Aftermath: Ending Two
Tauriel repeated and rephrased all the healing words she knew, her eyes shut with the effort of sending some of her own life's energy into Kili's failing body. Eventually, though, she ran out of words.
"Please," she choked out, unable to stop her tears from falling. "Save him."
And in the midst of the battle's casualties, Tauriel began to sob, the sounds echoing throughout the plains and off the rocks. It took some time before her eyes dried up, and her shoulders stopped shaking, and Tauriel could regain some composure. She packed up her things.
She reached out, one last time, to take Kili's hand in hers. "It was never a question of 'could have'," she whispered. "I did… I do love you." She brought his hand up to her lips, whereupon she placed a light kiss.
Pausing for a moment, daring to hope for a miracle, Tauriel sighed. She gently placed his hand down across his chest, then took the athelas and slid it into his palm – a testament to the one she couldn't save.
Picking up her satchel, the Elf stood, shoulders slumping and composure wilting. She turned to walk away, but remembered something.
Kneeling down beside the Dwarf, she searched his armour, looking for the black stone he had shown her. As she removed it from his body, the smooth surface reminded her of that time, which for an Elf was only a blink in the past, but for her, it seemed so long ago.
Holding onto the talisman tightly, she stood and began to leave.
As the sun set and Tauriel looked over Laketown, she resolved to go back to Kili's family, to return what he now could not.
Alternate Title: The Canon-Compliant Ending
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