If Bilbo had thought the nights preceding the coronation were riotous — and indeed, they certainly were that — he had not guessed that the party following the coronation would make the previous festivities seem like nothing so much as quiet afternoon tea parties of the sort that even Lobelia might find dull. It seemed that thousands of dwarves all of a mind to celebrate made for quite the loudest, most raucous celebration Bilbo could ever have conceived of. In fact, he decided, he could not have conceived of such a clamor, for the din in the great halls of Erebor was beyond anything he could ever have put words to.

It was so loud that it was nearly impossible to speak with anyone beyond the barest of pleasantries. The dwarves seemed not to mind, and quite enthusiastically shouted at each other so as to make themselves heard above the din, and also resorted to their sign language, about which Bilbo knew very little beyond the bare fact of its existence.

Bilbo had no sign language to aid him, but he was quite content to "Hullo, how d'you do?" to the very many dwarves who were pleased to make his acquaintance, and he bowed as gracefully as if he had been doing it his whole life, and those things were most of what was required of him. An alarming number of these brief shouted conversations turned to the topic of the Shire, and how many guest rooms were in Bag-End; Bilbo quickly became proficient at squinting in confusion as if he had not heard the speaker, holding a hand to his ear, and shrugging in profuse apology for failing to understand the question.

Thorin was holding court near the throne, though that great seat itself was draped in discarded cloaks and armor (the room was quite warm, and Bilbo too was uncomfortably warm, but he feared that if he dropped his beautiful velvet coat to the ground as so many of the dwarves had done, he should never retrieve it again). Thorin had at some point during the evening removed his ornate and ostentatious crown and had replaced with a simpler circlet of finely woven gold, studded with just a few glittering jewels. It was equally magnificent as the first, though Bilbo suspected far less likely to give rise to a headache, if dwarves indeed got headaches. Fili was at Thorin's side, his own small golden circlet still in place, and Kili was there as well, also still crowned, though not, in Bilbo's estimation, altogether happy about it — Bilbo had seen Kili try to take the circlet off earlier in the evening; Fili had materialized at his side as if out of thin air and had, to Kili's visible irritation, insisted that Kili keep it on.

Bilbo was not sure he blamed Kili, for surely he felt quite ridiculous in a crown, even one so small and tasteful as this one, and even though it was far less conspicuous than some of the many other crowns which could be seen — such a number were on display, it seemed everywhere Bilbo turned, there was another! Elrond was floating regally around the room, his diadem in place, and Elladan and Elrohir wore theirs as well, as did their sister Arwen, their elvish crowns delicate and intricately beautiful. Thranduil too was crowned as was his son and heir Prince Legolas of Mirkwood, who looked rather remarkably like his father, right down to the somewhat arrogant smirk. Their crowns were at once less fussy yet still grander than those of their cousins from Rivendell. Even Dáin was crowned, though he was no king, but he was Lord of the Iron Hills and a descendent of Durin in his own right, and none would suggest he could not wear whatever finery he wanted. His nieces too had golden tiaras in their hair, and they glittered and shone as the nieces themselves smiled and curtsied and made every and any excuse to chat with Fili and Kili and even Thorin — who, Bilbo realized rather suddenly, must certainly be a most eligible bachelor, now that his throne was restored to him.

The air on the dais was quite festive: Thorin had retrieved a harp from somewhere and he had been playing for quite some time and singing too; though Bilbo could not hear him over the noise of the very merry dwarves, he knew that Thorin's voice was actually quite smooth and fine. Fili was playing a fiddle next to him, and Bofur was there too playing a beautiful silvery flute. Dáin and some of his dwarves appeared to be singing along and stomping their feet enthusiastically on the floor; Elladan and Elrohir were settled next to Kili and they were singing as well — though, from what Bilbo could see of the way their lips moved, it was possible they were singing an entirely different song. Kili himself was not singing, and Bilbo felt a pang of disappointment at this, though he supposed it would have been asking too much for Kili to so quickly discard all the traditions which had for his whole life restricted his interactions with other dwarves, crown upon his head or no.

The band around the throne was hardly the only one in the room. Around the room there were several other groups of dwarves playing music and singing and contributing to the general clamor; Bilbo could not imagine from whence all these instruments had appeared! Perhaps the dwarves carried instruments with them wherever they went, much as a hobbit would carry his handkerchief. The noise was in fact a bit much for Bilbo, whose ears had begun to ring. Fearing for his hearing, he escaped to hide behind a large pillar, away to the side of the large chamber where the noise was at a level slightly less likely to induce deafness, and there he stood for a few moments with his fingers plugged inconspicuously into his ears.

