Chapter Forty Five: The Crownless Dude Again Shall Be King
(It is Coronation Day in Gondor and everyone is excited. People from all over Middle-earth have arrived for the ceremony and the following festivities. And when I say everyone I really mean everyone. Parties have arrived from the North, Imladris, Lorien, Rohan, and places such as the Voids of Space and Time. Yeah, that�s a lot of people. So now we find Aragorn being nervous all over again and Stevie trying to soothe his nerves a bit.)
Stevie: You need to be calm, sweetheart. Look at you! You�re practically shaking!
Aragorn: I can�t help myself! This is big, Stevie!
Stevie: No bigger than what you�ve faced already. Now come on. I want you to get out there and show them your stuff.
Aragorn: Where will you be?
Stevie: In the front row with everyone else. When you think you can�t go any further, know that I�m right behind you.
Aragorn: (smiles and hugs her) That makes me feel better. Thank you, love.
Stevie: It�s nothing. Now hurry up. Your loyal subjects are getting anxious. Remember that we�re all here for you.
Aragorn: I will. See you out there.
(And so Stevie returns out to the crowds where she is joined by Harper and the rest of the crew. They all stand in silence waiting for Aragorn to come out, which he does. Now everyone is so immensely happy and proud that they don�t really pay too much attention to the ceremony. Though, when it�s over and Gandalf places the crown on Aragorn�s head the entire crowed goes nuts and starts cheering. Aragorn turns and addresses his people.)
Aragorn: Together we have fought for peace and for our freedom! This day is not mine, but ours. Together let us rebuilt that which war and hatred as destroyed!
(As he finishes this he steps down and everyone bows and for a moment he actually looks astonished. He looks around and sees Stevie. He walks up to her and pulls her onto her feet.)
Aragorn: (smiling) Is it now that you would submit to my authority?
Stevie: (embraces him) If it�d make you happy then I shall do so just this once.
Aragorn: (smirks) Save that. I might need to use it later.
Stevie: I believe you had some other things you intended on doing now, right?
Aragorn: (nods, now addressing everyone) As King I have new duties to attend to, but I find that I cannot do them alone. It is now that I would ask the Lords Boromir and Faramir, sons of the late Steward Denethor to come forward.
(Now by this time everyone is back up on their feet. Faramir and Boromir both look mightily surprised, but Faramir more so than his elder brother. They do as they are bid, and come forward.)
Aragorn: If I were not here now you would have Boromir son of Denethor as your Steward. He is a noble man, and I do not doubt that he might even make a better King than I. He is a good and loyal man, and as such I feel it fitting that I appoint him Prince of Tolfalas.
(And so Boromir bowed as Aragorn placed a finely crafted mithril circlet upon his brow, and then stood proudly as all attention was now placed upon his little brother.)
Aragorn: And one cannot forget Faramir, who has ceaselessly and selflessly guarded these lands. He is brave and noble and I appoint him Prince of Ithilien.
(And then Faramir bowed in a manner much like his elder brother had, receiving another very well crafted mithril circlet. Now, after this had happened the people began to disperse, for when the ceremony ended the celebrations began.)
Harper: You look cute.
Boromir: Thanks.
Harper: So where exactly is this Tolfalas?
Boromir: In the south.
Harper: Where in the south?
Boromir: In the middle of the sea.
Harper: You�re the Prince of an island?
Boromir: Yes.
Harper: That is so cool.
Boromir: I�m glad you approve. Let�s go get food.
Harper: I like food.
(Just then Stevie and Aragorn came up to them. Aragorn seems a lot calmer now than he was before. Boromir smirks at him and claps him on the back.)
Aragorn: I see that you�re satisfied?
Boromir: Who me? I�d be satisfied with nothing. I�m just glad you�ve given Faramir Ithilien. He loves it so much.
Aragorn: He�s nearly bled and died for it a thousand times over. He deserves it. Oh no. I believe our betrothed are discussing something dastardly.
Stevie: Dastardly? We�re plotting for our next good deed!
Harper: Yep.
Boromir: And what would this �good deed� be, my love?
Harper: Can�t tell you. You�d both go and tell everyone and that just won�t do, will it Stevie?
Stevie: No, not at all, Harper. Come, we must tell Kit and Van of this plan.
Harper: Oh yes, we must.
(And so the girls walk off leaving Boromir and Aragorn looking rather confused.)
(So now Stevie and Harper have found Kit and Van. Kit looks down and sad for some reason. Harper and Stevie have a vague idea as to why.)
Kit: Frodo and I decided that things wouldn�t work out.
Stevie: You both did?
Kit: Yeah. We actually both wanted to talk about it at the same time. It would have been rather amusing, but considering the circumstances it wasn�t too.
Harper: So you�re both just a tad in the dumps, eh?
Kit: Just a little, but we�ll both get over it. What are you two up to?
Van: They look like they have a plan.
