Title: Curse or Blessing  
Author: Milly  
Author's Email: ElrohiradoresElladan@gmx.net 
Author’s website: http://millynoldorinwa.tripod.com/ 
Pairing(s): Boromir/Faramir, Faramir/Denethor, Elladan/Elrohir, possibly 
other pairings later  
Rating: R  
Summary: Based on *this* bunny: How about a distraught Faramir, 
knowing he is pregnant with his dead brother's child?  
Warning: incest, mpreg, angst, char death, violence, 
non-con/rape, bdsm, interspecies [elf/man], het
Disclaimer: I sadly still don’t own this.  
Authors Note (if needed/desired): Dernhelm claimed none of us would 
ever write one of her challenges, so I *had* to, you know. It's my first try 
on a pure filthy man couple. Please forgive me for possible later 
appearances of a certain other race... I'm used to Elves, they are used to 
being the good -and the bad- guys in my stories.  
Thanks a lot to Dernhelm for her challenge and to dear Stewardess for 
waking my interest in the mannish monsters. And thanks, thanks, thanks to 
Blue for being such a sweet reader. If it hadn't been for her I wouldn't have 
dared to post this, I think!  
Apart from that, I'll not go by the storyline of book and movie. I know 
both, but I just don't like the idea of adding the hobbits to the story. If my 
story is to be about men it'll be. And to be honest I'm not interested in the 
fights that will follow either. So okay, Boromir died, but Faramir...  
[In response to the criticism of a good friend of mine I decided to change 
the title of my fic. This story used to run by the name "Innocence" before. 
But as I decided to make a real change in the end it won't match anymore. 
So here, my sweet Elfchen, I hope you like this one better. :)] Thank you 
to both Elfchen and Stewardess for their criticism. I accepted it and 
changed some, hopefully you will like it better now. :)
*hugs her beta-tease close* Hannad, penneth. Your comments amused me 
to no end once more. :)
And a big thanks to Mira and Esteliel, who so nicely entertained me while 
I was writing the later chapters of this story. 

Curse or Blessing?  
 
Chapter 1 / 28  
 
Faramir strayed into memories of times that had passed long ago while he 
rested against a tree. Back then, when Boromir and he had still had time to 
learn how to fight and to play at the rivers. It was Boromir who had taught 
him, not only how to use a sword or how to swim, but also how to act 
around the adults, how to ride and how to read and write. And he had 
learned eagerly, not only because he had feared his father's reaction if he 
didn't, but also because he wanted to please Boromir. His older brother, 
the only person he had ever looked up to, his personal hero.  
 
But that had been a long time ago, years had passed and Faramir had 
realized that he had to cope with his own life, that he couldn't try to 
become Boromir's shadow and go with him wherever he went. When he 
had been a young child, he had tried to join the soldiers several times, but 
his brother had taken him home, had feared that his beloved little brother 
might be hurt among the rough men he dealt with. Faramir tried to recall if 
it had started back then, but he couldn't. No, no it had been later, about two 
years later, during the first time he remembered sleeping in his brother's 
arms.  
 
Twelve years ago...  
 
"Don't cry." Boromir helplessly hugged his younger brother, trying to calm 
him without any success. He picked up Faramir like he had done when he 
had still been a toddler and took him to his room, unable and unwilling to 
meet their father's eyes again. Anger bristled in his stomach as Faramir 
flinched from his touch, totally different from the way he usually adored to 
be held close. His brother had always craved for affection and he had tried 
his best to give it to him when he returned to the white city. But this time 
he had found his brother, kneeling before their father and crying and he 
had been able to stop Denethor right before he struck him again.  
 
It had been difficult to understand what had happened as Faramir had 
hardly been able to breath and Denethor had been too enraged to speak 
properly. And when the words had slowly started to make sense he had 
hardly been able to keep himself from laughing, even though it wasn't 
funny. At least not that his brother was crying and also not the more than 
stupid reaction that had been so different from what he had expected. His 
father had always been wise and fair in his eyes, but today he had doubted 
his reaction.  
 
He placed Faramir on his bed and locked the door, knowing that he 
couldn't face anyone right now, not when he was that angry at his father 
and at everyone else because they had heard his brother cry out in pain and 
they hadn't come to help him. This moment belonged to Faramir, not to 
anyone else but him, and he didn't intend to let anyone come and see his 
brother like this, not while Faramir was still crying so hard that it made 
him sound as if he was chocking. 
 
"We will clean you up and find you something clean to sleep in, alright?" 
He whispered, trying to sound soothing and he once more cursed himself 
for his own voice. It sounded like his father's, enough so to make Faramir 
flinch again now. Boromir stood up and collected the promised clothes to 
clean up the blood that already started to dry on his brother's back. "Please 
little one, stop crying, I love you, you know that I would never harm you." 
 
Boromir sighed and kissed a strand of black hair before he carefully 
moved it away from the shoulders he wanted to clean. Of course he should 
have placed him into a bathtub, but Faramir was too exhausted for that and 
he didn't want to call for the servants. He would do that tomorrow, when 
he was less angry and his brother was feeling better. For the moment the 
short cleaning would have to do and he dropped the cloth to the floor as 
soon as he was done.  
 
The angry conversation with his father was still on his mind while he took 
off his cloak and his tunic and lay down next to his brother. /He isn't my 
son./ Boromir angrily closed his eyes while he pulled his brother close. His 
reply had been thoughtless, but he couldn't remember being that angry at 
anyone before. /No, indeed, a father wouldn't mistreat his own child like 
that./ Denethor had stared at him, but Boromir had just gathered Faramir in 
his arms and left the room. And surely it had been for the best. Seeing the 
blood covered cane for longer might have caused him to react in an 
unforgivable way.  
 
Suddenly something pulled him back from his thoughts and he 
concentrated on hearing the sound that has distracted him. But there wasn't 
a sound, it was the silence that had surprised him and he smiled weakly 
and rested his hands carefully on Faramir's body, trying not to put any 
pressure on the wounds. His brother had fallen asleep and now that he 
listened carefully, he heard the almost peaceful breathing against his 
shoulder. /Oh Faramir, sweet little one, what shall I do with you? I cannot 
take you with me, but leaving you here isn't better than taking you from 
father's care. You will have to learn quicker than you did until now, I will 
try my best, I promise./  
 
 
 
A horrible fight between father and son had followed and Boromir had left 
them for weeks, frustrated that he couldn't talk any sense into their father. 
At least Denethor had chosen to ignore him after the incident with the 
stable boy and while he tried to be obedient and followed any of his 
father's wishes Denethor claimed that he couldn't have a son who had 
chosen to lay with males. Boromir had laughed bitterly when he had 
learned about it and told his brother not to worry, but obviously their 
father had chosen to not forgive him about kissing someone of his own 
gender.  
 
That didn't matter right now, though. Right now all what mattered was that 
Boromir was gone, that he had ridden to that Elven City to find the sword 
of Elendil, to solve the riddle and free Gondor from all the trouble and the 
War. And he hadn't been able to stay anymore either, but for different 
reasons. He had wanted to go to Rivendell himself, but Boromir had 
forbidden it, had called him too inexperienced and told him to stay where 
he was safe, pleaded him, not to risk anything. Of course he had obeyed 
his brother, as he had always done, even though his wish to help Gondor 
and their people grew with every day, not only within his brother but also 
inside of him.  
 
Chapter 2 / 28  
 
And then, a few weeks after Boromir had left he had noticed something 
was wrong. His worry for his brother had grown with every day, but it 
wasn't his mind. There was something, something growing inside of him, 
scaring him like nothing had ever scared him before. He had pretended 
that he was only imagining things until he hadn't been able to go on like 
that any longer. For weeks now he had felt sick and worried and then, one 
day he hadn't been able to deny it any longer. Even though it was 
impossible it was true. Something was growing inside of him. A life form, 
a child. His brother's child.  
 
He closed his eyes and forced himself not to think on it, not to think on his 
father's reaction, but it didn't work. It had driven his father mad, had made 
him angrier than anything he had ever done before. But Denethor hadn't 
killed him. He had found a punishment that was worse than death, worse 
than anything else he had ever endured. Somehow everything else seemed 
less important now, the belt, the cane… being thrown down the stairs or 
locked in the dungeons of the prison... 
 
It had been horrible...  
 
"You *dare* to address me as your sire?" Denethor once again struck his 
son's face. "You are nothing, you aren't my son, you aren't a man, you 
aren't worthy of being called a slut or an Orc any longer. There is no word 
that would match with you." Faramir didn't even raise his hands to stop his 
father, giving in to any punishment the Steward thought suitable. It was 
impossible for males to get pregnant and he didn't any right to ask for 
forgiveness any longer. "Tell me, who is the father?"  
 
Faramir bit back the cynical comment that a nothing wasn't able to speak. 
Boromir had told him that he should fight back if their father acted up, but 
he surely hadn't thought it possible that his brother would become 
pregnant. There were legends of male elves carrying children, but Elves 
weren't real males anyway. At least not if he could believe what his father 
had said about them. “Are you deaf, slut? I asked whom you spread your 
legs for!" The young man shivered, unsure whether it was better to tell or 
not to tell his father that he was siring his brother's child. And there was no 
doubt about it, Boromir was the only one he had ever lain with.  
 
He closed his eyes and ignored his father's question, worried that he might 
become mad at his brother as well, and tasted the blood in his mouth as his 
head hit the stone floor. Obviously, though, that hadn't been enough as he 
felt a kick against his abdomen and all of a sudden an unknown worry 
spread through his body. /My child!/ Faramir cursed the thought. That 
wasn't a child, it was a monster. Something that shouldn't be allowed to 
exist.  
 
Hands. His eyes flew open in horror as he felt Denethor's hands, taking off 
his clothes, like he had done so many times before. He couldn't stand a 
whipping now that he was already spilling his blood out in order not to 
choke on it. Nevertheless he kept silent, scared of what his father would do 
if he wouldn't and he waited for the taller man to step away and fetch a 
whip or a cane, but he heard the hard, angry panting behind him. 
Something was wrong, but he couldn't figure it out.  
A cloth was placed before his eyes and his mind cried that he had to go 
against it, that he had to fight whatever was going to happen. "No!" 
Despite his pain he started to struggle, causing his father to smack his head 
against the stone floor once more. "Silence!" He heard a hiss right next to 
his ear and shuddered at the sound as cold hands pressed his body back 
down and held him firmly. "You only get what you deserve." Faramir 
shook his head, but didn't manage to get up.  
 
And then he realized that his instinct had been right when it had warned 
him that his father was insane. "No," he whimpered, unable to speak any 
louder as Denethor pushed inside him. "Please…" Faramir's voice was 
barely audible and he knew that it was far too late now, he couldn't do 
anything, just pray to everyone who was listening that it would be over 
soon. 
 
And the Valar seemed to have mercy on him as Denethor panted above 
him as soon as he had thrusted fully inside for the first time. "Tiiiight," he 
slurred as if he was drunk and pushed harder once more before he cried 
out in both pleasure and anger. Faramir vomited as soon as he felt his 
father's semen inside of him, but he didn't care anymore. Blood and tears 
already covered the floor, the bit of food he had managed to eat wouldn't 
change much. His throat felt sore from both crying and vomiting and he 
prayed that his father would finally have mercy when he carelessly pulled 
out off his body. The cloth was pulled from his eyes, but he found that he 
couldn't focus on what was before him.  
 
