Bilbo trudged wearily into his room, Gorbo wriggling in his arms to be let down, and the tired hobbit was happy to oblige. He had been stuck in the middle of yet another useless dispute between the elves and dwarves, and he was seriously beginning to reconsider the merits of casting aside respectability and just yelling at them all to shut up. The argument had lasted the better part of the day, leaving him just enough time to retrieve Gorbo from the kitchens before supper. The lad was still refusing most food other than the raw meat that he had taken a liking to, a fact that left the hobbit shuddering in distaste at the sight. He had been rather surprised to note that he was the only one who felt that way for the most part. The dwarves had been quite cavalier about the whole affair, but considering their own diet of mostly meat, he supposed it should not have come as so much of a shock.
Now they were at last in the quiet seclusion of Bilbo's own private space, and to his intense dismay Gorbo did not appear to be at all sleepy. The small toddler was happily jumping about on top of the bed he had been gifted with to replace the crib that had been rapidly outgrown. Though it was quite low to the ground, Bilbo still found himself worrying, and hurried forward to pull his excitable son to the floor.
"Time for sleep, sweetheart," he murmured, sighing when Gorbo again squirmed out of his grasp to race around the room, gabbling incessantly about his day in the kitchen. The little one was not at all discouraged when only half of what he said came out in any comprehensible form, and continued to chirp away happily. Deciding to let him work out some of his excess energy, Bilbo went to the wardrobe to gather up a clean set of bedclothes, and to start a bath. A hard day was no reason for a lapse in cleanliness, no matter how much he would like to have an excuse just this once to let it be.
Once he had everything ready, Bilbo wrestled Gorbo out of his clothes and into the tub, sighing again when he was soon soaked through with the lavender scented water. He had hoped it might serve to calm the lad, as it had been a favorite of his when he was little, but Gorbo was oblivious to the soothing effects of the herb, and pushed his wooden boat around with undaunted enthusiasm.
Bath time was cut shorter than normal when Bilbo found himself nodding off right over the tub, and it was only another splash that jerked him back to semi-alertness. He wrapped Gorbo in a fluffy towel, drying him off near the hearth and tugging on his warm pajamas. Still, the lad was restless, rolling around on the bed that he had been placed in, and mussing the blankets Bilbo had so painstakingly tucked around him. Nearly at his wits end, Bilbo began to sing a soft lullaby, and it was only after an hour of this that Gorbo at last drifted off to sleep. Bilbo had only a moment to feel some dull relief before he fell asleep himself, slumped against the side of Gorbo's bed.
Dawn was sending the first shafts of light down into the mountain when Gorbo awoke, slipping off the bed and right past a heavily sleeping Bilbo. The small boy didn't cast a single look behind him before using a stool near the door to reach the handle, and then he was out and toddling down the wide hall, off on an early morning adventure. Back in the room, Bilbo slumbered on...
It was Dori who found Gorbo first, nearly knocking the lad over as he strolled down the hall, not expecting to bump into anyone at this early hour. "What are you doing out here?" the elder dwarf asked in concern, scooping up an eager Gorbo and leveling him with a look that was far more worried than it was stern.
"Bibo sleep, Dori!" the lad explained. "Go walk." The child smiled up at his new audience with innocent cheer.
"Adad is asleep is he?" Dori murmured, heading at once to confirm the validity of this statement, worried that he would come upon a frantic hobbit, but it appeared Gorbo had spoken the truth. The door was still creaked open, and upon peering inside they were treated to the sight of Bilbo sprawled against the bed, head laid back on the mattress. Snorting in contained amusement, Dori crept in as quietly as he could and laid a blanket over the hobbit, and after scrawling a short note on a scrap of paper from his pocket, he left it tucked near Bilbo's hand. The two then retreated from the room, Gorbo getting great fun out of pretending to be sneaky.
When Bilbo woke it was to a moment of panic before he registered the flutter of paper against the palm of his hand. 'Found Gorbo in the halls. Have him at my room now. Dori.' Bilbo was torn between relief and dread. Gorbo could now get out of their rooms, which meant nothing was safe anymore. He hurried to dress, padding out into the hall and in search of his wayward son, already contemplating the type of lock he might need to keep the little one contained at night. His knock at Dori's front door was met with the joyful squeal of Gorbo, followed by a whump as the lad threw himself into his legs. He didn't even have the heart to scold him after such an enthusiastic greeting.
"Dadad! Up, up!" Gorbo cried, bouncing on his toes. Bilbo swept him up, giving Dori an appreciative look and holding his son close.
Author's note: Gotta love mothering Dori. The next chapter will be all about Kili, and we get to see how well our mischievous prince handles babysitting duty. I'd also like to give a shout out to my reviewers, you guys are great! To answer one here, there will be a chapter on Dis in the near future, and Dain has been added to my list of people to write about, though I may not get to him for a bit yet. Again, if there is any person or situation that you would like to see written about, do let me know. I can't promise all of them, but I will certainly do my best to put anything into consideration as long as it is not a mature theme. This is going to continue to be a lighthearted family story, and I am still undecided about whether to include any romance at all. Thanks again for reading, reviews are appreciated!