Kili

I watched in horror as Azog prepared to murder my beloved brother Fili, rooted to the ground. The seconds ticked by, but they seemed like hours in the suspense. I hoped the job would be done cleanly and painlessly if it had to be done at all. As Azog prepared to stab Fili, I closed my eyes, tears leaking out of the corners, waiting for the swish that never came. When I opened my eyes, I saw Fili falling from the ledge. In a wild panic, I jumped out quickly and caught him, carrying him back into the safety of the tunnels. I quickly wiped my eyes and gently set him down on the ground. I could hear the orcs gabbling above us, and I quickly half dragged him further into the tunnel, (mostly) safe from wandering eyes.

"Fili!" I exclaimed as soon as I plopped down on the ground. "How are you still alive?"

"Bilbo threw a nice stone," he replied, grinning. "He's got great aim. Hit Azog right between the eyes. Azog dropped me, I jumped, and then Azog slashed hoping that I would die on the way down. If you hadn't caught me I might have broken a few ribs."

"'I can handle it,' huh! You nearly died! And Mother thought I was reckless," I chided. I still deny the reckless thing, by the way. "Still, I'm so relieved that you're alive." I brought him into a tight hug and he gasped in pain. Worried, I pulled back quickly and saw that the right side of his tunic was stained with red. "You're hurt!" I examined the wound. It didn't seem deep (with the tunic it was hard to tell, though), but it bled freely and needed binding. There wasn't anything nearby to bind Fili's side, so I thought he would have to endure the pain for a few more hours when I remembered Bilbo's forgotten pocket-handkerchief and how Bofur tore a strip off his tunic for him. Oh, how Bilbo had changed. He, more than once, had saved our lives. Parasites! When the trolls got us, we thought we were done for before we even got past the Misty Mountains, but Bilbo bought us enough time for Gandalf to turn them into stone. I'd shouted that I had the biggest parasites. Smiling slightly, I made a makeshift bandage from my tunic and bound Fili's wound well enough to last until someone better at healing could help.

Who could help? Oin stayed when the orc poison started getting the better of me, saying that his place was with the wounded. Tauriel, amralime, was the one who saved me, rescued me from excruciating pain and certain death. That was when I realized my love for her and her love for me as well, that she would go to any length to save me.

I waved and called to Bilbo, who scampered across the rocks. He seemed pretty skilled because I could not see him at all as he scuttled over to the tunnels. "Find me Oin, Fili is hurt. I bound his wound as well as I could, but we will need more help."

Fili groaned. "Stop making me sound like a baby who can't stand a few hours while wounded! I can live, and I will live for at least another week!"

I smirked. "Sorry, brother, but I'm just not a great healer. I'm making Bilbo get Oin." Fili sighed in mock exasperation.

Bilbo crossed his arms and stamped playfully. "Who said you could order me around?" He stood there frowning for a moment and then we all burst out laughing. "Okay, okay! I'm getting Oin!"

While we waited for Bilbo, we started reminiscing about how Bilbo had changed. "Remember when we just literally tossed him our knives?"
"Remember when he said we all had parasites and for a moment everyone got mad at him? Then I think something clicked and we all started clamoring about having the biggest parasites."
"I'm pretty sure you yelled about having the biggest parasites and then everyone started yelling about that too."
"How in the world did Bilbo get out of those tunnels?"
"Honestly, I have no idea. Maybe it was another of his brilliant ideas."
"Like the barrels thing! We would never have escaped otherwise. I mean, it—"
"The orcs were waiting for us. You nearly died."
"Well, no one's omniscient. How was Bilbo supposed to know that they were in for us?"
"Luckily he didn't give up when the sun set and no keyhole showed up. We wouldn't have been in Erebor if it weren't for him."
"Yeah, Gandalf made a good choice."

I mean, if Bilbo held off for maybe a few days more, it would be fine with me, I thought. After all, more time with Tauriel. More sharing stories and more bonding. Ah, yes. Tauriel, my beloved elf.

This went on for quite a while (well, not love thoughts) and later on we started laughing so hard that we didn't even notice when Bilbo showed up with Oin. "Hey, Oin, can you watch over Fili for now? I bound his side the best I could, but it'll only last a few hours. Plus, I want to avenge Fili."

"Hey, I'm not dead!" Indignantly, Fili tried to stand but collapsed as simultaneously Oin pushed him down and his wound twinged painfully. Fili kept muttering about "I'm alive" and "I don't need avenging" while Oin pulled some herbs out of his tunic and started mashing them to a paste.

"You're not dead, but the orcs slashed your side pretty badly. I'm not going to be happy if I don't kill some of them." I turned and sprinted out of the tunnel to murder some orcs. Soon I was slashing and stabbing orcs as hard as I could, the sweet thought of revenge driving me like a fury. Only around ten minutes later, I had already killed many, many orcs, but I wasn't satisfied. I hopped to a smaller ledge and continued slicing orcs in half. Each orc leaking blood from my sword gave me more strength and more pleasure. As I fought, I heard a cry.

"Kili!" It was Tauriel, looking for me. I turned and yelled, "Tauriel!" to let her know I was mostly okay. She was standing there, searching, making sure that I was safe and unhurt. She called "Kili!" again in her musical voice, and I could hear the worry in her voice. I responded again with another "Tauriel!" and soon she joined me in the massacre of orcs.

