A/N: Had a little trouble with chapters on this. Probably the story should have been about 5 chapters, but that would have made them wildly uneven in length. So, I opted to do a fairly short first chapter to introduce the scenario, and the final three are fairly lengthy. This is the longest of them.

Oh, and just a reminder, dinner equals lunch. In Med. Times, it was breakfast, dinner, supper, so they are headed to lunch with the queen.

Artistic Design

Chapter 2

Fele stumbled up the hill next to Theomund, not at all certain about this. Surely they could not just barge in on the queen's dinner without invitation, even if he was her son. And for him to drag in a complete stranger would be unforgivably rude. She tried again to dissuade him. "My lord, truly we should wait and seek an audience with her majesty. I do not think it right for us to just suddenly put in appearance this way."

He chuckled. "Fele, trust me! I know my family and Mother will not be at all alarmed by this 'breach of etiquette' you perceive. She is always delighted when I drop by for meals, even encouraging me to do so more often, and she always welcomes my friends. Now, please, be at ease."

Friends? Surely he did not intend to have his mother think she was his friend in order to sway her favor… Before she could put forth further protest, they had reached the Golden Hall and Theomund led her assuredly to the small family dining chamber. As it happened, his mother was dining alone, and appeared quite pleased to see them.

Warmly she greeted her son with a hug and kiss, and then turned questioningly to the woman lurking behind him. Hazarding a guess, she inquired, "And might this be Fele?"

"It is," Theomund acknowledged, his hand pressing on her back to urge her forward. "Fele, this is my mother, Queen Lothiriel."

Nervously, Fele bobbed a curtsy, keeping her eyes on the ground. "It is a great honor to meet you, your majesty!"

She was startled a moment later when the queen's hand stroked the side of her head, and in consternation she looked up to discover the woman smiling gently at her. "It is always a pleasure to meet my son's friends, Fele. You are most welcome here."

"But…my lady…I am not a friend, I am just a worker–" she stammered, but the queen cut her off with a laugh.

"Clearly you do not yet understand my son, Fele!" The queen moved to be seated and gestured for them to do likewise. "His fellow workers are his friends. It may seem odd to you, but that is the way he does things. If you work with him, you must tolerate his considering you a friend."

Lothiriel offered the plate of bread to the other woman, who took it hesitantly and then passed it on to Theomund after she had served herself.

For several minutes, while they dished up their plates, the conversation turned to catching up on family matters, and Fele listened silently, hardly able to believe she was privy to such a thing. She sat nibbling at her meal, barely daring to look up at the other two.

Then, suddenly, the queen asked, "So, Theomund, what brings you to my door this day? I doubt very much it was a burning desire to dine with your mother!"

He chuckled, and Fele eyed him with concern. Was the queen upset that they might have an ulterior motive for their visit?

"I have told you that Fele designs wonderful jewels, Mother. At present, no one is paying much attention to them, so I am enlisting your aid in changing that. Once the nobility discover you like her work, they will flock to her as well."

Lothiriel laughed. "True enough! They are like sheep, in that regard. Did you bring some pieces for me to see?"

Not looking the least bit apologetic, Theomund answered, "I fear we did not, but perhaps you could drop by the shop and see what she has done."

The comment was appalling. She ought to be more helpful if the queen was going to do this great favor for her. Clearing her throat nervously, she offered, "If you would like, my lady, I will go and fetch some pieces for you to see. You do not need to trouble yourself by coming to the shop."

Lothiriel and Theomund's eyes met and they both laughed, though Fele was not clear what they found amusing about her words.

"I see you also do not understand my son's shrewdness yet. You could bring the pieces here for me to see, but then I would have no reason to come to the shop, and be seen there – which would be a boon to business for the both of you! I assure you, Theomund did not 'forget' to bring the pieces along on this visit, dear. It was very well thought out on his part!"

Theomund shrugged as Fele stared at him in astonishment. Before either could say anything, Lothiriel added, "I am busy just after dinner, but I will come by this afternoon or tomorrow. I could use an excuse for a walk in the sunshine."

