Chapter Two

He pulled back from his hobbit as the door closed behind them and looked down at him in horror as a thought crossed his mind. "Please tell me you did not die in the battle as well? Tell me I did not lead you to your death?"

Bilbo smiled sadly at him and shook his head. "No, I'm afraid I was cursed with a very long life after your death. I slipped away quietly in my sleep at the unprecedented age of 131."

"I am glad," he sighed, pressing his forehead against the hobbit's in relief. "If I had led you to your doom, I would have never forgiven myself."

A shadow crossed Bilbo's eyes and he bit his lip. "Perhaps we ought to sit down. There is a lot you don't know about. This quest we're about to go on is important in more ways than you think."

He frowned at the haunted look in the hobbit's eyes and followed him silently to the sofa in the other room. Whatever had happened between his death and Bilbo's, he could tell from his One's eyes that it involved much pain and loss. A part of him was loathed to hear it, unable to bear the thought of anything causing his hobbit pain. The larger part of him, though, knew that he had to know, not only to prevent what he could, but so that he could know exactly how badly he had failed in his previous life.

"I do know that Gandalf has a motive other than merely helping a group of undeserving dwarrows reclaim their homeland," he said bitterly. "Though I do not know what it is."

It had been one of the reasons he had been so mistrustful of the wizard's advice the first time around, that and his insistence on getting help from elves of all people. Though in hindsight, the wizard had never steered them wrong. In fact, if it had not been for Gandalf, he never would have met Bilbo, would not have met his One. Thorin would always been in the wizard's debt for that.

"He does, though the dwarrows I came to know are hardly undeserving," Bilbo said with a disapproving frown. "But it isn't a bad motive. He wants you to reclaim the mountain because of its strategic position. He knows it'll be needed when the War breaks out. Though, I'm not entirely sure if he knows that War will definitely happen."

"War?" Thorin asked, brow furrowed. "And who will be fighting against whom in this war?"

His mind was whirring with the possibilities. Who would need this strategic position that Gandalf sought? Who was the old man trying to secure it for? Who did Gandalf think could defeat the army of dwarrows who would defend Erebor to their last breath if they ever were to reclaim it?

Bilbo looked puzzled, though, at the question. "Everyone will be fighting it. Sauron and his forces are enemies of all of us."

He sucked in a sharp breath. The voices had talked of a darkness but... "Sauron? He was killed."

The terribleness of Sauron and his forces were well known among his people. His forefather, Durin IV, had marched against the Dark Lord in the Last Alliance alongside the elf Gil-Galad and Elendil of Numenor. They had been told, though, that Sauron was defeated. That his evil would never darken the lands of Middle Earth again. Had they been deceived?

Bilbo shook his head. "No. His life was tied to the One Ring. As long as the ring exists, he lives on. And he has been gaining strength."

"Then it is even more important that we reclaim Erebor," he said seriously. "It will surely be an important stronghold in the North."

Bilbo bit his lip and seemed to hesitate over his words before sighing in resignation. "Erebor is not the only important thing we obtain on this quest."

Thorin felt a sense of forboding overtake him. He was not going to like whatever it was that the hobbit said next.

"Do you remember the ring I found in the Misty Mountain caves?"

No. He had to be misunderstanding. He could not have allowed such evil to have touch his One. If Bilbo had found the One Ring... Oh, Mahal, Bilbo had used the One Ring. Thorin felt sick at the thought. And if the cursed thing was tied to Sauron's life force.

He grasped Bilbo's hands tightly in his own, mostly to assure himself that his One was there, safe, alive, and untouched by this evil.

"And I thought it a useful, but harmless trinket," he said breathlessly.

"Yes, well, we were both wrong on that point," Bilbo remarked bitterly. "But you didn't willingly give the blasted thing to your nephew and let him bear the burden of walking to Mordor to destroy it."

Horror welled inside of Thorin. "You mean to destroy it yourself?"

Bilbo smiled sadly at him. "Wouldn't you? If you had seen it suck all joy and happiness out of Fili or Kili? Would you not take the burden from them? Would you not do everything in your power to keep that type of evil away from them?"

"I would, but I would also do everything to keep it away from you as well, my love," Thorin said, leaning his forehead against the hobbit's.

"It is my burden to bear," he replied.

"It is our burden to bear," he argued, bring a hand up to cup his One's cheek. "We were sent back to help each other. Allow me to help you in this."

"It's just..." Bilbo bit his lip and looked away, but Thorin saw the doubt that lingered in his eyes.

He sighed heavily. "You do not trust me with such a burden. I cannot blame you. You trusted me before and I cast you aside for a thriced-damn rock."

"That's not it!" the hobbit insisted. "The ring whispers terrible things to the mind. Tempts you with your greatest desire, your greatest fears. The gold sickness is not what I fear you succumbing to. There is something that happened before that I know you will stop at nothing to keep from happening this time around."

