Eek! Thank you soooo much for the amazing response last chapter and welcome aboard to the surprising number of new readers! I'm so glad people still like this story, you make my day so often :P Anyways, here's the next chapter, I hope it's okay. It was hard for me to write but I'm pretty happy with it :P

Forgive any mistakes :P

Read. Enjoy. Review.

Chapter Twelve # Nights In Rivendell #

Bilbo Baggins had been sneaking his entire life, and during his time in the wild his already sharp senses had sharpened further, so when he woke in the middle of the first night in Rivendell he knew that something had woken him.

He lay very still in the darkness, his ears twitching as they tried to discern what sound could have woken him. A slight shuffling sound preceded almost silent footsteps he instantly recognised as Kíli's.

Bilbo blinked a couple of times, his eyes growing accustomed to the moonlight as his son swam into focus.

The other dwarves were all fast asleep, by the sound of their snores, strewn across the large courtyard that had been given to them. Bilbo was more than a little disappointed that Thorin had declined Elrond's offer of bedrooms, though he was not surprised. The hobbit had heard the king-in-exile arguing with Gandalf in regards to keeping watch while they slept. Apparently, Gandalf had won that particular argument, because there was no one awake save for Bilbo and Kíli. Almost noiselessly, Kíli positioned his bedroll closer to Bilbo's and sank onto the floor, leaning against the wall and staring at the moon, which was pouring light into the room.

After a moment, Bilbo spoke quietly. "Where are you?"

Kíli jumped and looked up at Bilbo, smiling slightly. "I'm sorry, I woke you. I don't know where I am, Bilbo..."

"Well I'm in Rivendell and its rather nice here..." Bilbo murmured in an overly light tone, mindful not to wake the dwarves.

"I'm in a place between two worlds, and I am not entirely sure how to get out of it."

Bilbo smiled wryly, though his heartstrings were tugged by Kíli's melancholy tone. "What can I do help?"

"You're doing it." Kíli smiled softly. "You're here."

"I always will be." Bilbo promised softly, and Kíli reached out to grab Bilbo's hand briefly.

"Thank you."

Bilbo smiled and nodded as Kíli lay down less than a metre away from him, closing his eyes and slipping into sleep.

"Where's Rivendell?" Little Kíli asked, perched on Bilbo's knee.

"A decent way east of here, near the Misty Mountains." Bilbo pointed at the map spilling off of Kíli's lap. "It's where the elves live."

"I thought elves didn't like mountains…" Kíli mused, and Bilbo laughed.

"They don't like in the mountains, only near them. Elves much prefer the woods and the greenery to the tunnels and stone." Bilbo explained, drawing on his book-based knowledge.

Kíli mulled this over for a moment. "I think I like both best… But Bilbo, have you ever met an elf? A real one?"

"No, I haven't." Bilbo admitted, absently reaching for a poker to stoke the fire. "I would love to go to Rivendell…"

"Why?"

"Well, it's supposed to be very beautiful, and by all accounts the elves are excellent hosts. There's food and song and laughter to be found in Rivendell, Kíli." Bilbo described wistfully, and Kíli nodded thoughtfully.

"Will you go?"

Shocked, Bilbo laughed. "To Rivendell? Well, perhaps…though I doubt it."

"Why?"

"Hobbits don't travel so far." Bilbo tickled Kíli lightly, warning him away from the 'why' game as he replied.

Giggling, Kíli batted Bilbo's hands away and grinned at him cheekily. "Just like they don't adopt dwarves?"

"That is true…" Bilbo admitted with a smile.

"Would you take me? To Rivendell?"

"Of course I would." Bilbo smiled at the child in his lap, pressing a quick kiss onto Kíli's head.

Kíli smiled, snuggling back happily. "Good. I wouldn't want you to leave me here."

It was ironic, that twenty odd years ago it had been Kíli who was afraid of being left behind, Bilbo mused as he watched Kíli's light doze transform into a heavy slumber. The paternal instinct that had grown and developed in Bilbo over the past two decades kept the exhausted hobbit awake until he was certain that Kíli was sleeping and safe, but soon Bilbo too succumbed to slumber.

