Hobbit 1. Chapter 1, An Unexpected Traveller

The Hobbit had spent two days barricaded in his house, afraid to come out after his little encounter with Gandalf.

On the third day, Bilbo had felt ridiculous for being held prisoner in his own home by a crotchety old Wizard, and had braced himself as he took a step out into the bright day light. Bilbo had half expected Gandalf to jump out of the shrubs in front of his mailbox and frighten him, but after another couple of jumpy days, the Halfling had more or less returned to his regular routine.

But now, a week later, sitting at the fire place cooking a nice fish for supper, Bilbo wondered idly about the Wizard.

Perhaps he had changed his mind about the whole adventure nonsense, or better yet, maybe he had found someone more agreeably suited for the journey.

Bilbo was still a fairly young Hobbit, but like many of his kind, he was very fond of food and found himself having to re-tailor his breeches a bit more often now than he liked to admit. What he was trying to say was that he was in no shape to go gallivanting off on a nit witted adventure like some bottle headed Took.

Bilbo stopped for a second, chuckled and mentally chided himself as he remembered his mother. Yes, she was a Took and he meant her no disrespect, but he was a Baggins.

And a Baggins was responsible, mature and sensible.

Besides, who would take care of his vegetable garden? Or feed the hens, or milk Lassie and Lidya?

"Utter nonsense." Bilbo said to himself.

But then in spite of himself, he looked around his comfy little hobbit hole; at all the maps and books he had read throughout the years scattered across the floor and thought that maybe, just maybe, a little change in routine once in a while might do him some good...

Bilbo abruptly shook his noggin to get the preposterous thoughts out of his head.

Then seeing as his fish was cooked just the way he liked it, nice and seared on both sides, Bilbo smiled and chuckled again suddenly. He was in a fine mood and was quite excited to sit down to supper as it had already been two full hours since his last meal.

He began to hum a little tune and went to grab a nice lemon he had picked up from the market yesterday.

As though sensing the proximity of the food, Bilbo's stomach began to rumble and without further hesitation he sat down, flicked out his napkin before tucking it into his collar and set out to eat.

Just as he went to stab the succulent fish with his fork though, his doorbell went off.

Bilbo froze and instead of wondering who would be disturbing him, he sat contemplating whether or not to just ignore the unexpected visitor and bite into his fish, which now seemed to be calling to him.

Just one bite, Bilbo thought, but before he could even make another attempt at skewering the fish, the bell rang once more.

"For the love of-" Bilbo muttered under his breath. He placed his silverware back on the table and ripped his napkin from his collar as he tore himself away from his lovely supper.

His good mood was evaporating quickly.

"You, don't go anywhere." Bilbo turned and said as he pointed sternly at his supper. "I will be right back."

The dead fish simply laid there.

Bilbo nodded to himself and tightened his robe around his waist before opening the circular green door, an excuse already on his tongue for anyone who wanted to visit tonight. He was simply not in the mood to entertain... or to share his food.

"Sorry, but I'm not –" Bilbo froze and felt as his words died in his throat.

It was a dwarf.

There was a dwarf standing in his doorway.

Whatever the Hobbit had been expecting, it had surely not been this.

"H-hi." Bilbo stammered uncertainly, completely forgetting where he was and what he was doing for a second.

"Dwalin, at your service." The dwarf said in a deep, gruff voice with an odd accent. He bowed deeply so Bilbo was at eye level with his shiny bald head.

Bilbo saw that although there was no hair on his head, there were some strange markings that stretched across the expanse of his leathery looking skull.

Dwalin the dwarf straightened and the Hobbit had a chance to properly see him for the first time, as his shock was slowly wearing off. Unfortunately for little Bilbo, shock had been replaced with fear, excitement, wonder and awe all at once; and it was making him feel a bit queasy.

The Hobbit was staring at the dwarf's arms now. Each strand of muscle was as big as his leg!

"Ahem." The short, loud noise Dwalin made clearing his throat made Bilbo snap out of his examination and he looked up to see the dwarf raise a thick furry eyebrow in impatience.

"Oh!" Bilbo said suddenly, his cheeks flushing as he remembered his manners. "Bilbo Baggins, at your service." The Hobbit tried to mimic the dwarf's bow but ended up stumbling and caught himself on Dwalin's belt instead.

"Get your hands away from my crotch." The Dwarf growled viciously as he stood glaring daggers at poor Master Baggins.

"Yes, yes sorry." Bilbo said hastily straightening himself up and brushing off his robe even though it was perfectly clean.

He could feel his cheeks grow scarlet again and he backed away as Dwalin made his way into Bag End.

"Um, excuse me!" piped up Bilbo sheepishly, still quite embarrassed. "But, do we know each other?"

"No." The dwarf said in a voice that made it seem as though he thought Bilbo was daft. "Where is it then, Laddie?" Dwalin said suddenly taking off his weather beaten cloak.

Bilbo still stood in his doorway with a look of utter confusion on his round face. "Where is what, exactly?"

The dwarf turned on him and Bilbo shrank up against the wall.

"Supper of course! He said there'd be food." With that Dwalin turned towards the kitchen and threw his cloak at Bilbo, who now had absolutely no trace of his previous good spirits left.

As the Hobbit went to hang up the musty smelling cloak he felt serious regret at not taking a bite out of his fish the first chance he got. He desperately hoped that somehow the strange dwarf had not seen it yet.

Scurrying as fast as his furry feet could take him, Bilbo burst into the kitchen only to find Dwalin biting the head clean off his supper.

"It's really good, this." The dwarf said examining the skeletal remains of the fish as though it were made of gold. "Got any more?"

Bilbo let out a weary sigh and looked at his raisin cakes in despair, wondering how this evening could possibly get any worse.


	2. Chapter 2, Food, Farts and Females

Barely an hour had passed and the poor hobbit now had thirteen dwarves, one wizard, an empty pantry and an absolutely filthy washroom to deal with.

Well at least the dishes were clean, thought Bilbo trying to cheer himself up.

He was sitting a little separate from the table behind Gandalf and watched as the tall dwarf ate the soup that had been saved for him. The wizard had introduced him as Thorin Oakenshield and although Bilbo was quite intimidated by the dwarf, he perhaps felt a little gratitude towards him for as soon as his loud knocks were heard upon the door, the boisterous group had fallen blissfully silent.

Gandalf asked Thorin about which path he had taken to get to Bag End and when the dwarf spoke of passing Bilbo's garden three times before spotting the sign on the door, the wizard suddenly went stiff. Thorin noticed the change in Gandalf's posture and raised a thick, feathery brow in response.

"Oh, nothing nothing. Just a little something that slipped my mind." Gandalf said dismissing the topic with a wave of his wrinkled hand as he slowly got up from his seat.

Before turning to leave, he carefully selected a small bun from the plate that was laid before Thorin as well as a burning candle from the mantle. Then without another word of explanation the wizard walked out of the kitchen (ducking to make sure he didn't hit his head this time) and out Bilbo's green door.

The dwarves and Bilbo stared after Gandalf in confusion for a moment before the fattest dwarf sitting at the end of the table farted loudly and rather shamelessly.

A hoot of laughter rose from the entire table, and although Bilbo could only think of burning the seat cover Bombur was sitting on at the moment, his eyes suddenly fell on Thorin.

The corner of the dwarf's lips barely curled upwards to form what the Hobbit thought was the closest thing to a smile Thorin's face could conjure without breaking.

"That was nothing!" Yelled the young dwarf with dark brown hair sitting next to Bombur. "This one's been churning my stomach for hours- I call it; the Defiler."

Before Bilbo could cry out to protest in fear of having to burn two of his seat covers, Thorin's voice cut through the air in a loud, resounding boom, nearly making the Hobbit fall out of his seat.

"Kili!"

The entire room fell deathly silent.

"Do not _ever _speak that name again." Thorin said in a menacing voice.

The Hobbit was completely clueless as to what had just happened, but he felt sorry for the young dwarf nonetheless and stole a glance at Kili.

The dwarf's brown hair was falling slightly into his downcast eyes which were staring intently at the wooden table. There was a slight blush in his cheeks that made him look like a child after being scolded for having too many biscuits before bed time.

Bilbo's eyes now turned to Thorin.

He had simply returned to eating his supper with disinterest and for some reason this brought forth a wave of irritation and hostility in Bilbo towards the leader. How could he be so harsh to his own kin and then act as if nothing had happened?

And before the Halfling knew what he was doing, he began to speak.

"Bit excessive, don't you think? He didn't even do anything and it's not as though you're his father or-"

Thorin's pale blue eyes slowly turned to him, flashing with anger, and Bilbo choked on his own words, desperately wishing he could sew his own mouth shut.

It was as if the entire room sat, holding its breath, waiting for Bilbo to be torn a new Hobbit hole when Gandalf suddenly reappeared.

Seeming to notice the tense atmosphere in the room and the daggers Thorin was glaring at a very flustered Bilbo, the wizard cleared his throat in a grandiose manner.

Thorin peeled his eyes from Bilbo to look at Gandalf, and the Hobbit was so grateful that he almost didn't hear what the wizard said next.

"I would like you all to meet a very special guest."

Bilbo's first thought was that if it was another dwarf, he would set Bag End on fire to simply get rid of the lot, but then Gandalf continued.

"She has been entrusted in my care for a short time a-"

At this Thorin spoke, not even letting the wizard finish his sentence.

"She?" Bilbo could hear the distaste in Thorin's deep voice as he turned to face Gandalf in his chair.

"Yes, Thorin."

"We do not wish to meet her, nor is she welcome to our discussions." Thorin said gruffly as he turned back to his supper. Quiet murmurs of agreement went around the table and the little Hobbit was appalled at their rudeness, having half a mind to say something.

However he had learnt his lesson about speaking out from before, so he kept his mouth shut and returned his attention to Gandalf.

Bilbo saw the flash of anger that crossed the wizard's wrinkled face but it was gone in an instant.

"Then it is a good thing you are not the one to decide if Vanya is wel -" Gandalf tried to finish his sentence however it was drowned out by Thorin and a majority of the others as they cried in outrage and sat up from their seats.

"Vanya?" Thorin asked, spitting the name out as though someone had sprayed cow manure into his mouth. "An _**elf**_?" The last word was loaded and Bilbo saw the look of absolute hatred and fury that momentarily blackened the dwarf's icy eyes.

Bilbo on the other hand was ecstatic at the thought of being graced with the presence of a she-elf!

"Sit down you fools." Gandalf said in a deep voice that was dripping with acid. He waited until everyone, except for Thorin, was back in their seats before he disappeared from view for a moment.

The tall dwarf stood facing the door way, hands crossed sternly over his broad chest and stout legs spread apart. His eyes were cold and unforgiving as Gandalf's voice reached them from somewhere close by. "Decide for yourselves whether she is an elf or not."

Gandalf stepped back into view only to turn and bow slightly to the girl as she passed him and stepped sheepishly into the kitchen.

It was as if the air had been sucked out of the room and all of them had forgotten how to talk or even breathe.

The girl's big brown eyes were now staring uncomfortably at Gandalf, who had taken his seat. The old wizard smiled encouragingly at her but she seemed to take no comfort in his gesture.

Her small frame was rigid and tense and she seemed to shrink under the gaze of the fifteen pairs of eyes that were studying her intently. She bowed her head slightly and Bilbo noticed the way her long black hair cascaded in waves down her shoulders.

Bilbo was definitely transfixed by the girl's beauty, but then taking a quick look around the table, he suddenly realized that so was everyone else.

Including Thorin.


	3. Chapter 3, Like Lavender and Honey

_Thanks to everyone for the reviews and follows! Also sorry about the long chapter, but I hope you enjoy it._

The rightful King of Erebor stood staring at the girl for a moment. His mind had gone completely blank and in spite of himself, all he could do was stand there like a halfwit and watch her.

Her face was small and her skin was as white as the snow capped mountains he had journeyed across so many times before. Her clothes were much too big for her, hiding her figure and even then, something about the way she held herself troubled Thorin.

It was as though she was in pain and struggling to stand upright.

Only a few seconds had passed since she had entered the room and Thorin suddenly realized that everyone was waiting for him to do something.

Shifting his weight onto his left foot and breathing deeply, the dwarf tried to regain his composure.

"Thorin?" Balin asked gently. The elderly dwarf had only spoken out of kindness, to offer aid to his leader; however it had an entirely different effect on Thorin who lifted a broad hand to silence him.

Thorin was quick to anger, and he could feel his cheeks beginning to flush now; the promise of an oncoming storm. This girl had caused him to lower his defenses and in doing so had nearly made him look like an incompetent fool in front of his kin.

On top of it all, she might be an _elf_.

The last thought brought Thorin completely back to his senses and he was glowering by the time he opened his mouth to speak; perhaps being too rough with her than he should have been.

"Your name." Thorin commanded instantly although Gandalf had mentioned it before. He straightened up to his full height, which was quite impressive for a dwarf, and he knew then he would not be caught off guard again.

"Vanya." The girl said quietly. She seemed to be transfixed by a single point on the wooden floor and abruptly clasped a small hand to her stomach. She winced in pain for a split second before relaxing her elegant features once more.

He was about to ask if she needed to rest when he almost kicked himself for letting his mind wander again, and fiercely chased the thought out of his head.

"Where do you come from?" Thorin asked with no trace of kindness.

The girl stood with her eyes still looking at the floor when she answered him.

"Rilige of Bee." She said mumbling.

"Speak up!" Thorin barked and immediately felt a fleeting pang of regret when he saw Vanya jump at his voice.

Her brown eyes had remained glued to the floor however and this annoyed Thorin to no extent, dismissing his previous lapse in irritation.

"T-The Village of Bree." She said again, only a little louder than before but Thorin heard her this time. Her accent was clearly not that of an elf's, but it was also something the dwarf did not recognize. "I work at the Inn of the Prancing Pony as -"

"A whore?" Thorin had not meant this to be rude or scathing, only that someone with her beauty could be purchased for a very fine price.

He heard a loud huff behind him and knew it was the Halfling, probably ready to beat him over the head with something. This almost made Thorin smile, until he saw that he had made mistake.

The girl's brown eyes flashed up to meet Thorin's icy gaze for the first time. Although struck by her beauty again, he realized that her eyes were ablaze with anger.

The dwarf was taken aback by her intense reaction and before he could explain himself she spoke, louder and with much more confidence than before.

"Do you enjoy having a tongue, Master Dwarf?"

Thorin was completely bewildered by her question but kept the confusion from his features; he simply stood with his arms still crossed and raised an eyebrow disinterestedly towards her.

"Because if you call me a whore again, I shall see that it is cut out for you." Vanya said this with a complete look of calm, her eyes giving the only sign that she was furious.

Thorin was literally left speechless for a moment and could hear as Dwalin and a couple of other dwarves stood up, yelling in fury.

However, all Thorin could do was let out a small, incredulous scoff as he raised his hand again, silently telling the others to sit down.

Thorin was rightfully annoyed by her comment; no one had spoken to him like that before without paying dearly for it. However he could not help but feel a slight sense of admiration towards the girl for defending her honour.

That being said, it was still not a woman's place to behave like that and Thorin felt she needed to be taught a lesson.

He took a few heavy steps towards the girl, closing the gap between them until they were less than a foot apart.

Thorin noted she was a head shorter than he was, but certainly no dwarf or Halfling.

She tilted her head back slightly to glare at Thorin.

To his satisfaction, he could tell her previous anger had faded and there was now a look of timidity in her eyes although she tried to hide it.

Stubborn... We shall see how far that gets her, thought Thorin.

"Are you challenging me, little girl?" The dwarf asked with a condescending smirk as he leaned in, whispering menacingly into Vanya's ear which was covered from his sight by her wavy hair.

He had done this merely to intimidate her, to make her uncomfortable. He meant to pull away immediately and return to his seat, but then he took a small breath and was absolutely floored.

Her scent left his head spinning with a harsh, throbbing desire that he had not felt in decades.

Thorin stood blinking stupidly with shock and confusion, shaking his head slightly as he straightened himself so that he was looking down upon the girl again.

She did not answer his question, nor did he expect her to; instead, her big brown eyes shining in the candlelight looked up into his own with a glare that could blister paint. All signs of timidity gone.

As menacing as she was trying to be, her hostility only seemed to draw the dwarf closer as he could now feel her breasts grazing his chest as they rose and fell to the jagged rhythm of her breathing.

Thorin lost track of how long he stood staring at the girl, and it was only when she bowed her head once more in defeat, when the dwarf spoke again.

"No." he said quietly, not being finished with her just yet, and she slowly looked back up. Her feathery brows were knit together in what the dwarf could not distinguish between anger or fear.

She had managed to cause a thick lock of wavy hair to come loose by having bowed her head so quickly, and it settled just at the end of her left eye. She was trying to ignore it but Thorin could see that it was bothering her.

She began blinking furiously, only making her long lashes catch thin strands of hair, irritating her eye even more.

And suddenly, Thorin heard a tiny voice at the back of his brain calling out to him, trying to clear his head and get him to walk back to his seat as he should have done long before.

Only, whatever Thorin had told himself about not letting his guard down again was out the window and halfway to Weathertop at this point. And instead, Thorin found his hand lifting up towards the girl's face.

His fingers stopped an inch from her left cheek. He only vaguely noted the confusion that painted her features as he was busy wondering what in Durin's name he was doing himself. Whatever it was though, he felt compelled to do so.

Slowly and timidly, as though her face were an open flame he might burn himself upon, Thorin placed his fingers upon her cheek and grazed her smooth, soft skin moving upwards. Her skin was almost feverish against his cool touch and at first she cringed, but then straightened out and held as still as a statue.

He could feel her heartbeat, it was rapid now matching his own, as he caught the strand of hair between his index and middle fingers, pulling it away from her enthralling face.

She was so tiny, thought the dwarf, and noticed how his hand was bigger than her entire face. He could probably crush her skull with one fist.

His hand had moved the thick piece of hair from the corner of her eye and gently tucked it behind her ear.

Perhaps if Thorin had not been in such a daze, he would have noticed the odd feeling of her ear and how it did not feel like the soft, smooth skin on her face.

Instead, the dwarf found himself leaning in closer to the girl, whose eyes had yet to leave his, until their noses were an inch apart. He paused for a moment, breathing her in again.

The smell of her breath was simply intoxicating; like lavender and honey.

It was the same scent on her hair, except much more potent and it made Thorin have to fight against the growing excitement in his breeches with everything that he was worth.

"Uncle?"

Thorin blinked suddenly and it was as though his nephew's voice had triggered a huge, ice cold wave to wash over him.

Slowly but surely, the dwarf began to regain his senses.

He saw how inappropriately close he had gotten to the girl, and could feel the excitement churning deep in his stomach begin to fade away.

He straightened himself out and saw that his hand was still by the ear he had tucked her hair behind.

Her ears.

Thorin abruptly recalled why he was questioning her and found an explanation to excuse his absurd behaviour.

"She is no elf." Thorin declared loudly reclaiming his hand. He did not give Vanya a second glance as he walked away from her. "Her ears are not pointed."

Thorin tried to avoid the flabbergasted and questioning stares his company was giving him as he retook his seat and began finishing his supper, his eyes never leaving the bowl in front of him.

It was quiet for a few seconds more until Gandalf stood and if Thorin had been looking at Gandalf, he would have noticed the odd twinkle in the wizard's bright blue eyes.

However, Thorin only heard him position an empty chair beside the Halfling's, and then carefully escort the girl to the seat.

She was definitely hurt or ill. Somewhere deep inside the dwarf, he felt a hint of concern bubble up, but it was quashed immediately.

Thorin had no intentions of letting himself care for this unwelcome stranger.

Slowly, he heard his kin begin to whisper, then talk, and soon he heard them laughing and joking again, acting as though they had forgotten about the entire ordeal.

Although Thorin knew they hadn't, in fact he could practically feel Balin's questioning eyes boring holes into his head, but it mattered not.

He would not be caught in that position again. And this time he swore it.

He began to tell himself that the girl was most likely a vagrant or some other kind disgraced and disgusting person, in no way worthy of a king such as himself.

Thorin tried to tell himself lies about this girl, when the truth was that she had awakened something in him that he had long ago thought to be dead. And for this, he hated her.


	4. Chapter 4, Magnetic

_Thank you again to everyone for your support! It really means a lot! This chapter was a doozy to write, so I hope you all like it. _

Only a few moments had passed before a dwarf with white hair and a half braided beard came scurrying towards her and asked if he could "tempt her" with a sausage and some cheese. When Vanya refused politely, he bowed deeply and told her that his name was Dori. She nodded politely to acknowledge him but didn't really hear what he was saying, as her mind was elsewhere.

Vanya was beyond grateful as she sat there silently, ignoring the dwarves odd stares as they studied her. She was grateful to finally be able to rest, and that their leader with the pale blue eyes had not discovered her secret.

She could still feel the tingling of her skin where he had touched her face, and her eyes slowly went to him now.

Although his eyes were looking down at his food, he kept his back straight and even at this angle, he had an air of authority about him.

Then without warning she saw him in her mind, how close he had been standing to her, the way his cool breath had felt on her skin and most importantly his eyes. They had been swimming with a desire that she did not comprehend or appreciate. She had definitely seen it before, but only between intimate lovers and Thorin was _**far**_ from that.

Whatever it had been and however unwelcome, Vanya thanked the stars for it, since she knew that if Thorin had taken the time to stare at her ears as intently as he'd been staring at her face, she would have been kicked out immediately.

She idly lifted a hand to touch the cold, hard substance covering her pointy ears that Gandalf had hastily fashioned for her out of candle wax only a short while ago.

Vanya had asked the wizard why she needed to make her ears look round, but Gandalf only told her the name of the tall dwarf and that under no circumstance could he find out that she was an elf. Then he had ushered her inside the Hobbit's house with no further explanation.

In reality, she didn't really care why she needed to lie. The only reason why she was sitting in a Hobbit hole that stank of dwarf and spirits, was because she needed to get to Rivendell to seek the aid of Lord Elrond. Or at least that's what Gandalf had said a week ago when he had found her lying on the road with a spear lodged in her stomach.

The wizard had done everything in his power to heal her as best he could, and Vanya knew she owed him her life. But after removing the weapon and tossing it aside, she recalled through the searing agony, the look of confusion and shock on his wrinkled face before he told her that she needed elvish medicine.

The wizard had refused to give her any more details, only that she had shards of steel and some wood in her body that was beyond his skill to remove; but she knew he was hiding something.

Vanya's mind wandered further in on itself, trying to recall the incident.

She only remembered bits and pieces; that she had been walking on a path in the forest, on her way to Bree, when she felt the eerie sensation of someone watching her.

She could recall trying to run away as fast as she could from it, and just as she thought she had escaped the feeling, there was a loud, blood curdling shriek from right behind her before everything went black.

The elf realized that she had broken out in a cold sweat and closed her eyes, drowning out the noise of laughing and burping and tried to take a deep breath to calm her nerves.

"Hello, I'm Bilbo Baggins!"

Vanya jumped when she heard the Halfling's voice right beside her and her eyes flung wide open. The sudden movement caused a sharp pain to shoot up her body and she had to bite her lip to keep from crying out in agony.

The Hobbit seemed to notice as her features contorted in pain and his round face suddenly fell.

"Are you alright? Would you like to lay down somewhere?" Bilbo Baggins asked, the concern apparent in his timid voice.

Vanya went to look at the Halfling but her eyes noticed Thorin first; he had frozen in his seat and seemed to be straining to listen to what her reaction was going to be.

"No thank you, Master Baggins." Vanya answered respectfully before ripping her gaze away from the tall dwarf to look at the Halfling. The pain in her stomach had faded into a light throb and would soon disappear altogether; until the next time she moved abruptly, laughed or coughed.

"Please, call me Bilbo, My Lady," the Hobbit responded proudly, puffing his chest out slightly.

He had a wonderful, open, innocent face and looking at him made it hard for her not to smile, so she did.

After six days of pain, fear and confusion, it felt wonderful to genuinely smile again and she felt a rush of gratitude towards the Hobbit for lifting her spirits.

"Very well, but only under one condition." Vanya said in a mock serious tone, noticing how Bilbo began to fiddle nervously with his suspenders as he waited for her to continue.

"You must call me Vanya, and never "My Lady", seeing as I rarely behave like one."

She smiled again and winked at the Hobbit, who let out a small laugh and nodded his head once to acknowledge their agreement.

"Do your parents approve of you being away from home this late?" Bilbo asked suddenly, looking up at her with inquisitive eyes.

His question had caught Vanya off guard and struggling to come up with a lie, she told him the truth.

"My mother and father died when I was just a little girl," She said careful not to tell him too much. "Don't worry, you haven't saddened me, I was very young and do not remember them." Vanya added quickly, seeing the look of absolute horror that swept across Bilbo's face as he thought he'd upset her.

She even added an extra smile to make him feel better, but the Hobbit did not ask her any other questions.

Vanya sighed, having ruined another happy moment with her dreary past, and returned to gazing in front of her when she noticed Thorin's pale blue eyes staring at her intently. She did not know how long he had been looking at her, only that when she caught him, his cheeks flushed a deep pink and he looked away angrily. Only this time his glare went to Gandalf.

The wizard sat, still as a statue, smoking his pipe and looking into the fire with a distant look on his wizened face.

"Gandalf."

Thorin's commanding voice broke the wizard's concentration and he abruptly returned to his senses, shaking his head slightly before looking to the dwarf.

