Chapter Text
After the Battle of Five Armies, the men of Dale and the dwarves of Erebor came to an agreement about the gold owed to the people of Laketown - now the people of Dale. Thorin had been eager to make up for going back on his word, undoing all the wrongs he had done when the dragon sickness clouded his mind. If he was perhaps a little more generous that strictly necessary in his guilt over his treatment of Bilbo and the hobbit’s disappearance, no one mentioned it but Bard was grateful. It was agreed that a certain amount of the gold would be taken to Dale each month, escorted by Balin and armed guards, and this time, Kili, as keeping that amount of gold in the mostly ruined town could only attract trouble. Bard trusted the people who followed him, but there was still a risk of thieves and bandits coming into the town if they heard that there was a large amount of gold just sitting around, waiting to be stolen. The trip also served to strengthen the alliance between the men and the dwarves. If either side had a grievance with the other, then Balin and Bard would talk it out, at least in theory. So far, there had been no problems since the first payment had been met. At that point, Bard had still been suspicious of the dwarves, not sure that they would not go back on their word again, but Thorin was insistent that everything be done to secure their friendship and so there had been no problems. Instead, the meetings served to keep Bard updated on the progress of Erebor’s reconstruction and Balin updated on the progress made in Dale.
Normally, after such a meeting, Balin would return directly to the mountain with the guards but as Kili was with him this time, he granted permission for the guards to either return to the mountain or browse the market with them. Kili, bored stiff throughout the meeting, suddenly perked up. Balin didn’t bother hiding his amusement. Most of the guards returned to the mountain but two stayed behind, trailing Balin and Kili by a short distance.
The markets of Dale were not yet what they once were, but Balin could easily see a return to the good old days. There was still much to be done to restore the human city but there were plenty of people about these days to do their part. There were mostly humans selling their wares and browsing the stalls but there one or two elves and several other dwarves from the mountain. Kili eyed the elves with interest, but he didn’t approach them. Instead, he pretended to be looking over a stall of jewellery. None of it was up to the standard of the jewels they had found within the mountain but they were well made nonetheless. Balin, though he was keeping an eye on Kili, turned his attention to a stall selling leather-bound books. There were some almanacs, but most were blank notebooks waiting to be filled. Some were plain and some had designs embossed on the covers. One was a design of a tree with a complicated tangle of branches reaching upwards. Balin picked it up for a closer look, flipping through blank pages to inspect for quality. Perhaps Bilbo could use it, write down all that he could remember of his old life or make a record of the new memories he was making within the mountain. Satisfied with his find, Balin purchased it. No sooner had money exchanged hands than a commotion further down the street caught his attention.
The crowd parted and a procession of dwarves, apparently escorted by elves, came forwards. Not just any dwarves, however. Kili spotted them at the same time as Balin, and recognised the leader immediately.
“Mother!” He tore down the street and would have leapt into the cart if Dis had not jumped down and met him half way.
“Kili! Oh, my Kili!” They embraced, clinging to each other tightly. Balin hurried down towards them.
“Mother, I can’t believe you’re finally here!” Kili said, drawing back.
“It’s great to see you again. Is Fili here also? I hadn’t expected to see you until I reached Erebor,” Dis said, looking about for her other son.
“Fili is helping Thorin, back in the mountain,” answered Kili. “But I’m sure you’ll set him free, won’t you?”
“Ah, yes. My dear brother. I’m looking forward to seeing him again soon.” Dis was smiling, but there was a sharp look in her eyes that gave Kili and Balin reason to believe that Thorin wouldn’t enjoy their reunion nearly as much as his sister would. “So tell me, what have you been up to since your last letter? Come, sit on the cart with me and you can tell me everything. You too, Balin. Don’t think I haven’t noticed you.”
“Lady Dis, I would hardly assume otherwise. You always had such sharp eyes.” Balin smiled. “Now, do my eyes deceive me or do you have elvish escorts?”
He looked past Dis and Kili to the procession of carts and the elves in gleaming armour beside them.
“No, it’s true. When we came past Mirkwood, they emerged from the trees. King Thranduil sent them to ensure there were no further complications to our journey.” There was a suspicious tone to her voice, as though she wasn’t sure of the elven king’s motives Had they been sent to ensure the dwarves arrived safely at Erebor or to prevent them from causing mischief of some kind in the woods? “We are… most grateful, of course.” This she said for the benefit of the elves standing closest. They would not be taking tales of ungracious dwarves back to the woods with them.