Still trying to recover from all that was happening, Fele was further disconcerted when the king suddenly appeared in the chamber. He bent to kiss his wife, acknowledged his son and then came to stand behind Fele as she began struggling to her feet in order to curtsy. Firmly grasping her shoulders, he pressed her back down into her seat. "Do not interrupt your meal on my account. Who might you be?"

Too overwhelmed to speak, she sat mutely working her mouth trying to find her voice. A glint of humor in his eyes, Theomund introduced, "Father, this is Fele, the one who does the jewels in my shop. Fele, this is my father, Eomer-King."

"My lord," she squeaked in acknowledgement.

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Fele. Theomund has told us of you, and the fine work you do." The king seated himself next to her, between her and his wife, causing Fele to stiffen in alarm. He began stealing bites off of Lothiriel's plate as he inquired as to the reason for their visit, and listened while Theomund enlightened him.

With a sigh, he rose a few minutes later, apologizing, "I am afraid I cannot stay longer. I only snuck out of meetings for a moment, but must return. Fele, I hope we shall meet again." He kissed his wife once more, nodded to his son and was gone, leaving Fele with a pounding heart and feeling totally flustered.

She had never imagined that her asking to meet the queen would lead to all this, and certainly had never expected to dine with her and meet the king as well. It was more than she could take in at the moment, and her appetite completely failed her as she tried to recover her composure.

If the queen and her son noticed, they gave no indication of it, continuing to chat as if nothing out of the ordinary had taken place. She supposed, for them, nothing had, but to a peasant woman from Aldburg, this was likely more excitement than she would ever again know in her lifetime.

After her initial meeting with Theomund, and taking him to her home only to discover his identity, she had been learning all she could about this man who was so readily helping her. Her mother had not seemed nearly so shocked, or surprised, by her benefactor, and had related all that she knew of the royal family.

When Fele was younger, before she married, she had been as eager as anyone to listen to gossip, and the royal family at Edoras was frequently the chosen topic whenever news could be had in Aldburg. But once she had married, everything had changed. Her husband had seemed a good man before the marriage, but in the privacy of their own home, it was a different matter. Nothing she did was acceptable to him, and she frequently suffered his berating her about one thing or another. And, on occasion, if she displeased him enough, he was more than willing to punish her physically. She knew her mother suspected the abuse, but there was little anyone could do about it, and so Fele had simply done her best not to provoke him. Even her mother was not aware that the child she had lost had been due to his knocking her down some stairs.

In many ways, she had not been sorry when he had suddenly disappeared. Despite the hardships it brought, and the shame, it was still better than the abuse. She had resigned herself to making her own way in the world for the remainder of her days. She was not the sort of woman to attract another man, even if she was free to do so. But while Orgel lived, she was married to him, and even if he died wherever he was, she wasn't likely to learn of it.

So how in the world had she ended up dining with the queen of Rohan. There must be some dreadful mistake. She had told Theomund about her past, briefly, so he was not deceived about her in any way, but still he persisted in his kindnesses. Her mother allowed as how she had heard much of the royal family's generosity, and concern for their subjects, but that did not seem an adequate explanation for this. Her head was beginning to pound with all her frenzied thoughts as she tried to sort this through.

Suddenly Fele noticed the silence and became aware that the others were looking at her questioningly. Flushing red, she stammered fearfully, "I am sorry. Did you say something?" She wasn't sure which to look at in posing the question.

With a teasing grin, Theomund asked, "You do not find all the sordid details of our family life riveting? I am amazed!"

Her panicked gaze between the two of them, wondering what she had missed and how rude she had been, did not escape Lothiriel's notice. Reassuringly, she laid a hand on the woman's arm. "Ignore him, dear! He can be most annoying when he gets in one of his teasing moods. I suspect all this is rather overwhelming to you, but please do not feel out of place. We are simply a family, like you, your mother and your son, and this is how we spend our time together in private. We do not feel the need to put on airs for our friends."

