Disclaimer: The Hobbit and its characters do not belong to me.

AN: Thank you so much to my reviewers! I appreciate that someone is interested in hearing a little bit more from my muse. It inspires me to write faster and push through the Curious George and sticky hands in the background. (I am trying to write during morning nap for kid #2 and tv time for kid #1. I'm too exhausted to write after their bedtime.)

The Trouble with Soulmate Marks: a Hobbit fanfic

By Indygodusk

Chapter 2: Soulmate marks explained

On her first day in Mirkwood, Billa followed her friends down twisting corridors and past large caverns until they were thrown into prison cells by the elven guards. Later, she followed Thorin to his meeting with Thranduil. Then she got lost.

It took Billa Baggins another four days of spying to find her friends again and figure out the guard schedule so she could visit them openly. The guard schedule operated on a system of chimes that rang through the entire cave system. Different chimes signaled meals and other things, but the guard system chimes were distinct. Once she connected the right chimes to the movement of the guards, avoiding their vigilant watching became much easier. She'd double-checked their comings and goings once against the chimes, and didn't have the patience to wait again.

She would have twigged to it all sooner, but was operating on high stress and low food. A permanent bed needed to be found soon too. Catnapping in dusty closets and corners just wasn't working for her. Hobbits were meant for more comfortable things.

Plus, the less said about her stench the better. She'd have to warn future travelers to wipe off spider viscera as soon as possible, because once it dried the smell was nigh impossible to remove without access to a soap and bath. Only this morning, two servers had paused in front of where she crouched under a table eating a bit of stolen bread and talked about the awful smell and how it seemed to come and go in the corridors lately. Luckily they blamed the dwarves and didn't think to look down.

While she waited for the end of the current guard shift so she could visit her friends, she might as well continue listing her complaints. She had nothing better to do. Sighing silently, she looked down at her grubby hands.

A muted glint of gold caught her attention: the gold ring currently making her invisible. Billa frowned. Her little ring sometimes made her feel funny if she wore it too long. Maybe she was just imagining it, but a few times she'd felt her mood either dramatically elevate into overconfidence and manic euphoria, or drop down into abject hopelessness and despair. Such feelings were foreign to her hobbit character.

But her little ring was so pretty and useful. Maybe it was just being forced to sneak around all the time instead? It was hard to tell.

Whatever the case, it seemed to pass quickly. She wouldn't remain uncaptured for long without her ring in this place. Billa could withstand a little discomfort. She wouldn't give up such an advantage. She needed it to help rescue her friends. At the end of the day, the ring's power to make her invisible was just too precious.

Crouched invisibly in a corner, she shifted her weight again to get more comfortable. The elf she called blond sourpuss for his perpetual frown walked by. He sniffed suspiciously and wrinkled his nose. Brown sourpuss and red sourpuss also patrolled the corridors near the dwarves sometimes. She'd figure out all their names eventually, but she had more important things to worry about.

Billa couldn't wait to speak with Thorin again. She was worried about him after witnessing his disastrous meeting with Thranduil. Plus, she just missed him. It felt like a strange case of indigestion. After seeing him every day for months, she'd gotten used to it. She'd grown to like it.

The break in the guards should start any minute now. Billa hadn't been down here in a couple of days. She'd been trying to find a way for them all to escape when she'd gotten lost. Finally she'd just fallen asleep in an abandoned storeroom. Luckily she'd caught sight of the red-haired Captain Tauriel and followed her back here.

Billa wanted to talk to Thorin, but she couldn't figure out what cell he was in. The cells were shadowed. Most of the dwarves were asleep, snoring loudly. Thorin had to be in there somewhere, but it would be too disruptive to keep searching for him. She couldn't risk the guards getting suspicious. Plus, even though she knew she was invisible, she couldn't help feeling anxious when elves walked right by her or looked through her. It made her explorations more cautious than perhaps they needed to be. Frustrated with herself and the whole situation, she chewed on a hangnail, trying to even it out while waiting.

