Summary: A word from your long forgotten author of this fanfic to explain my absence and give you all what you wanted back when: a continuation of the story and its conclusion.

Hello everyone!

It's so nice to finally be able to speak with you all again. For those who still have alerts on this fic, yeah, it's quite a surprise. For those who are new, hello! Nice to meet you.

It's been such a wonderful experience with this fic and when I first started to write it, I loved Tolkien and was fully immersed in the universe and adored everything about it. I still love it, but at the time I was on unemployment benefits and basically was just waiting for a nice job offer. I wrote in that time, barely slept and barely ate and had a blast! Creatively, I was on fire. Then I was offered a job back with Square Enix and I haven't been out of work ever since.

As usually everyone knows, once they start to work, the ability to devote oneself to creative things starts to look real grim. As the time flew by without an update, I wondered if I still liked this story...and I realized that I loved it deeply. I tried to write Ch.48 but I noticed that I had no real inkling of what to really write about anymore. The story felt different, I had changed as a writer. It felt like I was a foreigner in my own work. SO much was different that it just kept reminding me that I felt like I was a better writer back when I wasn't working and was working on What's It Like full-time. I kept the story alive in my heart by writing the outline fully and fleshing it out more just in case I wanted to get back to it but in the end, nothing happened with it.

I re-read the outline at least once a week even now...and I love it to death. But I also feel horrible guilt over never giving readers who loved my story their full journey. The guilt of that burned at me ALL the time. With that guilt looming over me and still getting inbox messages and comments asking for the conclusion, I just didn't know what to do about that. Then I read a fanfic who kinda went through the same thing as me and they offered their outline and notes to their readers in a final chapter.

I'm going to do the same. I'm going to give you all of the unfinished Ch.48 and then in another few updates the outline for the remaining 52 chapters that included a 53rd chapter that was an AU to fix the death of the Durins for those who needed it.

The outline ranges from a minor description of a scene to to written out paragraphs full of dialogue that may have never even made to the final editing process since all of this was an original draft kinda thing with some edits later on. Overall the outline itself was 31 pages long and was beastly in nature. Maybe that's why writing the story became difficult? It sometimes felt like I had already written it out. XD

But after the main story is done, I do have the outlines as well for the AU and also for the side story How Do They See It. I have it all and I'll give it over to you guys so you can have the conclusion.

I want to thank you all from the bottom of my heart for all the wonderful things that were said and even the not so nice things. I enjoyed all of it and I'm grateful that you found my story worthy of writing a comment or discussing anything with me about it. For now though, the unfinished Chapter. 48.

Unaware of when exactly I had fallen asleep, my eyes opened to the bright light of the sun high above our heads and the sweltering heat hovering around us. Despite the best efforts of a paltry breeze that attempted to cool the forest, the sun would not be deterred and it was that fact that kept me from even trying to fall back asleep. So far from the calming sunrise that I fell asleep to, my eyes closed again of their own accord and resisted opening even though I fully understood it was time indeed to get up. When they finally did flutter open, I was at once so aware just how uncomfortable I was from being so sweaty and hot. Fili's shirt clung to certain parts of my body uncomfortably and the combined heat of the Durin's casually lying all over me was just too much.

My eyes took a quick peak around the area, a quick inspection letting me know that only the most hardy of the dwarves were actually still awake from the morning's little event. Off to the side near another tree, Balin sat chatting with Gandalf while Dwalin could be seen gesturing at Beorn with wide movements that made the skin-changer balk one minute and laugh the next.

Next to them, Ori and his brothers were deep in the throes of sleep, exhaustion written on their features as sure as I had seen it before when we escaped from the Misty Mountains. Looking at them, I had my doubts that they stayed awake to see the sunrise and I definitely couldn't blame them if they hadn't. I wondered myself given how exhausted I felt how I was even able to stay awake.

Relaxing back against Thorin's side, I heard my own sigh of contentment and noted the pressure of Fili's fingers on my waist, a firm enough weight that told me that he was awake as well but just as unwilling to get up. Neither one of us was eager to disrupt Thorin and Kili who still slumbered so peacefully, their combined snores pressing against my body in a soothing manner.

