Thank you, Manni, for your comment. :)
After weeks had gone by the medallion and the thief still weren't found, Fíli had expected it, but it still pained him to see how his mother would sometimes stroke her neck wistfully, as if she hoped the necklace might've returned magically.
At this evening however, he didn't want to dwell on gloomy thoughts. After a long day at the training ground he, Kíli and a few of their contemporaries wanted to spent some hours in a tavern with a tankard of ale, mead or wine, whatever they're in the mood for. Because, after a long day of exhausting training sessions, there was nothing more relaxing than drinking, a good conversation and the high spirits inside a tavern.
Heavy wooden tables and chairs adorned the large taproom. Behind the bar a young thing served drinks, while an older girl, responsible for the dishes, moved between the tables and placed soups and bread on them. Of all the taverns, this was the one Fíli preferred. It belonged to a plain family that worked hand in hand. The parents cooked, whereas the children hosted the guests. Disorderly behaviour wasn't accepted here and punished with a house ban for life. Another one of their kin made sure the ban was complied, he and Thorin had fought the Battle of Azanulbizar and he was just as scary as Mister Dwalin. So it wasn't surprising that the two warriors got along really well whenever they met.
As usual the air in the tavern was filled with smoke and Fíli didn't think twice either, as he lit his pipe. In the back most corner, close by the crackling open fire, a dwarf stroke up a jolly song on the fiddle. The bystanders clapped their hands and under their loud bawling the musician sped up the melody, the dwarves cheered with joy. Fíli's tapped his toes in the rhythm of the music, while Kíli drummed much more unashamedly on the table. Seeing the enthusiasm of his brother Fíli laughed.
Afterwards they talked for some time about their training progress. One of their companions whined about Fíli's and Kíli's horrible combination attacks he just couldn't win against. The brothers grinned at each other. Kíli held his hand out and Fíli, clasping it, shook it firmly.
"It was my pleasure", Kíli declared cheerfully.
"Any time again", he nodded to the brunet.
At the mere sight of it, their companion grumbled and looked into his tankard sulkily. But the more the evening progressed, the more of their group said goodbye until only Fíli and Kíli were left. Just as they'd decided to go home as well someone pushed two full tankards of ale towards them.
"It must've been ages since I saw you the last time", said the new arrival, as Fíli started to observe him.
The dwarf was a young man with wild, black hair he wore in numerous braids, they framed his features, but here and there they tried to escape his neatly tresses. This was probably the reason why he hadn't bothered to tame his thick beard. Considering his modest clothes, he didn't belong to a wealthy family. Tunic and trousers in subdued colours dressed his sturdy body.
"Torge?", Fíli asked truly surprised.
Instantly the dwarf nodded, obviously pleased and took a seat on the bench on the opposite side of the brothers.
"It really have been ages", Kíli agreed and grateful took the tankard. "How has the world been treating you?"
"Thank you for the ale", Fíli interrupted before the other could reply and nudged Kíli in the side with his elbow. In the process Kíli choked on his drink and started coughing for some time.
"Yeah… thanks", he willed out between his hacking noises, giving Fíli a venomous look nonetheless, but it wasn't really impressing.
"You haven't changed at all", Torge laughed amused. "Well, how has the world been treating me? Good, I would say, at least I can't complain. I'm getting trained to be a healer and it's a great feeling to be able to help other dwarves", he explained, relaxed he took a sip of his drink.
Until adolescence they'd learned with Torge and some other boys how to fight with an axe and Fíli had enjoyed the company of the simple dwarf. With the years however, it got obvious where everyone saw their future destination and while Torge had only trained to defend himself if necessary, Fíli and Kíli still learned how to use every kind of weapon. Thorin's lineage had to be experienced in many different things, but especially being able to protect their own lives was one of it. Threats would always exist and in case of emergency princes mustn't depend on bodyguards. In the Ered Luin they hadn't even these people around them, therefore their training was often embed in their weekly schedule. They probably belonged already more to the warriors than to any other profession, although they were still giving other things their attention. Torge's training however had stopped, when it was time to find an apprenticeship with a skilled master.
"That's wonderful", Fíli agreed. He was truly happy for the other dwarf.
