The Whispers of Valinor

The White City

The horses hooves beat steadily against the earth, muffled by the damp morning dew that clung to the tall grass.
The air was cool and carried the scent of distant rain, and the sky was a steel gray canvas, heavy with unspoken omens.
They rode in silence, a quiet that would have once been comfortable serene even but now felt thick with tension.

Althaea rode ahead of the group, her posture straight and eyes unwavering.
Her silver-blonde hair flowed like a silken banner behind her, the edges caught in the breeze.
Her expression was unreadable, lips pressed tightly, her gaze fixed on the road leading toward the human kingdom.

Behind her, Aurêlia and Ithara exchanged a look. The youngest sister, ever attuned to the shifts in mood, furrowed her brows.

"She hasn't said a word in hours,"
Ithara murmured to Aurêlia, barely above a whisper

"She's tired,"
Aurêlia replied, though even she didn't believe her own words.

Ithara urged her horse a little closer, her curiosity outweighing caution.
"Tired, or hiding something?"

The group behind them moved steadily
Aragorn at the rear with Gimli, Legolas slightly off to the left. Even they had grown quieter in recent hours, their attention flicking occasionally toward Althaea.

Finally, Ithara couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Althaea?" she called, her voice unusually tentative.

Althaea didn't look back. "Yes?"

"Do you think... do you think we'll ever find them? Our parents?"

The question lingered in the air, striking like a sudden gust of wind.

Althaea's grip on the reins tightened ever so slightly. "I don't know," she said flatly.

"But do you believe they're alive?"
Ithara pressed. "I mean really believe it? Or are we just chasing hope? We've searched for years and nothing. Not a letter. Not a sign. Not even a whisper. What if they're"

Althaea pulled her horse to a sudden stop.

The silence that followed was deafening.

Aurêlia slowed her own pace, eyebrows raised in alarm as she glanced from one sister to the other. Behind them, Aragorn and Legolas instinctively exchanged a look one filled with silent surprise. Althaea was never short tempered. Never.

But now, her shoulders were tense, her voice cold and low.

"Ithara," she said carefully, "I hope we will find what is hidden. But until then keep your questions to yourself."

Ithara blinked, stunned into silence. For the first time in a long while, she didn't know what to say.

Aragorn shifted in his saddle, quietly murmuring, "She's changed."

Legolas nodded slowly. "Something presses upon her mind."

Aurêlia urged her horse forward, the hooves splashing in a shallow stream as she came to ride beside Althaea. Her voice was soft, but firm.
"You shouldn't snap at her like that."