History Fanfic / TheHeartTrilogy

* RealityEnsues: When Kathryn decides to return to the Lonely Mountain, she tries to sell her property and animals and set out immediately afterwards. Much to her frustration, Bree's magistrate insists on weighing the value of everything she has at their own pace instead of just buying everything at the lowest price, and it also takes time to find a farmer who'd buy her animals since all the farmers are busy due to the nearing harvest season. Add in the equation a huge storm, and Kathryn is able to begin her journey after being delayed by an entire week.

* RealityEnsues: In the 9th chapter, "Cail Agonn" gives King Wilhelm an increasingly threatening TheReasonYouSuckSpeech in front of his court. The king is initially intimidated along with everyone else, but then he [[CantTakeCriticism refuses to take anymore of it]] and [[DisproportionateRetribution orders a guard to cut out Smaug's tongue]]. Fortunately Queen Lalemwen refuses to allow blood to be shed in her father's throne room and orders Smaug to be thrown in a dungeon instead[[note]]and Smaug would have likely killed the guard before he could touch him[[/note]], but insulting royalty -- especially one as self-absorbed as Wilhelm -- in their face is likely to end badly.

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: [[spoiler:Andraya is mauled and swallowed by Smaug, and then boiled alive by the fire in his stomach.]]

* [[AdaptationalVillainy Adaptational]] AntiHero: Thorin Oakenshield. While being faithful to the movie characterisation of Thorin, the story doesn't cover up or shy away from Thorin's [[TookALevelInJerkass more unsavoury character traits]] when he encounters Kathryn in a later phase of his SanitySlippage. His {{Fatal Flaw}}s are highlighted, showcasing how due to his {{Pride}} and {{Greed}} (which he [[{{Hypocrite}} refuses to acknowledge]], unlike the somewhat [[CardCarryingVillain knowingly wicked]] Smaug), he is NotSoDifferent from Smaug in one of the worst possible ways. The other dwarves of the Company technically also fit this trope, though certainly to a milder extent, as their quest's motivations are (not inaccurately) presented as not-so-heroic.

-->'''Gimli''': Careful there, laddie. That sounded like a threat…

* IsThatAThreat: Gimli uses a variation of this line at the Council of Elrond when Smaug tells him to be silent or he might forgo civility.

'''Kathryn''': {{Is that a threat}}?\\

** King Brandon and his son Bard look uncannily like Brandon's grandfather Bard the Bowman. Kathryn, who has seen the latter only once sixty years earlier, can tell this by just looking at the two descendants.

* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Afraid that Erebor's treasure is a too great temptation to Smaug, King Brand forcefully takes Kathryn as his and King Dáin's guest, promising to return her to Smaug once the dragon has returned from the north and leaves Dale and Erebor's inhabitants unharmed. He's clearly ashamed of himself while explaining his reasoning.

* FamousLastWords: Spoken in Elvish by [[spoiler:Tauriel]] to Smaug.
--> "''Lle naa haran e' nausalle.''"[[note]]"You are king in your imagination."[[/note]]

* ArmorPiercingResponse: Faervel gives Smaug one in the 15th chapter.

-->'''Smaug''': "Just like a dwarf -- the mere look of gold has you buzzing like a fly to dead flesh."\\
'''Gimli''': "Says ''you''! You couldn't do this task either!"

* SecretTestOfCharacter: Kathryn ends up arguing with Galadriel about what motivates the former when she asks for the latter's help in turning the Seer's power into a weapon against her enemies. Galadriel challenges Kathryn to combine the prophetic powers of the former's Mirror with her own, suggesting even that her child's fate may depend on it. Kathryn nearly looks in the Mirror before she stops herself, stating that [[SelfFulfillingProphecy prophecies are mostly self-fulfilling]]. Galadriel congratulates her and reveals that she was testing her.

* AdaptationalHeroism: Downplayed with Smaug who, despite all the caring he gives Kathryn, is pretty much the same selfish, greedy, arrogant and bloodthirsty dragon as in the source materials. However, unlike in the movie trilogy, he's never interested about serving Sauron or anyone else, wanting to be left in peace with his treasure and Kathryn unless provoked. While he accepts [[DealWithTheDevil Sauron's proposal]] in ''Heart of Ashes'', he does that in a moment of blind rage rather than ForTheEvulz. The Dark Lord trying to control him is an experience he's unwilling to repeat. He even takes the side of the Free Peoples in the War of the Ring, if only for his own reasons of which the safety of Kathryn [[spoiler:and their twins]] is the most altruistic one.

