Ch. 7
Lunch was another quiet affair, then Amy took the foreigners back to their rooms for a much-needed nap. She walked to Elrond's study and greeted Elrond, Glorfindel, and Gandalf warmly.
"It is good to see you once more, Almare," the wizard said.
"Likewise, old friend." Gandalf stood, and Amy gave him a big hug. "It has been too long."
When she stepped back, Elrond motioned her to a seat. "Thank you for coming, Almare. I imagine you will have many questions."
"I'm certain I will, but all of them don't need to be resolved this afternoon. Not even I pretend that three thousand years isn't quite a while." The others laughed with her. "I needed the time away, but I'm glad to be back."
"Where will you stay?" Glorfindel asked.
"I'm not sure yet. My young companions need rest for the moment, and we can make decisions later. The journey took a lot out of them."
"I can imagine. You are welcome to stay here as long as you would like, Almare," Elrond said. "Likewise, I'm certain Galadriel would be pleased to have you visit her in Lothlórien. It is not often she is able to speak with one who has lived as long as she."
"Of course. You may not realize it, but I was her handmaiden for many years. I'm not sure either of us cares to remember many of those years, though. The First Age was a difficult time."
"Forgive me. I did not think." Elrond nodded apologetically.
Gandalf chuckled. "I do believe your coming back was worth it, Almare, if only to hear him say that! I didn't think I'd ever see the day when he'd say anything of the sort!"
Elrond had the grace to simply duck his head for a moment. He lifted his head, then spoke. "As I said, you are welcome to stay here as long as you wish. If there is anything you need, please ask. Whenever you like, I can tell you what has happened since you left."
"Thank you. I'll let you know. I think for the moment, I'll probably just explore a little bit and enjoy my homecoming."
"Of course." Elrond rose, and kissed her hand. He turned and walked out the door, followed by Glorfindel. Gandalf stayed where he sat.
"What is it, old friend?"
"I can almost see the questions revolving in your head, questions you don't want to ask Elrond directly."
Amy ducked her head for a moment. "I saw the pain in his eyes when I mentioned Celebrían. I didn't want to say anything more, but I am curious. I'm also curious about how you came to be here."
"It's a good thing most people will assume we met early in the Third Age. There are few in Middle Earth who know what the Istari truly are, and those who do not know, need not. Here I am known as Mithrandir by the Elves, and Gandalf by Men, as well as a few other names, but the one you know should not be spoken this side of the Sea." He paused a minute before continuing. "Elrond cared for Celebrían deeply, but she was attacked by Orcs while travelling. He was deeply hurt by her death, but continued here for the sake of his children and the Elves who remained in Rivendell. Five hundred years have dulled the pain a bit, but he is alone, and it makes healing difficult. He has isolated himself from all of us—me, his children, his friends. He claims he does it to spare us the pain, but it is eating him up inside.
"That would be more than enough, but there is another pain for him yet. Arwen Undómiel has betrothed herself to a mortal. She will face the same fate as her ancestor Lúthien." *
"Who is this Man?"
"Aragorn, son of Arathorn. He is Isildur's heir. Aragorn was raised here as Elrond's son, Estel, but Arwen was living in Lothlórien with her grandmother at the time."
"Hope…"
"Yes. They met once he was grown, and pledged themselves to each other in Lothlórien. Elrond has forbidden them to marry until Aragorn has taken his ancestor's throne, but whether Aragorn succeeds or dies in the attempt, he will lose Arwen. She would not survive Aragorn's death."
After a long pause, Amy spoke. "Is there anything else I should know?"
"There are many things. That is all you needed to hear from me. I suppose, while we're at it, I might as well tell you more of it. The One Ring has been found. It is on its way here. We will soon have to decide what is to be done with it—not just the Elves, but all the free peoples of Middle Earth."
"The Ruling Ring…if only Isildur had destroyed it when he had the chance."
"Aye, and Aragorn feels the weight of that failure. He will have to try to atone for his ancestor's mistakes."
"It would be a heavy burden on anyone, and to place it on one so young…"
Gandalf nodded, then smiled. "Just do not let him hear you call him young. He is young when compared to us, but already old in the counting of men. The Edain are few in these days, and they are exiles among lesser Men. He has lived longer than most of them ever will."
"I thought the Ring was lost. How was it found?"
"A Hobbit named Déagol found it some five hundred years ago, but his cousin Sméagol murdered him to get it. The Ring corrupted Sméagol, called Gollum, and drove him mad. He lost the Ring to another Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, who passed it on to his nephew, Frodo."
"A being willingly surrendered the One Ring?"
"Amazing, isn't it? Hobbits truly are surprising creatures, and I fear they will rule the fate of us all in times to come, as they have already by finding the Ring." Gandalf grunted, then stood. "Enough of this dark talk. You should be enjoying your return to Middle Earth, not hearing all its woes. Go and join your young friends."
"I'll have to see if any of them are awake. When I left them, they were resting. They don't require as much sleep as they might think, but they do enjoy it—enormously. I've never really understood it." The wizard chuckled, then followed her out the door.
* Some of the information about Lúthien and Beren is found in the appendices to ROTK. Lúthien was an Elf who married a mortal, Beren, sacrificing her immortality in the process. The wizards, or the Istari, are not fully explained in the trilogy. The fuller explanation is found in the Silmarillion. They are Maiar sent to Middle Earth to oppose the Enemy. Specifically, Gandalf is the Maia Olorin. Maia were angelic figures of lesser power than the Valar, who were more powerful, but still subject to Eru, who was the ultimate creator and God of this universe.
