Okay, okay…

…here's the next—and last—part!

I'm really, really sorry for the delay!  But, well, you see…real life has been smacking me quite viciously in the face recently,

leaving me with hardly any time to post.

*sweatdrops*

But never fear!  This is the culminating chapter of this story, the first in our Atta Palurins series.

Oh, and…Emmithar was complaining about the fact that everyone has been bugging her about my lack of post, when she isn't the one who updates…

so, to help solve this problem, I will give you all my email address right now so that you can annoy me too!

=D

It's: lionesscrs@yahoo.com

And now, enough of that!  We have loved and appreciated your feedback so much, thank you for sticking with us for our first joint story

and giving us your encouragement and support!  We hope to see you for our next fic in this series!

There is a preview for it at the end of this, and we're looking very much forward to seeing you all there!

PLEASE NOTE:  This chapter jumps many, many years in the future to the time when Legolas is sailing to the Valinor with Gimli.  Yes, we are aware of the fact that we have skipped a whole lot of years here, and that it may seem a teeny bit awkward, but all of this unexplained space will be filled with the our other stories in this series.  We hope you enjoy it!

AND:  Special gratitude and appreciation to Cassia for giving us extremely helpful information about the passage to the Valinor!  *gives hugs*

Thanks a bunch!

Alright, alright!  I know you all probably want me to shut up now…so…here's the chapter, at last!

 

"That does not look much like a ship."

Legolas frowned down upon the speaker from his place in the tree he was resting in.  He had wanted to sit a fair distance away so he could admire his handiwork, and the branch of the nearest tree had proved to be the best spot.

"What would a Dwarf know about building a ship?" the Elf Prince remarked, looking down upon his friend Gimli.  The short being glanced into the tree, momentarily surprised.  He had only been mumbling the comment to himself, for the last thing he wanted to do was to insult his friend.  Gimli had had no idea that he was in the tree, but Dwarves are notorious for their pride, and he was not willing to admit that he had been even the slightest bit startled.

Sticking out his chest, Gimli returned, "A Dwarf has no need for building a ship.  We were made to mine mithril."

Legolas laughed merrily and leaped nimbly down from his branch on the tree.  "Well then friend Gimli, it will look like a ship soon enough.  These things take time."  His eyes appeared distant for a moment, and then he remarked, "You know, if you had taught me how to use your axe, I may have used it to speed up this process of cutting planks.  Using a saw is quite tiring."

The Dwarf looked deeply offended and glared at the Elf.

"What?  Using my axe to cut up planks?  For a ship?  I have never heard of anything as preposterous as that."

He turned away from Legolas to stare out at the sea and folded his arms across his chest in a stance of mock annoyance, his deep red beard brushing across them.

"Where's your sense of humor, Master Gimli?"  Legolas teased lightly.  He paused as a thought came to him.  "Oh yes, I forgot—you're a dwarf.  You don't even know the meaning of humor."

"Of course I do, Master Elf.  That is why I became friends with you."

Legolas chuckled to himself as he followed Gimli's gaze out to the blue waters.  He sighed deeply.

"I have always wondered what it would be like, to go up to the Grey Heavens.  It seems, though, that the feeling is even more apparent when I am by the sea."

Gimli glanced up at his friend.  He would have placed a hand on his shoulder in a gesture of comfort had the elf not been so tall.  They stood that way for a while before Legolas turned his gaze back to the ship.

"Well, I suppose I had better get back to work.  This will take some time, Gimli, perhaps a few days.  If you want to make any farewells to your kin, I suggest you do them now." He paused and looked down, his next comment more to himself than to Gimli.  "I have already made mine long ago."

At this statement, his eyes became sad.  Gimli noticed this and commented, "Aragorn would not want for you to grieve over him, my friendHe would wish for you to remember the times you shared together."

Legolas sighed and looked fondly at the Dwarf, his eyes still filled with deep feelings of nostalgia.

"I know this my friend.  After we got to know each other, I knew that one day, he would pass on.  There was no way for him to deny his mortal fate, and he never did.  Now that I think about it, it was I who did so.  Elves do not have to deal with death in such a way as his.  I didn't want to think of how my life would be without him.  But strangely enough, after he died those years ago, I almost felt nearer to him than I had even when he was alive; the memories that I had of our times together felt even closer and warmer to my heart."  He shook his head slowly and paused slightly before saying the next remark.  "It is just that now, as you and I are about to depart from Middle Earth, he feels very far away.  I do not want to forget him, Gimli.  Even in the Grey Heavens."

 "Then you will not forget him, Master Elf," came Gimli's reply, although his voice held a softness to it which told Legolas that he too had been thinking of Aragorn.  "Nor will I," Gimli finished, his tone thoughtful.

"Thank you for your fine logic, Gimli.  I do not know where I would be without it," Legolas returned, smiling slightly.

"You would be somewhere, I should think.  Now I had best let you get on with your work, or we will never leave here.  I will go off and say some farewells to my people, and I should be back in a few days.  Until then, my friend."

Legolas squeezed Gimli's shoulder comfortingly as he went off.  The Ef turned and watched as his friend disappeared into the woods.  He took a deep breath, and as he did, a familiar scent met his nose.

Lilacs.

How often had his thoughts turned to his mother?  He missed her so, and he had never quite forgiven his father for taking her away from him.  He chuckled as a thought entered his mind.  He supposed that his father had never quite forgiven him for befriending a dwarf either.

At least at long last he would be able to see his mother again.

The spirit of the sea, he mused.

Perhaps that was where his great longing for the water derived from—his great desire for his mother.  He thought back to the warning that Galadriel had sent him.  At first he had ignored the words, seeing no meaning or comfort.