Vanya gazed up at him and wondered idly what he had been thinking about so intently.

She also noticed that the twelve other dwarves, who had been previously chit-chatting away, fell silent.

"Tell your guest that she is to leave, we must discuss the matter at hand."

Vanya could feel her face begin to glow red with anger.

She was very close to standing up and smacking the idiot dwarf across the head, but as though he could read her thoughts, Gandalf placed a firm hand on her shoulder and momentarily calmed her down.

"Bilbo, why don't you show Vanya to a room so she can wash up and perhaps rest." The wizard suggested cheerfully, trying his best to diffuse the situation.

"Y-yes of course." The Hobbit stuttered, forgetting to get out of his seat for a moment. Vanya noticed his furry little feet as he walked to the centre of the room, and as he looked back at her with a half hearted smile plastered on his child-like face, waiting for her to follow.

Very slowly, Vanya got up from her chair, still fuming.

She was about to follow the Hobbit out of the room quietly when she realized that was just what Thorin wanted; and the thought of pleasing him was something that made her skin crawl.

So instead, she stopped, turned from Bilbo and despite many questioning stares, gingerly bent down to Thorin's ear.

He immediately became rigid, trying to pretend that he couldn't feel her breath on him and kept his gaze fixed in front. But the elf saw his broad hand grasp the side of his chair, knuckles turning pale white.

Vanya was well aware of the effect she had on the dwarf at this point –although she didn't understand why- and made sure her lips were gently grazing his earlobe as she watched his chest begin to rise and fall rapidly. She also noticed the way he ever so slightly leaned into her lips; not only with his head, but with his entire body, in short rigid little movements, as though he was fighting himself the entire time.

Vanya was unable to keep from smiling wickedly as she whispered the only phrase she knew in Khuzdul into his ear quietly so the others could not over hear.

"Gelek menu caragu rukhs."

Then before she could burst into a fit of laughter -which would cause her lots of pain- and before Thorin could physically harm her, Vanya moved as fast as her wound would allow her, and out of the kitchen.

Grabbing a very bewildered Bilbo by the arm, she led him in a random direction further into his house as she desperately tried not to turn back and look at Thorin.

Walking slower with the Hobbit in the lead now, Vanya had to suppress a chuckle at her childishness before. She felt wonderful and smiled down at the Halfling who looked up at her, still confused as to what she had done.

Perhaps it would be best if she kept what she'd said to herself, as she was fairly sure she had just told Thorin that he reeked like Orc dung.


	5. Chapter 5, Sweat and Blood

_A big thanks to SybiLLA12 for the wonderful cover photo! I love it! And to CannonRebel, thanks a bunch for the review and for favouriting the story. _

Vanya was laying down on the Hobbit's comfy little bed, gazing up at the ceiling and trying to stay awake.

The candles Bilbo had left with her were flickering and cast shadows on the many pictures he had lining the walls

She was vaguely listening to the voices from the kitchen that travelled down the corridors and in through her open door.

She could immediately distinguish Thorin's voice, it was rough, deep and commanding and upon hearing it, Vanya found herself wondering idly about the dwarf.

He was a pompous pig, but she knew that there was something more to him than he let on. She had seen it in his eyes, the way he had looked at her the first time, but he seemed to be angry at himself for whatever he was feeling.

Perhaps it was something he feared to acknowledge, so instead he kept it buried beneath the pride and arrogance.

Whatever the case, Vanya drifted off to sleep still thinking about Thorin Oakenshield.

* * *

The elf's eyes opened wide and she found herself in Bilbo's room, everything the exact same as it was before she had dozed off, except that now there was someone staring at her from the foot of the bed.

It was Thorin.

Vanya sat up and realized that she wasn't wearing the big, brown potato sack Gandalf had given her, but instead she had on a lovely blue night gown. The only problem was that it revealed too much of her skin and Vanya pulled the covers around herself in a protective sort of manner as she saw the dwarf's eyes absorb every part of her exposed flesh.

Had he changed her?

The elf's cheeks flushed at the thought of Thorin seeing her naked, both in embarrassment and outrage.

"What are you doing here?" Vanya asked more timidly than she had expected, but instead of answering her question, the dwarf slid closer to where the elf was backed up against the wall, making her shrink further under the covers.

"You have such lovely skin," Thorin breathed heavily, and Vanya watched as he slowly peeled Bilbo's quilt off of her, until she sat completely exposed and shivering in a night dress.

Vanya could see, even in the dim candlelight, how his eyes burnt with desire, and perhaps it was because she was distracted by the look on his face that she didn't see, but only felt his ice cold hand find its way up her nightgown.

She let out a small gasp at the shocking feel of his icy skin, but what shocked Vanya even more was that she wanted him to touch her.

Badly.

Only a second later, Thorin stopped just above her thigh.

"Such a shame," he whispered looking past Vanya and at the wall behind her.

The elf felt her eyebrows knit together in confusion, but before she could utter another word, Thorin spoke again, removing his hand from underneath her dress.

"He told me what you are," he whispered again, only this time he was staring straight at her, with a look that made the tiny hairs on the back of Vanya's neck stand straight.

His once crystal blue eyes were now pitch black as he glared at her, and slowly his pupils began to dilate until it looked like he was staring at her out of two black holes that had been carved out of his head.

Vanya was left paralyzed by fear, unable to move. She felt a scream tighten in her throat, but as she opened her mouth to release it, no sound came.

"He told me." Thorin said again, and Vanya knew as she saw the dwarf pull out a long blade, almost like a spear, that this was the end.

And as Thorin thrust the steel into her stomach, she screamed out in agony, and this time she did scream, only it was not her voice.

But a familiar blood, curdling shriek she had heard before.

* * *

Vanya sat bolt upright, panting and drenched in a cold sweat, her heart trying to break out of her ribcage when she realized where she was.

Bilbo's room. She thought again and again, reassuring herself.

She did not know how long she had dozed off for, but only one of the three candles on the Hobbit's bookshelf was still lit, flickering eerily in the dark.

What had seemed like friendly shadows licking the walls before, now looked menacing and evil.

She needed to get out of the room, and so gently she pulled herself off the small bed, realizing in relief that she was still wearing Gandalf's old clothing.

Getting up, she felt her legs wobble like jelly, and steadied herself on the wooden clothing dresser. She took a deep breath and tried to banish the nightmare from her thoughts, focusing on anything but the two black holes that had been Thorin's eyes in her dream.

Mentally chiding herself for thinking about it again, Vanya straightened up and felt a cold, slick patch of clothing stick to her stomach.

The elf sighed, knowing exactly what she would find when she looked down.

And sure enough, there was a large crimson stain right in the middle of the old, brown shirt.

She checked the Hobbit's bed and cringed, seeing just how vivid the stark red blood looked on the snow white linens.

She carefully pulled off her shirt and set it on the floor to examine the damage and saw that her wound had torn open slightly, but was just starting to coagulate again. It was nothing major as the blood would have suggested, but as she stood there half naked examining her belly, a young dwarf with light brown hair walked in and Vanya knew she was in deep trouble.


	6. Chapter 6, Breasts, Bandages & Biscuits

_The response for this story has been amazing! Thank you all soooooo much! A special thanks to everyone and to Poetgirl616 for all the support! Also, I promise there will be REAL Thorin/Vanya moments in the next chapter that don't end with him stabbing her :D_

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_**SMASH!**_

The tiny plate that had been filled with biscuits fell from the dwarf's limp hands, and the elf watched as it shattered into a million pieces on Bilbo's shiny wooden floor.

Vanya reflexively put her arms up to her chest, trying to hide her breasts, only realizing afterwards that it would have made more sense to hide her wound.

But it was too late; she stared first in shock then in panic at his handsome face as his brown eyes settled on her torn and bloodied stomach.

Just then the sound of furious little footsteps made their way down the corridor accompanied by the voice of a very irritated Bilbo Baggins.

"Confounded dwarves, breaking my dishes!"

The dwarf took a step back, his eyes never leaving her stomach, as he opened his mouth to call for his uncle.

"Thor-"

"NO!" Vanya yelped, she lunged at him disregarding all modesty and couldn't tell if it was her plea or the sight of her breasts that made the dwarf's words die in his throat. She didn't care, all she knew was that she did _not_ want the leader of their company to see her like this.

"Please, do not tell Thorin." She said desperately looking into his brown eyes as he nodded slightly.

Vanya sighed with relief.

Until Bilbo came into view.

"Kili, that was my Grandmother's plate!" Bilbo said positively fuming as he stood with clenched fists beside the dwarf. "It was over a hundred years-"

The Hobbit noticed Vanya while in the middle of his sentence and glanced over at her, having to do a double take when he realized she was shirtless.

His reaction was nearly identical to Kili's; his face went bright red at her breasts, his eyes lingering there longer than the dwarf's had, then pale white when he saw the blood.

Vanya sighed, already tired of being stared at like an animal, and turned to try and pick up her shirt.

"Bilbo, not a word to anyone." She heard the young dwarf say to the Hobbit who was still silent. The elf felt a wave of gratitude towards the dwarf, and he continued. "Go and find her something to wear."

Bilbo seemed to take a second to get going again, but then scurried off.

As Vanya propped an elbow up on the side of the bed to support herself, she heard Kili's boots thud on the floor as he came to stand beside her.

She pretended he wasn't there as she reached for her shirt but when he knelt down and gently took both of her hands in his, she couldn't help but look up at him.

His face was still bright pink, his eyes looking anywhere except her chest. She could tell he was uncomfortable with being so close to a half naked woman, but he helped her up all the same and sat her down on the bed.

"What are you doing?" Vanya asked worriedly when she saw Kili pull the bloodied bed sheet off and begin to tear it into long strips. If Bilbo had had such a fit about a single plate, she could only imagine the uproar he'd cause over a bed sheet.

"I'm going to bandage the wound." The dwarf said in a voice that was smooth and gentle; not anything like Thorin's.

Of course that's what he was doing, she felt like a fool for not realizing it before, and watched curiously as he laid the strips of white cloth out before throwing them over his shoulder and making his way to where the elf sat patiently.

Kili's touch was surprisingly gentle and although Vanya didn't appreciate his proximity, she was grateful for his aid and that he did not once look at her chest again.

"Who did this to you?" Kili asked quietly as he wrapped the cloth around her stomach. His hands were cold and they occasionally grazed her skin, making her shiver.

The question triggered a wave of memories, including that of her dream, and she began breathing heavily before shoving the nightmare into a corner of her mind to answer the dwarf.

"A vagrant outside of my village." She lied, relaxing slightly.

Kili frowned and went on in silence. There were a few times when the gash throbbed in pain, but she grit her teeth and let the dwarf carry on.

Finally he tucked the last piece of cloth into the tightly wound folds and stood back as Bilbo came back into the room carrying what seemed like a mountain of clothes.

Vanya and Kili both stared in surprise as he plopped them down by her side on the bed.

"I couldn't decide which one to bring, then I thought you might want to pick for yourself, so I brought all of the ones I thought would fit you." The Hobbit explained in one breath, his eyes respectfully gazing at the floor.

Vanya reached over and pulled a lovely lavender gown out from the heap. It was simple, and had a square neck with a black trim that matched the hem.

"Oh, Bilbo this is lovely." She breathed, feeling the silky material between her fingers.

"It was my mother's," the Halfling said with as much pride as he could while still bowing his head.

Vanya slipped it over herself carefully and stood, letting it fall. It fit her wonderfully, coming just above her ankles and she smiled.

Finally, a benefit of being so short.

The dwarf and hobbit seemed almost weary with relief when her breasts had been covered once more and they could look at her without fear of letting their eyes wander.

"We should leave before the others start to wonder." Kili said beckoning to Bilbo, who nodded. But as they both turned to exit, Vanya felt a hint of desperation and fear creep back into her mind as she realized they were going to leave her alone in the room.

"Thank you!" She said, almost breathlessly, unable to think of anything else to stop them.

Kili bowed slightly and Bilbo puffed his chest out, tucked his thumbs into his robe pockets and smiled. They continued to leave and the elf could feel herself beginning to panic.

"May I please come with you. I-I..I'm terribly hungry." Vanya lied desperately.

"Of course!" Bilbo said cheerfully as he walked over to Vanya.

Slipping a hand into hers, he began leading her out of the room as though she had forgotten which way the door was.

He stepped over the broken plate of biscuits and led her down the hall.

Kili only smiled and followed behind them.

Vanya nearly fainted with relief, the feeling of fear slowly ebbing away as she got further and further away from the room.

Whatever the circumstance, she was not going back in there by herself.

And if perhaps she had stayed, or if Kili and Bilbo had paid closer attention, they would have noticed the pair of hollow black eyes staring into the cozy little room from outside the circular window.


	7. Chapter 7, Melting Ice

Thorin glared defiantly at Gandalf who had brought up the girl again.

"She will _**not **_be accompanying us." The dwarf said viciously for the third time.

Thorin would not be the one held responsible for her getting killed out in the wild; he had his incompetent burglar to deal with and that was already one hindrance too many.

"Save me from the stubbornness of dwarves!" Gandalf said in a huff as he wrapped his long grey cloak about himself and stood up to pace about the Hobbit's living room.

Thorin said no more but looked over to Balin who was sitting in an armchair, stroking his snow white beard and staring off into the distance.

The dwarf prince was about to head over to his old friend to ask him what was on his mind, when he heard the Hobbit's little voice talking animatedly to who he could only assume was Vanya.

Thorin's heart leapt at the thought of her and he was disgusted at himself for it.

Sure enough, Bilbo came into view pulling a slender, white hand behind him and for some reason, this made the dwarf's eyes blaze with a jealous rage.

Then she stepped into the room, and it was like he was seeing her for the first time again. No longer was she wearing old baggy clothes, but a pale lavender gown which hugged her chest just enough to keep Thorin's mind racing with indecent thoughts. Her waist was tiny and her hips proportioned perfectly with her chest.

The dwarf found himself drinking in every inch of her body with his greedy eyes as she stole a quick glance in his direction.

The look was fleeting, but the dwarf prince felt an odd sort of queasiness in his stomach at her gaze; as though a field of butterflies had been set loose in his gut.

This worried him to no extent as he had once before felt like this, but that was over 60 years ago and the woman he had fallen for had ripped out his heart and torn it to pieces.

He had vowed from that day forth that women were of no concern to him, and that love was a miserable joke that only fools believed in.

But he continued to watch the girl as Bilbo sat her down in a chair next to the hearth and scurried off into the kitchen. He watched her and realized with dread that if he didn't distance himself from her immediately, she was going to ruin him.

Just then Bofur timidly approached Vanya and asked if she had ever played the flute before. The girl smiled and Thorin watched as she gently shook her head. Bilbo returned with a plate of sausages for her and she quickly ate them before taking up the musical instrument with a genuine look of interest.

A few minutes had passed and now Fili, Kili, Bofur, Bilbo, Dwalin, Ori and Nori sat and stood around the girl as they tried to teach her different melodies on Bofur's flute, laughing along with her when she got a note wrong.

He looked at his nephews and saw them with the same carefree, bright faces they once had when their mother told them stories of great battles long ago. They had been quite young when Dis had died, and ever since then, Thorin had tried as best he could to be like a father to them; and he knew he was terrible at it.

He was too gruff, too broken and too jaded to be able to show them the love he felt. And he knew it would be the same case with any woman; including Vanya.

"Perhaps it wouldn't be such a bad thing to have her along, laddie." Balin's voice almost made Thorin jump as he had returned his gaze back onto the girl, and without taking his eyes off of her, he answered his old friend.

"No, she will only slow us down." Thorin said firmly.

He heard Gandalf let out another huff from somewhere behind him.

"Very well, then perhaps you should inform her so she can make arrangements to return home in the morning." Balin said quietly before he turned to sit back on the small armchair, swigging a cup of tea that Dori had prepared.

Thorin nodded at his friend's words, and slowly getting up, he made his way towards the expanding crowd of dwarves (plus Bilbo) who sat, transfixed by the girl. So much so, that they didn't even hear Thorin's heavy footsteps approaching.

However, Vanya did, and she stopped suddenly and looked up at Thorin with an odd look on her small, porcelain face. It seemed as though she was afraid of him and drawn to him at the same time.

The rest of the dwarves fell silent and waited for him to speak.

"Be sure to have arrangements ready to return home in the morning." Thorin said gruffly before continuing. "You will not be a part of our company."

The dwarf watched as Vanya's cheeks flushed slightly, but there was no anger or defiance on her face or in her eyes as he had been hoping for. Instead there was an odd look of defeat mingled with sadness and it nearly tore Thorin's heart out to see her so vulnerable.

A completely different person sat in the chair compared to the one who had threatened to cut his tongue out just a short while ago in the kitchen.

"What?" The Hobbit spoke up suddenly, he was sitting on the floor beside Vanya's chair and had had his chin propped up on her knee. Thorin tried to ignore the annoyance he felt at seeing their "burglar" become so close to the girl in such a short amount of time.

"Do you have a problem with my decision, Master Baggins?" Thorin asked menacingly, he was hoping that the Hobbit would provoke him somehow as he was looking for an excuse to hit him.

"A-as a matter of fact I do." The Halfling said defiantly, standing up and straining to make himself seem taller. "If Vanya isn't welcome, then I'm sorry to say, but you lot can find yourselves another Burglar."

Thorin noticed the way the girl's brows furrowed in confusion when Bilbo referred to himself as their burglar.

The tall dwarf's eyes blazed with anger and he watched as Gandalf came to stand behind Bilbo, trying to hide the satisfaction on his face.

"Well, Thorin," the wizard said slowly, choosing his words carefully. "It seems as though you are left with no choice, as our plan is folly without Master Baggins."

The rightful King of Erebor stood glaring daggers at Bilbo who stared back at him with the same level of ferocity. The Hobbit drew courage from Gandalf who now had his hand placed on the Halfling's tiny shoulder.

"Fine." Spat the dwarf as he turned away angrily. His receding footsteps were drowned out by the cheers from his kin who were surrounding the girl and Thorin shook his head before he reclaimed his seat.

Balin gave his king a tight smile, letting Thorin know he agreed with his decision, before continuing his conversation with Dori.

But the approval from Balin did nothing to comfort the prince as he knew he was making a huge mistake in letting Vanya come along.

Although he would be denying himself the truth if he didn't admit there was a part of him which was almost ecstatic at the thought of being able to keep her by his side for as long as possible.

And he continued to watch, in spite of himself, as the girl smiled and laughed, slowly melting the block of ice that held Thorin's heart.


	8. Chapter 8, Breakfast and Buttons

**Hello everyone, I hope that you all are still enjoying the story as it progresses. I know it's going slow now, but it will pick up A LOT in the next chapter. **

**Please remember to review as it gives me motivation to keep writing! :)**

* * *

The light shone through the windows and Vanya woke to the smell and sound of pork sizzling upon a fire. Her wound felt better, Kili's bandage having helped more than she had thought, as she was able to laugh slightly without doubling over in pain.

Suddenly she felt her stomach rumble in response to the aroma that was wafting into the living room where she had fallen asleep beside Bilbo.

She couldn't recall the last time she had felt so at peace, living on the road all her life, every moment was a struggle and now it seemed as though she had left that life behind years ago.

The Hobbit was still snoring loudly and she had to stifle a smile when she saw the long trail of drool that had made its way down his chin.

Vanya gingerly pulled away from the sleeping Halfling and could hear the sound of the dwarves chatting away merrily from the dining room.

Before even taking four steps from where she had risen, Thorin stepped into the room with a plate of bacon and eggs in one of his large hands and a glass of milk in the other.

The two stopped dead in their tracks and stood staring at each other in silence, trying to ignore the Hobbit's snoring.

The morning Sun shone on Thorin's face, making him squint slightly, but the only thing Vanya could pay attention to were his eyes. The light passed through his blue irises in the most breathtaking way, making them seem almost transparent as he gazed at her intently.

She never noticed how handsome his brooding face was, and now that he was wearing only a thin, blue tunic, she noticed how broad his shoulders were and how they set into his muscular chest.

And then as though they had a mind of their own, her eyes traced down his body and took in the way his sleeves were rolled up casually, revealing strong arms and strange black markings that disappeared beneath his clothing.

She suddenly noticed that he had messed up the buttons on his tunic, leaving the last button without a hole and causing the rest to look lopsided.

Then before she could stop herself, she stepped right up to the dwarf and placed her small hands on his chest, smoothing out the wonderful material beneath her fingers. Vanya felt Thorin go rigid as she traced the intricate gold embroidery on his clothes before slowly unbuttoning his shirt.

She felt him struggle with the plate and glass in either hand, perhaps wondering if he should put them down or push her away.

But as it were he did neither, he simply stood, stuck without the use of his arms as the elf felt his heart thud loudly in his strong chest. His blue eyes were wide and his jaw was clenched tightly; he stared at her carefully wondering what she was going to do next.

Vanya reached the last button which stopped just above his abdomen and saw the light black hair that sprinkled his chest, but then she frowned.

A long white scar led from where the elf's fingers had stopped all the way up to his collar bone.

She began to trace the scar with an unsteady finger when she nearly gasped.

An odd sort of electricity ran through her at the feel of his bare skin and she knew he felt it too. He stopped breathing for a second before his chest began to rise and fall rapidly again, and his arms began to tremble ever so slightly.

She began to re button his tunic and when she finished, looked up into Thorin's eyes.

He seemed to tower over her, but in that moment, standing in the sunlight pressed up against his chest, she saw the handsome face of a weary dwarf who had endured many years of hardship, who now stood with a softness and vulnerability in his expression that made Vanya take back all of the rude things she had thought about the him before.

"T-This is for you," Thorin said suddenly stumbling over his words before they both returned to their senses and she stepped back from the dwarf as though he had pushed her off.

He brandished the plate and the glass he had in his hands just in case Vanya was unsure of what he meant.

Despite their odd moment of intimacy, Vanya was still taken aback at his kind gesture and smiled timidly at him.

"Thank you, Thorin." She said, ignoring the way her stomach leapt as she spoke his name.

The dwarf's cheeks flushed slightly and he nodded once before turning to leave with her food still in his hands.

Vanya stared after him blankly, unsure of what had just happened, when he returned. His face was bright red and he avoided her gaze as he set her breakfast down on the chair closest to him and turned to walk back into the dining room.

The elf smiled and gathered her food up in her hands before following Thorin into the room packed with dwarves and Gandalf.

The rest of Thorin's company aside from himself, Balin, Oin and Gloin all welcomed her loudly and shuffled around, trying to make room for her around the mish mash of wooden tables. There were about three different spots she considered squeezing herself into before Gandalf who was sitting beside Thorin, stood to greet her and quietly asked how she was feeling.

Vanya smiled and nodded to show him she was fine, and the wizard sighed with relief before speaking loudly so that everyone could hear.

"I'm off to find another pony for our journey as well as to replenish my supply of Old Toby. I will be back shortly, and please see to it that our Burglar is awake by then. Oh and Vanya, why don't you take my seat."

With that the wizard disappeared, and the elf was left to make her way towards a very rigid Thorin who had stopped eating.

His shoulders were tense as though he was waiting for her to hit him, but she only set her food down beside his and slid easily into the spot Gandalf had vacated.

The rest of the dwarves began asking her how she slept when Kili suddenly opened his mouth.

"How is your stomach?"

Vanya froze and she could tell Kili had only just realized what he'd said, as his eyes went wide and his face drained of all colour.

Everyone gave the young dwarf a confused look before turning to see what Vanya's reaction was.

She could feel Thorin's eyes as they tried to pry the thoughts from her mind, but thankfully she had regained her composure by the time they looked at the elf for an answer.

"It's fine now that I've had something to eat." Vanya replied nonchalantly and she could literally see the look of relief as it washed over Kili's dark features. He simply nodded and returned a weak smile before starting up a conversation with his brother.

Everyone returned to chatting away except Thorin, who was still staring at her as she scarfed down the bacon and eggs.

She refused to meet his eyes however, and soon he had returned to eating slowly, dismissing himself after he had finished and letting them know to be prepared as soon as he returned.

Vanya couldn't help but feel disappointed when he left, but she remained cheery and helped the dwarves clear up, saving a plate of food for Bilbo before waking him up.

It took her longer than she had expected but he woke with his curly hair matted on one side and ate his breakfast happily before heading off to pack his things.

The elf suddenly realized with a wave of sadness as she watched the dwarves prepare their things, that she had nothing to pack or take with her. It made her realize how displaced she was and she was frowning when the Hobbit returned.

He, on the other hand, was smiling brilliantly with two travelling sacks in his tiny hands.

She had not understood at first but then Bilbo handed one over to her.

When she opened the sack she saw a few more of his mother's dresses, a cloak and some biscuits all packed neatly for her. Vanya looked at Bilbo gratefully and smiled before bending over ever so slightly to give the Halfling a light kiss on the cheek.

The Hobbit's face went bright red and he mumbled something inaudible before shuffling his feet embarrassedly on the floor.

"We leave, _now_." Thorin's voice broke through the room like a clap of thunder and she saw the black gaze he cast in their direction before storming out of Bilbo's green door.

Vanya sighed and made her way out behind a very angry Thorin.


	9. Chapter 9, A Familiar Feeling

_**I cannot say thank you enough to all of you who reviewed, favourited and followed. It really did give me the motivation to finish this chapter and keep going. Thank you so much and I hope to hear from you all again!**_

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It had been four whole days since they'd left Bag End and Thorin had not looked at her or spoken to her once. He had nearly strangled Bilbo the time he halted the entire party and asked to go back for his handkerchief, but other than that the girl and the Halfling might as well have not been alive. She did notice however, the way his pale eyes would darken whenever she or Bilbo was mentioned.

