Thank you for your wonderful reviews and ideas. This chapter is beyond what I actually have written for the story so it may be a bit confusing but I'm trying to clarify questions so here goes: what was going on while Aragorn was at his meetings.

Faramir brought up the rear, herding the children as Eowyn led them up to his suite. He also had a house in the city, but for now he preferred the citadel over rattling around by himself in the huge lonely building where he had lived until he had been old enough to be sent out on missions. Once he and Eowyn were married, they would move out to Ithilien for part of the year and spend the other part in the house, which he had ordered fixed up.

When they arrived in his quarters, which weren't as spacious as the king's but were nearly as well appointed, he settled the children on the bed and tried to think of what to do with them. He had not had much of a childhood himself and so was not sure how to deal with the young.

Finally, he just said, "Would you mind telling me how you came to live here? I have only heard a small amount about you, and am very curious as to where you all came from."

The oldest, Canden he reminded himself, said, "We were living in the worst part of the city, where tried to survive the streets. King Elessar rescued us yesterday."

Faramir raised an eyebrow. He had known that there was a bad section but had never found out much about it because his father had required him to dance attendance on him when he was in the city. Thinking it over now, though, he realized that he had heard somewhat about it in reports that had passed over his desk during his short stint as ruling steward.

Thinking out loud, he said, "The city did not always have such a section. However, as the Shadow began to arise in the east, it seemed to affect the dispositions of those living under it. Crime became more rampant and people began to suffer. Fewer crops were grown because people became afraid to go as far from home as before so their fields shrank and they had less to sell in the markets. There were fewer jobs as well, and parts of the city began to get run down. It was decided that it would be to expensive in terms of money as well as lives to try to rebuild the homes and lives of those living there, so guards were just assigned to keep an eye over the areas around the bad sections so that it couldn't spread. The evil did grow, though. People who couldn't afford rent relocated to where the other poor lived. The steward at the time decided that if he ignored it for bigger problems, it might just go away." He gave a mournful sigh. Those who had decided to ignore it were his father and grandfather, though in Ecthelion's defense, he had been the one to try to prevent its spread, but nothing more.

Canden and Eowyn looked fascinated at his account. The boy knew a great deal about that evil considering he had lived under its shadow tried to protect the others from too deep a knowledge. The woman lived in a vastly different environment and was very interested in learning about the city her husband grew up in.

"So where does Aragorn come into this?" she asked.

"That's what I wondered two weeks ago when he informed me that he was going out unescorted and in disguise into the city. Did you know that he once went by the name Thorongil?"

Eowyn tapped her lips. "That name sounds familiar but I didn't connect it to him, no. Hmm, something my father said." She shook her head slowly. "I remember, he met a man whom he said looked to be of Gondor but who claimed to be from the north. He didn't give his name but allow the Rohirrim to name him when he joined them. He stayed awhile and fought by my father's side and then left for Gondor. He wasn't heard from again. You mean Aragorn was Thorongil?"

Canden answered before the steward could, "That's the name he told me. My father knew him when they fought off the Corsairs. Busy man, wasn't he?"

The two adults chuckled, shaking the bed and disturbing the quiet conversation the younger children were having, with the exception of Dan, who was staring out the window. "The birds are singing." He said softly in Sindarin. "Where have they been?"

Faramir jumped at the words of the boy. He knew Sindarin, having learned from Gandalf in his youth. "They have been up north, singing in the land of your fathers." He said, guessing the boy's origin from the language he spoke.

"I haven't heard them in a long time. It's hard to hear their songs over the sounds of shouting." Dan commented quietly.

"Would you like to tell me about it?" The Steward asked.

Dan continued to stare out the window but said, "Ada and me lived out there in the bad place. He was drunk a lot because he missed Nana. I don't really 'member her very well. Then Ada fell down one day while he was drinkin'. I got scared and ran off and hid and Canden found me but I couldn't talk to him because I don't know how to use that language but Thor-something said he would teach me and where is he?" This all came out in a rush, but Faramir recognized the symptoms of suppressed tears and went over to hug the child.

"He is making arrangements for all of you," he said, in a half-truth. He has to talk to a bunch of annoying people so that they will let him help all people who are living like you did. He will be back soon." He cradled the boy in his lap as he sat back down and then looked up to the other children who were watching him. "Was it the same for all of you?" He asked in Westron.

"Not exactly, but similar." Canden answered. "My brother and sisters and I were thrown out of our house when Father and Mother died months apart." He didn't give any detail about the hardships since, but Faramir could guess and did not like the conclusions he came to.

"And you, Kylie?" Faramir inquired gently.

"I didn't know my mother. My father was one of the Ithilien Rangers. He died a few years ago, and my aunt who had been taking care of me kicked me out. I did my best to survive, and then Canden came along and helped me."

Canden blushed and turned away.

Faramir frowned thoughtfully. "What was your father's name, child? Was is Estefan?"

Kylie nodded. "I think so. I didn't hear him called by name much of course, but I think I heard my aunt refer to him as that. You knew him?"

"Yes, he wasn't in my group, but I met him several times nonetheless. He seemed to be a good man from what I saw." He changed the subject, realizing that they didn't have many good memories of the past, anymore than he did. "Have you been enjoying yourself these past days here in the Citadel?"

Kylie giggled. "The boys started a pillowfight this morning. And Aragorn didn't get mad, he just joined in and so did Arwen. We even busted a couple of pillows!"

Faramir chuckled at the image this invoked. He had gotten into a pillowfight with Boromir once when they were very young. They had busted a pillow too right before their mother walked in. They had been scared to death for a moment, but she had just laughed and told them to be sure to clean up the mess. She hadn't even told Denethor.

The other children laughed too and told their parts in the story. Faramir and Eowyn noticed a comment by Hanny about how she had been between the king and queen and wondered what that was about, though they didn't ask.

Time passed quickly until there were footsteps outside the bedroom, and the door was opened by Aragorn. The children squealed in glee and hurled themselves at him. He submitted graciously to the attack and thanked the couple with a smile and significant look as he herded his charges out of the room.

Faramir nodded back and wondered when the king was going to have time for the conversation his eyes had promised.