The next couple of weeks flew by. Billie started her new job. Thorin was right she was basically a secretary, but the people she worked with were kind and the pay was good. She opened a savings account after her first paycheck; if this kept up she'd be able to afford her own car by the time summer ended.

Fili and Kili helped her move all her things from Lizzy's guest bedroom into Balin and Dori's guest bedroom. Billie tried to be as neat as possible, containing her piles to one big one on her closet floor. Dori told her secretly however that she didn't mind everyone's mess.

"I quit my job so I could be a stay-at-home mom when the baby arrives," she said, "but I've been so bored waiting for him to show up. It's nice having a house full of people that need looking after."

Everything seemed to be falling into place, until….

"GAH!" Billie screamed, scrambling backwards out of the hole in the wall she had been investigating.

"What?!" Thorin asked in alarm from the walls other side, "What is it? What's wrong?!" He hurried around the corner to kneel besides her.

"Bug!" Billie coughed, "went up my nose!" Thorin tried unsuccessfully not to laugh.

"Was it a big bug ooooor…?" he chuckled.

"It's not funny Thorin," Billie coughed again. Thorin smiled down at her, he'd taken her stitches out a few days ago and she'd returned from a visit with Lizzy that same night with her hair cut into a bob. Lizzy had used some magical hair dressing technique in order to hide the almost bald spot on the side of her head. The soft, brown curls framing her face suited her, he thought.

"Is it still in there?" Billie asked, tilting her head so he could see up her nose. Thorin put a hand under her chin to better peer into her nasal cavity.

"I don't think so." Billie turned pale.

"Oh my God, what if it went down my throat?! What if it was poisonous?!" Thorin laughed again.

"I think you'll be okay." Outside something boomed, causing Billie to jump.

"It's just thunder," Thorin assured her, there was a plinking sound on the roof, "and rain." He helped her to her feet and they walked towards the open French doors.

Outside the rain fell in sheets, flattening the grass in the yard, raising a river in the driveway. Lightening cracked across the dark blue sky, the wind whipped through the empty barn and flew up the porch steps to blow back their hair. Billie leaned against one side of the doorjamb, round eyes taking in the storms fury, Thorin stared at her for a second and then seemed to make up his mind about something.

"Are you hungry?" he asked suddenly. Billie turned to look at him, eyebrows raised. He felt his ears grow warm.

"I just realized we haven't eaten all day," he said.

"We had breakfast," Billie reminded him, "Dori made us sausages and pancakes."

"That was ages ago, it's," Thorin looked at his phone, "It's almost dinnertime." Billie smiled at him, one thing she had quickly learned she and Thorin's family had in common was their appreciation for meals held often and with large serving sizes.

"Want to break out the snack bar?" she asked, referring to the cooler in Thorin's truck filled with Hostess pastries, beef jerky and other such delicacies.

Thorin shook his head, "Let's go get real food, it probably isn't wise to be messing around with electric wires during a thunderstorm anyways." Billie nodded, before the spider or cockroach or whatever it was had taken its trip down her digestive tract, they had been trying to get the living room lights to turn on.

"Okay," she said, dusting herself off as best she could. "Let's go." Thorin retrieved his over shirt from where he had tossed it earlier. He always wore two shirts while working on the house, a long sleeved one over a t-shirt. Billie wondered why he bothered given it was usually 90 degrees out by 10 in the morning, but he was probably glad to have it now. She stepped out onto the front porch, mentally preparing herself to rush out into the rain, but Thorin surprised her by draping his second shirt over her head like a plaid hood. She blinked up at him.

"I need a shower more than you do," he said by way of explanation. "Ready?"

Billie grabbed the dangling shirt sleeves and held on tight, "Yeah."

"Alright, on three, one, two, three!" The raced into the downpour, Thorin clicking the unlock button as they ran. Even with his shirt over her head Billie was soaked by the time she climbed into the passenger's seat.

"Woo!" she shouted, peeling the garment off her hair, "That'll make you feel alive!" She tried to hand Thorin his shirt back but he shook his head.

"Wear it, you're shivering," she was, thanks to the rain and the trucks AC. She slid her arms into the sleeves gratefully. Thorin pulled the truck onto the main road and they turned towards town.

"We're not going to Bombor's?" Billie asked. They ate at the truck stop restaurant at least three times a week. The first time Billie had walked in with Fili and Kili to get lunch the fat cook had nearly broken her ribs with the hug he gave her, squealing that he was so glad that she was alright. Now he always gave her extra onion rings because he knew how much she liked them.

"Not today," Thorin said in answer to her question, he squinted at the windshield. It was really coming down; the wipers could barely keep up.

"Then where are we going?"

(Meanwhile…)

"Where are you going?" Kili asked, lowering the book he was reading to stare at his brother. Thorin had given them the afternoon off and he planned to spend it in complete slothfulness, apparently Fili had different plans. Kili's question left him paused halfway to the door.

"Um, to get…paint?" he said.

"Paint?" Kili asked.

"Yeah, for the house you know." Fili edged closer to the doorway."

"The house that won't need to be painted for weeks. The house that we still can't walk upstairs in because the floor is rotten through. That house?"

"Yep, that's the one." Fili made a mad dash out the door. Kili threw down his book and followed him, the rain made it hard to see, Fili struggled for the key to open the car they shared with Billie, and Kili slid into the passenger seat just as he slid into the drivers.

"Spill," his twin said, dripping hair hanging in front of his eyes.

Fili hung his head, "okaysothere'sthisgirl," he mumbled. Kili's smile grew wicked.

"Really," he adopted a listening pose, "a girl you say?"

"She works at the hardware store," Fili couldn't help but smile, "I saw her yesterday when Uncle Thorin sent me to get more sandpaper."

