The sun was just past its highest point in the sky when Fili and Kili finally began to climb the Mountain. They had not had far to travel that day, as they had reached Dale the previous night, but Bard had requested a full account of events in return for warm beds and plentiful food in his own rather large house, and of course that had taken most of the evening and a good part of the morning to finish. The King of Dale had explained that he wouldn't usually demand no other payment from uninvited visitors, but he felt guilty that so much harm had been done within his city while, due the chaos of the rebuilding, he had been completely unaware. Brúthor had also been included in this generous offer, but the elf had politely declined and instead asked directions to the nearest tavern.
"I've drunk the ale of every town of men east of the Misty Mountains and north of Harad," he had said, "I wouldn't want to miss one so close to home."
That was the last Fili and Kili had seen of Brúthor, but they had bidden him farewell and told him to stop by for some dwarven ale sometime.
The remaining part of that morning had been spent sorting out the dwarven stone masons, who had carried on under their own steam in the absence of their prince. It seemed that Thorin had informed them early on that, upon rescue by Fili, Kili would be returning to Erebor rather than continuing his duties in Dale, and thus their most skilled mason would be the spokesperson for them all and coordinate their work with Bard's wishes. To the relief of both princes, there seemed to be nothing left for them to do with regard to the building work so after reassuring the group of dwarves that they were both okay, they took the opportunity to fill Fili's pack with food for the short remaining journey (anything but cram) and make ready to leave. Tilda was sad to see them go so soon after arriving, but made them promise to drop by any time they were passing, and come for tea too.
Now Fili climbed the stone steps to the smaller entrance just above the great Gate of Erebor - the little-used one, since there was no real need to publicise their return - moving slowly so that his brother could keep up. Kili had not complained once about his leg for the whole journey, in spite of the fact that it was not yet fully healed, but his pace was still hindered by it so the elder Durin made a point of going slower than usual so that Kili would not feel that he was holding them up unnecessarily.
Still, now that the steps were steep and narrow, it was proving one challenge too many.
Fili looked behind to see Kili at least fifteen steps behind, resting his hand heavily on the cliff-face to one side.
"Fee, I..." Kili breathed in heavily, his face contorted with frustration, then promptly sank against the rock as his knees gave way.
Skipping back down the staircase two steps at a time, Fili said quickly, "Don't worry brother, we're nearly there. We'll see Amad and Uncle at the top. Come on, you can do it."
Reaching Kili, he slipped an arm round his brother's shoulders and hoisted him to his feet. "Not that far to go. One step at a time," he said encouragingly, and received an elbow in his ribs for his efforts. He glanced up in annoyance.
"Gimme a week," said Kili with a grin, "then I'll race you up these steps and beat you by a mile."
Realising that he was being rather patronising, Fili grinned back and simply focused on climbing the long staircase. His younger brother was adamantly taking most of his own weight still, but eventually they reached the top and Kili took a moment to gather his strength before relinquishing the assistance with a small smile of thanks.
They passed a few dwarves on their way in, still working hard on clearing the tunnels of the mountain. Although they were only wearing travelling gear - and some of it adjusted from elvish garments no less - they were recognised by at least half of those they passed and received respectful bows and offers of service. Soon, though, they passed into a series of much less used passages, which held a shortcut to their own quarters. They did not want to avoid other dwarves on purpose - quite the opposite, in fact, they could not wait to see their mother again - but Fili thought that it would probably be better for them to change into something a little more dignified before going to meet Thorin and his sister.
They washed quickly to rid themselves of some of the grime of travel, and dressed in soft, clean, well-fitted clothes befitting their status before taking to the passageways of Erebor once more, this time setting their feet in the direction of the great hall. While they knew it was unlikely their uncle would be there himself, there was a strong chance that they would meet someone there who could direct them to him.
As it happened, they did not need to go all the way to the great hall. Not three passages from their quarters, a short red-haired figure swerved round the corner ahead of them and skidded to a halt just a moment too late, causing Fili and Kili to spring out of the way to avoid being hit. The red-head turned and his eyes lit up at the sight of them.
"Fili! Kili! I haven't seen you in ages!"
The two brothers laughed and clapped their younger cousin on the shoulder, moving in on either side to flank him as they walked slowly together.
"It's been too long Gimli!" grinned Kili, "How have things been without us?"
"Oh, it's been dreadful," said Gimli darkly, "Everyone's been worrying and gloomy and no fun at all. But I think that's how they all are anyway, just I never noticed before because you brightened things up so much."
