We appeared in the archway and Celeborn was the first to spot us. His eyes widened when they saw me and he quickly got to his feet to bow to me, Galadriel followed along with the rest of the Fellowship.
"My Lady." Boromir said with a note of awe in his voice. I looked to Galadriel who smiled.
"I took the liberty of filling your companions in about your recent change in appearance." I nodded and took my seat next to her.
"Did you also tell them that Aragorn is my father?" I asked calmly. There was a loud clattering of forks and knives being dropped and I was sure that I heard Boromir choke on his drink. I took a calm sip of my own drink before looking at the rest of the group. They were all staring at me and Gimli actually had his mouth open mid bite. Boromir on the other hand was still coughing and Pippin was pounding him on the back in an attempt to help him. Finally Boromir regained his ability to breathe before rasping out a question.
"What?"
"Going from your reactions I would say that she did not tell you."
"You can not just throw something in our laps like that and expect no reaction." Gimli said.
"So that is what he was talking about when the two of you came back into the clearing. I take it then that he was not aware that you existed?" Boromir asked.
"No Boromir, I was not aware. Though I had heard rumors of a female Ranger that came into camp when I was not there, and stayed mostly in the North." Aragorn said as he walked into the room. I quickly glanced at him and saw that all traces of his break down were gone. The only thing that remained was a slightly blue line down his jaw where I had touched him.
"I was not aware that they spoke of me to you."
"They did not, they spoke of you when they thought I was not listening." He answered as he took a seat next to Boromir.
"Does this mean that you are going to stop looking like you want to hit him all the time?" Pippin asked innocently. I laughed and Merry quickly elbow is cousin in the ribs.
"I was not aware that you had noticed Pippin."
"Well. Sometimes when he moved near you I would catch a glimpse of your face and you always looked angry."
"In all fairness Your Grace, we all had taken notice of you when Gandalf told Aragorn to avoid being near you if he could. At the time we merely thought that you were dangerous and more wild than man and that was the reason for the warning." Boromir explained.
"Did Gandalf know you were a girl?" Merry asked.
"Of course he did. Gandalf all but raised me." I told him.
"What happened to your mother?" Pippin asked. I saw Aragorn freeze beside Boromir and Merry actually punched his cousin in the shoulder.
"Pippin! You cannot ask someone something like that!" he snapped.
"It is alright Merry. He meant no harm. My mother got very sick after I was born. It was why Gandalf stayed with us. She passed when I was twenty-three." There was a moment of silence before Sam asked his question.
"If you do not mind me asking Your Highness, how old are you now?" I smiled at Sam and his face took on a dreamy quality as did the others.
"Please Sam, no need for formality. I may be a Queen now, but I was first your companion and if you would like, your friend."
"I would like that very much." Frodo said with a smile.
"I was forty years last week." I told Sam.
"You look far younger. Do you age like an Elf?" Sam asked. I had noticed while we traveled that Sam had a great interest in anything Elvish and often asked Legolas questions.
"No Sam. Aragorn is of the Duendain line and they are blessed with long life and slow aging, something he passed onto me. Now that I have taken the Throne of my people I will remain looking like this for eternity."
"So you are immortal then?" Boromir asked.
"I am now. The Frost Queen is something called an Elemental Monarch. There are only ever five in existence at a time. The Frost Queen, the Fire King, the Earth King, the Wind King and the Water King. The Frost Throne is always occupied by a woman, the others may be either a male or a female. The first of the Elemental Monarch's were Maiar, lesser spirits of the Valar who came to Middle-earth when the first people's came into being. They were given these titles by Eru to control the elements that were running unchecked across Middle-earth. Over the many Ages most the Maiar found mates and had children and those children then took over the Throne. Unlike many races and creatures the blood of a Maia never lessens over time. Only someone who was at the least half Maia could hold the Throne and be able to control the element and the people that came with it. Each of the elements had people born of that element, for example I am Queen of the Frost people. No doubt you felt the cold that settled into the woods a little while ago? That was the arrival of my people coming to watch my coronation as Queen. My mother was different. She felt no urge to have children and was the only original monarch left, all the others answered to her." I explained to the awe filled hobbits and Dwarf, even Boromir was interested in the history.
"So do the others now answer to you too?" Frodo asked.
"I do not know Frodo, my mother never said."
"Yes, they will. While Maia blood does not dilute, Rhew is what they would call Pure. All the knowledge that Rhew's mother possessed passed to her when she assumed the Throne. Soon enough the other Kings will come to pay homage to her." Galadriel answered. I looked at her in surprise. I truly hadn't thought that they would answer to me, not once my mother passed.
"Wait since you are Aragorn's daughter that makes you a Princess of Gondor!" Merry said with excitement.
"No Merry. I will never be able to sit upon the Throne of Gondor." I told him.
"Why not?"
"Because Gondor is the Throne of Man, and I am not human anymore. Perhaps if I was still half human I could." I told him gently.
"It matters not. It is blood that decides it, and by blood you have as much right to it as your father." Celeborn said, speaking for the first time since I had entered the room.
"Come. We should get some rest. It has been a long day for all of us." Aragorn said gently changing the subject. A wave of sorrow swept through the Fellowship at the reminder. I nodded and rose from the table followed by everyone else. We all said our good nights to Celeborn and Galadriel before moving back to the space we had been allotted.
