During the time Kili left the room and Thranduil slept away his woes, He rounded up the children of Mirkwood who played about in the courtyard that Kili had argued with Tauriel in.
"Right then." Kili smirked at the kids. He was going to have some fun with this, and get a load of free drinks out of it. "I'm Kili, and you lot are going to help me win a bet. Questions?"
"Why are you so small?" Piped up one child from the back who had managed to climb onto another's shoulders to see what was going on with the small man who was now ordering them to do something.
"Are you a dwarf?" Asked another, a young girl by the sounds of her high voice.
"Are you from Erebor?" Said one with hair as white as Thranduil's. He never noticed how much he appreciated that hair before now, and made a mental note of the fact.
"I've never met a Dwarf before!" Shouted a boy from the left. That's not surprising. Kili thought. Not with the whole Erebor/Mirkwood feud going on.
"What are we doing?" a little child of about 8 asked, pulling on the sides of Kili's jacket. Kili lent back against a tree and smiled. This was going to be fun.
"In order, I'm small because that's how my race is. Yes I am a Dwarf, I am a Prince of Erebor to be exact. And what we are doing dear children is this. How many of you like to be creative and draw?" He asked and watched all of the children put their hands up. "Good. How many of you own paint?" The same result happened and Kili grinned. "What I want you to do is bring your paint to this square and wait here until I come out and tell you to go. Then, all I want you to do is make as much.. Creative expressions on the walls and the floor, anything you can get your paint brush near. Have you got that?"
"Isn't that bad though?" A brown haired child asked him from the right. So innocent. He almost pitied her. Almost being the key word.
"In normal circumstances, yes. But today, Thranduil has given you permission to do this. So have you all got that?" He asked, grinning at the nodding children that surrounded him. "Okay then. Go and get your paints!" He prompted, watching the children run off in different directions, before spotting Legolas crossing the cobbled courtyard. "Legolas! I wonder if you could show me where the Kitchens are..."
-oOo-
Author's note:
Tam doesn't know about this yet. She is going down in this bet!
Tanith
