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Chapter Text

“That should do it”, Bilbo Baggins said quietly as he set the last bit of his belongings in place. Two long weeks passed since his chaotic arrival at Hobbinton and the improper auction of his belongings, having to retrieve each one of them was a painful and embarrassing task but he couldn’t simply let them take away, especially Lobelia with his mother silverware, Bilbo couldn’t help but giggle as he remembers the sour face she made when he took the spoons away from her grasp.

“ No Sackville-Baggins shall have ownership of anything in Bag End ”, he thought as he was heading to the kitchen to prepare a good and well deserved afternoon tea. Still, his mind was restless as there was still much to be done. After the events of The Battle of The Five Armies, Bilbo decided to come back to the Shire to sort some details before settling at Erebor, despite the company’s protest, especially from Thorin, who insisted on sending some dwarves to retrieve whatever he wished for instead. To no avail, he left the Lonely Mountain alongside Gandalf, leaving a grumpy King and some sad faces behind.

“Oh bugger, don’t look at me like that”, Bilbo said while adjusting his vest ,“I’ll be back in no time, I just have to sort some things out in Bag End and after that I’ll be staying here with you all”.

“ Can’t you really just stay here with m-”, Thorin cleared his throat before continuing, clearly brushing of what he was going to say, “I- I mean with us? I can send some dwarves from Dain to retrieve your belongings”.

“Thorin, is quite alright, I can’t simply make you guys resolve my problems like that, specially considering that there’s still an entire kingdom for you to rebuild”, said the Hobbit with a soft smile on his face, “I won’t be gone for long... trust me, It’s a quick thing and I’ll be back for the company...”, he approached the Dwarf while speaking, ”...and for you”, quietly as he was very close to the King...

The King’s gone red, that made Bilbo laugh a little. After the aftermath of the battle with the orcs, Thorin revoked Bilbo’s ban and both decided to figure out what was going on between them. To Thorin’s demise Bilbo knew how to push the right buttons to tease and make the king go more red than a fully grown tomato in his farm. “Very well then”, Thorin said while recomposing himself, backing away a little, “I’ll be waiting for you… Bilbo”.

The memory of that moment made Bilbo smile as he was giving the last touches to the table, “Just a little more, you silly dwarf”…

Before Bilbo could even give a bite to his muffins, a loud and angry knock at his door interrupted him, a clear look of rage could be seem at the Hobbit face as he got up to see who was daring to interrupt his afternoon Tea. As he was opening the door a very familiar shade of yellow could be seen, in that moment Bilbo wished he hadn’t answered the door…

“Ah, Lobelia, of what do I owe you the visit at MY afternoon tea?”, Bilbo says in a very mocking and sarcastic tone, “You want some, I presume?”, he continues, “Maybe a muffin?”.

“Hmpf, I rather be attacked again”, she scoffs, “your pastries need more refinement to be deserving of my presence”. What she meant by ‘attacked again’ was unknown to Bilbo, but decided not to focus on that, to him Lobelia was just as crazy as any of the orcs. “I’m just here to inform you that I still have some of your silverware with me, and I’ll be arranging to be delivered back to you”.

“I knew it”, he tones up his voice a little, “The collection was incomplete because of none other than you”. They both stared at each other, as a very mental battle was happening right there in the silence, “In any case, if you want to return them, why not do it now, you already interrupted my lovely evening...”, he continued.

“You wish, Baggins”, said the lady looking at him with a mockery intent, “I’ll not give you this pleasure, not a second time”. Adjusting her hat, she turns away and walks towards Bag End’s gate, as she closes it, she speaks one more time, “Gustav will be delivering them either tomorrow or the day after tomorrow afternoon, be at home”. And with that she marches over.

“And a good afternoon to you too, Lobelia”, he says as he watches her leaving… “Now, where was I? Ah, the muffins”, Bilbo headed back to his table where his muffins were waiting, and once again, before the Hobbit could even take a bite, he paused, as only one thing, one question was lingering in his mind… “Gustav? Now that’s a name I don’t know… yet”.

On the next day, on his way to the markets, Bilbo’s mind couldn’t brush away what happened on the previous day, scanning through the depths of his memories for someone that matched that name he was informed. “It can’t be from a Hobbit, the name’s too Westrom, perhaps is someone from Bree? But why would someone from Bree be here for Yavanna’s sake?” , his mind was in a rush, so much that he didn’t notice the Hobbit in front of him…

“BILBO! I’m talking to you!”, said the Hobbit, taking a step to the side before Bilbo crashing into him and putting a hand in his shoulder. “Are you alright?”.

Bilbo jumped before coming back to reality, “Oh, Hamfast, good to see you”, he says with a big smile on his face, proceeding to hug him. “How you’ve been my friend? Farms ever growing I hope?”.

“Same as always my friend, it changed little since ya left and came back, but I believe your’s well being is probably the topic.” They started walking again, “You’re looking really out of place today, is something wrong? Or you’re already missing that mountain?”. He looked at Bilbo with a concerned look.

“Oh it’s nothing Hamfast, really, it’s just some things on my mind”, Hamfast raised an eyebrow before facing the road again. “Lobelia pestered me yesterday, I’m just processing it”, Bilbo added while adjusting the basket in is arm.

“Yeah, she really likes to test the patience of literally everyone, even Gustav can’t handle her sometimes”. There’s the name again, Bilbo looked at him with a confused look but Hamfast didn’t noticed and continued, “Despite her erratic behavior at the beginning he didn’t take us for lunatics and continued helping us, he has the patience of a mountain”, he said releasing a soft laugh.

“About that, who is this-”, Bilbo started speaking.

“Whatever are you gonna do in the markets anyway, out of pipe weed again?”, he interrupted, still smiling.

“Oh, not at all, I just want to restock some ingredients and get some seed for the garden, it’s a good time to tend it and I want to do it one last time here in the Shire before I depart back to-”, Bilbo shut his mouth almost in an instant, but it’s was to no use as Hamfast was already looking a him with a frown on his face.

“Departing?”, he asked, “You mean you’re heading back? To the mountains?”

“I guess is no use hiding it, but yeah, I’m heading back to the mountains...”, he says in a low tone even that they are both alone in the road, “It’s just… I grew fond of there y’know? And it’s feels so strange to head back to the Shire after all what happened and-”

“Peace Bilbo”, said Hamfast, “I’m not like Lobelia, I’ll not pester you over your decisions, and if you want to keep it a secret, so it’ll be, I’ll not pester you with it”. He concluded putting a hand in his shoulders once again.

“Thank you… Hamfast”. Bilbo smiled, and he felt his day brighter than it was when he left his home. “Oh, we arrived, and there still some fresh goods”. He said still smiling and heading over to the fruit stalls, he turned back and waved, “It was nice seeing you Hamfast, I wish you a good day”.

Hamfast waved back at him chuckling, “A nice day to you too Bilbo”. He headed towards the other side of the market, “And I hope you’re next home brings you memorable moments”, he concluded quietly to himself, glancing at the joyous Hobbit.

The market was strangely quiet for the day, but Bilbo was too busy gathering his ingredients to think about it. As he was heading back, noticed a very shiny object on the distance, it was in a stall somewhat far from the main, still, a few number of denizens where over there.

Ever curious, Bilbo decided to see what that shine was. The stall was relatively small, but it was very well organized, in it’s front, an set of metal tools of impressive craftsmanship, the shiny object Bilbo saw was an axe, it was no mistake that it was made of iron, but the quality and bright the metal was left him in awe, it didn’t looked like anything he saw in the Shire or Bree, it almost looked… Dwarven?

“Did ya liked it? You can take it for as much your heart think it deserves Mister Baggins”. The Hobbit at the stall spoke with a smile.

That took Bilbo by surprise, “Oh, my apologies, I was just-” he glanced over the axe again before continuing, “If I may ask, who did this?”, he asked, still impressed by the craftsmanship in front of him.

“Gustav did”, Bilbo lifted his head so quickly, that he almost made a step backwards as he heard that name once again, “Actually, this entire stall was his doing”, the Hobbit said while preparing his pipe still with a smile on his face.

Bilbo drifted his attention to the others items at the stall, there were work tools, utensils, and some very beautiful marble carvings varying from jewelry to simple decorations…

“He often replenishes the marble thingies he does, as most of the lasses come here to get something”, he released a big smoke of his mouth before continuing, “But he has a very strange kinda of business, they didn’t allowed him to simply give stuff for free, so he said that all his items should cost what the buyer is willing to pay”.

“Interesting”, Bilbo faced the Hobbit again, “So… is he here now?”, he asked with certain hope as the desire to meet this strange individual increased each time he heard his name.

“Ah, no, he’s off-work today”, Bilbo gave the Hobbit a confused look, “Ah, I think I should’ve said it before, I work for him from time to time, he share a portion of whatever he earns here”.

This however opened more questions than answers, questions that Bilbo couldn’t really form as he was now observing every item in the stall with attention.

The Hobbit puffed his pipe once more before asking one more time, “So… are you gonna buy something?”

Bilbo still had a great number of questions, but he decided it was best not linger any longer. He decided to take with him an adorned marble flower from the stall, he wanted to take the axe with him, but his mind was not letting him delve in the idea, “Whatever are you going to do with that axe, IN BAG END of all places? Cut your bread?”.

On his way back Bilbo decided to take another look at his newly acquired piece. Upon inspecting the adorned flower he again couldn’t help but be impressed by the amazing attention to the details even in a flat surface, as if everything was made with the utmost care of the world, that it any small force applied might break it, but other than that, just by looking at it he felt like he was at the mountains with the company, that sensation made Bilbo smile again…

“Soon...”, he said to himself while inspecting the piece in his hand. He immediately noticed the small holes in the flat surface, it was probably made to be sewn in case anyone wanted to turn it into a brooch, and decided to do it once arriving at Bag End.

It was evening, Bilbo finished setting his table for dinner, with a new addition to his usual vest, he made it removable so he could use it with any clothing. Everything was just as lovely, however, as Bilbo sat at his table, a sudden feeling of déjà vu struck him, almost as if he was expecting something to happen before he could even start to eat…

Brushing of the thought of if, as Bilbo was sprinkling the lemon over his fish, a knock on his door made him stop and pause with a frown in his face. “This is not happening… Not again...”

Another knock, a little more aggressive than the previous one, Bilbo left a sigh and got up to answer it, “This is probably Lobelia again, pestering me even at dinner time...”.

“Seriously Lobelia, at dinner time?”, Bilbo was already talking before even touching the doorknob, “Couldn’t you simply wait for tomorrow or never? Why do you-”, he stopped, as much to his surprise, it was not Lobelia who was at his door, but someone else… and before he could even say anything, he starts to speak...

“Gustav, at your service...”

Chapter Text

“Dwalin, at your service…”.  

“Balin, at your service...”.  

“Fíli… and Kíli... at your service...”

The memory of that night flashed before Bilbo’s eyes. A memory that became not only the change of his entire story but also his own perception of the world. Yet, the same memory is happening once more, but with a feeling that there’s more to it than it appears to be…

“Gustav, at your service”, the dwarf greeted with a bow.

In front of him, a brown-skinned dwarf, smaller than Thorin but taller than Fíli, a large scar in his forehead, a low hair so dark that it almost appeared that light itself refused to even touch it, a small beard which is quite unusual, and a hard to not notice mustache, he was carrying a finely adorned basket in his hand. Despite what Bilbo could process in those few seconds, the only thing the that had caught the Hobbit’s attention was the dwarf’s pale eye, surrounded by a burn scar. The dwarf’s gaze felt as it was piercing Bilbo’s soul, an extreme feeling of uneasiness started growing…

“Stop staring at him, you oaf, he politely greeted you, you’re a Baggins, act like one!”. That thought gave the courage Bilbo needed to finally break that dreadful silence. “Bilbo Baggins… A-at yours”, the hobbit responded, with uncertainty.

