"The elves? You're taking us to the elves!"
Bilbo sighed. This was the third time someone had exploded like this. First is was Gloin ("You expect those tree shaggers to let us in?"), then it was Oin ("Shelves? Where are we going to find shelves around here?") and now it was Dwalin's turn to attack Gandalf for coaching Balin to lead the Company towards Rivendell.
"Yes, Master Dwalin, we are heading towards the elves," the wizard sighed. For the third time. "For Lord Elrond is likely the only being with the ability to decipher your map."
"And without the map, this entire journey has been for nothing," Balin concluded, equally weary.
"Not entirely for nothing," Bilbo put in quietly, and Balin nodded.
"But the elves!" Dwalin repeated. "Elves!"
"We know, brother," Balin said. "But we have no other choice. We need the map. And for that we need Lord Elrond."
Dori drew in close, like he wasn't sure if he should be speaking. "What will we do with the K… Thorin?"
"What do you mean?" Dwalin grumbled, still unhappy.
"Can we bring him in?" Dori said. "What will the elves think if our King comes strapped to his pony?"
The other dwarves nodded. "Not to mention he hates elves almost as much as Dwalin does," Balin muttered to Bilbo.
"We can't leave him outside," Bofur said.
"We could tell them he's someone else – a third cousin perhaps," Nori put in.
Gandalf shook his head. "Let me do all the talking. Elves know when they are being deceived."
"But if we just exclude part of the truth…" Nori guessed. Gandalf agreed.
"But why is he tied down?" Dori pressed.
"That is how you treat criminals…" Nori said pointedly, looking at Dwalin.
"Well, he is a murderer…" Dwalin muttered darkly.
"We can't even suggest that," Balin said quickly, "If the elves realise who he is, we're ruined!"
"Maybe we will need to stand him outside with a guard," Gloin said. "Dwalin and I could stay with him, provided we have enough food and supplies."
Privately, Bilbo thought this would be for the best. Dwalin and Gloin were the two most likely to offend the elves – leaving them outside with Thorin would simply kill two birds with one stone.
"We'll set up camp on the outskirts then," said Dwalin. "You can make nice with the tree shaggers, and we'll wait for you to return to your senses."
.
.
-ooo-
.
.
Fili had watched the rest of the company discussing their plans. All he knew was that eventually they would leave camp, so he and Kili started packing supplies into bags and fastening them to the ponies.
When they were younger, back when they'd only been slaves for a few months, any time spent 'packing' was a good time. Master stayed out of the way and they were able to talk quietly between trips. Fili could make sure Kili was still coping.
Fili had always done whatever it took to keep Kili safe.
Then, if Master thought they were wasting time, Fili would find a way to make the blame fall on himself so that Kili wouldn't receive the beating.
He saw that Kili was looking longingly towards the slowly dying fire. They had been over there earlier – it was still warm – and Ori had mentioned there might still have been some extra food left over from last night. He had looked sideways towards Fili and Kili at that point, but Fili wasn't entirely sure what he meant. Was it a test? Was he trying to see which of them would break first? Or was he trying to work around the system like Master Bilbo had?
Kili had always looked for the way around orders. He would take slightly longer to do anything, if it meant he could have a single moment of stillness with his brother.
"Kili!" Fili called sharply. His brother jumped.
Caught.
Fili pulled Kili in close. "Not for us," he whispered. "We want… need Master Bilbo to want us, remember?"
Kili nodded dumbly.
"We need to show him that we are good, remember? We need him to need us!"
Kili looked down at his feet, and Fili knew that he had him.
Good – his nature remembers that the only way out is to submit. Submit to power…
"Thank you for preparing the ponies, Fili and Kili."
Master Bilbo's voice came out of nowhere. Fili jumped – had he seen that Kili had needed reminding to behave? He dropped to his knees. Kili came this time without being pulled.
Submit.
"What do you need, Master Bilbo?"
.
.
-ooo-
.
.
Bilbo wasn't sure exactly what Fili had done. Something had changed.
One day Kili was carefree and seemed to be returning to life. The next, he was as subdued and downtrodden as Fili. Or at least, as Fili had been.
He was still 'hunching and hiding', as Bilbo called it in his head, but there was something else. Everything he did, even kneeling as he was now, held some sort of resoluteness.
This is the right way.
Bilbo shook his head quickly. Fili might have thought this was right. It was Bilbo's job (and the other dwarves, of course) to change his mind.
"No thank you, boys. I can finish packing up my things."
Kili slumped, and Bilbo wondered what he had done wrong.
"Are you alright, Kili?"
Kili's face fell further, if possible. He seemed to realise Bilbo wanted an answer, and hurried to nod. "I'm fine, Master Bilbo," he said softly.
Internally, Bilbo wished they could move past this 'Master Bilbo' nonsense. But then, he supposed it was what they were used to. If only there was a way they could become 'unused' to it…
"Is there anything we can do to serve you, Master Bilbo?" Fili said suddenly. "There's nothing you need?"
Bilbo wasn't sure where this came from, and without thinking he answered honestly. "There's nothing I need, Fili. I have a good home, good clothes and most importantly, good food. The only thing that could make things better would be for you dwarves to find a good home to."
"We want a good home Master Bilbo," Fili agreed. "One where we can work safely and have a good Master who cares for us. Maybe a home where there's enough work for both of us, so we don't have to worry about being separated."
Instantly, Bilbo knew he had said the wrong thing. What he had meant was that the dwarves as a whole should be able to leave peacefully in Erabor.
Was Fili trying to sell the idea of them as slaves?