Lunch was another quiet affair, then Amy took the foreigners back to their rooms for a much-needed nap. She walked to Elrond's study and greeted Elrond, Glorfindel, and Gandalf warmly.
"It is good to see you once more, Almare," the wizard said.
"Likewise, old friend." Gandalf stood, and Amy gave him a big hug. "It has been too long."
When she stepped back, Elrond motioned her to a seat. "Thank you for coming, Almare. I imagine you will have many questions."
"I'm certain I will, but all of them don't need to be resolved this afternoon. Not even I pretend that three thousand years isn't quite a while." The others laughed with her. "I needed the time away, but I'm glad to be back."
"Where will you stay?" Glorfindel asked.
"I'm not sure yet. My young companions need rest for the moment, and we can make decisions later. The journey took a lot out of them."
"I can imagine. You are welcome to stay here as long as you would like, Almare," Elrond said. "Likewise, I'm certain Galadriel would be pleased to have you visit her in Lothlórien. It is not often she is able to speak with one who has lived as long as she."
"Of course. You may not realize it, but I was her handmaiden for many years. I'm not sure either of us cares to remember many of those years, though. The First Age was a difficult time."
"Forgive me. I did not think." Elrond nodded apologetically.
Gandalf chuckled. "I do believe your coming back was worth it, Almare, if only to hear him say that! I didn't think I'd ever see the day when he'd say anything of the sort!"
Elrond had the grace to simply duck his head for a moment. He lifted his head, then spoke. "As I said, you are welcome to stay here as long as you wish. If there is anything you need, please ask. Whenever you like, I can tell you what has happened since you left."
"Thank you. I'll let you know. I think for the moment, I'll probably just explore a little bit and enjoy my homecoming."
"Of course." Elrond rose, and kissed her hand. He turned and walked out the door, followed by Glorfindel. Gandalf stayed where he sat.
"What is it, old friend?"
"I can almost see the questions revolving in your head, questions you don't want to ask Elrond directly."
Amy ducked her head for a moment. "I saw the pain in his eyes when I mentioned Celebrían. I didn't want to say anything more, but I am curious. I'm also curious about how you came to be here."
"It's a good thing most people will assume we met early in the Third Age. There are few in Middle Earth who know what the Istari truly are, and those who do not know, need not. Here I am known as Mithrandir by the Elves, and Gandalf by Men, as well as a few other names, but the one you know should not be spoken this side of the Sea." He paused a minute before continuing. "Elrond cared for Celebrían deeply, but she was attacked by Orcs while travelling. He was deeply hurt by her death, but continued here for the sake of his children and the Elves who remained in Rivendell. Five hundred years have dulled the pain a bit, but he is alone, and it makes healing difficult. He has isolated himself from all of us—me, his children, his friends. He claims he does it to spare us the pain, but it is eating him up inside.
"That would be more than enough, but there is another pain for him yet. Arwen Undómiel has betrothed herself to a mortal. She will face the same fate as her ancestor Lúthien." *
"Who is this Man?"
"Aragorn, son of Arathorn. He is Isildur's heir. Aragorn was raised here as Elrond's son, Estel, but Arwen was living in Lothlórien with her grandmother at the time."
"Hope…"
"Yes. They met once he was grown, and pledged themselves to each other in Lothlórien. Elrond has forbidden them to marry until Aragorn has taken his ancestor's throne, but whether Aragorn succeeds or dies in the attempt, he will lose Arwen. She would not survive Aragorn's death."
After a long pause, Amy spoke. "Is there anything else I should know?"
"There are many things. That is all you needed to hear from me. I suppose, while we're at it, I might as well tell you more of it. The One Ring has been found. It is on its way here. We will soon have to decide what is to be done with it—not just the Elves, but all the free peoples of Middle Earth."
"The Ruling Ring…if only Isildur had destroyed it when he had the chance."
"Aye, and Aragorn feels the weight of that failure. He will have to try to atone for his ancestor's mistakes."
"It would be a heavy burden on anyone, and to place it on one so young…"
Gandalf nodded, then smiled. "Just do not let him hear you call him young. He is young when compared to us, but already old in the counting of men. The Edain are few in these days, and they are exiles among lesser Men. He has lived longer than most of them ever will."
"I thought the Ring was lost. How was it found?"
"A Hobbit named Déagol found it some five hundred years ago, but his cousin Sméagol murdered him to get it. The Ring corrupted Sméagol, called Gollum, and drove him mad. He lost the Ring to another Hobbit named Bilbo Baggins, who passed it on to his nephew, Frodo."
"A being willingly surrendered the One Ring?"
"Amazing, isn't it? Hobbits truly are surprising creatures, and I fear they will rule the fate of us all in times to come, as they have already by finding the Ring." Gandalf grunted, then stood. "Enough of this dark talk. You should be enjoying your return to Middle Earth, not hearing all its woes. Go and join your young friends."
"I'll have to see if any of them are awake. When I left them, they were resting. They don't require as much sleep as they might think, but they do enjoy it—enormously. I've never really understood it." The wizard chuckled, then followed her out the door.
* Some of the information about Lúthien and Beren is found in the appendices to ROTK. Lúthien was an Elf who married a mortal, Beren, sacrificing her immortality in the process. The wizards, or the Istari, are not fully explained in the trilogy. The fuller explanation is found in the Silmarillion. They are Maiar sent to Middle Earth to oppose the Enemy. Specifically, Gandalf is the Maia Olorin. Maia were angelic figures of lesser power than the Valar, who were more powerful, but still subject to Eru, who was the ultimate creator and God of this universe.