Chapter 16 – Devil Take the Hindmost

"Noble dragons don't have friends. The nearest they can get to the idea is an enemy who is still alive." ― Terry Pratchett, "Guards! Guards!"

Faervel reluctantly took Freyja with him as he journeyed across the lands of Dorwinion in search of his captured friend. It went against his better judgement and sense of right and wrong to do so, for she was little more than a girl, perhaps fourteen at most. But which was the greater evil? To take Freyja with him, endanger but find Kathryn and deal with the dragon with her knowledge? Or, to leave Freyja behind and Katrhyn suffer the consequences? It was a most troubling debate that he was waging war with inside his mind during those first few days when they travelled the plains that surrounded Vathvael. He wondered what his elders would conclude if they were presented with the same philosophical puzzle.

But he was somewhat surprised but grateful that the girl did not impede his progress, for it was clear that she knew how to survive on the road. From caring to their horses, to building fires, to even handling a crossbow (surprisingly enough), she never ceased to amaze him with her range of abilities and maturity for one so young.

They had silently worked out a system between them, as easily as the moon harmonises with the sea to create the currents. They travelled by day, Faervel trying to track the dragon's progress through the plains. It wasn't easy, as the dragon could fly for leagues without tiring and could veer in any direction at any given point. So the elf hunter was having to rely on his gut instincts in order to follow the direction that the beast had been heading in and hope that he found evidence of his passing at some point. Other than that, it was like trying to find the proverbial needle in a hay stack. They camped at sundown every night, and Freyja would prepare their meals and a fire whilst Faervel tracked their position and progress on his map as he scouted the stars.

"What do you know that can help us find this beast?" Faervel asked rather bluntly on the evening of the second night just before they were about to turn in for rest. Freyja flinched when he spoke, looking at him as she feared he would burst into flames. After a moment however, she cleared her throat and sat back on her heels with her hands folded meekly in her lap.

"I…um, I-I have my ways…" she mumbled, trying to glance up at him nervously though she would not look him in the eye.

"Freyja…" Faervel murmured softly, seeing clearly that she was fearful towards him as she had been through the whole journey so far. "You have nothing to fear from me, I will not harm you…"

"But you will," she whispered, staring at the floor as her voice threatened to shake. "I'll do something – anything – and you won't like it, then you'll be angry."

"Have I ever shown anger towards you?" he asked her but the girl shook her head, shaking physically as she seemed to go into a fearful trance as she stared at the floor.

"M-mother says that men always get angry – ever so angry! She says its bad, its evil! They get mad, then they punish you; always be on guard, then they won't be angry!" she squeezed her eyes shut, and Faervel slowly rose to his knees in alarm as he watched the girl in horror, reaching towards her with concern in his eyes. "Oh! I shouldn't be here! Mother will be so angry! She's awful when she's angry! Why did the men make her so angry?! I shouldn't have come! I should have been a good girl and –argh!"

"Freyja!" Faervel called to her as he grasped her shoulders and gently shook her. She screamed with surprise, eyes going wide like a panicked wild animal as she pushed and fought against him. He pulled her tighter against him, and though she screamed he held her still against his chest, holding her like a father would do as his child awoke from nightmares. He had no idea of the night-terrors that Freyja must have faced, but he was determined to banish them.

She resisted until her strength gave out – which wasn't long, and then collapsed against him, pulling against his cloak as she buried her head into his shoulder and wept. She sobbed like a terrified child, filled with despair, aching for any kind of comfort. Faervel gladly gave it to her, even as he stroked her hair and whispered soothing words.

"Hush now… it's alright… I'm not angry… you're safe…" he whispered, gradually feeling her calm as the shaking and shuddering stopped. "Poor sweet girl… What happened to you?"

Freyja was silent. They staid huddled together for what seemed like the longest time, until finally Freyja cleared her throat and pushed on Faervel's chest, forcing herself to sit up on her own, though she refused to look him in the eye.

"I apologise…" she said quietly as she looked at the floor again, cheeks still burned red, and her eyes puffy from tears. "That was untoward of me. It will not happen again."

