AN: Hey guys, sorry I didn't post yesterday! I have a very good excuse...I was at comicon. Your argument is invalid. Anyways, I hope you enjoy this new chapter! It's the end of the winter festival so after this, the plot is taking another turn and we're skipping a bit of time. So, enjoy!

OOOOO

If the Dwarves of Erebor knew one thing, it was how to be excessive. It was the last party of the Winter Festival, and the Great Hall was more magnificent than ever! Bilbo had been surprised every time he entered the Hall over the last week, but that night had to be the best he had seen. It was...more than excessive, it was ridiculous! The black stone and granite that made up the room was nearly impossible to see behind the giant golden garlands and beautiful silver banners. Bouquets of red and green hung on every wall, holly berries stretching across the top of every entrance way.

The whole room sparkled and shined and breathed with light and excitement and beauty. It really was simply breathtaking. But to Bilbo, it was also very overwhelming. Even the long stretches of tables filled to the absolute brink with the most delicious and decadent food could not put him to ease here in this sea of bright colors and warm bodies and laughter that nearly drowned out that upbeat Dwarven music. It seemed like everybody in all of Erebor, Dale, and Lake Town had come. As well as half the kingdom of Mirkwood!

At the beginning of the festivities, Bilbo had been pleased by the company and number of people coming to the mountain for the holiday. Now he felt very claustrophobic, and he wished he could be in his garden with a book from the library, not stuffed in this great room that buzzed with movement. His high collared jumper, which was a bright display of red and green stripes with holly leaves embroidered on it, felt like it was strangling him. It was too hot, though he did occasionally catch a breeze that made him shiver, and he longed to make an excuse and leave. But he had promised Fili and Kili that he would stay until midnight, with everyone else.

So, since he still had a long hour to wait, Bilbo found the smallest, most inconspicuous corner in the whole room, and stayed there. People moved about, hardly noticing him. And if they did, they only smiled and moved on after a quick wish of goodwill towards him. Luckily he had yet to be noticed by a member of the King's Company, or worse, the King's Sister. They were all busy conducting the political part of the evening, speaking with the leaders of the cities around them as well as supporters of Thorin's reign. But Bilbo could tell Dis was keeping a sharp eye out, looking for him. He could see her from his corner, but it didn't appear she had noticed him yet.

"Well what is a darling like you doing in a dreary little corner?" Bilbo's blood froze in his veins and a shiver of disgust ran down his spine as he was suddenly staring at Dain Ironfoot. Dain gave a half bow, catching the Hobbit's hand smoothly in his own as he straightened and bringing it to his lips. "We never got a proper introduction. Thorin likes to hog all the pretty ones for himself." Dain said with a dashing smile. Or Bilbo supposed other people would think it dashing. It only made him want to run away as fast and as far as he could.

"I'm not Thorin's." Bilbo said defensively, pulling his hand out of Dain's grip. Dain chuckled, sounding unimpressed, and smiled.

"Of course not. Though, you are by law, his prisoner. Does that not mean you are his?" Bilbo glowed red at the insinuation that he belonged to anyone, Thorin or no, and he barely stopped himself from punching the grinning Dwarf right in his face. "Luckily for me, I don't have to take you away to the Iron Hills to proposition you. I'll only be here for another few days, Master Hobbit. And we could spend them in pleasure. What do you say?" Another shudder of disgust went through Bilbo and he leveled a glare at the Dwarf.

"I would rather sleep with the pigs." He muttered, and Dain made and exaggerated show of being stabbed through the heart.

"Oh come, little burglar! You won't get much better than a Lord. Unless Thorin decides to descend from his high horse and take the gift he has been given. A little prisoner, so pretty and with a cute little ass to boot. He has every right to claim you. So spend the night with me before he does and I lose the opportunity forever." Bilbo only wrinkled his nose in revolt and shoved past the Dwarf and into the hoard of people. He pretended not to feel Dain's stare on his back as he left, but the nauseous feeling in his belly kept reminding him of the repulsive Dwarf and his infuriating proposition.

"Bilbo!" Dwalin stated happily as he happened to cross paths with the absolutely seething Hobbit. "What's gotten yer knickers in a twist?" The bald Dwarf asked when he noticed the way steam was practically coming from Bilbo's ears. Dwalin was a little drunk, most everyone in the room was, but he was not drunk enough to forget to be concerned for Bilbo.

