A/N: Thank you to~Booker10, Belieber Twihard, Robin Winters, Heather, FleurSuoh, Pixi, and just me!

I really appreciate all of your reviews and support! Keep the reviews coming please! And thank you to all who took the time to read my story!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or the Hobbit! Please read and REVIEW!

Hermione turned and buried her face in the crook of Kili's neck. Her salty tears splattered onto his skin, but he showed no sign of caring. Kili wrapped his arm around her waist tightly and held her close.

The group: three elves, a dwarf, and a human watched with heavy hearts as their companion slowly made his way onto the boat. Soft sobbing could be heard to Hermione's right: Tauriel. Hermione reached out and grasped Tauriel's hand and held it comfortingly.

"Tauriel, Captain of the Guard." Lord Elrond approached the crying elf.

Hermione could tell that Tauriel was struggling to conceal her broken heart from Elrond.

"Why did you choose to stay behind and not follow Master Malfoy?" he asked with piercing eyes.

"It is my duty to stay and be the Captain of the Guard and protect King Thranduil. I owe him a great debt for rescuing me as an elfling and raising me, regardless of the fact that I am but a lowly Silvan elf." She said with a firm voice, although her eyes betrayed her true sadness.

"I do not believe even King Thranduil of the Mirkwood Realm would begrudge you this chance at love. Elves only fall in love once, and you love Master Malfoy, do you not?" Galadriel now stood beside Elrond and gazed at Tauriel.

"I-I do." Tauriel looked surprised at herself for admitting to this out loud. "What shall I do, Lady Galadriel?"

"Perhaps it is time for you to follow your heart, rather than your duty." Galadriel smiled. "Go."

Tauriel blinked, trying to digest her words. Hermione squeezed her hand reassuringly. Suddenly, it clicked. Raw joy overtook the grief in Tauriel's eyes. She turned towards Hermione and pulled the surprised human into a tight embrace.

"Thank you, mellon." She whispered.

"G'bye, Tauriel." Hermione's throat felt clogged up again.

She did not have as much time as she would have liked with this beautiful elf in front of her. She knew that they would have been great friends. Their fiery personalities matched each other, as did their strong opinions of the world around them.

Hermione would always admire the strength Tauriel had to follow her duty, no matter the cost. That although Tauriel was immortal in Middle Earth, she still cared about the world and fate of other creatures.

After Tauriel pulled away, she bowed respectfully towards Galadriel and Elrond and began to walk towards the great ship.

The sun was just beginning to set on the horizon and its fiery golden rays illuminated Tauriel's hair, making it look as if someone had lit it on fire.

They heard a whoop of laughter as Draco turned and realized who would be accompanying him on his final journey. Hermione watched their silhouettes as Draco picked Tauriel up and spun her around. She couldn't help it: she laughed.

Kili cast her a frightened glance, which only caused her to laugh harder. The full-bellied laughs racked her small figure and replaced her tears of grief with those of joy. She turned towards Kili and kissed him full and hard on the mouth. He reacted so enthusiastically that he picked her up off the ground. Hermione wrapped her legs around his waist and poured everything she could into that kiss.

It wasn't until the world finally stopped spinning and her feet were planted firmly on the ground did she realize that Lady Galadriel was still standing there. Her cheeks erupted into flames as she noted with horror that Galadriel had witnessed her entire snog with Kili.

And to her surprise, Galadriel began to laugh as well. "Do not fret, Lady Hermione. I am not here to chastise you about your actions. Quite the opposite. You see, while Master Malfoy's presence in this world was seen and felt by many, yours was the most intriguing.

You came as a girl with so much weight and responsibility on your shoulders, yet you still agreed readily to accompany Thorin Oakenshield and his company on dwarves on a quest, while you could have easily chosen to lead a simple yet peaceful life.

You fell in love, and while you surely already knew of the outcome of such a love, continued to fight for it.

You do indeed have the mind of the eagle, the loyalty of a badger, the ambition of a snake, but most of all the bravery of a lion."

Hermione's eyes had misted as Galadriel spoke.

"Really, I wasn't all that brave. I-I did what had to be done. I was such a coward before I came here…I just wanted to change that." She denied truthfully.

"Hush, Child. Your heart and mind have always held the purest and truest intentions. It was fated that you should arrive and purge this world of a great threat. But I believe your destiny is greater yet." She finished ominously.

"Wh-What do you mean?" Hermione asked, bewildered.

"Only time will tell." Lady Galadriel finished, and when Hermione blinked, she was gone.

"Do not worry your pretty little head over that." Kili murmured into her hair. "All elves are full of tosh like that."

Still shaking, Hermione nodded and held his hand tightly before spinning on the spot and apparating them back to the Lonely Mountain. Back to their home.

~The End~

A/N: *Sniff sniff* Almost to the end of the story! I just have the epilogue left and that's it! Should I write a sequel? Please let me know your thoughts by leaving a review! Thanks!