Morning came after a restless night of dreams. Boromir felt tired and his arms ached from being tied up. Pushing himself upright he realized what had awakened him was someone approaching the room he was in. The curtain moved aside to reveal another one of The Fox's men – hooded and cloaked as they were the day before. A part of Boromir wondered if they slept like that, but the more practical side knew it was because they wanted to avoid being identified. A wise decision on the part of The Fox and his appreciation for the man's tactical abilities grew. The man approached and said "I'm here to take you outside so you can attend to business. I'm afraid we'll have to keep your hands bound as we can't afford you trying something foolish. I'll also need to cover your eyes so that you can't see any of us."
Boromir felt a moment of anger at this, but quickly realized that in their place, he would do much the same. It was the shrewd thing to do to insure that Boromir not only did not see any of the men, but also couldn't see the passages through which he walked. It would appear that The Fox has thought of all the details. It was no fool who held him captive.
Boromir nodded his agreement, at least grateful his captors were thinking of his bodily needs. The man came forward and bound a cloth over his eyes, completely obscuring his vision. Boromir waited until he was done and rose gingerly to his feet. Hands firmly, but carefully took his arm and lead the limping Boromir out of the room. They passed through a series of tunnels and Boromir was reminded that the cave that served as the hideout of The Fox and his men was quite extensive.
Once he had been let outside, the man said "I cannot leave you, but I promise you that you have been led away from sight of the sentries or anyone in the caves. "
Boromir was surprised by the man's consideration and muttered a muffled thank you. Dealing with his pants proved a bit tricky with the bound hands, but he was determined not to ask for any help from his guard. Some things you have to do for yourself. Once done, he heard the sounds of his guard approaching and once again felt the firm but careful grasp on his arm. The man was insuring that Boromir did not so much as stumble, a courtesy that Boromir would not have expected under the circumstances. It would appear that he would be treated with the respect due to his station.
They proceeded back into the cave and Boromir was grateful when they got back to his bunk. His ankle was throbbing painfully and he just wanted to sit and take the weight off it. Once he was seated, the guard removed his blindfold and said, "I will have food brought to you shortly. " He turned and exited the room.
Boromir settled back with a groan and propped his foot on the cot. He debated about trying to get his boot off, but decided that it would be far too tricky with his hands tied. It would just have to wait.
Faramir was waiting for Beregond when he entered the main area. "Why was Lord Boromir limping?" he asked as Beregond removed his cloak and mask.
Beregond shrugged and said, "He was limping when he arrived here yesterday. He must have injured himself while they were capturing him." He settled down at the table and began the process of repairing damaged arrows.
Faramir frowned and said, "Has anyone taken care of his injuries?"
Beregond thought for a moment and then shook his head with a tiny frown and said "No. In all the confusion over what to do with him and what your reaction would be, no one did. " He laid down the arrow he had begun to fix and said "I'll attend to it now."
Faramir gestured for him to sit down and said, "No, I'll handle it. I should have made inquires before now." He rubbed his eyes wearily and sighed. Having the man here was proving to be more difficult than he ever imagined.
He got up from the table and headed to their supply area and gathered up what he would need. Piling it all on a table, he then boiled water to prepare a tea of herbs that would ease the pain and swelling the man was no doubt suffering from. He felt a stab of guilt that he hadn't thought to ask of the man's condition. It was just that Boromir had made him so angry that he hadn't been able to be his usual calm observer. Well, he'd make up for it now.
Once the tea was done, he put it on a tray, along with all the other supplies. He then put on his hood and mask and headed down the hall to where the prisoner was. Pushing his way through the curtain, he made himself really look at the man who was his captive. He was eating a bowl of porridge that one of the other men had bought him but he put the bowl down when he saw Faramir enter.
Faramir walked towards the bed and set the tray down. "It's come to my attention that you are injured. If you tell me where you are hurt, I will tend to it. It should have been taken care of yesterday, but I'm afraid that my men failed to inform me that you had been injured."
