Thief of the Heart (BilboxThorin 18+)

Thief of the Heart

Please understand me.

I never meant to hurt you, but this was the only way we could prevent a war.

I needed to hide the Arkenstone for all our sakes!

Bilbo Baggins wished he could've said those words in a way that would help his dear friend listen to him, and not glare in his direction like their ties were severed. His friend gave off a sullen look to everybody, but this was different. It was one thing for the King of the Mountain to be distrustful, but it was another to have his heart shatter in front of thousands by the one whom he valued most.

Bilbo could only imagine what that must've felt like, but he had run out of options. Truly, he tried to pull the King out of his madness sooner. The hobbit saw it himself; he had escaped the possession before. Talking with him at great length seemed to do the trick, unfortunately, he was not as fond of the others in their group to fully resist the temptation of power. It had to be this way, or he'd submit himself and his friends to bloodshed. If there was anything the hobbit was not, it was a coward who'd give up when there was still time. But now, there was not a crumb of time left to dawdle on, and he could only plead silently, hoping his companion would forgive his actions.

The Mountain King was beside himself. He digested Bilbo's words but was unable to filter them like he wanted to. He tried separating the disturbing confession from the charming individual that had delivered them. What Bilbo told him had to be a lie; the hobbit who had trusted to follow him through treacherous crusades surely wouldn't turn his back on him now and steal the Arkenstone. What's more, he wouldn't dare hand off that stone to his enemies, one of which refused to take part in supporting the dwarves in their time of need.

If this was real, then the King feared it would mean everything they shared was under a façade. The dwarf had to remain an impenetrable warrior in front of his foes, so they do not make him out to be a fool struck by emotion. Yet he recalled the memories of the friendship he had built with the hobbit anyway; how he first encountered him and his bumbling words. Nobody evoked such a feeling in the dwarf like frustration and infatuation all at once.

He remembered growing warm at the sight of Bilbo chasing their group to tag along on their adventure. That sensation was too foreign to understand for himself, so he pushed them aside. He did a good job at it too, until that damn thief had the nerve to steal his heart during their fight with the Pale Orc. The new ruler had seen many battles, yet not one had a hobbit with no combat experience run headfirst into defending him- not for glory or acknowledgment, but simply because it was in his nature. That couldn't be someone who'd commit all that just to cheat him in the end.

There were a lot of things the long-haired dwarf refused to say, including how dashing his short companion was even amid chaos. Bilbo looked at him with those soft green eyes, and tousled brown hair. His mouth opened just slightly so oxygen could enter down his throat. It felt like instinct for the King to want to grab ahold of the thief and pry his lips further apart so his tongue could enter. They could wrap themselves in each other and shoo off the world as they did. But duty lies above silly affections. There would be more like Bilbo soon when he solidified his reign. Better than Bilbo even; they would come running down the hills begging for his hand and presenting their bellies where his children can form. Dwarves would be more than happy to please their King. The ruler held that future in his head and narrowed his glare at the one who stole his Arkenstone.

The hobbit was an enemy. He lied to him and twisted his purpose for living. He was meant to reawaken the dwarf kingdom and repopulate so another desecration would never occur again. He had to be strong, like his grandfather, and end those who posed a threat to their community.

The King ordered to have the hobbit sent over the edge of the wall, and the scene that played after was viewed like a hawk from above. Bilbo and the others had horror stricken over their faces, stupefied by this vicious decree. Nobody wanted to go through with it, so he needed to enact his mission alone. He grabbed Bilbo, and dragged him to the edge, pressuring him to go over. But their eyes made contact again, and a cold shrill raked the King's body. Like snakes had slithered underneath his clothing and hissed in his ear, flicking their devious forked tongues along the outer layer.