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Chapter 25

Thorin travelled as quickly as he could from Erebor to the outskirts of Dale on the presumption that Sara had returned to her secluded home. He had travelled unaccompanied on purpose. This was a journey of a dwarf who was following his heart, not as the King on official business. However despite not being in the company of another dwarf, he was not alone. He had his reliable pony under saddle and a messenger raven which flew ahead of him. The raven was a safety net of sorts and would allow him to send a message back to Erebor or to the Dale outpost should the need arise.

Throughout the journey which took the better part of a day, Thorin reflected on the events from the previous night and tried to understand where things went so wrong. The night had gone perfectly in the beginning. They had danced, drunk mead, and laughed. It was like no one else existed when she was near him. He was not sure if it was the magic of moonlight or the magic of Sara but he had confided in her deeply and opened his heart up to her as they stood just outside of the secret passageway under the stars of the nights sky.

If he closed his eyes he could still smell her sweet floral fragrance and feel the warmth of her soft lips upon his own. Even after the kiss he did not sense anything wrong. It was only after he presented her with a courting bead that she suddenly balked like a spooked animal and fled.

Thorin knew in his heart of hearts that the affection he felt towards the dwarrowdam was mutual. He did not understand her reasoning for fleeing him last night, nor did he understand her reasoning for fleeing Erebor. All Thorin knew was that he felt compelled to follow her.

Last night as he watched her exit the Great Hall, Thorin had thought it best to give her some space and try to speak with her in the morning. He bitterly huffed and scolded himself for such poor judgement, believing that he shouldn't have rested until matters between himself and Sara were resolved. Even if it meant further heartbreak for him, he did not want to leave any stone unturned.

Now faced with the inevitable conversation he was to have with Sara, Thorin was not sure what he planned to say. All he knew was that he couldn't leave things as they were. He was a stubborn dwarf after all and never accepted defeat lying down. Granted, Thorin had never been rejected in such a spectacular fashion before, but then again Sara was the first dwarrow he had ever sought to formally court.

Thorin's senses were on edge the closer he got to Sara's cottage. He was only a few miles away now. As he turned the pony down a narrow path his sharpe blue eyes caught a fast movement on the ground. He glanced towards the movement and what he saw struck cold fear into his chest. For it was the huge shadow of a dragon flying overhead. He was mortified when he saw the shadow cross the path ahead of him and looked up to see the flying beast heading in the direction of Sara's cottage.

Fear for Sara gripped every fibre of Thorin's system and he kicked the pony roughly to gallop on in pursuit.

He could not loose her.

He galloped all the way up to the clearing but pulled his reins harshly to halt in response to what he saw from a distance through the trees.

Never had he imagined to be greeted with such a foul and disturbing sight. For it was a dragon standing face to face with Sara. It only had to sneeze and she would be scorched to death. He was ready to charge in and slay the beast when he noticed that Sara did not look at all alarmed but at ease. He then heard it speak.

"Come, you have much to tell me about your stay at Erebor" the serpent said.
Thorin watched wide eyed from behind the scrub as it lowered its belly down in almost a submissive manner and allowed Sara to climb on its back before it flew off.

Thorin sat astride his pony dumbstruck in disbelief. He had never seen such a thing before. A dwarf ride a dragon? He felt like a mountain troll had stamped on his chest and forced all the breath out of his body.

Rage emanated from every pore of his being. His veins were protruding from his skin, his face was red and his fists were clenched to the point that his blunt nails drew blood from the palm of his hands.

He knew Sara felt a misguided pity for dragons, however he never in his wildest dreams expected this.

As he watched the beast take flight, Thorin went to grab his bow and arrow. It was a gift from one of the few Elves he had fought alongside some 50 years ago.

He swiftly took aim at the serpent's belly, but through the fire and smoke of Thorin's rage a mystical light came across him. If this had been 50 years ago, Thorin would have shot Sara and the dragon out of the sky immediately with a black arrow without hesitation, burnt the dwarrow at the stake, and then skinned the dragon and kept its hide as a morbid prize.

