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Thank you all for continuing to follow my story...which appears might never end! ha ha. I know these were supposed to be 'snippets' but apparently I just can't write that way.

Bear with me...I swear there will be an end to this one day!

Now...about that baby...

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Chapter 149

~X~

Over the next few hours, Flinn felt as if he were going mad. All those years in captivity were nothing compared to the fear and anxiety he was experiencing now, stuck out in the waiting room and being forced to hear his beloved struggling to birth their child.

"Flinn, sit down before you fall down," Thorin insisted, watching his brother-in-law pace the floor.

"You'd know all about that, wouldn't you, Uncle?" Kili joked, watching Thorin shoot him a murderous glare.

"But she's in pain," Flinn argued, running his fingers through his blond hair. "I don't remember it being like this when Fili and Kili were born."

"That's because you were fall down drunk when your first child came, and away fighting for the second," Dwalin reminded his friend. "You didn't see your lads until they were already birthed and cleaned up."

"Then why in the name of Durin's beard didn't you two think to get me drunk again this time?" Flinn scolded, nearing his final straw.

"Because Dis would have gutted the both of us if we had," Thorin reasoned, knowing that his sister had strictly forbidden them from doing so ever again.

Another cry of agony was heard from the birthing room, making Thorin rise to his feet, unable to sit still himself at the sound.

"Perhaps you should go in there, Adad," Fili suggested. "I know I felt much better when I was there holding Sier's hand."

"Dis forbid me to enter," Flinn pouted, having thought of doing so when he had heard how Fili, Thorin, and Dwalin had defied dwarrow tradition and went inside the birthing room. "She said she wouldn't be able to concentrate with me in there."

"There, see!" Gloin said proudly. "Finally a dam with brains!"

"Are you saying my wife, and your queen, is a simpleton?" Thorin accused giving his cousin a stern glare.

"As well as Sier?" Fili joined in.

"Or Bergie?" Dwalin finished, crossing his arms over his chest.

Gloin looked from one angry dwarrow to the next and then suddenly found the cuff of his tunic sleeve immensely interesting, ignoring the three quite blatantly.

Before they could press him further, the door opened, and out stepped Sier.

"Flinn…Dis would like it if you would come inside," she told him, relaying the message.

"She…she would?" Flinn was shocked. "I thought she said…"

"Well, she's changed her mind," the dark haired dam told him, waving her father-in-law in.

With one last look at those around him, each one giving him a smile of encouragement, he slowly stepped inside the room, allowing Sier to shut the door behind them.

"Well…this will prove interesting," Balin said, snickering a bit.

"Hush now, all of you," Thorin snapped. "This is no laughing matter. Dis is no young dam any more, and childbirth is dangerous enough in the best of circumstances. Flinn has every right to be worried…as do I."

"I'm sorry, Thorin," Balin apologized, looking contrite. "I know you worry for her. We all do."

"Mother is strong," Fili told his uncle, standing up and placing a hand on his shoulder. "She will come through just fine."

"That's right," Kili agreed, though everyone could see he was worried too. "I mean, if she could give birth to Fili, whose head is the size of a watermelon, she can certainly handle this one."

Fili could tell that his brother was only trying to lighten the mood with humor, so he didn't bother to become angry at his jab about his head. For he too flinched every time he heard his mother cry out, worried for both her and his new sibling.

"It's just that…Dis is the only original family I have left," Thorin said softly, giving voice to his fears. It had nearly killed him when he had lost Frerin…he couldn't lose Dis as well.

But before he could say more, the door reopened and this time Tauriel came rushing out, looking anxious.

"Kili, Fili, Thorin…come quickly!" she ordered, gesturing them inside.

"WHY?" Thorin demanded, fear etching lines in his face. "What's the matter…is it Dis?"

"No, it's Flinn!" she corrected. "He's fainted!"

"He's…what?" Despite his worry, Thorin couldn't help himself, and felt the corners of his mouth turning upwards. "Flinn fainted?"

"Yes. We can't get him off the floor and Dis is now fretting over him more than herself and the baby," Tauriel explained. "Now get in here and get him onto a bed!"

Thorin, Fili and Kili all entered, seeing Sier and Marigold standing around a passed out Flinn, doing what they could to bring him to. Dis was practically sitting up in her own bed, leaning over as far as she dared in order to see her husband.

"Thorin! Help him!" she ordered, gritting her teeth as another pain overtook her. "I can't do this with him lying there like that!"