“My apologies, mister Baggins, I did not had the intention of disturbing your dinner, but miss Sackville insisted that this errand should be resolved as soon as possible”, Gustav expressed with a certain guilt in his tone.

That name made Bilbo shift his mood again, “Lobelia, of course” .

“You probably already heard of me, but for habit’s sake, I’m a temporary resident at the service of the Shire, I do errands for the residents...” Gustav paused, letting his shoulders drop slightly before continuing, ”...in case you need anything done, or an able hand to do something, you can request it a my stall at the local market, and it shall be done, as long it is within my grasp...”, he ended just as serious as it was before.

To Bilbo’s surprise, despite the dwarf’s stoic stone-like expression, he was very gentle in his way of speaking, it reminded him of Bofur, well, without the sillyness and his ever joyous behavior. The feeling of familiarity struck him, as if he were at the Lonely Mountain again, his uneasiness wore of, and he smiled, before speaking, “I was looking to know you actually”, that made Gustav tilted his head a little to the side in confusion, “your craftsmanship is impressive”.

The dwarf smiled slightly, “You flatter me, mister Baggins, but there still much to be improved in my craft, the only thing I can work well enough to admit it is marble”, he points to Bilbo’s flower brooch before speaking again, “which I’m glad that you also got one... it means a lot to me…”

Bilbo frowns in indignation, he was in this situation before, “Oh please, you dwarves and their ever longing need to always be better”, he removes the brooch from his vest and holds it in front of Gustav, “this? Is lovely and perfect, the same goes for that axe at the market, and no one will ever convince me otherwise.”

Gustav scratches the back of his head a little, Bilbo couldn’t really see it but he felt that the dwarf was blushing, to be treated with such direct kindness, with someone he barely met really surprised him. Gustav smiled, “I- Thank you, mister Baggins, your words warm my heart”.

Bilbo smile widens, his eyes sparkling, “You are very welcome, master Gustav”, he gestures him to come inside, “But do not just stand there, come in, do you want some dinner? I made just for myself but I can prepare something in a few minutes.”.

“Oh, I would love to, mister Baggins, but unfortunately I still have much to do at home”, he turns a little and points to the horse at the gate, “I just came back from Bree, the Thain asked me to deliver and retrieve some items”, Gustav looks back at him, “and honestly I just want to lie down for now, but we can do it another day, if you like, I’d be honored”.

Bilbo looked at him, the sparkle in his eyes now gone, he tried not to show disappointment, but a faint sigh escaped him all the same, he wanted to insist, even to let him stay at one of the guest rooms, Bilbo was missing the company, missing Thorin, to see a dwarf he can talk again brought him joy, however, Bilbo decided it was best not to insist. Bilbo adjusted his vest slightly, “Ahem… Very well then… another time then...”

“Another time”, he smiled again, “Oh, that’s right, I needed to return this to you”, as he takes a step foward, reached into the basket and removes a small wooden box and gave it to the Hobbit, upon opening it, Bilbo noticed a familiar set of spoons, “Lobelia asked me to do it. I believe it’s your mother’s remaining silverware, right?”

“Dammit Lobelia” , Bilbo frowns, not even the presence of a dwarf could remedy the sour feeling that Lobelia Sackville-Baggins inflicted on him. “Yes...” Bilbo said in a very unpleased tone, “She interrupted my afternoon tea for that...”, he looked at Gustav with concern, “But aren’t you off-work today? The little hobbit at your stall informed me”.

“I am…”, with a displeased look in the dwarf’s face, “how lucky of me to arrive at my off-work day”, he mocks, Bilbo snorted, “I was leaving the Thain’s residence when miss Sackville simply demanded me to do this, she even gave me coin for it”, he took the coins inside his pocket and showed to Bilbo, there was also a very intricate marble coin in there slightly bigger than the golden ones, just as beautiful and detailed as the brooch in his vest, Bilbo was curious but decided it was not a question for the moment, “To be quite honest I was not in the mood to deal with miss Sackville tantrums, that’s why I came today”.

“Ha, that’s Lobelia for you. Even the most patient of us can’t deal with her most of the times”.

They both laugh, the sparkle in Bilbo eyes returned, to him this was a precious moment, and a sign that he needed to return to Erebor…

“Anyway... I think it’s time for me to go now, mister Baggins, It’s still a lengthy path to my house and I want to arrive before it gets too dark...”, Gustav explained, pointing at the sky.

“That’s unfortunate, really”, Bilbo looked at his brooch and got an idea, he didn’t wanted to miss the any opportunity to speak with Gustav so he elaborated something, “You’ll be at the markets tomorrow, right? I think I’ll pay another visit”.

Gustav tilted his head once again, “Oh… Very well then, I’ll be waiting for you there.”, he adjusted his cloak before turning back to the gates, suddenly he turns again with haste, and gives the basket to Bilbo, “That’s right, almost forgot. Mister Baggins, this is also for you”.

This time it was Bilbo who was confused, “What’s this master Gustav?”, as he opened, a delicious smell of apples and cinnamon reached his nostrils, could it be? “Is this... An Apple Pie?”, Bilbo looked at Gustav who had a proud smile in his face.

“Indeed”, he asserted as he was heading back to the gates, “miss Sackville informed of your return from the Lonely Mountains, so I thought it would be proper to give you a welcome back gift”, he climbed his horse and adjusted himself, “I know, a bit late for that, but I was doing some errands when you arrived… nice gesture of the Thain to allow me to use his kitchen”.

“My word”, Bilbo expressed, entranced by the smell of the pastry inside the basket.

“I hope it’ll be of your liking master Baggins.”, the brown dwarf said as he was taking his way, “I’ll be going for now. It’s been a long day…”

“Dash it, he’s leaving and you’re still gawking at the pie” . The hobbit returned to reality, still finding his words, “Y- yes, of course master Gustav, I- I wish you a good night.”

“For you too mister Baggins, and farewell”, Gustav said with a bow.

As Gustav was fading in the distance, Bilbo could only watch as the smell of apples and cinnamon tempted him to ignore the dinner already at his table…

The moon shines brightly at the Shire, the fireplace crackling, a feeling of comfort lingers. It is near time for supper, but Bilbo, sitting at his table with his belly still full from the dinner and his mind clouded by the dwarf who interrupted his dinner, had no desire for cooking at the moment, as the pie in front of him even after vast amount of minutes, still had that delicious aroma, one that would make even the most controlled hobbits go miles for a slice.

“It’s just like the old times, mother’s cooking… Mine’s still no match for hers...”, to receive such lovely gift, crafted by the dwarf’s own hands, Bilbo was engulfed by good memories, “Bombur’s food… I bet Thorin would be fuming just at the sight of it… Silly Dwarf...”, he smiled faintly, “Just a little more...”.

After a few more minutes, Bilbo decided to finally taste his gift, “ The crust needs a bit more work but overall it looks incredible ”, he pondered, upon inspecting the pastry up close. A generous slice was in his plate, the scent of apples and cinnamon now almost all over his kitchen, the slices of apple glinted with the flickering of the candle’s flame, a golden color that almost reminded him of the summer, “Well, here goes nothing”, fork in his hand, a small bite, and then silence, followed by a rush of sweetness, warm with the kiss of cinnamon.

As he chew the tart, the apple juice cuts through the rush, the crust, buttery and imperfect gives a chance to alternate away from the sweetness. Underneath all of it, a floral and nearly citric taste, like the sun in summer after a rainfall. Another bite, there’s the cinnamon again, a glimpse of ginger, and a pinch lemony tone as the acids of the apples come forth, the aromas filling his nose increasing the flavors as the spices begin to push, Bilbo groaned, “ This is… so good ”, the pie wasn’t like anything he tasted before which is surprising for a hobbit like him.

Half of the pie was already gone, Bilbo savored every bite with joy, that pie reminded him of the past, when he was a little flaunting , the embrace of his parents, but at the same time, he felt something else, it was profound, silent, and lonely and quite sad, not from him, but from the dwarf who gave this to him. The hobbit was in awe, how an apple pie could make him feel like this and why. It was late, and Bilbo decided it was best to settle down for the night. He cleaned his table, put out the fire in his fireplace, and proceeded to his room. In his bed, the moonlight was bright as the starry night was present, crickets on the outside and nothing but one question lingering in his head. “ Who is he? ”. As he was closing his eyes, the memories of the Lonely Mountain, a certain regent, greeted him once more, he fell asleep with a smile…

The next morning, a cloudless sky touched by the warm of the sun. The hobbit, slumbering comfortably with it’s mind far far away, whatever he was dreaming of was making him smile. But no adventures on the dreamlands are a match for the real world as this perfect moment was interrupted by a loud and constant noise in his window. Peck peck peck , echoing from the corridors of Bag End without end. Peck Peck Peck , more insistent than the previous time, Bilbo opened his eyes, annoyed, “Whatever or whoever is doing this will meet a short and painful end” , he thought while getting up and tying his robe. Peck Peck Peck, “I’m coming, I’m coming”, he urged as he was rushed to the window.

Upon opening, black feathers were falling, but nothing was within Bilbo’s sight, then a voice, “Bilbo Baggins I presume?”, Bilbo gazed to each side only to see nothing, “Over here, look down”, the mysterious voice expressed, the hobbit looked down, and there it was, a raven, black as a moonless night, talking…

“I must be dreaming ”, he thought, “Um, yeah, it’s me… Hello?”, he said uncertain.

“My name is Moroäc, a denizen of Ravenhill at the service of the Dúrin’s line”, he jumped and landed on the window planter before continuing, “I’ve came to deliver two messages”. The corvid removes a small piece of leather that was attached to his leg, with two small hops it dropped in front of the hobbit, “This is from the king, he ordered me to deliver with most secrecy, and to respond in the same manner, so please, do not make it lengthy”. The piece of leather had a parchment inside of it, as Bilbo started unfolding it, the raven spoke once more, “The second message is from the company, they all want to know how are things going on, they miss you, and want to know when are you coming back, and if you need help with anything to amend that...”

“The company?”, he exclaimed, “Of course, of course, please mister Moroäc, come in”, he gestured and welcomed the raven, which gladly accepted and landed next to the fireplace, as Bilbo sat in his armchair he spoke once more, still jolly, “how are they, are things well over the mountain? How’s Balin? And Bofur? Is the rebuild going well?”, Bilbo couldn’t contain his excitement, so many questions…

“Mister Baggins, please contain your excitement, you’re almost sound like one of the princes, considering how the king talked about you, this is hitting very low”, the corvid expressed in a serious tone, “One question at a time”.

That made Bilbo snap back from his jolly frenzy, “Y-yeah, I suppose you’re correct”, he spoke adjusting his robe, “My apologies, one question at a time then”.

“Very well”, Moroäc flied to the table next to Bilbo and started speaking, “Everything is going well at the mountains, the repairs are almost done, and many citizen of Ered Luin are coming over as well as some dwarrows from other regions seeking refugee or work.”, Bilbo smiled upon hearing the good news, “Master Balin is busy as usual, being the king’s counselor and head of the archives are both very arduous responsibilities, but he’s not complaining, master Ori as the official Scribe is helping him”, the raven paused and looked at the window, “Master Bofur as well as his brother are well too, the latter getting more bigger each day, still an amazing cook, the former and master Bifur are making toys for the dwarflings, they’re quite popular, and Bofur’s also back in the mines”, he concludes.

