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Tauriel POV

Four days have passed since the battle ended. It was incredible how the people of all races gathered together to help clean up the city. The bodies of orcs were removed from the city while the races collected their dead to give them proper sendoff. The city was in poor spirits from the large numbers of our own dead. There were very few people alive who didn't have someone to mourn. All leaders agreed to prepare a feast tonight to lift everyone's spirit. The sun had just started to rise in the east and both dwarves and humans began pouring into the streets. Now that the city had been cleaned up, we would begin rebuilding Dale.

I was pleased to hear laughter from some of the children running around the streets, playing some sort of human game. The innocence of children was one of the most beautiful things I have witnessed since my depart from Mirkwood. They chased each other around without a care in the world. The sound of footsteps from behind, pulled me back to reality. I turned to find Legolas staring at the children.

"They act as if nothing has happened," he stated. "They have much to mourn."

His words didn't surprise me but I still found them to be harsh. I knew human children matured much slower than us and I do not believe they should be criticized for it. I remember losing my parents at a young age. My heart had felt broken, as if it would never heal. It wasn't until Thranduil began caring for me that I began to improve. It had been a long process and so many days were spent dwelling on the loss of my parents. Was that truly the way it should be?

"They have much to be happy for," I decided. "They have their lives and their home."

He didn't press further. Since the battle there has been tension between us. I missed the friendship we shared before, but I was not sure if it would ever be the same. Legolas was no fool. He knew about my conflicted feelings for Kili, yet he never pressed to discuss them. It seemed like ages ago when we captured the dwarves in Mirkwood and Thranduil had brought his sons affections for me to light. It upset me, knowing I had hurt him when I chose to stay with Kili that night in Laketown. Then, when I tried to stop the King from retreating, he volunteered to follow me to Ravenhill just to save the young Dwarf.

"Come," he decided to drop the topic. "We have much to do."

Kili POV

We started making our way back to the city. Gloin, Dwalin, Bofur, and Bilbo were sent to collect lumber with me. We found a forest nearby and filled our wagon by lunchtime. Thorin had been unsure where to place the hobbit since he didn't have many skills for construction. His home was nicely built, but it was a hole in the ground. Instead of risking him being in the way of Dain's crew, he was sent to assist us in any way he could. He struggled to hold an axe so I had him watch over the rams that were hitched to the wagon. The creatures did not like to be treated like workhorses, but they were all we had to work with. All the horses were needed in the city. Rams were trained to charge into battle, not to pull cargo. Nonetheless, the animals pulled the cart with little fuss. As we neared Dale we started to hear the chorus of dwarves as they worked in the city.

"Your kind really likes to sing," Bilbo groaned.

"Oh Aye!" Bofur said. "It helps to keep us focused on the task at hand."

When we reached the city our cart that took all morning to fill was immediately emptied as the workers grabbed lumber from the cart as we passed. Bilbo looked in shock as he walked among the streets. His eyes gazed at the craftsmanship.

"Look at how much is done!" He admired. "This is incredible!"

"We dwarves work very efficiently Mr. Baggins," I laughed at his expression. "Don't you remember how quickly we cleaned your home?"

"I certainly remember how quickly you cleaned my pantry," he tried to look angry but he his smile was difficult to hide.

"Kili, come on. Give us a hand over here." Dwalin called. He was gathered with the others by a home that was nearly finished. I walked to them and Bilbo followed. "We're gonna fix this window up there."

"I'm not a craftsman Dwalin," I stated. "I don't know how to… AH!"

Before I could finish my sentence, Gloin had jumped from the cart onto my shoulders. I stumbled slightly.

"Oy! A little heads up would be nice!" I yelled. I grunted as the other two climbed up to stand on the next pair of shoulders. My body wanted to crumble under the weight. "They have ladders you know!"

"Aye but your much closer lad," Bofur laughed. He grabbed a tool from his pocket and began working. I grunted and prepared my back for a long struggle.

"What on earth are you doing?" I glanced up to see Gandalf approach. Following closely behind him was Tauriel and Legolas. Even under the heavy weight, my heart lifted when I saw her. We didn't have much time to spend together since that night. She insisted that she had no magic to keep bad dreams away but I didn't believe her. Since she watched over me that night, I haven't had a single bad dream.

"Oh, you know," I struggled to speak under the weight. "Just having a good ol' group hug. Care to join?"