"Lick it clean." The stern command totally took him aback. "Do as I say, 
or I swear that I will make you regret it." Something inside of Faramir's 
mind panicked. Could Denethor truly make his life worse than it was 
already? A well-known expression appeared in his father's eyes and he 
lowered his head in defeat. Denethor knew him. He knew that he was 
scared and he wouldn't let him go until he had done whatever... Faramir bit 
his lip in disgust. "Please father..."  
 
A blow against his head was all answer he received before he felt his 
father's limb before his mouth and he regretted his words. Denethor had 
never allowed him to call him father. It hadn't been a good idea to address 
him such with a plea for mercy. His hair was yanked back brutally. "Open 
your mouth and lick me clean, slut." For a few seconds he considered to 
refuse, but the grab on his hair became more painful and he helplessly 
opened his mouth, feeling the blood and the seed on his father's shaft 
inside the wetness of his mouth.  
 
Faramir shuddered violently when he heard his father moan in pleasure, 
but stilled and tried to focus on his task when he felt fingernails digging 
into the flesh of his shoulder. After several moments his father seemed 
pleased with the way he had cleaned up the shaft and started to dress, 
smirking at him. "Now take care of the floor, slut, I won't allow any hint of 
what has been inside your body on my floor." The younger man closed his 
eyes for a moment but the sharp dagger brought him back to reality and he 
complied, not knowing what else he could do.  
 
He heard Denethor speaking to him, but the words didn't make sense, he 
could as well have spoken the black speech instead and it wouldn't have 
made it less understandable. Once he was done with licking up his vomit 
and his blood, Faramir rested his head against the stone floor and waited 
for death. There was nothing else that could happen now to make things 
worse. But suddenly he saw his brother's face before him, crying out in 
pain and desperation and he realized that he had to survive. That he had to 
find his brother. He needed his brother's embrace, his tight, loving 
embrace, the adoration in his words as he cuddled inside the strong, 
comforting arms.  
 
"Boromir," he whispered before he passed out. He didn't know how long 
he had lain unconscious on the cold stone floor, but sadly it hadn't been 
long enough to make Denethor leave. "Count yourself lucky, I see you as 
something again. Nothing but a dirty whore, of course, but still. You make 
a good slut, boy, if you continue like that I might even allow you to stay 
here." Faramir looked at him wordlessly for a moment, not sure what he 
could say about such a disgusting praise. But his father already 
reconsidered. "No, no, I don't think I can stand having you around, I prefer 
having people who are worthy of my seed. I should never have taken your 
mother to bed the day she got pregnant with you. Go, leave my realm, 
never return. You ashamed me enough, go."  
 
Faramir got up in trance, not aware of what he was doing while he started 
to dress and stumbled outside, far too scared of what his father might do 
next. He had deserved a punishment, but he couldn't possibly have 
deserved that, could he? /You desired to lie with your brother, why didn't 
you enjoy lying beneath your father?/ A voice in his head mocked him and 
he shuddered in terror. Boromir had loved him, had shown him what it 
meant to feel bliss and praised his beauty and the kindness of his heart. No 
one who knew them could compare his father and his brother. /I will find 
him./ He winced in pain but determined went to his room one last time, 
missing the short whiff of guilt in his father's eyes as he left.  
 
 
 
/A slut, no more. Will Boromir still want me?/ He longed to feel dark hair 
against his naked body, needed to feel the tickling of a dark beard while 
his brother licked his way up from his navel to his chest. Faramir realized 
that he was becoming hard and looked down in disgust. How could he 
even think of having sex again? He was tainted, he could never again run 
his hands through the dark, slightly curled hair of his brother. /I was raped 
because of you, monster, I hope it pleases you to know that./  
 
He nudged his stomach and became worried when he didn't feel the anger 
he had felt before any longer. If he couldn't blame it on the monster, who 
else was to blame? /You are./ Yes, of course he was to blame for what had 
happened, it was his fault that he had become pregnant and that he had 
told his father. And of course it was also his fault that he hadn't stopped 
Denethor. He quickly started to run again in order to get rid of another 
thought. /Did I want him to do that?/  
 
Chapter 3 / 28  
 
Faramir lowered his head to the water and started to drink, feeling once 
more as if he was an animal. But he had no rations left and when he had 
woken he had felt terribly hungry. So in order to calm his stomach he had 
started to drink, but it wouldn't work and he started to wash himself in 
frustration. Ever since he had last seen his father he felt the urge to get 
clean more urgently than before and he wasted valuable time on washing 
himself instead of trying to at least catch a rabbit or a fish in order to 
survive.  
 
Then he reluctantly got up, feeling sick and dizzy once more as he started 
to walk again. "Please…" he heard a voice, followed by a whistle from 
somewhere around and he was scared, both by the urgent plea it voiced 
and by the smashing sound that followed it. Faramir shuddered as he 
remembered the sound and ran towards it. He had to help the assaulted 
person, he couldn't let someone else experience what he had endured so 
many times. It didn't take long for him to find the men he had searched for 
and he glared at the tormentor angrily. "Stop that immediately!" 
 
He knew exactly what it felt like to be hit like that...  


"Please," Faramir whimpered helplessly, trying not to show the whole 
amount of his fear as he saw his father's new cane. /Why must I always do 
wrong? Why can't ever behave like I should?/ It didn't occur to the youth 
that it possibly wasn't his fault that his father chose to punish him so often. 
It had to be his fault, it had always been his fault, no matter what Boromir 
said on that matter, his father couldn't hate him enough to punish him 
without a reason.  
 
Though but he couldn't really remember what he had wrong this time. But 
there had to be something and he tried hard to remember it. His father's 
lips formed a small, thin line like they always did when he was really 
enraged, and he gave up his struggle, in order not to annoy his father any 
further. He lowered his head as he felt the always present hand against his 
neck, whilst the other quickly ripped off his tunic and leggings before his 
father went to collect the instrument he intended to use.  
 
Denethor loved giving him time to think on what he had done. And 
Faramir suspected that he secretly enjoyed the idea of his child waiting for 
him and shuddering from fear, waiting to take whatever punishment he 
intended to give. Then, when he heard the well-known sound of the cane 
he almost sighed. It was terrible enough, but at least it wasn't the whip he 
had been so scared of. /Make it be over soon./ He prayed and couldn't 
manage to hold back a hiss of pain when he felt the first blow of the hated 
stick.  
 
More blows followed swiftly and soon he found himself wishing for a 
place he could run to. Praying for his brother to return to save him. But he 
wouldn't, he had left shortly ago and wouldn't return within the next three 
months. Faramir started to scream, not caring any longer that his father 
would think him weak. It hurt, it hurt so terribly and he couldn't hold back 
his screams like he wanted to.  
 
"You are weak, such a poor little girl." Denethor sounded disgusted when 
he looked down at the sobbing boy before him. "Learn not to cry when 
your brother leaves and you might be in less pain the next time. I will not 
have you embarrass me in front of everyone in Gondor again, do you 
understand me? Now go to your room and think and make sure you will 
not be seen again, you can eat in the kitchen with the other maids." 
Faramir nodded obediently and slowly walked out of the room, careful not 
to slip and fall to the floor like he had done the last time. It surely wasn't 
worth the punishment it brought to do that again.  
 
 
 
Both men stared at him in confusion and he used the time they were 
stunned to take the cane and break it, before either of them could react. 
"What are you doing?" Faramir tried not to show his fear at the angry 
words. Why was it that everyone seemed to hate him? Well everyone apart 
from Boromir who had been more patient than... He tried to concentrate as 
he noticed that the man wished for to hear an answer. "I will not see you 
do him anymore harm. Untie him and let him go."  
 
The man looked totally confused for a moment, before realization dawned 
on him. "This isn't what you think, mortal." The black-haired man moved 
his head and for the first time Faramir noticed the pointed ears. "I wouldn't 
ever hurt someone like that, if it wasn't exactly what he wants me to do." 
Slowly the man untied the wrist of the other man and Faramir realized that 
they looked far more alike than he had noticed before. But still, even 
though he was surprised, Faramir shook his head. "No, no one could 
possibly want such a thing."  
 
But the victim smiled and wrapped his arms around the other elf. "Believe 
me, he knows exactly what he is doing. I am sorry if we scared you." The 
man quickly put on his tunic and Faramir's eyes widened when he noticed 
that he pulled it close to his skin as if he took delight in the pain it brought. 
"You are scared, mortal, what troubles you like that?" The twins 
exchanged a glance when Faramir paled even more and tried to back away. 
 
"No, stay here, we might be able to help you. I am Elrohir and this is my 
brother, Elladan," one of the Elves introduced themselves, hopeful that the 
mortal would return the favour. Faramir considered his options for several 
moments, but then realized that whoever they were they might have food 
they could share with him. "I am Faramir, son of the Steward of Gondor." 
The word Steward tasted bitter on his tongue, but it wasn't as terrible as 
speaking the name of his father.  
  
A thoughtful expression crossed the face of one of the twins and he 
exchanged a glance with his brother. "We have heard of you, Faramir of 
Gondor. Your brother came to Imladris a short while ago." Faramir was 
about to ask what Imladris was when he remembered that some of the 
books spoke of it. It was the Elvish name of Rivendell. He sighed in relief. 
So at least his brother had reached the Elven realm.  
 
"Can you take me there? I... I have to see him, I have news for him." The 
twins looked at each other once more and Faramir was about to scream in 
frustration when they started to speak to each other in fluent Elvish. He 
didn't understand a word they were saying. Then one of them turned to 
him. "We could take you there. But we won't." Faramir sighed in 
frustration, but then felt a hand on his shoulder. "It would be useless, 
young mortal, he isn't in Imladris any longer, there was a fellowship 
created to take the one ring to Mordor. Your brother is among them, they 
set out for Lórien long before we left to take our father's message to our 
brother."  
 
"Would you show me the way to Lórien then?" One of the twins shrugged 
and looked at his brother as if unsure whether he wanted to go there. Then 
the other turned to him to speak again. "Yes, we will take you there. But 
you will have to tell us about your errant before we allow you to come 
with us. It'll be some trouble to get a mortal inside the borders when the 
arrogant marchwardens are on their watch."  
 
Chapter 4 / 28  
 
He had taken the food they had offered him and thankfully the terrible 
feeling in his stomach settled down a bit. "You are very frightened, even 
for a mortal," one of the brothers mumbled softly. Faramir was unsure if 
he should tell him off or just let it pass. "What happened to you? It's not 
like everyday that a mortal is found running through a forest and shaking 
like a little green leaf." 
 
The other twin burst into laughter and received a stern glare from his 
brother. "I'm sorry, mortal, I didn't mean to laugh at you. It is just that one 
of our friend's names means greenleaf when it is translated to the common 
tongue. Stupid name if you ask me, but his father is not to be argued with." 
He moved away from the playful slap he was about to receive and rested 
his eyes on the strangely pale mortal.  
 
"But my brother is right. Something must be wrong with you. We have 
lived among mortals for several years and I have never seen one as clean 
and thoughtful as you are."  
"You forget about baby brother when he tries to impress penneth."  
"He isn't thoughtful, he just tries to look clean."  
"Hush now, you are scaring him."  
 
