Thorin hadn't slept well, and his dreams had been muddled, mixing the past and present in a disturbing manner. When he'd first awoken at five his eyes had felt like sandpaper and his head had been pounding. Not that such a thing would have kept him from going into the office. He'd never called in sick. Not once. Too many depended upon him.
But today was different. He'd already arranged to lighten his work load, and even take some time away. Because of Kili. So Thorin had actually taken something for his aching head and done the unthinkable, he went back to sleep. Didn't American teenagers have a reputation for laziness? Surely Kili wouldn't be up at this time, he assured himself. Fili was a wonderful young man for a teenager, and he even he didn't get up until 6:30. No. Fili would be hard pressed to name the milkman who delivered here early in the mornings, much less describe him.
Thorin had rolled back into bed, pulling up the covers and feeling rather decadent. Still, he deserved this time, he had mused. All his life he'd been a slave to duty. Playing the proper Erebor princling, learning at his father's and grandsire's knees. Following the overthrow he'd followed those worthies into battle time and again, until Azanulbizar. That thought made him frown, moving on quickly to the assassinations of his father and grandsire, which were equally as grim memories. Actually, Thrain had been missing a long while before acknowledged deceased, leaving the family holdings in limbo. Which in turn had left Thorin in quite a desperate situation and not able to access any of the main accounts. He'd not completed his education before he'd had to step into the breach, learning the hard way the in's and out's of international business. He'd had some setbacks, yes, but by the time he'd been declared the heir to the family monies that hadn't been stolen by Smaug, he had already amassed quite a fortune on his own. For his people, and for their cause.
Thorin drifted in and out of a doze, pondering the past, and the future, when a knock came as a summons. Blue eyes opened, blessedly without the pain from a headache this time. He glanced over at the clock and then blinked twice rather quickly. "Quarter past seven?" He jerked upright in a bit of a shock. Hadn't it been but five a.m. only a few moments ago? "Come in!" He called out, only to have another knock on the door.
He scowled, knowing that it could only mean that Oin was the one outside in the hallway. Thorin marched over to the door unmindful of his boxers and state of undress, scowling at his long-time friend and physician.
Oin blinked, then cocked his head to one side as he eyed his erstwhile monarch. Thorin wasn't dressed at this hour? "Are you ill?"
"No!" Sniped the darker-haired male. "I am damn well not! I'll be down soon."
Oin scratched his chin and nodded, a decided spark of humor in his usually staid countenance. "I hear that Kili is now with us? And Fili is not?" It was said with more than a little caution, as if unsure of the other man's temper.
Thorin couldn't stop the scowl, even as he gave a short nod.
Oin bobbed his head and paused, then rocked back and forth on the balls of his feet. For a man with so much gray hair, the average person might think the physician to be slow and feeble. They'd be far wrong, Thorin had cause to know well enough. Meet Oin on the field of battle and you might not live to regret underestimating him.
"Yes?" Asking what else was on the physician's mind.
"Oh, yes." Oin smiled a bit sheepishly. "I was thinking a nice fry-up for breakfast. To welcome him and all."
Oh. Thorin relaxed a bit, realizing that there wasn't another problem waiting for him. He nodded and shrugged. "Ask Kili what he wants, but it sounds good to me."
"Ah." Oin looked around and leaned back as if to peer down the hallway. "His door is shut."
Thorin grunted and sighed. He wondered at what kind of lax discipline that Frerin had instilled in the lad whilst raising him in America. Kili had been quite outspoken to his elders last night, though Thorin was reluctant to admit that the boy had voiced some valid thoughts. And now it was over a quarter past seven and the lad's door was still shut tight. Never mind that he himself had just really awoken. "I'll rouse him."
Oin smiled a bit palely, and opened his mouth as if to protest, but then stayed silent as Thorin grabbed his dressing gown and belted it roughly about the waist. Sliding his feet inside the brocade slippers, Thorin ran a hand over his face and marched up to Fili's bedroom door.
"Lad isn't used to us." Oin slid the words out smoothly, but without raising his voice or appearing to tell his leader how to conduct himself.
Still, the advice wasn't bad. Thorin nodded and rapped on the door lightly. No response. He frowned lightly and knocked again, this time with a bit more vigor.
"Sound sleeper?" Oin suggested.
Thorin grunted and pushed the door open, peeking in. It wasn't the thing to waste half the morning, but he also didn't want to upset the lad too much. His desire was for Kili to want to stay on with them here. He frowned at the lump of a body beneath the comforter pulled into the middle of the bed in a great pile. "Kili. Kili!"
