Congratulations to those who found the movie quotes. They were Thranduil thinking that "a hundred years was but a blink of an eye for an elf" and Fili telling Dunner that "We never forgive…and we never forget."

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Now, let's get to the confession time! Spill your guts Thorin...as well as you Fili. Everyone has some 'splaining to do! (wink wink Phantominthemists)

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Chapter 135

~X~


Every member of the original company and their families joined them, all wishing to either hear about what took place in Erebor, or on the mission. While Bombur and his children desired to hear both! Bard, Bain and Thranduil also accompanied the group, with the king of Dale bringing along another full tankard of ale. Once everyone had filed in, finding seats for the adults while the little ones sat on the floor, they all eagerly turned to Thorin expectantly.

"How could you have not told us about this immediately?" Fili asked, sounding shocked and a bit horrified. "Or sent a raven with the news before we returned?" He let his hand find his wife's, giving it a squeeze as if to reassure himself that she was well and unharmed.

"I did not wish to dampen tonight's celebration," Thorin answered. "It was all over and dealt with before your return, and I figured there would be plenty of time to explain tomorrow."

"Is that what happened to the gates?" Kili spoke up. "Did they break them down in an effort to get in?"

"No…that was done in an effort to get out," the king stated. "Or, more precisely, it was done to get us out and let Bard and Thranduil in." At this, Thorin looked over at Gloin. "You have your cousin to thank for that."

"It was the only way I could think to open the gates!" Gloin insisted, getting a bit tired of explaining his actions over and over. "Next time we get invaded…YOU can open the bloody doors yourself!"

"Peace, Gloin," Thorin chuckled. "Your efforts were most effective, and very much appreciated. We only jest with you."

"So how did the Blacklocks get inside? And what did they want?" Dwalin questioned, his mind already working up new ways of keeping the mountain secure. "And most importantly…how did you get them out!"

"Well, most of them are still here," Thorin revealed. "They are just either in the dungeons…or dead. We have sent word to Lord Haken, asking him if he wishes his dwarves returned to him, as well as the bodies of the slain. He has yet to reply."

"The dungeons, eh?" Dwalin said with a sly grin. "My territory."

"Now, now, brother," Balin warned. "King Thorin has things under control, no need for you to go down there and start throwing your weight around."

"Speaking of throwing your weight around," Dwalin responded, apparently on to a new subject. "What's this about you being made king?"

"Well, that is quite an interesting story," Thorin laughed, watching Balin's face turn slightly red as all eyes were now on him. So, the king under the mountain proceeded to tell everyone there what had happened. How he had been forced to try on armor, and made Balin wear his coat and crown, thus having Hagen mistake him for Thorin when he burst into his chambers. Fili seemed to give a sigh of relief when he was told that Sier and Marigold had gotten Freya and Rose to safety through the tunnels. It was Dwalin's turn to be relived however when it was revealed that Bergie and the twins got away safe as well.

"Thus it was, Dis and the dams began to make their way through the mountain, trying to find a way to break us out of the dungeons," Thorin continued. "Sadly, the only way to reach us was through the ventilation shafts."

"The ventilation shafts?" Dwalin asked in a shocked voice. "Those are far too small for a dwarrow to crawl through! I should know, I made damn sure no one could ever escape that way!"

"That is true," Sier spoke up. "And that is why Tor and Tal volunteered to sneak in and get a message to, and from, Thorin for us."

Now this had Dwalin's eyes growing wide, looking down at the twins sitting near his feet. They both turned and stared up at him with wide smiles.

"It was fun, Adad!" Talin told him. "We got dirty and everything!"

"Well, steal my gizzard and call me gutless!" Dwalin barked out with a wide grin, slapping his hand on his knee. "I always knew my little ones had spunk! Good for you!"

"You would have been so proud of them, my love," Bergie said, also beaming at her children.

"I always have been," Dwalin nodded, opening his arms to scoop up his twins, engulfing them in a big hug. "But this just makes me more so!"