The twins looked at each other for several moments before one of them 
turned to Faramir. "You should eat some more, young mortal." The mortal 
nodded obediently and took the offered bread. "Thank you," he whispered 
shyly, unsure what to make of the strange Elves talk. They were scaring 
him, but they had promised to take him to Lórien and he had to find 
Boromir. At least he needed to know that he was well.
"You need to rest. Wait here, my brother will watch your sleep, I will go 
and fetch some fresh water," one of the brothers told him and he nodded, 
unable to deny that he was tired.  
 
The Elf who had spoken left and Faramir lay down on the ground, hearing 
a startled cry from the elf that was still with him. "But little mortal, you 
cannot want to lie on the ground like that," he chided softly and placed one 
of his blankets on the ground. "Lie down on that, young mortal. And don't 
worry. We will watch you, you can rest assured." Faramir wasn't sure if he 
should trust the Elves, but then, they were known to be good creatures, no 
matter what his... He silently cursed himself. /I do not have a father, I do 
not have a father.../  
 
Worried eyes rested on him, but he missed the concerned expression in the 
Elve's eyes as sleep claimed him. When Elladan returned Elrohir was 
singing softly, with one of his hands resting on the young man's forehead. 
"He is troubled, brother, we have to take him to grandmother's realm as 
soon as possible." Elladan nodded and allowed his concern to show more 
openly. "I know, dearest brother, but we will have to be patient. If you 
want to come across the stupid march warden with a mortal you would 
better think of a reason."  
 
Elrohir lowered his head for but a moment. "Will it count that he is 
pregnant and needs grandfather's council?" The older twin glared at his 
brother. "You do *not* joke upon such topics, Elrohir, you should know 
better than that by now." Elrohir nodded calmly and searched his brother's 
eyes, waiting patiently until he had fully understood his seriousness. "He is 
with child, you know that I feel such things."  
 
"But he cannot... he... You know what it means if he is pregnant." Elrohir 
nodded and lowered his head. "You know very well that I know." The 
older twin pulled his brother onto his lap and placed his arms carefully 
around his brother’s waist. "I love you. We will keep him safe, Elrohir, I 
promise we will make sure that he finds his happiness, he will not lose..." 
Pain flashed through their bodies upon the mere thought and each of them 
ended the sentence from their own memories. "Don't show him you are 
worried, love, we might scare him away."  
 
Chapter 5 / 28  
 
~"Heal the pain" is such a wonderful song.~  
 
"We will leave for Lórien today, get up, young mortal," Elrohir whispered 
softly and shook Faramir gently. He waited until the man sleepily looked 
up and then stared at him. "Who are you?" The younger twin raised his 
eyebrows. "I am not Elladan, if that's what you were about to ask next." 
The young man sighed in frustration until he remembered the day before. 
"Your name is similar to that though, isn't it?"  
 
Elladan nodded. "His name is ‘little tease’, I think. Elrohir what are you 
doing? You should be fetching branches!" He made a shooing move and 
the younger twin left, giggling merrily. They had talked until late in the 
night and had decided that it wasn't necessary for the mortal, to have 
Sadness around him. They would tease and laugh until he would lose his 
terribly sad mood and told them what was wrong. It had worked before 
after all and both twins prayed to the Valar that it wouldn't happen again. 
/You need but to trust us, mortal, we will help you./ 
 
"We should go and take a bath as soon as Elrohir returns. The 
Marchwardens are a bit strange, you should be clean so they cannot 
complain that you are filthy as they love to do." He didn't miss the shocked 
expression in Faramir's eyes and started to wonder even more. Elrohir and 
he surely needed to talk some more when Faramir was asleep the next 
time, but for the time being he had to keep his thoughts in his own mind.  
 
When Elrohir returned Elladan got up. "We will have a bath, filthy twin, 
you need to be washed, I am sure." The younger brother nodded and they 
moved towards the river, making sure that Faramir followed them. They 
carelessly started to remove each other’s clothes before Elrohir pushed 
Elladan into the cold water and earned himself a splash of water all over 
him. "Come and join us, please!" The older twin shouted and Faramir 
shyly took off his clothes and quickly moved into the water, not eager to 
show himself naked in front of anyone.  
 
But neither of the twins missed to see the marks on his body and he cried 
out in shock when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Someone has hurt you, 
little mortal. Would… would you tell us what happened?" The whisper 
was soft and caring, something he only knew from Boromir and he turned 
around and stared into grey eyes, framed by long black hair. So much like 
my brother, he realized. And so much like he was himself.  
 
Elrohir realized that the other man was about to cry and signalled to 
Elladan to get away from them and fetch their clothes. "Just trust me, 
young mortal, there is nothing you have to fear from my brother or me." 
He carefully placed his arms around the slender hips and wondered how 
any man could be that thin, especially in the condition Faramir was in. 
"Please trust me, little one." Faramir's defences slipped upon hearing his 
brother's pet name for him and he leaned into the touch, allowing his tears 
to fall freely.  
 
After several minutes, when the young man had calmed down a little, 
Elrohir carefully pulled him out of the water and towards his brother. "You 
can speak about it to us, do not be scared, we will help you." And Faramir 
wanted to believe them. Wanted to believe that the evil times were gone 
and that he could trust the Elves. "I... I do not know where to start," he 
whispered shyly, unsure if he really wanted to tell them.  
 
"Start wherever it pleases you to start, mortal one," Elrohir whispered 
softly and nodded at Elladan who obediently collected something from 
their packings. "I want you to relax, little one, just relax and lie back on 
the cloth my brother spread for you." Anger spread in the younger twin's 
body as looked down at the man who carefully settled on his stomach. 
Elladan returned and wordlessly handed him the salve he had carried, 
before he left again.  
 
"Please tell me what happened. I can heal the wounds on your body, but 
only you are able to lift the weight from your mind." Faramir gave in to the 
sweet, loving tone of the elf's voice and kept still while his wounds were 
covered with a soothing salve. He tried hard to focus and then suddenly it 
broke through him and he started to tell the Elf what he had experienced, 
repeating words and stuttering helplessly at times. But the Elf didn't hit 
him, he didn't turn from him in disgust. He merely stroked the wet, dark 
hair and listened.  
 
Several hours passed and Faramir had found a more steady voice in time,  
speaking about the events as if he had witnessed them from afar, but when 
he continued with came to the part when Denethor had abused him he felt 
arms around him, pulling him up into the other's embrace. He forced 
himself to go on, unable to lose the caring touch and received a kiss 
against his hair as a reward. "None of what has happened was your fault, 
mortal child," Elrohir whispered softly and when Faramir started to cry 
again he soothingly rocked the young man. "You are doing very well. I am 
proud that you are able to trust me like this, thank you."  
 
Elladan returned late, when Faramir was already fast asleep in his brother's 
arms, and nodded. "You are wonderful, dearest brother, I knew you would 
be able to do that." Elrohir smiled at the affectionate praise for a moment, 
then lowered his gaze. "His father did this to him, Elladan," he said, still 
trying hard to believe that any father would hurt his son like that. His 
brother's eyes flew open in shock and he shook his head. "But.."  
 
"That ada would never dream about hurting us doesn't mean that other 
creatures in Arda are that lucky, Elladan." Elrohir's voice was calm, but 
Elladan could sense his brother's distress. His twin was furious, mad 
enough to murder the person who was responsible for the pain he had 
learned about, by hanging him up by the legs until he starved or chocked 
on his screams. He had seen Elrohir do strange things to take revenge for 
caused harm, often with Orcs as victims for his hate. And it once again 
amazed him how careful and loving his brother could take care of the 
victims, who flamed the desire to avenge them, inside of him.  
 
"We will leave once the young mortal awakes again, brother, try to rest a 
little, you have to discuss this with Haldir's stupid brothers when we reach 
the border." Elladan sighed in defeat but nodded. And then, when he lay 
back, he felt a jab of jealousy as he thought about the man resting in his 
brother's arms and cursed himself. /He has suffered terribly, you horrible 
little Elf, you will be able to share your twin with him for a while./  
 
Chapter 6 / 28  
 
The next day they finally reached Lórien's borders and Elladan told them 
quietly that they were not to interfere with his conversation with the 
Marchwardens, no matter what happened. Then he whistled loudly, to 
make the Elves above them aware that he knew that they were around. 
And it took but a moment until one of them jumped down before their feet. 
"You called us, my prince?"  
 
/Ai, not Haldir himself./ Elladan cursed his bad luck, but forced himself to 
smile. "Actually I did." /And you came running like a dog./ His smile 
widened a little on the thought and his brother shot him a warning glance. 
"We would plead you to allow us passage through Lórien, we must 
urgently speak to your Lord." A short look up into the trees caused two 
other Elves to jump down beside him. "We will guide you, my prince. We 
must plead you to honour the rules though."  
 
Elladan bowed his head. "We will honour the rules of Lórien, 
Marchwarden." Haldir turned to his men and nodded. They stepped 
forward, each of them behind one of their guest and Faramir shook his 
head when the leader of the Elves tried to place something before his eyes. 
"No, please… please don't do that," he whispered, but the Elf ignored him. 
When he didn't get any reaction, Faramir panicked, smashed his elbow into 
the Elf’s stomach and ran towards the woods.   
 
"You said he would obey the rules!" Haldir hissed angrily and held his 
stomach. Elrohir raised his eyebrows arrogantly, in order not to show that 
he was insecure about how to deal with the guards of their grandparent's 
realm. "You are thoughtless, Marchwarden, you should have stopped when 
he asked you to and you know it. You are supposed to guard the borders, 
not to torture other people. If someone isn't willing to be blindfolded he is 
to be turned away, not to be forced the blindfold on and you know that 
very well."  
 
Then suddenly horror struck him and he wordlessly cursed himself. 
Blindfolded. Of course the poor little mortal would act against that. "How 
long do your men need to find *one* mortal? You lost the focus on your 
task. He should be here again already." Haldir didn't reply and merely 
waited a little longer until the Elves returned, dragging a struggling man 
back towards them. "He tried..." Haldir nodded and overtook the mortal. "I 
know what he tried, resume your positions, I will deal with him." The 
Elves nodded and left.  
 
"If you cannot accept the blindfold you will not enter the realm of my 
Lady, do you understand me?" He asked, slowly as if to speak to someone 
stupid. Faramir noticed that one of the twins stepped forward and spoke in 
a low voice, using the elvish tongue, and the young man listened while the 
voice of the elf became lower, more threatening, until it made him 
shudder. "I will accept the blindfold. Please do not fight like that." Faramir 
couldn't believe he had actually said those words, but he knew he had.  
 
A hand came to rest on his shoulder immediately. "They will be careful, 
believe me. No wrong will be done to you in the Golden Woods," Elrohir 
whispered gently and the man nodded, trying to believe what he was told 
and bit his lips when the blindfold was placed before his eyes. And then he 
felt hands on his clothes and heard Denethor speak to him. He screamed as 
the grip on his arms tightened and passed out before he could hear the 
soothing words that were spoken to him.  
 
Elrohir pinched the guard who was leading him. "If you aren't capable to 
carry him you will take off my blindfold, do you understand me? If he has 
one more scratch than those he already carries, I will hold you responsible 
for it." He heard a low chuckle in reply before the elf moved his head right 
against his own. "And I thought you only take your brother to bed, 
cunneth." The younger twin smirked evilly and then suddenly lifted his leg 
and kicked his foot into his guard's groin.  
 
