Chapter Twenty Four: A Burglar's Mission

When we finally hit as far down as the dwarves were able to go, it was time for us to part. Balin offered to walk me down further but of course Thorin wanted to take me to the stairs I was going to need to go down to the heart of Erebor. He claimed that since he was the one in charge, it only made sense that he should be the one to send me off.

They took turns wishing me luck and patting my shoulder. I couldn't shake the feeling that most of them thought I was going to die down there, not like I could blame them. In some of their expressions, it seemed like I was already dead.

I waved to everyone trying to appear as though I wasn't scared half to death. As soon as I turned the corner and I was out of sight, I had to wonder if that would be the last time I ever saw them. I took a quiet but shaky breath, still trying to hide my nerves from Thorin.

We were in silence for a while, still able to hear some of the company conversing but once we were out of earshot he turned around and hugged me tightly. I could feel our hearts rushing together and I held onto him.

"Please, please Lydia be careful," he whispered. "I wish I could go down there with you but we would be incinerated immediately."

I nodded into his chest. "I know, I must do this on my own. I must at least try."

"No goodbyes though, not yet. I just…wanted to make sure you were okay. What can I do to help you?"

We pulled apart and had to keep walking down the hall, but he held my hand tightly at our sides. I squeezed his hand and shook my head, trying to think. "Um…what is the Arkenstone? What does it do? What does it look like?"

"The Arkenstone is an heirloom of the Durin line and the single most precious thing in this entire mountain. Whoever possesses it, possesses the power to lead the seven dwarven armies. It's the color of the moon, and takes in any light and amplifies it by a hundred. It is so much more than just a simple jewel, and you will know it when you see it."

"That's reassuring since I'm sure there's thousands of white jewels down there. Are you sure you don't need me to burgle a specific piece of sand from the ocean instead?"

"You will know it when you see it," he repeated. His steps slowed for a moment and I looked back at him. "Lydia…you don't need to go if you do not wish to. The others care about that dumb contact as much as I do, there's no dishonor if we just turn back."

"Thorin, if this Arkenstone will help you take back your throne and your home I will go there. Come on now, show me the way."

He caught up with me and turned me down the right hall. "You never cease to amaze me with that bravery of yours." We came to a set of stairs and I knew this was where he was going to have to leave me. "If you're half as lucky as you are brave, I know you'll be fine."

I shuffled my backpack off me and I handed it to him. "No use for soap and honey down there, unless it's poisonous to dragons." He took it from me with a nod and then threw it onto his back. "And my bow doesn't have any arrows so-"

"No, no. You need to keep your father's bow with you. Who knows what you'll find down there to use."

I pressed my lips together. I guess if I did die down there, I would want the bow to burn with me. "I'll keep it. I'll most certainly bring my sword with me too."

He put his hands on my shoulders and I stared into his eyes. "If there is in fact a live dragon down there, do not awaken it. And then Lydia, come back to me." He pulled me in for another hug. "Come back to me…"

I got choked up for a moment but I quickly composed myself. I was not going to let my fear make him more worried about me than he already was. I wiped the mist out of my eyes and I smiled up into his face before giving him a kiss.

"You'll owe me something real special to celebrate when I get back, your highness. I've been able to do all sorts of magic and miracles on this journey, but I think I should get a special reward if I pull this one off. Don't you think so?"

He chuckled, amused. "You will get everything you're looking for and more, I can promise that to you."

We exchanged one final, passionate kiss between each other before we had to finally separate from each other's arms. I started my way down the stairs, Sting on my side and my father's bow on my back, and the ring was still tucked away in my pocket. As ready as I could be to steal from a dragon as I ever could be.

"Goodbye, only for now!" Thorin said, waving to me.

"Goodbye, I love you!" My feet froze as I realized the words that just casually fell out of my mouth. I saw his eyebrows move up for only a moment before I panicked and sprinted down the stairs in complete horror.

What's the likelihood I said that in my head and I didn't just admit my feelings to Thorin right to his face?

Pretty fucking slim.

I stewed in my embarrassment and it was actually a pretty efficient distraction as I traveled further down into Erebor. The rooms got bigger and more extravagant the further I went, and I certainly noticed the beautiful furniture and statues and halls but my mind was completely occupied with other matters.

"You've slept with him once, Barclay?!" I whispered under harsh breaths. "He's going to think you're out of your fucking mind if you're already saying you love him!"

Maybe he'll think I said it in a platonic way? Um no, you can't fuck someone and then say 'I love you' in a platonic way.

I said it because I meant it. I've never loved someone the way I loved Thorin before in my entire life, it felt so different than anything I had ever experienced before. I might not have even admitted it to myself yet, because those kinds of feelings were so foreign to me, but I knew deep within myself that I had felt that way for a long time.

Was I ready to tell him that though? Hell no!

We were just starting to have fun with each other. The flirting, the kissing, the sex. Ugh, then I had to bring something as serious as love into it.

What came over me to just blurt something like that out of the blue? Well…probably the fear of never seeing him again, if I were to guess.

