Kili/Bilbo, torture, rescue, BAMF!BilbomissisjokerDecember 23 2012, 09:41:55 UTC
The troll king makes good on his promise to torture the youngest dwarf- and he chooses correctly this time- Kili is taken to prison and tortured endlessly, but he never gives in or gives up, and never speaks one word to trolls. In fact, he doesn't speak at all, just screams. However, the party comes to belief that Kili has betrayed them/ broke under the pressure. When Gandalf arrives, Thorin orders the dwarfs to live without Kili. Meanwhile Bilbo, who just has gotten the ring,sees the dwarfs leave but doesn't see Kili among them. he stands there, near the cave entrance, contemplating his choices- and decides to go back and find his friend.
He reunites with Kili later and them both escape trolls and orcs. Meanwhile Gandalf reveals to Thorin that it was not Kili who spoke the secrets, but someone from Thorin's family, perhaps, one who wants to claim the throne and sees Thorin as obstacle.
Angst on all sides except for Bilbo because seriously, he has some other problems to deal with- trolls, orcs, Gollum, plus his favorite tobacco got completely wet...
Re: Kili/Bilbo, torture, rescue, BAMF!Bilborata_toskrMarch 17 2013, 22:36:31 UTC
I actually am working on a fill for this (yes 4 months later), but it may be quite awhile since I currently have too many WIPs and fics I just need to type up.
Are you okay if it isn't Gandalf who reveals it though? because I have a whole attempted assassination scene I want to write. And Bilbo may also be angsty because somehow the Shire turned homophobic in this story, idk my fills seem to have minds of their own. So it's less BAMF Bilbo and more he's just doing what needs to be done, despite being terrified.
Re: Kili/Bilbo, torture, rescue, BAMF!BilbomissisjokerMarch 18 2013, 07:01:25 UTC
I don't really care who reveals the truth- I just want tortured!Kili and BAMF!Bilbo saving him and lots of angst on Fili's and esp. Thorin's part since he actually believed Kili could betray him. And, of course, happy ending!
Re: Kili/Bilbo, torture, rescue, BAMF!Bilborata_toskrMarch 18 2013, 14:14:22 UTC
Well I can probably manage something close to that. There'll just be angst on everyone's part. So when I finally get my act together and finish it I'll post it here.
Re: Question for the OPmissisjokerApril 2 2013, 06:42:19 UTC
I'm ok with any killings as long as Kili, Fili, Bilbo and Bofur survive (yes, I have a weakness for DurinBros, and Bilbo and Bofur are waaay to cute to die). Other than that- go wild. About Thorin- well, he might be as dicky as he wants but I kinda believe that Kili will forgive him anyway (he is royal too, he understands duty, etc).
Re: Question for the OPrata_toskrApril 2 2013, 14:53:19 UTC
All right then, I guess Fili won't be dying tragically in anyone's arms- though I suppose he could always just pass out tragically instead. We'll see how it goes, my stories often end up places I don't expect but I should be able to keep it within those parameters.
No guarantees on the forgiveness though unless you really want that- I can actually see Kili forgiving Thorin leaving him behind because of duty and all that, I'm just not sure he'd forgive the pain it caused Fili.
Re: Question for the OPmissisjokerApril 2 2013, 16:33:12 UTC
Tragically passing out works for me :p
Well, if it is Fili who is suffering because of Thorin0 oh, that is completely another story! I do think that Kili can take lots of sh@t from Thorin or anyone else and still brush it off / forgive if it is only concerning him- but when it touches his brother he will go berserk. And- just my personal opinion- between Thorin and Fili, Kili will chose Fili if it comes to that.
And- no worries! Unexpected turns are the best!
And I'll be sending you rays of inspiration from now on (when I am not sleeping, of course :) )
Fill: Only Kin Could Slice So Deep, 1a/?rata_toskrMarch 29 2013, 01:34:28 UTC
Sorry, too many typos and I couldn't deal. Here's take two of the backstory. I swear I'll get into the actual prompt in the next section.
