Chapter Text
Billa’s feet sank into the coins and sent tiny avalanches of silver and gold down the hill with each step. It was hard to keep her balance on the unstable pile and some of the bigger trinkets dug into her soles uncomfortably, nearly bordering on painful.
Nevertheless Billa kept on walking, kicking at the gold miserably and wishing for a nice cup of tea and maybe some cake by a warm fireside. She was sure that Erebor had some sort of comfortable room where she and the dwarves could rest. Maybe they’d tell her stories of the kingdom’s glorious past, I would be so much better now that she had pictures to connect to the tales and she loved listening to the passionate descriptions.
Instead Thorin had insisted on all dwarves (and the Lady Burglar) to go looking for his precious Arkenstone. And so they did.
Looking over at the bigger piles of treasure that filled the enormous hall, Billa tried to see what her friends were doing. Bombur had left the group in order to prepare them a warm meal a while ago, and most of the other dwarves had slowed down the pace with which they were rummaging through the gold. She spotted Bofur and Nori pulling out random objects out of the pile and examining them and Glóin actually taking a nap on the gold, and judging by the sounds, Fíli and Kíli were engaged in a treasure-throwing match.
Thorin was nowhere to be seen.
With a sigh Billa let herself slide down the pile, putting her out of the line of sight of the dwarves. While the others were more or less searching for the Arkenstone, Billa was just pretending to be looking in earnest. She had found that silly stone nearly immediately after they started the search; it was now hidden in her spare blankets and she hoped that nobody would accidentally stumble upon it there.
There was no real reason to keep the stone for her; sure it was a beautiful gem, entrancing in its play of colours and the way it shone in the light. A little part of Billa had wanted to keep it as part of her share, a much better price than the gold she had no use for in the amounts she had been promised.
But as soon as that thought had crossed her mind she had also imagined how Thorin’s face would look like when she brought it to him, how he would smile in the same way when she proved over and over again how valuable she was to the company, how it would melt into relief when everyone had just escaped some danger and he had reassured himself that the hobbit was all right, or the gentle and sweet expression he had when reaching up to brush a strand of hair from her face.
He would certainly be much more pleased if it was her who brought him his grandfather’s precious stone rather than another member of the company. She couldn’t help but imagine how he would praise her for that final service she did for them, and for him especially. How he would craft her a beautiful silver chain to wear the Arkenstone around her neck, just like he had promised he would do with all the precious jewels of Erebor.
From the way Billa judged the progress of their relationship, she was quite sure that the Arkenstone would be hers to admire as she pleased anyway. So she had slipped it into her pocket, not wanting to present it just then while being tired and having ash and dirt all over her skirts.
Now she wished that she had given it to Thorin immediately instead of waiting for the ‘right moment’. At the moment there was hardly anything keeping her from just walking up to the king and shove the damn rock into his face, just to make him shut up about how important it was to find it. Because it really was not.
If Billa were queen or just someone the company would listen to instead of Thorin, she’d make them clean up the best rooms they could find and make them comfortable enough for them to rest after months of hardship. Then she’d ensure that they had food, plenty of it and good one for once. And after the comfort was ensured she’d go and make sure that the men of Laketown were well and offer them some of the treasure as a sign of gratitude. But she wasn’t and so all that she could do was to try and talk some sense into the dwarf.
The sudden clattering of metal and shuffling of feet made her look up. The ones who had stopped searching through the gold quickly returned to their task as Thorin strode through the trenches in the treasure. His face was clouded over with disgruntlement and he barely glanced over the other dwarves as he passed them. Nobody dared to return the stare and heads bowed away from him.
Just a few months back, Billa would have shrunken away and hidden herself from his glare to avoid falling victim to his constant criticism. But she had gained his respect and friendship over that time, and even his love. Thorin had told her so over and over, as he held her in his arms and kissed her in between promises of the home he’d hope Erebor would be to her and descriptions of gifts he would bring to her from the treasuries. He had allowed her to braid flowers into his hair in return, even as the company teased them good-natured. He had included Billa in the minuscule circle of people who had the right to criticise his actions and give him advise without fearing a rebuke.
