Hiding Myself. A fem!Bilbo Bagginshield fanfic

Chapter 12

Fanart above: young Aragorn hugs Legolas
SO CUUUUUUUUUTE! My poor fragile fangirl heart can't take it!

I'm sorry if this isn't as good as the rest. I went back to check on a mini speech of Thorin's at the end and POOF! it's all gone. Every single effing word.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy this part.

Bella Baggins led the dwarves through the levels of Mirkwood to their destination. As they walked, she lifted her hand to her lips and felt them for a moment. Something made what had just happened seem like a fantasy she'd dreamed up.
"Where are we? " Kili whispered from beside her. The young dwarf was looking all around in wonder.
"Almost there. I know it's very low in here, at the very bottom even. "
She heard Thorin's boots hit the ground over and over behind her. The reminder that he was right there kept the memory of the kiss they'd shared even closer to the front of her mind.
"Here. " she announced. The dwarves filed into the room, a cellar, and looked around confused at the many barrels.
"Get into the empty ones, quickly. If I understand right, the river will lead us straight to Laketown and closer to Erebor. "
The Company began complaining and began such a racket that Thorin, who Bella noticed beside her, hit the wall with his fist to quiet them.
"Do as she says. " he ordered. The dwarves, grumbling, began climbing into their barrels. Thorin quickly climbed into his own and waited for Bella to finish packing the rest in with hay. She reached him and began to put the lid on when he stopped her with a hand on her wrist.
"Thorin... "
He smiled. "You'll follow us, right? " he murmured. The dwarf king wasn't concerned about hiding his feelings any longer.
"Of course I will, until the very end. "
He nodded and watched as she pulled her hand away and closed the lid onto his barrel.
Just as she was about to let them out, footsteps sounded behind her.
"Stop that! "
"Wait! "
Bella ignored them and pulled the lever, opening the gate and letting the dwarves out. Legolas and Tauriel ran for her as she jumped behind them. Something grabbed onto her cloak and fell into the river with her.
She scrambled onto a barrel, leaving Legolas to grasp onto it.
"Look where you've gotten yourself, Elf. "
"I can see that, Hobbit. "
She smirked at the elf for a moment before looking down at her hands. At her silence, Legolas hopped up onto the large barrel beside her.
"I apologise for my actions before. My father has a way of making everyone act rude like that there. "
Bella looked up and smiled. "That's all right. I accept your apology, though I doubt Thorin would. "
He snorted. "I can live with that. "

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When they reached a small outpost, Legolas and Bella jumped off of their barrel and hid in the trees. Wood-Elves came and tied the barrels together and returned to their shacks. Legolas lay down on the shore, spread out.
"Relax, Bella. They won't let the barrels continue until morning. " he murmured.
The hobbit nodded, her eyes still on the barrel she knew to be Thorin's. The elf quickly noticed this and sat up. "You seem attached to Oakenshield. Why? "
She shrugged. "It doesn't make sense. You wouldn't get it anyways. "
"Try me. "
"He just.... Did something unexpected after I freed him and I-... I don't know why. "
"Let me guess. He kissed you and had left you wondering how he really feels. " he said. "Was I close? "
She stared at him, wide-eyed. "How.... how could you know that? "
Legolas shrugged and lay back down. "Lucky guess. And anyways, Tauriel has been acting strange as well. "
She nodded hesitantly and lay beside him. Closing her eyes, she drifted into sleep and dreamt of Thorin, and the words of Legolas.

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The next night, Bella crept off of the barrel raft and quickly pulled one ashore with Legolas' help. She pulled off the lid and out crawled a most unhappy and uncomfortable dwarf.
Thorin's mouth turned up into a smile when he recognised Bella. He instantly raised a hand to her cheek.
"Bella. "
She was about to respond when she heard Legolas pull another barrel onshore. Thorin turned around and walked over to the elf.
"Thorin.... " Bella began.
"What are you doing here? "
Legolas gestured to the barrels behind him. "Helping. I apologise for my earlier behaviour, Oakenshield. "
"Alright then. " Thorin muttered before helping to free the Company. Bella giggled behind her hand as the Dwarven king and the Elven prince avoided each other like poison. A few of the other dwarves got up and helped, unintentionally creating a barrier between them.
By the end, Bella was sitting near Kili, Fili talking in whispers with his uncle and Legolas standing near them watching.
"Bella. Come with us. " Thorin knelt down near the hobbit. "You too, Kili. We shall see what the men of Laketown make of us, hmm? "
Bella stood up, Kili grinning as he followed them towards the town.