"Take me to my room." Bilbo stated instead of answering. When Dwalin only raised one thick eyebrow, Bilbo rolled his eyes and huffed out, "Please."

"Somethin' happen Bilbo?" Dwalin asked, but before Bilbo could answer, there was a bellowing laughter from behind them and both of them looked to see Dain chortling with a few other Dwarves, apparently not that upset about being rejected. But the glare of pure fury that Bilbo was shooting at the visiting lord left Dwalin under no illusions of what happened. Thorin had said that Dain was not to be left alone with Bilbo, and Dwalin could only guess that he had failed on that order. "Come on." He encouraged the seething Hobbit.

They almost made it out of the Great Hall, the large door was in sight, when Dis stepped into their path. She looked from Bilbo, who's glare never left the ground, to Dwalin, who's glare never left the ceiling, and immediately knew something was wrong. And all it took was getting eye contact with Dwalin for all of three seconds before the big Dwarf spat out exactly what that something was.

"Dain." He growled, and Dis adopted a glare as well.

"Leave this to me." She muttered, and let them pass before storming over to her cousin. Upon finding the Lord of the Iron Hills, she yanked him right out of his conversation with some random Man of Dale and towards a semi secluded spot near the edge of the room. There was no real privacy in the room, which felt far too small considering just how big she knew it to be, but at least people weren't pressed up against them here. "What did you say to Bilbo?" She demanded instantly, before he could complain about her bad manners.

"Who?" He asked with a wrinkled brow, and Dis' anger only strengthened.

"The Hobbit." She gritted out between her teeth and Dain made a big show of realizing who she was talking about.

"Ah yes! Cute little thing, that one. Though a bit prudish if you ask me. Knows how to turn a man down at any rate." He smirked and Dis resisted the urge to throttle her cousin.

"Dain." She snapped, and he rolled his eyes.

"Oh lighten up! It's not like he's anyone important! All I did was proposition the lad, it's hardly my fault that he's so uppity and offended." Dain defended himself. "If you ask me, he's just playing hard to get. I may still get in his bed before I go." He added with a wolfish grin.

"You will stay away from Bilbo, do you understand? He does not want you near him, and neither do I. And I'm sure Thorin would be only to happy to see you off earlier than scheduled if he hears about this." Dis snarled, and Dain seemed to realize for the first time that she was seriously upset over the matter.

"What is it with you Durin's and your obsession with this Hobbit? If Thorin is so taken with him, why hasn't he taken him yet?" Dain sneered, more than a little peeved now that it wasn't just some joke.

"It's none of your business what lies between Bilbo and Thorin. If I see you even looking at the Hobbit again, I'll take the matter straight to my brother. If I don't take care of it first myself." She threatened, and after watching Dain's eyes widen appropriately, she turned promptly and stormed away. She was so steadily glaring ahead of herself that she didn't even notice the Man crossing her path until she slammed into him before rebounding to the ground. Dis stared up blankly, unable to quite comprehend what just happened for a few moment, before shaking her head and looking at the Man who had the most horrified look on his face.

"Oh, I apologize most profusely madam! Allow me to make it up to you somehow!" The Man rushed to help Dis up, and after letting her initial annoyance go, she smiled gracefully and accepted his hand. He pulled her up like she weighed nothing at all. She took a moment to look at him. He had ginger colored hair that curled beautifully and the most breathtaking blue eyes, along with sinfully sharp cheekbones. He was...quite lovely actually.

"Nonsense. I wasn't looking where I was going." She promised. The Man breathed a sigh of relief and returned her smile cautiously.

"You did look a little...distressed." The Man acknowledged. Dis huffed and rolled her eyes.

"Relatives! They can drive you to drink! And want to murder them." She admitted, and the man chuckled, still sounding nervous.

"You...you're lady Dis, aren't you?" He even blushed, the dear soul. Dis gave him a bigger smile and nodded. He huffed out an amazed laugh before bowing. "I am a lucky man. I've heard of people getting tossed in dungeons for less than knocking royalty to the ground."

"Well, I guess it's a merciful holiday after all." Dis chuckled.

"I-I also heard that someone was thrown in the dungeons for stealing the Arkenstone." He murmured, and that caught her attention. As far as she knew, that information was never made public. But there were bound to be leaks.

"Well, he's not in the dungeon anymore. Poor dear nearly died in there, but luckily his situation has changed. He's really a sweet boy." Dis defended Bilbo with a warm smile, and the Man's brow crinkled.

