Characters
I have wished you joy since first I saw you.
— Aragorn ‧ The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
Behind the line May contain spoilers.
Our reading
An editorial interpretation.
The wish for the other person’s happiness is traced back to their first meeting. That duration makes the statement an account of continuing goodwill, not simply a new hope for the present. The words express the speaker’s claim without showing how the wish has been acted upon.
Context reviewed