An: I stayed up for way too long to finish this chapter and I will regret it tomorrow. Oh well, I'll regret waking up anyways, because BoFA. It's tomorrow. Oh god.
Anyhow, this is a longer chapter again! Hope you like it :)
"I have finally decided what to do with you", Thranduil spoke, standing up from his throne. Kili was standing in front of him, head ducked politely. "Lucky or unlucky for you, we did not find the other dwarf. If you really were telling the truth about not knowing him, it is only unfortunate for you that we did not find him. If you do not know each other, he could have proven you correct. On the other hand, he also could have proven you a liar."
"Again, I do not know who this dwarf is", Kili said again, his voice sure and strong as he raised his head. Words couldn't describe how relieved he was that they hadn't found Fili. Usually Kili wanted Fili to be with him, but this place was really an exception. "I can't prove you that, but I give you my word."
"That is, unfortunately, not enough. But as I cannot know for sure, I simply cannot let you go. There is a really strong chance that you are lying, so you need to be punished ", Thranduil said, walking around the young dwarf. "But if you are innocent like you tell, it would be hugely unfair to treat you as a prisoner. This was, and still is, the problem for me."
"I believe that", Kili muttered, closing his eyes. Oh Mahal. He wouldn't be set free. Fili had to rescue him if he did not find a way to escape. He didn't want to stay there for long.
There was a pause. Nobody said anything, and Kili was too anxious to even breathe. The silence was stifling and heavy in a way, and Kili wanted nothing more than the king to open his mouth and just say something. This kind of waiting was unpleasant in every possible way.
Thranduil kept eyeing the dwarf with his icy eyes. Gwaen still held a strong grip on Kili's arm, hurting Kili a little.
"So I decided that", Thranduil said at last, "you'll be treated well, but you will have to work for this treatment."
Kili's eyes snapped open immediately. "What? You can't keep me here!" he yelled, taking a step backwards only to be pushed forward by the head of the guard. "This is nonsense!"
"Watch your tongue with me, dwarf", Thranduil said coldly, bending downwards a little to be closer to Kili's face. "I can and will change the punishment, if you aren't worth our hospitality. As I said, I strongly believe that you are a lia-"
"I don't care! I want to go home!" Kili cried, turning to glance at Gwaen before focusing on the king again. This wasn't okay, not at all. "I was just wandering in the forest because I couldn't sleep! I did nothing wrong, and now you're keeping me here as a prisoner? This is no hospitality! This is brutal, unfair and m-"
"Quiet!" Thranduil yelled, a murderous glare piercing through the dwarf. "I will not stand this kind of behavior in my kingdom. So, if this doesn't please you, I also have another option for you. You will work even harder as an exchange for a bed and two meals a day - served to you into your cell, where you will spend any free time you may have. Gwaen, take him to Amarth and tell him to teach the dwarf how to work. Immediately."
"You can't do this!" Kili yelled, and Gwaen grabbed his arm even harder, which Kili ripped free. "What exactly have I done wrong?"
"I do not need answer to you", Thranduil said, sitting down. "Gwaen! Do as I told."
"Come on", Gwaen hissed and took Kili by his shoulders, starting to walk him towards the door. Kili struggled against the elf, but he was stronger than Kili was. Gwaen kicked the door to the lobby open, and as soon as it closed behind them, Kili started kicking the chief of the guard standing behind him - he was so close to the door, so close to freedom - and actually managed to hit the elf's knee hard enough to make him cry out and loosen his grip on Kili's shoulders.
Immediately Kili twisted himself free and sprung towards the doors, where the guards stood already alarmed from the cry. "Stop him!" Gwaen yelled, struggling up from the ground where he had fallen. The other guard started to approach the running dwarf as the other went to shut the doors.
"No!" Kili yelled, eyeing the door and the approaching elf. He met with the elf and dodged the blade of the sword the guard had drawn out. He went to grab the sword but failed, cutting his palm with the sharp edge. He hissed as a burning pain spread all the way to his wrist, but ignored it. If he failed to escape now, it could be a long while before he got another chance.
