Aragorn was dead. He had lain himself down and passed on to his fathers, falling asleep in the House of the Kings. He was gone. Although he knew it was true, Gimli could not force himself to believe it. As the long years had drifted on, he had cheated himself into thinking that Aragorn would last forever as one of Númenórean race and Gimli had supposed him to be fortunate enough to be blessed with life eternal after all his efforts and trials for the protection of Middle-earth. Yet now, Gimli was faced with truth and reality: Aragorn's time was over.
When the news had come to him, he had left his kingdom of the Glittering Caves downcast and had come back from Gondor the same. Ever since his return, the Dwarves of the Glittering Caves had been concerned over his sullen manner, so different from all they had known in him before. And now that their lord had once again determined to leave his caves, they were worried. Gimli had carefully viewed his magnificent caves before setting out as if he somehow felt he would never see them again. He had left all his affairs settled and in order and it seemed to the Dwarves that he was going on some last errand of battle from which he would never return. Thus, his own people watched him go with discouraged eyes, not knowing for certain what they sensed in his departure. Had the time come for even their beloved lord to desert them? But none uttered a word as they silently bid him farewell in their solid hearts. For although they did not know if they would set eyes on their lord again, they knew to where he traveled. Often he had left his caves and journeyed but to three places: to the Kingdom under the Mountain, home of his kin, to the realm of Gondor where King Elessar dwelt or to Ithilien, where lived his friend of old, the Elf Legolas, known as Dwarf-friend among the Dwarves of the Glittering Caves. For indeed, not only had Gimli come to love the Elf as dear to him as his life, but all the Dwarves did the same and Legolas was no stranger to those who dwelt under the ground in the realm of Rohan.
Now Gimli's subjects could determine with certainty where his heart was taking him. It could not be to the Kingdom under the Mountain, for he took no such store of provisions as he would need to travel so far. It was not to the realm of the late King of Gondor, for his memorial had been held but a month back and the King himself being gone, Gimli had no reason to call upon the White City. Without doubt they knew that their lord was departing to spend time with the one who best understood him and whom he had kept as close friend for all his years since their first meeting. So it was that they watched him leave their underground gates for the last time as the Lord of the Glittering Caves walked with even step in search of the one to bring him comfort in such a time: Legolas Dwarf-friend. And in their hearts was not little sadness.
The journey was swift to the feet of Gimli. He had traveled this way many times and this occasion as he walked his memory thought back over time and he began to see images of the past move before his eyes. He recalled his homecoming in Erebor, how he had met his own kin again after a long time apart. He was reminded how he had called all who wished to dwell near the newly appointed King of Gondor to his side to voyage to the Glittering Caves and taking up residence there, restore for King Elessar the gates of Minas Tirith. He heard the sounds of workmanship that had long past labored in skill in Gondor. He cherished the reminiscence of the smiles between Dwarves and Elves, the helping hands, as together they worked side by side, the one making strong the city's buildings and the other embellishing it with gardens in like to the beauty of the Wood of Greenleaves. But above all, he held precious and long his recollection of the journeys he had taken with Legolas, from Fangorn, through Lothlórien, into Mirkwood newly changed. He could not say that his thoughts of wood and trees had changed much, but still he looked on them now as fair and beautiful. It was not his feeling for the forests themselves that had changed: his feelings for them would remain to his death, for he was a Dwarf captured in his own love of what lay under the earth. No, his feelings had not changed for the woodlands; they had changed for the love of an Elf so dear to him. If it had not been for his joy in the company of Legolas, the woods would forever have remained nothing but disdain to his heart. However, when he beheld the love of the Elf for what was green and saw the twinkle in his eye when he entered his own kingdom of Mirkwood, something in the heart of Gimli was moved. From that time forward that which was tall and emerald held for him all love akin to the spirit of the Elves.
Thus were the thoughts of Gimli the Dwarf as he made his way farther and farther on to the realm of Ithilien where dwelt his friend of old. Ever he drew nearer and the nearer he came the more his chest ached and his head bent, as if a weight had come upon him that refused to lift. He might have thought it was evil darkness, but for the fact that he himself had fought in the War of the Ring, being one of the Companions of the Ring-bearer that set out from Rivendell, and knowing that at the last the Halfling they had all trusted had fulfilled his quest and the realm of Shadow had long been brought to ruin. It was not evil that brought him so low, it was time, that endless living thing that slipped by often unnoticed and showed its head when eyes had darkened and minds become weary.
So it was, that after three days of traversing mountain and field and forest, Gimli, Lord of the Glittering Caves, laid his eyes upon the home of Legolas, Prince in Ithilien, sighing aloud at such a warm sight. As he approached the fair hall of his friend, clear ringing was heard, not of horns or trumpets, but of voices, heralding his coming. He had been seen from afar and by the time he had reached the entrance to the gate of the city in which the hall of Legolas stood, there was his friend, standing with a gentle smile and opened arms.
