A LONG RIDE HOME

Matt Stone

"He looked good for his age. Still it was sad to see him go." And with that, Gimli brushed away a tear that had begun to role down his cheek. Such sentiment was not appropriate for the dwarf lord he had become. Yet he could spare a tear for the passing of an old friend.

"He embraced the gift of man with much dignity." Answered Legolas, his eyes set firmly on the horizon.

"You were glad to see Queen Arwen again, too, weren’t you lad?" said the dwarf with a sideways glance towards his friend.

"It is not appropriate to speak of such things." Yet it seemed that a blush rose on the golden cheeks of the elf. Finally, with his ire peaked he looked down, "And would you mind stop calling me ’lad’, I am quite possibly twice your age." And then added in hushed tones, " If not twice your height."
"And there it is, you elves have always been prejudiced against those of us who were vertically challenged, I don’t know how Bilbo could stand to have lived in Rivendell all those years."

"Well then, let’s admit it, you dwarves have always been jealous of our fair elvish complexion. At least we can make it through 50 years of puberty with out acne. No wonder even dwarvish women grow beards."

At this point, if steam could have poured out of Gimli’s ears it would have. With a sudden loss for words he blurts out the only argument he can make. "Well at least I killed 43!"

"Oh, not this argument again," and putting on his best dwarvish accent Legolas mock his companion, " MR. ’HE’S GOT MY AXE EMBEDDED IN HIS NERVOUS SYSTEM’. How many time’s are you going to throw that in my face? You want to know something? There is something that has always bothered me about that night. When we were fighting, and you and Aragorn crept out that door. How did you get from there over to the causeway?!?"

A shocked and embarrassed silence came over the dwarf. A secret he had never shared with his friend. In a small voice he mumbled, "He threw me."

"What???"

"HE THREW ME! HE THREW ME! There, are you satisfied, LAD? Aragorn grabbed me by my breast plate and threw me like a sack of fruit over onto the cause way."

A long silence fell on the two companions. The elf stared down at his fellow journeyman. Finally he looked again to the horizon. His hand was on the tiller as he directed his boat into the golden-amber rays of the setting sun. "Well, so much for, ’No one tosses a dwarf!’"

Gimli, looked up at him, and exploded in a deep guttural laughter. A grace had been granted to elf and elf-friend. And for this journey home much grace was needed.


© 2004 Matt Stone