I bent my head to pass through into a small cavern. The place inside would be roomy and comfy for a dwarf, with a fire on the stove, and a long table in the center of the room. But I felt claustrophobic and compressed standing there with a low hood pulled over my face.

Everything about me was hidden under the worn, green-grey coloured cloak I had covered over my uniform. I had forged papers from Laketown telling that I was the wife of a guard of the town who was present in The Battle of the Five Armies. At least the last part was true. It was strange enough to see someone of the race of mortal man within these stone walls, if the dwarves realised an elf maiden walked among them, let alone an elf maiden of kin which they blamed for the loss of their home, I could have a full scale riot on my hands when I was here trying to make peace.

There were two people in the small room. One was sitting at the table, the other stood directly behind her with a hand on her shoulder. The one standing was a male dwarf; he had a broad body and a long beard of fine blond coloured hair. He looked fairly young for a dwarf but his face looked aged, not helped by the grim expression he wore upon it. As I entered he looked up sharply. A little surprise came into his eyes but his expression barely changed.

I gave no acknowledgement to him for my attention was on the dwarf woman sat before him. She was small and stubby with soft skin. On her cheeks and down her back flowed finely looked after hair, soft and dark as night. Her face was motionless and she stared blankly at the tabletop. She didn't move a muscle as I came in.

I had no words to say to her. What was there to say? There was no comfort for me after I'd lost the lives I knew only briefly. Here before me were the people who had raised those lives. What comfort did they have?

I felt the coldness of the stone in my palm underneath my cloak. Slowly, I stretched my arm out, and placed the small black stone on the table in front of where the woman's hands lay clenched together.

With miniscule speed and movement the woman opened her hands and pressed the stone into them. She stared at the stone. And then she lifted her eyes to look at me. I saw how dark they were, how the light of the fire reflected and flickered in them. Kili's eyes had done the same.

"He would have wanted you to have that." I told her. The sound of my voice betrayed me. I was no woman of Laketown. I saw the look on both their faces change. They knew there was an elf in their presence.

I pulled down my hood. "My name is Tauriel, I'm the captain of the guard in the Woodland Realm. I was with your sons when they died." I spoke with bravery, but the pain in my chest that hadn't left since the battle suddenly grew worse as I said those words.

"I know who you are." Kili's mother said softly.

I stared in amazement at her. How could she know me? The company and left home long before Kili ever met me.

The woman saw the expression on my face. Slowly she stood and turned away from me. I was left looking at the father, who was still grim faced and stared unblinking at me. In his eyes showed an unmistakable hate.

I saw Kili's mother unlocking a small and well crafted wooden box sitting on a shelf along one side of the rooms walls. She took out too sheets of paper, white and crisp. I could see heavy and dark ink writing pressing through the sheets, although she kept the written side hidden from me and hugged it too her body.

"The ravens of Erebor will do errands for you if you treat them well." She explained.

She took one of the sheets and gave one long, longing look at it. "You gave me this." She said, fingering the stone in one hand. "You may have this in return." She held out the sheet of paper to me.

"No." Her husband said fiercely.

She lowered her hand and turned to him.

A felt a great fear swell up inside me. I could guess all too easily what was written on the paper, and I knew I must have it, too keep forever in my care if I could, but to read it only once would suffice.

"I think our son would want her to have something to remember him by." Kili's mother told her husband.

"No matter what, you cannot even think of giving something so precious to an elf!" He argued.

"These are Kili's words, he never got to say them, and so I'll give them in his place." She said, and it was clear this time her words were final.

She turned back to me. "If you promise me to love and honour this forever then I shall entrust it to your care. Written here are the last words I ever had from my youngest son."

"Ma'am, there isn't anything in Kili's name that I wouldn't love and honour." I replied.

She gave a small nod and held out the sheet of paper once more. "Then take this."

I took the paper and stashed it carefully away inside my cloak.

She sat down again at the same place at the table. Her husband came forward and placed the comforting hand back on her shoulder. They both looked at the letter from Fili and Kili's stone together.

"Kili always had trouble with girls." The once mother began as she lifted her dark eyes back to me again. "He was always teased by women here for never having a beard. I knew when Fili grew up that he would never find a woman, he never cared much and when this quest came about all he could think of was that he would be heir to Erebor. I knew that if an heir was going to come from either of those two then it would be Kili. But I feared for him the most when they left, and rightly so. He was so reckless and he hated the night, but he wanted to see the world so badly. I knew that secretly he was hoping he'd find a woman out there, and I think I was secretly hoping that too. You may have changed my son, but I don't think it was in a bad way."

