Honeysuckle. That scent had to be honeysuckle, Faramir thought as he lay in bed, just waking and feeling more rested than he had felt in a very long time. A gentle golden sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains billowing in the warm morning breeze.

The sweet scent reminded him of a time he and his brother had spent at Lossarnach when they were younger, the generous (as much in heart as the length of his belt) Lord Forlong showing them about his garden showing them which plants were edible. Apparently it was a delicacy in Lossarnach to pinch off the bottom of a honeysuckle flower and suck out the nectar inside. But then, some claimed that Forlong would eat anything that stood still long enough. Unbeknownst to Faramir, Boromir had thought of just the same thing when he was here in the temperate fall.

The thought of honey made Faramir hungry and he was beginning to wonder when the morning meal was served here when Aragorn looked in. "Ready for breakfast?" his father asked.

Faramir smiled. "I have heard that Lord Elrond can read minds... i suppose he taught you the skill?"

"I'll take that as a 'yes' then," Aragorn grinned. "Come on, we usually dine in the hall."

Faramir nodded, rose, and started looking through his pack for a tunic that wasn't too travel-stained or wrinkled.

"No need to both with that," Aragorn said, his son then noticing that his father was still only in leggings and a shirt. "There might have been a time that Imladris held formality in regard for each meal of the day... but that was quickly changed about 900 years ago when the twins came along. I daresay there will be rather few in attendance at breakfast who would mind if we wore nothing at all. I don't think there are even any more ellyth residing here... though i will ask adar before i get too comfortable," he snickered.

"You are worse than Boromir," Faramir chided, but trusted in his father's way of thinking and contented himself to just put on a fresh shirt. And to think he had seen his mannerisms of late as about as informal as could be! Faramir was quickly realizing that there was a lot to be learned from life in Imladris.

Breakfast was an altogether renewing experience in itself. The fruit was fresh and ripe and tasted better than any fruit ever had in Gondor. There were small, thin cakes which were light, mildly sweet, and crisp. The same replenishing juices they had with supper the night before were served. Faramir wondered if he could ever go back to the old way of eating when this seemed so much more delicious and nourishing.

Elrond apologized for the notable lack of meat at his table, but Faramir had not actually noticed and certainly had not missed it. He rarely ate much meat himself, only when catching a rabbit meant the difference between the energy to go on for another day and another hungry night, something Aragorn more than understood. Faramir had nothing but praise for the Elf-lord and his home.

After breakfast was finished, Aragorn practically flew from the table with Faramir, so eager he was to give him a proper introduction to everything. With everyone else gone from the main hall, Elrond and Gandalf finally had a chance to talk of all that had been going on. Elrond was grateful to know certain things in advance and was carefully going over some mental preparations he intended, things like serving Faramir a peppermint tea in the mornings and chamomile in the evenings, when the wisest of the Elven-lords witnessed two things he thought certain he would never behold here in his own home. First, Erestor had just come to breakfast... quite late. Second, he was holding Glorfindel's hand... lovingly. Elrond very nearly fell over from the shock of it and now understood his son's warning from the evening before.

Faramir and Aragorn had gone immediately to the sanctuary of the sword. It was an impressive place even though it no longer sheltered the shards of Narsil. There were many other tokens of elder days kept in this part of the house, enough to keep Faramir intrigued until a bell sounded in the tower, calling everyone together for the noon-day repast.

After lunch Aragorn offered his son a walk in Elrond's exquisite garden where Faramir encountered so many different and new growing things he could not keep up with them all, though he paid close attention to the ones with particularly beneficial qualities. Afterward and just as the sun began to make it's trek west, it was a visit to the secluded hot spring that Aragorn had suggested the night before. It was an utterly luxuriant experience and a therapeutic one, as well, that took away many of the aches both men had acquired on the long journey in.

It was a while before either said anything, just laying there in that hot water that didn't threaten to go cold if you stayed in too long was more than enough. After a time, Aragorn said "When we are done here, we shall dress and head back to the house to get ready for supper. By then Erestor will likely have had an entire wardrobe selected for us. When we walk back, stay close to me, all right?"

Faramir nodded, but had a questioning look in his eye.

"It's as much for me as it is you," Aragorn answered his son's unasked question. "You have never done this before, am i right?"

Again Faramir merely nodded.

"You will be a little shaky on your feet, you might be for a few hours," Aragorn explained.

"Adar," Faramir finally spoke, finding words were not always necessary here, "how can something as simple as taking a hot bath disorient a man?"

"You'll see," Aragorn said, leaning his head back again. "Your muscles will be feeling so relieved of their aches that they might forget that you need to be supported. And you will need to replenish, drink a lot of water, perhaps even a bit of miruvor will help. The Dúnedain have a similar cordial, but nothing like what adar has."

Faramir smiled and resumed his nodding response, and even though Aragorn's eyes were blissfully lidded, Faramir had a good idea that his father knew he had assented.

Aragorn was silent for a time, seemingly reliving a moment and savoring its detail. "I met Arwen here, i had just taken a long bath and was starting back when i saw her... I thought i was hallucinating."

Faramir just smiled, shutting his eyes also and listening to the birdsongs all over the valley, mentally trying to identify them all,giving up after a few minutes, and surrendering to the calm. After all, here he was at long last in Imladris, the stuff of so many of his dreams, and here with his own father. Could life get better than this?

After a while the two had returned to the house, still dripping from the hot bath, via the back porch. Aragorn still remembered just how much his father hated it when people would "drip" in his entranceway, that was to say nothing of Erestor. That night dinner was indeed a little more formal than breakfast and lunch had been, though Faramir couldn't help but think that perhaps it was all for his benefit, as much as he hoped it was not. Still, the meal was every bit as satisfying and delicious as everything he'd had since arriving the night before and every sip of fresh, cool water he took was sweeter than wine to him.

-

A translation from a few chapters back (i beg pardon, i really meant to translate... it's just that when i upload sometimes i forget those little things in my haste to bring you dear readers the next chapter):

Utulielmet a mar - We are home (i think it is literally more like 'we have come to home,' but you all get the gist - it sounds better in Quenya either way.)

Elenhin: Ah yes... the famed exploding rocks of Scotland. Been to visit Tim the Enchanter, perhaps? Scotland is one of my favorite places too. Actually, to my knowledge, that should only happen if you are using river rocks (or lake rocks - loch rocks as they're called in Alba - aka Scotland). The idea is that the moisture is held in those rocks and when it is heated, the water, of course expands, thus... CRACK! I actually got the idea for the steam fromthe Native American custom of the sweatlodge, which i have been to on a couple of occasions. The idea is to build a very small wigwam of sorts, and i do mean small, you wonder how you will get in there, let alone any other people. There is a pit in the center which the heated rocks are forked into. The women go in first of course becausethe heatisn't as intense yet, you crawl in and you just lay there on the ground and sort of meditate as the leader pours water over the rocks and adds a little sage and other herbs. So anyway, yeah... more to come soon.

Redone: I think Elrond is enjoying this having everyone around again just as much as Faramir is enjoying seeing Rivendell for the first time. We shall see what Elrond can offer Faramir come the next chapter, there is just too much to discover in Imladris to take in all at once.

linda: Peace? What is that?

After a consultation with my crystal... (lapses into fey voice) this niceness has gone on long enough... the time for more angst is nigh!