Title: The End Has Come
Author: B-witched83uk )
Rating: R
Summary: The royal family of Gondor have their final adventure together.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Lord of the Rings. The whole of Middle-earth belongs to Tolkien
Dedication: Which ever being gave me that dream last night. THANK YOU! Ewan McGregor, Orlando Bloom, Heath Ledger and Eric Banna. Oh my.
Beta: The Last Evenstar, a great friend and a great editor.
Archive: , Any others please ask.
Feedback: I would absolutely love some because yes I am a praise junky.
A/N: Twin what? Nothing is implied here, if you people think there is something less then innocent between Elladan and Elrohir then it is you own imaginations, nothing to do with me.
Chapter 19
Brothers in arms
Elrohir poured himself and his brother some tea as they sat in silence in Elrond's study. Elladan had just informed his brother about the prophecy concerning Gwydion, and how he somehow held the key to restoring the Two Trees.
They had spoken much of Arwen's final days. Elladan had taken her to Lothlórien, where he had left her at her request. He knew what she intended. She would lie beneath the trees and stars and wait to die of her broken heart.
"Sooner or later, we are going to have to speak of Valinor, and our possible departure." Elrohir, always the braver in matters outside of battle, breached the subject first.
Elladan looked down at his cup, watching the dark liquid swirl in hot circles.
"A heavy choice lies before us, gwador, a choice that was made by others, so long ago."
Elladan looked up at his brother's face, and noticed that the usual luminous skin seemed ashen now.
"It is the choice of our father Elrond and his twin brother, Elros." Elrohir looked at Elladan with all the uncertainty that he felt. "Will history repeat itself?" He knew from what his father had told him that he had never fully healed from Elros' decision to become mortal, thus withering from this world, leaving Elrond broken-hearted with his immortal suffering.
Elrohir knew that to be separated from Elladan, to live for all eternity without his brother, to know that some day he would die and his body would feed the earth, would be his ruin.
Silent raindrops fell outside. The twins could not hear them, but they could smell them. Every time it rained, Elladan found himself outside, seeking to be washed clean of all guilt and silent blame. He remembered the rain hitting the pane of the window in his brother's study the night their mother had left. The anger his gentle brother's face had shown.
"What are you thinking about, gwador?" Elrohir brought him out of his thoughts and took him off-guard.
Before he was able to think of something to say, he found himself saying the truth. "I was thinking about our mother, about Naneth." He closed his eyes tightly, waiting for Elrohir to finally speak of what had been plaguing his mind for all these years.
"Rarely have I heard you speak of her. You all but recoil when I mention her, so I stopped trying to talk to you about her." Elrohir shifted in his seat, willing his brother's eyes to open once more. When they did, he saw that they were flooded with unshed tears. "Will you speak of her now, Elladan?"
Elladan shook his head gently. "I cannot. I cannot speak of her with you. Do not ask me to, for I know what I did, or didn't do. I cannot take your eyes upon me as I speak her name." The tears began to fall and Elrohir moved to kneel before his brother's chair.
"Hush, gwador. Do not cry for our mother, for we shall see her soon. Come with me to Valinor and again feel her love," Elrohir begged, for the idea of loosing the other half of his soul was too severe. Elrohir knew that if Elladan choose to stay in Middle-earth, then he would stay with him and accept a mortal fate. For what was eternity if it was spent alone?
"I cannot go with you, I can not face her! Please do not ask this of me." Elladan wept fiercely, clutching his brother's arms.
"I do not understand. Why can you not face her? She is our mother, Elladan." Elrohir pulled his brother off of the chair to sit beside him on the floor. He wrapped his arms around the sobbing form and rocked him slowly, like their mother did when they were babes.
"What if she blames me for her passing too? What if she finds it as hard to look at me?" Elladan felt the warm arms of his brother and knew that he did not deserve them.
"Why would she blame you? You have done nothing wrong, gwador. None of this is your fault."
