avatarange: I've updated my fic on AO3 as well and there I've added a story where I've included all the pictures that go along with it. I do hope that will help you with envisioning the story. /works/14129937

Chapter 26: A visit to prison

Bilbo couldn't remember the last time he had slept so great. When he woke up there was only a little amount of light in the room, suggesting that it was close to dawn. Allie had her head placed in the crook of his neck and her arm circled around his waist. She was still sleeping and Bilbo didn't dare to wake her.

It felt incredibly right to be able to hold Allie like this and he still couldn't believe that she felt the same way about him. For a minute there he had almost thought this had been another dream, but he was wide awake and Allie had asked him to spend the night here.

At the age of fifty Bilbo had never expected that he would have found love in his life. He was already way too old for hobbit standards. Most of them already had lots of children of their own and Bilbo was only just experiencing a love that felt so pure and honest. He wasn't sure as if love between two people always felt like that, but he didn't want to change a thing between him and Allie.

He felt his heart fluttering by simply observing Allie's sleeping face. There was still that doubt that lived inside his mind that made him wonder why someone like Allie would ever choose to be with him when she could do so much better. He was nothing more than a gangly hobbit who could barely defend himself, but for some reason Allie saw that there was more to him. She genuinely cared for him and Bilbo was more than grateful for this change between the two of them.

Allie stirred slightly in her sleep and Bilbo cautiously traced a pattern on her cheek. It brought a smile on Allie's lips and he knew that she was awake. "What are you doing?" she asked quietly, her voice almost a mix between a growl and whisper.

"Just starting the day in a very pleasant way," Bilbo answered honestly and he meant it.

Allie hummed, content. "I was thinking about something earlier," she said. "What exactly did you see when you went up above the trees?"

"I saw trees as far as the eyes could see in every direction. I was also able to see the Lonely Mountain and a huge lake that lay before it. It was nice to see sunlight again and there were many different butterflies up there. It was a beautiful sight really."

"That sounds nice," Allie said. "We are indeed closer to Erebor than we think. It's just so foolish that we're stuck in here while we should be getting to the mountain. Every day we waste here we are getting closer to Durin's Day."

"There's still enough time for that, right?"

"Durin's Day is only a couple of weeks away, Bilbo. We don't have that much time sadly enough. Which is why we have to think of a way of getting out this dreadful forest, its driving me nuts."

"We will think of something, Allie," he responded hopefully. "First we're going to pay a visit to the dungeons today. I suggest that you inform the servants that you're going to the library today. Surely they won't follow you there, which will give us the perfect opportunity to go elsewhere without them seeing."

Allie had to say that idea wasn't a bad one. She leaned upwards so that she could look Bilbo directly into his eyes. She brought one hand up and used that to cup Bilbo's face. "So, you'll be following me then?" Bilbo nodded. "That's great. Just stay here until the servants deliver breakfast. There is no need for you to go search it yourself, there will be plenty." Allie planted a soft kiss against his lips. "Good morning, you."

Bilbo could only kiss her back. He couldn't wish for a finer morning. He did break away from her when there came a knock on the door.

"I suggest you put on your ring real quick," Allie said, getting out of bed. Bilbo reached for it on the nightstand and slipped it on his finger, and disappeared. Allie then opened the door and immediately two servants came in.

"We came here to bring you breakfast," the blonde one said as she placed the tray on the table. "Can we help you with getting dressed, Milady?"

Allie shook her head. "No, I'm fine. I think I can do that by myself." The other woman went towards the bed, with the intention of cleaning the bedding. "There is no need for that. In fact I was wondering something. Can I spend the day at the royal library?"

"Of course, Milady. We will bring you there when you're ready. We'll be outside." With that they left the room again.

When they were gone Bilbo took off the ring again and appeared beside Allie. "You weren't lying about this amount of food," Bilbo said, his mouth watering at the cake that stood on the table.

"Of course, I wasn't. Do take whatever you need. I know you haven't had a good meal in a very long time," Allie replied. "There is enough."

Bilbo sat down at began to eat while Allie rummaged through the closet to find something to wear. She went behind the chamber-fold and changed her nightgown for a simple, dark green dress. It definitely wasn't as detailed and beautiful as the one she had worn before, but it was a lot easier to walk around in.

She had brushed her hair and had simply weaved it into a classical braid. As she returned she saw that Bilbo had nearly finished the cake. "Are you making up for all the second breakfasts that you missed?" she asked with a smirk.

"Very funny, Allie," he replied, making a face at her. "This cake doesn't compare with the one I usually bake."

"I am sure that you are excellent in baking cakes. I'd take it you are as fond of seed cakes as much as I am," Allie said as she took a bite from one of the sandwiches. "I remember you mentioning them during your speech before Azog showed up."