Vanya felt increasingly restless and tried to ignore the feeling of hurt each time the dwarf refused to acknowledge her existence as every other member of the company had grown to enjoy her companionship and took turns riding beside her, telling her stories of their home and their families. The elf tried to be attentive; to laugh at all the right moments and ask intuitive questions, but she couldn't go longer than two minutes without thinking about Thorin Oakenshield.

She spent more time staring at him than she did at the road, but he was always leading up front with Gandalf. She studied his long black hair, his broad shoulders, his weapons and his immense fur lined cloak, hoping that he would turn and catch her eye, but he didn't.

And to make things worse, Bilbo had stayed by her side the entire time, quietly gazing up at her and smiling when she turned to him. The Hobbit gave her a sense of security that she did not understand, but she knew that it was their proximity that annoyed Thorin so greatly.

They had stopped on the second night for some rest and as Bilbo laid beside Vanya to sleep, his arm had come over to wrap around her waist.

The had elf gone rigid and was about to pull away from the Hobbit when Fili saw them, and joked loudly that at this pace there would be nothing to save for their marriage bed.

Vanya had blushed furiously and pushed the Halfling's arm off of her, just before seeing Thorin get up from around the fire and storm off into the black night.

Vanya now rode in the pouring rain, soaking wet and not bothering to wear the cloak Bilbo had packed for her. She was very much used to this type of weather and enjoyed how the water washed away the dirt and sweat from her skin and hair.

She wanted to wash the dried blood from under her bandages too, but knew that would have to wait. Her wound had not given her immense trouble, only throbbing slightly when she had to climb on or off of Lilly, her Pony.

Instead of pain however, a heavy block of despair had settled at the bottom of her stomach.

And it was all because of the dwarf in the deep blue cloak.

The girl sighed in defeat, giving up hope that the tall dwarf would ever look at her again when Gandalf called to her from the front of the line.

"Vanya, if you would be so kind as to join me."

The elf blinked once in confusion, and then looked at the others as they made way for her to reach Gandalf.

She looked to Bilbo who was wearing his travel cloak, and he peeked out from underneath the hood to see if she wanted him to accompany her. Vanya smiled and shook her head before the Halfling nodded reluctantly and shrunk back into his cloak.

The girl made her way astride Lilly to where the wizard's immense horse was riding.

"I have not spoken to you in quite some time, you are doing well?" Gandalf asked, and then before she could answer he added. "Oh, ride to my left as I have a terrible crick in my neck from a root that I slept on the night before."

Vanya stopped her pony as Gandalf made way for her to join in between himself and Thorin.

The tall dwarf did nothing to acknowledge her as she came up beside him, perhaps closer than necessary.

"I'm doing well," she said. Then maybe because at this point she was just desperate for Thorin to notice her, she took a deep breath and braced herself, stating her thoughts aloud. "Although I would be doing much better if I could have the company of _one_ particular dwarf."

She had started off confident, but by the time she reached the end of her sentence, her voice was barely above a timid whisper.

Gandalf said nothing in turn but tried to hide a small smile.

And then, after four long days, Thorin's pale blue eyes finally found hers.

It was like a flower catching the first rays of sun after a weary, bleak winter and Vanya couldn't help but smile.

His eyes had been dark and guarded when he first turned to the girl, but as they fell on her, Vanya saw them instantly brighten and her heart skipped a beat.

She watched as he absorbed the way her cheeks were rosy pink with cold and the way strands of soaking hair clung to her neck. She especially noticed as he observed her wet dress, clinging to parts of her body.

His eyes lingered at her breasts and she felt an odd sort of tightening deep in her stomach. It was not an unpleasant tightening, just something she had never felt before.

The two rode, staring at each other intently.

"Mr. Gandalf, can't you do something about this deluge?" Dori's voice rang through the air and snapped the magnetic current between the dwarf and the elf.

"It is raining master dwarf, and it will continue to rain until the rain is done! The wizard who had been forgotten at their side shouted over his shoulder before slowing down to chide Dori further.

This left Vanya and Thorin by themselves, well in front of the others.

The two sat in a tense silence, each overly aware of the other and how close together their ponies had drifted.

The only sound was coming from the squish beneath the ponies' hooves and the patter of rain on the dwarf's blue, fur lined cloak. Night was quickly approaching; the light was slowly fading from behind the clouds as though a plug had been pulled from somewhere in the sky, draining away the daylight.

Suddenly the elf sneezed and ducked her head in embarrassment until the blush in her cheeks faded away, after which she stole a quick glance at Thorin.

He was staring at her in an odd sort of way from underneath his hood, seemingly conflicted over something and slightly chewing on his bottom lip.

Then in one swift motion, he pulled off his cloak and leaned over his pony carefully to drape the heavy garment over Vanya's tiny shoulders.

She stared over at him in utter shock, watching as the rain quickly soaked his black hair, his beard and the fine blue tunic she had been pressed up against a few days ago.

Only after having Thorin's cloak to provide her with some shelter from the rain, did she realize how cold she'd been. The thick fur that lined the shoulders was warm and soft, and she was shrouded in his wonderful scent.

She inhaled deeply and closed her eyes, the scent of pine, sweet grass and earth filled her nostrils.

She looked to him but he was trying to avoid her gaze. Vanya sighed in slight frustration; she had gone long enough without seeing his pale blue eyes and was growing weary of his sudden changes in mood.

"Thank you." She said loudly enough for him to hear, but he simply went on staring intently at the sky, letting fat drops of rain strike his handsome, weather beaten face.

His expression was unreadable.

The elf furrowed her brows in irritation but before she could say another word, Thorin turned his pony around and addressed the rest of his kin.

"We rest here for the night."

They had reached the outskirts of a vast forest, where large overbearing trees provided some shelter from the downpour.

But Vanya was wary of their resting place as she scanned the expanse of dense green vegetation which was starting to look more and more menacing as the sky became darker.

Something deep inside the elf told her to stay as far away from the trees as possible and Lilly seemed to sense it as well, whinnying and snorting when the girl tried to get them closer to where the rest of the company had settled.

And then, like a ton of bricks, she felt it; the same odd sensation of someone watching her.

She looked around, trying not to panic. She could see and hear Bilbo with the others trying to get a fire going as Gandalf examined the trees with a slight frown on his wizened face.

Thorin was the only one staring at her, and she knew it wasn't his gaze that was nearly suffocating her.

The dwarf looked on at her, and she could see him growing more and more concerned as she frantically whipped her head around as though trying to spot an invisible attacker.

Her breathing got heavy, and she was starting to sweat when seemingly out of nowhere, her wound felt as though it were on fire.

Vanya let out a muffled cry before Lilly went berserk, snorting and bucking; easily flinging Vanya and all of her belongings off her back before she bolted.

The last thing Vanya heard was Thorin's panicked yell as she lay limp with pain on the cold, wet ground.

And then everything went black.


	10. Chapter 10, Once an Empty Shell

**_Thanks again to everyone for their support! _**

**_And please remember to review!_**

_KillerKadoogan: I was giggling when I wrote the part with the cloak and I'm glad you like Thorin's scent...Just wish I could be shrouded in it too :P_

_Just4Me: Well, you're going to really enjoy this chapter if you like jealous Thorin! Hehehe. And I have a very specific scene in mind for when he does find out about Vanya. I just hope you like it!_

* * *

Thorin dropped his belongings and ran as fast as his legs could take him to where Vanya lay, not moving and unconscious.

He could hear his heart pounding in his chest and barely heard the yells coming from the rest of his company as they saw what was happening.

All he could focus on was her.

Dropping to his knees beside the girl, he brushed the sopping hair out of her face and frantically called her name.

Her porcelain skin was pale and cold as he cradled her face with his hands, and it nearly caused him pain to think that he had spent the last four days depriving himself of her beauty and her warm smile.

The dwarf saw then as Vanya's chest began to rise and fall jaggedly as she drew breath.

Thorin caressed her cheeks before tilting his head back and breathing an enormous sigh of relief, thanking Mahal for keeping her safe.

Just then he heard footsteps running behind him and didn't need to turn around to know who it was.

Thorin would be damned if he let the Halfling lay a hand on her, so scooping her up in both his arms, he stood up. He marveled at how she weighed next to nothing and how she seemed to drown in his cloak. She was so small, so vulnerable and so young.

Staring at her, Thorin turned and made his way to Gandalf, completely ignoring Bilbo who was asking panicked questions at his side. He noticed both of his nephews and Dwalin had run out behind the Hobbit but he paid none of them any attention either.

His eyes never left her pale face, and the dwarf prince found that he wanted nothing more than to keep her in his arms for as long as possible, to protect her from danger and hurt, perhaps even...

Love her? A small voice in the back of Thorin's mind sneered at him. Lover her so she can break your heart? So she can leave you like an empty shell just as the first one did?

The dwarf frowned and chased the thought out of his mind just as he reached Gandalf, who had a worried look on his wrinkled face.

"Lay her down here." The wizard instructed, pointing to a dry patch of grass that was well under the protection of the trees.

Thorin was almost reluctant to let her go, but he knew he had to. Laying her down gently in his cloak, he stood up as Gandalf swooped down beside the girl.

"What is wrong with her?" The dwarf asked anxiously as he watched the wizard examine her.

Thorin had seen her double over in pain before being thrown off her pony, so he knew it wasn't from the fall. He recalled the discomfort she had been in when she first arrived at Bag End and demanded to be told the whole truth.

Except the wizard wasn't answering, he kept mumbling to himself as he felt the girl's face.

And so, the leader of their company was forced to pace back and forth, watching helplessly along with the rest of the dwarves who sat with sombre looks on their faces as Gandalf began looking in his satchel for something.

"Let me over there," Bilbo said finally losing his patience. He had been standing behind Thorin and Balin and now bustled his way through them before the tall dwarf grabbed a hold of the Halfling's collar with a firm grasp.

"Stay away from her." Thorin had intended for this to come out in a non-threatening way, only to remind Bilbo to give Vanya some space, but he was practically growling as he said it.

"What, you own her now, do you?" The Hobbit asked in irritation trying to shake Thorin off.

This made the dwarf prince's nostrils flare with anger as he tightened his grip on the Halfling's coat, easily dragging Bilbo back so that they were facing each other. Thorin moved his grip from the back of the Hobbit's collar to the front, pulling him in so that they were a foot apart from each other.

"Do not make the mistake in assuming you're the only one here who cares about Vanya." The leader of the company snarled as the Halfling glared daggers at him.

"Let him go, laddie." Balin said suddenly in a gentle voice as he placed a hand on his King's shoulder.

Thorin all but threw Bilbo from his grasp and the Hobbit huffed as he straightened out his coat and fixed his collar.

"She's afraid of you, you know." The Halfling spoke just as Thorin was about to walk away. Bilbo's words made the dwarf freeze before he turned to acknowledge the Hobbit again.

"I've heard her, talking in her sleep." Bilbo continued, the dwarf's heart sinking lower and lower with each word. "She begs you not to hurt her, and I can hear the terror in her voice."

Thorin's anger had disappeared and he now stood, rooted to the spot, looking at the green grass beneath his feet, a weary look coming to settle upon his handsome face. He heard the silence that surrounded him, knowing full well that his kin were listening and watching intently, but his mind was blank.

Until the Hobbit spoke again.

"_You_ may care for her, but she does _**not**_ feel the same way about you."

The next moment was a blur to Thorin, one minute he felt the heat as blood rushed to his face and the next, Dwalin, Fili, Kili and Bofur were restraining him.

Bilbo's eyes were wide with shock and fear as he took a few steps away from the livid dwarf.

"Over here, you fools!" Gandalf's voice broke through Thorin's angry haze, and he took a deep breath before shaking his friends and nephews off.

The dwarf didn't even spare a glance in the Hobbit's direction, and instead made his way to the wizard who was kneeling beside Vanya.

He could already see the colour starting to come back into her cheeks and that her breathing had evened out.

Then he saw as her eyelids began to flutter, and a wave of relief washed over him and the rest of the company who all stood huddled close behind their leader. He could hear the collective sigh they breathed and as Dwalin clapped his brother on the back in happiness.

Her eyes were still closed but she opened her mouth ever so slightly to speak;

"Thorin?"


	11. Chapter 11, From One End to the Other

_Aluriel_: I actually re-wrote what happened after he finds out about her wound, and I hope you like the result!

_Ari:_ I'm very glad you like the story so far, but I fear that things have been going TOO well for Vanya and Thorin... hehehe you'll see what I mean by the end of this chapter!

_Just4Me_ and _KillerKadoogan_: Bilbo will get to be mean and rub a few more things in Thorin's face by the end of the chapter and I hope you will forgive me for the end here but I promise things will get better :D

**Thanks everyone and please remember to review! **

* * *

The feeling of absolute joy that swelled up inside the dwarf prince at hearing Vanya call for him was indescribable. He felt his heart warm at the way her accent curled around his name, at how _**he**_ was the first one she had asked for.

Gandalf watched the tall dwarf closely before beckoning him to come closer. He had lit his staff up with what looked like a glowing gem, and provided enough light for himself and the rest of the company as night had now fallen.

Before Thorin moved, he slowly turned around and found the Halfling who was gazing at the girl with a look of confusion and hurt on his round face. The dwarf gave Bilbo a pointed glare, knowing that the Hobbit could feel his triumphant eyes upon his short stature, and then made his way to Vanya.

She had opened her eyes again and when she saw him tried to lift herself up, only to clutch her abdomen with both hands and fall back helplessly to the ground, writhing in pain.

" Vanya!" Thorin slid down beside her in a panic and watched as she finally relaxed again, letting her arms go limp at her sides.

The dwarf then did something he hadn't done in well over 60 years; hesitantly slipping one of her small hands into his, he brought it up to his lips where he placed a gentle kiss on her smooth, soft skin. It felt so good, so natural, and Thorin found he had to keep his mind from wandering as he placed her hand back down, still holding on to it.

His heart was racing as he had done this; fully aware that everyone was watching, but the rightful king of Erebor simply couldn't help himself.

He had predicted that she was going to ruin him, and it turned out that he had been right.

With every passing moment the dwarf felt himself growing softer, like a piece of rotting fruit. This frightened Thorin, but for the moment he kept his emotions in check and squeezed Vanya's hand gently.

The feel of his skin and his lips brought a weak smile to the girl's mouth and she took a deep breath before closing her eyes again.

"Gandalf, what is wrong with her." Thorin did not ask this time, he simply demanded an answer from the wizard who looked up to the dwarf with guarded eyes, as if he was having an internal debate with himself about whether or not to tell the truth.

"You made her my responsibility when you brought her to Bag End, so now at least tell me what is wrong so I can-" Thorin stopped and corrected himself before continuing. "So we can take care of her."

Gandalf gazed upon the dwarf for a long time before finally speaking, his eyes had grown lighter but his face seemed wearier than ever.

"I found her 6 days before our meeting at Bag End, lying by the road with some kind of blade rammed into her stomach."

Thorin's mind began to race; he didn't know what to think first. He felt regret for not taking better care of her sooner, for letting her suffer this long. But he also felt a white, hot fury growing deep within him at whoever had done this to her. He wanted to break every finger on the hand of whatever monster could will themselves to wound such an innocent, young girl.

"Settle down, for goodness sake." Gandalf said seeing the dwarf's face beginning to glow with anger in the light of his staff. He also heard the rest of the company, especially Dwalin and Ori who seemed to be right along with Thorin's thoughts, as they voiced their threats and anger out loud.

"She was not attacked by any mortal," the wizard said, suddenly whispering with a frown on his face. "The blade I removed from her flesh had the markings of an ancient language, that of which I cannot read... "

"Not a mortal?" Kili's angry voice suddenly reached them, and both his uncle and the wizard snapped their attention to the young dwarf. "She told me it was a vagrant outside her village!"

Thorin took a moment and then realized what his nephew had just said. "You knew?" The dwarf prince asked slowly, glaring daggers at Kili. "You knew she was wounded this whole time and yet you did not have sense enough to tell me?" He could feel the anger starting to rise within him again and watched as his nephew bowed his head in frustration and embarrassment.

"Do not be so quick to pass judgement, Thorin," Gandalf chided. "If Kili had told you she was injured, you would have never allowed her to join us, even if it meant you lost your Burglar."

Thorin momentarily calmed down but then looked to the wizard with narrowed eyes. "And why was it so important that she join us?"

Gandalf suddenly sighed and looked to the girl.

"Why exactly were you so keen to bring her along, Gandalf?" The tall dwarf asked again, his voice growing louder with each word.

Everyone was deathly quiet, and there was no longer even the sound of rain to ease the silence.

Finally the wizard answered, looking far off into the dark night with a tired look on his old face.

"She needs the aid of Lord Elrond."

Thorin immediately let go of Vanya's hand and stood up, hearing the hushed whispers of disapproval from his kin.

"That was your plan from the beginning, to bring her along so I would be forced to seek aid and shelter from the elves!" The dwarf prince spat the last word. He should have known better than to trust either of them and walked away from Vanya's resting form, not wanting to look at her.

"Do not be so selfish, Thorin Oakenshield!" Gandalf shouted in a resounding voice, standing up and stretching to his full height as he followed the dwarf to the opposite end of where they had started their conversation.

"I have told you already, I will not go near that place." The leader of the company said firmly, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

"She is being hunted by whatever did this to her, and if you wish to be responsible for her death then so be it!" The wizard bellowed, clutching his staff as if he wanted to smack Thorin across the head with it.

"Then she will die and it will be no concern of mine." The tall dwarf spat mercilessly, but it was even as he spoke the words that he was disgusted by himself and his own cruelty. He wished desperately to take them back, but it was too late.

The wizard stared at him for a few minutes with an unreadable expression then stormed off, taking the light of his staff with him and leaving Thorin and his company in the pitch black of night.

"And you supposedly care about her, do you?" The Halfling suddenly said in a voice dripping with acid before trailing after Gandalf.

Thorin tried to ignore the Hobbit, but he felt his face grow red with shame and was grateful for the cover of darkness.

"Where are you going?" Bilbo called after Gandalf.

"To seek the company of the only person around here who's got any sense!" The wizard shouted angrily finding his horse and mounting it one fluid movement.

"And who's that?" The dwarf heard Bilbo asked with sincere confusion.

"MYSELF, Mr. Baggins!" And with that Gandalf rode off in a huff, leaving the company in a shroud of tense silence.

Thorin simply stood in the darkness as his kin began to start a fire. He was waging a war within himself, one part of him was fuming and almost didn't care if Vanya needed elvish help, but the other reminded him of the wizard's words.

Would he be responsible for her death?

The orange glow of the new fire enveloped the company in warmth and it slowly grew, forcing the dark thoughts from Thorin's mind.

Just then without thinking, the tall dwarf's eyes went to Vanya and his heart sank; she was awake.

She had lain there, forgotten as he and Gandalf had gone on bickering, and had woken up before managing to pull herself into a sitting position.

Thorin didn't need to ask to know that she'd heard everything. He saw the gut wrenching look of hurt in her big, brown eyes which were brimming with tears and for the first time in his life, the mighty dwarf felt like an insolent, ungrateful child.

He walked over to the girl, his entire mind and body burning with regret and shame.

"Vanya, I-" Thorin knelt down beside her and held her small hand when she leaned over and in one swift motion smacked the prince hard in the face.

The sound of the slap seemed to echo in the silence and not a single word of protest or outrage came from any of his kin.

Or from Thorin, who sat completely stunned, his face tingling from where she had struck him.

"Do not ever touch me again." And with tears streaming down her cheeks, the girl reclaimed her hand and pulled herself up before heading off into the dark, dense forest.


	12. Chapter 12, A Fire in the Distance

_Luinwen-2013_: That is an excellent question! But I can't answer it just yet hehe, you'll find out in the next few chapters though :D

**Thank you soooooo so so so so so SO much for the reviews and follows everyone! I know Thorin is being a little butt munchkin right now, but things will get better, I promise! As for now, I hope you enjoy!**

**And please remember to leave your lovely reviews as I love to read them!**

* * *

It had been quite some time since Vanya had, to Bilbo's utter delight, smacked the arrogance off of Thorin's face and run away. The dwarf prince had tried to go after the girl, but Dwalin had stopped him saying that she just needed some time alone and that she would be back soon.

But what was troubling the Hobbit was that she still had not returned. With a deep frown etched on his round face, Bilbo tried to eat the stew Bombur had prepared for the quiet company.

The Halfling looked to the leader of their company now, a myriad of feelings rushing over him at once. First and foremost, Bilbo felt a sick satisfaction at the bright pink patch on Thorin's cheek where the girl had hit him. But despite trying very hard not to, the Hobbit couldn't help but feel sorry for the dwarf. He sat far off from the rest of his kin, not eating and simply staring at a spot in the grass in front of him with a miserable look painted over his usually stoic features. He would pull up to his nose the cloak that Vanya had left behind and inhale deeply, breathing in her scent when he thought no one was looking.

"Idiot." Bilbo muttered under his breath suddenly, all traces of sympathy evaporating quickly. Why should he feel sorry for the stubborn, selfish dwarf when the Hobbit knew in his heart that he was a better match for the girl?

He could give Vanya a wonderful life in the Shire; he would make her just as happy as she made him, he would take excellent care of her and treat her better than all the gold and jewels that Thorin was so desperate to reclaim.

And the Hobbit knew that in time, Vanya would come to see it too.

"Oi, take these to the lads, will yer?" Bofur said suddenly, snapping Bilbo out of his thoughts just as he finished his supper.

The Halfling was handed two bowls filled to the brim before he could even utter a word of protest. Then mumbling and grumbling under his breath, he took the stew to Fili and Kili who were looking after the ponies. The animals were grazing in a small open space a short while away from the rest of the company and the two young dwarves stood bickering with each other as Bilbo approached with their supper.

"No, you oaf! There are fifteen!" Shouted Fili at his brother who let out a frustrated huff. "Learn how to count."

"I'm sorry." Kili replied in mock outrage before continuing. "_**You're**_ telling mehow to count? You - who were too busy with his face buried between the town's women's legs to attend our learning sessions - are telling me how to count."

Bilbo began to fidget uncomfortably, not knowing if he should just place their supper on the ground behind them and leave or interrupt their argument.

Fili smiled wickedly, his blonde hair glinting in the pale moonlight as he answered. "Don't be jealous brother, one day you'll find a woman to s-"

"Ahhhhhsupper!" Bilbo shouted, trying desperately to drown out the rest of the dwarf's sentence.

The Hobbit never expected the straw haired brother to be such a womanizer; in fact he thought Kili would be the ladies man out of the two. But that clearly was not the case.

The two brothers turned to look at the Hobbit with surprise on their faces, neither of them having heard his tiny footsteps approaching.

"Perfect," said Kili grabbing a hold of the Halfling's shoulder and pulling him up to the ledge where the two dwarves were standing. Bilbo squawked as he tried not to spill the contents of the bowls all over himself. "Right, Mr. Bilbo, would you be so kind as to count for us the number of ponies you see in the field?" The dark haired brother asked, taking his supper from a very confused Hobbit.

Nonetheless, Bilbo nodded and handed Fili his stew before counting up every single pony he could see.

"Fourteen. There's fourteen." The Halfling answered, mentally double checking his total to make sure.

"An wha id I ell you?" Kili turned to his brother, saying it with as much triumph as he could manage through a mouthful of stew.

"Hold on." Bilbo said suddenly, catching on. "If there are only fourteen ponies... where are the other two?" They had left Bag End with seventeen ponies; Lilly had bolted - leaving them with sixteen. But now there was a pair missing.

"That, we don't know," Fili admitted with a sheepish smile before a look of realization dawned on his face. "Wait a minute! As our official burglar, you can investigate where they've run off to!"

"Yes!" Kili agreed with his brother. "Then hopefully we won't have to tell Thorin."

The two dwarves ganged up on poor Master Baggins. They had both gulped down their supper and had tossed the empty bowls aside, standing now with their arms crossed menacingly, waiting for Bilbo to accept.

"Not on your lives!" The Halfling said stubbornly, puffing his chest out and glaring at the two brothers defiantly.

* * *

"Confounded dwarves." The Hobbit muttered as he beat his way through the trees, he was about to turn around and call back to Fili and Kili that there were no ponies to be seen, when Bilbo's eyes suddenly caught the light of a fire burning nearby. He would have completely missed it if he hadn't turned in just the right spot, but he was now staring at it, debating on whether or not to venture closer to the light.

Just then, something Tookish awoke in him and he felt courageous, adventurous and for the first time in a long while, Bilbo felt like a little boy again. When the world was his playground and he felt no fear or trepidation. When only curiosity and the promise of excitement mattered.

And without another thought, the Hobbit made his way towards the foreign light, but as his eyes fell upon the scene, Bilbo felt his previous emancipation evaporate as though he had walked onto the surface of the Sun.

For three giant Trolls sat around the fire; they had with them both missing ponies and a very pale and tied up Vanya.


	13. Chapter 13, Burglarobbits

_Aluriel_: Thank you as always for your wonderful reviews, I very much look forward to reading them. : )

_KillerKadoogan_: I really am sorry about the length of the last chapter, and so I hope you'll forgive me for this one too! But I promise the next chapter will be up ASAP and it's quite lengthy :D

_charathwen:_ I'm so glad that you're enjoying my story so far, and thank you for all the wonderful compliments! Also, your English is very good and don't worry as it is not my native tongue either.

