A/N:

Hello! This is my first fanfic like ever, so excuse any grammar and spelling mistakes! It is a revised version of What Happened When I Stole His Majesty's Horse, so the chapters will be slowly uploaded, because I am still currently revising it. I think it's going to be a lot better this time 'round! Hope you enjoy and please review!

Chapter 1

"Why did she leave? Why did she have to go?"

"Because it was her time, my dear child, but don't worry, I will look after you. You will never be alone."

"I want my mamma!" the young child wailed, hugging herself.

"I am sorry, but she has gone, and she can't ever return. She would if she could though." The man hoped that was so. The little girl's mother had been one of his best friends, but she had gone through so much, and she had never truly recovered, not really. Of course she had pretended for her daughter's sake, but he had seen her cry when no one was looking. He had seen her break apart, piece by piece, until she put that mask back on and went on as if nothing had happened.

"Your mother would want you to be brave. One day, I will tell you what happened to her, but for today, today you may grieve." He said, holding the little girl close as she cried quietly into his shoulder.

Ten Years Later

He sat on his bed, sighing tiredly. It was time for her to know. He couldn't keep it from her anymore, not after all the lies he had told to protect her from the harsh reality. He rose to his feet and let them carry him to her bedroom door. He knocked, and the door opened after a few seconds.

"Oh look who's here. Care to explain or are you going to tell me another one of your lies?" Her anger was thinly veiled by a mockery of respect.

"I've come to tell you a story."

"Another fake version? What are you trying to hide? Why won't you just tell me the truth?" She screamed, letting her frustration burn through her.

"No. I've come to tell you the story of your mother, how she became who she was and how she became the woman you knew."

That stopped her, and she calmed slightly.
"No more lies?" She asked uncertainly.

"No more lies." He promised.

Seventy Years Ago

The lithe figure held her breath as she heard footsteps coming down the hallway. She slide into the little space behind one of the large statutes and tried to be as silent as possible as she drew her black cape over her body and its' cowl over her head. Good thing my hair is midnight black, she thought. The footsteps passed by and faded after several long minutes. She peeked out and saw that the hall was once again empty. She silently slid out of the tiny space and continued on her way toward the treasury. She saw no one else as she hurried down the stone passage. She found the door to the treasury and she picked the well worn lock quickly.

Grinning to herself, she walked in and shut the door behind her slowly, making sure not to make too much noise. She lit her single torch and continued down another stone passage that led downward. Shadows danced upon the walls as she walked. She came to another iron door and she picked this one open, but the lock was less used and in better condition than the last and it took her longer. Time was everything. She cringed at the sound of the creaking door and quickly closed it as she slipped inside the room. Her torches glow only emitted a few feet of light in all directions, but she could feel the emptiness of this room. She walked in one direction for a while and only after five minutes found what she was looking for. A few feet away from her stood the key to his majesty's stables, along with several other keys to various things.

Her escape was guaranteed at this point, and she almost laughed at the guarding system or lack of one. The dwarves of Erebor were too arrogant with their precious gold. She grabbed a few precious jewels, some as large as her fist, glimmering in the firelight, just for the money, and headed back the way she had come.

Sometime later she stood right in front of king's precious stallion, one of the Mearas from forests of Lothlórien. Shadowstar was his name because his hide was black as night, but for a single white star on his forehead. This was what she had really come for. Shadowstar was well known and a prize to behold. Anyways, she loved horses and even though she didn't have a valid excuse to stealing anything really, she found the thrill, well, addictive. She easily jumped atop his back and without the need of a saddle she headed straight out.

He whined loudly and she heard a banging sound and her thoughts immediately flew to the worst possible outcome. Not now, she thought. Not when I was so close to my goal. She heard shouting behind her as she pushed Shadowstar to go faster. The horse surged forward his hoof beats in perfect rhythm as she thundered away. She heard the sounds of other horses but they were quickly fading away. Shadowstar was one of the best horses you could find in Middle Earth. She laughed out loud at her good luck and with joy for it had been a long time since she had last ridden a horse. The feeling of freedom shot through her as the wind whipped around her sending her cowl back and revealing her tan skin and icy blue eyes. Her long raven black hair was like a cape behind her, while her actual cape was twirling and dancing behind her in the ferocious wind.