When he woke again, it was much lighter, and he could see the sun through the window which informed him that it was almost noon. He sat up quickly, disconcerted by the lack of dwarves.

"Morning."

Bilbo's head turned slowly and he raised his eyebrow at Fíli and Kíli, who had just sung the greeting in unison. "Good morning."

"The others are, uh…exploring." Fíli said carefully, and Bilbo rubbed his chin, still staring at the two deceivingly innocent looking brothers.

"Exploring?"

"Aye…" Fíli said gravely.

Bilbo scrutinised Kíli's face in particular, knowing that it was far more likely to reveal secrets to him. "What have you done?"

"Done? Nothing, we haven't done anything." Kíli protested and Bilbo sighed.

"What have the others done?"

Fíli and Kíli exchanged glances. "We're not entirely sure…"

Kíli nodded at Fíli's words. "I wouldn't leave you and you needed your sleep so we're staying here."

"We brought you breakfast." Fíli added, passing Bilbo a large plate of fruits and bread.

"Thank you…" Bilbo yawned, smiling appreciatively as he took the food.

Kíli and Fíli returned to the conservation that they had obviously been holding while Bilbo still slept.

"…you're telling me the truth?"

"Yes."

"The absolute truth?" Kíli raised a sceptical eyebrow.

"How did you honestly not know? Surely that must have heard some rumour about it…"

"Never." Kíli shook his head. "Bilbo, did you know that?"

Bilbo purposefully finished his mouthful before speaking. "Did I know what?"

"That some dwarven women have beards!" Kíli replied, his voice still shining with surprise.

Bilbo raised an eyebrow. "They do?"

"They do." Fíli nodded, looking amused. "Our mother never grew one because Thorin didn't. She thought that it would be a bit embarrassing for the king's sister to have a greater beard than the king. Though we all know that she could overshadow him if she so chose."

"Why does Thorin have such a short beard?" Kíli asked, stealing a bread roll from Bilbo's plate comfortably.

"He wears it short in remembrance of the dwarves who lost their beards and their lives to the dragon. When we fulfil our goal he will grow his beard out once more."

Bilbo nodded absently at Fíli's solemn words, watching Kíli's reaction carefully. The dwarf wore a very familiar pensive expression as he listened to his brother. It made Bilbo smile – Kíli looked at Fíli the same way that Merry looked at Kíli.

"What is funny?" Fíli frowned, confused, and Bilbo almost choked.

"I'm so sorry, I wasn't laughing at that, not at all, it seems a most noble thing to do! No, no…I was laughing at Kíli."

Kíli blinked. "What did I do now?"

"Oh, nothing at all." Bilbo smiled, and Kíli studied him suspiciously.

Fíli glanced between the two, smiling in mild amusement.

Footsteps warned Bilbo of another's presence before the knock on the archway, but he was surprised to see that the youth lingering on the edge of the door was a neither an elf nor a dwarf.

He was a man. Dark hair hung around his face, casting the intense brown eyes into shadow, but his expression was open and friendly enough, giving him the air of a lovable rogue.

"Hello." Bilbo spoke first, brushing crumbs from his jacket.

"Hello…" the youth returned, looking curiously at the trio. "I hope I'm not disturbing you?"

"Not at all." Bilbo shook his head automatically, and Kíli and Fíli smiled.

"Can we help you?" Kíli asked politely, his ever present grin on his face.

"I was wondering if I may spend a little time with you." The young man said bluntly. "I heard of your arrival this morning, and I am curious. Besides, perhaps you may like a guide?"

"You know Rivendell?" Kíli asked curiously, and the youth gave a wry smile.

"You are not the only one raised by those outside their own kin."

Kíli's eyes widened with interest and Bilbo nodded. "A tour would be lovely, thank you."

A bright grin cracked across the young man's face. "Excellent! My name is Estel."