"There is no need for you to apologise," he murmured softly, but refrained from reaching out to her. She was clearly uncomfortable and he did not want to make the situation any worse for her.

"Anyway," she mumbled clearing her throat again forcefully. "To answer your question: I have something that can help us locate Smaug,"

"And what is that?"

Freyja then reached around to her satchel and pulled out from it a small wrapped bundle. Peeling back the layers of what appeared to be velvet cloth, she revealed a remarkably smooth crystal ball that fit snugly in the palm of her hand. She held it up for him to see.

"This was in the dragon's possession. It is how he discovered that Kathryn was in Vathvael," she explained.

"How do you know?" he asked, trying to keep the suspicion out of his voice lest he send her into another fit of hysterics.

"I… erm… let's just say that I know of the source who supplied him with it," she replied nervously.

"What does it do?" Faervel asked instead, choosing to brush aside her suspicious behaviour – for now.

"You simply look into its depths and focus on what you want. Then, the orb will show you where it is." She held out the crystal orb to him. Cautiously, he gently plucked it from her fingers and held it close to his eye level.

Emptying his mind, Faervel focused solely on the image of Kathryn in his mind, and watched in amazement as the inside of the orb transformed from a distorted horoscope view, to suddenly showing him what appeared to be an old and abandoned fortress inside a group of jagged cliffs that stuck out of the ground for hundreds of feet in the air. Soon, the image faded, and Faervel looked up at Freyja with an awed expression.

"Well?" she prompted softly.

"We're headed for Emyn Muil," He murmured.

They continued to travel for another week and a half. Tirelessly trekking across the plains and over hills, Faervel constantly trying to make Freyja comfortable whilst alone in his presence. The fear she displayed for males was most concerning. At this point he was unsure which was the more worrying cause: Kathryn kidnapped by a dragon, or Freyja with her mortal terror of the opposite sex. But then, one day, when they were perhaps another week at most from the edges of Emyn Muil, they found something that they had not expected to find.

A battle ground… or what was left of it.

The ground was charred black where raging fires had scorched the earth and robbed it of life so that all that remained was blackened earth and ashes. What appeared to be the shattered remains of carriages and coaches and wagons were strewn about all over the place, the debris either smashed to pieces or partly burned. But what was worse, was that the ground was littered with corpses; horses lying dead and their bodies bent at unnatural angles, men torn apart or their bodies burned into unrecognisable husks. The stench of burned meat and death was so heavy in the air, that Freyja fell from her saddle and scrambled back away from the scene in order to vomit back up her breakfast.

Faervel looked down at the poor girl with pity, although he wasn't as affected by the scene as she was, it still brought his heart immeasurable sorrow to see such carnage. To her later great thanks, he left her behind with the horses and went down onto the scene by himself, surveying the carnage and whispering prayers for the lost souls. He then worked through the afternoon in order to dispose of the dead. It didn't feel right to leave them like that. Freyja couldn't help, she was distraught from merely seeing such a sight, and sat far away, gripping the reins of the horses with a white knuckled grip, her face a pale shade of green.

But the elf did not mind, in fact, he took it all in silent contemplation, with each dead body he sent a silent prayer to his or her gods that would listen in order to take the soul away. But as he went about his work, he also managed to discover quite a few things.

From what he could tell, all of the dead seemed to be on the same side, so there was no casualty from the attacking force, this was an ambush, a massacre. But there were no signs of battle, just chaos, as no man had weapons drawn, there were no arrows sticking in the ground, no signs of combat; it had been a slaughter. But then, right in the centre of the scene, he found something else.

Footprints.

Four. BIG. Footprints.

Faervel scowled at the huge reptilian hand and feet prints that showed the presence of a very large four legged animal. In this case, namely a dragon. Faervel looked up and out towards the horizon, where the crags and cliffs of Emyn Muil could be seen in the long distance.

