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Visions of Gold

Chapter 71: Coda

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

A small bird landed on Aragorn’s desk, chirping happily as it stomped all over the parchment that he was attempting to write on. With a gentle wave of his hand he attempted to shoo it away to no avail as it deftly avoided his efforts and only chirped louder in protest. 

“Tell your master that I’ll be down in just a moment,” he scolded, lifting up the parchment from under the bird and moving it a few inches away to the other side of his desk. His efforts to continue his work were thwarted by the bird deftly plucking the quill from his hand and leaping just out of his reach. 

“Oh fine,” he chuckled good naturedly. “You win, tell her I’m coming.”

The bird tilted its head in what Aragorn swore was a sign of skepticism. It stood resolutely on his desk, watching to make sure he made good on his word as Aragorn pointedly stacked his papers and buckled on his sword belt. Once it was satisfied that its mission was complete, the cheeky thing chirped once more before launching itself out the nearby window- taking Aragorn’s quill with it. 

He chuckled lightly as he ran his eyes across his office once more before exiting, heading towards his dining halls where there would be a meal with his elvish family, the Fellowship, and a few other individuals who took part in the efforts to free Middle Earth. It was a bit of a reunion celebration- a small gathering to mark how far they had all come. His adoptive father and brothers would be present alongside the Fellowship, Eowyn, Faramir, Gimli’s father Gloin, Glorfindel, and Elenya. 

Following Elenya’s miraculous return from the assumed-dead, she and Glorfindel had been near inseparable. The odd pair, along with their wolf, soon ended up settling in the Druadan Forest just outside of Minas Tirith. They became crucial allies in eliminating the last remnants of Sauron’s armies alongside the newly-awakened Ents that Elenya continued to create. 

Of course, calming the citizens of Minas Tirith when they first noticed the small army of walking trees was a less-than-ideal headache the Aragorn had had to deal with, but the added security made it mostly worth it. 

Although it was clear that Elenya and Nightshade tended to get uncomfortable around the crowds of Minas Tirith and the Citadel, they still did on occasion venture into the city for the sake of Glorfindel who remained a social butterfly and greatly enjoyed his post as a slightly remote military advisor to Aragorn. His presence on the newly-crowned King’s council was invaluable in helping Aragorn settle the people of Gondor as he established himself as king. 

Pausing at the great wooden doors leading to his informal dining hall, Aragorn leaned forward and listened to the raucous laughter and cries of mock indignation on the other side. After a particularly voracious Sindarin insult from Elladan, he schooled the smirk off his face and entered. 

“The King approaches!” Glorfindel cried out in his most authoritative voice. The blond elf, in contrast to his ceremonious introduction, had lept onto the table and now stood with a goblet of wine held high and he feet straddling the plate of Elrohir who was uselessly batting at his ankles. 

“Yes indeed,” Gimli chimed in. “Hail to King Aragorn Elessar Strider Longshanks Whatshisface!”

Aragorn had barely opened his mouth to protest the mocking titles before Legolas slapped Gimli over the head. 

“Have you no respect for the King of Gondor!” He chided harshly. “Before us stands the great reuniter of Arnor- to think that such a Grand Majesty was once the boy who followed me up a tree and cried when he couldn’t get down.”

That last comment resulted and Aragorn quickly striding forward and swiping a piece of bread off the table to lob at said elf’s head. This quickly resulted in a brief food fight where various rolls and pastries were flung back and forth. 

“Oi! Not the good rolls!” Sam cried in dismay as one of his favorite poppy seed rolls flew straight between his outstretched hands. Luckily, Frodo, who was seated beside him, managed to catch one and place it on the offended hobbit’s plate. 

Once the ruckus had settled down, Aragorn stood at the head of the table and lifted his own goblet. His eyes flickered across his companions- the ones who raised him, guided him, and battled alongside him. 

“My friends,” he swallowed the lump in his throat as he spoke. “I have given enough speeches in the past several months to last a lifetime and I feel no need to bestow upon you, the ones who were there in the center of the chaos, the platitudes of victory. I have already offered everyone here my personal gratitude, understanding that words will never truly express the depth of how much Gondor and I have relied on each and every person sitting here today. And so I say to you- let us eat, drink, and be merry!”

“Here here!”

Agoreg vae!”

“Wahooo!”

“Ai!”

“That’s my kind of speech!”

But just before the fasted fork, belonging of course to Pippin, could dip into the ladened dishes, Elenya raised a hand, hovering it over the table. She tilted her head, examining the spread with scrutiny before speaking in a song-like tone. 

“May the fruits of this feast bless those of the table with lives of joy, health, and the fulfillment of their hearts.” At the end of her words, the Valar-borne’s eyes flashed with white starlight and the food on the table briefly glowed. There was a sudden silence in the hall broken only by the chomping of Nightshade who was undeterred from her hunk of veal. “Hm,” came the brief sound from Elenya’s closed lips. 

She turned to Glorfindel beside her who was gazing at her with those besotted eyes that he had been flashing all the more in recent days. 

“I suppose… this is something new that I can do…”

The room remain frozen for several more moments, each attempting to process what the power of a Valar’s blessing could bring to a meal. Eventually, the stalemate was broken.