"Aww, thanks Gimli!" said Fili, giving the shortest dwarf a one-armed squeeze, "I hope we haven't grown up too much to make this mountain a boring place now."
Gimli gaped. "The Mountain? Boring? Cousin, if it were filled with rotten elves this place couldn't be anything less than wondrous. I've never seen anything like it, and it already feels more like home than Ered Luin ever was. The stone speaks here, Fili. It sings."
Kili frowned slightly at the mention of 'rotten elves', but Fili noticed and gave him a pacifying shrug and with a troubled expression, the dark-haired prince relaxed again.
"Have you seen Thorin today?" Fili changed the subject to what they really wanted to know.
"No, not today," said Gimli, "He'll be in his office though. Something happened an hour or so ago that he might still be dealing with."
"What sort of something?" Kili questioned curiously.
"It was...what's his name? The one who had his trial..." Gimli stroked his beard as he tried to remember the name.
"Svithrir?" Kili offered, looking worried.
"Yes, that was the one," said Gimli.
"Is he okay? When was the trial? What happened? Why did it go ahead so soon?" Kili burst out, and Fili reached out and put a hand on his arm to calm him.
"He was let off," replied Gimli quickly, "And he is fine, as far as I'm aware. Some drunk tried to pick a fight with him, though. Didn't think he should have been released."
"And what about Svîur?" Kili pressed, some of the tension leaving him.
"He's with Ori, learning letters" Gimli shuddered, "Why he's submitting himself willingly to such torture is beyond me."
Kili breathed a sigh of relief. "Well then, I suppose I can thank Svithrir when we find Thorin. Thanks for putting my mind at rest, Gimli."
"Oh...er, it was nothing," the youngest dwarf replied awkwardly. He paused. "We had group training today."
"How did it go?" Fili asked with interest. There had been a lot of new faces to get used to what with all the Iron Hills dwarves in the mountain, but now there would be many more familiar ones around and the place might actually start feeling a bit more like home.
"Strangely," said Gimli in a low voice, "They have a lot more warriors than we do."
Kili laughed. "It's just the extra competition. You can't stand not winning all the time. Who is it, then, who can best you with an axe?"
"Âlof," Fili concluded before Gimli could reply, then frowned. "But she was injured, surely she's not fighting again already?"
"Ah, that would be the problem," said Kili knowledgeably, "Not being able to see who is the best. It's always worst not knowing what you're up against."
"Let me speak, would you?" exclaimed Gimli with irritation, and the princes promptly burst out laughing.
At that moment they came upon the door to Thorin's study, and Fili and Kili came to a halt. Gimli turned and looked at them.
"Well, I guess I'll see you later," he waved cheerily, "I'm off to see what Bombur's got left over from lunch."
He was gone before they could employ him as their personal biscuit-thief.
"I'm hungry," grumbled Kili, "We should have packed more food in Dale."
Fili decided not to contest the matter by pointing out that Kili had in fact eaten far more than half the provisions they had packed for lunch, and even then Fili felt he had eaten quite a sufficient amount. He did not understand it, so he let the matter drop, instead raising his fist to knock on Thorin's smooth stone door. He could hear voices inside, unmistakably Thorin's, and Balin's, and occasionally his mother's. He did not want to interrupt whatever they were talking about, feeling it would be rude to barge in like this, but ultimately he did not have to, for around the corner came two worried-looking dwarves who strode right up to the door and knocked loudly three times.
"Er...excuse me," spoke up Kili, feeling somewhat insulted that they had so completely ignored his and Fili's presence. Not because they were princes, but just because...well, they were here first.
"Yes?" said the male - for they were clearly husband and wife - as steps echoed from inside the King's study. "What can I do for you young sir?"
"Um...well, we were just wondering what your problem was, and whether we could help with it?" Fili stepped in to save his brother from being outright rude at this point.
The dwarrowdam frowned, and Fili suddenly thought that she looked somewhat familiar. "No, I don't think you can," she said, "We were just looking for Mister Darin, and we were told that he might be found here."
"Do you mean Dwalin?" Kili suggested, "Because I've never met a Mister Darin."
"The weapons master," confirmed the husband, but at that moment the door opened.
Dwalin himself stood in front of them, and as he clapped eyes on Kili his face split into a grin and he stepped forward to pat the youngest Durin hard on the shoulder.
"Good teh see yer well again, Kili," he said deeply, and the dark-haired archer covered a wince with a smile as his bad shoulder was struck in a friendly, and yet rather violent manner.
