One Fine Day

Translation:
One fine, clear day,
A thin trail of smoke arising,
on the far horizon, out to sea
And then his ship appears!
Then the white ship
Proudly enters the harbor
And thunders out its greeting.

You see, he has come!
I’ll not go down to greet him, not I!
I shall stay on the hillside and wait
and wait for a long time
and I'll not grow weary
of the long wait.

Emerging from the crowded city,
a man is coming, a tiny speck
starts to climb the hill.
Who is he? Who is he?
And when he arrives,
what will he say? What will he say?
He will call "Butterfly" from the distance.

I, without answering,
will remain hidden.
A little to ease him,
and a little so as not to die
at our first meeting;
and then rather worried,
he will call, he will call:
"My little one, my tiny wife,
Perfumed of Verbena"
The names he gave me when he came last.

(to Suzuki)
All this will happen,
I promise you.
Keep your fears to yourself,
I with faithful trust, will wait for him

Chapter 3


142 years later

The host of elves waited along the shoreline, abuzz with excitement. For the first time in nearly three millennia, a ship had been sighted! The loud, welcoming trumpet of horns had echoed through the air as if on eagles’ wings, pulling many from their daily routines.

Word spread quickly, drawing even more to the shores as the ship docked. The gangplank lowered, and silence descended upon the beach as the elves waited to see who would be the first to disembark.

A shining figure emerged, milk-white hair and exotic features proclaiming his ancient Teleri descent.

"I cannot believe he actually sailed," Elrond whispered to his wife.

"I cannot believe he actually shaved," Erestor added, making Celebrían giggle.

The Shipwright took a deep breath and sighed, cornflower blue eyes taking in the many faces present. Jaw working, the bright curiosity faded from his eyes as he turned back toward his ship.

He coughed and sputtered as a wave splashed him, seemingly coming out of nowhere. Soaked to the skin, Círdan looked around wildly. His crew, dry to an elf, stared back at him with wide eyes.

He was splashed again. His head jerked in the direction the wave had come from, eyes full of confused irritation. Whatever he saw in the slate colored waters made him smile. The smile grew into a wide grin, and rich laughter burbled forth.

"And that, dear Lady," Erestor commented, "is what becomes of elves who linger in Middle Earth for too long. They go crazy."

Elrond smacked the other elf lightly on the arm in reprimand, only to have his own buttocks swatted by his wife. All three elves returned their attention to the newly-arrived ship, lips twitching with suppressed humor.

From the corner of her eye, Celebrían spied her mother hurrying forward at an undignified run. Her eyes widened as that noble Lady squealed like a young girl and threw herself into the startled arms of an emerging passenger.

Celeborn had barely stepped onto dry, stable land when he heard a delighted shriek and found himself with an armload of squirming she-elf. It took him less than a second to recognize the bright blue eyes and achingly familiar thoughts curling through his own. Hugging her tightly, and amidst much laughter and approving whistles from the watching elves, the Silver Tree kissed his Shining Lady.

Erestor sighed. "I just love happy reunions, don’t you?"

Elrond slanted his friend a look. "My, we’re certainly in a mood today."

Erestor shrugged. "Must be the delightful company," he replied, winking at
Celebrían, who giggled.

A muttered "unconscionable flirt" was Elrond’s only reply.

Celebrían poked both elves. "Oh, stop, you two," she scolded, twining her arm through her husband’s. "Now take me to see my father."

Smiling, the half-elf obeyed, escorting his Lady over to where her parents stood, still kissing. He cleared his throat.

And was completely ignored.

Eyebrow cocked in amusement, he tried again. "My Lord," he said, voice thick with wry humor," while I hate interrupting such a charming reunion, there is someone who desires a word with you."

The pair broke apart. A slow smirk spread across Celeborn’s features as Galadriel’s cheeks pinkened. He turned.

"Nice to see you finally joined us," Elrond quipped.

Celeborn shrugged. "Middle Earth got rather boring after a while. The Dwarves went into hiding, and there is only so much deification and demonification one elf can take in a lifetime."

"Sounds like you had quite the time."

"Aye, you could say that. Now who is it wanting a word with me?"

Elrond’s lips twitched. "My wife."

"Your wife?" Celeborn asked. "Who is this pretty thing on your arm? Did my daughter finally wisen up and leave you for a good Sindarin husband?"

"Ada!"

He gave the outraged she-elf innocent eyes. "I beg your pardon, Lady, but I am afraid you are mistaken. My Celebrían was never so fair as you."