Billa straightened her skirt, as she always did when mentally bracing herself for something unpleasant, and walked out into Thorin’s way.
He only stopped as he finally noticed her, having walked quite a bit from the other dwarves and nearly overlooking her entirely.
“Billa,” he said instead of the proper greeting one would expect of a lover, slightly raising his hand as if to take hers but deciding to not bother with it after all. “I didn’t see you here, I thought you were further back by the display of swords?” he asked, his eyes roaming over the gold behind her.
Billa huffed a bit. Thorin used to embrace her as a greeting, sometimes even kissing her in a way to say hello when he hadn’t shown enough affection just before or when he didn’t mind the others watching.
“Well indeed, I have been there. But that was yesterday! By now I have moved many piles further, remember? I asked you about some of the toys there.”
Thorin nodded but it was evident that his attention wasn’t on the conversation but on the glittering gold behind the hobbit; even now he was searching for the ruddy Arkenstone. Some of the other dwarves glanced up and Billa could see Bofur smiling at her compassionately. She could feel her cheeks heat up in annoyance about the rudeness and the embarrassment. This wasn’t even the first time Thorin had forgotten his manners like that in their company.
“Can I please have a word with you? Alone?” she asked and tilted her chin up. Before Thorin could reply, she grabbed his wrist and lead him away from the searching dwarves.
Thorin arms stiffened and for a moment Billa thought that he’d pull away, but he followed her without protesting. When she was sure that they had walked far enough that their voices wouldn’t carry over to the others, she released Thorin’s wrist and spun around to face him with a glare.
“What is on your mind that has to be kept between us? Did something happen?” he asked, and at least he was truly focused on her for the first time in days, as Billa noted. It made some of her irritation drain away.
She sighed. “It’s… nothing urgent really. But I think there are some matters we all should deal with before we start going through the treasure. I understand that this is important to you, but tell our friends to move their attention to those…” she started to explain. Thorin had taken her hands into his while she talked and was rubbing slow circles over her skin.
“And which would that be?” he asked, his tone too light, as if he was amused by the little hobbit’s concerns, as he had always been when she had asked for things to be done in a way a hobbit would consider proper but a dwarf would just laugh off.
“Well.” Billa was not ready to let his belittlement stop her from telling him off. “For once, I am sure that we could all use some rest. Look at us; we haven’t even managed to find the time for cleaning the journey’s dirt from our clothes! And it has been days since we arrived! Some food wouldn’t do any harm either. I would also suggest that we go and either work on the front gate or the rooms we can restore on our own. Erebor will look so much nicer and be a comfortable place once we do that!”
Thorin laughed and the sound eased some of the worry that was on Billa’s mind. “Oh, my dear burglar. You truly are a grocer and a hobbit in your brave little heart.” He grasped her at the shoulders and pulled her to his chest. “I am sorry, I forgot how much your people value these things. But you must be patient a little longer. Once we find my grandfather’s stone I will personally ensure that you’ll want for nothing.”
Thorin’s arms wrapped around her, Billa was trapped in his embrace and she couldn’t help but lean closer, despite wanting to continue being angry about him. “Can’t that wait?” The search would be futile anyway. “Of course not, my burglar, the sooner the Arkenstone is returned to its place over the throne the better,” he replied and brushed a hand over her hair.
“And what of the gate? Surely it is not wise to have any weak points with so many sullen men waiting so close by?” she tried.
Thorin pushed her back a little without letting go to have a better look at her face.
“Are you worried about the men of Laketown coming to steal from us?”
“No… well. Yes! Yes I am. We are just fourteen and we are tired and they are so much taller than us! We wouldn’t stand a chance should too many manage to break in!”
Thorin shook his head slightly, eyes fixed on hers.