Elladan shook his head and moved out of his brother's arms. He stood before him and looked down at him with disbelief. "But you blame me, you always have, and it has eaten away at me." He choked through the sobs as his brother came to stand before him.
Elrohir wore a look of hurt and anger on his face as he stared in to his twin's eyes. "I have never blamed you for her passing, Elladan. For a long time I blamed her, for it was her decision to leave. But never have I once blamed you. I have only loved you." He felt his own tears threaten to fall. "Elladan, you have been so distant to me since our father's departure. You left me here alone, you left without tears nor promises of your return. I have sat here day after day, trying to find a reason why you would want to be apart from me, if I had done something or said something to make you flee. You are my brother, my twin, the other half of my soul, and you left me."
Elladan rubbed at his red eyes fiercely. "I did not know I had hurt you. I though it was what you wanted. I thought you wanted to be apart from me because you blamed me for her passing. Elrohir, I love you like no other, and I would rather have died then hurt you. Please forgive me, I thought it for the best. I thought I were doing the right thing. Now I see I was just running away."
Elrohir let out a breathy laugh through his tears. "El, I am incomplete without you. I haven't breathed since you went away." He held out his arms and his brother embraced him with both arms.
Elladan rested his head against his twin's. "Can you forgive me for leaving you? I promise I will never leave you again."
Elrohir nodded slowly, relishing the feeling of his brother in his arms once more. "I will forgive you if you forgive me for not recognising your pain."
Elladan smiled softly, clutching to Elrohir for dear life. "There is nothing to forgive on my part." He placed a soft kiss on his brother's cheek as the years of hurt slowly began to dissolve.
They both knew that things would not go back to the way they were, for you can never go back. But they both knew that the bond they shared would be ever stronger.
Elrohir untangled his brother's arms from around him and took a step back. "A decision still lies before us. If you decide to stay, then I shall stay with you. Because we are one soul that cannot be separated."
Legolas sat on the bed, clasping Galadwen's hand tightly. This was too familiar, too like the nightmares that had racked his mind for too many nights. She was too close to leaving him, to leaving this world. Her beauty was still there, but the pink tint in her cheeks was almost gone, and so was the light that shined from behind her starry eyes.
"You cannot leave me yet, Galadwen, you must hold on a little longer. You must be strong for me," he whispered to her as she slept in their bed.
Legolas watched her, his heart as dark as night. He knew he should let her go, that fate had chosen now to take her from him, but he refused to. He refused to give in without a fight.
Aragorn and Arwen were both gone from this world. Gwydion was finding his own path. There was nothing tying Galadwen to the world, nothing except the burning love of her husband, a love that shone brighter then the fiercest flame. She slept most days, nights too, reluctant to leave for Valinor until she knew for certain that her son would be all right, until she had heard his choice from his own mouth. She knew, they both knew, that the longer she waited, the longer she postponed her final journey, the closer she came to death.
She was cold, so cold. She needed the light of the Two Trees upon her face, a light that no longer shone. If Gwydion could find away to light them once more, it would mean leaving Middle-earth with them. She would rather die in her bed this night then see her son make a choice that would affect his whole life, a choice that would break his heart and leave him empty.
"Hold on, meleth, just hold on."
Elladan awoke the next morning with his heart feeling lighter then it had in decades. The sun was shinning once again, bursting into his room, the room he had inhabited since childhood. The smell of the churning river beneath the waterfall reached his nose, making him smile, as he made his way to his brother's study, for things had not changed so much that he no loner knew exactly where his brother would be.
Elrohir smiled as his twin entered the room. "Good morning. I trust you rested well in your old bed?"
"I rested wonderfully. What are you doing?" He watched his brother remove book after book from the selves, binding four at a time with twine.
"I am packing up Ada's and mybooks to send to Minas Tirith.. They will be well looked after by Eldarion and his family."
Elladan had thought long and hard the previous night about his brother's words. He had offered to stay in Middle-earth if Elladan so wished. Yet Elladan knew not what he wished. Arwen was gone, Aragorn was gone. What was there left worth staying for?