"You are going to have to do this with, or without, him lying there," Oin informed her in no uncertain terms. "This wee one will not care where its father is when it comes…and come it shall, now push!"

"Grab his feet, lads," Thorin instructed, stepping over the prone dwarf and slipping his hands under his shoulders. "Now, lift!"

Between the three of them, they managed to get Flinn onto a nearby bed, facing Dis so that should he awaken she would be in his view. It didn't appear that he had struck his head, just lost consciousness from the sheer magnitude of the situation.

"Is he all right?" Dis demanded, still more concerned over Flinn than herself. "I wanted him to be here for this child's birth! I will not have him miss out on all three!" Then she let loose a piercing scream as she shut her eyes and doubled over.

Kili, who suddenly realized he was not only in a birthing room, but one being used by his mother, turned an unhealthy shade of green. Covering his mouth with his hand, he ran from the room before he could wretch. Fili, shook his head in exasperation, and after leaning in to kiss his amad's cheek, he followed Kili out the door…but at a much more dignified pace.

"Please, stay with me, Thorin," Dis begged, needing the strength of her brother, since her husband was otherwise incapacitated. "I…I'm scared."

"I know," Thorin soothed, stepping over and taking her hand in his. "I'm here, and I will let nothing happen to you, Nan'ith." He brought her trembling fingers to his lips and gave them a gentle kiss. "You are so brave, my sweet Dis."

"Not as brave as I would like everyone to believe," she said with a bit of a laugh, one laced with concern. "This is not as easy as it was when Kili was born. I am starting to think I can't do this."

"We have both aged a bit, my dear," Thorin chuckled. "I'm not sporting these grey hairs for nothing." He then gave her a confident smile. "You can do this, Dis. I have full faith in you."

"I'm glad someone does," she said with a sigh, right before another wave of pain hit her. This time, when she cried out, it woke Flinn, the dwarf nearly falling off the bed in a desperate rush to get to his one. Sier and Tauriel held him down, insisting he lie still and not move for at least a few minutes.

"Dis…my diamond," he called from where he struggled to sit up. "I'm so sorry…I didn't mean to pass out."

"I know you didn't," she soothed. She turned and gave Thorin a tired smile. "But it happens to the best, from time to time."

Her brother just rolled his eyes, yet the smile on his face didn't fade. After a few more minutes, Sier and Tauriel allowed Flinn to get off the bed and come to stand on the other side of his wife. He still looked a bit pale, but also determined to remain upright from here on out.

"Here, wipe her brow with this," Marigold instructed, handing Flinn a cool, damp cloth. Taking it, he did as directed, pleased when his efforts seemed to ease her discomfort.

"All right, Dis," Oin spoke up, looking at the princess with a wide grin. "Your bairn is almost here. Just a few more strong pushes and we will see if we have a new prince or princess."

"Hold my hand, Flinn," Dis told him, taking hold of it before he had a chance to comply. And so, with her brother on one side, and her husband on the other, Dis gritted her teeth and gave one final push, falling back against the pillows in sheer exhaustion when she at last felt the child slip free.

"It's out!" Oin called joyfully, working frantically as he rubbed the baby clean. Yet when a few moments went by, and there was no sound out of the babe, Dis became worried.

"What's wrong?" she demanded. "Why is it not crying?" She turned to Flinn, fear in her eyes. "Is our baby all right?"

Flinn had just taken a step towards Oin, desperate to get a look at his child and see what might be the matter, when a lusty cry came from the small bundle in the healer's hands.

"It would simply appear that she simply had nothing at all to be upset about…until now," Oin informed them with a laugh, smiling from ear to ear as he brought a tiny squalling babe around and handed it to Dis. "You two have a very beautiful, and healthy, princess."

"A lass?" Dis whispered, pulling back the blanket so she could get a look at her daughter for the first time. "Oh, Flinn…we have a lass!"

"And she looks just like…" he stopped there, not quite sure what to say. For while she undoubtedly had Dis' eyes and nose, her small tuft of golden blond hair left no doubt as to who her father was.

"She looks like the both of us," Dis finished, leaning in to place a kiss on her rosy little cheek. At the sound of her amad's voice, the little princess had quieted down, turning her unfocused eyes toward the one she instinctively knew already loved her.

"And what shall her name be?" Thorin asked, wiping at his eyes as he pulled Marigold to his side. "Or have you two not settled on one just yet?"

"No, I know her name, I've always known her name," Dis informed everyone, looking down at her daughter with so much love in her eyes. "I have held her name in my heart for many years, even before Flinn went away." She turned to stare up her husband. "I always dreamed that our next child would be a daughter…yet when I thought I had lost you, my love, I resigned myself to the fact it would never happen. Yet now, here she is. Our little Lili."

