Author's Note: Short and sweet, this one. Just a little fun between the Durin boys. I hope you enjoy. It's at least much lighter than some of the latest chapters. Thanks so much for reading! Please review to fuel the writing fire.
CHAPTER 10
"I hate archery." Fili grumbled as he carefully nocked his arrow. "Why can't we practice something else?"
"Because, Fili, archery is a useful skill to learn." Thorin explained. He was certain he'd said this many times before, but it never seemed to be enough. "I would rather you learned as much as I can teach you, even if you hardly use some of it."
"Fine." Fili sighed, raising his bow as he aimed at the old oak they used for a target. He released the arrow, growling when it missed the tree entirely and sunk into the steep hill behind it.
"You'll get it, Fili. It just takes practice." Thorin chuckled, kneeling beside Kili.
"Is it like this, Uncle?" Kili asked, obviously struggling to properly nock his arrow. It was his first time after all.
"Almost, Kili. Just put the arrow here…pull it back like this…aim…and then let go when you're ready." Thorin explained, smiling as he watched Kili's arm shiver with the effort. He looked to be determined, despite it being his very first shot. Thorin vaguely wondered how long it would take before Kili started whining with his brother.
Kili let the arrow fly, watching it dig into the oak with a satisfying thunk.
Thorin sat there stunned for a moment.
Fili slouched with a heavy sigh.
"How come I can't do that?" Fili growled. "I only hit the stupid dirt."
Kili started dancing wildly in his victory.
"I did it!" he screamed excitedly. "Uncle, I did it!"
"Yes…yes, you did…" Thorin muttered, staring at the arrow as if unsure it was real. Sure, it wasn't right on the center of the oak, but Kili's shot was extremely accurate for the first try.
"Good job, Kili." Fili congratulated dully. He wanted to be happy with his brother, but he was just too overcome with his own dreary mood.
"Let's do it again!" Kili cheered, picking up a new arrow and slowly nocking it in his bow. Thorin stood with his arms folded, watching carefully. Fili murmured under his breath as he fitted an arrow for himself.
Kili took careful aim and let it go.
Thunk into the oak.
Thorin frowned with surprise. It was unlike anything he'd seen before. Archery didn't come as easy to dwarves as it did for elves. Their eyes weren't as sharp by easy comparison, but Fili had an undeniable knack.
"I like this. This is fun." Kili chirped, reaching for another arrow.
Thorin focused once more. Certainly, Kili couldn't manage three in a row.
Thunk into the oak.
"Huh." Thorin sighed, his eyes following the short line of arrows on the tree. They were slowly moving towards the center.
"Not fair." Fili huffed, aiming and releasing his arrow. His barely nicked the side of the tree, the arrow spinning off onto the slope behind. "Stupid archery." Thorin let out a huff as he watched his eldest nephew nearly throw down his bow. Fortunately, Fili thought better of it and merely sagged with frustration.
"Fili, you're just expecting yourself to fail." Thorin explained, walking towards and kneeling beside the older dwarfling. "If you give up, you'll never learn it properly." There was not much that put Fili in a sour mood. Archery was one of the worst offenders.
"But it's so hard." Fili grumbled, tears angrily filling his eyes.
"Relax. Focus on the tree the best you can. It's okay if you miss." Thorin said soothingly, setting a hand on the dwarfling's shoulder. "Just like with swordplay. When you started you weren't very good, remember? You fell a lot and earned plenty of bruises. Your mother wasn't very happy. But now you're much better, it just took time."
"But that's easier!" Fili cried, frowning more when he heard the telltale thunk of Kili's shot.
"No, it's not. You wanted to learn it. You worked hard for it." Thorin replied firmly. "You've given up with archery. Now you don't try because you already expect yourself to fail. You're better than that, Fili. I know you are."
Fili let out a puff of air.
"Fine, I'll try harder." he mumbled, grabbing another arrow. He properly put it in place, pulling the string back and aiming.
"Take your time. You don't need to rush." Thorin whispered. Fili took a moment to truly steady his shot, slowly releasing a breath. He let go of the string with a twang, his eyes glued to the arrow as it soared through the air.
Thunk.
Direct hit.
"Yay!" Kili shouted. "Good job, Fili!"
A wild grin broke on Fili's face as he stared at his arrow.
"I did it." he huffed quietly, a spark of joy rolling off his tongue. He looked at Thorin with bright eyes, who returned his gaze with a proud smile.
"Woohoo!" Kili cheered, pouncing Fili with a tight embrace. "That was the best shot I've ever seen!"
Thorin chuckled under his breath as he shook his head. The only archery Kili had ever seen was Fili's occasional practices and today's efforts. But Thorin was certain Kili would still dub Fili's shot as the best he'd ever seen, even if he'd witnessed the precision of an elf. It was just the kind of dwarf he was.
"Mum will be so proud of us!" Fili yelled happily in celebration, hugging his brother tightly. They both giggled uncontrollably in the presence of victory.
"Alright, get back to practice." Thorin laughed.
Kili broke away from their hug, running bouncily back to his post to ready another shot. Fili nocked another arrow, this time with a smile.
Thorin smirked as they both made their mark.
A successful practice indeed.