It was Bilbo who pulled off the ring and jerked Belladonna out of her stupor. He grabbed her arm and tried to pull her into the corridor. Smaug had lost them, but he was looking for them.

'Donna, we need to go!' the hobbit urged. But Thorins daughter did not move. As if she was dreaming, she turned to Bilbo.

'The dragon? Is he here?' she asked and Bilbo could see a faint golden gleam in her brown eyes. Bilbo dismissed this gleam, thinking that it only reflected the gold of the treasury.

'He will soon be here, therefore we need to leave!' Bilbo tried to tell her, but Belladonna still did not move.

'Where is the arkenstone, Bilbo?' Belladonna frowned. 'It was your task to steal it from Smaug. Where is it? My father needs it.'

Bilbo opened his mouth to tell her the truth, but something stopped him. It was not Brann. Belladonnas mother was petrified and stared at her daughter in shock. She had seen this expression before, in Thrains eyes. It was the expression of an obsessed person, a person who could see nothing more than the object of personal desire. But this was her little gem, her little daughter. Belladonna had never cared for gold, she had never cared for riches. Brann felt fear creep into her heart. She had concentrated on Thorin and Thorin only. Never in her wildest dreams had she thought that she would have to protect Belladonna. Dis had told her that the goldsickness had only effected the male members of her family. So why was Belladonna obsessed now? Even Elrond had not thought of Belladonna being affected by Durins curse.

A shiver went down Bilbos spine and he decided to not tell her that he had the arkenstone with him. It was a decision from the heart.

'Smaug awoke before I could find it.' Bilbo told her instead and made for the door, but Belladonna blocked his path.

'My father needs the stone!' she exclaimed. 'Without it he will never rule under this mountain. His reign will not be accepted!'

Bilbo frowned at the usually calm and gentle princess. Something was wrong with her, but he could not tell what it was. A strong breeze moved over his hair and Bilbo turned around. He could see the gold move and then he watched in horror, as Smaug emerged from the sea of gold. The dragon gained on them and Bilbo turned around, shielding Belladonna from the dragons view. He was about to push her backwards as Thorin and the company entered the treasury with their weapons raised. The dwarf king did not glance at the gold once, he only had eyes for his daughter and the dragon. Smaug paused only for a moment before he charged at the dwarves.

'Run!' Thorin yelled and the company scathered down the piles of gold to a corridor leading further down into the mountain. Thorin was the last to enter the corridor after he had pushed everyone inside and Smaugs fire caught his back. With a loud cry, Thorin threw away the burning tunic. That had been close, too close.

'Come.' Thorin did not care about the gold, nor the arkenstone at the moment. He looked around and saw his company safe. Bilbo as well as Brann noticed it and felt intense relief. The king seemed immune to the goldsickness, at least for the moment. Belladonnas mind was also clear again, at least for the moment and the princess helped her father up and looked at him in worry.

'Adad, what were you doing?' she asked and Thorin smiled at her.

'I was looking for my little gem. What were you doing?' Thorin frowned in worry. 'It was you who told me to have faith in Bilbo, yet you left the safety of the mountain to come down here...'

Belladonna did not know what to say. She did not know why she had followed Bilbo. Something had called out to her...something elusive.

'I worried about Bilbo. I thought that maybe...he needed help.' Belladonna tried to convince her father, as well as herself.

'We have to keep moving.' Dwalin was taking the lead. 'This corridor leads to the Northern exit.'

Thorin nodded and followed his captain. Smaug was awake and he would try to kill them. They had to leave the mountain and fight him or better - fight him inside of the mountain. But first, they needed a way out. The company hurried upwards to the Northern exit, beyond it lay a path leading over the mountain to the Iron Hills. As they arrived, they saw that the the exit was blocked by stone. But that was not the worst.

Thorin and his company froze as they found themselves inbetween of countless corpses. The small room before the exit was full of dead bodies, all of them dwarves of the noble class of Erebor. The bodies were in good shape, as were their clothes and their jewels. Belladonna had tears in her eyes as she watched her father walk amongst them. These dwarves had tried to flee through this corridor and the stone had blocked their chance of leaving the mountain. They had had no chance of going back, for the dragon would have waited for them at the end of this corridor. Belladonna looked at the mostly female dwarves and dwarflings. Right in front of the collapsed stone were a few male dwarves, all of them wearing armor. The princess walked towards them and kneeled down in front of the female dwarf lying in the middle of them. The female was wearing a mithril circlet around her forehead and her clothes were of even better quality than the clothes of the others. Two battleaxes lay at her side. Belladonna heard Balin gasp behind her and turned around. The old dwarf was pale and looked back between Thorin and the dead female.

'Thorin...' Balin tried to speak, but his voice failed him.

Thorin kneeled down beside Belladonna and softly took the dead females hand. His eyes were full of tears and he struggled to hold back a sob.

'My gem...' Thorin lowered his head. He could feel Branns hand on his cheek as he continued to speak. 'This is...was...your grandmother. My mother.'