Fele blushed again at the very suggestion that she was worthy to be considered a family friend, but there was no mistaking the queen's sincerity.

Rising, Lothiriel told them, "I am sorry we cannot talk longer just now, but I have matters I must attend to. Look for me at the shop later today or tomorrow." She leaned and kissed Theomund's head. "It was good to see you, dearest. I do wish you would come visit more often. Bring Fele and her family to supper some evening. You know how I enjoy playing with children!"

To Fele's astonishment, the queen kissed her head also, saying, "It has been a pleasure making your acquaintance, Fele. I hope we see much more of you." And then the queen was gone and Fele stared numbly at the plate before her.

Her thoughts, or lack thereof, were interrupted by Theomund saying gently, "I am sorry if I made you uncomfortable bringing you here and including you in our family meal. I suppose we are not what people expect us to be, and I forget that can be alarming to those who do not realize it."

She merely stared at him in silence, at a loss for words, and finally he rose, extending his hand, "Shall we head back?"

She nodded and hesitantly took his hand for help up, then quickly released it to pull on her cloak. Still feeling decidedly out of place, she trailed slightly behind him out of Meduseld and back to the shop.

True to her word, the queen put in appearance later that afternoon. Fele was rather amused at how right she had been about the nobility of Edoras. She was quite certain the queen had intended to come alone for the visit, but along the way she seemed to have collected an entourage who trailed in behind her.

Apparently the ladies expected her to be visiting her son, and so were surprised when instead she moved toward Fele and smiled warmly. "I told you I would come. I am eager to see these jewels you have created." Immediately, the other women swarmed around to look as well. By the time Lothiriel departed, every single jewel the queen had even so much as picked up to look at had been bought by someone.

Completely overwhelmed at what she had just witnessed, Fele sat drained by it all, unable to think clearly. She would now have to get busy making more jewels right away. They had almost bought out her entire stock. After taking several deep breaths, she slowly picked up a few stones to consider. If nothing else, she would repay the queen for her kindness by giving her the very best creation she could manage. One thing was certain, she would never again tolerate anyone speaking ill of the royal family in her presence. None of them that she had met had been anything other than kind and considerate, even of a mere peasant like herself.

xxxxx

The ice had been broken. Word apparently spread quickly around Edoras of Fele's jewels and the queen's fondness for them. Soon, there were more people in the shop looking at her display than to see Theomund. At first, Fele felt guilty about that, but he seemed not to care in the slightest, even coming over occasionally to spur things along with idle comments he knew would set them off on a buying frenzy. She had learned to recognize the devilish glint in his eye as he moved away afterward.

The sudden attention pressed her to work feverishly to meet the new demand. She would have worked well into the evening, if Theomund would have let her, but he insisted she needed to go home and be with her son. "You have enough money now to meet your needs, and a shortage of supply will only increase their fervor to be one of the lucky few to obtain one."

She had bowed to the wisdom of his argument. It was true that the worry about money had been eased considerably by this turn of events, and she did not want Eledher to miss being with her.

Apparently, Theomund was not content merely to make sure she went home at a reasonable hour at the end of the day. When she arrived one morning, he was leaning against the door of the shop awaiting her. Fall had come and the mornings were chilly now, so she was surprised he had not gone inside where it was warm.

A grin creased his face when he saw her and he shoved himself upright. "Finally! I have been waiting for you. I want to borrow your son!"

She blinked uncomprehendingly at him. "What?"

"Eledher. I want to borrow him and go for a ride."

"My lord, he is too young for riding," she stammered in confusion.

"Not if he rides with me," Theomund assured her.

"He is only three," she persisted, clearly thinking he did not know as much about children as she had previously believed.

"Exactly! My mother had a strict rule that none of us could ride outside of a paddock with my father until we were at least three and able to hold on for ourselves. So Eledher qualifies!" he explained triumphantly.

