The Lionheart (The Hobbit)

Chapter 4: a common enemy

((Thorin POV))

We reached out camping point and we all stopped and got off. Tygr went and helped make a fire. She glanced at me and smiled. I felt my heart pound and I pulled Dwalin aside.

"Dwalin...she knows Azog." I said. Dwalins eyes widened. "What do you mean." Before I got a chance to tell him Tygr was right next to me. "I hope your not about to tell him about my past." She said with venom in her voice. "What makes you think I was going to." She rolled her eyes. "Thorin I have wolf ears, I can hear a cricket from seven miles away you think I didn't just hear what you said?" My eyes widened. She sighed and grabbed my hand. She pulled me aside. "Look...Thorin...I'm not proud of my past and it haunts me...I trust you... I slept in your lap last night! I told you that...hoping you would tell anyone." She came closer to me and grabbed my hands. "Please...I trust you...don't break it." She whispered and looked down. I squeezed her hand. "I won't tell a soul." I said then I leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead. She looked up at me and smiled. She leaned up and kissed my cheek. "Thank you," she said before turning and walking away.

I watched her small form walk away, her bushy black tail swayed back and forth as she walked. Dwalin came back next to me. I didn't take my eyes off of her. "So what where you saying about her?" I saw her ear twice back towards us. "I can't say anything, I promised her I wouldn't. Given how terrifying she can probably be...I think it would be best to keep that promise." I said and Dwalin nodded. Tygr's ear turned away and I watched her skip over to Kili and Fili.

I went and sat on a rock and closed my eyes.

((Tygr POV))

"Have people ever stepped on your tail?" Kili asked...AGAIN. "Oh my...for the forth time! Yes, people have stepped on my hair, yes people have pulled my ears, yes I have slapped people with my claws. Your such a dork." I said and he gave me a wide smiled and smoked his pipe. "Hey...can I try that?" I asked looking at his pipe. Kili nodded and handed it to me. I inhaled the smoke and coughed. I handed it back to him and coughed some more. "Eh...why?" I choked. " it takes some getting used too." Fili said with a chuckle. I nodded, "obviously, jeez that stuffs brutal." The two dwarves laughed. Suddenly...I smelt something...I formed into a puppy and started sniffing the air. "Tygr? What's wrong?" Suddenly I heard a sharp scream. I formed back into my human form. "What was that?!?" Bilbo said rushing over. "Orcs." Kili said. I turned and looked at the two. Bilbo looked scared. I walked close to the edge. "Aye, throat cutters, must be dozens of them out there." Bilbo looked even more scared. "They strike in the wee small hours of the nights when everyone's asleep. No cries, no screams, just lots of blood." Kili said. I glared at them and turned away and walked to sit next to Gandalf. "You think that's funny? You think a night raid by orcs is a joke?" Thorin suddenly said. I looked at Thorin. "We didn't mean anything by it..." Kili said looking guilty. "No you didn't." Thorin stormed past us. "You know nothing of the world."

Fili and Kili looked extremely guilty. "Don't mind him lad. Thorin has more reason than most to hate Orcs." Balin said. I stood and went to sit next to Bilbo, sat down and perked up my ears and listened closely.

"What happened?" I asked.

Balin started telling the story.

Needless to say I was in shock, after hearing of how...Azog...beheaded his grandfather and swore to wipe out the line of Durin. I felt my blood slightly boil in anger.

Balin continued,

"We where leaderless," Balin continued. I stared at the ground, listening. "That is when I saw him, a young dwarf prince. Facing down the pale Orc." My eyes widened and I looked at Thorin's back. "he stood alone, his armor went, using an oak branch as a shield. He cut off the Orcs hand and Azog...the defiler learned that day, that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken." I stared at Kili and Fili who where eagerly listening to the story. "We fought back, and our enemy had been defeated. But there was no feast...no song that night. For we we where in grief, we few that survived. I thought to myself...there's one who I could follow. There's one...who I could call king." I liked at Balin who nodded. "What happened to him? Azog?" Bilbo asked. "The filth crawled back to the hole he came from, he died from his wounds long ago." I sighed and stood walking over to Thorin and stood by him. "I guess we've had a common enemy." I said. "It seems so." He said. "So...does that mean we can permanent allies? I won't turn my back if you won't." I said. Thorin grinned down at me. "I would like that." I raised my eyebrows. "Do you know what people have to do to become an Allie with me? I am one of the strongest skin changers in existence." Thorin turned fully. "What." "We have to fuse blood." He looked shocked. "Okay...and how to you suppose we do that?" He asked. I swiftly took a dagger out of his belt. He grins slightly. I held out my hand and made a straight cut on my palm. "Okay, now you." Thorin surprisingly just went ahead and did it.

Swiftly we pressed our hands together, I laced my fingers with his. "I'll serve and protect you till the day I stop breathing Thorin Oakenshield." I said and pulled my hand from his.

Thorin smiled down at me. "I'm honored." I smiled and laughed. "You know, I've never taken a liking to a stranger as fast as I have you." He said. I giggled and held my tail in my hands. "Hehehe it's cause I'm cute~" I said and planted a peck on his cheek before waking away.

((Thorin POV))

I felt a blush go across my face. I looked down at my hand and saw the cut around my hand. Suddenly Tygr came back and wrapped my hand. "Don't want that to get infected now do we?" She said sweetly. "Would you mind?" She said and held out the bandages and her hand. I wrapped her small hand and she smiled. "Thanks~" she said before lightly punching my arm. "Is that really how you create allies?" I asked. She shook her head. "What?" I asked. "It's how I grant my servitude to someone." She glanced up at me and smiled. "Sneaky." I said and heard her light little giggle. She yawned and stretched her arms, "welp, I'm really tired so I think I'm gonna go to sleep." She said looking up at the dark sky. "I am too, goodnight Tygr" I said. She smiled at me and and hugged me tightly. "Goodnight Mr. Oakenshield~" she said then walked around me though her tail trailed around my stomach before leaving. I turned and looked at her. She was smiling at me then winked before going and laying down by the fire. I yawned and went to sit back on a rock.

I closed my eyes but listened to what was around me. I heard something tiny moving. In no time I felt a small wolf curl next to my leg. "Are you gonna stay this close to me every night?" I whispered. The wolf looked back at me then just laid her head on my leg and fell asleep. "I'll take that as a yes." I said. "She's grown very fond of you. I'm surprised." I heard Gandalf say from behind me. I turned my head and looked at him. "Why are you surprised?" "Well, she's cut herself off from getting emotionally attached to anyone. Besides myself." I looked back to the sleeping wolf. "Well...I've never been so attached to someone so quickly." I said. "She's not your pet Thorin. She's a person." Gandalf said. I looked at him in shock. "What on earth makes you think I think of her as a pet?!" Gandalf sighed. "I'm just saying...the last person who treated her like a pet...is now six feet underground." My eyes widened. "She's granted you her trust and protection and love. Don't take advantage of it." Gandalf said before walking back to go to sleep. I looked at her once more and lifted her into my lap. I fell asleep easily knowing that my company would be 100% safer with Tygr here.