Chapter Six

Thorin would never be sure when the gold madness had faded. He knew it was during the battle, but slaying that many orcs tends to run together in a hazy, blood tinted sort of way. All he knew was that one moment he was in Erebor, counting his gold, caressing emeralds the size of a babe and then he saw the Arkenstone glittering in the hands of that grubby, petty, WORM of a man. 'Damn that bowman and damn his burglar!'

'And there was another dead orc. That one had an arrow through his eye, Kili is on fine form today. Good for him. Wait? Damn who, now? Why would he ever, ever think that of Billa? She had saved his life. She had freed him from the dungeons of the Elvenking. She had….'

'SHE HAD STOLEN HIS ARKENSTONE! DAMN THAT BURGLAR!'

And he had sought retribution, he had…. Oh Mahal….. had tried to kill her!

She deserved it, that worthless harlot of a hobbit with her easy smiles and blinding optimisim..

Between beheading an orc and skewering a warg through the throat he knew that his burglar, Billa Baggins, caused him to smile, even now in the middle of all this carnage during a battle that he had a very, very large part in causing. But still the thought of a smile from the Hobbit lass made his heart flutter. Or was he seizing?

Must think on it again later, after all the orcs were dead, after Azog was dead.

Azog, he could see him through the fray, granted he was sitting on a six foot warg and was another four feet of shoulder and torso, not very hard to spot, and he was coming straight toward him. Azog jumped from his warg and smirked at him, Thorin felt a deep seated fear, he was not after the King. Azog was walking towards Fili and Kili. Mahal no, please not Fili and Kili!

"Fili, Kili! RUN" but his shout distracted him, even as it alerted his nephews and that damnable warg was on him, trying to snap him up in its jaws, again. But even as the white beast tried, Thorin knew he could not lose, not while Azog thirsted for his sister-sons heads. Azog would not take anyone else from Thorin. Not while he still drew breath. And with a mighty heave, Thorin Oakenshield caught the muzzle of the White Warg as it attempted to close over his head and neck. He pushed and he shoved as the beast tried to find purchase for its claws in his flesh. With one hand curled around its snout and another closed around its bottom teeth the King Under the Mountain gave a thunderous roar and twisted the beasts head to the side until he heard its wretched spine snap. The White Warg fell limp, never to hunt the Line of Durin again. Thorin does not have time to celebrate, 'Please be alright, my dear boys.'

Before Thorin can even a take a step towards Fili and Kili who lay before the Pale Orc, when had they fallen? Then he saw her, their Burglar, burst through the lines of dark creatures around them. She sprinted for his nephews and without hesitation, raised her letter opener to meet Azog's mace as he brought it towards his nephews' skulls. He cannot hear the words her lips are forming. But as she moves to loose Azog's weapon from his grip, he hears her battle cry.

"YOU WILL NOT TOUCH THEM!" and with her shout he watches her stab the Orc through his throat, again and again and again. Then he watches her laugh, a dark, hysterical sound that bubbles from deep in her gut and causes her to shake. Is this what he caused to happen to the small Shire lass? Had his adventure reforged her from a plowshare, to a sword?

"Billa" he shouted it to her, "Billa!" she must have heard him for she stopped and looked around herself. She looked so lost to his eyes, covered in blood and exhausted, so far from the green fields of her home. He opened his mouth again but his words stick in throat, his attention instead is drawn to the figure racing through the ranks behind Billa and his boys. An orc as pale as Azog, though not as large nor covered in as much carnage or scars, with his sword raised high and his target clear and before Thorin could begin running, he was upon her. And the orc brought his sword around to make quick work of removing the Halfling's head from her shoulders and she brought her blade up to meet it and with a great clang that shook Thorin to his bones, he watches her fly from the force of the blow. Thankfully her head is still attached though he can see the blood on her face and her eyes stay closed at her landing point several feet away.

And before the thing can reach Billa again, he's upon it, for so intent was it on her that it never once saw the great King coming. Thorin wrested its head from its shoulders with one great cleave of Orcrist. 'The goblin-cleaver indeed'.

As the foul creatures head settles on the ground, Fili and Kili cry out "The Eagles, Uncle! The Eagles have come!" and Thorin can see that the Eagles of Manwe are grabbing enemies from the field of battle and dropping them on others, even Beorn has come and is chewing his way through the ranks. These final allies and the death of their general, Azog, has caused the assembled Orcs to panic and begin to flee. They start to scatter and the Elves blow their hunting horns and ride from the archers point near the Ravenhill. It seems Thranduil means to give chase, good for him. Thorin has more important things to attend to, like his nephews, his company and his burglar.

Kili has half his face covered in blood and his brother draped over his shoulder to help him walk towards Thorin who is kneeling by Billa. He can't help but feel guilt that his nephews have escaped nearly unscathed, while Billa lays before him unconscious in the mud. But he can see the small body is still drawing breath and Dwalin and Balin have also found their way to his side again. Balin kneels down opposite of Thorin, leaning over to put an ear to Billa's chest, while Dwalin begins to signal to other members of the company. Thorin knows he should make Fili and Kili leave for the healing tents and even he must rest, for his head is ringing and his legs feel unsteady but he makes no move to rise and does not make them leave yet. First, he must see who would come to their King's side, who would still be on their feet. Who would still be breathing. After that, there would be time for healing and time for searching for those who did not, could not come.

"Uncle" Kili started from over his shoulder "is she alright?" and as he moves to inspect Billa's head wound, she groans and blinks her eyes. She looks wooly headed, as if she had a night with too much mead and when her eyes meet Thorin's he is sure she doesn't actually see him.

"Uncle" Kili whispers again, seeing Billa's hands move towards her hair, possibly due to the blood dripping in her eyes, "she's going to….."

"I see Kili." And Thorin's voice was a soothing rumble, the same voice he used on his sick nephews or a skittish pony, and he grabs her wrist to stop the motion. She whimpers.

Thorin hears it plain as day and if he can, then Balin and Dwalin can. The sharp intake of air behind him means Fili and Kili hear it as well. And as Thorin brings his eyes to meet Balin's, he can see the Ri brothers and Ur family, who have just wandered up none looking too worse for wear, must have heard it too or their eyes would not be so full of concern nor their frowns so deep.

And quietly she whispers "Don't hurt me. Don't kill me. I'm sorry Thorin." And just like the whimper they all hear her plea. And Thorin remembers. They all remember. 'Dear Mahal, what have they done? What has he done?' And on the battlefield the King Under the Mountain gathers the small body in his arms and weeps.

"Billa, I am so sorry." And though he whispers it every step towards the healers' tents, she does not hear him and though the Company follows him there in stony silence, she does not wake. All they can say is "What have we done? Mahal save us, what have we done?" and they cried for what their madness had wrought.