“Delicious smelling food and blessed by Raven’s glowy-thing. I’m in.” Gloin, father of Gimli, and a dwarf who was apparently one of Elenya’s first friends in Middle Earth, eagerly tucked in. 

With that the spell of silence was broken and everyone resumed their joyous conversation as they dug into the food and reveled in the hard-won peace they now enjoyed. 



***

“The Lord of Dreams has spoken to me,” Elrond turned to Elenya, extending one last offer. “He wished for me to inform you that you are always welcome in Valinor.”

The harbor was largely empty save a single ship with only a few elvish crew members prowling the deck to complete their final checks before departing. The sunlight was warm and shone atop the azure sea that sparkled like jewels from the depths of a dwarvish mine. The cries of gulls circling above joined in with the gentle lapping of waves along the dock to make a seaside chorus. It was a beautifully peaceful day in Middle Earth with no cloud of evil or whisper of malice to be seen or heard. What a perfect final day on this side of the sea for Elrond. 

With his companions having already boarded the ship set to take them home to Valinor, only Elrond remained to say his final goodbyes to the small party watching them depart. 

“I appreciate you passing on the message, but Valinor will never be my home.” Elenya replied. Elrond, expecting as much, nodded in understanding. 

“Then we will not meet again. Farewell, may fair winds grace your path.”

“One last thing,” Elenya let slip a slight smirk as she handed Elrond a sealed letter with “Yavanna” written in flowing script across. “This is for Yavanna and the rest of the Aratar. Please pass this on once you arrive.”

Elrond reluctantly took the parchment, glancing at it with deep suspicion in his eyes. 

“Please tell me that you are not asking me to deliver a threat to the Valar.” He watched as the smirk on Elenya’s face grew, quickly holding up a hand to prevent her from speaking further. “Nevermind, it’s best that I don’t know.”

With that he tucked the letter into his sleeve, telling himself that he still had plausible deniability on anything that the letter contained. He glanced at the party who had come to see him and the other ring-bearers off. Much had changed in this world he loved. The ever present threat of Melkor’s power was turned to dust, his daughter was happily married on her own path, and Middle Earth no longer needed the protection and guidance of elven-kind. 

Having said his goodbyes to his family before arriving at the docks, Elrond turned to Glofindel who very solemnly placed a fist across his chest as he kneeled down. 

“Your decision is final then,” he asked, though he already knew the answer. “You will not be sailing back to Valinor with us, to the land of your birth?” It pained him to say goodbye to yet another friend, but had learned that it is impossible to pull others away from the destiny of their hearts. Though he knew not what the future would look like for Middle Earth, nor how well Glorfindel and Elenya would fare on their own, their choices were made and may as well have been set in stone. 

“Yes my Lord, I have made up my mind.”

“Very well then,” he resisted the urge to sigh as he placed a hand atop the kneeling elf’s head. “I, Elrond Earendilion, Herald to the last King of the Noldor and final Lord of Imladris, do hereby evanesce the bond betwixt myself and Lord Glorfindel. I relinquish you from all bounds of servitude with honor and an open heart. You are hereby free to follow your own path wherever or to whomever it may lead. I thank you for your service and wish you a future that shines with the light of the stars.”

At the end of his words, Glorfindel rose and embraced the Peredhel, whispering “thank you” for his ears only. 

Emerging from his hug, Glorfinel took a few steps backwards to grasp Elenya’s hand tight, bringing it to his lips to grace with a single kiss as Elrond turned to board the ship that would take him away from these shores for forever.

 He was leaving behind the house he had ruled for centuries to fade away, his daughter to her mortal fate, and the only home he had ever known for the place had never seen yet longed for still. Glorfindel, one of the last of the Calaquendi left on these shores, would never return to the land that bore him. 

Once the anchor was raised and the ship pushed off from the dock, Elrond watched as the shoreline slowly disappeared from view. He made his way carefully towards the bow of the ship where he gazed at the far horizon. Somewhere, beyond his sight, was the homeland that he had never known. But, just as he was preparing to wander below deck, a raven with sleek black feathers landed before him on the ship’s bow. It ruffled its feathers once and lifted its head to release a long, mournful croak. 

Elrond chuckled lightly despite the wary looks that others seemed to glance at each other with, black birds still so often seen as bad omens by the elves. He lifted his hand and attempted to stroke its back only to hastily retreat as it snapped its sharp beak at him.

“Of course my friend,” he smiled as the raven seemed to chuff, preening its wings. “My apologies. But please, ask your master to take care of him, will you? They must watch over each other.”

The raven paused its motions to lock gazes with Elrond, eyes holding far more clarity than a common bird. Not breaking eye-contact, it gave one solemn nod before releasing a final cry and taking flight- back in the direction of the land which they came from. 

Elrond paused for a moment to watch it disappear, a single tear falling from his eye for the ones he was leaving behind. 

“Farewell,” he whispered for only the breeze to hear. “May the path you choose bring you joy, both of you.”



Notes:

Just the Epilogue to go!

Does it make sense for a story to have a coda and an epilogue?
No.
Am I doing it anyway?
Absolutely.