Bofur was a cheerful fellow that always had food to feed a stranger and an extra cot to offer a weary traveler. He lived on the outskirts of their settlement that was barely a village of Ered Luin. He was always the first to see someone come and the last to see them leave. Wishes of luck always left his lips with promises to help if ever summoned by his friends.

Next to his little hut was a place that his brother, Bombur, had settled with his lovely wife. They had four children and were expecting a fifth. When the two walked with their children they always were told how lucky they were to be blessed with so many little ones, but Bofur knew the real reason. It was love. When you loved someone so thoroughly you did anything for them. You wanted to be with them in every possible way at any given time. And Bombur and his wife, which Bofur called Toffle because she made very good toffee and he could never remember her name, were very much in love. Thus, child after child came and as long as Bombur and Toffle could move he was certain more children were to come.

On a daily basis the little dwarves would rush over to their uncle's hut and invade his privacy before he went to work or after they heard the door shut when he returned home from a long day's work. They were a whirlwind of energy that he found wore him out more than mining for ore giving him good nights full of happy rest.

One such night he had ushered the last of the little ginger nuts out of his home and settled in for a good sleep. He was having a good dream of traveling with Thorin off to buy the rest of the Blue Mountains with their hard earned money, finally giving the dwarves of Westron a good home when he was startled awake from a loud knocking on his door.

He trodded out of his bed, dressed in his long underwear, grabbing only his hat. He grumbled a little as he lit a candle, the hard knocking making the wood of his door shake and groan.

"Imma comin'. I'm comin'!"

He pulled open the door expecting someone that had been told of his welcome home that was just passing through. Instead. Soaked in the rain, cloak wrapped around two shivering bundles, was Thorin Oakenshield. Two packs were strapped to his back, hastily placed.

The early spring rain was mixed with snow that set the usually stoic man into shivers as he looked at his friend with an expression that did not give any option to back out of. "Let us in."

Bofur moved to the side, the scuffing on the bottom of his door showed that Thorin had opted to kick instead of knock, "Of course. Just, uh. I'll start up a fire."

Bofur shut the door after Thorin carried in Fili and Kili, that took up his arms. He quickly took his candle to the fireplace and threw some kindling and wood inside the cold hearth and lit it with the candle.

He put the candle down on a small table and looked around for a moment. "Uh, I don't think I have anything that can fit you, but you'll be needin' to be gettin' out of those clothes before you take ill."

He went into his room finding the largest shirt and trousers he could. Coming back to the main room he found Thorin slowly stripping off his tunic with the help of Fili grabbing at the sopping cloth and pulling it over a mess of dark hair as the man bent over. The little blond took the tunic and threw it over the back of a chair that he dragged over with the help of Kili over to the fire to dry.

Bofur placed the dry clothes to the side as he helped his friend take off his boots. Something about Thorin made him look like he had just gone through a fight that he was barely able to dodge out of. When he got the second boot off that was when he got a good look. The peppered bruises up and down his side were dark purple in color. They looked a few days old, the healing causing his friend to finally feel the effects of it.

"How did you get these then?"

"Dis. When I told her she could not see the children again."

The miner sighed, placing the boots by the fire while Thorin took off his trousers. "So the sounds that woke up half the village was her really loosen her head over you then?"

"Mostly."

"And you showin' up in the middle of the night?"

Thorin frowned even more when the dry trousers didn't fit. He sighed and put them back on the table and wore just a long shirt. Fili and Kili pulled on the long shirt and he sat down pulling them up onto his knees. They were still tired, rightfully so. He had taken yet another day away from the forge. Read through the journals even though they broke his heart with each word written. Then he couldn't stand it any more. The thought that Dis knew where he lived, knew where to find his son and Kili. It scared him. Usually fear he would not admit to, but this... this depravity of hers, it sent a shiver down into his soul.

Thorin hugged the children closer to his chest. "Dis must not know where they are."

Bofur stiffened. "She really that bad now?"

"She is far worse than I could ever imagine..."

Fili pulled Kili up onto the chair. Bofur and Thorin had gone to work with strict instructions they were not to leave the house just yet. They were not to answer the door, and to stay away from the windows. There was food placed on the table that they were told was to last them all day. But right now Fili had to change Kili's bandage.

