A/N: Well, I'm afraid that this is it; thanks to all that reviewed throughout this story--and to those who didn't review, I only wish that I could thank you all personally. I hope that this ending pleases all of you, and I also hope that it answers most of your questions. Oh, and just to make one thing clear: I will NOT be writing a sequel. Thanks for reading! ; )

Jedi Knight247

Uncertain Fates

Epilogue

Denethor rode swiftly towards the large dungeon, but the closer he got, the heavier the burden weighed on his heart. Yes, Faramir was not his favorite son by far; and yes, he loved him to a certain degree, but could he really go through with this? Could he go through with allowing his own flesh and blood to die?

Deep down Denethor knew that Faramir was innocent. Gelmir had always been known for his sneakiness; and when Marcus came with evidence that should have been enough for him to clear his son of such accusations, he turned the soldier away. Now he had mixed feelings; his heart was in conflict. He thought of Finduilas and how she would feel to know that her husband was going to kill one of their sons—and he knew deep down that Faramir was innocent. Suddenly, almost as though it was a vision, Denethor could see her face, the sorrow in her deep blue eyes. "Don't do it Denethor; don't kill our son!"

And then she was gone. Denethor stared at where the vision of Finduilas had been, and knew that he had to do something.

Denethor had to stop the execution.

000

Éowyn ran down to the first level; she had left her quarters in such a hurry that she had forgotten her shoes.

Her feet ached from running sp vigorously, yet she knew that she couldn't stop.

000

"How do you know my brother?" Boromir asked in complete shock.

"He was taken captive by a band of evil elves called the Shadow elves," Galen answered. "And he was with us the entire time."

"You're one of them?" Boromir growled.

"Not by choice, my lord. Morwen, Tatiana, and myself all helped him the best way that we could."

Boromir was about to say something else but stopped when he saw two black horses come to a stop merely feet from where the foursome stood.

"Father," Boromir muttered under his breath. He looked at Denethor with such bitterness; he would be the sole reason for Faramir's demise…but that didn't exclude Gelidir.

Denethor weakly dismounted from his horse and gave his escort leave. He saw Boromir and knew that he would have to face the wrath of his favorite son before he explained his change of heart.

"How can you do this father!" Boromir shouted. "How can you kill your own flesh and blood? Faramir would do anything for you father; he would die to protect you!"

Denethor put his head down before looking up at Boromir. "Son, I know that you are terribly upset—"

"Upset?" Boromir roared. "I'm more than upset! Are you human, father? How else can you so emotionlessly murder you flesh and blood?"

"That is why I am human!" Denethor yelled so that his voice could be heard over Boromir's loud one. "I cannot kill my son."

His words hung in the air, and Boromir couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Father," he managed to finally say. "Are you…are you serious?"

"Yes," Denethor said. "My heart convicts me; I cannot kill my own flesh and blood," then turning to the guards he said. "Release him."

The guards stood still for a moment, not believing the sudden change in the Steward.

"You heard my father; release him!" Boromir ordered.

The guards turned and went inside to release the Captain of Gondor.

It all seemed so good to be true—too good to be true.

"And who might you be?" Denethor asked, eyeing the Elven trio coldly.

This time Tatiana spoke up. "We knew lord Faramir when he was in captivity. We were here to prove his innocence."

0-0

Faramir sat in his cell, awaiting the inevitable execution. He knew that his life was going to be over, but yet he still couldn't come to grips with it.

"How could father do this to me? Am I not his son as much as Boromir?"

He pushed that voice aside; he couldn't judge the Steward for picking a favorite son; but he never had any idea that Denethor didn't love him at all.

"Maybe I should have seen it," he said aloud. "But-"

He cut himself off as he saw a guard walk towards his cell. Faramir stood up. "I suppose that my time has come," he said grimly.

The guard shook his head. "No, my lord; I was sent here to free you."

Faramir's eyes widened. "To free me?"

"Yes; it is at lord Denethor's bidding."

Faramir's shock ran even deeper now, but he allowed the guard to unlock the cell door, and he stepped out a free man.

0-0

By the time Éowyn reached the large dungeon, Boromir and Denethor had already had their sorrowful father and son talk, and Tatiana, Morwen, and Galen had explained them about the Shadow Elves.

They all turned in her direction.

"Éowyn!" Boromir exclaimed, embracing her. He had forgotten that she was supposed to still be in the Citadel. "I am so glad to see you," he said.

"And I you," Éowyn replied, confused by the sight. "What happened?"

Boromir pulled away from the embrace and began to explain everything to her, but just at that moment, the dungeon door swung open and out walked Faramir. He was now a free man.

Éowyn, Morwen, Tatiana, and Galen backed away to give him a chance to reunite with Boromir and Denethor.

The first face that Faramir saw when he exited the dungeon was Denethor's. He did not see that his Elven friends were standing to his left; he only cared about speaking to his father.

