It was cold.

Even though the winter only started, the chilling air and the wind were biting into the hobbit´s face. But Bilbo did not feel it. After her crying stopped, she no longer thought or felt.

She felt nothing at all.

She stood there, next to Gandalf, on the frozen surface of the river and could not tear her eyes away from the limp body a few meters away from her. It felt like time had frozen.

There he laid, the mighty King under the Mountain, blood still leaking from the deep wound in his chest, even though his heart stopped beating minutes ago. Thorin.

Her dear friend, even more than that, now dead and gone forever.

This just could not be. It had to be a bad dream, some nightmare of her mind. After all that happened- this shall be the end?

Bilbo watched in dull silence as the rest of the company slowly gathered around their fallen leader and as the lifeless bodies of his nephews were laid down next to him.

Than she left Gandalf´s side and joined her friends, and stood with them around the three Durins.

But no one said a word. Not one of them dared to break the oppressive trance which laid upon the group, because this would have meant to face the inevitable: The Durins were dead.

Bilbo didn´t know how long they stood like that- she had no more feeling for the time´s passing, as they just looked down at the three figures surrounded by glittering ice in the sunlight, but than she heard the approaching of horses in the distance.

It were Bart of Laketown and King Thranduil of Mirkwood, followed by a few of their men. They stooped their horses on the edge of the ruins, dismounted and came closer to the gathered remains of the company, while their men stayed away.

But they did not say any words, as if to show with their quietness a last offer of respect towards the fallen warriors.

So the silence lingered on.

Bilbo...

Bilbo winced.

Bilbo Baggins..

A cold shudder ran down her spine. There was that it again, the voice. It was back.

The cold whispering which haunted her in her darkest hours.

Slowly she reached into her waist pocket and felt the cold metal against her fingertips.

Bilbo Baggins.. No! Not now!, she thought in panic as the voice just wouldn´t quiet down.

The stone.. use the stone..

The stone? What stone? Bilbo felt helpless and vulnerable against the voice invading her mind. Why did it speak up in such a moment?

The Arkenstone.. it can help, it can restore what was lost.

Restore what was lost?

It has the power to return what should not have gone lost..

Was it saying.. No way!

Even though Bilbo´s mind was racing, she could only focuse on this one thought. She still did not know what was going on, but the despair deep within her made her holding on to every sparkle of hope she could get. Could this really be possible?

Take it! Take it and use it!

But how? It was only a jewel right? It´s not like you could just ask it to help? And even if- Bilbo had no idea where the stone wa- wait! Bart!

Bilbo jerked her head up and looked into the direction of the human. He stood a few meters away from her, looking down on the fallen king with a face showing compassion and regret.

Something emerged in Bilbo´s mind, a feeling she never felt before, it was a mix of frustration, anger, despair and anxiety. It felt like a flame which started to grow and captured all her other thoughts and feelings, until only one was left which seemed to consume her mind.

Without another consider broke Bilbo the silence: "Bart!"

All heads turned to her, surprise and confusion written over them by the sudden broken silence. Bart looked startled at the hobbit for a moment before he answered: "Yes, Miss Halfling?"

"Do you still have the Arkenstone?", now all heads turned towards the human. No one had thought of the stone since the battle began and especially the dwarves waited for an answer of the human leader.

Bart himself seemed just to remember the stone, and reached into the inner pockets of his coat.

As he pulled out again, he held the white jewel in his hand, softly glowing in the light of the setting sun.

For a heartbeat everyone was quiet, but than shouts arose from the dwarves: "Give it back!"

"You have no right!" "It is ours!" "You shouldn´t have it!" Suddenly everyone was shouting, either taking part in the discussions or trying to calm people down and Bilbo sighed in frustration and pinched the bridge of her nose. Didn´t they had this all before?

Aroused by the sudden yelling and argumentation around her, Bilbo felt more and more patientless, the annoyance was more than she could bear right now. Gathering all her power, her own voice grew louder than any other:

"For the sake of the Valar! You all just SHUT UP FOR ONCE!"

Her voice echoed through the surrounding mountains as deadly silence followed. All eyes were on her, looking shocked and taken back, as well as embarrassed.

But Bildo did not have the time nor the nerves to taste the satisfaction. "Give me the Arkenstone. Now.", she said with a stern voice while walking over to Bart still holding the Arkenstone in his palm.

Balin was the first to find his voice again: "Bilbo, what are you doing?", he asked as Bilbo walked past him. "No time to explain, Balin. Please give me the Arkenstone, Mister Bart.", Bilbo said as she stood before the much taller human.

Bart looked down on the hobbit. He did not know what the little creature wanted with the stone, did she just want to take it? Surely not, the dwarves wouldn´t just let her wander off with their most precious treasure and she knew it.

But why did she wanted it else? He looked into her face and saw the despair in it. But her eyes held also something else- it was determination. She had a plan and Bart remembered this look on her face when she betrayed her friends by giving him the stone in order to save them.

He laid the gleaming stone into her much smaller extended hand and watched just like everyone else as she kneeled down in front of the fallen dwarf king and the princes.

Bilbo didn´t exactly know what to do, but she had a presentiment, so she shifted the Arkenstone into her right hand and took into the other her ring. Both felt unnatural cold, even the ring felt more strange in her hand than ever before.

Bilbo hesitated for a second, than she took a deep breath and pulled her hands together.

She registered a small clink as the stone and the ring touched, than everything went black.

In the next moment, Bilbo was surrounded by entirely darkness. The air still was cold, but this cold seemed to sink deeper into herskin with every second passing like it would slowly kill her .

The silence stretched on, unbreakable. Bilbo felt paralyzed, not able to breath properly.

She waited for something to happen. But it was like the world just stopped. She was alone in this darkness, not knowing where she exactly was, or how to turn back if she wanted.

She felt fear growing in her heart. What is happening now? Was she going to stay here forever? Has she been tricked?

For what felt like an endlessness time, Bilbo waited, called out for anyone, but getting no answer and waited again.