Smaug was out patrolling through the great labyrinth that was the crags of Emyn Muil, swooping and combing his way through the maze as he checked through every crevice and passage in order to find any signs of life, or more importantly, intruders. He didn't want any sentient being within a hundred mile radius of the fortress where he and Kathryn were staying; it was only until he was able to make his move towards Erebor, but he was still being thorough. Their exit from Vathvael had not been the most subtle, and he didn't want ANY repercussions because of it.

And besides, he only had to wait a few more days. He wanted to discover the limit to this magical stream that flowed between himself and Kathryn, and what advantages it could give him. And possibly, he wanted to see if Kathryn abilities would render anything useful. The past few days he had been dropping hints and speaking aloud about the current situation of the dwarves and Erebor, giving her little pieces of information just in the case that it might induce a vision that could help him. He knew that she needed to know certain details in order for a vision to come through, even though some were brought on by nothing. But, if she did not see anything within the next week at the most, Smaug's patience would be at its end and he would move on towards the mountain. He honestly doubted whether there would be any threat great enough to stop him taking back HIS treasure. He would destroy the dwarves the same as he did the first time he conquered Erebor, and the last Black Arrow was now destroyed. He was invincible!

Smirking to himself at the thought, Smaug then began to turn through the passages, selecting each one expertly as he moved his way through the crags and turning back towards the direction of the fortress. He had already mesmerised every single twist and turn, and was as easy to navigate through as if he could see through the stone itself to his destination. It was late evening, and he had already been hunting and had eaten with Kathryn a few hours earlier, so there was no need for a detour, he could head straight –

Smaug.

A snarl ripped from Smaug's jaws as he practically almost fell from the air with a shock surprise. As it was, he only just managed to catch himself as his right wing grazed one of the rocky cliffs, before he turned and kicked away from it and righting himself in the air. The dragon looked about, eyes wide as he suddenly searched his mind and the surrounding areas for the owner of the voice who had said his name. He could have sworn that he had heard a voice inside his mind, but that was impossible, as not even he and Kathryn could do that with their bond, how could someone –

And then he remembered how that dark power had reached him, using some magic to come to Smaug's mind and speak with him telepathically. Whilst this was not the same voice, it still had that same flavour of magic to it. And so, Smaug searched his mind for any intruder that was trying to wrestle his thoughts, but only found a light touch just against the outside of his walls, hardly touching him but still enough to make a connection. He found it at exactly the same time as he recognised the voice.

"Andraya." He growled savagely.

Good to see that you do possess SOME mental functioning. The witch commented dryly. After your rather bombastic outburst when you escaped Vathvael, I was beginning to wonder.

"Where are you?!" Smaug snarled as he twisted his head and neck in order to try and see if the loathsome woman was anywhere close by.

Far away from you. She bit back sourly. I am not stupid enough to be in your vicinity, hence why I am casting this spell: So that we may speak without your bothersome temper.

"You dare to insult me?!" the dragon bared his teeth, tasting his fire at the back of his throat from his growing anger.

You can do nothing to me, lizard. She replied venomously.

"Oh really…" Smaug bristled, and gathered the magic in his blood to him, baring his teeth as he felt the spike of it sting even him. And then, with a mental roar he unleashed it all so that it hit the witch with its full force! He smirked evilly as he took great pleasure in hearing the witch scream as she was assaulted by such an onslaught of magic. She held on to her place against his mind, but that only caused her more pain as the waves of magic crashed into her and tried to uproot her. Her pain was very real, and Smaug took IMMENSE pleasure in it.

NO! No – stop! Please! She screamed out to him, and Smaug pretended to not hear her. Please Smaug! Stop! F-Forgive me! I want to talk! She screamed out, and Smaug withdrew his magical slaughter back, and felt the Witch's consciousness sag in relief.

"What do you want?" he bit out coldly.

Where is my daughter? Andraya asked after a moment of respite.

"Why would you believe that I would know? I have no desire for the brat, and if you can misplace your possessions so easily, perhaps you should not have them."

She has not been seen since the night you escaped with the Seer. Simply tell me truthfully Smaug: Have you done anything to harm my daughter?