Celeborn laughed at his only child’s mutinous expression and pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. "’Tis not polite to kick your father, dear one."

"’Tis no like you don’t deserve it," she retorted, hugging him back just as tightly.

"Do not be silly, my love. You know very well there are none more lovely than you." He held her at an arm’s length and looked her over with suspiciously glassy eyes. "I have never seen you more radiant."

Celebrían blushed prettily. She looked up, an impish glint in her eyes. "So, did you bring me anything?"

Celeborn laughed. "Now, what kind of father would I be if I did not?"

Another horn blast rang out.

"Oh, good, there it is now."

The five elves turned to watch the second ship dock. Several bystanders hurried forward to help secure the vessel. The gangplank was lowered, and two dark haired figures emerged. Both elves were fair of face, and their sturdy forms gave testimony to their sire’s dual heritage.

Celebrían gasped as her sons saluted smartly before going down on one knee before her, heads bowed in respect. "Oh, get up and hug me, you silly widgets," she cried.

Elrohir, always the more demonstrative son, went to his mother first, laughing and hugging her tightly, while Elladan faced his father. The two Peredhil sized each other up, Elrond’s eyes shining in quiet approval of this son who was so like himself. Though his face would ever retain the youthful beauty of his elven ancestors, time had matured his eldest, knocking off many of the rough edges of youth. What remained was the confident, self-possessed elf standing before him, and Elrond was proud.

Never one to be publicly demonstrative in his affection, the elder Peredhel simply inclined his head in acknowledgement. A smile ghosted about Elladan’s lips and he nodded. They understood each other.

Elrond tilted his head toward Celebrían. Elladan’s attention shifted to his silver-crowned mother, who smiled and held open her arms.

Elladan’s hug, though sincere, was somewhat stiff. She understood. They were in pubic, and he was, after all, his father’s son.

Elrohir, much to Elrond’s amusement, suffered from no such restraint. He buried his parent in a hearty embrace. Elrond smiled and returned it. Taking advantage of Celebrían’s distraction, he whispered "Where you there?" into the younger twin’s ear.

Elrohir stiffened slightly and pulled away, looking back at him with careful eyes. "No, Sir."

Elrond repressed a sigh. He had hoped for at least some witness to the Evenstar’s passing. "Was she content?"

"We believe so, yes."

If Elrond noticed the hesitation accompanying the whispered response, he chose to ignore it. A smile warmed the changeling gray eyes as father took pity on son. "It is enough, then."


* * *


Erestor, for his part, had remained standing off to the side during the family reunion, silently dealing with his own parental pride. He and Glorfindel had, in their own way helped to raise Elrond’s children, often acting as disciplinarians and/or secret keepers, whichever the situation demanded. He had seen these two boys grow from maddeningly precocious elflings into strong, passionate young warriors. And now they stood before him again as adults, still passionate, but tempered by the fires of age and experience.

He patiently waited his turn. When the twins started talking among themselves about assisting in unloading the ship, Erestor shifted his weight and crossed his arms. "Now, I understand that, as tutor, I rank fairly low on your ‘happy to see again’ list, but do I not merit, at the least, a hello?"

Elladan and Elrohir shared a grin. "Hello, Erestor," they chorused obediently.

The former advisor’s lips twitched. "That is a bit more like it." He resisted the urge to roll his eyes at their identical mischievous grins. It seemed they had not changed too much. "Imps."

Elrohir laughed and clasped his former tutor’s arm in traditional greeting. He eyed the other elf. "You have changed, my friend."

Erestor shrugged. "Not much, though perhaps I have mellowed in my advanced age." His nose wrinkled. "And you have picked up quite the human accent."

Elladan snorted. "You live among humans for three millennia and see if you don’t go native. And Grandmother is older than you. What, then, does that say about her?"

Erestor’s eyebrow arched. "Whatever she says it does," he answered diplomatically. "And, dear Elladan, I may have mellowed, but not so much that I cannot still pull you over my knee, should you require a lesson on respecting your elders."

Elladan gave a brief bow, ceding him the point. "I consider myself duly warned." The elder twin’s attention was drawn back to his father, who had begun demanding details concerning their prolonged stay in Middle Earth.
K
nowing he would no doubt hear the story again, Erestor let his attention wander as he scanned the beach for the one he knew was there. With the Shipwright finally in Valinor, there would be no other ships sailing to the Undying Lands. Glorfindel was here. He had to be.

A tall blonde forcing his way through the milling elves drew his attention. His breath caught. //Glorfindel…//

@>~~ TBC ~~<@