Ok, so I've had this written for awhile now, but I've never had the time to actually type it up and publish it. That said, I am really sorry I didn't get it out to you guys sooner, even if you weren't expecting it.

I'm also going to apologize for the rough reading ahead of time. Just know this: regular font means narrator and italicized font means flashback. I separated the two with lines throughout the fic, so hopefully that'll make for easier reading.

Oh yeah, and I'm not assuming anything on anybody's opinions on who's the sword and who's the shield, this is just how I've interpreted it and I think others think somewhat differently. This is just how it all came out.

I do not own The Hobbit.

Sword and Shield

They were the sword and shield, dark and light, the moon and sun. What humans, dwarves, elves, and yes, even hobbits didn't realize was who was the sword and who was the shield. They all believed Fili was the sword and Kili the shield. What with their weapons, it was understandable. But that didn't mean it was true.

In reality, it was the opposite. Kili was the sword, and Fili was the shield. It was just how they worked. Fili was the distraction, shoving the enemy back until Kili came in, an unexpected stab through battered armor.

"Rawr, I'm going to eat you!" Thorin yelled, surprisingly lighthearted after a successful day at the forge. He was even willing to play a game he usually avoided: Dragon Invasion. "I'm a mighty dragon, rawr! I'm going to eat you!"

"Never!" The eldest prince yelled back, blue eyes determined as he took a swipe at Thorin with his wooden sword. "For I am Fili, Prince Under the Mountain, and I will defeat you!"

Thorin chased after his blond nephew, taking huge, lumbering steps around the couch. It was only when a small giggle came from behind that he realized that he had forgotten a nephew. He turned around to find large, brown eyes staring up at him in trump as the owner of those eyes released his bowstring, sending the dull arrow toward the 'dragon's' chest, where it thumped off to land on the ground.

"I am Kili, Prince Under the Mountain, and I have defeated you!" The dwarfling cheered. An 'ahem' from his older brother made Kili frown before shrugging, uncaring. "With the help of Prince Fili!"

The two worked in tandem to defeat just about anybody, and even with his bow Kili wasn't afraid of going on the offensive. They would work back to back, side by side, or even on opposite ends of the battlefield. And both protected the other, no matter where they were.

"You filthy dwarves, get out of my pub!" A tavern keeper yelled, physically shoving Fili and Kili outside. He was dressed in patched up pants and a shirt, with thick-soled boots and an old apron. Brown, almost black eyes glared out coldly at the two brothers, unwelcoming.

"Sir, we only wanted but a drink!" Fili protested, hands up as if to placate the man.

His eyes got even colder as his mouth twisted into a scowl. "Don't you 'sir' me, you filthy boy! You're not welcome here, you understand me?"

"Why?" Kili asked, slightly behind his elder brother. "If it's broken tables and mugs you're worried about, we'll promise not to get too rowdy."

But Fili was gaining a gleam of insight in his eyes, beginning to understand what Thorin had attempted to teach him for 75 years. The unfairness of prejudice. "You don't care about us breaking things, do you?" He questioned. "You only care about us."

By then, Kili had caught on, as well, and a scowl now stretched itself across his face, his displeasure obvious. "Us filthy, dirty dwarves, is that right?"

He began to take a step forward, only to find his path blocked by Fili's arm, his own face adorned with a frown behind his mustache and beads. "No, Kili." He warned. He carefully watched the tavern keeper, noting the hand that had come to rest upon his sword.

The keeper smirked as he caught Fili's eye. "You going to fight me, dwarf?" He sneered, ignoring the crowd that was beginning to gather.

"Oh, no." Fili replied, making a split second decision that he knew Thorin would have his head for. "I'm not the one with a sword."

Surprise lit in the man's eyes as he saw Kili step forward, gripping the sword his brother had just given him in both hands, point tilted toward the ground. "You're going to let a younger one fight me? Why, you scared?"

"No." Kili replied, shifting his stance when the man took out his own sword. "He's just smart enough to step aside. He also knows I'll probably be more merciful."

The sword was also, despite its sharpness, less brutal than the shield. And, while both dwarves seldom lost their temper, it was continually proven that, once lost, Fili would hold onto his anger longer than Kili would. Much the same as a shield, which could turn from defense to offense that would bruise and bruise.

That brutality would also help the shield to stand up longer than the sword, holding fast and protecting the sword even after its companion had fallen.

Fili whirled in a blur of blades, braids, and pure fury, standing in front of his fallen uncle even as he spotted Kili bounding over from where he had previously been fighting by Dwalin's side. Dwalin himself was making his way over, though having a significantly harder time due to his extra bulk.

