Here's the newest update! It took a long time because I felt a little uncomfortable writing a chapter in the voice of a non-main character. Let me know what you think of it. I'm not sure how I like it. If you all like it, I might try it with some other characters, but would be open to that if you have any characters in mind.

Chapter Four (Hashad)

The sun had long since set, but I was still up pacing in front of the window in our bedroom, occasionally glancing out at the private garden and pool.

"Are you really going to take her away?" Khatun asked me, standing away from me, her arms folded across her chest, a lifelong habit that conveyed her nervousness.

"I do not see any alternative," I replied. "While I think it will be difficult for Mareke to transition to life in Gondor, I do not think there will be such imminent threats on her and Adnan's life as there clearly are here. I am afraid if I did not take them away now that I will regret it for the rest of my life."

To think of the rift between my children broke my heart. My son frightened me. He had attempted to have his own nephew killed. I did not understand a man who would go so far to maintain his power.

"Do you think the King of Gondor will accept her so early?" Khatun asked.

"I can only hope he will. I do not think that there is any need for the wedding to be any earlier than it was going to be. I will only request that he shelter them."

I sat heavily on the edge of our bed, running my hands over my face and through my hair. With my eyes closed, I felt Khatun sit next to me and my body sagged into her. She wrapped an arm around my shoulder and kissed my graying temple.

"You will have to stay here," I said.

I felt her nod, her cheek pressed to my forehead. "What am I to say to Na'man if he asks about Mareke's early departure. We were all supposed to go together at the same time for her wedding."

I sighed, not having yet come up with an answer to that question. There were Haradrim prisoners of war still being held in Gondor. They were to be exchanged for my daughter upon her marriage to King Elessar. "Tell him that the King was concerned that I would not uphold my end of the bargain; that he wanted Mareke in Gondor earlier than we had agreed upon or he would harm our soldiers."

"I am not sure he will believe that," she said quietly.

"Neither am I, but he will bother you no further if you supply an answer. I will be confronted when I return, I am sure." I pulled my head off of her shoulder and looked into her golden eyes. "I need you to keep an eye on things here. I want to know of everything he plots while I am away."

"Of course," she responded sadly.

"It is hard to imagine how we have gotten here," I mused.

"We raised each of our children the same," Khatun replied. "I believe a person is born with a certain amount of their disposition already within them and no matter how much you love and nurture a child sometimes nothing can be done."

"I would be complacent with that answer, but our son will rule Harad very shortly. What will happen to the Realm we have looked after and cared for for so long?"

My wife shook her head. "Only time will tell that. You can still try to be a good example of a ruler to him."

"It is too late," I replied. "There is no hope for someone who would kill a child to maintain his own power."

Khatun remained silent for a few long moments, perhaps thinking of the sweet boy our son had been and where he had gone.

"You should rest, Hashad," she finally whispered.

"I cannot rest, I am taking Mareke out of Harad tonight."

"Tonight!"

"One of her women has packed all of her belongings. There will be a small caravan of protection to go with us. We will ride to the coast and take a boat the rest of the way to Minas Tirith."

I could see the tears welling in my wife's eyes. "I will not have a chance to say goodbye to her or Adnan."

I shook my head. I wanted to wake my daughter and get her out of the city and the Realm as quickly as possible. "We will still travel to Gondor for the wedding, Khatun."

"So much could happen before then."

"I know," I said as I stood. "But I do not think there is any alternative."

My wife stood next to me, bravely putting aside her own sorrow. "Please be safe. And keep our daughter and grandson safe."

I nodded. "I will be back within a fortnight." The soft, warmth of my wife had always been a place that I had felt safest. It was very difficult to pull myself away from her and head out into the dark night, dragging my daughter and grandson along with me, for what I knew not.

Khatun pressed a kiss first to my forehead and then to my lips. "Ahabak (I love you)."

I managed to extract myself from her embrace and left our chambers and headed the short distance to Mareke's rooms.

There was a faint light on in Mareke's bedroom. I hated to think of her so scared that she could not even sleep in the dark. As soon as I turned the handle of her door, her eyes flew open and I could see her arms tighten around her son who was not sleeping in his own bed.

"What are you doing, Father?" She asked quietly.

"We are leaving. Get dressed."