"Good to be well again, Dwalin," he replied. "Is Thorin here?"
"I'm here, Kili," came the voice of the King, and then Thorin was there, moving past his close friend to engulf his youngest sister-son in a bone-crushing hug. Usually Kili would have protested that he was too old for such things, but now he just relished the sense of security that his uncle brought. Fili watched with half a smile on his face.
Dwalin spoke again, "And what are these folk doing here? Is something the matter?"
"Yes," said the wife.
"It's about Âlof," said the husband simultaneously. Fili suddenly realised why these people had seemed familiar. There was no mistaking them now for Âlof's parents.
"What about Âlof?" Dwalin grunted.
"She's missing," said Âlof's mother.
"She didn't return from training this morning," said Âlof's father at the same time.
"This morning?" Kili interrupted, "But it's only just past midday. Surely there's no cause for worry yet? She's quite capable of looking after herself."
The dwarrowdam turned and looked Kili up and down pointedly, and Fili shifted forward and stood up straighter, instinctively defensive.
"Excuse me for saying, but you look rather too young and scruffy to be making such assumptions, Prince Fili,"
"Kili," corrected Kili through gritted teeth.
"My apologies," she said with patronisingly raised eyebrows.
Thorin stepped in. "And I apologise, but you are very much mistaken." He moved forward and put a hand on Kili's shoulder. "My nephew here is one of the finest warriors in this mountain and quite old enough to make such judgements. However, if you were expecting Âlof back, I'm sure enquiries can be made as to her whereabouts. Have you tried asking at the front gate? For then you can be assured that she has not left the Mountain."
"Thank you very much, your highness," said Âlof's father, though it was not clear whether the comment was sarcastic. He turned to Dwalin. "We have been reliably informed that the last place she was seen was following you. We thought perhaps you could tell us something."
"Aye, she followed me to the kerfuffle with the drunk," said Dwalin, "But that was over an hour ago. Surely she has been seen since?"
Balin now appeared in the doorway, with Dis at his side and Svithrir hovering hesitantly behind him.
"Well, if we are dealing with this now, I do not think it is fair to detain Svithrir any longer. But please, Svithrir, if you are ever troubled again, come straight here."
"Thank you," the father of Svîur inclined his head, "I will." He smiled thankfully at the dwarves who had turned his life around, and began to walk off down the corridor.
Balin addressed the two young warriors then with a warm smile of greeting: "Fili, Kili! It is good to see you both in fine health and returned to Erebor once more."
"It's good to be back," said Kili, for what felt like the hundredth time that day, "But...um...I really should catch Svithrir. I've a lot to thank him for. I won't be long!"
With that, he dashed after the retreating figure and caught up just before Svithrir turned a corner, and then they were both out of sight.
Fili shook his head and recalled himself to the present moment. He didn't think he'd ever feel comfortable when Kili suddenly ran off into the blue, no matter how safe he would be. Without his shadow at his side, there was always something niggling at the back of his mind, telling him that something wasn't right, though he knew perfectly well what was different and that it would all turn out fine in the end.
Dis found a place next to him and squeezed his arm gently. Their eyes met, and Fili knew that at least one person understood him.
Thorin was speaking to Âlof's parents again. "An hour is not a long time for an dwarrowdam of her age to be missing. I do not think there is cause yet for worry, but I will have the guards alerted in any case. You can be assured that if she is not brought back by the evening, a thorough search will be conducted."
Fili shared a glance with his mother, remembering a time when he and Kili had accidentally stayed out too long and been caught in a thunderstorm. They had been forced to shelter the night in a rough cave, which would have been fine had they been able to return home the next day, except that the river had swollen so much that it was impossible to cross and they had been forced to spend a further two days in the wild. Thankfully, nothing terrible had befallen them in that time, but they had worried their mother sick. Compared to that, being an hour late home was nothing.
"Thank you, your majesty," said Âlof's father, "That is comforting to know. And please inform her that her actions will not be without consequences."
"You may tell her that yourself," Thorin said gruffly, then turned to Dwalin. "If you would be so kind as to pass the word around the guards of a missing cadet, and Fili, would you care to come in and sit down while we wait for Kili to return? I believe Dori has just made another pot of tea."
"Indeed I have!" came a call from inside that was unmistakably Dori's voice. Fili wondered what he was doing here, for while it was not unusual to find some member of the company in Thorin's office for this and that, Dori was usually too busy to trouble the King.
