~X~

Almara Elf: so glad you enjoyed my little curve ball. ha ha. Now, lets see how Fili fares with angry Thorin.

Lady Jessica: I didn't fool you, huh? Oh well, better luck next time I guess. ha ha. And don't worry about the end scaring you, Thorin loves his nephews, he can just be a bit temperamental at times when he thinks they might have done wrong. Thanks for the review, hope you enjoy this chapter!

~X~

~X~

Chapter 15

Fili stood a couple yards from his room in the hallway, his back turned and his fingers running through his hair in mental anguish. He sensed, more than saw, Kili beside him, his younger brother also in a dither after all that had just transpired. He could not believe it…Daeloness was back, she was here with him once again and yet they now had a whole new set of worries. A child? Fili's mind was hardly able to comprehend the truth that was plain as day. Though he had no doubt in his mind that the babe was his, he wondered how he could have been so foolish as to not have even considered the possibility of this happening. Yet while they had performed the act required to create a new life, several times in fact, it had never occurred to him that their union could produce such a blessed event. She was from the water clan and he was a dwarf…who would have imagined it was even possible? Yet his dear sweet Daeloness bore the proof quite prominently. A child…his child!

The sound of the door closing behind him caused Fili to turn, yet before he could speak a word in his defense, he felt himself being slammed against the wall. Thorin's hand was at his throat and his face was only inches away as he growled his next words at him.

"HOW DARE YOU!" his deep and deadly voice thick with accusations. "You would stoop so low as to defile a maid under your care? I believed better of you, nephew…I thought I had raised you to have honor! Apparently I was mistaken!"

"Uncle no," Kili interjected reaching up and tugging at Thorin's shoulder, attempting to pull him off his brother, yet the king was unmovable.

"I might have expected something this thoughtless from Kili…but never you!" the angry dwarf continued.

"Hey!" Kili responded, quickly offended by his uncle's words, though after a second of thought, even he had to bob his head up and down in silent acknowledgment that it could easily have been the case.

"I placed her under your protection and you instead dishonor her in this manner?" Thorin gave a mighty roar, his anger coming to a head. "For Mahal's sake, at least tell me that the girl spoke the truth and that she was indeed willing!"

"I would never…not in a million years…" Fili cried, his words coming out in gasps as he struggled to release his uncle's vice-like grip around his throat. "Daeloness…I love her…she is…my one!"

Upon hearing Fili's claim, Thorin stepped back in shock, releasing the young dwarf so quickly that he lost his footing and collapsed on the floor, bracing himself against the wall as he struggled for breath.

"Your…your one?" he repeated not at all sure if that made things better or worse.

"Yes…she is my other half, Uncle…the one I was meant to find," he further explained, looking up at the man who had raised him, his eyes pleading for understanding. "We both tried to deny it at first, yet as you know, there is no way to alter such a course once it has been laid out for us. Our hearts beat as one, Daeloness is my life…my love."

"And…she feels the same for you?" Thorin was having a very hard time wrapping his mind around all this.

"I never would have lain with her if she did not," Fili confirmed.

"They even exchanged braids in each other's hair," Kili told him, kneeling down beside his brother as he pulled out the hidden lock for him to see.

"Fili…" Thorin gasped, his mouth dropping open in shock. "Why did you not tell me this? You knew she was your one at the time of the exchange and you chose to keep this from me? From your mother? Why?"

"It was all Daeloness' idea," Fili admitted, his eyes dropping to the floor in shame. "She knew that if I spoke of our love, it would ruin your chance of gaining the water stone and reclaiming Erebor. I wanted to tell you…I begged her not to go through with it, yet she would not be swayed. I was prepared to set her free, to send her away and then rejoin her later, yet she alerted Dain and his men to our presence and willingly gave herself in trade."

"She did that for us? The princess betrayed her own people so that we might obtain the means to destroy Smaug?" Thorin could not believe his ears…and yet, he had witnessed her bravery when she had stood up to her father that day…as well as just a bit ago.

"Her people?" Fili scoffed, a look of anger crossing his face. "She has been ostracized by her own kind since the day she was born! Her father locked her in a tower, kept her prisoner and only deemed her worthy of any consideration when he found a use for her. He planned to wed her to his enemy in order to join their two kingdoms, placing her within the hands of an evil and vengeful king. Daeloness risked more than her freedom when she agreed to go through with the exchange…by defying her father and telling us the stone was a fake, she put her very life in jeopardy."

