A/N- Sorry for the wait, but here it is! After much trial and error and writer's block, Chapter Three has arrived! I want to send out a quick thank you to those of you that have reviewed, favorite, and/or followed this story. Please read and review and let me know what you think!

Disclaimer- Everything belongs to Tolkien except Audra and Hravan. Those two are mine. :)

They reached the gates of Minas Tirith as the sun set behind the White Mountains. Éomer was whisked away to the Halls of Healing to have his shoulder tended to. Audra made her way to the stable to look after Firefoot and Hravan. She unsaddled the horses, brushed them down, fed and watered them, and began laying down fresh straw in the stalls before she realized she was being watched. She glanced behind her and saw a tall dark figure striding her direction. Wonderful. Just the person I was hoping to avoid, she thought as she recognized the form. She returned to her work promptly, avoiding her new companion's stern gaze.

"Where have you been?" Audra ignored him. "Faramir and I have been worried sick, Audra."

"Of course you have," Audra stated dryly. Being worried herself for Éomer, Audra was not in the mood to deal with Boomer and his older brother protectiveness.

"Audra, what were you thinking? Running off on your own? Do you have any idea how many Orc packs we have tracked just across the River alone?"

"Well, I suppose it's a good thing that I wasn't across the River then," Audra replied.

Boromir sighed heavily, shaking his head. "You are so stubborn-"

"Learned from the best," she said with a dismissive shrug.

"You're so stubborn," he continued without missing a beat. "You do realize that you could have died? You have no idea how to protect yourself during a fight."

"Actually, dear brother, I do."

Boromir let out an exasperated breath. "With Faramir and I, yes. But a real honest fight for life or death? There is no amount of training that can prepare you for that. You wouldn't last five seconds on your own."

Thanks for the vote of confidence. Audra angrily plunged the pitchfork into the stack of hay and tossed a lump into Firefoot's stall. The gelding shook his head to rid himself of the stray pieces that landed unceremoniously in his mane. She smiled at the horse's offended expression.

"Audra, please, I just want to protect you."

"I know, but I'm not a child anymore." Audra moved around Boromir to Hravan's stall and stepped through door. She picked up a brush from the bucket on the ground and ran it across his slick body. "When will you see that? What do I have to do for you to trust me with the knowledge that you have handed down to me?" She desperately wanted to tell him about the Orcs she and Éomer had encountered, that she had helped fight them off. And guess what? She was fine!

"Audra, I…"

"Lord Boromir." Audra and Boromir turned to the front of the stables. "The Steward Lord Denethor requests your presence." The soldier bowed.

"Thank you." Boromir smiled sadly at Audra before walking out of the stables, leaving Audra even more confused than before.

Faramir was the next to hunt down his sister. He found Audra exactly where he had thought she would be. Giving Hravan a grooming that would leave him literally spotless. Her movements were rough like she was agitated. He could only guess who had made her angry. Faramir leaned against a beam in the center of the stable and watched Audra work her way around the black gelding. When she had finally finished and walked out of Hravan's stall, latching behind her, he said, "I am happy to see that you have returned in one piece, little sister."

Audra smiled at her twin as she went embrace him. "You're only older by two minutes. Let it go." It was their running jest; Faramir always teasing Audra about being the oldest. Audra went to pick up Éomer's saddle that she hadn't gotten around to putting up as of yet. "I thought that Denethor had you and the Rangers going back out to Ithilien?"

"He did but Boromir convinced Father to give us a few more days after you went missing." Faramir followed her to the empty stall that presently was serving as a tack room. "What in the world would have caused you to just run off like that? You realize that Madril was ready to throttle you, right? I don't think I've ever seen the man so angry."

"I'm sorry," was all she managed to say. She was too ashamed and embarrassed to tell Faramir why she had left so she didn't say anything. "It was not my intention to upset anyone or even leave like I did, but I was not thinking right at the time."

"Now what could have caused my level headed sister to not think right?" Faramir walked up to Audra and put his hand on her shoulder. "Come now, tell me what happened."

