It happened once that King Aragorn found something very precious. What it was was kept secret, so that now no one knows what it could have been. Two of the few people who knew what it was were Legolas and Mornie, and so the king commanded that they be the ones to take it back to Minas Tirith. They did not require speed, so they laughed and sang much together along their journey. So they reached Fangorn Forest, where they met Gandalf and Treebeard together.
"Ai!" they called.
"Hail!" replied Gandalf and Treebeard.
"What brings you to the forest?" asked the Ent.
"An official errand of Gondor," replied Mornie, dismounting.
"What news, Gandalf?" asked Legolas. As they exchanged news, Mornie listened intently, until she began to feel dizzy. She leant against a tree, and the movement caught Legolas' eye.
"Mornie, are you all right?" he asked.
"I'll be fine in a moment," she said quietly.
"This is the fourth time, Mornie," he persisted. "Are you sure you're alright?"
Gandalf approached and took her hand, looking her in the eye. "How long have these spells been coming upon you?"
"Just a few months," she said.
"Her stomach's been bothering her too," Legolas added. Suddenly, Treebeard laughed.
"I have always said 'don't be hasty,'" he said, "but I never meant that to be taken as ignoring the obvious."
"The obvious?" Legolas asked.
"She carries a child," Treebeard said. Mornie caught her breath. Legolas took her hand. Her heart began to beat faster. She sank down to the ground. She tried to understand this easy concept. She felt that something was missing.
"Mornie," Legolas said, "We're going to have a baby."
That's what she was missing.
"Mornie?" Legolas said. "What's the matter?"
"I'm scared," she whispered. "I'm scared for this child. Gandalf," she asked, "please, do you know what-" she swallowed hard – "what Saruman did to me? Will this child survive?"
"Only you can answer that question. But now you need someplace close and safe, someplace you can rest."
Legolas looked to Mornie.
"Lothlorien," she said. "But the-"
"Don't worry," Gandalf interrupted. "I'll take care of it."
Lothlorien was even quieter than before, for nearly all the Elves were gone. Galadriel and Celeborn, however, still welcomed them warmly. Mornie put all her effort into supporting the child. Yet still she doubted.
"What if I'm a bad mother?" she asked Legolas late one night. "I haven't had one myself to know what to do."
"Look at how much you have already done for the child," he said. "All you have to do is love him."
"How do you know it's a boy?" Mornie smiled.
"Love her," he amended.
"How do you know it's a girl?"
"You," he said, and kissed the top of her head.
In March, a little girl named Nienna Silmarwen Calmacil was born. Her mother called her Mela, meaning love. Her father sent a letter to Mela's grandfather, telling him of her birth. However, that letter contained additional news: that the Last Ship was sailing in only six months. He worried that, with Mornie and Mela too weak to travel and Aragorn too busy ruling, they may never meet again.
Four months passed, and the three of them began to make slow progress towards the river Isen. Mornie easily found the small copse of trees that she had visited only once before. As it was late in the summer, many of the blossoms on a particular tree had already fallen off, covering the grave of her mother in beauty and a sweet perfume. They spent a few hours there, playing with Mela. As they began to leave, again a breeze that touched no other tree whispered through, and a full blossom wafted gently down, settling behind Mela's ear. So Mornie and her mother were truly parted.
As they turned back north, Mornie began to doubt that she would ever see her father again. This saddened her, but she now understood her responsibilities as a mother, and she would do everything in her power to fulfill them.
The 29th of September dawned a cool day so near the sea. Within a few hours of setting out from camp, they heard the call of a gull. Mornie looked at Legolas, who smiled back, and the horses began to hasten.
The sun was low on the horizon when they reached the Grey Havens. It had once been a beautiful city on the bay, with two monoliths on either side of the entrance to the sea. But Mornie cared not for these things, for she saw something else. At last, hope was renewed, and Mela met her grandfather. As Mornie said goodbye for the last time, she felt at peace, there at last at on the shores of the calling sea. In the prow of the boat she held Mela, leaning gently back, resting her head on Legolas' shoulder. So they passed into the West.
Thus ends the tale of Mornie, for, where she has gone, one of the last of her kind, no record has returned.