𝓛𝓪𝓷𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓷𝓼 𝓸𝓯 𝓖𝓸𝓵𝓭
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Words: 812
Pairings: Thorin x Bilbo
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Note:
It is my birthday as it happens! So I bring a present for you! A little teaser for something I’m working on. It’s technically the prologue for the story, you’ll see what I mean.
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Now, I’m not much of a storyteller, but if you insist… I’ll tell you a tale. This is the story of a roguish thief and a handsome prince, it all starts with the moon…
Once upon a time, a single drop of moonlight fell from the heavens. Blessed by the Valar- or, at least, that’s what they say. And perhaps, they were right, for from this small drop of moon, grew a mountain.
Of course I wasn’t there at the very beginning, but I’ve heard the story told often enough to know it by heart. Though, I wonder if I would have believed it true if I had not been there for the end- Dear me! I am getting ahead of myself.
Where was I…? Oh yes, centuries passed, and in that mountain, there grew a kingdom- the kingdom of Erebor. It was a grand place, a true kingdom of Dwarves, filled with riches and wealth to share. No one fell grievously ill, no one went hungry.
Then, one day the old king, Thrór, stepped down to allow his son, Thráin, to take the throne. Thráin, he was a beloved Prince, and soon after a beloved King. His wedding was stuff of legend.
The wedding went on for days, a party, larger than any that had came before it. Visitors from all kingdoms near and far came. Dwarves do love a good party, and when the Queen was said to have been with child, joy rang clear! An heir was to be born!
But, joy does not last forever… Despair fell upon the people of Erebor. The Queen had fallen ill. Very, ill. The healers tried all they could, but nothing was working, she was running out of time. It was then that the dwarves began to search for a miracle…
And a miracle is what they found. Deep beneath the mountain, where the drop of moonlight fell. They discovered a stone of pure light. It shone like the moon itself, glimmering with life, with magic.
They called it the Arkenstone, though I’ve heard it referred to by a few other names as well. That’s dwarves for you.
Now, you see, among the healers, there was one who was wicked. Szmûr he called himself. He took the form of a dwarf, though he was not one.
You see, Szmûr was not his true name, for he was a creature of fell magics. A beast with the heart of a drake, lured by precious things, all things gleaming. He could change forms from one to the next, shedding it like a wicked lizard.
That is why he was there, Szmûr was out for power. So when he heard tales of moonlight that grew a mountain, Szmûr wished to find it, steal away the magic nestled there.
When they found the Arkenstone, Szmûr knew that he had to steal it away. The stone had the ability to heal the sick and injured…it had the ability to grant life where death once settled her harsh claws.
But, someone else had their eye on that stone, for he knew all it could do and more and he wished to use it for good. This someone was another healer, Óin– yes, the very same Óin you’ve likely heard tales of, though this was long before he was head of the royal healers, likely before he was well known for much of anything at all.
You see, Óin had begun to grow suspicious of Szmûr, there was something of the way he would linger around the stone, glancing longingly- as if he was to take it.
So, Óin convinced the Healers to grind the stone into a fine powder, with that powder he brewed a tea and gave it to the Queen. Now, how he knew what to do with it is still one of the great mysteries in life.
Anyway, The Queen was healed, and soon a prince was born, a baby boy with raven hair that seemed to shine with a silver light. To celebrate his birth the king and queen released lanterns into the sky, and for that one moment, everything was perfect.
But, if it had stayed that way, we would not have this story, would we?
You see, Szmûr was not done…he broke into the palace, stole the child in the dead of night, and just like that he was gone…
The kingdom searched and searched, but they found no signs of the lost prince. For you see, hidden deep within the distant mountains, in an old dwarvish stronghold, Szmûr raised the child as his own, locked away and all alone…
The kingdom was devastated by this loss and though the king and queen had other children, one could not replace the loss of the other.
And so, year after year, they released lanterns, hoping against hope that their lost son would return.
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Note:
I was hoping to get prologue and chapter 1 out for this story but I think this will do. The next chapter of outlaws and lawmen will be coming, I promise. This was kinda a brain break for me.
Thanks to @midnightstar789 for being my test audience and basically my editor.