"It is nice to meet you, Estel." Bilbo nodded properly, getting to his feet. "I am Bilbo Baggins-"

"And I am Kíli Baggins." Kíli interrupted.

"Fíli, son of Dís." The blond nodded and Estel grinned.

The trio spent the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon in the company of Estel, who proved himself an outstanding guide and a great source of information. Even Fíli was drawn into the elvish stories with interest. The eighteen year old boy was light-hearted and cheerful, with an unexpected interest in poetry and song writing, and he proved himself great company.

"This is my favourite place in the entire valley." Estel declared proudly, leading them into an empty room.

"Why?" Kíli asked curiously, and Bilbo had to second the question in his head. Though indeed the walls were as elegant as any others, he did not see anything special other than the sparkle in Estel's eyes.

"If you come here in the day, it is all but abandoned. But this, my dear friends, is the Hall of Fire. It is where stories are shared and songs are sung, and if you come here at night there is no place more enchanting in the world." Estel boasted, and Bilbo gave a wry smile as he recognised the pride of a home.

"How far have you travelled?" Fíli asked curiously, and Estel laughed.

"No further than Gondor, on one occasion, but as the men of the south tend to say, home is where the heart is."

"And your heart is here?" Kíli asked in a strange voice, staring at the fire at the end of the room.

"Yes…" Estel smiled. "Though I still have much to experience in the world."

"Don't we all…" Bilbo murmured without realising that the words had slipped out of his mouth. Not missing the odd look that Kíli gave him, Bilbo looked expectantly at Estel and waited for him to continue.

A few hours later, Estel delivered them back to the courtyard that the dwarves were occupying, and the evening passed surprisingly normally - Kíli trained with Fíli and Dwalin and then disappeared with Thorin for a Khuzdul lesson, though if the look on his face when he returned was anything to go by the teaching was far more intense than usual.

Bilbo himself had been receiving far more glares than usual - Thorin's reaction to Kíli's ability was unspoken and fierce.

Kíli did not even say 'hello' when he sat down next to Bilbo, instead just sighing tiredly.

"Are you alright?" Bilbo asked in a low voice of concern, but his son just nodded, without even making eye contact.

Kíli's body language was screaming for solitude as he pulled the little wooden medallion Merry had given him and began turning it over in his fingers, his face stony and closed. Considering for a moment, Bilbo stood up.

"Kíli, will you come with me for a short while?"

Looking up in mild confusion, Kíli nodded slowly and stood, following the hobbit out of the room. Pretending that he knew where he was going, Bilbo strode through the corridors of Rivendell until they reached an abandoned room. The hobbit walked in, expecting Kíli to follow, which he did.

"Here...This shall do." At Kíli's quizzical look, Bilbo elaborated. "You're miles away, Kíli, and you need your privacy."

Kíli smiled in disbelief. "Oh, Bilbo..."

"What?" The hobbit protested, before finding himself engulfed in a crushing hug.

"What would I do without you? Thank you for the privacy, Bilbo…thank you. But could I... Could I talk to you?"

Slightly pained that Kíli even had to ask, Bilbo gave a feeble chuckle. "Kíli, of course you can!"

Giving Bilbo a weak but grateful smile, Kíli sighed. "Bilbo, I'm...I'm..."

"You're what?" Bilbo asked softly after a moment.

"Homesick." Kíli whispered in a barely audible voice, his face utterly wretched. "Bilbo, I'm homesick but I... a part of me feels guilty that I feel homesick because I'm with my family. Something about this place makes me think, Bilbo, more than I'd like to." Bilbo had no idea what he could say so he reached out and touched Kíli's forearm. "I feel lost, Bilbo... And I feel so awful for Thorin and Balin and the others - if I'm this homesick after two months..."

"Yes, I quite agree." Bilbo murmured.

Tears of frustration misted Kíli's eyes but refused to fall. "I just want someone to come and tell me what I should do and how I should feel!"

"We all do, at times." Bilbo admitted quietly. "But that's not the way that the world works."

Kíli snorted softly. "No, that would be too easy."

