I swear I want to write longer chapters, I just...can't. These need to be short and sweet. Well, not so sweet, but you know what I mean. To my lovely reviewers-Neocolai, Kyoiku kanji, winter's-lion, wardog85, AutumnSapphire9, Cockapoo, and livin-la-vidaloki-d-I don't know if I should feel good or terrible. I mean, I'm wreaking havoc on your emotions, but at the same time that means it must be kinda well written...I hope... I'm not the best judge of my own work. Either way, I apologize profusely. The end of this chapter almost made me cry, so...yeah. Enjoy, I suppose.
Fili stood in front of Balin, trying to hide his nerves. Balin held in his hands the heavy ceremonial crown of the Kings Under the Mountain, preparing to crown Fili as one of their line. All the dwarves of Erebor were standing in the room below the dais on which Fili stood with Balin, and Fili could feel nerves coiling like snakes in his stomach. What made it worse was that it should have been Thorin up there. Thorin, who, Fili was sure, would not feel the trepidation present in his nephew. Thorin was—had been—a natural-born leader, one who had led his people to a new life after Erebor fell.
Fili didn't realize Balin had been speaking until a heavy hand fell on his shoulder. "You all right, laddie?" the white-haired dwarf asked kindly.
Fili nodded slightly, and Balin repeated what he had said earlier—"Do you, Fili, son of Mim, promise to uphold the honor of the kingdom of Erebor?"
"I do," Fili replied, his voice surprisingly steady.
"Do you promise to rule faithfully and wisely, to the best of your ability?"
"I do."
They proceeded in the same manner through the rest of the ceremony. Finally, Balin said, "I declare you an heir of Durin, Fili son of Mim,' and placed the crown on Fili's head.
The crowd erupted into cheers, and Fili forced a smile.
That night Fili sat on his bed, his new crown on the table in front of him. He sat and looked at it, and despaired of all it symbolized. He and Kili had never been princes. They had been in name, to be sure, but living in exile as they had, they had never played the part. They had always been warriors, first and foremost. Fili wondered now if Thorin had merely been training them to help reclaim the mountain, nothing more. If that was so, he should have also been training the boys as princes. But, Fili had to admit, Thorin had never thought that far into the future. All he had ever spoken of was the mountain, their home. There had been no doubt in his heart that he would live to reclaim it, and then he would've groomed his sister-sons as heirs to the line of Durin.
With a groan Fili lay back across his bed, already completely overwhelmed by his new position. He was not prepared to take over, and while he knew he would have the help of excellent advisors like Balin, the majority of the burden still fell on his shoulders, and his alone.
Fili's eyes fluttered slowly shut.
The door to Fili's room creaked open, and Fili sat up, rubbing his eyes. He looked up to see who dare disturb the new king, and froze. His brother stood there in front of him, grin plastered across his face.
"Kee?" Fili asked hesitantly, and Kili nodded.
"Of course," he said happily, and fell onto the bed beside his brother.
"But you're…dead." Fili felt he had to point this out, yet regretted the words the instant he said them. Kili's face fell, and he curled into himself as he had when they were children.
"Yes," he replied slowly. "I am no longer of the realm of the living. But that does not mean I'm gone, Fee. I will be here for you. All you need to do is close your eyes."
Fili jerked awake with a start. He felt warmth running into his beard, and when he raised his hand to his cheek it came away wet. The dream-Kili had seemed so real, so…Kili. It made Fili miss his shadow even more.