He was just wondering whether he might risk uncorking one ear when he felt a sudden tap on his shoulder. Bilbo jumped and let out a little squeak of surprise, spinning around to find Ori standing there looking slightly alarmed.

"I am sorry, Mr. Baggins!" Ori apologized. "I did not mean to sneak up on you."

"No, no," Bilbo said. "I had my fingers in my ears, after all. I am glad you found me in this throng! I have been looking for you all evening."

"Well," Ori said, "it is quite difficult to find anyone in here except by chance." He was still wearing his fine robes, but they had begun to ... well, unravel was not quite the right word, but certainly they had begun to settle on him and take on the somewhat disheveled look of all the rest of his clothing. Bilbo supposed there were some people not cut out to be lords; he rather supposed he was one of them as well! Still, it would not do to say as much to Ori, who had been quite proud of his new finery, and had made a point of seeking out Bilbo to show it to him earlier in the day. He felt, he had said, quite dashing, and that the new scar on his forehead only made him more dashing still. Bilbo had quite a different opinion about that, but Ori now looked a bit rakish and certainly more hardened than he had before, and Bilbo supposed to dwarf eyes that might indeed make him more attractive.

"It is quite a party," Bilbo said agreeably. "It makes the dinner parties in Rivendell look quite tame in comparison." (They had not seemed tame at the time, with the dwarves throwing food at one another and often the occasional weapon, and Bofur ending each evening dancing on the tabletop singing at the top of his lungs.)

"They were quite tame," said Ori earnestly. "Thorin made us promise to be on our best behavior."

Well! Bilbo was certainly not going to comment on that! "I presume," he said instead, "that he did not coerce you into making any such promises tonight."

"No," Ori said. "Though he would not need to coerce us, but simply to command us, now that he is king."

"And you are a lord of Erebor!" Bilbo said. "A fine reward, I should think."

"Oh," said Ori. "If you hear me addressed as such after tonight, it will surely be in jest."

"Oh," Bilbo said himself, quite surprised. "I had thought it was an honor."

"It is," Ori said, "an honor of the highest sort! But that is all it is. Though perhaps for Balin and Dwalin and Oín and Gloín, it will carry more weight, as they are at least of the royal line. For the rest of us, it is just a pretty title to be toted out at ceremonies."

"I see," Bilbo said, though he was not entirely sure that he did, for there were very few titles in the Shire, and those there were all held significance of some sort. "And dwarf-friend? Is that but a pretty title too?"

"No," Ori said in some surprise. "That is a true honor indeed, and awarded to but a handful in all of our history. Did Thorin not tell you what it means?"

"Well," Bilbo said, "clearly it means I am a friend to the dwarves, and I certainly would feel that with or without being officially named such, but if there is more to it, I do not know."

Ori frowned just a bit, though to Bilbo's eyes he looked more exasperated than angry or unhappy. "There is more to it, Mr. Baggins, but this is hardly the time or place to tell you. For one thing, it should take all night, and I fear I would lose my voice shouting above the din for that long! But we must make sure you are told before you return home."

Return home! Bilbo had not really considered that in other than an abstract sense, but certainly he knew he must go — a dwarf-friend he might be, but he was no dwarf, and he could not see himself living contentedly inside the mountain, no matter how cheerful the dwarves were who lived there. No, Bilbo was quite eager to return to the peace and quiet of the Shire now that the quest was well done; an uneventful journey would see him home before the leaves began to turn.

"I look forward to hearing it," Bilbo said. "I did mean to ask Kili, but he is quite occupied tonight." He looked toward the throne, and frowned as he realized Kili was not there. Fili remained, no longer playing the fiddle, but surrounded instead by his Iron Hills kin, whom, it must be said, he resembled a great deal more than he did Thorin. In temperament he resembled them as well, or they him; many times since they reclaimed the mountain Bilbo had found Fili deep in conversation with his kin, discussing how many knives one could hide on one's person, and the relative merits of one forging technique over another for a particular kind of blade. But Kili, who too could frequently be found huddled with the Li cousins — though in his case discussing bows and arrow fletching, for there were several great archers among them — was nowhere to be seen within that group.

Of course it was possible that Kili had slipped into the crowd, in which case Bilbo should never find him again until everyone tottered off to bed, but it was also possible that Kili had become overwhelmed with all the attention and had escaped to one of his many hidey-holes within the mountain. Bilbo stood on his tiptoes as if it would help see over the crowd — it didn't — and peered around. He found Elladan and Elrohir easily enough: twice as tall as the dwarves and half as wide, they strode through the crowd with their odd leaping grace, dwarves moving out of their way like a stream parting round a stone. But of Kili there was no sign.

