The warm glow of the lit fireplace coaxed him from his thoughts. He stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind him. Ori gave him a nod from his perch near the opposite wall, his slingshot loaded and ready to aim and fire - obviously on watch for any intruders.

"Leggy still here?"

Ori narrowed his eyes. "You know he despises that name. And no, he left a hour ago."

Fili flashed a smile. "Elf's gotta get used to it. He's gonna be here until Kili wakes up."

"There's been no change," Ori replied in a quiet voice.

The brief comic relief lasted a bit longer than Fili expected. They could all use some light in this dark time.

Fili cleared his throat and crossed the room. He lightly knocked on the door.

It opened, revealing a relieved Bofur. "Thank goodness yer 'ere, laddie," he said hurriedly. "I've got to go check on Bombur and Bifur. Wasn't wantin' to leave 'er all alone 'ere." He patted Fili's shoulder as he passed.

The blond dwarf stepped into the room.

Not much had changed in Thorin's chambers save for the fact that it was much colder than it had been before. Dis - in her grief state - had fallen behind on stoking the dying fire in the hearth. Bringing the flames back to life was the first thing on anyone's mind the minute they walked in.

"Don't bother with that," he heard her soft voice say weakly.

"Can't have it this cold in here," he grunted. "You'll catch your - a cold." He had refrained from saying the words "dead" and "death"around her. He swallowed. "How's he been?"

"No changes," she breathed.

He took a seat across from her on the other side of the bed. "That's good, Mother. Means nothing's wrong with him."

She looked at him suddenly and he looked away. He could feel her hard eyes bore into him. "That also means he's not getting better."

He exhaled sharply and ran his hands along his thighs. "When do you want me to send that raven to Uncle?"

She shook her head, biting her nails. "Don't. I don't want him to see this."

"See what?" he growled before he could stop himself. "The one nephew he thought he had buried long ago actually come close to death again?" He cringed inwardly but the frown remained on his face. "Everyone here agrees he's been away long enough!"

She refused to look at him.

He didn't speak for a while, then after what seemed like hours, he croaked, "I'm sorry, Mother."

Her mouth twitched. "Have you heard from Stonehelm and Dyla?"

"They're keeping to themselves until this whole thing is resolved," he said. "And it will be resolved. Don't look at me like that. He'll be fine."

"It's been two weeks," Dis said plainly.

"It's been two weeks and he's still alive," Fili countered. "He could have died that night but he didn't. He's gonna be fine."

She stared at him for a while. "And you trust those elves?"

"They're our only hope," he replied. "We still have to find those responsible."

Dis pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. "Where have you put Dain's army?"

Fili froze and avoided her eyes, staring at a square on the quilt on the bed. "In the dungeons."

"Fili!" she scolded.

"The nice part of the dungeons," he added. "It's only the captains. Dwalin's set to question them tomorrow. Just rounded up the last three."

"We can only hope word doesn't reach Dain at how poorly we're treating his men."

"They came here unannounced and uninvited," Fili reminded her. "Any king would understand that we're only taking precautions."

Dis shook her head. "You better get some rest then."

He grunted. "I'm alright. You sleep. You've been here all day." He looked up and gave Dis a small smile. "I'll stay with him."

The female dwarf heaved out a defeated sigh and stood. "I'll be in the other room. If anything changes-" She hiccuped.

"I'll let you know," he assured her.

"Goodnight, Fili."

He watched his mother leave the room and close the door behind her. The bond between them had weakened in the past two weeks. She and most of the Company didn't hold out much hope that Kili would survive the elves' methods. Fili, Bofur, and Dwalin were the ones who believed the prince would live to really see another day.

Fili picked up his brother's hand with his own, rubbing his thumb over the cold and pale skin of Kili's knuckle. Fili knew he couldn't break; he had to be strong for not only his family but the kingdom too. It pained him every time he looked at Kili's purple lips and sunken eyes, but he couldn't fall.

He wouldn't be as weak as Thorin.