Don't worry, more interaction with Boromir and Faramir is coming. I just haven't had too much lately, simply because Boromir was sick.

Note: Mergil is a minor original character, (a boy living in Minas Tirith) around a year younger than Boromir. I created him simply because I needed another child besides just Beregond, for the two brothers to interact with.


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As the days passed slowly by, Boromir steadily improved. Mithrandir's medicine seemed to do the trick, and the boy's sickness faded from his body. During this time, Faramir attempted to explain some of the strange conversation he had overheard between the wizard and his father; however, Boromir, as Mithrandir had predicted, could recall nothing. In fact, the elder brother was not very interested in the ideas of wizards anyways, for they seemed to be too "academic", and the boy thought little of the argument that had occurred. Faramir saw this, and simply tucked the memory away in the back of his mind.

After perhaps a week, Boromir felt considerably better. He had not fully regained his former strength; however, a relieved Denethor gave him permission to spend a little time away from the tower.

"After all," explained the Steward, "some fresh air is bound to improve both body and spirit." He also pointed out that the danger of a relapse had passed, and, so long as Boromir did not over-exert himself, some exercise would be of no harm. In fact, Denethor was extremely weary from taking care of his son for the duration of a week that he looked forward to the prospect of a little free time for catching up on other affairs.

Thus, after a hearty breakfast, Boromir and Faramir left the tower, looking for some entertainment. Both were in high spirits. For Boromir, who had spent ages (so it seemed to him) cooped up in his room, it felt like a wonderful escape from the constraints of sickness. He was pleased to be wandering around the city once again, and, if he felt any weakness at all, he stubbornly denied it. Faramir was thrilled to be with his brother. He also felt great pride, for on that morning he had returned Boromir's metal sword to him, (for Faramir had carefully stored it away during the sickness), and his delighted older brother decided, in return, to give him his old wooden weapon. Though it was of mediocre quality, for a five year old boy it made the ideal gift, and now Faramir firmly grasped it as he walked.

Presently, the brothers passed through the fifth city gate, and began to search for some companions. They knew Beregond lived in the vicinity, along with some other boys around Boromir's age. In fact, it was quite uncommon to wander the surrounding city streets and not stumble upon some friends. The usual people were milling about Minas Tirith, attending to their daily business, and the brothers expected it to be a fairly simple matter of hunting down some other boys. However, this turned out not to be the case. Nearly half an hour went by, and they saw none of the familiar faces of theirs friends.

"Where is everyone?" asked Boromir, puzzled. They had checked all of the usual locations, but they were devoid of anyone their age. "Is there a festival going on that, in my sickness, I forgot about?"

Faramir shook his head.

"Well then, where could they be?" continued the elder brother. "I did want to speak to Beregond, to ensure that he remembers I kept my word about reaching the bottom of that well!" It was easy for Boromir to speak lightly about the experience, for, as he wandered about under the warm morning sun, it seemed only a distant memory. "I wonder where he is..." Boromir scanned the surrounding area, shielding his eyes from the sun with his hands.

The boys continued searching for their friends, but, for awhile, it seemed as though luck was not with them. Then, suddenly their fortune changed. Faramir picked up the sound of a familiar voice, drifting faintly down an unfamiliar alleyway. "They're over here," he said, pointing.

"Are you sure?" answered Boromir, skeptically. "I don't see anyone."

"Listen!"

The older boy cupped his hand around an ear. "I think you're right. But why would they be in that alley? It is so worn and pitiful looking. See, the rocks are cracking all along the wall."

Faramir could care less about the condition of the alley. "Let's go find them," he said, running towards the voices. Boromir, not to be left behind, immediately followed.


********

Boromir and Faramir soon stumbled across two other boys, near the back of the alley. One was Beregond, who grinned when he saw Boromir. "You're all right!" he exclaimed.

"Of course," bragged Boromir, "and I did make it to the bottom of the well, as I said I would."

