Days later, Smaug gathered his wives, he showed them the rings forged with Mithril and plated with gold, as well as their crowns, Tauriel had a diamond, Hera an emerald and Helena a ruby.
The rings were shaped differently, Tauriel's looked like flowers were sprouting around the diamond, Hera's had a design of a small horse running on one side and an eagle on the other with the emerald in the middle, Helena's was carved into a dragon that held the ruby in its mouth.
He personally placed each ring on the ring finger of his left hand, saying it signified commitment.
He himself had a ring of his own, it looked simple, like the One Ring, but it had small jewels encrusted in it, a ruby, an emerald, and a diamond.
Helena kissed him hard and promised never to take it off again, much happier.
Tauriel looked at the ring and then at Smaug, in the end she sighed and hugged him, Smaug could feel that that hug was warmer, Tauriel had gotten used to being his wife for a long time, there was affection between them, but that ring seemed to awaken something a little stronger.
Hera was the most complicated, looking at the horse and the eagle on the ring, she wanted to cry, but she held it in, she looked at Smaug and put her head on his chest, snuggling there for a while, feeling that her world had changed more than she expected.
It was complicated, very, the path was not easy, but she was the hardest to conquer among the three, it was not about the body, but about the heart.
Even now, what she can feel has gone from "I will be a good wife and mother" to "Maybe I can be really happy with him."
Hera seemed the calmest on the outside, but inside she was a free spirit, this ring, representing connection, with a horse and an eagle, showed that he really knew her, she didn't forget her roots, he didn't care.
It was a veiled recognition, Hera looked at the dragon with tearful eyes and kissed him.
In the end the three wives were happy, this also started a wave of "fashion" in the kingdom, where all the women expected rings from their husbands.
Including female gargoyles!
The male gargoyles scratched their horse heads, all too confused to understand what had happened, but that is a story for the future.
Alduin was radiant every day, like, radiant to the point of smiling even when Berkas put pepper in his drink, he patted the boy's head and told him to behave.
This scared Berkas so much that he hid behind Tauriel.
Helena also pulled her son aside and gave some tips, Alduin was between embarrassed and actually listening.
Smaug looked at this and asked if Alduin wanted a marriage.
Alduin didn't know, he felt it was unnecessary, perhaps due to the king, marriages are entirely verbal things here.
Like, you choose your partner, he agrees, you live together after that and voila, marriage.
Alduin was confused for a while and decided to ask Wynah.
Smaug also said that Wynah should eat with them from then on, after all, she is family now.
The first time she was brought in she was so low that she barely ate, but Helena, tired of this, ordered her to eat, so she became serious and ate as if it were a military command.
Alduin then expressed that they did not want a marriage, but with the wave of the ring, he wanted some mithril to make rings for them.
Smaug grumbled a bit, but in the end he gave him the Mithril, but gave him a mission, so he would have a greater sense of accomplishment, feeling that he deserved it.
Wynah promised to complete her with him, Hela seemed interested, as did Berkas, but the latter was stopped by Tauriel, which made him furious and the mother-son duo soon argued again.
-Go to Gondor and get the Palantir from the royal palace, you cannot be seen, even if you are, you must be hooded, if you are seen, kill everyone who sees you, bring the Palantir and you will get the Mithril, not only for the rings, but I will also make Mithril armor for Wynah. - Smaug promised.
Alduin became serious and quickly agreed, Wynah seemed to want to refuse, but didn't want to deny the king, so she could only bite her lips and hold Alduin's hand under the table, if she couldn't refuse, she would make it worth it.
Hela promised to go too, at night, a banquet was held to introduce the new princess, Wynah, who was extremely embarrassed, many moon elves and even some giant elves were unhappy about this, but thinking that the king had more than one wife, some had not yet given up.
It was at this time that Wynah showed her bloodthirsty side, just with her gaze, many looked away and some stared at her with defiance, this gave Alduin a headache for a while.
That night in her room, Hera asked a little worriedly, "We're not going to go to war with Gondor, are we?"
"No, I just want the Palantir." Smaug shook his head. "I could do it myself, but I wanted to let the boy prove himself."
"What if he gets caught?" Tauriel asked from the side.
"I'll stick around, at most I'll scare them a little to make them worry about the dragon in the sky instead of the robbery." Smaug shrugged.
The pair thought about it and decided it made sense. "What do you want this for?"