_Just4Me:_ I totally saw Fili as being the womanizer of the two and glad you saw it as well. I think Kili is just given a bad rep because he's so scrumptiously adorable.

**Thanks everyone for reading and your support! Please remember to leave your lovely reviews!**

* * *

"We can't eat her!" One of the Trolls bellowed, reaching over to stir a giant pot bubbling over the fire. "She's too nice lookin!"

"I don't care what she looks like, I'm sick of mutton! I need flesh!" The other Troll shouted in a whiny, nasally voice.

"Both of yehs shut up!" The third and biggest Troll yelled, smacking the whiny one in the head. "I make the decisions 'round here!"

Bilbo's heart was beating wildly and he momentarily cursed Fili and Kili for making him go looking for the ponies on his own - before he remembered Vanya.

The poor girl was tied up in a sack, lying against a great big tree with only her head exposed. She looked terrified and seeing the look of horror on her beautiful face, the Hobbit made up his mind instantly on what to do next.

Creeping closer to where Vanya was laying, the Halfling noticed the great big knot of rope that was tied to the gate of what looked like a makeshift stable. And inside were their ponies.

But the animals were of little concern at the moment; Master Baggins' main priority was to get his woman to safety.

"So are we eatin' her or not?" The Troll who was still stirring the pot asked, quickly losing his patience.

"She won't make more than a mouthful!" Said the biggest creature, glancing over at Vanya. Bilbo froze to the spot so he wouldn't be seen, only a few feet from the girl now.

"We can toss her in the stew for a bit o' nice flaverin'." The cook suggested regaining the other Troll's attention.

"Alright, throw her in." The creature said disinterestedly as the smallest Troll reached down to pick Vanya up, when she screamed as loud as her lungs would allow.

"Oi! Stop making that noise!" The whiny Troll yelled, holding one of his hands over his misshapen ears while the other continued to grab for her.

Bilbo's mind was still ringing with the sound of her scream, when without thinking, the Hobbit stepped out into the clearing and began waving his hands and shouting nonsense to distract the hideous monsters from Vanya.

The Halfling's plan worked; perhaps a bit too well as the creature that had been reaching for the girl, forgot about her and instead scooped Bilbo up in a flash.

"What are _**you**_?" The Troll asked, even uglier up close. Bilbo nearly fainted from the reek of its breath but managed to gulp a bit of fresh air before answering.

"A Burglar- I mean, Hobbit."

"A Burglarobbit?" Asked the monster in confusion. "Never heard of a Burglarobbit before."

Bilbo suddenly found the perfect opportunity to kill some time, wishing desperately that the others had heard Vanya's scream.

"Really?" Bilbo asked pretending to be thoroughly surprised. "W-well we're everywhere-but we mostly live in...um...trees."

"Trees?" The three Trolls questioned in unison.

"Yeah, there are loads of us, we hang from trees and um, eat... the bark?" The Hobbit was pulling things out from thin air at this point but the creatures were too dim-witted to notice. However they did have terribly short attention spans and the biggest Troll was growing restless.

"Thats enough! We wasn't sent down 'ere to learn about Burglarobbits." He said in a great huff before turning to stir the pot over the fire.

"Well, I can-" Bilbo started and then suddenly stopped, realizing what the Troll had just said. "What do you mean _sent_ down here? Who sent you?"

But before any of the creatures or the Hobbit could say another word, Bilbo heard the monster that was holding him yelp in pain and the next thing he knew, he had landed on his round bottom on the wonderful, solid ground.

"Let the girl go." Kili growled with an intensity that the Halfling hadn't heard before.

"You what!?" The head troll asked, sneering at the seemingly insignificant dwarf, when suddenly the rest of his kin sprang from the surrounding forest, hacking and swinging their terrible weapons at the giant creatures.

Bilbo was shaking with relief as he heard the howls of pain coming from the monsters but quickly stood up, planning to make his way over to Vanya. She was pale white and huddled into a little ball up against the tree, when the Hobbit noticed Thorin amidst the chaos and fighting.

He jumped into the clearing, and ignoring everyone and everything else, ran straight to the girl. He dropped down by her side and a helpless, breathless smile came to the dwarf's lips. He raised a big hand, brushing the hair out of her face, and the Halfling saw as she tried to turn away from him. Bilbo would have smiled if he wasn't busy trying to avoid being squashed by a Troll or accidentally stabbed by a dwarf.

But then Thorin took Vanya's small face in both his hands and made her look at him. He stared at her intently for a second, saying something and then taking her in his arms. The dwarf prince seemed to swallow the girl in his embrace, nuzzling his nose into her hair and breathing deeply.

Bilbo stood, simply watching the leader of their company touched and held the woman he had just risked his life to save. He felt a white hot anger within him, and at the same time the cold, crushing feel of defeat.

Thorin placed a light kiss on the top of Vanya's head before he stood up and joined his kin, wielding a frightening axe and slicing through Troll flesh as though it were made of butter.

But the Hobbit was still staring at the girl, whose face had gone bright red. With anger or pleasure; the Halfling did not know.

And it was in this moment when Bilbo felt himself being scooped up by a pair of huge hands, ready to be ripped apart.


	14. Chapter 14, Naked

_KillerKadoogan_: I hope the length of this chapter suits you better! :D

_Just4Me_ and _Lady Legend-Maker_: Ooooo you guys just wait, maybe she isn't as impartial towards our little Hobbit as you've come to think! Or maybe she is. You guys will just have to keep reading I guess! Muahaha ;)

_Hannah.j pg_, _kungfupandabear_ and _Ari_: Im so glad you guys are enjoying this story so far and have taken the time to review! It means a lot. :D

**Thank you to everyone else who favourited and followed! **

**Please remember to review! **

* * *

Thorin watched as his Burglar had an arm and a leg spread out in each direction, two filthy trolls on either end ready to yank his limbs off.

The company watched too, their energy fading as they realized that they were now all doomed. Each dwarf reluctantly dropped their weapons, last of all Kili who simply stared at the Trolls and then in a great huff, threw his sword down in exasperation.

All thirteen dwarves plus Bilbo currently found themselves being told to crawl into brown woven sacks; similar to the one Vanya was in.

"Hold on!" The biggest Troll shouted just as Thorin was about to place his boot into the bag. "Take off yer wrappin's first." Ordered the creature as he pointed to the dwarf's clothing.

The dwarf prince frowned in confusion, but removed his fur lined cloak anyway and tossed it to the ground before continuing to crawl into the old, brown sack.

"Are you deaf?" Bellowed the Troll, lowering his big ugly head down to where the dwarf was standing. "I said take em off!"

Thorin's face was momentarily about to explode if anymore blood rushed to his cheeks when he realized the monster meant for him to take off _**all**_ of his clothing.

"There's a lady in our presence." The tall dwarf said through clenched teeth, for some reason expecting that these foul creatures would suddenly understand the proper etiquette involved in such matters.

"Oi, one more word out of yehs, and I'll swallow yeh whole!" A second Troll bellowed, he was middle sized and wore a deep green loin cloth that barely covered anything.

Thorin's nostrils flared but he bit his tongue, reluctantly beginning to undress. And for some reason, despite his previous notion of propriety, he could not help but look over to Vanya.

She was blushing, and looked absolutely lovely in the light of the fire. Her brown eyes were wide and she was staring intently at Thorin, only to look away sheepishly when he caught her eye.

He had nearly toppled over in relief when he'd seen her alive and well, captured and tied up in a sack, but alive nonetheless. Vanya's scream had pushed aside all other thoughts and he had been only able to think about protecting her.

Thorin remembered the way she'd pulled away from his touch when he had brushed the hair out of her wonderful face, and it'd stung like she had slapped him again. He'd asked her to forgive him, but the girl had simply stared at him. Her eyes burnt with the memory of his harsh words and he had felt her tense up as he'd embraced her. But she'd slowly melted into him, sighing slightly when he had kissed her head.

Many things had been captured and stolen from the dwarf prince; his homeland, his heritage, his family and his friends, but never his heart. He had been very close to giving it away once, yes. But it had always belonged to him and he'd spent the last 60 years protecting it under lock and key.

But Thorin found, staring at the girl's big brown eyes and soft pale skin in the firelight, that his heart was irrevocably slipping away from him-and there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

Nothing except hope and pray that she did not turn it away.

"Get a move on, all of yehs!" The biggest Troll said, snapping Thorin's train of thought as he continued to undress. He could hear as the rest of his company began to shuffle out of their clothes, grumbling and complaining under their breath the entire time.

Thorin had stripped himself of all his clothing except for his breeches, and had managed to keep his eyes glued to the cloth prison bag he was supposed to climb into, but for whatever reason the dwarf now stole another furtive glance at Vanya; secretly hoping that she was watching him.

And as he turned to look, he could see that her head was bowed, but her eyes were absorbing every inch of Thorin's body and the dwarf prince couldn't help but smirk as he caught her gaze and held it. Her face had gone bright pink, but she didn't look away.

Thorin paused for a split second, debating on what to do next. He would have to be a fool in order to deny the effect she had on him, but the dwarf now realized an opportunity to see if he made her feel the same way.

So he slowly began to untie his breeches - not bothering to turn away - and to the dwarf's delight, he saw the girl struggle to keep her gaze locked on his eyes and not where his hands were. Her mouth was parted slightly, and he could tell she was breathing heavily. But suddenly his plan backfired, as the sight of her soft lips caused an odd sort of throbbing deep within Thorin's stomach. He tried to stop and think of other things but it was as though his mind was consumed by the girl, imagining her naked body, her smooth, pale breasts pressed up against his bare chest.

But just before he began to slip the last of his clothing off, Vanya took a deep, jagged breath and lowered her eyes completely.

Thorin stood naked and quickly stepped into the sack, pulling it up over himself to cover his excitement.

But just as he pulled the cloth over his shoulders, the smallest Troll out of the three, picked the dwarf prince up and tossed him to the side. Where he landed right next to Vanya.

The girl tried to avoid his gaze by looking around, but as she did, her cheeks flushed pink again and she had to stifle a smile before closing her eyes.

Thorin looked up in confusion and realized that he had forgotten all about the rest of his kin who were at varying stages of nakedness.

Fili and Kili were standing, completely nude and seemingly undisturbed as they shook off their boots, but they were not the ones Vanya had been looking at.

The dwarf followed her gaze and, perhaps with a slight pang of jealousy, found Bilbo Baggins. The Hobbit was desperately trying to cover his manhood with the brown bag the Trolls had provided them with, all the while attempting to take his shirt off and keep his clothes from getting dirty.

Thorin looked on at Bilbo, noting the way his eyes would flash over to the girl and how his cheeks would flush as he continued to undress. The dwarf was reminded of his own actions earlier and the thoughts behind them, when suddenly, he felt a protectiveness over Vanya like he had never felt before. And he vowed that the Halfling would not be allowed to spend any amount of time alone with her.

If they got out of here alive.

Soon after, half the dwarves were thrown alongside their leader and the rest were tied up and placed on a spit; slowly cooking above the fire.

The three hideous creatures were now debating on how to eat the lot of them; whether or not to sauté them in a skillet or to sit on them one by one and squash them into jelly.

"Ori, your foot is squeezing my unborn children right out of me family jewels!" Bofur yelped as the rest of the rotating dwarves began shouting all at once.

Thorin felt absolutely helpless but he simply refused to believe that this was how he and his company would perish. At the hands of three witless Trolls.

And just as he thought it, he heard a rustling in the trees and looked back to try and see what had caused it.

Fili had heard it as well and strained to peek in the direction the noise had come from, but he was lying more or less in Vanya's lap and had his face pressed up against a rather inappropriate region of the girl's body.

She began fidgeting uncomfortably but the straw haired dwarf simply grinned and raised an eyebrow suggestively at her. Thorin kicked him, hard, and his nephew scowled before turning back to his original position.

The trees began to rustle again and this time they all heard it, straining their necks in order to see if it was a friend, or another foe.

"I leave your company for less than half a day, and _**this**_ is what I come back to?"

Thorin thanked Durin as he heard Gandalf's voice whispering from somewhere in the trees. The rest of his kin had heard the wizard too and were letting out quiet sighs of relief.

"Get a move on, will yeh?" The biggest Troll yelled at the cook. "I don't fancy bein' turned to stone!"

"How are we supposed to get out of here?" Thorin asked in a hushed voice trying to be heard over the creatures bickering, but he received no answer and assumed the wizard already had a plan.

Thorin looked over at Vanya and saw that she was staring at him, the dwarf wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms, but as he caught her eye, the girl froze and her brows furrowed before she looked away from him.

He had done so little to keep her safe, and knew that deep down she was still upset with him. But it mattered not; the to-be King would do anything in his power to set things right again after they got out of this mess.

"Oi, Lump head, move faster!" One of the Trolls yelled suddenly.

"Who are you callin lump head, half-wit?" Another replied angrily.

Thorin was watching all three trolls now but noticed that none of their mouths had actually opened to speak.

Yet the bickering continued, and the creatures began whacking each other; actually starting to call each other names.

The tall dwarf realized it was Gandalf who had mimicked their voices in order to cause a fight between them, but Thorin did not know what the wizard expected them to do to each other – would they slit one another's throats or simply keep arguing until he lost half of his company as they were cooked on a spit?

"Daylight..." Vanya muttered suddenly as she too was observing the increasingly agitated Trolls, careful to keep her eyes from the hoard of naked dwarves over the fire.

The dwarf prince mentally kicked himself for not realizing it sooner, and as he looked up at the heavens, he could definitely see the light blue sky of morning. But Thorin suddenly wondered if the stories were even true, if these filthy creatures really would turn to stone at the break of day.

"What do yeh take me for? A fool?" The medium sized troll asked, sticking a fat grubby finger in the smallest creature's face. The spit had been forgotten and his kin stuck right above the fire began to yelp as the heat started to cook their flesh.

Suddenly Gandalf appeared grandly from the shadows, standing at the top of a huge boulder which closed the little field off from the pathway, and he held up his staff before bellowing;

"May the dawn take you all!"

The wizard struck the boulder he was perched upon, and as a resounding boom was heard across the forest, the giant rock trembled and split right in half, revealing the blinding sunlight.

And as Thorin plus his entire company watched in amazement, all three trolls began to howl in fright. But before they could turn to search for a place to hide, the creatures were rooted to the spot, never again to move from where they stood at this very moment.

As the three of them had been turned to stone.


	15. Chapter 15, Anger and Passion

_Charathwen_: I wish I was there too... lucky Vanya -_-

_Lady-Legend Maker_: That was one of my favourite parts in the book, and although I love how they depict it in the movie as well, I simply had to choose Tolkien's way!

_Kungfupandabear:_ You don't know how badly I wanted to create a random OC just to run in and shove a wad of one dollar bills into Thorin's breeches... But I had to stick to the plot unfortunately. :(

_DepthsOfMySubconsciousness_ and _Just4Me_: That is exactly what I thought when I saw they still had their little unitards on in the movie, but I think I can forgive them as I'm not sure I wanted to see a bunch of dwarf sausage and beans dangling over a fire :S As with Thorin getting his act in gear, he's trying – but deep down he's still the bossy, ill tempered Prince and has outbursts of anger and frustration. I personally think Bilbo would make a better match for her as well as they connect on a more emotional level, but that damn Thorin is just too smexy! :P And as for explaining her height, it will definitely be coming soon, I promise! In regards to Vanya's character, you will also learn more about her life on the road and how that has affected her, but as far as major flaws go I fear that her innocence and naivety is what has allowed Thorin to fall for her.

_KillerKadoogan_ and _Viper_: Hehehe I think Fili is totally underrepresented just because he's not as hot as his little Brother. So glad I could crack you guys up with his antics.

**Thanks again to everyone! I love you all and please remember to leave your wonderful reviews!**

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The dwarves that had been tied to the spit were all helped down, careful not to fall into the now dying fire.

Bofur had nearly collapsed with relief as he got down, complaining about the dent Ori had left on "his lads" as he'd called them. They were all laughing until Dwalin had asked why Gandalf hadn't shown up sooner. The wizard scowled and had muttered something along the lines of "ungrateful dwarves" under his breath before walking away to speak with the leader of their company.

Vanya was still sitting in her sack, as naked as the rest of the company had been, wondering how on Earth to drag herself towards her clothes that were lying in a heap several feet away.

Everyone besides her was now dressed though, and it was such a relief finally being able to let her eyes wander without fear of seeing too much. To her great regret, she had accidentally caught a glimpse of Bombur's backside as he'd bent over to pick up his clothes- the elf _still_ felt a bit nauseous.

But then she remembered Thorin's half naked body, gleaming in the firelight and her heart began to quicken. Never in her life had she seen anyone who possessed the same kind of wonderful muscles and strong broad shoulders. She could vividly recall the look he had given her as he untied his breeches, and even now it made her tremble with an odd sort of burning desire.

She had tried desperately to turn away, attempted to recall the anger within her that she had felt towards the dwarf, but it had been futile.

His sunkissed skin had been covered with scars and strange black markings that started at his shoulders and ran down to his forearms. She had been as transfixed by these symbols as she was with his body. The signs on his shoulders were beautiful and only added to the dwarf's appeal, but the largest and most intricate set of markings were on his back.

She would never have noticed it if he hadn't pulled his tunic off and lifted his long black hair from over top of them. Vanya only needed a split second to see that they were a set of symbols that ran along his spine. What these markings meant however, the elf had no idea.

The first marking had started right between his shoulder blades and was of a crown or helmet of some kind. There was a large star right above it and three smaller stars that spread out on either side. The symbol in the middle was a hammer and finally at the bottom, where his back curved in to meet his rump, there had been an anvil.

The girl sat idly wondering about the markings on Thorin's back when Bilbo suddenly appeared in front of her, a neatly folded lavender gown in his small hands.

"How are you feeling?" He asked, motioning towards her stomach with his head, brown curls glinting beautifully in the morning light. Her wound was fine; whatever evil feeling had caused her pain was gone now and she felt utterly at peace as she simply stared at the Hobbit's round face.

Then she poked her arms out of the sack, careful not to let it slip off, before lunging towards him and wrapping her arms around the Halfling's suddenly rigid frame. Upon seeing his face now, she remembered at once all that he had done for her.

She had been so angry at Thorin the night before that she'd stumbled right into the Troll's gathering without realizing where she was until it was too late. The hurt she'd experienced at hearing him utter those words was consuming and unlike anything she had felt before; it wasn't a physical pain, but something that seemed to wrench out her stomach from the inside.

She knew the dwarf was sorry for what he'd said, she had seen it in his eyes when he'd looked at her and in the way he'd embraced her. But the elf still felt as though his apology was nowhere near enough to make up for what he had said.

If he truly did care about her, Thorin would have to prove it; and she knew just the thing to ask of him.

Just then she felt Bilbo timidly reach around to return her embrace. She smiled into his shoulder, smelling the sweat and grass on him and momentarily forgot about the brooding dwarf.

"Thank you." The elf whispered into his ear. The Halfling had risked his very life to save hers and she could not express her gratitude enough.

Bilbo simply nodded.

Vanya had closed her eyes as she held the Halfling close, and could see the red glow of the Sun behind her lids. She felt a warmth and happiness that was unexplainable when she was with Bilbo. Just as she felt an entirely different warmth and breathlessness when she was with Thorin.

And as though she had summoned him, the red glow beneath her eyelids suddenly disappeared. She opened them timidly and saw the tall dwarf standing over the two; he was wearing only his tunic, his breeches and his boots. A relaxed look for him, but unfortunately the expression on his face was a bit short of murderous and the elf saw the dangerous glint in his pale blue eyes as he stared at Bilbo.

Vanya slowly let go of her Hobbit and without thinking, pulled him behind her protectively.

Thorin saw this and glared at the elf disapprovingly before reaching over to Bilbo, taking her clothes from him and silently daring him to utter a word of protest.

The Shire-ling let out a low string of insults before storming off, leaving the girl and the dwarf staring at each other intently.

She could hear the racket the other dwarves were making as they laughed and joked with one another, rejoicing at their narrow escape from certain doom. But they were all suddenly drowned out but the sound of her thudding heart as Thorin reached for her. She thought he was going to embrace her again, but instead she found herself being lifted from the ground and carried away from the clearing where the rest of the company still were.

Fili and Kili saw their uncle carrying the girl in his arms, heading into the forest and exchanged perplexed glances, but the last face she saw before the trees surrounded them was Bilbo's. And the expression of hurt on his innocent features almost made the elf cringe.

"Put me down." Vanya said as she glared at the tall dwarf, trying to ignore the fluttering in her stomach at the way his strong arms held her. Despite her attempts to banish them, thoughts of his unclothed body began to seep their way back into her thoughts and she had to make a tremendous effort just be upset with him.

His breath taking eyes seemed dark, like a crystal blue lake covered by clouds on a rainy day, and she could tell his jaw was clenched in annoyance.

"Put me down, Thorin." The girl said again, this time in a much weaker voice as she was merely grasping at what little remained of her previous anger. But she immediately regretted speaking.

"Enough!" He barked in a deep growl, and Vanya instantly fell silent. Her cheeks were hot with embarrassment and as upset as that made her, as much as she wanted to give him another slap, there was something about the dwarf that made her feel obliged to obey him. Whether the elf liked this or not however, she was unsure.

He kept his eyes off her and kept walking further into the forest until they could no longer hear his kin. Then he looked at her suddenly and let her down by a small batch of wild flowers.

Her clothes were slung over one of his broad shoulders and he advanced on her as a hunter would with his prey, making no sudden movements but with his eyes still dark as they bored holes into her head and kept her rooted to the spot.

For the first time since she'd met him, Vanya was frightened by the dwarf and recoiled from him as drew closer. He stopped suddenly a few feet away from her and let out an exasperated sigh.

"You embrace the damned Halfling as though he is your lover, and then spurn me as though I am your enemy." Thorin said, his rich, baritone voice straining with frustration.

Vanya looked up to him in confusion and saw the look of hurt that was slowly beginning to seep its way into his icy eyes. She realized then the extent to which he disliked her Hobbit and it struck something within her, making her angry once more.

"Bilbo risked his life to save mine, while you care not whether I am alive or dead. Need I say more?" She replied scathingly, seeing a look of absolute fury register across his dark features before he lunged towards her, locking both her arms in his huge hands.

Vanya's anger quickly turned into fear and she froze, eyes wide, staring at his livid face which was less than a foot from her own.

"Do not _**ever**_ say that again." Thorin breathed heavily, his pale blue irises still blazing. The elf both loved and hated the way every single, tiny hair on her body stood as the dwarf's hot breath caressed her skin.

Vanya could only nod slightly, but he did not pull away from her.

His expression altered abruptly as his expression softened, a potent look of remorse and sadness coming to settle over his face.

"If only you knew how deeply I regret having uttered those words..."

His voice was hoarse now, whispering as though afraid he would be overheard by the birds which were chirping happily among the surrounding trees.

He bowed his head ever so slightly, his hands still wrapped around her arms, and in that moment Vanya suddenly felt a blinding urge to reach up to Thorin's face and smooth out the creases which worry and grief had left between his brows over the years.

But she resisted and instead put forth her proposition. Knowing that how he answered would ultimately determine her feelings towards him.

"Take me to Lord Elrond, and I will know how truly you regret speaking them." The elf said slowly, deliberately dragging out each word as she gauged his expression.

The dwarf's eyes were unreadable as he stared at the girl for what seemed like an eternity.

Vanya's heart was beating fast, anxious to hear his answer. Dreading what would happen to her poor heart if he refused.

But then he reached up and held her face in both his hands as he had the night before.

"I will do... whatever you ask of me." Thorin said, almost forcing himself to get the last part out. And then as he finished his sentence, his expression changed, his eyes becoming weary and tender all at once as he stared at her.

Vanya couldn't help but smile up at the dwarf, her spirit swelling with utter joy beneath her chest; and not simply because he had agreed to take her to Rivendell. It was the notion behind his words that made her realize just how much the leader of their company cared for her.

She forgave him now for his harshness and distant demeanour, and without thinking, she leaned in and placed a light kiss on the dwarf's cheek.

She felt him hold utterly still, her lips hot beneath his cool skin and found that she wanted to kiss every square inch of his body.

But with whatever will power she had left, she slowly and rather unwillingly pulled back from the tall dwarf's face, only to have him look up at her with an intense desire in his blue eyes that made the girl's legs turn to jelly.

"Don't." Thorin simply ordered before he knotted his fist in Vanya's long, wavy hair and dragged the girl back into him desperately. She could feel her knees weaken as a small smirk played upon his mouth when he whispered; "I'm not finished with you yet."

And with that, his rough lips crashed into hers and Vanya forgot how to breathe.


	16. Chapter 16, Poison

_Luinwen-201_3,_ KiTeLLe36_0, and _kungfupandabea_r: I know, lucky little wench that Vanya is!

_Just4Me_ and _SybiLLA12_: Hehehe I wasn't thinking of doing an "M" chapter but i've got quite a few people asking for one, so I think I'll leave it up to the readers to leave a review if theyre in favour of a smut chapter when the time comes :)

_Lady Legend-Maker_ and _Ari_: Don't worry, I know things look bad for our adorable little Hobbit, but they'll get better! I promise! And Ari, I'm also very glad you liked sexy angry Thorin hehehe.