Boromir looked in surprise at the man standing before him. There was no reason for The Fox to tend to him. He could have sent one of his men to do it or he could have just left Boromir to suffer. It's not like it was a life threatening injury. He was once again surprised by the man's compassion towards one who was his sworn enemy. He found himself wishing he could see the man's face.
Still, the man had asked him a question and he hadn't answered yet. He gathered his thoughts and said "It's my ankle. I sprained it when my horse was shot out from under me." A moment of sadness passed across his face as he thought of the mount that had been through many campaigns with him, but he knew that it was the fortunes of war.
Faramir saw the sadness and said, "I am sorry about your horse. I know that a soldier's horse is more than just a mount. " Then because there was really not much more to say, he reached onto the tray and took up a mug. He handed to Boromir and said, "Drink this. It will help with the pain and the swelling. I'm afraid that taking your boot off is not going to be pleasant."
Boromir just nodded and took the mug. He drank it down with only a slight wince at the bitter taste. He was use to it after years of soldiering. Once he had finished it, he set the mug down on the tray. Giving a wry smile he said "Well, might as well get this over with" and shifted so that his foot was now stretched out towards Faramir.
Faramir nodded and studied the boot for a moment. He unlaced it and grasped it firmly. "This is probably going to hurt. You might want to brace yourself." Once he saw Boromir shift to support himself more firmly, he gave a hard and swift tug and the boot came free.
Boromir bit his lip to prevent his cry of pain from escaping. It hurt a lot, but he was grateful that The Fox had done so quickly and decisively. It showed that the man could be tough when the situation required it.
Faramir set the boot aside and looked at the ankle, which was badly swollen and purple in color. He was concerned that there might be a broken bone. He began to gently probe the ankle and foot, testing for any signs of breaks. He then began to slowly move the foot, testing for range of motion. He was happy to see that the foot moved freely if painfully. He looked up through his lashes to monitor Boromir's response to his actions and saw that while the man was wincing and biting his lip, he was not in terrible pain. It looked like it was just a sprain, though a bad one.
Despite the discomfort of having his foot and ankle examined, Boromir found he couldn't look away from the long fingers that were moving across his skin. He could feel the calluses of a man who wielded a bow and a sword and yet the touch was surprisingly gentle. He felt a warmth build in his belly and he found himself wondering what it would feel like to have those hands touching him in other places as well.
He pulled his mind back sharply from such dangerous thoughts. These were not feelings to be having about the man who was holding you captive. Boromir swallowed hard and reminded himself that his response was just because it had been so long since he had been with someone. It had nothing to do with the man who knelt before him. He was just horny. Still, a treacherous part of his mind wished he could reach out and pull away the mask.
Faramir stopped his manipulation of Boromir's foot and said "Well, it's a bad sprain but nothing worse. I'll bind it for you and that should help bring down the swelling." He shifted so that Boromir's leg was supported across his thigh and grabbed the bandages. He then carefully and gently began to bind Boromir's foot.
Boromir closed his eyes to shut away the image of those tempting hands and tried to steady his breathing. He tried to focus on the pain to distract other parts of his body, but that only made him more aware of the hands that glided over his ankle and the feel of a muscular thigh shifting beneath his leg. Realizing it was only making things worse;he opened his eyes and focused on the cave wall behind Faramir's head. He then forced himself to think about all the times he had been made to sit through endless council sessions. Surely the thought of those prosy, old horrors would be enough to stop this unfortunate reaction to the man before him.
Faramir looked up at Boromir and saw that he was focusing on a spot behind him. Think that he was doing so because of the pain, he paused for a moment and said, "I know this hurts but I'm almost done. And the willow bark should be taking affect soon and that will help reduce the pain as well. Just give me another few moments and I will be finished." He waited for Boromir's response.
