Kili walked down the hall with a slight limp in his step. An old wound was giving him troubles. He also had a headache.

It had been a long, emotionally draining day and he wanted nothing more than to get home. Today was Mailis's first birthday, but the dwarves of Erebor remembered this day as the day of the deaths of the Princess and the two Princes. There had been a few moments of silence observed through the whole of Erebor in their memory.

"Adad, wait!"

Kili turned around to see Torsten, wheeling his chair as fast as he could towards him.

"A letter, Adad, from Uncle Fili," Torsten held out a small roll of parchment.

Kili's face broke into a smile. He loved letters from his brother. "Come on in while I read the letter."

Torsten followed his father home.

"Hi, Amad," he smiled at his mother when he went into his childhood home.

The tall elf swooped down, kissed her son's cheek, then she turned to her husband and kissed him. "What brings you here tonight, Torsten?"

"Adad's got a letter from Uncle," Torsten explained.

Kili was breaking the seal.

"Hana's baby was due soon. I hope all is well," Tauriel said, looking to Kili, who was reading the letter. He was grinning.

"Come on, Adad. Read it out loud. Wait. Klin! Keil!" Torsten called for his brothers.

Identical faces popped out from around the corner. "Torsten!" they cried and ran to their eldest brother.

Kili cleared his throat. All eyes turned to him.

"Kili, Tauriel, Torsten, Agli, Iomhar, Keil and Klin, It is with great pride and much joy that I announce the birth of Prince Thorin IV, son of King Fili and Queen Hana. He was born in the early hours of September 5th - strong and healthy. Hana is fine and doing very well. Mailis has yet to meet her brother/uncle. Thorin is only just a few hours old now, but I had to write you with the news. He seems to be a good size and has Hana's brown hair. The midwife says he's as strong and healthy a lad as she has ever seen. I'll write you again soon. For now, I'm going to try and get some sleep. We've all been up all night long. I wish I could show off Thorin to you. He's absolutely perfect. My love to you all. Mahal bless you, for he has blessed me. Fili."

"A new cousin!" the twins whooped.

Tauriel was smiling. "A son for Fili. That's wonderful."

"A nephew," Kili smiled. "My nephew, Thorin, son of Fili. It has an nice ring to it. I'm so happy for him. Fili deserves this good fortune."

"The future king," Torsten said.

Kili looked to his son. Of course the birth of Fili's son would mean big changes to the line of the throne. Young Thorin was pure dwarrow, son of the king in the line of Durin. He had the right to be next in line for the throne. More than anyone else. Even Kili. Kili didn't mind. He had been the acting king for the past year and it was a tough, tiring job that he didn't like. He had no problems with returning the kingdom to its rightful king once Fili returned. Being king meant he didn't get to go outside quite so much. Less time for archery. Less time for hunts. Less time with his lovely wife.

But Torsten, had not been terribly subtle about his desires to be a king.

"I wish we could go see them," Klin said.

"So do I," Keil agreed.

"Yes, me too," Kili said. "We probably won't see them until next summer," he sighed.

"Don't worry, my love, the time will pass quickly," Tauriel patted her sons on the back. "When will you make the announcement, Kili?"

"Tomorrow. What news for us to learn on Mailis's birthday. Wait! The letter said Thorin was born on the fifth. That means the raven who brought the letter flew very quickly to get it here in so short a time. Who was the raven?" Kili turned to his son.

"Vek," Torsten answered.

"I'll go visit him tomorrow and take him an extra treat to show my gratitude."

Tauriel was very observant of her family. She could see Kili's pure happiness at his brother's good fortune. She could also see that Torsten had something on his mind and judging by the way he would glance periodically at his father, she knew he wanted to speak to Kili in private. Kili had a big heart, but he could be dense sometimes to recognize the emotions of others. She would make this easier for Torsten.

"Boys," she turned to the twins. "Why don't you run to the guard quarters, find Iomhar, and tell him the good news."

"Can we? Really?"Keil asked.

"Yes, just behave and stick together."

"We will," they spoke in unison and dashed to the door.

"Would you mind if I went to tell Agli Fili's news? We haven't had a nice visit in a while and I've been looking for an excuse to go see her," Tauriel spoke innocently.

