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Fíli’s Uncle Thorin taught him lots of things.
Fíli had a mama, of course, and a papa too, and they taught him all kinds of stuff, but Uncle Thorin said it was very important that Fíli learn things from him too. So every Tuesday, Uncle Thorin would come and take Fíli away to teach him about animals or metals or history.
(Uncle Thorin was really kind of boring and stiff and super serious but he sang nice songs and he knew lots about lots so it was okay.)
But there was one thing that Thorin knew about that Mama and Papa didn’t:
Uncle Thorin knew about being a big brother.
He knew about big brothering because he had a little brother named Frerin who was waiting to meet Fíli in the Halls (“He’s going to like you a lot, Fíli,” Mama would say with a sad smile, “and spoil you rotten”) and Mama was his little sister, too. Mama and Papa were both little siblings, so they didn’t know anything about being a big brother like Uncle Thorin and like Fíli.
Because Fíli was a big brother too! His little brother was Kíli, and Kíli was noisy and messy and cute.
Uncle Thorin taught Fíli about how to sing Kíli lullabies and read him books, and how to trick Kíli into falling asleep sometimes with a really really boring story about elves, and how to wash Kíli’s little hands when they were messy. When Kíli started pulling himself to his cute little feet, it was Uncle Thorin who taught Fíli how to hold Kíli’s hands and shuffle backwards so Kíli could learn how to walk.
And when Kíli took his very first steps on his own, it was Uncle Thorin who quietly took Fíli away from his parents’ celebrations, sat him down, and said:
“Fíli, your brother is walking now, and that means your life has now become on filled with danger,” in his very most serious voice.
Fíli’s eyes widened. “It is?” he whispered.
Uncle Thorin nodded solemnly (he did everything solemnly, really). “Yes. Because now, nothing is safe.”
Fíli shivered. “Nothing?”
“No. Kíli can walk, which means soon he’ll be climbing, which means he can get wherever he wants – on your bed, on the counter, where you hide your toys, even,” Uncle Thorin leaned down, “to your ears.”
Fíli gasped and clapped his hands over his beautiful, sensitive ears. “No!”
“Yes.”
“But…but he grabbed them when he was tiny!”
“Yes.”
“And you said he’d outgrow it!”
“Yes.”
“And he did!”
“Yes.” Thorin rested a hand on Fíli’s head. “But that was before, when you could distract him with silly noises. Now he’s going to be walking and touching and pulling on everything. If you let him too close to you, he might grab your braids if he starts to fall.”
Fíli made a noise of utter betrayal. “Did…did Mama grab your ears?!”
Thorin nodded, his eyes dark and serious. “Yes. She did.”
“And…and did she pull your braids?” Fíli whispered, because his mama. His mama, a braid puller. How could it be?!
“So hard that sometimes she would still have my beads in her little fists at bedtime.”
Fíli gasped, his hands flying from his ears to cup protectively over the tiny beads that his mama made just for him. “What,” he whispered, “what do I do?”
“The best thing is to distract him.” Thorin reached into his coat and pulled out a small, soft item, pressing it in Fíli’s hands.
It was an animal – a sort Fíli had never seen before, in soft golden-yellow cloth, with button eyes and a ruff of reddish yarn. It was soft and strong in Fíli’s hands, and warm from being tucked against Uncle Thorin’s shirt. “Ohhh,” Fíli breathed, “what is it?”
“A lion,” Uncle Thorin said. “They’re like oliphants, in that you may live your whole life without seeing one, but they’re out there, and they exist.” He reached into his coat again and pulled out another, this one in dark gray fabric, its ruff out of midnight yarn. “There’s one for each of you, so you can play with these together instead of letting him grab for your ears and braids.”
Fíli beamed up at his uncle, gathering the twin toys against his chest. He knew already which was his and which was Kíli’s. “Thank you, Uncle Thorin!”
“You’re very welcome. And remember, Fíli,” Thorin lowered his voice as Mama looked their way, her eyes narrowing with suspicion. “There is nothing more dangerous in the world than a little brother or sister whose hands are going for your head. They’ll grab ears, braids, and sometimes even noses.” Thorin gently tapped Fíli’s, making the little boy’s eyes cross a moment. “Whenever you have a fight – and you will, all siblings do – you must make sure your head is much too far away for them to snatch.”
Fíli nodded seriously. “I’ll remember,” he promised, before running off to show Kíli their new lions.
(Only a few minutes later, Fíli got to see his uncle’s knowledge in action – as his mother grabbed one of his braids and tugged and said, “Stop telling my son silly things!”
But of course it wasn’t silly.
And Uncle Thorin, braid still captured, sent Fíli a very secret wink to show they both understood how serious and dangerous little siblings could be.)