Deciphering Notions:
Unlike the journey they had encountered thus far, the group decided that it would be magnificent to take a day off and rest, against the advice of Thorin, of course. The sun was glittering on the hard rocks, dancing, reflected in the pools of water that had arisen from the previous days of rain.
"You're doing it wrong Fili!" Bofur screamed for the tenth time. "Right stance, foot forward, and lunge with your left knee! By the Gods you are useless!" Bofur and Fili had taken to sparring with axes, but using their bodies to counter. While Bofur had more experience in fighting than the younger dwarf, he had no patients for teaching him how to counter with his body. While Bofur condescendingly ordered Fili to do the moves again, his guard was down, Fili lunged with his knee as instructed, knocking Bofur in the groin, and then counter attacking with an elbow to the cheek… Knocking Bofur practically unconscious for a minute or two; he threw his axe over his shoulder, complacent and marched over to the group, smug expression fixed to his face.
"That silly bastard may have actually just taught me a few things!" Fili laughed, Bifur hummed joyfully and Bombur just carried on eating his fifth meal of the day.
Fili looked around, Thorin, Bilbo and Kili were nowhere in sight.
"Where be the others?" He asked Balin.
"I think they went to hunt for some food. Thorin insisted that Bilbo learn to use that sharp lamp of his against enemies, or just Conies, whichever he found more frightful" Oin laughed at Balin's remark about Bilbo's sword being a 'Sharp Lamp'
"Very well, I shall go and find them. I don't think Bofur will be too happy with me when he wakes up…"
Fili wondered off into the wilds in search of Thorin, Bilbo and his brother. He followed the fresh tracks of bare feet nestled into the damp earth, contemplating whether to scare them, but he envisioned a jumpy Hobbit stabbing him somewhere he would rather nobody stab.
Pulling back some bushes, he found a clearing, and the Hobbit foraging for blackberries, but he wasn't alone. Kili too was foraging. Could they not find any meat in this small but well housed forest?! He decided to watch closer.
"Are these ones any good, Bilbo?" Kili called.
"Yes, why YES! Those are perfect. If they have a green colouring, they aren't ripe enough, they tend to be bitter. These look great. I'm sure Bombur could do amazing work with these." The Hobbit plodded along happily. "Kili do you think Thorin has found anything yet?"
"I'm sure he would have come back if he found anything."
"Yeah, you're right. I don't like the idea of killing animals much." He stated plainly.
"Why would that be?" Kili asked, confused and maybe a little rudeness drawn from his sharp reply.
"Possibly because Hobbits live in peace with the animals around them; the Sackville-Baggins sometimes complain that they can hear wild, savage wolves over in Bree, but I thought they were liars."
"Sackville-Baggins?" Kili laughed a little. Sometimes the Hobbit said strange things.
"Oh, extended family. A pain in the neck they are!"
"I can agree there…" Kili nodded.
A large snap sounded, and put Kili on alert. Fili watching from afar, readied his axe, watching what the wolf snarling at them was about to do. Should he intervene? He knew Kili was a very competent fighter against one lone wolf.
The snarling grew louder, but the wolf did not draw closer, the sounds were out of sync with his breathing… more began to appear in the clearing. Kili forced Bilbo behind him, but Bilbo would fight if he had to. He slowly unsheathed his sword; he wasn't sure if the lack of glowing was a comfort, but he still didn't like staring down the mouth of an angry wolf.
"Stay behind me Bilbo" Kili muttered. "Wouldn't want you to kill an innocent animal" he gave a slight hum of laughter from his throat.
"What I said a second ago… I don't mind killing it if they want to eat me. You know, it's only fair."
Again Kili laughed. And he charged. The wolf at the front of the pack jumped back, not expecting Kili's sudden movement, but then began to charge. The white and majestic creature was slain in an instant. Kili began making work of the others. Bilbo joined in when a rabid wolf would jump past Kili and presumably seek dinner from a weaker source of prey.
It wasn't long before Kili was overrun. Fili decided now he would do something… He charged in, screaming, chopping the wolves with his axe. Thorin must have heard the commotion from his position and joined them in haste too. It was a clear victory. Minor wounds inflicted, the dwarves, and a rather nasty bite on Bilbo's ankle, which he hadn't noticed during his adrenaline rush. He thought it was a little nip at his leg. Kili looked down to see the blood beginning to stream out and pool at his feet. He rushed over and picked the Hobbit up.
"You're going to be fine, I'm taking you back to the camp" he assured Bilbo as the hobbit began to twitch slightly, refusing to look at his nasty wound.
"I'm not going to die am I?" He whimpered.
"No, but you are going to pass out…" As if on cue, Bilbo passed out from blood loss.
Bofur bandaged him up quickly and flawlessly; then proceeded to use the butt end of his axe to pay revenge on Fili.
Kili didn't leave Bilbo's side that night. The rest of the group made sneers, and lame jabs at him. But he resisted their comments. The poor Hobbit tossed and turned, a fever had enveloped him during the early hours and he kicked off his sleeping bag only to pull it on moments later.
He managed to calm himself when dawn approached.
Kili had barely managed to get to sleep when he heard a small 'Thank you', he opened one eye to see Bilbo looking at the dwarf, a glitter returned to his previously glazed eyes. Kili smiled and went back to sleep.
The sun had risen, and the camp was alive again. Dwarves shouting at one another, bickering, throwing axes, laughing, eating and snarling. Gandalf decided to join them once again. Saying the path was now sufficiently clear enough for the party to move on towards the mountains.
Fili noticed the change in his brother again. His brows furrowed out of annoyance. Why was he spending so much time with the Hobbit? It was absurd.
To even the untrained eye, Fili was jealous of this new found friendship. His brother was spending less time with him and much more time with Bilbo now.
"Something the matter, Laddie?" Balin noticed Fili's expression.
"Oh, it's nothing…" He looked cold and hard at his brothers back as it moved up and down with laughter.
"I think I know what it is. Friendships are found in hard times my boy, you need to learn that your brother can have other relationships besides family" Wise words indeed.
"They seem a little too intimate for my liking" His eyes narrowed. Bilbo threw an apple at Kili. "Stop wasting food!" he shouted.
Bilbo shyly placed the other apple in his bag an offered a "Sorry, you're right" over his shoulder.
Kili moved his horse closer, the snatched the apple out of Bilbo's bag and threw it at his brother...