Italic means Denethor is experiencing a flashback.
Denethor looks at Faramir in worry and sadness. How could it all come to this? Oh, he knows full well how it came to this. But regardless, he thinks about it again and again. It serves to teach him what he has done wrong and what he would like to change had he the opportunity to do so.
As he sits, he does not pay any attention to anything but Faramir. He wants to be constantly aware of how his son is doing. Still, from time to time he looks up. But only when there is a knock on the door. At that time, he looks out of the window; never at the door. Nor does he respond in any way. In time, silence fills the room only to be disturbed by Faramir's breathing. The silence has his attention turn back to when he walked to the room.
The door slamming behind him calms his nerves down. If only for a bit. He remains worried about Faramir. But all he needed was to get away from these foolish people. If they want to die for no purpose then, by all means, they should do so. Just like he told them. and just like he told them, he wants to be with his son.
With this in mind, he walks further into his house. He walks through the hallways into the direction of Faramir's room. He knows this is where the guards will have brought his son to. Reaching the room, he sees two guards standing at the door. He walks up to them and places his and on the door handle.
"Leave!"
The guards look hesitantly at him. They share a glance before leaving. He smiles amused knowing they will return sooner rather than later. He frowns. How can he still feel amusement at this time? Everything is crumbling down around him. Everything his family has fought and bled for. He shakes his head.
Looking back at the door, he carefully opens the door. As he does so his heart beats hard against his chest. Almost as if his heart is bursting out of his chest. A deep breath and he looks into the room not sure he will like what he will see.
In front of him, he can see the dim light coming from the candles and the shadows which are created. On his left side, a desk and chair stand. On the desk, multiple pieces of parchment lie scattered around. He smiles sadly for this is just what he would expect to find on Faramir's desk. Next to the desk, he can see the bookcase filled with books.
He steps into the room and turns around. Next to the door, a closet stands. Nothing out of the ordinary so far. He turns around again and sees a bed with a table on the side. From the location, it is across from the desk. On the table stands a bowl with a cloth beside it. Next to the bed stands a chair. And on the bed, he finally locates Faramir who is covered in blankets.
He walks towards the chair and sits down. He looks at the cloth for a moment. He considers what to do and who had the idea to place it here. Smiling sadly to himself, he picks up the cloth and dips it in the water. He wrings it out before bathing Faramir's brow. Afterward, he places the cloth on Faramir's head. After some time, he checks Faramir's face for fever and no matter how many times he does so Faramir's brow stays clammy. It is like his efforts have no effect on the fever.
He turns his head towards the door with only one thought in mind. No matter the knocking which might come, he stays with his son. And this time, he will not allow his opinion to be changed or swayed. He turns back towards Faramir and carefully picks up his hand up while stroking it. His other hand brushes Faramir's cheek in an effort to comfort his son.
"Father? Father? What is going on? How did I come here? Last I remember I was in the fields."
"Shh. Do not worry yourself, Faramir. You got injured during your flight to the city. You will be fine. Just close your eyes and rest."
Who is he to convince? Faramir? Himself? His scratching throat makes him sound even more upset than he already is. How will he calm Faramir then? Looking up, he sees Faramir looking at him with a frown. He strokes Faramir's cheek before wetting the cloth again. He dips it over Faramir's head. Faramir's eyes flutter. He can see the strain of Faramir trying to stay awake. He strokes Faramir's cheek again. This time, Faramir's eyes flutter close. Faramir relaxes.
He sighs happily to know Faramir is asleep once more. He knows what is to come. And this is what he wants to keep from Faramir. Faramir should not know about it. All Faramir should know is peace from now on. But how will he ensure Faramir will not suffer more than he already does? There are but few options available to him. He can fight to protect them. But then how will he ensure Faramir's lack of suffering? The orcs could torture Faramir after they kill him. No, this is not something he can use. But what about his other option? This would mean he ends their suffering before orcs can reach them. He nods. This is what he will do. He will end their lives to ensure the orcs cannot do it.
A hard knock on the door has him looking up. He narrows his eyes at the door but does not make a sound. A moment later, he turns his head back to Faramir. The knocking grows more insistent and more often as time passes. Still, he ignores them. All he focuses on is caring for Faramir. But no matter how often he ignores the knocking, it continues. The more time passes, the more he feels his anger growing. He can feel he is about to explode so he distracts himself by caring for Faramir.
