Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It must have been two or three in the afternoon when Kili broke through the bushes of Mirkwood and finally breathed the fresh open air. After delivering his catches from his hunting trip to the men of dale he had decided to visit Tauriel and spent 5 amazing days with her before Thranduil had enough of the Dwarf and sent him home. He soaked in the view of the lonely mountain ready to return. 

It had been almost five years since they had taken it back and it was slowly but surely returning to its former glory. Kili was happy to finally see the place he had heard so much of while growing up but he couldn't help but feel like no one noticed him anymore. Thorin was busy doing king stuff, Fili had to always be with him as the heir, and Dís and everyone else was constantly busy with the rapidly growing kingdom. Of course Kili understood that all their skills were needed but after five years the lack of real contact with his family and friends had left Kili a little bummed. He found himself going on many solo hunting trips and visiting his one in Mirkwood to pass the time.

As he walked through the great gates of Erebor he thought back on his trip. It had been almost a month since he left.

That's the longest I've been gone. I hope the others weren't to worried.

Kili was then met with Balin walking right past him, his nose in some document or other, without even acknowledging him. It hurt him just a little to be so blatantly ignored but he shook away the bad feelings and headed over to talk to Dwalin.

"Hey Dwalin!" Kili greeted his friend with a smile.

"Hello Kili," Dwalin's response was flat.

"Uhm, how's it going? you been busy?"

"Obviously I've been busy Kili and I still am so if this can wait that'd be great," Dwalins annoyance at the young prince was evident and Kili could only shrink away from the tall dwarf. Afterall he didn't want to be an annoyance.

As he was turning to leave, Dwalin said something to him.

"Why don't you go on one of those trips you do, pass the time some,"

Kili stiffened at the suggestion, his thoughts trying desperately to find something else, something that doesn't mean what he knows now must be true.

When he regained his bearing he walked away from Dwalin and whispered under his breath.

"I just got back,"

He didn't say it loud enough for Dwalin to hear, he didn't want to. Dwalin was a busy dwarf and he didn't want to upset him. It's no big deal he told himself. But he knew deep in his soul that it hurt him more than he would like to admit, being forgotten.

---

At dinner Kili sat at the long royal dining table and ate in lonely silence. Again. These days everyone else was to busy to eat dinner at any reasonable hour so Kili sat by himself with nothing to entertain him but his own mind, and what a sad place it had become recently. Thoughts slaying dragons, fighting evil and being a hero with tales galore were replaced with worry and contemplation and loneliness. Oh the loneliness, Kili thought it might eat him alive if he could not just talk with someone.

He was deep in these new thoughts when the grand door opened and in the doorway appeared his brother an uncle. Upon noticing their arrival Kili shot up out of his seat to greet them excitedly. Though perhaps it was a bit much as Thorin put one hand to his forehead and used the other to motion for Kili to sit.

"Please Kili tone it down, my head feels like it might explode," Thorin said

Kili sat down and mumbled his apology. 

Thorin and Fili sat at the Table opposite Kili and Their meals were brought out shortly. As much as Kili had yearned for some company he wasn't quite sure what to say. It had been so long since he got to talk to his family properly and Thorin had already proved to be in an irritable mood. He looked between his brother and uncle and his heart ached to see how tired they looked, they had clearly been drained by the days activities, the purple under their eyes only proved the point.

"Were you at a meeting?" 

Kili had said it before he could catch himself, work was surely the last thing they wanted to talk about right now. Neither dwarf in front of him answered ,however, and instead they both stared at him as if contemplating what he could've meant. Kili wasn't sure what to make of their reactions until Fili spoke.

"Kili, we were in Dale to celebrate the city's first harvest,"

"Oh,"

Perhaps Kili did feel a small bit dejected that he had not been invited but then again he had been away for a month.

"When was that planned?" he asked

Fili sighed before answering

"Three weeks ago! How had you not heard? The whole kingdoms been talking about it for half a cycle at least,"

"..."