"Aye…I can see that," Thorin muttered turning away as he ran his hands over his beard, lost in thought. "She was brave to have spoken up as she did…to be willing to give up so much for those who were not her kin."

"I am her kin now…I am her family," Fili insisted, still rubbing his sore neck and looking up at his uncle.

"That would seem to be the case," he nodded, turning back around. "After all, you have got the poor girl in a family way. And what do you plan to do about this, nephew?"

"What I wanted to do all along…marry her and take her as my wife," the young dwarf said with assurance. "I can't live without her…and truthfully, I do not know how I have lasted this long being parted."

"It is true, Uncle," Kili interjected. "Even you and mother noted on Fili's strange behavior, being moody and withdrawn, even thinking he might be sick. Well he was…lovesick. And I for one did not like that version of him at all."

"No…I can see why you would not, for you had no one willing to join you in your tomfoolery," Thorin snorted, a slight smile gracing his lips. To be honest, he too had missed the happy and carefree lad he had raised, all the while burdened with the guilt that it might have been the battle that had altered his heir's behavior. Yet he felt even more guilty now to learn that it had been within his power to have saved the girl and stopped it from happening in the first place. He loved both Fili and Kili like they were his own sons, and he would do anything to spare them a moment's pain.

Thorin's hand brushed against his tunic and he felt the silver medallion still tucked in his pocket, having stuffed it there when all hell had broken loose in the throne room.

"I think this belongs to you…or perhaps to her. Either way, it is not mine to keep," Thorin explained, removing it and holding the chain out to Fili. The young dwarf reverently reaching up to accept it. After a moment of silent reflection, perhaps thinking of where it had been for the past five months, the golden prince slipped the medallion back over his head. "Your father made these for you on the day you each were born, telling me that they would protect you and one day lead you to your true heart's desire. I of course laughed at him for such sentimentality, your father was always spouting off flowery speech and such nonsense. I think that is why Dis loved him so much, he always knew what to say to the ladies. Yet perhaps he was not as far off as I imagined…for this did indeed bring the desire of your heart back to you, Fili. I only hope Kili has such good fortune."

Thorin was about to speak again when a thundering herd of dwarves rounded the far corner and stormed towards them…nine of them to be exact. They began firing questions before they even got near.

"Is the lassie all right?" Dwalin asked, his deep voice able to be heard above all the others.

"We heard she collapsed and Oin was sent for," Bofur added in next.

"We came as soon as we heard." Balin looked down at the dwarf prince sitting on the floor. "What in the world are you doing down there?"

"How are you holding up, lad?" Gloin spoke up next. "Am I correct in hearing that you got your girl back and that you are to be…a father?"

Fili nodded his head, still completely overwhelmed by the idea himself.

"Well, you will be happy to know I gave that vile father of hers a right good boot in his backside as I tossed him out of the mountain!" Dwalin assured the prince, earning a smile of gratitude for his diligent efforts to avenge Daeloness…as well as following his king's command.

"Am I to understand that you all knew about Fili's attachments to the princess, then?" Thorin surmised, a dark scowl settling on his face as he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Well…" was the consensus from the group as they began to fidget and look anywhere but at their king.

"Aye, we knew," Dwalin piped up at last, the only one brave enough to answer Thorin. "And we swore our loyalty in helping the lad reclaim his heart as well. We were all to set out in a weeks' time and waylay the procession meant to transport her to that forced wedding her father had cooked up."

"And you thought you could all slip out of Erebor without my knowing it?" There was a mixture of skepticism, as well as hurt, in his voice as he asked this.

"Maybe not…but we were not going to let Fili do it all on his own," Kili replied, still crouched next to his brother on the floor.

"Then I suppose it was a good thing that the water king delivered her back to us personally," Thorin said after a moment of contemplation. "For with Durin's day so close at hand, it would have been a very inconvenient time for me to have left on a mission with you all to rescue the girl."

"You…you mean that you would have gone as well?" Fili asked, taking hold of Kili's hand as he helped his sibling rise.

Thorin gave a heavy sigh. It pained him to think that those he had fought beside had so little faith in him. He might be the king, but each and every one of them he considered his friends and family. They had battled side by side, sweated and bled as well as cried together and that was a bond that could never be broken. Taking a step closer, he placed his hand on the back of Fili's neck, pulling him forward until their foreheads touched, closing his eyes as he spoke his next words.

