standard disclaimers apply.
~~--~~*~~--~~
Here it is, finally. THE LAST CHAPTER. and no, i will not give a sequel. this one too enough out of me as is. that and i won't have the time with the summer that is coming up. i graduate in a few days and then it's time to prepare for college.
So this is dedicated to all of you who stuck through with the story through thick and thin, and then some. I hope you've enjoyed it. And keep watch for my name in future stories. You never know, I might surprise you one day.
~~--~~*~~--~~ Epilogue ~~--~~*~~--~~
"You are sure you will not reconsider?" Aragorn asked for the hundredth time as he sat in the floor playing with his son.
Boromir turned his attention from the window and looked at Aragorn, shaking his head. He grew tired of the constant questioning from the king. His decision had ben final when he declined the invitation to take Faramir's place as Steward. Faramir had recieved the position on his own, and he would not take it.
"I am not the Steward of Gondor, Aragorn. Faramir is, and I will not take that glory from my brother," Boromir answered.
Aragorn opened his mouth to say something, but Eldarion had launched himself at his father, knocking him back to the floor with a loud thud. Coughing to catch his breath, Aragorn sat up and lifted the child above his head, holding him there.
"You underestimate me, child, for I am much larger and stronger than you," Aragorn smiled.
Eldarion laughed and kicked his feet as Aragorn brought him back down to the ground.
"Your family should be arriving soon," Aragorn commented as he stood, walking over to the window with Boromir.
"They have delayed too long," he said with worry.
"Don't worry, I'm sure they will arrive soon enough. It has only been four days since they left."
"I have never been seperated from my wife for this long," Boromir said.
Turning from the window, Boromir walked over to a large chair and sat down, resting his head in his hands. The seperation from Adele had been a grievous one, and a choice that he had ultimately regretted from the second she had stepped foot out of the palace walls.
It had been decided that Boromir and Adele would not return to live with Sesile and Amiens. Instead, they would make their home in Ithilien with Faramir and Éowyn in a house that Aragorn had ordered built once the decision had been made.
Boromir insisted that he and Adele return to gather their things before moving to Emyn Arnen. That plan had been shot down when Aragorn had requested that Boromir stay in Minas Tirith for the move so that he could discuss important matters with the should-be Steward. Adele, with Faramir, Éowyn, and some of the royal guards, had traveled back without Boromir to gather their things.
It had been a lonely four days since they had departed.
"My friend, you need a good night's rest," Aragorn said as he rested a hand on Boromir's shoulder.
"Maybe you are right," Boromir answered.
"I know I'm right."
"But it is early!" Eldarion said from the floor.
"I am very tired," Boromir said to the child. "My nights have not been well spent."
"Well," Eldarion said as he contemplated Boromir's words. "Good night then."
"Good night."
Boromir left the sitting room and walked down the long, twisting corridors until he found the door that had been marked as his own. He walked in and bothered not to take his clothes off, instead opting for throwing himself upon the bed.
It was not long until sleep claimed him, though his dreams were not entirely pleasant. He dreamed of Adele and her return attempt. Only on the way to the city she was attacked by stray orcs. Then he was there with her, calling her name and holding her close as she whispered softly into his ear.
"Boromir," she whispered.
"You can't leave me," he cried.
"Love, I'm not going anywhere," she answered as she touched his face.
Boromir opened his eyes and looked up to meet the eyes of his wife, returned from her trip unscathed from the journey. He smiled and reached up to kiss her, pulling her down against his chest.
"I dreamed of losing you," he breathed. "You were dying in my arms."
"It was a dream," she soothed. "And I am safe."
"I missed you."
Adele smiled and reached up to run a finger down her husband's cheek. The days without him had been too long.
~~--~~*~~--~~
"Tevelan is strong," Aragorn commented to Borormir as they watched their children wrestle and practice sword fighting with sticks in the garden.
"Quite the climber," Boromir laughed. "Whenever we lose him, we always know to look in the trees."
"My son seems to favor the elvish side of his family. It is rare that you will find him doing anything more than reading or drawing."
"He seems to understand the basic concept of sword fighting. Or stick fighting, at least."
"There aren't many children around the palace that are close enough in age to him. The ones that are happen to be female, and Eldarion finds the opposite gender quite repulsive."
