AN: I don't own any of the hobbit characters I am just taking them out of Tolkien's toy box and playing with them.
Dori.
Dori groaned as he straightened his aching back, having spent the day sorting through his stock in the back room he wanted nothing more than to go home and sleep. He was tired but the thought of who waited for him at home brought a smile to his face. Ori had been accepted for an apprenticeship with the kingdom historian, working for the last three weeks and Nori was due home from his trading trip. In fact Dori was surprised that his middle brother hadn't come storming to the shop when he had found no-one home. With a final glance around the back room Dori left the shop carefully locking the door behind him. He whistled a merry song as he turned down one of the narrow streets leading to his home. A shout of pain caught his attention and the broken hearted sobbing that followed it had him turning his feet towards the sound. His happy smile was replaced with a sullen frown that turned into a scowl as harsh mocking laughter filled the air. He picked up his pace and rounded the corner at almost a run. The gathered dwarves were already scattering at his royally annoyed roar, in the middle of the street desperately trying to gather his papers together was Dori's baby brother. There was blood running down the smaller dwarf's face but Dori noticed with a hint of pride that despite the blood and tears his brother had obviously fought back the running dwarves and Ori's bloody knuckles were an obvious indicator of this. He calmed and helped Ori pick up the parchment before took the still shaking dwarf under his arm and leading the sniffling dwarfling back to their home.
Hours later Dori was sitting at the kitchen table, head in his hands and a cold cup of tea on the table in front of him. as he'd checked Ori over for worse injury Dori had noticed fading bruises and scratches littering the child's torso, he fought back murderous rage at the defeated look in scared brown eyes and instead of scolding the lad from not coming to him soon had merely helped him into bed and sat with him until he fell asleep. Dori could understand why his baby brother hadn't come straight to him, but he was worried, at first he'd thought Ori getting the apprenticeship was a good thing, but at some point during Ori's distraught sobbing he'd found out that the bullying had only started since he had accepted the role. Dori groaned and buried his head deeper into his hands, on top of that Nori was still not home and with it dark outside and Ori in such a fragile state Dori didn't dare go look for him. A loud pounding on the door had him bolting to answer it. He gasped in shock when he pulled the heavy wood open, Nori stood on the doorstep swaying slightly. Dori caught him as he reeled forward, missing neither the smell of booze on the younger's breath nor the wince as his hands closed on the narrow shoulder. He said nothing however and merely steered his brother to the table, before pottering around and putting a fresh pot of tea on the table. He kept up his comforting silence as Nori finally started to talk. Dori bit back his rage and heart break as he listened to his younger brother spilling his heart out. He knew Nori wouldn't be talking if he wasn't drunk, but Dori had to admit he could feel his own heart breaking for his brother. As he listened he found out Nori had joined the underground when he was but a mere forty decades old to protect their now deceased mother and father. The money he had been bringing home wasn't from trade but from illegal activities, Dori's emotions were bouncing from pillar to post as he listened. Nori had tried to leave the gang when their parents died, but the leaders had then threatened Ori. Nori's response to that was the reason they hadn't seen him for a couple of months without any news. He'd been forced to take the gang's tattoo and he'd started to distance himself from his family. Nori started sobbing and Dori still stayed silent merely pulling the auburn haired dwarf into a hug. Nori kept talking through his tears ad Dori found out that he was late because he'd tried to burn the gang's degrading mark from his own skin that night, then drank himself stupid to try and erase the pain. Dori tucked his younger brother into bed that night after seeing to his bleeding shoulder. As dawn crept onwards outside Dori stood vigil over his damaged kin. He would not let them down again.
Three weeks passed and Dori never let his guard down once. He refrained from questioning either brother, instead being there with healing herbs and a shoulder to cry on if they needed one. Ori was spending the day with Historian Balin and Nori had gone to try and talk yet more of his contacts into leaving the gang, so Dori was alone as he opened up the shop. He froze as the walls around him trembled, followed by a ferocious roar and the screams of terror and pain. He stared as guards began rounding people up ushering them to the exits. Dori forced his way through the panicking crowds towards the only guard he recognised, it had to be bad if Guardsman Dwalin were down here rather than with his shield brother the Prince Thorin. Dwalin caught his eyes and his own widened as he realised Dori was alone, yet he ignore the older dwarf's protests shunting him along with the crowds without a word. Dori fought back half-heartedly all the way. It wasn't until two weeks later he finally found Ori amongst the crowds of now displaced dwarves. It wasn't until they reached the Blue Mountains that he found out Nori was still alive. It wasn't until they had settled into Ered Luin that he finally saw his middle brother. As Dori held his sobbing brothers close he offered thanks to Mahal that they had all survived.
When Ori came to him and told him he was joining Thorin's venture to take back Erebore, Dori merely nodded and started to pack their belongs. If he knew his brother's the Nori would also sign up. They would be together again, and that was the only way Dori would have it.
