Disclaimer: I don't own The Hobbit.

Author's Note: Special thanks to thenerdist2000 and iN3PTITUDE for helping out by giving me their opinions on some ideas I had.

At First Sight

Chapter 10

The next morning, Saura refused to leave Kili's side. She clung to him until he hefted her into his arms so she could cuddle into his shoulder. The poor girl had suffered through a very trying week. Yesterday's trauma had really scared her; she didn't want to be alone at all.

Sieran was fussy and hadn't slept well all night. Thorin and Kili had taken turns getting up with him. It was a sleepy group that left camp that morning. Sieran finally slept soundly within Thorin's tunic much to the dwarf king's relief.

"Kili, can you sing to me?" Saura murmured before they had gone too far down the trail.

"You don't want to hear me sing," he protested.

"Yes, I do." She picked at his cloak nervously with the tips of her fingers. "What if Da doesn't want me?" she choked out suddenly. Her mind had been whirling with possibilities. "What will happen to me and Sieran? Will we have to live in the forest by ourselves?"

"No, precious one," Kili soothed. "Thorin and I would never leave you and Sieran on your own." He felt her relax a little at his words. "Saura, why are you so sure your da won't want you?" he asked softly.

Saura rolled Kili's cloak in her fingers as she spoke. "He never comes to visit. Mother wanted us to go live with him in Cainrtown, but he said no. He said it would cost too much money. I heard them arguing." She looked up at Kili sadly. "I wish you were my da."

He swallowed hard at her words and gave her a tight hug. "I'm not anyone's da, Saura, but I'll take care of you until your da can."

She placed her bandaged hands over his on the reins. "Promise you won't leave me and Sieran alone if Da won't keep us?"

"I promise, Saura. You have my word."

Her breath hitched in her throat as she tried to stifle a sob. Kili ran a gentle hand over her hair as Thorin reined Archer in beside them.

"Are you feeling all right, Saura?" the dwarf king asked kindly.

She worried her bottom lip with her teeth before she spoke. "Kili says you won't leave me and Sieran alone in the forest if our da don't want us."

"Kili is right, Saura," Thorin assured her. "We would never leave you and Sieran to fend for yourselves."

"Da didn't want Mother and us to live with him. What will happen if Da still doesn't want me and Sieran and you don't leave us in the forest?"

Thorin caught Kili's gaze for a moment and they exchanged looks of concern. "We'll cross that bridge if we come to it, Saura," Thorin assured her. "For now we will concentrate on getting to Cairntown and finding your da."

The child nodded, but was quiet and pensive for the rest of the day. They traveled long into the evening until they could see the lights of Cairntown in the distance.

"Let's camp here," Thorin stated, reining in his horse next to the river. "Tomorrow I'll go into town and search for Corin while you stay here with the children, Kili."

"Okay, Uncle," his tired nephew replied as he climbed stiffly down from Apple's back and reached for Saura. Then he removed their pack's from the pony's back and started a fire.

Saura was too tired to even eat. She curled up in her bedroll and was immediately asleep.

Thorin milked the goat and fed Sieran while Kili warmed up dinner. The baby fell asleep and Thorin tucked him in next to Saura before joining his nephew by the fire.

Kili handed him a bowl of mush, and Thorin accepted it gratefully. "I'm a bit worried about the children's father," he admitted quietly to Kili.

"What will we do if he doesn't want them, Uncle?" Kili asked worriedly. "How do we just leave them with some stranger?"

"I don't know, Kili," Thorin admitted with a tired sigh. "We won't leave them with just anyone."

They finished their meal in silence, both worrying about the children, and then Kili washed their plates in the river.

"We should get some rest," Thorin informed his nephew. "Tomorrow will be a long day. I'll take first watch."

Kili nodded and curled himself into his bedroll. Soon his soft snores drifted through the camp.

Saura's scream tore through the night air a short while later jolting Kili wide awake. He grasped for his bow next to his bedroll, but then realized Thorin had gathered a sobbing Saura in his arms and was rocking her back and forth.

"Nightmare?" Kili asked groggily, feeling sympathy for the child. He knew his mother and his uncle suffered from them terribly; they often dreamed of the demise of Erebor.