Since Kili's prison cell sat lowest down in the cavern, the guards visited it last on their rounds. Billa decided to visit him first. It would give her more time to escape later. Plus, she could use a bit of cheering up and he was the perfect dwarf for that. He'd also know which cell housed Thorin.

Unlike the rest of the dwarves, Kili was awake and waiting for something. Sure enough, here came the final patrolman: Captain Tauriel. After her there should be a gap long enough to sneak in and take off the ring to chat. Billa's belly filled with nervous excitement. She couldn't wait to talk to a friendly face for the first time in days.

Unfortunately, Captain Tauriel stopped by Kili's cell.

Why did she stop? Because the silly boy called her over to chat!

Billa gnawed at her lip in annoyance. Why was Kili flirting with his elven captor? Didn't dwarves dislike elves? Didn't he realize he had better people he could be talking to, like his very loyal yet lonely friend Billa Baggins? She wanted to talk to him now and he was wasting precious time. The next gap in the guards wasn't for hours and hours.

Strangely enough, Captain Tauriel seemed to respond to Kili's flirting. It was very coyly done, but Billa could tell that the elf seemed to like Kili almost despite herself. Little smiles kept twitching at the corner of her mouth, and a few times her eyes had even twinkled. Their fingertips even touched glancingly once. Both turned adorably pink.

If Billa wasn't so desperate to talk to Kili, she'd find it all endearing. But she did want to talk to him. Chop chop, time was of the essence right now! Durin's day was fast approaching. He needed to get his priorities straight. Kili had a duty to help Billa figure out their escape!

Finally, Tauriel seemed to remember that she was flirting with her prisoner and neglecting her other duties. Kili tried to delay her leaving, but she sent him a parting insult that came out indulgent instead of mean. Kili noticed too, the scamp, and smirked. Rolling her eyes to the sky, the Captain twirled around and stalked off.

The elf passed silently within a few feet of the hobbit. If Billa's eyes had been closed, she wouldn't have even known Tauriel was there. The only mark of her passing was a slight waft of air and the susurration of Tauriel's long red hair gliding across the quiver nestled by her side.

But at least she wasn't as bad as Prince Legolas. Luckily he didn't come down to the dungeons often. All elves were naturally light on their feet, but Legolas made the rest of them seem like puppies trapped in a bramble bush. He could probably dance a drunken jig without flickering a single candle flame. It made avoiding detection very difficult and stressful. Billa had almost physically run into him a few times because she'd gotten distracted looking around and he was so darn quiet.

Billa waited a minute more to make sure Tauriel wasn't coming back. Then she scampered forward to crouch in the piddling shadows next to Kili's cell. Hopefully they'd be enough to conceal her from any unexpected eyes. Taking a deep breath for courage, she slipped off her ring.

The young dwarf prince stood leaning against the wall staring dreamily off into space. He didn't even notice her appearance. Was he love-sick or something ridiculous like that?

"Psst! Kili," Billa whispered with exasperation.

He startled and almost fell over sideways. "Billa, you're safe!" he exclaimed loudly.

"Shh!" she scolded, looking over her shoulder anxiously. "Not so loud. The guards will only be on break for a little while longer now that Captain Tauriel is gone."

Kili's lips quirked into a fond smile, "You've seen her then? Isn't she magnificent?"

"Tauriel?" Billa asked.

"Of course Tauriel, who else?" he answered with a besotted sigh.

"Well yes, she's an elf so of course she's gorgeous. She'd have to be both smart and courageous to be captain of the entire guard, too," Billa replied. "Plus, she actually seems to appreciate your sense of humor, so that's a huge testament to her character. I guess calling her magnificent is fitting."

Then Billa pointed a finger in his face, "But that is completely irrelevant right now! We need to focus on the fact that you are locked up and I am sneaking around trying to get you all out in time to make the mountain by Durin's Day! I can't find Thorin with everyone asleep and I don't have time to keep looking, so I am coming to you! I need plans, information, inspiration, something, anything!" Throwing out her hands, she waited. She knew she had crazy eyes, but she didn't care.