She carefully propped herself on an elbow to study me. "Leaving? What do you mean? Where are we going?"

I shook my head. "I am not going to speak of it here. Get dressed. There is a chill tonight. Put a cloak on and make sure Adnan is warm as well."

Mareke, though suspicious, did as I asked. She dressed herself and then as gently as she could removed Adnan's sleeping pants and dressed him warmly. He whimpered in his sleep, but ultimately remained unconscious even as Mareke hauled him into her arms, looking at me expectantly.

"If you did not already know this is a secret. We must be careful."

Guards were waiting outside of her door for us. I sensed Mareke's hesitation behind me. "Your things have already been packed and are waiting at the coast by now."

I took my grandson into my own arms and led our party down the hall, making sure to stay away from corridors where there would even be the slightest chance of seeing anyone. We finally made it out to the stables where several black horses were saddled and waiting.

Despite what most people thought, our mumakil were not our main means of transportation. In all actuality, mumakil were only found in the reaches of Far Harad for the most part. We had a few in our city, but they were for show mostly and ceremonies. We did not use them to get around.

Even though we used horses just as much as the people in the North, Mareke was a hesitant rider. It had never been her strong suit as she had not travelled much outside of the Realm and had been able to get around the city by foot or in a litter.

"Do not fret. Adnan will ride with me," I assured her.

Quickly, one of the guards brought around a mounting stool and I watched as she clumsily climbed onto the beast. Even with my grandson in my arms, I required no such assistance.

There was a technique we used when riding with children and one of the guards assisted me before we left the stables. I held Adnan so that he was facing me and the guard bound him tightly to me with a sheath of cloth. When the child was secured to me, I wrapped my dark cloak around his sleeping form and turned to look at Mareke, who looked apprehensive at best.

"Hoods up," I said, before spurring my horse out of the stables and quickly out of the city.

It was not a terribly long ride to the coast where we would board a boat that would take us up river to Minas Tirith. We arrived before there was any glimpse of sun in the sky.

As Adnan's somehow still sleeping form was untied from me, I handed him to his mother. "We must go below deck until we reach our destination."

Mareke looks at me confused, but I could see that the ride had rattled her and she had no energy to question me or argue.

"I will tell you what is going when we are in your room," I said quietly.

I looked around the deck before following my daughter into the belly of the boat. All of the men on board looked common enough. No one would be able to tell that the boat was bearing a princess and prince of Harad to safety. That is exactly how I wanted it.

Mareke was tucking Adnan into the small bed in the corner of her very small room.

"I am sorry for the quarters," I said quietly so as not to wake my grandson. "But it is best if people do not know that a part of the royal family is leaving."

"What is going on, Father?" She asked, as I took her arm and led her through a door and into another small room.

"I could not allow you to stay in Harad any longer considering the recent circumstances," I replied.

"You mean Na'man?"

I nodded. "Though it pains me to think of the actions of your brother, I could not let that pain paralyze me and put you and Adnan in even greater danger. The longer you stayed the more determined he would have been to remove all threats to his reign."

"Where are we going?" Mareke asked. "We have no allies."

"We have one," I corrected her. "I have heard that the King of Gondor is very noble. I am hoping that if he understands the danger you and Adnan were in that he will be willing to shelter you until the wedding. If he agrees, then this will be a chance for you to learn about your new home without the pressure of immediately becoming its Queen."

My daughter nodded without saying anything else.

"I know this is abrupt and I cannot imagine how difficult the transition will be on you and Adnan, but if I am being honest you are my strong child. There has never been any doubt in my mind that you would overcome everything thrown your way and most likely even thrive."

Mareke's eyes welled with tears, though I could hardly see in the dim lighting of the cabin.

"All will be well in the end, Mareke, I am sure of it."

I knew she must be conflicted. She had never known any other home than Harad. She had been married there and her son had been born there. I could not imagine the pain of being parted with my home, but I knew that she was also smart, not to mention the most protective of mothers, and surely must see the danger in remaining until she was originally supposed to leave.

"I know you do not get to say goodbye to your home," I began.

"Who knows if I will ever return?"

"It is not so long of a journey. When things settle down, you will be able to come home and see everyone once more."

"Na'man will never let Adnan back into Harad. He is too much a threat to his reign."

I nodded. "You are probably right, but for the time being your brother does not yet reign."