Torsten nodded. "Let her know I'll be home soon."

Tauriel left and Kili sighed.

"She thinks I don't know what she's doing," Kili said, "but, I appreciate it all the same. So, what's on your mind, son?"

"Am I that easy to read?" Torsten chuckled.

"Only to your mother and I."

Torsten smiled, but then he grew serious. "Adad, I want to apologize to you."

"What have your down now?"

"It's not like that," Torsten smiled, thankful to his father for lightening the mood. "You might remember an embarrassing conversation we had a while back, just before my courting ceremony."

"The birds and the bees talk or the one about you being a prince?" Kili teased.

"Adad, really," Torsten blushed. "You know I mean the one about being a prince."

"I remember," Kili said.

"I want to apologize for that outburst. Obviously I wasn't ready to be a king or even a crown prince with that attitude. I didn't understand the burden, the responsibility of what ruling meant. If I had truly understood, I wouldn't have wanted it."

Kili chuckled. "You're young. You had no way to know these things."

"But you were younger than me when you helped Uncle Thorin reclaim Erebor."

"My life was very different," Kili sighed. "I grew up in exile of my homeland, even though I had never known that home. Thorin was my ruler as king and as head of my home. I never knew my father. He died before I could have memories of him. Thorin filled that roll and raised me. Fili and I grew up with the expectation of being the future king and crown prince. But you, with your mixed blood, grew up with the expectation of being a prince, but never a king." Kili sat down and faced his son, eye to eye. "Your mother and I had children, not to torture you by denying you a royal status, but because we loved each other and we wanted a family. I knew, when I fell in love and married your mother, that whatever children we managed to bring into this world would be faced with unique challenges due to your parentage, but we loved each other so much. We were willing to face those challenges for the joy of having children. I'm sorry you can never be a king because I fell in love with an elf, but I wouldn't change things for the world."

"I know. That's why I wanted to apologize. I should never have spoken the way I did. I understand now. I'm sorry to admit that when Fili left for the Shire and you made me crown prince regent, that I was determined to show you how good I could be and how much I deserved this title. I thought that maybe if you saw how great I was, you would change the rules of our people to accommodate me. It was a vain, foolish desire and I am absolutely ashamed of myself now."

"Oh Torsten," Kili smiled his famous grin. "My eldest son. I am so very proud of you. You would be a fine king. The best kings are not those who seek it, but those who have it thrust upon them. Those who are humble enough to admit and learn from their mistakes make the best kings. That's one reason why Fili is such a great king. You are worthy of a kingdom, my son, but I am glad you no longer seek it. Your life will be better because of it."

"Did you have a nice chat with Amad?" Torsten asked as he joined his wife in their bedroom.

"I was so happy to hear the news. A baby boy. I'll bet he's adorable." Agli was changing into her night gown. Torsten loved to watch his wife. She was so lovely, so kind. She chatted easily as she changed, her face was adorned with her beautiful smile. She looked to him and caught him staring at her. She laughed. "What is it? Did I put my night gown on backwards, or something?"

"No, I just love to watch you because you are so very beautiful." He rolled his chair to her, took her by the wrist and pulled her onto his lap. "I love the way your face lights up when you talk. Your smile. The way your eyes twinkle when you're happy." He caressed her face.

She leaned to him for a kiss. "You are a flatterer. I watch your father with Tauriel. You are just like him."

"What I learned from Adad was to appreciate beauty and you are a beauty to be appreciated," Torsten's hand rubbed at her back.

That earned him another kiss and he happily accepted it. He put his hands around her waist. She squirmed off his lap.

"No, no. Let me finish getting ready for bed," she said with a smile and leaned down to kiss him again.

He smiled and let her go. He pulled off his own shirt and tossed it into the basket that held their soiled clothes. He wheeled to his wardrobe.

Agli sighed and he turned to see if something was wrong. Instead he found her staring at him with a funny grin on her face.

"What? Do I have my night gown on backwards?" he teased.

"You know exactly what's wrong. You know I can't concentrate on anything when your shirt is off and you are using those exceptional arm and chest muscles to wheel your chair around. The way your skin moves over those muscles is just too distracting." She had come up and rubbed her hands along his arms and shoulders.