He looked around and went over to one of the packs still in the main room. He dug through it finding the salve and came over to the brunette. He carefully took off the bandages like Thorin had shown him. The burns were a lot better now, they didn't look like they would scar.

It was when he was spreading the cooling salv on Kili's arm that the boy finally spoke up for the first time in two days. The little brunette had been quiet ever since Thorin started to talk about how sick Dis was. At first he did not understand it, but after he got burned and how Fili continued to be a his best friend, he started to put some things together. It hurt, really, knowing that his mother had been trying to use him in order to hurt Fili. It hurt a lot. And if Thorin thought it was best to move them in the middle of the night so that Dis could not find them... she was very bad. She was the one that was dangerous. Not Fili, not Thorin. He had to come to terms with that.

"I'm sorry I thought you were a bad kitty." Kili's voice broke when he said the last two words.

"It's okay." Fili smiled softly, his shoulders visibly relaxing.

"No it's not... Mama wanted me to help hurt you..."

Fili twitched from the lance of pain that had caused to his heart. Kili... Kili would have hurt him?

The blistered palm of Kili's slipped into Fili's. Despite the pain he squeezed the blond's hand, he leaned forward, resting his forehead on Fili's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Fili moved his head enough to drag his tongue over Kili's face tasting the salty tears that were silently falling. He would forgive Kili of anything but forgiveness did not stop the pain that stabbed at him. Instead he focused on licking the tears away from Kili, calming his thoughts as he did.

After Kili's face was wet from Fili's saliva and not tears Fili asked softly. "Would you have hurt me?"

"No!" Kili threw himself off of the chair and clutched onto Fili. The older barely caught him before toppling over onto the ground not being able to support the full weight of Kili.

He groaned from where his head hit the floor. He was barely aware of Kili's babbling of apologies and how he should have listened to his dad and uncle Thorin. The only thing that shut him up was Fili covering his mouth with a hand. He smiled and nuzzled his friend. That stab in his heart was gone. Kili wouldn't hurt him, would never, ever hurt him. That felt nice.

It was few days later that Thorin decided to finally sit the boys around him as he tried to explain his findings in the journals. He had called Balin and Vili to gather with Bofur, Bombur, and Toffle. He needed them to know the gravity of the situation. For every adult involved to know that no matter what Dis was not allowed any of the children again. Their hut was filled rather well with so many dwarves present.

Thorin produced the three books that Vili had smuggled out from under Dis' watchful eye. His brother-in-law looked away from them looking uneasy.

"As it is known to many of us my sister, Dis, is not well. I did not know how unwell until I had read her personal journal as well as the two entrusted to her care." He placed down the oldest and tapped the cover. "The first is a sonnett. Ravings of someone who believed to have been before the First Age. It was the start of a secret passed down to every Durin woman." He then placed his great grandmother's journal on top of that one. He swallowed and put his hand on this one.

"That's the one mama showed me!" Kili exclaimed.

Thorin nodded. He waited for a moment before opening up the book, finding a the very page Kili had described with the scary cat and elf. He handed the book to Vili. The picture was much more graphic than what Kili had said. The chains the elf held were not simply wrapped around the lion but hooked into its meat. There were dismembered bodies laying about as the lion bit down upon a victim. The elf in the picture was serene, with one hand held up in a holy gesture. Vili made a disgusted sound in the back of his throat and passed the book over to Toffle who gasped at how horrid the picture was. Bombur quickly took it from his wife and stroked her back.

"This book, is not what it would seem. There are many contradictions, one being that only dwarves may slay the beast or an elven right. All because of a belief that every golden haired child born to a Durin is to be slain at birth or in battle, yet the only reason is that there is a possibility of the child being different from the others." Thorin spoke up.

"Different? In what way?" Balin asked when he got to see the picture after Bofur.

"A preposterous notion that the child can become a flesh eating beast. This book," he took it from Balin and placed it down. "is a guide. It tells how to teach the daughters of Durin how to fully believe these lies. It instructs on the proper way to slay the newborn, and if the newborn lives on how to properly dispose of it through other means. It even instructs on how to take the women who marry into our line to believe such things."

