A Shot in the Dark (Thilbo - Bagginshield)

Chapter 20

Bilbo hated the One Ring with every inch of his heart. It was the one thing that he had ever allowed himself to completely despise because if he didn't then he would have adored it. He could think of many horrible fates but submitting completely to the ring was a nightmare that not even he wanted to contemplate. Nothing else that he had ever known could ever replace that hate.

But the Arkenstone... it came to a close second.

"It's so beautiful," whispered Glóin, looking close to tears as Thorin held up the stone for all to marvel over.

"I've never seen anything like it," added Dori as he reached out to hold Nori back from grabbing it.

"It is truly the Heart of the Mountain," Dwalin said, his deep voice a whisper of awe.

Bilbo felt like he was going to be sick.

"It's a rock," he proclaimed loudly, crossing his arms over his chest. "Does it do anything? Besides sparkle, I mean."

The Dwarves all turned as one to stare at him with mixed reactions.

"What?!" squawked Óin, staring at him as if had just declared that he was going to marry an Orc or an Elf. "How can you even ask that? Just look at it! It's the Arkenstone!"

"It's a pretty jewel," he admitted easily, waltzing closer to Thorin, "but that is all I'm seeing. Does it do anything more? Does it give you wisdom or knowledge? Does it heal the wounded and cure the sick? Does it light up the entire mountain if you hold it up high enough? What does it do that makes it so precious?"

Thorin slowly shook his head, staring at the Hobbit with a small frown. "It does not need to do anything. That it simply exists is enough for us. This stone represents our skills and wealth to all others. This is the heart and soul of Erebor and her people."

"Really? A rock that you found in the mountain represents the might of your people?" summarized Bilbo, stopping before the king and tilting his head back to meet his eyes straight on. "That is rather insulting to them, don't you think? How can a mere stone—one that you didn't even make, by the way—ever measure up to the strength of your people? A strength that survived exile and untold hardships for decades?"

"But it's more than just that!" protested Kíli. "It's an heirloom! A family legacy!"

The Hobbit scoffed. "It's a shiny rock!"

Glóin gasped and held a hand over his heart as if he was in pain. "Bilbo!"

"Why are you so angry over this?" demanded Thorin as he stared down at the Hobbit with a clenched jaw. "It is—as you keep claiming—merely a stone."

"Because you look at it as if it holds all your heart's desires within," he snapped, trying to control his hands as they began to shake. "Such a look alarms me."

The king's eyes widened as the midnight blue began to shift into a clearer shade of cerulean. "Bilbo, no, that's not it. The Arkenstone does not hold all my desires. It is simply... It is something my grandfather and father treasured. It is an heirloom that reminds me of them and our heritage. It is nothing more than that."

—Thorin's hands grip his collar with the strength of a bear as he holds him over the wall. He dangles leagues above the ground in midair as the king shakes him harshly while yelling. The terror of falling grips him so tightly that he grabs Thorin's wrists in an attempt to hang on. When he meets the king's eyes, they are as black and cold as a winter night.

"You miserable Hobbit! You undersized burglar!" the Dwarf curses, shaking him even harder. "What have you done?!"

He does not answer. He has no answer to give because he is about to die at the hands of someone he loves over the fate of a pretty rock—