Just a filler. Sorry it took so long.

After days of searching and separating the living from the dead, they piled the bodies of the orcs and wargs to prepare them to be burned. The dwarves were laid to rest in the stone, and the men and elves had a place set aside to honor and bury their dead. The peoples worked hard and fast, wanting to move on from such horrific happenings.

Dain had sent for provisions, as had Thranduil. The Woodland king had been gifted the gems that should have been his so long ago, and many attributed his actions to this. The twins got word from their father that Lorien would be sending supplies enough for the winter; food, material, and tools. The men and dwarves would be well taken care of. Elrond also sent word that the Lindir was escorting Princess Dis to Erebor, and would be arriving in only a few weeks. She had left the Blue Mountains; with a small, armed company; upon receiving her son's first letter.

Her sons and brother were excited and anxious over this development. On the one hand, they looked forward to seeing her. On the other, they didn't like the idea of her traveling across Middle Earth without one of them, and they dreaded what she would do once she got there. She knew about Kili's wounds in the fields outside Rivendell, and adding the events from the most recent battle, Thorin thought his reign might end before it truly began.

Bilbo had told Thorin about finding the Arkenstone and what Glorfindel had said about it. Once he had conferred with his present advisors and cousin, it was decided that Fili and Kili would take the precious stone and hide it away. With the stench of dragon still in the air, and the possibility that the ring Sauron had gifted to the line of Durin may have already corrupted Thorin, it was thought best to keep it away from him. When the time came for Fili to take the throne, the stone could be returned to its place.

Thorin had decided, with the support of his company and Dain, to let the new people of Dale spend the winter in the mountain. Unlike Erebor, Dale had been exposed to the elements for almost two hundred years, and was in far worse shape. Thankfully, the city would be salvageable, but was uninhabitable for the moment. When spring came, the dwarves would help them to make it livable once more. In exchange, the men and women of Dale had volunteered to help clear the mountain of dust and unusable materials.

Finally, the dead were buried and honored, and the carcuses of their enemies had been burned. The elves were getting ready to return to their forest, and half of Dain's army was preparing to march for home. Dain would be staying through until the spring, as would the remaining warriors. There were others also preparing to leave.

"Are you sure we cannot convince you to stay, Master Baggins? You would be more than welcome," said Thorin. He, the company, Bard and his children, Tauriel, and Glorfindel stood by to wish their friends, old and new, well on their journeys.

"We accomplished what we set out to do. You have your home, and I now long for mine. I shall remember your offer, though, should I ever decide to have another adventure," said Bilbo smiling. "And, should any of you find yourself near the Shire, tea is at four, do not bother knocking."

"We shall see that he returns home safe, King Thorin," said Elladan.

"No need to worry about him," added Elrohir. The dwarf king rolled his eyes.

"We thank you for allowing us to search the old visitors' chambers for our father's dagger. He will be most pleased to have it back,"

"And we will be pleased to keep our hides," ended Elrohir. Fighting a smile, Thorin shook his head. He had not known them long, but his nephews had shared much about their adventure while they worked. He figured the least he could do was allow them to search for special dagger.

Legolas approached from where he had been securing his own things to his horse. "We must be on our way soon. Fear not for your hobbit, Thorin, I will see to it that he arrives at the door of Bag End before I go on my own path."

"That we are joining you on," said Elrohir.

"It's been a while since we have seen our, uh, Strider. We know his usual camps and paths. You will find him much quicker with us," said Elladan.

Legolas rolled his eyes and walked back to his horse.

"I wish I could see the Shire," lamented Tilda. "It sounds so pretty and so different from the Lake."

"I am sure that could be arranged, selenelle," said Elladan. He smiled at the child. When she had learned that her mother's line could be traced back to their father's twin, she asked if that made them cousins. The twins quickly agreed and took to calling her 'little cousin', much to her pleasure. Unbeknownst to the children, the twins had mentioned to Bard that their father would often foster children from his brother's linage, though most often they were from a specific line. Bard had the choice to send his children to Rivendell for an education, if he or his children liked. With their new positions, he had begun to think it wise.

