Aragorn let out a frustrated sigh as he moved to sit next to Stella. He said nothing as he stared off into space, leaning his back against the wall. Stella stared at a random spot on the wall as she let out a deep breath of air.
"Don't go." She whispered without much enthusiasm. "How many men will I have to watch walk away from me to fight? How many will never return? The first couple of times were easier, I had no idea what to expect. This time, I know what could happen."
There was a long pause, in which they both stared blankly at a spot that marred the otherwise perfect marble.
"I have to go. I have to give Frodo a chance. I need to do this." Aragorn finally whispered.
"I understand. I just want you to stay, with me, and be safe." She whispered as she leaned her head on his shoulder. "This too shall pass." Stella murmured and entwined her fingers with his. "And we shall all be the better for it."
Aragorn kissed the top of her head before hearing her whisper.
"Play a game with me?" she asked.
"What game would we play?"
"Pretend, pretend that you won't be leaving in a couple of days, pretend that we are on our honeymoon, pretend that we have never seen death or known fear, pretend that you are my husband and I am your wife and we have no responsibilities save for those to each other."
"That sounds like a very happy game." Aragorn smiled.
Stella shifted her position so that she sat on Aragorn's lap with her legs straddling his hips. She placed feather kisses over his exposed collarbone.
"Hush," she murmured into his neck, "I'm pretending!"
For Stella it seemed as if the days blended together and passed far too quickly. On the day of Aragorn's departure Stella requested that his Armour be sent up to their room so that she could dress him. She slowly placed a chainmail shirt over his head with a small grimace. She took her time smoothing out any chinks in the shirt before moving on to secure a shoulder piece under his armpit. With each piece she secured onto his body she placed a small kiss there.
"I love you. I won't waist my breath trying to convince you to stay now but I will tell you to be safe and come back." She spoke with authority.
"I will always come back to you. I will never leave you." He assured her.
"Good, because I will always need you." She smiled, "Now about your hair, it seems a bit long, don't you think? Maybe I could tie it back or something?" She suggested with a small giggle.
Stella finally decided on braiding the front pieces of hair back and securing it with the rest of his hair.
"You sit there." She gestured to the floor by the bed. "I'll be here." She stated as she situated herself on the still warm bed. "Keep your head still and don't fidget." She commanded with a smile.
Her hands moved quickly as she twisted his hair with expert ease.
"When I was younger I took care of these two little girls that lived next door, Emma and Jasmine, Emma loved for her hair to be braided. Every time I went over she would ask me to make a new design." Stella remembered with a grin. "Those little girls were the sweetest kids I had ever met. Okay, I'm done, though I wish I could keep you here for the rest of forever."
"I will be back soon and then we can start the rest of forever." Aragorn justified with a small smile.
Stella merely nodded as she turned around to hide the tears in her eyes. The couple walked in silence as they made their way horses where Legolas and Gimli were waiting for them. A pair of MacGyvered crutches supported Eowyn, it seemed she and Legolas were having an equally hard time saying goodbye. Stella heard Eowyn's soft commands to return home safely and smiled, she was glad to know she was not the only one scared for their success.
Stella and Eowyn stood together as they watched their loved ones set off to, what Stella believed to be, almost certain death.
"Eowyn, I need to tell you something." Stella stated as soon as she was sure Aragorn was out of earshot. "But you need to keep it a secret I haven't told Aragorn yet. I'm not even sure if I'm right but I have this feeling and I was trying to do the math and I'm pretty sure."
"Just tell me!" Eowyn cut her off as she moved to lean against the wall.
"I think I may be pregnant." Stella rushed out, letting the words hang like a lead balloon.
"I thought it was not possible. You have a medicine that prevents such things." Eowyn insisted as she searched her friend's eyes for a clue.
"I thought it was close to impossible. I mean, I knew there was a slight risk but this wasn't supposed to happen."
"Why haven't you told him?" Eowyn asked in shock, looking back at the retreating figures.
