Tiger DeRanged. I hope this is updated soon enough for you :D I have a weekend off work so you may even get a couple of chapters it depends if I can get the characters to play nicely. I can't promise any of their relationships will go anywhere anytime soon, have you guessed who I'm trying to set up with who yet? I'd love your opinion on what you think of the pairings if you have. Thank you for your kind words, they made my day, I'm glad you like my work.

Yana5 :-)

FallenDarkness666. I am beginning to think you are cruel, your mind is as warped as mine :). Welcome to the fun:P As you have probably guessed Ori at least won't be awkward. I am glad you are still following the story. I might have Fi and Ki blow something else up for you.

AN: I don't own any of the characters, I just play with them. Please let me know what you think of the story so far, I live for your reviews. I promise they will leave Rivendale at some point I am just having too much fun with them being safe at the minuet.

Chapter Twenty Five

Having been awoken by Bilbo's yell the company sat and stared open mouthed at an oblivious Ori, who was still dancing around Bilbo and the Durin brothers and had moved from grinning onto chuckling manically. Bilbo decided the stone floor was much more interesting than his friend currently acting like a tween and pressed his forehead onto the cool surface. Fili stiffened when his brother buried his face into his chest and burst into giggles at the sight of the scribe. Dori and Nori were looking at each other and then at their brother in complete confusion. Gloin was grumbling under his breath about not being able to recapture his dream of home, yet it wasn't until Ori's dancing made him knock the last of the red tea to the floor and the scent of Hibiscus flooded the room that anyone else remembered their dreams. Suddenly everyone was alert, even the sight of Fili and Kili jumping apart could provide any light relief, Ori was still dancing despite the growing tension in the room and Bilbo thought he better get the scribe to sit down. He scrambled to his feet, shirt hanging loosely off one shoulder, it's fineness showing the shadow of the tattoo underneath, diving for Ori. "Stop it." He hissed in the scribes ear, "act sane please", he looked at the now still scribe, "Awww don't pout Ori." The scribe merely looked at him with huge pathetic eyes, "I had a nice dream," the bottom lip jutted out and quivered, "why can't I be happy about that?" the sparkle in his brown eyes caused Bilbo to twig onto what the scribe was doing, "fine Ori," he sighed "dance away and find out why everyone else looks so…" he trailed off and took in the rest of the company, "traumatised." He pushed Ori towards Dwalin, "I will start breakfast."

It was into a strange scene that Gandalf walked not twenty minutes later. Ori was bouncing on the balls of his feet between his brothers, trying to tug Dwalin to his feet, both the scribe and warrior wearing matching expressions of stubbornness. While Nori had his head in his hands hiding his glowing face and being less than helpful to Dori who kept trying to pull Ori away. Bilbo was hovering over the cooking fire, with his back to the rest of the company. Fili and Kili were at opposite ends of the room, looking at anyone but the other. Thorin was curled up with his head on his knees (Gandalf was sure he was muttering something about not forcing quite happy), being talked at loudly by Balin and Oin, and obviously ignoring them. Bofur was sitting with his hat pulled as low as he could on his head, he appeared to be sitting with Bombur listening to the large, red haired dwarf who had a sappy expression on his face. Gloin was staring at his open locket and grinning stupidly as he stroked the images in it. Bifur seemed perfectly relaxed, smiling slightly across at the sight of a glowing Nori, whilst muttering "Miz meri, miz azki." Shaking his head the wizard walked cautiously over to the seemingly unaffected hobbit, he was wary as the last time he'd been in Bilbo's presence he'd been figuratively handed his head on a plate. He looked around the room as he came to a stop beside the smaller man and wondered if it was a good idea to let any of the company in the same room as an elf that day. When he looked back to Bilbo, he jumped a foot in the air to see the hobbit standing directly in front of him, peeling knife pointing at his nose. "erm," Gandalf began, "I was…" he trailed off as Bilbo snorted and turned from him, the knife falling inches from the wizard's boots, "Bilbo Baggins don't turn your back on me," he shouted drawing the attention of the thirteen dwarfs, who until that moment hadn't realised he was present. That Bilbo still ignored him stoked the wizard's temper. Bilbo for his part had deliberately walked away from the wizard, not wanting to lose the happy glow from his dream, even if it was Thorin who had gave him it. So ignoring the wizard's shout he headed over to the dwarfen king and flopped down next to him, to Thorin's surprise. Bilbo shuffled slightly to get comfortable and drew his knees to his chest, wrapped his arms around them and rested his chin on them. Back turned to Gandalf he deliberately copied Thorin, letting the wizard know subtlety and unsubtly that he was still in the dwarfs' camp. Thorin leant in unconsciously, and Balin and Oin crouched down next to them. As if this was a catalyst the, uncomfortable feeling spread around the company left rapidly as they crowded around their leader and their burglar, shielding them from the wizard's view. Gandalf huffed and turned sharply on his heel left the room, coming dangerously close to flounce away from the company.

