When Halien awoke, she was laying on the ground and she looked up to see the eagles of Gondolin circling back towards their home. She sat up and thanked Gandalf, then watched as he went to Thorin. She tried to get up but fell to her knees as Thorin woke up. He looked around, searching for Bilbo.

"It's alright, Bilbo is here. He's quite safe.' Gandalf assured him.

"You! What were you doing? You nearly got yourself killed! Did I not say that you would be a burden? That you would not survive in the wild? That you had no place amongst us?" he asked as he advanced on the Hobbit. "I have never been so wrong, in all my life," Thorin said, hugging Bilbo tightly.

Bofur helped Halien to stand and she smiled when she saw that Bilbo had finally proven his worth to Thorin and that Thorin now considered him as one of the company. The company rejoiced, glad to be safe and in one piece for the moment. Then, Thorin stopped, as the eagles flew home, and stared into the distance at the Lonely Mountain, rising high above the horizon.

A thrush flew by them and towards the mountain and Thorin took it as a sign, a good omen. He turned and walked over to Halien.

"We're nearly there, Halien."

"We are true." She replied, then kissed her husband's head.

Thorin smiled and didn't notice how the others looked at them.

Bofur smiled and had a hunch that he knew what was going on between them. Next to him, the other dwarves and Gandalf smiled and sighed in relief, seeing how close the elf and their king had become.

"So, who gave you the ring, lass?" Bofur asked Halien as they made their way down the pass to the base of the mountain peak where the eagles had dropped them off. "It's beautiful."

Halien blushed and smiled. She looked to Thorin as he led the company onward. Bofur could see her feelings clear in her eyes for Thorin as she touched Reva's stones.

"I see. It's alright, lass, I won't say anything." He replied.

"Thank you." She replied with a smile.

As they continued down the long pathway, Halien was beginning to feel faint. Her head ached and her stomach tightened as she felt the need to expel its contents. She tried to go slowly, but when they finally reached the base of the mountain, she rested against the side of the rock face and turned towards the bushes.

The company turned and stared as Halien wretched into the bushes. Bilbo rushed to her side and rubbed her back as she sank to one knee.

"Halien, it's been five months since we left Rivendell. You seem to not be able to shake this sickness, or whatever it is." He whispered. "Did you lay in bed with anyone while we were there?"

Halien looked up at him and her eyes widened. "Thorin…"

At that point, Thorin had come over to see that she was alright, not aware of the thought that crossed both the hobbit's and the elf's minds.

"Halien, are you sick?" he asked, helping her up.

Shaking her head and not wanting to worry him, she said, "No, Thorin. I am alright. I just need to go easy for a while."

Thorin nodded and they went at a slow pace from there.

A few weeks more had passed since then and Halien realized that it had been one year since they had set out on their quest.

Halien couldn't sleep and sat up, looking at the night sky. She rubbed her stomach gently, feeling her belly. Halien had not yet told Thorin that she was with child. She didn't want to worry him since their journey was dangerous. She felt the child growing within her and was relieved that she hadn't started to show too much, but it was easy to conceal it beneath her cloak and her ranger clothes.

Beside her, Thorin began to stir. He looked up and saw Halien gazing at the stars. 'Are you alright, my dear?'

Halien looked down and smiled. 'Of course, my love. I am just having a hard time sleeping for some reason.'

'Is your stomach alright? Does it hurt?' Thorin asked her, sitting up.

'It's fine, Thorin. Don't worry about it.' She told him, giving him a quick kiss. 'Go back to sleep, little king.'

Thorin smiled and set his head down on his arm, trying to go back to sleep. Halien in the meantime stood and went to the small pond that was a few yards from the camp. As she sat down and rested for a moment, Bilbo came out from behind the tree and stopped next to her.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her.

"As well as one could expect." She replied, a hand to her womb. "I hate not telling Thorin the truth, but I don't want him to worry." Looking to Bilbo, she continued. "Everyone knows that we're married now, but I don't know if they will handle news of a child being brought into this world with how dangerous our journey is."

"A child is a wonderful thing, but I understand your worry," Bilbo said. "There will be a time when you have to tell Thorin before you start to show. I do not think that anyone has noticed yet, but I have seen that you are beginning to show, even under your clothes. You will not be able to hide this much longer."

"I know, but I don't want him to worry. If he knows about his child and something bad is about to happen to him, he may be too distracted from the task at hand and get hurt in the process."

Bilbo nodded and started to walk back to camp. "You seem to have gotten over the morning sickness pretty well, by now. I was beginning to worry before; you seemed to be sick to your stomach every few days. I thought perhaps it was something bad you ate. As far as Thorin goes, you should tell him, but tell him when you are ready. You need to make sure you get plenty of rest, alright?"

Halien nodded and followed him back to the camp.

Halien woke up to breakfast and a smile from Thorin. He and the others had already woken up and had let her sleep some more. Halien took the plate from her husband and thanked him.

"Bilbo decided to make breakfast this time, so we let you sleep in a bit," Thorin said.

She thanked him and looked at Bilbo who smiled. 'Don't worry, Halien, I will keep your secret.'

She smiled and thanked the Hobbit.