5. Sketches

"Do your sons intend to stay long in Tirion?" Elisiel asked Celebrían as they watched over Estellan as he lay on a blanket surrounded by several of his favourite toys. Elisiel handed him the well-worn wooden rattle that Thranduil had carved for Legolas when he was a babe, and Estellan showed his delight in the heirloom by kicking his tiny feet in the air.

"I hope not, but if Adar and Naneth have anything to say about it, I think that my sons, and my grandchildren, will be there for quite a while," Celebrían answered sounding slightly annoyed.

"They are probably being spoiled by Celeborn and Galadriel, they both seem very devoted to the children of their grandsons, which I find a little surprising," laughed Elisiel. "From the way Thranduil used to speak of his distant kin, he gave me the impression that he was rather 'cold and aloof', to say the least."

"Outwardly he appears so, but Adar is really a sweet, gentle and compassionate Elf," said Celebrían, her deep love and affection for Celeborn colouring her voice. "He and Naneth suggested I invite you and Thranduil to accompany Elrond and I on our next visit to Tirion. Do you think he would be interested in going to a Noldor city?"

"He may grumble a bit outwardly, but he has mellowed somewhat in his attitudes to the past, and I am certain that he wants to see as much of Valinor as possible," answered Elisiel with an enigmatic smile as she recalled exactly why Thranduil was interested in exploring Valinor. Estellan chose that moment to shiver slightly so she reached for a lightweight blanket to place over the elf child who had succumbed to the restful rocking of the ship and had fallen asleep.

"I see that our husbands are enjoying a rather rowdy reunion over there," said Celebrían casting her glance towards the stern of the ship just as the Elves in question burst into laughter at something Glorfindel had said. "It is good to see them together once more, and in such a joyful mood."

"It is a day I have long awaited, and I see that Glorfindel has generously opened his last bottle of Dorwinion for the occasion," commented Elisiel as she recognised the shape of the bottle that held the wine favoured by her husband and his friends.

"I do not recall seeing him carrying any wine earlier," said Celebrían as she carefully moved the rattle from beneath Estellan, who had whimpered slightly as he rolled over onto the hard object. She expertly accomplished the task without disturbing the babe further and he quickly returned to a deep sleep, dreaming the dreams of an innocent.

"Probably because he had already sent Legolas several bottles of wine, including the Dorwinion, telling him they were his contribution to the evening, and that he simply wanted to make sure Thranduil would feel at home here," explained Elisiel. "Speaking of which, if you will watch over Estellan, I will go and find us a bottle of wine that is to our taste."

"A goblet of wine sounds delightful, why should they have all the fun!" said Celebrían, a bright smile on her face as she returned Glorfindel's cheeky salute with a more dignified wave of her hand.

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The storage cupboard where Legolas kept his supply of wine as well as lembas, dried fruits and other items of food suitable for a short stay on his ship, was located below deck and Elisiel selected a partly finished bottle of red wine from the rack. However, there were no goblets in sight, so she quickly searched the cupboards, and finally found two tucked away in the back of the smallest one. Pleased to have so easily found the goblets, Elisiel turned to leave when a box containing some very old books caught her attention. She had often been on Legolas' ship, and she wondered how she had not noticed it before. The wine and the goblets forgotten for the moment, she knelt down beside the box and indulged her curiousity as to its contents.

Most of the books were bound in leather with richly embossed gilt writing on the spines. She knew the elvish runes in the titles and she quickly determined that these were history books. All except the last one, which was not so much a book as it was many leaves of thick parchment held together in a plain leather folder.

"So this is where you are? The Lady Celebrían asked me to seek you out, and remind you that she is waiting for her wine. What have you found, Naneth?" asked Legolas curiously, smiling as Elisiel jumped slightly at the sound of his voice. It was not overly loud, but he been silent in his approach, and she had been so engrossed in her find that she was startled by the unexpected sound.

"Some old books of yours, I believe. Where are they from?" she asked. Legolas peered into the box, a shadow of grief passing across his fair features as memories of days gone by filled his mind.

"The books were a gift from Prince Faramir. Most of them tell of the history of the Stewards of Gondor, but there are a few that delve into the 'mysteries of Elvish Lore' as he put it. He penned those ones himself, and he gifted them to me as a reminder of my time in Ithilien," he explained. "This is his sketchbook," he said as he reverently took the folder from Elisiel's' hands. "He was quite a skilled artist," he mused as he carefully lifted the first sketch out and studied the picture of an Elf and a Dwarf, and a grey haired Man standing behind them with one hand placed passively on each of their shoulders.

"Why, that is a picture of you and Gimli!" declared Elisiel. "It is a good likeness of you both, and I assume that the Man standing behind you is Aragorn?" Legolas nodded.

"I remember quite clearly the day Faramir sketched this, it was the day we decided it was time to begin building the ship," he said. "Aragorn constantly teased Faramir for not wishing to damage his delicate artist's fingers, preferring to draw us at our labours rather than joining us. It was merely jest, of course, for as you can see from this picture, Faramir also helped. He even took the time in the early days after the War to learn some of the skills from his uncle's shipbuilders."

"Then who was the other artist?" asked Elisiel, easily able to see the differences in the two styles.

"Aragorn's son-- Eldarion. They decided it would make a better record of the time if they both drew on the same paper," replied Legolas. As he slowly turned the pages, the ship began to take shape, and Elisiel was impressed to see that both Faramir and Eldarion had chosen to capture the builders in unguarded moments rather than have them pose.

