She had told him the story of Beren and Luthien once, at the shores of the Long Lake, after she had saved his life. He had remembered it always, because it gave him hope that their love wasn't perhaps a fool's love, doomed from the begining, despite all their differences that spread like a chasm between them. Now, as he lay bloodied and on the edge of unconciousness, staring at the sky full of bats and huge Eagles outlined against the bright full sun, he could almost hear her voice as she told the tale - "Beren was mortal man, doomed to die. Luthien was elf-kind, immortal and fairest of all the Children of the Eldar..." His chest rose up and down, his body labouring to keep breathing. He wanted to hang on, if only long enough to see her one last time. He had seen Fili cut down mercilessly, he had fought what seemed like endless waves of Orcs in his fury and grief. He had watched as the Pale Orc and Thorin battled on the ice, and saw Thorin defeat him - but he had seen also that he had suffered a fatal blow in the process, and watched as he collapsed at the edge of the ice, while Bilbo ran to his side. He had been glad the little Hobbit was there with him, at the end. Kili had tried to make his way down from Ravenhill, but could not get to his Uncle, keeping getting waylaid by Orcs that had come up from the rear. He had known then that he would surely die here, along with his kin, but the rage of the deaths of the two most important men in his life had kept him fighting, until he at the last tussled with Bolg himself. He had managed to hold his own, for a while, but Bolg was too strong, and the orc had lifted him like a rucksack and pierced him with his spike. That was when a flurry of arrows hit the Orc, and he had dropped Kili onto the snowy ground, where he now lay surrounded by the corpses of a dozen Orcs and goblins. Kili had heard the fight continue, had seen out of the corner of his eye the blonde elf who had been with Tauriel at Lake Town. That was why now he held on with all of his might, thinking of her - she must not be far behind the male elf. He kept breathing, kept willing his eyes to stare at the battle in the sky, kept filling his mind with memories of her voice, telling him the tale of lovers from different races, coming together to fight a great evil and pursue, into the very depths of horror and depair, their love for each other. If they could do that, Kili could surely hold on long enough to see her, to tell her one last time, Amralime. "Inikh-de, Amralime..." he whispered, and repeated this phrase again and again in his head, willing himself to hold on, just a little longer, hold on, Inikh-de, Amralime, Inikh-de...

Tauriel danced with her daggers, not slowing down as she encountered foe after foe. She had seen from afar Legolas shoot the arrows at Bolg, watched the huge Orc drop Kili to the ground - she had heard herself scream then, a sound that seemed to come from somewhere outside of herself, but kept moving, knowing that if she stopped to consider the young dwarf might be dead, she would collapse into weakness and sorrow. She had to keep fighting her way to him, she had to believe that she could save him for a second time. The Eagles shrieked overhead, and she knew the tide of the battle was turning in their favor, and as she slashed and stabbed her way toward Kili the tide began to subside as many of the enemy now realized the same, and began to retreat away from the combined forces of Men, Elves, Dwarves and Eagles. She heard metal upon metal and saw above her on a ridge Legolas, his daggers pushing against the dark iron of Bolg's spike, the huge Orc still standing and still full of unnatural strength, even with the bolts of five arrows protruding from his chest and back. At that moment a huge Bear beast crashed into the group of Orcs in front of her, causing her to jump back in shock. The beast headed towards Legolas and Bolg, and she shouted, "Legolas, Noro! Noro!" He heard her and sensed the coming of the beast, chose his moment and then lithely pushed himself forward with all his strength, then used the momentem to take his feet and push off of Bolg's chest, flipping backward onto the snowy ground below the ridge, landing gracefully just as the Bear Beast leapt onto Bolg, mouth open and sharp teeth poised to bite the jugular. Within minutes where Bolg had stood there was only the beast, and a patch of blood soaked snow beneath him, the rest of whatever was left of Bolg out of sight behind the beast's large body. Legolas's chest heaved as he gasped for air, and he nodded towards Tauriel to let her know he was alright. She spared him a terse nod back and then ran towards where Kili lay, no more obstacles between her and him, but fear heavy in her heart as she knew she might find him already gone.