"Thank you, Uncle. I'm sure he won't be long," said Fili, stepping through the doorway and being followed by Dis and Balin. The dismissal of Âlof's parents was clear, and they got the hint, while Dwalin purposely took the other direction down the corridor to go and alert his guards. Thorin followed the others back into his study and closed the door.
"Fili," he smiled, "I hear you have had quite the adventure."
"Aye," chuckled Fili, not denying it, for all in the room knew that real 'adventure' was quite different to the childhood fantasies bearing the same name.
"Well, it is good that all justice was dealt out eventually," said Thorin, having heard most of the story already from Dis.
"Not all justice," Fili shook his head, "The leader of the gang is yet to be found, though we burned one of the criminal hideouts."
"We?" Balin questioned.
"The elves learned of the place and I went with them to destroy it," Fili explained with a shrug, sighing internally at the fractional tension in all of his companions. "We found a lot of paperwork, which suggests that the organisation is near-professional. There was also a map, which will hopefully lead to the end of the criminals in this part of the world. The trip lasted less than two days in all."
"And Kili?" asked Thorin.
"Oh, he was perfectly fine," replied Fili, grinning despite himself. He noticed his mother frowning at him, but he did not elaborate on his point. He did not think Kili would thank him if he mentioned Tauriel.
"Tea?" asked Dori politely, and Fili nodded as Balin gestured for him to take a seat. He sank into it gratefully, the full weariness that had been building up for days now washing over him in a great wave. While he had rested more than adequately for the most recent part, he still hadn't been home. There was a difference.
Home. He wondered when he had started thinking of Erebor as such. All his life, in a way, he guessed, but it had never quite seemed right...until now. He looked up at his mother and smiled, just as the door opened and Kili came back in.
"Ma, is it okay if Svithrir and Sviur come for tea tomorrow? I didn't want to take up too much of his time so I just asked him and -"
"That's absolutely fine, Kili dear," Dis cut across her youngest son with a fond smile, "As long as you promise not to cook."
The dark-haired prince grinned sheepishly, and Fili laughed. "Renew that promise, you mean," he corrected, "Kili promised never to cook again after the first time he set the curtain on fire. The curtain on the opposite side of the room to the oven."
"That wasn't my fault!" exclaimed Kili, though they all knew perfectly well that it was.
"Take a seat, Kili," said Thorin with a smile, remembering the incident. "There is much I wish to catch up on, and much we must discuss too, before I suggest you both eat early and retire to bed."
"Aye, Mahal knows you need the rest," agreed Balin, taking a seat opposite Fili and leaning forward with his hands clasped on the table. "There are just a few things, first, that I'd like cleared up..."
They talked well into the afternoon, not just about the most recent events, but also about the Mountain and how various trades were thriving in the ever-growing city. Balin mentioned that a thin vein of Erebor Mithril had been discovered by some of the miners, and that Bofur was currently investigating the practicality of following it. Thorin commented that some of the tunnel-clearing in the wider reaches of the Kingdom had uncovered vaster networks than could ever have been imagined, all untouched by the dragon - however, that did not render them free of corpses or fall-ins due to years of neglect.
At approximately half-past-three, Balin got up and promptly returned with a stack of plates, a perfectly round seed-cake, and a knife.
"It's just about time for afternoon tea, don't you think?" he proclaimed with a wink. The others laughed, for though they had teased Bilbo incessantly on the quest, it was they who, in the end, were adopting his fine traditions.
As they ate, Dori poured some more tea, and Fili suddenly remembered to ask, "Dori, do you know if I'll find Ori in the library? I need to ask a favour of him."
"He'll either be there or in the cells - or possibly the tavern," said Dori, accidentally sloshing tea into his own saucer. There was a hint of bitterness as he spoke.
Fili frowned. "Has something happened?"
"It's more that something hasn't happened, laddie," said Balin with a sigh, "It's been going on for ages."
"What?" asked Kili curiously. Dis also leaned forward in her seat, for she had not been there to witness the beginning of the minor feud and had not yet heard the full story.
Dori firmly closed his mouth and turned away. Balin leaned over and whispered, "He and Nori argued. They haven't spoken to each other for days. Ori's torn between the two."
The silver haired dwarf suddenly span round, the teapot clattering sideways onto the bench and sodden tea leaves splattering.
"I thought he had changed!" Dori exclaimed, his face as upset as any of them had ever seen, "I thought he was moving on! For once in his life he has an honest job, and then he declares that he's throwing it all away! I couldn't let him, Thorin, I couldn't let him go back to his old ways. He wants to quit his job and open a tavern. What sort of tavern do you think he'd run? It doesn't take a genius to see where it would end! More than likely he'd die early by accidental stabbing during a bar fight!"
