Title: Wizards
Series: Conversations in Minas Tirith
Rating: G
Author: Endaewen
Sources: LOTR, Unfinished Tales. Letters and Silmarillion
Summary: Pippin questions Gandalf about the Wizards
Setting: Minas Tirith after the coronation of King Elessar. Goes with the Quest of Erebor from the Unfinished Tales.
Disclaimer: All characters and settings involved in this story belong to the Tolkien Family.

Most days after the coronation of King Elessar, the majority of the surviving members of the Company gathered in the house allotted to the Ringbearer and his servant. Some days others, such as Faramir or Eowyn joined them. Often though, Aragorn and sometimes Gandalf were too busy to be present.

Still, when they were there, they joined in with catching the others up with events that had happened to one group or another after the Fellowship had broken up; or, in asking and answering questions. Gandalf in particular was the recipient of many questions. Some in regards to events he had been involved with, and others simply about this or that point in history. Early on, due to one of Elrond’s tales, it had come out that he had been travelling around Middle-Earth for around two thousand years.

At first, while Frodo’s hand was still healing, the others kept notes for him, particularly Merry and Pippin, especially during the tales of their journeys through Rohan and to the Black Gate. By now however, his hand had healed enough that Frodo was able to keep notes himself, albeit slowly.

Today, all of them were present, along with Elrond and Arwen, who were spending as much time together as possible. Faramir had left earlier in the day, but returned just a few minutes previously.

After the group had finished listening to Gandalf’s tale of how Bilbo had been chosen to join Thorin’s quest for the Lonely Mountain, Pippin spoke up with a request: “Several times in your tales, Gandalf, you have mentioned Wizards, including yourself. Can you tell us more about the others?”

“Very well,” the old Wizard said. “It is a long and sometimes uncertain tale though. I will tell you what I can today, and perhaps more tomorrow.” Everyone settled in to listen, one of them making sure that the water jug on the table to one side was still full.

“You have heard by now, those of you who didn’t already know, of the Valar and how they shaped the world?” he asked. The four hobbits nodded. “Well, along with the Valar are the Maiar, a lesser, though more numerous race.”

“Sauron was one of these. So also are the Wizards.” Some in the room it seemed, such as Elrond had suspected something of the sort. While others looked at their friend with new respect and no small amount of fear. Gandalf sensed their reaction and shook his head, smiling gently. “I am still the same person you all have known; some of you for years. None of that has changed in the slightest.”

He gave up momentarily and continued with his story: “Sauron chose to follow Melkor, or Morgoth,” Legolas shuddered slightly at that name, and Gandalf glanced over at him, “as he was later known to the Eldar.” He paused momentarily, then continued. “When his master fell at the end of the First Age of the Sun, as it is now known, Sauron chose to follow the same path, and to the same eventual end. However, that took another two ages to accomplish.”

“Couldn’t the Valar have done something to stop him before now?” Frodo asked.

Before Gandalf had a chance to answer the question, Elrond spoke up. “Possibly, but every time they have taken direct action against another of their kind, such as the war in which Morgoth fell, there has been great destruction. It was as a direct consequence of that war that Beleriand sank into the Sea.”

Gandalf nodded his agreement. “And, that is not the only example. Other wars had similar catastrophic effects, as did the removal of Aman, the residing place of the Valar from the circles of the world.”

Frodo acknowledged the answer, remembering that there was at least one person in the room who had been present at at least one of those events.

“However, after the events leading to the destruction of Numenor, the Valar started planning ways to prevent Sauron from regaining total control of Middle-Earth.”

“From those plans the Istari came into being. There were five of us sent, three of whom you have either met or have heard of in my other tales: Me, Saruman the White, who was once our head, and finally, Radagast the Brown. The other two, Alatar and Pallando, traveled into the East and the South, where according to, at first their messages and later rumor, they became known as the Blue Wizards.”

“The Ithryn Luin!” Legolas murmured quietly.

