Hiding Myself. A fem!Bilbo Bagginshield fanfic

Chapter 20

I can't believe we're at 20 chapters already.... Wow. Enjoy a sassy Bard picture!
This is my longest fanfic I've ever written, and we're nowhere near done yet!
There's still at least ten chapters left of BOTFA and the aftermath of it, including Legolas and the 'I belong with my brother' moment.
Anyways, to celebrate 20 chapters I want to do a special Q+A with myself and the characters of this fic. It will probably take place in about five chapters.
You can leave questions for any character appearing in Hiding Myself and for me.
Enjoy the twentieth chapter!

Bella woke up to someone shaking her shoulder gently. She opened her eyes blearily and yawned. Rubbing her eyes of sleep, the burglar looked up to see Kili grinning down at her.
"Morning. "
She smiled in return and stood up. The Company was milling around the treasure hall. Occasionally, a cry would go up and an object would be passed around.
She saw Balin and Dwalin standing with Oin and Gloin near a pile. Ori was sitting in the corner writing with his brothers nearby. Bifur was looking at a pile of axes and Bofur appeared to be telling Bombur a joke.
Fili walked up to his brother, new daggers in hand to replace those he'd lost in Mirkwood.
"Where's Thorin? " she asked, her voice still laced with sleep. Kili pointed over to the middle of the room.
The burglar darted over to her king, ignoring the clinking of gold under her feet. The dwarf glanced over at her as she approached.
"I see you have finally woken up. " he said, barely a hint of a tease in his voice. Bella rolled her eyes and leaned upwards to place a quick kiss on his cheek.
Nothing. He barely moved.
"Thorin, are you alright? " she asked in a soft voice. He nodded.
"Is there anything we are looking for? " Balin shouted up to them.
The dwarf looked around for a moment before nodding. "Finding the Arkenstone is our top priority. If anyone finds it I expect them to give it straight to me. "
"Alright then. "
Thorin's face acquired a vengeful look. "Withhold it, and the consequences will be severe. "
As the burglar stood next to the king, she shifted nervously.
She knew where the Arkenstone was, alright.
Her gaze was drawn to the tattered oddments she used as a pillow, the precious stone inside.

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Bella was trekking towards the rays of light on her expedition to make sure that the treasure hall was safe.
Her thoughts turned to the dwarves she'd left behind, the dwarves she loved. They waited behind, waiting for her.
The hobbit breathed in, continuing forwards. She walked straight up to the centre of the light.
She had never seen the Arkenstone, but Bella was sure that was it. There could not be two gems that magnificent in even that large of a hoard. It took it any lights shone upon it, even some that seemed to come from inside it. The gem split the light into rays of rainbows and shining light.
Her small hand reached out and grasped it hesitantly. Despite it's magnificence, she had a feeling that it would be better for it to stay lost. Thorin was not in his usual state of mind.
But she still had a duty to Thorin to return it to him so that he could restore the kingdom he was the rightful king of.
Even as Bella slipped the stone into her pocket she was deep in thought.
If Thorin fully reclaimed his kingdom and became king, what would that mean for her? She knew he loved her, that was no secret. Bella just wasn't sure if Thorin's people would accept her, possibly as their queen! If, that is, the dwarf king actually thought of her in that way.
"Don't think that way. Just get back to the dwarves. " she muttered to herself. The opening of the tunnel came in sight slowly and with it the dwarves guarding it. She smiled and ran ahead towards the dwarves, her dwarves.

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The small hobbit lass shook herself free from her memories. She still stood beside Thorin on top of a golden mound.
The Dwarven king glanced aside at her, as if making sure she was still there. Bella looked up into his eyes and flinched at the look she saw there.
Thorin's eyes seemed to be darker, stormier, than before. They reflected the glint of the gold around them. She saw a new greediness there, and it scared her.
Was this the goldsickness that she'd been told had taken over Thror's mind and brought the dragon? The same sickness that she'd overheard Elrond talking to Gandalf about in Rivendell.
Bella reached out and grasped Thorin's hand with her own. She smiled lovingly at him when he turned to her.
For a second, the stony facade cracked and a small smile peeked through. That single moment gave her a sliver of hope that maybe, just maybe, they could make it through this.