"He'll grow out of that one of these days," Boromir said while wincing, for Tevelan had taken a good hit to the shoulder with the stick that Eldarion was using.
"Be careful!" Aragorn yelled to his son with a warning tone.
"Sorry, Ada," Eldarion said while helping Tevelan to his feet.
The two boys picked up where they left off, hitting their sticks together fiercely, testing the limits of the wood.
"They have become good friends these past few days," Aragorn said. "It will be hard for Eldarion to understand why Tevelan has to go."
Boromir sighed, cathing the underlined meaning to that statement.
"It will not be the last time they will see each other," Boromir said.
"That's good to hear."
There was silence between them while they continued to watch their children play.
Inside a sitting room on the opposite side of the garden, Adele turned her attention from the small battle being fought, and turned it back to her daughter who was beginning to sob as she struggled to get out of Éowyn's arms.
"Do you think he will regret his decision?" Adele asked while taking the child.
"Deciling the position as Steward? I do not know."
"It still baffles me that he declined it in the first place. He wanted so much to find his past, and the stewardship would have been his future, but he did not take it. Sometimes his intentions are beyond me."
"Maybe he thinks he owes it to Faramir."
"Owes what?"
"Faramir showed him who he really was. Maybe declinding the stewardship is a way of repaying the favor."
Adele pondered this for a moment while she walked around the room in an attempt to make her fussing child drift off to sleep.
"Perhaps you are right."
~~--~~*~~--~~
Boromir stood in the courtyard, looking to the east and the rising sun. It was the day of their departure from Minas Tirith, and the first day of the rest of their new lives. Only a few days' ride away, Emyn Arnen had been the topic of much conversation between he and his brother. Inside he was itching to see the land for himself.
"The day is perfect for riding, is it not?" Faramir asked happily as he walked outside with a large bag full of his personal things.
"Yes, a wonderful morning to ride. We can only hope the weather will hold."
"The sky is clear," Faramir commented while turning his attention to the skies. "There will not be much to worry about."
"Is the road to Emyn Arnen safe?"
Faramir smiled and nodded, adding as an after thought, "As safe as can be expected, but no road is ever completely free of peril."
"As is no life."
Chuckling, Faramir walked back inside as Éowyn and Adele came out carrying their own things. Smiling, Boromir geeted them fondly.
"Hello husband."
Adele came over and kissed Boromir soundly on the lips, savoring the taste of his mouth.
"I hope you enjoyed this morning, for it will be several days before you get any special treatment again," she added as she walked away.
"Is that what you call it, woman?" Boromir asked as he reached out to grab Adele around the waist and pull her back against his chest. "Special treatment?"
"Perhaps you would favor another term? How about manual labor?"
"Seeing as how I am the one that does most of the work, that is a very acceptable term."
Adele laughed and pulled herself out of his embrace so she could go and retrieve the rest of her things, along with the children who were still asleep in the guest room.
Aragorn and Faramir met Adele as she was walking back inside. They both greeted her good morning before moving on to the courtyard where Boromir stood with his things, waiting on the stable boy to bring his horse.
"This is it," Aragorn proclaimed. "Not too much longer and you'll be on your way to Emyn Arnen."
"You speak as if it were a bad thing," Faramir said.
"It will be years before we all come together here again."
"Yes, I suppose it will," Boromir said as he took the reigns of his horse from the boy. "But you know where to find us."
"That is very true."
There was silence while Boromir began strapping bags and supplies to the saddle. The quiet was broken only by the sound of running feet coming into the courtyard. Tevelan threw himself at Boromir and held on tight.
"Mother says we go," he whined.
Boromir lened down and picked up his son.
"Yes, we will be leaving very soon to go home."
"Airsyn? Aidan?" Tevelan asked.
"No, we will go with Faramir and Éowyn."
The child looked slightly put down that he would not be going home to his cousins, the ones that spent so much time playing with him when everyone else was busy. He squirmed in Boromir's arms until he was put down where he ran back inside, presumably to look for Eldarion.
Faramir sighed and watched as the stable boy brought out two more horses, presumably for he and Éowyn. Another one was not far behind with Adele's.
