Chapter Sixteen
"Dwarf Women & Really Bad Stew"
As the refugees made their way toward Helm's Deep, Gimli rode Arod while Legolas was scouting ahead for any signs of trouble. Jesse knowing that for a while they would be safe from attack took the opportunity to walk with Èowyn and get to know the White Lady better. The pair enjoyed each other's company immensely and shared stories of their families, Èowyn of her brother and cousin, and Jesse of her adopted sisters and nephews. Soon their conversation turned to the adventures Jesse had seen since joining the Fellowship. On occasion Gimli, Boromir or Aragorn would each add his own commentary on events.
"It's true, you don't see many dwarf women. In fact, they are so alike in voice and appearance, that they're often mistaken for dwarf men," Gimli said as he continued to tell Èowyn about the lives of dwarves. Jesse and Èowyn both looked toward Aragorn as he whispered quietly and motioned with his hand, "It's the beards." This caused both ladies to laugh and Jesse to look up at the ranger and admonish happily, "You had better behave or I may just start telling Èowyn about all of those nice little tales Erestor told me about a certain inquisitive son of Arathorn in a city of the elves." This of course earned laughs from both Boromir and the king of Rohan, when Aragorn's eyes became as big as dinner plates and a blush creeped up his cheeks. "Now please continue Gimli," the elleth encouraged as she tried desperately to keep from laughing out right. "Now where was I? Oh yes! And this in turn has given rise to the belief that there are no dwarf women. And that dwarves just spring out of holes in the ground. Which is of course ridiculous," Gimli said as he began to laugh along with the ladies. Suddenly Arod charged forward, startled by the dwarf's antics, and Gimli fell from the saddle landing flat on his face. Èowyn and Jesse quickly ran to his side and helped him to stand back up. "It's all right. It's all right. Nobody panic. It was deliberate. It was deliberate," he assured as Jesse helped to him to get the dirt off.
"Lady Jessica, I would most like to speak with you," Théoden said as he rode up along side Jesse as she rode next to Boromir. "Of course, my Lord," she replied with a smile as she turned to the king and Boromir dropped back to give them some privacy. "Lord Aragorn tells me that you are a princess among your people," the king said as he looked at the smiling elleth. "Yes I am King Théoden. My father was the High King of the Noldorim," Jesse replied as she rode next to the king of Rohan. "How is it that a princess of the elves has become such an accomplished warrior," Théoden asked his curiosity getting the better of him. "It is a long story my Lord, and I hate to say this but some of it is not very happy," Jesse said carefully as she looked into the king's kind face.
Seeing sadness glisten in the elleth's beautiful eyes Théoden began to regret asking her about herself. "If the story pains you. I would not have you relive it," he said kindly, not wanting to burden her with grief. "It is alright, I do not mind," Jesse said honestly, then added, "The Lady Galadriel once told me that the best way for me to come terms with what happened to me was for me to share the story with others and I believe that hearing my story may be able to help you with your own grief as well for I know what it feels like to loose someone you care very deeply for. Though I have not lost a child, I have lost far to many that I have cared for as family." "Then please tell me your tale," the king said smiling sadly at the elleth.
"Well I was born to the High King and his Queen on the winter solstice of the year three thousand two hundred and fifteen of the Second Age. The day I was born I was stolen from my parents and taken to a world far from this one, by a man named Gideon, from a race known as the elders. Heleft abandoned on the door step of the home of a family of powerful good witches. Gideon believed that I was a threat to his race and their gaining power over all of the good magic of this world. He thought that by leaving me with a family that was constantly coming under attack by the forces of evil he would be able to keep his hands clean if I were killed," she explained as she allowed Swiftwind to guide their way.