---
Part I: Paranoia
When the Goblin King stares down at him and calls him by his name, Thorin Oakenshield knows that he has been betrayed.
He has known that someone is working against him ever since the beginning of his quest, suspicion sparked by the ill-luck that has plagued him from the start. Why else but sabotage would so many dwarves who were pledged to aid him suddenly change their minds? Why else would so many of his brave warriors turn coward and refuse to heed his call?
Someone had raised doubts among his people where there had never been before, doubts about his fitness as their lord and king. Someone made his clan, the Sigin-tarâg beg Thorin to stay in Ered Luin when they should have been fighting for the chance to journey at his side and reclaim Erebor. So with every shamefaced denial of aid and provisions, the dwarf lord became more certain that someone was working in the shadows to seed fear and doubt into the hearts of those he ruled.
Yet Thorin had no idea whom this enemy could be for all his usual opponents were silent and his council had supported the idea of his quest. None of the twelve who answered his summons had been warned off directly and as far as the dwarf could tell his people were happy with how he chose to rule. Or at least they had been, before this.
Even Balin, who kept his finger on the pulse of Thorin's kingdom and was usually well-informed about political intrigue had neither name nor face to give him. All the old dwarf could say was that there were rumors circling among his people. Rumors saying that Thorin's mind had been addled by the wizard, that his journey to reclaim Erebor was a suicide mission from which none could return and that the dragon Smaug would rain a fiery death upon any who dared face him.
No one knew from whence these whispers came, only that they must have been started by someone with influence and respect. A dwarf close enough to the royal family to know that Thorin worked with Gandalf and to have heard the details of his plan.
It was ill news indeed to know that there was a two-faced snake among his kin and the dwarf king hated to leave this enemy free to strike his back. However, Thorin could not afford to delay his quest any longer, not when all the omens said it must be now. So the dwarf gathered what supplies he had and sent his twelve companions to meet the wizard and their burglar in the far off land that Gandalf called the Shire. Then he left the Sigin-tarâg, in his sister's capable hands and warned her to watch her back as the dwarf rode to take council with his kin.
Thorin's fellow dwarf lords had agreed to meet him and he hoped that here at last he would receive assistance in his quest. However, he could feel the presence of his invisible enemy there as well in the way that the other dwarves would not meet his eyes, and in their staunch refusal to give him the aid that he was due. Even his cousin Dáin turned coward in the end and when pressed for explanation all the dwarf gave was those same rumors as excuse.
Perhaps Thorin should have taken it as a warning that his journey was not meant to be and he should secure his own lands before seeking Erebor. Yet he could not do this, not with the call of the Lonely Mountain singing in his veins and even if that had been what his enemy desired, the dwarf would undertake his quest with the companions that he had.
There would be time enough to deal with the traitor after he took back his home, and if this treachery claimed his life along the way, Thorin was certain that Dís would avenge him.
Such dark thoughts turned the dwarf's mood foul and by the time he arrived at the Green Dragon Inn he just wanted the day to be over. Thus when he received Gandalf's message to meet the others for dinner at one Bilbo Baggins' house all he could do was grind his teeth and sigh. The wizard's faulty directions did not improve his disposition, for that patch of flowers was really more blue than turquoise and no real dwarf would call that hill a mountain, and thus Thorin was frustrated indeed by the time he pounded on the hobbit's door.
Only Kin Could Slice So Deep, 1b/?rata_toskrMarch 29 2013, 01:50:06 UTC
While his anger made him somewhat harsh with Mr. Baggins, the halfling was clearly unsuitable for facing down a dragon and Thorin had enough things working against him without adding a millstone around his neck. The wizard's insistence that this must be his burglar actually made the dwarf wonder briefly if Gandalf could be the foe lurking in the shadows, but he shook that suspicion firmly from his mind.
If the wizard had wanted Thorin's quest to fail, he need only have kept his father's key and those rumors could not have been started by a stranger to his clan. Indeed Gandalf had come up with their plan, so the dwarf had to trust in the wizard's motives and his judgment if he was to have any hope at all. However, he could not deny being relieved when Mr. Baggins chose to stay behind.
