Tol Ereassёa
How does one describe sailing beyond the end of the world? It does not seem as though gravity releases it hold but when a day comes where the sun rises and sets in the eastern sky behind your ship that sails ever westward you know that you are indeed somewhere truly magical. Somewhere that is west of the sun. Eruanna could never explain it though few ever had asked her too. She couldn't precisely recall how long the journey took, as was the case with any who traveled the straight road after the world changed.
Eruanna remembered the day well when the sun rose and set in the east, she knew then she was reaching the end of her voyaged. She had had the worse feeling through out the trip that it was all too good to be true, and that one day they would wake to find they had run aground in what would one day be Nova Scotia or some other place in the America. Instead one morning she awoke from her bunk and felt at peace.
It was that day that the sun had risen and set in the eastern sky and that night the stars were more brilliant then ever before. She looked up at the sky in awe. She found the star she had as a child learnt to be Venus, but knew now as Earendil. She looked at that vibrant light wondering if he could see her and whether he knew she was coming. She hoped to see Earendil again, her friend and ally of old but the one person above all other's she wished to see was the one she knew would be waiting for her. Laiqualassё.
The ocean was like silver glass smooth and peaceful with only the smallest rippling waves trailing the grey ship as it glided forward. Eruanna spent many hours standing at the prow of the ship as they traveled ever westward. One morning a distant shore could be seen. Through that entire day it drew ever closer. The beaches white as sparkling diamonds glistening in the sun could be seen by mid day. As dusk was falling over the beautiful isle the ship slipped in the quay of the city of Avallone.
When Eruanna had seen the harbour she had gone below the deck to change into the dress that her father had given her. She had remembered taking it from its wrappings and hanging it in her closest. It was a white dress; the sleeves were tight to my elbows then flared out. At the elbow there were strips of gold fabric. The bodice was snug and the skirts flowed. Little gold flowers and vines wound around the hem of the skirts the neck line and the cuffs of the sleeves. The dress had a light cloak to go with it; the cloak was white and worked with a spreading golden tree. Eruanna gasped at seeing it for the first time and mentally thanked her Ada with tears in her eyes.
As she descended from the ship dressed in the white silk gown she looked almost as one of the elves. The gown clung however to curves that the ellith did not processes, it showed her human beauty, exotic among all of these willowy elves. Most of the Teleri had never seen a daughter of men before and were intrigued by this newest arrival.
One ellon watched her descend the gang way to the quay with a love shinning so brightly in his grey eyes that the few around him in the crowd looked at him in wonder even in Aman such love was a rare and precious thing. Slowly, he weaved his way through the crowd working his way towards the front of the crowd to reach the area where family greeted those who had come. His eyes never left her form. He watched her scan the crowd, he knew that she was looking for him, hoping to see him. He kept walking forward, however, when she reached the end of the gangway the front of the dock was blocked from view and he could not see her.
Eruanna scanned the crowd looking for Laiqualassё most of all but in general anyone that she recognized. She felt so alone, more alone then she had when she had first come through from her own time. She came down into the area where the elves she had traveled with were meeting those who had come before them. The few who did not have close family on Tol Eressёa seemed to know where to go. Eruanna stood with the same nervous feeling she had felt on her first day of High School, where should she go what should she do? For a time she just stood there like a deer in the head lights
"Eruanna, Eruanna-Mernaseldё," she head a female voice call from the crowd. She turned and looked trying to find the person who spoke. It was a desperate search; she wanted nothing more then to see someone she knew, even if it wasn't the one she had been hoping for. Suddenly a blond elleth grasped her by the shoulders and Eruanna looked in the fair face and remembered.
"Curoneth," she said excitedly. The last Eruanna had seen her; she had just taken an arrow in the chest.
"You are here! You are alive!" she exclaimed Curoneth with out taking a breath. Then the she saw the blond elleth who was right behind Eruanna. "Lailitha, my child," she said in a hoarse whisper. "Is it really you?" she asked.
"Nanneth," cried Lailitha. Eruanna looked on with tears of joy as the mother and daughter who had been torn apart in the most horrible fashion were again united in joy.
Curoneth turned to Eruanna, and pulled her into a hug. "Thank you, my friend, for caring for my child."
"Curoneth you must help me find Laiqualassё," said Eruanna searching the crowd as it began to thin.