"You do not need to worry for him so," Ori said.

"I—what?" said Bilbo. "Worry for whom?"

"Kili," Ori said. "You always look for him first, whenever you enter a room. And you are always first to seek him out when he escapes us for a little while."

"Well," Bilbo said, rather thoroughly flustered, for he had not realized he was quite so obvious in his attentions. "Hobbits are great worriers."

Ori looked quite amused and rather indulgent. "That is as it may be, Mr. Baggins, but it seems fair to say that you worry a bit more for Kili than you do the rest of us."

Bilbo sputtered, but Ori simply smiled with one eyebrow raised. With his sudden air of wisdom and his fine clothes and new rather fearsome scar, Bilbo for the first time thought he could believe that Ori was in age equal to Kili and Bilbo combined. "It is understandable," Ori said, rather gently. "He was in such great need of friendship for so long, and you were the first to provide it. I think you have become accustomed to protecting him."

"I–" Bilbo said. "Well. I would not say exactly that I have been protecting him."

"Perhaps that is not the best word." But Ori looked at him very keenly, all the same. "He is far from a dwarfling, nor is he a ... well, I do not know the word for a young hobbit. But he is no child of either sort for you to look after. He can take care of himself. He has done for many years."

Bilbo frowned at the reminder, for he was still resentful on Kili's behalf for all the years he had not been well looked-after — though of course he would never say so, for he did not think Kili or Fili or Thorin would appreciate it.

"No one would argue that your friendship has not done wonders for him," Ori said. "For all of us. You were the first to truly question our laws — and then to make us all question them as well."

"Surely," Bilbo said, "the elves would have done the same. They were quite frank in their distaste for your customs."

"But they are elves," Ori said. "Thorin would have paid them no mind."

This was almost certainly the case. "Perhaps," Bilbo said diplomatically. "But you too began to question, you and your brothers, and I am sure that your influence on Thorin was far greater than mine."

"I think there is no point to making a tally of who gets the most credit," said Ori. "The simple truth is that before we left on this quest, Kili was khazd khuv, and now he is a prince of Erebor, and I am very pleased and proud for whatever small part I played in that. But he is a prince now, and well-suited for it by all accounts, and he has an uncle and a brother who will look after him far better than you or I could. You have," Ori said, "known him for less than a year, in the end."

This was said gently, not to wound, but just to state a simple and undeniable truth, and Bilbo supposed that it was quite ridiculous of him to suppose that he had somehow grown to know Kili better than Thorin or Fili, who had known him since birth. It was true that Kili had changed, of course, but the far bigger change was in Thorin, and from Thorin all else followed.

"Well," Bilbo said eventually, after he had let silence signal his agreement, "soon enough I shall be home in the Shire with no one to worry about but my flowers. So perhaps I can be forgiven a few more days of worrying after Kili."

"Indeed," Ori said. "I imagine no one will begrudge you that." And then he pulled his fine cloak tighter around his shoulders. "If it will ease your mind at all," he said, "I saw Kili entering the Council Chamber not so very long ago, and I have not yet seen him come out."

Bilbo thanked him for this intelligence, and bid Ori a very good night, then began to make his way quickly toward the Council Chamber. He was sympathetic to Kili's desire to be away from the crowds, which were really rather overwhelming, and thought he would not mind a few quiet moments for himself; if those moments happened to be spent with Kili, so much the better. His progress was hampered by the great number of dwarves who made it a point to introduce themselves; Bilbo bowed so many times he began to feel quite dizzy! And though hobbits were light on their feet and very stealthy, those qualities proved to be not very much help in this throng. Finally he felt forced to duck behind a large table overfilled with every cut of meat imaginable, and there to slip on his golden ring, which he had not used a single time since the great battle, but which he always carried with him.

Instantly the light in the room dimmed to a more tolerable level and the noise grew muted and indistinct. The relief was so great that Bilbo rather wished he had thought to put the ring on earlier in the evening! But there was another sensation too, of seeking or being sought, and Bilbo spotted to find Gandalf looking around the hall quite urgently, eyes narrowed and thoughtful and his expression not altogether too kind. Though there was no reason to suspect Gandalf of looking for him in particular, Bilbo nonetheless felt quite uncomfortable, and he scurried as swiftly as he was able to the corridor that led to the Council Chamber, where he quickly removed his ring and placed it again safely in his pocket. The disquieting feeling of being hunted disappeared immediately, which was a great relief.

