I know i'm a little late today, couldn't figure out the ending. Enjoy

Ch 21 Gemstones

Thorin only made it to the dining before his legs threatened to give out on him. He needed food and to get off his feet before making his way up the many flights of stairs to his rooms. There was still some food left over on the tables, left for those who didn't make it to the lunch setting, and he slumped down at one of the tables; his forehead landing on the wood with a thump.

"I take it the Captain wasn't appreciative of female protectiveness."

Rolling his head to the left, Thorin saw Frerin sitting down the table. "What are you doing here?"

"Our tutor decided I needed to recite the first chapter of dwarf traditions before I was allowed lunch." Frerin stood and slid his food down the table until he was across from Thorin.

"Your tutor, I no longer need one." His head rolled face down again and the words were muttered into the wood.

"Yes, lucky you. Are you done for the day or is this a brief respite?"

"Done, I wasn't allowed a break until now."

Frerin grinned at the picture of weariness Thorin presented, it was his fault for telling Dis who was training him. She was very protective of her brothers. "Can you make it upstairs?"

"Eventually."

The plate of food was pushed across the table along with the drink and Thorin propped his chin up. "Eat that, I'll grab more food." Frerin glared at his brother until a hand reached up and grabbed some meat, then walking down to the end to grab another plate and drink.

Thorin nibbled on the food, his head propped up in his other hand and elbow on the table. Mahal, how was he going to do this again tomorrow? Frerin sat down again and began to eat again. Silence fell between them, nothing to say and both needing the nourishment after a long day. Halfway through his food, Thorin rested his cheek against the table and closed his eyes. In his mind, he saw Lapis and how he had left her in bed, all tucked in and comfortable. Had she done anything today? Was she lonely? Obviously Frerin hadn't been able to check on her, being in a similar position with his tutor as Thorin had been with Captain Gatik. It was then he remembered the little pebble looking item he had stuck in his pocket.

His hand patted the pocket down until his fingers found the small nugget and Thorin opened his eyes to inspect it closer. It was round and bumpy, glossy and an iridescent white color, it was a stone he had never seen before. His actions had Frerin looking over at him and inspecting the little stone the best he could.

"What is that?"

"I have no idea."

Thorin rolled it between his fingers, remembering when Lapis cried and her tears falling into a hard substance. Was this what it was and how had he not notice them before? Then again, she had kept him decently distracted and it was possible she hadn't known the significance of tears changing into something else. It was beautiful and he wondered if there were more scattered in his bed. Sitting up, Thorin swallowed the last of his drink and picked up the plate to take back to his room. He looked down where Frerin had walked down before and saw a small pile of meat and bread on a large platter. Filling up the plate high, he returned down the table and looked at Frerin.

"If father asks, I'm going to bed."

"Are you actually going to sleep?" A smile tugged at Frerin's lips.

"If I can help it, I have to remember to lock my door this time." At the curious look, Thorin added "Captain decided to take it upon himself to wake me this morning." Frerin's eyes bugged out, his mouth dropping open and Thorin nodded. Both knew the implications if Lapis had been found and neither needed to say it out loud.

"Sleep well."

Thorin left the hall at Frerin's parting words, plate in hand and the stone back into his pocket. He could only hope Lapis would let him sleep, even his bones ached right now. The climb back to his rooms seemed even longer today and his legs were dragging up the last of the steps. Why was the royal wing so far from the main floor? Thankfully, his room wasn't much further and Thorin trudged on, determined to not sit down in the hallway where he was and fall asleep. Pushing open the door open, he saw nothing out of the ordinary except there was no fire lit which didn't bother him, it meant no one had come into his rooms. Shutting the door behind him, Thorin looked curiously at the open bedroom door. He never left it open, even before Lapis appeared in his rooms.

With his free hand, Thorin pushed the door open the rest of the way and looked around the room from the light of the torch left from the morning. The bed looked empty upon first inspection and he shut the door and moved closer, setting the plate on the side table before throwing the covers to one side. She wasn't there. With a frown, he looked around the room to see if she had already carved out an exit. There wasn't on in sight and panic rose in his chest. Where was she? A noise behind him caught his attention, something Thorin couldn't identify and was coming from the bathroom. He stormed over and threw the door open, some of the light spilling into the room and lending aide to his searching eyes. The sound was louder and he frowned, unable to catch where it was coming from.

A sniffle caught his attention and Thorin looked at the tub, now knowing it was Lapis and she was crying again. Carefully walking forward, so he didn't frighten her again, he called out to her softly.

"Bunmel."