-It's useful to me, it can make me stronger. - Smaug explained lightly and didn't comment anymore, didn't the duo comment either?
Helena? He was in reverse cowgirl position, bobbing up and down excitedly.
Smaug smiled, pulling Hera up to his face.
Tauriel sighed and braced herself, she knew she would be next, she was already starting to get wet, she fingered herself as she watched.
--x--
Three days later, four Thestrals left, in addition to Hela, Wynah and Alduin, Legolas was also invited by Hela, making Smaug mutter in irritation, but he said nothing, after all he would leave soon after, he would keep an eye on him.
What no one noticed was that a small red-haired figure took the opportunity to grab his thestral and run away.
Only hours later, Tauriel felt something was wrong, when she searched for Berkas for hours, she couldn't find him, she became worried and soon the whole mountain was in motion, in the end, no one found the boy anywhere!
Tauriel quickly used the connection with Smaug to speak to him, Smaug connected to Berkas and sighed, his son was equipped with some dwarven armor, too young to get Mithril equipment, since not even Alduin and Hela had acquired it yet, waiting for them to grow a little more.
He carried a sword and a bow, trotting with his thestral through the forest, clearly seeking adventure.
-"Berkas... come home." - Smaug's voice sounded in Berkas's head.
Berkas was surprised, but vaguely remembering that his father might do that, he calmed down. "No! I'm going on an adventure!"
-"Boy, don't let me lose my patience." - Smaug snorted irritably.
Berkas looked scared, but thinking he could finally have some fun, he still refused, even under the threat of being hung and beaten.
Smaug sighed, looking at his youngest son with a headache. He didn't want to go back now. It would take him a few days to get back at the speed of the Thestrals, so he could only say, "I'll let someone find you and follow you. If you stay with them, you can go without punishment, but if you run away, I'll lock you in the dungeons for a year!"
Berkas wanted to deny it, but considering his father's anger, the deal seemed fair. "You're not going to send Mom, are you?" he asked, startled.
-"No, stay where you are, someone will come in a few hours." - Smaug sighed and said to his son.
Berkas was a little scared, but decided to trust his father. A few hours later, a delegation found him on his thestrals.
Hera, wearing her old clothes, Olwyn, and a moon elf... Berkas didn't recognize him at first.
"Aunt? Grandma?" Berkas was surprised. "I didn't think Dad would let you go out."
Hera snorted, but was very happy inside, Smaug promised he would let her out and finally did, he asked to take Berkas to see the world, but she should return in a few years.
For Hera, a few years was enough, she still had a bit of a human mentality after all, unlike elves and dragons.
Dragons don't have eternal life, but they live a very, very long time, mainly by conserving energy by sleeping.
Smaug also filled Hela with vitality, because she is the only one of his children who is mortal, he put enough in her for her to live tens of thousands of years, in the future he would put more.
In any case, Hera brought Olwyn, who was very happy to leave all her tasks on the mountain, she still had the title of hand of the king, not that she wanted it, but Smaug forced her.
Olwyn also came to continue Berkas's education, which he quickly noticed and grimaced at, but not being the mother, he could bear it.
The last one...
"This is Glamdyr, you may remember him, the one who went after Hela and was beaten by the king and hung for three days and three nights." Olwyn laughed lightly, looking at the moon elf with a harp on his back and a sword at his hip. He looked handsome, with long hair and two short braids on the side. He didn't look strong, but slender and delicate.
Glamdyr's lips trembled and he shivered, smiling awkwardly at Berkas, he spoke. "Hello, young prince, I am the writer and bard, beloved by women and a connoisseur of wine, Glamdyr!"
Berkas's lips trembled and he asked, "Why did Father send you here?"
"Ah, the king asked me to go and learn the culture of other races." Glamdyr seemed very excited.
Beside her, Hera looked away, only she knew that Smaug was fed up with this playboy elf singing and dancing around, so he sent him away.
Olwyn shook her head and the group soon left.
"Let's go to the wood elf kingdom first; we'll get regular horses there." Hera took the lead. Berkas pouted, but like a queen and his aunt, he didn't deny it. "Besides, your father told you to use magic to hide your horns. You can barely pass for an elf without them. Glamdyr will do the same to hide your hair, or just shave it off."
Glamdyr held his hair tightly and vehemently denied it, in the end he used magic and his hair now turned black, Berkas also hid his horns, they were just illusions, but they were enough.