Oin made a soft noise of protest, but Thorin ignored him as he walked into the room. "Time to get up, lad. Kili?" Suddenly he stilled. "Are you feeling extra jagged from the flight in?"
Hearing nothing, Thorin grunted, sure he was at the right conclusion. "I have Oin with me, and he's medically trained. A physician of great reputation in his field. Let him check you out."
Thorin reached out to pull the comforter down and frowned. Pressing his hand further into the pile and then yanking it away. Kili was not in bed.
o.o.o.o.o
o.o.o.o.o
Ori was making light not-quite snoring noises, curled up with a blanket on one of the beds in the hotel room. Gloin had his shoes off and his feet up, with his head resting back on the comfortable chair he'd settled into. Though Fili doubted the man was asleep as the red-head still had a half-empty glass of scotch in one hand and it didn't look in danger of falling.
Balin walked back into the room with a glass of what looked like water, making Fili startle a bit as he'd not realized the man had even left the room. He blinked and peered over at the clock, it was going on half past two in the morning.
"Sleepy?" Frerin asked him with a gentle smile.
Fili shook his head, still feeling awkward. "No, sir."
"No, sir." Repeated Frerin in a pitch perfect mimicry, his mobile lips drooping for a moment. "Always so proper."
"Sorry, sir …I mean. Yeah." Fili shrugged.
"Relax. Please, just relax. No one is going to jump down your throat and berate you if you say the wrong thing."
Fili gave a rather weak smile and nodded, believing his uncle but not really able to fully let go of his nerves, not yet.
Balin murmured something, pressing some pills onto Frerin with the glass of water while Fili watched. "I'm fine." His uncle demurred.
"Is that for the headaches Kili told me about?" Fili suddenly asked.
Frerin's eyes narrowed on his young nephew a bit sharply. Then he closed those blue eyes and nodded slowly. "Of course, Kili told you about them, did he?"
"He didn't mean anything wrong by it." Fili defended his brother though the brunet wasn't there.
"What did he tell you?" Frerin palmed the medications, grimacing and then taking them quickly.
Fili shrugged and shook his head. "He said you were badly injured at Azanulbizar and you'd had them ever since."
"And Thorin?" The words were low on volume, but heavy with meaning. Though Fili had no clue as to why or how. Suddenly he felt pinned in the spotlight, so to speak.
"Sir?"
Frerin didn't like the sudden tightness in Fili's tone, nor the fact that the teen's posture had just returned to ramrod straight. Still, the answer to his question was vastly important to him. "What does Thorin say of my injuries, or me in general?"
Fili flushed bright red and said nothing.
Frerin chuckled without humor, nodding achingly slowly. "I see. That bad, yes?"
Fili went even redder, his eyes dropping. "He never speaks of you."
Frerin's hand froze in the action of handing the glass back to Balin. His counselor and friend had to take it from him as the blond stared at the teenager. "Never? Only that I'm his brother in America?" He guessed.
Fili's face was burning and he peeked up at this uncle reluctantly, before dropping his gaze once more. "He never brings up your name, and if it comes up he turns the subject. I …it's what they do to the deceased heroes." His voice trailed off.
Frerin frowned, not quite understanding.
Balin sucked in a harsh breath. "You thought what? That your Uncle Frerin was dead?"
The teenager gave one short nod, slowly and with great reluctance. He licked his lips. "When Kili told me he lived with Uncle Frerin …I called him a liar."
Gloin's head rose up off the back of the chair, proving he was still awake and listening. His eyes slid to the side, taking in Frerin's expression, but the red-head said nothing. Though his lips pressed together in a rather grim line.
"Ain't that a bite." Frerin was rather surprised he wasn't choking on his own words. "Thorin treats me like a closet case."
Fili blinked, then gave a weak smile, then looked back down at his lap. "You sound like Kili."
Frerin snorted.
"Does the medicine help?" Fili forced himself to look up, hoping to change the topic onto something safer.
The older blond nodded and then shrugged. "It does, to some extent. But it also leaves me badly nauseated. Actually, what I just took was for my stomach. I'll take the DHE for the migraine a bit later."
"Oh." Fili fell silent again, not sure what was safe ground for discussion and what wasn't.