"But...he stole the Arkenstone. Usually such a crime is met with death."

"He tried to steal the Arkenstone. His circumstances were very peculiar and luckily a compromise was made so that he could live. Here, in Erebor." Dis was beginning to get wary of this conversation.

"Is he here now?" The Man asked eagerly, looking around. "I heard he's like no thief anyone has ever seen." He added, growing more excited. Dis scowled at the Man, and his excitement vanished.

"You just missed him actually. I had better return to the festivities. Goodwill to you." She murmured the standard goodbye, but it was stiff and mechanic. The Man bowed and she walked away. But rather than return to the festivities, she marched right out of the hall and towards Bilbo's room, completely unaware of the shadow following her.

Smaug stalked after the Dwarf, his facade falling, being replaced by his standard black hair and golden eyes. It was amazing what he could get away with by just changing how he looked. He stayed to the shadows but kept the Dwarrowdam in his sights. Finally she stopped in front of a large door and slipped inside, leaving the door open as she went. Smaug sniffed the air and carefully looked into the room, but it was empty. Just a sitting room. Voices came from one of the doors to the right though, and he quickly closed the distance to the door, listening closely.

"Dain is just a pompous ass! He's arrogant and infuriating, but he's harmless Bilbo. I promise." The woman Dwarf spoke. Smaug growled lightly to himself. So it was true. His thief had become friends with these disgusting Dwarves. He had abandoned his contract and jumped ship. It made him angry, but also curious. What had Bilbo gone through in the dungeons before breaking and allowing himself to submit to the Dwarves? The annoying she-Dwarf had said the Hobbit nearly died. It did not quell his rage any, but it still piqued his curiosity.

"No one is completely harmless. Least of all Dain." Bilbo sniffled, and it sounded like he had been crying. At least a little.

"He knows that Thorin will punish him if he touches you." A male Dwarf said, and Smaug tensed at both the presence of another male in that room, as well as the name of their Dwarf King. Oh how he wanted Thorin Oakenshield dead.

"But why? Dain said that, being a prisoner, it's only in Thorin's right to claim me. Is that what he spared me for? Is that what my life shall be once everything with Smaug has ended?" So Bilbo was technically still a prisoner, no doubt with a guard as well. Smaug was not usually one to believe the best of people, but for some reason, he wanted to believe the best of Bilbo. Maybe it wasn't by Bilbo's choice that he was there, surrounded by the enemy. Maybe he was just waiting for a good opportunity to strike, like he had in Dale to get the four rings. But at the same time, Bilbo sounded pretty desperate for the "business with Smaug" to be done.

"No! Bilbo you know we wouldn't let that happen! And you're more than skilled enough to ward off any advance my numbskull brother might attempt!" The female exclaimed.

"Besides, I don't think he just wants a quick fuck. He's tryin hard to get in yer good graces. Harder than I ever saw him try before. If he wants anything from yeh, it's something much deeper than just a bed warmer." The male Dwarf assured Bilbo, but it didn't sound like the Hobbit was comforted, based off the little sniffle.

"I want to go home. I should never have come here." Bilbo murmured to himself.

"Bilbo...we've already told you how glad we are that you came here.'' The female told him.

"But I'm not! I'll never be able to leave this mountain! I'll never get to go to the Shire again, or walk Middle Earth like I wanted to! Even if my mother survives the journey here, how will I tell her that I can never leave?!" Bilbo exclaimed, and Smaug felt himself grin a little. The evidence was suggesting that Bilbo was not as happy there as the Dwarves liked to think. Maybe it was a one sided relationship. Maybe Bilbo was still on his side.

"Aye, you'll be forfeiting a few things. But yeh can have a real life here Bilbo. Comforts and friends and yeh'll never have to kill or steal anything again." The male said hopefully. Bilbo sniffled again.

"As kind as it is of you all to accept me and try to invite me in to your lives...I will always be Bilbo Baggins, thief and killer and liar." Bilbo whispered.

"And the boy who gave up everything just for the chance to help his mother." The female murmured. Bilbo huffed.

"Yeah. And look where that landed me." There was a silence that followed before Bilbo sighed. "Look, I'm just upset right now. I'll be fine in the morning." It was obviously a dismissal, even Smaug could tell, and he smoothly left before he could be discovered. He had heard all he needed to hear. Bilbo had failed, and worse, was in league with the Dwarves. Regardless of whether or not it was willingly or not, he was against Smaug. And that did not sit well with him.