"Your pain is my pain, sister-son," he said in a low voice, one full of sincerity. "You and Kili mean more to me than my own life and I would do anything in my power to see that you are both happy and well. If you had told me what Daeloness meant to you, I would have moved mountains to see that you two were reunited…or better yet, never parted in the first place."

"I love you too, Uncle," Fili choked out, throwing his arms around Thorin as they both embraced, slapping each other on the back in a sign of affection. Kili, always hating to be left out, joined in on the moment by hugging them both, the wide grin on his face barely able to hide the tears pooling in his eyes.

"Enough of that now, you three," Balin huffed, yet the lump in his own throat was making it difficult to hold his tone steady. "Pretty soon you will have the rest of us sniffling like a pack of dwarf maids."

This got the whole group laughing, with Thorin, Kili and Fili being the loudest among them. As the king under the mountain watched his oldest nephew, his heart was made lighter just seeing the sunny disposition returning to the golden prince's face. He had truly missed his laughter.

~X~

Meanwhile, inside the room, a warm smile spread across Dis' face as she heard the merriment outside. She could easily pick out the voices of the three dwarves who meant the most in the world to her, and it did her heart good to hear them laughing together once again. Things had been different between her sons and her brother since the reclaiming of Erebor, and she only prayed with the return of this girl, things would finally begin to get back to normal. Yet how normal could things be with a dwarf and a water princess choosing each other and then producing a child? It would certainly be interesting, if nothing else.

"Fili?" came a voice from behind, causing her to turn just as the girl's eyes fluttered open. When she did not immediately see the face she sought, Daeloness went to sit up, her desperate gaze searching the room frantically.

"Hush now, little one," Dis instructed, coming over to sit beside her on the bed, taking Daeloness' hand as she patted it gently. "My son is right outside speaking with Thorin. I am to watch over you until he returns."

"Your…son?" Daeloness stammered, staring wide eyed at the lovely dwarrowdam before her. She did indeed resemble Thorin in looks; dark hair and sharp features with an almost stern appearance, though softened somewhat on the face of a female. She could see Kili when she looked into her eyes, but it was Fili who came to mind when the woman smiled. "You must be the Lady Dis," she quickly concluded. "Fili had told me much about you."

"I wish I could say the same, for he has not even seen fit to share your existence with me," her tone harbored a touch of hurt over this, but she smiled at the girl nonetheless, letting her gaze drift down to her protruding stomach. "Or the fact that you now carry his child."

"Fili did not know about the babe when we parted…for that matter, neither did I," she muttered, running her hands over her belly in a loving manner, something she had been doing a lot of ever since it became evident that Fili had left her with more than just his pendant.

"May I?" Dis asked, her own hand hovering in the air expectantly, eager to touch the place that housed her grandchild. When Daeloness nodded, the dwarrowdam laid her palm over her rounded middle, smiling as she thought of what lay inside. She had often wondered if her boys would be fortunate enough to find their one, and now, not only had Fili discovered his, the union had already been blessed with new life. Children among the dwarves were few and far between, and to know that she would soon be holding a little one in her arms once again filled her heart with joy. When she felt a sudden kick from inside, both women began to laugh, forming an instant maternal bond through the dwarf prince and child they both loved so dearly. "Your young one is strong," she mused, looking into the girl's eyes. "Just as his parents are."

"The thought of this child has brought me much joy over the past months," Daeloness revealed, a look of utter devotion coming to her eyes as she spoke of it. "I…I know what we did was wrong…but I could not imagine leaving his side like I knew I must without being with him in that way. There was a very large chance that we would never see each other again once we parted…and I needed something to hold on to in the days to come. This child however, was a very happy, yet unexpected, gift. I only hope that Fili is just as pleased about the baby as I am," she muttered, picking at the fringe of the blanket that covered her, her face now creased with worry. "I mean, we never talked about...this. In fact, we never really talked about the future at all."

"You must have spoken about it at some length," Dis mused, reaching out and lifting the little braid that had slipped to the side as the girl lay against the pillow. The strands were a bit frayed, the braid having seen better days, but the tiny bead at the end still spoke to the world of the commitment that Fili had made to her. "This is an engagement braid, my dear. It tells me that my son fully intends to take you as his bride."

"Yes…he did speak of marriage…but never of where we would live or what we would do, especially if Thorin disapproves of our relationship. And we certainly never spoke about whether he ever wanted children," she confessed, her face turning a bit red.