Looking toward the king she went on, "The family that raised me was wonderful. No child could have asked for better. I had my Grams, my Aunt Patty, Uncle Victor and three adopted sisters Prue, Phoebe, and Piper, andI also had my whitelighter Leo, who was always there when I needed him. When I was still very young Aunt Patty was killed by a demon and Grams was forced to raise me and the other three girls alone. Unlike my adopted sisters I always knew about magic and Grams taught me everything she could. She knew that someday she would not be around and that the family would need the guidance of a high priestess to survive. There were numerous attacks over the years and I learned early that to survive I had to learn to fight, because we never knew when the next demon would attack.I attended a school for magical children and was taught to use many weapons as well as the gifts I was born with. Some years later Grams died and I was left to teach my sisters to use their newfound gifts. The four of us did pretty well for about three years then a demon attack came that took Prue from us. We thought that losing her would be the end of the Charmed Ones but we found our sister Paige,who had been given up for adoption by Aunt Patty to protect her from the elders. With Paige we were able to continue fighting the evil of our world."
Taking a moment to wipe the tears that the memory of Prue's death had caused away, she took a calming breath before continuing, "Not long before Prue had died Piper and Leo had gotten married and by the end of the first year we had Paige with us, they had their first son Wyatt. Wyatt was the most powerful force magic good or evil had ever seen. A year later this young man came to us from twenty-three years in the future. He told us that something was going to turn Wyatt to the side of evil and that he was there to help us keep that from happening. It didn't take me long to find out that the young man, called Chris, was actually Piper and Leo's son as well. For a long time I was the only one who actually knew who he was and because of that we became very close. He was my best friend really. Then about four months after Wyatt's third birthday Chris was killedwhile trying to protectWyatt from Gideon, when he tried to kill the little boy. Leo and I were able to save Wyatt and Leovanquished Gideon but we were unable to save Chris."
Again she paused to wipe away more tears then told the rest of her tale, "After Chris died I began to loose hope and when my sister Paige found Gideon's journal and evidence in what he had done to me, I used the spell he had used to take me to return to Middle Earth. When I got here I was just in time to help Boromir near the Gap of Rohan where he was being attacked by Moria orcs. He and I journeyed together to Rivendell and there I found out who I really was from Lord Elrond. Lord Elrond had served under my father in the Last Alliance and knew who I was immediately. I found out that my mother had died from her grief of loosing me and that my father, Ereinion Gil Galad, had died during the Last Alliance. During my stay in Rivendell I became very close to the other members of the Fellowship and when they left on their quest I was not about to let my new family face it without me," with that she finally looked toward the king once more and smiled sadly.
"Yours is truly a sad tale, but I am honored that you have chosen to share it with me," Théoden said honestly with a kind sad smile of understanding, "I also believe that you were correct when you said that we understand on another more clearly, and I am honored that you have chosen to help in the defense of my people." "Thank you, my Lord," Jesse said gaining a better handle on her emotions once again. "Gandalf told me that you have recently married," the king said with a smile. "Yes I have, while the Fellowship was staying in the Golden Wood. My husband's name is Haldir and he is the March Warden there, as his father once was," she said with a proud smile at the mention of her husband. The king found himself smiling at light that shown in Jesse's eyes at the mention of her beloved husband. He also found himself respecting the elleth more for still honoring her vows to the Fellowship even after she had married. He hoped that someday he would meet this elf that so quickly had stolen the heart of this courageous elleth.
That night they as they made camp Jesse joined Boromir, Legolas and Gimli by the fire for dinner. From a distance she could see Aragorn and Èowyn talking. At the shocked look she could see on her new friend's face she figured the ranger must have told her how old he was. Watching Aragorn as Èowyn walked away she realized she was very glad that she had thought to bring some lembas bread with her. She couldn't help the giggle that escaped her as she watched him grimace at the taste of the stew Èowyn had cooked.
"What is so entertaining Lass?" Gimli asked as she handed him a piece of lembas. "Something tells me that Èowyn is not the best of camp cooks," she said trying to hold back her laughter as Aragorn approached still grimacing, "and Aragorn found out the hard way." "What would make you say that?" Boromir asked as he took a bite of his the dinner he had just gotten from Èowyn. "Because Aragorn had the same look you have on your face now, just moments ago," Jesse said simply as she, Legolas, and Gimli laughed at the look on their Gondorian friend's face. "What ever you do, I wouldsuggest not to swallow," Aragorn advised as he sat down next to Jesse and took her offering of lembas bread with a grateful smile. They all watched in various stages of amusement as Boromir tried to with as much dignity as possible spit out the offending stew. Taking pity on him Jesse offered him her water skin so that he could wash away the taste before handing him her last piece of lembas.