He went to punch the elf, managing to hit his face hard enough to make the elf cry out and take a step back. Kili took this opportunity to kick the elf's legs and he fell with another yell, desperately trying to swing his sword at Kili's direction.
The blade of the sword met with Kili's leg, a wave of white pain suddenly exploding in Kili's thigh. He jumped back in surprise, hissing out a curse. In a second the elf was on his feet again, breathing a little heavily. A crash echoed out behind the dwarf, so instinctively he glanced behind him, seeing Gwaen on his knees on the floor, muttering angrily in elvish.
Suddenly the elf's fist collided with Kili's chest a little too hard and Kili staggered back, doubling over a little, trying to catch his lost breath again. The elf took this moment to push Kili down, and the young dwarf fell with a cry and a faint curse in Khuzdûl.
Kili didn't have the time to get up before Gwaen was there, looking furious. "That was the last mistake you ever did."
Suddenly Kili was yanked to his feet, and his still achy cheek met Gwaen's fist. As Kili's head snapped to the other direction, he raised his hands to protect his face from further blows. Gwaen's leg was throbbing with pain - the kick really had hit well - and he was blinded with anger. If only he had had the permission to end this poor thing..
Then Kili was pushed to the nearest wall, his body -and head- hitting it with a thump and then crashing to the ground again. Kili bit his lip not to cry out, and the stinging pain in his forehead made Kili want to stand up and just run away and never even think about that place again. But he knew when he lost a fight, and just closed his eyes. He would have to wait for a better time, no matter how horrible it felt.
"If you ever do that again, I will make you beg that I'd leave it here", Gwaen hissed, kneeling near Kili. "Believe me, dwarf, that if you bother me I will make your visit here a hell. I have dealt with criminals way worse than you and made them beg, what makes you even think that you could ever win me?"
"Gwaen! I believe that is enough", echoed out a familiar voice suddenly. Kili opened his eyes and raised his head just enough to see a blonde elf approaching them from the other end of the hall. Legolas. "You have made your point clear. Now leave. I will deal with him."
The look of anger and embarrassment from being scolded by the prince rose on Gwaen's face, visible to everyone, and it made Kili grin. It was a small victory.
The head of the guard nodded a little, stood up and left without a word. As Gwaen disappeared from the room Kili finally sat up, holding his forehead. Surprisingly much blood was oozing out of the gash just above his left eye, and Kili hoped it wasn't anything serious. He didn't know much about wounds around your face but believed that all of them bled a lot.
"You can't stay out of trouble, can you?" Legolas sighed and eyed the dwarf from a distance. The front door was closed, and Kili knew that making a run for it would be useless, so he stayed on the ground, where he was. "What happened here?"
"Why don't you ask your father? Or Gwaen?" Kili asked in return, in a slightly hurt voice. "I don't owe you explanations."
"You're right, you do not", Legolas answered with a cold stare that made him look just like his father. "But trust me, it won't help you to make me your enemy."
Kili didn't bother to answer and stood up, only to find himself on the ground again. Oh Mahal, why was he this dizzy?
It took only a few seconds for Legolas to be by Kili's side.
"I think you hit your head too hard", Legolas said, gently pressing the gash with his hand, a focused look on his face. Kili's forehead was burning hot. Was this dwarf sick? "I say we go see the healer", Legolas continued, offering him a gentle smile. He knew his father's decision - he had told it earlier that day - and he knew that Kili should have been taken to Amarth but if he really was sick, he couldn't work.
"What? No! I'm fine", Kili hurried to say, pushing the elf's hand off. He didn't need -or want- the assistance of the elves. "It's nothing."
"How long have you had fever?" The elf asked, wiping his hand -now slightly covered in blood- on the inside of his shirt where it wasn't visible. He decided that he could change his shirt later. This dwarf needed to see the healer before he hurt himself more than he already had.