The Council Chamber was at the end of the small hall, and Bilbo had been in the room but once before, for it was the very same room wherein Thorin had so angrily punished Kili when the Arkenstone could not be found, and Bilbo had avoided ever re-entering it after Kili had in his fury sent him away. The memory of that day was enough to make Bilbo shiver, even in his fine and warm coat. He wondered for a moment if Kili might have simply been passing through the room on his way to another even more secluded spot, but that proved not to be the case; Kili was indeed there, sitting still and quiet in one of the comfortable chairs that now surrounded the great wooden table of the King's Council. His bow was laid out upon the table, fully assembled, and Kili caressed it absently, gaze unfocused.

"Mr. Baggins," he exclaimed, in some surprise.

"I am sorry to intrude," Bilbo began. "But it was so very noisy at the party, my head was ringing like a set of wind chimes."

"You are not intruding," Kili said, though his expression was momentarily peculiar. "Your company is always welcome."

It had not been welcome the last time they were in this room, Bilbo thought, but then he pushed the thought aside, for things had worked out well enough in the end. Bilbo was certainly not going to bring up that horrible day now, and so instead he asked, "Are you not enjoying the party?"

Kili shrugged very lightly, hardly a motion underneath the magnificent blue fabric that draped his shoulders. "It is a very grand party," he said. "But there are so many people." He looked a little embarrassed, and scratched absently at the table. "It is funny, perhaps, that for so many years I craved nothing more than companionship, but in the mountain sometimes I start to think there cannot possibly be enough air for so many people, and it is — that is, it sometimes feels as if — it can be difficult, sometimes, to breathe." He grunted irritably, face a little flushed. "If I can find an empty place, it is easier."

This was no surprise to Bilbo, for he had certainly noticed Kili's discomfort with crowds, though he had not ascribed it to any particular anxiety about the quantity of air (and suspected too that Kili's discomfort had nothing to do with air at all, whether or not Kili himself understood that). Nevertheless, it was a sensation Bilbo was himself quite familiar with, in less of an extreme. "In Hobbiton," he said, "in the summer, it is so crowded in the market that you cannot take a step without bumping into a neighbor or friend or relative, or perhaps a friend's relative or a relative's neighbor. It can be great fun, but I confess I am always relieved to return home to Bag-End at the end of the day, where it is quiet and I can be thoroughly alone with none but my thoughts to keep me company."

"You would think," said Kili quietly, "that I would have had enough time alone with my thoughts not to seek out any more of it. But do you know, some mornings, right as I waken, I think that I might open my eyes and find myself back in my little room in Thorin's house, with all my chores waiting for me, and nothing changed."

"I think we have all had such thoughts," said Bilbo. "It is easy in the early morning to be confused about where and when we are."

"I am not confused," Kili said with a slight frown. "It is more that, some days, I think I wish it to be true. That if I can only think upon it hard enough, I can make it true."

Bilbo did not at all know what to say to that, but of course, he rarely let that stop him from speaking. "Your life has changed a great deal in a very few days. It is quite natural in such tumultuous times to wish that things had remained the same as they always were."

Kili looked very doubtful. "Perhaps," he said. "It does not feel natural. Certainly no one would choose to be khazd khuv over a prince."

"I do not think that is what you are wishing for," Bilbo said slowly. "It is just that this is all very unfamiliar, and now there are a great many people expecting you to do a great many things, whereas before it was just Thorin, and you always knew what he wanted."

"Well," Kili said, "I suppose you are right about that. I do not know what he wants of me now, and he is being uncommonly peculiar by not telling me directly. I think perhaps he just wants me to be different, but I am not sure exactly in what manner except ... more like Fili, I suppose."

"Hmm," said Bilbo. "Sometimes I am sure he would prefer it quite the other way around!"

Kili chuckled once, quickly, which Bilbo took as a great victory, for Kili's laughter was still rare and precious. But then Kili's face grew somber again, and he tapped slowly at the table, drawing circles with his finger. "Do you remember when last we were in this room together, Mr. Baggins?"

Bilbo was hardly going to lie about it, when it had been weighing so heavily on his mind. "I do," he said, a note of hesitancy in his voice that he could not quite eliminate.

