Part 15 of the Elfwine Chronicles. The Elfwine Chronicles are a series of one-shots built around the family group of Eomer, Lothiriel and Elfwine. The total number will depend on how many ideas I get for new vignettes.
A/N: Alright, alright - if people are going to tease me about not changing the wording at the beginning of each Elfwine Chronicle, I guess I will let myself be bullied into it! (see above)
You can thank catwraith for coming up with this idea for a story. It's quite a bit longer than most of the Chronicles because it took more time to set up the story with this many people involved. Somehow I don't think any of you will complain! Who knows? You may yet see more of these two families interacting if I can come up with ideas of what to do with them together.
Amon Aredhel - more trouble for English class, coming right up (if caught, tell them you are studying my sentence structure and crafting of a story...)
YES! IT'S TRUE! Here is the long-rumored, hopefully anxiously awaited, Part 15. So, if you've read 17 of these little buggers, then you've read the entire set (so far)!
Legacy
(Jul, 4 IV)
"Are we almost there yet?" Elboron asked his mother.
Eowyn gave a sigh beside him, and turned from the window of the carriage. "Not yet. We still have a long way to go. We will not reach Edoras until almost nightfall." He had been asking her this same question for the past three days, and Eowyn grew weary of it, but time meant little to a four-year-old.
She would be glad to reach the city. The trip would have been more interesting if she could have ridden the entire way on her horse, but Elboron was not old enough to sit long in a saddle. While many of Gondor's nobles turned over the care and keeping of their children to nurses, and spent little time with them, she did not want that for her own offspring. In Edoras, the mother raised the children, and she wanted her family to have the same warm experience with her that she had had with her own mother. It was tiring being a mother, but she preferred to guide her son's growth than allow someone else to be his chief influence.
Elboron was intensely interested in his cousin, Elfwine, and had been asking endless questions about him. This was the first trip to see her nephew since he was an infant, so she had no ready answers. From Lothiriel's letters, she very much suspected the boy was a great deal like his father had been…and still was!
Eowyn was relieved when Elboron slept for a couple of hours after the midday meal. She took the opportunity to leave her son under the watchful eye of her maidservant and returned to riding her horse until he awakened. Faramir smiled tenderly at her as she fell in beside him. "Our son finally sleeps, I take it," he commented.
She nodded, "At last! He is so eager to meet his cousin and see this new place, he is beside himself. And I confess, my excitement grows as well at visiting my homeland and my brother."
Faramir reached out a hand and brushed her cheek with his fingers, "I am sorry we do not live closer so visits could be more frequent. When Elboron is older, perhaps you can come more often on your own and not have to wait for me to be available."
She smiled back at him, and rubbed a hand over her stomach, "Elboron getting older will only help so much, my lord! With another on the way, I am not soon likely to be able to travel unimpeded!"
Faramir rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "Then perhaps you wish no more children after this? Would you wish me to remove to another bedchamber and leave you in peace?"
She mock-glared at him, "Try it and see what happens! There is only one place under our roof where you are to sleep, and that is with your wife." She paused and then added teasingly, "And she would forego travelling to Edoras often if you are keeping her bed warm!"
They laughed together and Faramir reached for her hand. They rode on in silence, content just to be with one another.
xxxxx
Before nightfall, as Eowyn had predicted, they were within a few miles of Edoras, and a party of Riders came out to meet their company and escort them in.
Elboron could barely contain his excitement, and would have bolted out the carriage door before it came to a halt if Eowyn had not been quick-reflexed enough to catch him. "Elboron, what did I tell you? How do we behave when we visit a king?"
He squirmed in her grip, not really interested in this lesson, but realizing he couldn't escape, he finally settled a bit and answered grumpily, "Be polite and use manners." A servant opened the carriage door just then, and he pulled free and leapt to the ground before she could ensnare him again. With a sigh, she followed her son out. She knew her brother would not be upset if her son was not perfectly behaved, but he still needed to learn the lesson for other occasions.