"Tor and Tal brought back word from Thorin telling us to get the Arkenstone out of the mountain, since that was what Hagen was after," Gimli spoke up, this being the part where he and Bifur came in. "Since Bifur has no Durin blood in him, he was the only one who could handle it safely. So he took it and headed after our soldiers who had been sent towards the iron hills under a false command from the king. I hated to send him off alone, but I just couldn't leave Erebor knowing my adad was imprisoned, and my amad was in danger."

"We completely understand that," Kili nodded, knowing he too would have been reluctant to leave if he had found himself in the same situation. "But how did you manage to get out of the dungeons?" Kili persisted. He was sitting very close to Tauriel, his hand accidentally brushing hers now and then, but he did manage to keep his eyes on Thorin, and his mind on what he was saying.

"We used Nori's key," Thorin stated with a slight chuckle.

"My key?" the thief gasped, sitting up straight as his eyes grew wide. "You went into my room?"

"That we did!" Dena huffed, crossing her arms and giving him an angry glare. "And I ended up trapped beneath a net for my troubles too!"

"You did?" Nori tried to look guilty, but he was having a hard time not laughing at the idea of Gloin's wife in such a position.

"Laugh all you want," Dena told him smugly. "Just wait till you see how we left things! And you might want to avoid Dis for a while as well, since we found the crown you snitched from her. Oh, are you in so much trouble!"

This bit of news did indeed cause Nori to blanch slightly. He had not expected anyone to search his room while he was gone, and certainly not find the item he had pinched from Dis. He would have to work extra hard to get back on her good side. However, bringing back her long-lost husband, should buy him a little goodwill with the princess.

"It was about that time that Bard came to the mountain, trying to figure out why our gates were shut and the ravens were left unattended," Gloin was the next to speak up. "And since Hagen thought Balin was the king, he sent him out to speak to him…thus tipping him off that the mountain was not just under quarantine, but under attack as well."

"Oh, yes," Bard nodded, holding up his half empty tankard of ale. "Seeing Balin dressed in the king's coat and crown was a dead giveaway, that's for sure. At that point I was glad I had not waited and already sent a message to Thranduil, asking for aid. I had no idea what was going on, but I knew it was nothing good. And thanks to Balin's cryptic messages, I figured out that he wanted us to storm the mountain that evening. I was extremely grateful that our esteemed elf king answered my call to arms so quickly, thus strengthening our forces considerably." Here he gave Thranduil a nod of his head, causing the elf to return the gesture.

"So, you got Nori's key and had the twins bring it to you through the ventilation system? Is that how you got out and let Bard and Thranduil in?" Fili guessed, getting the story back on track.

"No. Unfortunately the grate was too small for the key to fit through," Balin told them, stepping in to speak as Thorin paused for a moment to take a sip of his ale. "So in order to get the key to us in the cell…Dis braided it into Rose's hair, and sent her into the dungeons."

"SHE WHAT?" Now it was Kili's turn to sound appalled. "What was Amad thinking?"

"Apparently she wasn't!" Thorin groused, still a bit peeved at the whole idea. "And neither was Marigold, if you ask me."

"But I wanted to help, Adad," the little princess insisted, standing up and coming over to crawl into her father's lap. "And I was the only one who had long hair."

"I know, my little flower," Thorin smiled, kissing her on the cheek. "And you did a splendid job of getting in and sneaking us the key. We couldn't have escaped without you. Though, I do hope you never try and pull any of that temper tantrum stuff on your mother or I. You really do have a fine set of lungs."

"I won't, Adad," Rose giggled, snuggling into her father's embrace. "I promise."

"So, once we had the key, we let ourselves out, overpowered the guards and met up with Dis and the others…including Gimli, who had by now joined the dams," Gloin said with a measure of pride.

"From there, we split up, sending Gloin, Gimli and Dena to the gates to get them open and let Bard in…we did not know at the time that King Thranduil had joined him," Thorin explained, giving a nod of appreciation towards the elf king. "Ori was assigned to take Marigold and Rose back to the tunnels, where Bergie and the other children were waiting, while I took Dis, Sier, Balin and Dori with me and began to hunt down Hagen."