"Lili?" Flinn repeated, a wide smile coming to his lips. "Fili, Kili, and Lili. I love it." He leaned in and first kissed his wife on the cheek, and then his daughter. "And I love you, my precious diamond. More than you will ever know."

"What a perfect name, Dis!" Sier agreed, wiping the tears of happiness out of her own eyes. "Would you like me to fetch your sons?"

"Give us a moment first," Oin instructed, wanting to get Dis taken care of and things cleaned up before they were brought in. "I doubt Kili would be willing to set foot in here again until things are a bit more tidy."

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So after a few minutes, Sier and Tauriel stepped out into the waiting room, signaling to Fili and Kili that it was safe to enter. Dwalin, who was not about to be left out, followed at a safe distance - hovering by the door in order to give the lads a moment with their parents. When they stepped inside, they couldn't help but smile at the look of pride and joy on Dis and Flinn's face. Their amad looked much more relaxed, and their adad was actually standing upright, holding a bundle in his arms.

"Well," Fili prompted, looking at Flinn expectantly. "Do we have a naddith or a nan'ith?"

"You two are now older brothers to a beautiful little sister, named Lili," their father revealed, looking at them with tears of happiness in his eyes.

"A nan'ith?" Kili gasped, stepping forward to stare at her in wonder. "She…she's so tiny."

"Well, much like Raina, Lili was determined to come a bit early," Marigold reminded him. "Yet she is healthy and strong, a true Durin, through and through."

"I'm so proud of you, Amad," Fili said, taking her hand in his and kissing it. "I will admit, you had everyone a bit worried there, but I knew you would pull through just fine. You always do, no matter what task you take on."

"That's my Fili…always my strength," Dis smiled. She then turned to look at her other son. "And Kili, you might not be my baby any more, but you are still my heart's joy. Come over here and give me a kiss."

Kili did as directed without hesitation, making his mother smile even more.

"Well, it looks as if you were finally able to be present for the birth of one of your children," Thorin teased Flinn, leaning over his friend's shoulder as he stared down at his new little niece. She was indeed a beauty, and he smiled inwardly at the thought of Flinn becoming an over-protective father as she grew. Welcome to the club, he thought to himself.

"Wild oliphants couldn't have kept me away this time," Flinn said proudly, gently bouncing Lili in his arms. He then looked around at those in the room, cringing just a bit. "But I'm never going to live down the shame of fainting…am I?"

"There is nothing wrong with showing emotion over the birth of one's child," Thorin stated firmly, placing his hand reassuringly on his brother-in-law's shoulder.

"You're only saying that because you fainted too," Dwalin laughed, at last coming forward and joining in the happy scene. "But don't worry, Flinn…you're in good company." He gave Thorin a wink, and then moved closer to see the new little princess himself.

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Soon Oin ordered everyone but Flinn out, saying that Dis needed her rest and Lili required her first meal. Fili and Kili kissed their mother's cheek once more and left the room with their arms around their wives. Dwalin, Thorin, and Marigold were close behind, but when they all stepped into the waiting room, they found it completely packed. Apparently the word had gotten out that the baby had arrived at last.

"What is it, Adad?" Flinn demanded, running over to his father and begging to be picked up. Freya was right behind him, eager to be in her mother's arms once again as well. "What did N'ama Dis have?"

"She had a little lass!" Fili told his son, as he hefted him onto his hip. "You now have an aunt named Lili."

"Just like you and Uncle Kili's name!" Frerin piped up, leaving Bergie's side and hurrying over.

"She might be your aunt," Rose deduced, thinking this over. "But she's my cousin…right, Adad?"

"That's correct, my flower," Thorin smiled, picking her up as well, while Marigold retrieved Raina from Bergie's arms. "You have a new little cousin, and one day you two will be great friends."

"Another lass?" Torin whined, crossing his arms over his chest, much like his father was known to do. "We lads are really outnumbered now!"

"Ahhh, but the fact that it was a lass, allowed me to make a mint off this wager," Nori nearly crowed with glee, rubbing his hands together. "For just about everyone bet it would be another prince, not a princess."

"Well, I was apparently one of the few that guessed correctly," Thorin grinned, holding out his hand expectantly. "I knew all along that if my sister wanted a lass…a lass she would have!"

"Not fair! You had the inside track," Nori grumbled, digging into his money pouch and counting out the correct amount of coin and handing it to his king.

