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

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: Sorry for the late post. I have had one of the busiest/craziest/worst/best weekends of my life.

Some of you don't know me personally, so I just thought I would take this opportunity to let you know that I'm British, and our sense of humour is a little (a lot) different. So if I offend anyone or make them think I am mad at them it is probably me being funny in my strange native way.

Chapter 20

The Prophecy Revised

Estelai wiped her tears away with the sleeve of her dress. Of all her aunts, Galadwen was by far her favourite. She looked upon her as a second mother.

"How long?" she whispered through her tears.

"Not long. She will leave for Valinor before the year is out, which means we do not have much time."

Estelai nodded and composed herself quickly. "So what is it you need me to do? Whatever you need, you have but to ask."

"I need to know if the prophecy is true. I need to know all that it entails, and I need to know how important my going to Valinor would be."

Estelai's gaze saddened deeper at the thought of him leaving Middle-earth. "You would leave for Valinor to see the Trees restored?"

He softly shook his head. "I do not know. I do not know how important the light is. I must make a decision, but I refuse to make it before I know all the facts. I must know exactly what I am leaving for and all that I must give up."

Estelai thought it strange how an old, abandoned library held no dust. It must be the magic of Rivendell, she decided.

Looking down at the text in front of her, she stiffened a yawn. They had found nothing new. All they had found was the text that Aragorn had spoken of, which contained the prophecy itself.

Gwydion was becoming frustrated. He felt as though his time was running out and he was getting no closer. "Read the passage again." He looked over at Estelai, who looked down at the book.

"I have read it to you four times now. There is nothing new."

"Estelai, please just read it. I know not what else to do." His gentle eyes pleaded with hers and she straightened up in her chair.

"The three Silmarils are long since lost. One was cast into the fiery chasms of the earth, another rests at the bottom of the sea, and the last floats in the air as a star shining bright." She let her yawn out freely and was about to continue reading when she looked over at Gwydion, whose face was twisted in a frown. "What is it?"

Gwydion shook his head and held out his hand for her to leave him to his thoughts for a moment. He closed his eyes. "I feel as though something in that sentence is important. I feel like I am trying to remember a dream, but the longer I am awake, the further away it feels."

Estelai sighed softly. "Well, the only way I can see for you to restore the light is with the Silmarillion, but that is hopeless. You can not reach up and pluck one from the night sky. You cannot dig underground until you meet the fire at the heart of the earth, and you can't very well scale the entire seabed and pry one from Ulmo's hands." She closed the book, ready to give up.

"Ulmo?" Gwydion's eyes narrowed on her.

"Yes, you know, one of the Valar, lord of waters and King of the sea." She spoke mockingly, for all in Middle-earth knew of the Valar.

Gwydion just stared at her, as, slowly, pieces began to fall into place. He closed his eyes and spoke out loud. "The sea calls ever strongly. The golden light and the moonshine are waiting for you."

Estelai looked at him as though he was mad, but decided to let him go with it.

"Ulmo and Elbereth. A man, skin of blue, barnacles. A maiden so fair, light of stars was in her hair." He held out his hands for Estelai to take, which she did, and lifted her to stand with him. "I dreamt of them, of Ulmo and Elbereth. They told me it was time for me to join them. They told me to go in to the water, to retrieve something. The Silmaril that was lost to the sea - that's what they wanted me to retrieve."

Estelai smiled, still not sure what this meant. "Do you think that perhaps they were trying to show you where it was?"

"I do not know. I was always too afraid to go in, too afraid of what I would find." He stood for a moment, contemplating what he must do.

"Estelai, I need you to find Elrond's book of medicinal herbs, something that will make me sleep. I have no choice but to go into my dream and find the location of the jewel."

Gwydion felt sleep begin to tug at him, pulling him into a relaxed state. "I am afraid."

His honest admission made Estelai's heart twist for him. She lay beside him on the cushions on the floor of the library and held his hand tightly. "There is nothing to fear, I will hold your hand until you wake." She leaned over him and placed a gentle kiss to his lips, feeling him sigh against her skin. He closed his eyes and waited for sleep to take him.

"Awake, my Prince, and take my hand. The light has long since waned, and the sea calls ever strongly."

"The sea calls ever strongly. Your time has come to join us."

The frosted twilight surrounded him instantly, the night sky breaking for morning, the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. The salty air filled his lungs. He felt the gentle breeze calm and sooth him.

"I aearon can bell."

The sea calls ever strongly

He turned to face the man and woman, whom he now knew as Elbereth and Ulmo. His eyes only stayed with them for the briefest of moments before being caught by the flow of golden hair catching in the breeze. "Estelai!"

Estelai stood to the side, watching Gwydion intently, a loving smile upon her lips. "There is nothing to fear, Gwydion, I will be right here."

The love he felt for her swelled to an impossible amount, and it was all he could do to keep breathing. He held her gaze for what seemed like a lifetime before turning to face the two Vala.

Elbereth smiled at him gently, her soft grace putting him at ease.

He turned slowly and faced the water, glinting in the sparkling twilight. He cautiously walked closer to the edge of the sea, allowing the ice-cold water to splash over his bare feet.

It was now or never, the moment of truth. He took a deep breath and swallowed hard, turning to look at Estelai once more. "im meleth lle, cugu tithin, an pain ind nín."

I love you, little dove, with all my heart

Estelai's heart contracted, and for the first time since her cousin's confession, she truly knew, without doubt or fear, that she loved him. She knew that she would love him for all her days and even beyond that. A silent tear fell from her eye as she held his gaze, her breath caught in her throat. "im meleth lle, sen im ista si. im innas meleth lle an uireb."

I love you, this I know now. I will love you for all eternity

Gwydion's heart felt as though it had been finally freed from a cage, a prison in which sunlight never ventured. Estelai's words went straight to his soul and gave him new strength, knew hope. His cloud of heavenly dreams was broken by the cool voices behind him.

"i glaur a i ithildin dar an lle." Their voices mixed together like music.

The golden light and the moonshine are waiting for you.

"I do not fear you." Gwydion's voice took on a new determination as he turned to face the sea. He heard a faint whisper of words on the rolling waves. The Silmaril was calling to him, beckoning him into the cool water.

The whispering coming from the sea was truly beautiful, soothing yet eerie. He began to wade into the sea, gasping as the icy water lovingly caressed his skin.

A great need went through him, a desperate desire to find the beautiful jewel beneath the surface and hold it in his hands. To show it to Estelai. The need he felt frightened him slightly, but the knowledge that Estelai was behind him gave him his courage. He shook his body, trying to rid it of the passion and fear it felt.

Further and further Gwydion waded out to sea, until finally the water was about to come over his head. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes as the icy liquid surrounded him completely.

Blinking his eyes open once more, he took in the underwater scene. It was more dreamlike then anything he had ever seen, and more beautiful. The water was an aquamarine that gave everything a bluish-green tinge. Bubbles floated to the surface. Soft sand with shadows of waves glinted like gold beneath his feet. He moved his body until he was able to swim.

He didn't know how long he had been swimming, but his arms now felt tired and filled with lead. The further out he went, the deeper the seabed became.

He pushed himself down further, not feeling the need for air. Below him something sparkled, like amber and diamonds caught in both the midday sun and the midnight moon. He gasped, filling his mouth with water, and swam lower still, eager to get a better look. The faint whispers became something more powerful as he eyed the sparkle, partly buried in the damp sand.

It was as though some magnetic force was pulling him closer, as though he and the jewel were meant to be one. A vision flashed through his mind of the Elf who crafted the Silmaril, his distant ancestor from afar. His hand reached out, as though thinking for itself, and grasped the glittering jewel in his hand, scooping up some of the cold sand with it.

His fist closed around it, and it beamed from between his fingers, a forceful light of day and night. A great and powerful surge went through him, a desperate feeling of rightness. It was as though everything now made sense. It was clear to him what he must do. It was just that he was reluctant to do it.

Pushing his feet against the sand, he thrust himself upwards. The single thrust was enough to push him to the top. When his head breached the surface, he took in a deep breath, his closed hand high above his head.

Gwydion's eyes flashed open, his breathing suddenly deep and forced. He stayed exactly where he was, lying on the floor of the library amongst the old books and pillows.

Beside him, he heard Estelai's breathing quicken, as though she were trying desperately to calm herself down. He turned his head slightly to look at her. "You stayed with me." His voice was full of something akin to disbelief.

"I promised you I would never leave you." She tried to sound light, but she was too close to tears after the intense experience they had just shared. He squeezed the hand he was still holding, and had been holding the entire time. "You love me."

It wasn't a question, but Estelai felt the need to answer him nonetheless. "I love you," she confirmed.

Both their gazes were drawn to their clasped hands. A faint glint was creeping through their joined fingers. Estelai let go of his hand and looked down in wonder. "How can that be?"

Gwydion opened his hand completely and stared down at the Silmaril in the palm of his hand. He looked at his cousin, his love, and smiled softly. "Love is the strongest magic there is."

TBC

Lady Ladreniel: Wow, I don't think I have ever received so many reviews from one person in one hit. I was away from my computer for a few days and I came back to lots of lovely reviews, so thank you. I can't possibly answer all of them though so I'll just cover the basics. It took me about 5 minutes to write Eldarion's speech. I didn't really think about it before hand, I just sat down and wrote it as it came to me, then tweaked it a bit later on. I don't know what happened with ---- I haven't spoken to her in a while, I hope everything is ok. It was nice reading your reviews, it reminded me of when I wrote them and how invested I became in the characters.

ME132: hehe, I got Kay in to Viggorli. I am writing one now actually, it will me some major fluff, its for Aniron's anniversary challenge. This fic is so close to the end, and then no more. I hope you all cy and morn me lol. Maybe I should release an extended version of my fics, hay if PJ can do it then so came I lol.

Lariren-Shadow: Galadwen is my favourite of all my OC's, hers and Legolas' was the first love story I got really invested in. If you look carefully, you will see that Arwen's pupils are always dilated, I think it has something to do with the clever lighting people.

The Converted: Sodomy is a funny word. The other day my boss came out with "Well bugger me." I laughed so hard and then had to explain to him why I was laughing during the staff meeting. 'Brothers Inside Each Others Pants'… I think I read that one. Shh, ixnay on the Ulmoay. No one is supposed to know that yet. Wow you really can't write pig Latin.

Viviana: I love getting reviews like yours, its such a great ego boost, thanks.

Queen Arwen: Actually Eric Bana was the only one who didn't touch me so don't fret ok, I just watched him take a shower…maybe that's worse.

DreaminofLorien: I really love the twins, I first wrote them for A Winters Night Ball and it was kind of hard cos they already existed but I could do whatever I wanted with their personalities. Also a lot of people tend to make them alike, the same person, so I took a different road.

Thank you Starlight63, Cerridwen-Evereven, EbonyBeach and ThePrincess04 for your reviews, I hope you liked this chapter.