Gandalf looked up sharply at that. Taking his action as a prompt, the elf explained. “In my youth, occasionally there came rumors from the East of wanderers garbed in blue.” He thought for a moment before continuing. “Generally the rumors came of disruptions to some evil plan or another. I had forgotten them until just now. I am sorry for interrupting.”

The Wizard took up the threads of his narrative where he had left off at the interruption. “The five of us were sent, not in direct opposition to Sauron, but instead to aid and encourage resistance to his domination.” He looked around at his rapt audience before continuing. “Our successes were varied. You know as well as I how Saruman fared. He failed when he began setting himself up in direct opposition to the Enemy. In my opinion, Radagast played his part successfully, but it is not up to me to judge. I know not the fate of the Blue Wizards, but I fear they failed. Of myself I will say nothing.

Aragorn spoke then to Gandalf. “Of the Blue Wizards, what do you think happened to them?”

“I know not. The only conclusion I can come to however, is that they must have died,” the Wizard said sadly.

“On my travels in the South and East, I have not even heard legends of these two, so whatever happened, it must have been a very long time ago. Everyone here knows how long stories can last. Longer than history for sure.” At that, despite the solemn mood, the newly crowned King shared a smile with the hobbits. Outside, the bells rang for the supper hour.

Pippin chuckled briefly, then sobered. “Strider is right you know,” he said to the other hobbits. “All of us know tales from the wandering days, and some legends from before that; though how much truth there is left in the tales, is impossible to tell.”

“Not much,” Frodo said, “if the rate of change is similar to that of the tales about Bilbo. Those have changed beyond all recognition, and he is still alive!”

Aragorn and Elrond confirmed the age of those tales, stating that according to the few records where hobbits were mentioned, those events occurred about two thousand years previously.

The talk continued in that vein for a few more minutes before Frodo said: “Thank you for telling us about yourself and the others.”

Merry nodded, asking: “Does that explain what Saruman was able to do with his voice making us hear things differently-“ He threw up his hands. “I’m not saying this very well.”

“I know what you meant, and yes it does,” replied Gandalf.

By this time, all those who had known the Wizard for a long time had list their fear and awe of him.

For the first time since Gandalf had begun his tale that afternoon, Faramir spoke up. “Now I understand what you told me about your names when I was but a child.” He was still deferential towards the man, but that was normal in Minas Tirith.

Soon after, dinner was brought in for the hobbits and their guests, after which Aragorn and some of the others left.

Title: Boromir
Series: Conversations in Minas Tirith
Fandom: LOTR
Rating: G
Disclaimer: All characters and settings involved with this story belong to the family of J.R.R. Tolkien.
Summary: Faramir asks about the journey with his brother.

Now a month after the celebration of both the coronation of Aragorn as the King Elessar Telcontar and his long-awaited wedding to Arwen, the city seemed finally to be calming down somewhat. As a result, Pippin and the others found that they had time to themselves again.

Today was an unusually good example. Once they morning was over, none of the group had any other obligations for the rest of the day. Generally, Pippin's duties were either inside the great hall, or, sometimes as one of the honour guard that stood either outside or just inside the doors on ceremonial occasions.

Shortly after the ringing of the noon-bells, the recently crowned monarch, along with the city-officials filed out of the hall, led by two of the Tower Guard. The hobbits, including Pippin, were all a part of the procession today. Once at the guard post by the gate, it disolved with all of the participants going their own separate ways.

The members of the company present were about to return to the house set aside for their use, to enjoy one of the rare times when there were no other demands for their attention and time. At these times, they tended to talk about anything and everything, ranging from what they had seen or done on their journey, to some point of Numenorean or hobbit custom. Other days, it might be a tale from one of Aragorn's travels. Once or twice, Elrond had joined them. When that happened, the topic tended to be ancient history.

Pippin was the first of the group ready to go, and was lingering by the gate.

"Peregrin Took, have you a moment?" That was a voice that the hobbit had learned to recognize. Still it took him a moment to locate the caller. It was Faramir, who had joined him. Behind the young Steward, Pippin could see the others coming.