"Master Kili, there are ladders nearby. There is no need to strain yourself." Gandalf said. Next to him Legolas glared at me, clearly not amused by our techniques. Tauriel on the other hand was having a difficult time hiding her laughter.

"Now Gandalf, ask yourself this. If I was leading this operation, would I have placed myself on the bottom?"

"Your third in line for the throne lad, you should be used to the bottom."

"Uncalled for," I retorted.

"Quit complainin' and move us closer!" Bofur shouted. I groaned and staggered closer to the building. "Bilbo, hand me a hammer will ya lad?"

"How exactly do I get it up there?" Bilbo strained his neck to see Bofur four dwarves above him.

"Just have Kili lift his knee up and pretend he's a ladder."

"Bofur, I will drop your sorry arse!" I yelled. Bilbo grabbed the hammer and turned towards me. He looked unsure of what to do. I offered him a smile and reached out my hand. "Here Bilbo, hand it over."

He gave me the hammer and I tossed it up to Bofur, with a little more force than necessary. I couldn't see but I must have hit something because he yelped.

"I'm gone for a few days and look what happens," a new voice entered the street. My eyes widened when I saw who it was. "you all turn my brother into a stepping stool."

"Fili!" Forgetting the fact that I was holding up three dwarves, I ran forward. It was so sudden that they all toppled off and crumbled in a pile. They cursed but I ignored them and ran to my brother to crush him into a hug. "You're awake!"

"Easy brother! I think the Elf King will string you up if his work gets undone," he winced. I immediately released him. So much happiness burst from my heart that it turned into laughter.

"Naw, I hear elves are secretly big softies," I winked at Tauriel. She responded with a smile until Legolas glanced at her. She quickly composed herself as the Prince shifted uncomfortably beside her.

"The Elf King might not harm ya, but we are gonna toss you off a cliff!" Dwalin recovered from his fall and glared at my direction. Bilbo was laughing at the fallen dwarves. Gloin picked up a stone and threw it at the hobbit.

"Hey!" He pretended to look offended. He grabbed it and threw it back, resulting in roars of laughter. Even Gandalf let out a chuckle.

"We've done it boys," I yelled. "We turned him into a Dwarf!"

Dwalin and Gloin laughed and patted him on the back. Bofur was still trying to recover his tools that scattered from the fall.

"Aye, all you need is a beard and no one would know the difference!" Bofur smiled at him before turning to look a Fili standing next to me. "How are you feelin' lad?"

"Little sore, but nothing I can't handle." He held a hand over his wound. "Happy to be alive."

"If I recall correctly my father ordered several days rest before you were to be walking." Legolas looked annoyed.

"I don't much like being told what to do by an Elf," Fili glared right back at him. I felt inclined to stick up for my brother, but unfortunately the Elf Prince had a point. Before Legolas could retaliate I put my hand on my brother's shoulder.

"He's right brother," I felt all dwarven eyes snap to me. I held my hands up defensively. "What?! Don't look at me like that, if Thorin finds out he's out here…"

"I'll throttle you if you don't get back in bed within the next five minutes!" Everyone stiffened as Thorin stormed into view. Even the Elven Prince took a step back in surprise. Behind uncle was the Elf King himself along with the new King of Dale. Bard looked nervous as uncle made his way to stand in front of us. His daughters walked closely behind him. Thranduil on the other hand looked as if he was enjoying himself.

"I just woke up uncle, I only wanted some fresh air."

"And you've gotten it, now get back in the house!" Fili bowed his head in defeat. Growing up, we both learned quickly that uncle wasn't affectionate, the last thing he expected after waking up from such a severe injury was to be scolded in front of a crowd. He nodded his head and turned to leave before Thorin grabbed his arm.

"Wait," For a moment I thought he was going to hit him. Instead, he brought him in for a hug. "I'm glad you are safe."

The tenderness made me smile. It may not have seemed like much to anyone else but after all we'd been through recently, it was refreshing.

Tauriel POV

Today had already been a very eventful day and it was only halfway gone. Watching the dwarves work was a privilege. They all worked as a team and together they could have the entire city rebuilt in a month. However, I wasn't sure how much longer Lord Dain would agree to stay. He was willing to help the men of Dale but his tolerance of elves was bound to fall sooner or later.

