Tauriel wasn't sure how long she had been wandering since the funeral. She remembered watching the dwarves gather around their fallen leader along with the hobbit. She had hidden when they came to claim the bodies of Kili and Fili. She kept to the shadows as she followed the procession into Erebor until she was forced to stop at the base of the Lonely Mountains. She could only imagine the festivities as the dwarves celebrated the lives of the last of Durin's heirs.
Tauriel remembered standing in the field and looking at the Lonely Mountains until she had grown tired. The men of Dale had celebrated and started rebuilding under the leadership of Bard. The elves had also gone, finally reclaiming their treasures. There was nothing left for Tauriel there, so she left.
Being banished from Mirkwood she had nowhere to go. She had lost the only home she had ever known. She had lost the man she loved. She had lost her reason to live.
Elves usually didn't need sleep but Tauriel felt oddly drained. She wandered in one direction for several days without food or water before collapsing. She didn't have the energy to pick herself up so she lay in the dirt. Pretty soon, she was asleep.
Dream Sequence
They had just figured out that Ravenhill was a trap. Tauriel looked up at the outpost in fear but even her keen elven eyes couldn't spot the dark-haired dwarf that she was desperately looking for. She followed Legolas with Bilbo to warn them.
The scene skipped to the fight. She had just dispatched three orcs when Bolg appeared out of nowhere. She fought hard and expertly but even she couldn't prevent Bolg from throwing her into the rock wall. Intense pain blossomed in her back. She struggled to get up as Bolg approached her, a menacing smirk on his deformed face, when he jumped down and attacked. Tauriel watched as Kili battled with Bolg, always keeping the giant orc from getting too close to her. Just when it seemed that Kili had the upper hand, Bolg struck and before Tauriel could blink the orc had stabbed the dwarf prince in the chest. Kili looked at her as Bolg held him in place. He tried to mouth something to her but everything sounded like rushing water. She tried to scream but she couldn't draw a breath. Her chest tightened painfully and everything went black.
Tauriel sat up with an audible gasp. Her dreams kept changing but they always ended the same. She could still hear his voice echoing, calling her name. She could still see the tears that fell from his eyes as the light faded from them. She could still feel the pain as her heart was ripped in two as his body fell. Her stomach churned violently and she turned over to throw up.
When she finally finished dry heaving she wiped her mouth and stood up. Without paying too much attention o the direction, she walked again.
Again she wasn't sure how long she wandered. She could feel her life slipping away as she slowly lost the will to live. She was walking through a grassy field when she heard two familiar voices nearby. Bilbo and Gandalf were coming over the hill behind her having left Erebor several days after her. Tauriel didn't get much time to spend with the hobbit but she was fond of the wizard.
Gandalf looked forward from his conversation with Bilbo and noticed a lone figure standing in the grass. He frowned slightly when he realized that it was Tauriel. As the two companions got closer Gandalf greeted her. "Tauriel! What are you doing alone? Shouldn't you be going back to Mirkwood with the others?"
Tauriel smiled tiredly. "I was banished for going against Lord Thranduil."
"Stubborn fool," Gandalf grumbled under his breath. "Where will you go now?"
Tauriel sighed. "I do not know. I have nowhere to go."
Gandalf studied her closely and dismounted his horse. "Have you been feeling nauseated and tired lately?"
Tauriel nodded. "I have been travelling for several days without rest or food," she offered as an explanation.
"Have you…been with anyone recently?"
Tauriel blushed. Sex was an intensely personal subject and premarital sex was almost unheard of among elves.
From Tauriel's reaction Gandalf nodded. "My dear, I believe you are expecting."
Tauriel's hands flew to her stomach in shock. "Expecting? That's impossible!" but even as she said it her mind was brought back to the night she had been watching over Kili while the others slept, the night before Smaug attacked. It had been spur of the moment, a quick moment of passion spawned from the fear of dying before either one could really say how they felt, a fear that was apparently justified.
"Do not lose that will to live," Gandalf warned, pulling her away from that passionate night. "You now have something to live for. Not only your child but you are also carrying the last of Durin's line. You must take care. I feel that your child will be very important one day."
Tauriel looked up at Gandalf as he mounted his horse again. He couldn't possibly have known about her and Kili. "How did you know? How can you be so sure?"
Gandalf winked and lightly tapped the side of his nose. "Take care of yourself and your child Tauriel. I shall see you soon." With nods from both, Gandalf and Bilbo continued on their way, leaving Tauriel once again alone.