"No. My quarrel is with you, Witch. I did not see your daughter that night, nor harm her. I had much more important things on my mind then petty grievances."

And how do I know you are telling the truth?

"Is my word not enough?" as if he could have any other use for the useless girl.

You gave me your word on a lot of things, that doesn't necessarily make it true. She made the snide comment quietly, almost as if it wasn't meant for his ears but he heard it anyway.

"The terms of the deal expired!" Smaug snapped angrily. "I am a dragon and I shall not be held accountable to the likes of you! Did you honestly think that you would bring me to do your biding? Your kind are as corrupt as I. You would have betrayed me sooner if given the chance."

So you will not abide by your word? She bristled.

"There is no promise to abide by," he replied smartly.

You will never fulfil any promise you make to others! Not unless it benefits you in some way!

"Do not insult my honour!" the dragon raged, threatening to blast her with another wave of magic. "My word is binding! You did not keep to the terms of the bargain."

And what terms does the seer uphold for you continued favour?! She continued, loathing in each and every word she spoke. Does she give you her powers? Her body? Her magic? I could have given you all for what was promised between us!

"She is mine, and a treasure of far more worth then any you could imagine!" Smaug snarled defensively.

You are quite taken with her then. Andraya muttered under her breath in a sour tone. But even your oaths to her are ones that you will eventually break.

"And how could that be?" he snapped.

Do you think that she will be happy with you forever? She asked, and Smaug was about to make a quick retort, when Andraya continued. The only reason you found her in the first place is because she was searching for peace. You will never give her that! She will be dragged from wherever you have hauled her back to your mountain – of that I have no doubt – but others will stop you, for the mountain is no longer yours and men, elves and dwarves will fight you forever for it. That is not the peace Kathryn wants. And because of you she will never be fulfilled. You have taken away her chance to find happiness: marriage, a safe home, children… all desires which you cannot fulfil.

Smaug's rage was so absolute, that he unleashed his magic once again to blast into the witch with such a ferocity that she was almost obliterated by the force. The magic squeezed her, squashed her, crushed her, clawed her, until she was screaming inside his head and oh… wasn't it music to Smaug's ears! Just like before, he withdrew for just a moment in order to give her a chance to breathe, before he pushed his mind against hers, as if he were thrusting his face towards her as he bared his teeth.

"You believe that these words will make me bend to our agreement, make me bend to your will?" he hissed at her. "No one controls ME, Witch! I am the one with the power here, you need me, but I would rather see you dead. I am almost tempted to search for your little strumpet of a girl, just so that I might see your face when I tear open her body, pull out her insides for you to see, tear her limbs from their sockets, and grind her bones in my teeth! For be warned witch, for that is a promise I make to you: That shall be the fate of both your child, should I see or hear of either of you ever again. For you, I will strip you of your precious power and crush you skull between my fingers! No be gone to where your pathetic attempts at power-play will not both me,"

And with one final push of his magic, he sent her scattered to the winds, and she was gone.

Gandalf and Elrond had been on the road for three days. Upon hearing of the news of the dragon attack in Vathvael, and that it had kidnapped a seer, they had both known that it could only be Smaug and Kathryn. For how likely could it be that another Great Fire Drake was spotted around the time of Smaug's supposed death, and not only that, but he managed to capture a seer? Neither Gandalf nor Elrond had heard word of Seer for hundreds of years before they had met Kathryn, and the chances of two were next to nil. The fact that the dragon and the seer were in exactly the same place and in each other's company only confirmed the theory.

And so the pair had set off from Dale and headed south as fast as they could. Elrond brought only a half dozen of his men, leaving the rest to help Bard and his people, the new King had instantly panicked and been on high alert, but had wisely thought to keep the continued existence of Smaug a secret so that there would not be wide spread panic amongst his people. Elrond was more determined than Gandalf had seen him in a long time to get to Kathryn. It was as if with her death something inside of him had been drowned but hope of her survival had resurfaced it and now he was determined to the point of almost a ferocious intensity to get to her before anything happened to her. Gandalf only prayed that it wasn't a false hope.

