[ The change in subject is a relief to him as well, but not entirely. He knows that the answer he gives must deny him of all that he has earned and the paths that he travelled. It denies him the promise that he had made to a man who died in his arms, a man he has failed once before, and that he has fulfilled it.
But he must. He must, for there is no Gondor here. There is no Gondor or Arnor or Middle Earth. A King is no King without his people, and though the White Tree blooms he will not claim himself as the King of Gondor, much less the King of Men.
(He does not think of the weight of the crown that awaits him back home; of the people who depend upon him and how he knows not their states. He does not, for if he does he will claw at the walls of this ship until his fingers break and bleed streaks of blood down his wrists.
He is worth no Kingship here.) ]
I am a Ranger of the North. [ Quietly. ] A wanderer of the forests.
voice.
But he must. He must, for there is no Gondor here. There is no Gondor or Arnor or Middle Earth. A King is no King without his people, and though the White Tree blooms he will not claim himself as the King of Gondor, much less the King of Men.
(He does not think of the weight of the crown that awaits him back home; of the people who depend upon him and how he knows not their states. He does not, for if he does he will claw at the walls of this ship until his fingers break and bleed streaks of blood down his wrists.
He is worth no Kingship here.) ]
I am a Ranger of the North. [ Quietly. ] A wanderer of the forests.