Although that relief had been short-lived, Thorin thought that with the start of his quest he could at least put his enemy behind him and focus on this chance to make his people's future bright.
Yet this was not to be and on the company's last night in the Shire, Thorin received word from Dís that would haunt his mind throughout the days to come. His sister's letter warned him that the rumors had spread despite her efforts and the dwarf would need a triumphant return to keep his people's faith and keep his crown. Ill news indeed for a fool's journey such as his own.
Dís had also received a reply from Rivendell to Thorin's request for information and while the dwarf knew that he needed Lord Elrond's expertise, it had been difficult for him to overcome his mistrust long enough to ask. Yet his effort had been wasted because all the elf wrote in his message was that Thorin's quest was ill-advised. Such obvious condescension was like salt poured in a wound and it only made the dwarf more determined to succeed without any help at all.
So he sent a letter to his sister informing her of the route they planned to take and promised to keep Dís informed of any changes if he could. Then the company of Thorin Oakenshield set out upon the long and dangerous journey that he hoped would lead his people home.
Only Kin Could Slice So Deep, 2a/?rata_toskrMarch 29 2013, 16:44:58 UTC
However, while the rest of the company became caught up in the joys of traveling and the hopeful spirit of their quest, Thorin's worries would not leave his mind. He brooded on them as they rode and his dreams were filled with dragon fire and a malevolent shadow laughing from the dark. The thought that his quest might fail only due to some traitor's machinations was unthinkable and the idea that he might succeed only to lose his people to another ate at his tattered pride.
Thus Thorin was determined that everything must go right so that he could reclaim his homeland gloriously and prove all the rumors false. He triumph must be so overwhelming that his Sigin-tarâg would follow him beyond any shred of doubt and all his enemies rue the day they chose the other side.
This pressure made him hard and snappish where he might have been encouraging and even the dwarf's nephews felt the sharp side of his tongue. However, despite his impatience with each of their mistakes, it did not occur to Thorin that his companions might be disloyal, not until after the fiasco with the trolls.
Once Gandalf finally saved them and the immediate threat was over, Thorin looked back on the night and thought bitterly, What in Mahal's name was everyone thinking? This could hardly have gone worse if I had planned it myself.
Even as he thought these words, the dwarf realized the truth they held and the seed of doubt was planted in fertile ground. As long as one didn't mind the danger, the easiest way to undermine a quest like this would be from within, and no one would ever think that the sabotage was more than awful luck.
Yet Thorin had known all of his companions for years, most of them were some manner of kin, and they had been the only ones willing to answer when he called. But while the dwarf tried to put the idea from his mind, it would not die completely and his thoughts were torn in two. How could he repay such brave loyalty with his suspicion? On the other hand, how could Thorin ignore the signs of treachery?
His doubts grew when his company suddenly found themselves hunted by an orc pack, a pack that should not have known that they were there.
“Who did you tell about your quest, beyond your kin?” Gandalf had asked furiously and Thorin did not lie when he swore there had been no one. This was the problem since no one else should have known the route that they would take and only one close to the dwarf could have betrayed his plans so well. So suddenly the fact that his company was made of friends and relatives was no longer reassuring because the traitor must be someone Thorin trusted and only kin could slice so deep.
When Gandalf went against his wishes and led the company to Rivendell, the dwarf's doubts were temporarily pushed aside by anger at the wizard and his annoyance with the elves. While Thorin could not fault Elrond's hospitality and appreciated the chance to send another messenger bird to his sister, he was certain that the elves would try to stop him here and the dwarf resented the attempt.
What right did they have to treat him as a child to be coddled and removed from dangerous things? He had known the risks when he chose to take them, and no meddling elf was going to keep him from his homeland. Especially not when the doubts he saw in the elf lord's eyes reminded Thorin of his own.