_KillerKadoogan_: Hahaha, I felt quite gross with an image of Bombur's junk stuck in my head for the rest of that day :S And I hope you like this chapter, it is Kili's POV as I'm saving a Fili POV for a bit later in the story. As for the tattoos, I just figured that Thorin was too much of a bad ass to not have them, but not as showy as Dwalin to have them exposed all the time. Hehehe, I must admit i was quite jealous of Vanya near the end, and you will find out if she's still nekid very soon! Happy reading and thanks for your lovely comments!

**Thank you sooo much everyone! Please remember to leave your wonderful reviews.**

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"Now where has Thorin run off to?" Gandalf said with a bit of irritation after searching the small clearing for their leader.

Kili exchanged a knowing glance with his brother but they both pretended not to hear the wizard. Instead, the young dwarf focused on laying out the bowls for the rest of his kin. They were all starving after going so long without a meal and Thorin had agreed to take a short rest here before moving on once more.

"Fili, Kili!" Gandalf shouted over to them and he could almost feel his shoulders slump, knowing exactly what the wizard wanted. "Go find Thorin, I must speak with him."

Kili saw his brother nod slightly, acknowledging the request and walking over to where the dark haired dwarf was still laying out bowls.

"Come on, brother." Fili said with a huff as his sea green eyes intently scanned the expanse of the forest.

Kili stood reluctantly and the two brothers walked together in silence before they reached the end of the clearing, staring into the forest.

"What do you suppose they're doing in there?" The younger dwarf asked with genuine curiosity not knowing why their uncle had taken Vanya alone into the woods. But a single look from the straw haired dwarf standing next to him wiped out those thoughts immediately and Kili felt his cheeks flush.

"Don't be foolish," He said admonishingly to his older brother. "Uncle hasn't lain with a woman since before we were born."

Fili looked at him incredulously. "And you think that after waiting _**this **_long, he took someone as beautiful as her into the forest with no clothes on to do what? Pick flowers?"

Kili scowled at his brother and remembered Vanya's breasts the night he had walked in on her at Bilbo's house. Knowing that if he ever found a woman like her, he would definitely be doing exactly what his brother was suggesting.

But his uncle... He was simply different. Truth be told, everyone in their company had noticed their leader's odd behaviour around the girl, but Kili wasn't so sure of her affect on him.

Thorin was simply too stubborn and far too proud to fall for anyone.

"After you, brother." Fili's voice broke the young dwarf's thoughts and he took a deep breath before stepping into the woods.

The two walked silently for a while listening to the animals and chirping birds, knowing that they should've been calling out Thorin's name to find him sooner. But Kili felt as though even the sounds of their footfalls were too loud- that he and his brother were intruding upon something.

Fili looked around and inclined his head to the left before turning to walk that way. Kili rolled his brown eyes after him, knowing that his brother had no idea where he was going but acted as though he had a map of the forest drawn on the back of his hand.

He followed the straw haired dwarf nonetheless, quickly taking the lead when he felt a smooth, hard object collide with the back of his neck. He turned to glare at Fili who was staring at him, innocently batting his eyelashes.

"Oh Kili, your smoulder! How it sends shivers down my spine!" His brother said in a disturbingly high pitched voice, breaking the silence between them.

Kili grinned and bent down, the shroud of seriousness evaporating from their minds as he pretended to fiddle with his boot while discreetly grabbing a pebble. He jumped up, throwing the object at Fili as hard as he could.

The dark haired dwarf would have stood and laughed but saw as the pebble struck his brother right between the eyes, an angry red welt already starting to form. Then he saw the murderous rage on Fili's face and began to run away, laughing the entire time as he heard the other dwarf following behind him muttering a string of threats his way.

Kili had always been the faster runner out of the two, and most of their squabbles ended up as such; with Fili chasing him until the older dwarf gave up and simply forgot about whatever his younger brother had done to annoy him in the first place.

But it was as Kili was running absentmindedly from Fili when he stumbled into a small clearing in the middle of the woods, and stood rooted to the spot. His brown eyes fixed on the scene taking place a couple yards in front of him.

Sure enough, Fili had been right.

Thorin stood, pressing Vanya up against the trunk of a tall birch tree, his mouth seeming to devour her small lips.

His uncle's hand seemed enormous as he had it tangled in her long hair, pushing her entire head towards him as the girl struggled to breathe under his desperate kiss.

"Yo-" Fili had come up behind his brother and had opened his mouth to speak when he spotted Thorin out in the clearing. His words immediately faltered and the two brothers stood, half concealed by the surrounding trees as they watched their uncle in utter shock –simply unable to look away.

The drawstring of the cloth sack, whose rim had been hanging over Vanya's chest, seemed to spontaneously loosen and the brown material fell down, conveniently catching on her hips.

For the second time now, he had seen the girl's wonderful breasts, and they still captured every ounce of his attention. Fili let out a low appreciative whistle but was more or less unperturbed by them and seemed to be occupied with judging Thorin's techniques instead. Nodding matter of factly when the tall dwarf caressed her greedily or when he'd tug at her hair, pulling her head back to place kisses on her neck.

Kili's uncle finally pulled away from the girl's lips, and the young dwarf saw the milk white skin was red and raw around her mouth from where Thorin's beard had chaffed her. Vanya was literally gasping for air, her big brown eyes were wide and she needed to hang onto the tall dwarf's shoulders to keep from falling over. But Thorin removed his fist from her hair and took both her hands in his, gently pushing her away from him to observe her half naked body in the scattered sunlight.

Kili could see from where he was standing, the look of pure, unabated desire that ran across his uncle's face at the sight of her exposed flesh and he suddenly needed to look away.

Never in his entire life had the dark haired dwarf seen Thorin even express the slightest amount of interest in any woman whatsoever. And there were plenty who offered him company for the night but he simply shook his head in disinterest, or in many cases pure disgust. Telling his nephews that women were the worst kind of poison and not to bother with any of them.

But now, it was as though someone had replaced his uncle with an entirely different person.

Kili heard Vanya's sharp gasp and turned to look as Thorin had placed a hand on her stomach; right where her wound was. Fili suddenly noticed the girl's chewed flesh and turned to look at his brother in concern.

Then, as their eyes locked, Fili suddenly pointed to Kili and lifted a hand, holding out two fingers and began to mimic a pair of walking legs. He thought his brother meant they should leave, and he couldn't agree more, but then Fili motioned towards his uncle.

The younger dwarf shook his head vehemently; Thorin would beat the line of Durin out of him if he knew Kili had been watching.

Fili frowned, trying to think of something to get his uncle's attention when they heard him speak.

"Hold still." His voice was strained - deeper than usual, and the two brothers looked on as Thorin slowly knelt down in front of Vanya, placing both of his hands on either side of the girl's hips.

His nephews looked on in amazement, knowing that she was the first person who had gotten the rightful king of Erebor to kneel before her.

Thorin was looking up at her the entire time, and Kili saw as her chest rose and fell rapidly, her eyes mingled with desire and trepidation. Fili's eyebrows raised in surprise as his uncle gently placed a kiss on her wounded stomach, and his brother shared the shock. It was amazingly unlike Thorin to be so...tender or caring. But as the two stood, they saw that he was indeed capable of expressing such emotions.

The tall dwarf stayed on his knees, his mouth beginning to wander further south, stopping just above the rim of the woven, cloth bag as it clung to her hips.

He began trailing kisses along the length of her waist, his hands squeezing the flesh on her sides as the skin beneath glowed pink.

Vanya smiled and then sighed, reaching down to place a small hand on Thorin's head, tenderly pushing the hair out of his face as he made his way up towards her navel with his rough lips.

He stopped then suddenly, and removed both of his hands from her sides, looking up at her while placing his fingers over the drawstring that held the cloth sack around her waist. He seemed to be waiting for her permission, careful not to cross any boundaries but the girl unabashedly reached down herself and loosened the strings.

Fili and Kili both looked away before the brown bag pooled around her ankles.

Heading silently away from the tiny clearing in the forest, the brothers heard Vanya's half choked gasp and Kili tried desperately to drown it out.

The dark haired dwarf's mind was numb, not entirely sure what he had just witnessed. Although there was one thing he was sure of and no matter how much it shocked him to think it, his uncle had fallen in love.

Fili and Kili finally made their way out of the forest and back into the clearing where Gandalf stood, examining the giant stone Trolls.

The wizard turned to them as they approached, raising an eyebrow at in expectance.

"He's on his way." Fili said nonchalantly as Gandalf nodded and went back to knocking one of the trolls on the head with his staff.

A hollow thud came from it as Kili turned around, grateful that his brother was such a talented liar.

Just then Bilbo came up to the two brothers, his hands stuffed in his tiny pockets as he looked around, trying to be casual.

"So- uh, w-what did Thorin want with Vanya?" The Hobbit asked as if it was absolutely no matter to him, but Kili could see the panic in his brown eyes. And suddenly the young dwarf felt his heart break for the Halfling, realizing that he too had come to care for the girl just as much as his uncle did.

Fili chuckled and was about to speak before his younger brother cut him off.

"They were talking." Kili lied, ignoring the odd look the straw haired dwarf was giving him. "Just talking."

A wave of relief seemed to wash over Bilbo and he bobbed up and down on the balls of his hairy little feet, smiling slightly. "Beautiful day, isn't it?"

Kili nodded once and gave him a tight smile before the Hobbit turned and walked away, humming a little tune.

Fili handed his brother the food that Bombur had prepared in their absence and looked at the dark haired dwarf intently.

"What is he going to do when he finds out?" The older dwarf asked quietly. "You should have told him the truth."

Kili simply shook his head in disagreement, trying to ignore how ridiculous the red welt in the middle of his brother's forehead made him look.

Bilbo would find out when he was ready; but now was not the time.

"Ah, Thorin!" Gandalf's voice suddenly broke through the brothers' quiet little huddle and they both snapped their necks towards their uncle, freezing to the spot as though he had somehow found out about their spying and was on his way to punish them.

But Thorin paid his nephews no attention, simply walking past them, his eyes brighter than they had ever seen and a trace of a smile still on his lips as he greeted the wizard.

The two brothers let out a sigh of relief and watched as Vanya sat, fully clothed and smiling widely, even more beautiful now in the midday sunlight as she accepted a bowl of food that Bilbo brought to her happily.

And as he watched the three entangled lovers, Kili decided that his uncle had been right; women _were_ indeed the worst kind of poison.


	17. Chapter 17, Marked

_Hello everyone! I have some bad news, this will be the last chapter until sometime next week since I'm on vacation till then. But I promise I will have a chapter up as soon as I can when I get back!_

_I wrote this in a bit of a rush, and hope you guys can forgive my half-assedness. The next chapter will be 10x better!_

_Also as for the dirty stuff, I devised a sort of system where for every 10 reviews in favour of smut, I'll post one "M" chapter. So far we're at 5 (unless I counted wrong hehe). Also if you're not into that sort of thing, no need to worry as I'll be creating a separate "story" and including all the "M" chapters there and you won't miss any of the plot line whatsoever._

_Thanks again for your support everyone and terribly sorry I couldn't personally reply to all your lovely comments :'(_

**Remember to review and cast your vote please! Much love!**

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Thorin stood, feeling the smooth hard steel of the sword Gandalf had found as they'd searched the Troll cave.

It was indeed a beautiful weapon, but the tall dwarf's mind was on another treasure.

He could still feel Vanya's soft skin upon his lips. He had fought with every fibre of his being to keep from taking her right then and there in the forest. But she deserved better than to lose her maidenhood like an animal in the woods with no bed or comfort.

The image of her naked body glowing in the warm hue of the woods still burned in Thorin's mind. Her beautifully round breasts, the soft, smooth skin between her legs and the taste of her in his mouth was all he could think about. He was unsure of whether or not the girl would be willing to let him kiss her in such an intimate place, but he remembered the look of excitement in her brown eyes and the gurgled gasp that had ripped from her throat as his lips had slipped between her thighs. She wanted him as badly as he wanted her, and even now it was enough to get his heart racing and his blood rushing south.

The thought of having Vanya in such an intimate way made something deep within Thorin begin to churn and he had to take a deep, shaky breath in order to clear his thoughts.

He was standing now amidst his company in a small space of underbrush not far from the Troll cave when Gandalf approached him.

"Where do you wish to lead us, Master dwarf?" The wizard asked, staring at the prince with guarded eyes.

Thorin paused for a moment and then braced himself. He had promised Vanya that he would take her to Elrond, and upon seeing her wound, he knew she needed help. It had been much worse than the dwarf had imagined, and it made him angry all over again simply thinking about it now. The hands of whoever had hurt her would indeed be cut off if he ever found them.

"Rivendell." Thorin said, trying to make it seem as though it had been his first choice all along.

But a wave of genuine shock washed over Gandalf's features and the wizard scrutinized the dwarf intently, making the shorter one of the two fidget uncomfortably.

Thorin was expecting an onslaught of questions from Gandalf but instead he simply returned his gaze to the Troll hoard.

"They must have come down from the Etenmoors," the wizard said quietly, staring at the woods surrounding them.

"Since when do Trolls travel this far south?" Thorin asked, grateful for the change of subject and the lack of interrogation.

"Well apparently they were _sent_ down here." Bilbo's voice suddenly appeared from thin air and the dwarf nearly reached for the hilt of his sword before realizing who it was.

The leader of the company simply ignored him but Gandalf froze, turning to face the Hobbit with an odd look on his ancient face.

"Who told you this?" the wizard asked, his voice was low and he seemed to be pondering the possibility of Bilbo's words even before the Halfling spoke again.

"W-well one of the Trolls did actually." Bilbo looked as though he regretted speaking, but it was too late now. Gandalf had rounded on him and began asking him more questions.

Thorin turned from the two; it was no concern to him what the Trolls were doing in these parts. But just as he left them, he noticed the look of impatience on the Hobbit's round face as he kept looking back to where Vanya was sitting - all the while trying to answer the wizard's inquiries coherently.

The tall dwarf found himself irritated to no extent but then looked over to the girl as well and the sight of her made his heart warm, getting rid of all the anger and jealousy and leaving a calmness in him which he had not felt before.

She was chatting happily with Bofur and Ori, perched on the trunk of a fallen tree and suddenly Thorin was reminded of a jewel encrusted hair ornament he had found while in the cave. Immediately pulling it out from his pocket, he brushed the little remains of dust from the gold frame and sapphires as they glinted wonderfully in the sunlight.

He was slowly letting himself imagine what life with her would be like once he reclaimed Erebor. The dwarf wanted to shower her with gold and all the jewels he possessed, but he was still quite wary of giving his heart up completely.

For some reason, a small voice in the back of the dwarf prince's mind warned him constantly that Vanya was simply too good to be true. That there was something that she must be hiding from him.

But Thorin banished the dark thoughts and made his way towards the girl. He couldn't shower her with the treasures of Erebor yet but he wanted to give her something nonetheless; a token of his affection.

Ori and Bofur stopped talking as they heard their leader approach and quickly occupied themselves with other things. Vanya's beautiful face brightened when she saw the tall dwarf and she sat up straight, smiling shyly as he came to stand close in front of her.

He was about to pin the ornament in her long, silky hair when a wild voice came from the trees and instead Thorin found himself with his new sword in hand, standing in front of the girl protectively as the rest of his kin took up arms.

But then a ragged looking old man in tattered brown clothing appeared into the underbrush, shouting and cursing all the while being dragged behind what looked like a wooden sled led by ten small rabbits.

"Radagast!" Gandalf shouted, and the entire company relaxed, Thorin lowered his weapon and checked on Vanya. She had hopped down from the fallen tree trunk and stood close behind him, her eyes were staring at the wild looking man with an unreadable expression.

The tall dwarf furrowed his brows in confusion but turned his attention back in front of him.

"I was looking for you, Gandalf!" Radagast said in a breathless voice as he stepped down from his sled. Thorin saw the wizard clad in grey step away from Bilbo, who was armed with what looked like a child's play toy, and towards the odd man. The dwarf prince then saw his staff and realized that he was a wizard as well. "I was at-"

Radagast abruptly stopped talking and began sniffing the air with his large, bulbous nose, causing Gandalf to raise a fuzzy eyebrow in question.

The wizard in the brown robes began to scurry around, sniffing the grass, the trees, and Dwalin (who simply stared on in confusion), muttering to himself frantically when suddenly he stopped. Taking one last, long sniff, he snapped his head towards Thorin.

But the dwarf knew it wasn't him Radagast was looking at with wide, fearful eyes.

He felt Vanya clutch the back of his tunic and he stepped in front of her, hiding the girl completely from the wizards penetrating view. His weapon rose in front of him protectively.

But Radagast did not make a move to come closer towards him or Vanya, instead he took a step back, his enormous blue eyes bulging out of his head as his gaze never left them.

Thorin began to grit his teeth, whoever this man was, the dwarf was about to beat the dried bird excrement from his beard if he kept this charade up.

But then the wizard in brown looked to Gandalf with a look of worry.

"She's been marked."


	18. Chapter 18 and 19 - Time in the Woods

_Hello again everyone! Thank you all so much for the lovely reviews and well wishes! My vacation was great but I'm much happier to be back home. _

_Once again, I'm terribly sorry for not being able to respond to your individual reviews simply because the length of this chapter is so loooooooooooong : (_

_But, on a happy note it looks like the people have spoken and an "M" chapter will definitely be posted shortly, hehe!_

_Also, you guys are totally freaking awesome and deserve two chapters in one! Which is why this is such a long chapter. :D I know it doesn't even begin to answer most of the questions you guys have asked, but Lord Elrond will be able to clear things up for you verrryy soon!_

_For now, you must read and wonder. Muahaha!_

**Please enjoy and remember to leave your loverly reviews as they give me the motivation to keep writing! Love you all!**

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**Chapter 18 - Hill of Sorcery**

"What do you mean?" Thorin and Bilbo asked together anxiously. Both had taken a step towards the haggard looking wizard before realizing that they were acting as each other's mirror.

The two stood now, glowering at one another and Thorin heard Vanya sigh behind him.

It would bring the rightful King of Erebor an indescribable amount of joy if he could simply kick the Hobbit right out of his filthy little trousers all the way back to that rat-hole he called a home. Thorin had no idea why Gandalf had brought Bilbo along in the first place as he had been much more of a hindrance than a help.

The only thing the Halfling seemed to be any good at was annoying Thorin.

"Something of great evil has left its mark on her." Radagast's voice immediately regained their attention and they stood, an intense silence shrouding the entire company as they stared at the wizard in brown, waiting for more information.

Even the birds in the trees had stopped chirping.

But Thorin felt Vanya move from where she was standing beside him and he looked down at her, a small hand was clutching her stomach and the dwarf suddenly realized that her wound was more than just a scar.

Radagast said nothing but stepped towards the girl who was still holding her abdomen. The wizard moved slow and cautious as if he was afraid she was a wild animal who would attack if he moved too fast.

The tall dwarf felt his woman shrink behind him, and he protectively moved in front of her again. His sword in one hand and the gold hair ornament still in the other; the tiny trinket was starting to dig into his palm uncomfortably, but the prince paid it no attention. He was too busy glaring daggers at the approaching stranger, daring him to come any closer to Vanya.

"And exactly _what_ does that entail?" The leader of the company asked through gritted teeth; his patience was wearing extremely thin and he wanted a straight answer.

The wizard in brown seemed to completely dismiss the threatening glare and tone Thorin was giving him, but stopped nonetheless halfway from where he had started.

"She should not be alive, and I fear she won't be for much longer." Radagast said quietly as he stared at the dwarf, but Thorin knew the wizard's crazed blue eyes were seeing straight through him, and he felt an involuntary shudder run up his spine.

He heard his kin shuffle uncomfortably but it still took a few moments until the future King realized what Radagast had actually said.

Then he felt his heart sink; a sick sort of panic mingled with anger swirled up inside of him, as part of the dwarf wanted to turn around and lock Vanya up in a cage. Where no one would touch her, speak to her or ever look at her apart from himself, and in doing so he would keep her safe.

The other part of him simply wanted to cut off the wizard's head for talking such nonsense.

"But...there must be someone who can help her; Elves, or maybe even Men?" Bilbo's frantic voice popped up from beside Thorin, and for once the dwarf prince felt a rush of support for the Halfling, finally grateful that the Hobbit had opened his mouth.

Radagast's chilling blue eyes snapped towards Bilbo and the Halfling shrank under the wizard's gaze, trying not to take a step back.

But the wizard did not answer the Hobbit, instead he mumbled under his breath and the only thing Thorin heard was of no help.

"Wight? No- Wraith? But from where? And why the elf?" Radagast began pacing to and fro, occasionally stopping to scratch his beard.

Thorin's brows furrowed in confusion when he heard the odd man mention an elf, but then Gandalf spoke and everyone's attention turned to the Grey wizard whose eyes were clouded as they gazed far off into the distance.

"There is something I have hidden from Vanya." Gandalf's wrinkled face seemed ancient in that moment before he continued. "I stumbled upon her lying in the road... but I saw what seemed like an old man, hooded and cloaked in black kneeling over her. He fled as I approached."

The dwarf prince could almost hear Vanya's breath catch in her throat and knew that Gandalf had been hoping to keep this news from her for as long as possible. But Thorin's jaw clenched and he felt his face go red with anger.

"Why have you kept this from us?" The tall dwarf asked, surprising himself at how calm and even his voice was. But then he continued, and his voice became rougher and louder with each word. "If we knew what that motherless filth looked like, we could have kept a watch out for him, hunted him down... he would have begged for death by time I finished tearing off every last limb from his cut and beaten body!"

Both of Thorin's hands were balled up into tight fists; one around the hilt of his sword, the other around the hair ornament whose fine gold teeth had bitten into his flesh, causing tiny pricks of crimson to spew forth from his palm before he dropped the trinket on the ground.

The sensation of pain only seemed to add to his fury, but then he felt Vanya place a small hand upon his shoulder. It was as though her touch absorbed every single bit of anger and panic that had been festering inside the dwarf, leaving Thorin almost breathless as a wave of calm and contentedness washed over him.

"Do not be a fool Thorin, son of Thrain!" Gandalf said chidingly. "You would be killed! Whatever has left its mark on her possesses a dark power that no axe or sword can destroy. No...this creature is not from the world of the living." Gandalf now slowly looked to Radagast, their eyes locked from a distance and it seemed as though they were having a silent conversation.

"You don't think...?" Radagast asked suddenly still staring at the other wizard, his bulbous eyes filled with both fear and wonder.

"No, no..." Gandalf said shaking his head so hard, his beard began to wag. Then he stopped and looked off into the dark expanse of forest that surrounded them. "But then again... I cannot be certain."

"Not certain of what?" Bilbo spoke again from beside Thorin.

"Lord Elrond will know." The wizard in grey said in a hushed voice, so quiet that it was almost to himself, as he completely ignored the Hobbit.

"Lord Elrond will know what? Come on, spit it out!" Bilbo said angrily.

"BILBO BAGGINS! One more word from you and I'll see that you are beaten and lain upon my doorstep as a rug!" Gandalf bellowed suddenly. The entire underbrush seemed to echo with the wizard's deep, resounding voice.

Bilbo's face went bright red as he huffed and muttered something inaudible under his breath before going quiet. Thorin nearly smiled but Radagast began to speak again.

"Gandalf, the reason why I'm here; why I was looking for you..." The Brown wizard paused and scurried back towards his friend before continuing in a voice so low that Thorin was forced to strain his ears in order to properly hear what was being said. "There is something that you must see... something I found from the abandoned fortress. It has a similar scent to that of the girl's."

The leader of the company saw the Grey wizard's shoulders tense before he stooped lower, the next part of their conversation was simply inaudible and the tall dwarf found himself thoroughly irritated yet again.

He had heard stories of the abandoned fortress of Dol Guldur from his father when he and his brother had been children, but Thorin had never really paid them any attention as he was far more interested in stories about adventure and treasures and battle. The only thing he could recall now about the place was that Dol Guldur was Sindarin for "Hill of Sorcery".

Suddenly Gandalf straightened out and turned to walk briskly towards the dwarf prince, his staff plodding down on the grass softly as he took enormous strides.

"I must leave for a short while, do not stray even a foot from this area." The wizard said quietly, his blue eyes were swimming with anxiety and it was that which made Thorin hold his tongue before he could protest.

He simply nodded, acknowledging Gandalf's orders.

Then before he turned to leave with Radagast, he stopped and looked again at the tall dwarf.

"And whatever happens, do not let Vanya out of your sight."

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**Chapter 19 - A Face in the Dark**

"A short while?" Thorin spat angrily. So much for the word of a wizard! He and his company had been trapped in the underbrush for hours, waiting on Gandalf to return but he was nowhere to be seen.

The Sun was declining rapidly and had already disappeared behind the trees.

The tall dwarf crossed his arms and looked at his nephews and Bilbo; upon Thorin's orders, the four of them had created a small circle around Vanya the moment Gandalf had left.

She was sitting uncomfortably on the ground with her legs folded to one side, staring at Fili and Kili as they sat cross legged on either side of her, tossing a piece of bark languidly to each other.

The leader of the company looked around at the rest of his kin;

Bifur, Bofur and Bombur were rationing whatever dried food they had left as Thorin would not risk lighting a fire. Bombur complained all the while at the two strips of dried venison he was given.

Dwalin, Balin, Gloin and Oin sat further away from the others and were talking quietly amongst themselves.

