.

THANK YOU!

To ALL those who let me know you were out there reading. I really appreciated it.

Now...let's see what Fili has to say to his little stowaways.

Eeeep...I can't watch!

(yes I can, hee hee)

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Chapter 102

~X~

Bain was sitting by the campfire, enjoying a well-deserved rest when he saw Dunner approach. At first he could not for the life of him figure out what he was carrying. Yet as he got closer, Bain's mouth fell open in shock…it appeared to be two children, one tucked under each arm as if he were carrying two small barrels.

"Dunner?" Bain asked, leaping up as he stared at his second in command. "What in Middle Earth do you have there?"

"Stowaways, Sire," the soldier reported coming to a stop and setting the squirming lads down on their feet. "Found them hiding in the supply wagon. They claim to belong to Prince Fili."

Bain could clearly see that they were indeed the crown prince's sons, and as he thought of the ramifications of them being there, he shut his eyes and let out a low moan.

"Fili is going to be furious!" he stated, opening his eyes and staring at the lads in disbelief. "What were you two thinking, coming along like this? Don't you realize how dangerous this is? Does your mother know where you are?" Then then threw his hands up in the air and rolled his eyes, not allowing them to answer any of his questions. "Of course she doesn't! Sier would never have allowed you to come…and neither would Fili! This is bad…this is very, very bad!"

Flinn and Frerin just stood there watching Prince Bain rant on, not sure if they should try and interject something in their defense, or just remain quiet. However, if the way Bain was acting was any indication of how their father would react…they began to suspect that they were in a lot of trouble.

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Fili and Kili had just sat down to dinner, which consisted of another hearty stew with bread and ale, when the prince of Dale and his man, Dunner, approached their camp.

"Don't worry, Bain," Fili laughed, glancing up at the solemn looking man. "We haven't forgotten that we're on guard duty tonight."

"That is not why I'm here," he admitted, looking almost afraid to speak his mind. "It appears that something that belongs to you got mixed up with our supplies, and found its way into our wagon."

"Oh?" Fili was confused. "And what might that be?"

Bain gave a heavy sigh and stepped aside, signaling for his second in command to approach. When the two dwarf princes saw the forlorn looking lads being directed forward - a strong hand on each of their shoulders so they could not escape - their mouths fell open in shock. Fili jumped to his feet, and Kili's bowl of stew slipped from his hands, spilling on the ground.

"FLINN? FRERIN?" Fili shouted, a mixture of shock and horror in his voice. "What in the name of Mahal are you two doing here?"

"Adad!" Frerin cried, pulling away from Dunner and running to his father, wrapping his little arms around his legs in a vice grip.

"I am sorry, Prince Fili," Bain continued. "We had no idea the lads were hiding in our supply wagon until just now. They must have slipped in without our notice. We do apologize for not being more vigilant."

"This is no fault of yours, Bain," Fili assured him, his face now grim with anger. Yet even as upset as he was, he still allowed his hand to slip down to Frerin's back, rubbing it gently as he leveled his eyes on Flinn. "And what do you have to say for yourself?"

"We…we wanted to come and help you, Adad," Flinn explained, not daring to look into his father's steel blue eyes.

"Help me?" Fili repeated, disbelief in his voice. "Help me? By stowing away you have done the exact opposite! Do you have any idea how much trouble you have caused? Or how much trouble you two are in right now?" He then stiffened up. "What happened to your camping trip with Bombur? Is he out there right now franticly looking for you two?"

"No…he…he thinks we went back to the mountain," Flinn admitted, digging the toe of his boot into the dirt nervously. "Frerin pretended to be homesick, so Bombur took us into Dale and handed us over to a guard who was supposed to take us to find Prince Bain. And while we did kind of find him, we didn't exactly let him know that we were hiding in his wagon when he traveled back to Erebor to meet up with you." He then lifted his eyes to his father's, a pleading look in them. "We never lied…not really. Bombur told us to stay with Prince Bain until he handed us back over to you."

