This is the fifth story in my Thorinduil series which starts with King of the Antlered Throne. A big thank you to all my readers who have made it this far and I hope that you continue to enjoy these stories.

The two kings are so obsessed with each other that they decide to get their heirs to relieve them of some of their duties. Somehow, I don't think that Legolas and Young Thorin, son of Dain, will get along half as well as they do, LOL! In this first chapter, the rows and arguments are getting so bad between Thorin and Thranduil that they devise a cunning plan that their friend, the beautiful dwarf woman , Brangwyn, doesn't exactly approve of.

.o00o.

The Kings and the Princes

Altercation

Brangwyn stood outside the door of Thorin's apartments in Erebor and raised her hand to knock. And then she paused and sighed. Not again. The sounds of an argument penetrated even this stout door and she lowered her hand. They were always arguing these days - loudly. And it was usually about the same thing. She wasn't surprised because it was only to be expected in such a tempestuous relationship where passions were so intense and ran so high.

She could hear Thorin yelling now: "Go! Go then! See if I care! You obviously don't value my companionship!"

And, now, Thranduil yelling back: "Your companionship? And why should I stay in Erebor for the companionship of an ill-tempered dwarf?"

"Well, I've always known that it wasn't exactly my personality you were here for!" shouted Thorin nastily.

"No, I suppose you think I'm only interested in your little, hairy body!" was the equally nasty reply.

"Well, this little, hairy body seems to arouse a damn sight more interest from some people than your tall, lanky one!"

"Who? Who's interested? Tell me now and I'll kill him!"

"Yes, that's your answer to everything, isn't it? You and your jealousy! Sometimes it's intolerable!"

"Almost as intolerable as the way you try to control my movements!"

"What movements! I've just told you that you can clear off out of Erebor if that's what you want!"

"And why is it always me who has to stay here? Why are you never willing to come with me?"

"I'm willing but the elf lords don't exactly make me welcome!"

"And aren't you prepared to make any sacrifices to get your hands on this tall, lanky body?"

There was a sudden silence and Brangwyn decided to come back later when they were both better-humoured.

Within the room, Thorin and Thranduil faced each other, both glaring, both flushed and panting. Suddenly, Thorin stepped forward and grabbed hold of Thranduil by his collar and pulled him into a voracious kiss. "Actually," he whispered huskily, "I'd make quite a few sacrifices to lay my hands on this tall, lanky body." And, pressing his lips to Thranduil's again, he ran his fingers down the elven king's back and grasped his long fall of silken hair, tugging his head back and exposing his enticing, white neck.

Thranduil responded with equal passion and pressed the dwarf backwards towards the bed. "And I don't know what it is about your hairy, little body but it drives me to the edge of madness," he murmured throatily.

He threw Thorin onto the mattress and the dwarf reached out to pull him down upon his broad chest. The elven king tore open his shirt and sighed with pleasure as he ran his face over the silken pelt that he found there. "Ahh," he groaned. "So much more seductive than the smooth skin of elves." But, Thorin was discovering that the smooth skin of elves was equally arousing as he bared and kissed Thranduil's shoulders. And as the dwarf sucked a hairless nipple, the elven king thrust a hand below Thorin's waist band and grasped his swollen member. Satin and stone, he thought.

After an hour of frantic love-making, they lay in each other's arms and both of them finally let out a sigh. "Well, that didn't exactly get us any further forward," said Thranduil.

"No," grinned Thorin. "But it was a load of fun!"

"It's not a laughing matter," said the elf sternly, settling the dwarf more firmly into the crook of his arm. "We've got to sort this out."

They spent most of their time with each other, sometimes in Mirkwood, but most usually in Erebor which was the more congenial place for both of them. However, Thranduil felt as though he was beginning to let things slip in his own kingdom and had told Thorin this morning that he had to go home. And then, as usual, the arguments started.

It was extraordinarily difficult for them to part with each other and the demands of their kingships made things even more tricky. When their relationship had first started, it had seemed sensible to spend some time together and some time apart so that they could concentrate on their duties without the distractions of each other's company, but, the more they were together, the more they found it impossible to go their separate ways, and the situation was made more complex by the poor welcome that Thorin received whenever he travelled to Mirkwood.

Thranduil cupped the dwarf's face in a gentle hand: "So beautiful," he said, brushing Thorin's lips with his own.

"Even if the face is attached to this little, hairy body?" asked Thorin.

"Especially if it's attached to this extremely desirable hairy body," murmured the elf. And he began to roll on top of his lover once more.

But, Thorin laughed and pushed him off. "Not yet, Thanduil," he said. "We've got to think."

"All right," agreed the elf lord. "To sum things up: we want to spend all our time with each other but that usually means we have no time for our duties. What to do?"

"Unload our duties on someone else?"

"Well, perhaps. But, we're kings and it would be wrong to unload too much. And who would take the burden from us anyway? Our people would be angry if we favoured some councillor with the task. That would defeat the whole purpose of kingship."

"How about Legolas?" Thorin suddenly asked. "After all, he is your king in waiting."

"And what about Young Thorin, Dain's son?" was Thranduil's suggestion. "He is your king in waiting and it's about time that he came to Erebor. It will take months to give them some initial training," he mused, "but, if they can free up even some of our time, it'll all be worth it."

"Worth what?" rumbled Thorin in his dark, chocolate voice as he slipped a hand between the elf's thighs.

"Worth the time we'd have for this, of course," purred Thranduil.

And so, it was just as well that Brangwyn didn't return to the dwarven king's apartment for quite a few hours.

.o00o.