"Sier!" Fili gasped, looking at his wife, unsure what to think. "Why would you place yourself at such risk?" He then turned his eyes on Thorin. "Uncle…how could you?"

"My niece is a warrior lass, through and through, Fili," the king said sternly. "I would have been a fool not to accept her assistance…and I doubt she would have let me leave her behind."

"That I would not!" the dark haired dam nodded. She shifted the sleeping Freya to her other shoulder and reached out a hand to lay on Fili's arm, noticing that he was trembling slightly. "I planned on telling you all about it later tonight, after the celebration. Please do not worry, Freya was completely safe in the tunnels with Bergie and the twins. But I was not about to let others fight for our home while I stood by and did nothing. You trained me well, my love. I was not injured, I promise."

"But you could have been!" Fili pointed out. "I could have easily come home to find my one dead! Do you have any idea of how that would've destroyed me?"

"No, Fili," Sier said rather sarcastically, getting a cross look on her face. "How could I ever know that feeling of fear at the thought of losing the love of my life in battle?"

Fili cringed at her harsh tone, realizing that she knew better than anyone, and he felt a stab of guilt over it…as well as his thoughtless words.

"Forgive me, love," he whispered, leaning in to touch his forehead to hers. "You are right. I'm sorry."

"So what happened next?" little Flinn asked in an excited tone, the story just now really getting good.

"Gloin broke down the gates using the large bell that hung in the entryway, allowing Bard and Thranduil to enter with their men, and took care of most of the guards," Dena stated proudly. "It really was an amazing sight!"

"It was rather spectacular when viewed from outside the mountain as well," Bard laughed, recalling his shock when the giant golden bell came crashing through the gates.

"Meanwhile, we found Hagen in the Hall of the Kings, or more precisely, he found us, and that was when he realized Thorin was the king…and not me at all," Balin explained. "A battle ensued, and while we were holding our own…we were quite outnumbered. But that's when help arrived, in the form of elven archers, led by none other than King Thranduil himself."

"You joined the battle?" Little Flinn asked, turning to look at the elf king with a wide smile. "You saved my Ama and Uncle?"

"I played my part," Thranduil stated rather humbly.

"Thank you!" the little blond dwarfling cried, jumping up and throwing himself into the startled elf's arms, hugging him tightly.

"You…you are most welcome, Master Flinn," Thranduil replied, a slight lump in his throat at the affectionate gesture from the lad. He then looked over to Thorin, who was wearing a rather out of place smile as well. Perhaps the two monarchs had at last turned that all important corner towards friendship. And while Thranduil hoped they had…he would be damned if he would tell the dwarf that. He rather enjoyed their verbal sparring, and he hated to see it end just yet.

"What about Hagen?" Dwalin asked, his hands balling into fists as he itched to wrap his fingers around that scum's neck.

"Dead," Thorin stated firmly, but without giving any of the gory details. "Killed him myself."

"Good for you!" Bofur gave a cheer. "Sounds like he deserved no less!"

"And that's when Queen Marigold went into labor!" Ori said with a heavy sigh and a rather sick look on his face.

"What?" Fili was shocked. "During the battle?"

"Well, she wasn't anywhere near the fighting," Thorin corrected. "But yes, during it. I arrived just in time to learn that the babe was not turned properly, and that both she and Marigold would most assuredly die if nothing could be done." Once more he turned his eyes to the elf, who was still holding his nephew on his lap. "Thankfully…King Thranduil was able to assist in this regard, saving both my one and my child. In honor of his help, Marigold named our second daughter, Raina…after the former queen of Mirkwood."

At this many in the room gasped in shock, while others simply stared in silence. Yet in the end, no one could fault the king and queen on the touching gesture.

"About that time, Bifur returned with our troops, having caught up to them rather quickly when they were delayed wiping out a pack of orcs heading north." Thorin continued.

"A pack of orcs?" Dwalin asked. "About fifty strong?"

"Aye, that's what they said," Bifur nodded.

"Well, those must have been the very same ones we were forced to let slip by us on the way," the bald warrior stated. "Good to hear you got them in the end, the filth!"

