"Kili, what do you know about the orcs?" Tauriel asks him. She kneels in front of his cell, white-knuckled hands gripping the rusty metal bars.

Kili shrugs, slightly aggravated at her presence. She'd interrupted his counting of how many insects were hovering around the torches. Now he forgot what number he was supposed to be on.

He would have asked her about Thorin if Bilbo hadn't already given him the rundown of his uncle's condition.

The hobbit had informed him that Thorin had a gained quite a few cuts and bruises when he refused to speak, but luckily one of the elves stepped in quickly and suggested that they shouldn't waste their time with him since he wouldn't talk anyway. Kili couldn't help but smugly inquire who that could have been.

To know Tauriel had willingly defended his uncle when she really had no reason to in the first place makes Kili beyond grateful. She's given him a debt that's going to be hard to repay.

He still wonders why she did it. There was something odd about the whole thing. He remembers how ecstatic she'd seemed when Legolas agreed to fetch Thorin to interrogate instead of taking Kili. If she was so pleased with the thought of torturing his uncle, why in the world would she would defend him? That's something he'd like to know.

Speaking of things Kili wanted to know, he was also able to learn where Bilbo found his ring. Apparently he'd picked it up in the forest one night. When the spiders were attacking, the ring had fallen out of his pocket. He'd grabbed it and then slipped on the ground, the ring flying out of his hand and eventually landing on his finger. The hobbit had found out about its invisibility properties when the spiders seemed to look right through him. They could hardly tell he was there.

Something was a bit off about Bilbo's story. He was definitely hiding something, though Kili didn't dare question it.

Between the weird way Tauriel's been acting and Bilbo's secrecy, this whole day is becoming one jumbled knot of perplexity and confusion.

"Do not play games with me," Tauriel's voice snaps him back to reality. "I hear whispers amongst the others..."

"It is not my place to say." Kili replies. He doesn't know whether or not it is wise to give her the right information.

"Fine," She stands. "Maybe that blonde dwarf with the braids will be more cooperative. What's his name, again? Fili?"

She places a hand on her dagger. Kili's heart swoops.

"You wouldn't touch him." He whispers roughly.

"I just might."

His stomach churns over.

"You're sick, you know that? Toying with my emotions to get what you want." Kili says, disgust lining his voice.

"I guess we're not so different, then." Tauriel says brusquely.

Kili opens his mouth to retort, then stops. She does have a point. She wants information. He wants freedom. They're both going to do whatever they need in order to get what they desire.

"Let's compromise. You let us free, and I give you the information."

"Or you could just tell me what you know. It's either that or I'll start chopping off your fingers. Your choice."

His hand goes numb at the thought. Kili tries for a chuckle.

"Aw, c'mon Tauriel. You wouldn't want to do that. Besides, I thought you liked my hands," He teases, wiggling his fingers at her. "Tell you what, though. I'll tell you everything you want to know about the orcs... on one condition."

"I'm not letting you out!"

"That wasn't the condition!" Kili exclaims.

Tauriel mulls this over. "Fine. State your terms."

"You have to kiss me."

Tauriel's eyebrows pull together. Her face scrunches up like she has a bad taste in her mouth. Kili half expects her to vomit right there on the spot.

"Oh, come on. It won't be that bad." Kili takes hold of the prison bars and sticks his head through the space between them. He doesn't know whether to smile endearingly or give her "the eyes". He attempts both.

"Kili, I... No! I can't!" Tauriel says sternly.

"Why not? You're a woman. I'm a man. Except I'm shorter than most men and you have pointy ears and live much longer than most women. Besides, I'm really not that bad of a...Oh," Kili whispers.

Realization hits him like an arrow to the chest. He feels the earth slipping from beneath his feet. The world twirls around him like dead leaves in a cool autumn breeze. Kili decides to sit down until the dizziness subsides.

"You and Legolas... You're..." Kili cannot bring himself to say the words.

The images shoot through his mind like cannons. Tauriel and Legolas walking together in a lonely wood. Her hand entwined with his. Kissing roughly against the darkened walls of dungeon halls where nobody could see them. Tugging away at each other's armor and clothes until they're scattered about the floor like flower petals. Waking up tangled in sheets. Legolas kissing her bare shoulder in the early hours of the morning when all the world is sleeping.

