Summer soon turned into autumn. The weather was still good and so the children were aloud to help with the harvest for the first time. Poppy picked apples and plums from the trees and the children were supposed to put them into baskets. They ate most of the plums though. Poppy chuckled and told them that they couldn't bake any cake if they ate all of them now. She knew that they loved them even more in desserts. They looked at her with wide eyes and dropped the plums into the basket immediately.
A few days later Lili and Tulip helped their mother in their garden. She told them to pull out the plants that didn't look good anymore. Vili stood next to them but he couldn't help. When Poppy told her daughters how well they were doing their core, the little boy looked like he'd burst into tears any second. "I want to help!" He sobbed.
Poppy kneeled down in front of him and took him in her arms. "Oh Vili, I'm so sorry! I don't have a task for you at the moment. Maybe you can help Papa. Come with me, we'll ask him." She said and took his hand.
They walked to the forge together and Poppy asked her husband with pleading eyes if Vili could stay with him. Of course the little boy couldn't help in the forge either. But the dwarf didn't say that aloud. He saw how distressed his son looked. He thought about what to do for a few seconds and then suggested. "Vili, the weather is far too nice to stay indoors. I have to work on some toys for the neighbouring villages. Let's sit down in the garden together."
Vili sobbed. "But I want to help you. And I can't."
Fili kneeled down in front of him and wiped his tears away. "Of course you can help me. Some families ordered some wooden blocks. You can paint them for me."
"Really? But how?" Vili asked with a frown.
"I'll show you. I really would appreciate your help." The young dwarf promised.
The little boy's face lit up and he nodded. He walked back to the garden with his mother and soon Fili joined them. He handed his son a brush and filled the paints into different cups. Then he showed his son what to do. Occasionally he had to help but all in all Vili worked very well. Fili was proud of him and asked him if he wanted to help more often. The little boy nodded and hugged his father. They stayed like this for a long time and Fili never wanted to let his son go again. Vili had been closer to Poppy from the beginning. Fili never complained though, all he wanted was him to be happy. But he enjoyed the moments when Vili wanted to cuddle with him very much.
In late autumn Poppy found out that she was with child again. On the one hand she was incredibly happy since she had always dreamed of a big family. But on the other hand she was very scared. What if she had a son and King Thorin somehow found out about the child and took him to Erebor? She prayed to Yavanna that she would get another daughter.
When she told Fili, he grinned happily until he saw the tears in her eyes. He hugged her and kissed her tears away. "Shh, shh, don't cry! Im sure everything will be fine, my love. Do you regret our decision to have another child?"
Poppy shook her head and buried her face in his hair. "No, but... But what if he finds out?"
Fili sighed and pulled her closer. "The Lady Galadriel promised to warn us if Thorin planned something. I don't like elves but we should trust her and Gandalf." He kneeled down and kissed her still flat belly. "I will protect you! All of you."
Poppy tried to smile and caressed her husband's beard. "I hope you're right. I still hope we'll have another girl."
"Aye, a little lass would be perfect. A lass that looks like her beautiful mummy." Fili said and kissed her belly again.
When Poppy had calmed down they told the children. They hugged their mother and cheered. Especially Tulip was happy that she'd finally get someone to play with when the twins spent time together. She was sad that she's still have to wait several months though. Fili hugged her and told her that he'd play with her as long as they waited for the new sibling. He also told his children that their mother was a bit more fragile now and that they had to be more careful when they played with her. They nodded and promise to take good care of her.
In late autumn Fili and Poppy received a letter from her relatives in Dwaling. They finally wanted to meet Poppy's family and were curious about the goods Fili sold. Dwaling wasn't too far away and so they decided to travel there with the children.
Fili wouldn't let his wife carry anything and so they put everything they needed in one backpack. Poppy packed some clothes for everyone, a few toys, the pictures of hers and Fili's family and the jewellery Dis had sent for her and the children. They put the backpack into the hallway and went to bed early.
In the middle of the night Fili heard shrieks. They sounded like orcs but the young dwarf was sure that this was impossible. A few minutes later he heard someone knock on the door like crazy. Fili grabbed his twin swords and went to the door.
Bilbo stood there with Sting in his hand. "Fili, there are orcs everywhere! We have to leave immediately. I heard strange noises and went to the door. Bywater and the Green Dragon are burning. They will be here soon. Fetch Poppy and the children!"
Fili looked at the hobbit with wide eyes and swallowed. He remembered the words of the Rangers in Bree and knew that the hobbits didn't have a change with no weapons to defend themselves. "Oh Mahal! Go to warn Daisy, Camelia and the others. I'll wake Poppy and the little ones. We have to protect them, Bilbo."
Bilbo nodded and ran away. Fili went back to the bedroom to inform Poppy. Seconds later Daisy was at their door. She took the backpack and helped Poppy with the children. Fili kissed his wife and told her to run away as fast as possible. He and Bilbo would be behind them to make sure that they were safe.
Poppy and Dasiy were shocked but did as they were told. They hoped that the Water would protect them but soon they ran into a group of Orcs who had simply swam through the river. The children and the females screamed and tried to run away. Poppy was the last and tripped over a root. She fell down and shrieked because she knew that the orcs were not far behind.
Daisy and the girls turned around and looked at her. She told them to run away and was about to stand up again when an Orc grabbed her hair. She felt pain in her belly and fell down on the floor again. She smiled when she saw Bilbo with Daisy and the children. They would be safe and her friends would help Fili to raise the little ones. Then everything went black.
Seconds later Gandalf and an eleven army from Rivendell had arrived. Apparently they had known about the threat and had rushed to the Shire to warn and protect the hobbits. But they were too late. Now they tried to kill the orcs and safe the hobbits that were still alive. They knew that those who lived in Bywater and the villages on the other side of the Wayer most likely didn't have a change. But there were still many to safe. The Grey Wizard had also told Lord Elrond about what Lady Galadriel had told him about Poppy. They had to make sure that she and her family survived. They needed a strong alliance in the East to fight off the evil in Middle Earth and a mad kind was a high risk for this alliance.
Fili had killed several orcs already. Then he ran towards Daisy and Bilbo. He was relieved that Lili, Vili and Tulip were with them but frowned since he couldn't see his wife anywhere. The little ones also cried and screamed for their mother. He noticed that they wanted to run and followed their gaze. Then he saw Poppy lying on the ground. He drew his twin swords and killed all the orcs around her. He sank to the ground and cradled his wife in his arms. He looked down at her belly because he felt a warm liquid on his fingers. An ugly looking blade sticked out of her belly. He gasped and started to scream for the elves. They had to help her. Fili carefully took his wife in his arms to carry her towards them. He had just started running when a few arrows pierced different parts of his body. Fili couldn't breathe anymore and collapsed on the ground.