After dinner Jesse found the urge to sing a song. It was one that she hadn't sung in a while and she felt like now would be the right time to sing it. Closing her eyes she began to sing,
"He Prays For The Harvest
To Bring A Record Yield
Five generations Counting
On His Work Out In These Fields
The Only Life He Knows
Is The Soil That He Tills
And If The Drought Don't Take It All
He Knows The Banker Will
He's Waiting For A Rain Of Angels
To Turn These Dusty Acres
Back To A Fertile Plain
Reward Him For His Labor
Put His Life Back In His Hands
He's Waiting For A Rain Of Angels
Somewhere In The City
In The Hours Before Dawn
She Huddles In A Doorway
To Dream Her Hunger Gone
Forgotten By The Cold World
Frightened By Her Own
She Sips A Little Whiskey
To Forget She Is Alone
She's Waiting For A Rain Of Angels
To Lift Her From These Shadows
To Give Her Back Her Name
Turn Back All The Pages
Give Her Shelter From The Storm
She's Waiting For A Rain Of Angels
And All The Places Where The Battle Lines Are Drawn
When The Bullets Fly
It Doesn't Matter What Side You're Standing On
Give The Farmer Back His Land
Pull The Helpless From The Street
Take The Guns Out Of Our Hands
And We Will Be Within The Angel's Reach
Call Down Through The Ages
Wash Away The Pain
Only Love Will Remain
We're All Waiting For
Still Waiting For A Rain Of Angels"
(Rain of Angels "Lila McCann")
As the last of the song left her lips she reopened her eyes and realized for the first time that the king and Èowyn as well as many of the refugees had joined them. "That was a most beautiful song, Lady Jessica," Théoden said with an approving smile his heart lightened by the song he had just heard."Thank you my Lord," she said with an appreciative smile in return. "You have a wondrous voice Jesse," Èowyn added as she moved to sit next to the elleth. "It would have been better if I had the guitar that Lord Elrond had made for me but that is just to hard to carry around on a trip through the countryside," Jesse said as some small children made their way toward her and sat down in front of her. "I believe the children would like to hear another Jesse," Aragorn said as he smoked his pipe. "Let me see if I can think of one that you will like," she said thinking back over the songs that she knew for children, "Ok this song was a very big favorite of my nephew Wyatt and I think everyone may like it," closing her eyes she thought back to the many times she had sung the song to Wyatt and she began,
"From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
Theres more to be seen than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done
Some say eat or be eaten
Some say live and let live
But all are agreed as they join the stampede
You should never take more than you give
In the Circle of Life
Its the wheel of fortune
Its the leap of faith
Its the band of hope
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle, the Circle of Life
Some of us fall by the wayside
And some of us soar to the stars
And some of us sail through our troubles
And some have to live with the scars
Theres far too much to take in here
More to find than can ever be found
But the sun rolling high
Through the sapphire sky
Keeps the great and small on the endless round
In the Circle of Life
Its the wheel of fortune
Its the leap of faith
Its the band of hope
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the Circle, the Circle of Life
On the path unwinding
In the Circle, the Circle of Life."
(Circle of Life "Sir Elton John")
The children all sat in awe as she finished the song, and one little girl had crawled up in her lap and fallen asleep. All Jesse could do was look down and smile at the sweet little girl and remember how many times Wyatt had done the exact same thing. "Now children we still have a long journey ahead of us tomarrow so now is the time to take your rest," the king announced quietly so as not to wake the already sleeping little girl.
As everyone began to make their way back to their own camps Jesse looked up at the king and asked a question she was dreading the answer too, "What has happened to her family," looking back down at the sleeping child in her arms. "Her father was killed in the battle that took my son," Théoden said sadly looking down at the child as well. "Her mother was very ill during her birth and died shortly after," Èowyn added a tear slipping from her eye over the loss the child had suffered at so young an age. "Oh you poor little thing," the elleth said as she took her blanket and covered the small child. "Who has been watching over her?" Aragorn asked almost sensing where the conversation was heading. "She has been staying in the Golden Hall ever since my brother brought news of her father's death. I have been searching for someone to take her in ever since," Èowyn answered quietly.