The same dread that had washed over him when speaking to Dwalin returned to hit him like a ton of bricks. He excuse himself without finishing his dinner and left the dinning hall.

Not even his brother knew he had been gone.

His feet took him straight to his chamber and over to his wardrobe. Reaching into the back he pulled out the same pack he carried here from Bag End almost 5 years ago. He reminisced over his travels as he stuffed his pack with everything he'd need for the long walk ahead of him. He wrote a quick letter to his Family and left it neatly on his desk. Dwalin was right, Kili needed to pass the time somewhere else, somewhere where he will feel loved an appreciated, somewhere he'll never be forgotten.

It may have been a rash and impulsive decision but Kili was sure that anything was better than this. He was going back to Bag End.

Chapter Text

The weather in the shire was usually quite predictable, except in spring. Young Frodo had been long playing in the spring sun when the heavens opened up into a sudden downpour. Frodo often didn't mind rain but these heavy sheets that fell thick drop after thick drop were not to his taste. How his uncle would worry if he does not return soon. So the fauntling picked up his little legs and ran through the trees of his wood. He ran to the main road and then kept running up all sorts of twists and turns trying to get back to Bag End as soon as possible.

He was nearing his home, almost at the top of the hill when his small body came to a dizzying stop. He had ran straight into something rather hard.

"Woah! Hey are you ok?"

Whatever Frodo had ran into was alive it would seem. Regaining his balance, Frodo squinted at the figure to try and make out some features. Whoever it was was tall, much taller than any hobbit anyway, and had a beard, which were very rare amongst hobbits. It was only natural really for Frodo to comment on it.

"You have a beard!" He yelled.

The figure in front of him was quiet for a moment.

"Can I touch it?" Frodo never could read a room.

"Uhm, sure?"

The figure knelt down on one knee to let him reach up and feel the prickling hair. Frodo was fascinated by the feeling and thought back to his uncles tales of dragon fire and stone. Suddenly he could see the long plait on the left side of his head, the big ears it sat behind and the strong, sturdy features of his face.

"Are you dwarf?" Frodo asked.

"I am, how could you tell?" The dwarf responded.

"My uncle know lots about dwarves! He went on an adventure!" Frodo puffed out his chest in pride as children tend to do when they know someone cool.

"Well does your uncle know you're out here in this rain? I think we really ought to go inside,"

Frodo knew this dwarf was right, it was much to wet for any respectable hobbit to be out chatting, but he didn't want to say goodbye to his new friend yet. He had listened to Bilbos amazing stories of the dwarves of Erebor for so long and now he actually had a real life dwarf standing in front of him, how could he just leave?

He looked down to his feet, which were covered in mud, and fiddled with his fingers in front of his chest.

"Will you stay for tea? I don't want to say goodbye yet," His voice was quiet and the raging winds weren't any help, but the dwarf heard him all the same.

"Don't worry little one, if your uncle is who I think he is I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot more of each other, now, if you don't mind I seem to have forgotten how to get to Bag End, could you help me?"

Frodo's yes sparkled so brightly they could've lit up the dark night. He grabbed his new friend by his large hand and ushered him around towards Bag End, yapping endless word storms the whole way home.

---

As Bilbo prepared for tea he thought of his dear nephew out in that dreadful weather, of course a little rain never hurt anyone but this was torrential.

He'll catch a cold if he doesn't get back soon.

Just then he heard the front door swing open and the sound of the rain flood through the halls. He allowed his shoulders to relax now that he knew Frodo was home.

"UNCLE, IM HOME! I BROUGHT A FRIEND!" Frodo yelled through the smial.

Bilbo rolled his eyes at the voice, how many times had he told that faunt not to shout inside. The friend, though, was new. Frodo was not disliked by any means but he didn't exactly have many friends, none his own age anyway, the adults loved him. He left the kettle over the fire to boil and padded through the halls to greet Frodo and this mysterious friend. 