Kili glanced about the elves, no doubt seeking a familiar face but Balin kept his mouth shut. Tauriel had not been seen since the battle. She had been the one to save Fili and Kili, but had been called away by the elves before they had recovered. It had been clear that she had not wanted to go, and Balin doubted they had seen the last of her. Kili still thought of her, though he had stopped asking after her after weeks and months of no word.
Balin sent their guard ahead of them to the mountain and then hopped up on to the cart beside Dis. Kili climbed on the other side, using the boost in height to have another glance at the assembled elves.
"Giving my brother time to hide, Balin?" Dis asked, watching the dwarf guard slip quickly through the crowds.
Kili tore his gaze away from the elves. "Thorin won't hide, Mum," he said.
"He'll wish he did by the time I'm through with him," Dis replied. "Going up against that dragon, getting involved in a war, nearly getting my boys killed..." she muttered darkly.
"It was not all his fault," Balin said quietly. "When the sickness took hold of his mind, he was not himself."
"And before then?"
"Before then we were still capable of making up our own minds," Kili said. "He asked us to follow him, to help him reclaim our kingdom and that's what we did. We knew it was dangerous, we knew we might not survive but we agreed anyway." Kili frowned at her. "We're not children anymore, mum. You don't need to protect us."
Dis stared at him in silence for a moment. "You have grown up, haven't you?" she said quietly. "You know I'm proud of you, don't you? It wasn't easy for me to let you and Fili go, and Mahal knows I didn't want you to, but I'm proud that you felt strongly enough about it to go anyway."
Kili fell silent for a long moment. "This place is our home. Even if we hadn't been here before, I knew it. I felt it as soon as I saw the gates, when I walked the hallways, slept within. It is home, and I'm glad to have fought to reclaim it."
"You're a true Durinson," Dis said, patting his shoulder. "And so is your uncle, and I'm still going to give him a thrashing over this. Honestly. Do you have any idea what his letters are like?" She deepened her voice to imitate Thorin's. "'Dear Dis, have reclaimed Erebor. Fought some orcs. Azog is definitely dead this time. Come as soon as you are able, Thorin.'" She threw her hands up. "I didn't even know Azog wasn't dead until Thorin mentioned him in that bloody letter!"
"It was a surprise for us too," Balin said. "Alas, I think that story may have to wait until later."
Ahead of them, the mountain loomed. The gates, were wide open, welcoming the dwarves of Erebor home. Crowds of dwarves had come to greet the newcomers. Shouts went up from the caravan, as people spotted friends and relatives crowding the entrance. Conversation lapsed into silence as the dwarves aboard the carts spotted the gates, some for the first time since fleeing, and others seeing them for the first time. Dis drew in a shaky breath. It wouldn’t do to break down now, she told herself, but it was hard. She was finally home.
Kili slipped his hand into hers. “It takes my breath away too,” he confided in a whisper.
Dis smiled, and squeezed his hand. She didn’t dare take her eyes off the carved stone mountainside, the huge statues guarding the entrance, the very gates themselves. It felt almost like a dream, and if not for the comforting solidness of Kili’s hand in hers, she might have thought she was asleep. As the cart rolled through the great stone gates at last, she gave Kili’s hand a final squeeze, but kept her grip until the cart came to a halt in front of Thorin, and all the other dwarves who had gathered to witness her arrival.
A very large part of Dis wanted to thump Thorin for all the worry he had caused her, dragging her sons away on a perilous journey to face a dragon (well, maybe not dragging so much as 'not trying hard enough persuading her sons to stay home') and getting embroiled in a war (most of which she heard about from other people and not Thorin). Her frustration had kept her going through all her time awaiting to hear news and it had sustained her on her own journey to the mountain. Most of the dwarves she had travelled with were wary of her temper now, and doubtless many of them expected her to knock Thorin out as soon as they reached Erebor. Judging from the look on Thorin's face as she climbed down from the cart, he expected the same. It was hard to say who was more surprised when her anger melted away almost instantly and she pulled him into a rib-crushing embrace, hiding tearful eyes in his long hair.
"Idiot," she muttered thickly into his ear. "Would it have killed you to send a proper letter once in a while?"
"Quite possibly," he replied, gently teasing.
Dis clung to him for a moment longer and then pulled away. She wiped at her eyes. "Don't think you're getting out of being thumped later. It just wouldn't look good for the people to see their king being beaten by his sister," she muttered.
"Duly noted," Thorin replied.
"Mum!" A blond blur all but tackled Dis.
"Fili!" Dis clung to him tightly. "Oh, my boy. I've missed you and Kili so much."
"We've missed you too," Fili said, voice muffled by the thick furs she was wearing. Though the weather was warming up, it was still chilly on the road.