"As soon as we are packed we will leave," Faramir said.
"I am ready to see the place that you call home."
~~--~~*~~--~~
As the small party rode through the fields on their way out of Minas Tirith, Boromir couldn't help but feel that he was being taken away from some part of his past. Even though his memories from far into his childhood were still sketchy, he was still saddened at the loss that their leaving brought.
Adele could feel his emotion, but had nothing that she could tell him to ease his pain. He had to make decisions on his own, even if sometimes they were the wrong ones. Not that she knew if the one he was making was wrong or not. She loved Éowyn and Faramir, and were content to follow them into Emyn Arnen, to make a home.
Still there was some part of her that wisheed for Boromir's complete happiness.
As they came upon a great hill overlooking the surrounding areas, she saw her husband stop and turn, looking back at the city.
"Talen," she said, using her given name for him as a sign of affection and rembrance.
"Am I doing the right thing?" he asked.
"Only you can know for sure."
"I feel as though I am leaving part of myself behind."
"There is still time to change your mind."
Boromir looked over at Faramir and Éowyn as they waited at the edge of the hill for his word. They knew that he was having an inner struggle about whether or not to leave.
"I have no history in Emyn Arnen," he said. "There are no memories from that place."
"What will you do, Talen?" she asked.
"I cannot leave," he answered. "This is my home."
Turning to his brother, he smiled regretfully. Faramir was already ahead of him, and knew exactly what was going on. He only smiled in acceptance and rode his horse over to Boromir.
"I am not far away, Brother," he said.
"Nor I."
"Fare well in your journey and do not hesitate to visit often," he said with a smile.
"Until our next meeting, Steward," Boromir said as Faramir turned to ride off.
"Where are they going?" Tevelan asked from the front of his father's saddle.
"They are going home," Boromir answered.
"Then where are we going?"
"We are going home as well," Adele said.
"Where is home?"
Looking down at his son, Boromir pondered the question deeply. There were so many ways to answer it, but none of them seemed fitting to his mind or heart. He was at a loss.
Perhaps one day I will truly know the answer to that myself."
~~--~~*~~--~~ The End ~~--~~*~~--~~
~~--~~*~~--~~
Here it is, finally. THE LAST CHAPTER. and no, i will not give a sequel. this one too enough out of me as is. that and i won't have the time with the summer that is coming up. i graduate in a few days and then it's time to prepare for college.
So this is dedicated to all of you who stuck through with the story through thick and thin, and then some. I hope you've enjoyed it. And keep watch for my name in future stories. You never know, I might surprise you one day.
~~--~~*~~--~~ Epilogue ~~--~~*~~--~~
"You are sure you will not reconsider?" Aragorn asked for the hundredth time as he sat in the floor playing with his son.
Boromir turned his attention from the window and looked at Aragorn, shaking his head. He grew tired of the constant questioning from the king. His decision had ben final when he declined the invitation to take Faramir's place as Steward. Faramir had recieved the position on his own, and he would not take it.
"I am not the Steward of Gondor, Aragorn. Faramir is, and I will not take that glory from my brother," Boromir answered.
Aragorn opened his mouth to say something, but Eldarion had launched himself at his father, knocking him back to the floor with a loud thud. Coughing to catch his breath, Aragorn sat up and lifted the child above his head, holding him there.
"You underestimate me, child, for I am much larger and stronger than you," Aragorn smiled.
Eldarion laughed and kicked his feet as Aragorn brought him back down to the ground.
"Your family should be arriving soon," Aragorn commented as he stood, walking over to the window with Boromir.
"They have delayed too long," he said with worry.
"Don't worry, I'm sure they will arrive soon enough. It has only been four days since they left."
"I have never been seperated from my wife for this long," Boromir said.
Turning from the window, Boromir walked over to a large chair and sat down, resting his head in his hands. The seperation from Adele had been a grievous one, and a choice that he had ultimately regretted from the second she had stepped foot out of the palace walls.
It had been decided that Boromir and Adele would not return to live with Sesile and Amiens. Instead, they would make their home in Ithilien with Faramir and Éowyn in a house that Aragorn had ordered built once the decision had been made.
