Writers note: in this story, Fili is around 7 in human years and Kili is 2. I'm not sure what that would translate to in dwarvish years, but lets just settle on the fact that they are super cute and lovable. :) Feel free to review. Hope you enjoy!

Fili was bored.

Thorin was away at the forge, Dis was busy baking, and his little brother was still asleep. What was he to do? The young dwarf was currently in the living room with a box of blocks that Bofur had brought both he and Kili the previous week. Fili loved to build castles with them, or at least what he envisioned Erebor to look like. Kili often ruined the structure before it was complete, being rather clumsy and overeager to help.

Lost in thought, Fili had built a rather impressive looking tower when he heard his mother come around the corner. "My, that's impressive..." Dis came over, kneeling down next to her eldest son in order to better appreciate his work. "This is the first time you've managed to complete the tower, isn't it?"

Fili smiled at his mother, quite proud and taken by the compliment. "It is...I was close yesterday, but Kili accidentally knocked it over," he explained, laughing a bit at the memory. The blonde had been a bit irritated but the feeling vanished completely when his little brother had started crying.

"I remember," Dis smiled and put a hand on his shoulder, pausing a moment. "Fili...do you think that you would be able to manage alright while I'm away?"

Fili's blue eyes met up with his mother's in surprise, the request catching him off guard. "Where are you going?" The young blonde questioned, a touch worried. Dis seldom left, and when she did she brought her boys along.

"Gloin's wife is ill, and I'm bringing them some soup," Dis explained, rising now. "I would bring you boys, but I'm afraid you'd catch it...I would be gone an hour at the most," she explained, then seemed to be second guessing the idea. "Though, perhaps I could leave you at Bofur's..."

"No, Mum, let me stay home." Fili said quickly, excited by the idea of being alone. This would be his first time, his chance to prove himself. "I can manage, I won't get into any trouble," he reassured her, standing now too. "Please? I promise I'll be good."

Dis felt her heart melt a bit to see such eager blue eyes. Eyes so similar to that of their father. "Well...alright," she relented, trusting that he would do as he said. Despite being so young, Fili was fiercely loyal and extremely mature for his age. "Kili won't be any trouble...he shouldn't wake for another hour or so yet," she smiled, kneeling down to kiss him on the cheek. "I'll be back soon."

Fili smiled, his heart skipping a beat with joy. An hour...sixty whole minutes in which he was in charge, sixty minutes in which he could prove himself reliable enough to be left on his own.

It felt like an eternity for Dis to get ready, but once she did and the door closed behind the dwarf maiden, Fili got right into action. While his mother had been getting the soup ready, the young prince had made a small list of things he would do while she was gone...and the first was waking his little brother.

Tucking the parchment away, Fili found he and his brother's room, peeking inside. All was quiet. Heading in, he looked through the bars of Kili's crib, seeing the young dwarfling curled up under a few blankets, thumb in his mouth.

"Kili," Fili whispered, excited to wake him. This was a rare opportunity, for he was always instructed to allow the brunette as much time to sleep as possible. "Kee, wake up!"

Kili stirred a little but didn't wake, and so Fili drug over a chair, climbing up. "Come on, little brother, it's time for you to wake up," he told him, gently shaking him by the shoulder. "We have a big day ahead of us; Mum has gone to visit and Uncle is at the forge, but don't worry, I'll take care of you."

The youngest Durin's eyes opened now, the shaking had been enough to wake him. Groggy a moment, he looked around in confusion before his vision focused to his brother. "Fee!" This was exclaimed happily, and he fell quiet. "Come sleep?" The youngest pat the spot next to him, and it was then Fili saw that he had once again wet the bed.

"Oh Kili...did you wet the bed again?" Fili wrapped his arms around him, carefully lifting him out of the crib and then climbed down from the chair. Any other baby, this would have been difficult, but Kili was quite small for a dwarf.

"There you are," he was quite proud of his success, but Kili looked very, very sleepy. "Tired," the prince stated crabbily, pressing his face to the blonde's shoulder. Why couldn't he sleep?

"I know, Kee, but your clothes are all wet now," Fili sighed a little, now that he was holding him he could feel that his trousers were a bit damp. "Don't worry...we'll get you some new clothes," to have all of this responsibility was exciting, and he welcomed every challenge that came his way.

Getting Kili dressed was no easy task. The youngest fussed and complained, he wanted the blue shirt over the green, and he had started to nod off again when Fili had once again picked him up. "There! All dressed. Are you hungry? I'll get you some breakfast, would you like that?"

Kili only rested his head to his shoulder, eyelids heavy. The brunette was not a morning person in the slightest, which was why he was usually left to sleep just as long as he needed. Fili laughed a little at the lack of response, bringing him to the kitchen. Once there, he sat Kili to his seat, wondering what he should prepare for him to eat.

