Sorry that it took some time to upload. Sometimes I have the drive to write and then I think I have it too tomorrow, but then it ends up getting too busy or with me very tired at the end of the day...

So apologies for the long wait. But here it is, Chapter twelve. There is going to be one more chapter after this. And I will try to get it done as soon as possible!

For now, this is what happened in the last chapter:

It didn't take much longer before Thorin had wrestled Dwalin to the ground. The older dwarf almost escaped once but Thorin managed to pin his arm down and stop him from wiggling. "Give up!" he shouted.

Dwalin stopped moving, allowing his head to rest on the ground. "Alright you little cheater, you win, I give up."

Thorin got off, offering his old friend a hand. "What do you mean, 'cheater'? Don't be a sore loser Dwalin."

"Ah shut it. You decided to turn into a young adult in the midst of our fight. I don't call that fair."

They clapped each other on the shoulder. The fight was over. Your husband had won.

He turned towards you, a promising gleam in his eyes. "And now, for round three" he said, looking directly into your eyes.

Together you walked off to your private chambers. The others stayed behind to wrestle each other. It took them the rest of the night before they were finally done with battling each other. All the while, Bilbo was nowhere to be found. But they wouldn't realize until the next morning. 

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A finger traced the path of the scar on his chest. It was only partly visible.

The scar traveled down further, but in time it got covered by hair. Shadow black hid plain white.

In a way it reminded you of the man whoms chest you were exploring. The whole transformation from man to baby and the life stages that came afterwards, had taken a toll on the both of you. However, it had also brought you closer together.

In many ways.

You still felt the his hands caressing your every curve, discovering each other anew. The head of the bed was still broken. Yet the built was still sturdy and quite comfortable.

His breath was slow, steady, peaceful as he laid in rest.

You stopped, allowing your hand to rest on the left side of his chest. His heart beat was regular. "You were awake the whole time, weren't you?"

The dimples in his cheeks appeared. "Aye, I was." He lazily opened his eyes. "I didn't want you to stop." He took you hand and kissed it. 

You propped yourself up on your elbow. "Then I shall continue, my king." Immediately, you started tickling him in his sides. His legs jumped up but it didn't take him long to regain himself. Now your own sides were being attacked by his fingers, searching for ticklish places.

Thorin used his strength to overpower you. He flipped you on your back. Now he had the advantage. With strategic moves, he pulled your arms upwards and held you in place with only one hand around your wrists. His other hand attacked you without mercy.

"Stop, stop! I give up" you squeeled. Still, his fingers were tickling you.

"My apologies. I didn't quite catch that" Thorin teased.

You tried kicking him, but he was too close to you. The impact didn't seem to have any effect on him. 

Then, he stopped. Before you could kick or hit him, he wrapped you in his arms and pulled you close to him. "Did I tell you that I love you?" he asked quietly. 

You playfully hit his chest. "You're not getting away with this that easily!"

Thorin chuckled, stroking your hair. "Remind me again, who started that tickle fight?"

You huffed. "That is not the point. You cheated!"

"Pray tell me, how did I cheat my beloved?"

"That is also not the point. I am your wife. You should have let me win." You tried pouting, but soon you were both laughing. You nestled your face in the crook of his neck. Once again your hand returned to caress his chest. "I'm so happy with you."

His fingers traveled down to the small of your back. Your body pressed itself against his as his nails started drawing circles on your skin. "And you make me the happiest man alive, âzyungâl." He tilted his head so that he was able to kiss you. 

"We should have more times like these" he whispered. His head was resting against you. His eyes were closed.

"We should" you whispered back.

Furious knocks on your door interupted the moment of peace. "COME QUICKLY! THE HOBBIT IS GONE!"

Your eyes widened. Thorin was already on his feet, putting his clothes back on. "Where did we see him last?" he barked at the person on the other side of the door. 

There was a slight hesitation before the answer sounded: "We don't know."

Thorin' face rock solid, like it had been when he was an adult. It was almost the same, safe some small details here and there. There was a small knife twisting in your heart. He had seemed so peaceful just a couple of seconds ago. Being royalty took a huge toll on him. 

He helped you back in your clothes before opening the door. "Does no one know where he was last seen?" Your husband didn't wait for the response. He beckoned you to follow him. Hand in hand you walked outside to find out what had happened.

All around the courtyard, there were dwarves searching under benches and behind bushes. They all stopped once they saw the pair of you. 

Everyone came running at their king to share their insights on what happened. 

"One by one" Thorin ordered. 

"I think I saw him at the fight yesterday" Fili started. Kili nodded furiously.

Bombur shook his head. "No, the hobbit was already gone by the time the fight started."

Kili stepped up. "Are you calling my brother a liar?"