"And you thought by engaging in some mild stalking she might want to go out with you?"

"No!" Fili looked alarmed, "No, I just, I just wanted to see her again."

Kili sighed, leaning his seat back and propping his feet up, "Alright, let's go."

Fili looked at him in confusion, "wait you're not going to make fun of me for this."

Kili patted his shoulder, "Oh no I will, later. Probably a lot, in a mildly scaring fashion, until the day we die. But, you're my brother. If you like this girl, the least I can do is check her out so I can tell you how little a chance you have with her."

Fili smiled at him, "Aw, I love you too." Kili snorted.

"Whatever. Start the engine Captain Friend-zoned!"

(And then…)

Billie took a bite of her pizza and nearly fainted with delight.

"OhmiGod," she said with her mouth full. Thorin laughed at her expression of over the top ecstasy.

"Here," he filled her glass full of root beer from the pitcher on the table, "try some of this." Billie took a sip and moaned with pleasure.

"I think I just had mouth orgasm," she said. Thorin's ears went scarlet and he choked on the bite he'd just taken.

"Yeah," he coughed to hide his embarrassment, "it's really good isn't it."

(…Meanwhile)

Fili peered around a display of hammers trying to look like he was deciding which one to buy while simultaneously watching Kili while he was up front, talking to Elann.

That was her name, Elann. Fili hoped it was in reference to the 1980's animated movie 'Starchaser' because if so he was going to love her parents.

He shifted his gaze from the hammers back to the front counter. She leaned against the cash register as she talked to Kili. Her mandatory red apron couldn't hide her long legs or slim waist, her hair was blonde like his, but a few shades paler, dawn sunlight to his gold. Her brown eyes sparkled as she smiled at something Kili had said.

See now that wasn't fair, smiles like that should be illegal.

Kili gave Elann a wave and left the store. Fili waited a few minutes and then followed, he found his twin sitting the car staring at the raindrops as they raced down the window.

"She is so out of your league," Kili told him. Fili felt his heart sink even more; he'd known that, but…

"But if you don't ask her out anyway you are an even bigger idiot than I thought." Kili made a shooing motion, "Go on, strap your balls on and ask her." Feeling as if he had swallowed live grasshoppers, Fili walked back into the store.

She was stacking paint cans. He took a deep breath, walked up and tapped her on the shoulder. She turned to stare at him.

"Hi," he started.

(And then…)

The storm had subsided by the time they got back to the house. The stars were coming out as they locked up and headed back to Balin and Dori's.

"Thanks for dinner," Billie said.

"You're welcome," Thorin pushed his toolbox into the back seat, "I hope Fili and Kili enjoyed their day off because we're going to need all four of us tomorrow. We're finally ready to start the upstairs floor."

"Cool," Billie climbed into the truck and they rumbled out of the half-flooded driveway. Thorin switched on the radio.

"Hey can I ask you something?" Billie asked suddenly, Thorin turned the radio down and looked at her.

"How'd you wind up raising your nephews?" She'd been wondering this for a while, not that it mattered, but she was convinced that she was a cat in a former life. A cat that had let curiosity get the best of them and had gotten run over by a bus. Thorin was quiet and she was suddenly afraid she had crossed some sort of line.

"Sorry. I know that came out of nowhere," she said, "if you don't want to tell me you don't have to." Thorin laughed softly.

"It's not that, I was just remembering." He began, "My sister Dis got pregnant very young. She was 15 and when our father found out, well he wanted her to get rid of the baby, we didn't know it was twins yet. He said, having a daughter pregnant at that age would bring shame on the Durin name."

"I thought your last name was Oakenshield," Billie interrupted.

"It is, my last name," Thorin explained, "I changed it when I moved out, but Dis was a Durin and so are the boys."

"Oh," Billie managed.

"Anyways, Dis refused to get rid of her child," Thorin continued, "The father took no responsibility for the situation and left, but Dis said that it was her poor choices that made the baby in the first place. She wasn't going to punish them for something they had no control over. So our father disowned her and then he disowned me when I followed to take care of her."

"How old were you?"

"I was 17," Thorin grinned, "Those were wild times. Both of us were still in high school and working whenever we could just to support ourselves. Miraculously I got accepted into college, even more miraculously I got a full scholarship. Dis had the boys the month after I graduated and together we moved to my college town, she got a little place and I helped out all I could. She finished high school online and by the time I had started my residency we were doing alright, and then she got sick." He sighed, "That was…rough. It felt like, we had made it up the mountain only to get attacked by a passing dragon. She died last year."

"I'm so sorry," Billie put a hand on his arm; he reached over and gave it a squeeze.

"Thank you," he let go and focused back on driving. "I miss her." He looked over at the girl in the passenger seat, "She would have liked you."

Billie smiled, "Really?" Thorin nodded.

"She was joyful, just like you. Life was an adventure; nothing was going to stop her from having her share of it." They pulled into Balin and Dori's neighborhood, Billie noticed that the car she shared with the boys was gone. They must have gone to the store or something.

In companionable silence they unloaded the truck and then Billie tromped upstairs to change and wash the dirt out of her hair. After her shower she opened her window and leaned her head against the screen, the crickets were singing.

(Meanwhile…)

Thorin sat on the back porch staring up at the stars, a lit cigarette dangled from his lips. He knew smoking killed, but ever since her he hadn't been able to stop. He heard a window open above him, Billie must still be awake. He was about to call up to her. There were some beers in the fridge, they could talk for a while, it was a nice night now that it had stopped raining. Then his cell phone rang.

Thorin answered it without looking to see who it was, "Hello."

"Thorin?"

Think of the devil and he shall appear.

"Iradessa?"