It was easier to take refuge in anger at the elves and at his enemy than to face that kernel of despair. It was easier to assume that his quest was being sabotaged by one within his company than to acknowledge that his luck had turned so ill.
Only Kin Could Slice So Deep, 2b/?rata_toskrMarch 29 2013, 16:45:47 UTC
Thus as the dwarves and hobbit climbed high into the Misty Mountains, Thorin found himself searching his companions' faces for any hint that they were not what they seemed. He found himself second-guessing every action and looking for falsehood in even Balin's eyes, while his uncertainty fed on nightmares in the dark.
However, the only sabotage that the dwarf could find was the hobbit's complete incompetence and even he was not so suspicious as to think that Bilbo was some kind of evil mastermind. Useless, yes, but to doubt their burglar was to doubt the wizard and Thorin could not do that without despair.
This lack of evidence made him shove the paranoia from his mind and remind himself fiercely that the traitor was probably back in Ered Luin, hiding in the shadows for fear of his sister's wrath. After several days of mostly normal behavior, Balin stopped sending Thorin worried sidelong glances and his nephews sat beside him again without fearing his sudden rage.
While Kíli still frowned at his uncle in disapproval when he used Bilbo as a convenient target for his frustrations, the dwarf started to think that maybe he could put his doubts behind him and trust in the loyalty of his friends once again. Yet even as he thought this, Thorin felt the stone disappear beneath his feet and the fourteen companions tumbled into the clutches of a goblin horde.
Beaten, disarmed and dragged in front of the goblin's leader, the dwarf does not look like any king and so when the Great Goblin says that he has been expecting him, Thorin knows that his fears were right.
There is no way that this Goblin King could have known that they would be traveling this way, not unless one of his companions has betrayed him. No one but the fifteen of them knew which route the company was taking and Thorin had chosen the less common paths to throw off their pursuit. No one else but Dís and the dwarf trusts his sister more than anyone, including even himself. He tries desperately to think of an explanation other than treachery, but there is none and as his anger gradually overrides the betrayal, Thorin burns with the need to take his vengeance.
The traitor must be one of the twelve dwarves that he brought with him, one with something to gain from the failure of his quest or from his death. Someone trusted by everyone and evil or foolish enough to side with goblins and orcs to see his purpose done.
As he and his companions are stripped of their weapons, the dwarf's mind races, trying to figure out who has double-crossed him. There are only five dwarves who have the power and the real motive to be the one whom Thorin seeks and the thought that any of them could have done such a thing threatens the foundations of his world. Yet the dwarf knows that they have and so he hardens his heart against this weakness for his only goal now is to make them pay for what they've done.
However, he is not sure how he can determine which of them is the traitor while stuck in this captivity, and Thorin tunes out the Goblin King's rambling speech as he tries to come up with a plan. If he is smart, my betrayer will not draw attention to himself and try to continue his sabotage if we escape but he also would not wish to risk his life. So how? How do I flush him out? And how do I get us free?
Thorin's attention is recaptured when the grotesque goblin reaches out and hits him across the cheek, obviously annoyed by his disregard.
“I see you do not take me seriously, little dwarf. Well if you will not talk, I'll make you squawk instead. I shall torture every member of your company one by one until you change your mind and tell me the answers that I seek.”
As if you do not already know. As if my betrayer has not already told you. Why would you bother with this charade except, but oh...of course.
Now that Thorin sees the answer it is obvious and he does not understand how he could have missed it before. What better way than this to separate the traitor from my company without suspicion? The Goblin King will try and use this false threat to break our spirits while my betrayer moves on with the next stage of his plan. I wonder if he truly means to kill me, to kill us all, or if there is some deeper scheme at work.
However, the party comes to belief that Kili has betrayed them/ broke under the pressure. When Gandalf arrives, Thorin orders the dwarfs to live without Kili.
Meanwhile Bilbo, who just has gotten the ring,sees the dwarfs leave but doesn't see Kili among them. he stands there, near the cave entrance, contemplating his choices- and decides to go back and find his friend.
He reunites with Kili later and them both escape trolls and orcs.