Bofur and Bifur stepped up to Bombur's sides. "Don't turn this into something it doesn't have to be" Bofur said, trying to calm the Durin prince down. 

"ENOUGH!" Thorin growled. The group of dwarves fell silent. He looked at each and every one of them. "So no one knows when the hobbit leaves?"

No one said a word.

Thorin sighed. He turned to you. "What do you think we should do?"

Heat rose to your cheeks. "W-what?"

He squeezed your hand. "My love, what do you think we should do in this situation?"

Your thoughts ran wild to figure out what would be the best action to take in this particular situation. "I think we should start by asking Gandalf whether he knows about what hobbits tend to do during this life stage. Or if he knows what Bilbo was doing at this age."

Murmurs erupted from the small crowd of dwarves.

"And then I think we should split up in groups of two and search the places where he most likely went."

Thorin turned around to face the other dwarves. "You heard the queen. Where is the wizard?"

On que, Gandalf walked onto the courtyard wearing a wide smile. It disappeared when he noticed all the faces looking in his direction. He was about to turn around, when Thorin called him over. The wizard seemed to sigh but made his way over none the less.

"What can I help you with on this fine day?" 

Thorin frowned. "What can you tell us about hobbits in their young adulthood?" he asked.

Gandalf leaned on his staff. He chewed on his lower lip. "Hobbits as young adults.... Hmmm... Very interesting."

Thorin' shoulders tensed. Before he could say something, you chipped in. "Yeah, like, for example, do they feel the urge to run away or discover the world?"

The wizard shook his head. "No, no, quite the opposite. They start to settle down. Running away wouldn't be the respectable thing to do." Everybody' moods downed. "Expect for Bilbo, that is. He was still quite the wild child during that period of his life. Always hanging out in the woods he was."

Dwalin growled. "You couldn't have told us before?" He pointed his finger at the wizard.

Gandalf hit Dwalin' hand with his staff. "Don't you point your finger at me! Go looking for Bilbo in the woods if you've lost him. I'm sure you will find him there." The walked away. "Maybe he is dangling from a tree again" he grumbled under his breath.

Thorin cleared his throat. "Alright, we have a hobbit to find. Fili, Kili and Dwalin, you go search the west side of the forest. Gloin, Oin and Balin, you search the east side." The first two groups left. "Bofur, Bifur and Bombur, I want you to search the area around the lake. Maybe he went back there."

They also left. Now it was just the two of you. 

"We go and search around the riverside. He was there too when we were still babies. There is a chance he returned to that place." You followed behind Thorin. He lead the way through the forest with surprising ease.

You were so used to him losing his way, that it was a bit unsettling now that he knew exactly where he was going. 

He only stopped once to look around. 

"Thank you" you said.

Thorin was looking around. "Huh?"

Trying to startle him, you grabbed his hand. "I said: thank you."

His eyes found yours. "What for?" His eyebrows furrowed. 

"For asking me what I thought we should do to find Bilbo. I appreciate that."

His eyes softened. He cupped your cheek. "Of course, I trust you." He pointed at something behind you. "We should go there. I remember coming across that tree when we went after them before."

Smiling, you went after your husband. It felt as if you were going on your very own adventure. Just the two of you. Warmth was still spreading through your heart after his loving words; 'I trust you.' You repeated it in your head, tasting it with your memory.

Suddenly, he halted. He held a finger against his lips. You stayed as quiet as possible.

Somewhere off in the distance, you heard humming. Thorin lead the way. The two of you went ahead trying to stay quiet. No one knew why Bilbo had left so you didn't want to risk scaring him off. 

Finally, you spotted him. You tapped Thorin on his shoulder. Then you pointed in the right direction. There he was. He was sitting at the river bend. His feet were dangling in the cool water. Bilbo was happily humming to himself. 

You wanted to go to him, but a hand on your stomache stopped you. 

Thorin took your hand in his and lead you away from the hobbit. You didn't stop until you were a little further away, on top of a small hill. You were still able to see the hobbit from here.

"We found him. Why aren't we talking to him right now? Everyone is worried about him!" you said. 

"My love, we were worried about him because we weren't sure whether he was safe or not." He nodded in Bilbo' direction. "He is safe. There is nothing wrong. Maybe Bilbo needed some space and quiet among all the rowdy dwarves."

Your shoulders relaxed.

Thorin pulled you down with him. Together you sat on the small hill, keeping a careful watch over the hobbit. You allowed yourself to lean into him, resting your head against his shoulder. 

You stayed there until the hobbit was standing back up. He dried his feet and went in the direction that would lead him back to the courtyard. He was going back home. Thorin and you stayed where you were a little longer. 

"(Y/N)?"

You looked up at your husband.

He was smiling. "I love you."

"I know." You returned his smile. "I love you too."