Hardly to her surprise, Elboron had dashed up the steps to Meduseld, but upon seeing the King of Rohan awaiting him, he skidded to an awed halt and stared open-mouthed. An amused grin tweaked Eomer's mouth as he eyed his nephew sternly, but after only a moment, he burst into a laugh and scooped the boy up into his arms. "You must be Elboron, I'll wager!"
Elboron, still at a loss for words, just bobbed his head in acknowledgement. Eomer, seeing that the boy was overwhelmed, leaned close and whispered, "So, tell me, Elboron, are you as ticklish as your cousin Elfwine is?" And his fingers attacked the tiny boy in his arms, who wriggled and squealed with delight.
Eowyn and Faramir ascended the steps, smiles on their faces. With mock severity, Faramir announced, "I must insist that the king unhand my son or I shall have to deal harshly with him!"
Eomer easily draped the boy over his shoulder and took a defensive stance, "Oh, is that so! You would dare attack Rohan at its very heart?"
Faramir gave a smirk, "I do not wish our countries to come to blows, my lord, but do keep in mind that I am married to your sister – who I would add is particularly fond of telling me embarrassing stories about her brother!"
Eomer blushed slightly and let out a laugh, "You do indeed come well armed, brother! I concede and surrender your son!" With that he flipped Elboron off his shoulder and tossed him lightly into Faramir's arms, the boy giggling madly at the great fun of it all.
"If you two are quite finished playing the fools, perhaps you might be able to properly greet your sister," Eowyn suggested, stepping forward.
Eomer swept her into a warm embrace, "Gladly!" He held her a long time, and then whispered, "It is very good to see you!"
Unnoticed, Lothiriel and her three-year-old, Elfwine, had appeared at Eomer's side. "My love, do we really need to keep our guests standing out here in the dark to greet them? Do bring them inside and feed them, for surely the journey was long, and they are hungry and weary."
Eomer pulled back from his sister, and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Of course, you are right. Come inside."
Faramir followed behind his wife, and slipped his free arm around the waist of his cousin, giving her a quick kiss on the head, "It is good to see you looking well, Thiri. Rohan seems to agree with you."
"Aye. Already it is home to me, all the more precious for my husband and son."
He gave her an understanding hug as they walked together inside the Golden Hall.
xxxxx
By the next day, Elboron and Elfwine were fast friends; largely because they had played together until they dropped from exhaustion the previous night. They were close enough in age that they played well, and their abilities were similar.
Despite their long trip, Eowyn wanted to be out enjoying her beloved homeland, and had persuaded her brother to take them all on a picnic outing. The two children rode in front of their fathers, leading the way, while Lothiriel and Eowyn trailed along beside them.
After glancing over at the men and boys, Eowyn laughed. "What is so amusing?" Lothiriel inquired.
"I just noticed – each of our sons has the same coloring as the father! See how much alike they look!"
Lothiriel observed a moment, then added, "Yes, and Elfwine is a great deal like his father. Too much sometimes!"
Eowyn nodded, "Elboron, too. I have so enjoyed reading your letters telling about Elfwine. It sounds so very much what my brother was like as a child. And older women who knew Faramir as a boy tell me the same is true of Elboron...though hopefully a happier child." Her voice trailed off and her expression sobered. She had heard far too many stories about how Faramir was treated by his father after the death of his mother.
Lothiriel reached over and touched her arm, "Do not dwell on the past. He is free of that torment now, and has a wonderful wife and son. Were he to die today, he would die blissfully happy, I am certain."
Eowyn smiled in return, and said fervently, "And I shall spend the rest of my days keeping it so!"
Lothiriel nodded, "Which is one of the many reasons why I like you so much!" That brought another laugh from Eowyn and lightened the mood once more.