A lump forms in Kili's throat. His chest aches. Each heartbeat wracks his body with a sharp pang of sorrow.

"Legolas and I? Me and Legolas. Together."

"Yes, you're together! I've gathered that now!" Kili dismally falls to the floor, puffing out a sigh. He stares at the ceiling and tries to get rid of the pain in his chest. Why should he care? So what if she spends her nights in bed with that elf prince? It's not like it's any of his business who she sleeps around with. Even as he thinks this, though, his stomach turns over in revulsion- and possibly envy.

Stop lying to yourself. You're infatuated with her. Kili tells himself. This elf is no good for you, but you can't seem to help yourself. How desperate and pathetic can you get?

Kili cannot get away from her. She enters his dreams and haunts his waking hours. Tauriel's a poison to him. Burrowing into his mind and heart like a rat in old furniture. Polluting his thoughts like venom from a snakebite. Hell, he's probably in love with her.

Kili shudders inwardly. Ugh, if his company could hear him say such things! If Thorin could hear him. The jokes, teasing, and long lectures that would ensue would be nearly unbearable.

But then again, maybe he wouldn't mind. He misses them so much the thought of Bofur's teasing and Balin's gentle reprimanding- even Thorin's yelling- almost sounds comforting.

Waves of memories wash over him. They begin to lap at the pain in his heart, as a lake does to the sand. They leave a dull ache of nostalgia in their wake.

"Kili, we're not-"

He hardly hears her as he cuts her off, sitting up abruptly, "I change my former statement. I want to see my family instead. I miss them, Tauriel."

"Kili," Tauriel's voice is gentle almost to the point of consolation. She kneels next to his cell. "You know why I can't do that."

He responds with an annoyed groan.

"If you want, I can act as a go-between. At least for a little while. If there's anything you want me to say..." begins Tauriel.

"No. I can't trust you. You'd just mess it up like you do everything else. Give me ink and paper. If you want to be a messenger, I will give you a message to send."

"I don't mess everything up." She replies defensively.

"Oh, but you do," He snaps. "My life would be better if you'd never entered it. It'd be better if you elves were all just gone."

Just leave me alone. Kili thinks, smoldering with frustration. He doesn't really mean what he said. Now he feels bad he even said it in the first place.

"Maybe there will be a day when we are!" Tauriel's voice sounds pained. "You think that we're comfortable sitting here as darkness creeps back into the world? I can feel it. It's hardly a shadow, but it's still there. One day that shadow will turn into a shroud that will blanket the land in darkness, and our time will be over. We'll either have to go to Valinor or stay here and slowly fade away with the race of dwarves and men and hobbits."

"What would you choose? To go with your princely boyfriend to the Undying Lands?" Kili asks acidly.

"Legolas isn't my... Kili, we aren't together," Tauriel scoffs, like she's trying to suppress a laugh. "I was trying to tell you that before."

"What?" Kili asks, dumbfounded. A feeble spark of hope reignites in his chest.

Tauriel shrugs, "We talked about it once. We both agreed that it'd be too... Weird. He's a brother to me. That's why we couldn't see ourselves being together romantically. We're too much alike."

Kili curses the smile that breaks across his face. Tauriel gives him a confused look, then shakes her head.

"So about those orcs..." Tauriel begins, clearing her throat.

Kili sits back on his knees and stubbornly keeps to his former terms, "Oh, no. It's either take me to see my family or give me a kiss. Personally, I'd like to see my family more. You can even blindfold me and bind my hands if you need to. Just two minutes is all I'm asking. Besides, I hate being cooped up here. I need to stretch my legs."

Tauriel shakes her head.

"Fine. Feel free to do neither and report back to your king with no information."

"I could still torture it out of you." A darkness takes over her features, though she has both pity and fear in her eyes. Kili looks at her for a spell. Drinking in her expression.

"You really do care about what happens to me, don't you?" He wonders in adoration.

They're hardly a foot apart from each other. He places his hand on the metal bar next to hers. They're close enough to be touching. Kili notices that her hand doesn't twitch in anxiety or move away from his.

"Why should I?" Tauriel inquires.