Around us the sounds of the forest hummed in the background, birds chirping in the morning air while the dwarves' voices mingled with them perfectly. It was peace in the middle of a perilous journey that would soon enough only become worse. Despite how fun the journey seemed in the last few days, in my mind I saw the visage of the Lonely Mountain that I saw on top of the Carrock. Though my mind still could not fully wrap itself around the idea of facing a dragon, my body understood on a base level. My heart started to race the more I tried to imagine what Smaug looked like...

Movement from my right side whisked me away from my thoughts and I looked up just in time to see Thorin blinking awake and groaning from discomfort. Distantly I watched as he craned his neck to crack it, his face the very picture of discomfort. Kili still would not wake so easily and I watched as Thorin eventually shook his youngest nephew to get off of him before looking around the camp. He needed to assess where the members of the company were. Just as quickly as I had done, he found the members all engaged where they were previously before sending his eyes my way.

A glance in my direction, a quick smile, and a kiss to the top of my head and Thorin was standing up and going to Dwalin's side near Beorn. Left with the brothers, Fili remained quiet until the stroke of Kili's voice on my bottom made me look down and smile at the sight of the brunette yawning loudly and stretching. He still looked tired but otherwise got up as quickly as he normally did. Fili followed him and helped me up, a grin on his face.

"So how was the sunrise, Miss Hobbit?"

"Oh, quite beautiful. It's a shame that you missed it." The smile I was rewarded with was sheepish at best until Kili came over and hung over his brother's shoulders heavily.

"Awww, it's just a sunrise. Who believes in such rubbish anyway?"

Though I wanted to mention that Kili himself was at times prone to believing in such things, I kept my mouth shut though a quick glance in Fili's direction had us both smirking with shared knowledge. Kili was as gullible as evidence suggested given that he truly thought Gandalf could kill hundreds of dragons single-handedly. Kili liked to believe in such amazing stories even if he wanted to put on such an older air.

Eventually Fili and I followed Kili back over to the main group where Beorn could be heard telling Ori stories of his clan and how they used to prepare for the festival in the times of yore. Ori hung on his every word, his wide eyes mesmerized by the traditions that the other dwarves most likely tried to shut their ears to. They stared at the giant skin-changer but one could easily tell by their dull eyes that they didn't bother to listen too closely.

Whenever Ori asked Beorn a question, his voice left my hands feeling particularly warm and fuzzy and Beorn was excited from the way my chest pounded with his voice. Regardless of how Beorn wasn't a huge fan of dwarves, Ori was making his own little spot in Beorn's home that the skin-changer was glad to give to one such as Ori.

It was on our way back to Beorn's home when my eyes caught the long strides of Gandalf coming up beside me, walking in step with my own languid pace. He strode casually, a care nowhere to be seen despite knowing that he was sending us all into very real danger without him. He looked down at me and offered me his pipe, something that I accepted gratefully before taking a puff. "You'll have fun tonight, Mistress Baggins. It'll do your Hobbit soul some good."

His voice was teasing, a steady but playful weight on my shoulder that had me cocking my head in his direction and inquiring with my eyebrow for him to elaborate. I recognized the twinkle in those blue eyes of his though and knew I would get no more of an explanation than anyone else.

When we finally returned to the house, all of us started to head off into our usual groups to either further help Beorn or train amongst themselves. In the corner of my eye, I already saw Thorin and Dwalin ducking out of view and slinking off towards the backyard, no doubt hoping to hide from the skin-changer. The brothers were heading back inside for breakfast and were followed by Oin and Gloin. I heard Beorn's heavy steps before his voice boomed in my chest, "Dwarves! I need your hands!"

The feeling of ticklish feet made me giggle and I looked over just in time to see Beorn grabbing at Bofur and lifting him up. I watched as he explained to them that he needed them to arrange some more flowers around in the dining hall but that after that they would be allowed to go free. I laughed at how they blanched at the idea of having to do more flower arranging but froze when Beorn turned his sharp eyes in my direction.

Leaving the dwarves to do what he asked of them, he strode towards me and I did my best not to shrink under his massive height when he looked down at me. "Bunny! I would like to prac-"

He stopped mid-sentence, his words cutting off abruptly as something came over him. His face scrunched up in a rather awkward way, his eyes looking around to see if there was someone else around hidden from his view. Once he was sure there was no one else besides the two of us present, he looked at me strangely before leaning down into my space.