Fili shared a glance with Kili, both surprised. They had not heard any of this.
Kili spoke, "Well, there is only one tavern in town..."
"...and the landlord doesn't give a sod about his job..." added Fili.
"I am NOT having Nori running some disreputable tavern just because there aren't any good ones yet!" cried Dori, "For once he's been given a good start, and finally left his bad name behind, but he'd rather still be among drunks and crooks!"
A silence fell, in which no one could think of anything with which to reply to Dori's outburst. Balin cleared his throat awkwardly. He and Thorin were not looking at each other. The silver-haired dwarf looked from one grimace to the next, his expression becoming more and more desperate, and at last he heaved a long-suffering sigh.
"Well, don't just sit there! If you've got something to tell me, say it!"
Balin cleared his throat again, and as no one else offered to speak, he made the point that he had already discussed at length with the King.
"Well, you see Dori, there is not much we can do at the moment to find out what the people think of Thorin as a King," he explained, "Bofur gathers what he can from the miners, and Oin would have a means of gathering information if only he weren't so deaf, but really, the best place to find out anything you want to know is -"
"-a tavern," finished Dori sourly. "You think Nori opening a tavern would give you a safe place to hear news fast."
"Well...yes," confirmed Balin, "but that's not all. To have a trustworthy landlord would benefit us all greatly I'm sure. A tavern where the landlord turns a blind eye can become the hangout for the scum of a kingdom, but Nori isn't like that. He knows the good sort from the bad."
Aye," agreed Thorin wearily, getting up and patting Dori on the shoulder sympathetically. He was not in favour of Nori going anywhere near his past either, but Balin had too many good arguments which he could not disagree with. "And we may be nobles now but that doesn't mean we can't enjoy ourselves once in a while."
"Safe or not, you are not making your second home in a tavern on my watch," exclaimed Dis, "I'm inclined to side with Dori here, if only because it'll stop you having nights out and staggering home drunk afterwards, bringing down the royal reputation!"
Fili and Kili sniggered, remembering the one time Thorin had actually got drunk. Suffice to say, it hadn't happened again.
"I don't think that's too much of a danger," said Balin quickly, noting Thorin's glare, then he glanced at Fili and Kili. "If necessary, though, we can request a limit on the amount of ale one can buy."
As the two princes began to protest, Dis cut them off with a single look. "If that is possible, then you have me convinced. A tavern owner who looks after his customers is rare but valuable."
Dori smiled a watery smile. "Well Nori's not going to talk to me until I apologise, so perhaps it is best that you take his side. Oh, what am I to do now? I don't know if I can bear to face him to say I was wrong - though I'm still not happy about it."
Thorin frowned, then spoke unexpectedly. "Dori, has Nori ever been right where you were wrong in the past?"
Dori started for a moment, taken by surprise. "Well...yes, I suppose there have been times," he answered slowly.
"And on those occasions, how did Nori take it?"
"He...oh, well I suppose he just accepted it and never mentioned it again, now I come to think of it," Dori frowned.
Thorin smiled. "Then there is nothing to fear by apologising to him now. I'm sure Ori will be more than happy to have you all back together again."
Relief washed over Dori's face and he straightened up, picking up the teapot from the bench and finding a cloth to mop up the tea-leaves. "Thank you," he said, "Thank you, thank you, thank you. I will go and find him right now, before I start having second thoughts. Thank you."
Leaving the teapot on the table, he left the room with a determined stride. As the door swung shut again, Balin breathed a sigh of relief.
"Well, that's that sorted."
"About time too," agreed Thorin.
"I ought to go and find Ori before I forget," said Fili, rising from his seat, "If I'm not back in time for dinner, assume I've got lost on my way to the library."
"Very well," said Thorin, "I will ask Bombur to make something special tonight."
"Oh no you won't," cut in Balin, "You've still got a stack of documents to get through before this evening and not much time left."
As Thorin groaned at the sheer amount of administration work he had to do now, Kili also made to get up.
"Has Gwyn come from Ered Luin?" he asked his mother.
"Yes, I would expect she is in one of the empty workshops on the eighth level," replied Dis, "Why?"
"My travelling clothes didn't survive the trip; I came home in Elvish garb," replied Kili, "And I promised Svîur I wouldn't charge him for new trousers."
"Well, don't be long," his mother smiled, and with a grin and a wave, Kili was gone.