It was what happened next that made his choice for him. His brother dropped one of the books he was holding, his hand trembling uncontrollably.
Elrohir was instantly clutching his shaking hand in his other, turning from Elladan's gaze. He was an Elven lord, and he was far too proud to let his brother see him thus. He had felt it more and more lately. He had felt cold and sickly, which could only mean one thing.
"The life of the Eldar is leaving you." Elladan's voice was calm, despite the rage he felt building up inside of him. How could Elrohir have kept this from him? How could he expect Elladan to live with himself if his brother died from his inability to make a decision?
His decision was made for him, and he felt nothing but relief. They would travel to Valinor and once again be with their mother and father. Elrohir would be saved, and thus Elladan's heart would not break.
Estelai sat beside the great waterfall in Imladris, her dress now moist and clinging to her. She let out a sigh, finally knowing what it was she would do. Her great-uncles had been surprised to see her there, but they welcomed her nonetheless. She had rarely seen Elladan and Elrohir, as they had spent most of their time locked away together. She assumed they were catching up.
It wasn't really anything in particular that alerted her of Gwydion's presence. It wasn't a sound, nor a smell, it was just something inside of her that told her he was behind her. She stood and turned, meeting his icy blue eyes with her own. "Gwydion." His name was a sigh on her lips.
The look in his eyes was not one she had seen before, it was something awful and frightening. When he spoke, his voice held none of its usual warmth. "I need your help."
TBC
EbonyBeach: Well Gwydion wants to stay because he love Estelai, but at the same time he wants to go to Valinor to make sure that his mother lives. it's a toughie. Technically I'm sure Estelai could go to Valinor if she wanted to, however she is the oldest child of the King and next in line for the throne. So her loyalties are tied as well.
The Converted: Sadie dear likes twincest. I was reading a lot of it at the time of writing this so I'm sure some innocently slipped in somewhere. This chapter was even worse wasn't it.
'She had rarely seen Elladan and Elrohir, as they had spent most of their time locked away together. She assumed they were catching up.' He he he, only I know what they were really doing lol.
tindomiel-tintalle: If you think you have the time to create a family tree on paint then I would be very grateful, but don't put yourself out or go out of your way to do it, only if you want to.
Lariren-Shadow: Britain is nice right? Except for the weather and the trains. Yup Gwydion and Estelai come from a family of rule breakers when love is involved. People said Aragorn and Arwen would never work out. They said the it was weird for Legolas to marry Galadwen. And now two first cousins want to hook up…we will just have to see how that one works out.
Calime Canos: I hate tough choices too. But someone has to make them.
Viviana: OH...MY...GOD!...your enthusiastic aren't you. Thank you so much for the high praise, it was very greatly received.
Cerridwen-Evereven: Glad you still like it, we are coming to an end soon so prepare yourself for some more sadness. I swear I don't do it n purpose.
The Last Evenstar: Big cuddles I hope you feel better soon Petal. Maybe you just need to get back to school and focus your attention on something academic. Of course I'll still talk to you, who else would like listening to my deranged, messed up relationship issues? Apart from someone getting paid. I'm not crazy…I'm interesting.
DreaminofLorien: I'm working on the family tree, I have had an offer. Hey when referring to us as dorks, speak for yourself. If I didn't have LOTR I would just find something else to be obsessed with, I seem to do that, go from one obsession to another.
Queen Arwen: Oh Morgoth, we hardly knew ye. Club Gondor is in full swing, Estelai and Galadwen can be the pole dances, no wait Legolas should, he's the pretty one right. I'm not going to write anymore about Arwen's passing because I wanted to stay true to what Tolkien wrote, which is why I used his words.
ME132: Your review got me all chocked up 'lil sis. I don't how I have helped you, I didn't even realise I was doing it, but I'm glad that I somehow did. Just think I never would have emailed you if the reviews had been working and I was able to just write you a review, instead I emailed it to you and you emailed back and thus our friendship was formed.
