The week after Aragorn and Arwen's wedding, we left for our trip to the Glittering Caves. Me Legolas and Gimli were eager to be traveling again and I felt great to be away from formalities.
We traveled for over a month into the Westfold of Rohan, towards Helm's Deep. It had been over half a year since we had last been here and yet the memory was still fresh in my mind.
It was safe to say, Legolas was stunned by the beauty of the Glittering Caves, as was me and Gimli. Who knew such beauty could reside underneath such a place of battle?
The caves lived up to their name, glittering and glistening with a thousand lights. We didn't even need to light a torch, the whole cave was lit up with the florescent water which stood in still pools below up. The stalactites and stalagmites stood proud and tall, the odd occasion dripping of water into the pool sent echoes off the cave walls.
We spent nearly two weeks there. We weren't in a rush to get anywhere else. Gimli was pleased just how much Legolas had come to appreciate the caves. Elves usually favoured the vast outdoors whilst the Dwarves dwelt underground. But even Legolas admitted, the Glittering Caves were one of the most beautiful things he had seen, and that said a lot coming from a nearly three thousand year old elf.
The next month we found ourselves in the depths of Fangorn Forest. It was a different type of beauty to the caves but it was beautiful nonetheless.
Both me and Legolas could feel how old the forest was, so ancient were it's roots, it made even us two feel so young in comparison. To an elf, there's only a few things that can make you seem young and Fangorn seemed to be one of those things.
The first week we spent there, Gimli felt on edge because unlike the caves, the forest was alive and he felt uneasy about being watched. After explaining to him just how old and wide the forest was, he relaxed a little.
The second week we stayed there, the Ents came out from hiding. Whilst Gimli wanted nothing better than to grab his axe for reasurance, me and Legolas were intreaged by the ancient beings.
I hadn't thought much about the forest the last time I had been there, after all, I had nearly been eaten alive by Orcs.
I wondered how exactly the elves had woken up the forest all those thousands of years ago. We spent the whole week, listening to the Ents, tales of the First Age of Middle-Earth. Even Gimli couldn't deny his facination with the Ents. By the time we left Fangorn, we were still full of questions but we knew that if we continue to stay there and ask them, we would never leave.
The next few years me, Legolas and Gimli continued to travel together.
Most of my life, I had been a rouge, a solitary ranger without many friends nor a normal family. Then I had met the fellowship and my life was changed. Instead of roaming Middle-Earth alone, I now had Legolas and Gimli and Aragorn. Though Aragorn was usually tied to Minas Tirith, he still continued to be a brother to me whenever we visited him. Same with Gimli, he definitely was a brother-at-arms.
As for Legolas, well, he may be annoying at times, but I wouldn't trade him for anyone else.
During one of our visits to Minas Tirith, we were told that Frodo, Gandalf and Mother Galadriel, as well as others, had sailed to Valinor, the undying lands. I felt sad that I wouldn't likely see Mother Galadriel in the near future but I knew they would be safe and happy in the undying lands. As for Frodo, I hoped he would one day find peace.
I wondered what Valinor was like. I knew that only Elves and Ring-Bearers could sail across the sea and step foot in the undying lands. It is meant to be what is basically elf utopia, a place of peace and harmony.
Perhaps one day I would travel there, to the undying lands, but I didn't think I was ready to put down my axe quite so soon. Even though I was late into my second millennia of life, I had still not seen all Middle-Earth had to offer. It was constantly changing and fighting, why would I leave such a curious country to live in a place that never changes and never dies?
At last, we set our sights on The Shire.
We had just traveled to Rivendell which was nearly completely emptied of elves. Most of the elves had sailed to Valinor, as had most of the elves from Lothlórien. A few remained in Middle-Earth by their own choice but many chose to leave. The elves of Mirkwood however, barely any left for Valinor, most chose to stay.
It took us months to reach the quaint Shire but as soon as we passed the Village of Bree and saw the little squat houses, I knew it was the Shire.
Not a cloud in sight, the sun shine over the valley of Hobbiton, basking the whole of The Shire in sunlight.
It wasn't a surprise the reception we gathered upon our arrival to The Shire. Having traveled with each other for nearly six years, we were accustomed to the perplexed faces people gave us as we passed by. After all, it was rather unusual to find two elves and a dwarf as traveling companions.
Then of course, we knew that many in The Shire had probably never seen an elf or a dwarf before, let alone together.
I couldn't help but chuckle as we trotted down the small cobbled pathways into the heart of Hobbiton. Every jaw dropped and everyone stared at us as we rode towards the market plaza.
Silence befell the plaza as we jumped down from our saddled. Our horses alone were nearly twice the size of the little halflings. Gimli was much more their height but me and Legolas towered over them.
"I don't believe it!" I heard a familiar voice cry as we turned and saw someone push their way through the crowd, another Hobbit following quickly behind.
"Merry! Pippin!" I exclaimed as I ran up to them, dropped to my knees and flung my arms around the two halflings, "It's so good to see you guys!"
"We'd thought you were joking all those years ago when you promised to visit the Shire!" Merry chirped happily as Gimli and Legolas came to our sides, broad smiles on their faces.