"Certainly sir," he responded, once the man was standing beside him. Unusually, Faramir seemed somewhat hesitant.

"I was wondering if you would be willing to tell me of your journey with Boromir, my brother some time." By now the others had come close enough to hear Faramir's words.

It was Aragorn who responded first. "Of course! He was a good man." With a glance at the others for agreement, he continued, "this afternoon, maybe?"

Faramir agreed, but qualified his agreement with a request to delay the talk for an hour or so. "I still have duties I must attend to before I am free today. Shall I meet you then?" Soon after, they parted, having agreed to meet later at the house.

Once the Steward arrived, the group went quiet for a few minutes, remembering their fallen companion. "Thank you for taking the time to do this."

It was Aragorn who spoke first. "Boromir never told us much about his travels on the way to Rivendell, or Imladris as Elrond's house is known in Gondor, however, from what he did say, I can guess at his route and what he experienced. I am not unfamiliar with much of the lands west of the Misty Mountains, and even some to the east. You know he started his travels in Rohan?"

Faramir nodded. "Yes, he planned to make for the Gap of Rohan. It is the best known of the routes past the Misty Mountains. There are others on some of the old maps, but little is known about them any more."

Aragorn continued, looking into some distant space. At his words, they guessed he was looking at a remembered map. "I would guess that he followed the old North-South road to Tharbad on the Gwathlo or Greyflood. Even mostly overgrown as it is now, it is still the most efficient travel route. There, he said he lost his horse and made the rest of his journey on foot. That would be..." he trailed off for a moment or so, "two hundred and fifty to three hundred miles in a straight line. Probably more, especially if he got off the path. Having crossed the Greyflood, Boromir must have crossed the Hoarwell. I would guess he crossed at the Last Bridge, it would have been safe by then. There are other ways of crossing the Hoarwell, known to the Rangers, but few are as safe as the Last Bridge."

Aragorn paused for a drink from the ever-present pitcher. "And most of those lands are nearly empty. There are scattered settlements here and there, but very few. Your brother arrived the night before the Council, in late October. When did he set out?"

"At the beginning of June."

"He managed the journey, and to find Rivendell in four months? That was impressive. Elrond's house is well hidden for its security."

"The first time I saw Boromir was the day after his arrival when he walked into the Council. My first impression was of a warrior and a strong, honourable, though proud man. Those impressions were borne out during his time with the Company."

Faramir nodded at each of the qualities that his monarch had listed, commenting: "My brother was all of those and more. He was also kind and a good leader. The men would follow him anywhere."

Frodo spoke up then. "At first, Boromir was doubting of Aragorn's lineage and claim, but once given proof, Boromir accepted his leadership and claim to the throne." Here there was amusement in his voice: "Admittedly, Aragorn was going by the name 'Strider' at the time." There was a muted chuckle from the others when Frodo said that.

Together, the seven members of the Company present, for Gandalf was not there today, told Faramir of their journey to Cahadras and the failed attempt to cross the mountain via the Redhorn Pass. "There, he saved all our lives. Had he not suggested we carry the firewood we did, I might not have thought of the possibility," Aragorn said ruefully. "And again with our retreat. Had I been alone, or the only Man in our group I would have been able to force a way through the snow. It was chest deep on both of us, and in places even deeper."

The four hobbits nodded, remembering. Merry and Sam spoke. "He carried us down past all the snow."

Together they spoke of their escape from the Wargs, followed by the tale of their travels through the Mines of Moria. Through the course of the afternoon, the speakers, mostly Aragorn and the hobbits grew closer to the telling of the events at Parth Galen and Boromir's death.

"...And then he..." Frodo trailed off, not wanting to say what had transpired. Being an orphan, he knew how it felt to have others speak ill of dead family members. He didn't want to do that to Boromir.

"Tried to take the Ring, I know. Sam told us that night in Ithilien." Faramir's voice was understanding.