When we reached our beds the hobbits settled down on them as a haunting song began to echo through the trees. The Elves were singing for the loss of Gandalf and I felt frozen tears begin to slide down my face at their words. Merry sat up listening to the song as Legolas passed by with a silver jar for water in his hands. Gimli was already asleep in his bed and Aragorn was next to him sharpening his sword as he too listened to the words.
"A lament for Gandalf." Legolas said softly and Merry looked at him.
"What do they say about him?"
"I have not the heart to tell you. For me the grief is still too near." He replied. Sam was crouched down making his bed and turned to Merry.
"I bet they do not mention his fireworks. There should be a verse about them." He stood and cleared his throat.
"The finest rockets ever seen, they burst in stars of blue and green..." Gimli snored loudly from beside Aragorn.
"Or after thunder...silver showers..." Aragorn turned to Gimli in annoyance and harshly swatted the Dwarf's pillow eliciting a grunt from him.
"Came falling like a...rain of flowers..." He sat down on his bed and groaned. "Oh that does not do them justice by a long road." Sam grumbled to himself.
"I thought it was beautiful Sam. Gandalf would have liked it. He used to light them off for me during the summer when it was too warm to be inside and yet too early to go to bed." I said with sad smile on my lips. I watched as Aragorn walked over to where Boromir was sitting away from everyone and I followed after him.
"Take some rest. These boarders are well protected." Aragorn said gently. We took a seat on either side of him and Boromir shivered in the cold that now wafted off me. The root under me froze, but Boromir and Aragorn paid it no heed.
"I will find no rest here. I heard her voice inside my head. She spoke of my father and the fall of Gondor. She said to me, ''Even now, there is hope left.'' But I cannot see it. It is long since we had any hope. My father is a noble man, but his rule is failing. And now our...our people lose faith. He looks to me to make things right and I – I would do it. I would see the glory of Gondor restored."
"That is a heavy burden to place upon any person's shoulders. I have no doubt you will do it Boromir. You are a loyal and good son." I told him gently. Boromir turned to me with wide eyes, shining with doubt, but also the merest hint of hope.
"Have you ever seen it?" He asked us. "The White Tower of Ecthelion, glimmering like a spike of pearl and silver. Its banners caught high in the morning breeze. Have you ever been called home by the clear ringing of silver trumpets?" He was lost in his memories and his voice took on an edge of wistfulness as he spoke about the city. I had to admit that the way he described it, it sounded beautiful. And now I wish that I had gone with Gandalf to visit the great city.
"I have seen the White City, long ago." Aragorn said softly.
"And you My Lady? Have you ever seen it?"
"No. I made sure to never venture too close to Gondor or Mordor when I did leave the North, but now I wish that I had. It sounds beautiful." I said quietly.
"One day, our paths will lead us there. And the tower guard shall take up the call: "The Lords and Lady of Gondor have returned!" Aragorn smiled slightly before looking away.
"Perhaps one day we will." I whispered in agreement, though my heart was not in it. We moved with Boromir back to his bed and waited for him to fall asleep before Aragorn gestured for me to follow him. We moved across the clearing for the others so that we wouldn't wake them with our conversation.
"Why did you never venture near Gondor or Mordor?" He asked.
"After my mother died I developed an apathy for the race of Men. To me it was their fault she had died, I see now that I was wrong, she chose to die and I doubt there would have been anything in Middle-earth or Valinor that would have convinced her to stay. In my hatred I shunned Men and most other races, interacting with them only if there was no other choice. I wanted nothing to do with Gondor and Gondor wanted nothing to do with me. More than that Mordor was the real reason I never went near the White City."
"What do you mean?"
"There was an unspoken arrangement between Sauron and I. I would leave him alone and give Mordor a wide berth and in return he would leave me to my own doings."
"You had an arrangement with the Dark Lord?" Aragorn asked incredulously.
"Yes. It is broken now. It broke the moment I agreed to go on this quest. At first I only came to Rivendell at the personal plea of Lady Galadriel. From there Elrond and Gandalf told me that the One Ring had been found. I will admit that at the time I did not care who had the Ring, because to me it did not matter."
"Why would that not matter to you? With the Ring in Sauron's hands he would have covered this world in shadow and flame!"
"I know! But it would have made little difference to me. As I told Gandalf and Elrond all those months ago. Sauron was many things, but a fool was generally not one of them. He knew better than to test me, Ring or no Ring."
"I do not understand."
"The Elemental Monarchs are the most powerful beings on Arda at any given moment, even one who remained uncrowned as I had would have been deadly to him and he knew it. He was not about to take the chance that I might truly destroy him if he tried to get rid of me. He would have died, but more than likely he would have taken me along with him. Now that I am Crowned his fear of me will have grown tenfold. There is only one way to kill someone like me and you already know it, even then it has to be their choice to pass on." Aragorn was about to say something when he was interrupted by the arrival of Celeborn.
"Queen Rhew. There are people who wish to see you." He told me. I turned back to my father and smiled at him.
"Get some rest. This day has been long and we will have time to speak later." I said gently.