A/N: I was thinking about the chapter "The Window on the West" where Faramir and the other Rangers paused for a moment before eating, and the idea for this story kind of popped into my head. I thought that there had to be more to that, and so I thought I would expand on their faith in the Valar and Eru. This is set a couple of years before the War of the Ring, making Lothíriel about 16 or 17. I hope you enjoy the story!

A/N 2: Okay, after I first posted this story, I got some really good feedback that gave me a lot to think about. After musing on it for a while, I decided to go back and make this fic about faith in the Creator, Eru Ilùvatar. While it is true that I have not really come across anything in LotR referring to any formal religion in Gondor, I thought that there had to be something more than the brief mention made by Faramir. Also, I made reference pronouns of Eru capitalized, somewhat like it is in the Bible.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this story, nor anything to do at all with the wonderful masterpiece created by Tolkien known as The Lord of the Rings.

He had no idea that she was there. He was just sitting there, reading his book, completely oblivious to everything else around him. She loved it when he got like this; it gave her the perfect opportunity to sneak up on him.

Careful not to make a sound and thankful for her soft slippers, Lothíriel crept toward her cousin at the table where he was sitting. She paused for a moment, then sprang at him, exclaiming, "Got you!"

Faramir jumped, the book he had been holding falling back onto the table. "Eru, Lothíriel! What was that for?!" he cried.

Lothíriel looked at him innocently. "Why, whatever do you mean, cousin?"

"Lothíriel, you just came up and scared the life out of me!"

"I know; you were so unaware of everything around you and did not hear me come in that I just could not resist. And by the way, your skills as a warrior are severely lacking."

"And is that why you came is here? To test my reflexes?" her cousin asked.

"No," she said, sitting down next to him. "Ada is in some council with Uncle, my brothers are bloody who-knows-where, and I am completely bored."

"So you thought you would have your cousin entertain you?"

"No, I just thought that I would see what you were doing and possibly join you."

Faramir laughed. "So, what would you like to do?"

She appeared to think for a moment. "How about we talk? It has been a long time since we sat and had a long talk."

"What would you like to talk about?"

"What have you been doing? You and Boromir have been out with your companies for so long, and no one tells me anything. They say that I am too young to understand, but I know that it is really because I do not want me to know."

"Lothíriel..."

"Please, Faramir," she begged, giving him the most pleading look she could manage. No one could resist it; not even her father. "I want to know the truth."

A wry grin appeared on in his face; she had won again. "You father will have my head if he ever finds out that I told you."

"Do you honestly think that I would?" she asked, and he shook his head.

"Things... are not well. Mordor continues to grow in strength, and keeps pressing our borders. Osgiliath is under constant threat, though we still hold it for now. There have also been rumors of Southrons and Easterlings making alliances with Mordor. If things do not change, then Sauron will soon be marching for Minas Tirith. We will have to put our trust in Ilùvatar."

Lothíriel looked down at her hands. It was a lot of information to digest. "What good can that do, trusting in Ilùvatar?" she asked, looking back up at him. "We put all this trust and hope in Him, yet everything is ultimately left to us. We pray for Him to help us, but He never does."

"What are you saying?" Faramir asked, his brow furrowed concernedly. "Are you losing your faith?"

"What faith?" she asked in return, "All my life, I have been told about Ilùvatar and how He is to be revered and all of that. Before every meal, we give thanks to Him for the meal we are about to eat. I just don't understand why He would let all of this happen; why He would let Sauron still exist if He is as all-powerful as He is supposed to be?" Tears were glistening in her eyes. "I am starting to doubt that He is really so powerful, or if He even exists."

"How long have you felt like this?"

Lothíriel shook her head. "I don't know. All I know is that every time you, Boromir, or any of my brothers go out there, I am scared to death to that you might not come back. There is no guarantee that you will come back safe. Not even Eru Himself could guarantee that."

For a moment, Faramir seemed speechless. "And this is how you truly feel?" he asked finally, "Just because we are put in charge of our own destinies, and that The One does not display Himself to us every day, you think He does not exist?"

She looked at her cousin, studying his face to determine if he had truly meant what he had just said. He did. "I... I never thought of it that way, I guess. But why has not He destroyed Sauron? He one of the Maiar, less powerful than the Creator and even the Valar; He could easily destroy him."

"I do not know," he answered truthfully, "Maybe we will never know why He has done what He does, but He has not destroyed him. Sauron is our enemy that we must defeat on our own; we must all bond together to fight our common enemy. The gods may not be there to help us every step of the way, but we are the ones who have their blessings; not Sauron."

"How can you have such faith, cousin? How can you still believe after all that you have seen out there?"

"It is not easy to do," he admitted, "But sometimes you just have to put your beliefs ahead of rational thinking. I cannot tell you what to think or what to believe, cousin. You will have to figure that out for yourself, but I hope you have gained a little perspective from our talk."

"Aye, I have," she agreed, placing a hand on top of his. "Hannon le, Faramir. You have certainly given me a lot to think about."

Any further comments that you guys might have are still welcome!