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Thorin strode towards a small guard shack at the edge of Laketown. His nephews and Bella followed behind him as he walked right in. The guards sprung up.
"Who are you? "
Thorin raised his chin proudly and stepped forward. "I am Thorin, son of Thrain. I have returned! I wish to see the Master of this town. "
The guards mumbles among themselves for a moment before one answered. "He is at feast. "
Thorin was about to respond when Kili burst forward. "All the more reason to take us to him, then. We are nearly starving, and many of our companions are hungry as well. "
The guards nodded and led the dwarves out of the shack. They were led to a large, gilded hall. It stood in stark contrast to the poor, house-like ruins in the rest of the town. Bella's heart nearly broke when she spied small faces of too-small children peer out from the windows.
"Bella. Come on. "
The hobbit hurried forward to stand just behind Thorin. The guards led them into the hall where a great feast seemed to be taking place. The Master, a large man, stood up upon seeing them and looked towards the guards.
"Who are they? "
Thorin broke in, speaking before the guard could. "I am Thorin, son of Thrain, and my comrades and I are on our way to reclaim our kingdom of old. "
"How can I know you are who you say you are? And who are these others? " the Master questioned, clearly wary.
"These are my sister-sons, and our Company burglar. The rest of our group are just outside of town. "
Bella stood behind Thorin with Fili and Kili on either side. She watched as Thorin argued with the Master, eventually displaying the key to the hidden door and Thror's Map. After that proof, the Master relented and let all of the dwarves into the hall. Bella found herself sitting in between Fili and Kili at a table near Thorin's.
She frowned. All she wanted right now was to talk with Thorin about what had happened back in Mirkwood, but everything seemed to get in the way. She grumbled under her breath and snuck out to the house that had been given up to the Company. Finding a small room, she lay on the bed and sighed. Maybe if she slept, something might work out.

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Bella heard a knocking sound but ignored it, still half-asleep. She heard someone walk up to her and lay a blanket on her.
The hobbit sat up drowsily, rubbing her eyes. When she opened them, she noticed Thorin exiting the room.
"Thorin. " she said. "What are you doing back? "
He turned around and strode over to her. Sitting on the edge of the bed, he looked outside. "It got too noisy. That Master got on my nerves wih his idiocy. "
Bella giggled softly and Thorin looked back up at her. She laid her hand hesitantly on his, surprised when he curled his fingers around it.
"Are you alright? You seem bothered by something. " Thorin murmured. Bella looked into his piercing blue gaze for a moment before looking away.
Drat this dwarf.
"Maybe...... I just don't....... If it....... " she stumbled over her words. Normally she could say what she needed, but not when he was looking at her like that, as if she was Yavanna herself. "What did it mean? "
Thorin appeared confused at her blunt question. "What.... What did what mean? "
"The.... Mirkwood.... When you kissed me. What did it mean? "
He smiled. "Whatever you want it to mean. I-I would think the obvious reason is that.... I..... Care about you. Very much. " he stammered at the end, clearly losing his stoic exterior.
"I'd hoped so. " she said, softly. "I hoped it wasn't anything else. "
"What else could it be? "
She looked down, fiddling with her shirt hem. "Because. Many would take advantage of an inexperienced girl like myself, to mess with my head. "
Thorin shook his head and, with his free hand, lifted her chin. "No. You are no girl. You are a woman, one who has proved her worth over and over and one.... Who I hope sees someone like me worthy of her. "
Her stomach flipped at his heartfelt words. She could hear the raw emotion in his low voice, could feel the shaking in his hands.
She forced a smile and scooted forward. She daringly placed a kiss on his lips and smiled, for real this time.
Maybe he wasn't as emotionless as he pretended to be. Something about her broke down the walls he'd built around himself for years.