I continued leaping around and murdering as many orcs as I could handle. Then I realized that I could no longer hear the swish of Tauriel's sword, see the gleam as she killed orcs with incredible speed. I stopped and looked to see where she was, and I spotted her pinned to the ground by Bolg, struggling to get free. Her eyes pleaded with me to help her, and a sudden rush of fear, fear like nothing I had ever felt before, flooded through me as I realized she might not live to see another day, and I was going to lose my beloved elf. Fueled by my passion, I immediately scrambled over while she landed a wild kick, buying herself some more time. He staggered, then threw her aside and she landed near the edge of the precipice, the wind knocked out of her. I sank an arrow into his back and he turned to me, ready to kill.

Well, he's not taking this dwarf! I thought and fought with all the more fury. I slashed here and there, leaped around agilely, and fought all the harder for Tauriel and Fili. I couldn't let them down now, when we had all been through so much. We needed each other, and I wasn't about to change that. Though I was hot, tired, and scratched, I continued my attempt to wipe out as many orcs as I could, even if it meant getting pretty hurt in the process. No, don't think that! Your life is worth more than a few nasty orcs. Don't let your passion take over and give away the only life you have! I thought wildly. I wildly attempted to kill Bolg before he killed me.

Unfortunately, I found myself gasping for breath and pinned to the ground by Bolg, who was preparing to kill me. Now, it was different. I would not live to see my elf. The jagged rock dug into my back and my eyes watered in pain. Bolg pressed his sword into my neck, relishing the moment. Beads of blood appeared and stars began to cloud my vision. I heard Tauriel sobbing, and I waited for the worst until the sword left my neck, Tauriel yelped, and I heard a dull thunk. A stone had hit Bolg on the head, and he turned, distracted. That moment was all I needed to summon my remaining strength, grab my sword, and behead him. Then I clambered over to a relieved Tauriel, pulled to her feet, and half-supported, half-carried her away from the edge.

I gasped from the effort, especially because of the thin cut on my neck, just barely missing my throat. Tauriel dabbed at it with her sleeve, stemming the flow.

"Oh, Kili, I'm so glad you're alive! I expected the worst when Bolg got you." She grasped both of my hands in hers, her eyes shining with relief.

"I'm really relieved that you're alive too. Wicked kick, there." She beamed at the compliment and blushed. "What?" I asked. "It was a really good kick. It got me enough time to at least sink an arrow into him."

"I wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you, my brave dwarf," she replied, and she caressed my cheek. I smiled at her gentle touch.

"I wouldn't be alive either if it weren't for whoever threw that stone. Was that you, by any chance? I couldn't see who it was."

"It wasn't. Didn't you hear me yelp? It nearly hit me, but luckily I ducked in time. Lucky for both of us, really. If it hadn't hit Bolg, you wouldn't be here and I would be devastated."

"And I too, if Bolg had gotten you." She looked down, and I gently lifted her head. Happiness flooded through me as she smiled warmly.

"So brave, my reckless little dwarf." For once, I didn't mind being called "little," but that was just Tauriel's spell. She could say nearly anything and I would be happy.

I pulled her into a warm embrace and she stiffened and then relaxed, deciding to go with it. Apparently, elves don't have much experience in the area of intimate relations. I relished the feel of her warm body against mine. She tightened her hold and I winced. The part where the rock cut into my back had started trickling blood. I was battered and exhausted, and Tauriel seemed to be too. We savored the moment of peace together.

Suddenly I remembered something. "Thorin," I gasped. "He was fighting Azog, and I don't know if he's okay!" I pulled back and looked around wildly to see where he was, and I saw him on an icy ledge. Tauriel turned and spotted him too. He pushed himself up and walked to the edge of the precipice. My body sagged in relief until I saw that his strength was fading. I started panicking.

In my desperation to reach Thorin and ascertain that he was okay, I forgot entirely that I was also on the edge of a cliff and ran right past the cliff's edge. Tauriel gasped in fear and then quickly grabbed my wrist before I could fall down the sharp rocks to certain death. She pulled me back onto the cliff and I fell forwards, breathing heavily.

"Reckless dwarf," Tauriel scolded. I looked down in embarrassment until I realized she was joking. "I guess that's one more time that I've saved your life. You don't need any more near-death situations."

"But Thorin! Tauriel, I need to make sure he's okay!" I protested. I looked back at where he stood. Thorin seemed pretty steady, but he swayed slightly. I bit my lip in worry.

Tauriel murmured comfortingly, "I'm sure he's alright. See, the ice is stained maroon, Azog is dead, and he's still standing." Right after she said that, Thorin collapsed. I waited for him to get up again, telling myself that he just tripped and that he was alright, he was just tired, it was normal. Minutes passed and still he didn't stand, and the Thorin I knew wouldn't hesitate to push himself back up if he weren't badly injured. I buried my face into my hands, crying silently. The leader of the expedition, the one who pushed on even when it seemed like there was no hope, was dead. Tauriel stroked my back and whispered, "Shh, shh, it's alright. When things get bad, we can grieve, but eventually, life goes on, and the pain will be dulled." It made sense, and her soft musical voice calmed my worry just a little bit. Still, I sobbed a little more, then raised my head.

Thorin was no longer on the ledge.

Sick with worry, I gasped, "THORIN!"

a/n: this is my first fanfic, please tell me how I can improve :)
reviews are gladly accepted