She rode Shadowstar hard for several hours, racing across the land over hills and through valleys, until she knew she had to stop soon to rest and eat. She slowed down Shadowstar to a fast walk and started looking for good places to rest for the night. Soon enough she spotted a clump of trees that would provide enough cover for both a horse and a girl. She dismounted and walked Shadow over to the trees and set up her small camp. She built a small fire and cooked a small meal and ate quickly. With a full stomach she soon grew sleepy, through she knew she should put out the fire first, but her body betrayed her and she fell into a dreamless sleep.

Far behind her, the sound of thundering hooves echoed against the earth as a group of ponies ran westward, and the cry of angry men atop them filled the air. The dwarves rode hard, not letting up until they caught sight of a glowing red light in the distance, marking a fire. Where the was fire, there would be someone, hopefully that someone being a girl who stole some jewels and his prized horse.

When she awoke she found a sword beneath her chin and saw a group of dwarves around her. She mentally cursed herself for her stupidity and muttered a few choice words under her breath.

"Get up!" A rough voice commanded her.

Her head was a bit fuzzy from sleep still, but she could tell by the sound of the voice that she was in trouble. She pondered her situation and decided to go along...at least for now. She got up.

"Give us your weapons and hand them out hilt first." The same voice ordered her again.

She looked at the dwarf who had spoken. He had clear, brilliant blue eyes and black hair that included stubble of a beard. He wore a deep blue tunic and a silver studded belt. He also wore a fur lined black cape that fell from his shoulders. The air of importance and authority he gave of was palpable and she knew without a doubt who he was.

She had seen him before, though he had not see her. She was looking at the mighty Thorin Oakenshield, king under the lonely mountain and he looked mad. He glared at her as she unsheathed her elven sword and gave him her two elven daggers, Sting and Bone. She glared back at him, not willing to show weakness. He studied the blades and then looked back at her.

"These are made by elves, but you are not an elf. I presume you stole these too?"

"Right under Thranduil's nose. Your fortress was even easier to break in. You seriously need a better guards system." She sneered at him while he tried to stay calm.

"And yet you still got caught..sleeping on the job eh?"

"Now you're just trying to turn this conversation back at me and ignore your weak guard system, though I have to say, I am quite the talented thief, so don't feel too bad." She laughed at his angry face.

"You will regret stealing Shadowstar, girl!"

"Stole? I was merely borrowing him for a little ride." She grinned smoothly at him and he turned to one of the dwarves, the one who looked like a younger version of himself. Her eyes lit up as she saw an opportunity. She lunged forward, simultaneously drawing her hidden knife and drawing Thorin's own blade from where he had it sheathed on his belt. She put her knife at his throat and his sword into the small of his back, glaring at the rest of the company to dare and apprehend her.

"Now who's making mistakes?" She whispered into his ear and laughed cruelly.

He tensed but didn't say anything, choosing to remain silent. The other dwarves drew their weapons, but didn't attack.

"Alright you lot, I want your weapons right in front of me and your hands where I can see them or Thorin dies. I want you," she said motioning with her hand at a young black haired dwarf, "To retrieve Shadowstar and bring him here. You will put my weapons in a bag and set it by Shadowstar. Then you will all back away and stand thirty or more feet from me. Now do it."

The dwarves muttered angrily, but did as she said and the young black haired dwarf brought Shadowstar close to her. His eyes gleamed with hatred and hopelessness at Thorin's precarious situation. She pressed the knife into Thorin's neck and a thin line of blood appeared. Thorin growled but didn't move. Suddenly in one quick motion, she smashed the hilt of the knife into Thorin's head, drew back grabbing the bag and leapt atop of Shadowstar. She squeezed his belly with her heels and they took off, away from the group of dwarves. He seemed to fly, his hooves barely touching the ground.

"Show us the meaning of haste Shadowstar."