Thorin nodded. "It was just a bad dream," he soothed, stroking Saura's long blonde hair.

Her fingers clutched at his tunic as her shoulders shook with sobs. "Kili," she choked out.

"He's right here," Thorin told her. He stood and moved to his nephew, passing the crying child to Kili.

The young dwarf took her from his uncle's arms and stretched out in his bedroll; Saura curled into his chest. "Sleepy," she sniffled.

"Then rest. I'll be right here," Kili assured her. He watched until her breathing evened out in slumber. How was he going to leave this child behind tomorrow, especially if her father didn't want her? Once again it was a long time before he could fall asleep.

Morning dawned clear and cold. Kili kept the children close to the fire after they'd eaten as Thorin saddled Archer to head into town. Saura was quiet and leaned into Kili's side as if she knew her life was going to change today.

Thorin's mind whirled as he rode away from camp. Dehra had wanted the children with their father, but what if their father didn't want them? Biting back a sigh, he urged Archer into a gallop.

As he rode into town a short while later, he slowed his pony and surveyed his surroundings. He wished he knew the name of the forge in which to find Corin. It would make things so much easier.

"Excuse me," he called to a young dwarf passing by, "can you direct me to the nearest forge?"

"Certainly. Follow this street to the end and make a left. Coble's Forge will be on the left."

"Thank you," Thorin rumbled gratefully before urging Archer onward.

The forge wasn't difficult to find. Thorin tied Archer outside and then drifted into the heat and noise of the forge.

"How can I help you, sir?" a man asked, standing tall above Thorin.

The dwarf king cleared his throat of the dust from the road. "I'm looking for Corin of the line of Meck, a fellow dwarf."

"That name doesn't ring a bell," the man responded after thinking for a moment. "Did someone tell you to look for him here?"

"I come with a message from his wife," Thorin announced. "She only told me that he worked at a forge in Cairntown.

The man scrubbed a hand through his sweaty hair. "There's a forge on the other side of town. Helerin's, I believe it's called. Just follow the main road and ask for directions once you reach the market."

Thorin nodded. "Thank you for your help." He left then as the man went back to work.

The second forge was a bit more difficult to find, but again no one there had heard of Corin. This time Thorin was directed to a smaller, less prosperous place up in the hills.

It took him well over an hour to find it, and by now it was nearing mid-afternoon. His fingers and toes tingled with cold as he dismounted his pony. Stepping into the heat of the stone forge, he knew he'd found the place. Four dwarves worked steadily at their various tasks and didn't notice him for a moment.

Finally, the burliest of the four, a dark-haired dwarf with tattoos covering both forearms, straightened and looked at Thorin. "How can I help you?" he asked, stepping away from the fire.

"I'm looking for Corin, of the line of Meck," Thorin announced, his eyes traveling over the dwarves.

"I am Corin," one of the dwarves replied, moving forward. His hair was thick and sandy brown, but his eyes were the same shape as Sieran's and Saura's. "Do I know you?"

"I am Thorin," the dwarf king announced.

"My Lord," Corin choked out in surprise. The other dwarves froze in their tasks.

Thorin shook his head. "No need for that. Dehra sent me to you."

"My wife?" Corin's eyebrows rose in surprise. "What's happened? Has the babe come early?"

"Let's go outside," Thorin suggested.

Corin followed him anxiously. "What is it, my Lord?"

"Corin, your son has come early," Thorin began gently. His heart pounded in his chest. How did he tell this man that his wife was dead?

"I have a son," Corin grinned, but that soon faded at the look on Thorin's face. "What is it? Dehra?"

Thorin nodded. "I'm sorry, Corin. She had a difficult birth. The bleeding would not stop." He trailed off.

"She's gone?" Corin asked in disbelief.

"Yes, Corin; I'm very sorry." Thorin's voice was sad and he had to swallow hard past the lump in his throat. "She wanted us, my nephew and myself, to bring the children to you."

"The children?" a ragged, grieving Corin asked. "Whatever am I going to do with two children?"

To Be Continued…

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