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The sound is tearing through him like a diamond saw. Nothing seems to block it out. Even when he'd gone outside to try and get just a momentary break from the torturous sound he could still hear it rip through the silent halls. He should thank Mahal that Dis’ youngest has been blessed with such a strong pair of lungs. The child will one day be a fierce warrior for sure, using his voice to command armies into battle. But right now Thorin would give his right arm for just a few hours’ sleep, for just a moment of peace.
He feels guilty of course. His sister is beside herself and has had just as little sleep as he has and yet she still sings lullabies to the babe, even when her voice is drowned out by his wails. But right now he would be happy to cut off his own ears just to be free from that piercing sound.
Dis sighs yet again. Kili's little cheeks are glowing red now. The poor dwarfling is clearly battling with his first teeth and there is no cure to help him through it. She’s done everything she knows of to calm him down but nothing seems to help tonight. No walk through the house, that normally raises his interest and his eager dark eyes follow every movement, every gleam of light, every noise. No breast feeding - that made him go to sleep for a bit but not for long - no singing lullabies.
Not even riding on his uncle’s shoulders, which normally does the trick.
Dis looks guilty after her brother, when he paces their chambers with a deep frown between his eyebrows. Normally dwarven kings would not been as close to raising their heirs as Thorin is, but he insisted. A wailing baby dwarf is what he got now.
“Shhh my little prince,” Dis tenderly kisses the hot cheeks.
“Please make it stop,” Thorin grinds his teeth as he presses his hands against his ears. He sighs as Dis throws him a reprimanding glare. “What's wrong with him? Why does he not stop crying?” He sinks himself into a chair, burying his face in his hands.
“He’s teething,” Dis is getting frustrated after hours and hours of this now herself, “See his tiny face is on fire.” She holds Kili up so he can look at his uncle. Usually Thorin’s hair is very interesting for little Kili to curl his baby fingers into but not now.
“‘Amad!! Uncle Thorin! Why does Kili not stop!?” A very sleepy Fili with tousled blond locks appears in the doorway now as well, bare foot and rubbing his eyes.
Thorin lets his forehead hit the table with a heavy thud and he groans. “He's teething,” he repeats his sister's explanation. “Go back to bed, Fili.”
“I do not want to go back to bed,” Fili whines, “I’m hungry now.”
Dis sighs again, rolling her eyes, hoping neither Fili nor Thorin has seen that. She rocks Kili in her arms, heavy from hours of carrying him. “There is some bread from dinner, eat that then my prince.” She tries to stay calm and not let her nerves show. It is not Fili’s fault that his brother is crying.
“I want cake, not bread!” Fili demands, stomping his foot. At that Kili starts to scream even louder.
“Can't you give him something?” Thorin asks desperately, ignoring Fili’s tantrum and nodding to the bright red babe in her arms, even though he full well knows if there was Dis would have already given it to Kili. He drags himself to his feet again, amazed his limbs even respond to his sleepy brain. “An ointment? Some tea?” A mug of ale? he thinks hopefully but swallows it.
“I already tried to let him drink some sage tea, put it on his little gums but you know how that tastes.” Dis grumbles, “He spat it all on me,” being at her wits end makes her snap at her brother. Fili never had these problems. She should have asked Oin beforehand what to do in this case and not be as unprepared as she is now. She knows there is another herb she should use but her mind is blank right now, feeling like a very useless mother.
“Come you,” Thorin kneels down and lifts Fili into his arms. “Let's get you some bread. And some goat's milk.” He places a kiss on his nephew’s brow as he carries him towards the kitchen.
“Did you make that much noise when you were that small?” Thorin asks more of himself than of Fili as he sits the youngster down at the kitchen table. Of course when Fili had been teething his brother-in-law was still alive. And when Thorin had heroically stated he would be a father figure to Dis' boys when their father had been killed, he had no idea what he had let himself in for. Still, it's what any decent dwarf would have done and he will do his very best to honour the arrangement. “Here,” he sighs as he sits himself down again and shoves a plate with bread and a glass of milk under Fili’s nose.
“I don’t know irak’adad,” Fili looks earnestly at his uncle. He always likes it when they can spend time together and he hesitantly takes the bread, forgotten his demand about cake, “Did you?”
Thorin can’t help but chuckle at that. “Probably,” he snorts as he too helps himself to some bread.
For a moment it seems like Kili has calmed down a little as the persistent screaming has settled into a heart wrenching sobbing. Thorin allows his tense muscles to relax a little as he ruffles Fili’s blond curls.
But just as he thinks the worst might be behind them and Kili might actually settle down for what is left of the night, the tiny dwarfling appears to have found a reserve of energy as he screams with renewed vigour, making both Thorin and Fili jump.
“Argh, shut up!” Thorin moans under his breath, letting his head hang.
“Yeah, shut up, Kili!” Fili mimics his elder at the top of his voice as Dis walks past the doorway bouncing Kili softly in her arms.
“Fili!” Thorin hisses in embarrassment, putting his finger on the blond prince’s lips. “Sssh.”
Dis stops in her tracks, seeing two pairs of incredibly blue eyes stare guiltily back at her. “Fili! Your brother is in pain. Don't tell him to shut up,” she says sternly, even though right now she has to admit that she silently wishes the same.
“But uncle Thorin…” Fili begins in his defence but when he catches his uncle’s silencing glare he quickly shuts his mouth again. “Sorry, ‘amad,” he mumbles into his milk.