Bilbo waited until the hem of his grey cloak turned the corner, "I swear down that Istari exists merely to piss people off Master Oakenshield." He rolled his shoulders back making the dwarfs wince as they popped, and face Thorin squarely "since you made such an excellent breakfast yesterday would you help me today?" he asked innocently.

It took a lot of work on Bilbo's side but it seemed to him by the time the dwarfs were fed that the uncomfortable atmosphere had disappeared. Yes they still wouldn't meet each other's eyes, and yes Fili and Kili still kept either Ori or himself between them, but at least everyone was talking to each other, and no one was wearing stupidly soppy expressions, or shouting. He sighed in relief and rolled his shoulders again. His bruises were giving him pain again, his healing slower than that of his dwarfen friends. He knew Ori, Fili and Kili were as good as healed by now, those with burns were merely itchy by this point, but his own bruises were still a dark mottled purple blue, only starting to show signs of turning greeny-yellow. He pushed to his feet, biting back a wince and grabbed his pack. Ignoring the protests from Fili and Kili, along with the questions from several of the company he made his way into the curtained off bathing area. As the gauzy curtain sung down behind him the company looked at each other curiously.

Bifur rolled his eyes as several of his fellows wouldn't meet each other's eyes, it was getting ridiculous, they all needed to get over their embarrassment or whatever it was they were feeling. He didn't know what was wrong with the group but if Ori and himself had enjoyed their dreams, if Gloin and Bombur had dreamed of home and their one, the rest of the company probably had interesting dreams as well. He wanted to dwell on his dream without having to deal with the stupidity of the rest of them. They were all adults (well all bar Kili), but they were acting like tweens, he tilted his head and looked around the group again, sighing he pushed to his feet and ignoring the rest of the company who were staring after Bilbo made his way from the veranda. He allowed his feet to take him where they would. In his hands he held a withered, almost dead posy of small white flowers. He stopped walking at some point, where he neither knew nor cared.

Nori's head snapped round just as Bifur rounded the corner out of sight. The star haired dwarf, counted heads curiously, wondering what had made him come back to the present. The rest of the company were sitting in a group still, in relative silence, not one of them had actually gone after Bilbo to check he was okay. Nori didn't feel he stood on good enough ground to do so himself , but he thought his brother or the Durin lads could have gone, besides if Bilbo just wanted to escape them for a bit he couldn't blame the hobbit, they had all been acting weird (well weirder than normal) since they got to Rivendell. When Nori realised who had gone he, got curious. Much as he liked Bilbo he was more curious as to why Bifur would have wandered off without telling anyone. Nori wasn't stupid, he was just a cautious dwarf, but as he sat there wondering why Bifur had wandered off something clicked inside his brain. His jaw dropped ad he groaned out loud startling Dori and Ori from their own trances. Shaking off his younger brother's gentle hand and ignoring his older brother's glance, Nori pushed unsteadily to his feet. As he walked for the veranda, his fingers went into his hair, unbraiding it with practised ease. The auburn mass fell down to his mid back as it slowly unravelled. Uncaring that he was walking the halls of a potential enemy Nori allowed his mind to wander, he dwelt brief on what he had dreamed the night before, relishing the feel of those fingers. It moved swiftly to dwell on more realistic touches, rough fingers soothing a healing balm over his skin, a hand on his hip supporting him when he was unsteady, a friendly push, and the brush of skin when comparing blades. All innocent by themselves but adding up to more when combined. Nori sighed and came to a stop in a clearing. He perched on a stone seat, the cool of the stone seeping through his under trousers while the heat from the morning sun fell across his face and seeped through his rough spun shirt. He tilted his head back allowing more of the sun's rays to fall on his face, his hair a weight down his back.