"Thorin was so angry — I had never seen him so angry. And for the first time in my life," Kili said, "I was not certain I deserved to be punished, or indeed whether being punished would do any good at all." He did not look at Bilbo. "I had never wondered about these things before. It confused me to feel that way. And it made me angry too, which I was hardly any more familiar with. I had not permitted myself to feel anger very often, I suppose. I did not know at whom to aim it. You were a convenient target."

"Well," Bilbo said, "you could have hardly yelled at Thorin."

"No," Kili said, brow crinkled. He drummed on the table some more. "You looked quite wretched when you left. And then the next day, you brought me within the chamber, and I found the Arkenstone." His fingers went still, and he peered at Bilbo with a sharp, assessing gaze. "I fell right on top of it," he said. "Do you remember?"

"Of course I do!" Bilbo said, rather too heartily, his heart suddenly pounding in his chest. "It was a remarkable stroke of luck."

"Remarkable indeed," Kili said. "For a moment, I thought surely this proved that Thorin had been right all along, and that the beating had averted the curse."

"You know I do not believe in curses," Bilbo said firmly, huffing.

"Indeed I do," said Kili. "Nor do you believe that bad luck can be carried around like pipeweed." He looked at Bilbo then, eyes keen and brightly intelligent. "Or like a jewel in a pocket."

"I–" Bilbo said, stammering. "I – if you are accusing me of something, I am sure that I–"

Kili shook his head. He looked very calm. "I am not accusing you of anything, Mr. Baggins. I am just pointing out a curious and fortunate coincidence."

Bilbo swallowed, quite uncomfortable and feeling as if he ought to say something, either to dispel Kili's suspicions or confirm them, he knew not which, when another voice intruded.

"What is a coincidence?" It was Fili, who had reached his limit, Bilbo supposed, for being separated from his brother.

"Nothing in particular," Bilbo said. "We were just making conversation."

"Mmm." Fili looked at him keenly, and his smile was sharp enough to make Bilbo nervous all over again. "I thought perhaps you were discussing the Arkenstone, for I am sure I heard you mention jewels whilst I was in the hallway, and when I hear jewels and coincidence, I cannot but think of the Arkenstone, and of Kili's great fortune in finding it."

Bilbo took a step backwards, involuntarily. Fili's smile was predator sharp, and his eyes were narrowed.

"Brother," Kili said softly. Fili turned to him with a great smile on his face at the endearment, which was still new and infrequent from Kili's lips. "You are frightening him."

"Oh no," Fili said, and to his credit he looked genuinely distraught. "No, I did not mean to frighten you, Mr. Baggins. I apologize if you perceived it so."

"That is quite alright," Bilbo said hastily. "I was not frightened." This was in fact a lie, as Fili had been making him very frightened indeed, even though he was certain Fili would never actually harm him. Well, fairly certain. But Bilbo had taken great liberties with the stone and Kili's fate both, and though his intentions had been entirely good, he knew as well as anyone that good intentions are often viewed as ill justification by others.

"You are a more than passable burglar," Fili said mildly, "but not much of a liar, Mr. Baggins."

That he meant more than this one instance was clear. But he did not look so very upset, in truth.

"In the Shire, there is very little call for deception," Bilbo said with a sigh. "Other than the smallest of lies to ease social interactions." Such as always telling Lobelia that he was pleased to see her, when that was never true.

"You should consider yourself fortunate that you have had no call to learn to lie better," Fili observed. "And to be fair, you held your face remarkably steady at that time. I should never have guessed, had I not searched that very mound of treasure just that morning. My eyes may not be so keen as a hobbit's, but I rather think I should have noticed the Arkenstone just sitting near to the surface, where anyone might have fallen upon it."

"I meant for him to find it at the top of the pile, where no one had yet searched," Bilbo said sullenly. "But you dwarves are so wretchedly heavy."

"Hewn from stone," Fili said. "Hobbits, I think, must be made of cotton and heather, you are so light on your feet."

"Brambles and foxglove, or so goes the rhyme," Bilbo said. Then he paused, suddenly aghast. "Thorin — Thorin does not know, does he?"

Fili shook his head. "I do not doubt he could puzzle it out, if he were willing to think on it, but — no. He is disinclined, I think, to give too much thought to the stone. He is frightened at how quickly he lost his reason over it, and the depths to which he sank before it was found." He grinned suddenly then. "I do think Nori has his suspicions."

Kili grunted. "More than suspicions, I think. He kept a sharp eye on Mr. Baggins all that day and the next."

"Well," Bilbo huffed, "I am feeling rather less pleased with myself about the whole affair, now that I know it was not nearly so secret as I had thought."

"You should be quite pleased with yourself," Fili said. "It was done well, if a bit belatedly."