"Aye…oh bother and confusticate those dwarves!" Bilbo cursed, and Kíli frowned lightly.

"What?"

"Aye…" Bilbo muttered, "They have me speaking like one of them! Aye, indeed."

Kíli snorted and then gave a little laugh, leaning his head against the nearby wall. "Bilbo…what would I be without you?"

"A wildling?"

"Don't tease me, Bilbo, I'm serious."

Bilbo smiled. "I know, I'm sorry. That was cruel…"

As Kíli turned his head to stare out at the rising moon, Bilbo sighed, wishing that there was something he could say to help his son, burdened with the terrible knowledge that anything he did to help would most likely make things worse.

"Master Baggins?"

The hobbit and the dwarf looked up to see Elrond stepping through the doorway. Suddenly terribly aware that he may well be somewhere that he ought not to be, Bilbo gave a little bow. "Lord Elrond…"

"I was just on my way to look for the both of you." Elrond's easy tone calmed Bilbo's worries enough. "Would you follow me?"

"Of course." Bilbo glanced at Kíli. Concerns about the dwarf's need for privacy were brushed aside with the curiosity sparkling in Kíli's brown eyes, so Bilbo nodded. "Yes, of course."

Elrond bowed his head and led them out of the room. Recognising the corridors from Estel's tour earlier in the day, Bilbo felt anticipation spark into his stomach. Though he tried not to let it consume him unless he was mistaken, Bilbo grew more and more excited as they drew closer towards the Hall of Fire.

He exchanged an excited glance with Kíli behind Elrond's back as the sound of singing made its way to his sharp ears, and his joy grew with the dancing of Kíli's eyes.

Sure enough, Elrond stood by the arched doorway of young Estel's favourite room and welcomed the pair. The room was far from empty now, with more than thirty elves gathered together, laughing jovially. Estel himself was sitting in the fair corner by the fire next to a pair of identical twins, and he gave a small wave and a large grin to Bilbo and Kíli.

The laughter faded slightly as the pair entered, but there was no hostility in the silence, only curiosity.

"Welcome Masters Baggins." The twins next to Estel chanted warmly, earning them a sharp glance from Elrond that Bilbo pretended not to notice.

"Come and sit with us." Estel offered, jumping up to pull around two chairs, and gratefully Bilbo and Kíli sat down.

Bilbo felt more than a little awkward at the inquisitive stares, but Kíli seemed to be handling it well. Then again, as he had proved time and time again, Kíli Baggins was nothing if not adaptable. To Bilbo's relief, one of the twins called across the room.

"Áile, I do believe that it's your turn to tell us a tale…"

An elf Bilbo recognised as the harpist from their meal raised a single eyebrow. "Do you believe so, Elladan?"

"He does." The twin replied with a hint of teasing in his tone.

"Elrohir…" Elrond warned in a very familiar tone. It was the exact tone that Bilbo took with Kíli, the same tone that Adalgrim took with Esme, the same tone that Esme took with Merry. It was the tone of a parent.

Elrohir bowed his head and Áile smiled, before starting up a cheerful song about a woman who outsmarted a kingdom.

Bilbo's misconceptions about the constant serenity of the elves were proved to be false as the company proved to be just as merry and light-hearted as the dwarves, with some of their songs and tales just as ridiculous and very occasionally as crude. When Bilbo glanced at Kíli he saw his son happy and laughing with the rest of the crowd, his previous stress all but gone from his eyes.

The hours wore on unnoticeably, until a particularly sorrowful lament ended and Estel decided that a change of tone was needed.

"Kíli, why don't you tell us a tale?"

Bilbo looked at Kíli expectantly, not at all surprised to see the dwarf's cheeks flash red.

"Most of the stories I know have already been told, and if they haven't then I'm sure that you've heard them already from storytellers with far more skill than I have." He grinned wryly.

"If you would be comfortable to tell it, I'm sure that we would all love to hear your own story, Kíli Baggins." Elladan offered. The only way that Bilbo could tell the difference between the twins he now knew to be the sons of Elrond was the fact that they had not swapped seats since they were introduced.