Kili rubbed at his bleary eyes with both fists, quite a bit crabby yet. The dwarfling's hair was a mess, as it often was. In the morning Fili always thought he resembled a baby bird of sorts; his hair had always been a struggle for Dis to work with, since he hated to have it brushed in the least. "Do you want some porridge?"

"No."

"Well...how about some soup? Mum left some for us-"

"No."

Fili folded his arms across his chest, frowning at his brother the way Thorin did when they were being stubborn. "Well, you are going to eat something whether you like it or not. Don't you want to grow up strong like the other dwarves? You're so small, Kee, and if you eat you'll grow bigger."

Kili looked to him now, for this seemed to gain his interest. "Soup, then," he surprisingly agreed, quite a bit more motivated now that he was promised to grow as a result. "I want soup."

For a moment, Fili nearly didn't believe it. Kili was agreeing to eat! This was a feat in itself, and he knew that if Dis were there she would have been quite proud. "Soup it is, then," he smiled proudly, fixing him a bowl. Before he set it in front of him, he made sure that it wasn't too hot, and then he fetched him a spoon. "There you are, eat up!"

Kili ate a while, and since he was eating Fili decided he might as well grab a bowl for himself. Drawing up a chair, he sat next to him, deep in thought as he considered the next events for their day.

"What's this?" Kili had reached into his bowl with his hand, holding a piece of potato in his fist. "Fee? Why's this in my soup? I don't like it."

"That's only a potato, Kili. Eat it, it's good." Fili purposely ate a spoonful with a piece of potato in, as if to prove his point. "Go on."

Kili tried it upon the recommendation, but was soon to spit it out. "I don't like the po-tay-toes, Fee, they're not good. I won't eat them." With that, he used his hands to fish out every piece of potato from the bowl.

Once breakfast was done (or lunch, rather) Fili got his brother down from his chair. "Next on the list, we must do something about that hair of yours, brother...it's a mess."

Thankfully, Kili was much more awake now. After his bowl of soup and some cake he was in much better spirits. "Can we play?"

"We can play afterwards," Fili smiled down at his little brother, tussling his tangled hair. "You want to look nice, don't you?"

"No."

Fili was unsure how to respond. "Well, you should. Hair is very important to a dwarf, and you need to keep care of it," he reminded, leading the way to Dis' room. Their mother had quite a few brushes and impressive clasps. "Would you like me to braid it?"

Kili shook his head, following along after his older brother. Wherever Fili went, Kili was soon to follow, even if it meant getting his hair brushed. "You sit right here," Fili pat a spot on a chair, and Kili climbed up, already feeling impatient. "Can we play outside?"

Fili chose the brush that Dis would use for Kili, only half listening. "No...best not, Kee...no one's home, and we're supposed to ask before we go someplace. Remember?" The blonde started to brush his brother's dark hair, surprised with how tangled it truly was.

Kili squirmed in his seat, wishing he had something to do. It wasn't long before Fili had accidentally pulled on a tangle, making him cry out. "FEE! That hurt!"

Fili quickly apologized, taking the time to examine the tangle. "I doubt that is coming out anytime soon," he sighed, considering what to do. "Maybe...I could cut it out. It's only a bit of hair, and yours is so thick you wouldn't notice it missing."

Kili was enthralled by the idea. "You're gonna use scissors?" The prince asked, excited. "Cut all of it! I want mine like Mr. Dwalin's."

Fili laughed at the request, shaking his head. "No, no...Mum would kill me if I cut all of it. Just this tangle." Finding the scissors in his mother's sewing drawer, he made his way over, looking to Kili hesitantly. "Now, sit completely still...alright?"

Kili nodded tensely, eyes wide as he watched his brother bring the shears closer to his hair. This had never been done before.

Holding his breath, Fili cut the piece away. The tangle came out in his hand, and he showed it to his brother, who was completely delighted to hold a piece of his own hair. "Cut more!"

"Kee, no! That is more than enough," Fili stepped back to see his work, his heart sinking a bit when he noticed that the hair next to it looked a bit longer. "Well...perhaps a bit more..."

Five minutes later, Fili was questioning his decision.

While he had tried to make the situation better, it had only gotten worse. After trying so hard to even things out, Kili was left with a patch of hair missing. "Oh, Kee..." he whispered to himself in despair, fearful for what their mother would say.

Kili looked to the pile of hair on the floor back to Fili. "Lemme see," he demanded, reaching a hand for the handheld mirror on the table. "I want to see my haircut."

Fili felt his heart sink, holding up the mirror so that his brother may see. For a while, nothing was said, and the blonde held his breath, ready for Kili to scream or perhaps even cry.

Contrary to his fears, Kili suddenly broke into a huge smile. "I LOVE it," he declared, touching the spot in which he were nearly bald. "Cut yours, too! Fee, cut your hair, we can match!"

Before Fili could muster a reply, he heard the front door shut, and then the familiar, heavy thud of boots...Thorin.

So ends chapter one. Remember to rate & review, and good luck to us all, for the Battle of Five Armies soon approaches...

- Jackie