Audra pulled in a deep breath in an attempt to control her emotions. "I found out why Denethor cast me out, the real reason." When Faramir remained quiet, she continued in a soft voice, in Elvish, hoping the beautiful language would make the harsh words hurt less. "'Amin delotha lle. Amin feuya ten' lee.'" Faramir wrapped an arm around her shoulders and squeezed. Denethor had told her that he hated her and that she disgusted him. He almost didn't want to know what else he had said to her. "He said that I did not belong here. That I am worthless, and seeing as how he already had a worthless son he would have nothing to do with a worthless girl. He said that I would never amount to anything."

"Why did you not come to one of us? Why did you just leave?" Faramir asked gently.

"I just needed to be alone, I suppose."

"For four days?" Audra shrugged and stepped away from her brother. She started picking at the caked on dirt on Éomer's saddle. "Audra, do not pay any attention to him. He does not know you. He cannot see past his own selfish-"

"No, he can't see past his hatred for us, Faramir. And it is not even what he said about me that hurt. It is how he sees you. Do you know that he blames us for Mother's death? He says she was never the same after we were born. She was nearly always sick. Always fighting some sort of illness. She was always weak." She smiled at an early memory. "I remember the only time I ever saw Denethor smile, truly smile. He was watching Mother with Boromir. They were just sitting near the White Tree. When Mother saw him she returned his smile and his face lit up like I had never seen before. They truly loved each other. I will never forget the way they looked at each other. They always smiled and they're eyes held a sparkle." Audra's smile faded slowly after that. She was remembering the day their mother had died. The light had forever left the Steward's eyes and he rarely smiled. He had turned against the twins that day, not caring that they had lost their mother. It was not long after that when Denethor had told Audra to leave.

Faramir, as if he could read her thoughts, said, "And then Madril found you here, in this very stall, if I am not mistaken."

Audra stopped picking at the dirt when she realized that Madril had yet to track her down. "Where is Madril?" She was struck with anticipation as she thought about the stern talking to she was bound to get from the old Ranger. She swallowed the bile that rose in her throat at the thought of his disappointment.

"He is getting the new recruits ready for our patrol to Ithilien. I am certain he will be here soon."

Audra perked up suddenly. "New recruits?"

"No." Faramir pointed a finger at her. "No way. Absolutely not." He knew exactly where this was going and he now regretted saying anything. It wasn't that he doubted her abilities, in fact he trusted her skills over most of the men, but he didn't want the distraction. He knew that despite the fact that she was very skilled he would constantly worry about her. It was his job to protect her, even if that meant making her angry at him.

"Do not pull that me, Faramir." She followed him as he walked out of the tack stall. "You do realize that there is nothing stating that a woman cannot join the Rangers, right?"

"Then what is stopping you?" Faramir stopped in his tracks and sighed heavily. He rolled his shoulders, mentally kicking himself. When was he going to learn to keep his mouth shut?

Audra thought about that for a moment. What was really stopping her from making an attempt to join the elite group of fighters? Then she remembered the pleading look that Boromir had given her when she had first brought it up. "Honestly, Boromir. He practically begged me not to."

Faramir looked hard at his sister. He knew why she wanted to be in the Rangers and he hated that she felt that way. "You know that you have nothing to prove to anyone, right?"

Audra snorted. "I do to him." She nodded toward the stable entrance as the man in question walked in with Madril following close behind. Faramir sighed in defeat, a sigh that did not go unnoticed by Audra, and went to greet his brother and second in command.

Madril shook hands with Faramir and after a quick word approached Audra. She prepared herself for the lecture of a lifetime. "I am more grateful than you'll ever know that you have returned safely, my dear." The old Ranger wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. She returned the hug with a reluctant feeling of relief. "We will talk about this when we return from Ithilien," he muttered softly in her ear. "I know the reason why you did what you did." She looked around Madril to glare at Faramir. He simply shrugged. She withdrew from Madril.

She tried to speak but couldn't find her voice. She grabbed onto Madril's arm as a wave of dizziness took over. She couldn't see; everything had gone dark, like someone had put a veil over her eyes. A sudden flash of light and searing pain in her head brought her to her knees. She grabbed her head and made an attempt to not scream out in pain. It lasted only a few seconds before it was gone and she found herself in the great throne room. Lord Denethor was seated in his position at the foot of the empty throne in his Steward's seat. His head was bowed, his shoulders shaking as if he were crying. In his hands he held the horn of Gondor. That was wrong. Why would Denethor have the horn? It should be with Boromir. Unless…?