"Ai, Legolas, this is a lovely picture of Aragorn, and I assume, Arwen?" she asked pointing to the drawing of the King of Gondor as he stole a kiss from his lovely wife. "I guess it to be Eldarion's work. He has captured such passion between them, they must have loved each other dearly."

"Yes, they did," he said simply. "Can you guess who this might be?" he asked as he pointed to a young man helping Gimli lift some planks. Elisiel studied the picture for a few moments before answering.

"Except that his hair has not yet greyed and his skin shows no sign of age, I would say a young Aragorn, but I assume this is Eldarion?" she replied, amazed at the likeness between father and son.

"Faramir captured his part human, part elvish look very well, just as he did with the two lovely young ladies sitting on the edge of the river dangling their feet in the water. They are Arwen's daughters. Of that there is no doubt."

"Yes, I can see Arwen in their eyes," agreed Elisiel. " You must allow me to show this book to Elrond and Celebrían," she insisted.

"If you think it wise, for you know Elrond and Arwen parted bitterly," said Legolas sounding dubious. "I would not wish to be responsible for opening old and very likely painful, wounds.

"Trust me on this, they will want to see this artwork. The pictures may cause them some grief, but I know they both often wonder about their daughter's fate, and that of her family. It will do them both more good than harm," she said confidently.

"I bow to your judgement," said Legolas, as he turned back to the first sketch. "May the Valar watch over you, mellon nin," he whispered as he trace a finger down the cheek of first Aragon and then Gimli.

Elisiel said nothing, but reached up to kiss away her son's grief. She handed him the part bottle of wine and the goblets, and putting her arm through his, escorted him back to where Celebrían was dealing with his crying son.

"Where have you two been?" demanded Celebrían. "Estellan is now wide awake and looking for his Naneth, and I was beginning to think you and Legolas had simply vanished!" Estellan was loudly continuing to make his hunger known, so Legolas took his son from Celebrían arm, the presence of his Adar calming the babe a little.

"Neridwen is on the beach helping with the preparation of the feast. I thank you both for minding my son, but I should take him to his Naneth before he realises I cannot offer a suitable source of nourishment," said Legolas, with a twinkle in his eye.

"What is that?" asked Celebrían, pointing to the folder Elisiel had found.

"Let us go and join Elrond and Thranduil and I will explain everything," she answered.

"This area of the ship is for drinkers of wine only," declared Glorfindel, smiling when he saw the bottle of wine and the two silver goblets in Celebrían's hands. "It is just as well you have your own, for I believe we have almost finished ours," he said with a forlorn look at he empty bottle as he turned it upside down.

"We would not wish to deprive you of anything, Glorfindel. You may share our wine if it suits you to do so," said Elisiel sweetly. "However, it is not only wine that I wish to share with Elrond and Celebrían. I believe this sketch book that I found on the ship will interest you all," she said as she handed the folder to Elrond. There were indrawn breaths and small gasps sometimes of surprise, and other times of anguish as the once Lord and Lady of Imladris saw their daughter once more, and met their mortal grandchildren for the first time.

"Arwen," whispered Elrond as he stared at the beloved face of the daughter who chose to remain with her lover.

"Was Aragorn as handsome as his son in his younger days?" asked Celebrían, unable to take her eyes from the drawing of her daughter.

"Yes, Eldarion bears a very close resemblance to his father," said Thranduil. "The ship building took almost a year, and according to Legolas, all the Elves of Ithilien as well as the King and his Steward, and Gimli, of course, enjoyed the task immensely."

"It breaks my heart to think that he was suffering from his denial of the call of the sea all the time he was building the vessel in which he intended to sail West," commented Elisiel. Thranduil wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders.

"It was a bittersweet time for them all, for it was never spoken out loud, but all knew that Aragorn's passing was imminent."

"Do you mean to tell me that these sketches were drawn not long before Aragorn accepted the Gift of Númenor?" asked Celebrían, her eyes bright with tears at the sadness of the thought.

"Yes," answered Legolas who had returned from handing his son over to the care of his Naneth.

"How is it that you have only just now chosen to show us these?" asked Elrond sounding slightly displeased.

"It was not a deliberate affront, for in all the commotion that surrounded my own arrival, I simply forgot about them," explained Legolas. "When Naneth found them, I was afraid to tell you, afraid to cause you any more pain," he answered honestly.

"Very noble of you," said Glorfindel who was also fascinated by the glimpse into the past, and the rendition of Arwen and her family. "I often wonder how Arwen fared, and it is comforting to finally know the answers."

"Yes, it is a comfort, and I find I am grateful for the chance," said Elrond. "This last page is only partly drawn, and you have such a look of impending doom on your face. Was it Faramir or Eldarion who tired of sketching?" asked Elrond.

"My face reflects the certainty I felt that I had said my last goodbye to Aragorn the day he returned to the White City. Neither artist ever tired of sketching, but that partly finished piece is Eldarion's work. He had just started the part of the picture that was to feature Gimli when a messenger rode up from Minas Tirith to deliver a message from Arwen urgently recalling him home. The next day Aragorn lay in the House of the Dead and all of Gondor mourned," said Legolas sadly, his heart filled with renewed grief for his deceased friends.

The Elves all held their silence for a few minutes, each thinking their own melancholy thoughts and coming to terms with the loss of the beloved Mortals in their own way.

In the sky above the shadow of death dimmed the brightness of the stars.