“That’s, that’s good to hear”, Bilbo said, in fact he was more than happy, to hear the news from the Mountains after such long time was the reminder of why he was back at the Shire. He gazed upon the parchment once again, hesitant he unfolded it this time with no interruptions from the raven who was still looking at the window…

My Bilbo

 

The days have been often colorless since you left, but I stand at the hopes that you’ll be back with me once more. Sooner than I expect to...

The company misses you as much as I do, Kíli himself wanted to accompany you until you reached Mirkwood, but he had duties to attend to, that is just one of the many proofs that your place is here, with us… with me.

Bilbo smile widened, he could hear Thorin’s words in his head, he sighed happily, at the verge of tears, but decided to maintain his composure.

I confess I’m not very good with words but...

Not even the Arkenstone at the throne could make this place shine as you do, I do see how blind I was, and how cowardly I treated everyone around me, how I tried to lock my heart from the obvious.

Bilbo, being a king is hardly the easy task, but with you by my side, I know I can do everything… So please, don’t make this longer than it needs to, I know you have your reasons and I respect that. To feel you again is my only desire, and each day I’m more eager to leave and be with you until we return to the mountains, but to depend on my nephews is to expect the mountains to fall, so I can’t...

 

My Ibinê, I’ll be waiting for you...

 

- Your Thorin.

 

PS: Please be nice to Moroäc, he’s a little blunt but he means well, and make sure to watch any plants you have, he tends to feast on them when there’s no food around.

 

PPS: If you’re in need of assistance coming back, my offer to make some Dwarrows accompany you still stands, make sure to let me know.

There was no fighting to that, Bilbo was crying, happily, to know that his love was real and that Thorin was just in the same position meant the world for him, the journey back to the Shire made it clear, and the meddling of Gandalf along the way just made it clear of how strong it was, the world felt silent, and the Shire glinted with colors, it was a glorious day and not even Lobelia and her presence could ruin it.

“Thank Mahal that stupid king finally accepted what his heart wanted”, the raven words which was in Bilbo’s shoulder made the hobbit jump so high that he almost landed on the ground, this reaction made the Moroäc fly again, only to land on Bilbo’s head, “that dwarf was looming all over you and every mention of you, since the day you left, I guess your pointless return to the Shire was indeed for a good cause”.

Bilbo frown, “Point-, now wait a minute”, he stands his arm so that the raven stands on it and adjusts so he can look a him, “Now you listen here, I couldn’t simply leave the Shire without any word, I almost lost all my belongings, they believed I was dead, for Yavanna’s sake.”

Moroäc scoffs, “Your problem, you were the one who left without any word other than ‘I’m going on and adventure’, your mistake mister Baggins”.

“You know what, I wonder how raven meat tastes, and I have one right in front of me.”, Bilbo teases mischievously, with a bit of rage in his tone.

“Careful mister Baggins, my absence can mean many things, you wouldn’t want the love of your life worrying, right?”, that made Bilbo frown disappear, the corvid laughs, knowing that his teasing worked. He flied, now to the armchair and sat comfortably, “Now, the king ordered me to stay until you respond his and the company’s message, and if I did read it correctly, either you treat me nice or your garden is doomed”, he teases once more.

Bilbo, mouth open by the audacity of the bird in front of him approaches the corvid pointing a finger at him, “Touch any of my flowers and you’ll be a featherless bird”, the bird only laughs, “Yeah, yeah, keep laughing”, adjusting his robe, he looks at the open window, the sun flowing from it framing the beautiful day that just started, “Is breakfast time, and you’re my guest, that’s great”, he looks at the raven, who despite not being possible to Bilbo tell is smiling, “what can I get for you mister Moroäc?”.

“Ah, finally, the famous hospitality of the Hobbits”, he mocks, but it last only for a moment as a angry Hobbit was pacing towards him, “I jest, I jest, calm down mister Baggins”, he flies and lands on Bilbo’s head once again, “How about some bread? I can make a fine breakfast companion y’know, in the mean time, I can tell you more of what’s been happening at the mountain in you absence”, he says lifting his wing towards the kitchen.

Bilbo sighs, knowing that there’s no way around it, and just play along as he prances towards the kitchen, “Very well then, let’s have some breakfast...”

Chapter Text

EREBOR

This morning in the Lonely Mountain is just as full of motion as it ever were once it got taken back, workers and civilians moving back and forth, the brisk and cold air flowing only interrupted by the hot presence of the forges, all followed by the rhythmic sound of the pickaxes and hammers in the distance…

Outside the throne room, Fíli patiently awaits for what it seems to be a far from friendly discussion between his brother and whoever are inside the throne room along with the king. Different loud voices almost echoing the corridor, fueled by anger, distrust, sadness. The blond dwarf nothing could do as one can not control what it’s heart truly desire. No, this is a battle that Kíli has to fight alone. Fíli’s mind remains divided by the situation, to stand to his brother, or fulfill his duty as the heir and do what’s best for the kingdom?

“Mother would know what to do…”.

Fíli’s thoughts were interrupted as the grand doors of the throne room opens, a young dwarf marching furiously, so angry that he doesn’t even acknowledge his brother just a few meters from him. Fíli reaches to him, a mix of concern and sadness shared between them both. He puts his hand on the dark-haired dwarf, which makes him stop his tracks to look at him...

“Kee?… Are you alright?”, Fíli asked, he had never seen his brother like that, full of rage and sadness, the shine and humor almost non-existent…

“He’s a dumb king who thinks he can control and command every aspect of my life”, Kíli fumed, “He can disown me for that, but I care not for this duty.”, he starts marching again, Fíli only could do what was best for the situation and walk with him, anger can be a powerful tool, but if not used properly, even the lightest of stones could cause a landslide…

They stop at Kíli’s room, he sits on his bed and sighs heavily, head down, hands on his face. On the other side, Fíli moves a chair and sits close to his brother.

“Just talk to me Kee, it’ll make you feel better, don’t hold your emotions like that, it’ll only hurt you more...”, the blond dwarf cautioned, putting a hand on his brother shoulder once more.

Kíli lifts his head, he exhales and looks at his brother, tears in his eyes, “I just don’t understand Fee, why this has to be so hard, why I can’t simply follow what my heart wants?”, Kíli huffed, Fíli understood this as a cue for action, he moved to the dark-haired dwarf side and embraced him, Kíli just accepted it and let himself get lost in the comfort and warmth of his brother.

“Well… There are things that are just as perilous and dangerous as the orcs, uncle’s probably just want you safe”, Fili disclosed threading his fingers through his hair.

“There’s no safety for a broken heart”, Kíli protested, “his distaste for elves blinds him, even after the battle, he’ll always be like this, and now he has one of another bunch of reasons to look down on me”, Kíli let go of Fíli’s embrace and adjust himself before continuing, “He inquired about my hair… AGAIN…”.¹

Fíli can’t help but release a soft laugh, “I still don’t get why he doesn’t like your hair that way, it’s basically the same as his and mother’s”, the blond added, ruffling Kíli’s hair, which rewards him with a smile from the younger brother followed by a light punch in protest, he also laughs, “Ow… Besides, you look good with dark hair, uncle always had trouble telling us apart.”

“And yet, still a problem, I bet if you were the one with dark hair, he would proudly boast that it’s a ‘fOllOwInG mY sTePs’ thing”, Kíli mocks, he gets up and starts a poorly impersonation of the king under the mountain, “lOoK aT tHe FuTuRe HeIr Of ThE tHrOnE, aImInG tO aPpEaR lIkE mE, and duties and blah blah blah...”.

They both stare at each other in silence, only for a couple of seconds, before they start laughing. Fíli joins in the play and both now start doing poorly impersonations of everyone of the company, Fíli only wanted his brother smile back…

They played like that for a couple more minutes before having to compose themselves.

“Well brother”, Fíli starts speaking again, “If you ever abandon the throne and don’t wish to make jewelry anymore, you can still aim for the acting scene”.

“Perhaps I will, Tauriel would like it”, Kíli added, still laughing but softly, “He seems to be an appreciator of the fine dwarven arts”, he continues, displaying himself with a smug look in his face.

“Yeah… A very impressive display...”, Fíli adds, “for an elf liking, don’t you worry brother, I’ll handle the dwarven ones”, he concludes as while lifting up the sleeve of his shirt to display the muscles of his arm.

The dark-haired dwarf scoffs humorously, “And what do you know, oh heir to the throne? The soon to be king surely needs the company of a consort”, Fíli frowns at his mockery, Kíli just grins mischievously, “Just saying...”.

“Hey I have you know that a lot of lads and lasses come to me for my attention”, he boasts, “Plenty of options to my side, oh dear brother...”.

“Courteous flirtations doesn’t count”, Kíli protests, “You know what I mean Fee”, he concludes as he lies on his bed.

“It’s still early you doofus, it’s not a competition”, he replied, “I’m not in a rush, and with luck I’ll not shake the foundations of the mountain with my one”, he looks at his brother mockingly, “different than certain someone...”

“Yeah right, if you say so, my dear brother”, the dwarf says looking at the ceiling of his room, a serious expression now on his face.

“Will you be okay”, the blond dwarf asks, sitting on the edge of his brother’s bed, “Want me to fetch something for you to eat?”.

“It’s alright Fee, don’t worry, just let me think… I’ll figure out something about all this...”, Kíli reassures, head on the top of one hand and another on the top of his belly, “Actually, bring some cookies, I bet Bombur made some more for his secret stash”.  

Fíli laughs again, “Heh, I’ll make sure to bring some then”, he heads to the door, on the other side, he pauses, “See ya later Kee”.

“See ya later Fee”, the brother answered with a smile, shining like usual, Fíli’s was relieved to see his brother happy again, only for the moment.

At the corridor to the main hall, Fíli walked pensive, “ You know what I mean Fee ”, what Kíli said echoed in his mind continously, he was right, to be requested by many is always funny but meaningless if there’s no foundation to it’s sentiment.

Fíli looks up, at the infinity of the stone walls of Erebor, where torches flicker like distant stars carved in stone, and only wonders, Kíli’s voice echoing, the many faces he once saw, and yet...

“When?”

Meanwhile, at the throne room, Thorin is sitting on his throne, head low, hands on his face, a heavy atmosphere of anger and regret lingering, next to him, Balin, ever loyal to the king, yet, visibly tired of all those ground shaking interactions between the king and whoever dares to stand against him.

“ I’m too old for this... ”, Balin ponders, “Well… Could have been worse, luckily Kíli has his brother, he’ll calm his nerves...”.

“I hope he put some sense into his brother mind as well, the absurdity of his actions is unacceptable and insulting.”, the king stands and stretches his back, “To think one of the heirs, to fall for an elf...”.

“Now now, as far as I’m aware my king, he doesn’t show any distaste for the elves, he does not have a reason to, different than you”, Balin words makes Thorin look at him with anger and concern.

“You taking his side now Balin? My own advisor standing for another of Kíli childish actions.”, the king protests, he knew that the moment he accepted to take his sister’ sons on to the quest to reclaim Erebor he would have to deal with the chaos of what is the young age, of course, he was young and reckless once as well, but for Thorin, there’s a limit for everything and Kíli’s actions were beyond every limit…

“I’m not taking any sides, your majesty , I just find it funny how much you weight yourself on your nephews as if who they are meant nothing compared to a duty that only you took for life”, he pauses and look at the doors, “the battle affected our perceptions of everyone around us, and yet, even after the peace we hard earned, you still act with distrust and second guesses, hardly honorable actions for a king”.