Smaug was justifiably angry with Bilbo. The contract however, stated that he could not kill Bilbo. It said nothing about whether or not he could hurt the Hobbit. He could always physically hurt Bilbo, and he had half a mind to return to Bilbo's chambers once the two Dwarves were gone and do just that. But rather than physically take his anger out on the failed thief, he would make Bilbo suffer in another way. And he had the perfect idea of how to do so.

OOOOO

Bilbo was surprised that he woke himself up the next morning. For nearly a month now, he had been woken up by somebody. Fili and Kili were the usual culprits, but sometimes it was Dwalin, Bofur, or Dis. Only rarely did Thorin wake him. That day, however, he woke to silence and stillness. Cautiously, he pulled on a coat and exited his room. Only to find Thorin, Dis, Fili, and Kili already up and in the sitting room with breakfast. It was odd. Usually they ate all together in the Company dining room. But Bilbo remembered Dis telling him about how the last day of the Winter Festival was spent in family units. Even for breakfast it appeared.

Their eyes turned to him and he blushed, a little embarrassed and also a little unsure of what he should be doing. They probably wouldn't want him there, he was not in their family unit after all. But he didn't know where he should go, if everyone was going to be spending time with their family all day. He didn't want to drag Dwalin away from his family so he couldn't sit in the garden or the library. He supposed he would just stay in his room for the day. He did have a few things he could do, but he knew he'd get awfully bored at some point or another. Before he could turn and disappear back into his room, Fili opened his mouth.

"Come eat with us Bilbo!" He invited, scooting down on the couch so there was an empty cushion between him and Kili. Bilbo was hesitant, but Fili, Kili, and Dis were smiling warmly at him. Thorin wasn't smiling, but neither was he frowning. He looked rather impassive.

"I don't want to interrupt-"

"You're not interrupting anything! We were actually thinking we'd come in there and extract you soon, if you hadn't woken up." Dis told him happily. Bilbo hesitated for another moment, but when Thorin turned his eyes on him, he knew he really didn't have a choice. No doubt Thorin would physically drag him to the couch if Fili and Kili didn't do it first. He still felt enormously uncomfortable as he walked over to the plush couch and sat between the brothers.

"Did you sleep well?" Fili asked him, handing the Hobbit a scone. It was still warm as he held it, but he was not very hungry that morning. He was not nearly as distressed as he had been the night before, but he was still unsettled.

He had the strangest dream, that Smaug was in the mountain. That he came to his room and loomed over him, at first looking like a normal man, with red hair and blue eyes. But he had changed, back into his normal appearance, and perched on the side of Bilbo's bed. The Dragon just looked at him, looking angry one moment and, for some reason, relieved the next. The strangest moment of the dream had been when he felt warm fingers trail down his face and neck, stopping just above the collar of his sleep shirt. It was probably in his head, but he thought he could still feel the fiery trail they left on his skin. So, he supposed, he did not sleep well. But he did not want to tell them that.

"I slept very deeply." He said instead, nibbling on the scone when he noticed the concerned look Dis was giving him.

"Mother was just telling us about nasty Cousin Dain and his dastardly plot!" Kili said dramatically, but completely ignorant to the scathing glares he received from all three of the elder Dwarves. Bilbo glanced at Thorin, wondering if that was why he had not smiled at him when he came out of his room. Was Thorin angry because of what happened with Dain? "I think you should have kicked him in his private parts! You would be doing the whole of Middle Earth a service!" Kili added with a smirk. Bilbo tried to smile, but he didn't think it really worked that well.

"Kili, that's enough." Dis murmured, though she didn't sound particularly reprimanding at all.

"It is true though. Someone should stand up to Dain. Maybe he would get the picture that no one likes a creep." Fili stated, keeping his eyes on his plate of eggs in case he should receive glares as well.

"Boys, what your cousin gets up to in his Kingdom is no concern of ours. But he's a guest in our Kingdom and even if he is a creep, we will still treat him with respect." Thorin said stiffly, but also failed at sounding rebuking.

"Mum and Bilbo weren't respectful to him." Kili muttered under his breath. He was ignored though. They sat in silence for a good few minutes before Dis cleared her throat.

"I thought we could play a game that Ori was telling me about. One person draws a picture, and the first person who guesses what it is wins the round." She told them hopefully. Kili and Fili quickly agreed, and Bilbo nodded after a few moments of hesitation. Thorin only gave her his famed stink eye.