* FantasticRacism: Smaug, and by extension the other dragons, are on the receiving end throughout the series. However, it's surprisingly {{justified}}, given the dragons' AlwaysChaoticEvil tendencies, and Smaug is no exception to the rule. In the case of [[spoiler:Kolstros and Vervenia]], it's much less justified due to them [[spoiler:lacking Smaug's and other dragons' hereditary connection to Morgoth]]. This trope influences no end of suffering and {{Hero Antagonist}}s' misguided actions for Smaug and Kathryn.

* LoveHurts: With Kathryn and Smaug both.

** Though an AbusiveParent, Andraya does care about her daughter Freyja. [[spoiler:After Smaug kills Freyja, Andraya hands Kathryn over to Fankil as RevengeByProxy.]]

* ProportionalAging: Dragons rival elves in lifespan, and their infancy doesn't last long so that they won't remain helpless for too long. However, it takes them 30-50 years to reach physical adulthood.

-->'''Kathryn''': I remember my mother enough to know that she would be mortified if I didn't give up my bed to house-guests in more need of it then I.

** In ''Heart of Fire'', Kathryn is briefly turned into a dragon by Smaug entering her body and lending her energy through their bond so that she can repel against Bolg's Orcs. In ''Heart of Ashes'', she shifts two times of her own accord, first when she's furious with Smaug over [[spoiler:Freyja's murder]], and secondly to battle against Fankil.

The Heart Trilogy is a series of ''Film/TheHobbit'' and later ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' fanfics by [[https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4774853/DONOVAN94 DONOVAN94]]. The trilogy features an OriginalCharacter, a Seer named Kathryn, and her gradually developing romance with the dragon Smaug. The first two parts are completed, while the third part is currently dormant.

The first part of the series, [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/9830774/1/Heart-of-Fire Heart of Fire]], begins with Gandalf meeting Kathryn, a Seer who lives in hiding and has an amazing story to tell. Many years earlier, the ostracized seer wandered Middle-Earth in search of peace, but when she settled in the ruined city of Dale, her life was changed forever. Upon hearing her heavenly singing voice, Smaug decided to keep Kathryn as a part of his hoard. From there began Kathryn's game of survival that led her to be connected with the dragon forever… to the point that she decides to return to him when Thorin Oakenshield's Company sets out to reconquer the Lonely Mountain.

Official description of Heart of Fire: ''"I am SMAUG! I kill where I wish and none dare resist! And now, you belong to me!" Smaug stirs beneath Erebor when he hears a heavenly voice and knows he must have such a prize for his own. Trapped in the Dragon's lair, Kathryn, a seer, must survive this deadly creature to escape to freedom. But a vision plagues her, one that connects her to the mighty dragon forever.''

In the second part of the series, [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10108427/1/Heart-of-Ashes Heart of Ashes]], Smaug returns from the dead, transformed into a man. Determined and wrathful, he sets out to find a way to regain his true form, exact his revenge on the people of Dale and the dwarves of Erebor, and reunite with Kathryn who's been taken to the city of Vathvael. Dark forces hunt the dragon and the Seer, and with no one to trust, Kathryn is having continuous visions of a darkness that calls to her… and an evil that now grows inside of Smaug. Click [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPTkuy1tg60 here]] to see the trailer.

Official description of Heart of Ashes: ''"I now have a duty that you abandoned me to face. It is time for you to face the ashes of your fires, dragon…" Smaug has been resurrected into the form of a human man, and now, he will stop at nothing to reclaim his lost form, exact his revenge on those that killed him and possess the one woman who stole his heart. The world will burn before him and darkness will feed his rage.''

The third part of the series, [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11571035/1/Heart-of-the-Inferno Heart of the Inferno]], takes place during the War of the Ring. Smaug and Kathryn, who have lived a secluded life for sixty years, are called by Gandalf to aid the Free Peoples against Sauron and his minions. Click [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=avP4cQ-7ebI here]] to see the trailer.

Official description of Heart of the Inferno: ''"The third age is now at an end, and in its place I shall bring the wings and fires to herald a new era: the Age of Dragons!" Gandalf seeks the help of an unlikely ally to fight the evil of Sauron: Smaug. With Kathryn, a Seer, he shall go on a journey that will determine the fate of Middle-Earth forever. The fires have ignited, the ashes have scattered, but the inferno still rages.''

