It was good to be home. He did not like diplomacy visits, even if it was other dwarves. Thankfully, it had gone well - they were getting more dwarves coming in from Ered Luin soon enough, once they had gathered themselves and their livelihoods together, and trade was going to pick back up. It had only taken a little bit of haggling - but trade with their kin? Was something they wanted to keep ahold of.

Balin had proposed that he contact the dwarves of the Red Mountains - in truth, it was a good idea. They had come to their aid when he was young, during the War between Dwarves and Orcs, and they would likely be good partners to have today. Trading would be slow and long, if they did it, but it would be beneficial to have them as allies... Thorin wasn't going to travel, though. Perhaps Fili or Kili.

Brushing by those thoughts for now, the beleaguered dwarf stepped through the secret passage that he had had installed - they needed another secret entrance/exit to the mountain, other than one that could only be entered on one day of the year. It was hidden away in the lower levels of the kingdom, at the base of the mountain, and wasn't visible from the outside - unless you knew where the stone parted to let you in, you could not see it.

Tired, he stepped through, each footstep heavy and loud, but it was mostly soundproof - Bombur had tested it for him, and even his heavy steps were barely heard. He was wet from the rain, haggered, and did not carry any hallmarks of being a king at the moment - good. He hardly wanted to get stopped by any of his subjects, not now. He needed to go back and talk to Balin and then get clean. The mud spattered up the side of his blue coat, coupled with in his silvering hair... Clean sounded nice. With one last grunt, Thorin finished stepping down the stone tunnel, glancing through the peephole to ensure that no one was out there, before he heaved the stone cover aside, stepping out, and then slid it back into place.

Unless you know what you were looking for...

Satisfied that his passage was safe, Thorin turned, following the noise of the mountain until he hit the edge of the marketplace, and could relax. The scent of breads in the air, the laughter and hubbub of the people, no longer starving, and the lights that made everything so bright and cheerful... It was a weight lifted off his shoulders, that ever appeared when he was away. The mountain was safe. His people were safe.

And for some very long moments, the exhausted, wet, mud-spattered and likely poor-looking King stood at the entrance to the market, surveying all of it with a ghost of a smile.