She stood staring at him a moment, then asked, "But why do you want Eledher to go with you? Would you not enjoy it more if you rode alone?"

"Of course not! There is nothing more enjoyable than a child on a horse, especially if they do not get to ride very often." Changing direction suddenly, he asked, "Do you ride?"

She shrugged apologetically. "I manage if I am on a tame horse."

"Good enough! You can come with us! Then you can keep an eye on Eledher and be assured of his safety!" Theomund declared.

A frustrated noise sounded in the back of her throat, and she again tried to reason with him. "My lord, I must work. There are many waiting for jewels from me and –"

He cut her off, catching her arms, to give her a slight shake. "Even you need a day off to play, Fele! Please, let him come, and you come with us!" He gave her a pleading look that was impossible for her to resist. It strongly reminded her of a look her son used to get his way.

"Perhaps...we could go for a few hours, and I could still get in some work this afternoon –" she relented.

"Yes! Come, let us go get him and be off. Oh, I almost forgot." He turned suddenly and unlocked the shop, disappearing inside as she stared perplexedly after him. He returned a moment later, fastening a sword to his hip.

She eyed it nervously and, when he noticed, he explained, "A hazard of being the king's son, I am afraid. If I do not wish to take an escort to go outside the city walls, I must go armed. I suppose it is a fair trade off, but a nuisance at times. Still, I think Eledher will be excited by it."

Catching her arm, he steered her toward her home and hurried her down the street. She was amazed that her own mother seemed to find the whole thing amusing, and did nothing to help her argue against it. Instead, she helped get Eledher ready to go and packed a meal for them to take. Fele had not intended to be gone long enough to need something to eat, but Theomund graciously accepted the offering and urged her out the door before she could make further protest.

The next thing she knew, they were in the royal stables. Eledher was adamant about 'helping' Theomund brush his horse, though it was clear he was of little use for the task despite Theomund's great patience in the matter. At length the horses were ready to go and they mounted.

Fele shifted nervously in the saddle. She didn't often get to ride and she was somewhat intimidated by the large animals, but the mare Theomund had chosen for her seemed docile enough. Theomund gazed perceptively at her expression and quietly assured her, "Do not fret. She is as gentle as they come. All you need do is sit there and hold on. She will do the rest."

Fele gave him a weak smile, and he led the way out of the stable. It was early yet and the streets of Edoras were still mostly empty as they passed through. Despite her reservations about all of this, Fele could not deny pleasure at the prospect of a day away from work. She had had precious few of those since her husband left. The thought of Orgel was like a cloud passing overhead, and she firmly pushed it away. She did not intend to let him darken this outing. It wasn't likely another would come soon.

They walked for some time, but finally Theomund decided to give in to Eledher's pleas to go faster. Looking at Fele, he instructed, "Nudge her with your heels and she will pick up speed. Will you be all right?"

Swallowing hard, she nodded, focusing resolutely on staying in the saddle. The trot proved a challenge and, noticing her struggle with it, Theomund led the way into a canter so the mare would follow. That smoothed her gait enough so that Fele was having an easier time of it, and Eledher was thrilled. In fact, the boy was beyond thrilled and wanted to go even faster.

Looking at Fele, Theomund told her, "Do not attempt to stay with us. Keep hold of the mare when I move away and she will be content to stay at a canter rather than follow. Or, if you prefer, you can pull her to a walk to watch. We will not go far."

Before she could respond, he dug his heels into the sides of his horse and they sprinted away. The mare did start to pick up her pace until Fele reined her in, and dropped her back to a walk. Her breath was caught in her throat as she watched the two charging away from her at a rapid pace. She trusted Theomund, but that was her little boy...

As if he understood her concern, they were not gone long. Theomund actually pulled his horse in a wide circle around her and they made three circuits before he moved back over to join her and drew the horse to a walk.

"More!" Eledher exclaimed, disappointed it had ended.

Theomund chuckled and ruffled his hair. "Perhaps in a little while. Let Abeodan have a rest first."

