Disclaimer: If I owned any of Tolkien's Jackson edited dwarves I would not be writing fanfiction because I'd have the real things in my bed. ;) I own nothing but my OCs and make no money from this.

TRIGGER WARNING APPLIES TO THIS CHAPTER

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Though Sky had expected to be forced into more sexual activities, she saw neither hide nor hair of Thorin for the rest of their journey. Not even his nephews came for her, though she thought she'd caught a glimpse of Fili's unusual blonde hair a few times, shimmering in the sunlight near the front of the procession of ponies, carts and dwarves. She'd caught a few of the soldiers eyeing her up on occasion, and one of them who was on foot like her had even summoned up the gall to cop a quick feel of her ass as he pretended to stumble and fall into her. She'd barely kept herself from catching the offending hand and putting into a lock that, given enough pressure, would have snapped even his abnormally thick boned wrist clean through. Though their increasingly lecherous stares made her uneasy, aside from that one incident with 'Clumsy' – as she'd acerbically nicknamed him – they largely kept their hands to themselves.

It took another month to reach Erebor. The Lonely Mountain could be seen from hundreds of miles away. It towered majestically into the heavens, its tip passing the clouds and seeming to go up forever. The dwarves around her were cheery, most likely eagerly awaiting the grand victory feast Thorin was going to throw in honour of himself and his warriors, according to her guards who luckily seemed quite tolerant of the tirade of questions she would ask when just sitting around in the tent chained to a post all night got boring. 'Tolerance' didn't guarantee answers however, and more times than not they just ignored her, but at least they didn't take it into their heads to do anything else.

Sky thought it odd how they'd all – aside from Clumsy – left her alone for the entire trip. Not once had they laid a hand on her, and she'd done everything in her power to ensure she didn't give them a reason to, yet it was so different to what she'd expected. It was almost as though she was carrying a plague of some sort. She ceased to ruminate and found it harder and harder to sleep at night the closer they came to the Mountain.

Dale, however, was apparently the first order of business.

Whilst the majority of the King's army continued on to Erebor, Thorin, the princes and a select group of about two score dwarves continued on through the front gates, dragging their captives with them. Sky imagined that, had she gotten to visit the city as a tourist rather than a prisoner soon to become the royal family's personal plaything, she would have enjoyed it much better. It was beautiful. From the rows upon rows of houses built one atop the other, to the white and black marble of the temples; from the intricately carved stonework of a mason's guild, to the perfectly sculpted statues of dragons, knights in their stone armour, Elven women on horseback and human women – or at least they looked like human women – chiselled in the act of pouring invisible water from pitchers supported under their arms; from the crystal fountains to the high stone walls that surrounded it all, Dale was everything Sky had imagined it would be.

Aside from all the slaves.

She cringed at the cries of a young man tied to a whipping post. The dwarf taking the knotted rope to his victim's back was chunky and burly, his beard long and coarse, spattered with blood. Sky shuddered and forced herself to look away, marching on in stony silence, trying not to cry as she was pushed past a human child of about ten years of age who had been chained like a dog and left in the mud outside the house she assumed he lived in.

Too soon they came to a halt, and Sky felt herself being dragged forward through the throng of soldiers until they broke free of the pressing, smelly bodies and she was thrown at Thorin's feet. He dismissed her guard gruffly, before grasping her by the back of her collar and hauling her upright again. She kept her eyes on the ground until he ordered her to walk ahead of him and she risked a glance up to see a short flight of stairs leading to a terrace whereupon stood the fattest dwarf she had ever seen. He was dressed in silks of silver and turquoise, and heavy gold jewellery hung from his thick neck, wrists, fingers and earlobes, the many gemstones set into the pieces glinting in the late morning sun.

"Lord Ragunn," Thorin greeted him, giving him a curt nod of the head in response to the other's answering bow.

"Your Majesty," he replied; his voice was oily smooth, oozing from him like unset tar. Sky hated him already.

"How did you fare against the savages in the North, Your Grace?"

