"Fili, do you remember where I put my-"
"Left coat pocket."
"Oh yeah." Kili reaches inside his travel coat and pulls out his pipe from the inner pocket. While he stuffs it with pipeweed, Fili blows a smoke ring, which disperses as his head goes through it a moment later. The enormous wolf trailing behind them merely rolls her eyes. Kili usually remembers to bring everything, but rarely where he packs it.
Were it not for all of the birthdays and anniversaries, she would have lost track of the count of years long ago. As it is, she knows well that it's been a little over fifty-three years since she first arrived in Arda. Kili, while still nearly as playful and spirited as he always was, has grown a great deal. Not just in appearance, but also in maturity. Fili is the same, though with a slightly different air about him. Being the elder of the brothers, he is next in line for the throne after Thorin, and as such has been groomed for leadership from a young age. Emery, while perhaps not the most significantly changed, has certainly had the biggest change. Literally. The little wolf pup the boys found as dwarflings that could easily curl up in one of their laps can no longer do so. The now-fully-grown wolf stands nearly five feet high, more than twice the height of an average wolf and tall enough on four legs to have to look down to look a dwarf in the eye.
Now, they make their way through the little paths of the Shire, the wolf on foot (on paw?) and the boys on their ponies. They catch a few stares from the resident hobbits that have not yet gone to bed, most of them frightful of the creature trailing behind the dwarves. This doesn't bother her, though. She's used to it, and it's come in handy more times than she can remember. They wander around Hobbiton, searching for the mark Gandalf said he would place on the door of their burglar's home. There are some times when Emery remembers certain helpful things, but for the majority of the last five decades, her memory of The Hobbit has been less than helpful, since nothing was described before the Quest. For the last few years, though, she's been biting at the bit to get to a part in the story where she knows exactly what's going on. Now that they're finally making the journey to the house of Bilbo Baggins, she feels relief - along with apprehension. While she has the benefit of knowing what is to come, it's not entirely a comfort.
After hours of wandering through Hobbiton with no sign of the mark, Kili huffs in frustration and turns to the wolf.
"Hey Lassie? Do you think you could find our burglar?" he asks her. She huffs and rolls her eyes. She's proven her tracking abilities many times over. Fili chuckles.
"Allow me to rephrase my brother's question: would you mind locating Mr. Baggins for us?" he says. She playfully gives an over-the-top bow, causing them to laugh, then squeezes between them to get in front of them, ignoring Kili's comment, "I'm pretty sure it was Boggins." They met Gandalf a few days ago when they were gathering their kin together and preparing to set out, so she knows his scent, and he's obviously been to Bilbo's house before, so she can follow it to their destination. If she can find it, that is. She closes her eyes and ducks her head, concentrating on nothing but her sense of smell.
Dirt. Grass. Wheelbarrow. Dew. Goat. Hobbit foot. Hobbit hair. Old Toby. Cabbages. Mushrooms. Carrots. Fish. Wood. Paint. Wagon. Pony. Hobbit clothes. Honey. Tea. Wood. Strange wood. Not Hobbit clothes. Beard. Old Hat. Old person. Old toby. Male. Gandalf. Emery opens her eyes and follows the scent, trotting along the path with the boys and their ponies just behind her. At one point, she sees Bag-End in the distance and forgets following the scent in favor of running down the path, Fili and Kili speeding up on their ponies behind her. After a few minutes, they arrive at the hobbit hole.
"Kili, look," Fili says, pointing to a little field near Bag-End, in which two ponies are grazing, "some of them must've already arrived." He's right, of course. Emery can smell the familiar scents of Thorin's closest friends leading up the steps. Fili puts away his pipe, then slides off his pony and leads it to the same field, Kili following suit, and the both of them begin unloading the animals. Once everything is stowed away and there are four ponies resting in the field, the brothers turn towards the gate of Bag-End. Before going further, however, Kili pauses. Fili walks a few steps further before realizing his brother isn't beside him and looks behind.
"Everything alright, Kee?" Kili takes a deep breath before answering.
"This hobbit is to be the last member of the company. The moment we've collected him, our quest has truly begun," he says quietly. Emery internally winces. She knows very well what this quest means to their family. Fili takes a few steps toward his little brother and places his hand on his shoulder.
"Aye, our quest is soon to be underway," he says with sympathy in his eyes, "and it's daunting. Ever since the dream of journeying to Erebor became a reality, there have been times when I felt as if our whole lives have been leading to this." Emery winces internally again, though for a very different reason. Fili sighs. "Honestly though, I've mostly just been thinking that if this quest is successful, we'll be able to tell Amad that she can return to her homeland." Freshly encouraged, Kili straightens up and nods at his older brother, then the two of them turn towards the hobbit-hole and open the gate.
As they approach the door and Fili raises his hand to knock, Emery huffs loudly to get their attention. It works, and they turn around to face her.
"Everything alright, Lassie?" Kili asks her. She gives him a pointed look. He looks confused, as does his older brother. She sighs and mentally face-palms. After six decades, they're still slow to pick up her cues. Then again, they've always been slow to pick up cues from just about everyone. At least, everyone except their mother. Even Emery learned very quickly to take Dis's cues. She raises her right front paw and shakes it, then taps it on the ground, loosening up the mud and dirt collected there and causing it to fall from her paw. Taking the hint with an "oh," the brothers tap their boots by the toe on the ground and shake their feet, causing it to rain earthy particles.
"Better?" Fili asks, and she nods. He returns her nod and turns to the door, raising his fist to the wood and striking it three times.