Hi all! I'm trying my best to keep pace!

I'm so grateful for all my reviewers, thank you so much!

Katia0203: more Lara and Haldir love coming!

Ponytail Goddess: yes, they are making progress, working towards completing their family

Earthdragon: yes you're right, I was contradictory. I can only offer that Lara thought that having another child and "completing" their family was what was expected of her and what she thought she wanted. But once she was pregnant, reality hit her.

SA Jedi DC of Marvel: thank you so much for the review! I hope you will continue to follow along.

During the trip to Minas Tirith, Lara and Haldir spent a great deal of time together. Haldir was able to watch his wife at work, cataloging the documents to be transported from Gondor to Lorien. He found himself concurring with Eldrin (of all people) that Lara's talents were many and should be put to use at the archives. He resolved to support his wife working outside the home; he would need delegate some of his travels to subordinates, but was confident that he could manage it.

Lara began to understand that while her husband had not always been physically present, she and Toby were always in his thoughts and in his heart. They were riding outside the city one afternoon, something they did not have much chance to do while at home. Suddenly, her horse startled and she was thrown off, rolling down a steep embankment. When she finally came to a halt, she felt her ankle throbbing intensely. There was a deep cut over the ankle, and it had twisted in an unnatural way. Otherwise, she was lucky that there did not seem to be any other major injuries, save for scrapes and bruises. She attempted to stand but found that she could not put any weight on the injured foot, rendering her immobile.

At the worst possible timing, she heard a low growl ahead of her, slowly growing louder as the creature emitting the noise moved toward her. She tried to push herself backwards, but found that to be too slow. The snout of a warg appeared through the bushes, then the rest of it emerged. Its teeth were barred and it snapped its jaw at her. Lara grasped around her for anything to defend herself. Before she could get hold of even a branch, she felt her someone grab her by the back of the collar and dragged her into a nearby clearing. The hold was harsh and the uneven ground jostled her injury, causing her to cry out in pain. When she was able to turn to see what had handled her so mercilessly, Lara froze with fear at the sight of a small group of orcs.

"Well look what the warg dragged in" a large orc said, placing a finger on her cheek. She turned away in disgust.

"An elf, no less. This must be our lucky day" the large orc smiled. He took hold of Lara's jaw and forced her face back to face his. "I think we will have a lot of fun with you."

Lara refused to give them the satisfaction of knowing she was scared: she did not cry and she did not say anything.

"Take off your clothes, so I can get a better look at you" the orc ordered. The others were all looking at her with lust and hunger in their eyes.

"No" Lara spat defiantly.

She was given a hard slap across the face. Then the orc stood over her and ripped off a large portion of her tunic. Lara could not help but whimper. She tried to crawl away, only to have the orc grab her by the injured ankle. She screamed in pain. Then, when Lara was quite prepared to be tortured, Haldir appeared on horseback. He leapt off his horse once he reached the group and began to battle the small group of orcs alone. Lara watched in amazement at his graceful, fluid steps. Fighting was second nature to him, and he was superb at it. Haldir showed the orcs no mercy as he slew them. Finally, there was just the large orc who had had terrorized Lara left. The orc tossed her aside as it brandished its weapon. Haldir's jaw was set and his lips formed a straight thin line, a sign of his fury.

"You will pay for touching her" Haldir said simply. Then the battle began. Lara did not see most of it as she tried to crawl slowly away, but she heard the clashes of the swords and dull thuds of in person combat. Soon, the orc fell dead, with the marchwarden's sword in his chest.

Haldir rushed to Lara's side. After surveying her body for injuries, he took out a roll of bandages from the small pack on his horse and applied pressure to her ankle wound. When Lara whimpered in pain, he held her hand. His eyes shone with fear and regret. He looked around, they were quite a ways from the city. He did see a small homestead, surrounded by farmland within walking distance.

As gently as possible, he picked Lara up and began to walk towards the house. He seemed to handle her weight without much strain, though Lara felt guilty he had to.

"I'm sorry for all the trouble Hal" she croaked.

Haldir smiled faintly. "It is I who is sorry I could not get to you sooner. The ridge you tumbled down was steep so my horse could not go quickly. I only wish I had gotten there before that foul creature laid a hand on you" he answered, grimacing.

"You got there in time" she said faintly, touching the front of his tunic, which was now soiled with orc blood.

An elderly couple lived on the farm, and seeing the elves in need, invited them in immediately. The old woman claimed to have been a healer in her younger days, and supported it by bringing out an impressive medical kit. Feeling Lara was in good hands, Haldir left her in the woman's care. The marchwarden went with the man of the house to inspect the property fences and scout for other orcs. A small town was nearby and a messenger would be sent to the palace for aid.

"What's your name my dear? Oh, you have been through quite the tumble today" the woman asked kindly.

"Lara, and yours?"

"Mearah. I haven't seen one of your kind for many years. But you are beautiful, as are all of your kin" was the reply. The healer looked at Lara once over. After the fracture in her ankle was set and the wound dressed, the woman proceeded to remove what was left of Lara's tunic. Suddenly self conscious, Lara recoiled.
"I need to dress your wounds, you have scratches and cuts everywhere and it won't do for them to get infected. Besides, there's not much left of your tunic anyway. I'll give you one of mine once we're done" she explained. Reluctantly, Lara let her cut the tunic off her. She remained bare as the healer tended to each wound. There were many but luckily they were superficial. With the healer's skills and her elven light, the wounds would heal completely within days. The woman started on top, cleansing and dressing each wound. After the last one on her lower abdomen was dressed, the healer's wise eyes looked into Lara's.