"We routed them easily enough. Once we brought real warfare to their doorstep they scattered like frightened little rabbits," said Thorin, raising his voice slightly for everyone to hear. The soldiers laughed loudly. Sky gritted her teeth, and at the bottom of the stairs she thought she heard a soft thud followed by a groan, and guessed that one of the Heath men had made his displeasure at Thorin's comment too obvious. She didn't dare look however, keeping her eyes cast down. Their safety depended on her swallowing her pride and not rubbing their captors the wrong way. Ragunn guawffed along with his ruler, and next to them she could see Kili smirking out of the corner of her eye. She realised she was staring at Fili's lips and looked away swiftly.

'It's not your fault those moustache braids frame them so beautifully,' said a naughty little voice in her mind. 'Shut up!' 'I bet they taste as good as they look….' 'I SAID SHUT UP!'

She came back to her senses at the feel of a large strong hand wrapping around her arm like a vice and shaking her to get her attention.

"SKY!"

"I'm sorry!" She babbled out quickly, wincing as Thorin's grip tightened.

"A day-dreamer this one," he remarked to Ragunn, before turning her to face the crowd gathered below and calling out in Khuzdul. There was a stirring in the ranks, before a dwarf with a hairstyle in the shape of a starfish shoved his way through the larger soldiers. With a jolt Sky recognised him as Nori, but her attention was suddenly seized by two slim figures standing forlornly behind him with their hands bound in front of them. Her heart sank and she couldn't stop herself whispering the older girl's name. "Leadawn…."

"Ah, so you do know them. Excellent." Thorin breathed in her ear, and she shivered involuntarily.

"What do you want with them?" she asked, voice wavering slightly. "Information." He yanked her closer to him and grasped her chin roughly, forcing her to look at him. "Where did the other tribe members go? Where are all the women and children? How many guards did their leader send with them?"

She only stared at him. He growled and barked an order at Nori, who tugged on the ropes of his captives until they knelt, before striking Leadawn hard across the face. Sky tried to pull away and run to her, but Thorin just spun her around and pulled her back firmly into his chest, hands closing her wrists in an iron grip and crossing them over her body to be held on opposite sides. She went limp after a moment of futile struggling, silent tears threatening to spill, but she did her best to hold them at bay. She would not give them any reason to think her weaker than they already must.

"Let's try that again shall we?" He murmured, and she hated her body's reaction to having him so close…. His voice and his proximity were almost too much. Her only saving grace was the slight unpleasant body odour all the dwarves suffered from as a result of travelling for the past month. It helped to keep her focused, but despite his smell it was still difficult. He continued, to her relief seemingly oblivious to her embarrassing state of arousal, "How many soldiers were sent with them?"

"I don't know," she gritted, then bit back a sob as Thorin nodded in Nori's direction and the former thief hit Leadawn again, much harder by the sound of it. The poor girl groaned and clutched her head in pain.

"Please! Leave her alone!" Sky pleaded, and subconsciously began to struggle again. The arms around her tightened and she hissed, stilling quickly.

"How many?" Came the wickedly sensual voice in her ear again. She made eye contact with her old friend…. And gave in.

"Two-hundred," she whispered.

"Louder, girl."

She repeated the number and Thorin nodded, then spoke again.

"And where did they go?"

"You've taken the Withered Heath! Isn't that what you wanted? It's yours! Isn't that enough?!" she begged, her voice pitching higher in desperation. In answer he forced her to her knees before slapping her twice, all the while maintaining an outer appearance of complete calmness. He seized her by the hair and turned her head to face him, speaking in a soft, yet terrifying tone that froze her blood. "You agreed to co-operate if I continued to let the Heath men live. I have fulfilled my end of the bargain. If you go back on your word one more time, not only will I have your beloved comrades executed, I will also have it done right here, in front of the child." He indicated the petrified girl she now recalled was named Pitha kneeling on the other side of Nori, her round face streaked with tears.

"Tell me," he said, almost as though they were talking over a cup of tea each, "How old are your two adorable little friends?" Shaking slightly, in both fear and anger at how the girls were being treated, Sky muttered, "Fourteen and six."

"Ah, good. I guessed correctly. To my knowledge, the older one will already have begun her cycles. An oblivious virgin now, but we can remedy that soon enough." Before she could say or do anything, Thorin had gestured at Nori, to which his mouth twisted up in a nasty smile. The next moment, she watched in horror as he and the dwarves closest to Leadawn converged on her. She cried out in fear and disgust, flailing wildly and scrambling to get away from their lecherous fingers.