Jesse closed her eyes as she felt Haldir's presence, 'It is a sad thing for one so small to have been left without the care of a loving home. I know what it is you would like to do my love and will stand by your decision.' 'Now I know why it was so easy for Grams to take me in. How can anyone with a heart turn their back on an innocent child? Thank you for understanding my love,' she replied as she reached out to caress his mind. 'Someone will have to care for her during the battle,' Haldir added, 'For you and I will be needed in the defense of the Hornburg.' 'I know and I am sure that Èowyn will be willing to help mewith that. I know her uncle will not allow her to be in the battle. Her place is in the caves with the women and children for this battle at least,' she answered not even bothering to keep future details from her husband anymore, knowing he could see her thoughts as clearly as his own now. 'Watch over yourself and our new daughter my love. I shall see you both very soon,' he said as his presence slipped from her mind.
Opening her eyes she first looked over at the other members of the Fellowship, each of them bowed their head in silent agreement for what she was about to say. Then she turned to look at Èowyn and the king and said, "Well I believe Èowyn, that she has found her new home. With the blessing of King Théoden of course." "And you shall have it my Lady," Théoden said smiling in approval, "I shall send a guard to retrieve an extra bedroll for you to use." "Thank you King Théoden," Jesse said gratefully as the king stood and left the group. "I know you will make a wonderful mother for Brigid," Èowyn said smiling, "Goodnight everyone," she added as she got up from her place next to Jesse and walked toward her own campfire.
Jesse looked down at the sleeping child in her arms and smiled. "She is a beautiful child," Boromir commented as he walked over and laid out his bedroll next to Jesse before he relieved her of the sleeping child and laid the girl on his bedroll, "I shall use the one the king is sending you should take your rest." "Thank you Boromir, but are you sure. I can wait," Jesse said with a tired smile. "I am most certain. You are already half asleep as it is Jesse. I know your conversation with the king took a lot out of you both of the mind and body. Now rest I insist," he said with a knowing gaze. To tired to continue arguing with her friend Jesse laid out her bedroll next to her new daughter and fell asleep almost instantly.
As she slept Jesse found herself once gain in the Lady's glade in the presence of the Lady of Light. Looking around Jesse realized that she was alone in the glade. 'I wonder where the Lady is?' she thought to herself as she sat down on one of the carved benches that sat near the base of the Lord and Lady's tree. "I am here child," Galadriel said as she walked gracefully down the stairs that led into the glade. Blushing Jesse looked up and smiled at the Lady of Light.
"I have seen your new daughter in my mirror, and with your love she will blossom into a strong young women. Do not fear for you have made a wise decision in this and once again fulfilled your destiny. The child would not have lived through the attack that is to come tomarrow had you not intervened on her behalf. She would have been separated from the refugees and been killed by the wargs that you will meet tomarrow. The Lady Èowyn will now see her to the safety of Helm's Deep and there she will await your return to her," Galadriel said as she sat down next to the stunned elleth.
"My Lady who should I get to care for her once the Battle at Helm's Deep is over? I will have to ride with the Fellowship and I know that Haldir will not let me go without him again," Jesse asked as she looked into the kind eyes of the older elleth. With Haldir's company travels an elleth healer, she will helped to tend the wounded of the battle but will also care for your child while your are gone. I have told her about the child and she will stay with the people of Rohan while you and your husband are away," the Lady explained, "Your daughter will always have a home in the Golden Wood." "Thank you Lady Galadriel," Jesse said with grateful tears streaming down her face. "You have done very well Jessica, because of you the son of Denethor will live to see the end of this war as will your new daughter," The Lady said as she hugged the crying elleth close to her, "Now the time of your waking is approaching. Until we meet again. Follow your heart it will not lead you down the wrong path."