The following time spent at the village selling the wares seemed rather dull and depressing to Kili. Lesur had disappeared, and no one could seem to find him. Krangon was also gone, his shop left unattended. Kili spent far too much time sulking in the tavern or just sleeping, and finally Fili and Bofur decided something needed to be done. So Fili woke up Kili early one morning, and told him to get ready. Begrudgingly, Kili got dressed, and then Fili took him downstairs where Bofur was waiting. The two dragged Kili around the town, Bofur paying for all kinds of goodies and making lots of jokes which finally made Kili crack a smile. It took a while, but finally Kili was fully laughing at Bofur's antics, which only earned strange looks from the town's people; however that only made Kili laugh harder because Bofur glared playfully right back at the people.
"Are you feeling better?" Fili asked at the end of the day, and Kili nodded.
"Thanks for trying so hard," he told both Fili and Bofur. "I just want to see her once more, just to know she didn't completely forget me like Thorin kept claiming."
Bofur's eyes widened and he grinned.
"Ah, I see," he smiled at Kili. "This is about proving Thorin wrong."
"No," Kili laughed despite himself at Bofur's falsely serious expression. "I mean, maybe a little, but I really do want to see her again. I suppose I'm glad she saved my life but…"
Kili glanced longingly towards the sea, and Bofur nodded understandingly.
"I know it's hard losing a loved one, but think of it this way. As Thorin said, she belongs out in the ocean with her family."
"Yeah," Kili sighed. "Why is it I never fall for dwarves? I remember there was a human woman once, and now a selkie. I think it annoys Thorin to no end."
"You've got that right," Fili muttered.
"Well, she might return," Bofur spoke up encouragingly. "However, you must keep in mind that selkies have a hard time going away from the sea after being there for a while. If she doesn't return, it doesn't mean it's her fault. Remember that!"
Silently, Bofur cursed the traders who'd ever made Kili interested in selkies which had then led to all these internal infernal troubles for the younger dwarf.
The next day, Fili caught Kili turning something over in his hand, and Fili's heart dropped.
"You still have the selkie pendent! Wait, how is that possible? I thought that human took it!"
"He did, I think. I just found this downstairs in an envelope. There was no note or anything, it was just there."
"Do you think he returned it to you? I don't understand; he didn't seem like the type to return it."
"Perhaps he did," Kili trailed off. A memory of a picture of Krangon and a woman who look suspiciously like a selkie filled his mind, and he couldn't help but wonder. With a sigh, he explained his suspicions to Fili, whose face dropped.
"You mean, they look like they were married?"
"Yes, and he didn't look evil. He looked younger, and happy."
Fili nodded, swallowing.
"Do you think he could have been looking for her? Trying to get selkies in order to look for her?"
"Maybe at the beginning, but I think he'd pretty much become obsessed by the whole thing by the time we met him."
Kili's eyes traveled to the pendent, and Fili frowned.
"What are you going to do with it?"
"We're leaving tomorrow, I'm going to bring it to the beach, and then get rid of it there I guess. It obviously works, and I don't think I should keep it."
Fili nodded, and then he swallowed again.
"By the way," he sighed. "You realize that Thorin and I didn't mean to get so mad at you, right? You realize we were only worried about you? You realize we completely forgive you?"
Kili smiled sadly as well.
"I hope you forgive me for being so rash, too," he said, but Fili only shook his head.
"No brother," he laughed softly. "You were only acting like yourself. You don't need forgiveness. You are always rash."
"Gee thanks," Kili rolled his eyes, but his brother only smiled gently, and then the brothers fell into an affable silence.
The next morning, Fili woke to see an empty bed on the other side of the room. He was quick to dress and hurry towards the sea. He wasn't surprised to see Kili standing there, staring out at the ocean, however he was disappointed to see that Kili was alone. With a sad sigh, Fili approached his brother and laid a hand on Kili's shoulder.
Slowly, Kili turned to face Fili, and Fili smiled at his brother sadly. Kili nodded and swallowed hard, his hand fingering the selkie pendent. Kili cast a final look at the ocean, and then he turned away, ready to leave the shore. The brothers walked several steps before Kili turned and with a running start, he threw the selkie pendent into the waves where is disappeared with a plop.
"There, it's over," Kili muttered, and Fili nodded. Kili turned again and began to walk away, when suddenly Fili saw a flash of grey in the waves. He stared, and then saw the grey flash again.
"Kili!" He called at his brother, who turned, and then his eyes widened.
He too see the grey amongst the blue waves. A few moments later, a seal appeared on the beach. The seal looked to Fili and Kili, and then lifted a flipper in salutation. Kili followed suit, raising an arm and swallowing something lodged in his throat. Fili smiled, also giving a small wave.
Kili didn't go any closer; he only stood and smiled at the small grey seal. After what seemed an eternity, he gave a final nod to the seal, and then he turned, as did the seal, and they parted ways.
"She did come back," Kili said, though it seemed to be more for himself than for Fili. Fili glanced back at the seal who bounded through the waves back to its home, and he nodded.
"She's where she belongs," Kili continued to speak. "And I'll be where I belong. I suppose it's better like this, but I'm so glad she came back."
Fili nodded in understanding before leading Kili back to the village.
When the ponies packed up with goods bought and traded at the village passed the ocean, each of the dwarves said their goodbyes and then turned down the path that led to the woods. Thorin and Kili paused before following the others, however.
"Did she come back?" Thorin asked softly, and Kili asked Thorin what he meant. "The selkie, did she come back when you went to see her again?"
"Yes, she did," Kili nodded, staring out at the ocean.
"That's good," Thorin sighed. "You might return in ten years and see her again. You can try, anyway. It happens, sometimes, that you see them again in ten years. It's been five years since I was last here, I have five more years to wait."
Kili turned to Thorin, confused, however Thorin didn't offer any explanation.
"Come," Thorin turned his pony away. "It's time we catch up with the others."
Thorin waited as Kili took one last glance at the ocean, and then nephew and uncle left the sea behind, and flash of grey waving them goodbye.
AU: So, this is finally the end. I'm planning out another story that will be Hobbit related, however I'm debating on just what to do. I have one story in mind that is related to DOS, and another that is about Thranduil which I've been thinking about and planning for quite some time. The one about Thranduil is actually a cross over with Harry Potter (I know sounds unusual, it kinda is, but I'm thinking about writing it) Ever since my friend introduced me to a picture comparing Thranduil and Lucius, I've had this headcannon about them being related or something, so we'll see where that goes. In any case, I've had a good time writing this and I'm kinda sad it's over. Still, this is the ending I've had planned for quite some time.
Please review and tell me what you think :)