Mareke said no more for a long while. "My dresses for Gondor were not ready yet," she said sadly.

I almost laughed. Out of everything going on around her, she was concerned with clothes.

She must have noticed the look on my face because she quickly went on. "The Gondoran people will be even less likely to take to me and Adnan to heart when we come looking as foreign as we do."

I had not thought of that. Both Mareke and Adnan had been taking lessons on everything there was to know about Gondor. My daughter had intended to mold herself into her new home and try to fit in with the people there to make everything easier on her, but that would be harder now.

"I will try to arrange something with the King so that you do not go too long without the proper attire," I promised.

Mareke nodded doubtfully.

"Now go lie down with Adnan. He will fret if he wakes up and you are not there," I said gently. I pressed a kiss to my daughter's forehead before gently ushering her through the door and into the other cabin where Adnan was still sleeping peacefully as I could tell from his deep breathing.

Before I could close the door, Mareke turned back to me. "Thank you for helping us, Father. I know this will put you in a difficult position upon your return."

"Do not think of me. You have your son to look out for."

Mareke nodded and pulled the door shut behind her.

ooooOoooo

We were on the boat a few days short of a week. Finally, we were close enough to Minas Tirith that we could ride the rest of the way. We had had to put our own horses on the boat as no one from Gondor knew we were coming and so they could not provide us with horses. The decision had been too abrupt to send a letter ahead and even if there had been time I was beginning to think that Na'man had someone who read most of my letters.

Once more, I rode with Adnan in front of me, though he was awake and excited to be going for a ride.

He had not been too disturbed to find out that we were going to Gondor earlier than expected. He seemed to enjoy the adventure of it. He loved being on the boat, but only under the cover of darkness would I let him explore the deck.

"Will they be pleased to see us?" Adnan asked me.

"Who would not be pleased to see an honorable prince such as yourself?" I asked with a smile.

Mareke was quiet for most of the ride and I knew that that probably stemmed more from her nervousness at entering Gondor than being uncomfortable on a horse.

The city of Minas Tirith loomed ever closer. I had never seen it before and I found it to be quite intimidating. It was nothing like our low-lying City of Serpents. Minas Tirith was a fortress of sorts, built into a rock face. You could not see people's homes or business from the outside. You could only see that the city was divided into sections.

"Might we stop for a moment?" Mareke asked. "I want to look as presentable as possible given the circumstances."

I halted our retinue and Mareke and the only of her ladies to accompany her dismounted. I watched as my daughter fretted about her outfit. They had done their best in dressing her in the most modest attire she had packed, though some of her legs and midriff were exposed.

"The people of Gondor will absolutely die if they see me like this," she muttered.

"Not many of them will see you just yet," I promised. "You can lie low until garments can be made for you. I have brought plenty along to pay for such things."

After a few more moments, our party was ready to continue on.

My own stomach began to churn as we approached the gates to the city.

"Who are you?" The guard demanded roughly.

"I am King Hashad of Harad," I replied, hoping that I sounded at least somewhat calm.

"You are awfully far from home," the man said, not adding on any show of respect for my title. "What do you come seeking?"

"I have been in contact with your King about his marriage to my daughter," I gestured to Mareke behind me. "She is seeking sanctuary from her husband-to-be."

The man laughed. "I am sure she is, but surely you know we cannot allow you into the city."

"Then allow me to speak with King Elessar so that he might make a decision."

"I will not have the King come down here so that you can assassinate him!" The man said, more aggression in his voice. "If you are the King of Harad, then I am of the Valar."

I was not sure to what he was referring to, but I knew that he was being sarcastic and difficult. "I can prove my identity. I have all of the correspondence from the King and the jewel my daughter wears around her neck, the ruby, is a gift from the King. It is engraved with his name and hers."

"I am not stupid. I am sure you are a gifted thief."

I was becoming quite exasperated with the man, not being used to being treated in such a manner. No one had ever before questioned who I was.

Finally, I showed the man my left hand. "In Harad, only royalty has a tattoo such as thing one." I pointed at the sun on the back of my hand. "There are only three of us in this party that have them. If they were fake, it would mean certain death for us in our home." I pulled Adnan's hand away from his body to show the man. "This is my grandson, a prince of Harad." I felt Mareke spur her horse up beside mine and she too held out her hand. "No one else in this retinue has them."

