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Early 2022 – Arkenstone Palace, the Kingdom of Erebor
A mobile phone buzzed on the table. Bilbo looked over from where he was standing by the window contemplating the steady evening rain. A follow-up buzz a few moments later compelled him to see who was trying to reach him at this hour.
He and Thorin had just returned from celebrating the grand-opening of a new restaurant adjacent to the Hidden Door brewery. Many of Thorin’s friends had been there and they had had a lot of fun. Kíli and Frodo had dropped in as well, on their way to a more ‘lively’ location, or so they claimed. Bilbo suspected they were hoping to catch the last ferry to Rhovanion for the night to meet up with Legolas and Gimli for the weekend.
Bilbo picked up the phone, while sitting down on the couch, to see two texts from Professor Grey:
Turn on the television.
Now.
Thorin was still in the bathroom, finishing up a quick shower, so Bilbo absently flipped on the TV to see what had Gandalf all in a tizzy.
The BBC headlines instantly grabbed his attention.
Massive earthquake strikes Colombian-Venezuelan boarder.
Reports of heavy damage throughout parts of Colombia and the mountain kingdom of Encanto.
The follow-up teaser was even crazier: Missing crown prince recovered after ten years! Heir to the Encantan throne, Bruno Madrigal, found safely nearby.
“Hey Thorin, who’s Bruno Madrigal?” Bilbo called at the closed bathroom door.
A second later, it cracked open a few inches, “What?”
“Who’s Bruno Madrigal?”
A moment of silence followed.
“We don’t talk about Bruno.”
Bilbo rolled his eyes. “Yes, yes, I get it. We don’t talk about S.M.A.U.G., Fight Club…and now apparently, Bruno?”
Thorin sighed and stepped into the bedroom, “Where’d you hear that name?”
“Gandalf, and the BBC.”
Thorin dropped on the couch next to Bilbo, his attention captured. “Shh…”
The two men stared quietly at the screen for the next few minutes, waiting for any breaking updates.
Thorin ran his fingers through his hair. “I just can’t believe it.” He jumped to his feet suddenly. “I have to call Gandalf.”
Bilbo wordlessly handed over his phone.
Thorin scrolled impatiently through the favorites list. “I don’t see him in here…oh, there he is….” The king snickered at the screen name: ‘Meddlesome Wizard.’
Gandalf picked up before the phone even rang. “Yes, Your Majesty?”
Thorin almost asked how the professor knew it was him, but quickly though better of it. “What have you been able to find out?”
“Little beyond what the news is reporting. My calls to the Queen’s secretary have gone unanswered and my other contacts are unreachable due to widespread power outages.”
“Osvaldo never answers his phone,” Thorin muttered. “I’ll try to reach Julieta tomorrow. Thank you, Gandalf.”
“Of course, Your Majesty. If I hear anything sooner, I’ll contact Ori immediately.”
The call ended and the king passed the phone back to Bilbo. He walked over to the bed and sank down. “I can hardly believe it,” he said again.
Bilbo climbed on the bed behind Thorin and rubbed his shoulders lightly. “Why have I never heard about this?”
Thorin sagged against Bilbo. “Bruno disappeared about a year or so before you and I collided downstairs. We always saw each other at functions throughout the years…most memorably, during his sister’s wedding. They had a massive hurricane.”
“I didn’t think they got hurricanes that far south?”
“Who knows? But after that, he wanted to get away for a while. Doctors don’t let him fly though, so we borrowed a boat in Cartagena and then hid out at Uther’s estate on Anguilla for a month or two. Drank and lamented our situations: the king who’d do anything to be back in his kingdom and the crown prince who’d do anything to escape his…” Thorin trailed off. “But he would never do less than his duty, which is why I just couldn’t understand why he just…vanished.”
Bilbo looked at the TV again and raised his eyebrow at the old picture they were showing. “He’s short with curly hair? I’m beginning to think you have a type.”
“What, no! Bilbo…you’re my heart. Our relationship was entirely platonic. I never saw him look at anyone – male, female, or anything in between. Uther even tried to set him up a few times when he managed to snag a boat to England, never worked though.” Thorin smiled fondly at the memory. “I’ll have to dig out some pictures in the morning.”
“Yes, morning! Which will be here sooner than we’d like if we don’t get to sleep.” Bilbo finished pulling down the blankets while Thorin went to complete his ablutions. “Good night, husband,” he said, settling onto his side when Thorin re-joined him a few minutes later.
“Good night, Kurdûh.”
Morning arrived too soon, accompanied by a loud bang on the door. Bilbo pulled the pillow over his head and kicked at Thorin to answer.
“Go away!” the king snapped in Khudzul.
“It’s me, my prince,” responded a voice in English.
Oh, it was Dwalin.
The commander continued, “I’ve news from Professor Grey, along with a possible number to reach Queen Alma in a few hours. Also, tea from Bombur.”
Thorin dragged himself out of bed. Not as young as he used to be. “Come in then.”
When Bilbo heard ‘tea,’ he sat up. “I suppose I’ll join you. Are there any scones?” he asked Dwalin.
Dwalin smirked. Some things never changed.
“Yes. There’s a whole tray. Bombur heard what happened and came to work early this morning.”
Mim followed behind Dwalin with the breakfast cart and wheeled it next to the table in the corner of the room. “If you need anything else, sir, just call.”