"Well I would surely prefer any Orc's presence in my bed instead of 
allowing *you* to join me, Rúmil ò Lórien."  
"Still as charming as always, aren't you, cunneth? Be happy that you are 
under your grandparents' protection."  
"Count yourself lucky that *you* are important to my grandparents or you 
would have died five centuries ago."  
"Do not be too sure of yourself, princeling."  
 
Suddenly a calm voice interrupted their argument. "Please resume your 
positions, Rúmil and Orophin. Elladan, Elrohir, you might want to take off 
your blindfolds and help Haldir to carry the mortal." Celeborn waited until 
everyone had followed his orders and turned to his grandsons with an 
affectionate smile. "Khila amin."  
 
cunneth = princeling  
khila amin = follow me  
 
Chapter 7 / 28 
 
Celeborn waited until the other Elves had placed Faramir onto a bed and 
turned to Elrohir. "Go and find your grandmother, I will need her aid with 
your mortal friend." The younger twin nodded, knowing that it was useless 
to disobey his grandfather and left the room. The silver-haired Elf searched 
Elladan's eyes for several moments before he turned to Haldir. "You know 
where to find my healing salve, get it," he commanded softly and the 
Marchwarden quickly obeyed, retrieving the salves from the other end of 
the room.  
 
Then the Lord of Lórien turned to his grandson. "I trust you treated his 
wounds?" 
Elladan nodded and watched as his grandfather carefully took off the dark 
green tunic. 
"Who did this?" 
Haldir, who had just returned to them, heard his Lord's question and 
looked at the prince. "I know someone who has major interest in hurting 
others in the cruelest ways." 
Celeborn rested his gaze on Haldir for but a moment, making him flinch 
by the mere look in his eyes. "Do not speak of things you do not know 
about, child. We do not need your assistance here any longer, please go 
and resume your position."  
 
The Elven Lord slowly started to rub the healing salve onto the body 
before him, patiently waiting for his grandson to tell him more. But 
Elladan didn't know what to say, how to speak about the horrible crimes 
that had been committed and that had destroyed his belief that every father 
loved his children like Elrond did. "Denethor." A soft voice answered for 
him and he turned to see his grandmother, coming swiftly to their side.  
 
"It is sad that Arathorn died before he could fulfil his destiny to reclaim 
the throne. The might has spoiled Denethor, he was a good man when he 
was young." Galadriel's voice sounded tired, almost melancholic. "Let us 
hope that he at least did not manage to hurt the child." Elrohir stared at his 
grandmother who smiled at him in return. "Did you seriously believe that 
you are the only one who can sense things like that? He will need the child 
if he wants to survive the loss of his brother."  
 
Elladan looked pleadingly at the seemingly so young lady before him. "No, 
please tell us he isn't dead." 
Galadriel's face was compassionate and she softly shook her head. "I 
cannot tell you something that is not true. I have seen his death after they 
had left already. And though I send sent two of my riders after them to 
warn them, they didn't arrive in time to help the fellowship. They returned 
to tell me that the fellowship is breaking. You will need to ride and find 
your brother as soon as you can leave the mortal, he will need your help, 
and you are still supposed to deliver your father's message. I will not have 
you delay your tasks."  
 
Elrohir sighed, but they bowed their heads obediently. "Elrohir, you will 
stay with us until your brother returns to us. Elladan, you will go and find 
the Dúnedain. But make haste, as you need to catch up with Estel in the 
realm of Théoden. He must know what your father seeks to tell him." The 
older twin nodded, and then rested his gaze upon the Lady. "Could you tell 
Haldir that he shall find my brother and show him out of Lórien as soon as 
I return? I do not wish to explain to Halbarad that we are going to play 
hide and seek games with the Galadhrim because…" Elladan stopped 
speaking when he noticed the friendly expression in his grandmother's 
eyes.  
 
Somehow his grandparents never ceased to amaze him. They did never 
need to raise their voices or speak threats to make sure that they were 
understood. "I will inform your brother when it is time to leave. Now go, 
you will have but two weeks before you must be on your way." Elrohir 
searched his brother's eyes and Elladan nodded, unsure if he seriously 
wanted to follow his orders. He shyly stepped forward and hugged his 
brother. "I will return to you as soon as possible. Take care of Faramir, he 
will need someone he can trust." The open plea in his eyes was easily to be 
seen by the other Elves and Celeborn immediately rested his worried gaze 
on the younger twin. /Still./  
 
Chapter 8 / 28 
 
Elrohir watched Faramir who had been staring into the air for hours. 
"He isn't dead." 
The Elf listened patiently to the mortal's words, wishing that Faramir 
would curse and cry, do something but deny that his brother had died. 
Suddenly the room seemed to become brighter and he turned to sadly 
smile at his grandmother. 
"I want you to follow me, Faramir of Gondor," the lady said calmly but 
something in her eyes alarmed Elrohir.  
 
Before he could speak however, he saw Galadriel turn towards him and he 
obediently bowed his head, unsure how he could allow this to happen. The 
mortal got up and followed her, and Elrohir did as well, slowly walking 
after them. He knew that his grandmother was aware of his presence and 
he also knew that she would have sent him away if she had been against it. 
So he saw it as in invitation to stay. Quietly he watched as she filled the 
mirror and Elrohir didn't protest when she asked Faramir to look into it, 
though the elf knew exactly what the mortal would see.  
 
It pained him to think of the pain it would cause, but he trusted his 
grandparents that they had thought over their decision to make the mortal 
watch such a cruel scene while he was still so vulnerable. They were right, 
Faramir had to give up his hope that they were lying to him, that they had 
made up his brother's death for some stupid reasons. And Elrohir swore 
himself to be there when he broke down.  
 
Compassion hit him when he saw the horror on the mortal's face and he 
tried to imagine what it would be like to lose his brother. Tears filled his 
eyes when Faramir started to scream. And he shuddered, feeling the urge 
growing inside of him to know that Elladan was safe. He didn't miss the 
moment when the mortal's heart burst and ran towards him and pulled him 
away from the mirror. Galadriel rested her eyes on him for but a moment 
and then turned to leave them alone.  
 
"Let it go… please just let your tears flow or it will destroy you," Elrohir 
whispered and gathered the young man in his arms, hugging him tightly, 
just like he had done when he had made him speak about the deep pain 
inside of him. And Faramir moved into the loving touch. It had been easy 
to tame the man, as he was hungry for the affection he could gain. Elrohir 
softly caressed the long black hair, remembering what it had been like all 
the times he had held Estel like that, when the child had woken from his 
nightmares. And he had seen Arathorn, every time he had soothed the 
mortal's son, and even now while he just soothed another of his uncle's 
decadents.  
 
/Forgive me, I have let you down, my friend./ He unknowingly tightened 
his grip on the mortal in his arms, resting his head against the neck of the 
crying man as he joined his tears. Not for Boromir whom he hadn't known. 
But for all those he had lost already. For his mother, for the child, for 
Arathorn, the former leader of the Dúnedain. The mere thought of Orcs 
started to make his blood cook inside his veins. /They will all die! I'll 
protect the mortals, my friend, I will succeed this time, I won't fail again!/  
 
It took a long time for the crying to cease and die down. Then it was silent 
for a long time and finally it was Faramir who found the strength to speak. 
"I do not know how to go on, Elrohir. I cannot face this. Not without him, 
not without the only one who ever loved me." The Elf leaned forward and 
regarded him quietly. "Do you really think that he is the only one who 
feels for you? I cannot promise you my love, not after I have merely 
known you for a few days. But I can promise you my friendship. And I 
know that my grandparents will support you. They know of your destiny 
more than I do, and they will take care of you."  
 
Faramir frowned, unsure if he should accept the offer. "Please leave me 
alone, I need to think on this." Elrohir nodded calmly, understanding the 
man's need to be alone. He gently touched Faramir's shoulder. "If you need 
anything you will find me nearby. I won't be far away, I will just go and 
speak to my grandmother. Take as much time as you need, but don't think 
you will be any burden. We like having you around, you are a guest in 
Lórien." The man nodded quietly and Elrohir turned to leave him alone.  
 
Chapter 9 / 28  
 
Days had passed and Faramir was silent, trying hard not to show his 
despair. He had promised Elrohir not to do any harm to himself or the 
child inside of him. But he couldn't feel anything, not even the pain he had 
felt when he had first seen the images he kept seeing in his head over and 
over again. Boromir, his fair face a mere mask of pain and fear as he was 
pierced by yet another black arrow. A man, Faramir had never seen before, 
had spoken to him and then he had passed away, his wounds claiming the 
life within him.  
 
And though Elrohir kept telling him that he wasn't to blame for what had 
happened, he knew he was. It had been his idea to ride to Rivendell and 
find the sword of Elendil, the sword the riddles spoke off. It was merely by 
chance that Boromir had died instead of him after he had claimed that he 
would go instead, trying to retrieve what they both so greatly desired to 
free their realm from all the Wars and the suffering. Suddenly a strange 
voice interrupted him from his musings. "Are you all alone?"  
 
Faramir turned to find an Elf directly facing him and the expression in the 
other’s eyes made him flinch. Then he remembered him, it was one of the 
Elves who had greeted them, one of them who had blindfolded him and 
reminded him of the terrible encounter with his father. "You shouldn't 
walk through this realm so freely without someone who knows the way, 
there are roots in the earth that might make you fall." An evil smirk 
appeared on the Elf's face. "The princes of Imladris are your friends, aren't 
they?" The Elf stepped towards him and Faramir decided to back away, 
very unsure if he wanted the Elf anywhere near him.   
 
But then, when the guard was about to grab his arm, he heard a voice. 
"Faramir, my grandson is searching for you, he wants to say goodbye as he 
is supposed to meet the other Dúnedain soon. Orophin, please go and 
resume your post. The war is coming soon and I do not want any stray 
Orcs to think that they can walk into my realm and do as they please." The 
command was soft, just like all of Celeborn's words but Orophin stiffened 
and nodded. "As you wish, my Lord." 
 
When the guard had left Celeborn turned to Faramir. "You should be 
careful not to leave the inner circle of Lórien until the guards are used to 
your presence. I can easily command them not to harm you and they will 
obey me, but you should know that there will always be those that like you 
and protect you and those who don't. No wrong will be done to you whilst 
you dwell in the golden woods, but be prepared that Arda is still the same 
and that you have to learn how to protect yourself or evil will seek you 
again. You are strong, Faramir, not many would have recovered from the 
ill deeds that were done to you like you did."  
 
The young man nodded, unsure what to make of the words of the Elf, but 
he didn't have much time to ponder about them as Celeborn signalled for 
him to follow and he was lead towards Elrohir who had already prepared 
himself for battle. The half-Elf smiled upon seeing Faramir and exchanged 
a short glance with his grandfather, who then left them alone. "I will miss 
you, Faramir, please take well care of yourself," he said softly and hugged 
the man. "You have a good heart, I knew it from the moment we met you 
and I am sure you will manage to do whatever the Valar expect you to do. 
My brother and I will find you after the War is over, please be strong, you 
mustn’t fear what is within you."  
 
/Within me.../ Faramir flinched at the comment, but nodded. "Please stay 
close to my grandfather, he knows about your state and promised me to 
help you." Elrohir decided not to mention, that he had pleaded Celeborn 
not only to take care of the man's pregnancy, but also of him in general and 
that Celeborn and Galadriel had both agreed, to help the mortal, in the way 
he had expected and hoped, they would.  
"Do not go near the Galadhrim, there are reasons why my brother and I 
dislike them and they dislike us in return. They will not act kindly around 
you for you are a friend of ours and something about you reminds them of 
an argument we had years ago. However, if the Lord or the Lady tells you 
to spend time with the Marchwardens for any reason, rest assured that they 
will first order them not to do you any harm. Only see them if you spoke to 
my grandparents about it before, do you understand?"  
 