Dori and Nori were sleeping, their heads propped up against their satchels and Ori was sketching in his small book, carefully balancing the ink for his quill on his snoring brother's forehead.

Just then Thorin saw Fili get up, and the prince's pale blue eyes snapped to his nephew.

"Where do you think you're going?" The tall dwarf asked gruffly, raising an eyebrow in question at his sister's eldest son, who immediately froze and looked to his uncle with confusion painted across his light features.

"Um...I have to pee."

"You can hold it in - now sit down." Thorin said sternly as he watched Fili bite his tongue and breathe heavily before plopping back down on the grass.

"Thorin, don't you think this is a bit much?" Vanya asked as she stared up at him, her small face seemed tired and she stretched out her legs in front of her.

"I'm not letting you out of my sight." The dwarf prince said stubbornly, watching as the girl's brown eyes looked skywards before she sighed.

"I understand, but is it really necessary to build a cage of Hobbits and Dwarves around me?" Vanya's usually smooth voice sounded strained and irritated as she carried on talking to Thorin. But he said nothing and simply stared at the trunk of the fallen tree that was a few feet away from them.

"Oh for goodness sake!" The girl got up and placed both her hands on her hips as she stared at the prince admonishingly, as if he were a child who had been caught ripping out flowers from the garden. "Thorin Oakenshield, you are going to let Fili relieve himself and let Kili get some food; I saw him trying to eat the grass when he thought no one was looking."

Thorin heard Fili try and hide his laughter behind a series of excessive coughs, but the tall dwarf was preoccupied by Vanya to pay him too much attention.

She was glaring at him and he shuffled uncomfortably as his cheeks flushed pink; the rightful King of Erebor definitely did not enjoy the way the girl made him feel like a little boy again but found that he could do nothing except lower his gaze and nod.

He dared not look at his nephews as he could feel their shocked gazes upon him, and instead turned around to walk closer to the edge of the underbrush; away from his kin, Bilbo and Vanya.

Thorin was pretending to examine the trees when he felt the girl's hand slip across his arm. The dwarf prince looked over at her sharply, still rather annoyed at her scolding tone from before, but one look at Vanya made him forget everything and he gave her a warm smile.

Was it really so bad if he had to take orders from her once in a while?

"Thank you." She whispered returning his smile as she made her way in front of him, their gazes locked intently on one another. Thorin said nothing and simply stood, admiring her beauty in the twilight. The two were partially concealed by a few shrubs and sparse trees, but Vanya looked away from him, taking furtive glances here and there before wrapping her arms around the dwarf's neck and placing her lips upon his own.

Thorin immediately felt the flesh between his legs stiffen at the feel of her tongue as it explored the inside of his mouth. The dwarf tried desperately to push her off in fear of losing control; he was very close to simply throwing her down and claiming her right there in the midst of his kin.

But Vanya smiled under his mouth, laughing quietly at his feeble attempts to fend her off and then he suddenly felt her hand through his breeches as she caressed his manhood.

Thorin was rendered completely motionless for a few seconds.

Then his heart picked up at twice the speed, his eyes glazed over and he was filled with a raw, primal need that he knew only Vanya could satisfy. He began kissing her ferociously and was about to sling the girl over his shoulder and take her into the woods when he heard Balin call his name.

The girl and the dwarf stepped away from each other at once, and stood panting. Their eyes still clouded with a fierce desire as they stared at each other, both looking as though they were ready to attack one another.

Thorin grabbed Vanya by the wrist and dragged her into him roughly, not caring if his grip was a little too tight.

"When I have you alone, when I claim you..." The dwarf prince whispered, his voice was gruff and it sounded almost like he was growling as he grabbed the girl's small face in one of his hands. "I swear, you will have to beg me to stop."

And with that, Thorin let go of Vanya and walked away without another glance in her direction, afraid that if he were to look upon her even once more, he would crumble completely and simply strip her down and make love to her on the forest floor.

He was not in the best of moods and still panting when he reached Balin, Gloin, Oin and Dwalin. His excitement had almost completely gone away but the tall dwarf still stood with his hands clasped in front of his groin to cover himself - just in case.

"What is it?" The leader of the company asked irately.

"The others and I were debating on which road to take to the Misty Mountains and-"

"No need, we are going to Rivendell." Thorin stated simply, cutting off his old friend and absolutely not caring as the look of distaste registered the other dwarfs' faces.

"Laddie, think about what you're doing. You suppose the elves will approve of our quest? They will try to stop us." The old dwarf said matter of factly as the rest of his kin nodded in approval.

"Then they can try, but Vanya needs elvish help and I will not risk her falling ill." The dwarf prince said in a tone that made it clear to the others that the conversation was over.

Thorin turned and walked away from them, his pale eyes scanning the underbrush for the girl.

It was completely dark now and the only light came from the half moon that clung to the inky sky.

But even with the pale moonlight, he could not find Vanya.

Thorin's heart began to race and he ran back to where he had left her, only to find Bilbo. He was staring off into the trees with his brows furrowed slightly.

"Where is she?" The dwarf asked in panic, trying not to think of what might have happened to the girl whom he had promised not to let stray from his sight.

The Hobbit jumped slightly, being caught off guard, but then looked up at Thorin with wide eyes.

"You lost her!?"

The future King under the Mountain let out a low curse in Khuzdul and began running off into the centre of the underbrush, Bilbo following close behind, when he spotted the girl's slender figure a few yards away.

Thorin nearly died with relief.

She was making her way towards the wall of black trees not far from where the Troll's lair was. Bilbo had spotted Vanya as well and was already half way towards her when he stopped suddenly.

The dwarf prince ran to where the Halfling stood, rooted to the spot, and was about to pass him when he felt the Hobbit grab his arm.

The leader of the company was about to turn and shove Bilbo off, but stopped when he saw the look of absolute terror on the Halfling's face.

"Thorin...w-what is that?" The Hobbit's voice was barely above a whisper and his hazel eyes were nearly bulging out of his head as he stared at the forest in front of them.

The tall dwarf suddenly felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand and he looked reluctantly into the trees that Vanya was still walking slowly towards.

After a few seconds of frantic searching, Thorin spotted nothing and wanted to smack Bilbo for the unnecessary trouble when his eyes suddenly caught sight of a queer patch of white hovering amidst the trees at the forest's edge.

As the dwarf's pale blue eyes adjusted to properly see what was standing there, he instantly felt his legs turn to lead, a cold sweat beginning to trickle down his back.

And he wondered if he was too late to save Vanya.


	19. Chapter 20, A State of Shock

_Hello everyone! Before I get to replying to reviews, **I wanted to ask everyone's lovely opinion on the next story I have cooking up in my mind.** It will be another Thorin/OC and somewhat AU but I have two very different ideas._

_One story would be light, fun and pretty ridiculous; Thorin gets lost on his way to Bag End and ends up asking a weird dude for directions, unfortunately for the dwarf, he follows them and stumbles upon a portal to the modern world. Here he'll meet a lovely lil' lady who helps him get through his culture shock and find his way back in time to reclaim Erebor, but as Thorin falls for her, he has to decide between his old life and the new one he's found with his lassie._

_The second story is a helluvah lot darker and takes place after Thorin reclaims Erebor. He's gone pretty much mad with dragon sickness and being a complete sod, every three years he demands 10 young women from all over his kingdom to be offered to him, and they must live in his palace with him as his concubines until deemed unfit to serve the King, upon which they are exiled. But this time round there's a saucy young wench who comes to stay at the palace and catches the attention of the King... and one of his nephews. _

**Let me know what you guys think in the reviews please :D**

_Caity_: Thank you so much! Hahaha I know, I wasn't even sure about the title, but I was eating a peanut butter granola bar as I made it up so it seemed fitting at the time. So glad you like the story thus far though and I hope to hear from you again!

_Charathwen_: Hehe, I wish they had a love interest for Thorin in the movies... I would love to see him get all hot and heavy on screen! *faint* As for the wizards, thank you very much! I always thought they were in their own little worlds and mysterious haha. Gandalf will reveal what him and Radagast were talking about in the next few chapters.

_Amcozy_ and _KillerKadoogan_: The two boys are going to get in a lot more squabbles before this story is over so Im glad you're liking the feud between the two! As for Thorin finding out about her "true nature"... let's just say it won't exactly be pretty.

_Just4Me_: Such a tough lover Thorin is! Hahaha and dont you worry, I'm not going to make you lovely readers wait that much longer for the smut!

Sorry for the huge header before the chapter but **enjoy and remember to leave your wonderful reviews!**

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Not a lot of things frightened Thorin Oakenshield. In fact, it was something he was shamelessly proud of. But now as he stood paralyzed with fear, he wondered what in Durin's name Vanya had gotten him and his company into.

There was something simply unnatural about the figure in the trees; it seemed to be shrouded in an even blacker pitch than the night around it and the creature's deathly white face gave off an eerie aura in the dark forest. Its lipless mouth was open, stretched obscenely wide to reveal rows of sharp, yellow, long teeth.

But what had Thorin and Bilbo frozen with terror was the two black holes that sunk into the demon's skull, exactly where its eyes should have been.

And amidst the fear and panic that swirled inside the tall dwarf's head like a hurricane, Gandalf's descriptions of Vanya's attacker rang loud and clear in his ears, and Thorin knew that he was currently staring at the culprit.

What exactly the culprit was remained unclear, however what it wanted was blatant – and that was Vanya.

It seemed to have her in some sort of trance as she walked slowly, closer and closer into the trees and straight into the creature's presence.

Thorin began to panic, he tried to take a step forward but found that each one of his legs weighed more than the Lonely Mountain.

The girl was only a few steps away from the edge of the forest now, and the prince knew that if he didn't do something now, he would lose her forever.

And although he had no time to spare, thoughts of the girl crept steadily into his terror stricken mind; the way her black hair glinted in the sunlight like obsidian, the way her big brown eyes looked up at him from under her long lashes; her small nose and full lips. Her lovely scent and soft skin, the way her flesh felt beneath his touch.

Images of Vanya swam in front of his eyes, but what he mostly thought of was the way she made him feel – as though he were a young dwarf again, without the rules and responsibilities that had been thrust upon him at such an early age. He was simply care free when the girl was nearby, like she lifted the weight of the entire world off his shoulders with just a single smile.

Would he simply stand here and watch as the woman who had so obviously stolen his heart was snatched away from him?

Suddenly something within Thorin stirred.

It started deep in his stomach, and for a second the prince thought he was going to pass wind, but then the odd sensation spread throughout his body, warming his limbs like a fire as his heart began to beat faster and faster- but not with fear.

Perhaps a lesser dwarf would have been overcome by terror and would have left his woman to die out of cowardice - but not Thorin Oakenshield.

Not a descendant from the line of Durin.

And then before the dwarf knew what he was doing, he yelled Vanya's name at the top of his lungs and felt his shaky legs as they ran towards the girl and the creature in the forest.

The demon let out an ear popping shriek as soon as it heard Thorin's voice and the prince would have stopped in his tracks again, but found that he seemed to have no control over his own body at this point and that running seemed to be the only thing he was capable of.

So he hurtled forward on a pair of wobbly legs trying not to look into the creature's eyes, when he saw it extend a gnarled white hand for Vanya who was only a few feet away from it now.

The next few minutes were a blur to the dwarf; he was still too far away from her, but reached out to try and grab her anyway.

Except the demon's long, crooked fingers wrapped tightly around the girl's neck first. She gurgled and gasped for air but the grip around her neck didn't loosen.

A few more seconds and Thorin had made it near enough to see the dried blood between the monster's teeth, and then as though by reflex, the son of Thrain unsheathed his sword and swung as hard as he could, down on the creature's outstretched arm.

And nearly to the prince's surprise, he felt the sword go through the limb like butter, and heard another toe curling shriek from the monster as the hand fell from Vanya's neck and onto the ground where it hissed and sizzled on the grass before turning into a pile of black ash.

The dwarf had no time to absorb what had just happened or to see if the girl was alright. He instantly grabbed her and threw her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes and ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction, careful to keep his sword away from Vanya's limp body.

Thorin's eyes were greeted by the sight of his entire kin, plus Bilbo who were all yelling as they charged towards the evil presence in the woods with flaming branches and sticks in their hands. Stopping as they took aim and hurled the fire into the trees, hoping that one would strike the creature.

The tall dwarf's heart nearly exploded with relief but he didn't dare stop running until he was well behind his company.

Then he looked on as the forest lit up like a giant lantern, the fire spreading rapidly in every direction. And although he could not see the monster, he heard as it gave one final screech before the only sounds were of the triumphant calls of his kin and the crackling of the trees as they were devoured by flames.

Suddenly a strange weariness swept over Thorin and his knees abruptly gave way beneath him as he crumbled to the ground, dropping his sword in order to hold on to Vanya so she was not thrown off his shoulder.

The girl's body was completely limp as he laid her out on the vegetation beneath them. His hands were shaking violently but the dwarf barely noticed as he was staring numbly at the harsh red bruises that went all the way around her neck.

"Is she alright?" Bilbo's frantic voice came from behind Thorin, and he tried to answer but found that no words made their way out of his mouth. He could only stare at Vanya as her entire body seemed to be glowing in the light of the rapidly expanding fire - his mind was completely blank.

"Is she breathing?" The Hobbit asked as he dropped down to his knees beside the girl's head. Thorin didn't even bother trying to answer as he heard the muffled sound of running feet behind them, but it was as though his ears were filled with cotton and he couldn't tell how many were approaching.

"Please, please be breathing!" Bilbo said desperately as he pushed the hair from her face and lowered his pointy ear down towards her nose. "She's not breathing!" The Hobbit cried hysterically, abruptly lifting his head back up.

"Move- MOVE!" Fili's voice rang through the air as he came to drop down beside the Halfling, his brother hovering above them.

A small, distorted voice called out to Thorin from somewhere deep inside his blank mind, telling him that he had just lost the one woman he had truly come to care about, but he was in shock and it did nothing except add to the numbness that was now spreading to his limbs.

The straw haired dwarf pulled off his cloak and wrapped Vanya in it tightly before he grabbed her chin and tilted her head back, opening her mouth.

Fili took a deep breath, lowered his head and closed his mouth on top of the girl's.

And that is when Thorin nearly strangled his own nephew.


	20. Chapter 21, Sharing Breath

_Amcozy_: Thank you haha, I don't want to damper the mood too much. Well not yet anyway ;)

_Trustbroccoli23_: Hehehe, I've got a couple of good ideas for both stories but I totally agree that Thorin in the world today would just be sh*t show! –In a good way of course :) And I can't thank you enough for your wonderful support!

_KiTeLLe36_0: Poor Fili, lol. And don't you worry, I've already started typing up the smut chapter and am totally excited for it to be done!

_KillerKadoogan_: First off, I absolutely love your reviews! They're always so detailed and make me laugh! And second, I was thinking of making a sample chapter/one shot for each story and see which one people liked better. But I am definitely considering both depending on the response and such. :) As for the current chapter and the "CPR" I tried to explain it in a way where it would have made sense to people back in middle earth. Putting more of a spiritual emphasis on it rather than scientific. I really hope you enjoy this chapter as it's Fili's POV! Much love and am looking forward to hearing your thoughts again!

_Mel-Mel 2011_: Thanks for the support you awesome person, you! And thanks so much for your vote, I think it would be pretty fun to write the second one and turn Thorin into a sort of beast. And as I said in the above reply, Im thinking of doing a one shot for each story so I hope you will like it! :)

**Thank you everyone and remember to leave your wonderful reviews!**

* * *

Fili was so caught up in trying to help Vanya, that he did not even think twice before he placed his mouth over hers.

He wasn't trying to kiss her - although the straw haired dwarf didn't mind the feel of her lips - but was attempting to breathe a tiny bit of his own life into the girl's motionless body.

Dis' eldest son should have realized that no one else in the company would understand what he was doing – to them it simply looked like Fili was trying to snog the girl- but the dwarf had learned a few very valuable things from the numerous women he had laid with.

After a vigorous session of love making with a particular woman whose name or face he could not quite recall (although he would most likely be able to identify her by her breasts if the occasion called for it, as they had been quite lovely), he had made a remark about how he was going to die of exhaustion.

The woman had laughed and said that if he did, she would simply breathe life back into him, and then make love to him again.

At first Fili thought he had accidentally rammed her head into the wall a few too many times while taking her from the rear, but she saw his sceptical look and began to explain herself.

Her father – or mother, the dwarf couldn't remember which one exactly- had been her town's healer and had apparently brought many people back to life who were on the very brink of death by simply sharing their breath.

The girl believed, as her parents did, that a person's breath carried a part of their soul with it, and sharing that tiny fraction with someone else was enough to keep them from death.

Fili, who had been quite intrigued, had asked for a demonstration and as the girl mounted him again, she smiled and took hold of his chin, tilting his head back as she slowly lowered her mouth over his and breathed into him.

Just as he had done with Vanya.

He saw how much Thorin seemed to care for her, and liking her already as it were, Fili decided instantly that he was willing to give up a tiny bit of himself if it meant saving the girl.

But the dwarf had barely finished his second breath into Vanya when he suddenly felt something massive collide into him, knocking the wind out of Fili as he landed with a thud on the vegetation beneath him, the heavy object on top.

A huge commotion erupted and there were stars in the dwarf's sea green eyes as he opened them to find his uncle practically sitting on top of his chest.

A wild look of murderous rage was painted across Thorin's features as his huge fist held on firmly to Fili's collar.

There had been many times when Fili and his little brother had annoyed the beard right off their uncle.

Literally.

He remembered the time Kili had tripped while running away from Fili with a bowl of honey in his hands, and of course as the dark haired dwarf had let go of the container, it flew straight into Thorin's face, drenching their uncle in the sweet, sticky liquid.

Then in a desperate attempt to fix things, Fili, who had just caught up to his brother saw the thick, golden syrup as it dripped from the tall dwarf and had ripped off a part of his tunic, immediately going to pat the prince's face dry.

Except the cloth got stuck and after several minutes of cursing, Thorin ripped the material off his skin... and took quite a few patches of his beard with it.

Even then, as their uncle had been fuming with his patchy facial hair, he hadn't laid a hand on them.

But now the straw haired dwarf had no idea what to do or what to think, as his uncle kept lifting him off the grass, only to bash his head into the ground repeatedly - which made it very hard for Fili to try and explain himself.

"Thorin-"

_**Thud**_

"I wasn't trying-"

_**Thud**_

"To kiss her!"

_**Thud**_

"She's not-"

_**Thud**_

"My type!"

Every few seconds as Thorin's nephew was lifted up by his collar, he caught a glimpse of Dwalin, Bofur, Gloin and Nori trying to pull the tall dwarf from on top of Fili, while his brother was waving his hands frantically in front of his uncle's face and shouting what sounded like;

"Stop! Thorin! No- Not his head! He's already dumb enough as it is!"

Bilbo was also shouting and it looked like he was pointing frantically to the glowing light of the expanding fire, but no one was paying him any attention.

Then finally after Fili felt himself starting to get light headed, Ori's high pitched squeal came from somewhere amidst the yelling and beating.

"She's alive – Thorin, she's alright!"

It seemed to take a second for Ori's words to trigger a response from the tall dwarf, but then Fili felt a pause as his uncle lifted him back from the grass. Thorin's momentary lapse in rage allowed the four dwarves still pulling on him to gain the upper hand and they dragged the prince from on top of his nephew.

Fili's head hit the ground one last time as Thorin released the grip on his collar.

The straw haired dwarf felt a dull ache start in his skull and his ears were filled with the throbbing sound of either his poor, rattled brain or his racing heart.

Kili knelt down beside his brother, his face serious for once.

"Are you alright?"

Fili simply gave the younger dwarf a weak smile and thumbs up before taking a deep breath, gingerly rolling onto his side.

He didn't think he was quite ready to sit up just yet as his head was still swimming, but he watched in the glow of the burning forest as his brother made his way over to Vanya where the rest of the company had also gathered.

She was spluttering and coughing violently, her head propped up on one of Thorin's knees as the tall dwarf gently stroked her hair.

His uncle's expression now as he stared at the girl was worlds apart from the crazed, half animal look that painted his features while he was beating his own kin a few moments ago.

It was a mixture of pure joy and absolute weariness, and Fili thought it might have been the of couple knocks to the noggin that made it seem as though Thorin's pale blue eyes were watery with tears.

Whatever the case, the straw haired dwarf smiled as he looked on, wishing he could remember the girl's name who had told him about sharing his breath, so if he ever found her again he could thank her.

Because regardless of what anyone else thought, Fili knew he had saved Vanya's life; and it was definitely worth the throbbing headache.


	21. Chapter 22, Unwanted Thoughts

Hey everyone!

So sorry for the long wait, but I now have a wedding to plan! :D Therefore the updates might be a bit more sporadic than they used to, but I promise I will get **at least** one new chapter up every week!

Also, for those of you who haven't already, **please check out my new story!** It's called Iron and Flowers and can be found via my profile!

I've decided to just carry on with this one and leave the "Thorin in the modern world" one until later on in the summer :) Thank you so much to all of you who reviewed, favourited and followed! You guys are the best!

_Skatingfaery_: You are so sweet! I can't believe you made an account just to favourite my story! That is seriously one of the nicest things and biggest compliments I've ever received in regards to my writing! I hope that i dont let you down and you continue to enjoy my work. Much love!

_Aluriel:_ Yayyyyy im so glad to have you back and reviewing! Im glad youre enjoying it so far and look fwd to hearing from you soon and reading your next chapter!

_KiTeLLE360_: hehe well you make me feel special when you review! And im so glad that I got some water snorting action from you on the last chapter! Also, only TWO more chapters until SMUT! Hahaha

_Trustbroccoli_: Psht, of course you should laugh hahaha i know I was ;)

_KillerKadoogan_: Hahaha, well i must say I was reading your review and got thoroughly distracted by "Thorin pounding Fili" hahaha. Good ol' Durincest! And as for the Fili/Kili story i think i might give it a shot actually, i just need to think of a plot :D

_Just4Me_: I definitely agree with Fili's sexiness, also if you haven't seen the actor who portrays him in the films...hot damn you should do so asap! Although I take no responsibility if your ovaries burst XD

Thanks so much everyone! Happy reading and **please remember to review**!

* * *

It was so difficult – trying to gasp in as much air as humanly possible, but having to deny your lungs what they so desperately needed because it felt like swallowing mouthfuls of fire.

Vanya found herself with tears leaking out the corners of her eyes as she wheezed and hacked, trying to ignore her spinning head.

Each body wracking cough felt as though someone was punching the girl in the throat and she wondered what on Earth had happened to her.

The last thing the elf remembered was Thorin as he left her desperate for another kiss. His last words had made the girl's knees weak, and she had remained in the same spot, imagining exactly what the tall dwarf was going to do to her when he found the chance.

Then she heard a small voice in the distance, whispering her name. At first she thought it had been Bilbo, but then it called out to her again in a different tone. Vanya had taken a few steps to try and locate the person, but as she had taken one look into the dark trees just behind the Troll's lair, her mind went blank.

And now here she was, with a swollen throat trying to get as much air in as possible before her lungs burst. She could vaguely hear the excited and anxious voices that surrounded her and slightly opened her eyes to be greeted by the sight of Thorin's handsome face.

The elf's senses were still quite fuzzy but she could make out the look of relief painted over his features, his bright eyes glowing in a strange orange light that seemed to engulf his entire body. He smiled at her and she felt a single drop of moisture land on her cheek. She vaguely wondered if it had started raining but then something else caught her hazy attention.

She was sweating; the air was abnormally hot and she could distinctly indentify the scent of scorched earth as it entered her nostrils.

Vanya knew something was wrong, but she just couldn't get herself to think or even worry about what might be happening. All she knew was that Thorin would keep her safe.

And despite all her pain and discomfort, the girl's aching body relaxed and she closed her eyes again, idly wondering where Bilbo was before she nodded off into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

"Thorin!"

Vanya's eyes flew wide open and a soft white light nearly blinded her as she squinted to make it less uncomfortable.

The elf had no idea what had caused her to call out the tall dwarf's name, but thoughts of him were quickly shoved aside as she slowly began to absorb her foreign surroundings.

The first thing she noticed was that she was lying in a huge, soft bed with snow white linens and that the smell of burning earth was gone.

Then beginning to look around, she saw that she was in a spacious room littered with intricate wooden furniture carved from fine Oak. An empty chair was situated on either side of the girl's bed, both pulled in close so that she could see the bright green detailing on each arm rest without having to lift her head once.

The air was warm and filled with the scent of pine as a gentle breeze wafted in from the huge veranda to her left, blowing the slightly open door against its wooden frame. The elf could slightly detect the sound of a running river in the distance and she smiled, knowing exactly where she was.

Thorin had lived up to his promise.

Vanya wanted to kiss the dwarf, but he was nowhere to be found so the girl took a deep breath and then stopped suddenly- something was different.

Her throat.

It felt perfectly fine; the painful, burning sensation was gone and before the elf could reach up to feel her neck, an old wizard cloaked in grey appeared at the door.

"Gandalf!" Vanya was astoundingly happy to see him and sat upright, resting her head upon the cool wall behind her and noticing that she was wearing a shimmering white sleeping gown made of smooth silk.

She suddenly began to remember the events leading up to the old man's departure with Radagast, wondering where he had gone and what the strange Brown wizard had wanted to show his friend, but Gandalf smiled and began to speak, slowly making his way into the airy room.

