Hope and Memory[Thorin Oakenshield Love Story]

[Chapter Thirty Nine]

The hobbit let out a scream, when she felt firm hands catch her by her arms. Thorin let out a startled grunt as he nearly went over with her when he felt someone grab him from behind, holding him steady. He looked behind him to see it was Dwalin. Thorin pulled the woman up until she was back on the step. He pulled her into his arms and held her when he noticed she was shaking from what her fate could have been. He nodded his head for the others to continue on and the two of them were alone. "Freya your alright, i got you." he whispered against her hair. The hobbit didn't say anything, but only wished this moment would last longer as she felt safe in his arms. He pressed his lips against her forehead. The dwarf noticed she stopped shaking and then noticed the light was slowly disappearing. " We should catch up to the others." she nodded in agreement and he kissed her on the lips and followed behind her up the rest of the way where the others were waiting for them patiently.

The burglar smiled to see his cousin was alright as she stood beside him. They all stood on a small ledge that faced a blank wall and they waited for it to reveal the door. "This must be it. The hidden door." Thorin stated as he ran up to the rock wall, examining it and then turned to face his fellow kin. " Let all those who doubted us. Rue this day!" He proclaimed, holding the key the wizard had given to him back in the Shire. The dwarves cheered around the two hobbits and they joined in the quick celebrating and the burglar saw the same smile from earlier his cousin had on as she looked at the dwarf prince and he had his suspicions that their might be something going on between the two.

"Right, then. We have a key. Which means that somewhere... there is a key-hole." Dwalin pointed out as he felt every inch of the wall for anything that might fit a key. Thorin was standing at the edge looking at the light as he recited the inscription on the map.

"The last light of Durin's day will shine upon the key-hole." Thorin grew nervous when the sun began to disappear behind the mountain and order Nori to help search for it. Nori began tapping a spoon against the rock, listening for any sound that didn't belong.

"We're losing the light. Come on." Thorin urged them. Dwalin quickly got impatient and began violently kicking it, making it difficult for Nori to put his talent to use.

"Be quiet!" Nori growled. "I can't hear with your thumping.

" Where is it!" Dwalin shouted in frustration as nothing happened but the light sinking ever lower and the others were beginning to get restless.

"Break it down!" Thorin yelled. A few of the dwarves began using their axes, slamming them into the rock hoping to smash their way in. The eldest dwarf shook his head, not wanting to watch his brother and the others waste their strength on something that couldn't be broken with a simple weapon.

"It's no good." Balin interrupted. " The door's sealed. Can't be opened by force. There's a powerful magic on it." They stopped and turned to look at Balin wondering what they were supposed to do now, but it was too late as the light finally disappeared.

" No!" Thorin stomped over towards the wall and turned to face the others and pulled out the map to read the inscription to open the door once again. " The last light of Durin's day...will shine upon the key-hole." The dwarves looked at their leader with doubt's. "That's what it says." he insisted as he looked at his oldest friend for answers. "What did we miss? Balin?"

"We've lost the light." Balin simple answered, not seeing any other way to put it. "There's no more to be done. We had but one chance. Come away, lads." The two hobbit stood there as the hopeless dwarves began to turn back the way they came.

"Wait a minute." Bilbo yelled.

"Too late." One of the dwarf's replied.

"Where are they going?" Bilbo questioned, but none would answer him. Thorin watched as the others began to leave. They had failed and he saw no other choice but to follow.

" You can't give up now!" Bilbo pressed. Freya looked at Thorin, as he let the key slip out of his hand and clang on the rock. She had never seen him so defeated on this quest as he did now. "Thorin." the burglar begged hoping he would see that this quest wasn't lost. But the dwarf prince walked passed him, shoving the map in his hands.

"Thorin!" Freya cried, and Thorin turned around to look at her. "You can't give up now." She begged him, walking over to him. He just looked at her with no expression, and didn't want to hear anymore.

"Freya, were too late. There's nothing more we can do." Thorin glumly stated accepting this wasn't meant to be.

"We'll figure out a way. There's always a way." The dwarf shook his head

" Not this time. We're leaving are you coming or staying?" He asked her, hoping she would at least come back with him. She looked back at her cousin who had gone back over to the wall with the map and she looked back Thorin and stood there. He let out a sigh of defeat that the woman was choosing to stay and he began making his way back down with the others. She felt a knot in her stomach as Thorin was no longer in her sights. She turned around and marched over to her cousin's side. She wasn't ready to give up yet, something told her, this wasn't the end.

Bilbo let out a sigh as he recalled the words the elf in Rivendell had spoke that night when he deciphered the clues on the map. "Stand by the grey stone..when the thrush knocks." he muttered to himself as he walked forward and touched the wall and looked around. Freya knew Bilbo liked riddles, where she was not as fond of them, and she noticed her cousin was onto something. "The setting sun and the last light of Durin's day will shine...the last light."

" Last light of what?" Freya questioned. Bilbo thought for a second when something told him to look to the sky. The clouds were clearing up to reveal the moon. The two cousins stared at it when they heard a tapping sound behind them and they turned around to see a thrush knocking on the wall and moonlight shined on it.

"The last light!" Bilbo exclaimed as they watched it reveal the key-hole. "The key-hole!" he shouted, hoping the others hadn't gone to far to not hear him.

" Bilbo you figured it out." Freya cheered and hugged her cousin, glad he hadn't given up. Bilbo ran over to the edge.

" Come back! Come back!" He shouted again." It's the light of the moon! The last moon of autumn!" he laughed, and Freya could help but giggle seeing her cousin actually happy for once since he came on this journey. He snapped out of it when he remembered that the key-hole only shows itself for a short time and they needed the key to open and looked around frantically for where Thorin had dropped it."Where's the k--? Where's the key?"

The two of them searched, knowing it was there a second ago. " Where's the--?" Bilbo stuttered again.

"Come on, It was-- it was here." Freya insisted as she looked everywhere " It was just--" she began to say again when her foot hit something and it when flying across the rocks and she gasped realizing she kicked the key towards the edge about to go over when a boot caught the end of the string before it went over. She looked up to see it was Thorin.

The dwarf crouched down carefully to grab the key not wanting to risk the chance of losing it for good. He stared at the key in awe before he turned his attention to the two hobbits as the others joined, thankful the hobbit's hadn't given up like they had so quickly.

The dwarf prince walked forward and slowly stuck the key into the hole and turned it until he heard it click. He placed both his hands on the wall and pushed with all his might and the door began to move to reveal what was on the other side.