Denethor did not know what to do or say when he saw how badly Faramir looked. He sent Faramir on the mission, half expecting him to not return, yet when he looked into Faramir's eyes he knew that the man still loved him, although it had to take something like this to happen for him to realize how he felt about his son.

But Denethor would still be Denethor. He had no intention of telling Faramir that part of him was expecting him to return dead, if he returned at all; and just because he realized his love for Faramir didn't mean that Boromir was no longer favored above him. Boromir would always be his firstborn, his favorite.

"Father," Faramir said, those words were barely able to escape him lips; he never thought that he would live to look upon his father's face again; and yet when he looked at Denethor, he saw grief and guilt.

"My son," Denethor replied. "I am sorry for what you have been put through due to my inability to see through Gelmir's lies."

Faramir said nothing; he knew that Denethor knew Gelmir couldn't be trusted, but he also knew that he was not about to be bitter. "Why don't you love me as much as Boromir, father?" he wanted to ask, but he stopped himself before he could even so much as open his mouth.

"I will see to it that Gelmir pays for his lies," Denethor said firmly. He then turned to a guard. "Find Gelmir, and see to it that he pays for his lies with his life."

"Yes, my lord," the soldier said.

All of a sudden, someone stepped out of the shadows; she had waited long enough to see her love…too long.

At the sound of someone approaching, Faramir turned to his left, and found himself face to face with Tatiana. Morwen and Galen weren't far behind.

"Tatiana," Faramir said almost breathlessly. "I thought that I would never look upon your face again."

"I knew that I would, Faramir," she replied, water coming to her eyes. "I knew I would."

After this they embraced each other and shared a warm moment.

Denethor was a little unsettled by this; he couldn't believe that his own son had fallen for an Elven woman.

Boromir and Éowyn on the other hand were exceedingly happy for Faramir and Tatiana.

"Even through a brutal capture, Faramir was able to find love," Boromir thought to himself.

Denethor cleared his throat loudly, therefore ending their romantic moment. "Well I suppose that we should return to the Citadel…Faramir, I will have a healer come to us, so that you can recover in a familiar dwelling place."

Before Faramir could thank Denethor, the Steward began to speak with the guard who had lead Faramir out. "Bring us a horse immediately; Faramir will collapse if he is to walk all the way up to the Citadel."

Just as Galen was about to say something, Denethor turned to face him. "In order to show my thanks to you all for coming here to prove that my son's innocence, I would appreciate it if you would join us in the Citadel."

"We would be honored, my lord," Morwen and Galen said in unison.

May 23rd 3018 of the third age

Around two years after Faramir's return to Gondor, two great events were in the making. First, Boromir and Éowyn had decided to renew their vows and start their marriage afresh. The second event had not happened just as yet, but it would within a matter of hours…this time, it was Boromir who was calming a nervous Faramir…

The groom to be nervously looked out of the window; he and his bride to be had both decided that a small and simple ceremony would be best, but yet he was still nervous, his hands were clammy, and he was constantly pacing.

"Brother, you must relax; nothing will go wrong," Boromir assured him. He rarely saw Faramir in this state, but he also smiled when he thought that Faramir was going to get married. He had never even considered Faramir getting married, for the man always seemed so happy when he was out in the wild, or spending time with his fellow Rangers in Henneth Annun.

Faramir ran a shaky hand through his hair; he couldn't believe that this day had finally come; it had seemed that Tatiana was the one who was fretting while they personally planned the event.

"It is almost time, brother," Boromir said, grinning. "While I am happy for you, I also pity you. It seems that you also have a strong-willed one on your hands," he chuckled at his own joke and continued to watch the spectacle play out before his eyes.

0-0

The wedding ceremony was beautiful—much to Faramir's delight, and Tatiana wore a simple wedding dress of Gondorian fashion.

Faramir still appeared nervous throughout the ceremony, and while Éowyn pitied him, she also found the situation a little comical.

Denethor was pleased with the bond that Boromir and Éowyn had formed over the last two years—especially since things got off to a dreadful start. The only thing that disappointed him was that he wasn't a grandfather as he had hoped to be.

Even though Denethor still loved Boromir more than Faramir, he did a great job at concealing it. He even gave Galen and Morwen (who were also married by now) a good house in Minas Tirith. He also relieved Gelidir of his duty, allowing him to return to his family.

Life was better than normal in Minas Tirith…it was great.

But the silent threat remained. Often soldiers and rangers would spot shadows moving along the Harad road. And those who were able to get close enough often said that they were in fact elves…as Faramir would have known all too well, but Denethor made sure that the news never reached him.

Two Months Later…

Things were once again unsettled in Minas Tirith, Faramir had had a rather vivid dream and sometime later Boromir had had it also, it was soon decided that Boromir would journey to Rivendell and consult the elf-lord Elrond about the matter. As he set out, the words of the dream rang in his head:

"Seek for the Sword that was broken:
In Imladris it dwells;
There shall be counsels taken
Stronger than Morgul-spells.
There shall be shown a token
That Doom is near at hand,
For Isildur's Bane shall waken,
And the Halfling forth shall stand."

THE END