Sell! By Aulë …
Fili crawled forward, still on his hands and knees. Bilbo was absolutely frozen in his shock – his brain was asking why he wasn't also down on the ground telling the boy to stand up but he literally couldn't move.
He belongs…
Bilbo shook his head forcefully. This voice in his head – where was it coming from? Fili and Kili belonged in their rightful places in the Company, at least. Preferably somewhere safe at home, in a place where they didn't have to worry about punishments and masters.
Fili had reached Bilbo's feet while he was internally whining.
"Master Bilbo," he said carefully, but firmly, "You asked us long ago what we wanted most in the world."
Fili was still low on the ground, but lifted his head to look up slightly at Bilbo.
The first time he's voluntarily looked at me.
"If we could have nothing else but have you as our Master and take us home with you, we would serve you happily for the rest of our lives and die with a smile on our faces."
If Bilbo could be even more taken aback…
Fili slowly backed up next to Kili, still staying low. "Please Master Bilbo, we beg you to buy us from the Company."
.
.
-ooo-
.
.
When Master Bilbo didn't respond, Kili knew something had gone horribly wrong. Without daring a look at his Master's face, he flung himself down into the dirt next to his brother.
"Please Master Bilbo, we beg your forgiveness for being too forward. Punish us as you deem necessary."
Out of sight, he felt Fili's hand reach out and pat his gently.
Together. Safe.
Their signal. Well done.
He almost missed Master Bilbo splutter something about "unnecessary", but then he heard someone else coming over. He felt Fili sit up slightly and both of them crouched behind Master Bilbo's pony out of the way.
.
.
-ooo-
.
.
Bilbo felt himself stammering some sort of reply to Fili's… pronouncements. His mouth felt vaguely detached from his usually sharp brain (if he did say so himself).
They wanted him to buythem?!
There were so many things wrong with this entire situation Bilbo wanted to scream! No, he wanted to scream and rage and beat the living stuffing out of any dwarf in the remote vicinity that had had anything to do with this entire despicable scenario!
Speaking of which, Dwalin and the bound Thorin had pulled up nearby. Here was someone he could take his rage out on…
"Mister Baggins," Thorin said smoothly.
Bilbo felt himself deflate suddenly like a juiced berry. The Thorin in front of him was (yes, his hands were still tied) not the raving lunatic from merely days ago. He was still the extremely controlled individual Bilbo had first picked him as, but there was something supremely different…
"Master Dwarf," Bilbo felt himself say automatically, politeness appearing out of habit. What had changed? Thorin seemed supremely unconcerned at his treatment – surely any king would have been crying treason at being treated like a common criminal?
Dwalin, standing by Thorin's side, gave Bilbo a gruff nod. He could explain Thorin's compliance.
Dwalin gave Thorin's halter another Tug, and the dwarf was pulled forward.
.
Suddenly the dwarf could see Fili and Kili, kneeling behind Myrtle. Both boys were still hunched over, eyes low.
Bilbo could see the genuine confusion broadcast all over Thorin's features.
"Fili? Kili? Why on earth… what are you doing?"
That almost sounded like genuine concern!
At the sound of his voice both boys jumped back away from the others. Kili clutched his brother but neither made eye contact.
Thorin made to move forward but Dwalin had noticed what was going on. He tugged on the ropes sharply, trying to force Thorin. Thorin staggered but didn't remove his gaze.
"Boys? What's happened?"
Fili was trembling again, but this time Bilbo thought he was trying to fight it. Kili still hadn't let go.
"Please, Master Bilbo…" he started softly.
Bilbo doubted Thorin had heard the entire thing, but he heard enough.
"You!" he bellowed. "You, hobbit? What have you done! What have you done to them!"
If Dwalin hadn't been holding the ropes, Bilbo was sure he still would have been terrified. As it was, he was tempted to hide behind something.
Except out of the corner of his eye, he could see Fili and Kili looking the same but worse – wondering if they could hide behind him…
That settled it.
"I have done nothing for them, dwarf, except fix that which you should have decades ago. I doubt even an orc could have been worse for them these last twenty years!"
.
.
-ooo-
.
.
Thorin staggered.
Twenty years!
He had been captured by a string of rage as strong as he had felt when Erebor fell. His family bowed to no one! How dare this halfling treat his boys that way!
Twenty years!
The orc comment had his hackles rising again, but a sharp pain behind his ear thrust him down into unconsciousness once more.
.
.
-ooo-
.
.
"Bilbo! I thought the boys were elsewhere! I…"
Bilbo quickly nodded at Dwalin as he hauled Thorin away. Regardless of the longest moment of lucidity he had seen in the dwarf king, Fili and Kili were the priority.
And his priorities were shivering on the ground in utter terror. Again.
Bilbo lowered himself to their level and tried gently rubbing their shoulders. They both winced at the contact but didn't shy away.
All it took was Thorin's voice. All that… decisiveness Fili's had recently. Gone.
"You're safe boys," Bilbo murmered. He kept reassuring them quietly for nearly five minutes before they seemed relatively recovered.
Fili swallowed hard. "Can we serve you, Master Bilbo?"
He chose to ignore the double meaning in the question. For now.
"Ah… yes, Fili. Have you packed my pipe? It was over near Bofur's bags, I believe – he took some of my leaf! Could you fetch it for me?"
Both boys nodded. Bilbo thought it would be better to give them something to occupy themselves with for a while.
Neither Fili nor Kili moved until Bilbo had risen. He watched them move off, trying to pretend things were under control once more.
.
Fili and Kili had obviously braced themselves, but at least they were moving forward.
Bilbo wondered if they would ever understand what wrong had been done.