"Bunny, surely you've done the best you can but while here in leisure, shouldn't you...?" He trailed off with a gesture of his hand towards his person, his voice dully sinking into my chest with a pressure that was uniquely his. All the while I stared at him unaware of his meaning, hoping he would clue me in.

When he noticed that I continued to look at him in confusion, Beorn finally leaned in closer and whispered, "There is a bath located near the rear of my house. From the outside it doesn't look like much but I assure you, I put great care into its construction." It was a subtle remark but paired with the look on Beorn's face, my cheeks reddened in embarrassment and I knew right away that I stunk. It didn't matter that I had washed the night previous, without soap I was still foul enough that Beorn could smell me.

I thought of my father as I bowed my head gratefully to Beorn's offer, following along after him when he started off towards the back of the house. Like any Hobbit before him, my father was always one for cleanliness and no matter the adventures my mum and I got into, he was the authority behind us getting clean before any other business was done. I found myself lightly reminiscing of him as I thanked Beorn for the drying sheets he gave me and opened the door to the washroom.

As soon as my eyes laid sight to the interior of the washroom, I stopped short in the entryway…

I blinked, unable to process what I was looking at.

I took a step back so that I could see the outside of the washroom again, noting the usual exterior with carvings of bears and horses but with the obvious wear and tear from decades underneath the sun. Yes, this was what I was expecting from the skin-changer who seemed to have only a reasonable amount of comfort in his home. At the doorway I looked back inside the washroom though and felt a shudder run through my limbs at the sight of the bathtub inside.

It wasn't spared the expense of his decorating for the festival with a bundle of flowers behind the tub, happily sitting where some of the sun shone in from a small window. The bathtub itself was big enough to hold Beorn but also wide enough where any of his animals could bathe if they wanted to as evidence also suggested by the steps leading into the tub. Beorn could have easily cleared the wooden wall but an animal would have trouble and it made sense that Beorn would make something that his animal friends could also partake in.

The designs along the bathtub also reflected this sentiment as depicted by the scene that was carved lovingly into the wood of the tub. Far from art of the exterior that was from the skin-changer lore, the tub bore the markings of private enjoyment, a bear bathing in a sloping, curving pool of water surrounded by his animal friends.

The thought of Beorn enjoying a bath with his friends made me smile before I set down the drying sheets and looked around for some means to fill the tub with water. All in all, it looked similar to the tubs that were back in the Shire but even my own tub had to be manually filled with buckets of heated water from the kitchen. Beorn's tub looked different than the style of the Shire tubs in that it looked like he had built a storage area next to it for some reason. There didn't seem to be a way to access it aside from a door near ground level.

Upon further inspection and after touching the wood and feeling the heat underneath, I figured out that there was a fire already going and that the door led to the area where the fire was kept. Putting two and two together, I assumed the storage unit to be filled with water that would be constantly heated for a bath that could occur whenever it was needed rather than when it was available. At the thought of a hot bath whenever needed with barely any effort, I shuddered and thought of how I could fix up my own bath to do the same back home.

At the same time as I thought about how to upgrade my bath back home, I found a lever nearby and pulled it, watching as a flood of water released into the tub in a gush that made my ears tingle. I began to strip, careful to keep an eye on the level of water since I didn't want it to fill nearly as much as the tub could normally hold for its usual occupants. I stopped the water by pushing the lever back to its original position and finished undressing even as I noticed that the entire room was filled with a heavy steam from how hot the water was.

I set aside my clothing, made my way up the steps and sunk into the water with the thought that the bath truly was divine. It was almost sinful that the bath felt as good as it did, soaking into my skin and flushing it with very little effort. Along the edges of the tub between flowers were the soaps that Beorn would use for himself, and after uncorking their tops, their natural scents drifted into my nose. Some of them contained the natural scents of the forest, pine and cedar but others contained sweeter smells like cherry and blueberry that were most likely made from an extract of Beorn's own creation.

I kept the bottle of blueberry close, sniffing it occasionally even as I leaned back against the tub and relaxed in the hot water. How much I missed warm baths kept coming into my mind rather than any other thoughts that would have been more pressing. Thoughts of why Fili had been crying were kept at bay, Kili's mood swings were not on my agenda to think about. Nothing was concerning at all while allowing myself to soak in silence…

After allowing myself the pleasure of soaking, I washed my hair in a tidy manner, using the soaps that smelled of sweet foods until I was sure that my hair couldn't take another ounce of soap into itself. It felt cleaner than it had in ages and paying the same attention to my body, I scrubbed until the skin was pink. I looked at my fingernails and paid special attention to the dirt that was still caked there that the previous washing hadn't taken care of. In the back of my mind, I thought of how Thorin's nails were always with a shadow of dirt under them while Fili and Kili's still looked clean from time to time depending on their care. I wondered just how often Thorin's hands were dirty that the dirt had become permanent compared to that of his nephews'.

