Something felt…off.
Bofur didn't know how to describe it, but the moment he opened his eyes, he knew that there was just something that left his stomach feeling as if it had been tied into a knot He sat up and looked across the room, finding Bifur and Ori both still fast asleep—and with good reason. As he slid out of bed and made his way over to the window, he could see that the skies were still a deep shade of blue, telling him it was early morning.
'I think…I think I should go check on Bombur.' The thought came from seemingly nowhere. 'Yes, I should visit him. It's been a while since I've seen him. And while I'm there, I can grab a few things…'
With a small frown, he laid down flat on his stomach and pressed his ear to the floor. Not only was it slightly warm, but he could just barely smell baking bread and heard the dull 'thud' of the oven being closed.
'Miss Baylee's up at least, then,' he thought. 'I can grab a mug of tea before I head out…And maybe a slice of that delicious fruit bread she makes—Ooh, if she's got any made, I should take a loaf or two back to Bombur and Gerdi! Them and the badgers would adore the stuff.'
Getting back to his feet, he made quick work of dressing himself without waking the other two dwarves. He put his hat atop his head and, as quiet as he could be, left the room. Just as he did every morning, he went over to the railing and peeked down into the common room. Though there was a fire in the hearth, he saw no one in the room.
When he reached the bottom of the stairs, however, he finally found some activity: The kitchen doors were wide open, showing that Baylee was indeed in the kitchen, kneading away at some dough. A small smile came to his lips and he crossed the common room.
He lightly knocked on the doorframe so he wouldn't startle her. "Mornin', Miss Baylee."
She glanced over at him, smiling. "Mornin', Bofur," she chirped, pressing down on the dough. "You're up earlier than normal."
"Aye, I got a weird feelin' in the pit o' my stomach," he admitted. Picking up the kettle, he went over to the sink so he could fill it from the fresh water bucket. "Not a bad feelin', mind you, just…a strange one that says I should go visit my brother."
Her head tilted slightly, though her gaze remained on the dough; she was sprinkling dried fruit that had been soaked in warm cider over it. "Tellin' you t' go visit Bombur, eh? Well, I suppose there are worse things weird feelings in the pit o' your stomach could be sayin'." She quietly chuckled, working the bits of fruit in before setting the big ball of dough into a large, buttered bowl. Covering it with a tea towel, she placed it on the counter behind her, where three other towel-covered bowls were sitting.
"You've got quite the production o' bread goin' already," he chuckled, carrying the kettle over to the hearth. "I don't think I've seen this much dough proofing, even when Bombur and Gerdi are fillin' Thorin's pantry!"
She laughed, using the back of her wrist to push some hair from her face. "I have t' make extra today because o' the soup Galiene an' Gawen will be making in a few days," she explained. "It's a really yummy onion soup that you put hard, stale bread in, top with cheese, an' put it in a roarin' hot oven for a few minutes t' get the cheese all melty."
He cocked his head. "I have never heard o' such a thing! It sounds mighty tasty, though."
"It's a recipe my mum an' auntie brought up from Rohan." She looked over at him, a mischievous smile on her lips. "Don't tell my auntie, but mum's version—the one Galiene makes—is far better than hers."
"My lips are sealed," he chuckled. "So long as you don't tell Bombur that I much prefer Gerdi's beef stew t' his." He propped his elbow on the end of the counter and then rested his chin in his palm as he watched her.
"Bein' that I have yet to meet either o' them, my lips are also sealed," she laughed.
"I've no doubt you'll meet 'em soon enough," he said before covering his mouth as he yawned. Glancing at her face, he frowned ever so slightly; she had dark circles under her eyes. "…Did you not sleep well, lass?"
"Hmm?" She looked up at him, having been in the middle of measuring out flour for more dough. "Why do you ask?"
"You're a bit dark under the eyes."
Her nose scrunched up. "Ahh…Aye, I had a wee bit o' trouble staying asleep." She then smiled reassuringly at him. "Nothin' to fret about though; I'll be able t' sneak a nap in later between breakfast an' lunch."
"You had better," he jokingly scolded, even wagging a finger at her. "Inn maids are o' no use t' their patrons if they're fallin' asleep on the job." He grinned as he both saw and heard her giggle; he wasn't quite sure why, but the sound made his stomach flutter ever so slightly.
"Don't worry—makin' all this bread is going t' have me worn out soon enough," she assured him.
"Speakin' of the bread…how long do you think it'll be until some o' that fruit bread will be finished an' ready to eat?"
"I just put the first six loaves in the oven about ten minutes before you came down here," she told him, "so about another half hour, plus some time t' cool…Why do you ask?"
"I was hopin' it'd be possible to buy two t' take with me."
"Oh, o' course it's possible," she chirped. "From what you an' the others have told me 'bout your brother an' his family, though, I think you might want t' take three loaves."
He snickered. "That is very true," he agreed. "I'm glad you realized that, because I don't think I would have until I stepped foot in the mansion!"