After some time, the knocking grows less. But in return, the knocks are soon accompanied by calling. Every knock signals another call for orders. After this goes on for about an hour when he finally has enough and shakes his head. He wants all this to stop. They have done this before and been rebuffed. So why do they continue to ask for something they did not get before? What do they think to attain with this? They will all surely die when Mordor breaks through their defenses.
He shakes his head once more and returns to what he is most important right now. He puts the cloth in water, wrings it and bathes Faramir's brow once more. This process he repeats multiple times.
Suddenly, he jumps up. Where did the shout come from? He looks around and can hear more shouting. From time to time, there is a scream. Looking at Faramir, he sees Faramir remaining asleep. He smiles sadly. Faramir does not notice a thing. But then where do the shouting and screaming come from? He looks around the room but cannot see anyone. He breathes a sigh of relief. He would have heard it, would he not?
Listening again, he can hear the sounds coming from outside the room. But does it come from the hallway or from the city? Standing up, he quietly walks towards the door. Upon reaching the door, he places his ear against the door and listens. He does so quietly as he does not want to give their location away. Nor does he want the guards to know he is doing something so undignified.
As he listens it becomes clear to him the sounds do not come from the hallway. Nor from inside his house. So does it come from the city? And how will he find out if it is? He can only think about one way; by looking out of the window. Straightening, he turns around and walks quietly towards the window. Along the way, he feels Faramir's brow for a moment. Luckily, he finds nothing different from when he left Faramir to listen at the door.
Reaching the window, he frowns and wonders what is going on. He looks out of the window and sees the shape of the Nazgul flying on their beasts. Near the first level, a large part of the orcs is concentrated. All across the city war machines are doing their duty. Outside the walls, more orcs and other creatures are gathering. He can see the glistening of Haradrian armor. So they have joined? No surprise there. He looks back at the city and only one thought comes to his mind; has their end come?
Before he knows it, he has left Faramir's room. He does not notice the guards at the door jumping around. Nor the guards looking confused at his retreating back. Soon he has opened a door and looks at the Palantíri in all its glory. He stops in his tracks and frowns. What is he doing here? He does not know and shakes his head. His eyes travel to the Palantíri. He tilts his head and steps towards the Palantíri. He reaches forwards with his hands.
Suddenly his hands move back to his side when his eyes widen on remembering something. He was with Faramir not long ago. He was looking out of the window at the siege. He was wondering if their end has come. He smiles grimly knowing why he came here. He was looking for a way to know more about how the siege is going. Only this way can he tell what he has to do at this time.
Looking down, the Palantíri beckons him once more. He nearly places his hands on it when another thought strikes him. He needs to have everything prepared. Tilting his head, he knows nothing is prepared in Faramir's room. He needs to gather everything and be with his son when their end has come. Looking around the room, he locates a cloth. Grabbing it, he wraps the Palantíri in it and hurries back to Faramir's room.
On his way back to Faramir's room, he makes a quick detour to his room. There he picks up a sword and a few daggers. These he will need in case the orcs get close to them. He quickly hides the weapons beneath his clothing. No need for the guards to see them and ask questions. He grimaces knowing how good guards are at asking questions. Especially if they see something they did not expect or deem suspicious. The palantíri, meanwhile, he hides in the cloth and under his arm. Hopefully this will allow him to get past the guards without encountering problems.
Looking out of the window, he sees what time it is. He bites his lips knowing he has been away from Faramir for too long. It causes him to worry about Faramir's health. Has it declined? He hopes not for he would want to be with his son then. If only to comfort him. His nervousness grows with each passing minute. He wants to be back with his son. Quickly leaving the door, he walks back to Faramir's room.
Once back with Faramir, he places the daggers on the side table and the sword against the side of Faramir's bed on his right side. The palantíri he places in his lap. He looks around himself with satisfaction. He has everything within reach and prepared. Only now does he place his hand on Faramir's brow. His heart hammers in his chest. He waits a moment to feel Faramir's temperature before heaving a sigh. Faramir is still clammy but no more than it already was.
He turns towards the bowl and wets the cloth. He uses it to bath Faramir's brow for a moment. Faramir moves around a bit at his touch. He reaches for Faramir's hand and squeezes it. Moments later, Faramir calms down and relaxes. He sighs happily to have eased Faramir's distress. Then he looks at his lap. He thinks for a moment before unwrapping the Palantíri. He places his hands on the Palantíri almost immediately.