Boromir insisted that he and Adele return to gather their things before moving to Emyn Arnen. That plan had been shot down when Aragorn had requested that Boromir stay in Minas Tirith for the move so that he could discuss important matters with the should-be Steward. Adele, with Faramir, Éowyn, and some of the royal guards, had traveled back without Boromir to gather their things.
It had been a lonely four days since they had departed.
"My friend, you need a good night's rest," Aragorn said as he rested a hand on Boromir's shoulder.
"Maybe you are right," Boromir answered.
"I know I'm right."
"But it is early!" Eldarion said from the floor.
"I am very tired," Boromir said to the child. "My nights have not been well spent."
"Well," Eldarion said as he contemplated Boromir's words. "Good night then."
"Good night."
Boromir left the sitting room and walked down the long, twisting corridors until he found the door that had been marked as his own. He walked in and bothered not to take his clothes off, instead opting for throwing himself upon the bed.
It was not long until sleep claimed him, though his dreams were not entirely pleasant. He dreamed of Adele and her return attempt. Only on the way to the city she was attacked by stray orcs. Then he was there with her, calling her name and holding her close as she whispered softly into his ear.
"Boromir," she whispered.
"You can't leave me," he cried.
"Love, I'm not going anywhere," she answered as she touched his face.
Boromir opened his eyes and looked up to meet the eyes of his wife, returned from her trip unscathed from the journey. He smiled and reached up to kiss her, pulling her down against his chest.
"I dreamed of losing you," he breathed. "You were dying in my arms."
"It was a dream," she soothed. "And I am safe."
"I missed you."
Adele smiled and reached up to run a finger down her husband's cheek. The days without him had been too long.
~~--~~*~~--~~
"Tevelan is strong," Aragorn commented to Borormir as they watched their children wrestle and practice sword fighting with sticks in the garden.
"Quite the climber," Boromir laughed. "Whenever we lose him, we always know to look in the trees."
"My son seems to favor the elvish side of his family. It is rare that you will find him doing anything more than reading or drawing."
"He seems to understand the basic concept of sword fighting. Or stick fighting, at least."
"There aren't many children around the palace that are close enough in age to him. The ones that are happen to be female, and Eldarion finds the opposite gender quite repulsive."
"He'll grow out of that one of these days," Boromir said while wincing, for Tevelan had taken a good hit to the shoulder with the stick that Eldarion was using.
"Be careful!" Aragorn yelled to his son with a warning tone.
"Sorry, Ada," Eldarion said while helping Tevelan to his feet.
The two boys picked up where they left off, hitting their sticks together fiercely, testing the limits of the wood.
"They have become good friends these past few days," Aragorn said. "It will be hard for Eldarion to understand why Tevelan has to go."
Boromir sighed, cathing the underlined meaning to that statement.
"It will not be the last time they will see each other," Boromir said.
"That's good to hear."
There was silence between them while they continued to watch their children play.
Inside a sitting room on the opposite side of the garden, Adele turned her attention from the small battle being fought, and turned it back to her daughter who was beginning to sob as she struggled to get out of Éowyn's arms.
"Do you think he will regret his decision?" Adele asked while taking the child.
"Deciling the position as Steward? I do not know."
"It still baffles me that he declined it in the first place. He wanted so much to find his past, and the stewardship would have been his future, but he did not take it. Sometimes his intentions are beyond me."
"Maybe he thinks he owes it to Faramir."
"Owes what?"
"Faramir showed him who he really was. Maybe declinding the stewardship is a way of repaying the favor."
Adele pondered this for a moment while she walked around the room in an attempt to make her fussing child drift off to sleep.
"Perhaps you are right."
~~--~~*~~--~~
Boromir stood in the courtyard, looking to the east and the rising sun. It was the day of their departure from Minas Tirith, and the first day of the rest of their new lives. Only a few days' ride away, Emyn Arnen had been the topic of much conversation between he and his brother. Inside he was itching to see the land for himself.
"The day is perfect for riding, is it not?" Faramir asked happily as he walked outside with a large bag full of his personal things.
"Yes, a wonderful morning to ride. We can only hope the weather will hold."
"The sky is clear," Faramir commented while turning his attention to the skies. "There will not be much to worry about."
"Is the road to Emyn Arnen safe?"