Although Bilbo didn't exactly know what to expect this friend to be but his own dear friend Kili would not have been his first guest. The young dwarf stood next to his nephew, both of them dripping water and mud all over the floor, Kili especially, all those layers must've carried the whole river in and never even mind they way the mud clung to his dwarven boots.

"Kili! Whatever are you doing here? Where's Fili, you two never leave each others side?"

Kili looked up and smiled at the hobbit. He made no attempt to explain yet why his brother does not join him but simply asks what he is to do with himself.

"I don't want to get too much muck on you floors," he said.

He was right of course, before any explaining could be done these too rascals needed to wash up. Bilbo instructed the two not to move while he went to get a laundry basket, for their clothes and a large bucket for Kili's boots. When everyone's wet clothes (and boots) were stored safely in the laundry room Bilbo showed Kili to the big bathroom where he could remove his damp undergarments, wash up and put some dry clothes on. While Kili went about his business Bilbo carried Frodo over to the en suite bathroom to clean him up too.

Eventually all three were cosy and warm sitting next to the fire having Tea(It was a little late but no one  minded). Bilbo and Kili spoke for a long time about Erebor's progress and Bilbo was excited to know how well it was doing. He had been exchanging letters with  some of the company but all the letters he received back were brief and seemed somewhat rushed. He was glad to have someone be able to explain in detail Erebor's growth. He then asked Kili how long he was planning on staying as he hadn't even written to warn him

"Ah, yeah, sorry about that. It was kind of a rash decision. Uhm, I don't really know how long I'll stay, as long as you'll let me, I guess," Kili was avoiding Bilbo's eyes as he spoke and suddenly he looked rather sad. His happy façade slipped just enough for bilbo to see a young dwarf who was suffering.

"Frodo," Bilbo spoke to his nephew "Would you go and ready the guest room for Kili please?"

Frodo nodded quickly and left the room. He was quite a diligent fauntling. Bilbo then turned back to Kili, his smile dropped and he looked at Kili with worry.

"Kili, why did you come here? What happened in Erebor?"

Kili's own smile faltered and soon he dropped it completely, replacing it with a small frown. He still would not look bilbo in his eyes and only stared down at his now cold tea.

"Please Kili, tell me what's wrong," Bilbo tried offering some reassuring words, hoping the young dwarf would open up to him.

Eventually Kili did speak.

"I was lonely," he said. 

"What? What about all the others?" Bilbo could hardly believe the words he heard.

"They're all busy, Erebor won't rebuild itself you know. No time for the younger prince, I don't really have any duties,"

Bilbo leaned back into his plush chair trying to make sense of what his dwarrow had become. Surely none of them would ignore Kili on purpose, and yet they had made him feel so hopelessly lonely he felt he had to leave his family. It wasn't right, that alone wouldn't push Kili away, something else happened.

"What happened? There has to be something else, lest you wouldn't have left so impulsively,"

Kili opened his mouth a few times to respond but would only close it again. His chin wobbled and he bit into his lower lip, evidently fighting back tears.

"I went on a hunting trip, I was gone . . . I was gone almost a month and when came back . . ," Kili spoke slowly, pushing the words out like he didn't want them to be true. "No one had noticed that I left, not even Fili," At the mention of his brother he let his eyes spill over and tears flooded his face.

Bilbo did not answer, he did not speak another word, he simply got up from his chair and embraced Kili pulling the sobbing teen into his arms and resting his chin on his raven hair as he stroked circles onto his back. He let Kili grip onto him like a young child and bury his face into the warm safety of his embrace. It Broke his heart to see his friend in such a state and it reminded him that Kili was still an adolescent in dwarven standards. He felt a very visceral anger rise in his stomach, those same dwarrow who would've died for Kili, who had been so protecting of him on their journey had neglected him so. They had let a prince of their kingdom, an heir of the line of Durin go missing for a month without even noticing his absence. Bilbo became more enraged as he thought of all that could've happened to him without his family even so much as sparing him a thought.