"Welcome to the Valley of Imladris my dear girl - I hope that you are feeling well?" The wizard stopped halfway from her bed with his hands clasped in front of him, and she saw that the very tip of his long, scraggly beard was black – almost as though it had been singed.

The girl wondered what had happened to the company while she had been unconscious but then realized she hadn't replied to Gandalf's question.

"Oh- yes, I feel great- do you know where Thorin is?" Vanya was trying to be polite but she blushed at how she was simply unable to get the tall dwarf off her mind, and the wizard noticed it too – smiling as he looked over at the oak chair to her right.

"Master Thorin has gone to eat...for the first time in three days might I add." Gandalf said with mock surprise as his thin lips still held traces of a faint smile. But the elf's brown eyes widened in shock.

"Three days?" The girl asked incredulously. How long had she been sleeping for?

"He had refused to leave your side – as had Bilbo- until they nearly fainted with hunger this morning." The wizard chuckled then before continuing, "I must say, they did not quite enjoy each other's company."

Vanya forced a smile, but despite feeling better than she had in a long time, there was the growing sensation of restlessness and anxiety that kept gnawing away at her brain.

And it was all because of the dwarf and the Halfling.

The girl felt so at peace when she was with the Hobbit as he always brought a smile to her lips. Vanya knew that he would do anything to make her happy, and when she thought of him, her heart warmed.

But whatever Bilbo stirred within the elf, it simply paled in comparison to the way Thorin made her feel.

That dwarf left her breathless whenever his eyes found hers, her stomach tightened at the thought of his rough lips working against her own - even now, and she had to take a deep breath to settle her thoughts.

Thorin had been serious, brooding and strict when she had first met him, and remained that way towards all in his company; except for her.

The girl had somehow broken through his hard shell and it was almost like a gift each time she got to see him smile, or heard him chuckle under his breath. Each time he caressed her lovingly and held her in his arms, Vanya could feel Thorin melt into her, his bitter exterior crumbling into a million little pieces.

Yes, the elf did have feelings for Bilbo. But she was _**in love**_ with Thorin.

The girl sighed now and knew that she must speak with the Halfling, as it was apparent that he felt as strongly for her as she felt for Thorin. It saddened her to think of, and above all she was worried of losing her Hobbit all together.

Perhaps Bilbo would become so cross with her, that he would never want to look upon her again. Maybe he would just leave and go back home...

Vanya felt the frown that had crept up on her dark features and had almost forgotten about Gandalf until he spoke, crashing the elf's concentration and sweeping a wave of devastating panic over her.

"You are worried of his reaction when he finds out that you are an elf." The wizard spoke this matter of factly, as though he had lifted the thought from her mind, but his words nearly made the girl's heart stop.

She looked at Gandalf blankly, unable to speak through the myriad of thoughts that were swirling around inside her mind and almost unable to hear him over the sound of her frantic heart beat.

"I think Thorin has changed, and I believe that he will..." The wizard stopped for a second and looked out the veranda at some unseen object in the distance before continuing, "Accept who and what you are."

Vanya's mind felt as though it were about to explode;

She had completely shoved aside the problem of her true nature and Thorin's hatred of elves, only now realizing the very real possibility of the dwarf rejecting her love because of something she had absolutely no control over.

It nearly made the girl sick.

"He may have saved you from danger before now, but you will save Thorin from himself before this journey is over." Gandalf's vivid blue eyes were unreadable as they stared intently at her and the elf had no idea what he meant, spending next to no time trying to decipher his words as she was still panicking over what the tall dwarf's reaction would be when he found out about her being an elf.

The wizard turned silently and walked out onto the veranda, but before Vanya could call after him, a loud holler was heard from the doorway and it shoved aside the girl's dark thoughts until a time when she was left alone with them again.

Kili and Fili bounded into the room with bright, happy faces as they made their way towards Vanya who forced another timid smile their way until she noticed the bandages wrapped around the straw haired dwarf's head.

"What have you done?" She said chidingly, in the same tone a mother would to her child, as Kili embraced her.

Fili smiled ruefully before bending over to take his brothers place in the girl's arms before letting go of her.

"I got attacked by a savage beast, didn't I brother?" The older dwarf looked to the younger and Kili tried to stifle a smile.

"Oh yes, Vanya you should have seen it! It was huge and hairy-"

"Not to mention down right ugly." Fili added in, cutting off the dark haired dwarf. The two began to laugh and the girl furrowed her brows, confused at why they seemed to be sharing some sort of private joke when she heard a familiar deep voice that made her break out in goose bumps.

"By Durin's beard..."

Fili and Kili froze and all traces of laughter were wiped clean from their faces as they both stepped back from the elf's bed.

Thorin stood in the doorway, his face was pale and there were dark circles beneath his pale blue eyes, but despite his haggard appearance, the girl felt her heart beat double at the sight of him.

He stood for a few more seconds, simply staring at Vanya until she began to wonder if he hadn't already found out about her secret. The girl was about to panic when the tall dwarf's handsome face broke out in a huge smile and he rushed towards her, abandoning all propriety as he dropped down on the side of the bed and grabbed her face in both his hands before he pulled the elf into a mind numbing kiss.

He was breathing hard, and she could taste the remnants of his breakfast on his tongue as it entered her slightly open mouth.

Vanya had forgotten all about Fili, Kili and Gandalf and could only focus on trying to breathe and the odd moisture that she felt between her thighs.

But despite the pleasure of his touch, there was a faint sensation of guilt that pooled deep within the girl's stomach and then she knew that even though she might lose him, Vanya had to tell Thorin the truth about herself.


	22. Chapter 23, Pesky Elves

Alrighty! The **next chapter is the first "M" rated** one of this work and I'll be posting a **separate story** for it incase you're not into that sort of thing! Im going to try and get the smut chapter and the regular chapter out by Wednesday so that everyone has something to read :D

_Aluriel_: ooooooo so close to finding out Thorin's reaction! It's a few chapters away, but I think it will be good :D Hope you like it, and thanks for the luck! Im going to need it! Hahaa, happy reading and writing lovely!

_Skatingfaery_: Thanks again for your continued support! Love it and hope you enjoy!

_Just4Me_: Well, he's going to pound the worry out of her in the next chapter... momentarily anyway hahaha

_KiTeLLe360_: She's going to tell Thorin soon, but I want to explain a few things about Vanya first. And eeep, the chapter you've been waiting for is being posted next! Haha I just hope you like it!

_KillerKadoogan_: Bahahahahaha! You always make me laugh out loud! There are two new brothers introduced in this chapter, but obviously not as sexy as our Fili and Kili! I hope to hear from you soon, you wonderful person, you! Much love!

_Sparrowismyhummingbird_: Well, shucks! Hehehe, thank you so much for the lovely compliments! I tried to capture as much of their original characters while trying to turn them into my own as well so Im really glad you like how I've portrayed them! Thanks again and I hope you hear from you again!

Thank you EVERYONE! Love love love you guys! **Please remember to review** my pretties!

* * *

Thorin trudged his way up the long flight of stairs to the room where Vanya slept, each footfall echoing the heavy thud of his heart. His breakfast had been disappointing, consisting of nothing more than a few boiled eggs and leaves; hardly enough food to fill the stomach of a dwarf who hadn't eaten in over three days. But what was worse was the dreaded reality of having to spend another second in the same room as the Halfling.

Bilbo and the dwarf had nearly ended up smashing each other's heads in after the second night when the Hobbit had kissed the back of her hand. If Gandalf hadn't been there to rip the two off each other, his Burglar would definitely be missing one of his fat, hairy legs by now.

A loud rumble came from the prince's stomach, but he ignored it; his thoughts on the sleeping girl up the stairs.

His woman had been lying in the same bed, in the same position, for over three days now and he wondered how long it would be until he got to stare into her breath taking brown eyes again.

Thorin and his company had arrived in Rivendell four nights ago in a wretched state; they had nearly been scorched to a crisp in the underbrush where Gandalf had left them on that afternoon. But a few moments after the girl had first regained consciousness, the wizard had arrived just in time to create a small path amidst the flaming trees for them to get away.

Ori, Nori, Bofur and Gloin had all managed to escape unscathed, but the rest of them were bruised and scalded. Thorin had a huge burn on the outside of his left arm where he had turned to protect Vanya from the vicious flames as he'd been cradling her in his arms. The dwarf much rather preferred himself getting hurt than her.

And such a great job he'd done keeping her from harm, the sneering voice in the back of his mind called out to him again and brought forth images of the pools of blood Vanya had lost while Elrond had removed the splinters from her stomach on the first night they'd arrived in his hall. The tall dwarf had seen many wounds in battle before, but this was something different – something he had never experienced before.

Having to watch, completely helpless, as the one person whom he cared most about was laid out on a bed and worked over by elves, bleeding and very possibly dying.

It was simply nightmarish, and Thorin found himself suddenly short of breath, having to stop halfway up the stairs to regain his composure - gripping onto the thin wooden railing that ran like a vine up along the wall.

A few seconds passed and the dwarf prince steadied himself, a combination of hunger, exhaustion and anxiety had taken their toll on him and he almost sat down on the steps in defeat when he heard a loud shout from the girl's room.

Thrain's son immediately felt his heart began to pound as all other thoughts were brushed clear from his mind and he bounded up the remaining steps in an instant.

He barely heard the two voices talking excitedly inside, but recognized them as Fili and Kili. The tall dwarf kept trying to calm himself down - to not get his hopes up; there was no way Vanya would be awake so soon.

But as he entered her room, Thorin's knees almost gave way when saw his woman, awake and sitting upright against the wall.

"By Durin's beard..."

Her brown eyes flashed over to him suddenly and he noticed how her cheeks were rosy. She looked healthier than he had seen in a long while; despite the faint greenish yellow bruises around her neck that were still fading.

Her shiny black hair had formed slight curls from the sweat and damp over the past few days, and they framed her face, making her even more beautiful if that was possible

The white night gown she wore was thin, and he saw the round shape of her breasts in the bright light of the room, finding it extremely difficult to avert his gaze.

But when he did manage to tear his pale eyes away from her chest, he saw the girl staring at him worriedly, and the prince almost laughed at how she was able to render him a speechless fool everytime he looked at her. Unable to do anything but smile, he ignored his nephews as they stared on at him with wide eyes, and rushed towards Vanya – needing to feel her lips against his own.

* * *

Thorin didn't know how long he sat there and kissed Vanya, but when he tore away from the girl, he saw that the large room had slowly filled up with the rest of his kin.

Fili and Kili stood exactly where they had been when their uncle had first entered the room, both with the same wide eyed expression, as though the leader of the company was going to turn around and smack them senseless at any moment.

Balin, Nori and Dori stood awkwardly a few feet away from the end of the bed, trying to divert their gazes from the two lovers. Gloin, Oin, Dwalin and Bofur were crowded around the door, and unlike the previous trio, the four of them were unable to look away. Expressions of absolute astonishment painted across their faces as they were all having a very difficult time trying to register what they'd just seen.

The tall dwarf expected to feel his cheeks flush with embarrassment at his public display of affection, but to his surprise, he felt completely content and almost proud to have his kin know about the love between him and Vanya.

Thorin abruptly paused as he caught himself – the _love_ between him and Vanya...

Was he really in love with her?

The future King of Erebor felt something stir inside of him, and as he took a single look at the girl – staring deep into her eyes - memories of her warm embrace, her bright smile and gentle spirit flooded his mind and Thorin knew that despite his relentless efforts to keep his heart locked up, Vanya had simply waltzed along, reached into the dwarf's chest and torn it out.

The prince felt almost naked as he realized that 60 years of protecting himself from the dangers of falling for another woman had been lost; that this slender, vulnerable little girl had his throbbing heart in the palm of her tiny hand.

He wanted to say it then, to tell Vanya that he loved her with everything that he was worth, but just then, the accursed Halfling stepped into the room and let out a squeal, ruining the tall dwarf's chance.

Thorin immediately went sour and mumbled a low oath under his breath as the Hobbit sprinted over to the bed from the opposite side, throwing his arms around the girl.

"Oh you're awake! You don't know how happy I am to see you up and well, I just knew that it wouldn't be long- I was going to bring you up a spot of breakfast but then I realized you might not be conscious, and even if you were, you might not be hungry so I just-"

Thorin grumbled and got off the mattress, making his way angrily from the room before he strangled Bilbo.

But before he got to the door, a pair of tall elves appeared in front of the door, blocking his way. The two were identical to one another; both were handsome, young or old - the dwarf could not tell, but they had dark brown hair that matched the colour of the Oaken furniture that littered Elrond's hall and they even shared the same light, grey coloured eyes.

Thorin stared at them for a split second before realizing the uncanny resemblance these two bore to the Elf Lord, and he wondered if they were perhaps his close kin.

Before the dwarf prince could brush them aside and make his way out, they bowed respectfully before him and he grudgingly reciprocated. He was in no mood to be polite.

"I am Elladan," the elf on the right spoke, his voice was clear and loud, breaking off Bilbo's stream of narrative from inside the room as everyone's attention turned to the cluster at the door. The two were wearing deep blue robes that shimmered in the pale light of the room and Thorin had to bite his tongue to keep from scoffing at them; cross dressers.

"And I am Elrohir," the other said, his voice was softer but his expression seemed harder, and the dwarf knew that at least this elf had seen battle before.

"Our Lord Elrond requests that your company join us for a feast tonight in order to celebrate the most beautiful maiden's awakening." Elladan spoke and his grey eyes flicked towards Vanya. The son of Thrain saw a slight smile curl upon the elf's lips as he stared at the girl, causing the tall dwarf's face to glow.

He was seriously starting to consider carrying Vanya around in a sack so that other men would keep their stares and smiles directed towards someone else.

"Thank you for the invitation, _**good bye**_." Thorin said rather rudely and was about to slam the door in their indistinguishable faces when Gandalf's voice boomed out from behind him.

"Elladan, the Elf-Man and Elrohir, the Elf-Knight!" The tall dwarf turned in surprise as he watched the wizard emerge from the veranda and into the room, his arms stretched out wide in welcome. He hadn't even suspected that Gandalf was there, but he had no time to ask what the wizard had been up to. "_Son's of Elrond_ and Masters in Battle, mae g'ovannen." The old man looked pointedly at Thorin as he emphasized the sons of Elrond part, and the prince huffed like a child.

He didn't care who these two were the sons of, although it did explain their resemblance to Elf Lord, he simply wanted both of them outside immediately as Elladan was still eyeing Vanya as though she were something to eat.

"Mithrandir," the two brothers bowed slightly to Gandalf before the wizard began speaking to them completely in Sindarin.

The tall dwarf tapped his foot impatiently as he waited for their little chat to be over, but instead Gandalf ushered them out of the room after a few more moments. The "Elf-Man" as he had been referred to, was reluctant to leave and took one last look at the girl in the bed before tearing his grey eyes from her and turning to follow his brother out into the corridor.

Thorin quickly shut the door behind them and mumbled under his breath. He was about to make his way back over to the bed when there was a light knock on the door.

The prince thought it was Elladan and ripped the door open with a foreboding glare when he saw a group of elf maidens standing with smiling faces as they held a brass bathing tub amongst them, each holding a steaming jug of water in the other hand.

"Is the lady ready for her bath?" A she-elf at the front of the group asked Thorin politely, but the dwarf would be damned if he let anyone, man or woman, other than himself see Vanya naked.

"You lot are going to give her a bath?...Can I watch?" Fili's voice popped up from somewhere behind his uncle, and if the straw haired dwarf had been standing any closer, he would have had the braids beaten out of his beard.

"Well, that's not fair then, is it? If Fili gets to stay then so do I." Bofur said mockingly while a few others laughed and agreed, but the joking tone went over looked and the future King of Erebor exploded.

"GET OUT!"

The entire room jumped and there was a moment of delayed reaction before everyone scurried out the door, shoving the startled elf maidens to the side as the entire company made their way down the stairs.

The only people left now were Bilbo, Thorin, Vanya and the elves.

"Leave the tub and the water; then be gone." The tall dwarf said sternly, using his King Under the Mountain voice, and the women agreed at once, placing the brass cistern in the centre of the room and neatly setting the jugs of water in a circle around it before hurriedly leaving.

Bilbo looked awkwardly at Thorin and the two came to a silent agreement. The dwarf prince hated the Halfling, but he had enough decency to acknowledge the fact that the Hobbit did not want him in there either. So the two made their way out of the room without another glance in Vanya's direction and Bilbo closed the door behind them.

"Are you- uhh, going to come down to the hall?" The Halfling asked shuffling his feet while he tugged at his suspenders.

"No. I'm going to sit here and make sure that Elladan doesn't come sneaking up-"

"Did you see the way he was staring at her?" Bilbo shook his head in disgust, cutting the dwarf off, but he didn't mind as he agreed with the Hobbit. For once. "It looked like he was about to burst right out of his shiny dress."

The two suddenly laughed, and the for once the animosity between the two seemed to evaporate as they now had a common enemy to side against.

"Right then, I'm off to go find something else to eat." Bilbo nodded once in Thorin's direction before plodding down the winding staircase, leaving the prince behind.

A few moments passed in silence as he stood guard and he wondered if Vanya had begun her bath when the loud sloshing of water was heard as it filled the brass tub.

It lasted for a while until the sound stopped and he heard a content sigh come from inside the room.

The tall dwarf tried not to think of her, soaking wet and naked in a pool of water, but found that he was already stiff by the time those thoughts had been banished.

He buried his head in his hands and rubbed his face, trying to calm himself down when he heard a soft moan.

"Thorin."

The prince froze, his mind racing and heart thudding rapidly. Had he just imagined her calling his name? Perhaps she was stuck or needed help. It would only be the right thing to see if she was alright, he thought.

Thorin slowly eased the door open, carefully peeking inside the room when he heard her call his name again. This time it was so clear, the dwarf thought she had spotted him, but then she said it again, much softer.

And when the To-Be King's pale blue eyes found Vanya in the tub of hot water, he abandoned all decency and slipped quietly inside the room, his excitement sending throbbing waves of desire all through his body.

And Thorin knew he was finally going to claim what was his.


	23. Chapter 24, Mood Swings

Hello everyone!

So for all of you smut lovers, the **"M" chapter is up** and can be found via my profile, it's called **"Guilty Love"** and is super long so I hope you all like it. :)

For all of you non-smut lovers, sorry about the sex reference in the first bit of this chapter but It's not too bad.

_Aluriel_: I dont think you're going to like the end of this chapter :S But at least you can go back and read the smut to make it better! And im so sorry for killing your ovaries! AHAHAHA that made me laugh pretty hard though, much love!

_KiTeLLe360:_ I know! I simply had to include the two into the story and so glad that you know who they are! :D

_KillerKadoogan_: Hehehe well thank you for the congrats! :) And he sure is in love, but he can be a little sh*t-head sometimes as you will see. I will definitely try and get out a Fili/Kili story by the end of the summer, and it will totally be dedicated to you, my lovely! As for your review on the smut chapter, i was literally snorting at the thought of you and your husband pretending to be Vanya and Thorin! Hahahahaa. There will definitely be more smut chapters in the future as I had a lot of fun writing the last one hehe. Enjoy reading, much love and hope to hear from you soon!

_Just4Me_: Bahahahahaa! Sorry for the disruption at work! As for Thorin's mystery woman, Im thinking of having a sort of flashback chapter in his POV sometime soon (although he's going to have to be in a very brooding mood) and we'll get to learn about her and what happened :D Also... im going to hypnotize you right now and make you think it's Wednesday... _

_Mel-Mel_: I was going to have the next chapter of Iron and Flowers up by tomorrow, but there are still some things I need to go over and my man has a stupid baseball tournament all day tomorrow that i have to go watch. So it will most likely be up on Monday! :)

Happy reading! **Please remember to leave your loverly reviews!** Mwaaah!

* * *

At last satisfied, Thorin stood and placed a rough kiss on Vanya's slack mouth.

He laughed at her limp body and despite her exhaustion and soreness, it made her heart warm as she rarely got to hear the beautiful sound.

She wondered what the dwarf was doing as he walked away from her and towards the now cold tub of water in the middle of the room, when she saw him reach into the cistern and wash his impressive manhood.

At first she thought of how on earth _**that**_ had fit inside her, but then she noticed that his member was covered in bright red blood.

Her mind began to race and she thought she had hurt him when the girl realized that the blood was hers.

Her cheeks flushed with embarrassment but Thorin didn't seem to mind, as he was humming a tune softly as he began to wash the sweat off his chest and face as well with one of the full jugs of water that the girl hadn't used earlier.

The elf wondered what it was that he was humming, but decided to simply enjoy the sight of his naked figure in the sunlight.

He had the most splendid body, his shoulders were so breathtakingly broad and muscular, his rear was round and tight and led wonderfully to his sturdy, stout legs. But the girl found herself examining two small dimples at the very base of his spine that were almost covered by the large markings that sprawled across the length of his back.

And before she could stop herself she spoke, breaking the blissful peace and the sound of Thorin's beautiful humming.

"What is that?"

The tall dwarf turned his head towards her and smiled, his eyes lighting up as they found her lounging on the bed. "And what is _**that**_ exactly?"

Vanya noticed that even the prince's voice sounded bright, as though his very soul was smiling, and she returned a grin in his direction, unable to resist his contagious cheer.

"Those markings on your back- what are they?" The elf asked, her brows knit together as she stared at him with the curiosity and wonder of a small child. She pulled herself up gingerly and felt the soreness deep in her stomach and winced, gritting her teeth against the pain as she dragged herself to the edge of the mattress where she propped up her face in her hands.

The handsome dwarf turned to her and she tried to keep her eyes glued to his face, attempting to ignore his gleaming, wet body as he made his way back towards the bed - smiling the entire way.

He sat down on the edge next to her, his thigh grazing her arm as she looked up at him.

"Do you like them?" He asked as he stroked her hair lovingly, taking in the way she looked against the snow white bedsheets. The prince spoke in way that made Vanya feel as though he would carve them out of his back if she said she didn't.

"Yes, very much so." The elf said quickly, smiling and nuzzling her face against his thigh, the dark hairs on his legs tickled her face and she wrinkled her nose to try and satisfy the itchy sensation.

She could smell the salty scent of sweat on him mixed with sweet pine and wondered if all dwarves smelt as good as Thorin.

"The three along my back create Durin's emblem - the symbol of my ancestors," he was practically beaming with pride as he told her and continued to stroke her hair. His rich, deep voice along with the body wracking love he had made to her had Vanya's eyes drooping sleepily, but she fought to keep them awake as he continued speaking.

"These markings on my arms represent the Two Lamps of the Valar that the great Mahal fashioned long ago." The elf was fascinated by the meaning of his markings as they made her respect the dwarf even more so than she already did. They had been beautiful before, but now they simply gave Thorin an ethereal quality that made her gaze up in wonder at him.

He was staring down at her tenderly and she could clearly see the love in his pale blue eyes, wrinkling around the corners as he smiled. She could see the love, even though he had yet to speak the words.

And what would she do when he did? Would she risk his affections for her and tell him the truth? Or would she simply tell him that she undoubtedly returned his love (which was also the truth) and omit the single, glaring obstacle that stood in their way?

The elf sighed and closed her eyes in defeat, gently placing a kiss on his thigh as she rested her head in his lap.

He hadn't told her that he loved her yet, and she would worry about it when he did. As for now, she was going to lie in the sunlight with her dwarf and forget about the rest of the world.

* * *

The sun was now far past the midday mark in the sky and there hadn't been a single knock on the girl's door, almost making her wonder if someone were keeping guard outside.

Thorin had gone for a short while without telling her where, and it saddened Vanya to see him get dressed again. But he had returned to her room with another brass tub, filled with steaming hot water.

His face had been bright red at hauling the water up the flight of stairs and the girl immediately began to chide him for his stupidity, but he only laughed as he put it down next to the other cistern and walked over to the bed, lifting her gingerly from the mattress and setting her into the piping hot bath.

She was surprised at how much the water seemed to help her soreness and she instantly thanked him. He watched her for a short while until he undressed again and asked if he could join her.

The two now sat, soaking together contentedly, Vanya leaning up against her dwarf's chest as he wrapped his strong arms around her tightly.

The prince took a deep breath as he was about to speak when there was finally a loud knock on the door.

The girl sat up abruptly, almost as she had been expecting someone but Thorin kept his arms locked around her.

"Who is it?"

There was silence for a moment and just as the tall dwarf began muttering under his breath about "pestering Hobbits," a strong, clear voice disrupted the calm, quiet atmosphere and the two lovers knew exactly who it was before he even announced his name.

"My lady, it is Elladan, son of Elrond." Vanya sighed quietly and rolled her eyes skywards before responding.

"And what may I do for you, master in battle, Elladan, son of Elrond?"

"Please, there is no need for such formality. Consider me a friend, my lady."

"Then why still do you address me as Lady? You know my name, so use it." The she-elf's voice was sharper than she intended and the dwarf prince was absolutely beaming at her rudeness.

But her cold remark had the opposite effect on Elladan and he chuckled, a light sound like chimes in the wind; nothing like Thorin's deep, booming laughter.

"I have yet to be graced with the knowledge of hearing your name; only that I am certain it must be as beautiful as you are."

And in spite of herself, Vanya couldn't help but smile. Not only at the elf's surprising forwardness but at the threatening growl she heard emanating from her dwarf's chest.

"Then I fear I cannot tell you, as I do not wish to disappoint the son of the elf who saved my life."