Bilbo frowned slightly. He had dreamed about eating seed cake with Allie in his dreams not too long ago. "You recall that correctly. They are my favorites."

After they had finished eating their breakfast and their stomachs were filled Bilbo slipped on the ring again. They left the room and Allie called one of the servants who escorted her, and Bilbo, through the different corridors of the Woodland Realm. It cleared on Allie that Bilbo didn't make any sound as he walked. She knew that elves hearing was superior to all other races, but she was convinced that they wouldn't be able to hear him. It really was as if he wasn't there.

They went into the library which Allie found the most beautiful place that Mirkwood had to offer. The servant left her so that Allie could rummage through the books without being disturbed. It was eerie quiet inside the library and Allie looked around to make sure that there were no other guards of servants inside. Apparently the elves here weren't too fond of books or something because the place was rather abandoned.

"Bilbo," Allie called quietly. She had no idea where he was exactly for she wasn't able to see him. All she could feel was how his hand slipped into hers and then she saw him, giving her a friendly smile. "We should have about two hours before they come and try to find me."

"That should give us enough time to make it there and back again," Bilbo assured her. "Come on, follow me. I know the way."

And Allie did. As they walked out of the library she intertwined their fingers and felt herself blushing.

It amazed Allie how easy it was for them to slip unnoticed past the guards. Clearly the hobbit in her was strong because she too barely made any sound as she walked, even though she was wearing rather uncomfortable boots. Hobbits do seemed to be stealthier and less clumsy than other races and they were using that as their advantage.

Bilbo knew the way surprisingly well for someone who had only been inside the large hall for a few days. He had spent that time sneaking around and trying to find Allie, in which he had succeeded.

The hobbit guided her unseen past the guards that stood outside the dungeon as they quietly stepped inside. They then came across the twelve separated cells where the rest of the dwarves were captured in. Allie fell her heart fall at the sight of seeing them like that. She wished nothing more than being able to free them.

Bilbo gave her a reassuring squeeze, letting her know that they had to get a move on. Allie nodded understandingly and walked after him on the tip of her toes. There was a door that leaded to another room, and inside there was one final cell. Caught behind the bars there was Thorin Oakenshield. The dwarf king looked miserable as he was staring straight ahead of him to the wall.

"I'll keep guard," Bilbo quietly said as he let go off her hand and walked away to the other room.

Allie now stood before the cell. Her father hadn't noticed anything. "Khagam," she called, but not too loud in case the elves overheard her.

Thorin looked up and at the sight of his daughter his eyes widened in shock and confusion. "Gemez," he pretty much whispered. He went closer towards her, but the bars were separating them. He brought his hand up to cup her cheek. "How did you get here?"

"Bilbo found me yesterday and he brought me here," Allie explained. "He's outside waiting for me to finish. How are they treating you?"

"There's no shortage of food and water here. Let's keep it at that," Thorin responded. "Where is the rest of our kin? Are they alright?"

"They are being held captive outside this room in separate cells. They don't look too great, but they are fed well. Besides they are unharmed. Thranduil kept his promise about that."

Thorin's expressions soured at the mention of the elf. "How about you? Is he hurting you?"

Allie shook her head. "No, not at all. He's treating me as a royal guest here. I can do anything that I please besides leaving Mirkwood without his consent. I even have servants following me around everywhere. To tell you the truth I had Legolas showing me around Mirkwood yesterday and afterwards I had to dine with the king and his council myself, at which I kind of lashed at him. I don't think he likes me."

A smile tugged at Thorin's lips. "That's my girl," he said proudly.

Allie rolled with her eyes. "It's no joke. He's keeping me here as if I'm some sort of pet. I want to leave this place."

"If only that were so simple, Allie. We're trapped in here," Thorin responded.

"I am well aware of that. I can assure you that Bilbo and I are going to look for a solution out of here. I don't know how long that will take, but we're doing our best," Allie assured him.

"I know you are, dear one. Did things between you and Bilbo resolve then?" Thorin asked.

Allie's jaw slightly dropped, but she tried to hide it. "Whatever do you mean?"

Thorin was smirking. "Well, everyone in the company could see that the two of you had a falling out. You refused to be near one another ever since we left Beorn's lodge. Did he do something to you?"

So obviously everyone knew Allie and Bilbo had gone through a tough time together. "No, he did nothing of the sort. We just had a disagreement that's all. Bilbo and I talked about it and we've resolved it. I'd say were as thick as thieves." This was the closest Allie could get to telling her father about Bilbo. She couldn't let him know that they were more than that.