Meanwhile Gandalf reveals to Thorin that it was not Kili who spoke the secrets, but someone from Thorin's family, perhaps, one who
wants to claim the throne and sees Thorin as obstacle.
Angst on all sides except for Bilbo because seriously, he has some other problems to deal with- trolls, orcs, Gollum, plus his favorite tobacco got completely wet...
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Are you okay if it isn't Gandalf who reveals it though? because I have a whole attempted assassination scene I want to write. And Bilbo may also be angsty because somehow the Shire turned homophobic in this story, idk my fills seem to have minds of their own. So it's less BAMF Bilbo and more he's just doing what needs to be done, despite being terrified.
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And, of course, happy ending!
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And since Thorin turned out to be such a dick so far, do you care if Kili actually forgives him in the end or not?
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Other than that- go wild.
About Thorin- well, he might be as dicky as he wants but I kinda believe that Kili will forgive him anyway (he is royal too, he understands duty, etc).
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No guarantees on the forgiveness though unless you really want that- I can actually see Kili forgiving Thorin leaving him behind because of duty and all that, I'm just not sure he'd forgive the pain it caused Fili.
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Well, if it is Fili who is suffering because of Thorin0 oh, that is completely another story!
I do think that Kili can take lots of sh@t from Thorin or anyone else and still brush it off / forgive if it is only concerning him- but when it touches his brother he will go berserk. And- just my personal opinion- between Thorin and Fili, Kili will chose Fili if it comes to that.
And- no worries! Unexpected turns are the best!
And I'll be sending you rays of inspiration from now on (when I am not sleeping, of course :) )
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And thanks for the rays- I'll have a small part up later today and I'm working on the whole rescue scene- it's just taking a bit to get it right.
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---
Part I: Paranoia
When the Goblin King stares down at him and calls him by his name, Thorin Oakenshield knows that he has been betrayed.
He has known that someone is working against him ever since the beginning of his quest, suspicion sparked by the ill-luck that has plagued him from the start. Why else but sabotage would so many dwarves who were pledged to aid him suddenly change their minds? Why else would so many of his brave warriors turn coward and refuse to heed his call?
Someone had raised doubts among his people where there had never been before, doubts about his fitness as their lord and king. Someone made his clan, the Sigin-tarâg beg Thorin to stay in Ered Luin when they should have been fighting for the chance to journey at his side and reclaim Erebor. So with every shamefaced denial of aid and provisions, the dwarf lord became more certain that someone was working in the shadows to seed fear and doubt into the hearts of those he ruled.
Yet Thorin had no idea whom this enemy could be for all his usual opponents were silent and his council had supported the idea of his quest. None of the twelve who answered his summons had been warned off directly and as far as the dwarf could tell his people were happy with how he chose to rule. Or at least they had been, before this.
Even Balin, who kept his finger on the pulse of Thorin's kingdom and was usually well-informed about political intrigue had neither name nor face to give him. All the old dwarf could say was that there were rumors circling among his people. Rumors saying that Thorin's mind had been addled by the wizard, that his journey to reclaim Erebor was a suicide mission from which none could return and that the dragon Smaug would rain a fiery death upon any who dared face him.
No one knew from whence these whispers came, only that they must have been started by someone with influence and respect. A dwarf close enough to the royal family to know that Thorin worked with Gandalf and to have heard the details of his plan.
It was ill news indeed to know that there was a two-faced snake among his kin and the dwarf king hated to leave this enemy free to strike his back. However, Thorin could not afford to delay his quest any longer, not when all the omens said it must be now. So the dwarf gathered what supplies he had and sent his twelve companions to meet the wizard and their burglar in the far off land that Gandalf called the Shire. Then he left the Sigin-tarâg, in his sister's capable hands and warned her to watch her back as the dwarf rode to take council with his kin.
Thorin's fellow dwarf lords had agreed to meet him and he hoped that here at last he would receive assistance in his quest. However, he could feel the presence of his invisible enemy there as well in the way that the other dwarves would not meet his eyes, and in their staunch refusal to give him the aid that he was due. Even his cousin Dáin turned coward in the end and when pressed for explanation all the dwarf gave was those same rumors as excuse.