I sighed deeply and entered into some sort of armory. It was completely empty, but there were statues of dwarves decked out in armor and weapon racks scattered about the room. I'm sure they were all taken out when they were attacked by Smaug all that time ago and they were never returned to this room. It was now covered in dust and cobwebs like the rest of the rooms I had come across so far. It was hard to imagine Erebor full of dwarves and life, seeing it like that.

I left the armory and came to a wide open cavern. I stared up at the ceilings that were impossible to even estimate how tall they were. It just seemed to go on forever. I kept walking to go down more stairs, but from the edge of the vantage point I got my first view of the riches of the Lonely Mountain. 'The hoard of gold and treasures of imagination' suddenly seemed like a vast understatement. It is so far beyond imagination.

As far as I could see in both directions were hills and waves of gold. It would take an entire kingdom a lifetime to count every gold piece, collect every jewel, and pile up every treasure box. My task of finding the Arkenstone just went from bleak to impossible.

I knew I still needed to try. For Thorin's sake.

I stepped down the stairs and then slowly stepped onto the treasures. The coins were slippery under my feet so I stepped carefully and made sure to stay off of the other treasures like the golden cups, plates, and beautiful jewels. I made sure to look at any of the white jewels but they didn't speak to me the way that I was told it would.

When I got tired of looking in one area, I started hiking my way up one of the steep hills, hoping to get some sort of vantage point. I wasn't sure how that was going to help me unless the jewel was sitting on top of one of these huge hills of gold. I just needed to start with something, make it feel like I had an idea of where to go.

While trying to make my way up the large pile, I randomly grabbed a gold chalice to just see if everything was in it, but it caused a small slide of gold further down the hill. I thought nothing of it until something was revealed that was not made of gold.

My breathing stopped as the closed eye of a dragon appeared out of the treasure. I froze for a moment in shock, but then quickly scrambled behind the nearest column.

Fuck oh fuck oh fuck oh fuck!

I heard the breathing of the great beast behind me and I pressed my back against the column. I looked off to my left, to see if I could find a safe route to get the hell away from Smaug, and I saw a distant patch of gold shift and slide down another hill.

I was realizing just how huge Smaug truly was and how doomed I was.

Attempting to escape, I started taking the most careful steps of my life back down the hill. When I heard the loud shifting and breathing of the dragon, I dropped down onto my back and hoped that I was out of sight.

My hands dove into my pockets and I grabbed onto the ring. I peaked over my shoulder and saw that Smaug's red and gold eye was open and scanning the surroundings. I slid the ring on without another moment of hesitation.

Smaug rose his head up, rising out of the piles of gold and growling deep in his body. I stared up in a mixture of awe and absolute terror as he seemed to only get taller and taller. He sniffed the air and grumbled more, searching for me.

"Well then, thief," his head went right over me and curled his way around the column, "I smell your flesh, I hear your breath, I feel your air. But where are you hidden? Where are you, she who awoke me from my slumber?"

He got too close for comfort so I rushed down the hill. Smaug obviously heard me and rushed after the sound, diving through the gold so fast that I had to quickly jump behind the nearest fallen piece of stone wall and press myself flat against it. I tried to control my breathing, closing my eyes and trying to convince myself that I wasn't being chased by a fire breathing dragon.

"Come now, don't be shy, little one. Step into the light and show yourself." I heard him wind around me so my eyes sprung back open. He was a huge creature with tan scales that looked hard as stone, and he had horns along his body. "There is…something about you. Something you carry? Something made of gold, but far more...precious."

The ring started to burn on my finger and I winced in surprise. It got hotter and hotter until I was either going to start screaming or I needed to take it off. The huge head of Smaug hung in front of me, but I had to rip the ring off and appear back in reality.

"There you are, thief in the Shadows!" His two large eyes landed on me and the growling got deeper.

I caught my breath and somehow managed to remember how to speak. "Steal? From you?" I slowly shook my head and tucked the ring back into my pocket. "Nay, O Great Smaug. I have simply heard the old stories about your grandeur and wanted to see for myself if there was any truth in it. The stories always sounded so far-fetched and unbelievable about the richest and most powerful creature to ever live, even more so than any king dead or alive. I couldn't realistically believe what they said so I came here."

He chuckled and swung around, backing away so I could see all of his stature at once. The ground shook with every movement and I struggled to keep my footing while he positioned himself to stand up tall on his four legs.

"And do you now? Believe the old stories?"

"Not a single tale or story I've ever heard would have prepared me for this moment." That statement was far more true than I was expecting. "Standing in front of you and witnessing your…glory, I'm just…at a loss for words."

"Clearly that's not true. Do you believe flattery will save your life?"

"I don't think it's ever killed anyone before," I chuckled, trying to cut the tension. "Surely speaking to you with honey is better than vinegar. Though saying your presence is awe inspiring is certainly not a stretch of the truth."

He narrowed his eyes on me. "You seem familiar with my name, but I don't remember smelling your kind before." Smaug moved closer to me, sniffing the air again. "Who are you and where do you come from, may I ask?"

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a bright, white light. While I considered how to answer, I looked down and saw a bright jewel covered by a few coins but glowing somehow with all and no colors at the same time. My heart rate sped up.

