Looking at the petrified Gollum, Sylas gave a short, cold snort. With a flick of his hand, the rigid creature floated in midair, following him down the spiral stairs.

In the grand hall, Bilbo, who had been pacing anxiously, turned in shock. His eyes widened when he saw Gollum dangling behind Sylas like a caught rat.

Then relief flooded his face.

"You caught him!"

Sylas dropped Gollum unceremoniously onto the marble floor, the impact making him grunt. Another casual wave of his wand released the Petrification spell.

"Don't even think about running," Sylas said coolly. His voice was quiet, but it carried the sharpness of a drawn blade. "You know what I can do."

Gollum froze, trembling. His yellow eyes darted from side to side, searching desperately for an escape.

But the Phoenix Lord's presence pressed down upon him like a weight of fire. The creature's shaking only grew worse.

"Now," Sylas continued, his tone deceptively calm. "Tell me, how did you get here? Why break into Bag End? Why sneak into my castle? What are you after?"

Gollum swallowed hard, then stammered,

"Gollum… Gollum only wants his Precious! The Precious was stolen by Baggins! Gollum just wants it back!"

Sylas's eyes narrowed. "Still lying?"

His wand moved slightly.

"Crucio."

The effect was immediate. Gollum convulsed violently, shrieking in agony as he writhed on the floor. His hands clawed at his own head, his body twisting unnaturally under the curse.

Even Bilbo, standing nearby, felt his stomach knot. For a moment, he'd thought the creature deserved every ounce of pain.

But as the shrieks rose higher and higher, the pity of a gentle heart began to whisper within him.

After several agonizing seconds, Sylas ended the curse. Gollum collapsed, gasping and twitching. A few murmured healing charms knit the creature's burst veins and burns.

Sylas crouched slightly, his eyes cold and golden.

"Can you speak now? Or should we try again?"

The trembling wretch nodded frantically, tears streaming down his dirt-smeared face.

"No more! Gollum will talk! Gollum will tell everything!"

And he did.

He began with Bilbo's theft of the Ring, his long pursuit through the Misty Mountains, and how he followed the trail of the Lonely Mountain expedition.

He spoke of being swept by a tornado near Isengard, carried eastward to Mordor, where he fell into Sauron's hands, tortured, broken, then released as bait.

From there, he wandered to the western lands, eventually reaching the shadows near Weathertop.

When his infiltration failed, he fled toward Bree, blending among travelers and beggars. There, he overheard Hobbits speaking of Bilbo Baggins, now a well-known figure in the Shire, hero of the Dwarves' quest, and friend of the Black-Robed Wizard.

Those stories sealed his path.

He followed them to the Shire, broke into Bag End, and attacked Bilbo, convinced the Ring would be there. But when he found nothing, suspicion turned toward Sylas himself.

So when Bilbo escaped using Floo Powder, Gollum mimicked him, entering the fire in pursuit, straight into Weathertop's magical trap.

When the tale ended, Sylas and Bilbo exchanged glances. For a moment, both were silent.

"Seven years," Sylas murmured at last. "He's crossed mountains, forests, and entire kingdoms… all for one ring."

He studied the pitiful creature before him with reluctant awe. "That kind of obsession… only the Ring could breed it."

"Who injured the Kraken when you crossed Black Lake?" Sylas asked suddenly. "Someone saved you from being eaten. Who was it?"

Gollum's face twisted. He shook his head violently.

"Don't know! Don't know! After I left Mordor, I ran and ran, eyes everywhere, always watching, always behind me! I swam across the lake, but the eyes followed! When I reached Bree, they stopped… only after I came to Bag End, and then here, they vanished!"

His words came in gasps and hisses, half nonsensical, but Sylas's Legilimency confirmed he spoke the truth.

"Eyes," Sylas murmured, frowning. "So Sauron released you… but kept the Ringwraiths shadowing your every step."

Bilbo paled. "The Ringwraiths? Here?"

Sylas's gaze hardened. "They wounded the Kraken to save him, that much is certain. They wanted him alive, to lead them to the Ring. Which means…"

He turned toward the window. Beyond it, dawn had painted the horizon crimson.

If that's the case, then those Ringwraiths are very likely still in the Shire, searching for Gollum?

A slow, dangerous smile curved across Sylas's lips.

As the last echoes of Gollum's trembling words faded, a new idea flickered to life behind his golden eyes.

"Gollum," he said softly, voice laced with a predatory calm. "How about we play a little game, of cat and mouse?"

Both Bilbo and Gollum looked at him in confusion.

"If you cooperate," Sylas continued, pacing a slow circle around the creature, "I might even spare your life. What do you think?"

The trembling wretch blinked rapidly, unsure whether to nod or flee. His two voices whispered frantically in his throat, Preciousss, yesss, but tricksy wizard, cruel wizard

Sylas didn't wait for an answer. With a flick of his wrist, something gleamed between his fingers, a golden ring, small and unassuming, yet pulsing faintly with enchantment.

He tossed it toward Gollum.

The moment it touched the ground, Gollum's eyes widened.

"My Precious!"

He lunged forward, claws scrabbling, clutching the ring to his chest with a sob of relief. Without hesitation, he slid it onto his thin finger, and froze.

For a heartbeat, joy shone in his eyes.

Then confusion.

Then anger.

"No! Fake! It's fake!" he snarled, ripping it off and hurling it to the floor. "Not my Precious!"

The ring hovered midair before it could fall, caught by invisible force. It rose to hover before Gollum's face as Sylas's voice cut through the air like steel.

