A Burden

The city had set up camp for that night before twilight had fallen, and at the moment the women were feeding the men with the little they had brought. All except for Raina, whom had been convinced not to lower herself to that level by her friends.

So instead she sat on her mat with Legolas, who had decided that they wouldn’t bother setting up a tent.

“Man-made cloth will not keep any weather from us, or the cold,” Legolas had said, and Raina agreed. Besides, it wasn’t going to rain that night anyways. And this was how they had camped with the Fellowship, just with far less people. No big deal.

They were both silently eating stew that had been given to them by one of the girls of the city. Raina joked that the girl had had her eye on Legolas the entire trip, hoping to get a reaction out of him. He had just shrugged and continued eating.

She sighed, looking down. In the distance, she could hear Èowyn and Aragorn speaking. They were the only familiar voices she could hear, and it comforted her that in this new place with new people there were still a few of her friends here.

“I made some stew. I know it isn’t much, but it’s hot,” Èowyn was offering Aragorn, who had until then been sitting along and thinking.

“Thank you,” he said softly, and Raina could practically see him nodding to her like a gentleman.

After a moment he nearly gagged on the stew before speaking.

“Mmm. It’s good,” he said. Raina laughed, looking over at Legolas, who was also smirking.

“You listening to them, too?” she whispered, as if the two mortals could hear them. He nodded, and they both turned to the two figures on one of the other hill tops. Aragorn’s head was bent low, trying to hide his grimace.

“Really?” Èowyn was asking hopefully, and her smile could be heard in her voice.

“Mmm,” he said again, causing Legolas and Raina to snigger again.

Èowyn turned away, seeming to walk off. Aragorn tried to hurriedly pour the stew out, but she turned around to face him. His hand jerked back up just in time as she started speaking. By now Raina was tried not to fall over laughing at them.

“My Uncle told me a strange thing,” she said slowly, a glimmer of a smile in her voice as she walked back over to Strider. “He said that you rode to war with Thengel, my grandfather. But he must be mistaken."

Aragorn shook his head slowly.

“King Théoden had a good memory. He was only a small child at the time,” was all he said.

Èowyn came closer. “Then you must be at least sixty. Seventy? But you cannot be eighty!” she gasped in disbelief.

Raina thought about it. She had never really thought about Aragorn’s age, but she guessed he was about a hundred.

“Eighty-seven,” he said with a small smile. Only thirteen years off, Raina thought.

“You are one of the Dúnedain,” Èowyn concluded finally. “A descendant of Númenor, blessed with long life. It was said that your race had passed into legend."

“Don’t they have Elf ancestors?” Raina asked Legolas, who shook his head.

“Aragorn is a small part Elf on his mother’s side, who was not from the North. I think her mother was an Elf.”

“Like me,” Raina whispered. “So if I were to marry a mortal Man, my children would be mortal as well. Like Aragorn.”

Legolas nodded. “But that’s not going to happen,” he said evenly.

Raina frowned at him. “How are you so sure?”

He turned to face her. “After all this,” he motioned to the city camped out. “You are going back to Rivendell, are you not?”

Raina remembered Elrond’s promise. “Oh,” she said softly. “Right.”

But now she wasn’t so sure. This life- out here, with her new family- was how she always wanted it to be. Bus eh knew that would never happen. Aragorn was going to become King, marry his Elf, and live the rest of his days in Minas Tirith. Gimli would go back to his mines as a hero, and Legolas would go back to the Woodland Realm to take his thrown. Which left Raina, forever wandering alone.

“You could come back with me,” Legolas said, as if he had been able to read her mind. “You could live as royalty, and do as you wish for the rest of eternity.”

Raina smiled at that. Living with her friend, able to visit the others as she pleased.

“That sounds wonderful,” she said softly, smiling up at Legolas as she spoke.