"And now he has," Fili said, tipping his head back and shutting his eyes in frustration. "Flinn, I can't believe you did this! I thought you knew better than to disobey me. I told you in no uncertain terms that you could not come along…and yet, here you are!" He reached up and ran his hands through his hair as he gave out a growl, very reminiscent of Thorin. He stared at his sons, unsure what to do or say. "I…I can't deal with you right now, I am far too angry." He then turned and stormed away from the camp, disappearing into the dark.

Kili watched him go, giving a heavy sigh before he looked over at Bain.

"Thank you for finding them," he told the still distressed looking prince. "I apologize that this happened, but you can rest assured that we will take it from here."

"I'm just sorry we didn't discover them sooner," Bain lamented. He then bowed to Kili as he and Dunner returned to their camp.

"Are…are we in a lot of trouble, Uncle Kili?" Frerin sniffled, holding out his hands in a request to be picked up.

"I'm afraid so, little one," Kili told him, lifting him into his arms and allowing the dwarfling to snuggle into him. "I have no idea what your father is going to do with you."

"Can't you talk to him?" Flinn begged, rushing up to tug on Kili's coat in a pleading fashion. "He listens to you. Tell him we're really, really sorry."

"Are you?" Kili asked, looking down at Flinn with a raised eyebrow. "Are you sorry for what you did…or only sorry you got caught?" When Kili realized what he had just said, he was stunned by the fact that he had heard those exact same words before…but out of Thorin's mouth! How many times had he and Fili been in this very position? In trouble for something they had done and begging their uncle to forgive them? He could almost hear Thorin's loud booming laugh in his head, muttering something about payback time.

"I'm sorry we ever came!" Frerin assured him, never taking his head off of Kili's shoulder. "I don't want Adad mad at me."

"And you, Flinn?" Kili prompted.

"I…I'm sorry that Adad is mad at us too," he said, bowing his head in shame. "And I know it was wrong to come…but…but I couldn't let Adad go off alone!"

"And what about us?" Dwalin huffed, the other dwarves having remained silent up till now. "Do you not think we would have protected your adad?"

"I know you would, Uncle Dwalin," Flinn moaned, now worried that he had insulted him as well. "But…it's not the same. We wanted to help him."

"But you didn't, did you?" Bofur pointed out. "And don't think I'm not upset with you also for tricking my brother and making him a party to your little lie. How do you think he is going to feel when he finds out what you did?"

"Not good, I guess," Flinn was starting to see how wrong he had truly been.

"Not good, is right," Bofur nodded, doing his best to remain stern, though it was a difficult thing to do in the face of two miserable dwarflings.

"And what do you think this news will do to your ama?" Nori added, always having had a soft spot for Sier. "I wouldn't be surprised if she burst into tears over such a deception."

"We're really sorry…honest!" Flinn bawled, flopping down on the ground in abject misery. He brought his knees up and buried his head in his folded arms, acting as if the whole world had suddenly come to an end. "Adad will never love us again!"

"Well….let's not go that far," Kili stated, patting the still weeping Frerin on his back gently. "Your adad might be upset with you now, and rightly so, but that does not mean he doesn't love you." He then looked over his shoulder to where Fili had disappeared, a thoughtful look on his face. "Have you two eaten dinner yet?" He asked in a kind tone.

"No!" Frerin was quick to answer, his head jerking up as his little tummy pleaded for some warm food. After two long days of only dried meat, bread and cheese, he would have accepted anything his uncle offered.

"Then why don't you stay here and eat some stew, while I go talk to your adad," Kili suggested, handing the littlest dwarfling over to Bofur's waiting arms. He spared a moment to glance at Tauriel, who had been standing nearby, watching the whole scene with rapt attention. "Well, it appears that you get to meet Fili's sons a bit sooner than you thought." He gave a half-hearted laugh and a roll of his eyes. "Lucky you."

Tauriel smiled at his jest, taking note that Kili had not lied - Flinn and Frerin did indeed remind her greatly of the two older princes. Their looks and mannerisms being exactly how she would have imagined Fili and Kili at that age. She was truly mesmerized.

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So, while Bofur took charge of the children and saw that they were properly fed, Kili headed off in search of Fili. It didn't take him long before he located his brother, standing near a small clearing, picking up rocks and hurling them as far as he could into the night.