"Since the night your elves took me, or maybe one night before that. I don't remember, but it's not a big deal", Kili tried to argue, but he knew that Legolas had made up his mind and whatever Kili did wouldn't change it. From what he had seen, he was nothing to the elves, and they seemed to think they had full control over him. And well, maybe they did. It wasn't like Kili had a say in anything, really.
"The healer decides that. You cannot work if you are burning with fever", Legolas explained, causing Kili to frown.
"You want me to be healthy so I can work harder and eat less", Kili muttered and rolled his eyes, taking a deep breath as he felt blood dripping down onto his cheek.
Legolas looked offended. "That is not the truth, whether you believe it or not."
Well, maybe it was partially the truth. The more the dwarf worked, the more pleased the king would be which not only helped Kili, but Legolas as well. When things weren't going too well, Thranduil let his son see it by snapping at him for petty things. This tense and angry behavior often meant more work for the other elves as well, as the king was never pleased. Anyways, Legolas would never admit it to the dwarf - Legolas needed to build trust between them to make things easier for everyone.
"It is the truth, I'm not as stupid as you think I am", Kili answered bluntly and held his hand against his forehead. It stung unpleasantly.
"Think whatever you please, we will go see the healer right now", Legolas sighed and pulled the dwarf to his feet. Kili swayed a little, his legs feeling odd and weak underneath him, but he could walk behind the elf with almost no trouble at all.
xx
Kili would have rather worked than being locked up in the cell. He had never been this bored before - back home he always had something to do. He could do absolutely nothing in that small cell of his, nothing else but sleep and sit in silence. Legolas had placed him in the upper cells again, in those where he had first been, and he didn't complain. The bed was comfier and some elves walked past, and even though they didn't speak to Kili, it was nice to know that he wasn't in complete isolation.
He and Legolas had gone to the healer some time earlier. The healer had cleaned the wound on his forehead and put a bandage on it before feeding Kili full of herbs that would lower the fever, but still had told Legolas not to let him work that day, or do anything actually.
Sooner or later Kili came up with a game. It was boring but it was something. He would try to guess what kind of elf walked past his cell next - gender and the color of their hair- and every time he guessed correctly, he used a stone he had found from the floor to carve a line to the wall.
He was just about to carve the sixth line in the wall when he heard steps again, and quickly spun around to look at the elf about to walk past. Ugh, a mistake. He took a step to the side and quickly put his hand against the wall in order to stay upright. Oh Mahal, how could his head feel this light?
A male elf with a little bit silverish hair came into sight. This elf was familiar, the dwarf noticed and then closed his eyes for a moment to make the spinning inside his head stop. Sure enough, it helped a little bit.
Aíthon noticed Kili and stopped, shaking his head a little. "Your name was Kili, right?"
Kili felt steady enough already, so he walked over to the bars and nodded a little. Maybe he could keep me company, he thought and rolled his eyes at the thought. Really? Had he really sunk this low? Well, he was friendly, and I am bored out of my mind. It wouldn't hurt.
The young dwarf could see that Aíthon was eyeing the bandage around his head, but before he could open his mouth, Aíthon spoke again. "What happened to you? I don't remember seeing a bandage on you when we last met."
"Gwaen did this", Kili answered and pointed at the bandage, "but I managed to kick him pretty well to the knee. Another guard, however, did these", Kili continued and showed his palm and when Aíthon had eyed it long enough, he pointed at his thigh. "Maybe it was my fault, though."
"Did you start a fight against two elves?" Aíthon asked and almost laughed a little at the thought of a small dwarf picking a fight with head of the elvish guard and another guard. It just seemed amusing to him. Even with the height difference only... It must have been a sight to remember.
"Maybe", the dwarf replied with a shrug. "Legolas took me to see the healer. The healer is a great elf, if you ask me. Fed me all these herbs so I would get healthy faster. They tasted pretty gross but I've had worse."