Elrohir's voice sounded urgent and Faramir nodded, remembering the 
warning that had been given to him only moments ago. Though it wasn't 
necessary. He would rather stay locked into a room for months before he 
went near someone like Orophin again. The coldness in the Elf’s voice 
was similar to that in Denethor's, and he had no desire to be reminded of 
what had happened back then. Then Elrohir smiled and kissed Faramir's 
forehead. "Don't be scared. No harm will be done to you. We will return 
soon, I promise."  
 
Suddenly Faramir remembered that Elrohir was riding to War and he 
cursed himself. He had been so alarmed about Orophin's actions and about 
both Celeborn's and Elrohir's words that he had almost forgotten to tell 
him that he wished him well. "I will pray for you to return safely, for both 
you and your brother. And that the free folks will defeat Sauron. I do no 
wish for any of them to die." A strange expression crossed Elrohir's face. 
"Oh but someone will die. May he not die who does not deserve death for 
his deeds." The half-Elf smiled and pressed another chaste kiss to 
Faramir's cheeks before leaving him alone, seemingly eager to go to War.  
 
Chapter 10 / 28  
 
~Don't worry, we'll return to Fara next chap.~  
 
Elrohir glared at Haldir before he allowed him to place the blindfold 
before his eyes. He had been in Lórien before the Marchwarden and he 
could walk the paths, he knew where to turn and where to expect trees or 
roots, without being led. Still he felt Haldir's hand on his arm and he knew 
that he was supposed to stay with him. It just felt strange to be one of the 
closest relatives of the Lordship of the realm and submit to such a 
treatment. But his grandparents insisted that rules were obeyed and they 
would not make exceptions for anyone, in order to be fair.  
 
When Haldir released him and took off his blindfold, the other rangers 
already awaited him, but he turned to the Elf next to him. "Thank you 
kindly for your care, I very much appreciate your help, Marchwarden. You 
may go and resume your tasks now." Haldir smiled politely, keeping up his 
arrogance even as he bowed before his prince. "It is my pleasure to aid you 
with any task you might ask me to fulfil, my prince. May the blessings of 
Lórien guide you in War and keep you safe."  
 
Elladan nodded haughtily at the Marchwarden who chose to leave as he 
didn't like the idea of being confronted with both Imladrisbrothers while 
his own brothers weren't with him. As soon as the Galadhrim was gone 
Elladan smiled at his twin. "I missed you." Elrohir smiled in return before 
he turned to the rangers. "It is always good to see you, my friends," he said 
with overt affection, before he addressed Halbarad. "But we must ride to 
aid my brother. We must find Aragorn and his friends without any delay." 
The man nodded knowingly as Elladan had already informed them that 
their chief needed their aid.  
 
He gestured for the others to follow him, leading them to the lands of 
Rohan, just like the Lady of Lórien had asked of them. Not before the 
night was setting they decided to rest, and when they did the twins left 
them alone. None of the men could or had to be fooled, all of them knew 
that the brothers liked their company but preferred to be alone at night. 
Elrohir patiently waited until the distance between the camp and 
themselves was big enough and then stopped his brother. "I need you," he 
whispered, and Elladan nodded, pulling his twin close. "I missed you 
terribly."  
 
The older twin slowly took off the cloak, the mail and the tunic of his 
brother, before he carefully tied his twin's wrists. "Lean against the tree, I 
do not wish for you to fall to the ground." Elrohir nodded obediently and 
rested his arms against one of the trees that were surrounding them. "I am 
ready," he then whispered and Elladan took out a cane, cursing that the 
lighter one had been broken by the foolish young mortal. Then he 
shrugged and hit the thin wood against his brother's skin, seeing it redden 
immediately. It was actually a good stick though he had always doubted 
that.  
 
The hiss it made was a little lower than that of the other one had been and 
it took a bit more strength to lift it, but it wouldn't take as long to reach the 
state his brother wanted to reach, and Elladan gritted his teeth, slashing the 
cane against the slender body again. His brother still didn't react at all, and 
Elladan knew that it would take a few more strokes before he could expect 
any sound. He quietly started to count while he brought down the cane 
again and again. At a count of thirteen he heard the well-known moan, 
begging for him to go on just a little longer.  
 
It still took five hard blows until his twin finally shuddered, and he leaned 
against the tree for support. Elladan dropped the cane. Yes, this cane was 
so much better then the other one. He sighed when Elrohir turned to him, 
silent tears running down his cheeks. "Come, my love," Elladan whispered 
and opened his arms to wrap them tightly around his brother. "I love you, I 
love you more than anything. Never leave me alone, do you understand 
me?" The fear in Elladan's voice made Elrohir react instinctively by 
pulling his brother closer. "I will try, I promise I will."  
 
Elladan sighed, knowing that he wouldn't get a different reply. They both 
knew that they were going to war and that facing death could end terribly. 
Elrohir leaned his head against his brother's shoulder and kissed his ear 
gently. "I love you too, more than anything, you must never leave me alone 
either, for I could not face my life anymore if you would." The older twin 
nodded and caressed his brother's hair tenderly. "I know, my heart, I 
know."  
 
Chapter 11 / 28  
 
Faramir felt ridiculous, but had to admit nevertheless that the robe Lord 
Celeborn had given to him felt far better over his swollen belly than his 
tunic did. Still it felt strange to wear a robe, even though he had wished for 
it many times when he had welcomed the wizard years ago. He sighed. 
Even Boromir had laughed at him when he had trusted him with that secret 
and now... now his brother was dead, killed when he had tried to fulfil a 
task that had came from an idea he had had.  
 
The young man sighed again and buried his head in his hands in silent 
despair. Elrohir had made him promise not to do himself any harm and he 
would stay true to that. But still he could not see the sense in it. The Elves 
were supposed to leave Middle-Earth soon. And he felt no desire to stay 
among men. Especially not as he would not be allowed to return to his 
home and could not imagine that the people in Rohan would be friendlier. 
Most certainly not if they heard that he had given birth to a child. The 
Elves didn't really seem to mind the fact that it was impossible for a male 
to give birth, at least they hadn't asked him how it was possible. And 
Faramir assumed that they either knew about it from other cases, or had 
seen so many unbelievable things in their long lives that they didn't mind 
seeing one more.  
 
He settled heavily on the ground, cursing himself immediately as he had 
had the fun of trying to get back up again only yesterday. "You must not 
speak those words in my realm." Faramir looked up and to his surprise, he 
didn't find Celeborn but Galadriel, standing next to him and it took him a 
moment, to understand that the soft voices of the leaders of Lórien 
sounded similar after all the years they had spoken to each other.  
 
Then mirth started to dance in the lady's eyes, making her look even 
younger than her Elven blood already made her seem. "My Lord has to 
plan new tactics of War with his guards as I grow weary of leading them 
into battle. But as you should not be alone with your thoughts all the time, 
we decided that I could spend some time with you instead. I apologize that 
I did not warn you about the vision you would have. But you needed to 
accept that your brother died and it wasn't possible to call you from your 
dreams in another way."  
 
Faramir stared at the Lady before him, unsure what to say. She was 
beautiful, even prettier than she had seemed when he had first seen her. 
And he quickly averted his gaze when he saw her eyes resting on him. 
There was knowledge in it, too much wisdom and intelligence. He didn't 
like the idea that she could see his thoughts, that she knew what had 
happened to him in the past, how terrible and used he had felt after the 
Steward had abused him, and how many times his brother and he had 
shared each other’s bed, aware that it was a crime against the laws of the 
Valar what they did.  
 
"Did my Lord inform you that your child is healthy and will be given birth 
to within the next fortnight?" Faramir shook his head, trying not to flinch. 
"It does not surprise me that he didn't. He knows that you do not like the 
topic and he seeks not to hurt you any further. I believe that it is easier for 
you to prepare yourself if you know what to expect. You must not fear 
giving birth, as it would be impossible to you to do such a thing." 
The man stared at the woman standing in front of him, unsure what to 
make of the new information, but when he was about to ask she smiled 
and raised her hand.  
 
"My Lord will cut the child out of your body. Sadly the scar will not heal 
as it would if you had more Elvish blood, but at least it is a way for both 
you and the child to survive. It will delay what lies before you, but only for 
a few days. Your child will first see the world on the day my grandsons 
meet their brother and Thranduil's son." Galadriel's voice sounded soft, 
gentler than before, and Faramir suddenly noticed the hand she offered 
him. "Do not be scared, my body might look fragile, but I assure you it 
isn't. I rode to battle in times not even Elrond or Thranduil would 
remember."  
 
The man nodded, but despite the Lady’s words he didn't really believe, that 
he could lean on her for strength. It surprised him when she effortlessly 
pulled him up and then shortly rested her hand on his belly and whispered 
a few words in a language that didn't sound like any Faramir had heard 
before. "Your brother would have loved the child, young one. He gave his 
life because there was nothing he wished for more than to finally see you 
happy. I will not ask you not to mourn for your brother, it is right that you 
did and that you do. But you must not let those fears and sorrows rule over 
your feelings for those who care for you or will come to care for you. 
There is love yet and I know that your brother wouldn't want you to be sad. 
He would understand you and be proud of you, just like he had always 
been."  
 
Faramir felt as if he had to protest, but words failed him as the Lady once 
again rested those knowing eyes on him. "Maybe you do not understand all 
of this yet, it is still to new for you. I just told you this now, to give you 
time to think on something, apart from your brother's loss. Do not worry, 
you will comprehend in time." 


Chapter 12 / 28

~I know this is short and kind of pointless, I'm sorry. *hugs*~

"The ugly dwarf is about, believe me, I can smell him." Elladan smirked 
evilly and Halbarad laughed. "You are not too friendly, he is a fellow of 
your brother, is he not?" 
The older twin shrugged and his smirk became even more wicked. "It is 
not I who decided who he would travel with." He pausend for a moment, 
sombering quickly. "You should speak to them. Elrohir says that they are 
worried."

Halbarad nodded and overtook his leading position again. It took a few 
moments before they were hailed. "Who are you to travel through Rohan? 
Name your reasons to ride through this realm." A stern looking man 
demanded and Halbarad pulled down his hood. "I am Halbarad, my 
fellows and I seek the one known to you as Aragorn, Arathorn's son, the 
chief of the Dúnedain. We heard of his wish to summon us." 

Aragorn turned to them, obviously delighted to see his friends. He 
dismounted to hug Halbarad. "I did not summon you, my friends, though I 
admit that I wished for your aid several times." 
Elladan exchanged a glance with his twin. They decided to give them a bit 
of time though they knew that they were supposed to deliver their father's 
message. First, however, they watched as Halbarad offered the Evenstar to 
Aragorn and the twins did not miss the expression in his eyes when he 
refused to take it just yet. "Keep it safe for me a little longer, my friend." 
Estel smiled and was greeted by confusion. 

Halbarad did not know what to make of his Chief's refusal to take the 
jewel. It hadn't been his idea to take the present of Lady Arwen and offer it 
to Aragorn and he looked to the twins, not sure what to do. Elladan 
shrugged and gestured that he should just put it away again and wait until 
Estel would take it, while Elrohir tried to convince him to offer it to Gimli 
instead. Halbarad shrugged and put the jewel away again, to then mount 
his horse again and wait for Aragorn to do the same. 