An arrow whistled by Fili, barely missing his arm, before embedding itself in an orc by the blond's side. He only managed a grin in his brother's direction before he was swept back into the fight, dual swords blazing a space around Thorin. Kili smiled back as he joined his elder brother, finally being forced to switch to a sword when his hand closed around empty air while reaching for another arrow. A cut oozed blood above his eye, slightly obscuring Kili's vision, and he shook his head to remove it. All the brunette rally succeeded in doing was smearing it over his face, though, and Fili momentarily entertained the thought of being young again, with Kili smearing raspberry jam instead of blood.

The screech of a goblin ripped him back to present time, just in time to parry a sword away from his brother. A sudden flood of orcs and goblins surprised Fili, and he cursed as he realized that they must have recognized the dwarf lying on the ground, wounded and unconscious, as Thorin. The fact that it was Thorin just made the two brothers fight even harder.

Fili winced as a sword managed to get past his guard and slice through his sleeve, cutting into his upper arm. The pain didn't reach him, but he knew that it was only because of the adrenaline pulsing through him. once it was gone, the pain would return tenfold.

He caught Kili turning to look at him, and not even Fili could return what Kili's lapse in concentration took. The blond dwarf, at 82 years of age, let out a scream as his younger brother stumbled. Stuck in Kili's chest was an orc's sword. The orc in question gazed at it somewhat stupidly, as if wondering what had just happened. Then clarification swept across its face along with a slow, menacing sneer. With one forceful yank, the sword cleared Kili's chest and the orc raised it over its head, ready to deal the final blow that would kill Kili immediately.

In an instant Fili was there, yelling even as tears began to trail down his cheeks, sticking in his beard and mustache. In one swing, Fili beheaded the orc with one sword while stabbing it in the throat with the other. He turned back to see Kili collapsed on the ground and attempting to drag himself to Thorin's side. Fili's throat closed up as he realized that, even with the dirt and blood already covering the ground, he could still see the life that Kili had left on the ground, leaving a trail to where he lay and pooling around him.

A sob threatened to overwhelm Fili, but he carefully set his jaw before following his his brother to his uncle. His two swords flashed through the air, gray flickering over Fili as he ducked and weaved among allies and foes. Within seconds, he stood over Kili, who clutched at the ground around him. But, slowly, Fili began to fade. His limbs grew weaker as more and more orcs and goblins surrounded the three dwarves. Dimly, he realized that Dwalin and Gloin had joined him, fighting a few yards off. Gradually, the gap between them closed and then opened again.

It wasn't until an axe buried itself in his leg and an arrow landed in his chest that Fili realized that neither brother would be making it off the battlefield alive that day. He stumbled backwards a step, reflexively dropping both swords on the ground before his leg buckled and he wound up in the dirt next to Kili and Thorin. Goblins and orcs began to swarm the three, but a roar echoed around as Dwalin changed directions and charged toward them, axes swinging.

All the same, Fili pulled himself over Kili, determined to do something to protect the younger even if he couldn't protect himself. A harsh cough brought his gaze to Kili's face.

"Kili." He whispered, slightly nudging the other dwarf. "Kili, look at me. Open your eyes, nadadith.*"

Another cough resounded from the brunette's chest, and Kili winced even as his eyes cracked open. "Fee… I… I can't, Fee."

"Yes, you can." Fili replied. "Just look at me. Don't look anywhere else, Kili. Just look at me."

The sounds of battle and death surrounded them, but Fili kept his hands clasped in Kili's gripping them for all he was worth as the two stared at each other. Finally, Kili broke the almost silence in a whisper. "We're to die, aren't we?"

"…Yeah. Yeah, we will." Fili admitted. "But we'll do it together."

As they closed their eyes, Kili huddled under Fili, the smell of blood and death in the air, and the cry of "The eagles!" ringing in their ears, they could finally lay down their arms and rest.

A sword always goes with a shield, and likewise. They are each other's companions. If one falls, the other will soon follow. And Fili, who had seen his sword in Kili fall, followed after with his shield.

AN: Sorry about any confusion these italics may bring (that's why I'm putting 'AN' here when I normally don't). Anyway, this is the end of the fic.

* Hurray! Cheers, guys, I've finally used Khuzdul in a fanfic! :D That actually makes me seriously happy. And oh yeah, for those of you don't recognize this word, 'nadadith' means 'little brother'.

Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed reading this, and please review!