Title: Watching over Durin's Sons
Summary: Fate has never been kind to the house of Durin. But Thorin thought the worst had been behind them. He was about to be proven wrong when a pack of Orcs raid through the Blue Mountains and take two treasures worth more than all the gold of Erebor. But that isn't the end of it. Fate has other plans for the sons of Durin. Pre, during and possibly post-Quest. Fíli!Whump, Kíli!Whump, Thorin!Angst.
Disclaimer: I do not own the Hobbit and this is honestly why I shouldn't be allowed to play Lego the Hobbit…it inspires epics like this.
A/N: Just so everyone is aware, Fíli and Kíli are the human equivalent of teenagers, so for the sake of argument, Fíli is about 35 in dwarf years and Kíli is 30 at the beginning of this.
Chapter 1
"Very good, Fíli!" Dwalin called from the fence line as he watched the young golden prince go through the training regimen Dwalin had set up for him. For having started weapons training in the past three months, the young heir was showing promising signs of being a natural warrior. Beside him stood the youngest Durin, Kíli, who watched with curious joy as his older brother continued to progress. Kíli was still too young to begin weapons training but since it was impossible to separate the two brothers, Kíli went to every sparring practice to watch his older brother. Today was no exception. Dwalin had wanted to try something out after noticing how Fíli seemed able to wield a sword with either hand so for today's practice, he had given him two, just to see what would happen. Fíli at first struggled with a sword in either hand but as he got more and more accustomed to the weight, he became more and more comfortable, if still a bit awkward. Dwalin smiled as he went through the routine, getting faster and faster each time. "You see, lad," Dwalin gruffed, nudging Kíli lightly with his elbow, "Yer brother there has the makings of a fine warrior."
"And what about me, Mister Dwalin?" Kíli asked hopefully. Dwalin laughed as he ruffled Kíli's wild mane of black hair. "We shall see when ye get older, won't we? Widen your stance, Fíli!"
Fíli listened to his cousin's order, widening his stance just a bit so that his weight was evenly distributed. He felt like his stance was too wide and he instantly brought his feet closer together. Dwalin sighed as he picked up a stone and gave it to Kíli. "Throw this at your brother's left side when I give you the signal."
"What's the signal?" Dwalin just smirked as he jumped into the ring, grabbing his training staff. Kíli stood and waited with the pebble in hand as he watched Dwalin walk in front of Fíli and block one of his swings. "Attack, Fíli."
Fíli did so without question, sending strike after strike at Dwalin. When Dwalin saw what he was looking for, he gave a quick nod to Kíli. Kíli recognized the signal and sent a rock flying into Fíli's unprotected side. The moment the rock hit Fíli, his brother turned to see what hit him just before Dwalin knocked Fíli's feet out from under him. Fíli hit the ground with a hard thud as Dwalin placed the end of his staff at Fíli's throat. "That is why you want to keep your weight evenly distributed. If yer stance had been wider, you wouldn't have been knocked over."
Dwalin removed the staff and helped the prince to his feet. With a smile, he clapped his hand on the young Dwarfling's shoulder. "Yer getting better, Fíli. Swordsmanship takes time and practice. We'll make a warrior out of you yet."
Fíli nodded as he Dwaling gently pushed him towards the fence line where his brother stood. "Come on, let's get ye both home before yer mother starts to think I kidnapped her sons."
Once Fíli reached his brother, he took the cloth his brother brought for him and wiped the sweat off his face. "Did you really have to throw that rock at me?"
"Mister Dwalin told me to," Kíli replied with a smile as he helped Fíli over the fence. "Besides, I would never give up the chance to watch you fall flat on your backside."
"Well, just you wait until you're in here training. It's not as easy as it looks." The brother's smiled as they followed their older cousin home. Dwalin smirked as he watched them over his shoulder as they playfully teased one another. Dwalin was close with his brother, Balin, but never had they ahd the bond that these two brothers shared. It was something special – something unique. They were fiercely loyal to one another and it would take an act of Mahal to break that.
They reached the home of Dis and her brother, Thorin, just as the sun was beginning to set. "I'll race you to the door, Fíli!"
"You're on!" The two rebellious teens flew past him at lightning speed, pushing one another to try and gain the advantage. It was no shock that they reached the front door at the same time. "I won!" Kíli cheered.
"No you didn't. I obviously got here before you."