“There must be something that works… Anything... “ Thorin sighs in despair, running his hands through his thick hair. “I've got to be up again in a few hours! How am I supposed to work tomorrow when I've not been able to catch any sleep?!” he grumbles.
Dis is clearly very grateful to Thorin for looking after Fili when she has all arms full of her youngest but right now she does not have much pity for him. She only wants the damn crying to stop.
“You need to go to Oin…” Dis states, getting annoyed with her brother's passive frustration now even though she can understand what he's saying. But it doesn't help the situation.
“What?” Thorin blinks at his sister. “It’s the middle of the night!!”
“You want the crying to stop or not?” Dis has a hard time to speak over the loud, husky screaming.
“Kun,” Thorin sighs. Mahal, yes! He pulls his tired body to its feet once more. “What is it you need?”
“Chamomile. It just came to me again,” Dis feels herself blush. “I am sorry I did not think about it earlier and I do not have any here anymore.” What bad mother am I?
“Alright …” Thorin can imagine that Oin will be none to happy to be woken up at this hour, but nonetheless he is at his wits’ end now and if he has to suffer then others can suffer sleep deprivation with him. He grabs his overcoat. “I will be as quick as I can." If the old dwarf even answers the door! And with that he disappears out into the halls to make his way towards Oin’s quarters.
When the door falls shut behind Thorin with a heavy thud Kili seems to take that as a cue to give this his last and very best shot to make his hurt known to all as he bellows at full pelt, making Fili cower under the audio assault.
“‘Amad, make him stop! Please!” With his uncle gone, Fili steps close to his brother and puts his finger on his lips, like Thorin had done to him earlier in the kitchen, in a desperate move. “Ssssh,” he says softly but firmly.
Suddenly the babe closes his mouth and bites down on his brother’s finger.
That brings instant silence. Except Fili starts to giggle.
Dis looks wide eyed at both her sons. Kili chewing at his sibling’s forefinger and his own tiny fingers curl firmly around Fili’s thumb.
“He holds on really tight,” Fili whispers to not disturb the silence, looking up at his mother in awe.
“He likes you a lot,” she whispers back, so very happy for her ears are not ringing anymore and her headache seems to settle instantly as well.
“I cannot move,” Fili giggles again, feeling proud that he’s the one who made his brother stop crying.
“Let’s sit down,” Dis is so grateful for the almost happy gurgling she now hears from her tiny dwarfling that she smiles broadly at her older son, “You have done very well, Fili.”
Fili beams proudly at the compliment. Until now the tiny dwarfling had been mostly a nuisance in his older brother's eyes - a helpless being that only slept and screamed and puked on occasions and who took up all of his mother's time. But now for the first time Fili really feels like the older brother. And he realises what a very important role that is.
“He’s sort of cute when he is not crying so much,” he admits as he smiles at his little brother, who suckles contently on his finger.
“Of course he is,” Dis sits down with a sigh onto the large armchair of her brother, cradling the baby just so that Fili still can scramble onto her lab.
As soon as Fili takes his finger away from Kili’s mouth the dark haired prince starts to pull a face. But Fili is very quick to give him his thumb this time and no new wail is heard. Lying his head against his mother’s chest he watches his brother’s eyes fall close, before he too falls asleep once more.
Dis strokes blond and dark locks in turn and she can keep her eyes open no longer. But despite the lack of sleep and the frustration she had felt when she had been unable to stop her son’s cries, now that they have both settled down the love in her heart for both of her small princes warms her insides.
+++
As expected Oin is rather surprised to find his king at his door at the hour of three in the morning, more so for asking for some simple chamomile. But after Thorin has explained the reason for his nightly visit, the older dwarf smiles sympathetically at him. Having raised two boys and a girl with his dear wife he can all too well relate to the dark rings under Thorin’s eyes.
“This will be sure to help,” he promises as he hands Thorin a tincture. “Just a few drops and little Kili will be fast asleep before you can count to ten.”
Thank Mahal! “I cannot thank you enough,” Thorin sighs more loudly than he had intended. But his trusted healer just smiles in understanding.
Thorin hastens himself back to the royal quarters, carrying the herbal remedy as were it the Arkenstone itself so precious.
But when he arrives at the door to the living quarters he shares with his sister and nephews he stops with his hand on the door handle.
Silence. Can it be?
The absence of Kili’s agonising screams is so stark in comparison with how he had left them that he is momentarily concerned. As quietly as possible he turns the door handle and steps inside.
He barely stifles an aaaw as he finds his sister slumped in the arm chair, with the babe finally asleep in her arms as Fili sleeps on her lap also, his thumb still propped in Kili’s mouth. And a content smile appears across his face as he quietly shrugs himself out of his coat, puts the medicine on the table and then creeps over to his kin.
“Sleep well then, my little boars,” he whispers softly to the boys as he pulls a blanket over the three of them, placing a gentle kiss on each of the boys’ heads. “Have some rest, sister,” he places a kiss on Dis’ raven locks as well.
He drags his heavy feet towards his own rooms, realising that in only a couple of hours he will be back in the forge. He wonders if it is even worth trying to get some sleep now. But as soon as he sits down on the bed, which creaks in complaint under his weight, his eyes already fall shut. He has to admit that parenting sure is a much tougher job than he had given it credit for. And yet, as he lays his head down on the pillow, he knows beyond doubt that the picture of his two nephews cradled in their mother’s arms is one of a simple happiness that is worth of thousand sleepless nights.