However he was Thorin Oakenshield, a mature King Under The Mountain. Much had happened in the last 50 years ruling his kingdom and Thorin had learnt to consider matters rationally and without the bias of emotion. In this moment when there was such an intense storm of emotion within, it was like his mind went into survival mode and switched off everything, allowing him to process what he saw purely based on facts. As such, he withdrew his aim and put the bow and arrow back into its holster.

Instantly he knew that there were only two possible explanations.

The first explanation was that Sara could be suffering from Dragon Spell. This was a known condition where an individual falls under a spell produced by a dragon through its deceiving words and hypnotic stare and the individual would be forced to believe the lies spoken by the dragon. Its spell was known to not just influence the victim, but also those around them.

The second explanation was that Sara was willingly meeting with the dragon and as such, was a traitor to her kin and guilty of treason.

Thorin now dismounted his pony, and tied it up to a tree. He cautiously walked towards the clearing where the dragon stood. He knelt down and picked up the dirt, letting it slowly run through his thick fingers as he looked above him for any sign of the flying beast. The sky was tinted the colour of pink and orange indicating that the sun was about to disappear.

Thorin silently contemplated.

If the first explanation was true, Sara was an innocent victim, and as such he was compelled to protect her. However this would also mean that she had no control over her actions, was doing the dragon's bidding, and could not be trusted. Furthermore it was entirely possible that she had been under the Dragon Spell her entire stay at Erebor. How clever of a dragon to seek to infiltrate the mountain with one of my own Thorin thought bitterly to himself. Not only did she have incredible access to everything under the mountain, but she also had access to himself and his family. Thorin instantly felt grave concern for Erebor and his kin. He also felt at a great saddened loss. As if this were all true, his connection with Sara was most likely a manipulation by the dragon and their feelings not real.

However if the second explanation was true, Sara was a traitor and guilty of treason. In this situation she would have been willingly doing the dragon's bidding. Clearly the dragon wants information from Erebor Thorin bitterly thought to himself, again feeling great unease about the safety of his people. He decided that under this explanation it was likely that she had willingly manipulated him and used the crown's invitation for her and the dragon's benefit. That while his feelings for her were not distorted by Dragon Spell, they were given under false pretences. In other words he had been played like a harp. This possibility made him feel utterly hurt and betrayed. Thorin then numbly acknowledged that the punishment for treason was a lifetime in the dungeons or death.

However Thorin had always considered himself to be a fair and just ruler. He did not wish to charge Sara with treason if she was indeed suffering from Dragon Spell and for all intensive purposes innocent. If this were true he could seek out treatment for her in the hopes of a good recovery.

To assess this, Thorin needed to get Sara back to Erebor and away from that dragon. He needed time to determine the truth as it was Sara's life was at stake, and possibly the safely of his people. He needed to know the dragon's plan.

Thorin also knew that if news was to spread of Sara's treacherous activity his people would demand swift justice. Therefore to give himself enough time to come to the truth, he needed to keep this secret for now.

With a whistle he summoned the messanger raven who flew down and perched itself on his shoulder. He quickly drew out a quill and a small piece of parchment and wrote a note. He then rolled it up and secured it to the raven's leg.

Thorin whispered to it in Khazalid before releasing it into the winds.

"Git kro alabrin. Erebor. Gand Dwailin".

With that he retreated back into the scrub with his pony and waited patiently.

A/N Git kro alabrin. Erebor. Gand Dwailin = Go black bird quick. Erebor. Find Dwailin.

The plot thickens!

I actually had trouble writing Thorin's reaction. I had several ideas penned and decided on this one above being the best fit for this story. I believe he would be deeply angry no matter what as he hates dragons so much. However the culpability of Sara in this varies based on how he looks at it. As you can see, he has not even considered that she is a Drakk Kazhunki yet! I think the only thing that stopped him from shooting/slaying Raegan on the spot was that he thought there was a possibility that Sara was "innocent".

Please R and R.