Fili followed Elrond through corridors and over courtyards, until they finally reached the House of Healing.

The House of Healing was actually a row of gazebo-like buildings overlooking the stunning valley. The buildings were connected by wooden boardwalks.
Elrond walked to the last one and entered, Fili following him closely.

Inside it was comfortably warm. There were three beds, along with some chairs and a table. The first bed was already occupied by Thorin, with a dark-haired Elf attending to his wounds. Elrond motioned to one of the other beds and Fili carefully laid his brother down on it.

"How is he, Lindir?" Elrond asked the Elf who was taking care of Thorin.
"We have taken out the arrows and treated his wounds. He looks peaceful" Lindir answered, "we will apply the bandages now, then he can rest".
"Thank you, Lindir" Elrond simply said.


When he had lain Kili down, Fili slumped into the armchair closest to his brother's bed. He stared into empty space, processing that day's events in his mind.
Why had Kili not told anyone about his injury? Why had he driven himself to the limits of his strength to reach Rivendell on his own? Could it be that Kili no longer trusted him?
At that moment it hit Fili that he could lose his little brother today. The poison was spreading further through Kili's body with every second and he could lose the battle for survival at any moment...
No! Fili could not allow himself to think like that. He had to be strong now, for Kili.

Elrond walked up to Kili and, without speaking, began peeling the layers of clothing away that were covering the wounds.
The tip of the arrow was clearly visible in Kili's shoulder. The blood and puss leaking from the wound didn't make it a pretty sight.

Suddenly Kili whimpered loudly. He had regained consciousness enough to feel the pain again.
Fili jumped up from the chair and was by his brother's side in a flash. He took Kili's hand is his and softly spoke soothing words to him.
Elrond hesitated just a second as he looked at the two brothers one by one. Somehow they reminded him of his own sons.

"You're going to be fine" Fili assured his brother.
"Hurts… so bad…" Kili choked out.
"That's the poison of the arrow in the wound" Elrond told him, "it had all the time to spread". Kili gave the Elf an apologetic look through half-closed and pain-filled eyes. By now he seemed to realize how stupid his actions had been.

Elrond started working on the wound. As soon as his fingers made contact with Kili's skin to remove the arrowtip, Kili screamed out. One hand took a tight hold of Fili's, nearly breaking his older brother's fingers.
"Easy, Kili, you are doing great" Fili comforted his brother, but Kili did not quite seem to hear him. His pain was so intense that everything else was drowned out. He tried desperately to cling to Fili's words of comfort, but in the end even that was lost in a world of pain...


It felt like ages before Elrond was finally finished. "The tip is out" the Elf said, "now I will have to treat the poison". Kili did not say anything, but took a still firmer grip on Fili's hand.
Elrond placed his hands over Kili's wound and muttered nearly inaudibly in Elfish.
All the while Kili was on the verge of screaming out in pain. He was tossing about, trying to get away from the Elf's healing hands.
The only thing Fili could think of doing was allowing his brother to crush his hand and whisper soothing words to him. He knew Kili did not easily give in to pain, so him acting like this must mean he was in extreme agony.

After about fifteen minutes Elrond finally stepped back and let go of Kili's shoulder. The wound was treated and bandaged, but still very painful.

The pain had drained Kili of all his remaining energy. He lay quite still now, breathing heavily and still clutching his brother's hand.
"It's alright, it's over" Fili said to him softly, in the meantime looking pleadingly at Elrond. The Elf understood what he meant without the blonde Dwarf actually asking.
"Kili" Elrond said, "don't worry. I am just making sure that you will sleep for a while. You need to rest". Kili shifted his gaze to Elrond, showing his agreement. It appeared he was even looking forward to not having to deal with the pain for a while.

Elrond placed a hand on Kili's forehead again and muttered words in a language neither Fili nor Kili understood.
Fili felt his brother's grip on his hand loosen gradually and his breathing became calmer. Kili's eyes slowly closed as he drifted off into the enchanted sleep.

"He will be sleeping for a good while now" Elrond said, pulling his hand away, "his shoulder will be hurting for some time, but I believe he will be fine".
"Thank you" Fili muttered. Elrond nodded his head once in return. He shortly checked up on Thorin in the next bed and then walked out of the House of Healing, leaving Fili alone with his unconscious brother and uncle.

As soon as Elrond had left, Fili sank back into the armchair. Now that Kili and Thorin were safe and their wounds treated, the heavy load he had been carrying all day was lifted off his shoulders and he felt terribly exhausted. The warmth in the House of Healing made him drowsy and before long he felt sleep overtake him.


Fili awoke with a start. He looked around disorientated for a moment, before it all came back to him.
He stretched, wincing as the bruised muscles in his back protested. Outside the sun had set and hundreds of stars had appeared in the clear sky.
He looked over at his brother. It appeared Kili had not moved a muscle since that afternoon and was vast asleep. Thorin, too, was lying deadly still and seemed not to have regained consciousness yet.

Fili slowly rose from his chair. He felt he needed a whiff of fresh air to properly clear his mind. He walked past the beds and stepped onto the boardwalk outside. He leaned back against the wooden wall of the House of Healing, looking out over the star- and moonlit valley, the sky reflecting in the river below.
His thoughts raced once again over the events of the day. How he had seen Thorin getting injured and believing him to have died, how he had been afraid that one of the Orcs or Wargs would kill him, the realization that he could have lost Kili forever today…
He felt panic rise, a rushing sound in his ears, and allowed himself to slide down against the wall. Sitting on the ground he pulled his knees up to his chest and buried his face in them. He was breathing heavily now as fear and shock were gradually taking over. Fili tried to fight it, but knew he could not suppress it much longer. Any minute now he would scream out in anger, frustation and hurt...

Being too preoccupied with trying to control his emotions, Fili completely missed the dark figure appearing on the boardwalk beside him…


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