"Gimli, Lord of the Glittering Caves, you are most welcome." Legolas and Gimli embraced momentarily and in that touch Gimli felt the years drop off of his body and felt once more as if he could be young and travel the earth all over again. Yet the moment he was released, his heart weighed heavy anew. There was a perceptive look in the eye of the Elf, who nodded solemnly and led Gimli swiftly to his hall and its inner room where they could discuss what they felt more freely.
"I see it in your eyes, Gimli. You are troubled and I do not doubt but you are struggling with the same thoughts as I."
"You've always seen much and I can't deny what you say. I feel like you've always had one over on me!"
Legolas chuckled. "I have been blessed with far sight in more ways than one."
"That I know," Gimli answered, with a gleam in his eyes that spoke of the many times before in which Legolas' gifts had to come to his aid. The way Legolas looked at him now was with fondness and yet, also with concern.
"What do you see now, Legolas? An old, bent dwarf with hair and beard of white beyond his prime? For that is how I feel."
Legolas shook his head. "No. I see an old dwarf whose bent frame but hides the vigor of his body, which is as strong as the day he was born. You could fight more battles, Gimli."
Gimli grunted. "You're flattering me in my age. Though I don't deny I like it. Perhaps I could do all you say, but I will not. It cannot be denied. We are old, Legolas."
"Yes, you are old, my friend. And for my part, I have lived far longer in Middle-earth than most of my kin. I am tired. Not of my realm or of Middle-earth, but of the passing days. I linger while my dearest and closest depart."
Gimli nodded. "They were all hard to accept, but this latest… it is more than I can bear and I am ashamed to admit so to an Elf. Dwarves have always endured loss easily in their hardened hearts but now I am crushed with grief."
Gimli could tell by the look in Legolas' eyes that everything he spoke of rang true for the Elf as well. The departure of Frodo and Gandalf many years before had been expected and understood, but the deaths of Merry and Pippin had tolled the passing years. And now that Aragorn, the last of the Fellowship to depart save the Dwarf and Elf, had found his way out of the bonds of Middle-earth, they were alone.
Legolas sighed. "Yes, dear Gimli. We are alone."
Gimli smiled sadly. "You read my thoughts again."
Legolas returned the smile. "But I do not think you read mine. My friend, it is time that we follow Sam."
At this, Gimli started and sitting up in the chair in which he had been reclining, he looked once again aghast at the Elf that had so often surprised him. Samwise was said to have left by the Grey Havens many years ago and to have crossed over the Sea.
"We? You know that is impossible. Oh that a Dwarf could dwell with Elves! Now I see your sadness truly, Legolas. You will sail and I must remain, the last of the Nine Companions. Well, you may go and I wish you speed and a quick journey."
Legolas than laughed aloud and Gimli stared at him with eyes of daggers. How very inappropriate of him, the smirking Elf!
"Would you really wish to live among Elves, my friend? It is so strange to hear you say so!"
Gimli stood, then, with strength and passion. "Yes, I would! If I were granted but to spend one day in the presence of the Lady Galadriel and could hold ever to he who is dear to me, I would!"
Legolas waved his hand, motioning Gimli back into his seat. "You misunderstand me, Gimli. I did not mean to impugn your honor, for it is great. It is perhaps a moment of irony that has struck me so with delight that I cannot help but laugh at both the joy of it and the surprise. For if I had not heard out of your own mouth the words you have just spoken, I might have doubted the summons of the Lady of Light herself."
"What? Lady Galadriel? You have heard tidings of her?" Not since she had left Middle-earth from the Grey Havens had Gimli heard anything of her and his heart was forever dimmed since the time of her passing.
Now Legolas laughed again and Gimli could not help but join him. "I have. My eyes see far, yes, but not as far over the Sea as I would like. Still, I had a messenger but a day ago who came from the Havens and he reported to me good tidings and revealed that the mind of the Lady of Light was now turned back to Middle-earth. He told me what was her heart and then he left. Who he was, I cannot imagine, but he is gone and that is not for me to determine. It is the message itself that is of importance."
Gimli was trembling. He heard in Legolas' words good and yet, they produced in him fear, for he sensed that the world he knew was ending. Cursing himself inside for a weak heart, he only stared at Legolas and whispered,
"What is the message of my Lady?"
"For you, Gimli Elf-friend, the Lady Galadriel has obtained the favor and grace of the Lords of the West. If you wish, you, too, may sail with me over the Sea."
Gimli closed and opened his eyes several times, deciding if this were a dream. Then in his mind he felt the struggle, now one side was winning and then the other, as he sat speaking no word.