Reluctantly, Eledher agreed and they rode in a peaceful silence for an instant, before he broke into an excited questioning about Theomund's sword. He twisted in the saddle so he could finger the hilt of it, studying it closely. Finally, he asked, "Will you teach me?"

Fele sucked in her breath at the question, feeling a sharp pang in her heart. She regretted the way her marriage had turned out, that Eledher had no father around to teach him things such as this and spend time with him. She knew there were some things a mother simply could not adequately do for a son, and it grieved her that he would suffer for her poor choice.

Theomund watched her from the corner of his eye, but did not turn to look at her, certain it would make her uncomfortable for him to do so. Gently he offered, "I will teach you to fight when you are a little older, Eledher. Right now you are not quite big enough to hold a sword and shield."

Clearly the boy was disappointed, but seemed appeased by the promise. All the same, he wanted something more definite. "When?"

Theomund laughed at the forthrightness of the child. "You must be at least four. I did not get a sword and shield until then, so you will have to wait also."

Eledher looked up at him excitedly and announced, "I will be four in just a few months!"

By now, Fele had forgotten her reverie and was blushing furiously at her outspoken son's words. "Eledher, hush! You must not impose on Theomund for such things."

Theomund grinned reassuringly at her. "Alas, Fele, you are too late. I have already made a promise, and I must keep it!"

With a sigh, Fele tried again, "My lord –"

She was interrupted by Theomund clearing his throat, and she looked at him questioningly. "We are not in public now, Fele. Please call me Theomund."

Blushing, she began again, "Very well…Theomund…please do not let my son take advantage of your good nature. I appreciate your kindnesses to us, but I do not expect you to…" She broke off, trying to figure out how to say this without great embarrassment.

Perceptively, he offered quietly, "You do not expect me to fill in for his father?"

Her eyes raised to meet his, alarmed by his discernment, but she nodded fearfully, afraid she had offended him.

Eledher was still raptly playing with the sword hilt and seemed oblivious to their conversation, so Theomund told her, "I would never presume to try to take his father's place, Fele, but I would be honored if you would allow me to spend time with him on occasion. I have grown quite fond of him in this very short time. He is a good lad."

Her face flaming, Fele stared down at the saddle, unable to understand why he would be so impossibly kind to both her and her son. She supposed it had something to do with being royal; perhaps they were expected to do kind things for their less fortunate subjects. She finally forced herself to hoarsely murmur, "Thank you, my…Theomund. That is very thoughtful of you."

She missed the look of annoyance that crossed Theomund's face. Why was she always thanking him and acting as though he was doing some wonderful thing just because he was friendly and showed that he liked them? Were his actions truly so very strange? He gave a soft sigh. He supposed he shouldn't be surprised by her reaction. Like it or not, he was royalty and others not only expected to have to treat him differently, but expected him to behave differently. Apparently, he was not expected to have friends or do nice things for others, as any lesser person might. It was the part of his life he found most frustrating.

Trying to recover the earlier mood, he led the way off toward the orchards, and spent time amusing Eledher by letting him reach up to grab a few apples from the tree branches as they rode by. From there, they made their way toward the old swimming hole. The moment he saw it, Eledher wanted to make use of it. "Can we go swimming, Mama? Can we?" He began squirming in the saddle, and Theomund had to quickly catch hold of him so he didn't tumble off.

"Eledher, it is too cold to go swimming. Another time perhaps."

Instantly a pout appeared, but Theomund whispered to the boy, "Your mother is right, Eledher. That water is very cold, and not very nice to swim in right now, but we will come back next summer so you can swim."

Eledher's good humor restored, the three of them dismounted, and strolled around the area while Eledher energetically explored every nook and cranny of the location. Finally, after nearly an hour, he returned to them and flung himself against his mother. "I am hungry, Mama."

Theomund teased, "Even after all those apples you ate?"

Eledher grinned and nodded vigorously. "I am a growing boy! Mama says so!"

