UniversalIndicator gave me a good input after the last chapter, concerning Thorins and Branns daughters. The question was why Thorin and Brann were not concerned about their daughters and where they would go after death since they are half human and half dwarf. I have to be perfectly honest that I had not even asked myself that, therefore I am grateful for this input!

In my imagination (hence in this story^^), they would be free to chose wether they would want to go to the halls of their fathers or leave the Undying Lands again, like most men do. Since Gimli was granted access to Valinor and Bilbo and Frodo also got to embark to the Undying Lands, I think that the Valar will grant them the choice. But I will try to remember to work this into my story when the time comes.

Brann could hear Dwana gasp in pain as she entered the infirmary. The birth had advanced quickly, for Dwalin had told her that labor had begun only moments ago.

'Her water broke.' Oin informed Brann. 'The little one is facing the right way and so far there are no complications. She is not dilated enough to push, yet. It will take a few more moments.'

Brann nodded and watched in amusement as Dwalin and Thorin Stonehelm both told Dwana to breathe and made her growl. The door to the infirmary opened and the king peeked into the room. Brann smiled at her husband and walked towards him.

'This might take a while.' she told him and cupped his cheek. 'You can come in if you like?'

'No, no, I will wait outside.' Thorin cleared his throat.

'You are only scared to faint, like me!' Dwalin yelled from inside the infirmary.

'You will not faint, that is an order!' Thorin yelled from the door and earned a quick nod from Thorin Stonehelm. The king turned to his wife and smiled. 'What about the others?'

'Which others?' Brann asked and watched in surprise as three dwarven faces and two cat faces peeked through the door below Thorin. 'Please be joking.'

'Amad, is aunt Dwana alright?' Zial asked. 'I can help.'

Brann wanted to tell her daughter that she was too young for this, but she paused in midsentence. Zial was twelve years old. In dwarven standards she was still very young, but in human standards she could start helping her mother in healing matters. Zial was very skilled in healing and had a high knowledge in medicine and herbs.

'Alright, Zial, you can come in, but the rest of you...especially the cats! Out!' The queen gave her husband and her remaining daughters a kiss on the nose and then closed the door. She could hear a commanding Sit from outside the door and asked herself wether Thorin had ordered the cats or their daughters to sit. Probably both. As Brann turned around, she was faced with a most stunning picture.

'Breathe, breathe, breathe.' Dwana told Dwalin as the captain of the guard began to pale. 'Everything is going to be alright.'

'My little daughter...you have grown up too fast.' Dwalin grabbed Thorin Stonehelms collar and dragged him close. 'I swear to Mahal, if my little daughter doesn´t get out of this unharmed...'

'Would you stop this!' Brann scolded Dwalin. 'You both love her and she loves you, too, but if you want to continue behaving like dwarflings I will throw you out personally!'

'You can try.' Dwalin muttered, but quickly shut up as Brann shot him a glare. 'I see, Dis taught you how to glare like a Durin.'

'No, Thorin did.' Brann grinned. 'Now, concentrate, we have work to do.'

The birth was a hard business. The dwarfling was huge and Dwana tore. But thanks to Brann and Oin the bleeding could be stopped almost instantly and Dwana and Thorin Stonehelm could welcome their newborn son in the morning. Dwalin had bravely fought against fainting this time, he wanted to be there for his daughter more than anything. Because of that and out of pride Dwalin did not faint this time, but Thorin Stonehelm looked extremly pale as his son was handed to him. Zial pushed him onto a chair and Brann felt pride arise for her thoughtful daughter. Zial was the one who made Dwana a strong herbal tea to activate the production of new blood, since Dwana had lost a lot during the birth. Dwana had been a real warrior. She had barely screamed, although she had to be in incredible pain. She had almost broken her fathers and husbands fingers during pushing, though.

The queen watched with a smile as Dwalin, his daughter and Thorin Stonehelm looked down at the new family member, who was looking up at the three dwarves with big eyes. The peaceful smiles and the silent happiness of the family warmed her heart and Brann took her daughter and quietly withdraw from the infirmary. Outside, she ran into Thorin, Dis and the other dwarflings.

'How is aunt Dwana?' Gwen was the first to speak. 'How did Zial do?'

'Dwana is doing great. Its a boy.' Brann smiled at Thorin. They had accepted the fact that they were blessed with three daughters, while others had only boys. 'Zial was a great help, she will be a fine healer one day.'

Brann hugged her daughter and saw how tired she was. 'Gwen, darling, would you do me a favor and take your sister to bed? It has been a straining night. You must be tired as well. Skip your lessons today.'

Thorin, who was holding a sleeping Belladonna and had a huge stuffed toy over his shoulders, looked relieved. Dis let out a deep breath as well. Fili and Kili rushed away with the princesses and started to spread the good news.

