Helplessly she watched, unable to move, reaching forward as she saw the blade plunge into Kili's chest. She saw his pain, and saw his lips move to form that foreign word.

"I think you know what it means," he'd said, when they were on the shore of the lake.

Yes, she knew. In her heart she knew that it meant that he felt for her as strongly as she felt for him. But words of love meant nothing when faced with the cruelty of an orc. She watched a single tear trail down his cheek as the life faded from his body.

"No!" She jolted awake, her breath coming in fast gasps. This was why she'd refused to sleep, because she knew the memories would haunt her.

"It was just a dream."

She could almost hear the sweet words that he'd spoken while they were in Laketown. But this had been a nightmare, not a dream. She'd fallen in love with a dwarf who spoke of sweet dreams, not nightmares.

She turned in the bed and realized that he was still next to her, his body warm and comforting. In a way, she felt guilty, sleeping next to him without his knowledge or permission, but Thranduil's words had haunted her.

"Make the most of your time."

The familiar dread and panic gripped her heart as she remembered that he was lying in a state that was neither dead nor alive. A quick check out her window at the lightening sky confirmed that she'd been asleep for several hours and she immediately worried that his status might have changed while she'd selfishly been resting. With trepidation, and without looking at him, she reached over to touch his chest to verify that his heart still beat within, and his chest continued to rise and fall steadily with breath.

She grasped Kili's warm hand, running her fingers over the rough surface. It was so unlike any elf's hand, large and rough, but she grasped it firmly, pulling it to her face and placing a kiss onto the calloused palm.

A sigh of relief escaped from her lips.

And it was answered by the low rumble of a laugh, followed by the sound of a deep, gentle voice. "Am I dreaming again?"

Her eyes flew open and she turned toward him with uncanny speed to see the warm brown eyes that had opened her heart. Perhaps she was still dreaming, but she didn't care because the joy that filled her in that moment made her feel more alive than she'd felt in days. She remembered that he'd said the same thing: that she made him feel alive. As much as she hadn't wanted to feel love at the loss of him, now she didn't want anything else.

Tears watered her eyes for the thousandth time in the past week, but this time, they were tears of joy and disbelief. She reached a trembling hand up to touch his face, her fingers ghosting against the scruffy almost-beard that covered his chin.

"If you are dreaming, then I am dreaming with you, and I do not wish to wake."

His hand covered hers, holding it against his cheek. "Then, we're in agreement," he said, his beautiful smile lighting his face. They lay like that for a minute or two, neither wanting to break the spell that surrounded them. He turned his head to lay a soft kiss against her hand. "I don't know how we came to be like this, but I can only say that I'm grateful," he said, giving her a saucy wink.

The innuendo of his words were emphasized by the impish gleam in his eyes, reminding her that their position was highly inappropriate at best. As the sleep cleared from her head, an embarrassed flush came to her cheeks.

Their position was chaste, neither touching, except for her hand on his face, but she suddenly felt quite awkward and embarrassed. Other than perhaps resting with companions while traveling, sleeping next to someone, sharing a bed – unless married – was highly unusual. He'd been unconscious and she'd taken advantage by crawling into the bed to be near him. Granted, he didn't seem to mind at the moment, but that was not the point.

As his hand brushed against her bare arm, she realized that she was only clothed in a light shift. An undergarment. And he was clothed in nothing more than the long shirt that she'd crafted for him.

The touch jolted her fully awake and she he sat up abruptly, looking away from him and blushing down to her toes, attempting to gather her wits about her.

"Tauriel, what's wrong?" he asked, clearly concerned.

Her mouth opened once or twice before she gathered the nerve to speak. "This is not proper. I apologize..." she stammered. "I should not have taken advantage..." Her loss for words was highly unusual, but it was a highly unusual circumstance.

He chuckled, and she felt herself shiver at the sound. His laugh was warm and rich and she loved hearing it. It made her smile and she turned her head to look back at him shyly. His smile lit his face, making his eyes twinkle like the stars. He reached for her hand, which was clutching nervously at the bedsheets. "I don't mind," he said softly and she could almost feel the flirtatious grin that lifted his lips. Lips that she had kissed, without him knowing, when she'd thought he was lost to her forever.

She felt a warmth spread through her body, pooling in her stomach, and an urge to turn to him and kiss him again, this time, to feel him kiss her back.

"Kili..." She wanted to say so much, but had no idea where to begin.

He tried to sit up, and she heard him gasp in pain. Forgetting her inappropriate attire, she immediately turned to him, cringing as she saw him clutch at the newly healed wound in his midsection. She placed her hand on his chest, urging him to lie back, not missing the affection in his eyes at her touch, despite his pain.

"You must rest. The king said that it would take some time for you to fully recover from your injuries."