As murmurs of affirmation undulated through the room, Elrohir continued Elladan's question. "We have never heard of a dwarf raised by a halfling before, let alone a prince."

"Alright…" Kíli cleared his throat. "My story begins before my memories do…"

As Bilbo listened, Kíli explained everything to the elves, speaking a lot more poetically than usual as he described the structure of his childhood and a couple of his more notable adventures with Saradoc, Esme and Paladin, and his gradual acceptance in the Shire. Though the stories content was not as enthralling or impressive as the tales the elves had shared, the dwarf drew on his impressive knowledge of poetry – a subject that Bilbo had made interesting for the boy by devising his own poems about great battles and adventures – and his natural knack for storytelling most commonly used on the children of the Shire to captivate his audience effectively, weaving his story around them carefully.

Elladan and Estel leant forward a little in their seats as Kíli's voice quietened effectively to highlight the tension he had felt peering through the little window by the door of Bag End and seeing a stranger lurch at his hobbit, and the elves did not so much as twitch as Kíli described his actions, skilfully recalling his precise emotions from precise moments.

Whether it was the words he used, the varying tone and pitch or the emotion in Kíli's voice that brought several women to tears at his poignant recollection of leaving Merry behind, Bilbo was not sure, but he suspected that it was a mix of all three.

The hobbit was a little surprised at how much the dwarf confided in the elves – confessing his fears of rejection or disproval from the dwarves and admitting how torn he felt when the word 'future' was even mentioned, but Bilbo was a also a little glad. Kíli needed to get those things off of his chest, and by weaving them into the story, his son could use the tales' events to draw attention away from his private thoughts even as he offered them up for the world to see.

Kíli wielded his words with as much skill as he did his bow, and by the time he concluded his tale with the company's arrival in Rivendell the only sound in the room was the crackle of the fire.

Finally, the silence was broken by Lord Elrond. "Well, Master Kíli…that was quite a story, and a story very well told."

Bowing his head with a sheepish grin, Kíli replied. "I think that the quality of the story telling is more down to Bilbo's teaching than it is down to any actual skill."

"Now that is most definitely not true." Bilbo protested, managing to stifle an exhausted yawn before anyone noticed it. "I only helped you hone in on the skills you already possessed."

"Can you tell us a tale, Bilbo?" Estel's eyes were filled with a hunger that Bilbo understood all too well – the devouring, dangerous, delightful hunger for knowledge.

Scouring his brain, Bilbo gave a little laugh. "I'm afraid that my poor brain is too addled tonight to do justice to any song or tale I know. It has been a long couple of days."

"Aye, you can say that again." Kíli snorted, a devilish fire lighting in his eyes as he declared loudly. "I think that it is well past my hobbit's bedtime."

"Kíli!" Bilbo groaned, hitting Kíli's arm rather harder than usual as he died of embarrassment. "You absolute…"

"What?" Kíli blinked innocently, and Bilbo gave him a severe look.

You are going to pay for that later.

Kíli tucked his chin towards his head slightly as he looked at Bilbo imploringly.

Sorry…I couldn't resist…

Bilbo shook his head. "As terribly humiliating as that may be, I do think that Kíli's right. I have had the most wonderful evening but I must go to bed while I still have the nous to find my way back."

Elrond bowed his head with a fond smile. "Of course…"

As Bilbo slid off of his chair, Kíli followed with a smile.

"Thank you very much." The young dwarf bowed at Elrond respectfully. "Bilbo is right, this was the most incredible night…"

"I am glad that you enjoyed yourselves." Elrond nodded.

"You are most welcome to return at any time during your stay." Elrohir smiled, and Elladan and Estel nodded enthusiastically along with several others.

A feeling of warmth spreading from the curls on his toes to the curls on his head that had nothing to do with the fire in the room, Bilbo bowed a final time to the gathering before turning to walk down the corridor with Kíli.

"That was great fun!" Kíli enthused, and Bilbo sent him a withering look.

"Ego, mibo orch, Kíli."

