Author's Note: I just realized I've been forgetting something vital. Disclaimer: I own nothing aside from the OC and the characters that can't be found in any of JRR Tolkien or Peter Jackson's work.

Aaaaaaaand que the squealing fangirl.

Nora's mental jaw is hanging as wide as it can possibly go. Inside the gates are two-story houses, store fronts, vendor stalls, an inn, a stable, and a few animals scattered around. The most interesting part, though, is the population of Dwarves. Mostly dwarrows, with a few dwarrowdams here and there. She can only tell the dams from the dwarrows because of the amount of facial hair. The dams have light sideburns or the occasional small mustache, but none have beards. None of the Dwarves wear bright colors; all of their clothes could be put into what film-costume designers would call the "mushroom colors" category. All of them have wild, usually curly, hair, and all of them have braids and metal beads decorating their hair. A few dwarflings can be seen running around or clinging to the adults.

Thorin and his nephews walk through the street, the boys rushing ahead and then falling back like yo-yos. After about fifteen minutes, they approach a house. Kíli rushes inside ("Ama! Ama! Come quick! Look what we found!"), but Fíli waits for Thorin at the door and holds it open as he walks inside. Squealing fangirl, take two.

The home of the Durins is small and cozy. What looks like the living room is a square room about ten feet wide. There's one small couch and an armchair, both of them worn and seemingly handmade. The floor is mostly covered by a plain rug, but the dirt floor beneath it can be seen around the edges. There's a low square table (also handmade) about 4 feet across. There's one open door on the right side of the far wall that appears to lead to the kitchen. On the other side of the room is a spiral staircase leading to a second floor. Rushing down that staircase is Kíli, followed by a less-rushed dwarrowdam. She looks so much like Thorin and Kíli, there's no doubting that she is Dis, Thorin's sister, Fíli and Kíli's mother. She slows on the last few steps as she sees Thorin with Nora (the large wolf pup) in his arms.

"Thorin, what's this?" Her voice makes Nora think of Courtney Cox with a British accent. She eyes Nora. "Why have you brought a wolf into the house?"

"Ama, she's injured. We found her trapped in a ditch in the woods," Fíli says. "She's friendly, see?" He pets the top of her head, and she moves around so she can lick his hand. "Uncle said she fractured her right hock," he adds. Dis's weary expression morphs into one of concern. She walks forward slowly, keeping her eyes on the pup (a.k.a. Nora).

"Her mother wasn't with her?" Dis asked. Thorin shook his head.

"She was alone. Kíli saw found her in a ditch early this morning and came back to tell me. If the mother was able or willing to come back to her pup, she would've done it by the time we reached her," he answers.

"Uncle says she won't make it on her own with a facted hock," Kíli tells his mother, adorably mispronouncing "fractured." "Please can she stay? Please, Ama?" he pleads with Dis. She looks reluctant at first, but then Fíli joins the pleading. With both of her sons making pouty lips and puppy dog eyes, she quickly loses what remains of her resolve and sighs.

"She may stay." The boys start to cheer, but she interrupts. "She may stay only until she is well enough to survive on her own. Understood?" Fíli and Kíli's faces fall a bit, but they nod. Nora can understand Dis's hesitation to allow a wolf into her home, even one so young. Wolves tend to be unpredictable and sometimes dangerous. There's very little danger from the average puppy, but any good mother tends to be paranoid about the safety of her children.

"What'll we name her?" Fíli asks. The adults look at him. "Well, we can't just keep calling her 'the pup' or 'it,' can we? She needs a name," he elaborates. Kíli immediately agrees and begins suggesting names. Nora wonders if that's a good idea. If Dis will only allow her to stay until she's healed, then it's better if the boys form as little attachment as possible. It seems the adults think the same thing. Thorin and Dis look at each other, then Thorin crouches down to the level of the dwarflings.

"Fíli, Kíli, giving the pup a name may not be such a good idea." At their confused expressions, he explains. "She will only be here for a short time, and then she will have to go back to the forest. Giving her a name will only make it more difficult to let her go when that time comes." The boys nod sadly in understanding.

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By the time the sun goes down, Nora's comfortably situated on a folded blanket under the living room table (the only place she could be without tripping anyone), and her leg is wrapped up nicely after a visit from the town's healer (who happens to have Oín as an apprentice). Dis is in the kitchen, preparing an unknown something that smells delicious. Thorin is sitting in the armchair, smoking pipe-weed and watching Fíli and Kíli, who are laying on their stomachs on the floor, facing Nora. Kíli, having insisted upon calling her something after getting confused, has dubbed her Girl. Now, the boys are petting her and cooing, calling her Girl. Dis gave her a bowl of water earlier, which she had lapped up quickly, so her thirst is no longer an issue. Her hunger, however, might just get to her if she doesn't get a taste of whatever Dis is cooking. Speaking of which...

"Boys! Time for dinner!" The dwarflings scurry to their feet and rush to the kitchen, which apparently has a table and chairs. Thorin follows behind at a much slower pace. Now the only occupant in the living room, Nora curls up, tucks her head into her side, and closes her eyes. If she's not going to eat, she might as well sleep. This plan does not work out. Only a few minutes later, the boys come back with three plates. They lay on their stomachs and place their own plates in front of them. They put the third on the floor in front of Nora. With smells flooding her nose and the steam particles landing on her tongue, her hunger erases all coherent thought and she lunges at the food. The boys snort and giggle, but she only cares about filling her stomach with the delicious contents of the plate. Thankfully, there's a lot of food, and by the time she finishes her plate, she's full and content. She hears a soft deep chuckle and looks up to see Thorin watching the three of them with a smile on his face.

With a belly full of Dis's delicious cooking, Nora feels the pull of sleep. Before succumbing to it, she licks each of the dwarflings' cheeks (causing them to giggle once more) as a goodnight gesture. She then curls up and closes her eyes. Soon, she drifts off into the first peaceful sleep she's had since arriving in Middle Earth.