“ Bilbo would know what to do... ”

The king sighs,, there was truth in Balin’s words, “Kíli’s too young to actually know what love is Balin”, they start walking towards the main hall, “Elves are treacherous, and their soft words can carry lies, what does he sees in that ‘Tauriel’ that any other dwarrow or dwarrowdam don’t have anyway?” he inquires.

“I don’t know Thorin, what do you see in Bilbo that any dwarrow or dwarrowdam don’t have anyway?”, the king’s gaze is drawn once again to him, “I don’t mean to disrespect my king, but your sentiments are clear as a crystal, probably everyone in the company thinks the same, and considering your reform and building requisitions, it’s more clear than ever, I mean, whatever are you going to do with a garden?”.

“Bilbo is… different...”, Thorin didn’t really know to respond, and so just said those words…

“Yet, he’s not one of us, he may eventually act like one of us, but he’s still a Hobbit, from the Shire”, Balin adds, “and perhaps, it’s the fact that he’s like that, you care deeply for him”, Thorin could only look, as words refused to come up, “So I ask of you, what if this ‘Tauriel’ from Mir- I mean Greenwoods does the same to the prince, hm? Could this be so much of an absurd for you to outburst in rage to the point you mention his hair, which by the way looks EXACTLY like yours?”

“It’s not about the hair, Balin, he acted imprudently”, Thorin grumbled.

“If it was Fíli, would you still think it was imprudent?”, Balin argued.

Silence, it was clear that Thorin, considering how Fíli was the next in the line for the throne, got a special attention from the king despite the brothers tomfoolery.

“Thought so”, the white-haired dwarf continued, “Clearly this situation is far from over, but there’s no use in staying bickering at each other like that, there’s still much to be done and we can’t have our conflicts delaying us”.

“Indeed”, the king agrees. “But we’ve made progress, for that I’m glad”.

Balin smiles, he puts a hand on Thorin’s shoulder, “It’ll be alright my friend, just you wait, everything will sort itself quite fine.”

“I hope you’re right my friend”, Thorin responded wearily, “Are the projects for the garden and the quarters going well?”, he inquired, opening the doors of the throne room.

“Quite well, it’ll be done in no time, it’ll make a fine surprise, considering Möroac didn’t said anything.”, Balin responded threading his fingers in his beard.

“He’ll be a featherless bird if he does that”, Thorin announces not acknowledging that they’re not alone anymore as they walk.

Balin laughs, “Poor bird, it’s hard to find Ravens like him”, he reaches to his pipe and starts preparing it as they continue…

A few moments of silence mixed with the words and footsteps of the denizens of Erebor working at full speed. Seeing Erebor growing to it’s former splendor carried not only hope and pride but a feeling of peace and happiness to both Thorin and Balin, the chaos of the world and it’s danger wounded them too much, the sentiment of fulfillment as one to grasp dearly.

Their walk eventually led them to the ramparts, the view of the greenlands and Dale in the distance, ever colorful, full of flowers and gentle wildlife and people walking either by foot or with their wagons, the bright sunlight touching their faces along with the cold breeze of the mountains, everything reminded both of Bilbo, but for Thorin it was more intense, his flowery smell, his kindness, meant everything for the king, his heart was longing for the company of his gem, and deep inside, lies the guilt and regret of what he did and tried to do even after Bilbo forgiving him.

Balin, being Thorin oldest friend, knew that he was feeling, he puffed his pipe looked at the distance before speaking.

“He’ll come back Thorin, don’t worry, he’ll come back for us, and for you”. he reassures him with a smile.

“Yeah… And I hope is sooner than I expect to...”, he responds, still looking at the greenlands, “if you don’t mind Balin, I wish to be alone for now...”

“Of course my friend, I’ll be in the archives with master Ori, a great day to you my king”, he bows to the king, and the king does the same. But as Balin was heading to the archives he turn back to the king once again, “Actually Thorin, there’s still one more thing of a certain importance that I’d like discuss briefly with you.”.

The King looked at him confused, whatever it was, certainly looked it was driving Balin attention, “What is it Balin? Another men trying to negotiate something with us?”.

“Not quite, my king”, he released a big cloud of smoke from his pipe, “I presume you already heard of a mysterious dwarf hermit that thread these lands, right?”

The king looks up to thinking, “You mean the dwarf they call ‘ The Wanderer ’, quite the cryptic title to be honest, it’s said that he’s been on the roads for more than fifteen years if I’m not mistaken, what of it?”.

“Legendary Marble working, quite skilled with many crafts and arts, specially dance, humble, wise and just to everyone, a friend of many, a true one to few, even elves, yet his face and presence is unknown, he built quite a legend on himself my king.”, Balin added smoking his pipe, the word dance made Thorin scoff which made the white-haired dwarf laugh, oh the absurdity of a dwarf dancing and moving graciously like an elf…

“Drooling over him Balin?”, the king mocks, “He’s unusual and experienced so what? Being a do-it-all makes him less skilled in everything.”, Balin decided it was not best to poke the beast, but he could notice how the king looked a bit jealous.

“Hah, peace my king, I’m just curious, master Ori is as well, we believe that now we are settled and properly adjusted, with some proper investigation work we may be able to find and contact him, I think if we convince him to join us here in Erebor, if his work is as legendary as they say, he’ll make a quite valuable asset for the kingdom, it’s not an opportunity to miss”. Balin ends with another puff to his pipe.

Thorin looks at him, curious, “You may be right, but in the manner you’re speaking it almost sounds like finding him a impossible task.”, he crosses his arms before continuing, “Can’t be that hard to find one dwarf such as him, right?”.

Balin face shifts to a more serious one, “well, you see, my king, not only his face and presence is unknown, as some reports have said that the paths he treads covers all sides of middle-earth, even the east, but it looks like he avoids any dwarrow lands on purpose, almost as if he’s fleeing or diverting his attention from us.”

Thorin frowns, a shadow of doubt and prejudice lingers, “He prefers the company of others than his own kin? Looks like that ‘Wanderer’ is not so friendly and perfect Balin”, he raises an eyebrow, “Why seek someone who does not want to even stay next to us?”.

“Never said he was perfect my king”, Balin corrects, “Despite this detail, I still think it’s worth a shot, besides, considering all the path he threads, he might have valuable information, or be a spy of sort”, he looks at the main hall, filled with people, “Better us doing this, before anyone else has the same idea and he disappears forever”.

Thorin ponders, again Balin words hold truth and, despite the strange feeling talking about this dwarf brings, it was not something to simply ignore.

“Very well then, but keep it low, I don’t want people creating a turmoil over this”, Thorin said returning his gaze to the horizon.

“As you wish my king”, Balin responded with a bow, and pranced in the direction of the archives.

Standing at the ramparts now alone, Thorin thoughts were pacing from the topic of the recent conversation and a certain Hobbit whom he wished it was a his side, “ Remain strong, he’ll return ”. In fact, to him, the kingdom would only return to it’s full colors when his gem returns, but nothing can be done other than patiently wait…

“My Ibinê...”

THE SHIRE

The market was full of life as usual, it was already past luncheon, no clouds in the sky as the sun bathed every unprotected corner of the Shire, the aroma of spices and flowers around, fresh and juicy looking fruits glittering in the sunlight, colorful vegetables as far as the eye can see, little hobbits running around and just the joyous chit chat to be heard.

Bilbo was collecting some ingredients for the remaining meals of the day, he had to get some others, as an unusual guest was staying at his house.

“ I’m heading to the market for a few ingredients, will you be alright here Möroac? ” , Bilbo inquires at the door to the raven sitting comfortably in his armchair.

“Relax, mister Baggins, I’ll get some nap, you don’t have to worry about anything, not even your precious flowers”, the raven chirped adjusting himself.

The Hobbit takes a step back and looks at Möroac with a murderous intent, “DO. NOT. TOUCH. MY. FLOWERS, Am I clear?”.

The raven laughs, “Clear as a water mister Baggins”.

“Good, I’ll be going then”.

In every stall Bilbo passed, many Hobbits greeted him and tried to know more of his journey to the Lonely Mountain, other many just looked at him with disapproval, for a Hobbit to leave the Shire, and a Baggins of all of them, clearly outrageous, but Bilbo didn’t wanted their approval, nor did cared for their judgment. As for the ones really interested he gladly shared his experiences with joy, little hobbits were the most immersed, many trying to reenact the scenes Bilbo described, that could only make the Hobbit laugh.

A great deal of time passed, and Bilbo decided it was best to return, he said his goodbyes, and headed to the only place he didn’t went, yet, was the one he wanted to go since the beginning.

Gustav’ stall was just as tidy and well presented as ever, the dwarf in question was talking to a hobbit lady who seemed to be very frustrated. The little hobbit who worked for him was also there, confused, as he was trying to keep up with the conversation between the two.

As Bilbo approached, he could hear the conversation, as the lady itself clearly didn’t wanted to be discreet about what they were talking.

“And then, that Brandybuck starts to boast about her silver-golden set, as if it were the only valuable thing on these lands, such preposterous declaration, and her tea was distasteful”, she waves her hands in scoff, it was clear that she was talking about some unfortunate event with the guests.

Ever calm and stone faced, Gustav inquires, while stroking his beard, “Silver-Golden, that’s a common combination, so I guess the tea set was pretty then?”

“Well...”, she pauses and look around, she leans in and mention for the dwarf to do the same, “the set is indeed lovely”, she whispers, and then leans back quickly only to continue speaking in the same frustrated manner, “but that’s no reason to act so pompously, master Gustav, she got the set in Bree, hardly something to brag about, yes, whoever made those needs to be praised, but not her, I refuse”.

Gustav didn’t know how to actually respond, only nod, despite his past life, these types of interactions are not really something he’s good at, but he can adapt very quickly. Inside his head, infinite possibilities for an answer each one leading to a result he was trying to predict, it was clear she wanted help, but he could not really pinpoint what, he was so immersed that he didn’t noticed Bilbo a few meters from him. The little hobbit greeted Bilbo with a not and a smile, which he responded in the same manner before returning his gaze to the pensive dwarf and the frustrated lady.

“This can’t end like this, now I need to find something to equally level with her stupid tea set...”, the lady exasperated as she sighed heavily, that was the cue Gustav needed, he turned and crouched picked a wooden box, he opened some space in the front of the stall in so the lady could look at it, she looked curious, the box was plain and simple no really intricate details as many of his items have, so it was a surprise to everyone, even the little hobbit, “whatever is this master Gustav?”, she quizzed.

“Well”, he pauses to open the box, “I don’t know if Marble can compete with metalworking, but I have this, it may be useful”. The lady froze, mouth open, and Bilbo was just as impressed.

Inside the box as a collection of polished marble tea cups, saucers, spoons, and a tea pot, each one of the cups had really detailed flowers and leaves painted with the most vibrant colors, each one of them complimenting each other with the white-golden veined marble, the saucers, simple yet really shiny, and the tea pot, just as beautiful as the cups, he picks the tea pot so she could look at it better, the painting of a tree in a lake was present along with a very unusual letter that looked like Khuzdul to Bilbo, all painted with a very deep tone of blue.

A moment of silence, as they were all looking at the marble-ware, the lady looked at the stone faced dwarf, a spark in her eyes and a ear to ear smile.