"No you didn't. I was clearly ahead of you."
"Was not!"
"Was too!"
In a blink of an eye the two were wrestling on the ground, still arguing over who won. With a groan Dwalin was about to go break them up when the front door opened and Dis stepped outside, her hands on her hips. "What in Durin's name is going on here?"
The brothers froze, Fíli on top of Kíli while Kíli had a handful of his brother's long golden wheat hair in his hand. In a matter of seconds they were on their feet, dusting off the dirt they had gathered from their tussle. "Inside, the both of you…NOW!"
They jolted to life, rushing into the house to bathe before dinner. Once they were gone, Dis walked up to Dwalin and crossed her arms. "Teaching my boys to wrestle now, are you?"
"Of course not, Dis. They already knew how to do that. They don't need my help."
Dis smiled as she nodded to the small home behind her. "Care to join us for dinner? There's plenty to go around."
"Wish I could but I'm in charge of the watch tonight. A pack of Orcs were spotted not far from here so we need as many on watch tonight as we can get."
Dis nodded in understanding as Dwalin gave her a slight bow before bidding her goodbye and walking back towards where he came. Once he was gone she turned and walked back in the house. From the wash room she could hear the laughter and chatter of her two boys as they splashed one another with the water. A smile pulled at the corners of her lips as she finished preparing tonight's meal. When their father had been killed, she was worried that her boys would grow up with the memory looming over their heads but it seemed it could not put a damper on their spirits. She wasn't sure what could.
The door opened and when she looked up, she smiled broadly. "I was wondering when you would be coming in."
Thorin sighed as he removed his coat and boots by the rack that stood by the door. "Had some problems with the forge. Too many orders, not enough hands."
As he wiped off his hands on a rag he kept in his pocket, he said, "It would help if I had an extra pair of hands at the forge."
"No, absolutely not," Dis replied pointedly, stopping her task abruptedly. "Let them be children a little while longer, Thorin."
"I was Fíli's age when our father first taught me how to forge a sword."
"Yes and you grew up too quickly. Give him a chance to enjoy being a child for just a while longer. I beg of you, brother, give my boys a chance to be happy."
Thorin sighed, looking his sister straight in the eye. "He needs to learn sooner rather than later, Dis."
Dis wanted to argue further but the boys emerged, cleaned and changed into a fresh set of clothes. "Dinner smells amazing, amad," Kíli said with a happy sigh as they walked towards the kitchen.
As Kíli headed towards the table, Fíli approached his mother and asked, "Is there anything I can do to help, amad?"
"Here, take this to the table," she replied, handing him a plate with bread. As her eldest helped her to set the table, Thorin and Kíli began to arrange the silverware and soon they all sat around the table, ready to eat. The dinner was the same as ever; the boys would fight over how much more food the other had gotten, Thorin would ask about Fíli's training and Dis would scold Kíli for playing with his vegetables. Yes, everything was well in the house of Durin.
But that night would see it turn to ash and dust.
TBC…
Alright, I know, not a very exciting chapter and probably not the best opener (I hate openers) but this is just to show the calm before the storm that is the next chapter. And, if you're familiar with my previous fanfictions on the Hobbit, I'll give you a teaser!
Fíli had only ever dreamt of what a battle would look like after hearing the stories his uncle and cousin would tell him and Kíli when they were younger. He never expected it to look like this. The houses of the village burned as families of Dwarves ran to escape the flames. The Orcs were scarier than he had imagined, their flesh mutilated and eyes glowing yellow as they screeched and cried through the destruction. Thorin turned to his nephews and patted them on their shoulders. "Head for the forest, find your mother. I'll find you as soon as I can."
"Uncle…"
"Look after your brother, Fíli." Thorin turned without a word as he rushed towards the thick of the battle. Fíli and Kíli stood frozen, watching the horror before their eyes. After swallowing a lump in his throat, Fíli grabbed his brother's hand and pulled him along. "Come on, Kee, you heard what Uncle Thorin said."
They ran towards the forest as instructed but in the chaos of the battle, Kíli tripped on the body of a Dwarf, causing him to loose his grip on his brother's hand. "Fíli!"
Fíli turned and his face blanched. While Kíli tried to stand up, an Orc came running towards his little brother with his sword in the air. "Kíli, no!"
Alrighty, folks, please review and let me know what you think!