Kili swallowed and looked at her seriously. "Do you really think she likes me? I mean my sense of humor? I thought so, but I was afraid it was just wishful thinking."

"Kili, focus!" Billa scolded fiercely.

Then she added, "But as much as I can tell with another woman of a different race, then yes, I do."

Kili joyfully opened his mouth, but Billa smothered his words with her hand. "Now focus! Escape plans! Status of our friends!" She waited for him to close his mouth and nod before removing her hand and wiping it dry on her trousers. "Okay, report."

Saluting mockingly, he began. "The cells are too tough to break out of. Ancient dwarves probably had a hand in helping to construct these caverns. None of us have managed to break any bars or loosen any stones. Unfortunately, getting the keys seems the only way out of our cells so far. The food isn't great, but at least it's better than the almost nothing we had out in Mirkwood. That first day was the worst. I think they're running out of nasty stuff to give us, because each meal tastes a little better than the last. Plus the water is plentiful and from what we can tell, not that nasty enchanted stuff from the forest," he sent her a half smile as they both remembered the awful scare they'd had hauling a sleeping Bombur through Mirkwood.

"Speaking of which, Bombur has fully recovered from that mishap, at least according to his complaints when the food trays come around." Taking her hand comfortingly, Kili continued, "Everyone else seems to be doing fine from what I can tell from our shouting back and forth. Oin's been a bit quiet, but his ear trumpet got even more mangled, so he probably just doesn't realize we're speaking to him."

Billa let out a sigh of relief and gripped his hand back tightly. She couldn't bear it if one of her friends got sick or hurt. That was just one more problem to solve and she already had enough of those.

It felt so good to touch another person, especially a friend. Hobbits just weren't meant to be alone for long. They were social creatures made for comfort, not for scampering around in caves hiding from elves, a good portion that seemed either discontent or perpetually drunk. Living in such a dark wood had certainly taken its toll on the people here. The elves in Rivendell were so much more pleasant.

"Unfortunately they put Fili in a cell pretty far away, so I can't joke with him for long before I start going hoarse," Kili added sadly as he looked up the row of cells. His spirits weren't as high as Billa had initially thought. He'd just been concealing it with that talk of his crush on Tauriel. Drat.

"Sorry." Kili bonked himself on the head to shake off his melancholy. "But thank goodness you're safe. Bofur especially has been asking after you, you know how he worries, but we all refused to believe you'd been eaten by the spiders. No one's seen you since you cut us loose from the webs. Everyone'll be relieved you're not only alive, but actually free to roam the hallways." He gave her a conspiratorial, close-lipped smile.

"Thorin especially will be pleased," he teased.

Billa leaned forward. "Which cell is he in? I want to talk to him next."

Kili's smile faded. "You'll have to figure that out yourself. After his big argument with Thranduil a couple of days ago," Kili paused and checked her face for understanding.

"Yes, I managed to sneak in and see that one," Billa acknowledged dryly. "It went horribly. I couldn't have imagined it going worse and I have quite a good imagination, being a storyteller. I had some hope of your release and the elves being reasonable, but that died when Thorin spit Khuzdul insults into the Elven King's face and Thranduil hissed Sindarin insults back and then threatened to keep Thorin trapped down here for the next century."

Kili snorted and then sighed. "Well, it is Thranduil. I'm sure he deserved it."

Billa laughed sadly and leaned against the bars. "I'd like to disagree with you, but he was being rather awful. Still, I wish Thorin had kept his temper. I think flattery would have gotten us pretty far with that one."

Kili shrugged philosophically. "Empty flattery isn't Thorin's style, especially not of an elf."

"True," Billa conceded with a sigh. "It's hard enough to get him to say nice things when you actually do deserve it."

Despite her cynical words, she couldn't help remembering what had happened after she'd saved Thorin's life during the clifftop battle with Azog. They'd always had tension, but after that it changed. After the eagles left, Thorin stood to face her. Then he unexpectedly scooped her up into a warm, exuberant embrace and declared his thanks and esteem to the entire company. Billa couldn't help it when her initial swell of relief flipped over into happiness and adoration.