She tilted her head in curiosity. "Mansion?" she repeated. Seeing him nod, she then said, "T' be honest, I didn't think your family would be one t' live in a mansion."
"Oh, almost all dwarf families live in mansions," he explained. "More than one generation o' family lives in them at a time, so you'll have grandparents, parents, children, an' the children's families all livin' under the same stone. If ever they run out o' room, they either carve out additions or the youngest gets t' go out an' found a new mansion." Hearing the kettle getting ready to whistle, he went to get himself a mug. "Bombur, Bifur, an' me, though, are the first generations in our mansion, so we've plenty o' room."
"That makes sense…though, I'd imagine for bigger families, it can feel a bit crowded at times."
"Aye. That's actually the reason Oin an' Gloin decided t' come over here instead of remaining in Ered Luin. They've one o' the biggest families that side o' the Misty Mountains. I think there's somethin' like a hundred-fifty o' them now?" He shook his head, scooping some tea into a strainer before going to fetch the kettle. "That's too many t' keep track of in my humble opinion. Mahal's beard, sometimes keepin' track o' Bombur's badgers can be tricky enough! My one savin' grace is that dwarrow dames don't have the same sort o' naming traditions as us males. Rather lucky they are in that regard. An' I'm rambling again. Sorry."
She looked over at him, her hands busy gently scraping one of the proofed balls of dough from the biggest bowl. "No need t' apologize," she said with a smile. "It's amusing and I get t' learn more about your culture." Using the back of her wrist, she once more pushed some hair from her face. It soon fell back into place, though. "I already knew some things thanks t' da' and Lovisa, but it's always nice t' learn more. Especially since it helps keep me from accidentally insultin' someone."
He chuckled as he filled his mug with hot water, her words making his brow rise; for some reason, he couldn't really picture her insulting anyone—except the old Master of Laketown, that is. "Ah, you don't have t' worry about that, Miss Baylee. We dwarves know that our culture isn't terribly well known outside o' our mountains, so we rarely take offense. That is, unless you suggest shavin' off our beards. That can warrant a brawl breakin' out depending on how much alcohol was consumed. Would you like a mug o' tea, by the way?"
"That'd be lovely, actually. Thank you," she smiled. "An' that's understandable. Hair an' beards are precious t' your people. Tellin' them to shave would be like telling an Eorlinga—ah, a person o' Rohan—to sell their horses…or tellin' a Mirkwood elf t' give up their wine."
Bofur let out a loud snort, having to clap a hand over his mouth midway to keep it from being too loud. "Now that would be impossible," he laughed, looking over his shoulder at her. He saw that she wore a victoriously cheeky grin. "I've been inside the king's wine cellar an' let me tell you: I have never in all my life seen that much alcohol stored in one place."
"Oh, aye, I know! I've never seen it personally, but when Bard was still a bargeman, he was constantly collectin' the empty wine barrels and gettin' them ready to send back t' Dorwinion."
"Those barrels are actually how we managed t' sneak into Laketown," he told her as he fetched a second mug and tea strainer. "'Course, with our luck, they started off empty an' then ended up filled with fish—while we were still in them."
"Ugh, that sounds horrible!"
"None of us could eat fish for at least half a year after that. Poor Ori, especially. The lad's afraid o' fish, so him bein' surrounded by them…?" He shook his head.
"Oh no, the poor dear!" She frowned at the thought; it would already be bad enough to be stuck in a barrel of fish, but to also be afraid of them…? "I don't blame him, though. Some fish can be quite frightenin'. The sturgeon an' the giant catfish are the worst." She stuck her tongue out at the thought of the fish. "I hope he wasn't stuck in a barrel with either o' those!"
He shook his head, bringing the mug of tea over to her counter. "Nah. Luckily, it was a bunch o' small fish we got stuck with." He set the mug down on a spot that was within her sight range, but out of the way of her breadmaking. Looking at the dough, his brow rose slightly; there were small, dark rounds of something being kneaded in. "What's this bread goin' to be, lass?"
"Rosemary an' olive bread," she replied. "I don't make it very often because I don't want t' use up all the olives, but papa's had a hankerin' for some lately."
"I would have never thought t' put olives in bread," he blinked. "But, I'm also not a cook—just a toymaker. Though I'm curious: Do you have all these different bread recipes memorized? Or is there a cookbook somewhere around here I'm not seein'?"
She let out a laugh. "Well, that's one way o' putting it," she said. "Remember how I told you my memory's strange with bein' able to 'see' clear pictures an' such?"
"Aye?"
"Well, that means I can 'see' the pages o' a cookbook—the one from the original Tankard back in Laketown, as a matter o' fact." Once more, she wore a mischievous smile. "I may have conveniently 'forgotten' some o' the dishes I didn't like."
"An' no one's called you out on that yet?" he chuckled.
"Uncle Richard did once. It was because I 'couldn't' remember the recipe for the Tankard's carrot cake." Her nose scrunched up slightly in disgust. "An atrocity t' desserts, it is." Lifting the kneaded dough, she placed it in yet another large, buttered bowl.
