It had been two months now and you were still crying yourself to sleep almost every night. Your every thought were bent on him during the day and when you could get a few hours of sleep, your dreams and nightmares were of him too. Like a shadow, following your every footstep, he was haunting you. You had been in love before, but you couldn't compare it to what you were feeling right now. It was like a steel blade, cold and sharp, was stuck permanently in the middle of your chest. You couldn't breathe properly, couldn't concentrate, this vivid ache inside you making every day torture. Still, you were back in your town, back to work, trying to keep busy as much as you could. You couldn't believe it had only been two months when it felt like half of your life had passed you by. Time was passing excruciatingly slowly. Some days you thought you wouldn't survive to the next.

The company had been back on the road for a while now, since Dwalin was ready to travel a few days after you had left them behind. Since then, Thorin had been unusually quiet, mostly hanging by himself, not enjoying anyone's company, not even Dwalin's. So one morning Dwalin and Bofur, who each had a different point of view on the matter, decided to team up and confront Thorin.

"You look like shit." said Dwalin one morning.

"Thanks for that, I feel better already," answered Thorin.

"Have the shakes started yet? I've noticed you are eating less and less. It's gnawing at you, isn't it? The dull ache of arukhel is sinking in…" asked Bofur.

"I'm sure I don't know what you mean…" Thorin replied

"You'll have to come to terms with this, Thorin. There's nothing for it. You can't stop it from taking you over. It's going to come, it's going to be brutal, and you'll have to go to her," said Dwalin.

"It's nothing like that. I've just been a bit under the weather, that's all. Anyway, she doesn't want to have anything to do with us. There was a tiny misunderstanding with this whole 'braiding her hair' thing, and once your explained it, Bofur, I understood that she could not have known. But really - leaving us just because of that! It's an exaggerated reaction if you ask me and I think we're better off without her. One less thing to worry about."

Bofur let a condescending laugh escape him at that.

"Wow. You really are thick, aren't you?" said Bofur.

"Mind your tone, Bofur," warned Dwalin.

"You're in no position to tell me what's right or wrong, Dwalin!"

"What have I done?"

"It's you both, actually! I got pretty close to her during her time with us. We spoke of many different things, one of which was her feelings for you, Thorin. However, after that little 'encounter' at the waterfall..." Thorin winced when he realized Bofur knew about this. "She overheard you two talking… in her own words she said she heard you say that she was basically a Durin's heir whore, only trying to seduce you, and that she wasn't anything different from all the others that came before her. How could you say something so harsh and SO untrue?!"

Thorin's pained expression was heartbreaking. He looked to Bofur and then to Dwalin, not sure how he was supposed to answer that.

"She didn't stay for the whole of our conversation, did she?" said Dwalin.

"She said she heard enough and when she heard what Thorin really thought of her, she made up her mind to leave us. She just wanted to check on you one last time before she bolted," said Bofur.

"Shit! What a mess. Thorin was just fucking around really, still trying to pretend that he didn't care for her. If only she would've stayed for a few more minutes! I forced him to confront his feelings for her then…"

"How could I have known she was listening in on us?!" said Thorin, bewildered.

"Listen, Bofur, we've got to find a way to fix this. The need is going to wash over Thorin soon enough. It's taking a bit more time than usual because his One is so far away, but it will come and then… if he doesn't get to… well… you know what could happen!"

"Okay… I might have an idea how to turn this around. But we'll have to be quick about it. The longer we wait, the more time she has to move on. We leave right now because we'll have to make a stop before reaching her."

"We really should go straight to her, Bofur," said Thorin uneasily.

"If you want to do this right, you'll follow my lead. We need to stop at a blacksmith's forge first."

Another seemingly endless night came to an end. The sun was rising and it looked like a beautiful warm day out but that warmth didn't reach your heart anymore. You were like a spirit wondering around your shop, purposeless and hopeless. You dressed yourself and you opened up shop. You had left behind the idea of trying to eat in the morning a few weeks back. It just made you sick to your stomach and it reminded you of the effect he had on you, still. You were about to sit down and indulge in a small cup of tea when someone came knocking at the door. Well, this days sure is starting early, you thought to yourself, better this way. Perhaps it will go by faster.

As you moved toward to door, you felt your skin starting to prickle everywhere and a familiar heat rushed over you. All your senses were suddenly awaken after months of hibernation. You were not sure what was happening to you but you tried to shake it off and you opened the door. You were left standing there, staring ahead, unable to move or speak. Thorin Oakenshield was standing right there, inches away from you.

Without even lifting his eyes to meet your gaze, he stated in a low, unsure voice:

"My Lady. I…. I'm s- sorry to disturb you so early. I can o- only hope I didn't wake you."

"It's not like I sleep anyway. What can I do for you, Thorin?" you answered him in a dull voice.

The coldness of your tone had Thorin wincing visibly and he took a step back. You regretted talking to him that way the instant the words left your mouth. You were so confused right now. You didn't want to see his arrogant face but then you lifted your eyes to look at him. You felt weak in the knees and you just wanted to take him into a tight unending embrace and…

"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come." and Thorin turned to leave.

"No, Thorin, don't go! I'm sorry. This is no way to greet a guest. My apologies, do come in."

Thorin hesitated on the doorstep but then finally walked in, his head still hanging.

"I won't take too much of your time, my lady. I just… I c-came to… Oh, for Durin's sake, I can't do this!" he exclaimed, shaking his head and almost walking back out.