They all rode their horses almost to the point of exhaustion each day and only rested at night, determined to reach the Capital of Dorwinion as soon as they possibly could. But it wasn't until they were perhaps half way there that they found some rather… interesting company.

The first they saw of him, was a boy perhaps in his early teens, dirty from the road, his clothes ragged, sooty and somewhat burned, ash dirtied his face and hair, he had a haunted look in his eyes as if he hadn't slept in days, a slight tremble to his shuffling walk, his boots worn with holes and his feet bleeding from where he had walked so far. Gandalf dismounted his horse and came up to the boy, his expression pinched with concern.

"Boy… lad what's wrong?" the wizard asked but the youth merely ignored him and carried on walking straight past as if he hadn't seen him. Elrond rode his horse until he was beside Gandalf.

"It would appear as if he is out of sorts," the elf lord mused.

"Or under an enchantment…" Gandalf murmured into his long grey beard. He strode up to the boy and quickly pulled on his shoulders until he fell back, at which point Gandalf gently laid him down upon the ground. The boy didn't fight, just stared blankly at the sky. Gandalf muttered some words as he passed his hand over the young lad's face, hoping to break whatever spell had obviously taken over him, robbing him of all function.

"What happened to him?" Elrond asked. Before Gandalf could answer, the boy spoke up.

"The dragon…" he whispered in a hoarse voice, his eyes wide and unseeing, his frame seeming to tremble all the more as he spoke. "The dragon… he told me to go to the Kings of Dale and Erebor… he told me to tell them… to tell them…"

"Tell them what lad?" Gandalf asked, suddenly hooked on every syllable the boy uttered.

"He's coming for them." he breathed.

Despite the fact that he wanted nothing more than to forget the witch, her words haunted Smaug's mind as he came back into the fortress. He had displayed his anger and ferocity to her, put her in her place as he ought to, but still her words had affected him, more so then he initially thought.

Human lives were so short – shorter than any other of the mortal races – that they sped through the natural process of their life cycles ever so quickly. It took them a maximum of fifteen years to mature to adulthood at which point they could breed again. They lived perhaps a century at the very most if kept in the best of health and did not strain themselves too much. They were born, they matured, they were married off young and breed again. And taking this into consideration, Smaug had to wonder: was it what Kathryn wanted? He had once thought back when they were both still in the Lonely Mountain, that she may need to have offspring of her own to carry on her legacy. It had enraged Smaug to think that she be with another male then and it made him mad with fury now. But once again the witch's words cut into his mind as he thought: could he give her what she wanted? Did she want a home, stability, a quiet life bonded and mated to a life partner and having children of her own?

Most of the items on that list, Smaug couldn't give her just yet, but he had time for with them bound together once again she would live as long as he did. A home and stability he couldn't give until he had the Lonely Mountain back in his possession and he had exterminated every sentient being for a five hundred mile radius. If she wanted to be married, then his mark upon her shoulder was a ring enough (which reminded him that the bite-mark was starting to heal, he would need to inflict it again if he wanted it to scar), and the link that bound them together was enough for a wedding. Smaug saw no point to the useless ceremony that mortals liked to put on couplings; if a pair wanted to mate then they should mate, if the male wanted to keep her he should stop any other males from getting anywhere near her. Dragon society was so simple compared to that of humans in that respect.

But what about children?

And then another thought rocked into Smaug's mind, one that made him pause. What about… HIS children?

