Title: Bring Them Home
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: Don't own the characters, not making any money, etc
Summary: Fili and Kili are not forgotten in the evening light.
Note: I felt like the end of the movie was pretty rushed; I would have really liked to see a little more homage paid to Fili and Kili after their deaths. So I wrote it for them ;) Also, I prefer to believe they all fought the battle with their original weapons. Please let me know what you think.
Dwalin wasn't sure how long they'd knelt there before Bifur arrived back with a sturdy shield. Their King would return to his mountain with honor. It was with great ceremony and deference that the Company situated their leader on the shield, folding his hands gently across his chest and over his sword. They slowly raised the shield to shoulder level and stepped off down the hill toward their home.
Bilbo followed the procession with a heavy heart. Despite the fact that Thorin had tried to kill him not all that long ago, Bilbo had accepted his apology completely and still held a deep respect and affection for the stalwart dwarf. He'd gone only a dozen paces when he realized that Dwalin, Balin and Bofur hadn't followed the rest of the Company. Turning in confusion he saw the three silhouetted against the slowing sinking sun still at the top of the hill. "Aren't you coming?"
"Fili and Kili deserve to come home too."
Bilbo physically flinched. How could he have forgotten about the boys? Unbidden, the vision of FIli gasping as Azog's claw cut through his back clouded the Hobbit's mind; he dropped to his knees, almost retching with grief. Bright, noble, mischievous Fili…. was there any chance he'd survived? Dwarves were hardy folk, much tougher to kill than most. And what of Kili? He turned pleading eyes to the trio in front of him, "isn't there still a chance? Shouldn't we bring Oin?"
"Nay laddie," Balin answered, the sob evident in his voice. "Nothing short of death itself could have kept those two from their Uncle's side."
They watched until Thorin's procession was out of sight before they headed across the frozen lake toward the tunnels. Dwalin hefted Grasper and Keeper in his hands as they stepped through the lower entrance. There was no telling what they might find still lurking in these tunnels and they wouldn't do the boys any good if they allowed themselves to be picked off by a stray goblin or orc that had evaded the eagles. The rest of their small troop followed suit, pulling weapons into weary hands. Bilbo kept one eye on Sting, hoping against hope that it wouldn't begin to glow. He'd had enough of battle to last him a lifetime. They made steady progress until they came to a T-junction in the tunnel. Dwalin halted the group and knelt to study the faint signs in the dusty floor. "They separated here."
Bofur's eyebrows disappeared under his hat; "why would they do that? We all know they fight better together."
"Aye, they do," Balin whispered to no one in particular. True, both Fili and Kili were formidable warriors on their own, but together they were nearly unbeatable. "Let's keep moving, get the lads home."
Bofur stepped off down the tunnel to the left; the others followed without question, not wanting to spend any more time in the tunnels than they needed to. The dark and damp created a sense of foreboding that hadn't diminished with the end of the battle. The toymaker hated to think how Kili and Fili would have felt searching through this place; the boys had loved nothing more than to spend every second of their free time running through the woods and basking in the sunshine. He was startled from his internal musings when he nearly tripped over the outstretched leg of orc. The troop was instantly on guard and moved cautiously around the corner; what they saw stopped them all in their tracks.
Nearly a dozen dead orcs and goblins littered the next twenty meters of the tunnel like some grotesque sculpture.
Dwalin stooped to pull the dagger from the chest of the first orc he came to; "this is FIli's handiwork. He knew."
"What do you mean he knew?" Bilbo's sword dropped in confusion.
Balin answered for Dwalin who had already moved on to the next body; "Fili knew there was an ambush waiting, that's why he sent Kili the other way."
"But how… why?"
Balin chuckled sadly, "Kili had exceptional eyesight, its part of what made him such a great archer; but Mahal blessed Fili with hearing more finely tuned than any elf. When he was but a dwarfling, he could hear his brother's slightest whimper from the opposite side of the house and always knew Thorin was home long before he turned the doorknob. And as to the why; Fili would always protect Kili to his last breath. Aye, they fight better together, but Fili would rather fall on his own sword than knowingly lead his brother into danger."
Bilbo thought back to their time together as he listened to the soft clinks of Bofur and Dwalin continuing to collect Fili's weapons from the slain orcs and goblins. He'd been able to sneak up on everyone in the company, usually on accident, except Fili; the blond youngster had always greeted him with a soft "how are you Bilbo?" when the hobbit was still five or six paces away. The memory of that soft smile that always accompanied the words nearly brought Bilbo to tears again. Fili's first instinct had always been to protect; usually it was his brother, but that protection had extended to everyone in the company at one point or another. Despite he and Kili's many antics, he'd taken his roll as crown prince very seriously. Bilbo was glad to see such care being taken to retrieve all of Fili's weapons; the lad had obviously held them in such high regard that he would be lost without them in the next life.
