Chapter 6. Family
Lauren came home that later that day and she had some papers in a folder. Naomi and Vivian were giggling over the stove as they stirred the stroganoff. Thorin and Kili were situating plans with Bofur using the special cell phones that Gandalf had given them so that Erebor would not be without leadership until such time as the new successor was named. Fili and the twins were passed out, snoring on the couch while 'Lion King' ran in the background for the seventh time that day.
"Hello all!" Lauren called as she squeezed into the door, bags of groceries and paperwork in her arms.
Naomi turned her head, smiling at something that Vivian had said. "Hi Mom!"
"I have a surprise for you! Come here!" Lauren's own smile flickered as something in her daughter's eyes darkened and with it her demeanor.
Naomi's smile was still there as she crossed the room to her mother. "What is it?"
"You're going into the tenth grade next week!" Lauren announced.
Kili's head snapped up. "I'll come back in a moment. Excuse me Master Bofur." He closed the phone with a snap. "Lauren, what do you mean? She can't go to school now! The girl's barely been home two days!"
"I'm her mother and I think that she's ready. Kili I know that you want to spend time with her and make up for lost time, and trust me I do too, but she needs an education to et anywhere in today's world. You have gone through the same subjects as she will, and I've made arrangements with the school that she can live at your apartment. Provided, of course, that her grades are maintained."
Naomi was getting rather frustrated with everyone making decisions and talking about her like she wasn't in the room. "Hello? I'm right here! What if I didn't want to live with Kili? Have you thought about that?"
Thorin did a spit-take. "Just one second, Bofur." He covered the receiver with his hand. "Naomi we know as well as you do that living with Kili would be nothing short of perfection for you, don't even try that."
Naomi nodded her head slightly. "That's not the point!"
Vivian called from the kitchen. "Enough! Naomi you're going to go to school and live with Kili, whether or not you enjoy it entirely. Lauren you could have told her beforehand. Kili close your mouth and sit down. Thorin!"
Her husband's eyes met hers and she raised her eyebrows, communicating a wordless command. Thorin clicked his phone shut.
"FILI!" Vivian shouted with more force than most likely necessary.
Fili started awake and fell off of the couch. "Mmh?"
"Dinner." Vivian grinned.
The twins had woken when the argument had started between their mother and sister. Everyone seated themselves at the table and Naomi, Vivian and Lauren brought out the food.
Tonight's entrée was a stroganoff, the smell of the mushroom sauce and bits of hamburger meat wafted themselves at the rest of the family. Even Fili, who had been grumbling softly about being woken, stopped and inhaled the scent deeply. Naomi was carrying a plate of steaming homemade butter rolls, smelling warm and good, and a bowl of Brussels sprouts. Lauren had a plastic pitcher of fresh lemonade with mint picked from the back garden.
Everything was set on the table and the girls took their places, Naomi between Kili and Lilli, Lauren beside Fili and Thorin and Vivian between Thorin and Charlie. The family joined hands and bowed heads around the table and Thorin's rumbling voice rolled over the table.
"Dear Heavenly Father, we thank You for the food You have provided for us on this day. We thank You also for the safe return of Your daughter Naomi. We ask for Your guidance and support in the coming days as she adjusts to her new life. In Your Name we pray. Amen."
"Amen." Chorused the family.
Dinner was a conversational affair, eating and drinking and joyful laughter as the day's news was transmitted in stories.
When dinner was done and Vivian was calling for dishes to be done the three boys shot up and began humming as the rest of the family transferred to the living room couches.
Naomi started to get up and help with clearing the table. Vivian placed a hand gently on her elbow and pushed her back into the couch. "Watch."
Fili was standing next to the table, plates stacked next to him. Kili stood in the kitchen doorway, grinning like an idiot, and Thorin was rolling up his sleeves next to the sink, smiling as he nodded.
"O-h!" Fili began.
"O-h!" chorused Kili, just slightly higher.
"Oo-h!" Thorin boomed, his baritone seeming to vibrate the girl's very souls.
Bend the knives and chew the forks!
Unscrew the bottles and rot the pork!
Drop the glasses and break the plates!
That's what Vivian Durin hates -
Cut the cloth and eat the fat!
Leave Legos on the bedroom mat!
Pour the milk on the kitchen floor!
Splash the juice on every door!
Dump the cat in a boiling pot;
Throw it in with a pound of scat;
And when you've finished, if she be cold,
Put her in the bed to nap!
That's what Vivian Durin hates!
So, carefully! Carefully with the plates!
As the boys sang they threw the dishes from the table to Kili, Kili to Thorin and by Thorin they were washed, dried and put away within minutes. Another round of the song saw the boys through wiping down the counters and table, and sweeping.
Dinner over and chores done They settled down to watch a movie. Naomi and Kili were almost settled when Kili said. "Wait! Naomi you and I are supposed to go home tonight!"
Naomi almost pouted at the thought of leaving her mother so soon. Lauren, sensing her daughter's thoughts, embraced her tightly. "I'll come and see you after work tomorrow. I promise."
Kili and Naomi listened to the radio as they drove to Kili's apartment across town. The station played a son called 'Broken' by Seether and Amy Lee. Naomi and Kili both knew the song by heart.
I wanted you to know that I love the way you laugh
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain away
I keep your photograph and I know it serves me well
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain
Because I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
You've gone away, you don't feel me here, anymore
The worst is over now and we can breathe again
I wanna hold you high, you steal my pain away
There's so much left to learn and no one left to fight
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain
'Cause I'm broken when I'm open
And I don't feel like I am strong enough
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
'Cause I'm broken when I'm open
And I don't feel like I am strong enough
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
You've gone away, you don't feel me here, anymore
The worst is over now and we can breathe again
I wanna hold you high and steal my pain away
There's so much left to learn and no more left to fight
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain
'Cause I'm broken when I'm open
And I don't feel like I am strong enough
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome
And I don't feel right when you're gone away
When Naomi and Kili got to his apartment they got into the door and set down Kili's bag. From mutual exhaustion, Kili showed Naomi around the place briefly and they curled up in the bed, fast asleep in each other's arms before they hit the mattress.
A.N. REVEIW! Please. I hope you guys enjoyed reading this as much as I did writing it. Until the next!