“Oh. My. Goodness. Gustav, this perfect”, squealed loudly that made many inside the market look at them but she didn’t care, as it in an instant she paced inside the stall and hugged the dwarf. That took everyone by surprise, but Gustav despite the surprise remained the same and just returned the hug. Bilbo couldn’t help but feel a strange emotion, one he could not describe, the lady happiness and excitement could be felt by everyone around. After a few seconds, she backs away, and adjusts her dress and clears her throat, “ahem… my apologies, I just got taken by my emotions”.

Gustav smiled softly, “It’s alright miss Noakes, if it helps you feel better, then I’m glad”, you can have the set for as much as you like.²

“Not only better, master Gustav, I have something of greater value, to own actual dwarven craftsmanship made with such love, that Brandybuck will regret her boastful behavior in my house forever”, she reaches to her hat, on her head, a small adorned cotton pouch was there, from which she retrieves a good amount of gold coins and gave them to the dwarf, “here, this should do it”.

“This… is quite a lot, miss Noakes...”. he said, looking at the amount of gold in his hands, the small hobbit frowns and roll his eyes.

The small hobbit started to speak, “Oh pleas-”.

“Nonsense, Master Gustav”, miss Noakes interrupted, “Something as lovely as this needs to get something as equal not in action but in it’s value, besides, I know a hard and complicated work of art when I see one, this tone blue is hard to get”, she winks at him at him before putting the pot back in the box, which she puts in her basket along with her other purchases.

“Very well, I hope this suits you well then, just be careful with the kids, it may be hard to break but it can leave quite a mark when it falls”, he declared.

“I’ll keep that in mind”, she said while turning to the market, “KIDS, we’re heading back, we have some tea to make”, she shouted, only to seconds later a bunch of kids appear, a very LARGE bunch of kids… “Once again I thank you master Gustav”, she declared with a joyous smile.

And so lady Noakes and her kids started marching towards the end of the market, leaving the three behind, Gustav with a soft smile in his face, and a bunch of gold coins in his hand, a small hobbit drooling over said coins, and Bilbo, confused by the scene that unfolded in front of him.

“Y’know”, the brown dwarf started speaking, “I’ll never get used to the fact that you guys have this many children, if the dwarrows had the same disposition of the hobbit ladies our kin wouldn’t be so short in numbers”. The little hobbit laughs, “Yeah, very amusing Gregor, here”, he handles half of the coins he received from lady Noakes, Gregor smile widens at the sight of the coins which he gladly puts in his pocket before getting his pipe from the other in his vest.

“I hope you realize that you started a war, master Gustav, be prepared for a retaliation and demanding from the Noakes AND from the Brandybucks”. he jested, Gregor might be exaggerating but his words holds truth.

Gustav sighs and scratches the back of his head, “it’s the fifth ’conflict’ between families that I get myself involved, this will not bode well...”, he concludes while reorganizing the items in the front of the stall, the axe still there with it’s splendor.

“Your problem, master Gustav, nobody asked you to be so good at your craft and such as they say ‘good listener’, you’re basically the gossip mediator of the Shire”, Gregor pats his shoulder mockingly, “Congratulations!”, he congratulates the dwarf with a grin in his face.  

The dwarf frowns and looks at him, “Really Gregor?”, the hobbit shrugs, “I guess I’ll just have to- Oh mister Baggins, good afternoon, how long you have been here?”, Gustav stopped mid speak as he finally acknowledge Bilbo presence.

“Good afternoon Gustav, how you’ve been?”, Bilbo complimented him with a smile.

Before Gustav could respond, Gregor interjects while puffing his pipe, “If you paid more attention you’d know that he was here since the beginning of miss Noakes rant”.

“Quiet you.”, Gustav retorted, “It’s not my fault that she was angry over tea utensils”.

“It’s quite alright, master Gustav”, Bilbo chuckled, “that was… Interesting to watch, never saw lady Noakes being so upfront with anyone, physically even...”.

“It’s the hug mister Baggins, they say Gustav ones are magical”, Gregor snarked, rushing to the other side giggling before Gustav could grab him.

“Don’t listen to him, mister Baggins, this project of a gentleman surely likes to mess with me given the opportunity.”, the dwarf huffed, looking at the little hobbit, who was making faces at him, and the dwarf responded with the same faces as well before driving his attention back to Bilbo, “what can I help you with today mister Baggins?”.

“Oh, nothing in general master Gustav, I just went to get some ingredients for later, and I thought I'd pay a visit”, Bilbo responded.

“How nice of ya, was the pie to your liking?”, he asked, a soft smile in his face.

“Gustav, that pie was one of the best apple pies I had in my entire life, I don’t know how you achieved that level of cooking, but you should be ever proud of it, I took one bite, and I couldn’t stop eating.”, he declared, Gustav blushed a little, it was clear that Bilbo response made him happy, “keep it like this and a multitude of lads and lasses will try and court you just for your cooking.”

Once again Gustav was at a loss of words, sincere compliments were not a familiar thing for him, he could only laugh a little and scratch the back of his head… Before he could respond, the little hobbit interjects once again.

“How come you never gave me an apple pie”, he complained.

The dwarf looks at him with confusion, “I got you Blackberry tart just this morning!”.

“Exactly”, Gregor replies, “THIS MORNING, and it wasn’t made by YOU, that’s not fair!”

“I’m not making you an apple pie Gregor”, he retorted.

“Now now, you too, I guess I can remedy this situation for all of us”, they both look at Bilbo, Gustav tilted his head to the side with a questioning face, “How ‘bout both of you come over for some tea? There’s still some apple pie left, I can get it warm and just as tasty as it when master Gustav gave it to me.”

Gustav tries to protest, “Mister Baggins, we don’t want to-”, suddenly, a hand covered his mouth.

“We’d be honored mister Baggins.”, Gregor interrupted, his hand covering the dwarf’s mouth, “it’ll be nice, for a change, and considering the amount of profit we made we can give ourselves the luxury of closing early, c’mon master Gustav, just this time”, he concludes removing his hand of Gustav mouth, and cleaned it on the dwarf’s shirt.

Bilbo snorted.

“ They look like Fíli and Kíli, ”.

Gustav gazed at them both, one at a time, he sighed, “Fine, just this time”, the small hobbit jumps in excitement and starts collecting the stall items with caution, “mister Baggins please give us a moment to just sort things around here and we’ll be ready to go.”

“No worries Gustav”, Bilbo replied with a smile, holding himself to not laugh of Gregor shenanigans…

“ He got himself quite a joyous and humorous friend, they’re just like them ...”

The path to Bag End was empty, and yet, full of life, the sun not so bright anymore still present but not as it was in the morning bathed the camps and crops around them, a gentle breeze touching the three gentlemen faces as fallen leaves danced around in their destine-less travels. Of the three, Gregor was prancing like a child, he, despite being a full grown hobbit, was smaller and more jovial than many of his age, but his energy was contagious, even to the ever stoic dwarf, Bilbo could only laugh at whatever weirdness the little hobbit brought.

As they approached Bag End, Bilbo inquired, “so you’re from the east, then? I once offered to travel to the east, to fight the Were-Worms of the Last Desert, but I guess the journey to the Lonely Mountain was enough for a hobbit”.³

“That would be a very impressive feat, mister Baggins”, he tilts his head, “but why would you fight them? They’re not known for being aggressive, they just dig large holes in the ground”.

“Really?”, he asked.

The dwarf strokes his beard, “Yeah… I mean, I know there are ways to use them for whatever you want, good or bad, but they just mind their own business and keep underground, accidents may happen, but you can’t really expect tranquility over a chaos that only them are able to understand...”

Bilbo remembered the battle of the five armies, and how the orcs arrived through the gigantic holes on the ground and wondered if those could be the same creatures he once wanted fight before the journey to Erebor, considering how the orcs and the dark influence they have upon the lands and on the living, it was safe to assume they managed to get them to do their evil deeds. But that was not a time for dark thoughts and war memories.  

As they arrived, Bilbo felt that he was missing something, but couldn’t really figure what. “Please keep your boots at the door please”, he requests as he opens the door…

“Ooh, I can already taste the pie”, Gregor said cheerfully, his words echoed, only to be interrupted by a unfamiliar voice.

“Mister Baggins, you’re back!”, now Bilbo remembers what he was forgetting, There it was at his kitchen, a Raven with crumbs all over him and around him, pie crumbs, Bilbo and Gregor both widened his eyes, but for different reasons, “I knew hobbit cuisine was special but this apple pie is beyond anything I’ve ever seen, you should be proud”, the raven continues, munching on the crumbs.

“A TALKING CROW” , said Gregor full with excitement at the creature in front of him. Only to be followed by…

“YOU BETTER HAVE NOT EATEN ALL OF MY PIE”, Bilbo fumed at the same time, stomping in the direction of the corvid.

“He-he-hey, calm down both of you”, Möroac shuddered opening flight and landing on the top shelf before Bilbo could catch him, “How about both of you calm down and KINDLY not touch me, yes?”.

The raven paused, waiting for Bilbo who was angry and red as tomato, and Gregor, who was looking at him so attentively that it was concerning to calm down. A few seconds passed, Möroac looking at them both with his dark eyes, when he felt it was safe enough, he began talking once again.

“First of all, mister Baggins, I didn’t eat your whole pie, in fact, YOUR pie is sitting right there where you left it”, he pointed with his wing, Bilbo gaze on that direction made him recollect his thoughts and realize the embarrassment of actions towards the corvid, “I’ll have you know mister Baggins that I’m a very respectable raven, I would never do such a thing, even to my best friend”, his words felt heavy on Bilbo, which couldn’t find a way to express his regret. “As for you little one”, Möroac attention now to Gregor, “I’m a RAVEN, not a crow, please, it may not be insulting but still annoying, and yes, I can talk… shocking...”

Bilbo felt the Guilt strike deeply, he jumped into conclusions way before knowing, it was not like him to act like that, “Möroac, I… I’m sorry, I was not acting like myself”.

“I knew Hobbits were protective about their food, but don’t you think it’s a little too much?”, he asked, “Well, considering how good this pie tastes, I’d probably be over protective of it as well, and I’ve only eaten the crumbs”, he concludes jumping and landing on the table again, Bilbo looking down not wanting to say anything...

“Wow, can I pet him mister Baggins? Is he yours?”, he questions extending his arm to touch the corvid, “Can he do tricks? Do you know other languages, Mr Cro- I mean raven? Are there others like you? Can I have one?”.

“HEY I said NO TOUCHING”, he hissed, making Gregor stop his tracks mid questions, “mister Baggins control your young friend, I don’t want another Kíli in my life, thank you very much.”

“Leave the bird alone Gregor, you’re making him nervous…”, a deep voice unknown to Möroac echoes, that command alone made Gregor take a step back and make room for the corvid, which made a few jumps to the side so he could see who was speaking.

Möroac’s eyes met with Gustav’s, the dwarf’s single eyed gaze pierced his being, a feeling of uneasiness growing, but it was not for that.

“ A brown dwarf, now this is a surprise… A very complicated one... ”.

His thoughts rushing through his mind.

“ I must act cool, his presence could mean anything, let’s hope he’s not like one of those… ”

“Why am I feeling so nervous??? ”

“Well Well, what do we have here?”, the corvid speaks again, opening flight in the direction of the brown dwarf, which lifts his arm so he could land on it safely. “It is rare to find one your kind so far from home”, he pronounces while eyeing him, making Gustav raise his eyebrow...

