He saw her eyes widen a fraction in surprise before she answered in a warm voice and a deep bow of her own, "Dís, daughter of Thrain, at yours."
"Welcome to my humble home," Bilbo hurried to say as he opened the door even further. "And do bring some of your people if you like, I'm afraid I don't have enough to properly host more than a dozen though, my larder is still recovering…" he babbled, remembering the last unexpected party. He wasn't quite ready for another adventure yet: he had just gotten home, for heaven's sakes!
"I wish to speak with you alone, if I may," Lady Dís gently interrupted. It rather seemed like he had interrupted her, although he was the one that had been talking.
"Of course, yes, that's fine," he muttered as he helped her remove her travel cloak. Bilbo noted the two guards at the door, and suspected that there would be more guarding the other entrances to his home. He made a mental note to bring them refreshments later.
"Come in, come in… It's almost teatime; is there anything particular I can get for you? I just put on the kettle and I have…"
"Just tea, thank you," she said as she gracefully sat down in one of his worn chairs. He could feel her eyes on him as he ran around his kitchen. He wished he had baked more seed biscuits yesterday as he set out his best china. When everything was finally arranged to his flustered satisfaction, he collapsed in his chair. To his slight surprise, Dís had waited to begin until he had joined her.
Dís's eyebrow cocked in surprise as she sampled her tea. "You make an excellent brew, Master Hobbit."
Bilbo muttered some depreciating reply. The initial shock of having another dwarf in his home so soon after… well, after, was starting to wear off, allowing him to actually take note of her appearance. She was the same height as Thorin, with the same raven-black hair, although hers was coming in light grey around the roots. She wore it pulled back from her face in a single thick braid accented with a handful of silver clips. Her ears were heavily pierced, but the jewelry she wore was small and simply decorated. Her beard was full and short, with understated silver beads frosting her jawline. Her eyes, as Bilbo had noticed earlier, were the same vibrant blue as Fili's, while her other features bore more resemblance to Kili's. Her clothing was of the tough cloth and finely worked leather favored by the dwarves. Despite its well-worn and travel-stained state, she wore it as if she were dressed in the finest silks and gems. To his surprise, Bilbo noted knives strapped to her forearms. Even royal dwarrowdams, it would seem, went nowhere unarmed.
"Now what do I owe the honor of your visit, milady?" Bilbo asked politely.
"I would think that my purpose would be obvious," she said quietly as she placed her cup into her saucer with a small clink, "Especially to the fourteenth member of the Company."