The girl hoped that he would simply leave, but this prince was stubborn, and if she knew that the dwarf in the bath with her was a prince as well, she would have wondered if obstinacy was a royal trait.

"Very well then, If you will not give me your name I shall make one up for you." The room was silent for another split second before the son of Lord Elrond continued. "I will call you Vanglirtána- the one whose beauty only poetry can capture."

The she-elf felt Thorin tense up, and seeing his huge hands clench into fists, she literally had to turn around and straddle the dwarf in the small tub, ignoring the shooting pain between her legs at the movement.

She stroked his flushed cheeks and placed light kisses all over his lips and face.

She could slowly feel him begin to relax, and when his nostrils were no longer flaring, she answered Elladan.

"If it pleases you, then by all means call me what you will; however, may I ask the purpose of your visit?"

"You may ask me whatever your heart desires; I came here to offer you a gift."

Vanya was beginning to wish that she could just place her hands over the tall dwarf's ears so he didn't get upset at every second thing that was said.

"Thank you, but your hospitality is enough." The girl's voice was short and stern, leaving no room for persuasion, but of course the elf pressed on.

"It was too late to have one of the maidens sew you a new gown for the feast tonight, so I have persuaded my sister to give you one of her very finest." Vanya was about to decline once more but Elladan spoke again before her. "My Lord Elrond also persists that you wear it."

The girl sighed in defeat, finding herself with no other choice but to accept. However Thorin didn't understand, fuming when she told Elrond's son to leave his gift by the door– the Elf Lord had saved her life and the least she could do was wear one of his daughter's gowns to the feast he was throwing in her honour.

After Elladan's footsteps could no longer be heard, Vanya found herself face to face with a very displeased dwarf. She tried to reach over to stroke his face again, but he recoiled from her touch, making the girl feel as though he had struck her.

He avoided her gaze and pulled himself from beneath her, silently stepping out of the tub and drying himself with his cloak – his back to the woman whose maidenhood he had taken only a short while ago.

"Thorin?" The elf's voice was a timid whisper, her entire heart sinking as he pretended not to hear her, gathering up his clothes and getting dressed, angrily pulling his tunic over his head and yanking his breeches on.

He carried his damp cloak and armour under one of his arms and ripped the door open before he stopped.

Vanya's hopes soared for a split second, thinking that he was going to turn back around and apologize, then kiss her and keep her company until they had to go to the feast.

But the future King of Erebor bent over and picked up a parcel wrapped in glittering, silver jewels, examining it before turning slightly and tossing it to the bed with disgust.

It missed by a few feet and landed with a dull thud on the stone floor, almost echoing the sound of the elf's heart as it hit the bottom of her stomach.

"If the gown reeks of Elves as strongly as the parcel does, then do not bother sitting by me tonight."

And with that Thorin walked out of her room and slammed the door shut behind himself without so much as a glance at Vanya.

The girl simply stared after the dwarf, a numb confusion creeping into her mind as she sat in the cooling tub of water, idly wondering how on earth that had been the same dwarf who had held her so close and happily showered her with kisses only a few moments ago.

And as the numbness wore off, the hurt began to take its place, spreading through her body like poison as the elf cursed the night she had walked into Bag End and set eyes on Thorin Oakenshield.


	24. Chapter 26, An Insightful Meeting

_HELLO EVERYONE!_

_Oh my goodness, let me start off with a HUUUGGEEE apology to you all! My hubby-to-be surprised me with a trip to England and we got back on Friday. I would have loved to take my laptop with me, but i "wasn't allowed" any electronic devices besides my ipod, something about spending quality time together *eyeroll* haha_

_ANYWAY! Im soooooo glad to finally be back and writing! Im not going to be responding to reviews in this chapter because I want to get this chapter out - Finally! _

_For those of you who are also reading **Iron and Flowers,** I already have chapter three written and im weeding through the bits I dont like and what I want to add. Expect chapter 3 to be out by Friday! :D_

_Thank you all SOOOO much for your continued support and I promise I'll try not to have any more impromptu month long vacations!_

_Please enjoy and remember to leave your beautiful reviews! Much love!_

* * *

The sun was hanging low upon the horizon; only a few hours before the feast began.

Gandalf was staring idly out of the veranda at the giant ball of fire which hung in the pale orange sky as he waited for Lord Elrond in the vast, empty room.

It had been quite some time since the wizard had ushered Elladan and Elrohir from Vanya's chambers and sent them to prepare things for the celebrations tonight. Of course this was all by design, in hopes that the girl and Thorin would be able to spend some time alone together.

It was true that although Gandalf hadn't intended for the two to fall in love, it had proven an unexpected, yet pleasant twist. The old man had hope that she could save the stubborn dwarf prince from falling into the same, dark trap his grandfather had been sucked into so many years ago.

If Thorin was successful in killing Smaug, reclaiming Erebor and re-establishing the line of Durin under the mountain, he would still have to face perhaps the toughest challenge still; and that was to resist the sick, consuming temptation of gold.

Dragon sickness was a terrible thing and the wizard had seen a few before Thror go mad with lust for precious gems, and although Thorin was in no way weak, Gandalf could sense a darkness in him that could be easily brought forth by the sight of his long lost riches.

And that is where Vanya's love could save him; if he wasn't foolish enough to turn her away.

With that thought, the wizard suddenly felt wearier than ever before as he took a giant breath, wondering what the son of Thrain would say or do when he found out about the girl. Gandalf found himself pitying the elf for a few seconds, unable to help but feel responsible for the pain she would go through if Thorin scorned her.

After all, it was his fault - he had dragged her to Bag End where she first met the leader of their company.

The old wizard found himself wondering why he had bothered to help Vanya in the first place; he had seen many die before, sometimes at his own hands, so why the compelling urge to save one insignificant young girl?

For some strange reason, when Gandalf had first seen the elf, he thought he'd recognized her from somewhere, but couldn't quite put his finger on it. Perhaps that single, fleeting moment of familiarity was enough to make the wizard go through all the trouble in saving her...

The man pondered for a few more seconds, absent-mindedly stroking his beard when he felt a presence behind him.

He turned to face the Lord of Rivendell, his ageless face always with the same stern expression, regardless if he was happy, angry or sad. Elrond's brown eyes were unreadable as he scrutinized the wizard, wasting no time in discussing what was on his mind.

"Mithrandir, I want you to know that although your hospitality is always welcome, I fear that due to... recent events, I must urge you and your company to be on your way as soon as possible."

The Elf Lord's voice was smooth and calming, like a gentle breeze on a summer day. But his words were far from pleasant.

Gandalf's brows furrowed and Elrond continued.

"It seems that my son has become attached to Vanya, and I will not allow Elladan to put himself in danger for her."

The wizard was staring at the elf lord, his bushy eyebrows still knit together, watching as the setting sun cast orange and yellow rays upon Elrond's lean figure and stern face.

Gandalf was trying to figure out what the Elf meant by "danger". Surely he did not mean that the girl was _still_ in peril... the creature that had marked Vanya would no longer be able to track her. Although the girl's wound would never fully heal, Elrond had removed every last shard of steel from her abdomen and had washed away the evil that had been festering like a black, ball in the pit of her stomach.

But then what did he mean by danger?

The Lord of Rivendell could clearly see the internal debate the old man was having and stared at the wizard for a while.

"You did not recognize the girl, did you?" Elrond asked suddenly.

Gandalf looked up sharply and narrowed his bright blue eyes at his old companion. Not understanding why he should have recognized a complete stranger... but then again, he thought she _had _been familiar the day he saw her in the woods.

"Do you recall Meldamiriel?" The Elf Lord asked, watching the wizard carefully. Gandalf stroked his beard absent-mindedly again; the name rang a bell, however it was a very old and rusty bell – therefore he had little memory of anyone by the name.

Elrond took the wizard's silence as an answer and began pacing the room, his long silver robes brushing against the cool stone floor as he began to tell his story.

"She was the fairest of our race, some even claimed her to be even more fair than Lúthien, daughter of Elu. Meldamiriel, the precious jewel..." The Lord of Rivendell paused by a large canvas with painted fruit and goblets of wine, seemingly absorbed by the art.

"Meldamiriel was born in Greenwood the Great under the rule of Thranduil, and as the elf maiden grew older, the faster it seemed rumour of her unparalleled beauty spread. Until one day, the Elven King decided to see for himself what all the whispers were about."

Gandalf slowly began to recall what he could of the story, as he had in fact heard it; many times before to be honest. But for some reason he couldn't remember most of it; well perhaps not for "some reason", as the wizard had smoked the last batch of Old Toby right before making his way over to meet the Elf Lord. Therefore his mind was a little foggy.

But he still didn't understand what this had to do with Vanya.

"Thranduil was besotted the moment he laid eyes on the poor girl, and married her only weeks after. It seemed as though all of Middle Earth had been invited as a guest to see the Elven King take Meldamiriel as his wife." Elrond turned to face the wizard again, but the old man could see that the Elf's ancient brown eyes were far away as he remembered.

"Oh Gandalf- she was beautiful. But it broke my heart to see someone so miserable. My beloved Celebrian nearly wept for her and I must admit that I had half a mind to speak with Thranduil; to urge him not to go through with the ceremony."

The room was filled with bright orange light as the final rays of sun reached inside where Gandalf shifted uncomfortably. He was beginning to dread where this story was going.

"But of course the two were wed, and like all things borne out of contempt, their marriage was doomed to fail."

The Elf Lord looked directly at the wizard now, his expression unreadable. "Do you know why Thranduil has such a hatred for dwarves?"

And then suddenly, as though fireworks had suddenly gone off in Gandalf's brain and cleared the Old Toby, he remembered.

"Belkul the Brave..."

Elrond smiled slightly and nodded.

Belkul had been a dwarf from the Iron Hills who had travelled down to the Greenwood to do business with Thranduil. The Elven King had treated him with hospitality, introducing the dwarf to his wife, Meldamiriel.

But that had been the King's biggest mistake as the two fell in love soon after and Belkul stole away with the beautiful maiden despite knowing what the consequences would be.

Sure enough, Thranduil sent every last elf, man and creature after the two in hopes of finding them, but his search was in vain and the King of the Greenwood had lost his most beloved treasure; his wife.

Gandalf knew that the two had been killed many many years after running away, but he still failed to see why Elrond was taking the time to tell him a story he had heard many times before.

The Elf Lord carefully took a look at the wizard before speaking.

"Meldamiriel and Belkul lived the rest of their lives happily, even while trying to stay hidden from the rest of the world. However despite their efforts to live in complete secrecy, it was rumoured that they had a child; one daughter - a half-elf, half-dwarf -who was thought to be the spitting image of her mother but with the height of her father..."

Gandalf felt his blue eyes widen in utter shock as he realized what Elrond was telling him.

"Vanya."

The elf nodded.

The old man only now remembered the painting he had seen of the beautiful elf-maiden in the halls of Lothlorien many years ago. The wizard could barely recall the features on the face of the drawing, yet somehow he had been able to notice a familiarity between a browning sheet of paper and the elf he had saved only a short while ago.

The wizard was ecstatic; perhaps if Thorin could not love an Elf, he could love a half-dwarf.

"You have no idea the dangers that await the poor girl, I am quite surprised that she has managed to stay alive for so long to be honest." Elrond looked down at the ground for a split second, a fleeting look of pity washed over his features before they became stoic once more.

Gandalf's good mood evaporated.

"What do you mean by danger, Lord Elrond? And why would your son be putting himself in harm's way by caring for Vanya?"

The Elf looked hesitant for a moment, but then sighed and spoke in a soft voice, as if afraid he would be over heard.

"Of all the people I have encountered in my long life on this Earth, I have seen perhaps two or three possible futures for each one- five at most. But Vanya..." Elrond paused for a moment, a crease coming between his eyebrows as he frowned, his gaze was averted from the wizard. "It is as though her future changes with every passing moment."

Gandalf was holding his breath while the Lord of Rivendell continued.

"I've seen her with the Halfling, and always there is a happy ending with those two. I see her also with Thorin Oakenshield; and at times her life is that of an immaculate fairytale with him. But then I see her with the Dwarf and she is even more miserable than her mother was with Thranduil."

Elrond's face suddenly became grave.

"But Gandalf, the one outcome I have seen above all the others is her death."

The wizard's heart sank.

"And ever since this morning, I have seen her with Elladan; having many children and living happily in the Valley. But then there was also another vision that I saw which also involved my son- and that is why I must urge your company to leave Rivendell as soon as possible."

"Surely it is not a cause for concern,-"

"My son has his life taken from him while protecting the girl from an old enemy of Thorin's- and no matter how small the possibility- i will not risk losing Elladan."

Gandalf stared quietly at the ground until he realized that the sun had completely set, shrouding the two in the eerie dim of twilight.

"You will have by the end of this week to be on your way, my friend. I hope you can understand why I must ask this of you."

The wizard nodded slightly and forced a smile upon his lips as he bowed, taking note of the tone in Elrond's voice that signalled the end of their conversation.

The old man clad in grey turned to head down to the dining hall for the feast when the Elf Lord spoke once more; his voice strange and hollow.

"And one more thing Mithrandir... you must make certain that no matter where your travels might take you and your friends, that you will not let Thranduil catch even a glimpse of Vanya."

"Yes, Lord Elrond." And with that, Gandalf made his way out of the room, his mind buzzing with all that he had just learned.

Amidst the ambiguity of the Elf Lord's visions, one thing was clear to the wizard; he had to find Vanya.


	25. Chapter 27, The Calm Before the Storm

Hello all!

Thanks for all your lovely reviews and support! You guys are AWESOME! :D

And get ready for some shit to hit the fan in the next few upcoming chapters! Hehehe

Lots of Love!

**_KiTeLLe360_**: Im glad to be back! And I could have updated so many new chapters if I was allowed to take my laptop! -_- That rule sucks poop.

**_Aluriel:_** Hehehe! You're happier to have me back than my own mother was! Hahahaha I love it! :D England was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! So many beautiful places, although it was very crowded :S He's pretty good...but he's no Thorin Oakenshield! hahahaha ;) And as for Bilbo...the Hobbit is a persistent little bugger as you will soon see Lots of love darling and can't wait for your reviews!

**_Lady La-sara:_** Thank you soooo sososoososososososooo much! I agree with you completely about not following the movie or story plot bit by bit and am so glad that you can appreciate that :) You are most welcome my dear and I put this story up for wonderful people like you who enjoy my crack-pot work! Much love and looking fwd to hearing from you soon :D

_**Just4Me**:_ I know, I wish I was her...lucky bugger. Haha, Im almost tempted to have her take things a bit further with Elladan but im not sure : ) For now she is all over that big sexy dwarf. And what makes you think she'll run into Thranduil _ haha

**_KillerKadoogan_:** I really hope that you'll be able to go one day as it was spectacular! Im not going to lie, I was on the look out for Richard Armitage and Benedict Cumberbatch the entire time I was there... _ Fortunately (for my fiance) I didnt see either of them :'( As for Thorin and Vanya they are going to have a LOT of shite to sift through in the next couple of chapters but I promise it will be good! Much love and cant wait for your review!

Thanks for reading and **please remember to leave your wonderful reviews** as it keeps me writing! :D

* * *

Kili sank into his chair, running his fingers through his hair and sighing loudly as he turned to look at his brother.

Fili had spent the entire afternoon complaining about Elf-maidens; how they were snobbish and rude, how they were too tall or how they had the shape and structure of a 12 year old boy.

And yet, after all of that moaning, he had spent the last half an hour attempting to woo Arwen, Elrond's daughter, who was sitting not far across from Fili.

The she-elf was undoubtedly beautiful, but had sat there staring at the straw haired dwarf with a look on her face as though there was a glass of curdled milk under her nose.

Finally, the womanizing nephew of Thorin conceded defeat and turned his attention to Estel, a young toddler who had slowly crept up on the strangers, eyeing them suspiciously with his big blue eyes.

The straw haired dwarf had always been great with kids and as Kili watched him now, making horse noises while bobbing the boy up and down on his lap, it almost seemed as though his brother was having more fun than the child.

But just then the boy shrieked with delight as he managed to grab a handful of Fili's beard with his chubby little fingers, yanking as hard as he could manage.

"Oi! You porky little son of a b-" Fili cut himself off mid-sentence and looked with a sheepish smile at the she-elf who was standing watch over Estel as she raised a disapproving eyebrow at him.

Kili smiled and shook his head as he turned away from his older brother to marvel at the beauty of the Elvish hall.

It wasn't enormous by any means, in fact it was a bit small for a dining hall in the dwarf's opinion, but it was absolutely breathtaking.

The hall seemed to be fashioned after a giant canopy, with great big, arched open doors that looked out onto the Valley from one end and the inky night sky on the other. Hundreds of white flowers hung effortlessly from the pillars like they were growing straight out of the stone itself, and as decor for the feast, there seemed to be bouquets of multi coloured plants at every corner along with intricately carved wax candles which lined the walls, giving the area a warm glow.

There had only been a few hours to prepare for the feast, but the people of Rivendell had managed to cook what seemed like enough food to feed an army of 1000 men... or at least thirteen hungry dwarves.

The rest of the company, Kili included, had nearly died with joy at the sight of roast mutton, salted pork, juicy steak and tender chicken that seemed to be calling to them from the tables.

Bombur had nearly dove face first into the food before a pair of elves informed them that none were permitted to eat until Lord Elrond gave the proper blessings.

All twelve dwarves were extremely displeased and they now had to wait, pacing about and distracting themselves with other things to keep their minds off of the food that lay ready and eager to be eaten on the massive oak tables.

The sun had set a few minutes ago and everyone had already taken their seats; the only ones missing now were Gandalf, Elrond, Thorin and the guest of honour; Vanya.

The rest of the dwarves were sitting right in the centre of the hall at the largest table with a huge ornately carved chair at the head, a vacant seat on either side.

Elladan and Elorhir were sitting across from each other beside the two empty chairs, next to Elladan was Arwen and next to her was Bilbo.

The Hobbit had been absurdly quiet for the entire evening, at first Kili thought he was upset, but then he understood that the Halfling was merely transfixed by the beauty of Rivendell. His brown eyes were wide and he simply stared in wonder at everything his gaze fell upon, a small incredulous smile coming to play across his mouth every so often.

Beside Master Baggins there was Dwalin, then Bifur, Bombur, Ori and lastly sat Oin with his metal hearing device propped up against a goblet.

Kili's eyes wandered now to his side of the table.

There were two empty seats on either side of Elrohir, then going down the table sat the dark haired dwarf himself, then his brother –who had given Estel back to the she-elf and now sat staring gloomily at the food in front of him he could not yet touch- then there was Balin, Bofur, Dori, Nori and at the very end of the oak table sat Gloin.

"Finally!" Fili's voice snapped his brother out of his thoughts and the entire company of dwarves gave a breath of relief when they saw Gandalf's stooped figure make its way towards the table, stopping for a few seconds to speak with a couple of the other guests.

The Wizard made his way to the company and Kili saw as the Elf twins placed their hands over their breasts, bowing their heads respectfully as they greeted the old man.

Once Gandalf was seated beside Elrohir, he looked around at the table and frowned slightly.

"Where are Thorin and Vanya? And Lord Elrond?"

"We thought they were with you!" Ori piped up from near the end of the table and as the wizard shook his head to show that they were mistaken, the entire lot groaned loudly.

Now they had to wait even _longer_ before they could eat.

"My apologies Mithrandir, but Vanya? Is that the fair maiden's name?" Elladan spoke for the first time since Kili had heard him enter the girl's room that morning. He had a clear, commanding voice that drew everyone's attention at once.

The two elf brothers looked so similar to Elrond, yet they differed greatly at the same time.

They both had cropped, curly brown hair that came to settle just below their pointy ears. It looked almost like Bilbo's hair, except much more refined and neat, not just the jumbled mess of curls that sat atop the Hobbit's head.

Their eyes were stark grey and seemed to sit a bit higher than their father's, their eyebrows with a much softer arch than Lord Elrond's. They had sharp cheekbones and perfectly square jaws, broad chests and lean figures; Kili suddenly found himself envying the two when he mentally smacked himself and turned his attention back to what was happening.

Elladan's brown brows were furrowed and his pale eyes were bright with excitement, he looked as though he would attack Gandalf if he didn't answer him fast enough.

"Yes, Master Elf... her name is Vanya." Kili didn't understand why the wizard looked so hesitant as he replied, but there was an obvious crease in the old man's brow and he stared at Elladan oddly.

"Vanya." The prince said the name as though the taste of an exotic fruit was on his tongue; foreign, yet sweet and delicious.

And as the young dwarf watched the smile that spread across the Elf's lips, Kili knew that he too had come to fall under the girl's spell.

Fili suddenly nudged his brother under the table and the two exchanged a quick glance- the straw haired dwarf apparently coming to the same conclusion as the other- when the older of the two smirked, beckoning his head towards the Halfling.

Bilbo's face had grown bright red and he was muttering something inaudible under his breath as he glared poisonous daggers at Elladan.

It was actually almost humorous to watch, and just as Kili was about to duck his head in order to cover his laughter, he spotted his uncle storming through one of the arches and the young dwarf's chuckle died in his throat.

Thorin looked positively murderous.

His nephew almost wondered if they would find a dead body lying somewhere in the river a few days from now, but then again Bilbo was sitting here and Elrond's son was present as well...

Fili noticed the sudden change of expression on his brother's face and followed his gaze.

"Well, someone is going to get uncle's boot shoved up their a-"

"Ah- Thorin!" Gandalf shouted as he saw the leader of the company stalk towards the table.

The tall dwarf was simply glowering at the wizard as he arrived; his nostrils were flared, his eyes were dark and his cheeks were flushed. The rightful King of Erebor simply ignored the Elf twins as they gave their greetings.

"Sit," Gandalf said this with perhaps a bit more force than necessary, but kept a smile on his wrinkled face the whole time as he beckoned the leader to the empty chair between Elrohir and his nephew.

Kili gave a low oath when he realized that Thorin would be sitting right beside him for the entire feast... it was laborious enough to sit with him and be on ones best behaviour when he was in a good mood so the dark haired dwarf didn't want to think about what it would be like when he looked as though someone had killed his entire family right before his eyes.

Kili watched as Thorin scanned the remaining empty seats and his nephew thought he could almost see steam coming out his uncle's ears as he realized that Vanya would have to sit beside Elladan while he was shoved off to the other side of the table.

"Good luck, brother." Fili muttered quietly as he slowly and silently edged his chair away, trying to put as much distance between himself and his uncle as possible.

The younger of the two sighed loudly as he got ready for what he knew would be a long night; at least the food would be good.

"And at last the final members of our company join us!" Gandalf's voice brought everyone's attention to Lord Elrond as he walked in slowly, smiling gently while the most beautiful woman Kili had ever seen clung onto his arm. And as the young dwarf stared in awe at the girl, he realized it was Vanya.

She had always been beautiful, but tonight she was simply heart stopping. Kili couldn't quite put his finger on it, but she looked different; as though there was a light glowing beneath her skin.

Her eyes seemed brighter, her lips pinker, and even her hair looked as though each lock was sparkling like stars in the night sky.

Perhaps it was the deep red gown that made her look so lovely; the neck scooped down to reveal her décolletage and left the top of both her shoulders bare. The mesmerizing material clung in all the right places and Kili's face went pink as his eyes involuntarily lingered on certain parts of her body before he shook his head and regained his senses.

The entirety of his company had gone silent, and the dark haired dwarf was reminded starkly of the first night Vanya came to Bag End.

The son of Dis looked to his uncle now and nearly laughed out loud.

Thorin's mouth was agape and he kept blinking rapidly, as though the Dwarf prince believed that the girl was some sort of hallucination that would disappear once he returned to reality.

But Vanya slowly made her way to the table with Elrond towing her gently by his side and as they got to be a few feet away, Kili saw Elladan rise and respectfully bow before his father and the girl.

Elrohir stood and followed his brother, and the rest of the company -except Arwen- rose and did the same.

The Elf Lord sat the girl down in the chair next to his wide-eyed son and whispered something into her ear before he went to stand at the head of the table and placed his hand over his chest.

His children, Gandalf and the rest of the Elves in the hall took their seats and the dwarvish company plopped down clumsily soon after.

Elrond began to speak in Sindarin and as Kili had no idea and little interest in what he was saying, the dwarf's eyes wandered back to Vanya.

Her gaze never left the empty plate in front of her, even as Elladan had his grey eyes simply glued to her face. The girl began to shift uncomfortably until the Elf Prince peeled himself away from her long enough to crouch down to retrieve something from under the table.

After a few seconds, he brought up an enormous bunch of bright flowers and presented them to the girl with a wide smile, his perfect white teeth gleaming in the candlelight.

Vanya blushed and quietly accepted the flowers, carefully placing them down behind her chair and returned to staring intently at her empty plate as though fascinated by it.

For a spilt second, the girl stole a glance at Thorin and quickly ducked her head once more; a look of confusion painting her features as Kili looked to his uncle.

The Future King of Erebor looked down at his lap, a solemn expression coming to settle over him as he placed his fist over his thighs and opened his hand.

A single purple flower lay in the middle of his huge palm. The plant was broken and bruised, dark blotches marring the once beautiful petals as the Dwarf Prince studied it intently, a deep frown etching its way across his lips.

And as Kili watched his uncle turn his hand over and let the flower fall gently to the ground, Elrond took his seat and the feast began.


End file.