The chief of the Dúnedain whispered something to Legolas and then told 
the group to go ahead while he waited for the other rangers. "Your 
brothers came with us," Halbarad said and Aragorn nodded, knowing that 
the twins would most certainly be a great aid in the following war. 
"Suilad," he greeted and the twins smiled before replying, "Suilad 
penneth" simultaneously. 

Estel glared at them, but it didn't help him. At least the other rangers didn't 
speak Elvish, so he decided to drop the topic. "It is nice to see you. I trust 
ada is well." The twins nodded, knowing that they would annoy him by 
behaving exactly alike just like they knew that he thought them insane for 
still dressing alike like children would do. "Ada wants you to reclaim 
Gondor as quickly as possible," Elladan said and Elrohir added, "yes, and 
he wants you to take the paths of the dead to remind them of their oath." 


Chapter 13 / 28 

It was confusing and difficult to understand what Galadriel had said to 
him. But he tried. The pain in his body didn't feel as terrible anymore now. 
As if a soothing salve had been caressed upon an aching muscle. He 
leaned back, tried to concentrate, and suddenly he didn't see the pain and 
the death in his brother's face anymore when he closed his eyes. No, he 
saw Boromir speaking to him, whispering soothing words and reaching 
out to caress his skin. And he remembered it, remembered what it had 
been like to feel his brother's hair touching his face, to feel Boromir's 
hands tickling his skin... 

"Faramir," Boromir's voice sounded soft and Faramir beamed, running to 
be caught in his brother's embrace. "Oh my little one, I missed you so 
much." An angry cough, coming from behind, forced his brother to let him 
go earlier than he wanted to and he gently pushed Faramir away. 
"I will see you later, little one, let us not anger father. I will say hello in a 
proper way when we are alone." The whisper was urgent and Faramir 
nodded and bowed his head.
"It is a pleasure to see you well, brother," Faramir stated loudly and rushed 
back to the table, carefully guarding his expression in order not to show 
his disappointment at having to leave his brother’s embrace so soon. 

Boromir greeted their father with polite, almost cold mien, seemingly 
remembering the fight they had had before he had left for the last time. 
And Denethor didn't seem to ignore what had happened either. So they 
passed the meal in silence and Faramir found it hard to breath. With the 
person he hated more than he was allowed to on one side and the person 
he loved more than he was allowed to on the other. 

Denethor retired wordlessly once he had finished eating, and the brothers 
finally started to speak, whispering to each other in order not to disturb 
anyone. And then, when they had finished eating, Boromir took Faramir's 
hand and pulled him away, almost as if they had the right to be alone. As if 
it wasn't wrong how much they longed to be together, as if it was Faramir's 
right to lie in his brother's arms, to be kissed and to be caressed. 
It was bliss, the wonderful feeling to lie in those strong, protective arms, 
even though Faramir greatly feared that someone might come to greet 
Boromir and welcome him back. But Boromir hushed his brother's 
worries. He locked his door and kissed Faramir's face. Gently, again and 
again. Faramir closed his eyes, knowing that Boromir looked exactly like 
the princes from the fairy tales he used to read, one of the many facts that 
annoyed Denethor so much. 

But he wouldn't allow their father to destroy such a sweet and perfect 
moment. Just once, even though it was dangerous, he wanted to be happy 
without thinking of the consequences. Of course it was wrong to be in love 
with a male. Denethor had been very, very angry about such ideas. And it 
was even worse if that male was your own brother. But there was no one 
that could compare to Boromir's charming traits, to the way he smiled and 
especially not to the understanding, reassuring words he found to comfort 
all the sorrow. They had never really been alike, Boromir with his 
adoration for war and glory, and Faramir with his heart filled from with 
the love for books and reading. But never had Boromir accused him of 
being a coward or a sissy. He had merely tried to convince his brother that 
swords were more interesting and sometimes, when he had talked about 
the way they would fight evil together as soon as Faramir was old enough 
to come with him. The thought of them fighting side aside with their most 
trusted, their brother, had even managed to lure the younger man into 
thinking that his interest in weapons would grow after a while…


But it hadn’t. It never had a chance to grow, as so soon –far too soon- his 
brother had been lost, lost in a stupid useless war, even though he had been 
able to fight so well. Faramir had watched him so often, had observed his 
training and figured that he would never be able to fight like his beloved 
brother did. He had never liked swords and even bows had always scared 
him. Though he had come to the conclusion that if the elves used them 
they had to be good. As he told himself that there was no greater enemy 
than the ruler of his former home. And he knew Denethor’s opinion upon 
the Elves.
Though… what about Boromir? Had he disliked the Elves as well? 
Faramir tried to imagine his brother’s face, the long black hair almost 
covering it completely as he yelled at an elf. He failed and was greatly 
relieved by the thought that he couldn’t picture his brother to say hateful 
things towards the fair race. So maybe Boromir hadn’t loved them dearly, 
but he surely hadn’t thought as lowly of them as Denethor did. And 
whenever Boromir’s opinion did not match with that of their… father… 
Faramir felt happy upon the fact, especially if he thought that Boromir 
would agree with him instead. 

However, there was still a nagging doubt inside him, asking whether 
Boromir would have agreed upon having a child, such a strange little 
being, from their blood only. He touched the skin above the moving little 
creature and even though Galadriel and Celeborn had tried to convince 
him that there was nothing wrong with having a child, even as a male, he 
still felt full of doubt. /I wished I could have asked you for your opinion, 
Boromir. I wished I could have seen your eyes, seen what you felt in your 
heart about the life we created when we lay together./
Once more sadness started to shadow his heart, even though he had tried to 
remember how wonderful it had been to be with Boromir. But possibly 
that wasn’t what Galadriel had meant. Maybe looking back at the good 
times still hurt because he had felt safe and happy while Boromir was 
around and recalling such a time made him feel even sadder and more 
insecure than before. 

Faramir caressed the skin, trying to be soothing to both his child and his 
own troubled heart. But his child would not stop kicking; in fact it seemed 
to be even more eager to leave his body and even as he recalled Galadriel’s 
words about the birth he heard steps towards him while he slowly passed 
out from pain. 

Chapter 14/ 28 
 
Elrohir and Elladan tried their best to prove as annoying towards their little 
brother as possible. It wasn’t really that they wanted to tease him, but they 
had agreed that they didn’t want to speak about any worries concerning the 
war or concerning their new found friend in Lórien. And as Estel tended to 
sense that something was wrong if you didn’t keep him busy, they had a 
perfect excuse for making him try to chase them away as soon as he saw 
them. And luckily that had left the Rohirrim behind already, making their 
way to the Paths of the Death like their father had told them to.  
 
 
“Elladan, dear brother, do you really think that Estel prefers golden locks 
and sparkling blue eyes to black hair and grey eyes lately?” Elrohir smiled 
innocently, as if he didn’t notice the angry glare of his brother and Elladan 
nodded, smiling just as sweetly, as he replied, “oh yes, I believe so, my 
brother, it seems that he enjoys the company of a certain prince a lot.” 
Elrohir pretended to be shocked, though both of them secretly smirked on 
the light blush on their foster brother’s face. “But brother, you cannot 
mean to say that he enjoys the company of this pretty elfish lad. No, I was 
talking of Éowyn, the pretty shield maiden of Rohan. Do you not think he 
lost his heart to her?” 
“No, dearest brother, I am afraid that we disagree this time. For I am sure, 
that I have seen a light blush on the face of our woodland kin when Estel 
refused to take the Evenstar.” 
“Yes, but Elladan, did you not see the sorrow in the eyes of the beautiful 
lady when we left? Not knowing if she could hope for the honour to see 
him, who was raised by our father, again.”  
Neither of the twins failed to notice that both suggestions were close to the 
truth as Legolas seemed to listen to their words rather carefully and they 
didn’t fail to see the look in his eyes. 
 
/Father will be grateful that there is hope for Arwen yet./ Elrohir smiled, 
hoping that his sister would finally give up her foolish wish to bind to their 
mortal brother. Legolas was a better choice by far. Fair, good-hearted and 
wise enough for his age and, which was most important, not damned to a 
mortal life if he chose to stay in middle earth a little longer. Yes, both 
twins greeted the hope that their father wouldn’t have to grieve their 
sister’s loss like he had mourned his brother’s and both of them hoped, 
that it would make Legolas and their brother happy to stay a couple even 
after the Ring had been destroyed and their mission was completed.  
 
They finally reached the cave and it made the horses become insecure. The 
twins grinned when they saw Legolas speak and sing softly to the one he 
was riding while they had as little trouble with their animals as the 
Dúnedain. Elladan smirked at his brother, before turning around. “Hey 
little leaf, do you need help?” 
Legolas grumbled something, but didn’t really reply, whilst Gimli, who 
was sitting behind the blond elf to the twin’s surprise and amusement, 
mumbled something about having to remember to call him leaf next time.  
“That wasn’t friendly, my brother was merely trying to be nice towards 
you, young Sinda,” Elrohir said sternly and Legolas looked up, trying to 
remain patient. It wasn’t like the twins were *that* much older than he 
was. But they had always loved to annoy him, if they met.  
“Im hiraetha, Elladan,” Legolas grumbled, not meaning a word of what he 
had said. However Elladan just smiled teasingly and ignored the sarcastic 
tone. They agreed that Legolas was nicer than their grandparents’ 
Marchwarden by far and whilst they tried to compete with Haldir and his 
brothers, they were merely making fun of their younger woodland kin. 
Soon, though, they dropped the teasing sounds of their voices. It was fun 
to tease others whilst in the woods. But the cave was dark and dangerous, 
and none of them really knew what to expect of the death. The twins 
didn’t fear the dead men and neither did Legolas. But it was obvious that 
Gimli, the rangers and even Estel were anxious about what was lying 
ahead of them.  
 
Chapter 15/ 28 
~I need to warn you for lightly implied het now. I am sure about any 
inconvenience that might cause to the readers.~ 
 
“You are strong, Faramir. Celeborn and I were faithful that you would 
survive,” Galadriel said softly, smiling down at the young man who was 
still lying on the bed he had been taken to. “We did what we could to heal 
you scar, but, what is more important… your child is well and you can see 
her as soon as you feel strong enough.” 
 
Faramir looked up, feeling totally confused. It took several moments until 
he understood that he wasn’t in Gondor, but in Lórien, and that the child 
Galadriel was speaking of was his own, Boromir’s and his child. Boromir 
was dead. But there was a child that had been born even after his death. A 
baby, which carried on their bloodline. He smiled at the thought, faintly 
only, but calmed by the thought that the monster that had taken his 
brother’s life hadn’t managed to destroy their line.  
 
Carefully, he tried to get up and with Galadriel’s aid he managed to sit. “I 
wish to see her,” he whispered, wondering just how long he had been 
sleeping. Galadriel smiled. “I hoped that you would say that,” she said and 
for a moment the old, wise eyes showed more than a tiny amount of 
mischief as she called softly: “You can take her inside, my dear, he wants 
to see her.” 
 