At the edge of the tub, Thorin peered down and saw her wrapped up in a sheet at the bottom, dozens of the little round pebbles surrounding her. He descended the steps and slid down next to her, pulling the sheet from her face and revealing bloodshot eyes that made hers appear like they were on fire. He cupped her face in his hands and rubbed his thumbs along her cheekbones.

"My mimuslukh, what happened?" The last time she had cried was after what Thorin assumed was a nightmare that she refused to speak of, it was safe to think the same had happened again. But Lapis shook her head at him and crawled into his lap, nuzzling into his chest as the tears slowed down. "I can't help you if you don't tell me what happened." Her head shook against him and he sighed, there was no way to force the information out of her.

Scooping her up, Thorin climbed out of the tub and over to the bed where he laid her down before going to the bedroom door, shutting and locking it. On his way back to the bed, he stripped off all his clothes and crawled into his bed; unwrapping Lapis from her cocoon and tucking her into his body before covering them with a blanket. He needed a bath since he was covered in sweat from training but right now, his One needed comfort. Thorin laid on his back with her curled up at his side, half laying across him with her head above his heart. She had stopped crying and was drifting off to sleep with Thorin stroking her hair with one hand and his other arm wrapped around her waist. Whatever was haunting his dragon was a mystery and it hurt Thorin to think there was something he couldn't fix for her, that she had to be in this pain. Soon, his eyes fluttered shut at the sound of her even breathing.

He woke to a tongue scraping up his pec and Thorin moaned, cracking an eye opened to see Lapis straddling and licking him. Apparently, his body wasn't tired as much as he had thought, his painful erection nudging her butt as she slid down him. "What are you doing?"

"You taste delicious."

Thorin had no idea why but that sent a shot of lust to his groin and he groaned loudly as her tongue traced the ridges of his abs. "I'm sweating, I need to clean up."

"No, you smell good, like a mate."

Propping himself up on his elbows, Thorin watched in a daze as she continued to lick down his body. She must be attracted to whatever he smelt like usually, just enhanced from his training. He was a little surprised Lapis still wanted to have sex after the last few days, Thorin was sure she would've worn herself down by now. It was like becoming pregnant had sent her into a heat and she couldn't stop herself. Her core slid over his member, coating it with wetness before she lifted her body up and moved down his legs to sit on his knees. This had Lapis eye level with his erection that twitched under her gaze and she leaned in, licking up the underside and making Thorin fall back onto his pillow.

Thorin was awake again and he felt the bed next to him for Lapis and found it cold. He sat up and looked around the room, not seeing her but the bath room door was open again. Naked, he crossed the floor and looked in to see his dragon staring at a wall in the corner.

"Is there something there?"

She turned, her gold eyes shining in the dark and they danced over Thorin's body, making his cock rise up to attention.

"Not something, but this would be the best spot to create an exit to outside."

He came up behind her and looked at the wall, "What is so special about it?"

"There is nothing above or below that could cause a shift and it could lead out towards the back of the mountain."

Being towards the top of the peak, he could only imagine the drop and knew there wasn't a chance of him using the exit unless he had no other choice. "Did you want to start?"

"You would not mind?"

He smiled at her and kissed her cheek, "Not at all, just don't make too much noise. I'll be taking a bath while you do that," Thorin stepped away before stopping. "What time of night is it?"

"The moon is high, I would be coming out right now to hunt."

He had enough time to bath and fall back asleep before Gatik came to wake him, or Thorin assumed he would be again. Anything was possible. He stooped at the faucet and cranked the nozzle, after a few seconds, water poured out and Thorin made to stand when a strange sound echoed in the room. Not able to see the bottom of the tub in the dim light, he stripped his clothes, turned the water off, and carefully stepped down the steps until he reached the bottom. One foot churned the water and felt little pebbles brushing his foot and then he realized, Lapis had been crying in the tub earlier. Kneeling down, Thorin blindly scooped some of them up with one hand. They felt the same as the one he had been inspecting earlier and he stood, climbing the steps and held out his hand to Lapis who had come over to the bath.

"Do you know what these are?"

She looked at the objects in his hands curiously, "No? What are they from?"

Thorin stared at her just as curious, "From you, when you cry these fall from your eyes. Have you never noticed before?"

"I've never cried before these last several days."

He stood quietly as she picked on up and rolled it between her fingers. She had never cried? Did she understand what the action meant? He couldn't imagine her being alive for so long and not shedding a tear for anything.

"These are…gems? No, they are precious but not jewels. A stone maybe, a gemstone."

Thorin wasn't sure what to make of them, if they were worth money, it would help them later. Picking up his shirt, he descended into the tub again and gathered the rest of them on the garment and tied it up. He would put them away, hidden just in case.

Same thing again, there is another smut scene written and will be sent upon request.