"Are you aiming at anything in particular, or just venting your frustrations?" Kili asked, coming to stand next to the irate prince, his fingers laced behind his back as he watched another rock disappear into the dark.

"How could I have been so stupid, Kili?" Fili almost shouted, hurling another stone at nothing. "I was a fool to think they would have given up as easily as they did. Why didn't I see it? Some father I am!"

"Oh, Fili," Kili sighed, reaching up to place a hand on his brother's shoulder. "Don't beat yourself up over this. How could you have known they were planning this?"

"I'm their father! I should have known!" Fili insisted, flinging the next rock with such force he might have thrown his arm out of the socket. "I should have suspected they were up to something! I can't believe I was duped by a pair of dwarflings!"

"Fili, stop!" Kili commanded. "I mean, Sier didn't know…how could you?"

"Oh, Mahal…Sier!" Fili groaned, as if suddenly realizing he would have to tell his wife. "She is going to kill me for sure. I will be sleeping on the sofa and eating bread and water for a month…if not longer!"

There was a moment of silence between them, as Fili stared blankly out into the night and Kili's brows furrowed in deep thought. Then with a sigh of resignation, the younger brother spoke.

"It'll probably do you good," Kili mused, reaching out to pat Fili's stomach. "You could stand to go without a few meals. And come on, you already have three children…maybe sleeping apart would let you focus on your training more, and not on making more babies. I think you've had enough."

"What?" Fili gasped, looking down at his flat stomach in horror. "I'm in great shape! Better than you!" He then placed his hands on his hips and glared at his younger brother. "And where do you get off telling me I shouldn't have any more children? Who died and made you baby boss?"

"I'm just saying, three's a lot to handle," Kili shrugged. "Between your wife, your duties, and your children…there really has not been a lot of time for just you and me. From the way you talk, being a parent sounds like a huge burden…maybe it's just too much for you to handle."

"Too much for me to handle?" Fili was really upset now. How could his brother be saying such things? "I'll have you know that I'm a damn good father! I have never once considered any of my children a burden, and I would happily welcome six more, if Sier and I were blessed in that manner! Besides, if you keep talking like this, I may not want to spend any time with you…you dumb orc!"

"So…" Kili mused, a wide grin coming to his face. "Fatherhood isn't looking so bad now, is it?"

Fili stared at his brother for a long moment, realization dawning as he watched Kili's smile grow wider.

"You dirty rotten warg! You tricked me!" he huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

"What are brothers for?" Kili laughed, throwing his arm around Fili's shoulder. "And you knew it all along, you just needed to hear it said from someone with sense."

"Ya mean you?" Fili huffed.

"No…you!" the dark haired prince corrected, poking Fili in the chest with his finger. "You are a great father, the best, in fact! And I never want to hear you doubting that again, you hear? Now, what's done is done, and all we can do is figure out how to fix the problem. Flinn and Frerin are here…what are we going to do about it?"

"Send them back, obviously!" Fili stated firmly.

"Yes…but who is going to take them?" Kili reasoned. "Turning back is not an option, and you and I cannot leave the party. We could send them home with only a few guards, but what if they ran into that orc pack we passed today…we have no idea where they are headed or if they might decide to turn around. And if we sent a bunch of guards with them…then that leaves us short for the upcoming battle."

"You're not helping," Fili growled, seeing that everything Kili was saying was true. "So what do you say we should do?"

"The only thing we can, brother, and you know it as well as I do," he huffed. "They have to come with us."

"NO!" Fili yelled, throwing his hands up and stomping around in anger. "I will not risk their lives by taking them with us! That is exactly the reason I forbid them to come in the first place!"

"I'm not saying it's an ideal solution, but it beats the alternative," Kili replied. "If they are with us, we can protect them. We can make sure they are safe. It is either come with us, or send them home at great risk. You're their father, and according to you, a damn good one…so it's your call."

Fili stood with his back to his brother for a long while, contemplating Kili's less than savory words. Yet eventually his shoulders dropped and he gave a sigh of defeat.