The door opened and Celeborn stepped inside. And for several moments 
Faramir was lost in the sweetness of the sleeping child upon his arm. As if 
in trance he got up and totally forgot how weak he still felt when he 
stepped up to the Elven Lord to look at his daughter. “She is incredible…” 
was all he could whisper in awe. Which was perfectly close to the truth, 
for the girl was fair for such a tiny baby, and her expression was softened 
by the dreams that would carry her away from Arda for a few hours. 
Faramir smiled, slowly starting to feel warm again. And it took several 
moments until he understood that he had missed the love he now felt since 
the day he had heard of his brother’s death. Maybe even since his last 
“discussion” with the man who filled his nightmares. He felt a stab of guilt 
when he remembered accusing his daughter of being a monster, and 
lowered his head. 
 
“Would you like to hold her?” Celeborn asked, and suddenly Faramir 
became aware that Galadriel was supporting him, to ensure he wouldn’t 
fall down, whilst Celeborn now offered him to hold his child on his own 
arms. “Maybe you should sit down first.” Galadriel smiled, obviously 
pleased by his reaction.  
Faramir nodded, slowly following the suggestion of the Lady of Lórien, 
before he wondered if he could really accept such a fragile child to his 
rough hands. But it seemed that the Elves had sensed his distress, as 
Galadriel showed him how to hold his arms before Celeborn carefully 
placed his daughter into his arms. “Do not worry, she is a child, but she is 
strong like her fathers. You received a very rare gift, young one. It is 
believed among the wise of my people that lead a relationship that is 
blessed by Valar, if they allow a child to be born to the parents.”  
 
They had considered telling Faramir that there were also those among their 
kind that believed it to be a curse of the Valar, to compromise and punish 
an incestuous relationship, to make them get a child, but as neither 
Galadriel nor Celeborn believed in such a theory, as children were the 
highest gift an elf could hope to receive, they had decided against telling 
him about such a foolish idea. Instead they watched as the young girl 
huddled against her father’s chest and secretly agreed that it was 
impossible that such a sweet child was supposed to be a curse to her 
father. 
 
After a moment Celeborn felt the light caress of his wife’s sleeve and 
nodded. Yes, Faramir was getting along for the moment and they would 
leave him the peace of the moment by quietly leaving the room for a bit. 
Later there were things to discuss, though they had already taken care of 
the most of the less amazing tasks of a newborn’s parents. But for a 
moment the young father deserved to enjoy his daughter’s presence for a 
while.  
 
Chapter 16 / 28 
 
“You must not fear father’s counsel, Estel,” Elrohir said, switching to the 
stern voice of the older brother who had helped to raise the younger man. 
“For my father would not give his advice if he did not know that it is the 
best he can offer. You should have learned that by now and you should 
step ahead with the knowledge that it is your right to claim the throne of 
Gondor, as well as the privilege to summon the death who should follow 
their honour more than they did, when they made their pledge to follow the 
Kingdom of my uncle’s line.”  
 
Aragorn stiffened, forcing himself to look serious and calm. “I am aware 
of that, Elrohir,” he answered, trying to sound angry instead of ashamed. “I 
will summon the death as it is my task, do not worry,” he added, sounding 
steadier than before.  
Elladan nodded, still frowning as he had obviously been about to support 
his brother. “We guard you, if that is your wish, brother. The young ones 
can stay here.” 
 
Legolas kept his reply to himself and his anger was only shown by his lips 
that tightened to one straight line. However Gimli became rather annoyed 
about the older prince’s words. “How can you expect us to stay back now? 
Who are you to ask such a thing of the members of the fellowship?” 
Elladan raised an eyebrow and regarded Gimli coolly, “I have seen your 
wish to stay back in your heart, young dwarf. And as you might remember 
I was introduced to you as Elladan, oldest son of Lord Elrond of Imladris. 
You can however come with us, but if your fear leads the death to doubt 
Estel’s claim, it will be your fault and your fault only if our mission fails.” 
“He calls me young…” Gimli glared at the elf, then wondered just how 
hold the twin brothers might be. 
“Well you were foolish enough to ask Lady Galadriel for a strand of her 
hair. So I presume you are still rather young, even for a dwarf.” 
Gimli stared at him, for a moment unsure what to reply, before he glared at 
Legolas. “Did you tell him of that?”  
Legolas shook his head. “I did not, but you cannot ask something of Lady 
Galadriel and expect that it will remain a secret to her grandsons.” 
The dwarf looked at the Elves with new interest for a short while, before 
Elladan just shrugged and jumped off his horse. “We should leave; it is not 
as if we were here for our enjoyment.” 
Elrohir nodded and followed his brother’s example, waiting for Aragorn to 
jump off his horse as well, before he gave his reins to Halbarad. “Please 
take good care of my friend here.” He whispered, smiling at his fellow 
ranger and the man nodded. “I will, do not worry.” 
 
None of the rangers pretended to be eager to go with them, but Gimli and 
Legolas followed closely while they went deeper into the caves and finally 
summoned the leader of the oath-breakers.  
The discussion was long and tricky, as the death did not wish to accept 
Aragorn’s claim at first. However, as they did not desire to remain under 
their curse for eternity, the heir to Gondor’s throne was able to convince 
him to follow his command into one last battle before he would set them 
free from their vows.  
 
Then, without wasting more time or words, they made their way back to 
the waiting rangers, to inform them of the success of their mission and 
share their thoughts on the tactics for the following war. And as soon as 
they had agreed upon the tasks everyone would fulfil during the next days 
they mounted their horses again, before noticing the men that were riding 
after them like they had promised.  
 
Chapter 17 / 28 
 
A long time passed while Faramir just regarded his child, still wondering 
how he could possibly have carried such a perfect little being under his 
heart. She was sweet, light as a fairy of the tales. And when she suddenly 
opened her eyes to look at Faramir he was rather confused. After all he had 
heard of children –and that hadn’t been much of course- they couldn’t see 
in their first days, or if they could at least not much. But he had the feeling 
that the child’s gaze was focused on him and the idea made him smile 
without any second thought.  
He lowered his guard, letting the child cross the thick wall he had tried to 
build, directly to his heart. And the amazing little girl just yawned and 
snuggled sleepily against him again. Obviously she was convinced that 
everything was alright as she didn’t start to scream as he had feared.  
 
Sadly however, Galadriel and Celeborn came back far too soon and 
Faramir tried to smile weakly, not knowing how to thank them for all the 
help they had offered to him. But they didn’t seem to care about that 
anyway. Instead Galadriel took the little girl from his arms, lightly holding 
it to her bosom. And to Faramir’s embarrassment his daughter tried to 
suck on the lady’s clothes. “I… I am sorry about that…” he stuttered, not 
knowing what else to say and he was surprised to hear the light laughter of 
the Elves.  
“You might be, but she is right. After all she has a reason to be hungry 
after sleeping for such a long time,” Galadriel said softly and Faramir 
blushed even more. Of course his daughter had a right to be hungry. But… 
he couldn’t help her. And it took a moment until he understood what 
Galadriel meant. “You cannot mean to feed my child… we are just 
mortals, you…. I cannot ask that of you.” 
“Oh but it is not your choice, young mortal. For I will not ask the maidens 
of my realm to take care of your daughter, as they couldn’t refuse my 
wishes. And as your child has to eat as we cannot have her starve and you 
sadly aren’t female, there is no other choice. She accepted my gift already 
and there is nothing you can do but to accept it as well as I do not wish for 
this sweet child to die.” 
Faramir opened his mouth to reply, but Celeborn shook his head. “My 
wife is not to be argued with once she has made her choice, young mortal. 
The Noldor have always been headstrong as you might have noticed when 
you met my grandsons.” 
After a few moments Faramir lowered his head and nodded. “Thank you.” 
He said, not knowing what else to reply and Galadriel smirked, once again 
showing the bit of mischief she still seemed to carry inside her heart. She 
stepped away, but didn’t leave the room. Turning her back on the men she 
didn’t seem to care that they were still about while she took care of the 
child’s needs.  
 
And while Faramir still wondered about that, Celeborn smiled. “We also 
came to address another matter of importance, young one.” 
Faramir gulped, wondering if Celeborn wanted to prepare him to the 
thought that they would help him until his child was old enough to survive 
without her help and then turn him away. But Celeborn still smiled gently. 
“You do not need to worry so much. It would be good if you could 
imagine riding to war while we take care of your daughter, but it is not 
necessary apart from the not as important thought that you might want to 
help the realm your grew up in. However, what is far more important to us, 
is that we do not like to call your daughter little one all the time. It would 
be nice if you could tell us her name.” 
 
Faramir stared at Celeborn, then understood that he was asked to name his 
child. Of course, it was his choice as no one could ask Boromir about his 
wishes anymore. He nodded, after all he had considered his wishes to 
name the child before. Still he felt embarrassed and strange, now that he 
was asked to tell others of his choice. After all he had expected his child to 
become a boy whom he would have named after Boromir. But he smiled, 
trying not to blush when he finally told them of his choice. “I wish to name 
her Mirwyn.” 
 
[Mir = jewel; wyn = lover] 
 
Chapter 18 / 28 
 
“The war is almost over, it is time.”  
Elladan turned to look into the grey eyes just next to his face. He sighed, 
but nodded. “As you wish, dear brother, you know I would never deny you 
a wish.” 
Elrohir nodded, smiling for a moment, but his face became stern and 
serious again within a few seconds. Just like his brother he jumped off his 
horse and commanded it to leave the field. It was safe now, safe enough to 
send the animals off alone. And the twin brothers ran swiftly, knowing 
their aim as they left the field side by side. None of the others called after 
them. Several people had left already, trying to help the wounded or dig 
graves for the death. The battle had taken long enough and when Aragorn 
would need their help again they would be back from what they privately 
desired.  
 
Once they got closer to the place they wished to visit they began to move 
more silently. It wasn’t necessary to alert anyone of their presence for they 
did not think it necessary to be seen. But they were used to the idea that it 
wasn’t good to have too many eyes upon them. After all they had been 
trained to keep their relationship a secret while they were among strangers. 
Sometimes someone disturbed them, but usually they would find places 
other people wouldn’t go to… 
 
Another door opened and the brothers quickly stepped inside before 
closing and locking it. “We are lucky, brother dear,” Elrohir silently 
informed his brother and Elladan nodded in return. “Lucky indeed, my 
dear,” he whispered back and almost felt scared himself when he saw the 
grim expression on his brother’s face.  
 
Chapter 19 / 28 
 
The young jewel lover was sleeping peacefully in Faramir’s arms again. 
He still wondered how he could ever thank the Elves, but after a while he 
had just accepted that they enjoyed having his daughter around, which was 
partly a result of the Elves’ view on children in general and partly a 
reaction to the sweetness of the young girl. She was a quiet child, only 
screaming if she was in pain or distress and all of them greeted her 
wonderful habit to sleep through the nights. 
 
To his utter surprise she had shown him the small sapphires in her face 
several times and he kept wondering why Boromir’s and his child didn’t 
have grey eyes like them. But when he had asked Galadriel about it, she 
had just smiled and told him that there was a great chance that they would 
become grey in a year or two.  
Faramir had noticed that both Galadriel and Celeborn smiled a lot when 
they came to visit him, no matter if Mirwyn was around him or not. It 
seemed that they really enjoyed his company, which surprised him more 
than a little. They often talked about the twins and their sister Arwen, 
comparing what they had done when they were babies to what Mirwyn 
did, and telling him of the little pranks the twins had made up as children. 
 