"Now is not the time to worry about my brother. Yet how can you ever doubt that Fili would want this child?" Dis asked in disbelief. "It took only one look into my son's eyes, as he stared at you, for me to understand the depth of his love. You are his one…that much is plain. And to a dwarf, a child is the greatest treasure of all, desired more than all the gold and silver a mountain has to offer. My Fili will not be able to wipe the smile off his face as he struts around Erebor, telling all who will lend an ear that he is to be a father. And since his smile has been sorely missed since apparently having parted with you, it will be a welcome sight indeed."

"I can see why Fili and Kili value you so much," Daeloness said, tears now coming to her eyes. "Your love and support of them is a wondrous thing to behold. You do yourself credit with your words of affection, and I will strive to emulate your example as mother to my own little one."

"You wish to copy me? What about your own mother, dear heart?" Dis asked, touched by her words.

"I never knew my mother…she died as I was being born," she told her sadly. "That is why I asked Fili to tell me so much of his childhood while we were together, for I wished to hear about you and how he was raised. You and Thorin did a fine job with him, for I cannot imagine a more fine and honorable dwarf than Fili."

"He takes after his father in a lot of ways," Dis laughed. "Though Thorin has done much to temper his recklessness, I can still detect a great deal of my husband in both my boys. When I look at Fili, I see his father's golden appearance, but he has inherited the distinctive blue eyes of the descendants of Durin. Kili, on the other hand, takes after me and Thorin in looks, yet even he inherited his sire's mischievous disposition."

"And you would not have it any other way," Daeloness laughed, seeing the look of pride that showed in the dwarrowdam's eyes.

"Not in the least," she agreed, the two women once again laughing amongst themselves.

~X~

It was this sight that Fili, Thorin and Kili were met with when they returned to the room, all three having made peace and were ready to deal with the confusing situation head on. When Daeloness saw her love enter, her smile grew wider and she attempted to sit up, eager to be near him once more. Five months had been far too long without gazing into his eyes or feeling the touch of his strong but tender hands.

"No, lie back," he instructed, rushing to her side as he took the place his mother had just vacated, knowing that her presence was no longer needed or desired. "How are you feeling, my heart?" he asked, cupping her cheek with his hand. Oh, the touch was glorious, something she knew she would never get enough of.

"Much better now that you are here," she told him, turning her head so that she could place a light kiss against his palm.

"Watch it, brother!" Kili cried out in mock fear. "If I recall, that is much the same way I acquired my grievous wound!"

His jest caused much laughter in the room, with poor Dis being the only one left out of the joke.

"I hope you will accept my apology for damaging you the way I did, Kili," Daeloness petitioned, now eyeing the still grinning dwarf with a measure of affection. She had once thought him vile and cocky, striking out at him the only way she knew how over the perceived offense. Yet now she could see it had not been done with malice in mind, only being his normal cocky behavior that drove the action. And after hearing about all the jokes, tricks and pranks he and Fili had played on those he considered friends and loved ones, she knew she could harbor no further grudge. She only hoped he felt the same.

"With the way the lad bellyached about his thumb over the next month, one would think you had bitten it clean off," Thorin chuckled, earning a scowling look from Kili.

"Daeloness bit you?" Dis asked, putting the pieces together at last.

"He dared to touch her in an unacceptable fashion," Fili revealed, wishing for there to be no misunderstanding as to why his love had felt justified in doing so.

"KILI!" Dis scolded, now making the young dwarf cringe, wishing he had not brought the subject up in front of his mother.

"Why are you all yelling at me? I only touched her face…once!" he cried out in defense. "Fili is the one who obviously did more!" He was not above throwing his brother under the wagon, if it got his mother and uncle off his back, yet even he had to blush slightly as he realized exactly what he had just implied.

"And we will have to deal with that situation with great care," Thorin nodded, his face returning to the stern look of a king.

"I fully intend to marry her, Uncle," Fili spoke up, the conviction in his voice leaving him only as he turned and looked at her questioningly. "If you will still have me, Daeloness. For I would not blame you if you have since changed your mind, as I was a fool for not coming to your rescue sooner. Though I had planned to steal you back on your journey to wed in Ekmus, had I known you were languishing in a dungeon all this time, nothing would have kept me from your side. Please forgive me, my love."