Smaug had never thought about offspring before, he had mated with females of his own kind, yes, and had probably sired a few hatchlings here and there; whether any were still alive he didn't know and almost didn't care. Like mortals, both parents were involved when rearing young, though only the mother was necessary, should the father not be there then nothing would be lost. The father only provided a male example and to offer protection to the hatchlings as his base role. But Smaug would admit that he had seen males who had been more than happy to watch their offspring whilst the mother was out hunting. But what if Smaug had children with Kathryn? If he impregnated her, would the children be born half breeds or simply magically powered dragons that could switch forms like he could now? Despite the fact that Smaug had never given reproduction much thought, he suddenly felt in him a desire… a desire to see Kathryn swell and grow with his offspring inside of her, to see her birth him strong and healthy young that would honour his name with their boosted magical abilities, to watch as she nurtured a part of them both in the next generation. If she were to have his young, she would be tied to him forever. For no matter the fact that he would now never allow her to leave him, should she ever think of it, his children would tie her to him in more binding ways than any mark upon her shoulder.

And suddenly, he grinned as a wicked idea came to him.

Smaug made his way into the fortress, climbing down into the depths where he had hidden Kathryn and also his treasure that he had stolen from the merchant party last night. Kathryn had not been so pleased and oddly suspicious of his bringing home cartful's of gold and silver. Sensing that she would not approve of his actions, he had lied and told her that he had discovered a band of thieves killing the merchants, and since he was not obligated to help them had watched and then killed the thieves and brought home the goods. Smaug knew that he answered to no one, and that Kathryn would just have to put up with his actions whether she liked it or not, as he was the dragon after all. But he had lied because he knew it would just make his life so much easier.

Kathryn was currently sitting by a fire that he had left for her, reading a book, she didn't look up at him as he walked into the room, probably because she was still sour about the fact that he had left in sulk after she had tried to lecture him again about the stolen gold. Thinking of his plan, he knew he would need to forget his pride and that spat in order to further his goals. He didn't say a word as he walked up to her, his footfalls making a thundering sound as he came close to her. Without a word he simply lay down beside her, curling his long neck around her tiny form, and with the side of his head pushed her closer. She squawked in surprise, caught off guard by his action, watching him with surprise. She hadn't expected him to act this way either.

"Smaug, what are you –" she tried to ask, but Smaug cut her off with a snort from his nostrils nuzzling his muzzle into her side, taking the opportunity to subtly drink in her scent. She was receptive, perhaps not at the peak of her fertility this month, but humans were quite versatile in the respect that they didn't necessarily need to be, they could fall pregnant at any point in their cycle; but having her at peak efficiency would just increase the chances.

"I tire of fighting you just for spite," he grumbled, playing the card that he was tired as he yawned for a greater effect. He then focused his eyes on her, locking her gaze as he made his eyes glow slightly in the way that he knew she wouldn't resist. "I just got you back, Kathryn," he murmured, putting in as much tender tones as he would allow, not too much in case she would get suspicious. "I do not wish to open old wounds with you so soon,"

His plan worked, for a look passed across her face, almost guilt as she fell for his words, and smiled softly for him as she reached up to touch his snout. Smaug wasn't lying when he felt absolutely wonderful when she touched him like that.

"I'm sorry," she murmured, still some pride in her voice that she tried to keep in check, but she was submitting, and that was all Smaug wanted. "I didn't mean to upset you,"

"Stay with me, in this moment," he murmured. Kathryn smiled fully, dropping her book as she reached out to touch him with her other hand, leaning in as she kissed the edge of his scaly lips. Smaug purred for her, and felt her body heat begin to rise. Smaug felt his senses sharpening as he knew that his next moves needed to push her further in the right direction.

He then slowly, as if he were testing for reaction, leaned his head slightly at an angle as he brought the end of his snout close to one of her legs. He paused for more effect as he locked his eyes back on Kathryn's, never breaking her gaze as he slowly opened his mouth and carefully brought out his tongue. Knowing that his hot saliva might be a little too warm, he gently and carefully touched her ankle with the tip of his thick tongue. She gasped slightly, her skin going pink as if from being dipped in a hot bath, but otherwise she was unharmed and she didn't tell him to stop. Emboldened, and liking the taste of her in this form, Smaug slowly, carefully swept his tongue up her shin, over her knee before stopping half way up her thigh, flicking the end of his tongue as he finished so that it lightly touched her neck and face. Kathryn was panting slightly, and Smaug made a show of taking in her scent, noting the spice of her arousal was already beginning to filter into the air. He fought down his smirk of triumph.

