Seeds of the White Tree

Chapter 56 - The Legacy

The song of a meadowlark was the first thing that Eldarion marked as he slowly left the world of dreams. Lying on his side with the morning sunlight warming his face, he did not open his eyes just yet. Instead, he lingered for a few moments, floating in that soft, undefined space between sleeping and waking. It was so peaceful, lying like this in his apartment in the King's House with the late summer sunrise pouring through the open window, the birds singing in the gardens below, and the city quiet with the lingering stillness of night. This would be a big day, not just for him but for all of Gondor. Eldarion had spent more than a year working alongside the scholars of the Sages' Tier in preparation for this, as well as in coordination with all the provinces of the realm and their leaders. After much planning, negotiation, and deliberation, all the arrangements had been made. Today would be the beginning of a new chapter in Gondor's history.

There was just one thing that would make this moment perfect. Rolling over in bed, Eldarion slid his arms around Galieth. Still asleep, she let out a drowsy murmur. The long waves of her unbound black hair spilled across the pillow, and Eldarion gently brushed enough of it aside to drop a kiss behind her ear.

"Arduil vaer, meleth-nin (Good morning, my beloved)," he whispered, and was rewarded with a smile curling Galieth's lips even as she pretended to still be asleep. "Today is the day..."

With a long, languid stretch, Galieth turned over to face Eldarion. Her eyes remained slitted against the brightness of the dawn, and the leg she draped over Eldarion's weighed limply; an invitation to linger just a little longer.

"Mmmm...are you nervous?"

"No...and yes. It's been four years since the Black House...this will be my first time going back."

Galieth was awake now. Reaching up, she brushed aside the hair from Eldarion's brow. Doing so brought the ring upon her finger into clear view, and Eldarion smiled to see it. They had been wed in March, and even now six months later Eldarion still found himself prone to fiddling with his own mithril wedding band. The celebration had, according to Faramir, been close to rivaling that of his own parents' marriage, so many years ago after the War of the Ring. Eldarion was arguably filled with almost as much anticipation contemplating this coming day as he had been the morning of his wedding. The way Galieth was looking at him now suggested she understood perfectly. She, after all, had been the only one besides Aragorn who had seen the true aftermath of the Black House. Today though, a light would be kindled from that darkness.

"Do you ever think about him?" asked Galieth.

"About who?"

"Rhoss."

"Oh."

Rather than fiddle with his own wedding ring, Eldarion took advantage of the opportunity to capture Galieth's hand and study hers. The stone was an aquamarine, palest of pale blues and found in the Hills of Evendim around Annúminas. Galieth's father, Lord Suiledir had gifted it to Eldarion when he had formally asked her parents for their blessing to marry her. It was almost as if Suiledir had had the stone ready and waiting in anticipation of the question.

"Eldarion?"

Running his thumb across Galieth's knuckles, Eldarion nodded. "I do, sometimes. Mostly I pity him. I have often wondered what might have become of the two of us, were our places and fathers exchanged. Were our natures so very different - he being who he was and I being who I am - that he would have always been destined for villainy and betrayal? Or could Rhoss have been someone entirely different, given half the chance?"

"You see yourself in him."

In the few short months they had been married, Eldarion had come to appreciate how easily Galieth seemed to be able to 'read' him. It was as if his inner thoughts were as clear across his face as a banner. Eldarion now understood this much about Galieth; her kind, generous nature granted her unusual insight into the hearts of others. If there was any difficulty in being Galieth's husband, it was in striving to never take her kindness and generosity for granted. His wife's store of patience for listening to others seemed without end though, and this morning Eldarion was grateful to impose upon it. Some days he could scarcely believe his luck in meeting a woman such as Galieth.