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Mending the Broken Pieces	By : LadyLaran Category: Lord of the Rings Movies > Het - Male/Female Views: 13613 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
Disclaimer: I do not own "the Hobbit" nor do I make money from this story. Tolkien and Jackson are the ones who own the characters and world.

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Author’s Note - I wanted to post today as presents for those who have been so amazing in following this story. You guys really are an inspiration to me. I hope all of you have enjoyed this holiday season, no matter the faith you follow, and are being safe and happy.

Disclaimer – I do not own “the Hobbit” nor do I make any money from this story.

Chapter Fifty-three – Homecoming

A raven had been the one to alert the occupants of Erebor to the approach of the Eagles of Manwë, and the company, including Lord Elrond’s sons, were waiting anxiously at the gates for the arrival of their missing family members. Thorin was anxious to see them again and was glad to know they would be home soon.

When the eagles landed, Dwalin was the first one to slide off of the feathered back of the bird he’d been riding and turned to help ease Kili to the ground. Helka and Glorfindel were off of their eagles fairly swiftly, and the elf took Hawthorn from Gandalf before the old wizard dismounted as well.

Thorin stepped forward, bowing to the eagles.

“Thank you for seeing them safely there and back,” he told them, grateful they had given their aid to this quest.

“We could not sit idly by and do nothing when the world was on the brink of darkness,” Gwaihir answered the dwarf. “We were honored to be asked to be a part of this quest.”

“Is there anything we can provide for your comfort before you return to your homes?”

“A place to rest before we return to our aerie,” the eagle responded. “The journey has been very long for all of us; we will find a place to hunt that is away from the areas your allies call home.”

“You are welcome to any roosting spots you may find,” Thorin told him. “If you need anything, hail one of the ravens and we shall do our best to ensure you have what you require. Erebor owes a debt to your flock for the aid you have given in ending this evil.”

The eagle bowed his head before the small group took flight, heading towards the mountain to find places to rest. Once they were gone, the company hurried towards the ones who had been gone for so long.

Thorin watched as Oin did a fast check over their returned friends, and he agreed when the healer began hurrying everyone inside. Winter had been slow to settle in, but the temperatures were swiftly falling. It would be better to have the company and friends back inside the King’s Halls where it was warm.

Once there, Bombur had warm drinks and soup ready for everyone and there was a rush to get the returned company members seated and comfortable.

Thorin took a seat on the couch, accepting Hawthorn as she was carefully laid on it. He placed her head on his lap, gently caressing her hair for a moment as he took in the familiar features of his One. She had lost a lot of weight, which worried him a great deal since she had been too slender for a hobbit or dwarf before leaving on this journey, and he could see the exhaustion that laid so heavily on her.

He said nothing as Oin examined her, unwrapping the blankets that been bundled around her tiny form. That was when the heavy bandages on her feet and calves were seen, and both males realized what had been burned when the mountain had erupted.

“When were your bandages changed last,” the healer asked his daughter, watching her face as she answered.

“Two hours ago,” Hawthorn answered tiredly, leaning into Thorin’s touch as he continued to caress her hair. “Glorfindel made sure the salves were applied properly before putting fresh bandages on.”

“I’ll be wanting to see those burns after we get you to your room in a while,” he told her.

“I expected as much,” she said softly.

“Are you in any pain?”

“Yes but I can’t have any more tonic until after I eat,” Hawthorn replied, being honest with them. “The healers said I needed to ensure I tried to eat as many small meals in a day as I could because I’m too thin.”

“You’re not at the weight you were when we left the Shire,” Oin said, sounding concerned. “You weren’t exactly at the weight of the hobbit-dams we saw while leaving either.”

“I’ve never been able to eat the traditional seven,” she admitted with a sigh. “Being in pain most of the time along with my financial issues, I became used to three meals a day with the occasional nibble with tea. I haven’t been at the normal hobbit weight for years, but I wasn’t unhealthy either.”

“We’ll get you back to your starting weight and see how it goes from there,” the healer instructed her. “Now, we’ll have Thorin hold you up and get some tea and soup into you.”

“Sounds wonderful,” Hawthorn said with a small smile, sitting up when Oin helped her to do so.

Thorin shifted on the sofa so that his back was to the arm of it, one leg along the back so Oin could shift Hawthorn. The hobbit was soon resting against his chest, sitting up enough so she could hold the small bowl of soup Bombur had handed her.

“Eat that and I’ll get you more if you think your belly can handle it,” the heavy dwarf told her, gently patting her shoulder before going to serve the others.

“I thought the coddling of my little group was bad,” the hobbit said quietly to her betrothed once Bombur was out of earshot.

“You forgot you had the rest of us overprotective dwarrow to watch over you when you got home, didn’t you,” he asked with a smile.

“I didn’t forget who I was coming home to,” she admitted with a sweet smile. “I did forget that all of you could be very overprotective.”