"I don't know. Why should I care for you? I do. I care deeply for you. I'm not supposed to, yet I do." He murmurs. Kili's fingers inch over hers.

Tauriel scowls when she looks down at their hands. Her eyes catch his.

"Well, I do not care so much for you." She says bitterly, pulling her hand away.

"But you do care for me," Kili disagrees. "You must. It... It doesn't add up."

Tauriel gives him an odd look, "And what makes you say that?"

"The whole thing about my uncle! Why would you defend him? You looked so relieved when Legolas agreed to take him up to your king. Pleased, even! You're like some sick, two-faced, masochistic..." Kili's voice trails away.

"How do you know about that? Who told you I-"

His heart lurches, mind flying immediately to Bilbo, "Um... The guards," Kili lies quickly. "Yeah. I overheard them talking."

He waves her question away and hopes she doesn't ask any further details. Luckily she seems satisfied with his answer, if not a little concerned that there might be "rumors" about her defending a dwarf. Phew, that was close. He almost gave Bilbo away. He'll have to try to look out for him better and watch his tongue while he's at it.

A realization tugs at the back of his mind. Once that clicks in his head, everything else falls into place.

"Oh Tauriel," Kili says softly. "Tauriel... You were trying to protect me."

The elf's eyes widen. She begins to stammer in shock.

"That's it, isn't it?" Kili presses on. "It all makes sense now. Why you were so adamant about taking Thorin instead of me. Why you looked so relaxed and happy when Legolas agreed to do as you wished. That's why you kept refusing my offer! Because you wouldn't have been able to stand seeing me in pain. You wouldn't have let them lay a finger on me. Because you simply couldn't stand the thought of having to watch them beat at me while you were expected to just stand by and do nothing. You care too damn much about me to let that happen. While you were blind in seeing I was trying to defend Thorin, I myself was blind in seeing that you were trying to defend me."

How wrong he's been about her. He mistook her protectiveness for malice.

"You're mad if you believe that to be true. I was only doing as my king asked. Nothing more." Tauriel says.

Usually Kili's able to hold his tongue when he thinks people are lying, but this is one time he can't.

"Now I don't believe that for a second," He shakes his head. "What still perplexes me is why you stood up for my uncle. I must have gotten through to you somehow."

"Did you ever consider, dwarf, that maybe I just don't like the thought of hurting people who have done nothing wrong?," Her voice grows quiet. "And maybe I thought of you. Maybe your words rang in my ears. I wondered what you would do had our roles been switched, and Legolas in Thorin's place. Maybe I thought if I defended him, one day you would do the same for me."

"I would have," Kili's agrees softly. "Done the same, I mean. Defended him if you'd asked me to. Without a second thought."

"You have a good heart," Tauriel offers him a gentle smile. "Unless you're just saying that. Dwarves are known to be treacherous. Though not as much as men."

Kili shrugs althogh annoyance courses through his veins.

"That may be true," He allows, not wanting to argue with her. "But believe me when I say that one day I will repay you, my beautiful elf lady."

"Oh I expect it," She nods. "And... Please don't call me that."

"Why? It's true," Kili protests. "Besides, I think you secretly like it."

"I have a knife. Two, actually." Tauriel reminds him.

Kili rolls his eyes. Her threats don't scare him anymore. Not now that he knows she won't actually hurt him.

"So you won't inflict real pain on people, but you'll still threaten them. Would you please explain to me how that makes any sense at all?"

"The way I see it, threatening people and doing actual damage to them are two very different things."

"You must threaten a lot of people, then. Do you do it to everyone? Or am I just special?" Kili wonders.

Tauriel chuckles mirthfully and shakes her head, "Please. You're far from being anythig special. No. I only threaten people who irritate me."

"Aw, come on. You love me."

"I tolerate you."

"Nah. I'm pretty sure you're in love with me. Ah, but you see..." Kili sighs and shakes his head with feigned sadness. "My uncle will never allow it..."

"You think you're funny." She says dryly.

"I think I'm adorable," He grins. "And I think you do, too."

"Well, you've got some personality. I'll give you that." Tauriel agrees solemnly, kissing him on the cheek.

Kili's face turns scarlet. Even as she pulls away, he can still feel where her lips touched his skin.