She held him at a full gallop for a few hours then slowed to a canter as the horse grew thirsty, and she stopped him and let him get a quick drink before setting off again. She continued to the great east road where she slowed down to stop and eat a quick snack. Light was fading from the sky as she made a camp in a hidden dip in the ground, and this time she wisely didn't make a fire. She ate a cold dinner and fell asleep quickly afterwards.

When she awoke the sun was just peaking over the horizon, the pale light casting an ethereal glow over the land . She packed quickly and rode onwards toward the town of Bree. For many days she traveled, riding hard as not to let any dwarf catch up with her. I'm certainly never going back to Erebor again, she thought. Knocking out the king does tend to do that. Soon she came upon the hills at the edges of the shire and the town of Bree came into view.

After many weeks of riding fast and sleeping little, she was finally home. She sighed contentedly at the thought of being able to relax at last, without having to worry about anyone hunting her. She rode into the stables of Bree, dismounted, and bribed the stable hand to keep quiet about her return. She then made her way to the market to buy some home grown food. She only had about twenty gold coins, so she bought only a few loaves of bread, some carrots, and a few sweet cakes. The idea of selling the jewels she had didn't look so good. If Then she hurried back to the prancing pony, where she had made herself a life as a barmaid years before. A great spot to hear the news and gossip was a bonus too.

She walked in and was immediately met with the smell of ale and baking bread. It was close to the eleventh hour of the night so most men had left or gone to bed in the inn itself. She went straight to her room and unpacked her things which included Thorin's sword. She hid the blade under a wooden board that had come loose a while ago. Then she hurried to join her fellow barmaids in the kitchen.

When she entered, Suzan, one of the prettiest girls she had ever seen before looked up and smiled at her. Suzan had soft brown hair and chocolate eyes. Her skin was tan like hers and she had a kind smile that lit up her face. She'd seen boys fall apart when she smiled at them. It was quite funny to watch them stumbling around and stuttering. She walked over to her and started helping her wash the dishes which were piled high. As they washed, she started the interrogation which always followed after her journeys.

"So Onyx," Suzan said using her nickname which originated from her raven colored hair. "What is your latest adventure?"

She forced a smile and replied:

"Oh I just took a trip to the city of Dale." She lied. Suzan knew that she was lying, but she always let it go knowing she was better off not knowing where she had been.

"And what did you do in Dale? Any interesting boys?" She grew red in the face at her last remark and thought of Oakenshield but instantly ignored it.

"No interesting boys Suzan. Speaking of boys..how are you and Sam doing?" She asked changing the subject from her adventure, but Suzan would not be deterred.

"Oh he's great. At kissing. Now what did you do this time? Did you steal something?"

She mumbled something about horses and swords, but didn't answer.

"Onyx please tell me you didn't steal something important." Onyx winced and looked down, but smiled all the same. "Oh Onyx. What am I to do with you? Is anyone going to come hunting for you? Do you need to go into hiding again?"

"Someone probably will but I doubt the would look here. It's not exactly the place for a burglar to live." She explained to her.

Suzan just sighed and we continued to work till all the plates and cups were done. She said good night to her and the other barmaids before retiring to her room. She didn't sleep though, choosing to stand by the window, staring out at the night sky. She couldn't sleep, her nightmares would come back and haunt her, so she avoided sleeping as much as possible, until she couldn't any longer. So was the way she lived since that night.

Weeks passed and nothing happened, no angry dwarves, no king under the mountain, just nothing of interest seemed to occur. She heard a few rumors that the King of Erebor was looking for someone, but other than that, there wasn't any excitement. She continued to work as usual, went on a few 'adventures', and made a new friend named Meredith. Several more months passed and nothing more happened besides a few drunken brawls in the tavern, therefore she felt that she was entirely safe. No one would look for a thief among hobbits, who were known for their humble and quiet lives.

Then one day while she was serving some especially thirsty men around luncheon she heard the inn door open and turned around to see who she was going to serve next. Standing there in the doorway was three dwarves, Kili, his brother Fili, and Thorin's personal guard, Dwalin. She hurried back into the kitchen and went to her rooms and packed up a few supplies then quietly slipped out back and went to the stables. She found the stable boy and paid him some more to keep him quiet.