"Not exactly," Thorin mused, pocketing his winnings. "I just learned a long time ago, never to bet against Dis!"

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It had been a long day and night for everyone, and since no one had gotten any sleep, Fili, Kili and Thorin told Balin to cancel all their appointments for the day, and headed for their chambers. Kili felt bad for Fili and Sier, since they had three well rested dwarflings to look after…or pass off onto someone else. But he knew it was not going to be him and Tauriel, not this time, since all they wanted was some sleep.

When they were alone in their chambers, he looked up at his beautiful wife, searching her face for any signs of sadness.

"Are you all right, my love?" he asked, afraid that the birth might have upset her.

"Of course, why shouldn't I be?" she queried. "Yes, I am a bit tired, but I was not the one struggling to give birth all night." Then understanding what he was truly asking, she gave a sigh. "I am happy for your mother and Flinn…honest. And though it does serve to remind me that we have yet to conceive our own babe, I will not give up hope. As you said, these things take time, and constantly wishing for one, or crying over the lack, will not make it come any sooner. I love you more than anything, Kili, and I know in time, that love will manifest itself in the form of a child. I have to believe that."

"I believe it too," Kili smiled, wrapping his arms around her as he stared into her lovely green eyes. "For a love this strong could never fail. We will have a child one day, Amrâlimê. I'm sure of it."

And though Kili spoke from his heart, he could not help but worry a bit as well. What if they couldn't conceive? What if dwarves and elves were simply incompatible in the ways of reproduction? It pained him deeply to think that in marrying him, Tauriel might be denied the family she longed for. Children had been the one consolation he had hoped to give his wife, knowing that one day she would be forced to part with him. And if he couldn't even give her that…then how selfish was he for binding an immortal to him?

Please Mahal, Kili prayed silently, you have already blessed me with my heart's desire…I beg of you not to deny Tauriel hers. Please!

Nan'ith = Little Sister

I know I usually put the definition of the dwarf words I use at the beginning of the story, but I didn't want to give it away that Dis was having a girl before you got to that part. ha ha.

So...did you like her name? Lili?

Well, there you go, Flinn is a daddy again and he now has more in common with Thorin than before. They will be raising their daughters together and fighting off the suitors with a stick. ha ha. And I am willing to bet that a bow and arrow and a pair of twin blades will be at Lili's service as well. ha ha.

Hope you enjoyed Flinn passing out. SOMEONE had to!

Guest Reviews:

Emrfangirl: Awww, thanks for writing in twice, but your original message came through just fine. When a 'guest' reviews, I get notified immediately through my E-Mail, but the FF site holds the review in reserve for two days, waiting to see if I will accept and post it, or wish to delete it. (I think that option is there just in case an unknown reviewer sends up something really nasty or vulgar) Anyway, so if you do not see your review right away, don't fear, it is probably just still stuck in the FF holding area. You are forgiven for being absent for a while...but do you have a note from your parents? (That is a teaching joke...get it? ha ha) I appreciate you saying so, it makes writing so much more fun when you can connect with your readers...it really does! I would say half were shocked by Dis being pregnant, and the other half 'knew it all along'. ha ha. I hope you are not disappointed by a girl. I know Dwarves are supposed to have only a few of them, but three of them were beget with Hobbits, so you can't really count them as normal. ha ha. And Freya and Lili both have two brothers, so really, the odds were that THEY would be girls. ha ha. Don't worry too much for Tauriel...I've got it covered. Thanks!

Guest: I hope you were happy with what Dis had!

Feu d'Argent: Ok then, Flinn should be a big help in the moral support department. Yes, but like I said above...three of those girls came from Hobbits...so they don't count. Just as long as your brother's best friend is cute...or your best friends brother is. "Time resistant dwarf" oh I live that! So cute. And Flinn says he understands...the break up is mutual.

Guest: Yes, there has been a bumper crop of babies, but that is what happens when mommies and daddies love each other and spend time alone in their bedrooms. ha ha. As I am sure you just read, yes, it was a bit dangerous for Dis to have a baby at her age, BUT...everything turned out just fine. I am glad you enjoyed my story line about bringing Flinn home. I was tickled to do so. Yes, Tauriel and Kili just need to be patient a little bit longer. Thanks.

Aranel Mereneth: Am I really getting THAT predictable...or you just know my characters that well? ha ha. Sigdis sounds like a cross between Sigrid and Dis. I hope you like Lili well enough, I have been holding on to that name for a while now. Thanks.