"Uncle Thorin, Uncle Thorin! Can you guess whose birthday it is tomorrow?"
A brunette bundle of energy shot forward in Thorin's gut, knocking the wind out of him for a moment. Taking a much needed breath, Thorin gazed down at his youngest nephew and a smile was drawn forth from him at Kili's hyperactivity. His onyx eyes alight with excitement, Kili returned Thorin's serene smile with a wide, abandoned grin. Fili, who stood a little way off at his brother's request, shook his head at the soon-to-be five-year-old's antics. Dis turned slightly towards them and away from supper's dishes and snickered softly at her older brother's expression.
"Kili has Thorin wrapped around his little finger and my brother is too obtuse (in this matter) to notice; that child of mine could ask for a star and I believe Thorin would attempt to fetch one for him." Her eyes flickered to Fili, softening as he reminded her of Fain. "That boy looks more like his father every day that passes . . . at least he can remember Fain, unlike Kili. Perhaps that is a reason for Thorin's especial closeness to Kili; he is the only father Kili has ever known." Dis blinked back the gathering tears that thoughts of her late husband always brought, and focused on Thorin's forthcoming reply to Kili's question.
"Hmm, I must think on this for a moment, Kili; my memory quite escapes me. It cannot be Fili's or your mother's, as theirs have already passed, and it cannot be mine for that is later in the year. Because no other Dwarves celebrate birthdays as we do, I am uncertain as to whom it could be . . ." Thorin trailed off, pretending to look utterly stumped, although his sapphire eyes held a hint of amusement.
"Uncle Thorin, it is MY fifth birthday! How could you forget?" Kili's lower lip protruded outward dejectedly for a moment before Kili, with his empathetic nature, moved on quickly. "It is all right, Uncle, I forgive you for forgetting; may I show you what I want to receive? I drew a picture for you!" His pleading eyes locked on Thorin's, causing Thorin's heart to tighten in his chest; partly from love for Kili, but also for another who had gone from his life long ago.
"Very well then, fetch this picture of yours for me," he gave his leave gruffly, unwilling to reveal the emotions swirling inside of his soul. Kili's eyes widened as he nodded his head and sprung out of Thorin's lap towards his room. Fili walked over to Thorin's chair and smiled hesitantly at his uncle. Thorin raised an eyebrow at his ten-year old heir's expression and inquired,
"What is the matter, Fili?"
"I know what Kili is going to ask you for, Uncle, and I wanted to warn you about it. It is a bit . . ." Fili paused, searching his mind for the exact word he wished to use, "unorthodox." He smiled triumphantly for a moment, glad that Balin had taught him the word that morning. "I am not sure if you will be able to find one," At this point Kili emerged from the bedroom, and Fili concluded quietly, "or if you will want to give it to him if you did."
Kili waved his paper back and forth excitedly as he sailed towards Thorin. "I found it, Uncle Thorin! This is what I want for my birthday!" He thrust the paper into Thorin's hands and stepped back, his small, eager face scanning Thorin's for his reaction.
Thorin unfolded the rumbled paper and was met with a baffling sight: Kili had drawn what appeared to be foamy wisps of cloth joined together into a circle, which seemed to Thorin strikingly like . . . "a skirt?!" Thorin gasped out in consternation, unable to form any other conclusion. "My nephew, who is a prince by birthright among the dwarves, the future ruler of Erebor when we reclaim it, and the youngest of the line of Durin, wants a SKIRT for his birthday?!" The only thing keeping Thorin in control was the knowledge that a certain dwarfling was currently watching every emotion playing over his uncle's features. Thorin glanced at Fili, who nodded sympathetically, and then engaged Dis in an exchange of looks.
"I need your help on this; I have no idea how to tell him no." Thorin lifted his eyebrows beseechingly, hoping that she would catch on to his meaning.
"Then it is about time you learned how, Thorin Oakenshield, or you could give it to him." Her eyes crinkled in amusement at the glare sent over Kili's head that she received in return.
"I AM NOT GIVING MY NEPHEW A SKIRT, DIS, THAT IS FINAL." Sighing confusedly, he ran one hand through his hair and rested his chin with the other. Looking up at Kili to find the boy biting his lip in anticipation, he asked levelly (although it was a struggle to do so),
"What exactly are you asking for, Kili? Is this a-," Thorin winced slightly, "skirt?"
"OH NO, Uncle Thorin, I would never ask for a skirt! Skirts are for girls!" A look of horror crossed Kili's face at the thought before he grinned. "I am asking for a tutu! It is completely different; I made it up! I want to look majestical like you, Uncle! You have shining armor, swords, and axes, but I do not. When I go to fight the Goblins with you, I want to be able to stand next to you and not make you look bad." Kili lowered his glowing gaze, his little heart filled with the importance of the gift. Dis, covering her mouth to stifle her cry of terror at the thought of Kili fighting Goblins (unlikely, for a few years yet, but still), began to plead silently with Thorin to say something to Kili.
Thorin closed his eyes exasperatedly, torn between his ancestral pride and his fierce affection for Kili. Suddenly, an idea struck that would not force him to choose between the two. His eyes flashed open as he got out of the chair and knelt down in front of Kili. Cupping his nephew's chin with his hand, he guided Kili's gaze to meet his own.
"We shall see, Kili; I am not saying no, but-" Kili's whoop of sheer delight echoed off of the four corners of the house as he ran to Fili excitedly.
"Uncle is getting me a tutu! Yay, Fili, this is going to be the best birthday ever!" Fili could only laugh along with his brother and began to guide them to their bedroom after catching a glance from Dis.