I hung on to every word that came from her lips. When she was finished I knew there was nothing left to say, so I bowed my head in parting. "Hannon le."

I don't think she understood me, but she smiled anyway. It was a very familiar smile, very cheeky yet soft at the same time, with the one corner of the lips turned upwards.

I turned and left and didn't look back.

While I'd been inside the day had gone and the night was already well underway. I climbed onto my horse and began the long journey back to Mirkwood.

I rode slowly. It was a clear night and the stars shined bright and high above me and the moon was full. A full moon? I realised it had been a month; a whole month since the battle, and still the pain wasn't any easier.

I took the sheet of paper out from under my cloak and by the night light I read Kili's letter.

Dear Mamma and Father,

Both Fili and I have a night watch tonight, we promised to write if we could and we're lucky enough to have found a way.

We have been successful in our quest as we've reached the mountain and taken it for our own. The ravens have returned to Erebor as foretold and have agreed to be our spies. Furthermore we have treated them well and in return they'll deliver messages far for us, which is how we come to write to you.

It is a cold night but the sky is clear as I write to you and it gives me hope for things that our yet to come.

Smaug has been killed, but not by our doing. To my knowledge the dragon was shot down by a man from a town that lives on the Long Lake. Now we must hold the mountain against the townspeople for they have joined forces with the elves of Mirkwood, who took us captive as we passed through, fortunately though we escaped. And so all of us stand still at this point. The people of Laketown are demanding the gold Smaug stole to Erebor. Uncle Thorin refuses as they take help from the wood elves. But he has sent word to Dain of the Iron Hills and we expect his army to arrive within the next days, which should change the situation at present.

We have not been without unfortunate events on our journey however. Our company was pursued by Orcs for the most parts of our journey, they have some past hate for Uncle Thorin but I don't understand it. We lost them after Laketown. Furthermore we were nearly eaten by trolls not long after our start. And later in Mirkwood we were captured by great spirders. But we have escaped death each time.

I, myself have had a narrow miss with death. The Orcs attacked us as we fled Mirkwood and I took an arrow to the leg ensuring our escape. I did not know it at the time, but although I removed the arrow and cleaned the wound, the tip was poisoned. I was close to death not long after reaching Laketown and I'm certain I would not be here to write these words to you had it not been for the captain of the elven guard.

This brings me to the matter which I most eagerly wish to tell you of. The captain of the guard in Mirkwood is a she-elf named Tauriel. She came to Laketown pursuing the Orcs that tracked us and assaulted Mirkwood. It was she that cured my wound and saved my life. She has done so on three occasions now. I owe my life to her and such as it is I have come to the realisation that I love her.

I know that back home you are both shaking your heads and thinking that this time I really have gone too far. I will try explaining it to you as best as I can in writing.

First know that had I the choice I would come to you first to tell you this news. But as it is I am unlikely to see her again if I wait. Second know that I entrust this information to you and Fili and no one else, not even Uncle Thorin.

And now for my explanation. As I was close to death from my wound I had a dream, a dream of the most beautiful woman. I saw her walking in starlight and I knew instantly that I loved her. When I woke I wondered if she could have loved me too. Fili and Tauriel were at my side, but I doubted whether she was the woman I'd seen. I thought she was just a dream. But for many nights I was restless and sleepless with thoughts of the dream. I started taking every late night watch and even though the cold chills me to the bone, the stars come out and I can think of her. When finally one night when I did sleep I dreamed of a woman in starlight, but this time I saw Tauriel, and I knew when I awoke that she was the woman from my dream. The woman I love.

My plan is as follows. Once Dain has come and our business here is all done I shall go to her before she leaves for her home and vow my love to her. Whether she will accept it or not I cannot guess, but at the very least I must tell her of my feelings. You might advise me against it but Fili has told me I can but try, and try I must.

I'll finish this letter with the hope of good fortunes for our people and for myself personally. I love you both most dearly and will wish for a quick return to you with my brother when we have had full success in our quest.

All my love and farewell,

Kili.

I read the letter over three times without stopping before finally hugging the scrap of paper to my chest. I looked up at the starlight, but could barely see it through the burrs of my tears. I forced myself to stop crying, not because I wanted to be strong, but because I wanted to see the starlight. It remained me of Kili, perhaps writing the letter I held so dear on a night just like this one. To my surprise and relief I realised the pain in my chest was finally gone.

He loved me. At least I knew that he really did love me in the end.