The room was filled with no noise but the sniffling and weeping of the family and friends. The twin sisters who originally held onto their newly wedded husbands, hugged each other, burying their heads in their sister's shoulders, soaking the wedding dresses with tears. Susan with her blurred vision, could see Legolas' pain-struck face. There was no tear but deep misery and sorrow while Gimli, had a small cloth in hand to allow him to blow his nose. Meanwhile, Sam sat on a chair, looking miserable and far away. Arwen seemed absolutely heart broken and kept on murmuring words that the Gentle Queen failed to decipher. For a moment, she though that the widow was going crazy, yet she had a calm appearance as if she had sought a method of relief from this agony.
The next day, the deceased King of Gondor was being carried off on a stretcher with his full armor and sword to the Sixth Street, where the tomb of the kings and stewards of the past would forever be placed - Rath Dinen. From what she had once heard about the city structure, Susan felt it a complete irony that the tomb was to be built on the same street as the Houses of Healing stood, but she did not say a thing for everyone, the citizens and peasants, who had loved and adored their king dearly, gathered at the Silent Street to pay their respects. They watched as the stretcher was lifted into the Closed Doors, the entrance to Rath Dinen. Women were weeping while the children hugged their parents. The men were all desolate and wretched as if future was dim and without hope. Arwen and Eldarion led the group into the eerie and quiet area as Elwing, Nimoloth and Susan scattered flower petals in the air. The elven prince sang a melancholy tune in elvish, which was so sorrowful that despite not knowing or comprehending the lyrics, a gush of depression hit her hard and her mood plunged to its deepest, bringing along with it the despair she had buried in her heart's inner most corner.
In a matter of seconds, the flood of emotions of losing her siblings, her parents, Eustace and most of all, Caspian, surfaced. It was as if her world had turned upside down. She felt like a runner, hitting the wall, losing all motivation to keep going on. She wanted to be rid of Middle Earth where it simply brought her more angst and torment than she could ever bear or carry, she wanted to be back home, facing those white blank walls, doing nothing but to let the craziness drive her mad. Then, as if there were an inner angel in her, light struck her mind and slowly, glowed in the darkness, lighting it up bit by bit. It made her see that life on Middle Earth provided her the mere source of hope she had left to rescue her from the fatigue and grief she had been in. This world gave her the twin sisters who treated her as one of them, dear and true friends which she could not ask for more and Legolas, who always had her back whenever things did not go her way. Oh, what would she possibly have more to wish for? Fortune? Authority? Fame? No, these were all unnecessary. All she wanted was peace, respect and love, which Middle Earth and its people had satisfied her with.
Little did she know that these trains of thoughts had stopped her from walking and she was standing like a stone statue, not moving forward nor backward. When she had overcome her inner turmoil, she found that everyone was ahead of her and Legolas was turning his head occasionally to check if she was alright. She gave him a light smile to ensure that everything was fine and strode towards the group, murmuring a word of thanks to Aslan for helping her overcome the fear. Unlike normal hobbits, elves, dwarves or human, members belonging to the Fellowship of the Ring all had privileges of choosing to be buried in this tomb for kings of Gondor. Among them, Merry and Pippin had been buried here and Aragorn would be placed between them, binding the friendship and journey they had once shared, for eternity.
The coronation of Eldarion took place the next day as the citizens were getting exasperated for they had lost their leader. Arwen did the honor of crowning her son with Aragorn's crown and scepter which he had left for him in the care of the queen. Everyone bowed towards the king, all except Sam, who had a proud smile on his face for he was blessed with a chance that no other hobbit did- witnessing another magnificent king taking on his father's kingdom. There was clapping and cheering for the Reunited Kingdom had found itself a rightful ruler. In memory of his father, Eldarion postponed the feast by two weeks so as to be respectful.
Anyone who had seen and knew her truly would know that the queen dowager's heart was broken into pieces but was faking strength and support for her son's sake, not wanting him to be all alone in this. However, she had voiced out that she would be returning to Lothlorien where she had once shared the happy memories with Aragorn, plighting their troth to each other. Though everyone dreaded the day that it should come, still, they respected her decision and knew it was the only way she could seek comfort.
There was no sign of a smile nor laughter in the whole of the kingdom for everybody was mourning after their deceased king. Susan was not as gloomy as the others were, nonetheless, she did not let the dejected atmosphere bring her down. As the Gentle Queen she had been and always would be, she spent her time talking to the twins and being with Legolas, who seemed to cheer up bit by bit with every minute spent with her. She kept Sam and Gimli company and most of all, took her time to take walks with Arwen, who was in most need of comfort and a listener.
Dear all, thank you for waiting so patiently for this chapter! I'm sorry about the on day delay but as I've previously mentioned, school has started and I cannot find time to finish up the chapters! So please bear with me, I'll try my best to update frequently! Do review and tell me what you think!
Reply to the Cretin: Thank you for making me feel truly like a writer! I'm glad you liked the story so far! That certainly is a funny tradition to decapitate a dead body! Anyways, I'm flattered that you should think so highly of my story and grateful for your continuous support, I can't stress that fact more! Good Luck in everything!