Not too much later, the wizard, three elves, and the lone hobbit started their trek west. Everyone began to go their own way. They had expected Glorfindel to stay, but Tauriel had been a surprise. Thranduil had tried to convince her to return with her people, but she refused, saying that she was needed where she was. She was to be the new Captain of the Guard for Dale. She would see to it that, for at least the next few years, the guards and soldiers of Dale would receive the best training. Having seen her fight, none of the dwarrow would disagree that she would be a fine instructor. Though, there was mention that a little dwarven influence could be useful.

Men, women, and dwarves were already hard at work cleaning out hallways and rooms. It was decided that it would be better for the dwarrow to tend to the private halls and homes, that way there could be no later accusations of theft. The Men of Dale were all quartered in the visitor's halls. They mainly stuck to clearing out the public areas. The dwarrow documented names and possession so that families may more easily claim what is rightfully theirs. The Men and Dwarves in the mountain numbered over one thousand. Even without the number Dis was bringing, they would have the mountain ready well before spring.

"Amad should be here in what? Two weeks?" asked Kili.

"I believe that is correct. What do you think the chances are that she won't yell at us?" said Fili.

"None," answered Thorin. "I know my sister. She will air her grievances, and I will be lucky to survive her first night home, especially once she hears about how I treated the two of you before the battle."

They were in the treasury. This was a place very few people would have access to. They had begun separating what they could, making sure every person and people would get what they were promised. The Company were going to be set for life. Esgaroth would be able to rebuild, for there were those who wished to rebuild Laketown, albeit in another, yet to be selected, place. They would not build over the old town.

"Ah, it won't be that bad. We'll protect you," teased Fili.

"I don't understand why you plan to tell her, anyway," said Kili. "She doesn't have to know about that last bit."

Thorin and Fili looked at the younger dwarf. Fili walked up to him and smacked the back of his head.

"She's Amad, Kili! She will find out. If we were to try and hide it from her…." The three dwarrow shivered. An angry dwarrowdam was a very scary thing.

"Right, better to tell her. But she wouldn't actually kill you, Thorin."

"She threw an axe at my head when she found out I lost you both for an hour in the market."

"Yeah, but you didn't return without us. Now is no different. Yeah, you cocked it up, but we're still here, alive and well."

"Besides, we haven't had your official coronation, and I need to be officially named your heir. If need be, we can draw it out until her anger cools," added Fili.

"That'll only take about, what? Twenty years? Or one of us could marry and give her grandchildren. That would make her let it go." Kili received another blow to the head. "Ow! Stop doing that, Fili!"

"Don't you dare go putting those thoughts in her head! I'll be the first victim, Kili!"

The three Durin's bickered and teased some more before breaking for lunch. They met the rest of the Company and Bard's children in the royal family's private dining hall. They were the last to arrive.

"Bard not joining us?" asked Thorin as they began eating.

"No, Da and Percy have been making plans. Percy has been elected as the new Master. Since Da knows the lake so well, he is helping to choose a new placement for the town," answered Sigrid. She and Tilda spent most of their time with Bombur in the kitchens.

"They have been pouring over those maps for most of the morning. Da tried to tell him that it would be better to wait until Spring to actually look at the lake, since the maps that have been unearthed are over two hundred years old, but those resettling Esgaroth have been bothering Percy about having a plan in place," added Bain. He had been cleaning out weapons rooms with Dwalin and Bifur.

Bofur had been surveying the mines with a few of the Iron Hills dwarves, Balin and Ori had been in the library, and the rest of the Company had been in the treasure with Fili, Kili, and Thorin.

"Where are Glorfindel and Tauriel? I haven't seen them since this morning, and Tauriel always comes by the kitchens before lunch," asked Tilda.

The adults chuckled, but Kili answered her. "I know they have plans to dine with the Woodland elves tonight, since they shall leave tomorrow, but I think Tauriel mentioned wanting to take a walk before it becomes too cold to do so."

"I want to go for a walk too! I am tired of being stuck in the kitchens," pouted Tilda. This brought on more chuckles.