He held Kili by his shoulders and pushed back just enough to look him in his eyes.

"I promise Kili, you will never feel lonely here, you can stay as long as you want. I'll write to Thorin and I'll let him know just what I think of his behav-""Please don't write to uncle!"

Kili interrupted Bilbo before he could finish.

"If he finds out where I am he'll just come and take me back to Erebor," He explained

He kept his arms tightly around Bilbo, not willing to let him go until he knows he won't write.

Bilbo sighed deeply but decided to let Kili have his way. It's not like he's in any danger in the shire, though he may get overrun buy curious fauntlings.

"Ok, I won't write,"

Chapter Text

 Bilbo woke up early in the morning as he does every day. Outside his bedroom window he could see the sun rising over the far hills. He stood and reached up letting all all the kinks in his back pop out. He could hear Frodo and Kili running up and down the halls accompanied by Frodo's endless stream of giggles. Bilbo was glad that the boy had taken so fondly to Kili, especially after what the dwarf had told him the day before.

Bilbo selected his clothes for the day and entered the madness filling the rest of his home.

Bilbo called out to his boys and the three of them stood in the kitchen. As bilbo began preparing breakfast he spoke to Frodo.

"Frodo, did you tell Kili what's happening today?" 

Frodo stood in quiet thought before bursting out "OH!! I forgot that was today!" The boy gasped. Frodo turned to face Kili, who was looking quite intrigued, and flashed the dwarf the biggest smile his little face could muster "It's Our Mothers festival, everyone in Hobbiton will gather to celebrate at the party tree!"

Frodo wasted no time in running off to choose just what to wear when the time came. Kili, being not a hobbit, still wasn't quite sure what was happening later. he looked to Bilbo for a better explanation. The hobbit let out a puff of air in amusement.

"It's a celebration of our lady Yavannah," He explained "It was on this day that our lady planted the first hobbits and brought us to life. Our lady took 7 days to create us and therefore we take 7 days to celebrate her. Its one of our most important celebrations along side the solstices,"

Kili's eyes brightened at the mention of celebration and he was brimming with excitement.

"We celebrate Yavannah too! Only for one day though, the first day of spring," he beamed

"She is Aule's wife I suppose, anyway, go and fetch Frodo will you? Tell him breakfast is ready,"

---

The residents of Bag end had been kicking up a fuss since luncheon. The start of Our Mothers festival was closing in and last minute panic crept its way into the halls of the large smial. Bilbo had offered to bring a selection of baked goods to add to the feast but was delayed in making them by his unexpected guest, Frodo was incredibly indecisive about his clothing and still couldn't choose whether to wear blue or green and lastly Kili had spent the day settling into his new room and asking all about Our mothers festival. He was ecstatic. From Bilbo's patient answers Kili learned of Hobbits heavy drinking and food based celebrations, of course there would be many games and activities as well which were just as appealing to the dwarf.

Frodo came running into Kilis room, two shirts in his hands "Kili! Should I wear the blue or the green? I can't decide," 

Kili looked between the two shirts. They looked near identical to him, bar the colour. 

"I think you should wear blue, that's the Durin colour!" He said. He knew already the faunt was fascinated with dwarrow and thought this way Frodo might feel closer to him, he wanted to get along with him.

As Kili suspected, Frodo's eyes lit up and the green shirt was promptly discarded on the floor while he pulled on the Blue one. Kili watched as he ran back to his own room with a little smile. Being the younger brother he never really had many chances to interact with younger kids but he always loved it when he did, children were so carefree and happy about little things, it made Kili feel like a kid too. Like he didn't have to grow up as fast.

Bilbos voice broke through his thoughts, "Kili! We're leaving now," He called into the room.

Kili grabbed his boots and left his room.

