ya got a price on yer head like the rest of us. So you don' know who is watching."

"Yer friend is right, dear boy," spoke an unexpected female voice, and both Thorin and Dwalin had turned their attention to an Elder woman who now sat in Gandalf's empty chair. "Ye never know who might be watching."

In Dwarvish tongue, the Elder woman introduced, "my name is Fairen." Fairen asked, "what are yer names?"

Surprise filled Dwalin's and Thorin's facial features when the woman spoke Dwarvish. As quickly as the surprise came, Thorin and Dwalin recovered. Dwalin, in Dwarvish tongue, first spoke, "my name is Dwalin. Pleasure to meet ya sister."

"Pleasure is all mine, Dwalin," Fairen replied in Dwarvish tongue. Fairen's eyes turned to Thorin when Thorin, in Dwarvish tongue, introduced, "my name is Thorin Oakenshield. Pleasure as well, sister."

Fairen, in Dwarvish tongue, replied, "I am pleased to meet ya Thorin Oakenshield." Fairen asked, "so the rumors are true after all? Ya were robbed of yer homeland?"

Thorin and Dwalin responded with a single nod.

Thorin and Dwalin studied the Elder woman: gray wrinkled skin covered by a plain red dress, gray hair covered and wrapped in a headdress that lay over the woman's thin shoulder; adorning the hem of the headdress were beautiful jewels that rested against the woman's wrinkled forehead. Gray eyebrows and long gray eyelashes framed fierce, but beautiful green eyes. The woman looked to be a tad taller than both he and Dwalin.

In Dwarvish tongue, Thorin asked, "how do you know our language? Were you taught?"

Fairen smiled. "Oh no, my dear boy. I was born in Erebor."

"What?!" asked a surprised Thorin and a surprised Dwalin in Dwarvish tongue.

"You were born in Erebor?" asked Thorin.

"Aye," Fairen explained, "I am part Dwarf and part Witch, and I have some news fer ya Thorin Oakenshield, son of Thrain, especially since I saw the ring that my father made fer ya great grandfather to give yer great grandmother - the same ring tha,' no doubtlessly, been handed down to yer father to give yer mother, that was supposed to be given to yer sister."

"For me?" Thorin asked while Fairen leaned over to grab her satchel that sat on the floor against her chair. "Aye, and Dwalin too. Just a shame yer sister never got tha' ring."

"Dis did get that ring, but she lost her husband and the father of my two nephews when the Dragon robbed us of our homeland. So Dis gave the ring to Dwalin to give to me," Thorin explained in Dwarvish tongue while Fairen laid her satchel on the table and in Dwarvish tongue, replied, "I am so sorry to hear tha,'" while pulling various items out from deep within her satchel.

"I hope she does not have any of 'em stupid Tarrot Cards," Dwalin whispered to Thorin in English.

Thorin smiled when Fairen whacked Dwalin on the head with a rolled up wanted poster that she had just pulled out when Dwalin had whispered to him. With a smile on his face, Thorin, in English, whispered, "I think she heard you."

"Aye, she did."

Finally speaking, "here it is." Fairen pulled out a flat, silver metal rectangle box from within her satchel and set the box on the table.

Thorin and Dwalin exchanged a curious look while Fairen set the box on the table, and they watched with curiosity while Fairen opened the lid and took out an hourglass shaped vial filled with gray liquid with a heart shaped emblem engraved into both sides of the vial. Both Thorin's and Dwalin's curiosity drained when Fairen pulled out a covered needle and set it beside the vial on the table.

Fairen closed the lid and pushed the metal box to the side. Speaking in Dwarvish, Fairen began, "I know how hard this quest will get fer ya both - especially fer Erebor's new king," Fairen continued in Dwarvish, "but the strength and love of a good woman can and will help ya both greatly - especially the new king of Erebor. But the question still remains: who is the future woman fer ya both? So…" Fairen paused while uncorking the vial and uncovering the needle. "…Ya first." Fairen held out a hand to Dwalin.

Dwalin and Thorin briefly exchanged a look of uncertainty before Dwalin put his hand in Fairen's palm-faced-up-hand. Fairen gently turned Dwalin's meaty hand over then, quickly and efficiently, pricked a fingertip with the needle; drawing only a drop of blood. Fairen grabbed the gray-liquid-filled-vial, and dripped Dwalin's blood into the liquid.

Making a hissing sound, steam rose from within the vial and the gray liquid turned as clear as glass, and in the liquid glass mirror, appeared first an image of Rivendell, then an image of a woman with what looked to Dwalin: long brown hair, olive toned skin, and when the liquid glass mirror showed the woman's face, Dwalin saw brown eyebrows and long brown eyelashes framing beautiful hazel brown eyes.

Dwalin felt his heart skip a beat. Fairen, in English, told Dwalin, "ya will find yer soul woman in Rivendell." Fairen turned to Thorin. "Yer turn."

Thorin turned his meaty hand palm-face-up. Fairen gently took Thorin's hand and just like the Elder woman did with Dwalin, quickly and efficiently pricked one of his fingertips with her needle; drawing only a drop of blood.

Thorin watched Fairen drip his drop of blood into the gray liquid after the two previous images vanished. After the gray liquid made the same hissing sound, steam again rose from within the vial after the gray liquid mixed with Thorin's blood. Again the gray liquid turned as clear as glass, and again, an image of Rivendell appeared in the liquid glass mirror, followed by an image of a woman.

Thorin felt his own heart skip a beat when he saw the woman: long purple hair, pale skin, purple eyebrows and long purple eyelashes framed beautiful purple gem eyes. Thorin saw that the woman had a tattoo of a blue arrowhead on her forehead, the tip of the blue arrowhead vanished behind a blood red diamond in the center of the woman's forehead.

After the image of the woman, the image changed to show both the woman with purple hair and pale skin standing beside the woman with brown hair and olive toned skin. Both women looked like they were talking.

"Yer sole mates live in Rivendell. Ya will meet them on yer journey. However, both of ya will have to discover their names fer yerselves." Fairen corked the vial and rewrapped the needle then put them back in the metal rectangle box and shut the lid. "I am truly sorry fer yer guys's loss of yer homeland and yer families. That is why the love of a good woman will help even more. The love of a good woman helps heal the sorrows of a man's heart. In this case, the love of those two women will help heal the grief and sorrow of both yer hearts. When the time comes fer both of ya to court them and marry them, ya better have love and treat them the way that they deserve, because they have been adopted by the Elven King. Love and treat them the way they deserve, and they will love ya and treat ya the way ya deserve." Fairen looked to Thorin. "Especially a new king."

After Fairen said goodbye to Thorin and Dwalin, Fairen left to go crawl into her own bed for the night. Thorin and Dwalin finished their beer and went to go crawl into their own warm beds for the night. A lot of thoughts and emotions now weighed on the hearts of both Dwarves. Thorin and Dwalin however, for the first time, felt hope settle within their heart and soul while they made their way up the stairs for their bedrooms to crawl into a warm hot bed with a smile on their face.