Poppy stood in the doorway in shock. She wanted to run to her husband to kiss him and make sure that he was fine but she was too scared of what she might find in the bed. How severely was he injured or had he just died recently and simply wasn't buried yet?

Lord Elrond sensed her fear and thought that she might faint any second. So he put his arm around her shoulder to steady her and asked one of the healers to make a tea for the hobbit. She had endured the journey surprisingly well and he didn't want something to happen to her or the baby now that they were in safety. He put a hand on her belly to check if the distress and worry about Fili had harmed the unborn child but the little one seemed to be fine. He helped her to sit down on one of the beds and handed her a cup.

Poppy took a sip of the tea and looked at the elf lord. "How is Fili? Will he live?"

"Fili has been injured very badly, two of the arrows were indeed twisted and poisoned. But he's a young and strong dwarf and his condition improves everyday. You should talk to him and touch him. He has been unconscious most of the time but he will sense your presence. It will help him to recover more quickly. I'm quite optimistic that he'll survive." Elrond explained. He took the cup and helped Poppy to walk to her husband's bed.

Poppy sat down next to Fili and took his hand. He looked pale but was breathing steadily. She took that as a good sign and wiped her tears away. "Thank you, Lord Elrond! For everything." She put a hand on her belly. "You saved not just my husband but also me and our child."

The elf put his hand on her shoulder. "I wish we would have arrived earlier and none of this had ever happened. Everyone here in Rivendell will do everything they can to help all of you." He sighed. "I'll have to leave now. If you need anything, just call for one of the healers."

Poppy nodded and focused on her husband. At first she was reluctant to touch him because she worried that she might hurt him accidentally. Most of Fili's body was covered in bandages except for his head. After a while she caressed his face and even put a kiss on his forehead, nose and lips.

When one of the healers arrived to bring her something to eat and drink, she asked him if she was allowed to brush Fili's hair. She knew how important hair was for dwarves and her husband's looked terrible at the moment.

The elf brought a comb and asked her to be careful when moving his head. Poppy thanked him and sat closer to his head. She unbraided his hair and brushed it carefully. It was tangled and knotted but after a while it looked better. Then the hobbit tried to braid his hair. She had to concentrate on the different braids but at least this distracted her for a while. In the end she was quite happy with the result and hoped that it would comfort Fili somehow.

Later Elrond arrived with Bilbo and the children who sat down on the bed next to Poppy. They looked at their father but didn't understand why he didn't wake up.

Poppy told them that their father had to sleep to recover. The girls were happy to see him again but Vili burst into tears. "Papa! I want Papa to speak and cuddle. I want my Papa!" He sobbed.

Bilbo sat the little boy in his mother's lap and Lili took his hand but nothing they did seemed to comfort him. Vili kept sobbing and asking his father to talk to him.

Lord Elrond looked at the family sadly and tried to convince Vili that for now he could only look at his father and touch his hand. But Vili cried even more and buried his face in her mother's hair.

Bilbo looked at the elf. "Excuse me, Lord Elrond. But Vili is just five years old. The last time he heard his father's voice was when the orcs nearly killed his parents. He doesn't understand that his father is here but won't talk to him."

Elrond frowned. "But he can see him and -"

"No, he can't see him!" Poppy suddenly yelled and pulled her son even closer. "He's blind!"

The elf gasped. "I didn't know. Of course Gandalf told me a lot about Vili but he never mentioned that he can't see. I thought he was just shy after he had been taken to Erebor. Please forgive me, mistress hobbit."

Poppy nodded and stroked her son's back. "Vili, please calm down. Papa is here but he has to sleep." Poppy started crying because she didn't know what to do until she finally had an idea. Her heartbeat had always calmed him down. Maybe Fili's heartbeat would help to convince Vili that his father was truly there. She sat Vili next to his father's chest and told him to be very careful. Then she laid him down with his head close to Fili's heart and put one of his braids in the little boy's hand.

After a few moments Vili stopped crying and his face lit up. "Papa, Papa!"

Everyone else smiled. Lili and Tulip carefully crawled closer to Fili and petted his face and hands. They were happy that they were together again and hoped that their father would wake up soon.

Later that evening Lindir showed Poppy, Bilbo and the children were they could sleep. They were given two rooms close to the infirmary to be close to Fili. Daisy and her family stayed close to them as well. Bilbo asked her to look after the children who were asleep because he wanted to go for a walk with Poppy. The latter at first didn't want to but agreed in the end.

Bilbo wanted to distract her and showed her some beautiful places of Rivendell but Poppy couldn't stop thinking about Fili. He took her hand and they sat down on one of the many balconies. There he wrapped his arms around her shoulders to comfort his friend. "Poppy, I'm sure Fili will live. He is in good hands and endured much worse after the Battle of the Five Armies. Has Fili ever told you about this battle?"

"He told me about the battle and of course I know his scars but he never told me any details. He said he would tell me one day. But, but-" Poppy said but then her voice broke. She took a deep breath. "Would you tell me?"

Bilbo nodded and cleared his throat. "Well, Fili, Kili, Thorin and Dwalin had gone to an old watch tower because Azog, the leader of the orcs, was there. Apparently Thorin had sent Kili and Fili into the tour to scout."

Poppy shuddered and sobbed when she heard the dwarf king's name. "He sent them to their death? What has Fili done wrong that his uncle wanted him dead from the beginning?"

Bilbo took her hand. "Thorin never wanted Fili to die. He loved his nephews more then everything in the world. But then he became mad. I think he can't love anything except for his gold anymore. But deep in his heart he is a good person."

"Fili said the same but I can't believe it. I hope I'll never meet him. I don't even want to imagine what happens if we met him." Poppy said and put her head against Bilbo's shoulder. "Please tell me what happened next."

"Well, Fili sent his brother to the lower part of the tower. He was sure that their enemies where in the upper part and went there alone to protect Kili." Bilbo closed his eyes and sighed. "When I arrived there to warn them, Azog dragged Fili out by the collar of his coat. I will spare you the details but Azog pushed a sword through Fili's back and chest. Then he let his body fall down the tower. Fili landed directly in front of his brother who thought that he was dead. Kili was really angry and shocked. He didn't even check on his brother but ran away immediately to revenge him. But that's a different story." Bilbo took a deep breath. "Quite some time later Dwalin went back to the watch tower to retrieve Fili's dead body only to find out that he was still alive. Nobody thought that Fili would survive. Of course the healers treated his wounds but even the elves didn't believe that he would live more than a few hours. They wanted to make his passing as comfortable and easy as possible but Fili pulled through." Then Bilbo looked at Poppy. "He wanted to live for you. He wanted to win your heart."

Poppy smiled and wiped her tears away.

"And this time he has even a better reason to survive. He will fight for you and your children. I sure of it." Bilbo said.

Poppy hugged her friend and kissed his cheeks. "Thank you for cheering me up, Bilbo! I hope you are right."

From the distance Lady Galadriel, who had just arrived in Rivendell for a meeting of the White Council about the future of the hobbits, watched Bilbo and Poppy. Of course she knew who the young female was and watched her curiously. She wondered how the hobbit and one of her children would change the fate of Thorin Oakenshield. One thing Galadriel knew for sure though. If Poppy and the child didn't succeed, Erebor's future would be in danger and the alliance of the Elves, Men and Dwarves in the East would crumble.