wisearacano :
He had waited so long, regretting every day that he had not been quick enough to prevent the actions that drove them apart. It had all been avoidable – it was simply his fault for not taking action sooner. Perhaps he could stopped Fëanáro, and perhaps he could have convinced his people to remain. But he had not, and that was the mistake he must live with. And yet she sought his forgiveness? He’d spent so much time wishing for hers, wishing that the events of history had not so disrupted their family and their lives.
Tears threatened, yet he smiled with a soft warmth still reserved for her alone. Even after all these years – especially after all these years – her mere presence was like the light of the Trees themselves.
He offered her his hands, bare of rings and scars and marks of a life long lived. It was as fresh a start as he could offer her, if she would have him – a new fana in the land they belonged, with the darkness mostly past and their children to eventually follow him home as they had once followed him into tragedy. “You have done nothing I need forgive,” he said, “for your choice was the wise one, and I can hold no fault against you for that.”
She took both hands in her own; the ring he had given her simple in its elegance and beauty compared to the others she wore that were adorned with gems and jewels. Their fingers linked, she raised their hands so she was able to press kisses to the backs of his knuckles. Of course she would have him, there was no force in this world that could sever the bond of love she held for him. Though they may have been parted, she had never wavered in her unconditional adoration of her husband.
“You did nothing I need to forgive either, meldanya,” she insisted. “You led our people to a future beyond such baseless bloodshed. I have talked at length with survivors and they regale me with the tales of my darling husband and how mighty he was, how valiant our children were . . .”
She let go of one of his hands, opting instead to drape her arm around his shoulders as she leaned closer to allow their brows to touch. “Welcome home, husband mine. You have been sorely missed.”