"After that, we rounded up the last of Hagen's soldiers, and sent a message…well, more like an ultimatum, to the Blacklocks, offering them back the captives and their dead, in exchange for a signed promise never to attempt to invade Erebor again. And if they don't agree…they will be disavowed from the seven clans."

This also brought a round of gasps from the group, knowing that such a thing would be the highest insult imaginable. They would be fools not to accept.

"Now we simply have to get the gates fixed, and do some work on beefing up security, so that nothing like this will ever happen again!" Thorin stated.

"And are you not fortunate that my most trusted captain of the guard will be residing in Erebor," Thranduil pointed out. "I am willing to bet that she could offer a few suggestions that would be of great help."

"Tauriel will be residing in Erebor?" Kili repeated, grabbing onto that piece of information with both hands greedily. "Does this mean you're giving us permission to marry, Uncle?"

"We will speak on that subject in the morning, when your amad can be present as well," Thorin stated firmly. He was even more tired now than he was earlier, and he could feel a headache setting in. The last thing he needed was to speak at length with his exuberant nephew…about an elf! "But right now, I am anxious to hear of your journey…and especially how you came to find your father in all this."

"Well, that is indeed a story," Fili laughed, still having a hard time believing it all himself. Still, he was a bit hesitant about telling it in full…since that would mean explaining to Sier how her two little lads had been captured. But, she would find out eventually, and perhaps if they were in a crowd, she might not yell at him too loudly…he hoped.

And so he began to relate the tale, telling of how they had been forced to hide as the orcs had passed them by, unwilling to lose any in a battle they didn't need to fight, while on the way to rescue the prisoners.

"You chose wisely, Fili," Thorin commended. "You did not let your lust for battle cloud your mind to what you needed to do. I applaud your decision."

"Aye, but it was those very orcs who prevented me from sending my lads home with a small contingency, fearing they might run into them on the way back," Fili revealed, causing Thorin to nod in rueful understanding.

"Wait…what?" Bombur spoke up, looking over at Fili in confusion. "What do you mean, send your lads home?"

Here Fili turned and stared at Flinn and Frerin, jerking his head slightly as if to tell them it was time. They would have to confess their deception eventually, and now seemed as good a time as any. The two dwarflings looked at each other and sighed, one getting to his feet while the other slid off Thranduil's lap, both walking over to stand in front of Bombur.

"Ummm, Mister Bombur, sir," Flinn began, his hands laced behind his back in a repentant manner. "We kind of have a confession."

"A confession?" the rotund dwarf asked, looking perplexed.

"You see, we kind of didn't go back to Erebor like we told you we would," Flinn continued. "Instead…we stowed away in the supply wagon from Dale and went along. We're sorry we deceived you…truly we are."

"You…you tricked me into letting you go home just so you could sneak off and join your father?" Bombur was aghast. "You lied to me?"

"No…we never lied, we just…well, we didn't tell you the whole truth is all," Frerin did his best to justify his crime.

"Lying by omission is still a lie, Frerin," Fili told his son, making the lad's face fall.

"We're sorry, Mister Bombur, really we are," Frerin sniffled, knowing there was no good excuse, so might as well just beg for mercy. "Please say you'll forgive us."

"Well now, lads," Bombur huffed, not quite sure what to think. "I have to say, I'm rather disappointed and a bit hurt that you would have treated me so poorly, when all I wanted to do was take you both on a nice camping trip."

"And you have every right to be mad at us," Flinn stated. "We promise to make it up to you…anyway you want. We can sweep, carry firewood, and peel potatoes…anything!"

"Well now, that idea might have some merit," Bombur nodded. "I will think it over and then talk with your parents. But don't expect me to go light on you two…what you did was wrong and you have to accept the consequences."

"Yes, sir," they both said in unison.

Bombur then turned to his own children, who were sitting nearby, not even daring to make eye contact with their father.

"And just what did you three know of this scheme?" he asked, very familiar with his own youngens. "Did you know what Flinn and Frerin were up to?"

When he got nothing but guilty looks out of Bram, Tam and Tae, he had his answer.

