Thorin Oakenshield Imagine: Healer.

Thorin Imagine: Healer. Part Fifteen

(Y/N) had not been able to stay in her room for very long. She had deeply been craving the company of the rowdy bunch of dwarves and especially that of her regal lover. Bilbo had come to her a short while after Thorin had left, baring a tray full of freshly picked berries from the fields surrounding the lonely mountain. The Hobbit had stayed with her for only a few fleeting moments before claiming that he had to race back to the others and help with the search for the Arkenstone. 

(Y/N) was not the type of woman to be locked away while there was work to be done, and so slipping her sandals upon her fleshy feet, she pulled open the door to her chambers and entered the darkened hallway beyond. Most of the kingdom of Erebor sat in ebony shadow and appeared to brood in itself. A vast amount of the halls and rooms had no windows and let in no natural light, but (Y/N) was used to hiding away for so long that being shrouded in the darkness was like a second skin to her. She felt more than comfortable slinking around the reclaimed homeland of her friends.

Coming to a landing, the girl leaned over and spotted Thorin stood in an open hall below her, wading deep in the plentiful piles of glistening jewels and coins. She could sense how tense he was, as the sweat had soaked through his cotton tunic and stuck to the curves of his muscular back. (Y/N) rushed down to them all while greeting the king with a grin and declaring that she was more than happy to lend a helping hand.

"You don't need to worry yourself with such things-" Thorin gently hushed, pulling her to one side. "We can handle this."

(Y/N) cast him an irritated look which made the dwarf feel slightly uncomfortable. "Thorin. I have come this far, do not feel the need to wrap me up in cotton wool. I want to help you!" And she slid his rough hand from her arm, bending to dig through a chest by her feet that contained the most beautiful diamonds and gems. Thorin smirked to himself for a moment before walking back to where he had been searching. She was right of course. (Y/N) did not need to be so easily underestimated but to him, she was so fragile and precious that he never wanted to risk her being hurt, no matter how small of a prospect.

The company hunted for hours on end, not finding a glimpse or a clue as to the location of the Arkenstone. By the time Thorin had asked Dwalin and Fili to go and update him on the refugees now residing in the crumbling buildings of Dale, they had returned to say that it was was well into the evening and that the men had settled for the night. With this news, the king declared it was time to prepare some food and told them all to meet in an hour around the banquet table in the main hall. Kili and Fili went off to gather roots and see if anything worth shooting still remained in the countryside, while the others took to bathing in the old heated tubs that sat in the worker's dorms down on the ground floor. A little later than planned, a steaming bowl of rabbit stew greeting the dwarves as they scraped into their seats, hungry and ready for bed.

"The men of Lake Town will ask for assistance. But I cannot allow anyone to enter the treasure chambers before I have located the Arkenstone." Thorin spoke deeply as he finished a mouthful of potato. "We have a good chance of it being stolen if the men get in there and start rifling around."

"We could fill a chest with coins, maybe even supply them with some building materials? I saw some down in the stores today, there are plenty of them to go around." suggested Kili lightly, eyeing his uncle for a reply.

"They will grow greedy, and reliant," Thorin mumbled, barely audible. "We have our own needs for those supplies."

The company looked at him in shock, there was obviously going to be some disagreement about this issue. Balin shuffled around in his seat and began to speak in a calming voice. "We did promise them compensation for their kindness, Thorin. It would be unwise to turn our backs on them now we look to rebuild a kingdom from the ground."