Gwyn was not hard to find, mostly because of the exclamations and curses that drew Kili to the fifth craft room along the corridor to find several dwarves, including Gwyn, surrounding a square wooden table upon which rested a curious object. He knocked on the door out of courtesy, and the talking stopped as all seven dwarves turned to see who the visitor was. Kili cleared his throat, but it was unnecessary.
"Kili!" exclaimed Gwyn, excusing herself from the other dwarves and coming to greet him properly. Once out in the corridor, they placed their hands on each other's shoulders and, after a pause, head-butted each other with all the force they dared. It was a tradition that they had stolen as small children from Balin and Dwalin - in fact, it had originally been Fili's idea to borrow the greeting for their small group of friends in Ered Luin. They took a step back from each other and smiled, taking in the small changes in the other that had come to pass in the year since they last saw each other.
Gwyn wore a tunic and breeches, which was not the usual style for a dwarrowdam but Kili was not surprised, since when one was able to tailor one's own clothes with the mastery that Gwyn had perfected, there were no rules at all on what one could wear. The top part of her warm brown hair was pulled back into four immaculate braids which joined and then fell down her back as one, while the rest of her hair fell to her waist. Her beard, longer than either Fili's or Kili's, formed a small braid at her chin. And she was smiling, as usual. Nothing much had changed.
He, on the other hand...
"Have you grown?" Gwyn tilted her head to the side inquisitively.
"No, I've been taller than you for years," laughed Kili.
Gwyn raised an eyebrow. "Just."
"Just," agreed Kili, nodding. "What's going on in there?"
"It's a machine they found during some clearing work," explained Gwynedd, "It's only half-made but they think it was intended to sew automatically. Don't ask me how. It's what we've been trying to figure out since yesterday morning."
Kili peered back into the room with the machine, and saw an old dwarf slowly turning a wheel on one side of the strange contraption. He shook his head, baffled. Gwyn laughed in agreement.
"What did you want to see me about anyway?"
"Oh, right, that," Kili remembered, "I'm short on travelling clothes and I wondered if you'd be able help."
"Depends on how much you're willing to pay," grinned Gwyn, "As there's so much gold here in Erebor, my prices have gone up to account for inflation."
"For a shirt and trousers?"
"Thirty-five gold coins."
Kili's jaw dropped. "No family discounts?"
"You're not my relative," Gwyn pointed out.
"...friend discounts?"
The dwarrowdam rolled her green eyes. "You're a prince now, Kili, surely you can afford it."
The prince in question looked sheepish. "Well, yes, but..."
"Then I'm not changing the price. It would usually be sixteen for the shirt and twenty for the trousers, but since you're buying them together I've discounted one gold coin already. That's all you're getting."
"Fine," Kili sighed with fake reluctance, but Gwyn's eyes were smiling; she knew it was only jest. He grinned. "You'd better have them ready by next week or I may have to pass a new law."
"Have me thrown in prison for not finishing your clothes on time?" Gwyn suggested, teasing.
Kili shuddered. "No, I don't think you deserve quite that. Something more along the lines of 'Subjects who do not meet their deadlines are to sit only on elvish chairs for an entire day'."
The dwarrowdam frowned. "That doesn't sound too bad," but Kili shook his head knowingly, leaving Gwyn to wonder.
He looked as if he was going to speak again, when suddenly a dwarf from inside the room with the machine let out a loud curse and stormed away down the corridor. As Kili and Gwyn looked on with curiosity, another, older dwarf poked his head out from the room.
"Well, it looks as if no more progress will be made today, Lady Gwyn. You might as well go home and come back early tomorrow while it's still quiet, since you seem to be the most patient with this Mahal-forsaken machine." He turned, and followed his frustrated companion away down the hall.
Gwyn turned to Kili and shrugged. "Looks like I'm released for today. Do you know where Fili is? I haven't seen him since I arrived."
"Library," replied the prince, pulling a face, "He went to find Ori."
The brown-haired lass suddenly looked worried. "I don't know my way to the library yet. Could you give me directions?"
Kili laughed, most unhelpfully. "I don't know the way either! It's a maze, by all accounts. But two heads are better than one, right? I know the general direction, and we're bound to find someone who can tell us the way."
Gwyn laughed and shrugged, "Okay, but if we get lost I'm blaming you!"
So...trying to find the library...good idea? O_O
And Gwyn is an actual person. Yes, she's real! Check out Gwynedd Silverfighter on this website, she's awesome :D
Reviews, anyone? :P *employs Gimli as personal biscuit thief* okay people who review get tea and biscuits!