“It will only become worse as the years pass, ukradel,” Thorin chuckled. “Add my sister to this, I’ll be surprised if she allows you or the others out of her sight for a while.”

“You’ve been in contact with her,” Hawthorn asked between slow bites of the delicious soup.

“I have,” he answered. “I didn’t want her to hear about this after she returns to Erebor; she would never forgive me for that, but I did keep the letters around your quest in a special code so no one would know what I was writing about should the missives not reach their intended recipient.”

“How did she take the news?”

“Oh she was infuriated at first,” Thorin told her, wincing as he remembered the rage filled letters he’d gotten from his sister when she was told about what her youngest was involved in. “But she was proud as well. Dis was fairly amazed by Kili’s maturity in agreeing to separate from his brother and go with you to offer what support he could.”

“I wouldn’t have been able to do it without him,” Hawthorn shared in a soft voice. “Helka and the others were protective, always ensuring we were safe, but Kili made sure to stay by my side no matter what. He listened to me when I had nightmares whenever you and I didn’t meet in dreams, soothing me with hugs and telling me about what we would expect when we got home. He shared memories of his childhood, talking about you, his mother, and Fili. I think he shared every memory where he got into trouble while growing up just to see me smile.”

The king pressed a kiss to her temple, encouraging her to eat more before answering her.

“I am happy he was with you and able to encourage you to continue onward,” he stated. “I had hoped he would be able to do so as well as protect you.”

“He did,” she said after swallowing another bite of food. “You, Fili, and Dis have plenty of reason to be proud of him for his actions during the journey.”

Thorin nodded, content to have her in his arms as he had missed her greatly. He looked around the room, spying Fili with his brother. Balin had not left Dwalin’s side either, and Helka had been dragged into sitting with Fili and Kili. The dam looked content as she ate, listening to the younger dwarrow as they spoke.

His family was nearly whole; it would be complete once his sister arrived in Erebor. He didn’t expect her until mid to late spring, if not later, and he was eager to see her once more. The king needed his family together under the safety of Erebor’s stone before he could feel fully secure.

He was dragged from his thoughts when someone asked for the story of Hawthorn’s adventure, and Oin was quick to intervene before he could.

“Let her eat and rest,” the healer stated. “Tomorrow, if she feels up to it, she can share the story so it can be written by Ori.”

The scribe beamed at that, and Hawthorn gave a soft sigh.

“What is it, laslel?”

“I don’t know if it’s a story to be written,” she answered her betrothed, sounding tired and a little ashamed.

“Why do you say that,” Thorin asked, gently moving the hair out of her face.

“It was a nightmare that became worse the closer we drew to Mordor,” the hobbit said in a voice too soft to be heard by anyone other than her dwarf. “The journey to the borders wasn’t bad, but the ring grew heavier with each mile that passed once we stepped onto the cursed land. As the burden grew heavier, the dreams became worse whenever you and I parted each night. It got where I couldn’t eat much, even with the others encouraging me to do so. Every step we took drained so much energy from me, and it was all I could do to keep my head up and continue walking.

“There were some days where just getting up or trying to eat was difficult,” she shared, trembling somewhat. “I could sense you, but the ring kept trying to distract me from the bond. It played on every fear and insecurity I had in hopes of finding a way to its master. Thorin, there were times I wanted it all to stop and I didn’t care how.”

His arms tightened, giving her comfort while his voice softly murmured his answer in her ear.

“That thing was beyond evil, and you held against it. You didn’t succumb to the whispers or exhaustion, and you let others help you when things reached where you didn’t think you could do it on your own. You showed true strength, Hawthorn, and I am so proud of you.”

She trembled in his arms, nearly spilling her soup but managing to keep it steady. Hawthorn had needed to hear that from him and was so glad to know he wasn’t disappointed in her. His arms tightened again as he sensed it and continued speaking to her.

“We are all proud of you,” he murmured. “Never doubt that. We are proud, and the dwarrow of Erebor will be the same as your story is told and passed down. Every generation will know of the gentle queen whose strength saved us all, giving us hope for a brighter future.”

She reached up, unable to speak due to the emotion that tightened her throat, and rested her hand against his arm. Her hand gently squeezed, telling him she was grateful and was taking comfort in what he had told her.

Thorin kissed the top of her head, heartened that she had found comfort in his words.

“Eat now, Hawthorn. You need to recover your strength,” he told her, glad to see her resume eating.

They would have to keep a watchful eye on her to ensure she ate and rested properly. Thorin feared it would take some time to heal from the wounds left behind by both the ring and the quest to destroy it. He would ensure to do what he could to help her and knew the others would too.

Author’s End Note – The endearments used by Thorin are translated here. Ukradel means greatest heart of all hearts, laslel means rose of all roses. I found these endearments on a list written by poplitealqueen on her tumblr. I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter; there’s still more to come. Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all of you. I’ll see you next chapter! ~ Laran
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Mending the Broken Pieces