"No. From this moment on, it is your Precious."

The sheer authority in the wizard's tone made Gollum flinch, the defiance vanishing from his eyes. He trembled, bowing his head, muttering half-coherently,

Sylas ignored him and turned to Bilbo briefly.

"You'll understand soon," he murmured, before facing Gollum again.

"Here's what you'll do. I'll spread word across the land that a treasure has been stolen from Weathertop, and that a thief named Gollum carries it."

"You will wander with that 'treasure' in plain sight. Draw the eyes that have been shadowing you. Let them follow."

"You don't want to keep feeling those unseen eyes behind you forever, do you?"

Gollum hesitated, staring at the floating ring. His breathing quickened. Fear, greed, and despair warred inside him.

Sylas didn't give him the chance to decide.

"Hand out," he ordered.

The creature obeyed reluctantly, stretching out his long, bony arm.

Sylas placed his wandtip to the skin.

A faint whisper of magic filled the air, like the sound of roots burrowing into soil.

Gollum gasped as pain flared. A mark seared itself into his flesh:two intertwined trees, white and gold, their roots coiling like living veins beneath the skin.

The symbol pulsed faintly, shimmering with silver light.

This was Sylas's own creation, a reimagining of the Dark Mark once used by Voldemort.

Where the old mark had been ugly, venomous, and vile, this one bore grace and purpose. The Two Trees of Weathertop, inspired by the White Tree of Gondor and the golden Mallorn, represented light and law intertwined.

But beneath their beauty lay the same ruthless function: control.

Through the mark, Sylas could summon, command, or punish. Should Gollum betray his word, pain beyond the Cruciatus would bloom through his veins.

The ring, too, had been crafted with care:

A flawless illusion of the One Ring, enchanted with Confundo and layered spells. To any who saw it, it radiated the unmistakable dread and allure of Sauron's treasure.

Even wearing it would trigger a shimmer of invisibility, close enough to fool the eye of a Nazgûl.

A perfect decoy.

"You may go," Sylas said quietly. "But remember, disobedience means pain."

He tapped his wand once against the mark.

At once, Gollum screamed.

The twin trees writhed, their roots spreading through his arm like molten vines. Pain lanced through his body, wracking every nerve. The mark's glow deepened, golden roots digging into flesh and bone.

The more it spread, the sharper the pain, searing through nerves and bone until it rivaled the Cruciatus Curse itself.

But Sylas had no desire for prolonged torment. His intent was discipline, not sadism. He merely let Gollum taste enough pain to ensure obedience before ending the spell.

At last, the roots of light and shadow on Gollum's arm stilled. The trembling creature gasped for breath, sweat dripping from his pale face.

Sylas waved his hand dismissively.

He gestured toward the floating golden ring. Gollum clutched it greedily and, trembling, slid it onto his finger.

At once, his body shimmered, and vanished completely.

Bilbo gasped, eyes darting around the room.

"He's gone! But....how?"

Sylas's gaze followed the invisible movements with calm precision.Through the Mark of the Two Trees, he could feel the creature's direction, a faint tug in the air, like a heartbeat in the distance.

He watched the invisible Gollum slip out of the castle hall, down the stone steps, and into the night. Only when the mark's echo faded did Sylas allow himself a small, knowing smile.

"Alright," he said at last, turning to Bilbo. "It's time we let the world know about this little theft."

Bilbo blinked, confused.

"A theft?"

"Yes," Sylas replied, tone faintly amused. "You'll announce that a treasure you entrusted to me, a golden ring capable of invisibility, was stolen by a thief who infiltrated Weathertop."

Bilbo hesitated, still unsure of the wizard's plan, but he trusted Sylas implicitly. He nodded.

Before long, an official message left Weathertop Castle, signed under the Lord's seal and the endorsement of his Hobbit friend.

A thief has stolen a precious golden ring from the Castle, an artifact with the power to turn its wearer invisible. A handsome reward shall be given to anyone who captures the thief, dead or alive.

Wanted posters with Gollum's sketch were distributed to Hogsmeade, Bree, and nearby towns. Within a single day, they were plastered on every wall and tavern door.

Panic spread quickly.

Citizens began whispering of an "invisible thief" who could slip into homes unseen. Merchants double-locked their chests. Farmers sealed their barns. Housewives clutched their jewelry close, refusing to sleep until dawn.

But greed spread faster than fear.

The promise of a reward, and the allure of an invisibility ring, set the towns ablaze with excitement.

Bounty hunters, and mercenaries joined the hunt. Some baited food in cellars and alleys.

Others unleashed trained hounds to sniff out strange footprints. A few even sprinkled flour across their floors, hoping invisible feet might leave a trace.

Rumors spread far beyond the borders of the Shire, stories of a ring that could make one vanish, and of a monster who devoured raw meat like a beast in the dark.

And soon enough, signs appeared.

Farmers reported poultry torn apart and eaten raw. Hunters discovered small, clawed footprints pressed into the mud, too small for a man, too twisted for an animal.

With hounds leading the way, a search party tracked the creature to an abandoned warehouse on the outskirts of Bree.

Inside, Gollum crouched over a pile of stolen food, devouring it with wild hunger. When the door burst open, torches flared, and shouts filled the air, he shrieked, clutching the ring.

"My Precious! Mine!"

He slipped it onto his finger.

Before anyone could reach him, his form shimmered, and vanished.

Men screamed in panic. Swords swung at empty air, but the creature was gone, leaving only overturned barrels and echoing footsteps.

At this point, the topic of the golden ring and the monster thief became even more heated.

...

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