Bofur's brow rose in amusement. "What's wrong with carrot cake? I find it quite nice myself—especially with that tangy-but-sweet frostin' that goes on it."
She shook her head, putting the bowl on the counter behind her. "The frosting is the only good thing about it. I have yet t' have a carrot cake that isn't dense, dry, an' bland as all get. Now, we've some amazin' bakers in Dale an' Laketown but none o' them can make a carrot cake taste good."
"Well, now, I'm just goin' to have t' have Gerdi make one of her carrot cakes for you, lass," he grinned. "Hers are the lightest an' moistest carrot cakes I've ever had."
Baylee playfully rolled her eyes. "We'll have t' see about that—because it's not just me you'll have t' convince. It's Will, too. He hates it more than I do!" Wiping her hands off on her apron, she went over to the oven and took a peek inside to find the bread ready. "You'll want t' head to the other side of the kitchen," she warned as she grabbed her peel.
Doing as instructed, he hurried across the kitchen and watched as she opened the oven before quickly ducking out of the way herself. After a few seconds, she skillfully started to remove the ceramic pans two at a time, twisting around to slide them onto the countertop. In less than a minute, she had all six loaves out and was using the peel to shut the oven door once more.
"You're good at that," he chuckled. "Almost reminds me of the glassblowers in Erebor."
Her head tilted. "Glassblowers? What kind o' work do they do?"
He copied her head motion, blinking. "You've never seen a glassblower at work?"
She shook her head. "Glass wasn't a very big industry in Laketown, as you can imagine. The amount o' heat needed t' make it meant that only one building was able t' make the glass. Even then, they only made windows an' some mirrors."
"Ahh, aye, that's understandable then," he murmured. "Glassblowers are the ones who make things that aren't windows or mirrors. Cups, teapots, vases, chandeliers, figurines…Mahal's beard, some of them even make jewelry!" He watched as she grabbed her mug of tea and bobbed her strainer in it a few times. "They use these real long pipes t' do most of the shapin'. Since the pipes are hollow, they blow into them an' it makes the molten glass expand."
"That…sounds really interesting, actually. Do they ever let people watch them work?"
"Some o' them do, but a lot o' them have trade secrets, so they stay behind closed doors." He took a drink of his own tea. "They are really interestin' to watch, though. It's like watchin' a potter work with clay, except it's red-hot glass."
"Next time I have t' visit Erebor, I'll have to find one an' watch them," she smiled. Taking a sip of her tea, she then set it down in favor of covering her mouth as she yawned. "I've some time while these doughs proof…would you like me t' make you anythin' to eat?"
Bofur shook his head. "No, no thank you, lass. The feelin' in my stomach is makin' me strangely not hungry this mornin'."
"Well, I hope once you reach your home, that feelin' goes away."
"Oh, I'm sure it will," he smiled.
Erebor was just beginning to wake up as Bofur rode in through the front gate. The streets were still fairly empty and shopkeepers were just beginning to open up shop. As he guided his pony along the familiar path towards his home, he felt the anxiousness in his stomach beginning to fade away. Everything around him was calm, so surely things must be calm at the Ur mansion as well…?
When he reached his home and got his pony stabled, he found that it couldn't have been further from the truth.
With a basket containing three still-lukewarm loaves of fruit bread, he walked in through the front door in time to see Berez rushing down the stairs. His face was as red as his beard and he didn't even take notice of his uncle as he bolted down the hall.
'That's not good,' Bofur thought, hurrying after him.
As he reached the kitchen, he found Baraz, Berez, and Biriz huddled around the stoves while, much to his surprise, a dwarrow dame who was very much not Gerdi was placing bowls of porridge in front of Boroz, Buruz, Grid, and Sanna. Berez, he saw, was pouring steaming water into a bowl, along with some herbs; which ones, he couldn't tell.
"What's going on?" he then asked in Khuzdul, taking them all by surprise.
"Uncle Bof!" all but the dwarrow dame exclaimed. The three youngest slid out of their chairs and raced towards him. Tossing the basket onto the counter, he crouched down and caught them all in a big hug.
"Uncle Bof, you couldn't have better timing," Baraz told him. Out of everyone in the room, he looked the most exhausted and he sounded it, too. "Mom went into labor around midnight. Dad's been pacing the hall outside their room like crazy—Since you and cousin Bifur weren't here, Thorin went up to keep him company."
Stepping aside as Berez came towards the doorway with the bowl of steaming water, Bofur let out a hearty laugh. "Is that so? Well, then it's a good thing I listened t' my gut when it told me to come visit today!" he grinned. He winced slightly as Sanna used his pigtail to help pull herself up onto his shoulder before grabbing his hat off his head. "What're you think you're doing, you wee badger?" he laughed.
Sanna grinned as she slid back off his shoulder and bolted back to the table, his too-big-for-her hat still atop her head.