The group soon left.
--x--
A week later, in a forest-surrounded camp not far from Gondor, the four sat around a campfire discussing their plan.
"...I still don't think stealing is a good idea." Legolas frowned, looking at Hela.
"Father said Sauron possesses one of the Palantirs; keeping it among men, with their weak minds, will only lead to their corruption," Hela explained calmly. "Negotiating with them won't work either; they'll only believe in themselves."
Legolas paused for a moment and sighed, then nodded. "Well, I'll help."
Alduin looked at Legolas as if assessing him, then nodded. "I've seen you fight. You'll be a valuable asset if needed. Here, put this on and cover your face. We can't leave any gaps." He handed Legolas a Moon Elf Guard robe.
He looked at the clothes and nodded, he left to change and Hela looked interested, wanting to follow him.
Alduin took her arm and said, "Do you really think Daddy will let you go out with him without coming and taking precautions?" Alduin raised an eyebrow at her.
Hela stopped, stunned, then groaned in frustration, stamping her foot on the floor, she sat down and sulked.
Alduin shook his head, feeling a little sorry for his sister. He had been envious before, but now looking at the adorable Wynah beside him, he felt much better! He hugged the small figure and nuzzled her hair.
Wynah seemed to understand, her eyes rolling, but she still hugged him tightly, making Hela beside her even more unhappy.
She wanted to be furious with her father, but every time she tried, he started crying like a child! Hela wanted to ignore it and fight for her rights, but he cried even more sadly, to the point of sitting on the floor, crying and muttering, "My daughter hates me..."
She could only get frustrated with nowhere to empty it.
-Just a few more years, then he won't be able to stop me! - She made a firm decision.
Smaug not far away, looking through Hela's eyes, heard her words, he was furious, but managed to control himself from roaring.
Hela seemed even worse than Alduin and Berkas, but that was because she was half-human and her dragon side affected her more, which left him exasperated and worried.
He tried to calm down, it was natural, his daughter had to grow up... but feeling the room getting hotter, he realized he was smoking again, with bloodshot eyes.
He sighed and calmed down, he just couldn't.
His human side would probably just get pissed off, but being a dragon comes with its problems, his anger, hatred, greed... everything grew more, so it was difficult to control himself most of the time.
Stopping his thoughts about his "unfilial" daughter, he watched as the group climbed onto their Thestrals and flew above the city of Gondor, so high above that they were barely visible.
Then they jumped.
Smaug would be worried, if he hadn't "invented" a wingsuit.
Even Legolas had tried this before, it was one of the products he sold, with the flying horses, Thranduil was very happy to buy, the man was also having to increase his varied productions, or he wouldn't have enough to trade in the future, Smaug was particularly interested in Lembas, after all this could be very valuable during the war.
From across the podium, the four opened their gliders and flew slowly downwards, landing on a tower of Gondor and completing the infiltration.
Smaug watched through Hela's eyes, sometimes switching between Wynah and Alduin, the group went unnoticed.
Legolas was also very good at concealment, so the four sailed while searching for the Palantir.
Alduin took a guard and bequeathed him for questioning.
His children not only inherited his fire, but also his mental magic, although the magic was weaker, it would still serve to ask for directions.
After getting what they wanted, they knocked the man out and went to an underground room, there, the Palantir, Smaug's eyes shone, wondering what kind of ability he would receive this time.
Probably something geared towards exploration, the two abilities received from the Palantir were sky eye and spiritual connection, this doesn't seem like a coincidence.
The escape process was more complicated, or perhaps less, depending on your point of view.
They had to climb to the top of the tower from the outside, after climbing the highest tower, they jumped and glided through the air with the gliders.
The architecture of Gondor helped a lot with this, the palace was at the highest point and its tower was even higher, so they attracted a little attention, but they were taken as figures or large bats, they were high enough and it was night.
Far from the city, the horses were waiting, as soon as they saw them they positioned themselves and each one landed on his horse, Smaug was very pleased.
The group then galloped away before gaining momentum and flying off, enjoying the night sky and resting during the day.
Smaug followed them from afar, only when they were over Mirkwood did he return first, pretending he never left.
His children wouldn't believe it, but so what? He'd still deny it!
As soon as he returned he was taken to the room by an anxious Helena and Tauriel also followed, without Berkas she seemed to have renewed breath, feeling much more active during the following time.