Though his tone was entirely pleasant, Bilbo felt a rebuke in it, though whether that was Fili's intent or just his own guilt making itself known, he could not say. His throat worked for a moment before he could manage to speak. "I did not know, or guess, what Thorin might do when he could not find the stone. If I had, I would not have held on to it for so long." Then he sighed, long and heavy. "But the truth of the matter was that I too could not think clearly where the stone was concerned, and from the moment I found it I was determined only to keep it hidden, and I made up many justifications for doing so. I think perhaps it was only after I had seen Thorin so thoroughly lose all reason that I came back to my own senses. I am not sure anything else would have served."

"Well," Fili said, "however it came about, I think we are all happy with the outcome. For Thorin has his reason and the stone, we have reclaimed our home, and now Kili is a prince of Erebor!"

Kili blushed unexpectedly and quite furiously. "It is ridiculous that I should be a prince," he said. "It feels as if I am a child playing make-believe, and quite a fantastical game of it at that."

"Perhaps you are," Fili said. "Perhaps we all are. It is rather like a children's tale, is it not?"

"I am sure it will be a children's tale before long," Bilbo said. "I shall certainly tell it to the children within the Shire, when I return."

"Oh," Kili said, with a fierce little frown. "Are you returning to the Shire, then?"

"Why, of course," Bilbo said. "Surely you have heard me complain of how I miss my home and my chairs and my books. I even begin to miss some of my less-pleasant relations, though I do suspect that a very short time within their company will make that feeling disappear quickly enough. Do not frown so," he said, for Kili still looked quite unhappy indeed. "We shall see each other again."

"Of course we shall," Kili said. "But it shall not be the same without you here."

"I think you shall be too busy to miss me," Bilbo said. "And you shall have many new friends to keep you company."

It was on that very note that yet another dwarf entered the chamber, and he looked quite surprised indeed to find anyone there.

"Oh," the dwarf said to Kili. "You are not alone. I'm sorry; I didn't mean to interrupt."

"You are not interrupting," Kili said, and his expression changed quite smoothly to a smile. "Grefrig, I am not sure you have met Mr. Baggins before."

"The dwarf-friend burglar!" The dwarf was not so tall as Kili nor even as broad, which made him quite skinny for one of his kind. He was dressed in Iron Hills finery that showed him to be well off but not nobility (Bilbo had a keen eye for clothes, and had quickly learned to deduce a dwarf's status from the color and cut of his coat, even if he could not identify the clan to which the dwarf belonged), and he had several small braids woven into his beard that were quite festive indeed. "At your service, Mr. Baggins. It is an honor to make your acquaintance." He bowed quite low then, very gracefully.

"And yours as well," Bilbo said, bowing himself. "Are you a relation to Kili and Fili?"

"No," Grefrig said, with a quirky and pleasant little grin that reached all the way to his eyes. "Although we are probably cousins of some sort. Most dwarves are kin if you go back far enough."

"Grefrig is a captain in Dáin's corps of archers," Kili said. "Her mother was great friends with ..." He paused just for a moment, nearly stumbling. "... my father."

Bilbo blinked, pleased that Kili would make reference to his father in this manner, stumbling or not, but also quite taken aback at the revelation that Grefrig was a female, and feeling very fortunate indeed that he had not said anything that indicated he had assumed her to be male. And of course, now that he looked closer, Grefrig wore jewels in her beard along with braids, and her build was not so slim at all for a female dwarf. "How very delightful," he said brightly, "that you have discovered each other all these years later."

"The Li family are great archers," Grefrig said cheerfully. "Though my mother would say they are not as good as we are. But I do not think even my mother could have brought down a dragon with but a single arrow, as did you, Prince Kili."

Bilbo smiled at Grefrig then, feeling very charitable toward her; she smiled back quite readily, but Bilbo did not miss how a blush crept up her cheeks, under her pretty, braided beard. Kili too looked discomfited, and Bilbo suddenly felt like quite a dolt. Fili was off to the side, with a very self-satisfied smirk on his face, and at this exchange he bowed very low and excused himself and Bilbo too, for he claimed to suddenly have remembered that they were to meet with Balin to discuss the particulars of Bilbo's open offer of hospitality to the dwarves.