"Your body shows that you've recently given birth, yet you do not make milk" the old woman stated, it wasn't a question.

"The child did not survive. The afterbirth detached prematurely." Lara said softly. She had to admit, the woman must've been an extraordinary healer to be able to tell what happened to her through just inspecting her body.

"Ah. That elf who carried you here, was he the father?" Mearah asked.

"My husband, yes. He wasn't there when it happened. He's a soldier, he was away" Lara said. She didn't know why she was confiding in an absolute stranger, though it was actually easier for her to confide in a stranger than someone close to her.

"Makes sense. He had such concern for you. It was obvious in his eyes. He cares for you, it's just harder for men to show it. You will have another baby before you know it." the healer said.

"We tried a while ago, but I was told it would not be likely. There was damage to the womb…" Lara said, trailing off. The old woman had left the room, without so much as a word. Lara propped herself up to see where she had gone. The healer returned to the room with her hands full.
"Not as beautiful as yours, but it will do" the woman said, handing Lara a tunic. It was a size too big but it would cover her, and that's all Lara cared about.

"Thank you, Mearah" she said, it was completely heartfelt.

The healer nodded in response. "I'll get dinner started. You will stay for dinner and then we'll see about finding you a ride back to the city. Can you sit up?"

Lara propped herself up to prove she could. Mearah helped her to the kitchen and settled the elleth on a chair at the dining table. Lara insisted on helping, so Mearah placed a bowl of potatoes in front of her to peel.

Mearah began chopping vegetables, her back to the elleth. After several minutes of silence, she began to talk again.

"My husband, the man that's gone out to town with yours was a soldier. I spent many nights alone. I reared 3 children almost by myself. He was constantly away. I resented him at times. I wished he were at home more" she said. She'd finished chopping the vegetables, and were now placing them into a large pot.

"You're still married. You must love each other still" Lara prompted. She had never met another wife who would speak those feelings out loud.

"One day, I came home to find my children had left the barn door open. The horses had escaped and half the farm animals were in the house. I lost it. I thought I could carry on no longer and openly wept in the middle of the living room. I was young. Then, my son came up to me and asked me to help him with his letters for school. I realised my children needed me. And I looked around and saw that I had nothing to complain about. I had 3 healthy children, a home, a husband who loved me and was good to me. It was time I appreciated the good things in my life" Mearah continued. "Oh when Jonah came home for leave I let him have it. Told him he had to help more around the house. But I never thought of quitting or leaving after that." she grinned as she finished.

"We have a son, Toby. And Haldir, he is trying" Lara volunteered.

"Then you should be grateful you have a healthy son and a good husband. What will come will come. Now help me knead this dough so we'll have bread with the stew." Mearah said. Lara smiled silently and reached for the flour.

Haldir and Jonah returned just as the stew had finished cooking. Haldir headed straight for Lara, crouching to face her where she was seated.

"How are you meleth?" the marchwarden asked, lines of worry on his face.

"I'm fine, Hal. Minor injuries. I'll be better in a day or two." Lara reassured.

"That orc didn't…" Haldir trailed off, the thought unimaginably horrific for him.

"Haldir, it's just the ankle and scratches and bruises." Lara repeated, looking him in his eyes so he could see the truth in her eyes.

"We were able to send a messenger to Minas Tirith. The Palace will be sending a carriage to get you back to the city. They will arrive by nightfall. No other signs of orcs, looks like you encountered a small pack foraging, My Lady." Jonah added, smiling.

"Good, dinner's ready. Go wash up" Mearah ordered.

It was total darkness by the time Lara and Haldir returned to the Palace. Arwen and Aragorn had met them in person, the Queen had fussed over Lara incessantly. She took great effort to reassure Arwen that all she needed was some rest. Arwen then insisted on settling her into bed herself. Haldir and Aragorn went to pore over the maps, to locate precisely where the orcs were encountered so that Gondorian troops can be sent to bolster the area the next day.

"Go Meleth, I'll be fine. I just need some sleep" Lara said, when Haldir seemed reluctant to leave her.

Arwen fluffed her pillow for what seemed like the tenth time. "Would you like something to drink? Can I do anything for you?" the Queen hovered.

Lara smiled. "I'm fine, I'll be good as new in a few days Arwen. Could you place this on my dresser?" she asked, handing Arwen a small pouch.

Jonah and Mearah helped the elleth into the carriage.
"I cannot thank you enough for all your aid Mearah" Lara said, giving the woman a tight hug.

"Think nothing of it" the old woman replied. "Here, take this" she said, producing a small pouch from the pocket of her dress and pressing it into Lara's hands. Mearah was careful that no one could see the exchange.

"What is it?" Lara asked.

"Tea, a special brew. To heal your womb. For when you're ready. You will be one day. Soon, I think."

The room was dark but Lara had not yet fallen asleep when Haldir returned, late in the night. She heard him quietly take off his tunic. He slid into bed next to her. She turned over to face him, burying her face in his chest. The scent calmed her. He traced soft circles on her back.

"Lara, can I get you anything?" he asked softly.

"No, just stay with me" she murmured.

"I'm right here, Meleth. I'll always be here."