The man's companion looked uncertain and he whispered something to the man who was studying the tattoos.

"If you send for your King and he decides that we are not being genuine he will surely let you kill us yourself."

This, disturbingly, seemed to brighten the man's dispostion toward us. "Well then we should speed that process along, should we not?" He turned back to his companion and whispered something that I could not hear, but very quickly the other man was off. "Do not move a muscle until the King arrives."

We obeyed nervously, though I tried with all my might to only show composure.

It seemed like hours later when I finally heard a commotion on the other side of the gate.

"The King is here," the man said.

I thought it would be safe enough to dismount my horse so long as I remained tight to the animal's side, praying the man would not draw a weapon on me when the King was so near.

The tall man emerged from the gates among of group of heavily armed guards. He approached me slowly and I was surprised to find that he looked almost as old as I was. I had not been aware that he was so old. By all accounts I had received of his performance in the War I was expecting a much more virile man.

"I hear you are the King of Harad," he said quietly.

"That is true," I dipped my head in respect to him, but did not fully bow as that would have been below my station. "I have brought my daughter and grandson who are seeking sanctuary."

I gestured for Mareke to dismount and join me and then I reached up and took Adnan from the saddle, standing him in front of me and resting my hands on his shoulders.

Mareke clumsily dismounted and I tried to keep my face passive despite my embarrassment at her lack of grace. I truly had no idea where it came from. Her mother could ride a horse until the sun set and do it again the next day with pleasure.

When my daughter stood next to me, she dipped a much more elegant curtsy to the King. She had been practicing.

"Your portrait does not do you justice, Princess Mareke," he said. I noticed he spoke with a lack of emotion as though he were reading from a script.

"Thank you, Your Majesty," she replied quietly.

King Elessar's attention moved to the little boy standing in front of me. For the first time, a genuine smile came to his face. He knelt before the boy and reached out to clasp his small forearm. "You must be Prince Adnan."

Adnan nodded bashfully, though he grasped the King's arm in return.

"Quite the grip you have there," he said and Mareke and I looked at each other. The King had spoken in Haradrim. "I am very glad that you are here in Gondor."

He stood once more and looked between my daughter and I. "I hope I got that right. I have been practicing."

"It was very good, King Elessar."

"Now tell me why are you seeking sanctuary?"

"I would speak to you in private of that if possible."

The King nodded. "Of course. We shall go to my private rooms to ensure that we are alone." He glanced back over his shoulder as he re-entered the city. "I bid you to prepare yourself. It is quite a hike back to the top level."

Before entering the city, I gave a pointed look to the guard who had treated us so disrespectfully. He was the red in face, I imagined more from anger than embarrassment.

The King had not been jesting. We were completely breathless when we reached the level in which the royal family and their court resided. One of the guards had had to pick Adnan up and carry him though he had climbed bravely for a couple of levels.

"Please make yourselves at home," KIng Elessar bid everyone once we were in a private sitting room.

I removed my cloak and took a seat on a couch across from him.

Mareke knelt and removed Adnan's small cloak before doing the same with her own, color rising on her cheeks. She quickly sat next to me and pulled her son onto her lap in order to hide the skin that was showing.

When I was bid, I told King Elessar exactly what danger my daughter and her son had faced in Harad. It was a long story and difficult to explain in some parts.

As I finished, I noticed that the King was staring at the pair beside me. Studying him closer, I found that his eyes were on Adnan who had fallen asleep on his mother's lap after the day's tiring journey.

When the King realized I was no longer speaking, he met my eyes with his gray ones. "They will be safe in my city, I promise you that."

I nodded and sighed in relief. "I cannot thank you enough for this, Your Majesty."

He waved away my thanks. "I was raised amongst the Elves and I must tell you that they have very different standards that us Men. The thought of someone trying to harm that child does not sit well with me. In fact, it makes me quite angry and disgusted. He will be protected here as will daughter, I assure you."

He stood and we all did as well. "I will have someone show you to rooms where you can rest."

I nodded and walked ahead. Behind me I heard the King say to Mareke, "You son is very lucky to have such a brave mother as you, Princess."

Let me know what you thought! I hope you loved it! I love to hear from my readers. It makes me write quicker!

Happy reading,

Avonmora