“No accent, formal, he’s well versed and probably knows our dialect as well, could he be the fabled marble dwarf? No, I didn’t saw any marble work on my way here… A refugee from the east maybe? But why in the Shire for Mahal’s sake? And what’s with that westrom name? Why am I so nervous???”.

The raven collects his thoughts and decides it was best to not to pester with the dwarf to avoid his suspicion, the sight of a dwarf from the east could be sign of either bad or good omen, the corvid looks at Bilbo, “Couldn’t wait until you arrived at Erebor right, mister Baggins?”, the Hobbit raises his head, cheeks growing red with the absurdity of the raven words.

“W-What? N-No!”, he spluttered, “He-He’s just a friend, I invited him and his friend for tea.”

The corvid smirks, “Yeeah, a friend, suure”, the dwarf tilts his head to the side in confusion.

“I’m serious Möroac”, said the hobbit, ears fully red, “I’m a Baggins, we don’t act like that”.

The raven releases a soft laugh, “If you say so mister Baggins”, he looks back at the dwarf completely oblivious of whatever the two were speaking and bows, ”A pleasure to meet you… Gustav”.

“The pleasure is all mine Möroac”, he responds with a small bow, and looks back at Bilbo, “mister Baggins, if we’re interrupting something we can leave.”

As Bilbo proceeded to respond the small hobbit voice rose up, “Nuh-uh, I want apple pie and I’m not leaving without some”, he protested.

“Gregor, mister Baggins has a guest, you can’t act like that.”, the dwarf retorted.

The small hobbit scoffs, “You can leave if you want, more pie for me”, he sits on a chair nearby the table and makes a face to the dwarf.

Möroac giggles, “Heh, I like him...”.

“Yeah I wonder why”, said Bilbo, looking at both of them, “Anyway, master Gustav you can stay, you two are my guests as well and it’s not a VERY CHEEKY bird who’s gonna say otherwise...”, Bilbo’s words made the raven laugh once again, he scoffs and put his basket at the table.

The raven and the dwarf shares glances one more time before he opens flight towards Bilbo and lands on his head., Gustav follows slowly and sits at the other side of the table, he gives a head nod to Gregor which immediately spurs into action.

“Mister Baggins, allow me to help”, he announces while getting the items from the basket and putting them on the table.

“Oh, it’s quite alright Gregor, I’ll won-”.

“Nonsense, we may be your guests but that doesn’t mean you have to do all by yourself”, the little hobbit declared.

Just as Bilbo tried to say, it didn’t take long for everything to be set, Bilbo managed to re-heat the remaining half of the apple pie, the aroma of cinnamon and ginger now all over his kitchen once more, Gregor, drooling over the glittering tart containing himself to not jump and devour the pastry, Gustav with his usual stone like facade looking around curious, and Möroac pensive still on Bilbo’s head.

Bilbo sliced the remaining pie equally and gave each one a slice, except for the raven, as he was going to protest, the brown dwarf sliced his part and put it on the saucer where his tea cup was sitting and motioned for the corvid to approach, “I think mister Möroac should have a slice too, if he enjoyed the crumbs, he’ll probably enjoy the whole thing as well”, the raven landed next to the saucer, and bowed for the dwarf.

“Now that’s some manners, you should learn with him mister Baggins, not giving me pie, so much for the hospitality of the hobbits”, the raven snarked.

Bilbo frowns, “I’m not falling for that again, ravens don’t eat pastries”.

“Oh you’re a raven now? I was not aware, pardon me for not knowing my own capabilities…”, responded the raven with a smirk.

Both Gregor and Gustav chuckled, the contrast between those two was noticeable but entertaining the same way it was between them both. To Bilbo however, this event meant something more, as the memories of the dwarves arrival at his smial flowed through his mind, almost as if he could feel them present with him in the moment, he was happy, and couldn’t wait to share more moments like this with everyone at Erebor.

Everything was set, the flowery aroma of the tea clashing with the aromas of the pastry... Bread, butter, jam, and some honey breads all around the table making a colorful pattern of textures, everyone, or at least almost everyone wondering where to start...

“Shall we then?”, the host asked with a bright smile…

And so all of them enjoyed every moment of the afternoon tea…

Still… The raven who talked so bluntly stood quiet, as it was facing an internal battle inside his head, making glances over the dwarf who was as the same as he was when he arrived answering questions when prompted. His presence was not expected and for that Möroac knew that once he flights again to Erebor he would have to do it quickly. Yet… Even so the nervousness he was feeling, he felt no hostility, no aggressiveness on his gaze, he felt nothing…

“ Who is he?... ”

Chapter Text

The halls of the Lonely Mountain were cold even for a bright and sunny day, the everlasting sound of the denizens chatter and the rhythmic beat of the workers tools echoed through the long corridors. The throne room was glimmering, and in it’s center three dwarves were debating, only to be interrupted by the sound of the grand doors opening showing a familiar face sprinting in their direction.  

“My king, Möroac’s back”, the white-bearded dwarf announced to the king sitting on his throne pensive, his nephews standing on each side, “He wishes to speak with you, it appears to be urgent”, he continues.  

The king rose faster than a child on a rush for sweets with a sparkling smile, three long weeks had been passed since the raven departure and three more long weeks had passed until his arrival. The King Under the Mountain anxiously waited for what it looked like an eternity, an endless and uncertain doubt of could and couldn’t be regarding himself and his gem. Truly to hear the words of the corvid most waited arrival from one of his most dear friends wouldn’t be responded with serious demeanor, a moment of truth awaited. The same could also be said from his nephews, as both could only look at each other with a ear to ear smile, but it wasn’t clear whether they were happy for the upcoming good news, or by their uncle so sudden and unlikely reaction, Balin was indeed right, it was obvious to everyone the king’s feeling for their burglar.  

“Where is he?”, Thorin asked enthusiastically, “Where is he, Balin?”.  

“He is in the meeting room, my king, but-”, Balin couldn’t even finish his sentence as the king simply sprinted to the meeting hall followed by his nephews, he left a big sigh and then followed as well, “ I’m too old for this... ”.  

The meeting room was empty, only the corvid was present with a certain piece no longer attached into his leg, prancing from one side to another, the afternoon sunlight touching part of the table and chairs, cold but bright. The doors opened with a loud noise making the raven jump, the king under the mountain entering like a predator searching for it’s prey.  

The corvid speaks, “My king, good t-”.  

“Möroac, what news you bring from the Shire”, the king interjects, approaching the raven, “How’s Bilbo? Is he well? Did he answered my letter? Is he coming back?”  

“My king, wait I hav-”, Every question asked at once without pauses, the raven can’t even speak before another question arrives, not even the princes entering clumsily interrupt him, and to his demise they also start talking with their own questions.  

“Möroac”, Kíli greets happily, “How’s it going buddy?”.  

“Heh, You arrived early”, Fíli added with a grin on his face.  

“Quiet you two, I’m talking to him, go back your duties”, Thorin commanded, looking at his nephews.  

“Nu-Uh, I want to hear about Bilbo just as much as you do.”, Kíli retorted.  

“Yeah, me too Uncle, not fair for you to get all the news early”, Fíli continued.  

Then the three started arguing, Balin arriving just a few seconds with a tired look in his face as it’s already common for him to see Thorin and his nephews arguing pointlessly, and he couldn’t help but, as ALWAYS, be the reasonable one in the middle of the mess forming in front of him.

The raven tried to speak, increasing his voice, but the dwarves were louder, he needed to talk, as every moment lost would bring more uncertainty…  

“What’s gotten on you all of sudden?”, Bilbo asked the raven.  

It’s the next morning after the tea with the dwarf and the hobbit, the sun is bright and the Shire is full of colors, Bilbo and Möroac in Bag End main room, the aroma of tea and fresh bread starting to cover the kitchen reaching them,  

“I told you before that I can’t stay much, and I fear a storm is approaching and I don’t want to wait more than it’s necessary”, the corvid responded with a lie, a lie that fortunately to him Bilbo didn’t notice, “so can you please write your answer to that love-struck king of yours?”  

The Hobbit laughs, “Fine, just give me a moment”, he says turning away and going in the direction of the study…s

After a few minutes, the Hobbit comes back with the same folded leather piece the raven brought in the previous day, this time with a blue ribbon on it. Bilbo carefully attaches it to the raven left leg, upon finishing he speaks again, “At least have some breakfast, I wouldn’t forgive myself knowing that you’ve done all this long travel without at least one decent meal on the way”.

The raven thinks, looking at the Hobbit, he sighs, “Very well… I’ll join you for breakfast, some bread and seeds would be nice”.

“Right away Möroac, come, everything is already set”, Bilbo said cheerfully.

Skies clear, the sun at it’s top, the breeze gentle, Möroac journey back to Erebor was being calm tranquil, absent of challenges, but he could only think about the events that happened at that afternoon tea, the brown dwarf gaze and his unreadable demeanor truly was something unexpected, but not only that, it could be an omen of bad events approaching…

“I must make haste...”

The raven was at his limit, and not only that, he was tired, he did not want to hear that foolish bickering and just finish what he was commanded to do. With a spur of rage, the raven croaked, as loudly as he could, stopping the fiery argument the four dwarves in front of him were having, “CAN YOU ALL SHUT UP?”.

An uncomfortable silence was set, plenty of second passed, eyes now staring a him with confusion by the princes and Balin, and rage by the king, but the raven did not cared, a couple more seconds passed before the raven starts speaking again, “With all due respect, but to see you two acting so recklessly like the princes is very disappointing to see”, he finishes addressing both the King and his friend.

“How come this happened twice in less than a month? First the Hobbit and now them.. ”

“Oi… rude.”, the two princes protest.  

“Yeah, that’s how you two act”, Möroac replies, “Anyway as I was TRYING to say… My king, it’s good to see you”, the raven greets Thorin with a bow, “I’ve got urgent news from the Shire, but I expected to discuss this only with you…”  

The king, still angry by the nephew bickering and the raven spur of rage responds, “It is good to see you too Möroac… And I think it’s more appropriate to discuss this matters alone as well, but I don’t think we’ll be able to reason with these two”, he added glancing at the princes, who are making faces at the corvid gesturing No more cookies to you in Iglishmêk, stopping after realizing the king is looking, “I guess is no use convincing them otherwise, so let us just hear the news you have for us”.  

The king gestures for all to sit, and so the princes and Balin start walking, the king covertly gestured with his hands to the raven, Give me the letter but don’t make them notice , in Iglishmêk. The raven who had removed the leather piece before the king entrance made a few jumps into the kings direction to make cover using his body and quickly opened his wing allowing the leather piece to fall in front of Thorin, which quickly grabbed it, letting it fall into the pocket of his coat, fortunately none of the other noticed that little dance they both did. The four of them now sat in their chairs, Möroac in front of them almost at the center of the table, the sun still bathing a part of the room and part of the corvid’s body, and an air of anticipation on all of the present…  

The raven speaks, “Ahem… Addressing both of you first, and a good day to you Balin, everything’s fine Kíli, just a little tired”, he looks at Kíli and bows to Balin, “As for you, heir to the throne , I decided it was best to make haste for everyone’s sake, you all looked very anxious for any news from the Hobbit”, Fíli never liked to be addressed like that, so Möroac was clearly mocking even being exhausted, he finally looks at the King, “As for you my king...”, Thorin straights up in his chair, “Bilbo’s well, he’s just as joyful and gentle as you said he were, actually everything in the Shire looks like that, and he makes some very delicious bread might I add, he shared some as we got some breakfast, I gave myself the freedom to enjoy some while sharing the events that happened in his absence from here”, the dwarves look at each other and smile, the raven plucks a feather from his wing before continuing, “Bilbo said that everything is set and properly done, so he can basically depart at any moment, he said he’ll be awaiting for the dwarves you’ll send to accompany him on his way back, and he requested for bags as some of his belongings will also travel with him… He’s coming back, my king...”  

