Chapter 25

*Fili*

Fili was not amused at all with Kili's little trick he pulled. There has to be a way I can get revenge on Kili! Fili thought. He was still deep in plots and schemes when Coal suddenly stumbled. Fili halted when Kili dismounted and lifted Coal's front hoof.

"What's the matter?" Fili asked.

"He picked up a stone in his shoe." Kili answered and proceeded to remove the stone which had lodged itself between the pony's soft bottom of his hoof and iron shoe. Fili watched Kili and then knew exactly what he was going to do to get even with his brother. By the time Kili stood up, Fili's sneeky plan had already been put to work.

They continued on for about half an hour until they both decided to stop for the night. Kili was about to get off his pony, when the saddle, without any warning, slide from Coal's back and Kili was in the dust.

"Fili, I know you did this. You had better learn to keep yourself awake for the rest of the journey or you're not going to like it." Kili said as calmly as he could, while anyone could see that he was inwardly seething with contained rage. Fili smirked and slid out of his saddle.

"You just can stay on the pony, can you?"

"Did you do it the first time too?" Kili asked, standing up and giving his elder a fierce look.

"No. That happened on its self."

"So you are guilty this time?"

"Maybe a little bit. Now it's my turn to ask a question: what will you do to me if I go to sleep?"

Kili smiled very grimly and said, "I guess you'll just have to find that out."

Now Fili was quite sure he did not want to put Kili on watch ever again for safety reasons. He was not sure what Kili was planning, but it could not be good in the least. There were times when Fili did not trust his little brother and right now was defiantly one of them.

"You know what you are, Kili?" he asked to change the subject.

"What?" Kili asked back and he sounded a little suspicious that Fili was going to say something he would not like.

"You are a dead-eye."

"A dead what?!" He did not seem too happy about it.

"A dead-eye." Fili repeated. Kili still did not look impressed, so Fili said, "Do you even know what that is?"

"No."

Fili shook his head. How could Kili not know what that meant?

"It means you are an expert archer. Take the complement." he said.

To say that Kili looked confused as to why Fili called him such a strange sounding name and then tell him that it was a complement would be an understatement. He looked absolutely baffled to no end. Fili glanced at him and began to laugh hard. When Kili's puzzled expression grew even more confused, the golden haired Dwarf almost collapsed in helpless glee.

"What is so funny?" Kili asked and Fili replied, "Your face when I said that! What were you expecting? To be teased?"

"Yes, I was. After all, I just threatened you."

Fili grinned. His brother always guessed the worst when someone said something he had never heard before. Kili still did not look completely convinced that a 'dead-eye' was entirely what Fili said it was and Fili felt like rolling his eyes, but he refrained from the action and began to try and think of a way to call a truce before what they were doing turned into a full-scale prank war when there was no one around to put an end to it. If it did become a war, Fili knew that it would not end until they reached The Shire.

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Kili seemed to have the most energy out of all the ponies and his brother, but Fili was not about to let him take watch first and wake up later to whatever sort of mischief Kili had planned. But then again, he was to going to go to sleep after Kili took second watch either, and wake up to the same thing.

Fili was sitting on the ground, while Kili untangled a snag in Coal's mane, and tried to think of a way to keep himself safe from Kili's devious mind and get some rest at the same time. So far everything the elder sibling had thought of would not work and he was starting to get discouraged on what to do. Maybe it would just be better to let him get it over with then learn to sleep with one eye on my brother the entire time. he thought, but his Dwarvish pride protested strongly against it. He sighed and shook his head, waiting for a suitable idea to present itself.

After he was finished brushing his pony, Kili walked over to Fili and sat next to him idly dragging a twig through the dust. Fili watched him do that, absently at first, but then almost with something akin to intrest.

"Why are you doing that, Kili?"

"I don't know, I'm just doing it is all." Kili replied without looking up at his brother. Fili shook his head and watched as Myrtle bit of the tops of wild onions and tried to get the offensive greenery out of her mouth. Fili chuckled a little at her actions.

Kili glanced up at the pony in distress and grinned before starting to make some kind of pattern with his twig. Fili closed his eyes for a minute or so and when he reopened them and looked at what Kili was doing, he saw that his little brother had drawn Fili's personal emblem, his own next to it, and beneath them he and written in Dwarven runes: "Truce, brother?"

The crown prince looked over at Kili who smiled at him. Fili considered the options carefully. If he were to say no, that could mean Kili would stop at nothing to get revenge. If he accepted, it could mean either Kili was not in the mind set for something like a war or that he was just saying that to make Fili relax his guard and then suddenly do something to him. Fili was expecting the latter and he decided to play along.

"Alright Kee, I agree to your truce." he said.

"Good."

The trap was sprung. If Kili really gave up he would have just nodded and started a different conversation.

A/N I am sorry I did not update sooner! I wanted to but then a writer's block hit and depression happened. It was sad. So anyway, I'M BACK! And I am now the proud owner of… The Desolation of Smaug DVD! :D

Thank you all the favoriters and followers out there! And of course the wonderful Alicia 457, Mira Meliandra, GregsMadHatter, jaymzNshed, ACreativeHobbit, Akeea, Syblime, leggomygreggo2, Wraven, and Apophis god of chaos for reviewing! The Durin boys really love the reading they get to do thanks to you guys.