Sorry about the late post! Between some trouble with Doc Manager and it being my birthday and all, it took me a bit to fix everything.

But, it is my birthday! Yayyyyyy! And, in true hobbit fashion, a gift for you all: this chapter!

Please enjoy!

It was a dream.

One of many that graced Emi's sleep during the long, still days of her recovery.

She was recovering… slowly…

Her waking moments were filled with either Oin's desperate attempts to get her to move, Thorin's monologues about the affairs of the mountain with Bard and Thranduil's insistence in a share of the wealth, the others visiting to ramble incoherently about nothing in particular, or silence.

She preferred the silence. For sleep soon followed. And when she slept, she dreamed.

This was a dream.

A dream of home.

Those were her favorite, after all. Her little hobbit hole. Purse Close. What a ridiculous name it was. But charming in a way, to her at least.

Emi sat on the stump just outside her door. She was lazily blowing peaceful smoke rings out into the rising morning.

As a perfectly round example drifted into the growing sun, Emi stretched and sighed contentedly. What a beautiful, beautiful morning.

"Mama!" A tiny, unplaceable yet familiar voice called out. Emi opened her eyes to see a tiny little hobbit girl run up to her and throw her arms around Emi's neck.

"What's the matter sweetheart?" Emi found herself saying.

"Brother said the goblins would come and eat me cause I lied yesterday!" The tiny, brown haired child sobbed, looking up at her. "It's not true, is it?"

"Of course not darling." Emi reassured the girl, pulling her close. "No goblins are coming for you here in the shire. And if they do, I'll fight them and make them all go far far away."

"Okay." The little girl nodded, rubbing away tears with a small chubby hand.

"Now, where is that brother of yours?" Emi asked calmly.

"Da's giving him a scolding for scaring me." The tiny girl smiled through drying tears.

"Well, you get what you deserve I suppose." Emi sighed, shaking her head. "But I feel a bit sorry for him. You know how scary you father can be." The little girl nodded empathetically. "Ah there you are dear!" Emi smiled and stood to her feet as her husband came in through the front gate, a very dejected looking little boy behind him. "I hope you weren't too hard on him Bilbo. It was an mean joke, but only a joke." Her husband raised a questioning eyebrow before placing a kiss on her cheek and turning to the little girl.

"You alright now darling?" Bilbo Baggins asked, kneeling in front of his daughter.

"Yes Da." The girl nodded, smiling. "Mama said if any goblins come to eat me, she'll chase them all away!"

"Did she now?" Bilbo shot a bemused glance at Emi.

"Well," Emi swallowed as her throat ran a little dry. "I'd say it was about time for elevensies, wouldn't you? Who's hungry?"

Both children shouted out their affirmation and ran inside, trailing mud in behind them.

"Little bundles of energy those two." Bilbo sighed wearily.

"They take after you." Emi nudged him playfully. Bilbo laughed humorlessly until a cloaked figure stopped him. Emi turned as well to this stranger, who had a tiny bundle in their arms.

"Good Morning…" Emi started, but stopped as the figure removed their hood. "Thorin." Bilbo tensed visibly at the name and a dark cloud seemed to form on Emi's brow. "I thought I made it quite clear. I want nothing to do with you anymore."

"You know him?" Bilbo exclaimed in surprise.

Thorin looked very much the part of king. The crown, the bearing… But something was not right. "And I want nothing more to do with you either. Make no mistake." The dwarf lord barked. He took a few heavy steps forward and shoved the bundle into Emi's arms. "This is yours. Take responsibility for your own actions."

"W-what?" Emi stammered looking down at the motionless babe now in her arms. "What do you mean mine?"

"Yes." Bilbo agreed. "What do you mean hers?"

"All those years ago…" Thorin said, ignoring her husband completely. "Before Smaug was destroyed, you and I-"

"YES. I quite remember what happened." Emi coughed nervously, shooting Bilbo a apologizing glance. "But that was years ago. How-"

"Dwarves take a few more… years to grow." Thorin blushed, looking at the floor. What?

"What do you mean? You can't get pregnant!"