Kili came up behind Dis, wrapping his arms around both his brother and mother, who immediately adjusted their embrace to include him. Around them, similar greetings were taking place as the other dwarves reunited with their loved ones as well. There was no shortage of wet eyes and handkerchiefs being passed around. Thorin took his eyes off his sister and nephews only briefly to take it all in, and was surprised to find his vision blurring slightly.
“There now, laddie. This is what we truly fought for, is it not?” Balin said quietly at his side.
“Aye. Erebor is not, and has never been just a mountain full of treasure. It is home,” Thorin murmured. “I regret ever losing sight of that.”
“You may yet be able to put things right,” replied Balin.
Thorin shook his head. “I can make amends, but nothing will undo all I did.”
“All you did?” Dis looked up from her sons. “Thorin? Am I missing something?”
Fili and Kili pulled back, shared a look with each other and then glanced at Thorin. There expressions showed nothing but resolve.
“We’ll tell you, Mum,” Fili said quietly, so as not to be overheard by anyone save those standing closest.
“But not here,” Kili added. “There’s… a lot to tell, and you probably want to get comfortable first.”
“Speaking of which, we’ve had your old rooms restored,” Balin said, cheerfully trying to change the subject.
Dis looked torn. On one hand, she wanted to know what was going on with her brother and sons, but on the other, she did desperately want a rest and a decent meal somewhere more comfortable than a roadside inn or the back of a cart. “I should see to it that those who accompanied me are settled first,” she said, shaking her head.
“You’ve done enough just getting them here in one piece,” Balin said. “Let me handle the rest. You need your rest just as much as anyone else.”
Dis turned to look over the other dwarves crowding the entrance hall. Though many had found others they knew, there were still those hanging back, who had not had anyone waiting for them. “Let me help with those who are alone, at least,” she said. “I cannot abandon them all now, after the journey we have shared together.”
“We’ll help too,” Kili said cheerfully. Fili nodded in agreement.
“Many hands make light work,” Thorin added. “Come, let us make sure that everyone will have a bed for the night and a warm meal at the very least.”
* * *
Nori knew he wouldn’t have much time before he was expected to join the others in the grand entrance hall, but he still planned to take full advantage of the opportunity granted to him when Fili raced off down the corridor to greet Dis. Checking for witnesses, he slipped into the princes’ rooms. A quick glance showed him that Bilbo wasn’t in the main room, so he was probably sleeping.
He could possibly sneak in and leave a note for Bilbo, but he would prefer to talk to the hobbit personally. Without an audience.
He shut the door, only to hear a faint gasp behind him. He turned to see the bedroom door slightly more open than it had been, but no sign of the hobbit.
“Bilbo, if you’re there and awake, I’d like to introduce myself. I’m Nori, brother to Dori and Ori, at your service. He bowed towards the bedroom door, aware of eyes on him even if he couldn’t see Bilbo at that moment. “We were friends once, and I bring a gift for you. One best not shared in front of others. I know how protective Fili and Kili are of you. They lost you once, and they don’t want to risk it again, so they might not be too happy about me giving you this.”
There was no reply, but Nori could imagine the way Bilbo was watching him. He made a show of pulling a scroll out of his inner pocket. “I don’t know if the others have menitoned, but I have a special job around Erebor these days. I’m officially the spymaster for Thorin, though there’s few enough who know that. Makes my job easier, let me tell you. In any case, this here is a special map of the mountain. I’ve very carefully copied it from some of the old scrolls Ori had in the library, and made my own notes to show where we’ve restored the old place since the dragon was ousted, and the lesser used passageways. There’s even a few secret passages on here as well. I figured it would be useful if you want to get down to the library yourself one day, without coming across too many strangers. Or the kitchen, Mahal knows the others ave told me you need a few more decent meals in you, so don’t be afraid to pester Bombur for snacks.”
Realising he was rambling, and should be leaving before Fili and Kili came back, Nori set the scroll on the table. “I’m going to leave this here, and I advise you to take it before Fili and Kili get back. I’ll arrange an official meeting through them later, but I thought I’d take the opportunity to hand this over now. Until we meet again, Mister Baggins.”
He turned back towards the door, and was half out of the room when a quiet voice behind him said, “Thank you, Master Nori.”
He very carefully didn’t jump, and glanced back to see Bilbo standing by the table, map clutched in his hands. The princes were right, he thought. Much too thin, but it made those wide eyes seem that much bigger. He hadn’t heard a single sound to indicate that Bilbo had moved, but then Bilbo had always been surprisingly sneaky for someone who had looked like a grocer when they first met.
“Think nothing of it, Bilbo.” He smiled quickly, and then was gone.