“Bilbo is coming back!”, Kíli jumps from his chair cheerfully, followed by his brother, who was just as excited as him, “He’s coming back for us Fee”, and so they started celebrating…  

Thorin wanted to complain about his nephews behaviors or the loud celebration they were doing, but even he could not deny that he was happy, as he was smiling fully with a spark in his eyes, Balin shared the sentiment as well, but something was off, it was not normal for Möroac to maintain such a serious demeanor even in front of the king, or forgetting to greet everyone, no sassy comments, no constant mockery, there was something more, something that he didn’t know how express and Balin knew…  

“We must make the arrangements for the travel”, Thorin said as he got up from the chair, “And we must inform the others as well, you two, do that”, he commands his nephews, interrupting their joyous interaction with each other.  

“That’s right, let’s go Kee, Bofur will burst upon hearing us”, Fíli said grabbing his brother hand and rushing to the doors…  

“WAIT”, Balin commanded raising his voice, making both stop, Balin’s action surprised even Thorin, it was not common for the white-bearded dwarf to talk so loudly, command even, something was wrong... The princes looked at each other before returning, confusion mixed with uncertainty lingering in everyone’s face…  

Thorin hesitated, “What’s wrong my friend?”.  

His eyes fixed on the raven, and the raven trying to find his words knowing that such a joyous moment would be cut.  

“Möroac, you’re not telling us everything… Are you?”, Balin doubted, his voice now back to normal, “I can see not only in you behavior but on how you are talking… Something happened didn’t it?”  

The dwarves look at Balin, and then at the corvid, who jumped a little to the back, uncertain on how to begin…  

Thorin’s face went dark, his usual serious facade now back, he takes a deep breath, and sits on his chair once again deadly staring at the raven…  

“What is it, Möroac?”

“Indeed there’s another thing, my king… Or to be more precise, a person”, the raven said.  

“A person? That sound very ominous coming from you Möroac”, the king responds, “The Shire is full of people, knowing Bilbo he probably knows everyone there...”  

“True, but I’m not speaking of a Hobbit, my king…”, the corvid answers making a few jumps in the king’s direction.  

“Then what is it, my feathered friend?”, Balin asks more confused than ever.  

“A dwarf was there, your majesty… A brown dwarf...”, Möroac finally reveals.  

The brothers looked at each other, confused while Balin scratch the back of his head. The king smiles, the tension on his shoulders fading, “Heh, is this your big concern? Plenty of dwarrows pass through the Shire, I can’t really picture the issue, he’s probably a merchant worker or-”.  

“No, my king, he’s not...”, the raven interjects, “Of what I could notice, he’s a resident in the Shire… And he’s from the east, I know it’s indelicate to make assumptions like this, but your brothers from the east don’t always picture a good omen, considering their past decisions...”  

Thorin remained silent, looking at the raven in front of him, indeed, to make certain assumptions was a very immature action, but he couldn’t help but feel an incredible sensation of danger growing. Balin on the other hand, along with the large amount of variables, considered the most logical of those, for a dwarf to choose to stay at the Shire, other than any of the Dwarven settlements could mean that a certain dwarf he was looking for finally decided to stop his moves, but the white bearded dwarf decided to keep that thought for himself, at least just for the moment. The brothers on the other hand, remained curious but confused, as both couldn’t understand why the raven was making this fact a big deal, to no surprise, both of them didn’t really were the type to take even their own history with the upmost care, the blessings of the youth… probably…

“Could it be a refugee?”, Balin guessed, “I’ve seen a large number of our east brothers to come to these lands seeking refuge or work”.

“This far, Balin?”, Thorin responds raising an eyebrow, “Sounds a little unreasonable, don’t you think?”.

“Maybe he was going to the Blue Mountains but settled in the Shire”, Kíli asked, “It is a nice place to live… I think...”, he finished scratching the back of his head.

“He probably heard of our story and decided to enjoy the peace and quiet”, Fíli continues, “The Shire doesn’t sound so bad, besides we would pretty much be the tallest around, imagine people having to look up to talk to us”, he parodied while comparing his size to his brother.

“To not seek the comfort of your own really strikes as odd to me, the same could be said of someone trying to hide himself of danger”, the King grumbled, “Did he pose any threat to you or to Bilbo, Möroac? Did he approached him? Is he safe?”.

“I don’t think he poses any threat at all, my king...”, the corvid answered, “He seems… Harmless, and Bilbo really does seems to enjoy his company, howe-”.

“What do you mean ‘enjoy his company’, raven?”, Thorin interjects, his face going red of anger, Balin looking at him and sighing, clearly his friend misunderstood what the raven meant, “What they were doing together? Answer me.”.

“Um… I can’t really know the extent of their interactions, my king”, the raven hesitated, measuring his words with caution, “but when I was there, all they did together was an afternoon tea along with another hobbit and me”.

The king tilts his head to the side in confusion, “Tea? Just that?”.

“Yes, they were chatting mostly about the Shire and recipes, the dwarf made a very delicious apple pie, one of the best I’ve had honestly...”, the raven answers.

Thorin face shifts from confused to serious, the room silent with only the usual noises from the denizens at the corridors, all dwarves not knowing what to say, Balin with trying to forge a plan in his head, the brothers as usual not, weighing up the situation accordingly, and Thorin clearly imagining the downside of a situation that doesn’t exists, oh the horror of his Ibinê enjoying the company of another dwarf other than him…

“My nephews”, Thorin cuts the silence, his nephews straightening up upon hearing his serious tone, “Go inform the others about Bilbo’s response and his upcoming arrival”.

The brothers look at each other once again, “Of course uncle”, Fíli responds.

Kíli follows, “But what about this dwarf Möroac informed, should we-”.

“Don’t be foolish Kíli”, Thorin grunted, “Do not talk about this to anyone, this is for BOTH of you… Am I clear?”.

“Yes uncle”, the brothers answered in unison, bowing to the King and Balin, and then leaving the room.

Thorin gets up from his chair, and proceeded to close the doors. His back still to the raven and Balin, looking down, his hand on the carved oak of the door, pensive, doubts arriving each moment... “Is that really all… Möroac?”, he gulped.

“Yes, my king, that’s all”, the raven responds.

Balin knew what Thorin was thinking, yet, he preferred to remain to himself, considering the sickness that almost consumed his being and made him nearly kill his one, being cured of it would not simple drive away something like jealousy… His thoughts are interrupted by his friend’s voice, who was now looking at him, just as serious as before.

“Balin?”, Thorin calls for his advisor, uncertain…

“Yes, my friend?”, Balin asked.

The king paused, and looked at the raven, who was plucking a feather of his wing, “Do you think it could be him? This ‘Wanderer’ you spoke of?”.

Before the white-bearded dwarf could answer, the corvid interjected, “I don’t think so my king… I haven't seen any work of the kind, either on my way to the Shire or back, I think he’s just a regular dwarf, or maybe a baker, the Hobbits are very fond of their cooking, it would make sense.”

“But why he’s there? The circumstances are not right...”, the king complained , “He must be hiding something…”, he glances at Balin, then at the corvid, “You’re good at reading people, Möroac, Are you certain you haven't seen or felt anything strange about him? Try to remember.”.

The raven jumped and flapping his dark wings, landing on the backrest of the chair Thorin was seated, “I am certain, my king...”, the corvid paused and looked down before continuing, “To be quite honest, I admit that of all the persons I saw, he was the only one I couldn’t really picture anything, like there was nothing there to be seen, it was just him and nothing more… Apart from his cloudy eye, looking at him in the eyes was a little hard, his gaze felt like it was piercing through me… But it’s just… That, my king, my apologies...”, he finishes, bowing to the king.

Thorin approached the raven, he reaches out and pets the bird, a gesture that surprised the raven, but it was not unwelcome, a slight smile on his face, “It’s alright Möroac, you did well to inform us about this and about Bilbo as well… You must be tired, please rest...”, he pauses and look at the window, “We will be needing your services again soon, and don’t worry, I’ll make sure that either one of those stupid nephews of mine to deliver some of Bombur’s cookies to you...”

“Very well then, my king… Thank you...”, Möroac responds.

The king then extend his arm so that the raven can jump on it, he walks to the window and in a quick motion he lift it up and the raven sets flight to Ravenhill…

The room is silent once more, the sun bathing the King Under the Mountain serious face as he watches the raven disappearing in the distance, his friend and advisor pensive looking at him uncertain of what to say, and only pondering what the future will bring. The king glances at him, and knowing him, Balin knew that his friend needed to be alone for the moment, and in silence he bowed to the king and left the room…

As the door was finally closed, the king reached for the folded leather piece in his pocket. Carefully, he unties the ribbon and unfold the message.

My Thorin,

 

It makes me more than happy to know that you feel the same as me… that you want us to be together, as I as well with each step wanted to turn back and return to your arms… to feel you…

Yet we all have a past that sometimes need to be sorted out, at least mine is not as thrilling as a dragon, unless you consider Lobelia one…

 

I can’t wait to finally be back, to see everyone again… Bombur’s food, Bofur’s songs, Balin’ stories, everyday without you feels like an eternity…

 

I can’t wait to be with you, to have you, for you to have me, to listen to your voice, your songs, your stories, to kiss you…

 

Just a few more days, my love...

 

I’ll be waiting here, and sooner than you think I’ll be at your side once again… And forever…

 

- Your Bilbo.

 

PS: Quite the raven you got there, I made sure that he traveled with his belly full, if he says otherwise it is a lie.

 

PPS: I won’t need much, just some bags will be fine, I decided to keep everything ‘big’ here for the next resident, what I need will be already with me, and of course… at the end of the journey back…

 

Thorin eyes glimmered, a bright smile shining under the sunlight, there’s no denying to his feeling, in his mind the image of him and his gem together for as long as their life endures, bodies close, his curly hairs, his ever joyous smile, he was ecstatic, and couldn’t wait for the end of his Ibinê journey. Yet, deep down, a concerning feeling regarding what Möroac said lingered, ‘like there was nothing there to be seen, it was just him and nothing more’ , to him, something was not right, and this could be the beginning of something far more complicated… or dangerous…

“ My Ibinê ”, the king pondered, looking at the cloudy mountains…

Meanwhile, at the Shire, the brown dwarf and his small friend are enjoying some fruit tarts with some tea, chatting casually at their market stall.

The hobbit speaks, “How many do you think will arrive here?”.  

“Considering how nervous that raven was, it’s hard to tell”, the dwarf answered, still munching.  

“That was fun to watch, I bet the entire company will come”, Gregor sneered.  

Gustav raises his eyebrow, “You wanna bet on that?”, he cleans his beard of the crumbles, “Also, show respect, don’t talk about them like that.”  

The hobbit rolled his eyes reaching to the pipe in his pocket, “10 gold pieces at least six or seven will be at his door”, he finishes extending his other hand to the dwarf.  

The dwarf then, holds Gregor’s hand and with a little shake, they set the bet, “Deal”.  