"Immediately after, Boromir returned to the rest of the Company and confessed his actions. However, by that time it was too late." Legolas had picked up the tale where Frodo had left off. "Frodo had decided to go on alone to remove the temptation from the rest of us. Only, Sam didn't agree and managed to find his maser in time to join him."

"We became separated in our search for the Ringbearer, and that is when the orcs struck. Boromir had followed Merry and Pippin."

From there, Pippin took up the tale, with occasional comments from Merry. "We were so worried about cousin Frodo that the two of us stupidly managed to run right into the orcs."

"Boromir was right behind us and slew most of the orcs, but more appeared." That was Merry speaking. "Boromir blew his horn in an attempt to alert the others."

"We heard it, but by that time, we were fighting orcs ourselves," Aragorn said. There was a distant look in his eyes. "Still, we made our was towards the call as fast as we could. However, we arrived moments too late." Aragorn's voice broke at that point.

Gimli spoke for the first time: "Boromir was lying, wounded, against a tree. There wee many orc bodies, at least eight or nine, on the ground around him, but no sign of any of the hobbits."

Faramir broke in then. "The horn. I heard the horn, though it was distant, more in my head than something actually heard. Some days later, the horn was found, in pieces, by the banks of the Anduin."

There was a moment of silence from all in the room before Pippin spoke again. "Boromir was willing to sacrifice his life in an attempt to keep us safe." There was respect in his voice. "Although he failed, I still feel a debt to him." Merry nodded agreement. "I was honoured to know your brother as long as I did." He bowed his head in remembrance, and spontaneously, so did the others in the room.

Title: The White Tree
Series: Conversations in Minas Tirith
Rating: G
Author: Endaewen
Disclaimer: All characters and settings belong to the family of the man who created them in the first place: J.R.R. Tolkien.
Summary: A simple observation leads to a history lesson for Sam and the others.
Note: Set before "Wizards" and "Boromir".

As honoured guests, the four hobbits, along with Legolas and Gimli, were present when the dead and withered skeleton of the White Tree was removed from the court where it had at one time grown. They watched together as, like the kings of old, it was borne away in honour to Rath Dinen, and the newly discovered seedling was planted in it's place, with widespread rejoicing throughout the city. Gandalf and Faramir together explained that it was seen as a symbol of the new kingship, when Pippin, being his usual inquisitive self, asked. This was especially so as it was very apparent that the sapling flourished as it was hoped that the City would now, and in the future.

One thing though puzzled Sam as the weeks went by. He had found on their travels that his experience as a gardener served them in good stead. There were very few plants that he didn't recognize, at least in general. And yet, he couldn't identify this tree. The other thing about the young tree that the gardener found strange was the reverence with which it, and it's predecessor, were treated. Finally, some six to eight weeks later, he got up the courage to ask one day when he, and some of the others, were waiting for Pippin to get off duty.

He thought it would be Aragorn, or even Legolas who answered his question, but instead, it was Elrond, who Sam had though wasn't even close enough to hear, much less listening to the group's chattering.

"The history of the White Tree of Gondor is a long and sometimes interesting tale, that makes reference to many other times and events in history. Although, I do admit that it seems more like reciting a genealogy at times," he added. "Would you like to hear it?" the Half-Elven lord of Rivendell asked.

The missing member of the group, Pippin, had joined them while Elrond was speaking. He joined in the chorus of ‘yeses’ that was heard in response to the question.

"Very well then. Shall we stay here?" 'Here' was the court surrounding the young tree. Within moments, everyone had found a seat near the tale-teller. Some, like Aragorn and Faramir, were sitting on the same bench, while others, such as the hobbits had seated themselves on the ground in front.

"The tale of the White Tree of Minas Tirith begins, in a roundabout way, before the Moon and the Sun, with the Two Trees." It was clear to his audience that Elrond enjoyed telling tales and legends as much as most of the other elves they had met. "In fact, it begins some time during the Ages of the Trees." He explained to his audience, half of whom had no knowledge of those beautiful creations, exactly what the trees were. "In that time, the only sources of light throughout Arda were the stars and the Trees; Laurelin and Teleperion, and the latter two were fenced away from the threat of Melkor in Aman, the land of the Valar." However, even those who knew the story to some extent were listening attentively.