"She's been a little thief lately," Buruz told him. "Stealing bites from everyone's plates, stealing Biriz's socks, stealing Grid's toys…"
"Why, if I didn't know better, I'd say she was taking after Nori," Bofur chuckled. He then looked at the dwarrow dame as he ushered Grid and Buruz to go back and eat their breakfast. "And I take it you're helping to keep these three little ones under control while Bombur and Gerdi are occupied?"
Her brow rose as she smiled at him. "I wouldn't necessarily say I'm keeping them under control—they are Urs after all," she said with a laugh. "But yes, when Baraz came bursting into the palace this morning to both announce the impending birth and how we would have to fend for ourselves for breakfast, Thorin and I felt it best we come provide some help and moral support." She walked over to Bofur, giving him a hug.
Returning the hug, he gave her a small pat on the back. "I'm sure they appreciate both the help and moral support," he chuckled. As they parted from the hug, he gave her a teasing wink. "And I'm sure you and Thorin appreciate all the ready-made food down here in the kitchen." He laughed as she swatted at him. "Are Fili and Kili here?"
She shook her head, wearing a small grin. "They were still sound asleep when we left—you know how those two are. Lazy bones in the morning and productive later in the day."
"They might grow out of it one day." He then glanced at the basket he had brought. "Well, I should go make sure my brother hasn't worn a track in the floor…In that basket, there are three loaves of fruit bread. Help yourselves, but save enough for the rest of us, alright? I haven't had breakfast yet and I sure as Aulë's red-hot forge want some of it to go with my meal."
The dame nodded and laughed. "I'll do my best to ensure no one takes more than their fair share."
Chuckling, he turned and left the kitchen, heading back down the hallway to the foot of the stairs. As he walked up them, he could hear his brother's worried mumbling from down the hall. Whatever he was saying, though, was too jumbled to make out and he didn't have much time to eavesdrop because, as he started down the hall, a second dwarf spotted him.
"Bofur, you're here!" Thorin said, a relieved smile coming to his lips.
Bombur spun around, his eyes wide. "Brother!" He hurried down the hall, meeting Bofur halfway before pulling him into a tight hug. "Thank Aulë you're here! The midwife isn't letting me or Thorin in to be with Gerdi; she was only letting Berez in to run errands!"
"Well that's not very fair," Bofur wheezed. His brother's hug was strong enough that he wondered how much of his spine was out of alignment now. "Why isn't she letting you in?" He breathed a sigh of relief when he was put back down on the ground.
"He's too fat," Thorin replied simply, a bit of amusement on his lips. "The midwife doesn't want to risk him knocking something over as he paces. And she won't let me in because I'm not part of the family."
"You would think she'd let the King Under the Mountain in to provide moral support for his friend, but no—family only!" Bombur grumbled.
Bofur laughed, patting him on the back. "Then it's a good thing I'm here, isn't it?" Moving past his brother, he knocked on the door to his and Gerdi's room. "Gerdi? It's me, Bofur. Can I come in?"
All three males stared at the door in a mixture of amusement and surprise as the usually-cleaned mouth Gerdi shouted back, "Get your ass in here!"
Not wanting to keep her waiting, Bofur slipped in through the door. He could see his sister-in-law slowly walking back and forth, one hand on the small of her back, the other on her stomach, and pain on her face. She beckoned him over, gladly clinging to his arm when he was close enough to grab.
He was no stranger to this procedure; this wasn't the first time he had been the one at Gerdi's side for a birth. In fact, it was the third time he was the one present in place of Bombur, so he knew that this pacing not only helped relieve some of the pain she was feeling, but it also helped a dwarrow dame's body prepare for the eventual pushing she would have to do.
"She's very close," the midwife told him. "I'd say she'll have the child birthed within the hour." As she spoke, she walked over to a strange chair that had a large, U-shaped hole cut out of the seat and foot rests about six inches off the ground.
Nodding in understanding, he gently patted Gerdi's arm. "I'll tell you, I was not expecting this to happen when I woke up this morning," he told her with a small smile. "Have you and Bombur thought of any names?"
"Byryz," she told him, her voice a bit strained. "He'll be named Byryz. Tell me about yours and Bifur's shop."
"Well, it's about halfway done in terms of repair work. It had been half done, but that storm we had the other day showed us that we need a new roof. The second floor had puddles everywhere. Though, that might be because we also kind of removed a section of the roof…" He shook his head. "Luckily, we hadn't plastered up there yet—just the first floor. The second floor isn't really our main concern right now, even though we know we'll be living up there eventually.
"But anyway, it's a good building. We took down a couple of walls to make a larger store front and the kitchen is nice and big…It's got the strangest privy room though—not only is there a privy in it, but also a bathtub!" He gave Gerdi's arm a reassuring pat when she groaned in pain. Staying quiet a moment, he waited to see if she would need to sit or if she needed to start pushing. When neither happened, he began talking again. "Can you imagine that? Bathing in the same room you use to relieve yourself…I suppose it makes sense, though. You can just pour the bath water down the privy. And if you've managed to make a mess of yourself on a night of too much drinking, there you go, bath's right there."
