A/N: Wow! I managed to post an early update! I hope that you guys enjoy it!

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-The Elven Pirate And The Hobbit Ninja: Only time will tell how Norah and Boromir feel about each other, hopefully this chapter will shed some light on their feelings; thanks for reviewing: )

Uncertain Fates

Now to the present with lady Eowyn, Aragorn, and the elves:

They had been able to safely return to Thranduil's palace. When they entered, an Elven servant approached Legolas.

"Lord Legolas, a healer sent me to inform you of Aranel's condition."

Arial's eyes widened, "My brother is here?" he asked in shock.

Legolas turned to Arial, "Hosea is your brother?" he asked, slightly gesturing to the now confused servant.

"No my lord, Aranel is my brother; that is the reason why I came to your wood. May I go to him?"

"Yes, you may," replied Legolas, but before Aranel could leave, he gestured for him to stop and turned his attention back to the servant. "How is he?"

"He is conscious—and stable, he was very lucky my lord."

A small smile crept across Legolas' face due to the good news; "That is very good news; now Hosea, if you would be so kind as to take Arial to his brother…"

Legolas didn't even have to finish; the Elven servant nodded obediently and he and Arial were soon out of sight.

Thranduil's palace was no doubt a beautiful palace; it was the sort of place that had only been thought to exist in ones dream.

Eowyn couldn't help looking around in awe; yes, she had seen many beautiful places in her short life of only twenty years, but she had never seen anything so beautiful:

It had a beautiful high ceiling with tree engravings, and the tall mahogany pillars stood out.

The floor was made of marble, and the large floor length windows were trimmed with gold. Eowyn seemed to take all of this in, in just a matter of seconds; she did not even realize that they were on their way to see King Thranduil.

000

The orcs dragged the wounded soldiers of Gondor from their hiding place.

"What should we do with them?" asked the squeaky orc.

"I say that we make a meal out of them!" said Granbash, riling up the rest of the orcs.

"Yes, yes, we must eat them! How long has it been since we've tasted man flesh!" exclaimed a malnourished orc.

Marcus looked at his fellow soldiers; none of them wanted to die—especially that way.

"Too long!" said another big orc.

The malnourished orc drew his curved blade and bared his teeth. "So long, fodder; you'll soon be in our bellies!" he licked his dry cracked lips and began to slowly advance; the other orcs stood and watched, for it had been a while since they had had some good entertainment.

"Prepare to die," he sneered.

000

Morwen had been able to steal away with Tatiana for a moment, and it was then that she revealed more about the plan.

"We shall leave tonight—we have to leave tonight, for it is now or never."

Tatiana swallowed; she hated the very thought of leaving Faramir; ever since their emotional conversation, she had put the situation all the way into the back of her head, and now she had to face it head on.

"Tonight?" she asked, hoping for there to be an alternative. There wasn't.

"Yes, tonight has to be the night; once we escape, we will make out way to Cair Andros; that place holds bitter memories for Galen, but it is our only chance, seeing that we both know that area well."

Tatiana stared ahead for a few moments, thinking about saying goodbye. Their conversation was interrupted when they could hear Jaylyn calling.

"I must go now," said Tatiana.

Morwen nodded slightly, and watched Tatiana make her way towards her fiancée (not by choice).

She stood there for a moment, thinking about how grieved Tatiana looked; Morwen began to wonder how deep Tatiana's feelings were for Faramir.

000

When Norah finally left, she almost instantly found herself face to face with Denethor. He did not look pleased to see her in the least.

"What are you doing here?" he asked coldly.

"I…I…I was here to see lo-"

Her stammering was sharply cut off by Denethor. "You came to see my son; in case you have failed to notice: he is alive and well, and your assistance is no longer needed; you may now return to your previous duties. I will see to it that another healer takes over, understood?"

Norah did not know what else to say except for "Understood" The way that Denethor looked at her made her want to shrink away; she didn't know why Denethor didn't want her to visit Boromir anymore, but for now she could do nothing except hold back her tears, bow her head in reverence, and walk away.

Denethor made sure that she had left before going in to see his son.

Boromir was lying in bed, propped up by the fluffiest pillows that the healers had been able to find; he did not prefer to have that sort of treatment, for he hated having to stay bed ridden. But Norah's visits always lifted his spirits.

"Father," Boromir said, looking up from the book which he had just started to read. "What are you doing here?"

"Is it a crime for a father to want to check on his wounded son?" Denethor asked, allowing a smile to creep across his face.

"No, it is not a crime; but I know you, and you are up to something for I can see it in your eyes," Boromir said; he was glad that Denethor had decided to see him but suspected that the Steward had not just come to check up on him.

Denethor sighed; "It is impossible to keep anything from you—yes, I have also come to talk to you about something, or should I say someone."