"No," he held up his hand before one of the hobbits, Merry, this time, could interrupt. "This tree is not related to either of the Two Trees. However, a copy of Teleperion, the elder of the Two Trees, called Galathilion, was made for the city of Tirion. One of the many saplings from this tree was planted later on the isle of Tol Eressea. The copy was made, due to the great love the Eldar of the city had for the Trees. In fact, it was the report of the trees, by the leaders of the three groups, the Noldor, Vanyar and Teleri, that drew many of the Elves into the West, or so I've been told."

The narrator took a breath, then continued. "From there, things stayed the same until the beginning of the Second Age of the Sun, when the island of Numenor was created as a reward for the Men, mostly Edain, though there were others as well, who had fought against Morgoth during the War of Wrath. Those who made the journey to Numenor were led by my brother, Elros." There was a slightly sad tone in his voice when he said that, for Elros had chosen the fate of Men and until the end of the world, the two would not meet again.

For the hobbits, hearing that from Elrond brought it home again just how old the Elven Lord was, and how much he had seen. After all, the founding of Numenor was at the beginning of the Second Age of the Sun, and Elrond had been there for that, as well as earlier events. Prior to this day, of the hobbits, only Frodo and Sam had had an inkling of how old he was, and even that had fallen far short.

"A sapling from that tree," he continued, "was given as a gift and planted in the Royal Court of Armenelos, the capital city of Numenor. That tree was called Nimloth, and to the best of my knowledge, it was the only one of it's kind on Numenor. Nimloth lived until the time of the last king Ar-Pharazon, when, after the coming of Sauron, the Tree was burned."

"However, Isildur, the son of Elendil, was able to steal a fruit from the Tree, which soon (possibly only days later) was burned on the orders of Sauron and Ar-Pharazon. The fruit grew, and after the destruction of Numenor, it was planted in Minas Ithil." At the quizzical looks of the hobbits, Elrond explained further: "The sapling of the White Tree was one of the things carried away by the nine ships that escaped the destruction. Other things included the Palantiri and items such as the Ring of Barahir, now worn by Aragorn."

Elrond paused before saying that he wasn't certain of the following events, when Faramir, who had been on the outskirts of the group spoke up. "It is a tradition, now mostly forgotten, that Isildur planted the last sapling of the Tree here in the time before he left on his ill-fated journey to the North Kingdom. To me, this has long suggested that perhaps Isildur stole more than one fruit, for how could the one planted in Minas Ithil have matured enough to produce in this manner. Not to mention, it is written as the last sapling, suggesting the last of a group."

"That is possible, though not recorded," Elrond said thoughtfully.

"Whatever the truth is, it is recorded that the White Tree of Minas Tirith died some fourteen centuries ago during a plague in the year 1636. Whether it was killed by the plague or not is unknown," Faramir continued.

This time it was the new King who spoke: "And yet a new Tree stands here. Some time in that sixteen century span, somebody hid at least one fruit away in the mountains, and it waited all that time to sprout."

Pippin, the youngest of the four hobbits had a solemn and slightly awe-filled expression, and his voice reflected it when he spoke. "Thank you, Lord Elrond for retelling this history. Now I understand more of the insignia I wear, and I respect it even more than I did before." He fell silent, as though trying to pick out his next words, when Sam spoke.

"So, the Tree isn't only a tree, but is something folks can see which links them to the past. Is that why they treat it with such respect?"

"That's true, Sam, but there's more to it as well." Elrond spoke again. "It was prophesied in Numenor that when Nimloth died, the Kingship would end, and that's exactly what happened. I suspect that there is an element of this superstition lingering in Gondor even today. After all, the line of the Kings was broken here as well, though not right after the death of the White Tree."

"Many," he continued, "see the discovery of this sapling of the White Tree by their new King as his approval from the Valar. Not to mention as strong suggestion that the Kingship of Gondor is going to last for a long time into the future.