She is your mother Zial? Brann looked down at the body. So this was Thrains wife. His lost love. Thrain had told her that his wife had bren in the lower levels of the mountain and that she had never made it out. Apparently, she had tried to lure some of her kin out, but it had been in vain. Brann could see two battleaxes at the females side and remembered that Thrain had been so proud of his strong and axewielding wife. After her loss Thrains heart had broken and he had never been the same. Even his five grandchildren had not reached his heart again.

Thorin, I am so sorry.

Thorin swallowed heavily and stroke over his mother's dry hair. She and all the other dwarves had slowly starved to death, a very dishonorable death for a dwarf. None of them had deserved this.

'Grandmother.' Belladonna whispered. 'Was she the namegiver for my sister, Zial?'

Thorin nodded and had to smirk. 'Gwen is more like her, but we could not know that.'

'I am so sorry.' Bilbos voice made the Durin family jump. In their grief they had forgotten everything about the company. Belladonna had not known her grandmother, but she felt connected to the dead body. She could feel that this was her grandmother. The pain in her fathers eyes also touched her and Belladonna sighed. The initial joy of reclaiming her father's home had vanished and had made room for fear, doubt and grief. Belladonna could feel the heavy disappointment in her stomach and stood up on shaking legs.

'This is how our family will reunite? In death?' Belladonna whispered.

'No.' Thorin took his daughters hand as he turned away from his mothers body. With all his strength he forced his gaze away from her. 'We will not die like this. Broken and starving to death. We will make for the forge.'

'The lizard will find us before we get there, for sure.' Dwalin doubted.

'Not when we split up.' Thorin insisted. He would not give up. Never. 'We have to try. If we burn...then we will burn together.'

Thorin saw most of the dwarves nod and he felt Branns hand on his back. She was with him, as was the company.

'I will go with Bilbo and Balin. Dwalin, Nori and Donna will form another group. Gloin and Bifur a third. Dori, Ori and Bofur the last.' once again, Thorin was reminded of the fact that their company was not complete. He hoped that Fili, Kili and Oin were alright. But such thoughts were only distracting now.

'I want to stay with you, adad.' Belladonna told Thorin as the other dwarves prepared to face Smaug again.

'No. If something happens...it is better if the members of our family will not...the chances of one of us surviving are bigger apart.' Thorin murmured.

Belladonna swallowed and nodded. Her father was right.

'C'mon, lass.' Dwalin patted her shoulder and grinned. 'Show an old dwarf how fast you can run.'

#

#

Brann had no idea how, but all the dwarves made it to the forge. Smaug had concentrated on Thorin and he had almost succeeded to kill him twice on his way down. Dwalin, Nori and Belladonna were the ones who rescued Thorin the second time and together, they joined the rest of the company in the forge.

'We need to light the furnace!' Balin told Thorin.

The king turned around and Belladonna could see the mischief in his eyes. It shocked her how much he looked like Kili in this moment. Kili...Belladonna hoped that he was alright.

Before she knew it Thorin began to row insults at the dragon. Belladonna gasped, but she quickly understood his motives. Thorin provoked Smaug to make him breathe fire. The dragonfire would enlighten the forge. Belladonna grabbed Bilbo and lunged behind a metal pillar for protection.

'Slug!' Thorin spit towards the angry dragon and turned to grin at his company. 'Take cover.'

Belladonna pressed Bilbo close as the dragonfire threatened to suffocate them. In her panic, she had not noticed that she had pressed the hobbit face against her chest and Bilbo had flushed to a bright red.

'Oh. Sorry.' Belladonna mumbled in embarassment.

But Bilbo only smiled shyly. 'Its quite alright. Thank you for...protecting me.'

'You saved my life, Bilbo. I think thats the least I could do.' Belladonna cleared her throat. Her father was about to instruct his dwarves what to do. Thank Mahal, he had not seen his daughter with the hobbit or else he would probably have thrown Bilbo right into Smaugs face.

'Bilbo, go up there and pull the handle when I give you the order.' Thorin patted Bilbos shoulder reassuringly and the hobbit came to action immediately.

Belladonna watched as the company worked in union, as one. She felt lost and like an outsider. And she did not like it.

#

Smaug did not know what hit him. The company lured him to the hall of kings and attempted to destroy his life. But they did not succeed. The dragon, more furious than ever, fleed the mountain and seeked revenge on the men of Laketown.

Thorin and the company were sick with worry. Not only were Fili, Kili and Oin in danger, but also the men, women and children of Laketown. Again, the men would lose their home because of the dwarves' battle with a dragon.

Brann stayed at her husbands side. She had to tell him about Belladonna. She had to tell him that their little gem was showing signs of the goldsickness. She thought about asking Bilbo to give Belladonna the ring instead of Thorin, but she hesitated. The ring was golden and she had promised Bilbo that he would get it back. Brann looked into her daughters eyes and saw the golden gleam. If Bilbo would give her the ring, she would not give it back. She had to talk to Thorin and she had to see and touch him. She desperately needed the comfort of his strong arms now.

