AHHHHH!!! MY EXAMS START TOMORROW!!!
Therefore, will not be online till Saturday, and I don't know when I will be able to write again.

Chapter 40 : A Mother's Knowledge

"Finally, I'll be rid of you at last," Elfwine said with a grin.

"When I'm gone, you'll have to admit that you miss me and desperately want me back to keep you company," Elboron replied. "I'm indispensable."

Elfwine chose to carry on with the joke. "Whatever you say, Elboron, as long as you go away."

Elboron laughed and turned to embrace his aunt. "Goodbye, Aunt Lothíriel," he said. "Till we meet again."

"You'll be missed in Edoras," Lothíriel replied, smiling. "You and your tricks. Say hello to your parents for me."

Elboron nodded, and moved on to say goodbye to Éomer. Lothíriel watched the two of them exchange words with laughter and smiles. In Edoras, Éomer took over the role of Elboron's father, just like Faramir would whenever Elfwine went to Emyn Arnen.

Lothíriel then noticed a girl standing at the bottom of the steps as if waiting for someone. Moving towards her son, she whispered, "Do you know what that is, Elfwine?"

He followed her gaze, and nodded. "That's Meren."

Meren. Lothíriel had heard of her, the new girl who had come to work in Methuseld, and had gained the friendship of both princes, but had never had the chance to meet her. "Why is she standing there by herself? Why don't you go down and ask her to come and join us, Elfwine? She is most welcome."

To Lothíriel's surprise, Elfwine hesitated and took a deep breath (as if he needed all his courage) before walking down the steps towards Meren. She watched her son speak to the girl, and found something very different in him. She could not hear what they were saying, but from his manner, it was as if he had no idea what to do around her. A smile spread across her face as she watched. Had Elfwine stumbled into the unknown?

He was now coming up the stairs with Meren walking beside him. Elboron turned to see her, a wide grin on his face, and they began talking together almost immediately. Elfwine came back to stand next to Lothíriel, seeming to have no desire to join in.

Finally it was time for Elboron to go. He walked down the steps towards the one guard that had been sent with him, and mounted his horse. He did not look back until he reached the gates, where he turned and waved.

"Well, we won't be seeing that rascal for a while," Éomer remarked with a smile. "I suppose Faramir will want him to pay more attention to his duties in Ithilien. That boy is just the same mischief-maker as the time in Dol Amroth, don't you think?"

"Yes, he is," Lothíriel agreed. "And we all love him for it." She approached Meren, smiling warmly. "So you are Meren. I've heard much about you, from Elboron. And a little from Elfwine as well." It had struck her as a little odd how little Elfwine spoke of Meren when he spent so much time with her, but now she felt as if she was beginning to understand what was going on.

Meren bowed her head. "It is an honour to meet you at last, my Queen."

Lothíriel turned to her husband. "Here is the girl we've been hearing of from our boys, Éomer. This is Meren."

"It's good to finally have a face to put to the name," Éomer said good-naturedly. "I was getting tired of thinking of just a silhouette every time."

Lothíriel laughed. "Well, someday you must take a break from your work and join us at dinner," she said kindly. "We'd be most glad to have you, seeing you're such good friends with Elfwine."

Meren blushed and nodded, and Elfwine just continued looking awkward. Lothíriel almost wanted to laugh again, but just managed to keep herself from doing so. If all was as she suspected, there wasn't much she could do for her son, but it would be most interesting to see how he figured things out for himself.

Meren sat on the ground, watching Elfwine train with the other boys. There was nothing much to take care of in the kitchens now, and no other work for her to attend to, so she had slipped out to watch. He did not expect her to be there, and had not noticed her yet, so she just sat quietly, watching him. He fought well, putting everything he had into his efforts. When he fought, it was as if he saw nothing else. Meren's gaze switched over to Éothain for a moment. She knew him because of Freda, and knew that he, together with the king himself, was responsible for Elfwine's great skill. Éothain was watching with a look that greatly resembled pride on his face, nodding in satisfaction. Meren smiled and turned her attention back to Elfwine.

He finished off the fight, grinning at his partner. The other boy said something, and he laughed. Meren was surprised. She had never seen Elfwine laugh like that before, and had assumed that it was because he was too serious. She had never seen him so relaxed, so uninhibited. She wondered if he behaved this way when he was alone with Elboron. If that was the case, why wasn't he so with her?

Elfwine began to keep his practice equipment. When he looked up, his eyes rested on her, and he dropped his things. His bow smacked onto his toes, and he winced. Meren got up and went to his side to help him pick up his things. "Are you all right?" she asked.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Elfwine said hastily. "Here, let me take those. They're heavy."

Meren let him take the things from her, and they walked towards the armoury so Elfwine could put them away. He glanced at her and cleared his throat. "How long were you sitting there?"

"Since you started; you didn't notice," Meren replied. "I think you were very good."

Elfwine's cheeks seemed to redden a little. "I'm not that good."

"Yes you are!" Meren insisted. "Anyone would say so."

"Have you ever seen Elboron practice?" Elfwine suddenly asked.

"Why? Is he better?" Meren asked. It was difficult to imagine a playful boy like Elboron being better than Elfwine.

"You might think so," Elfwine muttered.

Something in his tone made Meren pay attention. It was as if Elfwine was hinting at something else, but she couldn't think of what it could be. "What do you mean?" she asked.

Elfwine shook his head. "Nothing."

They reached the armoury, and Elfwine packed his things into the shelves as best as he could. When he was done, he gave Meren a little smile. "Now, what do you want to do?"

Éomer leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes for a moment. He had just spent hours reading through reports sent from the Westfold. On the whole, things were going rather well, but there was some worry of a strange illness passing through the horses in a few of the villages. Éomer had thus decided to travel to those villages with some of his best men, to see how they could help. But for now… he just wanted to have a little rest.

The door opened, and Éomer just stopped himself from groaning, thinking it was someone bringing more reports. But, opening his eyes, he saw Lothíriel smiling down at him, and heaved a sigh of relief.

"Working hard?" Lothíriel asked, giving him a quick kiss.

Éomer gestured at the reports. "I think I'll have to go to the Westfold as soon as possible," he said. "Just to see what I can do."

Lothíriel picked up two of the reports and read through them quickly, a frown forming on her face. She put them down on the table again when she was done. "Of course," she said. "The people would be glad to see their king helping them face their troubles. Don't you worry; I'll take care of things here while you're gone."

"Actually, I thought you could come with me, and we would let Elfwine try his hand of managing things. Éothain could stay here to help him, of course. Elfwine shows a lot of interest in the matters of the country, perhaps letting him take care of things for awhile would further help him."

Lothíriel smiled, taking a seat across the desk from him. "I've no doubt Elfwine could manage that." She paused. "But… perhaps he should not be made to take charge of things now."

"Why not?" Éomer asked. "He's only nineteen, I know, but he has great promise."

"He does have great promise," Lothíriel agreed. "But, as you said, he's only nineteen." A secretive smile came over her face. "And I think he has more than enough to handle now without you trying to pile more on him."

"What does that mean?"

Another secretive smile. "Just be patient, wait and see. This will be a great test for our boy."