The walk down to the party tree was short and sweet, as they made his way through neighbourhoods and the village Kili truly came to understand that the shire was the land of fertility. There was very little in the shire with no plant life, the many smials with garden roofs he saw were exploding with brightly coloured flora and the paths and roads had all sorts of fauna scattered around them. The amount of faunts that ran about had caught his eye, dwarrow didn't have so many children as hobbits so Kili was in awe of the sheer amount of children he could constantly see.

As Bilbo had predicted, when the group arrived at the party tree Kili was overrun by curious fauntlings and even a few tweens. The dwarf was swept away to play before any of the adults could make any remarks loud enough for him to hear, as they are wont to do. Bilbo knew well what type of creatures these hobbits were, they were the type to be cautious with something as different as a dwarf and they were gossipers. Rumours of all sorts about Kili would be flying around Hobbiton by morning and the only thing to do is wait them out.

Bilbo weaved his way through the crowd to the table to drop off his package and was soon caught in conversation with his gardener, a kind  Hobbit by the name of Hamfast Gamgee

"Oh Mr. Baggins, have you heard? There's a dwarf about," he said

"Hamfast, how many times must I tell you to call me Bilbo and yes I am well aware of the dwarf, he is staying with me in Bag end after all," Bilbo responded

Hamfasts face twisted into something quite similar to disbelief and bilbo only laughed at his confusion. He was quite sure Hamfast had never truly believed any of Bilbos stories of dwarrow and dragons. The two continued their idle chatter until a shrill yell broke through the crowd. Bilbo looked to his right where the scream had come from and nearly lost his footing.

In the middle of the large clearing Kili stood with so many faunts dangling from him he could barely be seen underneath them all. The sight reminded Bilbo that a faunts curiosity knows no bounds, how those curious and happy faunts could grow into such cautious hobbits he did not know, but he did know the sight would sway the folks in Kilis favour and that was enough to bring a smile to Bilbos face, he certainly would not feel alone in Hobbiton.  

Chapter Text

Bilbo found that Kili had a lot of energy and if he didn't spend it he would become quite restless, and a restless dwarven teenager does not pair well with a mischievous fauntling. Bilbo was beginning to worry for his new batch of bread as Kili hadn't been out all day.

Someone knocked on the door of Bag end as Bilbo tried to think up a remedy, the sound tore through the home and had him rushing to answer it. Opening the door Bilbo found his oldest friends wife, Bell Goodchild, with a basket of freshly baked blueberry and cinnamon muffins. She was heavily pregnant and had long red curls that flowed freely down to her waist, longer than most hobbits liked. Bilbo invited her in and brought her to the sitting room where she sat on the plush sofa.

"Bell what a surprise! What brings you here," Bilbo said, he wasn't all too fond of surprise visits but he couldn't imagine that Bell would come unannounced for no reason.

He took the basket of goods off her and set them on the small table in the middle of the room, smacking Frodo's curious hands away. The faunt had come out of his room as soon as he caught a whiff of Bells famous muffins no doubt.

Bilbo sat down in his favourite chair while Frodo crawled up to sit next to Bell.

"Well it's rather embarrassing, but needs must." Bell shifted in her seat "Hamfast took a nasty fall yesterday while working in our garden as I'm sure you know and as you can clearly see I'm far to pregnant to do very much and we've just run out of firewood for the stove. You don't suppose the dwarf would mind cutting some wood for us do you? I've heard that dwarves are quite strong," she finished.

Bilbo considered the request for a moment. Cutting firewood was a tiring activity that would spend a good amount of Kili's energy, it would allow him to socialize with Hamfast and Bell rather than just the faunts that adored him and if Bell tells even one other Hobbit that Kili had helped her out while she was pregnant Hobbiton's general opinion of him would sway in his favour. It was a perfect offer.

"Why of course he will, Frodo go and fetch Kili good lad," Bilbo beamed.