As if able to read his mind, Balin smiled sadly. "Lad, it's alright. You are in no way to blame for anything that goes on between your two uncles." He put his hand solidly on Frerin's shoulders, in support or warning to stay quiet, Fili wasn't quite sure.
"What happened?" The teenager asked, hoping to hear something substantive but not surprised when the adults blew off the question.
"Water under the bridge." Frerin said, leaning forward with his arms on his knees. "Nothing to stress over."
Fili didn't agree with that assessment, but didn't say anything, not yet.
"So. You flew from camp, switching places with your brother whom you JUST met. All to meet a man you didn't know existed, or at least still to be breathing, in a country you know little about. Is that the summation?"
With a tight chuckle and a smile that didn't quite reach his clear blue eyes, Fili nodded.
"You're brave." Frerin said, though Fili squirmed a bit on the inside at the praise. It felt good, but it also felt like a betrayal to Uncle Thorin somehow. "You also seem quite bright, smart, polite, and on you very best behavior."
Fili stared, not sure how he should respond.
"When you relax, that's when I'll know you feel comfortable around us, and that is my goal." Frerin said candidly. "I want you to feel at home here."
Fili drew in a deep breath, his eyes widening fractionally.
Frerin held up a hand to forestall the lad. "You can feel at home here and still choose to go back to London. I will not force you, not now not ever. But I'd like you to at least want to visit us again." Or stay. Frerin didn't add that last part though.
Settling down, Fili pondered his uncle's words carefully before giving a bit of a nod.
"Now. What do you want to know?"
Fili stared. He didn't dare bring up the rift between Thorin and Frerin, not again. But he didn't know ….yes he did. The teen licked his lips and asked for the world. "Tell me about my parents."
Frerin looked startled, then sadly curious. "Thorin didn't tell you about them?"
The blond teen nodded, then shrugged. "I want to hear it from you."
Balin suddenly smiled, though he too looked saddened. He understood at least, even if Frerin didn't, not yet. Fili didn't trust Thorin's word, not anymore. Not after learning that Frerin wasn't deceased and that he had a brother he'd not known about. Fili wanted outside insight into his parents, to compare with what he'd been taught all his life.
Balin listened as Frerin started in on telling stories about Dis as a youngster and a precocious princess of Erebor. The white-bearded counselor wondered if Kili was reacting the same way, now treating anything that Frerin, or he, had taught the boy with suspicion. It hurt his heart to think of that bright soul feeling so lost. He just hoped Thorin was treating the boy with kind acceptance and open mindedness. Balin closed his eyes at the thought.
o.o.o.o.o
o.o.o.o.o
Thorin's left eye twitched heavily as he stared at the empty bed with something akin to horror.
Reason didn't enter into the panic he felt as he simply registered that Kili wasn't under those covers. He spun around, looking in every corner and not seeing a teenage brunet boy grinning at him. Without a word he took off down the hall to the loo that he'd pointed out to Kili just last evening. He wasn't there. Perhaps the bathroom? Which wasn't the same as the water closet, but held the actual clawfooted bathtub. Yet it turned out to be empty as well.
He turned, realizing that Oin was talking but that he'd not heard a single word. Thorin scowled, wondering if the boy hated it so much here that he'd run off. If he stopped to think it through, he'd have probably realized that he was not on target.
But his dreams of those loved ones no longer with them came back to bite his ass. Thror, Thrain, Dis, Reneli, and yes …Frerin. His heart was pounding as he raced downstairs yelling for Dwalin.
Bofur came in from the kitchen with wide eyes, an apron over his clothing as he wiped his hands. "Thorin?"
"I need the car!"
"And pants." Oin pointed out quietly.
Thorin rounded on the physician with a snarl. "Get Dwalin for me!"
"He's out back with Kili, let me …"
Thorin stilled, turned and glared at Bofur. "Why didn't you tell me that FIRST!" He roared, stalking out through the corridor leading to the back of the house leaving the bewildered pilot with his jaw hanging open.
"What?" Bofur said weakly, then sniffed the air and fled back into the kitchen to save the breakfast. "Oin! Tell them the food is about ready!" He shouted.
"I have my hearing aids in, no need to yell." Oin chuckled, staring at where Thorin had disappeared in his dressing gown and slippers and in an utter panic. "Well now." He muttered, and followed along at a slower pace.
The gray-bearded and braided physician stepped outside, following the sound of sword play, and voices. He walked up beside Thorin, who was watching as Dwalin put Kili through some blade footwork. The two stood there for several minutes, judging Kili's movements and form.