"What's wrong, Thorin? Please calm down. I know we don't get along so well but just say what you have to say. I promise I won't interrupt you."

"It's just… I mean don't be angry with Bofur, okay? He just wants to help and…"

"What has he said to you?" you let out a little exasperated.

"You said you would let me finish. He cares for you a lot. He told me what happened, that you… overheard Dwalin and I talking."

A furious blush came over your face. You couldn't believe your ears, but still you kept quiet.

"I was rude. I was really just messing around with Dwalin and our conversation finished on a whole different note, if only you would've stayed a bit longer…"

"On what different note?"

"What?"

"You said it ended on a different note. What did you say after?"

"Hmm… it's Dwalin really… he wanted me to… I don't remember very well…"

"Of course you don't. If that's all, Thorin, I'd appreciate it if you left me alone so I could start my day," you said, trying not to be too affected by how vulnerable Thorin looked in that moment.

"Of course. I'll be on my way, this was indeed, a bad idea. I-I just have… huh… t-this for you."

Thorin handed you a small piece of cloth that contained something heavier inside it. You looked at him questioningly and for the first time since he arrived, he looked up at you. I sharp pang pierced your heart then. He looked desperate and hopeful all at once, his deep blue eyes pleading you, pleading you for something, though you did not know for what. You swallowed hard and looked down at your hands to unfold the cloth. Your head snapped back up sharply.

"Where… how… where did you find this?" your voice only a tiny whisper as you looked on at the pendant in your hands with amazement.

"Hum, well, I just… I actually found it at a shop near the entrance of your city… It's nothing really, a small trinket I just wanted to apologize."

"A small trinket…" you pondered. "Thorin, do you know what this is? It is my family emblem, my family crest. It is very sacred. There is no way you could have found this in a shop in the city, I don't understand where you could have found this. Nothing like this has ever been forged…" and then comprehension dawned on you. Your eyes softened instantly and you couldn't help but take a step forward, getting closer to him.

"You're a blacksmith, yes?"

"Hum… y-yes my lady."

"Bofur told you about my handkerchief, didn't he. Thorin, did you forge this for me, with your own hands?" There was undeniable awe in your voice as you came to realize what he had done for you. As you examined the artwork in your hands you couldn't believe it. It was the most beautiful and thoughtful gift you'd ever received in your life. The symbol was forged in a delicate metal you'd never seen and a fine leather lace was running through a ring at the top of the symbol, so you could wear it around your neck. The time it most have taken him to do this, the mere fact that he thought to do this for you.

"That I did, my lady. I just felt… so…"

You briskly took a step forward and pressed a finger over his lips, shushing him in the process and causing Thorin's breath to hitch at the contact, his eyes growing wide. The same powerful and indescribable feeling that came over you when you fell atop him crept back into your body. You took your finger away, slowly and gently, before lightly kissing him on the cheek, careful to avoid touching his beard too much. When the softness of your lips touched the hot roughness of his skin, it sent electric pulses throughout your body and you almost whimpered. You wanted to stay there, this close, smelling him, touching him, and tasting him. You wanted more, you wanted it all. When you reluctantly moved away, Thorin was staring at you, his eyes darker than you had ever seen them before. It almost scared you but it also ignited an intense inferno deep inside your belly. You wanted him, all of him. So much it was hurting you just to look at him. You took another careful step forward without thinking, wanting nothing more than to kiss him full on the mouth, your breaths mingling together, hot and wet, but you saw the hesitation in his eyes. Thorin brought his shaking hands at the level of your shoulders, wanting perhaps to push you away, but he seemed unable to touch you.

"Please, don't."

"Oh! I'm…. sorry! I… I don't know what came over me… I just… thank you for the gift."

You turned on your heels, blushing furiously, when you felt his hand on your forearm. You looked back at him. He was staring at the place where his hand was touching your skin, his breathing was quite hard, his chest heaving up and down, and the heat… the heat coming off his hand was almost too much to bear. What was this? This intense energy between you two, there were no words to explain it. The air became thick and moist around you, so you could hardly breathe, the air burning your lungs. A dull ache was starting to build in your core, wetness pouring between your legs. You felt overcome by an intense feeling of lust, pure desire, raw and all-consuming, and you were quite certain you could die from the force of it all, if he didn't touch you more, right this instant.

Thorin's gaze moved up your arm, slowly, caressing every inch of your skin as if it were his mouth on you, driving you mad, up your shoulder, up your neck, over your parted lips and then he licked his lips lavishly before his penetrating gaze met yours. Your heart was beating so fast, you could hear it thumping in your ears. Thorin looked like he was very very close to losing all of his tightly held control, but he took a deep steadying breath before taking a hesitant step toward you.

"I can't be near you when I'm in that state. It's too much… too powerful…"

"But I… I don't want you to go." You finally admitted to him and to yourself.

"You don't know what you are saying. The implications of this…"

You took another step toward him and you tried to swing both your arms around his neck to bring him into an embrace, but Thorin sharply grasped your other forearm in his strong hand, stopping you short. You almost yelped when he did, his grip on you so tight it was almost painful. But still, your need for him was overpowering everything else so you still leaned in bringing your lips dangerously close to his.

"Thorin… please…" you breathed, which pulled a strangled moan from his throat and he shut his eyes tight, trying to keep his need at bay.

"I can't!" He forcefully pushed you away. You fell back on the floor, in shock, while Thorin made his rapid escape through the door, leaving it open in his wake and you could see a very surprised Bofur staring back at you from the other side of the door.