This time Aíthon laughed out loud. "The prince came to rescue you?"
"Yeah!" Kili answered and furrowed his brows. "What? Does he not do that often or why are you laughing?"
"Nevermind, Kili", the elf laughed and shook his head. "You are just.. an extraordinary case. I do not know if it is good, since it probably isn't, but that doesn't change anything. What will happen now?"
Kili rolled his eyes with a small grin. He had underestimated Aíthon. He really was a nice elf. "I will have to work", he told the elf with a deep sigh, reality hitting him again, and suddenly he felt the familiar urge to shake the bars and annoy the elves so much they would have to kick him out. "I am treated like a criminal."
The grin on Aíthon's face disappeared and for once he looked serious, even a little bit sad, Kili guessed. "I am sorry to hear that. I wish I could change that."
"You can!" Kili said before he even realized it, quickly -but not too quickly, not to make his head spin again- glancing around the corridor to make sure nobody would hear him. "You can help me escape. Nobody would ever know you helped."
"I can't do that, Kili, I'm sorry", Aíthon said, backing off a step. "I have angered the king once before, and if I do it again, I will also be punished. I do not wish this to happen to you, but I also have to think about myself. I hope you understand."
Kili closed his eyes, shaking his head a little bit before letting his forehead rest against the cool bar. "I understand. Sorry for bothering you", Kili muttered. He felt weak and as if he were nothing. Like he probably was to the elves, even to Aíthon. "Could you at least bring me something to warm myself up with?"
"I will see what I can do", Aíthon replied, grinning a little again, but with no happiness visible. "I will return shortly."
The dwarf nodded, almost collapsing on the bed again. He stared at the ceiling, wanting nothing more than to vanish or escape, but knowing that right then he could do neither. Fili, please, come quick.
xx
Fili sat on the ground, staring blankly into the fire dancing in front of him. It illuminated the dark surroundings a little bit, making it feel safer.
He still had a way to travel before he reached the Iron Hills. If he rode fast and only stopped when the night fell, it would take him two or three days to the Iron Hills where Daín and Thorin were. He had thought about a million different ways of telling them that hey, I kinda lost my little brother and can't find him and he's probably hurt or worse even though I hope he is not, but none of them sounded good. He needed to tell the news without giving Thorin a heart attack and killing him. He also needed to tell the news nicely so Daín wouldn't end himself in the fear of Dís' anger if something bad had happened to Kili - it had been his idea to send the boys home before Thorin, after all.
A bowl of soup laid next to him. It was only half empty - for some reason Fili hadn't found his appetite with Kili gone. He was hungry but the food tasted like wood in his mouth, and Mahal, it felt wrong to eat when he knew that Kili was in trouble. Maybe in serious trouble, maybe in trouble not-that-serious, but it was trouble and who knew? He could be dead, for all Fili knew.
No. He wouldn't let himself think that - Kili wasn't dead, he wasn't. He was sure of it. They were brothers and Fili was sure he'd feel it if something really bad had happened to Kili.
He turned his head to glance at the ponies - he tried to imagine that it was only silent because Kili was already sleeping, and for once he slept without snoring. His imagination failed him though, and soon enough he turned his gaze back to the fire, somehow disappointed not to see Kili sleeping on the ground.
Fili thought about the reactions of Thorin and Daín - would they be angry at Fili? Worried? Disappointed? Furious? He had no idea. Worried, definitely, but that couldn't possibly be the only emotion they'd feel. Anger was a probable one, as well as disappointment and regret. Fili didn't know, and he wasn't sure if he wanted to, either. He just hoped Kili was fine wherever he was.
The fire kept on rattling and dancing as Fili laid down and closed his eyes, and slowly fell asleep.
Review! Everything is appreciated - positive and negative comments, suggestions, uh.. telling me I suck is also great. Reviewers get a mental "I made a cool review B) " badge! Only for this one chapter ;) Okay, jokes aside (it wasn't a joke).