"He most certainly can my dear Bilbo." Emi turned to see Gandalf coming out of the house.

"I'm not Bilbo!" Emi hissed. "He's Bilbo!" She pointed at her husband.

"Dear, I think you've gotten a bit muddled in the heat." Bilbo looked concerned. "Everyone knows, I'm Emilie. And you're Bilbo."

"No." Emi shook her head. "No, I'm Emilie. I know I am. Look!" But as she looked down, she found herself instead to be Bilbo Baggins. She looked up in horror to see herself standing where her husband had been. Emi-Bilbo looked around in confusion to see that Gandalf had gone. She turned to Thorin, Queen of Erebor, the babe crying in her arms.

"No this is all wrong." Emi shook her head. "This doesn't make any sense!"

Her eyes jolted open and light from the fireplace streamed in, replacing the contorted images in her dream. A strange cold sweat covered her as she shakily sat up. What an awful awful dream. So awful, she had almost not realized that she had sat up. She had sat up. A huge smile broke onto her face as she looked down at her own hands. They moved. She could tell them to move and they did!

"Emilie?" Emi looked toward the voice to see Thorin, who had been dosing in a chair by the fireplace. "You're healed!" He stood quickly and rushed to her, momentarily forgetting that it was he who had caused her misfortune as he enveloped her in a bone-crushing hug. Emi chuckled.

Thorin, let go! That hurts! Her laughter stopped. Thorin.

At last, he pulled away smiling at her before he realized something was wrong. "What is it?"

Thorin, I can't… No sound came out. Thorin's brow pulled together. Why can't I…

"Are you trying to speak? Why can't you speak?" He began to fret again.

I don't know! If I knew, it wouldn't be a problem, now would it?

"Oin!" Thorin called in alarm. "OIN!" Nothing. "Come on, we're going to go find him." He took her hand as they walked through the corridors. At times, Emi almost had to run to keep up, until she grew too tired and she dragged her feet. This happened rather quickly, which really isn't very surprising at all.

At last, they found the medicinal dwarf in the kitchen eating with the others. Everyone was shocked when Thorin and Emi burst in like a battering ram.

"Emi!" many cried.

"Oin. She can't talk." Thorin growled.

"It's a miracle she's standing at all!" Oin replied rushing out of his seat to give the lass a quick examination as Thorin continued to fret.

"Why can't she talk? What's wrong with her?"

"She was in a state of almost complete paralysis lad. It's not surprising if a few things don't fix up completely." Oin said as patiently as she could.

Yes, well it doesn't make things easy for me. Emi mouthed soundlessly.

"Though it does seem a bit odd." The old dwarf admitted.

"Aye," Bofur nodded. "When someone that noisy turns silent, everything'll seem a bit odd."

Emi rolled her eyes. Your one to talk. She mouthed. A few of the dwarves chuckled, including Thorin.

"I doubt theirs anything to be done." Oin concluded, taking a step back. "I can try some old remedies in the morning, but I doubt it'll do you much good."

Well, that won't be your fault. Emi smiled. Instinctively, Oin brought out his ear trumpet and put it to his ear, before remembering it wasn't his hearing that was the problem. Emi smiled sadly and patted the dwarf's shoulder.

"Is there really nothing you can do?" Thorin asked desperately.

"We'll see tomorrow lad. Until then, I suggest both of you get some rest."

I've actually had quite enough of sleeping for right just now. Emi muttered noiselessly to herself. No one paid it any mind. Then she suddenly remembered something and ripped her hand out of Thorin's turning on her heel and striding away.

"What was that for?" Thorin asked in confusion.

Emi whirled back around pointed at him and shouted. I'M STILL ANGRY WITH YOU!

Which is really much less impressive without actually speaking, but it got the point across for the most part. And with that, she turned back around on her heel, and strode out.

No miracles have actually taken place in this chapter. It is, as far as my research provides, a valid circumstance. It make have appeared a little Daius es Macina or whatever, but really, it wasn't... well, it was... but... I... um... DRAGONS

^-^ Hope you liked it.