"Well," Bilbo said, when they had escaped the chamber and were back in the corridor. "I never supposed I would see such a happy thing!" Though of course he had not truly seen anything at all, and it was entirely possible that Grefrig's blush had meant only that there were feelings on her part, and none on Kili's. But then again, Kili had looked quite peculiar when Bilbo had entered the chamber, as if he were expecting someone else, and he too had been nearly blushing at the end. All in all, Bilbo supposed it was a very good thing if Kili were indeed to be courting, for that was a very normal, wonderful thing, and Bilbo believed very strongly that Kili was entitled to as many normal, wonderful things as could be squeezed into the rest of his lifetime.

They had barely made it into the party hall when they were cornered by Bofur, who wore a grin that stretched from ear to ear. "Well?" he asked, eyes gleaming. "What news have you to report, Mr. Baggins?"

Bilbo had not the faintest idea what he was talking about. His expression must have made clear his confusion, for Bofur threw his arms up in the air. "News, Mr. Baggins. Of the epic romance unfolding as we speak!" And behind him was Dáin looking very interested indeed, and even Thorin, though he was pretending to be absorbed in his harp. "Did they cast glances full of longing at each other?" Bofur asked. "Did they pledge eternal devotion?"

Bilbo supposed he should not have been surprised by the dwarves' interest. "Not in my hearing. I think perhaps Kili just intended to show her his bow."

The dwarves all laughed very heartily at this and poked one another quite meaningfully, while Bilbo blushed after a moment to think about just what he had said, which certainly sounded quite a bit worse than he had intended.

"Well," Dáin said, still chuckling, "she is no niece of mine, which is a pity, but she is a fine archer and comes from very sturdy stock. Her family is not superstitious at all, and they will not mind his history. Kili could do far worse, if he were to choose her for a wife."

Bilbo was more than a little taken aback by this rather swift jump from early courting to wives. "But surely," he said, "they have just become acquainted? Is it not too soon to be discussing marriage?" In the Shire, courting was a long meandering process; Bilbo found it hard to credit that dwarves, whose lives stretched on once and a half again as long as those of hobbits, would rush through such a pleasant process so quickly. Bilbo himself had courted a few times over the years, though never with any serious intent to wed, and he had always found it enjoyable, particularly the early days.

"Kili is a prince of Erebor now," Fili said, rather grandly, as if it had been his own doing. "People will be discussing marriage every time he so much as speaks to a maiden. He might be better off choosing now and getting it over with."

"It will not help," Thorin said, his voice equal parts amused and rueful. "As soon as he weds, the talk will turn to heirs, and when he will have them. There is no help for it." His look at Fili was pointed, and Fili scowled, as if it was only now occurring to him that he too was a prince of Erebor, and thus subject to the same prurient interest in his personal affairs.

"Who is having heirs?" This was Gandalf, who had popped up again from nowhere, his eyes merry and inquisitive. "You have only just reclaimed the mountain. Surely it is too early for a new babe."

"No one is having heirs," Thorin said. His tone was a little prickly.

Gandalf sighed, looking quite sad. "Oh, that is disappointing. I was looking forward to spoiling the tot. It has been a long time since I have had the chance."

"You may not have to wait too long," Fili said, quite mischievously. "Kili is even now having a private conversation with Grefrig in the Council Chambers."

"Is he now!" Gandalf said, and he looked as delighted as a moment ago he looked sad. "Well, that is certainly marvelous news."

Bilbo rather thought they were all counting the blooms long before the bulbs had been properly planted, but he did not say so, for the dwarves and Gandalf all looked very cheerful, and after all, Bilbo knew very little of dwarf courting rituals. Perhaps he would find out in the morning that Kili and Grefrig had come to terms and the match was all set!

"Grefrig's family is well-settled in the Iron Hills," Dáin said, consideringly. "And she is very close to her brothers and cousins. She would certainly want to visit with some frequency. It would work well, if Kili is to be an emissary from Erebor."

Fili frowned at that. "Emissaries must travel for months at a time. I would be loath to see him gone for so long. "

Dáin laughed. "Come now, Prince Fili. You must be able to spare your brother for such a short time, when for so long his presence was naught to you but an embarrassment and a burden."

Fili's expression turned thunderous indeed. "He was neither of those things, cousin."

Dáin gave him a doubtful look, his eyebrows raised almost comically high. "Surely you would not do him the discourtesy of pretending he has all this time been your equal, when in truth he was held a slave in your own home."

"Do not speak of things you do not understand," Fili said, bristling, "or you shall have no emissary from Erebor at all. He was no slave, as I think you are fully aware. But if you truly believed we were treating him so ill, why did you not come to take him from us? My father's family were amongst your nobility. Why did you not seek to rescue him? You had an army at your back whilst we were still scrounging for scraps in Ered Luin. We could not have held Kili from you, had you but come for him."

