Alive - Fili Durin

51 || Dur-End

(Updated A/N at the end)

A month had passed since the banquet and Leo and Fili had been swept up in planning for the wedding, establishing pre-royal policies, and beginning their task of helping their people. Now, only a day before their wedding, Leo and Fili were up much earlier than usual to get ready to travel to the Shire. According to Balin, who had been traveling back and forth to the Shire to check Bilbo, many of the guests had already arrived there early. The young couple and the Company scrambled around Erebor as they planned to leave as soon as possible. Dis had arrived early with some of her kin as she wanted to check every little detail at least six times.

Balin stood at the gates of the Mountain, checking off anything the dwarves carted out and strapped onto the eagles. One Fili and Leo and emerged with only a few things, he deemed it was go-time.

"Alright, lads...and little lass! Let's get a move on! There's a lot to do when we get there!"

The dwarves and Leo climbed up the feathered transport and braced themselves for the short journey. Leo, of course, rode with Fili, sitting in front of him so he could wrap his arms around her as an extra safety measure. She sighed contently, leaning her head back on his shoulder and closing her eyes as their eagles began to soar to the Shire.

A while later, Leo's eyes fluttered open as a hand gently patted her thigh to wake her. Tilting her head back to look into Fili's smiling eyes, he placed a kiss on her forehead before nodding towards the ground below the still in-flight eagles. Leaning carefully to look at the ground, her heart was filled with joy to see the green rolling hills and...a sea of hobbits. Shirefolk emerged from their homes at the sounds of the dwarves' arrival overhead as they crowded in the pasture to look in awe and celebrate.

Bilbo had written to Leo and explained to her how she had become a celebrity in the Shire since it is not too often a hobbit does much of anything notable - especially becoming a queen. He had said that every hobbit had expressed their excitement for the wedding...meaning every hobbit would be at the wedding. This would be an event like the Shire had never seen before and it was one that would go down in history for both races - a very unique unity indeed.

Leo grinned at the waving hobbits standing around the heavily decorated Shire.

"They've outdone themselves haven't they?" Fili remarked with a smile.

"Well," Dwalin began, "I don't assume it's every day the hobbits get to meet a princess. Am I right, Leo? Did ye ever see a hobbit princess?"

She shook her head. "Never."

"Ah! See!"

Fili rolled his eyes at Dwalin's dramatics before tightening his grip on Leo as the eagles began to land in a large pasture. The hobbits quickly made their way to the landing plane to greet Leo and the dwarves. Once landed, Fili slide off first before standing on the ground to catch Leo. Once he had caught her in his hands, instead of setting her immediately on the ground, she lifted her up into the air to provoke a laugh from her.