"Stop this! Please! I'll tell you what you want to know, just stop them!" Sky yelled, meeting Thorin's amused gaze beseechingly. He bellowed a single, harsh-sounding word over Leadawn's screams and the soldiers stopped whatever they were doing instantly, drifting back into the semi-circle around the base of the stairs with rather peeved expressions, leaving the girl they had been on the verge of violating sobbing piteously in the centre, clutching her dress to her where it had been torn.

"A pity," Thorin commented, "I'm sure they were rather looking forward to that. Like waving a juicy piece of meat in front of a dog's nose then taking it away. I don't like disappointing my warriors, so I sincerely hope you will indeed tell me everything I wish to know." There was a lengthy pause as he let that seep in, then he crouched beside her.

"I will ask you one last time," he murmured, tucking a lock of her hair behind her ear almost tenderly. "After that, nothing you can say or do will save her. And it will be on your head." He took her continued silence as comprehension, and continued, growling now, "What is their destination?"

She took in a shuddering breath before answering, "I was not made privy to that information, but," she raised her voice slightly as his face hardened, "I know which direction they went." His head cocked to one side and he looked at her expectantly.

"North. They went North. I don't know why or where exactly, but that was the way they were going when I left them."

He nodded, then patted her back, "There see? That wasn't so difficult. Why did you have to be stubborn and put your friends through all that trauma?"

Her hands balled into fists and she bit her tongue hard enough that she tasted blood in her mouth. Thorin rose and held a quick conversation with Ragunn, then gave a string of orders to the soldiers below. Several broke off and dragged the now enraged Heath men up the stairs and past them. The younger man spat at Sky's face and she flinched as a few drops hit her, shame flooding her as he cursed her in his native tongue. The elder of the two however, gave her a sympathetic look before they were both herded away into the building behind them.

"Where are they going?" Sky asked, eyeing Thorin worriedly.

"I'm keeping my word. They will be given clean, sturdy clothes, supplies and coin enough to get to Esgaroth, where they can find jobs and earn a sufficient amount to travel elsewhere if it so pleases them. They will each be given a document stating they are free men under my jurisdiction and not to be enslaved."

"Thank you," she said through gritted teeth. Then a thought struck her, "And the girls?" Thorin turned and regarded them coldly for a moment or two before looking back at her questioningly, "What about them?"

A wave of suspicion washed over her and she stared at him accusingly, "You never told me you had them. You intended for me to have nothing to barter for their freedom with!" She gasped as in the next second her back was to a pillar, dangling a foot from the ground as the dwarf King lifted her bodily to be eye to eye with him, the steel in his gaze enough to stop her breath as efficiently as the hand wrapped tightly around her throat. "I have been more merciful to all of you this day than I am obliged to be, salrûna," he snarled, moving her a little away from the pillar only to slam her against it again. She had room for a hurried intake of air before the pressure increased to cut it off.

"I think you forget too quickly your current predicament and that, I fear, will be harmful to your health. I suggest you stay out of matters that do not concern you, or there will be dire consequences." He released her and she slumped, gasping for air, to the cool white marble below.

"Sire."

Thorin turned to Fili, once again calm and collected.

"Yes, Fili?"

The blonde prince glanced briefly between where Sky sat and where the two girls now huddled together at the base of the stairs, thinking carefully before he spoke.

"She is clearly well acquainted with them. I am sure she only challenged you so foolishly because she was blinded by fear for their welfare. Perhaps they have become like sisters, or even daughters to her. Would it not be wiser to ensure they are kept safe and out of the hands of those who would seek enjoyment from them? We could take them with us to Erebor; put them to work in the kitchens. They'd have plenty to eat and would be out of the cold. The woman might not honour her part of the deal once she knows the men are free, but if we hold onto her friends, she will have no choice but to keep her word. If she tries to escape or attempts to harm one of us, it will be to their detriment, and she will have no-one but herself to blame."