Oin nodded, seeing that the boy was well trained though perhaps a bit quick. He slid his eyes toward Thorin, finding their monarch scowling heavily. He wondered if the elder Durin was finding fault in Kili's form, or in the fact that someone other than he had trained him.
A shout from the house had Dwalin gesturing for Kili to end the pattern. The teenager looked disappointed, but obeyed readily enough to Oin's eyes. Kili wiped his face and hands off with a towel handed to him by Dwalin, but his dark eyes kept seeking out those of Thorin. The bright grin started fading around the edges as he noted his uncle's rather dark expression.
Dwalin noticed too, giving Thorin a quick hard glare. "Ye did fine lad, need some work on the third movement pattern and you have a tendency to rush."
Kili blushed heavily. "Yeah, Frerin says so too." The words were out before they could be edited. "I mean, well …" He scratched his right ear. "I've heard that before."
"Then you shouldn't repeat your mistakes." Snapped Thorin, drawing a stoic look from Dwalin, and a rather hurt one from a certain teenager. "Now. Wash up for breakfast, I believe Bofur has it ready."
Kili flushed and hurried by him on a bee-line for the main house. Before Thorin could turn and follow, Dwalin stepped into his path. He didn't say anything, just stood there.
"He didn't run, Thorin." Oin said quietly. "Perhaps he's not the only one that needs to learn from previous mistakes."
Snapping sapphire eyes slid to the side, temper barely held in check. "Perhaps he's not." Thorin said coldly, flipping the advice around onto his long-time friend and cousin.
Dwalin grunted and stepped to the side and out of Thorin's path. "He tells me he's very good with a bow and arrow."
Like Frerin.
The implication hung in the air around the trio before Thorin snapped out an ill-chosen word not fit for teenage ears. He stalked back toward the house, and breakfast.
Thorin hesitated before entering the kitchen, trying to control his mood. The others were right, he was overreacting. This was no way to win over young Kili. He tugged at his dressing gown and wished he'd taken the time to dress, but if he went up now his food would be cold. And he found himself reluctant to pass up this opportunity to eat with his nephew.
Kili did not look up when the others entered the dining room, with Bofur muttering something about the kitchen being too small to hold them all comfortably.
Looking at the piled up food on the plates, Thorin's mood lifted. Nothing like a full English breakfast. He grinned and looked over at Kili.
The brunet was staring with wide eyes and something that looked like shock. He poked the beans with his fork as if he'd never seen such before. "Don't like beans?"
Kili looked up, his eyebrows rising high on his forehead. "I do. But not at breakfast." The teen looked around the table appearing confused. Everyone had the same foods piled onto their plates.
"It's a full English, or a fry-up." Bofur explained, catching on that the youth was unsure. "Bacon, sausage, pudding, beans, bread, mushrooms, eggs, and tomatoes."
Kili suddenly giggled.
Thorin gave him a stare and the teen settled back down, but still was grinning.
"Tom-ah-toes?" Kili seemed vastly amused. "Tom-A-toes. You sound funny."
"You sound funny to us, kid." Dwalin cut into his sausages and began eating without preamble.
"I suppose." Kili picked up his bacon and looked at it askance. "This is cut weird." He said of the back-cut meat.
"It's bacon." Dwalin sipped his tea, nodding.
Bofur cleared his throat. "I didn't know if you wanted white with or without. I gave you with, as that's Fili's preference, but I can get you another cuppa if you don't like."
Kili stared and shook his head, clearly not understanding.
"Let us know if there's anything you don't like." Oin said gently. "We know it's different from what you're used to getting."
"Your tea lad, I was asking about your tea. With or without sugar." Bofur pointed at the cup next to Kili's plate.
"Uhm." The brunet looked less than thrilled, but gamely took a sip. His facial expression said it all.
"What do you usually have?" Thorin asked, cutting up his fried eggs with gusto, the yolks running deliciously into his bread.
"Orange juice?" Kili asked hopefully, then shook his head as he realized they didn't have that here. "Milk?"
"Milk!" Bofur jumped up, relieved. "Not a problem."
Breakfast continued as everyone tucked in, each watching as Kili ate his beans with a somewhat bemused expression. They nodded happily as he enjoyed his eggs, sausage and bacon. The tomatoes, by either pronunciation, went next. Kili at least tried the mushrooms, eating nearly half before pushing them aside on his plate. At last he picked up the dark circle of blood pudding. He looked at Thorin first, who nodded at him and took a bite of his own.