"There. I kissed you. You got what you wanted, now give me what I want."

He shakes away the dazed feeling that wraps around his head like gauze.

"That wasn't what I wanted, nor what I asked for, my lady." Kili whispers softly.

She hesitates, giving him a confused look. Kili taps his lips with his finger, "Right here."

"No." Tauriel says, looking bewildered.

"Why? You afraid you'll like it?" He wiggles his eyebrows at her in a lighthearted attempt at seduction.

"Give me one good reason why I should even remotely consider kissing you on the mouth."

"Because, Tauriel, my pretty elf lady. We have so much in common."

She raises eyebrow, "There is nothing similar about you and I, besides the fact that we use each other for our own personal gain. You are a dwarf. I am an elf. We come from different worlds. I from the woods, and you from the mountains. And we will never, ever be alike."

"Oh, but we are, Tauriel. We're both of the same past. Fathers who were never there. Kings who acted as fathers for us. Your best friend who acts as an older brother to you, and my older brother who acts as a best friend to me. That's one reason. Let me give you another," Kili says. He catches a strand of her russet hair between his fingers. Tauriel winces when he does so. "We're both practiced with bows. Though you're a better shot than me I'd reckon. We both have fires in our bellies and an overpowering sense of bravery. We're invulnerable, Tauriel. Do you realize that? When we want something, there isn't anything in the world that'll stop us from getting it. We do as we're told but we don't exactly like to follow everyone's rules. We think we're doing what's right. But the truth is that you're as confused as I am. We're just two messed up people trying to find our place in the world. Trying to make our mark. We don't belong anywhere. We don't fit in with our kind. We're outcasts, you and I. And I know I'm not good for you and you definitely aren't any good for me, but... Oh, to hell with it all." He quickly finishes, pulling her into a kiss.

Kili tries to kiss her well. Passionately and deeply. One hand coils in her soft red hair, pressing her lips to his. He feels her muscles tense under his touch.

She doesn't hit him or shove him away as he expects her to. Tauriel is a statue. Rigid and unresponsive.

He traces her jawline with his fingertips. Marveling at its smoothness. It feels weird to not find the wisps of a small and nicely trimmed beard on a woman's chin. But Kili almost likes it better this way. It's interesting, that's for sure.

His fingers climb from her jaw to her ear, which he also traces gently. He caresses the pointed tips of her ears and the soft spot behind them. His fingers tingle when he does this. Amazing, her ears.

When he was a child, Thorin would describe elves as having ears that were ugly and long and pointed. But Kili thinks her ears are just fine the way they are. They certainly aren't ugly. In fact, he thinks they're quite beautiful.

His fingers dance across her flushed cheek and slide to the back of her neck. She hasn't moved this whole time. Her lips are soft against his.

Kili cups her face in his hands and tries to kiss her more intensely than he had been before.

Something between a hiss and a gasp escapes Tauriel's lips. She gropes for his cloak with trembling hands and pulls him against the bars. Unsure whether to kiss him back or throw him across the cell.

He's in for it now. She's going to kill him. Or severely hurt him. Kili's certain either one will be a very painful ordeal.

But she does neither. Instead, he finds Tauriel tentatively kissing him back.

Kili feels like he's floating. A nagging fear takes place in the back of his mind that says this is all wrong. He shouldn't be feeling these things for her. His heart shouldn't be filled with felicity and bliss.

Kili smiles against her lips in spite of this. She eventually releases her grip on his coat and probes the whiskers on his cheek with a trembling hand.

Tauriel tastes like grapes and citrus. His mind turns foggy.

She kisses him out of curiosity and stunned bewilderment rather than love or affection. Kili knows this, and he's fine with it. It's far better she kisses him than tries to kill him.

He snarls his fingers in her long, sweet smelling hair again and puts a hand on her shoulder to steady himself. Her warm fingertips trail from his cheek to his throat. Kili's heart lurches and for a moment he fears she may strangle him. But no, she's just exploring the stubble under his chin. Kili shivers, his heart pounding away in his chest.

Keys. The word finally surfaces in his mind. Cutting through the fog like a brightly lit lantern. Yes, keys. Get the keys. Wasn't that the idea in the first place?