With those thoughts in mind, I made sure that my own nails were shining beautifully by the time I was finished and that even my toenails were at least better than what they once were. As a hobbit it was not possible to get all the dirt from one's feet but the attempt must always be made. I thought of my father as I scrubbed the soles of my feet from the side of the bath, giggling when I remembered how he scolded Mum and me when we trailed in dirt from our own adventures. I smiled at his memory and thought of how I missed him so.

Sometimes it still felt as if it were only recently that he passed.

Shaking my head so as to clear such thoughts, I allowed myself another soak while I tried to think about the rest of the journey ahead. The sight of Erebor in the distance still worried me with what I knew to be there at the end but in the bath, it seemed so far away…

Trying to rid of my mind of that evitable path, my eyes inevitably wandered over to the sight of Beorn's flowers. I scooted closer to them and leaned over to finger the petals of a daffodil and found myself wondering about what Beorn's festival would be like. Ori seemed to know more than the rest of us what it entailed but his excitement made it almost impossible for us to ask. Well, that and the fact that Beorn had kept us all busy in preparation for it.

-write this connecting section-

And with that thought, I realized that I had already spent far too much time in the bath that I originally had wanted. Intending on just a quick dip to appease Beorn, I was sidetracked by the pure decadence that the bath offered after I first saw it. Though knowing that this would most likely be my last bath for the foreseeable future, I got out without much fanfare and went for a drying sheet; it was cool against my skin and smelled of the same pine that I associated with Beorn and his home.

I dried quickly and dressed again in the clothes that I had been wearing. While I relished the feel of the fabric against my skin, even I noticed that a scent lingered on them from how often they had been worn over the journey so far. Only Fili's shirt did not have an unpleasant stench though as the fabric went over my head, I noticed that it did smell of the brothers.

Leaving my hair down and only bothering to finger comb it, I left the bathing house and wandered back to the front of the main house to see what the others were up to. Still split into various groups, there were notably three groupings, one of which was Beorn and the cousins Bifur and Bofur. They talked about something while another group sat off to the side.

Momentarily catching my attention, Dwalin and Thorin rustled about back and forth in a casual looking spar, both of them exchanging easy blows while they talked about something too low to even catch their sensations on the wind. As they were so into their match, I went over to the group where the brothers and other dwarves sat and immediately noticed as I sat down that they talked about tonight's entertainment plans.

I took a seat next to a smiling Fili and relished the feel of his hand brushing along my leg

-write connecting part- -Dwarf dancing lesson-

"Well, that brings back some fond memories."

With the interruption of Gandalf's voice over us, the steady beat of Kili and Bifur's clapping stopped and we all stopped to acknowledge the elderly wizard that had spoken. I stood at the ready just in case they wanted to continue on with the lesson, turning to face Ori since I would need to start with him when the dance continued.

To the side, Bofur's cheerful voice tickled the tops of my feet as he inquired to Gandalf, "And what kind of memories would that be, Master Gandalf?"

"Why, of someone kind enough to dance with this old fool." I blushed at the teasing bright smile he gave me, his voice teasing at my shoulder, "I seem to recall a little hobbit's skirts flying about as she laughed at us tumbling everywhere."

The dwarves laughed at Gandalf good naturedly but I kept my mouth shut because even though I had been present, I was too young to remember such a happy event as clearly as Gandalf could. Even trying my hardest to recall the evening that I first met Gandalf with my mum, I could only vaguely remember the fireworks that he lit rather than any dance we might have shared.

"It reminds me of the hobbit step, don't you think so, Bilbo?"

His voice tickled at my shoulder and though my face automatically went for a confused look, the playful glint in Gandalf's eye made me stop. He obviously wanted the dwarves to get a taste of hobbit dancing, something that was as complex and complicated as we as a race were simple. I smiled at the idea of oncoming mischief and tried to play it off as casually as he.