"The king? Thoren is here?" He looked around the room, confused, taking in the unfamiliar surroundings. "Where are we?"

Thoren.

She closed her eyes tightly, knowing that the news she would have to deliver would hurt him. He did not yet know the fate of his kin, and she felt a deep sadness. She turned toward him, her embarrassment forgotten and it only took a moment for him to read the sorrowful regret in her eyes.

A look of desperate panic crossed his face and he sat up abruptly, then cried out in pain, reaching for his gut and the not-fully-healed wound where Bolg's blade had pierced. She could see his eyes water in pain but he still fought to move.

Hurriedly, she reached over to stop him from trying to exit the bed. "You are still wounded, badly." She informed him. "You must rest."

He gritted his teeth in determination, his expression angry. "No! Thorin..." then he paused, his eyes closing in pain, this time an emotional pain as he recalled the memories from the battle. His voice broke as he spoke a single name, "Fili..."

He looked at her again, his eyes pleading that she would tell him that all was not as he feared. She shook her head, negatively, desperately wishing that her answer could have been different. "I'm sorry, Kili."

The overwhelming sorrow that filled his eyes nearly broke her heart. Then, without shame, he leaned forward, dropping his face into his hands and wept.

She didn't know what to do. There were no words of comfort that she could offer, so she sat there awkwardly until the urge to touch him overcame her feelings of impropriety. Gently, she placed a hand on his shoulder which he apparently welcomed, because he responded by leaning into her, resting his head on her shoulder as he spent his grief.

"I failed them. I failed them both."

She pulled away, grasping his hands and pulling them from his face so that she could look him in the eyes. "I was there. I saw how you fought. You failed no one."

Tears flowed freely down his handsome face. "He was my brother, Tauriel. All I could do was watch as they murdered him."

Once, long ago, she'd felt the same, when she'd seen her parents murdered by those foul creatures. She felt a kindred sense of anger at the injustice. It was that anger that had spurred her to becoming a warrior but it was this gentle dwarf who had opened her heart to a brighter future. It saddened her to know he was now suffering the same pain.

They sat like that for several minutes, holding hands, until Tauriel began to feel uncomfortable. She started to retract her hand, but he quickly moved to capture it, holding it firmly. With tear-filled eyes, he looked up at her. "Thank you, Tauriel. For what it's worth, I'm glad you're here."

She nodded, unsure of what to say.

He took a deep breath. "What happened to me? Where are we?"

She wasn't quite certain how to inform him that he had, in fact, died. "Your runestone held more power than either of us realized," she said. "Aule found favor when I asked him to allow you to keep your promise to me."

The confusion on his face was evident. "Aule, how?"

"King Thranduil holds much knowledge of your people from the First Age. He gave me the means to call you back to me."

Kili scowled, clearly bothered by the information. "I owe my life to an Elven king?"

Her love for Kili didn't stop her from feeling defensive about her king. "Yes, you do."

His scowl deepened. "I don't trust him."

His reaction wasn't unexpected, but now was not the time for him to question his current circumstances. "I understand, but please do not dwell on that now. I would rather you regain your strength," she said gently, placing her hand on his arm to emphasize her point.

He looked at her hand, then his eyes traced up her bare arm, a devilish smile lifting his lips and she was once again reminded of her state of undress. Quickly, she withdrew her hand.

"I apologize for my..." she paused, "unusual attire."

He chuckled. "It is not unwelcome."

She got up from the bed, her nervousness returning. She remembered her last conversation with her king, and the knowledge that Kili was now Prince Under the Mountain – even if his own kind were not yet aware that he lived. Lying next to another without their permission was bad enough, but to take such a liberty with a prince was unfathomable. Her actions of the past few days had been beyond inappropriate. No wonder the king had been treating her so strangely, as if she were a child again.

"Perhaps," she said, her voice shaking a little. "But you must rest and I must inform the king that you are awake."

He appeared ready to object, but there was no denying the tiredness in his eyes. After a moment, he nodded. "Promise me to return soon?" he said.

She gave a small smile, feeling a rush of affection toward the young dwarrow. He was injured, grieving, yet he still had that gentle, hopeful look in his eyes that had captured her heart. Part of her didn't want to leave him but she knew he likely needed some time to mourn privately. "I promise," she said, thinking of how promises between them would always have a special meaning.

Quickly, she turned her back to him, hoping he did not watch as she donned the borrowed dress that she'd worn the previous night. tried to fix her hair quickly, foregoing the braids that she normally wore due to her hurry.

Before she left, she looked back at her dwarf. He appeared sad, and she had little doubt that he was thinking of his lost kin as he stared out the window, a faraway look in his eyes. He glanced over to her, giving her a weak smile to indicate that he would be all right. She gave him an encouraging nod, and left to find her king.

xxx