Bilbo had not forgotten his promise to the queen. He sat with Belladonna and watched her closely. The princess seemed distant and had not moved since the dragon had left the mountain. Her gaze drifted to the corridors leading to the treasury, but she did not move. She fought it, Bilbo knew. The hobbit remembered their conversation in Rivendell. He had asked her if she feared the goldsickness. Belladonna had claimed that only the males of her family had fallen under Durins curse. Until now. Bilbo stood up silently and walked over to Thorin. He still did not know how to talk to the king. But he considered Thorin a leader and a friend. Bilbo would gladly give his life for Thorin, he knew that now. What the dwarven king had shown in the last months had gained the hobbit loyalty.

Thorin frowned as Bilbo gave him the ring, his hands hidden behind Thorins body and shielded from the others.

'What is this, master hobbit?' he asked hoarsely.

'Your wife needs to speak to you. She asked me to help her...you...' Bilbo stammered. 'She also promised me that I would get it back...it is my ring.'

Thorin frowned, but nodded. 'You have my word, master...Bilbo.'

Thorin turned to Dwalin and nodded at him. The captain of his guard nodded back at him and watched as the king walked down the corridor leading to the treasury. He exchanged a worried glance with Balin, but he was loyal to his king. He would watch over the company while his king would take a look at his gold.

#

Thorin slipped the ring to his finger as soon as he had reached he treasury. He did not look at the gold once, he only wanted to see Brann. Thorin had never expected the ring to fit over his thick fingers, but it did. The world turned grey and Thorin felt cold. He looked around and jumped as he saw Brann stand right behind him, smiling at him. But her smile was sad.

Brann threw herself into Thorins arms. She held back a sob and buried her face in his neck. Thorin wrapped his arms around his wife and sighed. He had missed her so much and he had missed this.

'Brann, my love.' Thorin had to concentrate. 'You told Bilbo that you needed to speak to me?'

'I needed you. We can talk anytime, but I needed to be with you.' Brann whispered. 'Everything is falling apart. I am stuck here and have to watch you walk from one danger into the other...and I have to watch...Thorin, Belladonna is falling under the curse. The goldsickness affects our little gem!'

Thorin let go of his wife immediately and looked at her in shock. 'Belladonna? This is impossible!'

'I have seen the golden gleam in her eyes, Thorin!' Brann was desperate. 'I have been there as she attacked Bilbo for not having found the arkenstone. You should have seen her, Thorin. That was not our daughter!'

Thorin felt his knees go weak. His little gem, it could not be! He had brought this doom upon her. She was his blood and his blood was weak.

'Thorin, look at me!' Brann had cupped his cheeks and looked at her husband in worry. 'What shall we do?'

'There is nothing we can do against Durins curse. My grandfather was beyond reach after he had fallen for his gold.' Thorin had to sit down. He could see the mad gleam in Thrors eyes in his mind. During their fight against the dragon Thorin had not noticed the change in his daughter. He hated himself for it.

'I should have seen it. I swore that I would keep her from harm...' Thorin whispered and covered his eyes with his hands. 'I have failed.'

'No, Thorin.' Brann took his hands and kissed his knuckles. 'Nothing is lost, yet. You are king and a warrior. Do not give up. Do not give up on our daughter. You have to fight it.'

'I am tired of fighting.' Thorin sighed. 'I am tired of failing. I fought Smaug and brought doom over the men in Dale and Laketown. I fought Durins curse and lost our daughter.'

'Nothing is lost, yet, Thorin.' Brann whispered and laid her forehead against his. 'We are in this together. I will stay at your side.'

Thorin felt hope warm his heart for the first time since Smaug left the mountain. Brann was right, they had to fight. Fight evil, fight Smaug, fight the gold and fight their doubts. None of them knew that they would have to fight even more before the end.

'I have to tell you something, my bear.' Brann whispered. She had told Bilbo to keep the arkenstone to himself, but the situation had changed. Thorin had shown no signs of the goldsickness so far, but Brann hoped that she did not bring Bilbo into trouble.

'We have the stone.'

Thorin stiffened slightly, but he kept his forehead pressed against Branns. 'What are you talking about? And who is "we"? I have always thought that there is only one "we".'

Brann smiled at her husbands humor. 'Bilbo found the stone. But I asked him to keep it. For now. It is safe, but I needed to know...'

'You needed to know if I could be trusted with it...and the gold.' Thorin finished the sentence. If anyone else would have doubted him he would have been hurt and furious. But this was his wife, his love. She was his strongest support. And she was right.

'The hobbit overheard Elrond and Gandalf talk about you and the curse.' Brann stated. 'He knows and he also wants to save you from the curse. He is very loyal.'

'Indeed, he is.' Thorin sighed. It made him uncomfortable to know that the hobbit knew of his weakness. 'I have thought that retrieving the arkenstone would be my only goal. During the whole quest, nothing seemed more important to me that the heirlom of my family. But now...'

'What now?' Brann asked and looked into Thorins sad eyes.

'Now, nothing is more important than the gold and not the cursed stone.' Thorin grumbled and stood up, leaving Brann sitting on the floor of the treasury. He smiled down at his wife with one of the warm smiles Brann had missed for so long. 'And I am sure that the hobbit will agree.'