Now there was even more tension as Kili's brother was finally awake and he had wondered out here when he was supposed to be resting. I had been about to scold the dwarf myself but it made Kili so happy to see him that he forgot all about the dwarves he had been supporting to hug his brother. I enjoyed watching the affection between the two brothers. Elves hardly ever showed affection. In the six hundred years I have been on this earth I have only witnessed a few weddings. Apart from those moments, I never saw anything more than formal interactions between my people. The dwarves hugged without a care of who was around to witness such a private moment. I wondered what it would be like to be held in his embrace. Shortly after the dragon was slain he came to me on the beach and had grabbed my hand for just a moment. That alone was enough to send shivers throughout my entire body. Their moment was interrupted by the three Kings coming to the scene. Thorin practically dragged the older brother away even though he insisted he felt fine. Stubborn Dwarf. Apparently recklessness ran in the family. Thranduil followed them to make sure he did not hinder the healing process during his short adventure. Kili had wanted to go with him but there was still work to be done.

"He's frightening," Bard's oldest daughter watched the Dwarf King walk away with Fili.

"Ah that's nothing lass," the larger Dwarf, Gloin, spoke. "Kili here can tell you much harsher stories about Thorin's punishments."

"I wouldn't count on it, I think he took more beatings from the women." Bofur said.

His comment resulted in roars of laughter from the other dwarves, all except for Kili who glared at his kin. A new unpleasant feeling stirred in my belly as they discussed him spending time with female dwarves. It was stupid to feel jealous. I had no reason to feel this way. He was not promised to me, nor I to him.

"Aye, but he had it coming every time!" The red haired Dwarf had a difficult time containing his laughter.

"Hey, I had to do something! They kept trying to steal my brother away." Kili attempted to defend himself.

"They were trying to court him lad."

"What did you do to them?" Bilbo looked nervous as he asked the question. I too, was curious to hear the answer.

"Nothing too bad," he shrugged, but he could not resist smiling. "I usually just locked a ram in their chambers."

"So there really are Dwarf women?" Sigrid asked.

Every Dwarf turned to look at her. Each wore a confused expression.

"Of course there are females, where do you think we come from?" Bofur asked. Her face turned red. I had a strong desire to reach out to her but her father stepped in and put his arm around her.

"Forgive us," he stated. "But it is not often we have the company of dwarves. We rely on the tales we are told from other villages about your kind."

"There are very few of them and they don't explore outside of home very often," Kili must have noticed the young girl's embarrassment because he spoke to her softly. He offered her a smile. "I'd find it stranger if you had come across one."

The young girl smiled back at him, clearly thankful for understanding.

"Alright, enough standin' around. Back to work," one of the dwarves gathered his tools. "Come on Kili."

"Oh no, I don't think so," he said. "I will go find a ladder… Argh!"

Before he could walk away, the older Dwarf, Dwalin, snuck behind him to climb onto his shoulders.

"Oh come on!" He complained. A short laugh slipped through my lips before I could stop it. Thankfully, the dwarves were so loud though that no one noticed my slip up.

"I think I've had enough of dwarves for one afternoon," Gandalf sighed. He turned to me and Legolas. "Would you both accompany Master Bard and I to oversee construction in the Northern district?"

Legolas was quick to accept for the both of us. I wanted to refuse and stay here. The more time I spent around the dwarves, the more I realized how much I enjoyed their company. While my people might consider their actions to be immature, I found it to be enjoyable. Unfortunately, he was still my Prince and I was to obey. As the group turned to leave, I glanced back at Kili. He appeared troubled when he noticed I was leaving, but he quickly put on a smile. I returned it before turning away. We had only walked a short distance before my King appeared.

"Tauriel, I must speak with you." The others nodded and left us. Legolas gave his father a questioning stare but it was quickly dismissed. I began to worry about the nature of the conversation that was to follow. "When we last spoke of the issue, you were conflicted on your return to Mirkwood. I thought it best to mention that we depart tomorrow."

"I.." My heart dropped in my chest. I had been busy the past few days with little time to dwell on the topic. "I do not know."

"I'm not here for an answer," he waved my words away. "I am only here to provide you information. I will however, require your decision by tomorrow."

With that, he took his leave. I watched him follow his son. This was the man who cared for me when my parents passed and the man I spent my entire life fighting beside. I wanted to follow, but then I heard the roaring laughter of the dwarves behind me. I glanced back to look at the young Dwarf that I spent so much effort keeping alive. Standing here in the middle, I have never felt so conflicted.