A/N: Hi! Here's a quick one-shot I've been working on.Inspired by a post on Tumblr: post/106625334909/butfili-hearts-of-gold-are-not-just-p-u-r-e . I just really wanted to show Thorin's reasons for the quest and a tender moment between him and Fili. I think Thorin would have been a loving Uncle all of Fili and Kili's lives and when the quest started and he became 'King Thorin' I think Fili and Kili would have been a bit confused and mistake it for Thorin not loving them. I hope you enjoy, please leave a review as I would love to know what you think of it!
Disclaimer: I do not own The Hobbit. All rights belong to J.R.R Tolkien.
The sky in Lake-town was darkening as Fili watched the celebrations take place down beneath the room he was sharing with Kili. These men and women of Lake-town who only thought of the promised gold they would receive should the dwarfs succeed in conquering the mountain. They did not stop to think what would happen if the dragon was awoken. Though he had never of course seen Smaug as some members of the company had, the tales were enough to put anyone off traveling towards the beast. And yet here he was. On the eve of the trek he would be taking to enter Erebor watching what might be the last spark of happiness to be upon these people. His eyes fell upon members of the company amongst the men. He saw Bofur heavily a part of a drinking contest which, while Fili did not doubt he would win, knew would give him a tough time for their early start in the morning. A small smile made its way onto the golden haired dwarf as he saw others laughing and drinking and forgetting the troubles of the quest for the night. But his smile dropped as his eyes landed on Kili. His brother was sitting with Ori and Nori and while their company seemed thoroughly entertaining, Ori was a hilarious drunk, Fili did not miss the winces of pain Kili tried to conceal when his leg was nudged. He did not miss how Kili had a sheen of sweat on his forehead and how glassy his eyes were as he gripped his leg wound. But he was suddenly brought out of his thoughts by a voice.
"It's not like you to skip a celebration."
Thorin was standing behind Fili an untouched tankard of ale in his hand. Fili spun around as he spoke and was relieved to see the hint of a smile on his Uncle's face.
"Got a bit crowded," Fili said "I needed somewhere to think."
"We share similar thoughts then," Thorin said as he walked over and offered the ale to Fili. Fili took it gratefully and took a drink. As he looked back up he saw Thorin staring out of the window. Not down at celebration below as he had been, but up above. The lonely mountain loomed over the town, seeming closer than ever. Fili saw the expression Thorin possessed whenever he spoke of Erebor on his face. It was proud and determined and in awe. Fili too had felt it when he first lay his eyes upon the mountain, back on the carrock, but now he looked to it and then glanced back down at Kili and took a deep breath before speaking.
"Thorin. I-I know that this quest has been to reclaim Erebor. And I know we have almost achieved that. And I know that Erebor means the world to you and matters more than anything else. And I know it should be the same for me but," Fili took a breath, "but family means more to me than any mountain or pile of gold and I can't help but wonder if this has all been worth it, because Kili is injured and he isn't getting better, and he won't tell anyone how bad it is and I can't help thinking that if we had stayed home he would be fine." Fili finished. His voice loud but cracking on the last word. He was looking down at his boots but after a long silence he chanced a looked at Thorin and saw his expression was not angry, but soft and sad and he also looked slightly disappointed in himself. Thorin swallowed thickly and looked at Fili. The younger dwarf was startled to see tears in his uncle's eyes. And then Thorin slowly spoke in a low voice,
"Little prince with no crown. Heir to no throne. You wear armour as your gown. Don't you want to reclaim your home?" A short silence fell between them before Thorin spoke again "This quest did not take place to be able to hold up some trinkets and be rich. This quest was done for you. Everything I have done was you and your brother. You are right when you say Erebor means the world to me but a wrong if you believe it to be the most important thing in my life. You and Kili are the most important. You are the real treasures and I already have you. But I want to give you more. I want to give you the life you and Kili deserve. I want you to be respected and treated as the Princes of Erebor that you are. I will not have others look down on you. I want to take you home. I want to show you your true home." Thorin said. A single tear made its way down his face as his eyes bore into Fili's.
It was then that Fili understood. He understood what his Uncle wanted and he understood how much Thorin loved both him and Kili. Growing up he was never deprived of any affection from his Uncle no matter how many times others had told Thorin not to 'You cannot raise Prince's like this Thorin. You should be treating them as your heirs'. Even when they were not dwarflings and were adults, affection had not gone away. They had never felt unimportant in Thorin's life. Thorin had raised the boys as his heirs but first he raised them as his nephews. He was always an Uncle for Fili and Kili before he was a King. He was their father in all but blood. But once the quest had started he became the King under the mountain. Fili could now see that no matter how much Thorin might have wanted to be, he could not be 'Uncle Thorin' on the quest. He was the leader and others looked to him. Fili and Kili had believed that Thorin had stopped his love for them because he valued Erebor more than them. Fili now looked back on the thought and realised how ridiculous they had been. He now remembered how Thorin had held when they were brought out of the river after almost drowning, he remembered how Thorin had always stood in front of the boys when faced with danger, he remembered how tense Thorin had gone and how he had spoken out when the goblin king had threatened the youngest of the company (Kili). He now saw that Thorin was protecting and looking out for them the whole time on the quest.
An understanding washed over Fili and he felt his own eye's fill with tears. Thorin placed his hand on Fili's shoulder and pressed their foreheads together.
"The most important." Thorin muttered before turning and leaving the room. Fili straightened his back and glanced back out of the window up at Erebor. He felt stronger. He felt like the heir to the throne of Erebor and he knew that soon Thorin, himself and Kili would become as close as they were before the quest in the halls of Erebor. The line of Durin would be in its rightful place once more.