I knew that I had just stunned the other Hobbits in the plaza into another wave of silence. They were now staring at our happy reunion with both awe and confusion.
They were confused beyond belief why we strangers were so close to Merry and Pippin. It may have been embarrassing for them but knowing them, they didn't mind the attention.
"Where's Sam?" Legolas asked, scanning the crowd for the other Hobbit.
"He's probably at home with the family." Pippin shrugged.
"Family?" I scoffed, "What exactly did we miss?"
All eyes were still on us as Merry and Pippin led us through the quaint little town. Some of the little Hobbit children were gawping at us in awe, obviously having only heard tales of our kinds before.
It wasn't long before we were stood outside one of the little round doors under a small hill. The cute little garden was full of beautiful flowers and a million and one different fruit and veg.
Pippin knocked excitedly on the round door, Merry standing to his side with an equally excited smile.
"Who is it?" I heard the familiar voice of Sam call.
"It's us," Merry called out, "And we've come with friends!"
A few moments later, the doornob twisted and the little door swung open to reveal Sam. His jaw dropped upon seeing us again and once he got over the shock, he came bounding out to greet us.
"It's been too long!" I exclaimed happily, content that Sam was smiling because the last time I had seen him, he wasn't in good spirits.
"What are you doing here?" He asked curiously as he greeted Legolas and Gimli as well.
"I promised didn't I?" I scoffed, "I promised I'd visit this peaceful Shire of yours."
"Darling, who's at the door- oh!" A little Hobbit woman now stood at the door, her hair in blonde ringlets, a little baby girl in her arms and one hand drapped across her pregnant stomach.
"Who's this?" Legolas asked as the little baby girl gawped at him.
Two children appeared beside the blonde woman, one boy and another girl, all with the same curly wear blonde hair. They clutched to the woman's dress and hid behind her as they stared up at us. I couldn't blame them, we probably looked like giants to them.
"This is Rosie, my wife," Sam smiled awkwardly as he walked to her side and tried to coach the children out from hiding.
"Congratulations," Legolas chuckled heartily.
"And the little ones?" Gimli smiled down at the hiding children.
"This is Elanor," Sam said as the little girl timidly walked out from behind Rosie, her brother walking out with her, "And this is Frodo."
"Frodo?" I mused happily, "A fitting name."
"And this is Rose," Sam cooed as he gently took the baby from Rosie's arms.
"Don't forget there's another one on the way," Pippin chuckled as he gestured to Rosie's stomach.
"Um... I'm still waiting for an explanation," Rosie squeaked awkwardly as she continued to look between us and her husband.
"Remember when I told you about the Fellowship and the Ring?" Sam said shyly, "Well I wasn't joking. This is Lady Sapphire, Prince Legolas and Gimli."
It was safe to say, she was rather shocked, apparently she had just assumed we weren't real, but now we were right in front of her. Not only was this probably the only time she had seen an elf or a dwarf, but she now knew that her husband had been a part of the fellowship.
We spent two weeks in The Shire, mostly because I was fascinated by the peaceful land. Truly it was as beautiful as all the Hobbits had told us, a place unburdened by war or troubles.
We stayed at the Inn 'The Green Dragon'. There weren't exactly any rooms big enough for me or Legolas but that was ok, we didn't need to sleep much and when we did, we just sort of curled up. Fortunately, Gimli was the right size for his room.
Throughout the week, the villagers continued to ask us questions out of curiosity. The children were especially facinated by us and I was more than happy to sit down with them and tell them a few tales of my travels.
It was lovely to see the Hobbits again after all those years. Having seen Sam with his happy little family, Gimli decided it was probably time to check up on our own families, namely Thranduil in Legolas' case and Gimli's mother in his case.
It had been nearly seven years since we left Mirkwood and I had to admit that traveling through Middle-Earth with Gimli and Legolas was a wonderful experience. But we all knew that we would eventually have to separate.
I didn't believe it would be the end of adventuring, after all, I still hadn't found the lost city of Gondolin. But perhaps that discovery would have to wait.
We split from Gimli when we entered the Westfold of Rohan, while we traveled north, he continued east. It felt weird without Gimli there, after all, we had spent seven years together as companions.
That didn't mean there weren't a few perks to his leave of absence. More time alone with Legolas springs to mind.
After a month absence of Gimli, we had fallen back into the routine of flirting and fighting with each other. Though it felt weird for Gimli not to be there, after all he was like a brother to us, it did feel good to be by ourselves again.
Mirkwood felt and looked better than the last time we had seen it seven years ago. The trees seemed less dark and menacing. The elven path which was overgrown last time, seemed to have been retiled so it was clearer and easier to navigate. Though there was still an unearthly amount of cobwebs, it seemed the forest was starting to grow back some colour. Perhaps now that the Ring had been destroyed, Mirkwood would finally revert back to the Greenwood of old.
Having been so long since we had seen Thranduil, I was optimistic for once that any rift between us had disapated over the years and he had forgotten everything sour he felt for me. Having had years to come to terms with the fact I had recovered his treasures and the fact his son was in love with me, I hoped he was now at peace with it all.
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