Gerdi managed a laugh and smacked his arm. "Bofur!"
"What? I'm just speaking the truth," he grinned, also hearing the midwife laugh. "It's a strange thing to do, but also a bit handy, don't you think? Just don't take a bath right after someone had one of those nights…" He laughed as Gerdi smacked his again. "Alright, alright, what would you rather I talk about?"
"Th-that inn you're staying at," she told him. "Bifur told us that it's nice."
"Oh, it's very nice! Good, soft beds; good, filling food; never-empty tankards; and some of the friendliest inn staff I've ever seen. I'm sure Bifur already told you about how we hired the innkeeper's son to work for us." When Gerdi nodded, he continued. "Well, Will's been mighty helpful. We're even thinking about teaching him how to make toys once the shop renovation is done. He might have some difficulty with the finer details, but that won't matter."
"Wh-why would he have dif-difficulties?"
"He's got a bit of nerve damage that makes his arm tremble at times. It's not too bad of a tremble—most of the time. But there's been a time or two when he's literally had to grab his wrist to stop his arm from shaking."
"The War?"
"Yes. Poor lad got all sorts of scarred up—then again, hardly anyone who fought in that battle came out unscathed." He shook his head again. "Anyway…I did bring some loaves of fruit bread from the inn, by the way. It's the specialty of Miss Baylee—she's the innkeeper's daughter. She and Will are twins, but you'd never guess it because of how small she is. I daresay she and Dwalin are the same height!"
Gerdi's brow rose. "Is sh-she part dwarrow?"
"No, no—we joke she could easily be confused for one, but she's a wee bit too skinny and not hairy enough to be part dwarrow," he chuckled. Then, unconsciously, he added, "Very pretty, though…But Miss Baylee's starting to pick up on our habits, too: She tosses food and dishes around with us; she knows how Ori likes exactly a splash-and-a-half of cream in his tea and that Bifur always has his utensils on the left…Speaking of Ori, it seems her and him are becoming fast friends. Just the other day, she went with him to the market to help him haggle prices for some pigments. The lad's been wanting to make his own paints."
She nodded in understanding. "Th-that's good…Ori's a sw-sweet lad. I'm glad D-Dori's let him stay in D-Dale on his own. He could—he could do with the free—" She let out a small cry of pain and doubled over. "I-I think it's time to push," she whimpered.
Nodding, Bofur helped her waddle over to the strange chair before he and the midwife assisted her in getting situated. He turned his head away at that point; being that this wasn't his first time being present for a birth, he knew that it could get rather…gross looking to say the least.
"You squeeze my hand as tight as you need, Gerdi," he told her, offering his hand out to her. "You know I don't mind if you break some of the bones." He smiled when his comment earned a pained laugh from his sister-in-law.
"You know what to do by now, I'm sure," the midwife said, kneeling beside the chair.
Bofur felt Gerdi grip his hand and he winced slightly; though he had expecting her to hold on tightly, he always forgot just how strong her grip was. "You got this, Gerdi," he told her, one of his eyes closed in pain. He told himself that what he was going through was absolutely nothing compared to what she going through. "Soon enough, you'll be holding the newest addition to your family and we'll all be cooing over his cuteness!"
"T-time to shush," Gerdi grunted out. While she appreciated the distraction his ramblings brought when she had been walking around, she needed concentration for the pushing.
Falling silent, Bofur continued to look away while letting Gerdi squeeze is hand. He did his best to think about the celebration that would take place later that day in an effort to drown out the cries of pain coming from his sister-in-law. Between her cries, he could hear Bombur out in the hall, blubbering to Thorin—more than likely about how he should be the one in here with his wife.
"One more push should do it!"
Bofur's eyes and jaw clenched shut as his hand was squeezed extra hard; he was certain at least two of his fingers had been dislocated. But the pain was quickly replaced by shock and awe as he heard both the tiny wailing of a newborn and the voice of the midwife as she spoke again.
"It's a girl! By Aulë's sacred anvil, Gerdi, you've a third daughter!"
"What!?" Bofur gasped, unable to stop himself from looking over. "Another daughter?" He was just in time to see the little girl, now wrapped in a blanket, be handed up to her mother. "Aulë bless this day—I don't think any dwarrow's been so lucky as to have three daughters!"
Gerdi clutched the child to her chest, tears of joy spilling from her eyes. "A daughter! Bless me, the thought of having a third one never even crossed my mind!" She started to coo to the crying child, gently rocking her as best she could in the chair. "Look at all this hair! That's the most hair I've seen on a newborn since Baraz was born!"
Keeping his back turned to the midwife, Bofur smiled down at the sight of his new niece. Her face was the only part of her that had been really cleaned off, leaving him thankful that the blanket obscured the rest of the blood and…yuck. "Shall I fetch Bombur, then?" he asked her.