"What are you not telling me?" he asked, feeling ice settle at the base his spine.

Bilbo looked at him with a deep sadness in his eyes. "Fili and Kili both fell with you in battle that day."

His boys... No.

His head dropped into his hands. Bilbo wrapped him in his arms and Thorin went willing, weeping openly into the hobbit's shoulder.

He had led them to their deaths. He was leading them to their deaths.

"It will not happen," he stated firmly. "I will not allow it."

"We were sent back to change things," Bilbo reminded with a sad smile.

"Right," he agreed. "They are going to be angry with me, but it cannot be helped."

"Sorry, but why are they going to be angry with you?" he asked, confusion written on his face.

"For telling them they cannot come on this quest with us," Thorin replied. Bilbo could not seriously expect him to allow his sister-sons to travel with them after telling him their deaths lie at the end of the journey. He could not do that.

"Thorin, I understand. Really, I do, but are you sure that's the wisest course?" Thorin opened his mouth to argue but Bilbo cut him off. "Hear me out. We don't know how this whole changing the course of history thing will actually work. What if Fili and Kili are meant to be in a life-threatening situation no matter what? We can't save them if we are not with them."

"You cannot ask me to risk all three of you," he whispered brokenly.

"Hey, no," Bilbo soothed, taking Thorin's face in both hands. "We will be much more prepared for the battle at the mountain. We have advance warning. And if we coordinate better with the elves and men, and if Gandalf can get the Eagles there sooner, the battle will go much better."

"You would have me cooperate with Thranduil," he said, sneering at the name.

"For Fili and Kili's lives, not to mention your own? Yes, I would," he said with a glare. Thorin was suitably chastised at that. He would do anything to save the lives of his boys. "Besides, Thranduil will have plenty cause to fight. He should not want Erebor overrun with orcs and goblins anymore than you do. If Sauron gains enough power to strike out, Thranduil's kingdom will be beseiged by both Dol Guldur and Erebor if it falls."

"We will just have to convince him of that," Thorin commented with a grimace.

"Yes, well, might be best if I do the talking for that," Bilbo teased with a smile. "Though if we can get Gandalf to travel to the Woodland Realm with us, it might go a bit smoother."

"You think we should tell him the truth, then?" It had been a thought that crossed his mind as well. They would probably need the wizard's help to pull everything off, and Mahal knew the man could keep a secret better than most.

"I think we should tell them all eventual. The whole company," he clarified. "There's not one of them I would not trust with my life. Telling them all now, though, would be a mistake. You and I will be second-guessing ourselves enough without the other second-guessing themselves as well. But yes, we'll need to tell Gandalf so that he keeps closer than before."

"So you mean not to tell them until you march to your death in Mordor," Thorin said darkly.

"Don't be so melodramatic, Thorin," Bilbo said, rolling his eyes. "Sauron won't even be looking for something like this type of attack. He won't notice a small hobbit sneaking into Mount Doom."

"A small hobbit and a dwarf," he corrected. "Don't give me that look. You cannot expect me to let you go alone."

"I suppose you wouldn't be the stubborn dwarf I love if you did," he replied with a long-suffering look before smiling. "I promise it will all turn out okay."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," Thorin warned, closing his eyes and leaning against his One.

They sat silently there for a few moments, both basking in each other's presence and thinking of the long, dangerous road ahead.

"Well then," Bilbo said, standing and smiling down at Thorin. "I do believe that there are twelve hungry dwarves and one wizard who will all be here by nightfall, and this time, I intend on serving them a much better supper than I did the first time around, followed in the morning by a bountiful breakfast. Yavanna knows we won't get many good meals in the coming days. Might as well spoil the lads now."

"Should we not plan what we intend to do?" Thorin asked in bewilderment.

"Of course," he replied with a nod. "You plan, I cook. Just keep in mind with your planning that we will have to get the ring from Gollum, and we will have to make a trip to see Thranduil."

"I hope you don't intend on me letting you fall down the inside of a mountain again," he said with narrowed eyes. "It was just luck you didn't break your neck the first time."

"I'm sure you'll come up with something," Bilbo replied with an indulgent smile. "Just make sure you make it a bit flexible. Never know what will happen on the road. Last time, I ended up falling for a stubborn dwarf king."

That managed to draw a smile out of Thorin for the first time since he learned of his sister-sons' deaths in the other time. Bilbo's smile grew larger when he saw it.

"We're going to change things, Thorin. We will keep them safe."

'And I will keep you safe,' he vowed silently. 'I will not fail any of my family again.'

tbc...

So this chapter was tough to write, and I'm not entirely satisfied with how it turned out, so please let me know what you think!