Forgotten Allies: part i
by: McJen

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"Love is eternal. That is its terror and its final beauty. Love never ends. The joy may go out of it, and, in time, even the pain may end. But it lingers like a living thing and follows you every moment of your life."

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The kingdoms of men rose and fell and histories were forgotten and rebuilt many times over. And but a little while did it seem to the Elves who lived in the Blessed Realm. At least to all save a few. There were a few elves who were more acutely aware of the passage of time, and how it affected those who did not live for an eternity. And in turn when the passage of time seemed too great a distance to cross even in memory, each of these Elves could be found in the same place. Beneath the great mallorn trees, upon the high hill that overlooked the Forests, within the only cemetery in the Undying Lands. Four headstones surrounded by tall soft green grasses were the only reminder of mortality in a land that was blessed with eternal life.

And on this night, in nights beyond counting, Legolas stood beside the graves and gazed long upon the Elvish runes that twisted upon the headstones and sparkled beneath the starlight.

"The stars, they do not change, nor does the beauty of this land. And yet. . . ."

"You grow restless?" a voice said from behind him.

Legolas turned to see Gandalf who had joined him at the hill top.

Legolas nodded. "Too touched by mortals, perhaps to endure the endless days flowing seamlessly together. So that I lose count of all the sunsets I have seen. And I grow even weary of them, though their beauty is unsurpassed."

"Even beauty looses its luster if forever unchanged. Commonplace it becomes. And that is a greater tragedy." Gandalf said.

"It is true. My father often warned me of the dangers of befriending mortals. And little did I heed his warnings." Legolas said.

"But you were very young." Gandalf said.

"And foolish." Legolas added.

"And yet. . . ."

"I would do it all again, exactly the same. Though I would wish for more time to enjoy their company." Legolas said.

Gandalf smiled. "So you also grieve their loss after so many years?"

"The hurt is deeper than any I have ever known." Legolas said.

"How I loved the sound of their laughter." Gandalf said.

"Mortals possess a love of life that cannot equal the Elves no matter how many ages pass. For they know they do not have forever and so few squander their time." Legolas said. "Their courage is more heroic, their joy and sadness greater. And their laughter is truer."

"Some days I hear a distant laughter and am sure it is the sound of Bilbo." Gandalf said, almost to himself.

Legolas looked at Gandalf, surprised. "I too have heard the distant laughter, though to my ears it is always Gimli." Legolas said, and stared long at one particular grave site.

"We are both cursed and blessed to remember them for so long. Our love for them was deep." Gandalf said.

"Deeper still is my desire to conquer the growing evil so that their descendants however distant they may be, will know peace." Legolas said.

"You too have felt the growing darkness?"

Legolas nodded. "It is not as strong as the darkness that once befell Middle-Earth, but it is strong for those who have only their lives to give to defend it."

"And what aid can we give, besides our immortality." Gandalf asked.

"Isn't that enough?" Legolas asked.

Gandalf chuckled. "Perhaps it is. Yet we also have wisdom."

"You may have wisdom. I have none at all. Nor ever felt like I did, truth be told." Legolas said.

"And that is the first sign that one is indeed wise." Gandalf said.

"Then I should be the wisest elf in all the Blessed Realm." Legolas said.

At that Gandalf laughed out loud. The sound filled the air and seemed to lighten the heart and spirit. Legolas gazed up at the stars. He did not feel wise. And though he knew great age, he still felt like the young elf who once looked into the forests of Fangorn and was so entranced by the sight of eyes that he was willing to give up his entire quest to see what those eyes beheld. If not for Gandalf's stern words, he probably would have dashed off into the forest, dwarf or no dwarf behind him. At that thought, Legolas smiled.

"I have never understood how a happy memory can bring so much sadness." Legolas said.

"It is not the happy memory that is bringing you sadness, but the fact that those whom you shared it with are gone." Gandalf said.