Boromir's smile faded; "What is it, father?" he asked.

"Son, even though your wife is on the loose right now, it does not mean that you have to find comfort in the arms of another woman—her maid least of all."

Boromir looked at his father in shock. "How can you possibly say that I am trying to find comfort in the arms of Norah? Father, I just enjoy her company that is all!"

"Son-"

"Tell me that you did not mention a word of this to Norah, tell me father!"

"Son, you are not completely better; you should not get so stressed out," Denethor said calmly.

"What did you tell her?" asked a now fuming Boromir.

"I told her that her services are no longer needed."

"Can I not spend time with Norah without you thinking something vile! Leave me!"

"Son, you do not mean-"

He was interrupted when a furious Boromir threw a vase, causing it to shatter against the door.

Denethor was now annoyed; he stood up to leave, but turned around to say one last thing. "The two of you are becoming too close; you must remember that you have a wife. And I will see to it that that maid does not jeopardize your marriage!" and with that, Denethor left, slamming the door behind him.

000

Once Theodred had finally reached the field of Celebrant, he almost fell off of his horse due to exhaustion.

He now knew that it would not be much longer until he reached the forests of Mirkwood that was what motivated him to go on.

Now that he thought about it, entering Mirkwood and finding Eowyn would not be very easy at all, in fact, chances were that he would get taken prisoner for trespassing before he even knew where to look.

He sighed as these thoughts raced through his head. He lay down on the welcoming green grass with his arms behind his head and drifted into a dreamless sleep.

000

When Norah returned to her dwelling, she wept and wept; it had been too hard to hold back the tears; she lay on her bed with her head buried in the pillow to muffle her crying.

She didn't know why Denethor didn't want her to see Boromir anymore, as far as she was concerned, she had done nothing wrong.

The way that Denethor had looked down on her made her feel smaller than a Halfling; the tears began to flow rapidly again as she recalled their conversation; Denethor had been as cold as ice, and now she knew that he had intended to make her feel as though she was only an inch tall.

Was she going to stop seeing Boromir because of that incident?

The answer was no.

000

Thinking quickly, Marcus sprang to his feet, jabbed the orc in the stomach, and to the other orcs' horror, took the long knife.

"Get him!" roared Granbash.

Marcus quickly killed the skinny orc, and when he saw his fellow soldiers running off, he attempted to join them, but it was of no use: Granbash caught him, and in no time the orcs had recaptured his fellow soldiers.

He tried to fight Granbash off, but the orc bit him in his right shoulder, causing dark red blood to flow freely. The orc, not being able to resist the temptation, began to lick the blood, ignoring Marcus' groans of pain.

It all seemed to happen in an instant; the sound of marching footsteps could now be heard. Granbash dropped Marcus as though he was a tin of trash.

Soon the men came into view, and a still conscious Marcus backed away from Granbash, but when he saw who was approaching, he knew that their chances to escape had run out.

"Haradrim," he said aloud.

0-0

When the Haradrim reached the orcs, they had surveyed the prisoners, and had officially taken charge; the orcs were displeased by this, but they were out-numbered so they had no choice but to comply with the man of Harad.

000

That night, Morwen, Tatiana, and Galen were going to make their escape, but before they did, Tatiana paid a visit to Faramir.

She easily found him, but she knew that they wouldn't be able to talk for long, due to the fact that the Shadow Elves were getting ready to set out for Mordor once more.

When he saw her, his eyes smiled instantly.

"Tatiana, I was just about to look for you…Galen told me that this is the night."

She bowed her head, "Yes, this night we will set our course for Cair Andros."

"Before you go, Tatiana, there is something that I must say to you—I do not know if you feel the same way," he stopped for a moment and looked upon her face for what would possibly be the last time. "Fate has chosen to separate us, and the only thing I am certain about right now is the way that I feel about you."

Tatiana looked up at the Captain of Gondor, she was inwardly dying to hear those three words, for he would not just be voicing out how he felt, but he would also unknowingly state her true feelings for him; she had tried not to show her love for him which had developed into such too soon for her to stop it. She knew that by expressing her love for Faramir outwardly, she might as well ask Jaylyn to kill him on the spot.

"Tatiana, I love you."

There was a precious silence in the air, one that neither of them would forget.

"Tatiana!" hissed Morwen, trying to find Tatiana without anyone noticing.

Tatiana looked in the direction of the voice, then back at Faramir. "I—I…I love you too," was all that she could say; the two embraced each other, hoping that that would not be their last meeting; but she soon had to leave for the time had come: the camp was very busy, for the elves were bustling about, preparing to leave. That was their only chance of escape; Tatiana reluctantly drew herself out of the hug, and after looking back one last time, ran to join Galen and Morwen.

Faramir stared after his love until she was out of sight; he'd make sure that he saw Tatiana again, or he would die trying.