“We can fight to protect what is rightfully ours. They will not dare to intrude like this. And soon Dáin and the dwarves of the Iron Hills will be here to fight by our side. No part of this treasure will ever fall into their hands, I promise you. I will fight till my last and slay each and every one who should dare to come close to you and the gold or anything that is mine!” he said, voice a low growl full of fervour.
Billa frowned at that, not sure whether to be mad at her lover’s stubborn foolishness or the way he talked of her as if she were a possession among the golden treasure, no matter how passionate it had sounded.
Not paying any mind to her expression, Thorin took a step back and sat down on the nearest pile of gold, not releasing his hold on Billa, which nearly made her fall over. She landed in his lap with a laugh and batted at his chest to make him let her stand up again. The dwarf chuckled softly and pulled her closer so that she was sitting upright across his legs. He pressed kisses to her cheek and nose as she giggled and brushed her fingers through his hair. It felt just like it should be, easy and comfortable, not like they were strangers yet again, as Billa had felt more and more in this past days.
Thorin turned his head away from her then, reaching for something behind him. Billa watched him pushing aside some goblets curiously until he closed his hand around something she couldn’t see. Then he turned back and grabbed some of Billa’s curls, braiding something golden into her hair.
“There,” he said when he was done and smiled as he looked at his work. “Now you really look like you do belong to a king, everyone who isn’t a complete fool will understand to keep their hands away from you.”
“What is it?” she asked.
Thorin started digging through the pile around him again without replying, pulling more things out of it, and Billa used the opportunity to feel for what he had tied to her hair. It was a delicate net of gold chains, with tiny sapphires worked into it. Even from what little the hobbit knew about these kinds of jewels, she could see that it was an incredibly precious object, something the daughters of the richer lords of men would hardly be able to afford, and certainly much more than her friends in the Shire would even hope to dream about. It also had the designs she had seen on Thorin’s weapons and rings carved into them.
“Oh…” she blushed a little at the thought of people being able to tell who she belonged to, and it wasn’t exactly proper to wear such an expensive sign after such a short amount of time. “Thorin, this is really too much of a gift…” she started but the dwarf took her hands into his and wrapped thin chains of a similar style around her wrists.
Billa sighed but let him proceed. “Dwarf women always wear these, everyone will make the effort to ensure that his wife, sisters and daughters have the most beautiful gems.” Thorin started to explain; even though it sounded more like something he was reciting rather than the explanation of dwarven culture he had given to Billa on the journey.
He had told her about how one would craft the most beautiful adornments to prove one’s skill with the gems and metals, things to emphasise the beauty and how she was valued by the one who made those gift.
Thorin placed another chain with heavy rubies around Billa’s neck and draped some pearls around her head like a crown.
He took her chin in both of his hands and tilted her face back to have a proper look. “You are magnificent,” Thorin said, disregarding the frown that had returned to the hobbit’s face while he had decorated her. His eyes wandered over the precious materials he had woven into her hair.
“I can see it before my eyes, once Erebor is restored and I am sitting on my throne again, everything will be as it should be. The Arkenstone will be placed above it again, and you shall sit beside me dressed in all the riches that the King’s consort is entitled to. And when all the people who have wronged us before will come to pay their respects, they shall see what precious treasures I possess. It will be a delight to laugh at their envy later.”
Billa gasped at the words, not sure which had disturbed her more. The way Thorin was still talking about all others, how he was thinking about the damned Arkenstone again or that he had assumed that she’d marry him, without asking her first, without properly courting her or even telling her that he intended to do that soon.
Unconcerned by the audible intake of air and the glare that was directed at him, Thorin brushed his fingers over Billa’s ear thoughtfully.
“Do you know, dwarves often pierce holes into their earlobes and wear rings of metal or precious stones in them. I believe it would suit you if you allowed me to do it.”
The same touch that used to feel so pleasant now made Billa shiver and she shoved Thorin’s hands off her. He finally looked at her, startled from the uncharacteristically harsh rejection.
“You can’t just talk of such things this way!” Billa snapped. “You haven’t even courted me, how can you talk about it so casually? And I am not another polished jewel to make our former hosts and friends jealous of!”