Perhaps Thorin should have taken it as a warning that his journey was not meant to be and he should secure his own lands before seeking Erebor. Yet he could not do this, not with the call of the Lonely Mountain singing in his veins and even if that had been what his enemy desired, the dwarf would undertake his quest with the companions that he had.
There would be time enough to deal with the traitor after he took back his home, and if this treachery claimed his life along the way, Thorin was certain that Dís would avenge him.
Such dark thoughts turned the dwarf's mood foul and by the time he arrived at the Green Dragon Inn he just wanted the day to be over. Thus when he received Gandalf's message to meet the others for dinner at one Bilbo Baggins' house all he could do was grind his teeth and sigh. The wizard's faulty directions did not improve his disposition, for that patch of flowers was really more blue than turquoise and no real dwarf would call that hill a mountain, and thus Thorin was frustrated indeed by the time he pounded on the hobbit's door.
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If the wizard had wanted Thorin's quest to fail, he need only have kept his father's key and those rumors could not have been started by a stranger to his clan. Indeed Gandalf had come up with their plan, so the dwarf had to trust in the wizard's motives and his judgment if he was to have any hope at all. However, he could not deny being relieved when Mr. Baggins chose to stay behind.
Although that relief had been short-lived, Thorin thought that with the start of his quest he could at least put his enemy behind him and focus on this chance to make his people's future bright.
Yet this was not to be and on the company's last night in the Shire, Thorin received word from Dís that would haunt his mind throughout the days to come. His sister's letter warned him that the rumors had spread despite her efforts and the dwarf would need a triumphant return to keep his people's faith and keep his crown. Ill news indeed for a fool's journey such as his own.
Dís had also received a reply from Rivendell to Thorin's request for information and while the dwarf knew that he needed Lord Elrond's expertise, it had been difficult for him to overcome his mistrust long enough to ask. Yet his effort had been wasted because all the elf wrote in his message was that Thorin's quest was ill-advised. Such obvious condescension was like salt poured in a wound and it only made the dwarf more determined to succeed without any help at all.
So he sent a letter to his sister informing her of the route they planned to take and promised to keep Dís informed of any changes if he could. Then the company of Thorin Oakenshield set out upon the long and dangerous journey that he hoped would lead his people home.
Reply
Thus Thorin was determined that everything must go right so that he could reclaim his homeland gloriously and prove all the rumors false. He triumph must be so overwhelming that his Sigin-tarâg would follow him beyond any shred of doubt and all his enemies rue the day they chose the other side.
This pressure made him hard and snappish where he might have been encouraging and even the dwarf's nephews felt the sharp side of his tongue. However, despite his impatience with each of their mistakes, it did not occur to Thorin that his companions might be disloyal, not until after the fiasco with the trolls.
Once Gandalf finally saved them and the immediate threat was over, Thorin looked back on the night and thought bitterly, What in Mahal's name was everyone thinking? This could hardly have gone worse if I had planned it myself.
Even as he thought these words, the dwarf realized the truth they held and the seed of doubt was planted in fertile ground. As long as one didn't mind the danger, the easiest way to undermine a quest like this would be from within, and no one would ever think that the sabotage was more than awful luck.
Yet Thorin had known all of his companions for years, most of them were some manner of kin, and they had been the only ones willing to answer when he called. But while the dwarf tried to put the idea from his mind, it would not die completely and his thoughts were torn in two. How could he repay such brave loyalty with his suspicion? On the other hand, how could Thorin ignore the signs of treachery?
His doubts grew when his company suddenly found themselves hunted by an orc pack, a pack that should not have known that they were there.
“Who did you tell about your quest, beyond your kin?” Gandalf had asked furiously and Thorin did not lie when he swore there had been no one. This was the problem since no one else should have known the route that they would take and only one close to the dwarf could have betrayed his plans so well. So suddenly the fact that his company was made of friends and relatives was no longer reassuring because the traitor must be someone Thorin trusted and only kin could slice so deep.