Faramir smiled and nodded, adding as an after thought, "As safe as can be expected, but no road is ever completely free of peril."
"As is no life."
Chuckling, Faramir walked back inside as Éowyn and Adele came out carrying their own things. Smiling, Boromir geeted them fondly.
"Hello husband."
Adele came over and kissed Boromir soundly on the lips, savoring the taste of his mouth.
"I hope you enjoyed this morning, for it will be several days before you get any special treatment again," she added as she walked away.
"Is that what you call it, woman?" Boromir asked as he reached out to grab Adele around the waist and pull her back against his chest. "Special treatment?"
"Perhaps you would favor another term? How about manual labor?"
"Seeing as how I am the one that does most of the work, that is a very acceptable term."
Adele laughed and pulled herself out of his embrace so she could go and retrieve the rest of her things, along with the children who were still asleep in the guest room.
Aragorn and Faramir met Adele as she was walking back inside. They both greeted her good morning before moving on to the courtyard where Boromir stood with his things, waiting on the stable boy to bring his horse.
"This is it," Aragorn proclaimed. "Not too much longer and you'll be on your way to Emyn Arnen."
"You speak as if it were a bad thing," Faramir said.
"It will be years before we all come together here again."
"Yes, I suppose it will," Boromir said as he took the reigns of his horse from the boy. "But you know where to find us."
"That is very true."
There was silence while Boromir began strapping bags and supplies to the saddle. The quiet was broken only by the sound of running feet coming into the courtyard. Tevelan threw himself at Boromir and held on tight.
"Mother says we go," he whined.
Boromir lened down and picked up his son.
"Yes, we will be leaving very soon to go home."
"Airsyn? Aidan?" Tevelan asked.
"No, we will go with Faramir and Éowyn."
The child looked slightly put down that he would not be going home to his cousins, the ones that spent so much time playing with him when everyone else was busy. He squirmed in Boromir's arms until he was put down where he ran back inside, presumably to look for Eldarion.
Faramir sighed and watched as the stable boy brought out two more horses, presumably for he and Éowyn. Another one was not far behind with Adele's.
"As soon as we are packed we will leave," Faramir said.
"I am ready to see the place that you call home."
~~--~~*~~--~~
As the small party rode through the fields on their way out of Minas Tirith, Boromir couldn't help but feel that he was being taken away from some part of his past. Even though his memories from far into his childhood were still sketchy, he was still saddened at the loss that their leaving brought.
Adele could feel his emotion, but had nothing that she could tell him to ease his pain. He had to make decisions on his own, even if sometimes they were the wrong ones. Not that she knew if the one he was making was wrong or not. She loved Éowyn and Faramir, and were content to follow them into Emyn Arnen, to make a home.
Still there was some part of her that wisheed for Boromir's complete happiness.
As they came upon a great hill overlooking the surrounding areas, she saw her husband stop and turn, looking back at the city.
"Talen," she said, using her given name for him as a sign of affection and rembrance.
"Am I doing the right thing?" he asked.
"Only you can know for sure."
"I feel as though I am leaving part of myself behind."
"There is still time to change your mind."
Boromir looked over at Faramir and Éowyn as they waited at the edge of the hill for his word. They knew that he was having an inner struggle about whether or not to leave.
"I have no history in Emyn Arnen," he said. "There are no memories from that place."
"What will you do, Talen?" she asked.
"I cannot leave," he answered. "This is my home."
Turning to his brother, he smiled regretfully. Faramir was already ahead of him, and knew exactly what was going on. He only smiled in acceptance and rode his horse over to Boromir.
"I am not far away, Brother," he said.
"Nor I."
"Fare well in your journey and do not hesitate to visit often," he said with a smile.
"Until our next meeting, Steward," Boromir said as Faramir turned to ride off.
"Where are they going?" Tevelan asked from the front of his father's saddle.
"They are going home," Boromir answered.
"Then where are we going?"
"We are going home as well," Adele said.
"Where is home?"
Looking down at his son, Boromir pondered the question deeply. There were so many ways to answer it, but none of them seemed fitting to his mind or heart. He was at a loss.
Perhaps one day I will truly know the answer to that myself."
~~--~~*~~--~~ The End ~~--~~*~~--~~