There was still a certain look on Thorin's face as if he suspected something more. "That's good...I think. I know that I wasn't a big fan of Bilbo since he came along with us. He has proved himself countless times by repeatedly saving everyone's life. I owe him a great debt and it's clear that he's very loyal. What I did notice from the start was that he seemed to care about you. He's a good person to have around, Allie."

Allie smiled at the sincerity of her father's words. Perhaps there would come a day that he would be supportive of what's going on between her and Bilbo, if they would still be together in the future. "I agree with that. Bilbo is a wonderful man and it's good for all of our sakes that he decided to leave his door. He's been of help many times."

Bilbo then barged in. "There are guards nearby!" he informed Allie. "We have to go. Now!"

Allie pressed a kiss on her father's forehead through the thin bars, and then got onto her feet. "We'll come back when we've found out how to get you out of here," she promised him. "Hang in there."

Thorin nodded and then whispered something to Allie in Khuzdul.

She grabbed Bilbo's hand and he slipped the ring on and they were gone. She had one final gaze at her father before she and Bilbo slipped out of the room, just as one of the guards entered.

As soon as they had left the dungeons behind them Allie finally dared to breathe again. For a moment she had been quite fearful that they would be caught, but Bilbo had alarmed her right in time to get away. They had gotten away undetected and it felt amazing.

They had made it back to the library within an hour. That was where Allie released Bilbo's hand and told one of the servants that she would be heading back to her room. When the door of her guest chambers closed behind her Bilbo took off his ring.

"That was a rather close call," he gasped.

"It's a good thing that you saw the guards on time," Allie replied, sitting down on her bed.

"What did Thorin say to you before we left?" Bilbo asked her.

Allie met his gaze. "He told me that he was proud of me," she clarified. "And that placed his trust in us."

"That's kind of him to say that." Bilbo sat down beside her, licking his lips. "You didn't tell him about what happened between us, did you?"

"No, I did not. The thing is that you and I have only come clear about our feelings the previous day and it's all so new. I'd want to keep that between us for now," Allie enlightened him. "I just want to see how things between us will go and if it's serious then we have no choice but to come clear to all of them. They will figure it out sooner or later."

Bilbo smiled at her. He wanted to keep this between them for now as well. The last thing that he wanted was for Thorin to find out. There was after all nothing more that Thorin valued than Allie. Bilbo didn't want to risk the wrath of the dwarven King. "You're right," he said. "We'll take it one step at the time."

"Thank you for being so understanding about it." Allie then sighed when she realized something. "I have to dine with the King in an hour."

"Can't you stay here?" Bilbo asked her.

"Sadly not. Thranduil will be suspicious if I won't show up. I best let him see my face so he doesn't think I'm plotting anything. It shouldn't be too long."

"Do you want me to go with you? To make sure he doesn't do anything and -"

"And expose yourself as a result?" Allie finished for him, grabbing his hands. "No, we can't risk that. No one knows that you're here and we have to keep it that way. You might be our only way out of here. I can handle Thranduil by myself. He doesn't hurt me or anything. He can't do that."

Still Bilbo didn't seem to be reassured. He had followed her and Thorin to their encounter with the elven King when they had first arrived in Mirkwood. There was something alarming about the elven king that slightly unsettled him. Thranduil obviously was very fond of himself, and wasn't the nicest towards other people. At least not that Bilbo had witnessed. "But I don't want him to make you feel bad, Allie. I know he's not that great in saying kind things."

Allie flashed him a rather large smile. "I shouldn't worry about Thranduil if I were you. Over the years I've gotten quite used to stubborn Kings. They don't bother me too much." Bilbo chuckled at that. "It's going to be alright. We will get through this, Bilbo. One of these days we'll find a way out of here, I'm sure of that.

"You're right," he said, enfolding Allie into a warm embrace. She appreciated his way of thinking and gladly returned it. "I sure hope that we'll be out of here quite soon. I can't wait to leave this forest behind of us."

"Me neither. We still have some way to go before we reach Erebor," Allie replied. "There's Lake-Town that we have to cross as well."

"And what about the dragon?" Bilbo asked. "Do you think we can defeat that?"

"I honestly wish that I could give an answer to that, Bilbo. I simply have no idea if we can. We don't even know if Smaug is still alive, but that's something that we have to deal with when the time is right. Oh, I forgot to tell you. My father told me that the entire company knew we had a falling out, which is why we acted so different to each other ever since we left Beorn. They all knew there was something going on."

Bilbo chuckled. "It doesn't surprise me that they we aware of that because we used to be quite close before it all. What did you tell him?"

"That we resolved it," Allie replied honestly. "And that we're close again. I didn't lie, I just didn't tell him the whole truth."

"You gave him the right answer. " With that he leaned forwards to kiss her again.