"My Kathryn…" he whispered her name darkly, in that way he knew she would respond to, as a shiver ran down her spine. He then pressed his muzzle against her, pushing her against him until he had her pinned, growling and purring so that she was forced to endure the vibrations of sound against her tender and already aroused body, whilst he took in her scent, the changes that happened, and knew exactly when was the time to strike. "MINE…"

Remembering how it had happened before, Smaug reached out to the flow of magic that ran like a river between him and Kathryn, and pulled upon it so that he was filled with energy. He forced himself to remain still as he was filled with the magic, his body easily generating what seemed to be a required amount in order to begin the transformation (a piece of information that Smaug stored safely away inside his brain to dissect later). The pain was not as bad as when he was human, all he needed to do was lock his joints as his muscles contorted and contracted, but soon he was in human form and lying naked with himself pressed against Kathryn, who was looking at him in surprise and awe.

As before, Smaug had a wave of dizziness and exhaustion come over him, but this time it was not nearly as bad and passed quite quickly. He could only think that he was getting used to and adapting to the transformations, making them easier with each time. He still didn't know how they worked precisely, but from this he now had a good idea.

But he banished such thoughts to the back of his mind as he focused on Kathryn. She knew why he had changed and so went along with it more than willingly as she helped him strip her of her clothes and they mated together beside the fire. Smaug would be a liar if he didn't admit that it felt ever so good to be back inside of her, to feel her, to be with her in such an intimate and vulnerable way once again. That was the reason why he mated with her again later that night, and again at some point later. Mostly for pleasure but also to make sure that his plan had every chance of succeeding. He gathered that once he transformed back into his true form, he would not be able to turn again for some time.

As Smaug lay there in the middle of the night, with Kathryn in his arms and curled up against him, her hair all around him, her body glistening from sweat, the scent of his male musk, their sex and her own exertion clinging to her skin. And on her shoulder, in exactly the same place, Smaug had reopened the wound every single time they had mated that night, for he wanted to be sure it would scar. And also he liked the taste of her blood in his mouth as he spilled his seed into her. It was very empowering to say the least. But Smaug took another deep breath as he tried to pinpoint the scent that meant her body was responding in the way he wanted, that he had taken root inside of her and she was beginning the incubation. He didn't find anything, and knew that he wouldn't, he would need to wait a few days for the hormones to be much more prominent before he would be able to tell anything. But still, he could hope. It would be very annoying to wait for conformation that he had succeeded.

He almost contemplated waking her and telling her, that she be pregnant with his young. But then, he thought better of it. He wanted to wait. He wouldn't tell her because he wanted her to find out on her own, to come running to him, her face filled with joy as she told him. He didn't want to spoil such a surprise for her.

It would be perfect.

Author's Note: Hello everyone! I hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Now, before I do the usual pleasantries, I want to address a couple of issues first. I have read each and every review that goes to this story, and I allow both positive and negative criticism to be posted. I'm very tolerant and understanding in that respect. What I will not tolerate however, is people using this as a chance to argue and basically be trolls. No body needs to see the pointless argument that is happening over chapter 13. I won't name names, but the point is mute: in my story the sexual content was how I imagined it, it is different with every other sexual encounter. I'm now going to be monitoring the reviews and not allowing any more argumentative posts. I do not want this to be a place for arguments. So please, no more.

Another issue, I'm going to be going on holiday for two weeks to Turkey on Monday, so I won't be near my laptop or be able to update I'm afraid guys :( But I promise to get back on this as soon as possible!

And also, I would say that this story has ten chapters left MAXIMUM. So we're nearing the end of the second arc.

Now, please review! Tell me what you thought of: Faervel and Freyja? Andraya and Smaug's conversation? Gandalf and Elrond to the rescue? Finding the boy? Smaug and Kathryn? Smaug's plan?

Love you guys, and I hope to hear from you when I'm back and gorgeously tanned! :P