He could no longer feel his legs. It felt as if every breath was a struggle, but he kept forcing himself to focus on pulling the air in, breathing it back out. The whole world seemed to have slowed down, the Eagles above him flying gracefully, their wings beating in time with his own slow, ragged breaths. The snow was falling steadily now, and every once in a while he felt the kiss of a snowflake upon his face. Suddenly the sun above him was blocked and a shadow lay over him, and he feared that this was the moment his body would give out on him. But that was when he saw her face come into view, in slow motion, and she was wreathed with an otherworldly light, looking the way she did when she had healed him in Lake Town, looking like she was walking in the white light of forver that she had spoken to him about long ago. He smiled. He wasn't sure if this was real, but he whispered nonetheless, "Amralime..." It was then that he felt her hand touching his arms, and felt her take off his gloves so she could wind her fingers with his. She brought his hand up to her own cheek, placing it there and kissing his knuckles. "I am here." she said, smiling sadly. "I am here, melen nin."

"So this is real." he said, smiling at her, managing to move the tips of his fingers ever so slightly, caressing her cheek.

"Yes," her voice broke into a sob, tears streaming her beautiful face, "Yes melen nin. I promise you this is real. I am here with you. I am not leaving your side."

"I was remembering the tale...remembering how you told it to me." he said, his eyes searching her face.

"Oh, Kili," she started, but he shook his head, cutting her off.

"Amralime...I wanted to see you once last time. I have been granted that. I do not think our story will be quite as long as theirs. But I would have loved you...I would have..." he struggled for his next few breaths, winced as a jolt of pain traveled from somewhere in his chest up to the back of his neck. He saw her eyes go wide in alarm, felt her grip tighten on his hand where she held it to her cheek. "I would have gone with you to where the world falls away...take me with you..."

"Remember when Beren held in his hand a Simaril, and Carcharoth took his hand within his jaws and bit it off at the wrist?" Tauriel asked, and Kili nodded, a tear escaping from his eye as he struggled to stay here with her, struggled to keep his body from failing. "Luthien was certain Beren would die. While his spirit wandered upon the borders of death she healed him, and she sang to him, and he came back to her. Please melen nin, do not give in, fight for me. Fight for us. Give me time in which to heal you." Kili stared up at her, and his whole world in that moment was the white light and Tauriel's face, and he breathed in again deep and focused on the breathing, willing himself to stay present with her, here, in this moment. He managed to nod again. "Promise me, Kili. Promise me, that you will return to me."

"Inikh-de, Amralime..." he said weakly. "I promise."

Legolas saw his friend with the dwarf, and knew then that her heart was truly given to Kili. Without hesitation, he walked closer to them, knowing she would hear his soft footsteps on the snow behind her, and recognize him by the sound. She looked up at him with such sorrow in her eyes, the depths of which he could not fathom to understand. He knelt down next to her, looking at her in wonder, and out of his pack he withdrew Athelas, handing it to her solemnly, looking like he did not fully understand what was passing between her and the dwarf, but knowing that she needed to try to save him. She looked at him with such love in that moment that Legolas felt the pain of knowing she did not love him the way she loved Kili, and he averted his eyes, unsure how to process the emotions racking through him now. He watched as she gently put down Kili's arm, unwinding her fingers from his while whispering to him, so he would know she was still there. Legolas watched the young dwarf struggling to breathe, and could read the pain on his face. Kili hadn't taken his eyes from Tauriel's face, but as she started to massage the plant within the palms of her hands, mixing it with snow, the dwarf's eyes fluttered and then shut, although his breathing remained the same. Tauriel spread the mixture into his wound, reciting the healing words they had all learned while in battle training. She wasn't a healer by trade, but she knew enough to treat battle injuries, and Legolas hoped it was enough to stabilize the dwarf until he could be brought to a more skilled healer. The wound was deep, but seemed to have missed the major organs, or he wouldn't have lasted this long as it was. Legolas watched her work, and handed her what he had out of his pack - some more Athelas as needed, bandages. He joined her in her chanting, willing the forces at work in the world to hear their prayer, hoping that combined they could save him. From the corner of his eye he saw two dwarves come over the ridge and walk slowly towards them, taking in the scene. Then two more followed behind, then another three. Then there were four more, and Legolas surmised that these must be the surviving members of the company, come up from the ice below where Thorin Oakenshield had met his end. Finally Bilbo and Mithrandir arrived, and the little Hobbit broke the silence only by breaking out into sobs of his own, all the losses of the day too much for his kind heart. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Kili's breathing became less strained and more regular, and his body less tense. It looked more now like he was sleeping than fading, and Legolas turned to Tauriel, gently placing his hand on her shoulder. "Mellon nin, you have done all you can. We should get him to the camp below."