Moving his hand from her shoulder, Kili's fingers hover over the set of keys which are secured in place with a leather strap. It's only a simple slipknot, so it should be easy to untie.

The only problem are the keys themselves. They make so much noise when they jangle against each other.

Also, trying to kiss someone while you're attempting to pickpocket them poses a problem. It's much harder than it looks. Especially if they're kissing you back. It's very, very distracting. And here he'd been thinking it would be easy.

Kili's heart throbs in his ears while gently undoes the knot with shaking fingers.

His palms sweat. He soundlessly slides the ring of keys from their leather stripped fastenings into his hands. If he drops them... Well, he'd rather not like to think about the consequences at the moment.

The heavy keys clank softly as he grips to them tightly, like a lifeline. His knuckles turn white. He relaxes his muscles, hoping it'll keep his hands for shaking. It doesn't help much.

He feels Tauriel begin to pull away. Kili's fingers bury themselves deeper in her hair. He presses his lips more roughly to hers.

Kili debates yanking the keys quickly past the bars or slowly sliding them past. If they catch on the metal rungs, he'll be dead as a doornail in two seconds flat.

He decides quicker is better and swiftly pulls the keys past the bars.

They don't make a sound. He successfully slides them into the pocket of his cloak.

Ha-ha. Elves are idiots, he thinks triumphantly. So unobservant. Their heads are held so high they can't even see what's right in front of their noses!

She disentangles her hand from his hair and gingerly pulls her lips away from his.

"You lied," She breathes, pressing her smooth forehead to Kili's. "You told me you weren't reckless."

"Ah, well... I guess I am. You know, a little." He smirks.

Tauriel throws her arm around his neck again. Kili leans in to kiss her for a second time. She stops him by touching her fingers to his lips.

"It's funny how you dwarves still think you're more cunning than us, however reckless you may be. You really thought I wouldn't have noticed if you snagged my keys?" She snaps in hostility.

He glances up at her in shock. The look she gives Kili causes a chill to trickle uncomfortably down his spine.

Kili tries wrench himself free from her grasp, but stops when something sharp digs into the base of his neck.

Kili's breath hitches in his throat. His blood turns to ice. The knife presses harder against his skin.

"Uh-uh. Don't move." She warns.

Something pokes his chest. Kili looks down in dismay. Oh, there's the other knife. Now he has one at his heart and the other at his neck. Well, this is just wonderful.

A wry smile plays on her lips, "I'd like my keys back."

Kili shakes his head. There's no way he's going to give them up that easily. No matter how terrifying her glare is.

The few inches between them suddenly feels like miles. He finds himself wanting to kiss her again. There's really no reason to now, though. Save for the pleasure of it. Besides, she'd run him through with her dagger before his lips touched hers.

"Give 'em to me." She commands, pressing the blade harder into the back of his neck. It stings terribly.

"No," He whispers, still trying to catch his breath. "Told you I wasn't a bad kisser."

Tauriel scoffs,"I've had better."

"Your eyes betray your words," He taunts lightly.

"The keys, Kili!" Tauriel snaps in agitation. She presses the knife deeper into his neck. Kili cries out in pain. His eyes water.

"Ouch! Watch where you shove that thing!"

"Stop whining. It's just a scratch." She mutters.

"You're going to cut my head off!"

"That's the plan." Tauriel sneers.

The pain grows more intense than before. His tears threaten to spill over. Kili grits his teeth and tries to fight off the pain.

"You said you didn't like hurting innocent people." He squeaks.

"If they do nothing wrong, yes. Unwanted advances are a very different story."

Kili curses her in Khûzdul.

"What was that?" She inquires.

He smirks deviously,"I said you can suck my- OW!"

An idea hits him. Maybe if he distracts her with what she wanted from him in the first place, she'd forget all about the keys. It's a terrible plan, but it's the best he's got.

"Azog." Kili says. He feels the pressure on his neck lighten.

"What?"

"Azog. You wanted information about the orcs, right?"

Tauriel nods curtly.

"He's known to most as Azog the Defiler. We thought he died during the Battle of Azanulbizar from his wounds. But he came back. He's been chasing us the whole way. He won't stop, either. You know orcs. They won't stop chasing you until you're dead. He almost killed Thorin at one point. We were trapped on this cliff, and the trees were burning... Honestly I don't know what's going to happen if we get out of these woods. Azog could chase us straight into the Lonely Mountain if he wanted to."

