The sun was high in the sky, its delicate, watery beams shining wanly down on the two brothers. The older dwarves braids were blown about by the strong wind, while the younger ones hair flew wildly behind him.
The two brothers had decided to go out and play. Kili insisted on being a dwarvish warrior of old, which left his older brother the part of the evil Orc. But Fili did not mind, even though it meant that he would most certainly have to "die", if only to keep Kili's naïve perception that good could always conquer evil alive. They had promised their mother they would be home before the sun set, which would be in only a few hours.
Kili and Fili had been preoccupied with the pretend battle that raged between them.
Their battle had taken them so far through the meadow and woods that Fili wasn't entirely sure where they were. From the look of the rocks all around them they were closer to the mountains and quarry than he had wanted them to go. But what really concerned him was the ledge directly in front of them.
He was about to tell Kili it was time to go home when he saw his brother heading to the ledge. Although Kili was faster Fili was taller and had longer legs and easily caught up to his younger brother. He grabbed Kili by the scruff of the neck, jerking him back.
"Awww, come on, Fili," Kili whined. But Fili ignored him until he had dragged him back a good measure from the ledge.
"There's no harm in looking what's down there, is there?" Kili said to his brother once he had let go.
Fili pondered his brother's question. He knew it was dangerous. When he had gone to pull Kili back he had seen down into the canyon. It was about twenty feet deep and filled with sharp rock at the bottom. He was also sure that the rocks near the edge were not sturdy and would almost certainly cause them to fall should they get to close.
At the same time he didn't think Kili was clumsy. On the contrary, Kili was rather elegant and graceful, for a dwarf. And he could never say no to his baby brother, especially when he looked into his big brown eyes.
"Alright," Fili conceded with a sigh. But his resignation was short lived when he saw the delight on Kili's face. "But only for a minute. And-"
Before he could finish his thought about being careful Kili darted forward.
"No, Kili, stop!" He yelled after his brother.
Kili stopped sharply at the edge and turned to look at his brother. He looked back at his brother, confused, but before he could ask Fili saw his expression change in an instance, from confusion to panic, as he lost his footing on the edge and realized he was about to fall.
It felt to Fili as if fifty impossibly heavy stones had been dropped in his stomach. His eyes held Kili's panicked ones as he watched his brother tumble over the edge. He reached out to grab his brother. His head told him he was to far but his heart made him do it nonetheless.
Kili's scream as he fell made Fili shiver. He prayed that Kili would be all right. But it was the sick thudding sound and Kili's cries of agony that made his blood run cold.