Legolas and Gandalf stared at their old friends graves. From left to right, Legolas stared at the headstones. The Elvish script said nothing poetic, for no poetry was needed to memorialize their lives. They were well-known within the Blessed Realm. Only their names were written, in a sparkling elvish script that not time nor wind would wear away. Bilbo Baggins, Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gamgee, Gimli.

"Do you… . . .Do you know where they are Gandalf? Where their spirits walk?" Legolas asked. In all his years in the Blessed Realm, he had never dared ask such a question.

Gandalf shook his head. "My path is with the undying. It is not for me to know where the souls of mortals walk or if they are forever at rest."

"Some days, Gandalf, some days I think it a gift." Legolas said.

Gandalf nodded, "As do I."

The winds blew through the grasses and they rippled like waves on the ocean. The soft winds smelt of woods and open spaces and sky and water. Legolas and Gandalf gazed up at the stars. The stars that wheeled through the sky, forever unchanging.

They heard soft elvish footsteps and Elrond walked up the hill to join them. Gandalf nodded, as if expecting him.

"I should have known we would meet here, of all places." Elrond said. "The past holds us like ropes, connecting us forever to Middle-Earth." He stared solemnly at the graves.

"Your ropes are stronger than most." Gandalf said.

Elrond nodded sadly. "Indeed. Have you spoken to the Valar?"

"I have." Gandalf said.

Legolas's eyes rose to meet Elrond's. He knew nothing of the words exchanged between the two, but could feel the sudden rise in tension, as if the air were charged with it.

"And what is their proclamation." Elrond asked.

"They were not pleased with my actions, but they will leave us to do as we see fit." Gandalf said.

"So we will not be hindered?" Elrond asked.

"We will not."

"And Legolas? You will join us?" Elrond asked, turning to Legolas.

"Return to Middle-Earth?" Legolas asked.

Elrond nodded. "Did you not know that others have already returned?"

Legolas looked at Gandalf. "Why did you not tell me?" "All in due time." Gandalf said. "I was waiting for the right moment. But Elrond will finish this story. There is much for me to do, and even less time to do it in."

Gandalf disappeared into the darkness, Elrond and Legolas watched him go. The peacefulness of Valinor that Legolas had taken for granted for so many years, was suddenly gone. Replacing it was an eager anticipation of a coming journey and the unknown.

"The coming darkness." Legolas said. "You have felt it as well?"

Elrond nodded. "I have. But the ties between us and Middle-Earth are stronger than in most Elves."

"What is it?" Legolas asked. "Is it Sauron?" "I do not know. It is only a shell of the former darkness in days of old. Perhaps, a remnant of Sauron's old form, but within the flesh and blood of a mortal." Elrond said. "It was the uncertainty that caused my sons to leave at Gandalf's wish, to discover the nature of this evil. For only the eyes of an Elf can see through the many masks and faces that evil wears. The eyes of mortals are easily confused and evil can be hidden. Their journey was to take but a fortnight. Yet they were not there to meet Gandalf at the planned date of returning. He has had no word of them. And the mortal who accompanied them is also missing. The worst is feared."

"Elrohir and Elladan?" Legolas said. "If they had been captured then the evil must indeed be grave."

"Perhaps, perhaps not. Middle-Earth has changed a great deal since we sailed from the havens. It barely resembles the land we left behind." Elrond said. "Though some things remain. Things we should have taken with us. I should have insisted." Elrond sighed heavily. "But I did not have the heart or will then to cause any greater sorrow."

"Your leaving Middle-Earth was the sorrow of Arwen's life." Legolas said. "At least until the death of Aragorn."

"It is because of him that we return. Or more truthfully, because of my weakness of spirit." Elrond said.

If Elrond wished to say more, he would have. And Legolas did not wish to bring more grief to Elrond's face. So he left the questions racing through his mind unanswered and quieted himself with the surprising joy that rose in him at the thought of seeing Middle-Earth again. No matter how changed it may be, it was still in many ways. Home. And in his dreams he often walked there. He could scarcly wait to set his feet upon the shores of Middle-Earth.

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