Kíli stopped, widening his eyes to the size of dinner plates and looking ridiculously like a puppy that had just been trodden on. "Bilbo?"

"Oh come off it, you know that you deserved that, you unpleasant child." The hobbit snorted.

"I'm sorry Bilbo, I couldn't resist!" Kíli pleaded, and Bilbo put his hands on his hips.

"Could not resist what? The temptation to humiliate me?"

Kíli's eyes flickered to the ground with genuine guilt. "Bilbo, I did not mean to humiliate you, I was only teasing…"

Shaking his head, Bilbo smiled fondly. "I know. I forgive you."

Instantly, Kíli beamed.

"Your story was very well told." Bilbo remarked as they began to walk down the corridors again.

"Thank you." Kíli laughed. "I wanted to see if me techniques would work on anyone over a foot high."

"I would say that was a yes." Bilbo grinned, and Kíli paused.

"I still think that you were unnecessarily harsh."

Bilbo was baffled. "About what?"

"You told me to go and kiss an orc. In elvish."

Bilbo rolled his eyes. "I was irritated. You deserved it."

"That's debatable."

Bilbo snorted softly as they drew nearer to the dwarves' courtyard. "No it isn't."

"I'm only conceding because you're about to collapse of exhaustion in your weak hobbit form."

"If you don't stop talking, Kíli Baggins, I will clip you around the ears, and I don't care who is watching!"

Kíli chuckled softly, slinging his arm around Bilbo affectionately as they turned into the courtyard full of sleeping dwarves. Only Fíli and Thorin remained awake, speaking quietly to each other in the far end of the room. Fíli grinned and Thorin looked somewhat relieved at their entrance, and Bilbo nodded to the both of them, before practically staggering to his bed roll.

His son went to speak to Fíli and Thorin quietly as Bilbo sank down under a woolly blanket provided by the elves, but the hobbit was too tired to care what they were speaking about.

On the other side of Rivendell, an ancient elven beauty in a white dress spoke to her grandson.

"The dwarves are a strange collection." Elladan admitted. "I am not entirely sure what to make of them, though I like Kíli and Bilbo. They seem very decent folk."

"Yes…" the woman who had spoken to Fíli the previous day nodded once. "They are 'decent folk' to use your words. However, they are not the only worthy folk amongst their company. There are several I would be interested to converse with, after Mithrandir confessed the true purpose of their quest."

"Do you believe that the quest is a good idea?" Elladan worried.

"I trust in Mithrandir."

The simple answer was more than enough for Elladan coming from the mouth of its speaker. "Very well. I am certain that father would send for them…"

"I do not think that the House of Durin would appreciate that gesture, Elladan." A smile spread across the beautiful elf's face. "I shall seek out those I wish to see."

"Is Kíli one of them?" Elladan asked knowingly, watching his grandmother's eyes sparkle.

"The child is lost; torn between two worlds. If there is any race on this earth to share that feeling, it is the elves."

Elladan paused. He had not thought of it that way, but of course his mother's mother was correct. "You think we can help him."

The Lady Galadriel smiled. "We shall try."

Wow, she is one hard elf to write in character. Sheesh! I hope you enjoyed that chapter but I have a brief note on the age of Aragorn (Estel). As I've pointed out before I've shifted the age of some certain young hobbits, but as ShivaVixen pointed out, having Aragorn the same age/younger than Frodo (who is ten in this story more or less) would be just plain weird. For the sake of the story (it will be of more consequence across the next pair of chapters) Estel does not yet know he is Aragorn son of Arathorn as he discovers that at the age of twenty in LOTR cannon I believe, so he doesn't have that weight on his shoulders and is a bit more merry than he is in the LOTR. For this reason Arwen cannot appear in this story as she had not met Aragorn yet.

Also, I hope Galadriel was okay, she's a hard elf to write! Sheesh… and also I wonder what she does with herself while she's not…well helping people on quests and being an awesome elf lady.

I hope you enjoyed and that everyone was in character! Sorry if there wasn't much action :( Leave a review if you like, I love 'em!