She stared at Fili with resentment. Not a day would go by without fear of her former companions being grievously injured for any perceived recalcitrance. On the other hand, Thorin did not seem about to release them as he had the two men. Perhaps the prince's suggestion had been beneficial in regards to their safety. Only time would tell.

Thorin nodded to Fili, and the blond stepped forward to issue an order to the remaining guardsmen. Two picked up the girls' ropes and tugged them along behind as they clanked off, rounding the building and disappearing into the street adjacent. Sky watched them go pensively, shooting Leadawn an apologetic look which was returned with a neutral expression. She clearly couldn't decide whether or not she felt gratitude for being spared sexual assault or anger that the older woman had given up the location of their more vulnerable tribe members. Sky had never agreed with the Heath doctrine which stated that one often had to be sacrificed for the good of many. She refused to believe even now that she'd made a mistake in stopping Leadawn's attackers through giving Thorin what he wanted. There had been no other choice. She could not have stood by and watched her old friend be subjected to such atrocities simply to keep the location of the others a secret. If Thorin wanted them badly enough he'd find them anyway, sooner or later, and Leadawn had needed her right then and there.

She was broken out of her reverie by Kili taking hold of her bicep none too gently and marching her back down the stairs, following his uncle and brother. He kept glancing down at her, as though daring her to make any kind of move. So she did. Though it was smoothly disguised as a stumble. Kili grunted and winced as her foot landed hard on the instep of his own, much more heavily than possible for a mere accident. His grip slackened for a moment, and she took advantage of that to rip her arm away and reach up as though to use it to steady herself by way of his shoulder. Instead she 'accidentally' dealt him a glancing blow to his top lip and nose with her fingernails. He glared at her and she made a great show of apologising to him, but the triumphant glint in her eyes most likely told him a different story. Luckily for her, Fili called something out to his sibling from up ahead; the dark haired prince growled something under his breath before snatching her arm again – much tighter this time – and dragging her with him, limping ever so slightly, to where his kin were waiting for them.

Some squires – Sky wasn't sure dwarves had squires, but even if they didn't, she guessed that they were the equivalent of human squires – approached them with three of the most beautiful ponies she had ever seen. Bedecked in long silk caparisons and each protected by criniere, croupiere, flanchards, peytral and testiere presumably made of mithril, they looked every bit like Royal steeds. She cringed at her use of the word 'steeds'. She was in danger of sounding like bloody Princess Fiona from Shrek…. Her thoughts were rudely interrupted yet again by the youngest prince as without warning he seized her around the waist and slung her like a sack of flour over the front of his saddle. She bit back a cry of protest and instead made do with shooting daggers at him. He pretended to ignore her as he settled in behind her, gathering up the reins and kicking his mount into a canter to catch up with the King and Crown Prince who had ridden ahead aways, but the corner of his mouth had twitched up into a crooked smirk she would have just loved to wipe off his handsome face….

The soldiers fell into step around them and they moved out, heading once again toward the Lonely Mountain.

The Mountain that was soon to become her personal living hell.

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Author's Note: Thorin. You are a nasty, sinfully sexy bastard. Now go bathe so you can swamp everyone with your equally as sexy non-travel overpowered scent. Look out people, I think the next chapter will contain the really dirty, dark smut you've been waiting for…. I smell LEMONS IN THE NOT TOO DISTANT DISTANCE! MWUH HA HA HA HA! REVIEW PLEASE! OR YOU WILL BE FLOGGED!

Skywolf42, over and out. ;)

Armour Terms:

'Caparison' – cloth covering often used in conjunction with 'barding' (the generalised term for equine armour)

'Criniere' (also known as manefaire or crinet) – a set of segmented plates that protected the horse's neck

'Croupiere' (also crupiere bacul or crupper) – protection for the horse's hind quarters

'Flanchards' – protection for the horse's flank

'Peytral' – designed to protect the chest of the horse

'Testiere'(or chanfron; also spelled champion, chamfron, chamfrein, and shaffron) – medieval plate armour to protect a horse's head

Khuzdul Translation:

Salrȗna – slave; feminine singular

Much gratitude to Dwarrowscholar (not a Fanfiction pen name by the way; look them up on the general internet) who spent so much time putting together an actual English-Khuzdul DICTIONARY, which is what I used here.