Instantly, his mind drifts towards the Anduin. He travels along the Anduin and can see sails appearing in the distance. The sails are black. He bites his lips fearing what these sails might signal. He moves closer to the sails to get a look at the signs on it. He knows there will be signs on them. What he sees instantly tells him these are Corsair ships. How many men are on these ships? He shakes his head. It does not matter for their doom is near at hand.
This thought has his mind drifting back to the fields of Pelennor. His face bleaks and his eyes widen at the sight before him. How can they hope to survive all Mordor has planned for them? He knows how; they cannot. The enemy is stronger than it has ever been before.
Quickly moving towards Mordor, he struggles with the pull from Sauron. Has Sauron recovered his ring yet? The strength of the pull has him believing this. How else could Sauron otherwise create such a pull? He is barely able to keep him from being pulled into Mordor and before Sauron. He pushes all his strength into it knowing Sauron must not get his hands on him. Or his mind. The information he has needs to be protected at all costs. His hands shoot up quickly and he stands up. Something heavy falls on the ground with a bang. It rolls over the ground until it hits a wall. His struggles breathing. He knows what it means if he is right; Sauron has regained his strength.
He turns his head and stares at his reflection in the water. His face turns ashen. His hair looks gray. His face rimpled nearly beyond recognition. His eyes widen knowing he has suddenly turned years older. He shakes his head. He cannot fail now but he does not know how to handle the situation. Mordor will overrun them. He is sure of it for it is only a matter of time. Why oh why does he even try? And why has he ever tried? He has done a lot for Gondor. He has strengthened the army and the defenses. Now all will be in vain. He closes his eyes and sacks down on the chair in defeat.
As his eyes are closed lights begin to dance before them. He opens his eyes and sees himself riding through Ithilien with his family. They seem to be alone and confused. He groans and grabs his head with both hands. His head hurts a lot. It feels like his head is breaking apart. What is this? He takes a deep breath and another image instantly comes to his mind. He sees himself dining with an older Faramir. Along the table, a few young men sit who look like Faramir. A young Rohirrim sits at the table together with a few young men and a young woman who look like her. They are talking about something. He tries to listen to what they are saying but cannot understand them. Why can he not understand them? And more importantly why do his ears ring so loudly? He can barely hear anything.
He opens his eyes when he is suddenly in the throne room. He looks around. He is not holding court. No, he sits there as an onlooker. It is the only explanation he has for why he is looking partially down on the room. Looking into the room, he sees Faramir, a Dúnedain, and Gil sitting there. They are holding court. Suddenly, the image changes. He sees his family and him riding with the older Faramir and Gil. Guards ride with them. Where are they riding towards? Oh, yes now he remembers. They are riding to inspect a forest where a strange mist had appeared. It is how they came to be in this time.
His eyes widen with realization. He knows what he is seeing. He sees how Gondor has won the war and recovered. Sadly, he has not been able to live through it. All he knows from his visit there. No matter how strange it has been, it is reassuring. He shakes his head trying to clear his thoughts. Suddenly he hears words coming from all around him.
"Adar, please remember to not despair when the siege happens. As I told you, aid will come to Gondor. It might take some time for the aid to arrive but it will come. While you wait, keep the hope up for the people, warriors and yourself."
"I will remember that, Faramir. I am just glad to know that even though we were besieged, Gondor did not fall. Even better, Gondor is starting to prosper once more. It is just as it should."
The images disappear slowly but he does not notice. He narrows his eyes in thought. Where were they when Faramir said these words? Where? He cannot tell. All he heard where the words. He did not see anything which would tell him where they were. He bites his lips not liking it. He wants to know where they were.
He looks around and sees Faramir lying on his bed. It is then that he notices he has left his memories. Shouting is audible from outside. He looks around confused. Where did these memories come from? Where they fake? No! He shakes his head. He knows this is not true. He can feel these memories are true. But where did they come from? And why now?
His eyes light up with a thought. If these memories are true then he has seen the future. He knows they will survive this. He turns his head knowing instantly what he has to do right now. With that in mind, he decides to call the person whose assistance he needs.
"Barhador!"