They continued moving slowly through the tunnels once Bofur and Dwalin were satisfied they had every last dagger. Silently they moved, passing the occasional dead orc or goblin along the way; it was obvious Fili had fought to the end with every fiber of his being. Soon enough they came to the top of the stone structure where Azog had heartlessly ripped a brilliant soul from their lives.
"Oh laddie," the quiet exclamation escaped Balin as he viewed the Prince's broken body from the edge of the precipice. Hearing what had happened from his brother had not prepared the old scholar for the heart-wrenching look of shock that FIli's cold body still wore. "Erebor may not have been his home for very long, but it's where the lad belongs. Let's get him home."
The others moved without speaking; swiftly back through the tunnels, past the slain enemies and the site of Fili's selfless and fateful decision. Eventually they came to the exit of the lower tunnels, surprised to see another dagger there; this one was not FIli's.
"Kili saw the whole thing." Bofur's quite statement was met with silent nods from the rest of their small troop. There was no doubt in anyone's mind that Kili had died the second his brother's lifeless body had landed in front of him. So distraught, he'd dropped the small dagger without even realizing it; leaving him with just his sword.
Dwalin slowly dropped to his knees next to his protégé. He'd always felt very close to both boys; but Fili, as his godson, would always hold the deepest part of his heart. The lad had followed his every instruction to the "T", proving himself to have a natural ability as a warrior that even Dwalin was envious of; he'd had to work very hard for his skills, Fili's came as easily as breathing. He gently moved a stray hair from Fili's forehead and closed the younger dwarf's eyes as a solitary tear fell from his own. Leaning on ceremony to keep himself from losing it completely, he crossed Fili's arms over his chest, ensuring that each of his hands held tightly to one of his beloved twin swords. Few knew that Fili had crafted a third, matching blade which his brother carried at all times. He accepted the offered fur from Bofur and covered the young prince's face before gently gathering the body into his arms. A heavy silence blanketed the entire process and the small group moved off without a word, intent on reuniting the brothers.
Kili had left his own trail of dead orcs strewn across the open staircase and down onto the terrace of flats. They found him on the lowest terrace; they also found a heart broken elf that was just turning away from the body of her lost love.
Tauriel startled slightly at their approach; she whirled with her bloodied sword half raised but dropped it immediately when she recognized the contingent of dwarves. Her eyes were instantly drawn to the covered form held almost lovingly in Dwalin's arms and all the dots finally connected in her mind. Kili had fought to protect her but there was a recklessness there; he hadn't cared whether he lived or died because half of his soul was already gone. Now she also understood the peace that had settled over him immediately before he passed; seeing the love in her eyes had brought him great joy, but only seeing his brother waiting to lead him to the halls of their ancestors could have calmed him like that. She welcomed the tears that returned to her eyes; she knew she could not stay but she'd been so reluctant to leave Kili. "I finished my goodbyes long ago; now I know that I leave him in good hands. I have no doubt you will do justice to the amazing dwarves that they were." She felt no need to hide the emotion from these men; they more than anyone could understand the depth of her grief.
"Aye, that we will lass."
Tauriel gave a brief nod of acknowledgement before turning and starting to make her way slowly down the hill. She knew she would need time alone to honor Kili in her own way and deal with the feelings that now consumed her.
The Dwarves waited until the willowy elf had disappeared from sight before they began their ritual. Unwilling to put down his precious cargo, Dwalin watched as Bilbo, Bofur and Balin took care of their youngest member. Balin removed his fur while Bilbo and Bofur rearranged Kili's hold on his sword and placed the dagger in it's proper resting place. In was completely un-nerving to see the dark haired archer so silent; Kili had literally vibrated with life every minute of everyday. Bofur gathered the too still form in his arms and they moved off the lonely hill.
Halfway across the frozen lake they were met by another very solemn quartet baring two more matching, sturdy shields. It was but a moments work to transfer the boys and continue their final journey to Erebor.
Silence reigned as dwarves, elves and men stood shoulder to shoulder honoring the King and Princes Under the Mountain. A heavy blow had been dealt to their common enemy, but no one could deny the price paid was a high one.