Kili bit into the crunchy disk and then nearly choked as he grabbed his milk glass, draining what was left in it. "What's that?" He sputtered.
Bofur and Dwalin laughed at him in good humored fun. Thorin smiled and shook his head. "You don't have to eat it if you don't want it. It's pudding."
Kili blinked. Blinked again. Shook his head and then laughed. "You're pulling my leg."
"We're not taking the piss out of you." Bofur assured him. "It's blood pudding."
Kili's face paled and then he gave a rough sort of chuckled. "Blood …pudding?" He banged the crunchy object against his plate. "Pudding doesn't do that, and shouldn't bleed. And take the piss ….I …. You guys have NO room to complain about MY English that's for sure."
o.o.o.o.o
o.o.o.o.o
Fili and Ori had gone down to breakfast first, letting the adults finish calling their offices and getting messages and the like.
When Frerin joined them, they were talking and joking while waiting for their food. He eyed the two youngsters with a bit of jealousy, oh to be so young that staying up over half the night had no effect on them. They looked far better rested than he felt.
Still. He thought about food and nearly shuddered. When the waitress come over he ordered coffee and toast. He'd see how that settled first.
"Where's Balin, sir?"
Frerin glanced over at Fili, wanting to shake the lad until the 'sirs' fell by the roadside and were left for dead. It was polite and proper, and it was all wrong for uncle and nephew, to Frerin's way of thinking at least. "Renting a car. Thought we'd tour the coast line, find our own adventures for the day. As you know, Vicky will be joining us later this evening. But for this afternoon we're all batchelors."
Fili smiled, then leaned back as the waitress arrived with the first food orders. He grinned at the large omelet ripe with ham and mushrooms along with a full plate of bacon and sausage. He then stared at Ori's pancakes until his friend offered to halve them with him for a share of the omelet.
That was when the large tumbler was placed at Fili's side. He eyed the glass of amber liquid poured over large chunks of ice. "What's this?" He asked.
"Your tea, shug." The pretty waitress smiled prettily at him.
Fili's eyes rounded with horror and he shook his head in denial.
Frerin reached over and plucked the offending glass out of the way. "Perhaps we could have some hot tea, instead?"
"I'll check and see if we have any." The waitress promised.
Fili eyed the glass Frerin was still holding as if it were a venomous snake. "That is so wrong."
o.o.o.o.o
o.o.o.o.o
"It's on the list of things to eat." Kili pointed out reasonably.
"You didn't like blood pudding, you are not going to like marmite." Bofur assured the lad.
"I like marmite." Dwalin's rumble moved through the room.
"Yes, well, you're a freak of nature." Bofur rejoined. He opened a jar filled with a dark substance that looked suspiciously horrible. He held it out under Kili's nose in an invitation.
The teen sniffed, then made a face.
"Want to try it?"
Kili shook his head negatively.
"What else was on that list?" Dwalin asked with a sigh.
"Bubbles and mash, Squeak and bangers."
Dwalin choked out a laugh and shook his head. "Got those backwards, kid. But yeah, you'll probably like those."
Kili sunk down a bit in his chair, hesitating. "Er …spotted ….something."
"Spotted dick?" Bofur nodded, a gleam in his eyes. "We'll have it for desert tonight. Good choice!"
"You mean, it's really real?" Kili shot up on his seat, his eyes wide and his mouth hanging open. "You're not pissing, right?"
Dwalin groaned, dropping his head. "Take the piss out of, take the piss, not …look, let's not use that one yet. You'll fall on your arse."
"Arse?" Kili looked confused, then red in the cheeks as he fought not to laugh. "You mean fall on your fanny?"
Instead of laughter both Dwalin and Bofur looked stunned. They shook their heads at him. "Don't talk like that. That's rude."
"You say piss!" Kili pointed out, defending himself. "And arse! I can say fanny, it's not as bad as ass."
"Ass?" Bofur rolled his eyes and chuckled weakly. "Kid, on this side of the ocean, fanny is a word for part of the female anatomy you shouldn't be talking about."
Dwalin nodded in agreement when Kili looked at him, unsure.
"Is this a pissing thing too?" The brunet asked in a small voice.
Both men just shook their heads solemnly.
Thorin walked in with a train schedule, making notations for an outing he hoped would help Kili enjoy England.
