Notes: I am hoping to update every week, but I also have a life, so that may (or may not) happen.

This happens after the events of Make Us Strong. You don't necessarily need to read it first, but that may help.

This is a re-telling of The Hobbit from mostly Fili's POV. It will contain events from both the book and the movies as well as a few things I add myself. As this is an AU, there will be place/people/events that I may tweak a bit.

Disclaimer: I don't own middle earth, but I would love to ;)

Chapter 1: Someone to share in an adventure

They had been walking for a several hours now and Fíli's leg was throbbing. The directions they had been given by the wizard had made enough sense in the light, but now that it was getting dark, both brothers were a little turned around. Scratch that, they were very lost. The paths and roads in this part of the Shire seemed to intertwine and weave around one another in a dizzying pattern. They had stopped to ask for directions several times, but each attempt was met with either blank stares, suspicious glares or slamming doors. So now they were back at square one: try to follow the wizard's directions.

"Gandalf said it was the green door with a mark at the top of the hill near the gnarled tree. So helpful. First thing, most of the doors around here are green. Except for that one; that one's yellow. Second, what in Mahal's name constitutes a 'gnarled tree'?" Kíli griped, "Like what about this? Is this a gnarled tree?" He grabbed part of the hedge row next to them and gave it a vicious tug. The branch snapped out of his hand and hit him square in the face before returning to its original position.

"That's a hedge, Kee," Fíli said not bothering to smother his laughter, "And I don't think it likes you."

"Well I'm sorry if botany is something I've never understood."

"No, for sure. Being able to identify plants in the wild will never come in handy. Thank heavens though that you have a keen interest in pie making," Fíli teased. Kíli opened his mouth, but after failing to come up with a smart retort, closed it with a snap. They walked on in silence for a few more minutes before Kíli spoke again.

"I wonder what this burglar fellow is like," Kíli mused.

"Well, I would wager that he's good. Gandalf seemed pretty confident in him," Fíli pointed out.

"No, I mean what is he going to be like. Like if he'll be all dark and broody like Uncle or if he'll be charming and wonderful like me."

"He'll probably be like Dwalin: ready to disembowel anyone who annoys them, so behave once we arrive," Fíli gave Kíli a pointed look. Kíli dismissed him with a wave of his hand.

"Yes, yes. But do you think maybe he'll be any good at archery? It would be nice to have another archer. Or maybe he'll have lots of good campfire stories like Balin. That would be nice. I mean, don't get me wrong, Balin has lots of good stories, they just get old after the ump-teenth time hearing them. Or maybe he'll be super easy to pull pranks on. I would like that. You can only pull so many on Ori before you get Dori on your case," Kíli continued rambling.

"Heavens above Kíli. If we walked as fast as your mouth talked, we could have been in Erebor hours ago."

Kíli blushed and was about to reply when he walked straight into a mailbox, knocking it clean off its post. Kíli scrambled to catch it, but it landed on the ground with a crash, it's contents spilling everywhere. Fíli groaned as Kíli hurriedly gathered up the spilt letters and shoved them back inside.

"Hey Fee, what was the burglar's name again?" Kíli called over his shoulder.

"Baggins. Why?"

"I think we're here. Mail box says 'Boggins' and there's a mark on the door. This must be the place Gandalf was talking about," Kíli responded as he gestured to first the mail box then the door. Fíli peered at the door. He could just make out a faint glowing mark on near the bottom. He slapped Kíli's shoulder.

"Well, it would appear that you are correct: we're here. This must be the home of Mister Baggins," Fíli stressed the correct pronunciation as they let themselves in the front gate.

"Aye, that's what I said. Weren't you listening?"

"Yeah, you totally mispronounced it. You said 'Boggins' not 'Baggins'."

"Did not," protested Kíli as he knocked on the front door.

"Did too," Fíli ribbed. Before Kíli could protest again, the swung door opened to reveal a very stressed looking hobbit. This particular hobbit, Fíli noticed, was a little taller than most of the other hobbits they had encountered thus far, though he still was much shorter than any Dwarf. Any thoughts of a fierce warrior hobbit vanished as Fíli took in the funny patchwork dressing gown.

"Fíli," Fíli said introducing himself. He thought about using their last name, but decided not to just in case any unfriendly ears were listening.

"And Kíli."

"At your service," they finished together with a sweeping bow.

"You must be Mr. Boggins," Kíli exclaimed enthusiastically. Fíli elbowed his brother in the ribs which earned him Kíli's death glare.

"No! You can't come in, you've come to the wrong house," the hobbit replied starting to shut the door in their faces. Kíli quickly stuck a foot forward, catching the door before it shut in their faces.

"Has it been canceled?" Kíli demanded.

"No one told us," Fíli added. He was a bit worried. He didn't like the prospect of having to find an inn in the dark in unfamiliar territory.

"Canceled? What? No, nothing's been canceled," the poor hobbit stammered, confusion written all over his face.

"Well, that's a relief," said Kíli grinning at Fíli. With that the brothers shoved their way inside. The hole was cozy and well lit; something Fíli greatly appreciated. Despite being a Dwarf, he didn't particularly like damp or dark underground spaces. Looking around, Fíli shrugged out of the shoulder sheaths for his twin swords. Those, along with some of Fíli's bigger knifes, were deposited in the hobbit's arms with instructions:

"Be careful, I just sharpened these."

"Mr. Dwalin!" Kíli exclaimed grabbing the warrior in a big hug. Dwalin returned the hug before cuffing the side of Kíli's head. The two taller Dwarfs launched into a chorus of gruff laughter before heading into the dining room. Fíli followed at slower pace, allowing his leg to rest a bit.

The dining room was spacious, but Fíli could see that it lacked enough chairs. He also noticed Balin smiling widely and making his way around the table. After embracing Fíli in much the same way Dwalin and Kíli had embraced, Balin escorted Fíli one of the few chairs at the long table.

"You sit here, lad. We'll finish everything," Balin said, patting Fíli on the shoulder.

"I'm not an invalid, you know," Fíli pointed out.

"Never said you were, but you sitting might give your brother some peace of mind," Balin nodded toward Kíli who was watching Fíli out of the corner of his eye while also trying to balance a stack of plates in each hand.

"Plus, you can keep the others from eating everything before everyone else arrives," the old dwarf added with a chuckle and mischievous wink. Fíli raised his hands in surrender before plopping down in the indicated chair. Though he would never admit it, it did feel good to sit down. As more dwarfs began to arrive, Fíli acted as commander, directing them to various tasks and giving them a light-hearted scolding when they tried to eat before everyone was ready.

Dinner was a rowdy affair. Food was both thrown and consumed. Drinks flowed. Songs were sung. Fíli was having so much fun that he nearly forgot why they were all there. They had just finished clean the dishes for the poor hobbit when there was a loud knock at the door. The door opened to reveal a tired and rather grumpy Thorin.