"Good night, Mum and Uncle Thorin!" The brothers replied in synchronization as they entered the bedroom.
"Good night, Fili and Kili," Dis and Thorin replied.
Dis shot Thorin a skeptical glance as she walked to her room. "I care not that you are his uncle and my older brother; if you do not meet my son's expectations, I will make you sorry that you ever promised him such a thing." Her eyes narrowed playfully dangerous.
Thorin's eyes widened as he replied to her retreating form, "I did not promise anything, Dis, this is no time for your sisterly selective hearing!" As soon as Dis closed her door, he leant against the legs of the chair and groaned inwardly. A few moments later, he walked towards the front door and strode into the night towards the forge.
Arriving at the forge, he unlocked the door with his key and gathered his tools. Starting and the stoking the fire, he gazed intently at Kili's drawing. Armed with a pen, he began sketching an outline underneath the drawing, checking Kili's periodically to stay true to the lad's idea. In a few minutes, Thorin's idea that had struck him at the house was a visible drawing beneath Kili's. Grabbing mold-making materials from the shelf underneath a table, he began to shape the molds to his liking, mentally measuring Kili's waist size and leg length as he did. A half hour later, Thorin had eight identical molds and one that resembled a circle staring up at him. Satisfied, he thought of what metal he should use that would work best.
"Iron would be too heavy for him, Silver would be tarnished easily (especially with Kili's activity level), and steel would not be valuable enough for this. What other metal could I use?" Instantly, his mind flashed to a forgotten dress lying in a box underneath his bed. "That would be enough metal, and Dis cannot fit in it after having the lads. Mother would have liked it to be used, and for her grandson no less."
Thorin raced back to the house, glancing at the sky to determine how much time that he had before Fili and Kili would awaken. It was midnight, judging by the stars, giving him seven hours until the boys awoke. Opening the door silently, he crept towards his room, slipping through his door once he reached it to lessen the chance of sound. He slid the box from under the bed and opened it. Dazzled by the bright light shining forth from the darkness, Thorin shaded his eyes and his breath hitched as he looked once more upon his mother's dress made completely of mithril. Shutting the box quickly, he stole back into the ever fading darkness with his precious cargo.
Melting the mithril down and purifying it once more from any impurities it had gathered when worn, Thorin poured it into the nine molds and waited for the mithril to set, then removed the metal from the mold. While the metal was still hot, he pounded mightily on it with his hammer, the blows lulling him into a calmness that pervaded his mind Once he had beaten the pieces into shape, he joined the eight identical pieces to the circular piece at the precise moment when the metal was not too hot nor too cool for the mithril to bond. Afterwards, he clasped his burin and began engraving designs into the mithril. Becoming engrossed, intricate scrollwork, pristine runes, and vivid depictions of animals flowed from his hands like they never had before. As the first tendrils of dawn began to creep inside the forge, Thorin placed his final touch by engraving Kili's name in runes around the right side panel.
With sweat streaming profusely from every pore of his body, Thorin peered, bleary-eyed, at his work. Nodding to himself, he wrapped it in several layers of hide and walked home. As soon as his foot passed the threshold, a chorus of voices greeted his exhausted being.
"Thorin, where have you been all night?! I have not seen you this tired for a long while!" Dis exclaimed at her brother's bedraggled state.
"Uncle, you made it at the exact time that you needed to!" shouted Fili gleefully.
"YAY, UNCLE THORIN, I THOUGHT YOU WERE GOING TO MISS MY BIRTHDAY!" Kili yelled at the top of his pint-sized lungs as he tackled Thorin's leg.
A smile crept across Thorin's face and spread to his eyes as he knelt down, untangling Kili from him in the process. "I would never miss your birthday, Kili, not even for Erebor itself," Kili's eyes seemed as if they were brown saucers at Thorin's statement, and even Thorin was somewhat surprised at how he meant every word of it. Pulling the hide-covered package from behind his back, he handed to Kili and said,
"Happy birthday, Kili, I hope that this suffices."
Kili tore at the string around the hide while Fili and Dis gathered behind him. After several layers, the hide rolled back to reveal a shimmering skirt of eight mithril armor plates that had tapered ends. Thorin's stunning scrollwork, runes, and depictions seemed to catch sunlight from every angle, as if holding the very light hostage. Kili's name etched in the right panel shone like starlight itself. Dis's hands flew to her face in wonder, and Fili whistled softly at the gift.
Gazing at it fixatedly, Kili did not speak a word. Tears welled up in his eyes, and Thorin's heart plummeted. "Did I fail him for the first time?"
As tears silently began to stream down his face, Kili spoke chokingly, "Uncle, you made me my tutu; it is perfect!" He slid his legs through the opening and twirled around once, the plates flowing with his movement like water. His eyes shimmering with tears and starlight, he locked eyes with Thorin and beamed, "I love you more than anything, Uncle Thorin!"
He rammed into Thorin, knocking the breath out of the already breathless dwarf at his nephew's reaction. Hugging him tightly, Thorin replied in a hushed tone,
"As do I, Kili, as do I."
A/N: Happy 14th Birthday, MY Kili! For all of you other lovely readers, this is my present to one of my friends who call each other Hobbit nicknames (she's Kili, while I'm Uncle Thorin ;) For some reason, she wanted a tutu, to which mortified Gandalf and I replied NO EMPHATICALLY. This, however, inspired this fanfic, hence that it's dedicated to MY Kili, so that she gets the tutu that she wanted ;) Hope you and everyone else likes it!
Uncle Thorin/Thorin Oakenshield (to the rest of you!)