Just before letting her go, he'd dipped his mouth near the shell of her lightly pointed ear and breathed in deeply. She'd shivered and felt his lips turn up in a smile. Then he whispered, "I see it now. You are my treasure. I was blind. Thank Mahal for bringing you to me, Billa Baggins."

She tingled every time she thought about it, though she still didn't know what he'd meant by his words. It shouldn't matter. She was a hobbit spinster with plans of growing prize-winning tomatoes and writing a book in Bag End, while he was a Dwarven King intent on killing a dragon and regaining his kingdom in Erebor. They would part after this quest. She had no business imagining anything different. She shouldn't want anything different.

Kili's voice broke her out of her depressed musings. "Well, after that meeting they brought Thorin back to his cell, but then a few hours later the guard came back and took him away again on orders of Thranduil. We haven't seen him since." His words wobbled a bit and he couldn't quite hide the sheen of worry in his eyes.

Billa patted his hand comfortingly. "I'll look for Thorin next and then come back and let you know how he's doing. I'm sure he's fine. Probably offending all his guards and snootily explaining ways they could improve on the inferior elven architecture with some solid dwarvish construction."

Kili smiled through wet eyes. "Dearest Burglar, what would we do without you to lift our spirits and save us from calamity?"

Uncomfortable and slightly hysterical laughter tried to escape Billa's throat, but she swallowed it down. That wouldn't help the current situation, no matter how much she wanted to lie back and beg someone else to do the saving this time. Besides, it would worry Kili even more, and he didn't deserve that. Being locked up was bad enough. Dwarves didn't really like being alone that much either, and his separation from his brother Fili, not to mention the disappearance of his uncle, obviously troubled him.

Missing the thoughts flying across Billa's face, Kili continued his narrative. "No one else has been taken out of the cells yet except Thorin. If they would open at least two of our cells at once, we might have a chance to overwhelm the guards just long enough to get the rest of us out. But after that no one has any clue how to get out of here without being recaptured or cornered and starved out. Plus we'd have to get Thorin out too and we don't know where he's being held. Perhaps once you find Thorin, he'll have a plan." Kili looked hopeful, but Billa feared that Thorin would be just as clueless about this place as the rest of them. Her optimism had once again flagged. "So that's it," he concluded. "But if there's anything more you can think of for me to do, just ask and I'll do it."

Billa sighed. "You're a gem, Kili. If I think of anything, I'll let you know." Billa was out of ideas on the escape front, but she was loath to end the conversation just yet. "We have a bit more time before the next guard patrol," she said, and then trudged up the energy for a teasing smile, "so let's go back to talking about the magnificent Captain Tauriel, shall we? Just what is going on there?"

A blush stained Kili's cheeks and he dropped his head shyly. "She's perfect, inside and out. Every time we speak, I can feel my heart pounding in my chest like a hammer shaping metal on the forge. But it isn't metal being shaped by the blows, it is my soul. Everything makes sense now."

He looked up into Billa's eyes excitedly. "I see now that this is my moment of choice, that she is the person promised by my soulmate mark to be my other half. There are mysterious and magical stars on my body that don't belong to me. They belong to my soulmate, to her. When Tauriel spoke of the light of the stars being warm, of being memory, I knew that my stars were placed there for her. They are to remind her that I am her home, just as she will be mine."

Billa mouth dropped open in surprise. She hadn't expected that revelation at all. Soulmates! What an unlikely pair. What awful timing! Or wonderful timing, depending on how things all worked out. She hoped they worked out. Kili deserved all the best things in the world. But could an elf of Mirkwood give him that? It just reminded her of why Hobbits avoided the messy soulmate business if possible.

"Well, congratulations," Bill said to his happy countenance. "I know you've been looking for her. I'm surprised she has the will to leave you locked up down here though. What does she think of being your soulmate?"

Kili's happiness dimmed. "She doesn't know yet. I think she suspects, but she hasn't accepted the bond with me like I've accepted the bond with her. I've tried sending her dreams, but she hasn't mentioned them. She might not choose me in the end."