Consultation

Brangwyn found the two kings drifting around in casual silken robes and she could see a rumpled bed through the door of the adjacent room. Ah, she grinned to herself. It would seem that they have kissed and made up – among other things.

"How can we help you, Brangwyn?" asked Thorin, smiling.

"W-e-l-l," she said slowly. "Now, you two mustn't take offence, but I thought I'd better warn you that the Council are getting a bit restless because of your constant absence from their meetings. It doesn't look good, you know."

"Yes, we know," said Thorin, "and we're feeling rather shame-faced about things. We've had a – umm – discussion about the situation. We've decided that we haven't been carrying out our duties properly of late and that we must do something about it."

Brangwyn looked pleased that they were taking things seriously. "And…..?" she asked.

"We're thinking we should get our heirs involved. I shall be summoning Young Thorin and Thranduil is going home to talk to Legolas."

"I'll give him some initial training in Mirkwood," said Thranduil, "whilst Thorin introduces Young Thorin to Erebor and then my son and I will come here so that we two kings and the two princes can get to know each other. Balin can help us with the tuition of both of them after that."

"And if our two heirs become familiar with each other – and even like each other – it will be excellent for future dwarf/elf diplomacy," added Thorin.

"Well, it sounds good in theory," said Brangwyn, but with a slight hesitancy in her voice because she felt uneasy about the measure of selfishness that seemed involved. Their obsession with each other was taking them down some undesirable paths as far as she was concerned. But, she continued: "What sort of areas of kingship do you think they can help you with?"

"The biggest chore," laughed Thorin, "is the bookkeeping - keeping track of what's going on in the treasury, how much we have, what it's being spent on etc."

"What you have is limitless," grumbled Thranduil. "The elves of Mirkwood do not have such wealth and that's why keeping control of the economy is important to us. But, I would agree with Thorin: it's very boring and a chore I would gladly pass on, even if only in part."

"Let's hope they're both good at figures and calculations then," muttered Thorin.

"And what else could they do?" asked Brangwyn.

"Another burden on us," said Thorin, "are the functions we're expected to appear at, such as formal dinners which go on for hours and where we're often expected to give speeches. And then there are official appearances in places like Dale. They're not important but the people just like to have a stare at you. They can be quite pleasant - not too demanding except in the amount of time they consume - and I'm sure that everyone will be very curious to see the new heirs to the throne."

"Then, of course," put in Thranduil, "there might be a bit of law-making and the passing out of justice but I think these are too important to leave to novices. They would be expected to accompany us to the courts, however, so that they could get their hand in, so to speak. And the same would go for the Council meetings…"

"Which…." interrupted Brangwyn, "you have been missing so frequently just recently."

The two kings bit their lips and hung their heads, looking so much like naughty little boys that Brangwyn had to laugh.

"We promise not to truant any more," said Thorin, his hand on his heart.

"But, I'm sure you had very good reasons," said Brangwyn. And the two kings glanced across at each other with sly grins.

Then Thorin hastened off to send a messenger to the Iron Hills whilst Thranduil made preparations to return to Mirkwood. Before the elf set off, they held each other in a long embrace.

"I shall be gone for at least two weeks," whispered Thranduil in his lover's ear.

"And I shall count every hour," murmured Thorin. And they parted on a passionate kiss.

.o00o.

In fact, Thorin sometimes found himself counting every minute, especially in the small hours when he awoke to find that Thranduil wasn't curled up into his back. Then he tossed and turned until the dawn came in. But, the arrival of Young Thorin, son of Dain, prince of the Iron Hills and heir apparent to the throne of Erebor helped to distract him a bit.

Like Thorin, the prince was tall and muscular and handsome but with blond hair, hanging in braids (just like Fili, Thorin thought rather sadly). He remembered him only from the Battle of the Five Armies when the young dwarf had fought bravely enough to impress even the King under the Mountain. And, at the time, he had seemed a suitable heir to the throne.

But, Thorin had been gravely wounded and hadn't got to know him well before he had returned with his father to the Iron Hills. He seemed to have changed somewhat since that time and Thorin wondered if this was the way he had always been or if the prospect of becoming King of Erebor had affected him in some way.

"So, what do you think of him?" Thorin asked Brangwyn, the day after the prince had arrived.

"He's a cross between you and Thranduil," she laughed.

"Stroppy and arrogant?"

"Spot on," agreed the dwarf woman. "But, he's also very good-looking, just like the both of you. You know, you two could be his parents." And she giggled at the thought.

"Don't laugh," muttered Thorin. "I'm a bit concerned that he isn't quite as I remember him."

On the day that he had arrived, Thorin had taken him on a tour of Erebor. He had gazed at the great marble halls and the huge piles of gold in the treasury. "It will be good to come into my own," he had said, his head tilted at a haughty angle as if this day was about to happen any time now.

"Well, I'm not dead yet, lad," Thorin had grunted at his elbow and Young Thorin had looked startled as if he hadn't thought of that aspect of his inheritance.

Then Thorin had introduced him to Brangwyn. "This is one whom you should thank," he said, "because if she had accepted my offer of marriage, she might have conceived an heir of Durin by now and you would not be king in waiting."

The prince had given her an odd, side-long glance as if he couldn't imagine anyone foolish enough to turn down a chance of the throne. He saw it as a weakness in her and dismissed the dwarf woman as a person of no account.

.o00o.

Next chapter: Misconceptions and Preoccupations. Young Prince Thorin gets hold of the wrong idea about Brangwyn and the two heirs-in-waiting don't exactly see eye to eye. Is all this training such a good idea or will it end in chaos?