"There is nothing to forgive, Fili," she insisted, the look of utter grief in his eyes telling her how much the thought must pain him. "I was the one who insisted that we part. It was me who alerted your cousin Dain to our whereabouts and begged you to keep silent. None of this is your fault."

"Yet I carry the responsibility for this," he told her, placing his shaking hand over her middle, a tear slipping from his eyes as he did. "When I think of the fear you must have felt, discovering that I had left you with child…I…I am so sorry, my love."

"My only fear was that my father would find out and choose to take it from me," she assured him, her own eyes growing moist at the memory. "When I realized that your seed had taken hold and begun to grow, I could not have been more pleased. I was able to glean bits of information from the guards and those who brought me food, learning that the dragon had indeed been vanquished, yet no one could tell me if you had survived the battle. I prayed each night that our child would one day come to know his father, yet afraid that the babe you left me with might be all I would ever have to remember you by. That was the only fear I had…never was I afraid or upset about the child itself. Never!" She then let a playful smile spread across her lips. "I did however, worry that I might begin to grow a beard, and checked my chin daily to see if carrying a dwarf babe might cause one to sprout."

This caused Fili to chuckle, recalling how he had once said a dwarrowdam might allow one to grow during this time of her life.

"It is good to see that your quick wit and sharp tongue has not been silenced," he laughed, leaning down to kiss her on the forehead – he would have preferred the lips, but with his family in the room, he thought better of it. "Yet you have not answered my question…will you consent to be my wife, Daeloness?"

"I have not changed my mind since the last time you asked," she told him with all seriousness. "In my heart, I already consider you to be my husband."

"Just as I have called you wife since the moment I knew you were my one," he agreed.

"Well…as your king and head of this family, I will be requiring a bit more," Thorin broke in, imagining that the two lovers had long since forgotten that they were not alone in the room. "There are laws to uphold and vows that must be spoken if this child is ever to be accepted within dwarf society…or as a potential heir of mine." He then turned his eyes upon his eldest nephew. "Since I cannot comprehend there being a dwarf maid out there willing to put up with my surly attitude, much less provide me with a child of my own, you will be next in line, Fili…and after that, Kili will inherit the crown. Yet, this world is full of uncertainties and one day it might fall upon your child to take his rightful place as the heir of Durin and sit on the throne of Erebor."

"You…you would accept our child as your heir?" Daeloness gasped, her eyes growing wide at his words. "Even if his mother is not a dwarf?"

"While I might have little objection to this…there will be some who shall protest. Yet, if Fili is the sire, no one can deny that the blood of Durin the Deathless runs through the veins of your unborn child," Thorin assured her. "Besides, the tale of how you defied your kin and sided with the dwarves during the acquisition of the water stone, is still spoken of around the hearths and homes of many in Erebor. You, Daeloness, won the respect of all dwarves that day and I am willing to bet you will quickly win their hearts as well. And you have certainly earned my appreciation and loyalty…as well the unswerving love of Fili."

"And me!" Kili spoke up, stepping forward with a proud smile on his face. "Though…not in the same way…I mean, like sister…that is all! And the same can be said for the rest of our company, Dwalin included…and he doesn't get along with anyone!"

"She has also found a place in my heart as well," Dis nodded, smiling down at her son and his fledgling family. "I will be proud to call her daughter, and will lay low any who dare to speak against her."

"Then, with your approval, I suggest that we get these two wed as quickly as possible," Thorin announced. "I will schedule the event to take place in three days hence. That way, you two can celebrate Durin's day as a married couple and the child will be born under the protection of a sanctioned union."

"Thank you, King Thorin," Daeloness whispered, happier than she ever thought possible.

"I think it might be appropriate to start calling me Uncle, little one," he told her, his usually stern face morphing into a wide grin. "At least in private…after all, I do need to retain some semblance of being in charge around here. Even if these two rebellious nephews of mine put that theory to the test at every turn."

"Someone has to keep you on your toes, Uncle," Kili laughed. "As well as give you those distinguished looking grey streaks in your hair."

"At the rate you two are going…my beard will soon be as white as Gandalf's!" he laughed, slapping Kili on the back as everyone in the room joined in.

Awwwww, it looks like they have Uncle Thorin, as well as Kili and Dis', stamp of approval. Now, they just have to sway the rest of the dwarves in Erebor...easy as pie!

But they are happy and together once more. Sooooo, now lets see what other drama we can find for our couple. ha ha.