* InTheBlood: It's revealed that all dragons are born with a link to Morgoth due to his meddling and augmentations to their ancestors, which is heavily implied to be the root of their AlwaysChaoticEvil tendencies.

* ColorContrast: [[spoiler:The PsychicLink Kathryn forms between Aragorn and Arwen is silver-themed, in contrast to Smaug and Kathryn's gold-themed link]].

* DeathByChildbirth: Subverted. [[spoiler:Kathryn comes close to death while giving birth to her twins, finding herself welcomed by Irmo. Fortunately, the recently resuscitated Gandalf the White brings her back.]]

* DividedWeFall: Kathryn tells Aragorn that he's needed to lead the Free Peoples because they stand divided and Sauron knows not to tolerate the same weakness with his own forces, so the Free Peoples can match the unity of Sauron's armies only by being united by a strong leader.

* NiceJobFixingItVillain: Sauron's mental assault on Kathryn just as [[spoiler:her labour begins]] helps to convince [[BystanderSyndrome Smaug]] to [[NeutralNoLonger take the Free Peoples' side against the Dark Lord]].

* TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow: When Kathryn asks Galadriel to help her understand her power of sight, the Lady of Lothlórien responds that no-one, not even the immortal elves, are meant to know or fully comprehend the fabric of time.

* TragicStillbirth: Kathryn has had three miscarriages during the last decade. They were all devastating experiences both to her and Smaug, requiring a lot of time to recover from.
* UntoUsASonAndDaughterAreBorn: [[spoiler:In the 9th chapter, Kathryn gives birth to a son and a daughter while Smaug fights the Orcs of Dol GUldur with the Elves of Lothlórien. She names them Kolstros and Vervenia, respectively.]]

* {{Seers}}: Kathryn is one of the last Seers, women capable of seeing into all realities of past, present and future through Raw Magic. The Elvish term for them is ''Tharŷliel'' ("Daughter of Future Dreams"). Their patron is Irmo (also known as Lórien), the Vala of visions and dreams.

** King Brandon and his son Bard look uncannily like Brandon's grandfather Bard the Bowman. Kathryn -- who has seen the latter only once sixty years earlier -- can tell this by just looking at the two descendants.

* {{Ambadassador}}: Faervel has become Rivendell's ambassador for Esgaroth's all peoples, and he convinces Smaug to accept King Brand's condition that he'll get Kathryn back once he returns from his mission in the north and leaves without harming anyone in Esgaroth's area.

* FantasticRacism: Smaug, and by extension other dragons, are on the receiving end throughout the series. However, it's surprisingly {{justified}}, given the dragons' AlwaysChaoticEvil tendencies, and Smaug is no exception to the rule. In the case of [[spoiler:Kolstros and Vervenia]], it's much less justified due to them [[spoiler:lacking Smaug's and other dragons' hereditary connection to Morgoth]]. This trope influences no end of suffering and {{Hero Antagonist}}s' misguided actions for Smaug and Kathryn.

* ForWantOfANail: In ''Heart of Fire'', Smaug injures Bilbo with his tooth. In ''Heart of Ashes'', Bilbo's recovering from the wound and hasn't thus left Erebor following the Battle of Five Armies. As such, he's around to hear about Smaug reappearing in Dorwinion and decides to tag along with Gandalf and Elrond [[MustMakeAmends to make up for being unable to stop Smaug from attacking Lake-town]].

** When Kathryn is brought to Vathvael's palace in ''Heart of Ashes'', she's given luxurious quarters, but she's nonetheless forced to entertain the royal court with singing and given little room for insubordination. The revelation of her being a Seer further lessens her chances of being allowed to leave.
** In ''Heart of the Inferno'', Kathryn and [[spoiler:her twins]] are forced to remain in Erebor until Smaug returns to fetch them. Though their needs are tended to like those of honored guests, the dwarves don't hide their enmity toward the unwilling guests.

* GreaterScopeVillain: The first Dark Lord Morgoth who was sealed long ago in the void through the Door of Night. It's stated by Gandalf that should Morgoth ever return, the currect Dark Lord and his [[DragonAscendant former second-in-command]] Sauron [[EvilerThanThou would bow to him]]. [[spoiler:Morgoth's demon-spawn Fankil is trying to locate the Door and release Morgoth.]] The dragons' AlwaysChaoticEvil tendencies are also rooted to Morgoth's experiments. However, Morgoth himself has made no other appearances than in Kathryn's visions.