"And if they don't?"

"They are executed."

Toffle took a visible step back who held her to his side. "That is... awful. So awful."

"I agree, you should get rid of that wicked book." Bombur frowned deeply. As loving parents they could not understand such thoughts and they did not want to.

"Now, wait a moment." Balin paced a few steps he could take. "If what Thorin is saying is true, that Dis was raised to believe all of this then the book would give us stratigic insite as to what she may try to do. But my question is, why now? What triggered this? Yes blond dwarves are rare but she has met many before, even Frerin was blond. So why focus on solely Fili?"

Thorin swallowed hard. He looked to Fili and ran his hand over his head. He knew the truth now, how he had no right to call Fili his son, but it hurt to admit that.

Vili spoke up, "Thorin, you don't have to say another thing."

"I do." He spoke to Fili and Kili now. "Kili... your mama had a baby before you."

"She did?"

Thorin nodded, "But she was very bad and left him in the woods to be eaten by animals."

"What?! I had a sister or brother? And mama... Well she's not getting Fili!" Kili got up from his seat on the floor. He suddenly grabbed Fili and held him tight against his chest, nearly choking the blond.

"Kili... Fili is your brother."

"You don't know that Thorin." Vili said almost painfully.

Thorin shot a piercing gaze up at Vili. "Look at him. He has Frerin's hair, blue eyes of the Durins, and Dis' nose, your cheeks and chin!"

Kili let go of Fili and went over to his father. "Papa, papa, is that true? Is Fili really my brother?"

Vili looked at Thorin carefully before he looked to his child. He picked up Kili and felt such a sadness for his brother-in-law. "We believe he is..."

"Udâd." Fili scrambled over to Thorin. This wasn't true. Thorin was his father. Thorin was the one that held him close, who hugged and kissed him. He was the one that knew his secret and still loved him as much as Kili did. He didn't know Vili. He was Kili's dad, not his.

Thorin looked closed his eyes and looked away from those pleading eyes that begged him to say this was a bad joke. He cursed Fili for being so intelligent. It would have been much easier if he was like Kili and just accepted it.

Then Kili said something that made Vili laugh. "Fili! Fili! Do you know how lucky you are? You have two papas!"

Vili agreed loudly, "Yes, yes he does."

Thorin looked up to his companions who all shared the same look. For him to take this chance and remain Fili's father without removing Vili's role. Thorin cursed himself for being so selfish. All of the joys of fatherhood should be Vili's not his, but he took it. He reached over and stroked Fili's hair.

"Udâd." Fili leaned into the stroking touch. "If Vili is my other papa, then who is Frerin?"

iHe should have been your other papa./i Thorin stamped down on the thought. Frerin deserved more to his memory than 'should have been's and 'could have's.

"Frerin was your uncle." Balin said softly. "A very good man."

Fili looked at Balin for a long time before he looked back to Thorin. "May I call Kili, brother?"

"If you would like."

Kili gave a shriek of excitement that caused nearly everyone in the hut to wince. He wiggled down from his father's grip and ran over to Fili hugged him tight. He squeezed Fili so hard that he made an odd cat like wheeze.

"It's getting late." Thorin tapped to top of Kili's head with his knuckles. "Get ready for bed."

"I get to sleep with my brother!" Kili screamed running out of the room, dragging Fili by a hand.

"Speaking of brothers... Shall I tell them or should you?" Vili asked kindly soon as the children were out of hearing.

Thorin gripped Dis' journal. He held it out for Balin to take. He stood up and walked passed them, silent and heavy bodied. Balin placed a hand over the journal and sighed, letting Thorin go. He was one of the very few that knew what had been shared between the two and he would keep it a secret, but he would also let the other continue to mourn. In their world, it was not often one out of a pair lived long after one was gone. It was a hardship he could not understand.

Balin opened the book in his hands and slowly thumbed through it. He finally came to the passage of Dis' confession. He read it out loud feeling the words drop from his mouth, heavy as the hardest stone. Once the last word was read he closed the book in the silent room.

What did they do? By their laws she should be executed. But was that fair punishment when one was raised to be insane?