"I did consider it," Dáin admitted. "But to move against Thorin would have been treason, and I was not so eager for that, nor was your father's family, and it would have been they who would have had to press the claim. And I suppose I trusted Thorin not to deal with the boy too harshly. Had it been anyone else as shemor, I think I would not have stayed my hand." He bowed slightly to Thorin then, who had stayed most unusually silent throughout this exchange. "I apologize if my words were rash and fueled by drink, cousin. I know the boy was not truly a slave."

"In all but name," Thorin said grimly. "I will take whatever words of condemnation you have to offer, cousin. For assuredly I deserve them and more."

"Aye, that you do," Dáin said. "But I shall flay you no more, when you are so competent at doing it yourself."

Thorin grunted, and Dáin guffawed loudly and took a messy swig from of ale that left his beard dripping. "Certainly," Dáin said, slinging his arm companionably across Thorin's shoulders, turning serious once again (at least, as serious as Dáin ever got, which was not in Bilbo's opinion altogether very serious at all), "you shall win no acclaim among my folk for Kili's upbringing, but I know too that in olden times most khazd khuv never lived to see the end of their sentences, or were so crippled afterward they could do aught but beg for food. I know of none other who after 77 years as khufud would have been hale enough to handle the bow of Regrin, or would have been trained so well as to make good use of it."

"That you know of none other means little," Thorin said, apparently in little mood to be forgiven or appeased. "For in all your years in the Iron Hills, how many times has the sentence been carried out?"

"Surely," Dáin said, rather pointedly, "the more important question is, how many more times shall the sentence be carried out amongst your folk?"

"Never!" This was from Fili, and said quite vehemently too. "Of course it shall not be, not when we have all seen that it is nonsense!"

"Shall you say that to Kili?" Thorin said lowly. "That his whole life has been given to nonsense? I do not think he would thank you for such a sentiment."

"Not nonsense then," Fili said after a moment. "But a regrettable custom that has outlived its time. And surely he can take comfort knowing he shall be the last to bear this burden. You can rid us of it, Uncle, with but a word."

"Do you not think I would have, if I could?" Thorin said. "I cannot strike down laws on a whim, nephew, even those I most loathe, not when they are so deeply embedded within our people as this one. Such change must be done slowly and with care. There are those who will not welcome it."

Dáin hummed in disapproval. "On this night of all nights, victory still bright and strong in everyone's blood, and you newly crowned, none would have dared to speak against you, no matter what laws you struck down. I think you have missed an opportunity that will not soon recur, cousin. You are Thorin Oakenshield, King Under the Mountain! You must start acting like it."

Thorin frowned at him. "So says Dáin Ironfoot, King of the Iron Hills."

"Ah," Dáin said merrily, "do not disparage my throne, cousin, even if it is not nearly so grand as your own. King or no, my people follow me no less loyally than yours shall follow you! That is, if you prove to be any good at rule. I am yet to be convinced."

"Speak to me thus again in public, cousin," Thorin said, "and we shall see exactly how strong my rule is. As strong as my steel at your throat, at the very least."

Bilbo blinked at this rather un-cousinly threat, but Dáin only bobbed his head, beard dipping briefly into his ale. "I meant no disrespect, of course, my king. You know I am ever your most loyal subject." He grinned then, a wide cheery grin, and slapped Fili heavily on the shoulder. "Come now, lad, do not take everything so deeply to heart. You will hear much worse than this in the months to come, for Kili is a great hero now, and there will be many who will be quick to take offense on his behalf. So too will there be those far too slow to release their superstitions, no matter Thorin's words of pardon. He is right that there some among our people who will resist any change, and they shall not make it easy for him."

Gandalf harrumphed. "I dare say it will not be an easy path for any of you. But for all that I think the journey ahead will be easier than the one behind."

"I should certainly hope so!" Bilbo said fervently.

"At the very least," Fili said, "we shall hope there are no more dragons."

With this sentiment, Bilbo most heartily agreed.


A/N: Okay, first let me say, as there seems to be some confusion at the end of every chapter ... this story is not (quite) finished, though we are getting very close now.

And second ... this is really two chapters for which I could not find a convenient place to break.

And third ... thank you thank you thank you to everyone who continues to comment and leave kudos. You really have no idea (or maybe you do) how much it perks me up to get these kind thoughts and words from you. It's really immeasurable.

And fourth ... as always, enormous thanks to my beta SapphireMusings, who still continues to prod me to make this story better.