Prologue
Disclaimer: This is a story after The Lord of the Rings, by J. R. R. Tolkien. He has copyrighted the characters except the ones I made up.
(This is just an explanation of the goings-on in Middle Earth after the Lord of the Rings ends and before The Fall of an Arrow begins, so don't expect it to be all that wonderful and captivating. (Please don't give up one me!) That comes in the next chapter. This is just a few laughs and explanations so you aren't lost about things in my other stories. It might not be crucial. And you can skip it if you like, but I think it is fun to see what happened to the fellowship after the Tolkien books.)
Of the Races of Middle Earth and their Adventures
After Frodo sailed away, Merry, Pippin, and Sam seemed to recover pretty well. They were soon recognized as leaders in Hobbit society. Young hobbits soon became very interested in adventures and quests, much contradicting earlier customs. The three friends began to lead expeditions around Middle Earth with younger Hobbits, visiting all of the places they had gone on their adventures. They even went near Mordor sometimes, which had now been conformed into a vast meadow of trees and plants, Fruit bearing and otherwise in the absence of Sauron. It was soon discovered that Sauron had seen the ents as a threat when hey had still been young and thriving and had taken away the Ent-wives to ensure their destruction. They were all set free when he was destroyed. Merry and Pippin journeyed to Fangorn Forest with some adventurous hobbits and informed Treebeard of their findings. Then they journeyed back to Mordor and found that it was to the liking of both the Ents and the ent-wives. Mordor was then renamed Fanlad, Land of the Trees, for many trees lived there as well.
Merry, Pippin and Sam were always welcome guests, with their closest young hobbit adventurers, in Minas Tirith and Edoras. King Elessar and Queen Arwen were great and peaceful monarchs. They had a son named Elarsarn and a daughter named Aldaelin. Aldaelin and Mirnen, daughter of Faramir and Eowyn, were fast friends. However, Mirnen's brothers, Mothluin and Narorod, never got along well with Elarsarn (having taking a fancy to each others' sisters). The three boys still enjoyed going on expeditions with the hobbits when they were still about the same size. They were ever trying to cancel each other out with knowledge they had picked up from their fathers' stories. The young hobbits drank in every drop.
During a visit to Lonely Mountain, the hobbits and young men were given battle knives from Gimli and his dwarf-friends. Every once in a while, a dwarf would pop up at one of their campsites and join the journey for a week or two. During a visit to the newly named Fanlad, they discovered a few small colonies of Orcs living near where the borders of Mordor used to be. This was the first real fighting any of the party had done, save Legolas and Gimli who had decided to come along to see what the new Mordor looked like. Two things were soon discovered- 1, Elarsarn, Mothluin, and Narorod all had the talent of their fathers in war and 2, hobbits have quite a knack for defending themselves. They soon took to the sport that Legolas and Gimli had been telling them about, trying to outdo each other in battle. This was also a new method of competition for the three young men. Though they always had considerable scores, the young hobbits always surprised everyone with their battle talents. They found that they had a perfect angle for ducking and striking and loved to try to kill the most Orcs. Though they rejoiced with the others at the killing of the last Orcs in Middle Earth, the hobbits could never be completely happy at the loss of a pleasurable adventure.
Speaking of Legolas and Gimli, they soon went on their promised tour of Fangorn Forest and Helm's Deep. Treebeard specially returned to the forest to guide them and tell them secrets of the forest. While Legolas enjoyed conversing with Treebeard, Gimli rather took to a midget of an ent with long gray hair and a beard. They found that they were much alike (apart from the extreme difference in race) and enjoyed speaking together. Both elf and dwarf were rather solemn at parting with the forest. They next journeyed to Helm's Deep, where King Eomer specially gave them a reserved time in the vast cave. Though he had been doubtful, Legolas was amazed by the beauty of the caves and definitely enjoyed himself. He even tried his hand at gently chiseling a small hollow in the wall of the caves for fires and storytelling. Being the last full elf in Middle Earth, his knowledge was on much demand.
After the adventures had ceased, Merry and Sam had began to grow old (Pippin, being younger, was still rather middling in hobbit years.). In Minas Tirith, a young human the size of a seed appeared in a hollow in the white tree of Gondor. He bore a remarkable likeness to Tom Bombadil, who, seeing his new heir, had decided his time on Middle Earth had ceased. He but the child in Goldberry's care to take his place, and went to Legolas. He, with some help from a newly-instructed Gimli, built an Elvin-boat fit to cross the sea. On it went Tom, Merry, Sam and Rosie, (Pippin had decided to stay to keep order in the Shire and teach the young arts, stories, and exploration. He still had a life in front of him.) Quickbeam, and Radagast the Brown. After a sorrowful good-bye, they sailed to Valinor. The friends where there happily reunited.
Legolas and Gimli discovered they had quite a knack for building boats and so, after another couple adventures, decided to build one for themselves. They would sail onto Anduin the Great and into the sea to Valinor. They were getting ready to set sail, having made all preparations, when something happened that they did not expect…