“It’s on my friend”, Gregor responds with a smile…

In the next morning, Thorin, his nephews, Balin, Dwalin and Ori were having breakfast at the center table, the mountain loud as ever, ovens flickering as the aroma of fresh bread spread across the kitchen, Bombur pacing from left to right preparing as many food as possible, and eating the same amount as well. In front of the dwarves, bread, eggs, goat’s milk, raspberry jam, cheese, all settled nicely in a colorful way.  

Seated on the right side of the king, Dwalin is enjoying his breakfast, in silence, while watching everything unfold at around him, the lore master at the left end next to Balin, slowly eating while scribbling at his notebook, but from moment to moment, subtly glancing on the king’s shield, at one moment, they shared glances, and the lore master’s face grown red as he covered himself until he was not looking anymore. To his demise, two dwarves seated at the opposite end of the king were aware of what was happening, and sooner or later, his peace will cease to exist...  

The king spoke to Balin, “I’m trying to decide who I am going to send to accompany Bilbo, however I don’t want to make him feel nervous traveling with someone he doesn’t know.”, he ended drinking some of the milk from his cup.  

“Considering the information we got from Möroac, I’m sure you’ll probably send only the best of our own”, Balin paused and looked at Thorin, “Am I right?”.  

“I just want to be sure”, the king added while preparing another slice of bread with jam, “You said to me once, ‘It is not wise to judge so early at the lack of facts’… I’m just following your advice.”  

“That’s good my king… Very good indeed...”, Balin responded. The white-bearded dwarf looked at the table, the memory of what the raven said still in his mind, “ It’s a possibility, a dangerous one... ”, despite what it was said, Balin couldn’t simply accept the fact that the mysterious dwarf of the Shire was just some random individual that baked well, to him, a strong sense curiosity lingered, one that he wanted to end. He looked up, the long distant ceiling of Erebor, weakly glowing by the torches, “ It is worth a try... ”. He then faced his friend, who is enjoying his bread while watching his nephews who are talking with each other cheerfully, “I can go...”.  

The king stopped, and all present dwarves looked at Balin, a genuine concern in both Thorin’s and Dwalin’s face, “I can’t ask you to do that Balin, you’re my advisor an-”, the king said.  

“And I’m as well someone more suited to ‘peacefully’ deal with everyone, considering our last adventure”, Balin interrupted, “And don’t give me that look you two, I’m old, but not an invalid, if your ‘concern’ is real, for once I think it’s better to solve this without bloodshed”.  

“I was thinking on sending Dwalin”, Thorin said, “I told him before breakfast, and he agreed”.  

The king’s shield nodded, “I can go, brother”.  

“Don’t you think it is better for your shield to stay at your side?”, Balin asserted. “In case of any peril, he’ll be more useful than me…”, he paused and looked at Ori, “Just trust me on this… Besides I won’t be traveling alone...”  

Ori took a moment to realize, but after that he simply stood up and nodded, and headed to the archives but before he reached the door he looked one more time to Dwalin, who was looking at him, then he quickly resumed his path as he felt his face getting warm, the brothers couldn’t help but giggle at the sight, only to instantly end as the bald dwarf grunted, looking angrily to them.  

The king leaned in to Balin and whispered, “You still think he’s that dwarf don’t you?”.  

“Didn’t Möroac said he’s just a regular dwarf… probably a baker, my king?”, Balin postulated, “I'll do everything carefully… Besides, both me and master Ori are eager to see Bilbo again, why not do that while traveling back here?”.  

The king and his shield shared glances, and then looked back at Balin and pondered, the brothers looking at them whispering at each other something that he couldn’t figure out, the kitchen sounds echoing as the cooks and other dwarves were chatting at the other tables. He sighed knowing that there was no use protesting against his advisor’s resolve, “Very well Balin, you may go”, he sipped his cup one more time before continuing, “But I’ll be sending two more companions along with you and master Ori, they’ll be at your command… Tomorrow I’ll be assigning them”.

The white-bearded dwarf stood up from his chair, adjusted his vest and bowed to his king, “Very well then my king”, and so he ended making haste to the archives.

“You don’t seem happy, my friend”, the king’s shield added, breaking the silence, “Have some faith in my brother”.

“It’s not a matter of fate Dwalin...”, Thorin responded, “The circumstances are… Strange...”.

“More than fighting a dragon alongside a Shire lad, who clearly you’re not smitten by?”, he jested.

“Not you too...”, the king grumbled and Dwalin chuckled in response.

Suddenly the brothers stood up with a loud noise of the chairs dragging on the stone floor and bowed, “Uncle”, both said in unison and hastily walked towards the main hall.

“That can’t be good...”, Dwalin pointed out.

”…And the day has barely begun”, Thorin continued grunting, wiping his hand across his face in annoyance, making his friend laugh, “Yeah, laugh at my misery Dwalin...”.

The day went smoothly in The Lonely Mountain, dealings with Dale and other kingdoms sorted out to ensure the prosperity of both parts. Thorin, grumpy as ever when dealing with elves and Balin to his side to ensure the king stay polite and reasonable, while his nephews stood idle and watched, as one day they’ll be in the same position, well… At least that is expected of them…

It is nighttime, Thorin is at his desk, reading his gem’s letter again, eyes sparkling with the flicker of the candles, the mountain has grown silent and only a small murmur could be heard from the closed doors, the denizens were settling for the night, as tomorrow would be another busy day. The king ever smiling at the thought of having his love with him jumped as a loud and hasty knock on the doors expelled the silence…

“Uncle? You awake? It’s Fee and Kee, can we come in?”, the familiar voice spoke from the other side of the door.  

“ What now? ”, the king pondered as he put his gem’s letter in his pocket, “Yes, you may enter”.  

As the door opened, both Kíli and Fíli were standing, side-by-side with a large smile in their faces, to Thorin this could mean good news, or terrible actions that he would have to resolve…  

“So… nephews… What do you two want at this time of the night?”, the king asked.

The brothers looked at each other and started mumbling,

“You first”...

“No. YOU first, it was your idea”...

“That’s not how we planned”...

“Just talk, Fee”...

“No. YOU talk”…

“Can you two get to the point?”, Thorin interrupted their interaction, annoyed by their behavior.

The brothers look at the king displeased face and correct themselves, then, after a brief silence the dark-haired dwarf started speaking, “Ahem… Uncle, did you already assigned who are going to accompany Balin and Ori to fetch Bilbo?”.  

The king raised an eyebrow, “No... Why?”, he inquired.  

“We have a request”, the blond dwarf said taking a step forward.  

“ This can’t be good ”, the king’s mind echoing what happened in the morning as he watched both his nephews suspicious behavior after his dialogue with his advisor, “And what is it, my sister’ sons?”.  

The brothers looked at each other one more time, and then in unison, “We want to go too!”, both talked out loud.  

Silence returned, the king eyeing both of his nephews, deep inside, Thorin knew that this would happen, and yet, he decided not to ponder on that, as it was only a possibility, but the stone known for telling stories in chaotic motions, their children no different…  

After a couple of seconds of silence, the king started to speak still eyeing both of his sister’ sons, “I can imagine some of the motives you ‘two’ want to go...”, he paused, and fixed his attention to Kíli, which was still smiling even knowing what his uncle meant by his emphasis, “But why would you want to venture once more, BOTH of you have duties here...”.  

“Your stuff is boring uncle.”, Fíli retorted, “Besides, we want to see Bilbo again too”.  

“And mother as well”, Kíli added, “We sent ravens, but these take long and…”, he stopped and looked down, his smile now gone, “I miss her...”.  

“WE miss her...”, the blond corrected, his smile also faded.  

Be it emotional blackmail or a sincere appeal, Thorin knew his nephews very well, and if this is what they wanted they would do it regardless of his approval or not… He looked down to his feet and then sighed, the tiredness of the day finally striking him, “You know that travel poses a risk… To you both, right?”, he coaxed, “Even after our success against the orcs, there are still many out there waiting for an opportunity to strike...”, he paused, and looked at his nephews, “I can’t ask you two to do this...”.

“We’ll be careful uncle, and we’ll make sure to protect Balin and Ori”, Kíli responded.  

“Please? We’ll be fine uncle...”, Fíli added, with a very miserable attempt of making puppy eyes, making the king release a soft laugh.  

Thorin eyed both of his nephews once more, and with a sigh, “Fine… You may go… But-”, he couldn’t continue as both of his sister’ sons launched themselves at him into a hug, the gesture surprised him, but he didn’t reacted against it, but just let himself be embraced, and return it, by wrapping both arms around each one, the warm sensation brought back memories of the Blue Mountains, at simpler times were his nephews little and just as chaotic as they are in present days, his little sister, sassy and cunning but always lovely, but also Bilbo and their embrace after Azog’s attack, memories both good and bad, a sensation of longing and reunion that is still yet to come…  

They stayed like that for a couple of seconds… After that both Fíli and Kíli stood up, and side-by-side, bowed to the king, “Thanks Uncle, we will not let you down...”, and rushed to their rooms, closing the door…  

The room is silent once more… The king decided it was time to settle for the day… On his bed, while sleep was taking over, the memories of Bilbo and the company in their journey circled in his mind, and the possibilities of a uncertain but peaceful future could be imagined…

“ My Ibinê... ”

Meanwhile at corridors of Erebor, the brothers conversed with each other, walking slowly...  

“The puppy eyes always work, mother can’t resist them...”, said blond dwarf.  

“A little below the belt don’t you think brother?”, argued the dark-haired dwarf, while he was approaching the doors of his room.  

“Nah, we have to take advantage of this while we can”, Fíli bantered, “Besides, we got what we wanted, no? So it’s all good… And you used mother as excuse to see that elf lady, you played dirty just as well”.  

“I do miss mother, Fee”, Kíli asserted, “The fact that Tauriel is in the way to her is not my fault”.  

“Uh Huh, right brother...”, Fíli jested in response, making his brother roll his eyes.  

As Kíli entered his room, he paused and looked down, turning back to face his brother, and asked, “How do you think he looks like? That dwarf in the Shire...”.  

Fíli tilted his head, curious, “I don’t know, but judging Möroac seriousness, he might be a scary dude”.  

“Or just a simple baker...”, Kíli guessed, “Do you think we can convince him to bake something for us?”, he ended, with a smile from ear to ear after considering the possibility.  

Fíli smiled and raised an eyebrow, “Maybe… I’ll use my charm on him, or the puppy eyes, those often work...”.  

“Heh, be careful brother...”, Kíli taunted, “We might be speaking of your future one… This ‘charm’ of yours might get you two married or something”, he ribbed, mockingly making kissy faces at his brother.  

“How about you shut up, oh dear brother, it is time for you to sleep ”, Fili scoffed, pushing his brother gently to his room in an attempt to stop him, but to no avail as he continued to make faces and sounds, slowly becoming replaced by laughs as the door closed. And with a sigh, he walked in the direction of his room.

The corridors were empty, low chatter could be heard in the distance… Fíli’s room was warm, weapons and books lying on the ground, window opened as the moonlight bathed a portion of his bed… Lying down, he looked at the moon, bright as a pale crystal, the moonlight bathing his face glimmering his eyes, and in his mind a shadow of doubt caused by his brother’s jesting…

“ Could it be? ”

In the distance of what it looked like an eternity, at the woods of the Overhill, sitting on a tree stump, Gustav meditated… A soft cold breeze of the night flowing, the stars shining, flowers with their petals covered by a deep silver… A deep breath, and then he opened his eyes, and gazed upon the skin, the moonlight shining, on his dark eye… There he pondered something that he knew but did not wanted to happen…

“ The roads are calling once more... ”