6. The Flame That Is Within
He begins to feel it before they pass through the rain-curtain; tingling at his fingers' ends, joints cracking, knots straining to undo themselves. Elrond and Galadriel exchange glances. Yet for the sake of the Hobbits' Mortal eyes, he holds the power in check, even when he sets foot on Valinor's shore and feels it crackling through him.
At last, high in the hills above Valmar, he is alone; he closes his eyes... and lets go. Feels flesh and bone and sinew falling away, finally parting mortal frame from immortal spirit, an instant of regret –
He is free.
Welcome home, Olórin.
~~~
For the tolkien_weekly "Parting" challenge.
"...only those that knew him well glimpsed the flame that was within" (Unfinished Tales, The Istari)
This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of J R R Tolkien. The characters, settings, places, and languages used in this work are the property of the Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Enterprises, and possibly New Line Cinema, except for certain original characters who belong to the author of the said work. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, is available solely for the enjoyment of Henneth Annûn Story Archive readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author.