Bilbo and bell continued their small talk while they waited for Kili to arrive. Bilbo made sure to tell bell to say 'dwarrow' instead of 'dwarves' lest she embarrass herself. When Kili arrived he was more than happy to help. He practically lit up when Bilbo asked, the dwarf must've been quite bored.

Kili grabbed a muffin before running off to put his boots on, Bilbo couldn't help but noticed that they seemed to be getting worn down, though he wasn't really sure.

Coming up to the Gamgee household shortly behind Bell, Kili realised that this was the first time he had left Bag end without Bilbo or Frodo. He had been learning well enough his way around the neighbourhood with the other two but had never had the chance to use the skill by himself, it made him a little bit nervous. Kili knew that the other Hobbits didn't think to highly of him but Bilbo assured him that they were only getting used to having a dwarf around. Suddenly he felt his palms were sweaty and his stomach was turning.

Bell however, was a very observant lass.

"Kili? Would you like something to drink before you get started?" she said, catching his attention.

"Huh? Oh no, that's alright, thank you," 

"If you're sure. Well its just here, all the wood is in that shed there and you should find an axe there too, you don't need to cut too much just enough for a week or too until my husbands back is better,"

Kili nodded but really he wasn't sure how much wood that was. He decided that too much was better than too little and he would cut as much as he could or until he gets told to stop. Bell disappeared back into the smial and Kili opened the shed to get started.

It was good work and Kili noticed the axe was of decent quality. He enjoyed the exercise as well, back in Erebor he spent most of his time training, hunting or dancing, he didn't get as much a chance to let loose in the shire. He had only been working for a bout an hour when Bell came out carrying a small tray with three cups and a plate of cut fruit.

"Oh wow, you've cut so much already! I had heard of the strength of dwarves—dwarrow," she corrected herself, "but this is amazing,"

She put the tray down on a small outdoor table and beckoned Kili over to her. Soon after he sat down Hamfast arrived to take a seat next to his wife. the two were a very lovely couple, Kili noted, Hamfast and Bell gravitated so naturally towards one another and they simply looked in love. This child was sure to grow up in the same love that surrounded Kili now.

Kili, Bell and Hamfast enjoyed their time in the late spring sun with fresh fruit and lemonade and for the first time since Kili had arrived in the shire he truly felt like it was now home. It almost made him tear up a bit, but his break was soon over and he had to go back to cutting wood.

When he arrived back to Bag end that evening he spent all of dinner telling Bilbo and Frodo all about the latest gossip he had heard from Bell and all about what he had heard or their plans for the child.

"Did you find out what they want to name it?" Bilbo asked

"For a girl they said Saffron and for a boy Samwise," Kili responded

"Oh those are good names indeed!"

Bilbo was beyond excited to have a new faunt in the neighbourhood, he hoped that Frodo and this new baby might be able to become close friends like he himself was with Hamfast. He had a soft spot for children anyway, he found that the faunts always loved to listen to his tales of trolls and dragons, they never tired of it. Bilbo even found his storytelling improving because of them. Perhaps he should write a book.

Chapter Text

Very sorry but this is not a new chapter. Don't worry though I am not abandoning this fic, she will continue I promise.

I haven't updated in a little over a month which some of you might know is about right but I'm sorry to say I won't be updating any time soon either.

It all started a few weeks ago when I git sick. A chronic infection I had for a few years in childhood returned after 7 years (😫)and it hit me pretty hard. I was down for the count for a while then. Very unfortunately not long after a close family member passed away very suddenly and I had to then( and still now tbh) deal with the first real loss of my life. I have also just graduated from secondary school and will be facing my end of school exams starting from tomorrow.

I've been very busy healing, grieving and studying and haven't gotten to write anything at all and still won't be able until my exams are over in two weeks time at least. I can't imagine the next chapter will come out too soon after that either.

Thank you very much for reading my work and I'll try make the next chapter worth the wait. I have a lot planned for this fic so I'm very sorry to take such a break but needs must.