"Don't blame them, Mister Bombur," Flinn quickly spoke up. "It wasn't their idea…it was ours, and we swore them to secrecy."

"Just like they did Tor, Tal, and Rose," Thorin pointed out, looking over at Bombur as if to say he was not the only one who had been duped. "It was quite the conspiracy, it would appear."

"And we will never, ever do anything like that again!" Frerin wailed, hating to have anyone upset with him, even if he thoroughly deserved it. "It all stopped being any kind of fun when we were stuck in the wagon for days and days, but things really got scary after we got captured by those horrible orcs, and they wanted to eat us, and one of them licked my hair!" Here the little dwarfling rubbed the back of his head as his face screwed up in a look of disgust. "Then I had to crawl up a sticky food pipe, and almost got caught letting Adad out of the prison cell, and then that really mean orc wanted to stab Flinn, and…" he paused just for a moment to take a breath, but never finished his thought due to Sier's cry of anguish.

"YOU WHAT?" she gasped, her tone startling Freya awake, the little dam's lip sticking out as she looked around with a worried expression. "Fili…what is this about them being captured by orcs? Were you going to tell me any of this…and if so, WHEN?"

"Later on tonight," he admitted with a bit of wince, repeating her own words back to her. "I too did not wish to ruin tonight's festivities with tales of what transpired on the journey. Yes, things happened that were out of our control, but also, if it were not for Frerin, and the fact that he was the perfect size to crawl up a food pipe…we might still be stuck in that horrible mine. But look…your lads are here, safe and sound, with not a scratch on them."

"That's not true," Frerin spoke up, pulling up his sleeve and showing his parents the little bruise on his arm. "See my battle wound!"

"How did you get that?" Fili asked, confused by his son's purple mark.

"I got it from pinching myself to make me cry," Frerin stated, rather proud of himself. "Flinn said I needed to act sad and cry so that Mister Bombur would believe I was homesick and wanted my ama!"

At this Flinn elbowed his little brother, shooting his parents a rather sheepish look.

"Even those tears were a lie?" Bombur cried out, now more appalled than ever. "I believed you lad!"

"Oh, I think they will be making this up to you for a long, long time," Sier told Bombur, narrowing her eyes and shaking her head at her lads. She then turned and looked at Fili and Kili. "I blame you two."

"Us…what did we do?" Kili exclaimed, acting hurt by her words.

"You know perfectly well those two copy you in every way possible," Sier scolded, though there was a measure of humor behind her words. "I'm just glad that so far, Freya takes after me!"

"So am I, my love," Fili chuckled leaning in to kiss both of his dams on the cheek. "So am I."

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Over the course of the next hour, the story about how the prisoners were rescued was told, with many adding in their pieces to make a whole. Bard was beaming with pride by the time they finished telling of how Bain had bravely taken the lead in attacking the orcs, decimating their forces, and then storming the mountain to rescue those trapped inside. Bain blushed a little, but took the praise in stride, crediting his own troops, as well as the dwarves, for their aid in doing so.

Thorin's eyebrows rose in amazement when Kili described how Tauriel had pushed him out of the way of the cave-in, not to mention how she showed up just in the nick of time to save Flinn from being cut open by Gorbash. He had also gown a bit misty eyed when Fili had told him of their first meeting with their adad, explaining how he had stood up for his grandsons, even before he knew who they were.

"He thought we were adad and uncle," Flinn explained. "He was kind of confused…but we set him straight."

"I'm sure he was," Sier laughed, her mood having improved greatly as Fili had spoken of his father. "I bet he thought he was seeing things."

"That he did," Fili grinned. "Said he thought he had finally lost his mind."

"I can't wait to get to know him better," Sier sighed, leaning her head on Fili's shoulder.

"Of course you can't," Fili stated. "After all, most say I'm the spitting image of him…so why wouldn't you two get along splendidly?"

"Oh, you!" Sier laughed, slapping his arm playfully.