She climbed down from Thorin’s lap with as much grace as she could muster, which wasn’t really that much as she kept slipping on the unstable ground and he had grabbed her wrists again; whether to prevent her from falling or running away she couldn’t tell.
“Don’t you want me to gift you with all these riches? A dwarven maid wouldn’t refuse such an offer from her lover, especially not if she is consort to one of royalty.”
“I do want you to make me gifts, but not like this. You hardly think of anything else! And that is not even my point; you behave as if I’m just an object all of a sudden! Nothing but another thing to keep in your treasury! Also wouldn’t I be the Queen if I married you?”
Thorin looked bemused at that. “Queen of dwarves? That’s a high ambition for a little hobbit burglar from the Shire.” He rubbed his fingers over the chains on Billa’s wrists, making the gems on them dig into her skin and click together in a soft tinkle. He seemed to think that it’d soothe her temper but it only made her be angrier with him.
“Well, it is the proper title I would gain should I choose to marry you,”She said, her voice rising in her fury.
“It would bring certain duties with it,” Thorin said lightly, or rather patronizing, as Billa thought. She hated being talked to in such a manner.
“We hobbits believe that spouses should support each other in their duties, so I am aware of that! And who said that I want to be your queen anyway?” she said coolly.
“So you would be consort after all, what is the matter then?” Thorin said, and he sounded frustrated now, vary of the hobbit not making any sense to him.
Billa glared at him. “No, I do not! Not while you’re behaving like you do now! If this is the way you will be from now on – treating me and our friends like this – I will simply take my bag and leave to the Shire! I have no wish to deal with any of this!” she snapped angrily.
Thorin’s expression darkened and he tightened his grip on Billa’s wrists nearly enough to start hurting.
“What are you saying, burglar?” he hissed and his eyes glittered dangerously. “You belong to me, I will not let run off just like that. What is it that you want to return to? Or whom?”
He had the same expression when he talked of the elves of Mirkwood or when thinking of somebody taking away his gold and the possessive streak was just what made Billa want to run. She stared at Thorin wide eyed, but he didn’t let her go; only tightening his grip even further.
“Did I not offer you enough? Is it more gold that you want? Or is this just some kind of revenge for whatever I did that didn’t agree with your tender hobbit sensibilities?!”
The gems on her wrists rubbed against Billa’s skin even more, rubbing at the flesh like shackles. She made an effort to pull away, anger swelling in her chest as it was ignored yet again.
“Thorin, I am warning you!”
“You dare to…? Know your place, burglar! It is you who–“
“Billa? Uncle Thorin?”
The hobbit and the dwarf’s heads turned into the direction where the voice had come from. Kíli stood on the path they had walked before, staring at them and leaning backwards, as if he wanted to run back before they noticed him. As nobody said a word, he gestured towards the rest of the company “I … Bombur sent me to tell you that the food is prepared and the others wanted to wait for you to … for everyone to return.” A blush crept over his cheeks, as if he was remembering something that he didn’t want to repeat before his uncle.
Thorin nodded and stood up swiftly, walking away from Billa and Kíli. She sighed and rubbed at the red imprints the chains had left on her skin. Kíli stood besides her, watching her pulling off all the jewels that Thorin had placed on her before.
“Billa, is everything alright? Are you and uncle…” Kíli started, sounding worried about the argument he had just witnessed. Billa sighed and gave him a small but genuine smile. He had stopped the argument from escalating any further after all; Eru knew what she might have said in her anger.
“Of course Kíli, I am fine. Thorin and I were simply discussing some important matters. Why don’t you go now, I’ll join you as soon as I remove all these items, I wouldn’t want them to get damaged after all.”
Kíli didn’t seem to be entirely convinced, but nodded and followed his uncle. As soon as he was out of sight, Billa buried her face in her hands. She didn’t know what to do about Thorin or whether he’d stay like this. After she took a moment to compose herself, she too followed the dwarves back to the company.