When Gandalf went against his wishes and led the company to Rivendell, the dwarf's doubts were temporarily pushed aside by anger at the wizard and his annoyance with the elves. While Thorin could not fault Elrond's hospitality and appreciated the chance to send another messenger bird to his sister, he was certain that the elves would try to stop him here and the dwarf resented the attempt.
What right did they have to treat him as a child to be coddled and removed from dangerous things? He had known the risks when he chose to take them, and no meddling elf was going to keep him from his homeland. Especially not when the doubts he saw in the elf lord's eyes reminded Thorin of his own.
It was easier to take refuge in anger at the elves and at his enemy than to face that kernel of despair. It was easier to assume that his quest was being sabotaged by one within his company than to acknowledge that his luck had turned so ill.
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However, the only sabotage that the dwarf could find was the hobbit's complete incompetence and even he was not so suspicious as to think that Bilbo was some kind of evil mastermind. Useless, yes, but to doubt their burglar was to doubt the wizard and Thorin could not do that without despair.
This lack of evidence made him shove the paranoia from his mind and remind himself fiercely that the traitor was probably back in Ered Luin, hiding in the shadows for fear of his sister's wrath. After several days of mostly normal behavior, Balin stopped sending Thorin worried sidelong glances and his nephews sat beside him again without fearing his sudden rage.
While Kíli still frowned at his uncle in disapproval when he used Bilbo as a convenient target for his frustrations, the dwarf started to think that maybe he could put his doubts behind him and trust in the loyalty of his friends once again. Yet even as he thought this, Thorin felt the stone disappear beneath his feet and the fourteen companions tumbled into the clutches of a goblin horde.
Beaten, disarmed and dragged in front of the goblin's leader, the dwarf does not look like any king and so when the Great Goblin says that he has been expecting him, Thorin knows that his fears were right.
There is no way that this Goblin King could have known that they would be traveling this way, not unless one of his companions has betrayed him. No one but the fifteen of them knew which route the company was taking and Thorin had chosen the less common paths to throw off their pursuit. No one else but Dís and the dwarf trusts his sister more than anyone, including even himself. He tries desperately to think of an explanation other than treachery, but there is none and as his anger gradually overrides the betrayal, Thorin burns with the need to take his vengeance.
The traitor must be one of the twelve dwarves that he brought with him, one with something to gain from the failure of his quest or from his death. Someone trusted by everyone and evil or foolish enough to side with goblins and orcs to see his purpose done.
As he and his companions are stripped of their weapons, the dwarf's mind races, trying to figure out who has double-crossed him. There are only five dwarves who have the power and the real motive to be the one whom Thorin seeks and the thought that any of them could have done such a thing threatens the foundations of his world. Yet the dwarf knows that they have and so he hardens his heart against this weakness for his only goal now is to make them pay for what they've done.
However, he is not sure how he can determine which of them is the traitor while stuck in this captivity, and Thorin tunes out the Goblin King's rambling speech as he tries to come up with a plan. If he is smart, my betrayer will not draw attention to himself and try to continue his sabotage if we escape but he also would not wish to risk his life. So how? How do I flush him out? And how do I get us free?
Thorin's attention is recaptured when the grotesque goblin reaches out and hits him across the cheek, obviously annoyed by his disregard.
“I see you do not take me seriously, little dwarf. Well if you will not talk, I'll make you squawk instead. I shall torture every member of your company one by one until you change your mind and tell me the answers that I seek.”
As if you do not already know. As if my betrayer has not already told you. Why would you bother with this charade except, but oh...of course.
Now that Thorin sees the answer it is obvious and he does not understand how he could have missed it before. What better way than this to separate the traitor from my company without suspicion? The Goblin King will try and use this false threat to break our spirits while my betrayer moves on with the next stage of his plan. I wonder if he truly means to kill me, to kill us all, or if there is some deeper scheme at work.
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