“Thank you.” Thorin nodded his head in dismissal and sat at the table, while Bilbo poured drinks and plated himself a scone.
Dwalin handed Thorin a small sheaf of documents. “Regular daily updates in there as well.”
After grabbing his own pastry, Dwalin detailed the information he’d received from both Gandalf and Nori, who’d reported some extra tidbits that even the Professor hadn’t gathered. “Seems like he never left.”
“What?” Thorin gasped.
“Yes, he hid in the palace the entire time, with help from a few trusted aides.”
Thorin whispered something in Khazdul that Bilbo didn’t quite catch.
Dwalin responded similarly and Bilbo gave up. Despite his best efforts and talent with languages, more than basic Khazdul eluded him even after almost eight years of full-time residency. He took the opportunity to pick up a few photographs from the pile.
“Wow, his eyes are bright!” Bilbo was surprised at the vividness, even in the telephoto ones.
Thorin returned to English for a moment, declaring, “I promised him the biggest emeralds from the mines to match his eyes, if he would come for my coronation.”
Bilbo and Dwalin both snorted, but Bilbo continued, “And you said you weren’t smitten.”
Thorin shrugged.
Bilbo finished his drink and hastened toward the bathroom to prepare for the day. “Anyway, I’ll catch up with you on the rest of the details later. I’ve got a cooking school demonstration and then a Zoom with Guinevere and Merlin. Something about their anniversary and Arthur being a dolt.”
When Bilbo returned a few hours later, he almost knocked Ori over as the younger man dashed down the hallway.
“Where’s the fire?”
Ori smiled, always pleased to see the other man. “Ah, Mr. Bilbo! His Majesty is in his office waiting for a call from Queen Alma. The number that Commander Dwalin had this morning went out before he was able to reach them. ”
Bilbo turned then and followed Ori, who began speaking again. “It’s miraculous. I recall that the king was very troubled when Prince Bruno disappeared. There had even been talk of sending a support team to Encanto, but Queen Alma ultimately declined. Odd.” Ori shrugged. “I know Thorin would take the world apart to find Fíli or Kíli.”
Bilbo nodded in agreement. They paused after reaching Thorin’s private office, waiting as Ori knocked on the door.
“Come,” Thorin responded.
Bilbo trailed in behind Ori to see Dwalin and Balin lounging on their favorite couch, with Nori perched near the window. It had been almost three years before Bilbo had realized Nori had another job besides ‘working at the mountain.’ He walked over and gave Thorin a quick kiss before finding his own seat.
Ori went straight to the phone on Thorin’s desk. “Sir, if you’re ready, Osvaldo is standing by on the other end.”
“Yes, put us through.”
Everyone held their breath as they waited for the line to connect after Ori dialed.
“ ¿Aló?”
“Ah, Osvaldo, this is Ori. King Thorin is ready to speak to Queen Alma now.”
“Si, un momento, por favor.”
Another moment passed and then they heard the Queen speak. She sounded exhausted. “King Thorin, thank you for calling.”
“Queen Alma, I’m so sorry to hear about the earthquake. Erebor stands ready to provide any requested aid for Encanto.” Thorin began with the diplomatic niceties, but Bilbo could tell he just wanted to ask about Bruno.
“Por supesto. Of course. Encanto is grateful to accept your offer of aid.”
The phone line cut out for a second and Thorin scowled. “Alma, please, before we lose the connection. How is Bruno?”
They didn’t hear anything and Bilbo though perhaps the call had failed.
“Ay, Brunito,” the queen murmured. “It’s been a lot, Thorin. I won’t lie. But, Mirabel has brought him home. I know he’ll want to speak to you when he can. We’ll have to see.”
They heard a commotion on the other end, which turned into a muffled argument.
Suddenly, a new voice broke in, “Thorin, it’s Julieta. I’ll get Bruno to call you as soon as he wakes up. Prometo. What’s the best way for him to reach you?”
Thorin gave her his private cell. “Thank you, Julieta. I really appreciate it.”
“Hablamos pronto. We’ll talk soon. ¿De acuerdo?”
“Yes. Ciao, Julieta.” Thorin hit the end button. He glanced around the room at his advisors. “I want a flight to Encanto as soon as we have clearance.”
“But Thorin,” Balin began. “I don’t think…”
The king stood up and interrupted, “No ‘but Thorin’s. Bruno was missing…for 10 aklâf years! And no one did anything about it. Including me, to my eternal shame. If I have to bring him back to Erebor, I will.”
Bilbo caught Ori’s eye, who gave him the same shrug he had in the hallway as if to say, “See, I told you so.” Well, a swearing Thorin always meant business, so perhaps this was the start of a new adventure.
“I call dibs on first class,” Bilbo announced with a smile, ready to support Thorin's quest.
“There is no first class on Thorin’s plane, you daft Englishman,” Dwalin replied. “And no one’s agreed to anything yet.”
“That’s ‘Your Grace you daft Englishman’ to you.” Bilbo mostly ignored his consort title except when it came to Dwalin. He married Thorin because he loved him, not because he wanted to be the Duke or Prince of anything, but he made an exception for Dwalin.
“I think it was a joke,” Ori interjected.
Bilbo nodded, “Fine, how about…‘last one packed is a rotten egg.’”
Even that escaped Ori apparently. “Yuck?”
“Sorry, it’s an American thing. But no, seriously, do I need a visa?”
This time they all laughed. Encanto better watch out, because Thorin and his company were on the way.