"But I want to!"
"Kili, you're too young."
"I'm not a baby anymore!" Kili protested, stamping his feet. There was no way he was leaving until he got to see the mines.
"I know you're not a baby, but it's very dangerous down there, and-"
"It's not fair!" Kili yelled. He wasn't a baby. He was seven years old. He was a big boy now. He could go down the mine if he wanted. Why wasn't Balin listening?
"Kili. You have to do what Uncle Balin says." Dis interjected, giving Kili a do-it-if-you-know-what's-good-for-you look.
"No no no! I won't! I want to see the mines!" Kili yelled, his childish tantrums echoing off the walls, filling the emerald halls with his wails.
"Kili! Stop being such a fool!" Dis warned him, her glare intensifying.
"Don't call me a fool! You're not the boss of me!"
"Don't speak to your mother that way!" said a voice from the doorway. It was none other than Thorin Oakenshield himself, with Fili at his heels. "I was just showing Fili the throne room when I heard someone causing a fuss down here."
"They won't let me see the mines, Uncle Thorin!" Kili said, batting his eyelashes and pursing his lips. No adult could resist the sheer masterpiece that was Kili's puppy-dog eyes. Alas, it didn't work- Thorin saw through it straight away.
"Kili, no means no. You have to respect that."
"No no no!" Kili sprinted off into the corridors, his light footsteps echoing.
"Kili, wait!" Dis called out, then ran off after him. Thorin and Balin followed suit, leaving Fili on his own in the entrance hall. He knew better than to run away like his little brother. Why was Kili such a trouble maker?
Thorin was getting tired of running. Why was Erebor so large and... majestic? He had no idea where Kili would end up- he didn't even know where he was; he was just following his sister's footsteps. Suddenly, the steady rhythm of Dis' feet stopped. She stood in the doorframe of a balcony, frozen rigidly as she stared at the scene below. Thorin caught up to her. She shot him a momentary glance as he approached her, then extended a shaky hand and pointed. As Thorin's eyes adjusted, he made out three things:
One. They were overlooking the area where supplies and resources where moved back and forth between the mines using little carts on a track.
Two. One of the carts was moving very fast towards the mine when it shouldn't've been.
Three. Kili was in that cart.
Thorin bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Kili!"
All the dwarves working in the loading station looked first at Thorin and then at the runaway cart. Oh dear...
Dis snapped out of her horrified state, and started apologizing profusely, her voice heavy with oncoming tears. "Thorin, I'm so, so sorry! I couldn't catch up with him- he just leapt off the balcony into the cart!"
Luckily for Kili, the drop was only about four metres high. He could have easily cleared the balcony railing and fallen into a cart below. What really amazed Thorin was how quick thinking Kili was. Why did his nephew have to use his talents this way?
Kili, on the other hand, was rather pleased with himself. What an excellent plan of his. There he was, soaring along, heading straight for the mines, without any adult following him or telling him not to. He let the wind ruffle his hair, smiling to himself. Everything was going exceptionally well until Kili spied a drop in front of him. Oops. Well, he was probably going to die right then and there.
Then it hit him. He was going to die! He screamed at the top of his lungs. HE WAS GOING TO DIE!
Meanwhile, Thorin had been handing out instructions to all his dwarves, who all knew and loved Kili like their son. They would do anything to keep him safe. Dis was standing rigidly on the track the carts went down, staring as far as she could see into the darkness that her youngest had sped off into. As his high-pitched scream wafted towards them, Dis cried, "My baby!"
Thorin gulped. This couldn't end well.
Fili was still sitting in the entrance hall. He had drawn a picture in the dust. He was bored. He heard his brother's squeals coming from a corridor to his right. What was he to do? He didn't want to wander off and cause trouble... but his brother needed him. He could feel it.
Sometimes, rules were worth breaking.
Kili was still screaming when the cart reached the edge of the track. Luckily for him, the cart swapped rails to the one above it just in time. He was now suspended in midair, rolling along the track. When Kili realised he wasn't falling to his death, he looked over the edge timidly- and what he saw blew him away. The mines sprawled out beneath him, veins of gold glinting up at him. Emerald greens mixed with glittering gold and brilliant white- a kaleidoscope of wonder that spiraled ever downwards. He had done it. Kili had gotten to see the mines. They were wonderful!
Unfortunately, all good things come to an end.. The rails took a sharp turn, and because the carts weren't meant for carrying dwarves, Kili flew right off the edge. Now, he was going to die.
Thorin and Dis stood at the edge of the track as some other dwarves hauled the rogue cart in. It was empty. Dis broke into a sobbing fit at Thorin's shoulder. Thorin tried to comfort her, but he really felt like bursting into tears himself. Not Kili. Kili can't die. He's too young. He wanted to save his nephew, but at the moment he was lost for ideas.
Kili was falling past all the dwarves at work. Mutters, shouts and gasps broke out as he passed each dwarf. There were a few outcrops and balconies looking out over the mines, but he missed each one as he fell deeper into the Lonely Mountain. They were all too far left. Kili needed on on his right. Aha! There was one just below him. There was one person standing there, with a horror-stricken look on his face as he stared up at Kili falling down above him.
Caught like a deer in the headlights, Fili couldn't move. Kili started to yell something to his brother but before he could he landed directly on top of him.
The resulting thud shook the mountain.
When the boys woke up, they were both covered in cuts and bruises. Kili had been spared the impact of the fall by Fili, who had been squashed by his little brother. Luckily, almost impossibly, everyone was okay. They both groggily came to as their family rushed to their sides. Pushing aside all the questions, hugs and lectures the older dwarves offered them, Fili and Kili sat up and looked each other in the eye. Kili grinned. He was missing a few teeth.
"Fanks, Fiwi. You safed me."
Fili smiled back, one eye swollen shut.
"No problem, little brother."
Some rules were worth breaking, Fili thought.