Kili leaned over and whispered to his uncle. Once Thorin nodded his approval, Kili turned back to Bard's children. "If it's alright with you, Sigrid, Fili and I will give Tilda a tour of some of the recently cleaned up areas. She'll be able to stretch her legs, and we'll be able to take a break from sorting that endless pit."

Sigrid quickly agreed, thinking an afternoon without having to mind her sister would be heavenly.

Glorfindel and Tauriel walked around the base of the mountain. Neither were ready to head towards the elven camp, but they weren't ready to return to the mountain just yet.

"Thorin has said we are more than welcome to walk the ramparts when we are feeling restless. That should help if we begin to feel restless in the mountain," said Glorfindel. They had chatted about many things all morning; her plans for Dale's guard, the various differences between Rivendell and Mirkwood, the differences from Gondolin. They had yet to address what was on both of their minds.

"Yes, he told me last eve. It is kind of him. I cannot remember a time that I was not surrounded by earth and trees, but at least I shall have the stars. They have always been a comfort to me."

"Yes, I remember." They walked in silence a few moments more before Glorfindel built up the courage to begin. "I am surprised Legolas decided to go in search of Estel. I figured he would remain and encourage you to return to Mirkwood."

"Estel?"

"Strider. He is one of the Dunedain, around ten years older than Sigrid. Their mother's father was a third cousin of his, I believe. He was orphaned and raised in Rivendell."

They walked in silence further. This time, Tauriel spoke first.

"Legolas does not feel for me as he thought, he knows this now. He feared losing me."

"And how do you know this?" He saw something mischievous in her eyes.

"I asked him how he thought of me. If he could see me as a wife…. in his bed."

Glorfindel stopped. He worked to clear his mind because he knew he was nowhere near ready for those kinds of thoughts. He heard giggling coming from a few steps ahead.

"You'll pay for that," he promised.

"One day perhaps, but as I was saying, he realized I spoke the truth. He wished me well before he left and told me that, though I have lived all my years among the trees of the Greenwood, I would feel just as at home in the Valley of Imladris."

"I figured something had passed between you. He wished me happiness, and said that I am well matched. I was too stunned to believe it. I had already determined to have a talk with him. Lady Galadriel had paid a visit to Rivendell while Kili was injured. She told me not to fear should my heart be taken. Kili reminded me just after our conversation on the lake shore. Most elves my age are well past thinking of taking a spouse. I have never ruled it out, but it had never seemed to be the right time. So, I left on our journey knowing something, or rather, someone would cross my path. In the cell, I remember thinking, 'what fear is there to be held'. I was quite besotted, and then Legolas let on that he cared for you. Having witnessed what can become of such a situation, I thought it better to step aside."

"Even knowing his feelings would never be returned by me?"

"People do foolish things for those they care for. I regretted what I said the moment I said it, and then you were riding off with him. I didn't care for that one bit."

"It was for the best."

"So it was. How long do you believe you shall serve as Bard's captain?"

"As long as he has need of me. I have no other plans. What of yourself? Surly you will not always be in Erebor?"

"I will be here for a full two years. Then, I shall come back periodically. Sauron is not done with this land. He has been flushed out, but he will hide behind his gates and build his armies. As I once promised, I will help the line of Durin. The dwarves of Erebor will be strong against him, and with your aid, so will the Men of Dale and Esgaroth. Many of our people have begun to sail for the undying lands. Our time here is drawing to a close, though it will still be many years before I take my leave."

He had watched Tauriel as he said this. Thranduil had kept his people separate from the world for centuries. He noticed she looked a bit sad.

"How can this work? I am Silvan, you are Noldor. My people do not sail."

"Tauriel, there has always been a place for your people in Aman. The Silvan may often choose to fade or die in battle, but no matter how they end their lives here, all elves end up in the same place."

"My parents…"

"Are preparing to be reborn in Aman if they have not already been. You will see them again."

"What do you want from me?" she asked. She had stopped walking and looked him into his eyes.

"Right now? I want to get to know you better, and have you know me. Anything more we can decided on later."

She smiled at him before turning to continue their walk. She asked him if it were true that elves could grow beards.

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