Note: You should all know that the poem at the beginning of the story is not mine, but is the property of Mr. Tolkien.  It can be found in The White Rider in TTT.

~

Legolas Greenleaf long under tree

In joy thou hast lived. Beware of the sea!

If thou hearest the cry of the gull on the shore,

Thy heart shall then rest in the forest no more.

Was it simply his imagination, or did the soft breeze carry the scent of salt?  Legolas leaned on the railing of the balcony, put his face to the breeze and inhaled deeply, closing his eyes.  Deep inside him stirred the restlessness that was his constant companion.  His brow furrowed in concentration.  It was always when his heart was heavy with grief that the scent of the sea came to him on a breeze.  And now that the last of their company had been ensconced in their stony tomb, what was there to keep him from following his people over the sea?

“You would not be thinking of leaving me now, would you?”  Legolas opened his eyes and turned, smiling down at the figure before him.  He was short and stooped with age, his hair snowy white.  His beard reached down to his knees and his hand now clutched a staff more often than it did his axe.

“Now Master Dwarf, why would you ask a thing like that?” Legolas said teasingly to distract his old companion.  Gimli, however, was not so easily dissuaded.

“Because you always talk of leaving when the little ones pass away.”  Legolas opened his mouth to answer, but closed it again and turned back to the railing, watching as the red and orange leaves of autumn fell to the ground.

“I envy Arwen and her decision,” he said finally, “One by one my companions leave me.  When they are all gone, what will be my fate?  To live forever with the weight of grief?  That is no life Gimli.” 

“Well,” Gimli said gruffly, “I will not be easy to get rid off.  We dwarves are a hardy folk.”

“But you are not immortal,” Legolas said with the faint smile of one who would not be consoled, “Your race is dwindling Gimli.  The elves have all passed beyond the sea.  The dwarves and the hobbits are fading from the minds of men.  Am I to wander Middle Earth alone and watch as time swallows the world?”  He turned back to Gimli, who watched him with sad eyes.  “The mark of the elves is fading from the land.  Fair Lothlorien dwindles by the day.  I can not stand to stay and watch until it is forever gone.  I would leave with what memories I have.”

Gimli sighed.  “Very well.  When will we be leaving?”  Legolas only barely managed to maintain his composure in his surprise.

“We?”  There was a twinkle in the dwarf’s eyes.

“Aye lad, we.  Besides, you think I’m going to let you build a ship on your own and trust you not to drown yourself because you forgot the caulking?  The last words out of your mouth would be I’m sorry Gimli, but I must have been busy singing to the moon and forgot.”  It was only with centuries of diplomatic experience that Legolas managed to maintain his composure.

“I beg your pardon!”  Gimli only barely managed to suppress a smile at the outraged tone and continued as if the interruption had not occurred. 

“I happen to remember a certain elf who was so excited about riding ‘in a real boat’ that he tipped himself, a certain dwarf and all their belongings into the Anduin.”

“That was not my fault,” Legolas insisted, in a manner that suggested that this argument was long lived, “I happen to remember one dwarf who thought that the rule ‘No standing in the boat’ was for mere immortals such as myself and did not apply to him.”  Gimli grinned and shook his head.

“Nay, I believe you are mistaken.  As I recall, we agreed that it happened to be a cheeky ranger who thought it would be funny to ‘accidentally’ brush our boat with his.”

“Aye, I believe you are correct. That was the day Sam made that comment about ‘acting his age’.”  His smile hovered as he lost himself in his memories.  “I would go through it all again to have them back once more, Gimli.”

“Ach, enough of the famed melancholy of the elves, my friend.”  For once, Gimli’s voice sounded tired and Legolas realized that Gimli had his own longings in his heart.

“Very well.  But are you sure?  Once we leave, we will not return.”

“I am sure, Legolas.”  His eyes turned to where the king lay with his two, smallest subjects.  They lingered for a minute before the dwarf turned away and headed back inside.

“I could not bear the silence.”

Legolas watched him disappear inside with the crash of waves ringing in his ears.  He could never be sure in the years to come, but he thought he heard the light laughter of little hobbits ringing in the roar of the sea.