** Kathryn is a beautiful Seer instead of a witch, but she otherwise fits this trope, and some ignorant people tend to call her witch.

* ItWasAGift: When Smaug allows Kathryn to leave Erebor, he gives her the scale that was loosened by Girion. She continues wearing it as a necklace.

* LikeADaughterToMe: Elrond is rather fatherly toward Kathryn, and she appears to reciprocate the feeling.

** Certain original traits of Smaug and his species, such as their mating-bite, also feature in the author's unrelated later fanfiction ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10413831/1/Dragon-Bound Dragon-Bound]]''.

* SealedEvilInACan: Morgoth was sent to the void in chains, with the entrance -- the Door of Night -- hidden and protected by an immortal guardian. [[spoiler:Fankil's goal is to locate the Door and release his father.]]

** ''Heart of Ashes'' was commenced before ''Film/TheHobbitTheBattleOfTheFiveArmies'', so the White Council rescues Gandalf and drives Sauron out of Dol Gulder quite differently than in the film. Notably, Sauron vanishes in a blinding flash of light which Saruman unleashes. This references to the book continuity wherein Saruman is implied to have aided Sauron escape from Dol Guldur when the White Council drove him out.

* AlternateUniverseFic: Mostly utilizes the ''[[Film/TheHobbit Hobbit]]''/''[[Film/LordOfTheRings Lord of the Rings]]'' movie continuity, but with AcceptableBreaksFromCanon (see above), references to the [[Literature/TheHobbit novel]] [[Literature/TheLordOfTheRings continuity]], and some other minor [[DerivativeWorks alterations from canon]]. The most important [[ForWantOfANail diver]][[InSpiteOfANail gences]] are the presence of [[OriginalCharacter Kathryn]] in Middle-Earth, and Smaug's [[SparedByTheAdaptation (somewhat secret) survival]] [[spoiler:beyond his death at Lake-town]] resulting in him still being alive as late as the War of the Ring.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Dragons, due to Morgoth's intervention. Though he genuinely loves Kathryn, throughout the series Smaug himself remains as callous and merciless as in canon. [[spoiler:Kolstros and Vervenia are the first dragons in millennia to be born without their race's link to Morgoth, rendering them {{Token Heroic Orc}}s.]]

-->"And with [Kathryn's] touch upon such sensitive skin, he could feel every current of electricity running through her body, every strong heartbeat, every breath in her lungs, every twitch of a muscle."

** Not as extreme as other examples, but the vision Kathryn has in the 7th chapter of ''Heart of Fire'' is so severe that blood appears from her nose and ears.

* CagedBirdMetaphor: In ''Heart of Fire'', Smaug captures Kathryn because he wants her heavenly singing voice all for himself. He even initially keeps her locked up in a giant bird cage, and furthermore, he initially mockingly calls her his "songbird" as a pet name. In ''Heart of Ashes'', King Wilhelm calls Kathryn a songbird after he makes her his court's bard, a situation that is a GildedCage situation for her.

** In ''Heart of Fire'', Sauron enters Smaug's mind, offering him gold and glory in exchange for leading the Dark Lord's armies in war. Smaug's not interested in serving anyone, so Sauron leaves and orders Bolg to capture Kathryn in order to have a bargaining chip. After Kathryn escapes from Smaug near the end of ''Heart of Ashes'', Sauron offers to help him in taking Kathryn and Erebor back in exchange for swearing allegiance to the Dark Lord. This time, the seething dragon accepts the offer and attacks Vathvael, with Sauron's taint in his scar [[MoreThanMindControl directing his actions]] with a varying level of success. Once Gandalf realizes this, he contains the worst of Sauron's influence, but the threat of succumbing to Sauron's influence if Smaug isn't careful with his darker emotions remains.
** At the climax of ''Heart of Ashes'', [[spoiler:Andraya hands Kathryn over to Fankil in order to gain RevengeByProxy against Smaug as well as a resurrection spell as a means to gain Freyja back.]]

* {{Epigraph}}: Every chapter of every part of the trilogy is initiated with quotations. The epigraphs of ''Heart of Fire'' are all riddles and their answer. Those of ''Heart of Ashes'' are all somehow dragon-related, covering various works. In ''Heart of the Inferno'', all the epigraphs come from ''Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium''.