"I don't understand," Billa said. "There aren't many hobbit soulmates, but there isn't much choice involved, from what I've heard. When someone is born with a soulmate mark, they either have to go to great lengths to avoid ever meeting their intended, like moving to live in Bree, or else they stick together from their moment of meeting like burrs on sheep. Trying to get them to separate for the first few years can be disgustingly difficult, even just to go to different sides of the market. Even those hobbits somehow ignorant of the fact that they possess a soulmate mark won't willingly separate from their partner once they've touched. The scandalous gossip generated in such situations lasts for years."

Bewilderment creasing his brow, he asked, "How can someone not know they have a soulmate mark?"

"Buttocks," Billa replied concisely.

Kili barked out a surprised laugh before clapping a hand over his mouth and looking down the corridor worriedly. One of the snores stopped, but no guards came. "Sorry," he apologized, "I just pictured it and couldn't help myself."

"Well, that and a traditional family determined to ignore the possibility of such scandal being born into their line. They never told him, and who really ever twists around to look at their own buttocks?" Billa added just to see him stifle another laugh.

Getting into a more comfortable position, Kili moved until he sat cross-legged facing the bars. Billa shifted to mirror his position. With a gentle smile he reached through the bars and clasped her hands. "Dwarven soulmate marks don't work like that. We're different from hobbits and men. Maybe from elves too, I don't know."

He became pensive for a moment before continuing. "With Dwarves, you can choose not to bond with your soulmate, though that's rare. Not all marks are the same either. Dwarves have two types." Kili folded out two of her fingers and held them up.

"Wait," Billa stared at her fingers. "Two? Why would you even need more than one?"

"Yes, two. Or wait ,no, three. That one's kinda shameful and weird. Old fashioned. Fili says that only really old people even talk about it, but I think he just says that because he likes to be annoying." Kili wiggled her third finger as Billa scrunched her brown in confusion.

"I'm lost already," she said.

"I guess it's relevant so I'll explain that one too." Kili released her fingers and shifted a bit on the hard stone ground.

"Relevant? Why? Or wait, no, back up," Billa said. "How you can choose not to bond with your soulmate? Even after you've met? Isn't that the whole reason people want to have a soulmate? Not having to worry about making the wrong choice and getting stuck with someone awful that cares for you too little instead of too much? Just having it figured out for you? At least, that's what I've heard."

"Not for dwarves. What a strange thought," he said with a slight laugh, "having no choice. Now hush and let me finish explaining!"

"Sorry, please continue," she said, ducking her head in mock obedience.

"Some few dwarrow have a single, obvious soulmate mark that appears at puberty," he went on. "There is only one other soul out there that is a perfect match for you. You know your soulmate when you meet them, but you don't have to bond with them. There is a choice. Accepting a soulmate is a glorious and serious responsibility. However, it can lead to neglect of ones' craft or kin. Dwarven soulmates are also extremely passionate, obsessive, and possessive. It can cause conflict. When you all live so close together underground, sometimes the risk isn't worth the reward. There is honor is making your craft your primary and only purpose. Some of our greatest cultural treasures were made by such individuals."

"How would that even work?" Billa shook her head softly.

Kili flicked her forehead. "The stubbornness of dwarrows is legendary. You should know that by now."

Billa smacked away his hand. "Yes, I can certainly personally attest to that."

"A dwarf will cut off his nose to spite his face if he thinks it necessary, or sometimes even just to prove he can do it." Kili evaded her swiping fingers to tap her nose. "Rejecting a soulmate is the same sort of thing. The maker decided to give us a choice to reduce the chances of that."

Kili's lips quirked wryly. "In the past, I've sometimes teased myself with the thought of just going it alone. Deep down I've wondered if I'd ever find her in the halls of my people. Fili called it a silly fear, but I realize now it was a premonition. Another dwarf would be so much simpler; mating with an elf will make things much harder. There is still so much work to do to keep our people safe. It weighs heavily on Uncle Thorin and my mother. But I must believe that anyone chosen to fit my soul would also care about the fate of my kin."

"Perhaps others will say that focusing all my passions on my craft is the only honorable choice when confronted with an elven soulmate, but having now met her, I am undone. Stars light my dreams. I cannot do aught but love her now, even if she never chooses me back," he said huskily.

Closing his eyes, he spoke with quiet conviction, "In the pause between my heartbeats an elven voice now sings. Even when she's far away, I can still perfectly recall her faint perfume of clean leather, stiff fletching, sharp steel, and the lilac soap she must use to wash her hair. My concerns shrink in importance. I have chosen and will accept the consequences as they come."

"Then I wish you only good consequences from your choice," Billa said firmly. Kili opened his eyes and smiled at her gratefully. "Whatever comes, you have my support and friendship, as does she."

"Thank you," he cleared his throat emotionally and continued. "Where was I? That's right, explaining dwarrow soulmate marks. I don't actually have the first type of marking. I was born with the second type."

Billa raised her eyebrows in exasperation. "Then why didn't you start with that one? I want to know about you here, not random other dwarrows!" Billa paused and rethought what she'd just said. "Okay, wait, I do want to know about other dwarrows, and this is fascinating, and you know I am curious about different cultures, but especially about you guys, so what I really mean is mmph-!" Kili covered her mouth and cut her off.

"I get it already, silly hobbit," he said. "Take a breath."

Billa wrinkled her nose at him in displeasure and crossed her eyes at him. He took away his hand. Then he made a silly face back at her. The two of them spent the next minute making silly faces at each other until finally they dissolved into laughter. She'd needed that, dearest boy.

Clearing his throat, Kili continued. "Right, the second type of soulmate mark, and the most important because I happen to have been born with it. When I was but a wee babe fresh from my mother's womb, Uncle Thorin discovered a series of faint, interlocking symbols on both of my upper arms. They darkened as I got older. All of the symbols were different, with two symbols on each side. That gave me four possible soulmates."

Billa had to bite her tongue to keep from interrupting with a spate of questions.

"Here, let me show you." Kili kneeled up, reached behind his head, and unselfconsciously pulled off his shirt.

Billa sputtered. "Kili! I've told you a thousand times not to just take off your clothes in front of me, remember?"

"No, but then you say a lot of silly things about respectable this and proper hobbit behavior that. After a while I just tune that stuff out," he said cheekily, winking and flexing his chest muscles alternatively until they bounced up and down ridiculously beneath the thick hair common to all the dwarves. Despite her best efforts, she'd managed to get a good look at everyone in various stages of undress. Well, everyone but Thorin. He made sure not to parade around naked like the rest of them on wash day.

"You brat," she laughed. Billa never could stay irritated with him for long, even when he said and did the most annoying things.

"Now look," he said, leaning forward to show her his upper arms and a set of very impressive biceps. He was obviously showing off again, but Billa wouldn't give him the satisfaction of pointing it out.

"Hmm, a bit smaller than some of the other company members," she teased.

"Hey," he squawked quietly, "I'm showing you my mark right now. Focus on that."

"There are only the stars you've shown me before," Billa said, touching them gently. "I don't see any other marks."

Kili relaxed back onto his heels. "Even though I had four types of marks, I only possess one soul. I can only have one soulmate," he explained. "That's why a dwarf with this type of mark must choose one passion to follow and forsake the others. That's the only way to ever mate fully with your match. Over time the other marks fade until only one remains, like my stars, a sign that you've made yourself worthy and perfect for your one, even though you may have initially been compatible with several. It requires sacrifice to make it work, but there is always the hope of that ultimate love." He smiled softly.

"A dwarf born with this type of soulmate mark is special, which can come as no surprise to you after knowing me," he said with a wink. "It signals that the dwarf owns a very agreeable soul, faceted like a precious gem cut by a master craftsman. Each facet is a different aptitude. Only the most talented of dwarrows have such a mark. It is very, very rare. The last one we know of was born right before the burning of Erebor. Unfortunately, she didn't manage to escape."

They shared a moment of silence before he continued. "Even when down to just one mark, a dwarf may still choose not to bond to his other half, though that almost never happens with this type of soulmate marking."

How different dwarf culture seemed from that of hobbits! She suspected that there were more connotations she was missing due to cultural ignorance, but Billa found the explanation absolutely fascinating. The emphasis on choice seemed strange at first, but once she thought about it she realized that dwarves were so contrary and stubborn that forcing them to do anything, even good things, had an even chance of blowing up in your face. Give dwarves a choice to have a soulmate, and most would choose to bond. Give hobbits a choice, and most of them would politely decline.

Leaning back from another examination of his mark, Billa said, "You can put your shirt back on now."

"You sure? I don't mind keeping it off for you," he winked.

Rolling her eyes, Billa replied, "I'm sure. Besides, I can see the goosebumps rising on your skin. It's freezing down here.

"It's not that bad," he defended. "Most of us find it pretty comfortable. But your hands do feel like ice. Maybe you should steal yourself an extra coat or blanket."

By the time he'd pulled his shirt back on and tucked it in, Billa had thought of several more questions. "So what did you choose to focus on that left you only with the stars as your soulmark?"

"I didn't know I was choosing my stars then, but I decided to focus on archery." Intensity sharpened his features. "I wanted to learn not only how to become the most accurate archer, but how to make the best arrows. They say that in the battle with Smaug, he could have been killed by a specially forged black arrow. However, the secret of their making was lost and only a few still existed when the dragon attacked. The black arrows were entrusted to men. Yet the Lord of Dale missed shot after shot, wasting the arrows and allowing the dragon to conquer the lonely mountain."

An angry scowl marred his face. "One day I will rediscover the secret to making the black arrows. I will forge enough for an army of dwarves, and we will use them to bring Smaug down out of the sky and kill him once and for all. I will revenge my people's suffering. Then I will become the best arrow-maker in the land. Elves from every kingdom will travel across the continent to buy arrows from me." His face burned with conviction.

But then he looked at her and seemed to shrink in on himself. He smiled self-consciously. "You probably think I sound crazy. Most people do, a dwarf becoming a master fletcher even greater than the elves."

"No, I believe you." Billa looked him square in the eyes. "I know you Kili, son of Durin, and if that is your passion, if that is your dream, then I have every confidence that you will find a way to make it happen."

Tears welled in his eyes. Kili looked away to wipe his face on his shoulder. "No one ever really says things like that to me. Usually I'm just silly Kili that no one trusts with anything."

"Thorin obviously trusted you enough to take you on this mission," Billa disagreed. "He's trusted you to defend us on the road. We all have. Even if they haven't said it out loud, our company knows your worth. You are valued."

A few more tears welled over to slide down Kili's cheeks. "Right, well," he blew out a breath. "Thank you, Billa Baggins. You are a right true friend and," he paused to wipe his face clean before continuing with a smile, "if I hadn't just given my heart away to an elven lass I'd surely lose it to you."

Surprised and pleased by the compliment, she took his hand and squeezed. "You are a dangerous flirt. I will have to keep guarding my heart carefully around you else you steal it from me accidentally."

He laughed. "Don't worry. I'm far too afraid of the consequences to even think about pursuing you seriously, even before I met Tauriel. Thorin would kill me."

"Thorin?" she asked in confusion. "Why?"

Kili coughed into his hand and looked away. "Oh, uh, you know, as leader and my uncle and all. What were we talking about again?"

Billa shrugged her shoulders. "Soulmate marks. You said dwarrows had three types, but you've only mentioned two."

Kili winced for some reason. "Oh, right, that. Okay, so finally there is the last and most rare type of soulmate mark. I don't really know how it's done, but a dwarf can petition Mahal, the maker, to give them a soulmate mark to help them find a soulmate. Mahal somehow brands the petitioning dwarf with a riddle that can only be solved by their true soulmate. It also is supposed to change them so that they will fit perfectly with a soulmate where they didn't before. To be so blessed is a double-edged sword. You'd have to be really desperate to do such a thing. In the past, such marks were considered a special sign of favor and were honored. But nowadays things are different. Times are harder. Lots of dwarves think it's selfish and wrong, or that it brings bad luck and change, and will penalize a dwarf for even attempting it."

Wide eyed, Billa kept listening. "Besides that, the right person isn't obvious. Your soulmate won't actually have a mark because only one of you has bargained with Mahal, so it's notoriously difficult to find them. You can't just go up to everyone you meet and beg them to solve your riddle, because if you are wrong, they might just tell everyone else and get you kicked out of town and banned from the local mine. I guess you find someone you really like and pray to the maker that they can answer the riddle correctly. I'm just glad I don't have to deal with that," he finished soberly.

Billa felt sick just thinking about it. What a mess! "Can such a dwarf change his mind? Choose not to pursue the soulmate after all?"

An uncomfortable look slid over Kili's face. "By petitioning the maker directly, a dwarf forfeits that choice. If they later refuse the sacrifice needed to change and find their one and give up or turn their back after discovering them, they will be cursed. Their other relationships, sometimes even their sanity, will suffer. It can spread like poison. That's another reason why so many dwarves think it bad luck. Only the truly desperate or crazy ever attempt it. Why Mahal chooses to answer some pleas and not others is a mystery."

A heavy silence fell. It took a moment for Billa to realize something was wrong. It was too quiet. The snores had stopped.

"Breakfast!" echoed Bombur's voice down the corridor.

Billa and Kili looked at each other in panic.

Jumping up, Billa fumbled at her vest but she couldn't find it. Where was her ring? Finally her scrabbling fingers found it wedged into the corner of the pocket. Frantically she tugged it out and slipped it on.

Kili gasped when she disappeared before his eyes. "I don't know how you just did that, but get out of here quick before you're discovered. I'll make a distraction."

Pressing his face up against the bars, Kili shouted up the hall, "Hey! I figured out why they make us eat this crap with wooden spoons."

What was he doing, calling attention to their corner? Billa wondered frantically.

"Why's that, lad?" called back Bofur from up the hall.

"A little bunny told me," Kili yelled. Beorn had called her little bunny and the dwarves had all teased her mercilessly about it for days. They would know what it meant. They would know she was alive and free.

"Was it a dust bunny?" Gloin asked suspiciously, a bit slow on the uptake.

Kili laughed. "Aye, very dusty, and it's afraid we'll blunt the knives!"

Then he began loudly singing, "Blunt the knives, bend the forks, smash the bottles and burn the corks!" A rousing cheer drowned out his next phrase, but quickly all the dwarves joined in on the song they'd first sung to Billa in Bag End all those months ago. Gloin caught on and joined the singing heartily.

How she missed her soft nightgown and dressing coat, her full pantry and fresh garden. Dwarven boots stamped, hands clapped, and everything that could possibly make a racket was utilized. The returning elves stood frozen on the upper staircase with appalled expressions. Admittedly, the song had had a similar effect on her the first time she'd heard it too.

Taking advantage of the racket, Billa snuck away. As the song faded with distance, her fears for Thorin swelled. She refused to believe that Thranduil had killed Thorin in a rage. He had to be locked up here somewhere, alive and well, even if she hadn't come across him in all of her wanderings. He had to be. Rubbing away the ache in her chest, Billa forced her spine to straighten. It had been interesting hearing about dwarven soulmates, but it didn't really apply to her. She needed to focus on what did.

First she needed to find a bit of breakfast. She hadn't eaten in who knows how long. Then she could start trying to find Thorin. At least that was a more manageable goal than getting them all out of this place without anyone noticing. Yes, she would find Thorin. Then everything would be better.

TO BE CONTINUED

AN: I keep going back and forth on whether I want to use Tolkien's preferred plural for a dwarf, dwarrow, or to use the much more natural to me after years of reading fantasy word dwarves. Sorry for switching back and forth. Just consider them synonyms in this world for now.

Also, I hope you find the three types of soulmates something interesting and unique instead of confusing. Thanks for reading and I hope you're enjoying it! Next chapter is Billa meeting up with Thorin. Let me know your thoughts!