"Dis you know I'm rubbish at drawing." He grumbled, spearing his sausage with a little more force than strictly necessary.

"Well then you can be the bonus round. If anyone can figure your pictures out, they get three points instead of one." Dis taunted with a smirk, and the boys snickered. Bilbo even smiled lightly, but it quickly vanished when Thorin swept his eyes over the three of them on the couch. "Come on Thorin, we're supposed to spend the day playing rubbish games and acting familial, remember."

"Fine! I'll go get some parchment!" Thorin growled, giving Dis another stink eye. She only smiled back, knowing Thorin would forget he was mad at her within the first half an hour of playing. As Thorin left, Bilbo put down his still unfinished scone, glad for the distraction. Of course, it only worked on Fili and Kili. He could never fool Dis.

"Boys go with him to help with the ink pots." Dis commanded, and the words were hardly out of her mouth before they were up and trailing after the king, who rolled his eyes but didn't protest his sister's order. Carrying five ink pots would be a recipe for disaster anyways. As soon as the door closed behind the three of them, Dis stood and took Fili's vacant seat next to Bilbo. "How did you sleep?" She asked, pleasantly but also in a tone that just dared Bilbo to lie to her. The Hobbit swallowed nervously and glanced down at his hands.

"Fine." He murmured, and he could just feel the incredulous stare Dis was leveling at him.

"Fine." She repeated and Bilbo nodded. "Then, are you still upset about last night?" She inquired, narrowing her eyes a little when Bilbo looked away again.

"No." He said bluntly, and obviously lying.

"No?"

"That's what I said, isn't it?" Bilbo muttered, feeling a mixture of annoyed, nervous, and cornered. Dis quirked an eyebrow.

"I thought we knew each other well enough by now to know when the other is lying." Dis said softly, as gently as possible. When Bilbo got like this, like a wounded animal ready to lash out at anyone who got close, she always had to use extreme caution and gentility.

"We've known each other less than a month." Bilbo bit, jerking his knee away when Dis tried to put her hand on it. "And I am not lying, I am fine!" He added defensively. She hesitated, not feeling right about dropping the subject, but also knowing that if she pushed it, Bilbo would only get more upset. It was always a delicate situation when Bilbo got like this, as rare as it was. It only really happened in extreme cases, so something must have really shaken the Hobbit.

As it was, Bilbo was glaring at the ground, his eyes glazed over slightly. Dis wondered just what, or who he was thinking about. She wondered if it was Dain, or someone else. Maybe Thorin or, worse, Smaug. She'd give anything to be able to hear his thoughts in that moment. Bilbo had never been more glad that she couldn't. The encounter he'd had with Dain the night before had been bad. The doubt it had planted in his mind was worse. But add in the dream about Smaug, and Bilbo just felt...well he didn't even know how he felt. But it didn't feel good. And in that moment, the only thing he wanted was his mother.

His mask slid back into place when the others returned, and there it stayed, quite firmly, for the rest of the day. Only Dis seemed to know what turbulence lied beneath it, even Thorin seemed oblivious, but it was Thorin. The mask only came off when he finally retired back to his room. The first thing he did was enter his washroom and approach the shining silver circle that he would look in to see his appearance. The Dwarves called it a mirror. He'd never had one back in the Shire. He'd never cared for his appearance in the Shire, no Hobbits did. It wasn't as important as gardening and gossiping.

Throughout the day, he kept feeling the burning trail Smaug's fingers left on his skin, in his dream. It felt so very real, Bilbo was almost sure it had happened. But there was nothing on his skin. No mark, or blemish. His fingers traced the trail as he looked in the mirror, brows furrowed. It was just a dream. He had been upset last night, of course his mind would conjure up a bizarre dream. It was nothing more than the result of his active imagination and heightened nerves. That was all.

In Dale, Smaug smirked to himself, sensing Bilbo's emotions through the trace amount of venom he'd left on Bilbo's skin the night before. Just a tiny amount, excreted through his sweat glands, and soaked into Bilbo's body through his skin. Enough for him to sense the rise and fall of emotions and chemicals. Enough to keep a tab on the Hobbit for the next couple of days. When it passed through his body and left it, Smaug would have to find some other way to keep track of his little thief. He did want to keep some kind of eye on the little one, while he was away from Erebor and Dale. He had plans to enact, but he would be back. And everything...would be his.

OOOOO