The other boy, called Mergil, was only a little younger than Boromir. Both brothers had seen him before, for he often wandered around the streets during the day, challenging anyone he could find to a mock sword fight. In fact, he owned a sword that was of similar quality to Boromir's.

"Hail, Boromir," he said, ignoring Faramir. His glance fell upon the older boy's sword. "I see you have a better weapon now."

Boromir proudly showed off his sword. "Care for a battle?" he asked, casually, though he could not prevent the eagerness that showed on his face. "You're no match for me now."

To his surprise, Mergil declined. "Nay," the other boy answered. "Maybe later. Right now, Beregond and I were in the middle of something a little more...interesting." He lowered his voice on the last word. Beregond slowly nodded his head in agreement.

"What are you doing?" Faramir piped up. His curiosity had arisen. However, to Faramir's disappointment, he was once again ignored.

Finally, Boromir spoke up. "Come on," he begged, "tell us what you are doing."

Mergil grinned. "Well," he began, "see that wall over there?" He pointed to a short wall that connected to a small section of the alley.

"Aye," answered Boromir and Faramir in unison.

"There's a big dog that lives on the other side. Very big, and ferocious too."

"So what?" asked Boromir, annoyed "I have seen beasts before, you know. Get to the point."

"The dog guards everything on the other side of the wall," continued Mergil. "And, a few days ago, a boy dropped his fine bow after being dared to go back there and confront the dog. He ran away quickly, and being a coward, refused to return for his bow, so it's still there. Beregond and I want to sneak over there, past the dog, and claim the weapon." A fierce gleam was in his eyes.

Boromir was impressed. He had never owned a bow, but both he and Faramir had practiced shooting with one many times before. Boromir's aim was decent, though he often longed for a chance to improve it (secretly jealous of his younger sibling's better aim). Most of the boys he knew had swords of some sort, yet they also dreamed of having a bow to call their own.

Beregond interrupted his thoughts. "So," he inquired, "care to join us? After a well, a dog can't be that bad."

Before Boromir could reply, Faramir spoke up. "I want to come," he demanded. "I have a sword too, see?" He showed them the wooden weapon.

Mergil laughed. "You? You're too little! I've got years on you! You should wait here."

Faramir stretched to his full height, though he was considerably smaller than the other boy, and gave him a stubborn look. "You can't stop me," he stated.

"I can so!" Mergil pointed his sword at Faramir, but Boromir intervened.

"He can go if he wants to," he said to Mergil, with a warning tone in his voice. "We'll all go, right?" He glanced around. Nearby, Beregond, who had remained quiet for awhile, nodded his head in agreement. He did not necessarily want Faramir along, because he was the youngest, but he wasn't interested in a fight with Boromir.

Mergil finally relented. He put his sword away, though he still wore a scowl across his face. "So be it," he muttered to himself. Then, he straightened up. "Well, let's go. We aren't getting any closer to that bow by standing here talking."


********

The four boys spent a few minutes trying to devise a plan for getting past the dog. Soon, however, they became impatient, and decided to improvise as they went along.

Beregond and Faramir scaled the wall first, and scanned the area behind it. To their surprise, they did not see the "ferocious dog" they had expected. "It must be hiding somewhere," mumbled Beregond, mostly to himself.

Meanwhile, Boromir and Mergil climbed the wall about twenty feet away. They had a better view of the area, and, as Beregond had guessed, they saw a large, snarling dog digging behind a few bushes, mostly hidden from view. Boromir grew slightly uneasy at the sight, for the animal was bigger than he expected, and he no longer felt so sure about a possible encounter with it. Mergil seemed undaunted. He was gazing in awe at a bow, lying about forty feet way from the dog, his eyes shining in anticipation.

Suddenly, the dog seemed to sense the intrusion of the boys. He immediately ceased in his digging, and, growling, ran over to one side of the wall. Beregond and Faramir jumped a little in surprise, though they were careful not to go tumbling off the wall. A fleeting look of fear leapt into Beregond's eyes, but he clenched his sword tightly, and it soon vanished. Faramir did not attempt to hide his apprehension, but neither did he move from his spot.

