Bilbo woke to the sound of his own whimpers, and he was breathing hard. Small beads of sweat had formed on his forehead and he looked around wildly. He had dreamt of the dragon again. Only this time, it was much worse.
The hobbit dreamt of Smaug burning down the Shire, along with all his friends and family. The great dragon first killed Gandalf, piercing his gigantic claws through the wizard's skin and clothes. Next, it killed the dwarves. First came Fili, trying to protect his brother; then Kili, then Bombur, and so on and on. Lastly, great Smaug breathed his hottest breath on Thorin Oakenshield, burning him to a crisp.
Whilst all of this occurred, Bilbo could do nothing but watch. His arms and legs felt like stone, and he couldn't even scream out; his voice had been lost.
Bilbo realized that this was a dream once he saw his friends sleeping soundly on the ground around him. Though his mind was still racing, he breathed a deep sigh of relief; then he remembered in detail his dream.
Before the burglar could stop himself, tears started to slip down his face, and he buried his head in his hands. This went on for a few minutes, when a deep, soft voice emerged from the shadows.
"Are you all right, Mr. Baggins?" Bilbo nearly jumped out of his skin until he realized it was only Thorin.
"I'm fine," the hobbit replied, though his voice broke and he didn't sound at all convincing.
"I find that hard to believe," Thorin didn't sound mocking, not at all. He sounded worried, his deep voice softer than usual.
Bilbo did not reply, only wiped tears from his face. He started to shiver after a cold breeze blew past, wishing he had brought with him a heavier coat.
Bilbo looked up, startled, when he felt a heavy, fur lined coat be lifted on to his shoulders. Thorin gave him a small smile and sat down beside him.
"I assume you had another nightmare," the dwarf suggested calmly.
"N-no," Bilbo started. "What do you mean another one?"
Thorin ducked his head slightly. "I apologize, but I have noticed your stirring while asleep for the past few nights."
The hobbit hesitated before shrugging. "It doesn't matter," he responds, voice small.
"It matters to me," Thorin tried, wanting to help him.
Bilbo glanced up at the dwarf's face, trying for a hint of mockery. He only found sincerity, and care. He sighed and looked away. "It was just... the dragon, that's all,"
"I believe there was more than just the dragon, Mr. Baggins," Thorin pressed.
"I saw him burn down the Shire, and he killed Gandalf and Fili and Kili and Bifur and Bombur..." he blurted out. By this point, all the hobbit wanted was to tell someone about it, and so he did. But this was not possible without some recurring tears, which caused Thorin's face to soften. "..and he killed you." Bilbo finished, sniffing.
The dwarf placed his arms around the burglar protectively and held him close. Bilbo was too shocked to say anything, which, I suppose, was a good thing.
"As long as I can help it, the great dragon will never do any of those things," Thorin murmured into Bilbo's ear. "I will always protect you, little burglar. Until the end of my days."
And they fell asleep, comfortable in each other's arms, until the bright shine of sunrise shone on their faces the next morning.
Epilogue
Thorin did, in fact, protect Bilbo until the end of his days. Or rather, until the end of Bilbo's days. The hobbit died peacefully in his sleep on one midsummer's evening, after battling a strong disease for many months. Bilbo's last words to Thorin were, as it was, "When I get better, we shall visit the Shire together." and he went on about all the nice activities they would partake in.
Though they never did visit the Shire whilst Bilbo was alive, Thorin took him to be buried there, right under his sycamore tree above the same hobbit hole that, all those years ago, had been crawling with dwarves on the night they left.
You may be wondering what happened to Thorin. That, I do not know. After his lover's funeral, he disappeared into the forest and only came out on Bilbo's birthday or their anniversary.
One year, the old dwarf didn't show up on Bilbo's birthday. And he never has since.
What I do know is Bilbo and Thorin loved each other endlessly, ever since the night of the hobbit's nightmare. Hopefully, wherever they are, they are together, as they always should be.