"Because I don't know for sure, and telling him now would only make him worry. I didn't want him to stay here because he felt guilty and then it turn out that I was wrong about this whole thing anyways."
"You will tell him when he gets back, right?"
"If I'm right about this then I will have to tell him at some point. But I have this idea. When he proposed I joked about knitting hats for babies, I want to knit a hat and show it to him when I know for sure." Stella explained.
"Why do you think you are," Eowyn paused, "In your condition?" She finished finally.
"Well I was thinking about a couple of nights ago, at that party, I usually love the smell of ale. But that night I could barely take a small sniff without thinking of dirty socks. I only drank that first drink but couldn't bring myself to drink another. I remember my mother saying something about when she was pregnant all the smells she loved would smell inexplicably foul. Anyways, that made me start thinking about it and I did the math and I think I'm about a week late."
As Stella explained Eowyn's eyes grew larger and larger.
"I'm not really upset about it but I am rather worried about timing. I mean this is possibly one of the worst times I could think of to bring a child into this world." Stella finished with a grimace.
"If there is one thing I have learned, it is that there is never an bad time to bring life to the world." Eowyn encouraged, "especially during a war, I child would be a sign of hope when all else has lost value."
"But it would be safer if my husband were home and there was no great source of evil attempting to bring the roof crashing in." Stella argued with a smile. "Either way I want to get started on this hat, will you help me?"
"Yes," Eowyn beamed. "This is something I should be very good at given my level of mobility."
"A sitting task for the both of us will be welcomed. I think I might even get Faramir to help seeing as how he is bed bound for another few weeks at least." Stella laughed as she helped Eowyn up and supported her through the halls.
Stella had listened to Eowyn's directions specifically to find the woman that sold the yarn and needles she needed. The old woman's shop was little more than a small hole in the wall filled to the brim with different coloured yarns in different stages. Stella got lost in selecting colours and needle sizes and found she was bonding with the old woman.
"Well, my dear, the selection of yarn all comes down to its purpose. A pair of socks need a thinner needle and finer thread, while the thicker yarns and needles are best used for a jumper." The lady explained in a sweet voice.
"Thank you, I don't believe I ever asked your name?" Stella asked in a soft voice that she reserved for babies and the elderly.
"Dorothea, my dear, and there is no asking about you. Everyone is talking about the woman that has our new soon to be king so enamoured." The woman grinned in a friendly manner. "So, sweetheart, what are you making?"
"A hat, but I need it to be softer than any other. Something that would not irritate new skin." Stella explained as she ran her hands over spools of yarn in search for the softest.
"A baby? Oh, my dear, yes a baby prince I'm sure." Dorothea suddenly gushed as she placed her hands on Stella's stomach.
"I'm not entirely sure yet." Stella absently brushed her hands over her stomach. "But as I think about it more, I find myself wishing it to be true."
"Oh, my dear, yes I have just the yarn you will need. We can talk about colour later. If I don't have the colour you want we can make it." She comforted her.
Dorothea lead her to the very back of the store there a small section of the finest yarns Stella had ever felt.
"Yarn fit for royalty!" Dorothea pronounced with a proud grin.
Stella ran her hand over every colour in the selection trying to pick the perfect one.
"I do not know if I could ever pick just one colour. They are all so beautiful."
"A baby needs more than a hat to stay warm in these winters. Perhaps you do not need to choose." Dorothea stated with a smile.
"Yes, I could always enlist Eowyn's help, I am afraid my kitting expertise falls short of much more than a simple hat." Stella laughed.
Dorothea smiled but Stella could see there was something on her mind, a plan hatching.
"Perhaps." Was all she whispered as she bustled around the store looking of a chair for Stella. "Oh a baby! I still remember the day each of my children were born. Frank, my husband, was simply beside himself each time."
"How many children did you have?" Stella asked.