"Boromir. My son. He is dead."

Audra's heart stopped. Boromir, dead?

"Audra!" She turned in the direction of the muffled voice. She shook her head to clear it and realized that she was slumped in Madril's arms, Boromir and Faramir hovering overhead.

"What happened to you? You just passed out all of a sudden."

Audra shook her head. "I have no idea."

"Are you okay?"

"I- I think so." She was hesitant to tell any of them about what she had seen. She met Boromir's eyes and the expression on his face said that he didn't believe her. Madril helped her to her feet. She stood on shaky legs for a moment, grasping his arm, before stepping forward and slowly making her way toward the door. She needed to get out of the dusty air of the stable.

Audra took a deep breath as she stepped out of the stable. Boromir walked up behind her. "What happened?"

She thought quickly. This wasn't the time or place to tell him about what she saw; the street was crowded with merchants and people buying their goods, despite the late hour. She wasn't even certain that she wanted to tell him.

Faramir, sensing something wasn't quite right, spoke up. "How long has it been since you've eaten, Audra?"

Yes! That was it. Faramir had just brought her terrible habit of not eating on a regular basis to light. And in truth she hadn't eaten anything since her small meal with Éomer the day before. And before that she hadn't eaten for 3 days. "Umm..."

"Too long, I'd say," Boromir spoke up at her hesitation. He led the way to a small tavern, one of their favorites and the four of them shared a meal of hot soup and bread. Between the small talk and eaves dropping on the chatter around her, Audra quickly forgot about the vision.

They sat at a table meant for a much larger group, right up close to the warm hearth. The red-orange flames danced, casting flickering shadows across the table. Audra's thoughts quickly drifted away from the conversation about Orcs being sighted near the Anduin to Éomer. It was only the second time she had thought of the man that had ended up saving her life and she was nearly ashamed. There had been no time for good-byes or well wishes when they had arrived at the gates for a Gondorian soldier recognized him and Éomer had been whisked off to the Halls of Healing. Having nothing else to do, under the assumption that her brothers and Madril had journeyed to Ithilien, Audra had tended to their horses. Then they surprised her by postponing the journey. Speaking of which…

"When are you three leaving for Ithilien?" She asked suddenly, ending the men's argument over who was the best at a sort of game they had created. All three looked at her.

Faramir glanced sideways at Boromir and Madril before answering her. "We leave at first light."

"And no, you are not going."

Audra gave her older brother a stern look. "I wouldn't dream of it dear brother." All three of her companions gave her looks that clearly said that they didn't believe her, all knowing better.

Madril stood up from his seat next to Audra, putting a hand on her shoulder. "I think we all need to get some rest. It is late and we leave in only a few hours." Boromir and Faramir nodded both standing up as well. Madril looked down at Audra. "Will you be alright, my dear?" She knew he was really asking her if she would have another episode like earlier.

"Yes, I will be fine," she lied. Knots were beginning to form in her stomach at the thought of not knowing if she would see them again. She was trying to be optimistic but the vision or whatever it was would not let her. "Go. Get some rest." She stood and stretched. "I need to check on Lord Éomer. I feel terrible that I have not seen him since we first arrived."

Boromir put a foot on the bench on front of him and rested an arm on his knee. There was an amused gleam to his eye that unsettled Audra. "Yes, do tell about the whole you saving King Théoden's nephew incident. And don't leave out the Orcs." A proud smile slowly formed on his lips, lighting up his green eyes.

Faramir and Madril agreed and they both sat down hastily. Audra sighed, feeling defeated. So he had also spoken to Éomer. "I was going to tell you, honestly. I just didn't know how, I guess."

"Wait," Faramir interjected. "You mean to tell me that you feel that you need to prove something to this brother of ours," he began as the smile faded from Boromir's face, replaced by what could only be described as an uneasy expression, something Faramir missed. "And you fail to mention that you saved Théoden's nephew?"

A/N- I couldn't find anything that technically stated that a woman couldn't join the Rangers. (Although I am sure there is somewhere.) Also, the Elvish in this chapter came from The Grey Company Phrase Book as of 6/10/2000.

Thank you for reading and again, please review! (even if it's a quick one)