Gerdi nodded, too enamored by the little girl to pay him much mind. "Yes…yes, tell him he must come see his daughter."
With a wide grin plastered to his face, he went over to the door and, upon opening it, found Bombur, Thorin, and Dis standing on the other side.
"Well?" Bombur demanded, his eyes wide as saucers. "How did it go? Is the little lad healthy?"
"I don't know about any 'little lad', but I do know that the little lass is healthy and has a mighty pair of pipes on her already!"
Dis and Bombur both let out cries of surprise and joy; Thorin, being more reserved, simply wore a wide grin. As Bofur ducked out of the way, Bombur hurried into the room, not even taking the time to shut the door behind him.
"A third daughter!" Dis exclaimed. "Bless my soul, can you believe that, Thorin?" She was positively giddy in her excitement—an amusing sight, as she was normally just as reserved as her brother.
Thorin chuckled, his brow rising as he watched her. "We'll most definitely be holding a feast in honor of the miracle!" he said. He then looked at Bofur. "I didn't get the chance to ask you, but had you been planning to visit today? Because if so, your timing couldn't have been better."
He shook his head, leaning against the wall as he rubbed his hand; miraculously, all his fingers were in the right spots. "I woke up early this morning with a strange feeling in my gut. It told me to come visit today, so I thought it best to listen. I didn't want to wake Bifur, though, just in case the feeling ended up being nothing, so I asked Miss Baylee to relay a message to him for me."
"So then, it was sheer, dumb luck that brought you here? That sounds about right for you." Grinning, Thorin clapped Bofur on the back. "Come on; we should go tell the others the blessed news while Dis worms her way into the room to see the baby."
Dis' cheeks turned a bit pink and she pouted. "I'll have you know that I plan on giving mother and father as much alone time as they need with their—"
The door opened and Bombur poked his head (and the frontmost part of his stomach) out into the hall. "Dis? The midwife needs some assistance, if you would be so kind. Thorin, Bofur, I'm afraid you two will have to wait a bit."
Thorin and Bofur snickered as Dis hurried into the room without question. "That's fine with us, Bombur," Bofur told him. "Thorin and I were just about to head down to the kitchen to make the announcement."
As Bombur nodded and closed the door, the two started to walk down the hallway towards the stairs.
"Have you ever heard of a family having three daughters?" Thorin asked. "It's rare enough for a family having two daughters—but three?"
"This has to be one of the first—if not the first—times it's happened. Ah, but Bombur and Gerdi deserve it." He hooked his thumbs through his belt loops. "They're wonderful parents."
"Do you think you'll ever have any?" Thorin then asked. He looked at his friend, seeing just a touch of sadness creep into his eyes. "You're still young enough, you know…Bombur can't have gotten all the Ur family luck, after all."
A small sigh left Bofur's mouth. "I don't know, Thorin…when Kaia died, it felt like any hope I had at having a family of my own died with her. It'd be a wonderfully pleasant surprise if it did happen, though I'm not going to hold out any hope. You know as well as me that we dwarrows are lucky to fall in love once—falling in love twice is just as rare as having more than one daughter."
"I'm sure Aulë's got something in the forge for you." Reaching over, he patted Bofur on the back. "He's been mighty sneaky in his crafting of late…Giving Bombur a third daughter, having Kili fall for an elf maiden and she for him, Dori finally giving Ori a bit of freedom…"
Bofur snorted at the last one. "That in and of itself used up the majority of the Ri family's luck, I'm sure," he grinned. As they entered the kitchen, they found the seven Ur children either nervously pacing, anxiously stuffing their faces, or, in the case of the three youngest, obliviously eating a second helping of breakfast.
"Well?" Biriz asked, his eyes wide as he saw the king and his uncle. "Did mum give birth yet?"
"She did," Bofur said, purposefully drawing out the anticipation. His voice managed to draw the attention of the littlest ones, too.
"And?" Boroz questioned. "Is mum alright? Is our brother alright?"
Thorin crossed his arms over his chest. "What brother? It's another sister you've got, lad."
There was a moment of shocked silence; even Grid and Sanna were silent in surprise. Then, all at once, the seven siblings erupted into loud cheers of joy and relief. Baraz, Berez, and Biriz practically started to dance, they were so happy to hear the news.
"Alright, alright—quiet down you lot!" Bofur laughed. "We don't need you alerting the whole of Erebor to this! At least, not yet. Give your mum a little bit of time to rest and relax after all that hard work." As he spoke, he went over to the counter where he had set the basket of bread. To his great relief (and surprise), the bread hadn't been touched yet. Pulling one of the loaves out, he carried it to a cutting board. "Baraz, bread knife!"
Nodding, Baraz opened a drawer and pulled out a long, sheathed knife. "Here you go, Uncle Bof!" Making sure the sheath was on well, he tossed it across the kitchen.
