The Quest

THE QUEST: Chapter 52

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is my final chapter for The Quest. Thank you all for coming on this journey with me for so long. This fic is more than just a fic to me, it is my literal heart and soul. Without this fandom, I wouldn't have found so any family and friends that I hold dear and will cherish forever in my heart. I will post an epilogue sometime tomorrow for this fic, so be sure to have your notifications turned on! I love you all and thank you.

Chapter 52

"Oryn?!" Alannah exclaimed through a shaky voice as tears threatened to spill from her eyes. Oryn smiled widely, that smile, his father's smile as he heard his mother's voice. Alannah leapt from the ground beneath the tree and crashed into her son's arms, weeping as she clung to him. In her eyes he was still the small bundle she had held to her chest all those years ago in Ithilien, regardless of his size now as a fully grown ellon. She pulled away and held his face in her hands, her eyes pouring over every feature of his face. "I'm so sorry!" Alannah cried out desperately. "I should have never let you go! I should have kept you home that day. I sh-should...I-"

Oryn shook his head as he held onto his mother's face as she did his, using his thumbs to wipe away the tears as they began to seep out of her eyes. "No naneth. No apologies. Ot here, then. Never apologize. It wasn't you." Oryn smiled as he took his mother's hands into his and gently pulled her to stand with him, his eyes flickering to Gandalf before looking around the vast and beautiful gardens. With an innocently curious expression, he turned back to meet his mother's gaze. "Where is ada?" He asked having fully expected to see him there as well. Alannah looked down at her hands as her son held onto them, the light of the sun reflecting off of the gold band she wore around her forefinger. "He...your ada did not sail with me." Alannah admitted. Her eyes met her son's as she smiled hopefully. "We shall look forward to the day that he joins us ion nin."

Gandalf stepped forward and wrapped an arm around each of them as he nodded his head. "Yes, we will." He agreed as he began leading mother and son away from the tree and out of the gardens. "But for now your grandfather awaits you Oryn, I'm sure that you have missed him a great deal as well."

Oryn nodded and held onto his mother's hand as Gandalf pulled his arms from them to lead them back to Thranduil. It didn't take them long to find him as he stood still sitting by the shore, quietly watching the waves crash into land. Alannah pulled Oryn's hand up to her lips and kissed it softly before nodding her head in Thranduil's direction. The smile that grew on Oryn's face was so similar to Legolas' that it prompted Alannah's heart to leap in her chest at the thought of her husband.

"Grand ada.." Oryn voiced softly, not wishing to startle the former elven king. Thranduil jolted slightly in surprise as he turned his head towards them having been completely enthralled and at peace as he watched the slow yet powerful tide. His eyes immediately glistened while his lips parted in a smile as he pulled himself up to stand.

"Oryn.." Thranduil voiced as he moved to pull Oryn into his embrace, keeping one hand protectively over the back of his grandson's head. He held him to his chest for several minutes as Alannah looked on, feeling Gandalf's arm wrap around her shoulders. She looked up at him, now able to take the time to examine his appearance more clearly. His hair was as white as a dove's feather and his face ageless, a stark comparison to the aged Istari she had long known her entire life. Still Alannah relaxed into his side as she always had, always regarding him as her father.

"I know you miss him." Gandalf muttered quietly as to not disturb the reunion in front of them. Alannah nodded as she winced her eyes shut, not needing to hear Legolas' name spoken to know who Gandalf was referring to. "He will be along, sweet child. I assure you. For now, enjoy the family you have here."

~

Alannah spent many years in Valinor happily as she awaited Legolas' arrival free of the heartaches she had endured during her time in Middle Earth. No longer she carried the shame of what had happened with Boromir by the Falls of Rauros or the sadness she felt from his death, the emptiness she felt having lost her parents at such a young age, or the deep and agonizing heartache of her and Legolas' slain son that had triggered her inevitable fading.