"I was thinking they were somewhat similar."

I grinned through the small lie and tried to not laugh at the idea of trying to pass the dance off as anything like the dwarven dancing. Though the dance the dwarves taught me had involved a good amount of movement, it was nothing like the hobbit step. Not even in the slightest. Really the only thing the dances had in common was the joy that people experienced as they tried to fumble their way through it. It certainly did make adults and children alike abound with laughter because of how high energy it was.

Looking at the group, I saw that Gandalf's ploy was starting to work, the curious look on the faces of the dwarves really starting to show. They looked at one another, thinking of whether they wanted to learn a hobbit dance, as boring as it might have been. Surely they thought that it was a lazy dance, much like all hobbits were.

"What's the hobbit step?" Fili asked, his voice a happy and playful pinch on my rear. He stood up as he asked, already eager to try and learn the steps. His enthusiasm to share in my culture in this small way made me smile but to their credit, the other dwarves were all ears to the dance.

"Quite a lovely dance, really. Especially beloved by the children of the Shire."

Gandalf schooled his face to only show his small smile but obvious glee from what he was about to see came through in his tone.

"If it's a dance that children can do, I don't see why we can't learn it as well for tonight?"

At the sight of all the dwarves smiling at me looking so eager to learn such a dance, I nodded without even really thinking of how well suited the dwarves were towards the dance itself.

"…What was that, Miss Hobbit?"

"That was the hobbit step, Fili. It's a dance any child can do."

"I feel sick…" Obviously the turns had been a bit much for Fili as evident by the parlor of his skin, pale and starting to look a bit on the green side.

-basic steps
turn turn turn turn turn turn
turn fast fast fast
do the line, turn turn, line
Line jump jump
turn directions, line line line
turn turn turn
line in different direction
hop hop hop as turn
Pause...lean... turn turn turn-

When preparing for the party, Ori and the others teach Bilbo a dwarf dance. Excitedly, she learns the dance and delights because it's very similar to hobbit dances.

Afterwards, Gandalf comes over and makes a note that the dwarf dance has hobbit like elements to it. He mentions that it looks like the "hobbit trot!"

The dwarves ask to learn the hobbit trot though they are quite terrible at it.
Dwalin and Thorin are off to the side training with swords, unknowingly watching the lessons.
By the end of the lessons, Bilbo concludes that the dwarves won't be doing any hobbit trot.

They start the festival by drinking

- Mid-Summer Festival

They decorate the house with flowers. Livestock is also decorated in flowers and ferns.
Central female figure since festival believes that moon is woman and gave birth to the children of the world when pregnant.
Beorn tells them the ancient story of how the bear clan of skin-changers came to be. Constellation Ursa
Central dance pair.

There is TONS of dancing in the chapter

Bilbo tells Thorin about how her parents met during one of the festivals
Dwalin is pulled to dance with Bilbo, lingering touch on her wrist
Bilbo wants to dance and pulls Dwalin up to dance with her. They dance with the others in dwarf style but for the second dance, Dwalin says that her hands are not right.
He positions his hands for the hobbit trot and Bilbo is astoundingly happy that Dwalin was paying attention.
He gives her off to Thorin and they dance. He runs his fingers through her hair
They celebrate fertility.
Dwarves and Beorn run naked when the moon is at its highest.
They play games "Descent into the Garden". They each pick a flower from a pile and whatever they pick represents how many children they will have.
Bilbo notices that Kili looks a little frustrated later on in the night.

Thorin/Bilbo sex -during sex, she hears arguing from Kili/Fili bedroom.
Thorin and Bilbo have sex after the festival.
She sits on the bed, exhausted and still slightly drunk.
Thorin comes up to her and kneels down before the bed
He looks at her and her crown of flowers and smiles, "The queen of summer."
Bilbo smiles, laughs and nods when he asks, "Allow me to honor you."
He slips his hand underneath her skirt and touches her before going down on her.
They both move up the bed, undressing and she has him lie down so that she can straddle over him. She gives him a blow job while he alternates between licking her and fingering her.
She eventually starts using the skills that Kili taught her to use against Thorin. When he is almost about to come, he has her stop.
He sits up and they have sex, her back to his chest.
Fili also comes into the bedroom naked and snuggles up to Thorin
Bilbo makes a joke about the King of the Bedroom having returned.