"I see your ordeal," said Legolas. "Does a Dwarf hold true to his own nature and live to his dying days in his glimmering caves or leave his own kin to reside with those he most loves? It is a difficult choice and I do not envy you the time you will need to decide. As for me, you know my heart lies with the Sea and is called ever on by the gulls. The ship is already being built and will be ready in a week's time. I would have sent for you soon if you had not come to me. That is in itself a telling sign of the hour. I will leave you to your own mind."
Legolas turned to leave and had almost reached the door to the hall when he turned back. "One more thing, Gimli. I suppose I do not have to tell you what I hope your choice may be."
Gimli only nodded and then was left alone, a very confused Dwarf. After a while, he shook his head. He couldn't think in this hall. He needed the darkness of the caves, but those were now far away. Far away… would they forever be so? They would if his choice were to set sail. To set sail over the Sea… how a very large part of him longed for that! Never in his days nor the days before him had a Dwarf ever been offered such a gift.
"Yes, and neither has a Dwarf had to sit in a hall and decide between Elves or his own kin!" Gimli spoke aloud to no one. What strange fate had led him to this hour? It could only be his joining of the Fellowship of the Ring and that he regretted not. That it had led him to such a complex choice he could not have foreseen, but he would have desired to be a part of it nonetheless. It was in the Fellowship that he had not only found honor in war, but also a new home and new friends more dear to him than any in Middle-earth. What was to become of him now, Gimli, one of the last of the Fellowship of the Ring?
When Legolas returned hours later, he found Gimli just as he had left him, alone in the inner room, sitting with his head upon his breast in a chair too big for him. Yet now he seemed to be asleep. Legolas had barely touched his friend's shoulder when Gimli's head jerked up and he stared into the Elf's eyes as if caught unawares. Then his eyes softened and he said slowly,
"I am coming, Legolas."
Legolas' grin betrayed that this was the answer he had desired. "So may we leave this world together, my friend."
So it came that when a week had been spent and Legolas had put all in order in his realm in Ithilien and Gimli had glanced his last at the shining city of Minas Tirith that the two remaining members of the Fellowship of the Ring boarded a broad grey ship that was to sail down the Great River Anduin. Looking back towards Rohan, Gimli gazed for the last time towards the realm where his precious Glittering Caves lay. Taking a deep breath and sighing with relief and resign, he turned from that sight and never looked that way again. His will was set and he would go forward.
Legolas stood by his side as the ship began to drift down the river. The entire Elven realm of Ithilien had turned out to watch the passing of the Lord of the Glittering Caves and the Elven Prince of Ithilien. As the ship turned out of sight, songs followed it coming from voices fairer than any in Middle-earth. This one song Gimli heard above all others:
The time has come
For the passing of days
Away fly the old
To the calls of the gulls
Fly, fly, the time has come
Sail away beyond the Sea
Come never more back to earth
Let all hearts forever rest.
The ship moved on its own. Gimli looked but could see no way by which it navigated the waters. More Elvish enchantments, Gimli thought to himself. Still, this one did not bother him in the least and he let it go. It was early morning when the ship disembarked and the gulls had obviously been early to rise, for the more they journeyed down the Anduin, the more gulls followed the craft.
"Does it not remind you of when we rode in the Lady's boats out of Lothlórien?" Legolas was speaking.
"Yes, it does," Gimli answered. For a moment, his mind was set back and he remembered when he took leave of the Lady. Three hairs… that was what she had given him. Legolas did not know it, but they were still with his friend. All these years he had ever carried them close to his breast in a hidden pocket.
The river slipped quickly by. The Elven kin were not to be seen and men only stopped to stare who worked along the river at their trades. The last of the Fellowship spoke no more words until they reached the Mouths of Anduin. Then as the ship took one of the tributaries heading out to the Sea, Legolas stirred from next to Gimli and his excitement was unmistakable.
"I shall at last be at rest!" he breathed.
Gimli nodded. "Yes, at long last we will both have come to the end of our time." Yet, within, something spoke of regret, for he was born out of earth and Middle-earth was his home.
The ship moved into the Sea and a great gust of wind come out of the East and bore them ever farther West. What they saw as they voyaged, no one can tell, or perhaps it is just that because words were few and memories heavy, no word of that time has ever come back across the Sea.
Yet this it can be said: that as the grey ship of Ithilien sailed close to its destination there shone a light so bright Gimli's eyes would not have been able to shield it had they not already been changed as the ship sailed. In the light, Gimli son of Glóin beheld that which he had desired to see ever since he left Lothlórien, the Lady Galadriel herself, welcoming him and beckoning him on. At that moment, the Lady of Light before him and Legolas his true friend beside him, Gimli Elf-friend knew that he was home.