Tauriel followed Kíli down the richly carved and gilded passages of Erebor's royal chambers. She could not remember the last time she had felt this nervous. It was not a feeling she was accustomed to, but then, since meeting Kíli, she had discovered a great many emotions she had not known before.
Kíli pulled her to a halt in the arched opening of a side hall.
"Tauriel, you'll be wonderful," he assured her. "I'm not worried."
"Kíli, she's your mother," Tauriel objected softly. Almost the first thing she had learned about Kíli was how much he meant to Dís, and she felt it mattered a great deal what the dwarf woman thought of her, perhaps more even than what Thorin did.
Kíli caressed her hand in his. "She believes you were sent by Mahal to save my life," he said. "I don't think you need to be afraid."
Tauriel nodded. She believed him, and yet that tight feeling in her stomach would not ease.
"By the way," Kíli added almost apologetically, "You do know that our women have beards as well as the men, right? I don't want you to be surprised." Dís would be the first woman Tauriel had met in Erebor.
"I have heard all dwarves were bearded," Tauriel returned, somewhat embarrassed, "But meeting you, I realized I could not believe all that is said of your folk."
He laughed. "What, because I don't wear a beard down to my belt?"
"No." She smiled in spite of her nervousness. "Because you found beauty in a fire moon and you listened to me speak of stars."
Kíli smiled contentedly at her words.
"But, now you mention it..." Tauriel began thoughtfully. "Why do you keep your beard so short?"
"Because," he said, matter of fact, "I've far more interesting things to do than spend an hour braiding it every morning."
Tauriel giggled. "I'm trying to imagine that."
"If I grew my beard, it would be quite magnificent," he declared, his eyes glinting with amusement. "Far more so than Fí's silly mustache."
She snorted.
"There; you laughed. Feel better?"
"Mmm." Tauriel nodded. "A little."
"I love you. And Mum will, too." He took her face in his hands and drew her down to kiss him once.
YOU ARE READING
So Comes Snow After Fire
FanfictionIn the weeks since the battle, Kili has kept his meetings with Tauriel secret. Yet when a fierce snowstorm looms, he would rather dare Thorin's displeasure than leave the exiled elf unsheltered on the mountainside. Once Tauriel enters Erebor, of cou...