"I think it's time we all call it a night," Thorin stated, his eyes more than tired after a long day and so many surprises. He would need a good month to process them all…if he ever could. And right now, all he wanted was to hold his wife in his arms and get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow would be just as hard…if not more so, with the funerals planned, honoring those who had died on the journey, and in Erebor. Not to mention, he would need to speak to Kili about his intentions towards the elf. And even though he knew he would give his consent, he had to talk to Dis about the subject…and Thorin was not looking forward to that.

Everyone agreed and rose from their seats, a few of the younger children needing to be carried out in their parent's arms. Bard, having indeed had just one too many pints of ale, had decided to accept Thorin's offer to stay the night, and not attempt to ride home in the dark. Besides, they would only have to return first thing for the scheduled funerals anyway, so it was best that they stay. The royal family of Dale had a nice apartment made up for them, which was rather convenient.

Yet as Fili and Kili stepped out of Thorin's council chamber, with Tauriel and Sier right behind, they were halted in their tracks by a rather stern looking Tilda. And from the way she was staring directly at the two of them…they knew they had done something to anger the princess.

"Ummmm…can we help you, Tilda?" Fili asked, shooting Bard and Bain a pleading look for help as they also exited the room. Yet the two held up their hands and backed away, letting the dwarves know they were on their own in this one.

"Can you help me?" she reiterated, fire in her eyes. "I think you have already helped me enough!"

"What did we do?" Kili whined, though he knew exactly what she was all up in arms about.

"Did you, or did you not, ambush poor Dunner and practically threaten to cut off certain parts of his anatomy, if he even so much as looked at me wrong?" Tilda demanded, her face turning a bit red at the thought of Dunner's…well, you know.

"We did no such thing!" Fili insisted. "Well, at least not in so many words. Is it our fault he read more into it than we intended? But that's all we did…I swear."

"He said you pointed a blade on him!" Tilda shrieked.

"Oh…that," Fili said with a sheepish grin. "Well, maybe I forgot to mention that little detail."

"You know, Adad," little Flinn spoke up. "Didn't you just say that lying by omission is still a lie?"

Fili shut his eyes and rubbed his temples in exasperation.

"Oh, sure…now you start listening to every word I say?" he moaned, knowing this was not helping his case, or making him look good in front of his children.

"Oh, pish!" Kili scoffed. "That was nothing. Fili merely pulled out one of his knives to clean under his fingernails…we have been on the road for some time you know. His hands were dirty."

"You two can spin this any way you wish, but I'm here to tell you now, that you are both forbidden to speak to Dunner ever again!" Tilda shouted.

"What?" Fili sounded hurt. "But why? We kind of like the lad."

"That's a fine way to treat someone you like!" Tilda then stepped forward and linked her arm with Tauriel's. "Come, you will be bunking with me tonight. There is a shortage of rooms with man-sized beds, and I happen to have a spare."

"Hey…wait!" Kili groused, not wishing to part with Tauriel just yet. "Maybe she and I wanted to talk a bit more."

"Well, that's just too bad! How does it feel to have someone mess with your love life for a change, huh, Kili?" Tilda said, giving him an indignant sniff as she stormed away, pulling the somewhat reluctant elf with her. Tauriel managed one final look over her shoulder and a slight wave before the two disappeared around the corner, leaving Kili feeling lonely and sad.

"Well, that wasn't very nice," the dark haired prince pouted.

"Wait…" Bard said, his eyes opening wide as if he just realized something. "Did Tilda say…love life?" He looked down the corridor where his youngest daughter had gone, and then over to Bain. "What did she mean by love life? My little Tilda…what?"

"Do you think she means Dunner?" was Bain's instant thought, his eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"Don't worry, Kili and I set the lad straight," Fili assured the two men. "But if our opinion means anything, we think he's all right. I mean, he didn't scare off too easy, so at least he's brave." The crown prince thought for a moment. "Or stupid."

"Still…this is something I intend to get to the bottom of!" Bard insisted, taking off at a run, though weaving slightly as he made his way after her. Bain gave a sigh and shook his head, wishing them all a good night before following his tipsy father.

"Poor Bard," Kili grinned, chuckling at the sight the retreating men made. "Must be hard having daughters."

"Yep, I really feel for him," Fili nodded, also breaking out in laughter. "The sorry sod."