"You're right," he said at last. "We dare not send them back now. We will just have to take them along and make sure nothing happens to them." He gave a low groan. "I am not looking forward to telling Sier. Not at all."

"Normally I would suggest you didn't and kept it a secret…but knowing your wife, she would find out somehow, and then your name would really be mud," Kili cringed, imagining Sier's wrath.

"I will send her a message by raven tomorrow, explaining my reasons for keeping Flinn and Frerin with me." He took a deep breath and squared his shoulders. "She might kill me over this, but I can't think about that right now. I have a mission to concentrate on, as well as two willful dwarflings to punish."

"Really?" Kili asked, cringing a bit at the idea. "You intend to punish them now?"

"Shouldn't I?" Fili was shocked by his brother's words. "They disobeyed me! I should paddle their backsides right good. I can't let them simply get away with it."

"No, of course not," the dark haired prince agreed. "But…perhaps you should wait and dole out any punishments when we get home. Talk to them now, and make them see what they did was very wrong, but don't shame them in front of everyone. They may be young, but they're still dwarves…and you need to let them keep their pride."

Again, Fili was struck silent by his brother's wise words.

"When did you get to be so damn smart?" he asked, looking at Kili in disbelief.

"About ten minutes ago," the younger dwarf laughed. "I said something to Flinn that sounded a lot like what Thorin had often said to us. And since then, I think I have been channeling Uncle. If you think about it, this is not very different from what we did when we were not much older than Flinn and Frerin. Remember how we followed Thorin on one of his hunting trips without permission?"

"How could I forget?" Fili groaned. "He made us chop wood and haul water for every neighbor within a mile for a full month!"

"Exactly…but he also let us stay with him on the trip, and waited to implement our punishment when we got home," Kili reminded him.

"Yah…he did do that, didn't he?" Fili grinned. "And while we never dared disobey him like that again…I will never forget that hunting trip as long as I live, and we both learned a lot of valuable lessons too."

"It was on that hunting trip that I took a shine to the bow and arrow," Kili recalled.

"And Thorin taught me how to skin a deer," Fili added, a look of pride crossing his face. "Uncle Thorin made us feel like grown up dwarves on that trip, even though we were still both snot-nose kids."

"Would you do any less for your own sons?" Kili asked, knowing exactly what his brother would say.

"No…but the idea of tanning their hides is still rather tempting," Fili grumbled.

"As if you would ever raise a hand to your children," Kili scoffed, knowing his brother far too well.

"Fine," Fili said, releasing a longsuffering sigh. "I will take a page from Uncle Thorin's book, and do it his way. After all, we didn't turn out too bad, did we?"

"Depends on who you're asking," Kili laughed. "Now come on, there are two very sorry and sad dwarflings back at the camp who think their father hates them. Care to set them straight?"

"I suppose it would be the fatherly thing to do." Fili nodded.

"A damn good fatherly thing!" Kili corrected, the two of them laughing as they headed back to camp.

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Frerin had downed two bowls of stew by the time Fili and Kili emerged from the trees, while Flinn had barely touched his, still despondent over his disobedience. When he spotted his father, he set the bowl aside and stood up, his hands behind his back and looking down penitently.

"Adad…" he began, his voice full of remorse. "I'm so very sorry that I disobeyed you, and that I cooked up this whole scheme. But most of all, I'm sorry I dragged Frerin into it with me."

"NO!" the littlest dwarfling cried, rushing to stand next to his brother. "I wanted to come! I would have followed on my own if Flinn had not brought me."

Fili and Kili exchanged silent looks, seeing so much of themselves in the two lads before them.

"So what you're saying is that you are both to blame for your actions?" Fili stated, crossing his arms over his chest and looking down at them sternly.

"Yes, Adad," Flinn and Frerin nodded sadly.

"But me more than him," Flinn added quickly, before his brother could protest.

"Well, lads," Fili said, clearing his throat so that both looked up at him, eyes full of fear. He could see that Dwalin, Nori and Bofur were doing their best to appear busy, but it was obvious that they were all listening to every word. Tauriel, on the other hand, was staring quite blatantly, apparently very keen on what was going to happen. "We are too far from Erebor to send you home…so, whether I like it or not, I am now forced to take you along with us."

