A Shot in the Dark (Thilbo - Bagginshield)

Chapter 19

Bombur remembered her hands the best.

They were soft and strong hands; hands that chopped vegetables and kneaded dough. They only fleetingly knew what it was like to hold an axe, and they never strived to hurt anyone. With deft fingers, they had braided his hair and combed his beard out at the end of the day. They had soothed his back aches and rubbed the tense knots out of his shoulders. He had worshipped those tanned hands and decorated them with silver and iron rings because she did not care for gold. He had held those hands in his own clumsy pair as they walked home together, or after they had made love. He had kissed them when she told him that he was to be a father. They had in turn wiped away his tears of joy.

They weren't there to wipe them away when Smaug came.

The years after Erebor fell were a haze to Bombur. He could recall only vague images of fire and screams and wandering for days on end. He remembered a soothing voice guiding him along, but for the most part the memories were fuzzy and unclear. He probably would have continued like that for the rest of his days if Bofur had not forced him awake with a hard punch to the face.

Bofur—his little brother who watched their father burn alive; who saw their mother crushed by a falling pillar; whose back was covered with the burns of Smaug's fire—forced him to wake up and see again. Bofur had dragged him out of his fog and made him remember what it was like to live. He had saved him in every way, and Bombur could never repay him for it. He was so very lucky, in that regard, that he had a brother who loved him so much.

Bilbo Baggins... was not so lucky.

The Hobbit did not have a brother. He did not have any siblings or parents left and his kin were very far away. He had only the Dwarves and a lone wizard for company. Bombur did not know if they could be enough for the single Hobbit with a broken heart. But, just as Bofur forced him to live, he would force Bilbo to carry on. Because he understood now why his brother fought so hard for him. He understood that love—for a spouse or brother or a friend—was still love.

And love? Well, that was always worth fighting for.

~*~

Bilbo found himself exploring Erebor over the next few days. He stuck mostly to the secure areas such as the throne room and armory and avoided the unstable mines and deep halls. He found himself leaving footprints in the dusty halls and stairs as he rediscovered the glorious Dwarven city. Sometimes one of the other's joined him but most of the time he explored alone; getting lost in his thoughts and memories and plans for the future.

Balin and Gandalf had still not returned but he was not worried. He estimated that it would take them a good week before they would return to Erebor. He hoped that when they did return, they would bring news of Azog and his ilk, and then he could begin to help his friends prepare for the upcoming battle. He hoped that perhaps the Battle of the Five Armies would not commence, but he wasn't about to take any chances. Not with the lives of the three royals Dwarves on the line.

With nothing more to do but wait, Bilbo took to watching his friends in between his explorations. Thorin in particular he kept a close eye on when he went through the mountains of treasure. So far none of them had displayed any madness or stirrings of greed over the gold, but he didn't let his guard down. Sooner or later one of them would be consumed by it. And considering his luck, Bilbo knew it would most likely be a certain Dwarven king.

Eventually, during one of his walks through Erebor, he found himself in the massive throne room. It was indeed an architect of wonder as Fíli had claimed, and he took a long time admiring the carefully constructed statues that lined the colossal chambers. He could not begin to imagine how the Dwarves had gone about building something so large and detailed. Not even Rivendell could boast such an architectural wonder. When he eventually made his way to the actual throne, Bilbo was surprised to find it already occupied.