Catching the knife, Bofur grinned. "Thanks, lad!" As he made to start cutting the bread, Thorin came over and leaned against the counter.
"Once Bombur comes down, I'll start making arrangements for a feast with him," said the king. "I'm sure he'll want the usual crowd in attendance." His brow rose slightly as he was offered a slice of the bread, which he took and then smelled. "What kind of bread is this?" Looking it over, he found little flecks of fruit scattered throughout the piece.
"Fruit bread. It's a specialty of Miss Baylee," he explained, continuing to slice the loaf. "She's the daughter of the proprietor of the inn we're staying at."
Taking a bite of the bread, Thorin was rather surprised to find that it was more similar to cake in texture than bread. He also discovered that the red and orange flecks had been bits of cranberry, candied orange peel, and pear. It was a combination he wouldn't have come up with, but found himself rather enjoying.
"Bombur and Gerdi are definitely going to want this recipe," he murmured, looking at the piece of bread before taking another bite.
Bofur chuckled, his brow rising. "It's good, isn't it? Truthfully, when she first told us that one of the inn's specials was fruit bread of all things, me and Ori were a bit skeptical. We've heard of fruits in pastries, in cakes, and in cookies, but never bread." Plucking up a piece himself, he took a large bite. After chewing and swallowing, he grinned.
"Don't let Fili near this bread," he smiled, his brow rising. "You know how much the lad enjoys cranberries."
"He is the only person I know who gladly eats fresh cranberries," Bofur snorted, shaking his head. Feeling a tug on his tunic, he blinked and looked down only to find Grid looking up at him.
"What're you eatin', Uncle Bof?" she questioned.
Grabbing two pieces of the bread, he handed them to her. "Fruit bread," he smiled. "Be a good badger and take one to Sanna, alright?"
"You mean this cheeky little badger?"
Bofur looked over at Thorin only to find his arm outstretched and Sanna dangling from it. She wore a wide grin that was quickly obscured as his hat fell into her face. Rolling his eyes, he let out a hearty laugh. "Sanna, you know better than to be climbing all over guests like that—especially the king!"
"It's alright," Thorin assured him. He wore a smile as he turned the girl upside down, making her squeal in amusement as she clutched her uncle's hat atop her head. "After helping raise Fili and Kili, I'm rather used to dwarrowlings climbing all over me."
"Sanna likes to climb everything, though," Grid told him. She held out one of the pieces of bread to her sister, who gladly took it.
"Tank you," she said.
"Ah, the wee lass just likes to feel tall," Thorin chuckled. He turned her right-side up, which earned another set of giggles. "You did the same thing when you were her age—so did Kili, come to think of it."
Bofur opened his mouth to reply, but there was a ringing from the front door. Excusing himself, he went down the hall and popped the last bite of bread into his mouth. The bell rung again just a few seconds before he opened the door to find two young adult dwarves on the front step: Crown Prince Fili and Prince Kili.
"We came as soon as we heard!" Kili told him, speaking hurriedly.
"Has the child been born?" Fili asked, his voice a bit calmer than his brother's.
"Barely half an hour ago." Stepping aside, he ushered the two inside. "It's another wee lass for the family, too!"
The pair let out joyous cheers, heartily patting Bofur on the back.
"Have they a name for her yet?" Kili questioned, a wide grin on his lips. "Last I heard, they had only picked out a male name."
Bofur shook his head. "They were convinced they were having another son, so no name for the wee lass yet. Come along, now—almost everyone's in the kitchen. Your mum and Bombur are up with Gerdi."
"Uh-oh. That means you left Uncle to wrangle the little ones?" Fili snickered. As he started for the kitchen, Bofur frowned slightly; he was limping quite badly.
Not having paid attention to his question, Bofur in turn asked, "Fili, is your leg feeling alright? You've got yourself a bad limp today."
Looking down at his leg, the prince shrugged. "It's fine, I promise. I just put it on in a hurry, so the padding and such isn't sitting quite right. I'll fix it when I use the privy."
"He's half lying," Kili told him, earning a glare from Fili. "The prosthetic has been bothering him a bit lately, so we've been keeping our eyes out for any craftsmen or women who seem skilled enough to make him a new one."
Bofur nodded in understanding. "Will you have the new one made from metal? Or still going to go with wood?"
"I'm not sure yet," Fili admitted with a sigh. "I'd like a metal one, but something tells me it'd get to be a pain to lug around. Aulë's beard, just this wooden one is hard enough some days." He then gave Bofur a reassuring smile. "Don't worry about it, though—it'll be fine." He then cleared his throat and held up a neatly wrapped package. "On a different note, I have a gift for the newborn. Is there somewhere I can put this until Gerdi or Bombur could open it?"
Knowing it would useless to continue the conversation about his leg, Bofur nodded. "It'll be safest in the family room for now, since no one's in there," he said.
"Alright. I'll go put it in there and meet you two in the kitchen." He smiled and headed down a hallway while Bofur and Kili continued on walking straight.