A hand in his hair startled him, as he had heard no one approach, it was the voice and smell, rather than the spoken words that stopped him with a hand on a dagger. The fingers brushed hesitantly through the auburn length, gentle and unsure. He stifled a groan, his eyes fluttering closed and leant in to the familiar touch. It was unbecoming he knew, unbecoming and forbidden, but the touch felt of home. A warm body was sitting on the bench next to him. A knee pressed against the small of his back, another against his own knee. A second hand, brushed the hair from his face softly. "Likkag ath bar ar, miz azki," the words were spoken softly, so quietly that Nori felt them against the skin of his cheek rather than heard them. He shivered slightly and turned to face the person seated next to him. "Miz Azki Bifur?" he asked. The older dwarf started to pull away, a question and fear in his eyes. Nori rushed to grab his bare hands in his own, toppling them both from the bench onto the planked floor. He landed underneath Bifur, automatically resting his hands on the other dwarf's hips to steady him. Bifur was straddling him, his face inches from Nori's own. "Ai," whispered Bifur his breath brushing Nori's lips, "Miz Azki!" the older dwarf stressed, the fear gone from his eyes now, their dark depths showing heat and certainty, he dragged his eyes from Nori's own down to the auburn haired dwarf's lips and back up, "Miz azki," he repeated softly, hi seyes softened the heat still visible but tinged with a softer emotion now, "Uz?" he questioned. Something in Nori snapped. He tilted his head again, bring his lips with in touching distance of Bifur's. "Ohr leibzen azki," he gasped out before pressing his lips against Bifur's. Nori groaned at the sensation a simple kiss flooded his body with, as he groaned his lips parted and Bifur took the opportunity to nip gently at the bottom lip. Nori tightened his grip on Bifur's hips. Nori was lost. He was heedless of his loose hair spread out around him, he was heedless of Bifur's shorter hair falling around them like a silver streaked, dusky curtain. All he could concentrate was Bifur's finger tips moving against his scalp and sending sparks of pleasure into his blood, the strong hand on his side that was slowly pushing his rough spun shirt up, trailing callused finger tips against his bare skin and turning his bones to jelly. He tried to gain some control by deepening the kiss, but when Bifur responded by nipping his way down Nori's long neck all the thief could do was groan and arch his back giving Bifur more access to his skin. He gasped as he felt Bifur's sharp canines sink into the juncture of his shoulder and neck, then moaned loudly as the older dwarf soothed the bite with his tongue.

Bifur pulled back and looked down at Nori sprawled out beneath him. His normally perfect hair was mused, his vivid green eyes were unfocused, his lips kissed red, and the mark he'd made stood out vividly against the thief's pale skin. He was amazed this was happening, he'd known for a while he liked the middle Ri brother, but had never dared dream that he would have the feelings returned. He dipped his head and pressed a gentle kiss against Nori's lips, slowly bringing the auburn haired dwarf back down to earth. Gentle fingers touched his face and Bifur smiled softly when he saw his own wonder reflected in Nori's green eyes. Nori's fingers sprawled on his chest over his rapidly beating heart and he returned the gesture. They stayed silent and still, just looking at each other for a long while until Nori surged forward again catching Bifur's mouth with his own.

Bilbo groaned as he stripped off his clothing, he glanced down at his body. It was definitely still mottled black and purple. He wince, most likely not a good look to be showing any of the company. He had just started getting them to respect him. He assumed that to still be bruised as badly as he was would lower him in most of their eyes. After all he reasoned dwarfs healed fast. He sank into the hot water, biting back a gasp as the heat came into contact with his grazes and bruises. Forcing himself lower he sank down until the water covered his shoulders. Soon the heat started to sooth his aches rather than add to them, and he allowed himself to relax against the side of the tub. Resting his arms lightly against the side of the bath he settled comfortably on the seat running around the edge. Deciding to turn the pain into something bearable Bilbo ran his hands over his skin. He was used to doing this at home, it distracted his mind and he needed to distract his mind he had too many thoughts on top of the pain. He imagined callused hands caressing him, strong fingers grabbing his hips and arse, he imagined the bruises were formed by pleasure rather than in pain. He moaned and whimpered uncaring of anyone hearing as the heat, his own hand and imagination gradually lulled him into a sense of peace and he drifted in his mind, not quite awake nor yet fully asleep. He failed to notice the gauze curtain shift and Thorin join him in the bath.