Suddenly, Brann realised that some dwarves were missing. 'Wait a moment, did not Dain send a letter that they would be coming? They should have arrived by now!' in all the chaos of the past weeks, she had completely forgotten about the letter.

Thorin shrugged his shoulders and cursed quietly as Blacky fell down. 'The last I heard of them was when they were about to travel to the Red Mountains and the dwarves of the East. No word since then.'

Brann frowned as she picked up Blacky and walked back to the royal chambers with Thorin and Dis. She hoped that Dain and Mira were alright. But then again, it would take more than a few Easterlings or orcs to stop Dain and Mira to see their first grandchild.

Thorin Stonehelms and Dwanas son was called Nain, after Dains father. He was a cheerful little dwarfling with Thorin Stonehelms blond hair, blue eyes and Dwanas fierce character. The royal family stood stronger than ever and the dwarves of the Blue Mountains cherished the strong and fertile royal family. Especially the three princesses were seen as a blessing of Mahal and the king and queen were accepted in and beyond the Blue Mountains. Taking them as an example, the birth rate had increased and the population had grown since Thorin had become king and the trade secured the wealth of the dwarven kingdom. The armies of the Blue Mountains and Ered Luin secured the area around the mountain and the alarm system between the dwarves and men worked better than expected. The attacks had diminished and he men of Rohan and Gondor were given a few years of peace. It was too perfect.

One week after Nains birth, the delegation from the Iron Hills arrived. The scouts from the Blue Mountains alarmed Thorin and informed him that the delegation was way bigger than usual. The king exchanged a worried glance with his queen as they rushed to the look out of the Blue Mountains. The delegation was a day´s march away and it was huge. The scouts reported that the delegation was a few hundred dwarves large.

'This cannot be possible!' Brann murmured. 'Is this even a delegation? Or is it a caravan?'

The scout shuffled with his feet and looked to the floor. 'Some dwarves of the caravan seem to be from the east. We could not see their braids and beads, but not all of them are from the Iron Hills, that is for sure.'

'The East.' Thorin frowned. 'Something must have happened to lord Ravin and his people. In his last letter he wrote that the Easterlings were getting bold. But he was confident. He said that they had everything under control.'

'Maybe he underestimated the danger.' Brann hoped that they were wrong. The Red Mountains had been strong allies and were the only dwarven kingdom between the Blue Mountains and the Iron Hills.

'Prepare everything for their arrival.' Thorin instructed Balin. 'We will need accomodations and enough food and water.'

Balin nodded and took care of everything. Dwalin ordered his guards to stay alert and have an eye on the horizon. He would be prepared if some orcs would decide to attack the slow moving caravan. But in the evening, the caravan had reached the Blue Mountains. Dain and Mya led the delegation from the Iron Hills, Thorin Stonehelms sister had stayed in the Iron Hills with their husbands. The had brought some guards with them, but the scout had been right about the other dwarves. About five hundred dwarves from the Red Mountains had arrived with Dain and Mya. They looked tired and worn out, some were even slightly injured. Lord Ravin was not with them.

'Dain, Mya!' Brann rushed towards the royal couple from the Iron Hills. 'What happened, are you well?'

'We are well, my dear.' Mya hugged her friend tightly. 'But our kin from the East was not that lucky. These are the remains of the Eastern kingdom of lord Ravin. Fivehundred and sixty two survivors.'

'Survivors?' Thorin Oakenshield had joined them. 'Durins beard...please tell us what happened. Come in, you are safe with us.'

At nightfall the gates to the Blue Mountains closed and the guards were doubled. No danger would befall the dwarves inside of the fortress that night.

The survivors of the East were traumatised. Their home had been raided and burned down by Easterlings and orcs. Thorin and Brann paled as they heard about the two armies of their enemies closing ranks against the dwarves. It had been the combined strength of the evil forces which had made the gates crumble. Lord Ravin had fallen defending his family. Only barely over fivehundred dwarves had managed to flee. The Iron Hills had not even been able to send any reinforcements. The attack had been sudden and fierce and Ravin had not even had the time to call for refugees had met with the delegation from the Iron Hills after many days and had decided to seek refugee in the Blue Mountains.

'This is the rest of Ravins kin.' Brann stated sadly. She and Thorin stood on one of the balconies leading towards one of the bigger halls and watched the refugees. There were not enough rooms in the Blue Mountains for so many dwarves and Balin had cots brought to the lower halls for the refugees to sleep. The sound of dwarflings crying and dwarf women mumbling comforting words pained Brann. The male dwarves had decided to support the local guard. They had just lost their home and felt the guilt of the survivors. They would not take the help of the Blue Mountains without giving anything back. Bombur and Dis made sure that the refugees ate and drank enough and Zial was down there with Oin to take care of the wounded.

'I should go down there, too.' Brann decided and took off her crown to hand it to Thorin. 'This will not be necessary.'

'You are the queen, Brann, you do not need to do this anymore.' Thorin told his wife, but he already knew her answer.

