"I'm dreaming" Tauriel said.
"Quisif nan-Pah, Tauriel," her mother said gently as she approached her child, "This is no dream,"
"Then…" Tauriel swallowed, "I am dead?"
"No, child," she said, "You are still very much alive."
"Then how can you be here?" Tauriel asked, "What is happening, Mother?"
"You are trapped," She replied sadly, "Stuck between Middle Earth and the Halls of Mandos."
"So it is as I thought," Tauriel murmured, "I am being punished."
"Punished, no," her mother said, "You are being given a chance. You should be dead, Tauriel."
"I do not understand, Mother."
"You didn't know what you were doing, but you gave a piece of yourself to the Dwarf. In your desperation to save him, you used forbidden magics you didn't know you could practice."
"I what?"
"A Piece of your Fëa belongs to Kili now," Her mother explained, "And he cannot give it back to you."
"Then I can't leave this place? I will be forced to spend eternity between worlds?"
"No, Child," she continued, "You are only trapped because you don't know how to get back. The piece of yourself you gave up is your immortality"
"I'm… mortal?"
"We were never completely immortal, Tauriel. We are as old as the earth and we will die with the Earth. You will just die earlier than most."
"Then I am no longer Elven?"
"Our lifespans are not what make us, Tauriel. You are an Elf and you will be to the end of your days."
"I am so confused, Mother."
"I know, and I wish I could help you, but I can't" she said sympathetically, "I can help you return back to the mortal realm, but you must figure things out from there."
"Teach me," Tauriel pleaded, "Teach me how to return."
"It will be difficult," her mother warned, "And I make no promises about the state your physical body is in. You might die anyways."
"I don't care," Tauriel insisted, "There are people waiting for me. People who need me."
"You love him," her mother said. It wasn't a question, just a statement. Tauriel couldn't tell what her mother was thinking. Elves had a nasty habit of being able to conceal their emotions. It often aided Tauriel, but right now she wanted nothing more than to have her mother's approval.
"Yes," Tauriel replied, "With all my heart."
"Then it should be easier for you to return," she said with a small smile. Tauriel let out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. If not approval, she at least didn't have her mother's hatred, "Lie back, Tauriel" her mother said.
Tauriel obeyed and let the softness of her pillows envelope her. She was struck with the realization that even if she could return to the physical world, she would still never see her home again. She hadn't really gotten the chance to process her banishment. There hadn't been a moment off peace since she had reached Laketown. This was the first time she had really had the chance to take it all in.
"Tauriel? Are you alright?"
"Yes, mother," she said quickly.
"Tauriel," she replied, "If there is something you are not telling me, then you don't have to go back. I can guide you to the Halls of Mandos just as easily as I can guide you to the physical world."
"I want to return," Tauriel admitted, "But I have nowhere to go. Thranduil banished me and I won't be welcome in Erebor. Laketown will not be able to support the people it already has. I no longer have a home"
"I… did not know that," her mother replied.
"I have nothing if I go back, but I am not ready to die." Tauriel said, as a single tear spilled from her eye.
"You have him."
"He is a Prince, Mother."
"I have been watching over you for hundreds of years, Tauriel, and I have never seen anyone love you the way he does. He will follow you to the ends of the Earth.
"I don't want him to," Tauriel replied, "He belongs with his people and his kingdom."
Her mother only laughed, "I doubt you'll be able to be rid of him, Child."
"He won't be happy with me forever. I can't tear him away from his family."
"His brother is dead, Tauriel. He doesn't have much family left." Her mother replied, "And as for your lack of a home… sometimes home is not a place, but a person."
Tauriel nodded in response. No matter what happened, she had to go back. Kili needed her, and she needed him. She had been a fool for thinking that they could live their lives without each other.
"Close your eyes, Child,'" her mother murmured, "And picture where you want to go."
Kili froze when he felt her hand gently squeeze his. Maybe she couldn't really hear him, but she at least felt his presence, and she was letting him know that she hadn't given up. Wherever she was, she would fight for her life and return to him.
He placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, "Get better, Amrâlimê." Bard had been right. Kili did feel better now that he'd seen her. And now all he wanted to do was sleep. With the children here, there was barely room for Bard's own family, let alone a Dwarf. He glanced at the small chair on the other side of the room and decided that was the best place to sleep for the night. He would be close to Tauriel, yet be close to the children if they needed anything. Kili had never been a fan of children, but knowing that Tauriel got hurt saving them made him oddly protective.
He grabbed a spare blanket and settled down for the night. He knew he would be sore in the morning, but at least he would get the hours of rest he'd missed out on over the past few days. Kili grabbed a spare blanket and settled down in his chair, letting himself fall asleep to dreams of Tauriel and a happier time.
Translations:
Quisif nan-Pah- Common Elvish greeting for a loved one
A.N. I couldn't find a name I liked for Tauriel's mother, so I left her nameless. And let me know what you think of the character and her and Tauriel's relationship.