Faramir's soft words pulled Boromir back from a memory of an endless speech given by one of his father's cronies, and he blinked for a moment before looking at the man in front of him. He regretted it immediately as he found himself caught in compassionate blue eyes. Again, he found himself wishing that the mask would be removed and he could see the face of the man before him. He started to reach out when the feel of his bound hands brought him back abruptly to reality. He lowered his head and broke the spell. He found himself breathing far more rapidly then he liked and he closed his eyes to bring himself back under control. It wouldn't do to let The Fox see how much his presence affected him.
Faramir could see that Boromir was breathing more quickly than normal and was confused. While the ankle was painful, it shouldn't be getting this kind of response, especially from one who is a soldier. He studied the man before him, searching for some sign of the problem. Looking him over, he seemed healthy enough. In fact, for all that his clothes were rumpled and dirty, Boromir radiated a sense of life and vitality that few could match. Faramir could certainly see why the people of Minas Tirith were so in love with their Golden Knight. He was beautiful with eyes the color of the leaves of Ithilien in the spring. But he does not belong here in Ithilien came a mocking voice in his head. Faramir looked down as the truth of that sunk in. This man was his prisoner and the son of his enemy. He would treat his injury and leave, as was the plan. He had far too much at stake to allow himself to get distracted - even by so handsome a face as Boromir's. With that resolved, he began to finish up wrapping Boromir's ankle.
Boromir could feel Faramir begin again and reminded himself over and over that this man was his enemy. That he was holding him captive and despite what he had been told, there were no guarantees that they wouldn't try to torture him for information or just kill him outright. But the words felt hollow and false as he looked at the man who was so carefully tending his ankle. Somehow he knew that this man would not go back on his word. He almost cried out in relief when The Fox finished and very gently moved his leg so that it was lying on the bed.
Faramir positioned Boromir carefully and then rose to his feet. He looked at Boromir and said, "You should stay off of that as much as possible. I'll see to it that my men continue to bring you willow bark tea to help reduce the swelling. I would guess that it should be feeling better in seven or eight days – if you keep it elevated and stay off it." He started to turn away but stopped when Boromir replied.
"Well, I had rather hoped to do a little hunting followed by a lovely hike in the woods, but I guess that will have to wait." Boromir didn't know why he said that but somehow he didn't want the other man to leave him.
Faramir paused and then replied, "No, I'm afraid the hunting will definitely have to wait. We are rather particular whom we let hunt in our woods. After all, you never know who will take it in their head to try to catch a fox." He looked thoughtfully over at Boromir who had the good grace to blush and said "Still, since you will be here a while, I guess we should find you something to help you pass the time. I can lend you some books if you like. I'm afraid we don't have the variety that the Archives of the Citadel has, but its still better than staring at the wall for hours at a time."
Boromir had never been much of a reader, but was willing to admit that it was a far better alternative than being left to his own thoughts. Especially since his own thoughts had turned rather treacherous when it came to a certain outlaw. Giving a nod he said "I thank you for the consideration. I am not use to idle time." He found he had to look away when he saw understanding in the blue eyes. How is it he could be so drawn to someone he had never truly seen?
Faramir felt a stirring of compassion towards the soldier who had likely had very little time that was his own. Enforced idleness was likely to sit very heavily with one who was use to being active. He would do what he could to make this go easier for him. He nodded one last time and headed out of the room. Mentally he was reviewing what he had that might be suitable for one such as Boromir. He smiled as he thought of the Elvish poetry that was currently resting by his bed. He felt pretty confident that he could eliminate that from the list. But he did have some tales of old Numenor that might be suitable. Lost in his own thoughts, he wandered back to the main area, still wearing his mask and hood.
He didn't notice a small form watching him from a storage area with a knowing grin on their face. Pippin watched as Faramir moved out of sight and then looked back down the tunnel from where he came. "Looks like things are going to get mighty interesting around here" thought Pippin as he set off down the tunnel to talk to Faramir. "Mighty interesting indeed!"