'These dwarves do not need a queen, they need healers, food and water. And a home.' Brann stated quietly. 'I am a healer. At least I was...and I should remember that.'

Thorin smiled at his queen and kissed her gently. 'Then go. I will bring Dain and Mya to see their grandchild and then I will summon a council. This attack surprised us all. The orc filth has allies in the Easterlings, that was unexpected. This alliance is not only dangerous, its not typical. Orcs never work in alliances, its against their nature. We need to find out what made them launch such an attack.'

'Evil has been allowed to grow for too long.' Brann shook her head. The king and queen walked down to the heavy doors of the hall. 'The great wars of the First Age are over, but we should not forget that there is still evil in the world which needs to be fought. One day, the balance between good and evil will be evened. And then the free folk of Middle Earth will have to fight again.'

Thorin frowned and opened the door to the hall for Brann. He took a glance at the hundred of refugees and shook his head. 'I hope that it will not have to come to this, but if we have to fight, we will be ready.'

Brann had taken off all her jewels and folded up her sleeves. 'And I will fight at you side, my husband and king.'

Thorin cupped her cheek and kissed her forehead. 'I am the luckiest dwarf in Middle Earth to have you. And thanks to you, my queen, our kingdom had strong allies and loyal friends. We will endure. Now enter these halls, my queen. We will meet at dinner.'

Brann laid her forehead against Thorins and smiled. This gesture was intimate and loving and she felt all her love for Thorin flow through her veins in this very moment. Her husbands heavy forehead against hers gave her a feeling of belonging and not for the first time since their paths had crossed, she thanked the Valar on her knees for her fate at his side.

'See you at dinner.' Brann whispered and turned towards the hall. She had work to do.

Brann did not know how long she was already working. There were many wounded, but thankfully none of the refugees was deadly injured. Most of them had to deal with the trauma of losing their homes and beloved ones. Oin set up countless herbal teas to numb the mind and pain, but especially the smaller dwarflings could not be helped. Many of them had lost their parent or even both parents and nobody could stop their cries. Soon, Brann thought that she would go insane of all the crying and whimpering. She could understand the refugees pain and their misery touched her. But she had to stay strong, she could not break apart, or else she would not be able to help them. Zial helped the wounded dwarflings and stopped nearby a cot to inspect the head injury of a male dwarfling in her age. He was sitting near his mother, who was unconscious after drinking one of Oins teas. She had been exhausted and had needed her sleep. Zial looked at the beautiful cooperhaired dwarf women and checked her breathing. She was breathing fine and Zial turned towards her son. The head wound looked deep and it had been treated already, but not very well. The boy flinched slightly as Zial touched the wound, but he tried to hide it. Zial sighed as she realised that he would need stitches. She knew how to sew flesh, but she did not like it.

'Listen, you need to stay still while I set the stitches. Can you do that?' Zial asked the boy gently and smiled as he nodded. He had black hair and beautiful blue eyes and he reminded Zial of someone she knew, but she could not put a finger on it. 'This will hurt a bit, but I will be careful.'

The boy nodded again and tilted his head to grant Zial a better access with the needle. Zial smiled gratefully and started sewing. She only needed five stitches and took a deep breath as she was finished.

'Take a breath before you faint.' she told the boy and smirked in amusement.

'You should take your own advice. Thank Mahal you sew fast enough. You did not breathe during the whole time you set the stitches.' the boys voice was shaking from not speaking for some time. 'Did you do that for the first time?'

His rude remark made Zial frown. 'I should have sown your mouth shut, since apparently you have no idea how to express a simple gratitude. And have no manners.'

The boy frowned and looked at his feet. It took a while for him to remember his manners, but he finally did. 'Thank you.' he grumbled and sighed. He looked at his sleeping mother and then back at Zial. 'Thank you for helping my mother. My father, Levek, has joined the city guard and she worries deeply. We only barely fled from the Easterlings. You must believe us cowards.'

'You are no cowards.' Zial told him gently. 'Staying behind and dying for a lost cause would not have been worth it. You came here and Mahal granted you a second chance to achieve something in life. Use it.'

Zial noticed that the boy was very different from the older and merrier Fili and Kili. He was severe and stoic. Zial did not want to think about what he had to endure to become like this. But she hoped that when the trauma passed, he would become more friendly again. He was her age and dwarflings in that age should not succumb to grief and sadness.

'My name is Zial.' the princess introduced herself. 'At your service.'

The boy was about to tell her his name as Brann called out for her daughter from a dozen cots further down the hall. 'Zial, I need your help over here! Come quickly!'

An elder dwarf lady had begun to panic and Brann needed all her strength to keep the dwarf from hurting herself even more. Zial rushed to her mothers side and helped her calm the elder lady down. After an endless struggle the dwarf woman had calmed down and Zial left to get her a herbal tea. As she turned back to the boy he was already asleep.