The Arkenstone!

I took a moment to breathe then answered him. "I come from a land of prancing ponies and where ale flows."

"Prancing Ponies?"

"Aye. My journey has brought me over hills and through trees, under mountains and through the air. During my travels I have become 'She Who Walks Unseen'."

He seemed amused. "What else are you?"

"Miracle Maker, Riddle Master, River Rider."

"Lovely titles for such a small creature. Is that what your dwarf friends call you?"

I tilted my head as if I had never even heard of the word 'dwarf' before. "Dwarves? I don't think I've ever had the pleasure."

"Oh, I don't think so, River Rider!" He stomped around and I moved closer to the Arkenstone. "They sent you in here to do their dirty work while they skulk about outside." When his eyes came back to me, I froze in place.

"Dwarves here? Why on earth would they come here after you sacked the kingdom? Certainly no living creature would be silly enough to try and come to cause you ill-will."

"You have nice manners for a thief and liar! I know the smell and taste of Dwarf, no one better! It's the gold. They are drawn to treasure, like flies to dead flesh." Smaug slammed down his foot and sent the Arkenstone flying down the hill of gold. I also lost my footing and went sliding and falling down to the bottom. "Did you think I did not know this day would come?! That a pack of canting Dwarves would come crawling back to the Mountain?!"

When I came to the bottom a rain of gold fell on top of me but I could still hear Smaug fuming as he knocked over huge columns, making the whole mountain shake in his anger. He nearly stepped on me but I leapt out in time and kept rushing to another hill of gold, seeing the Arkenstone roll further and further away. Once Smaug spotted me again, he took flight and followed me down to where I hid under a stone structure.

"The King Under the Mountain is dead and I took his throne! I ate his people like a wolf amongst sheep. I kill where I wish, when I wish! My armor is iron. No blade can pierce me! It's Oakensheild, that filthy, Dwarvish usurper! He sent you in here for the Arkenstone, didn't he?"

"I do not know what it is that you speak of, O Powerful Smaug. When I came here, I came on my own accord." I swiveled around one of the legs of the stone structure so I could stay out of his eyesight. I was able to spot the Arkenstone again as well, it was less than ten feet outside of the overhang of the structure!

"Don't bother denying it! I guessed his foul purpose some time ago. But it matters not, Oakenshield's quest will fail either way. The darkness is coming! It will spread to every corner of the land. And as for you, little thief, you are being used. You were only ever a means to an end. The coward Oakensheild has weighed the value of your life and found it worth nothing."

I shook my head, knowing he was just trying to get under my skin. Though…with all the noise Smaug was making certainly they all knew that he had been awakened. Wouldn't any of them, especially Thorin, have at least tried to come down and help me…?

"What did he promise you? A share of the treasure? As if it was his to give! I will not part with a single coin, not one piece of it."

I dove out of the covering to grab for the Arkenstone but Smaug's tail flashed like lightning, knocking me and the stone off towards the entrance of one of the tunnels. I scrambled back onto my feet as he rose his head back up into the air. He seemed to go on forever, just getting taller and bigger and more imposing.

As he stretched himself, right on his chest I found a single missing scale. I inspected it for a moment before realizing that Bard was right! His ancestor made his mark all that time ago. Smaug did have a weakness in his armor after all.

Smaug's piercing eyes traveled and landed onto the Arkenstone that wasn't far from where I stood. He chuckled without humor and took a step towards me. "I am almost tempted to let you take it, if only to see Oakenshield suffer. I would love to watch it destroy him, watch it corrupt his heart and drive him mad like his grandfather and father before him."

I looked back down at the brilliant jewel. Could such a thing really do that to Thorin? All this treasure and the Arkenstone drove his family mad, certainly he would be able to avoid such a curse. Couldn't he?

"But I think not ... I think our little game must end here," he growled, taking another step towards me with his chest starting to glow with fire. "Since you've stroked my ego with your empty words, I will do you one final kindness. So tell me, Little Thief, how do you choose to die on this day? By fire or by fire?"

He lunged towards me and I threw the ring back onto my finger, disappearing out of sight. I dove for the Arkenstone, shoving the hefty gem into my pocket and sprinting towards the stairs to escape. Smaug roared as he breathed fire blindly, and it certainly licked at my heels as I tried to get away. Though I was putting distance between me and the dragon, I was still feeling an intense heat on my back. When I looked over my shoulder I saw that my already decimated cape was on fire so I whipped it off and put it out.

He lashed out, taking out more columns and crushing stone structures as he thrashed around in the treasure. His roaring shook me down to my core, my body only acting on self preservation. If I had stopped to think for even a moment I would have frozen up in complete fear. My brain just told my body to run.

I put my ring into my pocket and secured my cape back onto my shoulders, then kept rushing up the stairs. There was no celebration in that moment, knowing I had done the impossible to find the stone amongst the treasure hoard. Knowing that Smaug was not only awake, but entirely pissed off made me feel sick to my stomach.

In my pocket was the stone that could drive Thorin mad like his grandfather before him, and I was leaving an angry dragon that could destroy everything and kill everyone…