Legolas Greenleaf long under tree

In joy though hast lived.  Beware of the sea!

If though hearest the cry of the gull on the shore,

Thy heart shall then rest in the forest no more.

Now the simple lines made sense.  His first thoughts when he saw the sea were of his mother.  She had left the shores so long ago, but that had been with the promise that they would once see each other again, when the time came.  And that time was now drawing ever nearer.

~*~*~

Legolas watched as the sun set slowly into the ocean.  He let out a breath of air.  The sight was so beautiful.  He lay now on the sandy shore, and he leaned on his elbow as he traced his finger through the sand.  The ship stood before him nearly complete.  It was a fine craft indeed, and Legolas chuckled as he thought of the surprised look it would surely garner from his Dwarf friend Gimli.

The laughter soon stopped, and Legolas became sad and thoughtful again as he remembered what Gimli had said.  Although Aragorn still lingered on in his mind, the Elf still feared that he would forget him.

"You will not forget him, Master Elf."

"No, I will not," Legolas repeated to himself, as if saying the words would make his friend last even longer in his memory.

He sighed and looked back up to the bow of his ship.  Tied to the top was a bundle of flowers.  Lilacs.

"I have not forgotten you either, mother," he whispered fiercely, closing his eyes as the gentle evening wind blew across his face.  "And I will not forget anyone.  Ever."

~*~*~

"It is time, Gimli."

It was evening two days later, and the Dwarf had arrived earlier in the morning.  The ship was now finished, and the pale presence of the moonlight cast a warm glow over it.  Gimli nodded, and wordlessly the two friends stepped on board the ship.  As the ship set sail, a gentle breeze blew through the trees, and it seemed as if the treetops were saying their own farewell as they moved from side to side.  As the shores of Middle Earth disappeared into the depths of the fog, the ship lifted higher and higher into the sky, and the two friends shared a smile that no one would have been able to comprehend. 

Legolas and Gimli had both lost track of time as the ship continued on its course to the heavens.  The days moved on, and the Elf and Dwarf became more and more apprehensive.  They shared many moments of silence together, and somehow, the quiet was more comforting than words. At long last, the shores of the Valinor finally came into view.

The ship pushed into the shore gently, and Legolas quickly made his way off of the vessel.  Gimli, however, stayed behind on the craft, for he was unsure of how to proceed and slightly hesitant in what he should do.  The Elf prince had momentarily forgotten his friend still on board the ship as he ran his eyes over the crowd that had formed at the harbor to meet them.  His eyes were hopeful, but after many long moments of searching, bitter disappointment replaced the eagerness they had held as the one who he sought was not there.

There were others, however, who had not missed him.  Some of his good friends who had passed to the shores long before he had pushed their way through the crowd to embrace him.  Legolas returned the hugs and shared half heartedly in the laughter that they gave him, for even though he was happy to see them again, they were not who he wanted to see most.

It was then that the sound of soft singing filled the air.  Legolas turned and his friends released him as the crowd parted.  Then Legolas smiled.  A solitary tear began to roll down his cheek as he stepped slowly forward to the figure that had appeared in the clearing of the Valinor, where the shores of the Grey Heavens ended.  Her arms were outstretched and she stood, still singing, and ready to welcome him.  Time seemed to stand still as he moved towards her, and when he reached her, he fell into her tight embrace.  How long had he waited for this moment.

"Atara," he whispered.

It was an embrace that Legolas never wanted to break out of.  His mother finally pushed him back gently so that she could gaze into his eyes.  Her smile grew as she saw the strong, proud being her son had grown into.

"Welcome home, my Legolas."

THE END

Or is it only the beginning?  

Look out for our upcoming story in our Atta Palurins series about young Aragorn, which is entitled Waking Nightmare.  Here is a summary, along with a special short preview:

Waking Nightmare

What begins as innocent fun quickly turns into a nightmare for Elladan, Elrohir, and a young Estel.  The only problem is that it is one neither of them can wake from…

Will they be able to survive the toils and tribulations to come?  Or will hope be lost to them forever?

No. 

Elladan closed his eyes, pushing the doubts back.  He didn't want to think about what might have happened to his brother as he called out Estel's name in a shaky voice, which sounded strangely distant to his ears and very unlike his own. Elrohir was standing rigidly next to him scanning the area quickly, climbing easily on top of a rock to see if Estel was somewhere on the ground below the cliff, under the pile of rocks that had fallen down the ragged, rocky slope.  A thousand frantic thoughts were running through his mind and an icy fear was beginning to grip his heart. By Elbereth….how did this happen?  Elrohir cursed himself for not paying closer attention, and for allowing Estel to wander that far ahead on the path.

Suddenly a strangled cry came forth from Elrohir's throat as his eyes caught a hold of a sight he wished he did not have to see.  Elladan turned a frightened expression to his brother and followed his twin's gaze apprehensively.  When Elladan's eyes found the dreadful scene, it felt as though his breath was stuck in his throat, and that his heart had, for the moment, stopped beating altogether.

The faint outline of their brother's body lay below the cliff. He wasn't moving, and half of his small form was covered with the heavy rocks.  That was only the superficial surface.  The darkness prevented the twins from seeing whatever other injuries he had sustained.

Elrohir let out a shaky breath and squeezed his eyes tightly shut, desiring more than anything that this all was some horrible dream.

Oh, Estel, he thought frantically to himself, troubled waves of despair beginning to wash over him, what we need is some hope now

Coming soon to a fanfiction site near you!

Tenna' san' [Until then]!

Namaarie!