Mergil saw that the dog was, at least temporarily, distracted by Beregond and Faramir. He decided to take the opportunity to quietly slip down the wall, landing softly on his feet. Boromir followed him cautiously, and they slowly, almost silently crept over to where the bow lay.

Beregond noticed the two boys, and his fear left. He was not about to let the others get all the glory for sneaking past the animal, while he stood atop the wall acting as a distraction! With a sudden impulse, he took a piece of bread from his cloak, meant to serve as part of his lunch, and tossed it high over the dog's head, back towards the bushes. For a moment, it appeared as though the dog was not interested; then he suddenly took off after the food, his tongue lolling. Beregond slipped down the wall to the ground. Faramir paused for a second, and then joined him, clenching his sword in his right hand.

Boromir and Mergil reached the bow by the time Beregond and Faramir entered the yard. They now had simply to pick it up, and retreat before the dog lost interest in the bread, and decided that boys made a better lunch. Unfortunately, they seemed to forget their silence. Mergil had insisted upon taking the bow, but Boromir was not about to lose the chance for such a weapon. He started to argue with Mergil.

"It's just as much mine as yours," pointed out Boromir, "so why should you get it?"

"Because I got here first!" Mergil became angry.

"You did not!"

"Did too!"

"No you didn't!"

"Did too!"

Boromir and Mergil, in the way of boys their age, because oblivious to their surroundings, and focused on nothing but themselves, and the bow that divided them. Neither was willing to give in to the other. Presently, they each grabbed on to a side of the weapon, attempting to wrench it from the other's grasp.

It was during this time that Beregond, who, along with Faramir, had reached Boromir's side, suddenly noticed a deep noise in the air. He swerved around, and noticed that the previously distracted dog was no longer engaged in chewing on the bread. Instead, it leaped to its feet, and advanced, snarling, towards the boys.

"RUN!" Beregond yelled, scrambling back towards the wall.

Mergil, Boromir, and Faramir froze. The two older boys abandoned all thoughts of the bow, and stood still, staring at the beast as it trotted closer. Then, all three came to their senses, and bolted back in the direction from which they had come. A pair of hands grabbed the bow, but none of the other three boys paid any attention. The dog snapped, and lunged after the intruders.

Beregond managed to reach the wall first. Driven by terror, he managed to claw his way up the wall; then turned back to find the others.

Mergil came next. He was unable to scale the wall alone, for his hands were shaking to much, but Beregond grabbed on to the top of his cloak. Luckily, Mergil was fairly light, and Beregond was able to half-drag him to the top.

Faramir was not quite as quick as the other two, for his legs were considerably shorter. However, he was still swift, and reached the base of the wall a few seconds behind Mergil. He snatched on to the nearest hand hold he saw, and began pulling himself quickly up.

Suddenly, all three boys noticed that Boromir was not with them. They looked up slightly, and, terrified, saw the dog as it lunged at their friend. Boromir had started running with the others, but, after a few steps, a weakness hit his body (due to his previous illness), and he stumbled. His sword slipped from his hand, and he shook as he saw the beast approach, it's snapping jaws mere inches from his feet.

At that moment, an arrow sped through the air, the only one that had been left with the bow, picked up in the yard. It struck the dog in the side, and, though the wound was shallow, the sudden pain from it caused the animal to howl. The dog then whimpered in fear (for it was not used to the feeling of an arrow in its side), and dashed back towards the bushes.

Boromir managed to scramble to his feet, retrieve his sword, and walk quickly to the wall. Faramir, Beregond, and Mergil all helped him over it, and then, at last, Faramir joined them.

When they had reached the other side, they paused, panting. Beregond, Mergil, and Boromir all had tears in their eyes, owing to their fright, and all were silent.

Then, Boromir reached over to Faramir, and hugged him, sobbing slightly. The younger boy returned the hug, still gripping the bow in his small hands.