Entering the kitchen, they were greeted by the sight of Baraz hoisting up Grid and Buruz, both of whom were covered in porridge. At the dining table, Berez and Biriz were cleaning up what looked like a miniature warzone.
"Wh-what happened here?" Bofur gawked. He had only been gone a few minutes!
Grid smiled cheekily. "Buruz asked me if I was going to eat the rest of my porridge. I said no, he asked if he could have it, an' I started passing it to him."
"You weren't passing it!" Buruz argued with a pout. "You flung it at me with your spoon!"
"So he flung some back at her and the two had an all-out war," Baraz sighed. "Hello, Kili. There's plenty of food if you and Fili are hungry." He smiled tiredly before toting the two off towards the bathing pools.
Thorin shook his head as Kili made a small 'Ooh!' sound and hurried in to go see what there was to eat. "Fili and Kili used to do the same thing when they were dwarrowlings," he smiled. He still had Sanna, who was now perched atop his shoulders; she had finished her bread and was now just observing things while occasionally having to push her uncle's hat up out of her face.
"That doesn't surprise me," Bofur chuckled. He glanced over at the far doorway in time to see Fili limp in. "Help yourself to some food, Fili," he called over before walking over to Thorin. He plucked Sanna off his shoulders, making sure to blow a nice, big raspberry on her cheek to make her squeal. "Uncle Bof and Thorin are going to go talk in the family room, alright? You keep being a good badger for your brothers. No trying to steal Kili's eyepatch or Fili's leg, alright?"
"Yes, Uncle Bof." She squealed again as he blew another raspberry on her other cheek. As Bofur set her down, she scurried across the kitchen to try and steal more food.
Quietly laughing to himself, Bofur motioned for Thorin to follow him out of the kitchen. "So, I've heard you're sending Fili to Dale in a few weeks?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder at the king. "Does it happen to have anything to do with the assignment you've given Nori? Or is that top secret?"
Thorin's brow rose in amusement. "I'm afraid Nori's mission is top secret—for now, at least," he answered. "But yes, Fili will be going to Dale in my place…And then, after that, he shall be going down to Laketown where he will see how well they're coming along and if they're in need of more gold to help with anything." Entering the living room, the two plopped themselves down in a set of plush chairs.
"That's a good way to give him a taste of what being king will be like. Even if he's not the king of Dale or Laketown, it'll still be good for him to also mingle with the common folk." he used his foot to drag over a footstool before propping his feet up on it. "I know he does that quite a bit here, but humans are different from we dwarrows."
The king nodded before closing his eyes and letting his head fall back. "I assume the inn you, Bifur, and Ori have been staying at is the one Nori recommended to us? The Full Tankard?"
"You'd be correct in that assumption."
"Then I'll rest assured he'll be treated well there. Especially if they keep him well supplied with that bread." He quietly chuckled, shaking his head slightly. "Dwalin will be going with him, of course."
"Will there be anyone else in his entourage?" Bofur joked, his brow cocked.
Thorin snorted. "Dis tried to talk him into taking a few guards with him, but he refuses. Says he, Dwalin, and Nori will be plenty. I can't say I disagree with him—they can be quite the formidable team if someone tries to attack them."
Bofur's brow rose. "Do you anticipate on them getting attacked?"
"No, but there have been reports of raiders attacking merchant caravans close to Dale and Laketown." Opening his eyes, he looked over at Bofur. "That's another thing Fili will be discussing with Bard. We need to do something about the raiders, especially since we're not sure where they come from."
Bofur frowned at this. "…Huh. I wonder if that's why the queen of Dorwinion gifted Dale with a troupe of rangers…?"
At that, Thorin's brow rose. "The queen of Dorwinion gifted Dale with rangers?"
Nodding, Bofur rubbed the back of his head. "I'm not too certain on the specifics, but I know they're staying at the Tankard, too. Apparently, the barracks aren't quite up to livable standards just yet…"
"Hm. Interesting…I don't suppose you've seen much of them?"
He shook his head. "No. They've only been there about four days." He then let out a small laugh. "However, I do know they've got the women of Dale in a bit of a tizzy. Apparently, the males are the sorts human women find very attractive. Oh…And one other thing I noticed: One of them is a half-elf and their leader is most definitely a half-dwarrow."
That made Thorin's brow rise once more. "Oh? How could you tell?"
"Shaves in the morning and has stubble by evening, broad shoulders like a dwarrow, big ears like a dwarrow, shorter than everyone but Miss Baylee…Definitely a half dwarrow."
"Not many of those in the world," Thorin murmured, more to himself than to his friend.
"Not many, no, but that's the second one I've heard of in the last couple of months."
"What do you mean? Is there another roaming in Dale?"
"Not Dale. Laketown." He shifted in the chair, crossing his ankles over one another. "There's apparently a mute half-dwarrow dame down there who used to be Miss Baylee and Will's nanny."
Thorin's brow rose in intrigue. "…That family gets more and more interesting with every new thing you tell me about them."