** Smaug's love toward Kathryn is practically his only redeeming quality. [[DeconstructedTrope Even so]], he commits bad actions that hurt the much more moral Kathryn, and the prideful dragon-dread doesn't easily comply to her wishes. By the end of ''Heart of Ashes'', Kathryn forces Smaug to choose between his selfish desires and her. [[{{Reconstruction}} He ends up choosing her, giving up his plans for revenge.]] In the beginning of ''Heart of the Inferno'', this trope is discussed, with Gandalf arguing to Galadriel that Smaug's feelings for Kathryn make him ALighterShadeOfBlack against Sauron. [[spoiler:Smaug's also happy about his and Kathryn's twins [[UntoUsASonAndDaughterAreBorn Kolstros and Vervenia]] after they're born.]]

** When Andraya reveals that she wants Smaug to impregnate the fourteen-year-old Freyja with a powerful offspring, he's repulsed with the idea of laying with a not yet mature girl. He establishes that among the dragonkind, an adult dragon copulating with another dragon not of age (younger than fifty years) would be considered despicable.

** Kathryn had originally her father's golden brown eyes until she had her first vision at the age of six. The magic of clairvoyance turned her eyes purple. [[spoiler:When she dies while trying to save Smaug from death, her eyes gain the color of molten gold. They remain so when she's resurrected due to her link to Raw Magic being damaged. Once Smaug restores the link, she regains her purple eyes.]]

The Heart Trilogy is a series of ''Film/TheHobbit'' and later ''Film/TheLordOfTheRings'' fanfics by [[https://www.fanfiction.net/u/4774853/DONOVAN94 DONOVAN94]]. The trilogy features an OriginalCharacter, a Seer named Kathryn, and her gradually developing relationship with the dragon Smaug. The first two parts are completed, and the third part is ongoing.

In the second part of the series, [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/10108427/1/Heart-of-Ashes Heart of Ashes]], Smaug returns from the dead, transformed into a man. Determined and wrathful, he sets out to find a way to regain his true form, exact his revenge on the people of Dale and the dwarves of Erebor, and reunite with Kathryn who's been taken to the city Vathvael. Dark forces hunt the dragon and the Seer, and with no one to trust, Kathryn is having continuous visions of a darkness that calls to her… and an evil that now grows inside of Smaug. Click [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPTkuy1tg60 here]] to see the trailer.

** The 13th chapter has a brief one between Smaug and Urgost. Smaug gains the upper hand.

* KnowWhenToFoldEm: After Smaug pins down Urgost who realizes that Smaug isn't dead after all, the grey dragon looks at the bitten stump of his finger and surrenders, saying that he doesn't want to make the descendant of Ancalagon the Black his enemy.

* RedOniBlueOni: [[spoiler:Kathryn and Smaug's twins]] are already starting to show signs of this dynamic; the more daring [[spoiler:Vervenia]] is the Red Oni, while the more cautious [[spoiler:Kolstros]] is the Blue Oni.

* BurnTheWitch: Played with; Kathryn has been hounded, cast out and hated by others for years due to her {{Seer}} abilities. The mercenary Karst at one point calls her a witch in spite.

* PsychicLink: Smaug forms one with Kathryn.

Now with a [[Characters/TheHeartTrilogy Character Sheet]] that NeedsWikiMagicLove.

[[folder: Heart of Fire]]

[[folder: Heart of Ashes]]

[[folder: Heart of the Inferno]]

[[/folder]]

[[quoteright:300:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_heart_trilogy_9.jpg]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_heart_trilogy_9.jpg]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/heart_of_ashes_cover.jpg]]

-->"He was a complexity if ever there was one. He was majestic yet frightening, powerful and quick, supremely intelligent but his guarded nature wasted his cunning on the pursuit of gold, he was utterly beautiful but deadly, and his lack of empathy only pushed forward his wickedness. He seemed to be a very angry creature, wanting to lash out at the first thing that drew his attention, but also… desperate for attention. Kathryn could find no other way to describe it; even when he was at his utmost cruel, even when he was playing mind games, even when he was stalking his prey, he craved for the respect and attention of another creature, so therefore he would have something to distract his mind. Even if he would eventually tire of whatever caught his interest."

%%* JerkassHasAPoint: