CHAPTER FOUR
An hour later all the guests were congregated in the Main Hall which had been decorated in honour of the occasion. Faramir had spent most of the day supervising the process while Éowyn and Arwen kept Aragorn occupied. How they had managed to keep the whole thing a secret none of them had any idea but it appeared that they had pulled the whole thing off. Now all they had to do was wait for the guest of honour to arrive.
"Presenting their Majesties, King Elessar, Queen Arwen and Lady Faerveren!" announced the herald as Aragorn and Arwen appeared at the top of the steps. Aragorn was carrying Faerveren on his hip and raised an eyebrow when his presence was announced, he was only going for evening meal. Faerveren giggled.
When they began to descend the steps, everyone in the Hall began to cheer and Aragorn stopped moving, his mouth hanging open. He turned to his wife.
"So this is what you've been doing? And why you wouldn't let me anywhere near the Hall today!" he accused.
"Of course. It isn't everyday you turn a you celebrate your centenary," smiled Arwen, taking Faerveren from her father and setting her on the ground. She was quickly taken charge of by Eldarion and Elboron.
"Strider are you going to spend the whole evening standing on the steps or are you going to join us?" piped up Pippin. Aragorn stared at the hobbit, or indeed the whole of the remaining Fellowship, and his expression went from shock to joy within a matter of seconds. He actually ran down the remaining few steps towards the group and embraced his friends.
"My Lord," squeaked Pippin as both he and Merry were caught in a rib-crushing hug by the Man.
"It is so good to see you again," said Aragorn and his voice was choked with emotion.
"And me?" asked Glorfindel as he appeared behind the King.
"Glorfindel!" cried the King, spinning around. The golden-Elf found himself wrapped in Aragorn's embrace which he gladly returned. He hadn't seen the Dúnadan since his tenth anniversary of his coronation three years previous and then Kalya had been alive. He had of course heard of the Golden Princess' death but the Imladris Sentinel had not come to Gondor for the funeral. Elrond had come, so had Elladan and Elrohir, but as such someone had to stay in Imladris. With three years being but the blink of an eye to an Elf, especially one as old as he was, Glorfindel still found it hard to believe the Morning Star of his people was entombed within the stone crypt of Gondor.
"My little Estel," whispered Glorfindel, tightly embracing the King. The shudder of Aragorn's shoulders made Glorfindel pull away in concern. Aragorn tried to hide his face, the same way he had done when he was a child.
"Why do you cry?" asked the golden-Elf.
"I don't know," replied Aragorn, brushing away the stray drops of water and he genuinely didn't, he had been a mix of emotions the whole day. "Are 'Dan and 'Ro with you?"
"Alas no. Elladan was made Lord of Imladris when your father departed for Valinor, what Elrond was thinking when he made that decision I will never know, and had to stay behind. Elrohir insisted on staying with him." Aragorn understood and nodded, though he dearly wished to have seen his brothers again.
"Aragorn, are you going to spend all night with the Elves or are you going to greet the rest of us as well?" teased Éomer. Aragorn laughed and embrace his fellow monarch before kissing the hand of Rohan's Queen, Lothíriel, former Princess of Dol Amroth. Elfwine had disappeared from his parent's side and was now playing with Faerveren and the Gondorian Princes and was paying no attention to the greetings the King was givng.
The Citadel's cooks had out done themselves with the banquet. That tables were literally groaning under the weight of the food they had produced – fish, venison, chicken, beef, tureens of carrots, peas and potatoes, boats of thick rich tasting gravy – and that was just what Eldarion could see from his seat!
Aragorn sat at the High Table, Arwen and Faerveren on his right, Eldarion on his left. Faramir and his family also sat at his left, with Elboron positioned beside Eldarion (Aragorn was convinced that was a bad idea). To his other side sat Haldir and Glorfindel while opposite him sat Éomer and his family, the rest of the Fellowship and Erestor. All the guests talked nineteen to the dozen throughout the meal.
"So what did Haldir do with you to today?" asked Aragorn, turning to his son.
"We had to show your guests to their rooms without you finding out," replied Eldarion after swallowing his mouthful of potato.
"That didn't take you all day surely?" questioned Aragorn.
"Well everyone decided to arrive at different times and it would have been impossible to get everyone through the City together," replied Elboron. "We walked too and from the Main Gate at least five times!"
"The walk will have done you good," replied Aragorn.
"Estel, how much walking did you do when you were nine or eleven ?" asked his wife, having been listening to the conversation while helping Faerveren.
"I had plenty of exercise!" replied Aragorn.
"But did you ever walk the equivalent of four miles in one day?" Aragorn stalled. While he had been physically active in his childhood, most of his life really, a majority of his energy had been spent on fighting – whether training or defending – so if he was to be honest, no he hadn't done an awful lot of walking until he became a ranger when he was twenty-one.
"It didn't take us all day," protested Eldarion, going slightly red. "Just, when we finished, I fell asleep."
"Awe, does the little Princling still need his afternoon nap?" teased Elfwine with a grin.
"Didn't see you helping us," shot back Elboron in an equally jovial mood. Elfwine turned slightly pink and muttered something under his breath.
"What was that mellon nîn?" asked Eldarion, having caught the words 'mother' and 'bath' coming from the Rohirrim's mouth. my friend
"Mother made me take a bath!" repeated the ten-year-old in a ever so slightly stronger voice. Elboron and Eldarion were grinning at him making Elfwine turn even redder and glare at them with a look that plainly said 'if you mention this to anyone I will kill you'.
"Well of course I made you take a bath!" exclaimed Lothíriel; "You had been riding all day and smelt strongly of horse!"
"He's a Horse-Lord!" exclaimed Éomer slightly indignant.
"But this is Gondor," replied Lothíriel. "It would not have done to have him appear unclean around the nobility of this country." Éomer, it appeared, had no come back and settled on stuffing his loaded fork back into his mouth. The surrounding guests laughed, it was not often that you saw the King of Rohan pout.
"So how did you manage to keep Pip quiet?" asked Aragorn, casting a grin at the hobbit sitting opposite him.
"Hey!"
"The kitchen staff accosted him and Merry as soon as we got the to the Citadel," replied Elboron. "If they hadn't we would have dragged him back and forth to the Gate with us."
"If you had done that, then you would not be eating that roast chicken now!" replied Pippin, folding his arms with pride.
After the meal, Aragorn was forced to stay seated while varying guest presented him with gifts. Merry gifted his friend with a Pipe, made of Mithril with a gold leaf design and a pearl mouth piece. Pippin presented his Lord, for he had not yet been official released from his duty as a Tower Guard, with a fine selection of Pipeweeds, Long-Bottom Leaf, Old Toby and Southern Star being among them. Each was presented within its own decorated jar.
"After all," Pippin had claimed; "With all the pressures of being a King, Strider has to have something decent to smoke in his new pipe!"
Legolas presented the Man with a new bow, styled very much in the form of the Galadhrim bow Legolas had received almost a decade and a half ago when the Fellowship had past through the Golden Woof. While Aragorn was not permitted to leave Minas Tirith as often as he wanted, there was absolutely nothing stopping him from partaking in the pleasurable pursuit of weapon's training. Gimli gave set of rings, each with a delicate device etched into the metal.
From the Rohan royal family, Aragorn received new tack for Brego, Éomer having seen the state of his friend's old saddle on his last visit to Rohan. When asked why he had never replaced it, the older man had nonchalantly stated that the worn leather was comfortable.
Glorfindel and Erestor presented the Man with a four new set of tunics and leggings, two for formal occasions, wine red and midnight blue in colour and the others, moonlight-silver and forest green in colour, for casual events. Elladan and Elrohir had sent two cloaks, a heavy, sable lined one for winter and a lighter one for summer use. Whether it was planned or coincidence, the cloaks where toned so that they would match whatever clothing Aragorn decided to wear.
His Steward's family gifted him a new scabbard for Andúril, the rich smelling leather traced with Elven blessings in Mithril and gold-leaf.
Haldir was the last person to present his gift. It was neither large nor seeming extravagant. Indeed some of the Gondorian Lord's, who had showered their King with large and expensive items, scoffed that the Lórien Guard was parsimonious. However, out of all the gifts which Aragorn had received, with the exception of his son's painting, Haldir's gift was the one that touched his heart the most. The silver-Elf handed the Adan King a wooden box, adorned with the Tree of the High Elves. Aragorn pried open the box and gasped.
The box contained a Mithril brooch in the shape of a leaf. On the metal wasinlayed a simple device of two proud standing trees, their branches intertwined with each other and bathed in the pale light cast by a star. Aragorn looked at his friend through glistening eyes. Closing the box, he handed it to Arwen and stood up. He drew the Elf into a tight embrace which Haldir returned. A couple of Aragorn's councilmen muttered to each other about the lack of decorum shown by their King but when Eldarion, Elboron, Legolas, Faramir and Glorfindel glared at them they quickly silenced their qualms.
"Hebithon antech ned guren," whispered Aragorn. Haldir knew that he was not simply talking about the broach and he kissed Aragorn's temple before withdrawing from the embrace. I will treasure your gift in my heart
When the gift giving had finished, the minstrels started to play lively music for dancing and Arwen persuaded Aragorn that he did dance. The royal couple led the way on to the dance floor, other partners following suit. The three Princes stood on the sidelines with Faerveren, watching their parents carryout what was a complicated set of footwork.
When a slower piece struck up Faerveren tugged on Eldarion's sleeve. "Dance," she stated and held her arms out to her brother.
Eldarion smiled and scooped her into his arms, making his way out on to the dance floor. Placing Faerveren on the ground and instructing her to stand on his feet, Eldarion began to follow through the basic steps of the dance, Faerveren giggling in delight.
On the other side of the Hall, Haldir was standing with Glorfindel, watching the royal family.
"How has he coped?" asked Glorfindel. Haldir did not need to ask who he meant.
"Today or in general?" he replied.
"Both. Estel effectively lost his right arm."
"He's taking everyday as it comes. According to Faramir, he's alright if he's kept busy but when he is given sufficient time to think, he invariably begins to sink into the past. When I got here yesterday he was in despair. Arwen and Éowyn deliberately kept him busy today so that he wouldn't have the time to sit and surrender to his grief. The two young Princes are the ones who are having the most problems." Haldir broke off with a smile as Elfwine and Elboron were accosted by their mothers and forced on the dance floor.
"How so?" asked Glorfindel, taking a sip of wine.
"When Estel surrenders to his memories, he goes numb, does not hear or feel anything other than the pain in his heart. You could yell insults about Kalya to your hearts content at him and you would be lucky to get the faintest reaction from him. When the boys hear insults about her, they are impulsive and tend not to look before they leap," replied Haldir. "Yesterday they got into a fight with one of the older boys because he made a couple of derogatory remarks about Kalya. They are now banned from pleasure pursuits for the next fortnight."
"Sounds like the twins when they were younger. Both sets," commented Glorfindel. "And how are you coping, mellon nîn?" my friend
Haldir sighed; "It still hurts but I promised Kalya that I would protect Eldarion the same way I did her. If I was to be honest, if it wasn't for that promise I would have joined my little one three years ago."
Glorfindel smiled, "You sound exactly like Elrond when you call Kalya your 'little one'"
"Well she is," protested Haldir. His eyes clouded suddenly and the proud warrior blinked. "I'm sorry, my Lord. I can't talk about this anymore, the pain is still to close. Excuse me." Without waiting for Glorfindel to reply Haldir escaped on to the balcony.
"She comes back every morning," said a soft voice as Haldir perched precariously on the stone ledge, gazing out into the star specked sky. Haldir turned his head and found himself facing Arwen.
"You should be inside, my Lady."
"As should you. Haldir you have counselled Estel on more than one occasion that he should release Kalya, why can you not do the same?"
"Because I can't grieve for her!" exclaimed Haldir, slipping off his perch. "You should know that better than anyone else! If I release her, it means accepting that I will never see her again and that would kill me! Your son is the only thing keeping me alive!"
"Haldir I…." began Arwen but her voice trailed away as Haldir sprang over the wall into the nearby trees and to the ground, sprinting away from the Tower.
Concerned for her friend, Arwen turned and returned to the Hall where she cornered her son and Elboron. (It was now Elfwine's turn to dance with Faerveren)
"Naneth, man sa?" asked Eldarion, catching sight of the worry in his mother's eyes. Mother, what is it?
"Haldir," responded Arwen. Both boys stiffened.
"What about him?" asked Eldarion.
"He fled into grounds."
"Statue," muttered Eldarion and grabbing Elboron's wrist, he pulled the older boy behind him, leaving his mother standing gazing after them.
Haldir ran blindly through the grounds, intent on getting his destination. Eventually he arrived at the royal gardens and he sprinted to the marble statue which depicted his beloved charge. Only moonlight shone into the garden but being an Elf, Haldir had sharper night vision and he would have known his way to the statue anyway even in the pitch black.
"Kalya, I can't keep doing this!" he cried, falling in front of the statue. The night dampened grass soaked the knees and shins of his leggings but he didn't care. "Everything was so much better when you were alive!" The tears he had held off since leaving the balcony began to flow down his face; "Why did you have to die?"
The Elf knelt weeping in front of Kalya's statue, rocking back and forward and hugging himself as he made no attempt to stem the flow of his tears. It was the first time he had cried since Kalya had been killed and three years of pent up grief and anger flooded out. He didn't care who would see him, gone was the proud March-Warden of Lórien and in his place was a grieving parent.
An arm wrapped around his shoulders and someone buried their nose into the spot between his ear and neck. Instinctively, Haldir wrapped his arms around Eldarion, he knew who it was, the raven-Prince being the only person who hugged Haldir in such a manner, and sobbed into his shoulder.
"Haldir? Haldir man sa?" whispered Eldarion, very concerned as he had never witnessed this proud Elf breakdown. what is it?
"I can't keep fighting," replied Haldir.
"Keep fighting what?"
"The pain," replied Haldir before falling limp to the ground.
Eek! What did I just do? Feel free to shout at me over this chapter (flames still not acceptable). It worked in my mind but I think Haldir has altered personalities!
I know this is a little early in Eldarion's life to be considering such a possibility, but should he be given the same choice as all of Elrond's line – mortality or immortality? I have already decided (well actually Tolkien decided) that he will be mortal, but should he given the chance to choose?
Response to reviewers;
CapriceAnn Hedican-Kocur; Thank you. I hope I haven't destroyed his character too much with this chapter.
Angel of the Night Watchers; No problem. Just as well you don't mind long chapters, this one was just as bad!
IwishChan; (grins) I wish I could draw the painting but I haven't a visual artistic bone in my body!
Haldir's Heart and Soul; Thank you.