"Uncle Thorin, what's a fanny?"
Both Dwalin and Bofur sunk down in their seats as Thorin turned furious eyes onto the duo. "WHAT ARE YOU TEACHING HIM?"
o.o.o.o.o
o.o.o.o.o
Fili laughed from the backseat of Frerin's rented convertible, the wind blowing through his braids. "No wonder Kili's hair is always in tangles!"
"What?" Ori turned to him, his own grin infectious.
Fili shook his head, it wasn't important. They'd gone out for a drive along the coastline and without any plan in mind. The alligator farm they'd found had been fascinating, and Fili had even gotten to feed some of the avaricious creatures.
Even so, as much fun as it was, Fili was keeping a close eye on his uncle. Frerin seemed to be getting paler and paler in a way that had little to do with the hat he wore to keep the sun out of his face. With that in mind he'd asked to head back to the hotel earlier than planned in order to spend the afternoon by the pool. Quietly.
Balin had given him an approving nod and a smile. Dwalin's brother wasn't as physically imposing as the bald warrior. But there was something about him that Fili respected, something in his quiet manner and small courtesies. The man was smart too, and if he didn't know something he said so, unlike a lot of adults and teachers Fili was more accustomed to dealing with.
And Uncle Frerin? He was funny. Hilarious! He was a born mimic and could do just about any accent spot-on. He'd had Fili and Ori nearly in stitches the whole morning.
Fili grinned, watching the city approaching them as they drove. It had been a near perfect morning. The only things missing? Thorin and Kili and the others. His smile dipped as he wondered at the original problem between the two Durinson brothers. How bad could it have been to cause a rift lasting over fourteen years? Was there anything to be done? Were he and Kili tilting at windmills here? An impossible task? He sighed and then shook himself. No need to give into doubt now. No. He was going to enjoy this time with his Uncle Frerin, even if nothing ever worked out with Thorin. He was going to have fun now.
The males of differing generations were laughing as they pulled up to the hotel parking lot, and the mood lasted all the way into the lobby.
Fili stopped solely because Frerin stopped. He peered around his uncle at the curves of the gorgeous blonde woman who was leaning elegantly against the hotel desk smoking a cigarette in a long holder.
Ori whistled under his breath, while Fili just stared. The woman smiled and all of a sudden the teen had a vision of the alligator he'd thrown the cut up pieces of chicken to earlier. He frowned, that was an unfair comparison.
"Vicky!" Frerin opened his arms for the woman. The lady straightened, her eyes snapping with a high temper. She did not rush into Frerin's embrace. No. She tapped the ashes from her cigarette, missing the glass ashtray by inches and paying no heed to the mess left behind as she glided forward in her tight pencil skirt.
Fili had to hand it to her. She made those impossibly high heels and tight clothing look easy to walk in, graceful.
"You're late." She pouted. "I've been waiting here all morning."
Fili felt puzzled. Hadn't his uncle said that when he'd called her she was supposed to arrive this evening?
"Vicky, I'd like you to meet my young cousin Ori Rison. And this handsome young warrior is my nephew, Fili Durinson." Frerin fairly beamed with pride.
"I thought it was Kili, oh well." Vicky yawned and pointed at her baggage in a dismissive gesture. "You can help me check in."
Balin and Fili both looked over at the concierge and the bell boy, wondering why they hadn't taken care of the task already. The hotel employees shook their heads and held up their hands in a show of innocence.
"Fili? Ori? Will you lend my fiancé a hand here?" Frerin asked, looking a bit sheepish as he offered Vicky his arm. "Now, how did you get in so early?"
"I simply hate flying with strangers." Vicky pouted, then simpered as she smiled with a bit of triumph. "A friend was heading this way and offered to allow me to come along."
"A friend?" Frerin asked curiously.
"Oh now, don't be jealous. It wasn't like that!" Cooed Vicky, so even though Frerin hadn't been jealous now it made it look like he should be.
"So much for a quiet afternoon by the pool." Ori mumbled.
Balin shook his head and gestured for the two boys to proceed him, even as he too picked up one piece of Vicky's luggage. One of six.
"How long did she think we were staying in Miami?" Fili asked. He'd heard Frerin tell her on the telephone it would only be a few days.
Balin ground his teeth.
Ori leaned in. "I'll clue you. Balin is a firm believer in if you don't have anything nice to say, keep your mouth shut until it does you the most good."
Fili eyed the white-bearded male and nodded.