Thorin had been sitting staring at the gauze where Bilbo had disappeared from view, mulling over what he had learnt about the hobbit so far. He wasn't stupid and the clues his dream had given him had made him curious. He would admit to being attracted physically to the smaller man from the moment of meeting him, but he was surprised to have had him feature in (what for an unbonded dwarf was) a rather risqué dream. From listening to his sister (and since the start of this quest Gloin and Bofur) talk about finding their One, he had found out about a Khanneh Mornit, and his dream last night had seemed to follow all the hints they had given. From the smells and sounds to the touches. It seemed that his dwarfen mind had picked the hobbit as his One, even if he himself had only just started to form any kind of bond with the man. His keen ears picked up the small whimpers of pain and unbidden his feet took him through the curtain. Deaf to the shock of the other dwarfs Thorin had stepped through the gauze to find it took his eyes a few seconds to adapt to the still dark warm bathing room. When they had he could see the haphazard piled cloths by the door and Bilbo reclining in what appeared to be almost steaming water. The smell of Bilbo's healing herbs hit Thorin's nose and he felt almost compelled to join the company burglar in the bath. They were travelling companions and as company leader he was entitled to make sure all of his men were in good shape, guilt ate at him as he took in the hand shaped bruise on the hobbits collar bone. He had obviously failed that task if one of his company could keep such bruising hidden from him. He remembered that Bilbo had admitted to being bruised only a couple of days before and so pushing his dream and new revelation to the back of his mind, Thorin stripped off and settled into the bath next to the hobbit. He winced at the heat of the water and reached out a hand to gently touch Bilbo's elbow. He wasn't expecting the yelp, or splash the hobbit made as he was brought back to reality and so fell off the bench himself. He surfaced to see an open mouthed, red faced Bilbo staring at him. A loaded silence fell between them as Bilbo desperately tried to cover his piercing and tattoo and Thorin stood and stared. "Right," squeaked Bilbo before clearing his throat and grinning wickedly. The grin sent heat pooling in Thorin's lower belly and he shifted slightly, as Bilbo swept his eyes down his wet chest, licking his lips as he did. When the hobbit took an almost unconscious step towards him Thorin let out an unkingly gasp and took a step back. Bilbo's grin deepened and Thorin could swear his eye colour did also, the hobbit taking another step towards him drove this from his mind and he stepped back again. Bilbo uncrossed his arms and made a seemingly unconscious gesture that drew Thorin's eyes to the stud in his nipple. Thorin's eyes widened as flashes of his dream came flooding into his mind, distracted he failed to see Bilbo step closer to him again. A warm hand on his arm had him stumbling backwards until he was brought up sharp by the feel of cold marble across his shoulder blades. He gasped as Bilbo bracketed him in, the muscle arms pressing against the stone bath either side of Thorin's waist. He knew he was breathing deeply, yet he couldn't pull his mask into place as he stared into the now green-navy eyes of the young hobbit in front of him. He felt the muscles in Bilbo's arms flex against his sides and he shuddered, his eyes travelled down Bilbo's face to his plump lips and Thorin unconsciously licked his own. "Now Master Oakenshield," whispered Bilbo, his voice husky and sleepy, "You shouldn't creep up on a person when they are bathing," Thorin's mind stopped when he felt a cold blade against the outside of his thigh, "it could get you hurt. Especially when said person has only just started to trust you." Thorin stared at Bilbo, willing himself to not find the situation attractive and make it worse for himself. He realised he was fighting a losing battle when Bilbo trailed long fingers across his stomach under the water and walked them up his chest. He shut his eyes and breathed deeply through his nose, focusing on calming himself. A low splash made him open his eyes and he found himself looking at Bilbo's bare back, he trailed his eyes down the blue and bronze tattoo, cursing the trousers that blocked his view. Bilbo turned slightly giving him another glance of that piercing as he pulled his shirt over his head, "Master Oakenshield," he breathed, stepping closer to the bath again, " I would appreciate it if you would keep quiet about the piercing and tattoo." He waited for Thorin to nod before sweeping from the bathing room.

Thorin watched him go open mouthed. He was shocked, turned on and in awe all at once. Bilbo's voice floated back to him through the gauzy curtain, "Your uncle is fine Kili. I didn't kill him. Get OFF me Fi. No Ori, Just No! No Dwalin the king does not want company. No Oin he does not need medical help. Gah Gloin that's just wrong! Balin make them stop." The pleading tone in the hobbit's voice sent Thorin over the edge. Satisfied he wouldn't be disturbed and unperturbed if he was Thorin waded deeper into the water. He closed his eyes and imagined Bilbo's hands on his skin. He pulled the dream to the front of his mind and ran a callused hand down his muscled stomach, he braced a hand on the edge of the seat as he moved his hand lower, remembering Bilbo dragging his fingertips across his lower stomach, and he gasped at the sparks of pleasure rushing through his body. The scent of lavender was heady as it swirled up from the steaming water. He focused on his dream feeling long clever fingers stroking the inside of his wrist, he imagined them moving over his skin as those soft lips kissed his neck. He imagined the hands moving across his chest, and down his stomach as the kiss deepened, he pushed his imagination beyond the end of his dream and pictured the hands moving lower, finger nails digging in to his hips as those lips kissed down his throat. He ran his hand lower, feeling himself harden as he did, he imagined Bilbo kissing across his stomach and the scar that ran over his ribs, he groaned softly as his head tipped back as he grasped himself, the sensations entirely new.

"What the hell happened to YOU!?" The sound of his nephew shrieking like a girl broke through his lust addled brain. Swearing loudly Thorin forced himself to think of anything that would return him to his normal state. Dragging himself from the bath, Thorin dressed quickly as soon as he was able, throwing on his clothes haphazardly over his wet skin. As he walked through the gauzy drape, his own mouth fell open at the sight in front of him.

Translations.

Khanneh Mornit- Seeker Sleep.

Ohr Leibzen Azki –I am your spy.

Uz-us

Ai-yes

Likkag ath bar ar-like liquid red gold.