The two adults chuckled at that, and Theomund went to fetch the picnic they had brought. As they had failed to bring a blanket, Theomund spread his cloak out for them to sit on and they were soon munching on their meal, while Eledher regaled them with tales of all his discoveries around the pond. They had just finished eating, when Eledher jumped up and pointed excitedly toward the west. "Look! Horses!"

Immediately alert, Theomund rose to check on things, and after several moments he relaxed as he finally made out the king's banner. "Who is it?" Fele asked, coming to stand beside him.

"Likely my brother. I know Father is not gone from Edoras just now, and Elfwine is the only other one to ride under the king's banner on official business."

Fele nodded, then said entreatingly, "Theomund, I have enjoyed this day, but I truly should return and do some work. And I very much suspect my son will soon be in need of rest after all the excitement of the outing."

"Very well. We will ride out and meet my brother, and then we can return with them. That ought to make a fine end to Eledher's day." He moved over to ready the horses while Fele gathered up the remains of their meal and his cloak. They were soon back on their horses and underway.

As predicted, it was Elfwine leading the Riders, and he was surprised to find his brother coming to meet him. Theomund quickly explained the circumstances as they fell in beside him, and then made introductions.

Eledher was completely captivated to be amongst the Riders and his eyes sought to take in everything at once. Finally, however, they came to rest on Elfwine. After several minutes of observing Theomund's brother, he blurted out, "How did you hurt your hand?"

Fele gave a horrified gasp. "Eledher! That is rude! Apologize at once!"

But Elfwine raised his hand to silence her. "It is all right. It is an honest question. Sometimes I prefer the directness of children who will ask and be done with it, rather than their parents who try not to stare and whisper guesses about it when they think I do not notice."

As Fele blushed red, still not convinced that Eledher shouldn't be punished, Elfwine reached his arm over to the boy and told him about his accident. Curiously, Eledher studied the stump, then gingerly touched it with a finger, looking up in concern. "Does it hurt?"

"No, not anymore. It happened a long time ago."

Eledher considered that, then took in the sword Elfwine wore at his hip. "And you can still ride and fight and everything?"

Elfwine nodded and dropped his reins. Drawing his sword, he gave it a few easy swings before resheathing it, to Eledher's delight.

Then Elfwine leaned toward the boy and whispered loudly, "Do you wish to know a secret?"

Eledher nodded vigorously in anticipation and Elfwine told him, "The King of Gondor took care of me when I lost my hand!"

"He did?" Eledher breathed in awe. "Is he nice?"

"He is very nice," Elfwine assured him. "So nice, in fact, that he let me marry his daughter!"

Eledher wrinkled his nose at that. "I should rather have a pony!"

All three of the adults could not restrain a laugh at the child's perspective. Still chuckling, Elfwine agreed, "Aye, a pony would also have been nice!"

Apparently satisfied with the answers he had received to his questions, Eledher lapsed into silence, which it was soon evident was due to tiredness. Not long after that, Theomund glanced down to see the lad sound asleep in front of him, and pulled him a little closer to hold him more securely. As he looked up, he met his brother's eyes, which were presently full of amusement. He knew what Elfwine was thinking. He had often been teased by the family for taking so long to marry and have children. Now some of his nieces and nephews were almost grown, and ready to have children of their own.

Before they knew it, they were back at Edoras. Elfwine offered to have his men care for their horses so they could get Eledher to bed, and he left them on the main road near Fele's home. Eledher had barely stirred when Theomund dismounted, and snuggled into his chest as they made their way to the boarding house.

Once inside, Fele showed Theomund where to lay the boy, and after doing so he pensively gazed upon the cherubic little face for a moment. He was a dear lad, and Theomund could truly say he had immensely enjoyed spending the day with him. With his mother, too, for that matter. Sighing softly at the difficult situation, he pressed a kiss to Eledher's brow and stood up.

Fele had washed and was ready to return to the shop with him, so they said farewell to Frideswide and departed.