Then she went around back to the hidden stall that she housed Shadowstar in. She jumped abroad his back and spurred him forward. They shot out of the stables. Once they reached the main gate, she slowed him down, and pulled her cowl over her head, keeping her head down. She went by unnoticed and sighed in relief. She headed back west for a few miles, then turned off the trail and into the wood. She made her way through the brush for several miles than finally halted and made a makeshift camp with some canvas and wooden poles. She set a fire up and warmed up some food. She ate and then sat under her canvas watching the wood around her. Nothing stirred. She decided that she would wait a week for the dwarves to leave.

A week passed slowly as she bid her time, hoping she would wait out the dwarves that would surely be looking for her. She didn't sleep much, a few hours one night and that was it. She was sleep-deprived, but stocked up on adrenaline.

She rode Shadowstar back and put him in the hidden stable and returned to the inn. She walked in making sure to keep my head down just in case the dwarves were still there and headed into the kitchen. Suzanne was pounding out some bread and the powder covered her from head to waist. She laughed at the sight, but Suzanne only frowned at her.

"Where did you go for the last week? Was it the dwarves you're running from? They're still here you know. They seem intent on meeting every long-black haired girl in this town."

She raised her eyebrows at the last part of Suzanne's sentence, but she only shrugged though panic flooded through her. She stiffly walked over to Suzan.

"Do you happen to have any of that hair dye left? The brown one?"

Suzan nodded and they both headed upstairs after the dough was done and in the furnace, cooking. She got out her hair dye and started dying her hair hair a light shade of brown. It took about an hour, but when Suzan looked into the mirror her hair was a soft shade of brown, a bit darker than Suzanne's own hair. She thanked her.

Then she headed to her rooms, where she hid a dagger up her sleeve and one in her boot. After that she headed back to the tavern, instantly noticed the dwarves in the corner of the room, watching the steady flow of customers with bold intentions. Strangely only three of them sat around the table. Thorin wasn't one of them. Kili, Fili, and Dwalin all had drinks in their hands, but she ignored them, going around with her face down, avoiding them. She weaved her way through the room back and forth as she took orders from customers. She tried to stay away from the dwarves, but she was ordered by the head cook to deliver some food to them. She balanced three trays of food and resigned herself to carrying them over. She ambled over, slowly making her way over to their table through the crowd.

They didn't seem to recognize her at first, as she kept her head down, attempting to hide her face as her hair fell over he face. She didn't speak for fear that they would recognize her voice. The plates clattered onto the table as she set them down. She instinctively looked up briefly when the young dark-haired dwarf tapped her on the shoulder. She froze, her breath catching in her throat as recognition flashed in Kili's eyes and anger replaced it. She tried to back up, but a hand gripped her arm tightly, tight enough to cut off her blood supply to the rest of her arm. Fear spiked through her at the thought of getting beaten and she wrenched herself away, running on pure adrenaline. Out the door, she ran to the town market, hoping to escape in the crowded streets. She didn't make it that far.

She was tackled by the black haired youth, her arms pinned below her body. She struggled against his weight, but he held her fast, cursing her in the dwarf language. She tried to push him off, but Fili and Dwalin caught up and grabbed her, hauling her to her feet. Her movements stilled as she felt cold, hard metal slide over her wrists and ankles. She panicked, fear seizing her, and she felt her heartbeat speed up till it felt like it was going to burst out of her chest. She felt her head spinning and her vision was fading in and out. Her chest felt compressed and she fought to breathe at all. Her knees went weak and she collapsed on Kili, who looked surprised at her wide, wild eyes and pale skin. The blood had drained out of her face when the chains had been locked on. He dropped her, and the ground rushed up to meet her. Her head hit first and her mind went blank as darkness engulfed her.

Hope you enjoyed :) R&R pls. I want to try and get at least five reviews per chapter before I update. I need your thoughts on the plotline and what you think I could improve!