"Why is he tracking you?"

Kili chuckles,"Revenge. Why else?"

"How many are there in his pack?"

"A lot."

"How many is a lot?"

"A lot is... Well, it's far more than thirteen dwarves can handle by themselves. I don't know. Ask Thorin. He'd be able to give you a better guess than I could."

She nods, "I'll consider it. Is there anything else I should know?"

"No, my lady." Kili says, shaking his head.

Tauriel sheaths the knife she had aimed at his heart.

"Thank you, Kili. You've been very cooperative." She says in gratitude, reaching into his coat pocket where he'd put the keys.

Kili grabs her wrist to stop her. The searing pain at his neck reminds him of where he stands.

Dammit! He fumes.

She takes the keys from him and smirks with pride.

"Oh, no. You don't have to take those. Really..." Kili's attempt to bargain with her falls flat.

"Actually, I do. And how do you think my king will react when he finds out that you-"

"Kissed me with the burning passion of a thousand suns? Uh, not very well, that's for sure."

She looks around to make sure nobody had heard him.

"If you tell anyone-" She starts to threaten.

"I won't," He reassures her. "So long as you don't tell any of my companions. Especially Thorin."

She nods in agreement.

"You never kissed me, and you never took my keys. I threatened you with a knife and you gave me the information, understand?"

"Every word." Kili smiles in relief.

"Good." Tauriel says, relieving him of the pain from the sharp dagger digging into the back of his neck.

Kili rubs his stinging neck. When he pulls his hand away, he's surprised to see a minimal amount of blood.

"Like I said, it's just a scratch." Tauriel stands up.

Her cheeks are still flushed pink and her hair in slight disarray. A whirlwind of emotions glaze over her eyes. Seething anger masked by an otherwise calm and collected demeanor. He wonders how much willpower it had taken her to not run him through with her knife.

"Your hair, uh... It's kind of, er..." Kili hesitates, making motions with his hands that she should comb through her hair or at least tame the few stray strands that stick wildly about her head.

She turns a deep shade of red and quickly runs her fingernails through her hair, making sure every strand is back in its place.

"Thank you." She says acridly.

"You're welcome." Kili murmurs.

Tauriel starts walking away, looking ruffled. She shakes her head and mutters about "stupid dwarves" and "orcs... not my problem" among other things.

"It is, you know," Kili pipes up when he hears this. "Whether you like it or not, it's your fight, too. I'm not just talking about orcs, either. We're all a part of this world. If this... This 'darkness' is coming like you say it is, we should be standing together. Not fighting alone. We can't let evil get the best of us. We should be fighting with each other, not against each other."

"You're wiser than you give yourself credit for. I'll keep that in mind, what you said," Tauriel replies. Her voice begins to grow faint as the she travels farther and farther away from his cell. "Sadly, I have to come by later to bring you dinner. I suppose I'll see you then."

"Can we eat in your bedchamber instead? I'd like the change of scenery."

"Not in your lifetime, dwarf-scum." She growls in irritation.

"Well how about the manacles then? Can you put me in those? That was our original agreement, right?" Kili inquires, trying to keep the impish smile off his face. He loves teasing with her. Elves take everything so personally.

"Goodbye, Kili!" Tauriel, in exasperation, cuts their conversation short.

Stifling a laugh, he watches her turn a corner and disappear from his sight.

A thin veil of loneliness wraps loosely around him when she leaves.

He absentmindedly runs his fingers over his cheek, following the same path Tauriel's fingers did.

The tingling sensation has long since left his skin, and the rush of emotions Kili felt so strongly when she kissed him is merely an echo.

He sure won't miss this place when he leaves, but he might just miss her.

Yes, Kili decides. I will definitely miss her.

Thank you for taking your time to read this story. I hope you enjoyed it. I appreciate every single alert, favorite, and review. They all mean so much to me. It's highly unlikely I'll write any more Kili/Tauriel fics or any other LotR fics in general, although this was a blast to do. Thanks again for all your wonderful comments. I can't express my gratitude enough.