In the following they talked awhile about old memories, like the one time, when one of the boys had pulled Kíli's pants down, during a training session, which had ended with the brunet stumbling over the fabric all of a sudden. Of course Kíli wasn't amused to hear of this story again and pouted for some time, until he remembered a tale to embarrass Fíli.
"And he really made the mistake and bragged about his skills in front of Dwalin, whereon he forced him through the whole training without a break until Fíli threw up with exhaustion directly on Dwalin's boots", Kíli told with a broad grin Fíli wanted to wipe from his face.
Torge however listened enthusiastically, since some of the stories were unknown to him, despite having trained with them nearly the whole time. He laughed loudly, as Kíli finished the tale.
"Dwalin's boots?", he asked disbelievingly and wiped a few tears of laugh away. "What did he do with him then?"
"Letting him clean his boots, of course!"
Fíli pretended he hadn't heard his brother's reply and emptied his tankard in one gulp. This was indeed one of those stories that could still make him blush with embarrassment. Sure, it had been his own arrogance that got himself into trouble, but the mockery lasted for a long time after he'd suddenly thrown up his breakfast. To top it all the alcohol seemed to go to his head now, since his movements started to feel a bit sluggish and the tavern blurred from time to time before it sharpened again. The air, smelling like ale and smoke, made it only worse.
He got up slowly and interrupted Kíli's and Torge's lively conversation, without knowing what they're even talking about. Was it still his mishap or were they discussing a totally different topic?
"Oh, come on, don't be like that, it was just a joke", the voice of his brother reached his ears, sounding strangely muffled.
All the talk about his childhood, too much ale and the awful mixture of smells forced him to swallow hard as nausea began to crawl into his stomach bit by bit. He needed to get some fresh air. Maybe afterwards the uneasy feeling in his belly and the dizziness would disappear again.
"Are you all right?", Kíli pressed all of a sudden a bit more serious, once he looked at his brother Fíli could even detect a hint of concern on his features.
Fíli tried to smile reassuringly, but he couldn't tell if it was believable.
"I only need to get some fresh air", he answered calmly, although it sounded a bit distorted in his own ears. Damned alcohol!
Cautiously he turned away from the table and step by step he aimed for the door, fearing to weave through the taproom, should his concentration slip just for one moment. After all, a lot of dwarves were currently in the tavern and gossip travelled faster than the best riding animal. Having arrived outside, Fíli took a deep breath of the fresh night air, while he leaned against the wall of the building. His knees were shaking terribly by now, as if they would soon refuse to carry his weight for much longer. Fortunately the inside of the mountain was deserted outside the tavern, the most dwarves were probably already asleep at home, and so no one would see him in his poor condition. The only noises, he could hear, came from the inside of the tavern.
But even after some time away from the interspersed air and the uncomfortable volume, that normally didn't bother him, the spinning of his surroundings hadn't ceased which was why he closed his eyes, it was a desperate attempt to stop the dizziness. He drew a deep breath and exhaled slowly. It didn't help, despite his closed lids he still felt like the whole ground under his feet was moving, his stomach turned in response. Mahal, he hadn't even drunken that much!
The front door of the tavern opened and steps came closer. Fíli didn't dare to open his lids to look at the one that had left the building, fearing that he was going to lose his balance otherwise. It felt like he only needed to see the world spin with his eyes and his control would slip.
"Fíli, is everything all right?"
As soon as he heard the voice of his brother he dared to lift his lids. Panting, he watched Kíli worriedly when something suddenly slid down his cheek. Confused, he wiped it away and detected trails of liquid on his fingers. He hadn't even realised that he'd broken out in a cold sweat. The spinning of the world sped up and out of the blue his legs weren't able to carry him any longer.
Kíli reacted instinctively, grabbed him by the upper arm and guided him gently to the stony ground of the hall. Fíli thought he was going to choke under the nausea in his belly, which only caused him to gasp, feeling cramped.
I don't feel so good, Kíli, he wanted to say, but his tongue had forgotten how to work properly and couldn't connect the sounds as needed. It chased away Kíli's concerned expression and left a heart-breaking fear.
"All right, I'll take you to Óin", he told him hurriedly and bend down to either help him up or to carry him if necessary.
Before he could do so however, Fíli slumped down, no longer able to stay even in a sitting position and not a moment later Kíli fell to the ground with dull thud. Fíli tried to call out to his motionless brother, but darkness covered his consciousness.