Stevie: Well, Prince Imrahil�s sons are here, but his youngest, his only daughter showed up yesterday. Her name is Lothiriel.
Kit: What are you planning?
Harper: (whispers) We were thinking about how Eomer�s going to be King of Rohan and how he needs a girl. He�s very cranky as of late.
Van: Oh, I see. That�s how it�s supposed to work out, right?
Stevie: More or less, yeah. We�re going over them to �socialize�.
Harper: Yep. Got to meet the family�..at least my new family anyway.
(Meanwhile, two hobbits and two sprites are having a drinking contest inside. Obviously these would be Merry, Pippin, Spry, and Dawdle. The celebrations have been going on for maybe two hours now and the four look like they�re already wasted. Arcane and Haldir are looking on from another corner of the room.)
Arcane: I find it hard to believe that I�m actually related to those two.
Haldir: Me too. But hey, it�s fun watching them get drunk.
Arcane: Speaking of drunk, where are Rumil and Orophin?
(Back over near the distant relations of the Manly Men of Gondor, the four girls are talking with Elphir, Echirion, and Amrothos.)
Elphir: (to Harper) So you�re marrying Boromir?
Harper: Yep.
Echirion: I didn�t think he�d ever settle down.
Stevie: Speaking of settling down, we need to talk to you three about something.
Echirion: Aye?
Harper: We want to be blunt. This concerns your little sister.
Amrothos: What about Lothiriel?
Stevie: Well, we were watching her and couldn�t help but thinking how well she and Lord Eomer might get along, if you get my meaning.
Elphir: You want to hook our little sister up with Lord Eomer?
Harper: Yeah, we do.
Kit: They really seem like they�d be perfect together.
Amrothos: I don�t see anything wrong with that. Lord Eomer seems nice enough. What say you, brothers?
Elphir: I don�t see any harm in encouraging our little sister�s fancies for once.
Echirion: Then it is settled! Thank you, fair ladies for this idea.
Van: Kit and I had nothing to do with it. Thank Stevie and Harper. Oh, you�ll excuse me I must find Halbarad.
(So Van leaves and Elphir and Echirion excuse themselves to go find their father, Prince Imrahil, leaving Harper, Stevie, Kit, and the young Amrothos alone. Amrothos and Kit are just sort of staring at each other without speaking, and Stevie and Harper, coming up with another matchmaking plot, decide to leave the two kids alone. And so off they go to Aragorn and Boromir who are sitting at a table eating and drinking. They sit in their respective seats and decide to strike up conversation.)
Boromir: Were you just setting up my little cousin Lothiriel with a certain future King of Rohan?
Harper: Sure, why not. Pass me the bread.
Aragorn: (chucks a roll at Harper�s head) You two are such trouble-makers.
Stevie: We can�t help it. It�s just so much fun. Besides, we got Kit to flirt with Amrothos. They�re cute.
Boromir: Well, if I recall correctly he�s only a little older than you, and Lothiriel is about your age now. Where�s Van?
Stevie: She�s dancing with Halbarad.
Aragorn: Dancing with Halbarad? I�ve known that man all my life. He can�t dance!
Harper: Well, by the looks of it either can Van, but I don�t think that�s stopping them.
Boromir: Oh well. Anyone know who one the Hobbit versus Sprite drinking contest?
Stevie: It was the hobbits by a long shot.
Aragorn: Figures. (sighs) Today was a good day. I�m King, Faramir�s Prince of Ithilien, Boromir just became Prince of a giant rock in the middle of the sea, and we�re all half drunk.
Harper: You didn�t tell me it was a giant rock in the middle of the sea.
Boromir: All islands are giant rocks in the middle of the sea, love. Don�t worry, it�s a beautiful place, and it�s not just a rock.
Harper: I still can�t believe you gave him his own island, Aragorn.
Aragorn: Either can I.
Boromir: Hey! What�s that supposed to mean?
Stevie: It isn�t important. Cheese and wine anyone?
Harper: Cheese and wine? That�s nasty.
Boromir: How is that nasty?
Harper: Because now we�re all going to be drunk and constipated.
Aragorn: You know, I never thought about it that way before. I find myself now enlightened.
Stevie: If you let your ego grow any more the crown won�t fit.
Boromir: (laughs) Anyone care to dance?
Harper: Don�t look at me! I can�t dance. Remember what happened last time we tried that?
Stevie: What?
Boromir: We ended up throwing each other into the river.
Aragorn: Fun.
Boromir: Want to dance anyway?
Aragorn: (shrugs and rises from the table, grabbing most people�s attention) In honor of this say I propose that we all have a celebratory dance!
(And so, to close off a long and wonderful day, people from all over Middle-earth got up and danced. Shortly there after everything turned into complete chaos because very few people could actually dance and others fell over laughing at the sight of Legolas and Gimli doing some funky jig in the corner. But what did anyone expect?)
Gandalf: (dancing with the drunken hobbits) This is, after all, where insanity abounds!
