The Hobbit / LOTR -oneshots

Grief - Fili

Warnings: Death of a parent (not graphic)
Word count: 2213
Other: Fili, Kili, and Thorin are alive after BOTFA
Edited on 23.6.2021 and 5.2.2023

The loss of someone close to you introduces another into your life. 

As Fili arrived in the hallway just outside the door, he didn't see the typical welcoming committee there. Around him were shocked faces, and one dwarf pushed past him and into a hallway on the left. Fili made his way through the crowd to see what the fuss was about. First, his eyes met Kili, who looked horrified. Then, his eyes trailed to Thorin, who was kneeling down next to a dwarf that was on a makeshift gurney. Fili stepped forward into the circle and Thorin lifted his head up to look at him. Fili nodded to him and turned to his brother, who still looked shocked. They greeted each other with a hug, but Kili's was lame as his mind was elsewhere. The guards started to thin out the crowd around them, and Fili inched next to Dwalin, who had been on the journey to Iron hills as well.

"What happened?" Fili whispered, and Dwalin turned and tilted his head towards him but his eyes were still on Thorin, who was talking quietly with Balin.
"He took a fatal blow for Kili." Fili nodded and glanced at the dead dwarf who had a large gash that still bled on his side. "That explains why Kili is so shocked." Fili glanced around for a moment but froze as the words truly hit him. He could have lost his brother. He would have lost his brother if it wasn't for that dwarf. He inched back next to Kili and pressed his side to his, causing Kili to pull his gaze away from the dwarf that was laying there.
"You alright?" Fili whispered, and Kili nodded groggily.
"I didn't see the orc coming. I would be laying there if Bofot hadn't taken the blow." He was shaking and Fili tapped his shoulder, trying to calm him down.

Dis stormed next to the two and grabbed Kili into a tight hug.
"Amad! You are strangling me!" Kili tried to squirm away from the hug but Dis held her hands tight.
"I could have lost you!" She squeezed even harder, and Kili accepted his fate and allowed their mother to hug him.
"I am fine, amad, thanks to Bofot," Kili spoke quietly, and Dis let go of him and hurried next to her brother. A shriek rang through the kingdom and everyone lifted their gazes, but as nothing happened, they returned back to their conversations.

But soon, a young dwarven woman burst out of one of the hallways on the left. Her eyes landed on the dwarf down on the ground and she let out a loud wail. Wasting no time, she pushed past the guards and Fili grabbed his sword to defend himself but the woman stormed past everyone and sunk down to her knees next to the body. She placed a shaking hand on his shoulder.
"Papa. Papa!" She begged, but as the dwarf was quiet and still, she laid her head on his chest and let out a heartbreaking sob.
"You promised. You promised you would not leave me." She started to cry and her cries got worse and worse as she clung to the body. Her shoulders shook from the power of her sobs. Dis glanced at her and got up from her place next to Thorin, walking to the guards.
"I want everyone out of here except for me, my sons, Thorin, Dwalin, and Balin. You guard the entries so no one disturbs us." Her gaze was cold and the guards knew better not to argue with her, and they emptied the large hall in minutes. Dis returned back to the others, who were watching the scene in front of them with wide eyes. Dis glanced sadly at the pair.
"What is it, Dis?" Thorin asked, and Dis lifted her eyes to him, sighing deeply.

"I know this girl. She worked in the clothing department with her mother until very recently. I just can't remember her name." Dis spoke in a whisper, not wanting the woman to hear. The others frowned, not sure what to make of the story.
"And..?" Balin asked, and Dis sighed again.
"Her mother died a week ago, two days before you left for the journey. We haven't even held her funeral yet." A stunned silence followed her words, and they all turned to look at the woman. Thorin sighed deeply, deep sorrow in his eyes.
"And now her father too." Dis nodded with dark eyes at her brother's words.
"She is going to need a lot of time to get through this. She worked only for a day after the death of her mother, and I could tell she was distracted. I fear that this might be too much for her." Dis sighed deeply, and all of the dwarves pressed their heads down.
"I will make sure she has one of the best housings in the kingdom, as well as a private maid. I know that it won't make her feel any better at the moment but at least it's something." Thorin sighed again and glanced at the woman, who was still crying next to the body. Dis sighed too and shook her head, deep sorrow in her eyes as she, too, looked at the woman.
"She was such a happy girl, I was meaning to introduce her to you boys before her mother's death." Dis glanced at his sons, who exchanged looks.
"What will we do with her, she can't stay here forever?" Balin whispered, and all eyes turned to the woman, whose cries still showed no sign of easing.