Kili had always been prone to nightmares, ever since he was little, but it had always been their mother who had held him, soothed him, through the fear and the tears. But now it was Fili’s responsibility as Kili’s older brother to do the same when the distance from home and the fear of the unknown and the creatures and battles they fought wormed their way into Kili’s subconscious and left him shaking in his bedroll at night.

He took his job seriously, creeping quietly over from his own bedroll to hold his brother tight, pet his hair, tell him it would be alright because they had each other and their uncle and all the rest of the company to protect them, and what better cure for a nightmare was there?