Chapter 36:
"Surprising News"
Once the boat reached the bank below the Mountain, the group of six disembarked and began their long trek. Torshar, sadly, had to be carried up due to her bare feet going out halfway up but Calyr didn't seem to mind as he picked her up bridal style. About midmorning, the group came upon the broken entrance to the kingdom of Erebor and all stopped for a moment to process it.
When the moment passed, the men all ran inside, stopping once more at the destruction the encountered, "Bifur? Bombur? Anybody?" Bofur called out only to be answered with silence.
They continued to walk through the corridors until they heard a voice echo, "Wait! Wait!"
"It's Bilbo! He's alive!" Calyr exclaimed as he put Torshar down per her request.
"You need to leave… We all need to leave." The Hobbit warned.
"But we've only just got here!" Bofur stated confused.
Bilbo shook his head, "I've tried talking to him, but he won't listen."
"What do you mean, lad?" Oin asked.
"Thorin! Thorin… He's been down there for days. He doesn't eat, he barely sleeps. He's not been himself, not at all. It's this place… I think a sickness lies upon it." The burglar explained, trying to calm his breathing.
"Sickness?! What kind of sickness?!" Kili asked concerned as Fili walked briskly past him.
"Fili? Fili!" the Hobbit shouted and followed to try and stop him.
The group followed close behind and became mesmerized by the gold they came upon. Torshar grabbed the railing of the stairs for balance as Thorin slowly walked in from a corridor opposite and below them. When he spoke, it was as if he was completely different, "Gold… Gold beyond measure… Beyond sorrow and grief." He suddenly stopped and looked up to where the group was gathered, "Behold the great treasure hoard of Thror…"
Taking everyone by surprise, he chunked a huge uncut ruby up to Fili, who caught it and he spoke again, "Welcome, my sister's sons, to the Kingdom of Erebor."
The Dwarves reunited with their friends and family as Torshar ran to Thorin, across the vast space of treasure, and leapt into his arms, "Oh my love…" she whispered into his hair.
"You were in Mirkwood…" he said with a hint of anger in his voice.
Something was wrong, Torshar could feel it. Thorin did not return her embrace and the tone in his voice told her he was angered, "What? No, I have not been in Mirkwood. I was captured by Harar and taken to Dol Gul Dur. Then held prisoner there for… I don't know how long, it does not matter. All that matters is that I am here now, with you…" she said with a small smile of reassurance and slowly pulled back to look at her love only to lose the smile when she saw his hard look of discontent.
"You do not believe me…"
"It is hard to believe when you stand before me in an Elvish gown and no shoes." The king stated.
"Lady Galadriel gave this to me! She showed up to save me and Gandalf from the Orcs! They were going to rape me and kill the wizard, Thorin! The Orcs ripped my clothes and pulled my hair… Why don't you believe me?" she asked sadly and took a step back.
Thorin turned and stated, "I do not believe the lies of an Elvish whore." Then walked away, not seeing the tears that fell down his wife-to-be's face.
Later in the day, as the Dwarves continued to search for the Arkenstone, Torshar went to the front gate and looked out towards the ruins of Dale. Her heart was broken at what Thorin had said and the look in his eyes told her that the sickness had barely begun to set in. Her stomach churned violently, and she rushed to the tail where she bent over it and emptied her already empty stomach.
"Torshar? Are you alright?" a voice asked, making the versifier look up slightly to find a concerned Hobbit.
"No… Master Baggins…" she groaned then dry heaved for a few moments as her friend approached and gently pulled her hair back out of her face.
Once she was done, the burglar helped her sit then disappeared down the steps only to reappear a few moments later with a water flask in hand, "Here." He said simply and gave it to her.
"Thank you, Bilbo. You are very kind." She complimented as the Hobbit sat beside her and she drank her water.
After a few moments of silence, Bilbo spoke again, "So… What happened that upset you so badly?" he asked carefully so not to upset her again.
Tears sprang to her eyes as she looked out at Dale again, "Thorin thinks I am a whore…" she sniffled as the tears fell.
Bilbo knew then that Thorin's sickness was getting out of hand. He wrapped an arm around Torshar's shoulders and gently pulled her so she was leaning on his shoulder, "It's alright, Torshar… We'll find a way to fix this…" he whispered and kissed her head in comfort.
A few hours later, Torshar went to Oin to see if there was anything that could be done about her nausea that was still running rampant through her system. He had her sit in a chair as he examined her nose, ears, throat, and eyes. When he found nothing he cleared a table and asked her to lie down. Once she was comfortable, he began to examine her abdomen and pelvis. His eyes widened when he felt her stomach had become nearly perfectly round, "Torshar, I ask this as your physician… When was the last time you had relations…?"
At first the minstrel was confused by the question and slowly answered, "A couple of days ago…"
"How long before that?"
"In Rivendell, Oin, what is going on?!" she demanded.
The physician sighed, "You appear to be four months pregnant…" he said slowly, allowing it to sink in.
Her heartbeat increased tenfold as she slowly sat up and Oin grabbed a stethoscope; pressing it gently against her stomach. He smiled and removed the ear pieces, "Would you like to hear? The heartbeat is strong."
Smiling, she nodded and placed the pieces in her ears while Oin held the stopper still. Once she had settled, a small pulse beat echoed, making tears begin to fall, "Oh Mahal… I can hear it…" she whispered and the grey bearded Dwarf moved the stopper around a bit until the versifier grabbed his wrist, "Oin, I hear two heartbeats…"
"What?!" he asked shocked and she took the pieces from her ears then placed them in his.
To his astonishment, the physician also heard the second beat, "Mahal… You're going to have twins."