She stopped her chanting and sighed heavily, teetering a bit on her knees, looking exhausted and drained. She looked at him and nodded weakly, and he helped her up to her feet. "Hannon le, Legolas...for everything." She squeezed his hand and then turned away, making room for the dwarves to gather up their kinsman and take him down the Mountain towards the encampement below, to the healing tents. Legolas watched her go, and made way for the dwarves as well, walking slowly over to Mithrandir and the hobbit.

Bilbo spoke first, his face dirty and tear stained, his voice cracking with worry and gried. Legolas remembered Mithrandir telling him how close the hobbit had become the Thorin Oakenshield and his company, and felt a pang of pity for the gentle creature, thrust into a battle where he had lost people that he had loved. "Is he...well, is he..." Bilbo trailed off, wringing his hands and staring up at Legolas.

"He is alive." Legolas sighed, "Whether or not he can be saved has yet to be seen."

Bilbo nodded curtly. "His brother was killed by Azog earlier. And Thorin..." his voice cracked when he said the name, and he took a deep breath before continuing. "Thorin managed to kill the foul creature, but not before he...well. Not before he was injured so badly that...Oh, I do hope Kili can be saved. Thorin doesn't deserve to die knowing one of his nephews was killed and hoping the other made it, against all odds. Kili...Kili must live."

Legolas gave a sad smile. He understood what the Hobbit was trying to say. Mithrandir put his arms on Bilbo's shoulders. "It is out of our hands now, but if there is anything that can be done, the Elves will see to it." the wizard said, squeezing Bilbo's right shoulder in a show of support. Bilbo nodded again. "Let us get off of this accursed hill and down where there is warmth and food." the wizard said, heading for the path down from Ravenhill. Legolas and Bilbo followed, and the other dwarves were already ahead, carrying Kili between them. Legolas looked for Tauriel, but it seemed she had already left the hill herself, needing to get away from the stench of death and the offending sight of dead Orcs. He resolved to eat something, rest and regain his strength, and then see to comforting Tauriel. Although he felt the sting of watching her love go to another, he knew he also did not want to be parted from her, not yet, not while she needed him most. In all his long years he had not experience so many different emotions - but he had lived a sheltered life in the Greenwood, protected by his father against the realities of the world of mortals. Death and Love were things that he knew of but were foreign to him, and even what he felt for Tauriel had been a thing of no urgency, because he had all the time in the world, before. Now he knew that he had been living a charmed life that most in Middle Earth could never live, being mortal and living in places where evil things could befall at any time. After today, he could not go back to that life - in fact, there was no going back even if he wanted to. And he would have to confront his father about these things, too, in time. That thought left Legolas feeling cold, as he remembered his last words to his father during the battle, "If you touch her, you will have to kill me as well." As he stepped off of Ravenhill and headed to the tents strewn close to Erebor's gates upon the open field, he made sure to steer clear of Thranduil's pavilion, preferring to have that discussion much later, when he had time to recover from the events that had unfolded over the course of the battle.