"But I am old enough to join the guard. I know I am."
Kíli was talking towards the big fire at the centre of the camp when he heard Nadúr arguing loudly with his mother.
"Not when I say you aren't." Hnór's voice was strained, there was no doubt that this argument had been going for a while.
"Kíli, you're the king. Tell her I'm old enough."
"Sorry, a mother's voice weights higher than a king's. Besides; I agree with her. You aren't old enough."
When it became clear to the boy that he wouldn't be allowed to join the guard he kicked the ground angrily before sitting down in front of the fire and began sulking.
"If that's how you're going to behave you're definitely not old enough." Hnór said dryly before she went over to help prepare the dinner. Kíli stood by the fire for a little bit before he went over and sat down next to Nadúr, he thought he knew what was troubling the boy.
"Why do people keep treating me like a child?" Nadúr asked, still starring into the fire.
"Because, Nadúr, you are a child. Childhood isn't something you should hurry through as quickly as possible, but something you should enjoy as long as you have it. Because once it is over; it's gone and you'll never get it back."
"But adults get to go to battle. They get to have glory."
"You think battle is a glorious thing? Let me tell you something; it isn't. It's nothing but blood and screams." Realising that he had begun all but screaming with anger Kíli quickly stopped and looked at the boy who was staring at him with huge eyes.
"Sorry." He whispered. "I didn't realise."
"That I had been in battle? It's okay; just don't make the mistake of glorifying battle ever again."
Satisfied that Nadúr had understood the message, at least for the time being, Kíli went to fetch his quiver and sat down in the shadow of the wagon to begin the slow task of going through each of his arrows, it was a tedious task but something he had always found put his mind to ease.
Talking about what battle was really like had made him feel as if he could almost hear the screams of the battle; on top of it all his brother's voice, desperately telling him that their uncle had been hit by a large spear. Still, it had not been right to get angry with the boy as he had been much like that himself once. More times that he could count Thorin had told him off for glorifying battle, the pain in his uncle's voice had never ceased when he talked about Frerin, Fíli's and Kíli's other uncle, who had died at the gates of Moria.
Once he was sure all his arrows were in order Kíli quickly checked his bow as well before he went to re-join the others by the fire. He was glad to see that Nadúr had decided to not be so desperate to appear as an adult and was currently playing with his younger siblings; the four boys eagerly trying to show little Mín how an anthill worked, though the girl seemed more interesting in throwing pieces of grass around than listening to her brothers' explanation.
Those five, as well as Brúv's and Síra's unborn child, were the only children from the entire village and Kíli would give up all the gold of Erebor before he let any of the come to harm. He just hoped that he would never be affected by the Dragon Sickness, that he would never put gold before his people.
Everybody, except for those three who had the first watch, went to bed as soon as they were done with the dinner. Those who were travelling inside the wagon would also sleep inside it, with Nadúr sleep on top of the steps leading to its door; he had refused to sleep inside but Kíli had managed to convince him to sleep right in front of the door so he could protect his younger siblings. Everyone else was simply sleeping where they could.
Kíli couldn't sleep. He kept thinking of his talk with Nadúr and the memories of the battle wouldn't stop flooding back into his mind. Not that it was the worst part that was the worry about how he should ever manage to get all these people safely to Erebor. He had heard the guard change a couple of times before he finally managed to drift into an uneasy sleep.
Packing everything together was just as easy as putting up camp had been, and by the first light they were ready to move on. Just as they were leaving the former campsite behind Kíli looked back and was met by a disheartening sight; the grass, which had been lush and green when they arrived, was completely trampled and there were several black patches where the fires had been.
"What's the matter?" Gamíl asked, seeing Kíli's frown.
"I don't like this. It's too clear that we've been here."
"Kíli, such a large company can't remain hidden. Every camp we make will be a clear testament that we have been here, not to mention the trail we'll leave through the landscape. There's nothing to be done about that, other than keeping our guards up."
"I know. And I'm glad you and your people are here."
That day passed very much like the previous day had; they were following the course of the river, which Dwalin had said was one of the tributaries of the river Lhûn. Like the previous day there was no significant changes in the landscape as they slowly winded their way along the river, sometimes right next to it, sometimes a little distance away, and sometimes it would suddenly drop several feet below then into a deep gorge, the only indicator that it was always there was the constant sound of running water.
Kíli was on guard-duty the following night, together with Ori and Lóni he spent two hours patrolling the edges of the campsite, which was not nearly as well protected as the first had been. Part of him had wanted to look for a more suitable spot but he knew that during the long journey they would frequently be forced to camp at locations which were even less protected. As Gamíl had said; they just had to keep their guards up.
Soon everything settled into a rhythm; as soon as the shadows began to get longer they would make camp, the next morning everyone would be ready to move on at the first light, and during the day they would only stop for a short rest at noon. Gradually Kíli begun feeling more and more confident about leading the large group on this dangerous journey, but never once did he forget his talk with Nadúr.