After several more minutes of kissing, Torsten, finished getting ready for the night and pulled himself up into their bed.

Since his injury, he had worked very hard to be independent and take care of everything by himself. It had taken a few years before he got comfortable enough with the way his body moved or didn't move before he was finally able to care for himself and not need the help of his mother or father.

When he and Agli had married, he was quite nervous about her seeing him as he really was. His legs were small and weak compared to what they had once been. She had watched him without reservation as he would get into and out of his chair each day, the way he bathed, dressed himself, the routines he had to make his life easier. He had been embarrassed and afraid that after seeing him, truly seeing him, she would go right back to his Uncle and demand the marriage be reversed.

But she didn't. She had watched his routines with interest and learned how to fit herself into those routines. She learned ways she could help him or make things easier without making him feel incapable. He didn't need her help and at first he had resented it and resisted it, but he quickly learned she didn't help him out of pity, but out of a genuine love for her husband.

She had to explain to him in the first month of their marriage, that in a marriage, spouses did things for each other to make their lives better, easier and happier. It wasn't that she was trying to coddle him, she only wanted to be a good wife and show him how much she loved him. His condition just added a little uniqueness to their situation with the ways she could show him her desire to be a helpful, loving wife.

After that talk, he had been more observant of his father and his mother, of Fili and Hana, and other married couples he knew. He watched them and saw what Agli said was true. His mother would do little things for his father just to make him happy. One day they had been over at his Uncle's home and he watched Hana as she had stood up and gotten his uncle a glass of wine. Not because he was incapable of getting it himself and certainly not because she served him. It was a gesture of love from a wife to her husband.

Now, Torsten understood and appreciated his wife's help. He would get himself into bed, and Agli would adjust his legs, making them comfortable in whatever position he wanted to sleep in. She would rub creams into his skin and check to make sure he didn't have any skin wounds from the constant sitting. He couldn't feel it, but he knew it was good for his legs to be moved and massaged to keep them healthy. He loved her attentions and she loved giving him her attention. And of course, his legs weren't the only recipients of her attentions.

"Are you happy for your uncle?" she asked after they had settled down into their bed, his arms wrapped around her waist.

"Yes, of course."

"But you'll never have the throne of Erebor now."

Torsten sighed. She knew of his frustrations of his mixed-blood never allowing him to take his place as a king among dwarves. He was embarrassed now to think of the number of times he had complained about this to her.

"Erebor was never mine to rule," he said, "but, I've come to realize over the last year, that I'm alright with never being a king. It's a lot of hard work and the responsibility is so great. Every decision affects the lives of thousands. A choice that seems simple, like opening up a new line to mine, isn't so simple. It's not just about the ore. It's about safety to the mountain. Safety to the dwarves who work the mine. Promises to the miners families that they will be as safe as possible when they work. Then, there is providing for everyone. Do we have enough food for the winter? Not just for me and my family, but every dwarrow in the mountain. Who gets sent to fight our enemies when Erebor is threatened? Every dwarf who fights has a family who want to see them safely home. Can I make that decision to send them out to fight? "

Agli wiped at the tears that had fallen from her eyes. She buried herself deeper into her husband's embrace.

"No," he continued. "I've learned that being a king is nothing to lust after. Except for my Uncle Thorin. He wanted to be king, but it was for a different reason. He wanted to give his people back their home and he was the only one with the power and right to do that. I'm sorry for the hours you have had to listen to me rant about this subject. My views have changed. I no longer want to rule."

"I'm proud of you. And do you know what?" Agli asked.

"What?"

"That if you ever became a king, I know you would be a good king. It is within you to be a good king and now that you've accepted some humble pie," Torsten poked her in the ribs, "you would be a better king."

"I think for now, I'll stick with being a prince. It's hard enough work." Torsten pressed his face into his wife's hair and felt its softness on his cheeks. How had he gotten so lucky to have married someone so perfect as Agli. She was beautiful, she was smart, she was kind, she was attentive, helpful, funny... his list of her many perfections could go on and on. She loved him for who he was, despite his faults, and he would be forever thankful to Mahal for sending him his dearest Agli.