"Seven all together, three girls and four boys. They all have their own families now. My boys are off fighting." Dorothea elaborated softly.
"My prayers are with them." Stella whispered.
"Yes, well I find other things to occupy myself with." She trailed off cryptically.
After several hours Stella had finally decided on a hat in soft lavender and booties in light green. Dorothea also insisted on a pastel yellow for a jumper she insisted on making. Stella also picked out needles of ever shape and size, unsure about which ones she would need for each task. She left the shop feeling incredibly confident that not only was she pregnant but that this child would be the most loved child.
"Eowyn, how long do you think they will be gone?" Stella asked with a slight whine in her voice.
Aragorn and the rest of the army had been gone for two days and with every day they heard no news Stella became more and more anxious.
"I have already explained to you that they would wait to approach the black gates in the morning. If all goes well they should be back by tomorrow." Eowyn explained exasperatedly.
"And if they fail?" Stella asked.
"If they fail we would hear about it." Eowyn comforted.
"I'm sorry I just absolutely hate waiting." Stella justified.
"My dear, I believe it would be best if you stepped away from the window and worked on something." Dorothea suggested with a smile. "Worrying does little good."
"I have already finished the hat I was working on. I don't think I have ever finished a project so fast. It must be all the worry, it keeps me up at night and this is what I do to try to will my brain to sleep."
"Perhaps you could start on another project then? Something for yourself perhaps." Dorothea suggested.
Stella sighed but reluctantly moved back to the armchair she was sitting on.
"How do you do it, act so calm when you know they are out doing something dangerous?"
"Practice, my dear, you will learn it in time."
"I wish I never have to." Stella mumbled.
"Perhaps you never will."
Dorothea had come up for the past two days to sit with Eowyn and Stella and help them with their respective projects. It turned out that Eowyn had quite a knack for learning intricate patterns and stitches while Stella needed slightly more help and occasionally made such a mess of whatever she was working on that the whole thing needed to be taken apart. However Dorothea had the patience of an angel and stood by Stella, correcting her with unfailing diligence.
Just as Stella had resigned herself to a new project she saw out of the corner of her eye a flash of red and she quickly moved to see what had caused it.
"Did you see that? I think it was a volcano! Oh my God, I hope everyone is alright!" Stella cried as a new wave of emotion hit her like a tonne of bricks.
Though Dorothea tried to help Stella back to her seat she would not move. She could not allow herself to be torn away from the window, which had become her lifeline to Aragorn. As long as she could see the blurs of red and orange on the horizon she knew he would be okay.
Stella stayed glued to the window for another full night and day before she heard the cries of people returning. It was then that her feet could not carry her fast enough. Tears streamed down her face as she rushed out of the large doors that she felt had kept her hostage for the past four days. Stella quickly wiped her eyes and nose with the back of her hand before running of in the direction of shouts. From what she could tell they had won, but it was unclear how many they might have lost or who was injured.
"Aragorn? Aragorn!" She cried at the top of her voice, catching some looks from bystanders.
She continued to shout his name until she could finally see him. She burst forward, with a speed she did not know she possessed, crashing into his arms.
"Oh thank Go-." Aragorn placing a rough and passionate kiss on her lips cut her off.
"I told you I would return to you. Now we can start the rest of forever." He whispered, as they broke apart.
"Forever." Stella intoned as she reached back up for another kiss. "There is something I need to tell you."
"What is that, my love?" he asked with a smile.
Stella grinned as she took his hand with her free one. She slowly opened his palm and placed the small purple hat she had made in the centre. Stella watched as Aragorn's eyes went from confusion to excitement to shock in one swift movement.
"But I thought," She started, still gasping for breath.
"So did I, but I did the math. I'm sure, besides I can just feel it." Stella justified with a grin. "You are going to be a father."
It took him a moment but it was not long before Aragorn spun Stella around with a laugh.
"You will make a terrific mother." He pronounced finally.
"And you will make a wonderful father." Stella agreed.