"You know…" Sier stated, coming to stand beside her husband, their sleeping daughter in her arms and a wicked grin on her face. "You will one day be in his boots. I'll remind you of your insensitive remarks towards Bard when you are the one trying to figure out if Freya has fallen in love with some unknown dwarf."

And just like that…Fili's face lost all color and he looked as if he were about to be sick.

Suddenly, Sier was the only one laughing.


Well, the cats are out of the bags, so to speak. Everyone knows all.

Some were shocked, (Kili) some were horrified (Fili) and some were tickled pink (Dwalin about his kids). And Bombur was a bit hurt that the lads had deceived him like this. But I think he will get over it in time. Then came the flip side, with Sier flipping out over the danger her boys were in. ha ha.

Oh boy, is Tilda mad at YOU TWO...serves you right, Fili and Kili!

And look, no real cliff hangers this time. Have a nice weekend and see you on Monday!


Guest Reviews:

Emrfangirl: I am very impressed...you WERE showing a lot of restraint! The ruby bead would get lost in her hair...but she is only going to wear it for a while, than it gets replaced with the marriage bead...so maybe she will make a necklace out of it next? Yep, other than the fact that the gates are destroyed, they are clueless about the invasion...so far. Good for you, you found BOTH the movie quotes. Now if you only had an account I could have sent you your snippets. The Bride price was hard to come up with...I hope you like what I decided on. And yep, Thrandy gets MEAT! No...Fili starved! ha ha. I am sure he snuck a bite or two between all his doings. And as you probably just read...yep, Tilda gave them what-for after their little stunt with Dunner. I am willing to bet it was Gloin who told Fili...he was probably getting tired of people asking him about the gates and he just blurted it out. ha ha. Ummm, I am sure they will find a cookie or two, ha ha. Not sure, but they got side tracked with 'story time' ha ha. Thanks!

Guest: Not sure if you would say that the kings are of the same mind...they are just both too old and tired to fight against love. ha ha. Yep, Thorin was shocked about elves eating meat...who knew? I agree...it was definitely Gloin. ha ha. No, sorry, I think you find out the bride price on Tuesday. (I think) Glad you enjoyed the chapter.

Aranel Mereneth: Yep, always love me some good Fili and Sier moments. ha ha. More to come. Oh yes, Tilda is like their little sister who is taller - and meaner - than them. ha ha. They better watch out, she is not to be messed with. ha ha.

Feu d'Agent: Well, after 90 years apart...it HAD to be a bit steamy. ha ha. But I kept it PG13 rated...for goodness sakes, my MOTHER reads my work, ha ha. Flinn Jr. has his overnight bag packed and is ready to go when you need his help. And I did want Thrnady to lighten up a bit. I love me some Fili/Sier time too. And if you ask Fili...Da was her first REAL word. ha ha. Oh, man...where would Kili find cows and sheep and stuff? Dale? Esgaroth? That would be funny as all get out, him wrangling a few pigs and chickens. Too funny. BUT...I already wrote the bride price chapter...I hope you like what I came up with. Legolas is off gallivanting. I don't want him in this so that when he and Gimli meet in Rivendell, it is the first time and they are still a bit untrusting of each other. I don't want to mess with the LOTR story much at all. That is also why Tauriel won't take Kili to Lothorien, so that when Gimli meets Galadrial it is still a big deal. Glad my chapter helped brighten your day. Yes, both split the costs! Yes, Dunner will have to have nerves of steel if he wants to court Tilda. ha ha. I think Bain is just shy and he wants to keep his love life to himself. He is not ashamed of her and there is no animosity between the families. And it is kind of a BIG deal when a prince shows interest in a girl...maybe SHE is wanting to keep it hush-hush. When you said you are driving now...I hope you didn't mean WHILE you were reviewing! Yes, I did know the story is now #1 in reviews, and trust me, I had been watching very closely to see when it happened too! Thanks, I am very excited about it. Could I have a life-size Fili doll? Please? I read that last part outloud to my husband...and he said yes, he will take me out to celebrate! Whooohooo, dinner out for me! THANKS!