A short time later, they arrived at the selected spot and lay down blankets. It was difficult to do, but they managed to get the two boys to eat something before insisting on going exploring. Eomer had managed to doze off right after eating, so Faramir went with the children to keep an eye on them.
They had been gone for some time when Lothiriel nudged Eomer until he awakened. Sleepily he looked at her questioningly, "I think you ought to go check on Faramir and the boys. And the exercise will do you good after so much time behind a desk!"
He made a face at her but slowly rose, to the sound of his sister's laughter. "Lothiriel, I am so glad you know how to handle him!" Eowyn announced.
Pretending to be affronted, Eomer glared at the two women and sauntered off in the direction Lothiriel indicated the others had gone. They had settled in a wooded area at the top of a hill that sloped down to a stream. From his vantage point at the top, Eomer could see Faramir and the children at the bottom. Faramir was staring out over the water, lost in thought as the boys played nearby, and Eomer watched him for a few moments, wondering where his thoughts dwelled.
An instant later, he heard a loud splash and his head jerked back to the boys. He was horrified to see his son was no longer on the stream bank but thrashing in the water. Before he could even think to react, something charged into his sightline and jumped into the water, quickly retrieving the screaming youngster.
Faramir waded back to the bank and sat down on a large stone, holding and soothing the frightened toddler. Elboron stood beside them, apparently crying also, and Faramir reached to pull him into the embrace as well. While Eomer watched, the two children gradually calmed, and Faramir gathered Elfwine close to him to keep him warm, then began trudging back toward their camp. Elboron caught hold of his father's tunic and followed along, occasionally glancing up at his cousin, who was still giving a sniffle now and then.
Quickly Eomer hurried down the hill to meet them and, part way there, Faramir noticed his approach and worried expression. "Do not be alarmed," he called out. "Elfwine is fine. He is just a little frightened."
Since his son seemed content to be snuggled in close to Faramir's chest, Eomer scooped up Elboron and turned to walk beside Faramir for the remainder of the distance. Elfwine was quickly bundled up in a blanket by his concerned mother, and they decided it was probably a good time to make the return trip to Edoras.
As they rode along, Eomer was lost in his own thoughts while he held his heir safely in front of him. A time or two he glanced over at his brother-in-law, holding his rapidly tiring son in the saddle, between his arms. A slight smile played at the corners of his mouth, and Lothiriel made note of it but asked no questions.
After they were back at Meduseld, the children were put down for a nap and their parents slipped off to other occupations until suppertime. For a few moments, Eomer lingered in the doorway of the nursery watching his son sleep. Lothiriel slipped up beside him and snaked an arm around his waist. "What are your thoughts, my love?" she asked him.
It took a bit for him to organize his thoughts coherently in order to express them, but then he told her, "Today I saw Faramir spring to our son's aid as if it was his own child. He rescued him from harm and comforted him until soothed." Eomer paused, fighting for the words to continue, "It left a warm feeling in my heart that he would treat my son so."
He shrugged, not entirely satisfied with his explanation but unsure how to better express it. Lothiriel smiled, and laid her head against his chest. Softly she answered, "Perhaps it pleases you because now you feel certain that if anything were to happen to us, our son would be as well taken care of and loved by his uncle as you and Eowyn were by yours."
Eomer started at her words, but then slowly nodded in agreement. "Yes, I think that is it." He pulled her closer and gave a soft laugh, "How is it you always seem to know what I am feeling?"
"I suppose I am just lucky," she assured him.
THE END
End note: It is best that you read the Elfwine Chronicles in the order they were written. The more of them that I wrote, the more likely I was to make reference to one of the previous ones and something that happened there. If you want to read them in order, go to the top of this page and click on my name (Deandra). That will take you to my profile page. Scroll down and you will find all the stories I have written. The Elfwine Chronicles are in order from bottom to top since ffn shows them in the order they were posted. A few were posted out of number order, but you can read them in posting order or number order since those few won't be affected in the story content.