"You…you're going to let us come along?" Flinn asked, so shocked he swayed just a bit before catching himself.

"Like I said, I don't have much choice, do I?" he replied. "However, while you are on this journey, you will be expected to pull your weight and take on your share of tasks, like gathering firewood and washing all the dishes. But most important, you will listen to me and your uncle, and do exactly what we say at all times…no arguments! Understand?"

"Yes, Adad!" they both responded in unison.

"And when we get home, you will not only be doing a lot of extra chores around the house to make up for disobeying me, but you will also have to make it up to Bombur for tricking him the way you did," he warned. "This little deception of yours has cost you a great deal of our trust, and it will take quite a bit to earn it back."

"Yes, Adad." And while they both nodded in agreement, they sounded extra forlorn about that last part.

"All right then," he continued, his tone still stern. "If you understand everything I have said and agree to it, then we will consider the matter closed...for now." Fili then went down on one knee and opened his arms wide. "Now…how about coming over here and giving me a big hug. I've missed you two rascals!"

With no further urging needed, the two little dwarflings raced forward with huge grins on their faces, throwing themselves into their father's arms.

"We love you, Adad!" Flinn told him, burying his face in Fili's neck.

"I'm glad," he informed them, placing a kiss on each of their heads. "Because when we get home and I tell your mother about this, I have a feeling you might be the only ones who do."

"Freya will still love you, Adad," Frerin assured him. "She's too little to understand how to be mad."

"Well thank goodness for that," Fili laughed, his heart suddenly much lighter. And though he hated the idea of his sons being placed in any danger, he couldn't help but love the fact that they were both in his arms.

Oh, how he adored his two little lads.

And it's a good thing too! Otherwise they would probably have been in a LOT more trouble. ha ha.

So...how did Fili do? Was Kili's trick a good one...making him see that he was a really awesome dad regardless of what he currently thought of himself.

And those little lads will be doing a ton of chores when they get home - much like Thorin made Fili and Kili do when they stowed away on his hunting trip. ha ha. Like father, like son.

See...no big cliffie this time! More on Monday!

Guest Reviews:

Guest: Thanks for the three cheers! And I hope my second chapter went well with your breakfast! Thanks for the review.

abc: Yes, information on both is very important. Especially when you want to know the BIG questions...like, 'are you my one?' ha ha. And yes, Fili got what he had coming for teasing Kili the night before. What goes around, comes around Fili. Hmmm, was the punishment 'inventive' enough? And maybe for chapter 200 we can have Gandalf's fireworks and Bombur's cake...but I am not sure it will make it THAT far, ha ha.

Guest: Yep, the piper must be paid...I hope the price is not too high. Thanks for the congratulations, and I'm glad you are loving it as much as when you first began!

Feu d'Argent: I knew some would worry about Flinn and Frerin when the orcs headed their way, but nope, that was never my intention for putting them there. More on that later. I do hereby accept the virtual chocolates and send you THIS chapter as a thank you. ha ha.

dojoson41: Ummmm, well, since I already DID do the cliffie...I guess there ARE cliffhangers allowed, ha ha. Sorry, I will TRY and keep them to a minimum. This one wasn't so bad, was it?

13YearOldFangirl: A fan since part one? You have stuck with me through the long haul then! ha ha. And while I don't know how long this story will end up being, I am currently working on chapter 126...so it will be at LEAST that long. I am glad updates make your day! Your reviews make mine!

Emrfangirl: How did waiting all day to read the next one go...when I read, and i have two to read, I can't stand it and sneak in the second chapter the first chance I get. I have no willpower. ha ha. Oh the Dwalin/Tauriel sparing will come. The kissing in the tree song just HAD to be sung...but I dwarfed it up by using a Khuzdul word. ha ha. I am glad my warning stopped you from reading your chapters out of order...that would have sucked! And I am glad they got caught too...it was very dull for them (and me too) to have them in there with nothing to do. And yes, Fili was upset...but as you saw, he handled it like a pro.

Guest: Thanks for the 'wow'. I needed that. :o)