The affection the grandparents felt towards them was obvious, but 
sometimes Faramir wondered that they never mentioned their own 
daughter. For Elrohir had explained that his mother was the Princess of 
Lórien, but hadn’t ever mentioned anything else about her and his twin and 
his grandparents never talked about her at all. They spoke freely of love, of 
affection and of memories of long gone times. But what they said was 
wise at times, amusing at others. And he wondered if all the merriness of 
the Elves’ lives could ever  be clouded by sadness.  
Sometimes he believed that they deliberately kept anything from him that 
had caused sorrow for them.  
Faramir appreciated not having to search for words to console them. It was 
easier to laugh with them then to search for words of comfort. Though it 
was still confusing that the Elves seemed friendlier towards him than his 
own kind had been. Of course Boromir had been around to cheer him 
whenever he had stayed in Gondor. But no one but his brother had ever 
tried to be nice towards him, and he wondered if things would have been 
different if he had grown up like Elrohir and Elladan had.  
 
However even the twins seemed to choose their relationship over one with 
other Elves. And he wondered if maybe it wasn’t as strange to feel love for 
a brother as he had thought. Hadn’t Galadriel and Celeborn told him his 
child was a gift? He most clearly remembered the difference between a gift 
and a punishment.  
It was just like the difference between being with Boromir or Denethor. 
You felt happy about the first, while you did your best to avoid the latter… 
Chapter 20 / 28

With one fluent move he stepped before another man and grabbed his arms 
before the other could react. “So we meet at last, keeper of the throne of 
my line.” 
Denethor stared at the man, not sure how to react to the attack, for he had 
never expected anyone to come past his guards. “How did you get in here? 
What do you want?” he demanded angrily, but was silenced by a hard slap. 
“It is not your turn to ask questions, Denethor of Gondor. Today you will 
answer instead.”
The Steward wanted to yell for his guards, but to his surprise a hand was 
placed before his mouth even though the man in front of him was holding 
his arms again. “You will be silent, no word or I will end your life, believe 
me.”

“What...?” he asked when the hand left his mouth, but he didn’t end his 
sentence when a cloth was placed before his eyes and he was kicked 
roughly to the ground. 
“How do you feel, Steward? How does it feel to lie there helplessly, not 
knowing what will happen to you next?” A voice asked him, calmly, yet 
mercilessly. “Are you scared now? Believe me, you have every right to 
be.”
His hands were yanked behind his back by one of the figures while the 
other held him too tight to try to escape and he felt a rope with which his 
hands were tied behind his back. When he felt that his clothes were ripped 
off he was about to scream, but seemingly the attackers had considered 
that possibility for without further announcement a cloth was placed inside 
his mouth. 

It was when he lay there, naked and tied up and wondering what would 
happen next that he shivered, not only from coldness, but also from fear. 
Seemingly nothing happened though. He heard steps around him, aware 
that the men were still about. But he couldn’t see or hear what they were 
doing. The steps were loud enough for him to hear though he was sure he 
hadn’t heard them when the men had entered the room. However he could 
not hear voices anymore and that scared him more then the announcement 
that he had every right to be scared of what would happen next. He didn’t 
understand why his guards hadn’t stopped anyone from entering his room 
just like that. And he wondered who knew the castle well enough to know 
where to find him. However he couldn’t voice his questions and so he just 
listened to the sound of the steps, shivering and wondering, but totally 
helpless. 

Chapter 21 / 28
(I apologize that once again the timeline doesn’t fit between the two chap-
branches. It’s a shame it doesn’t and I fear it won’t until the end. I’m sorry 
about that inconvenience!) 

When Faramir had allowed Celeborn and Galadriel to take his daughter for 
a walk –they always asked for his permission even though they knew he 
would grant it to them - he started to read on one of the several scrolls and 
books that had been given to him for entertainment as well as to learn from 
them. He had only read a few pages though, when he heard a voice and 
looked up. 

“You should leave this realm, mortal. Take your child and leave. She 
dishonours our realm with her presence. It’s a curse of the Valar if a male 
becomes pregnant. We have seen it before and it was a curse back then. 
Our Lady’s heart is too friendly; she does not want to hear our council and 
forbid us to warn her against it. But you are ruining her and our Lord’s life 
if you stay here and have her feed your little bastard. Think about it, 
mortal. There are reasons why every elven maiden would refuse feeding 
the child if she doesn’t command them to do it. So she does it herself. 
Once again she is refusing to give in to the Valar. But this time it’ll draw 
too much of her strength. You can’t really want to punish those that 
showed you kindness for your sins. Think about it, mortal. Your friends 
will not be happy if they come back and find their grandmother fading like 
their mother did before her.”

Faramir looked at the Marchwarden in shock, not sure how he could react 
to such a frame. He had protested against Galadriel’s help, but when she 
had insisted on it, he had given in and soon accepted it happily. However, 
if Haldir was right… Would Galadriel tell him if it was dangerous for her? 
She hadn’t mentioned that it was a curse when she had spoken about it, 
had even called it a blessing and a gift instead. 

But what if she was selflessly trying to save his daughter? What if 
Denethor and the Marchwardens were right that it was abnormal to 
become pregnant and that it meant that the Valar had cursed him for his 
relationship? It sounded logical. After all it couldn’t really be normal for a 
man to be in love with his brother. And why should the Valar bless such a 
relationship? There was no reason why someone would believe it, apart 
from the possibility that he knew someone who was into the situation and 
decided to try to support the couple.
And weren’t the beloved grandsons of Lord Celeborn and Lady Galadriel 
in the same situation? Had they chosen to ignore the obvious as they didn’t 
want to see that what their grandchildren were doing was wrong? 

When Faramir looked up the elf had left again already. But that didn’t help 
him much. He had the choice to ignore the counsel or to react. And if he 
didn’t react, how could he live with looking into Elrohir’s and Elladan’s 
eyes again after their grandparents faded for helping him? It was just hard 
to consider what would happen to his little girl if he left now. There was 
no chance he could feed her himself and there was nowhere he could go 
for help. Apart from Gondor, maybe, but would his father allow him to 
return? And would he be able to stand being around him, could he force 
young Mirwyn to meet the Steward? Would he dare to tell Denethor and if 
he did, would it cause Denethor to reconsider and allow them to stay?

But there wasn’t anywhere else he could go. And with Boromir gone he 
certainly didn’t dare to stay in the wilds. Especially not, as their daughter 
was around him. The war was about to break loose and he did not wish to 
find if he would be able to hide from different monsters that longed to go 
to wherever the war would take place…

Chapter 22 / 28

Earlier he had felt a dagger against his throat, but now it seemed that the 
men didn’t intend to threaten him any longer. And it made him wonder, 
wonder just what they could be up to. An assassin would kill his victim, 
not wait until a guard or a servant found him to have a witness of his evil 
deed. But who else could wish to attack him if not an assassin of the 
enemy? However, would assassins even tie and strip him?
Suddenly a fear worse than that for his life made him whimper like a 
frightened child. No, nobody in Gondor, no one in Middle-earth could dare 
to do such a thing upon the ruler of Gondor. He shook his head, trying to 
chase away the nameless fear that attacked his heart now. Again he 
whimpered, almost chocking on the cloth as his throat became sore. /No, 
please… please…/ 

He remembered the words, the pleas, the fear… not his own. Of course 
not, he had always been strong. But the weak yammering of a child, of the 
second son he had sired. Faramir, the second loved, the weakling that had 
chosen books and lore over swords and fights. The one that had disgusted 
him with the way he loved fellow beings, that hadn’t denied his wishes 
and desires to be among men. And it had been weakness, for Denethor 
himself had had the strength to give up his wishes to read and to be with 
men before they had ruined his character and made others speak lowly of 
him. 

Still he had envied his son… in a strange way. Somehow Faramir had 
never seemed to care if others called him a wimp or hit him for the 
thoughtful expression his face had always carried. 
But apart from the envy there had also been shame. If he had woken up at 
night and hadn’t been able to find sleep… and only if he couldn’t find 
wine or any other distraction quickly enough to get over it, when he had 
thought of his nameless desire to punish Faramir for being like he had 
wanted to be and about what he had done to ensure that he ruined his son’s 
life forever, he had felt guilty, had even considered to take his life. 

Though Faramir had deserved a punishment. He had deserved what he had 
gotten. Only if the long forgotten young man inside of him tried to get 
back to the surface he felt bad, felt that he had failed his son. But he just 
pushed and hit that young man, just like he had hit his son for becoming 
like the man he had never been able to be. It hadn’t been fair of Faramir to 
be like that. To show him that others were able to have what he couldn’t 
have. For he had cared for his reputation too much to allow himself to live 
his life the way he wanted to. And he had been grateful that Boromir had 
tried to be like his strong and merciless father. 

However, Faramir even managed to ruin that, as Boromir carried too much 
love in heart for his younger brother and became weak like him whenever 
he thought he needed to protect him. And when his beloved firstborn had 
turned against him he had started to hate Faramir even more. He had 
guarded himself well against feeling sorry, no matter what happened to 
scare and frustrate his son and he had started to enjoy punishing him. But 
could anyone blame him for punishing his child? It was a father’s duty to 
raise his children to become good men. And lying with men and reading 
books wasn’t what a good man did. 

His mind returned to his situation and his self-pity luckily overtook before 
he could come to another conclusion. These men wanted to hurt him… 
they were merciless monsters that didn’t even know him and had no 
reason to degrade him. 

It was then when he heard the cold voice again. “Good, I think you had 
enough time to look forward to what will happen next now. You shouldn’t 
scream if you do not wish to present yourself to your people like that, 
Denethor. After all you are the ruler of Gondor for now. And you 
shouldn’t let them see that you aren’t able to defend yourself. However, it 
is your choice of course, for we do not care. Speak now, if you wish to.”
The cloth was removed from his mouth but he needed to swallow several 
times before he could say anything. “You have no reason for this attack. It 
isn’t as if you had the right to judge me.” 
“Oh it is not?” asked the cool voice not even pretending to care about his 
words. “It is not my right to judge a rapist and abuser?”

The fear now also settled in Denethor’s stomach, making him feel sick as 
if he had to vomit. Someone knew of his deeds, Faramir had spoken of it, 
had dared to mention it. He shook his head, trying to deny the charge. 
“Who are you to enter the halls of Gondor without permission to come 
here? What did you do to my guards?”

“Oh, we are changing the topic. But to calm you, nothing has been done to 
your guards. They just fought to defend Gondor as it is their duty. Believe 
us, we must know, for we fought with them to free Gondor from the siege 
of the filthy creatures Sauron created to fight his battle for him. However, 
that isn’t of any importance for this matter. The war has been won, the 
army can move on. But sadly we cannot follow them yet, for this is of 
importance to us. We saw the child the Valar had given you to care for. 
Frightened, hurt and not knowing where to turn. And after we took him to 
safety, to someone who could take care of him we swore to avenge him. 
Do you confess what you did or must we use means to make you talk?”

Denethor considered the possibilities, but came to the conclusion that it 
was senseless to deny the truth. “I punished him for his deeds.”

One of the men laughed, but it wasn’t a happy sound. “I told you, that he 
would say that. But it is a good way to come to the point. As you already 
said, bad deeds are to be punished. And while you consider what Faramir 
did a bad deed, we agreed that what you did to Faramir as a ‘punishment’ 
is a bad deed that needs to find a punishment suitable to redeem such a 
deed. And as death alone would be rather boring, we considered doing 
something I personally never liked much. But it usually doesn’t fail to 
reach its aim. I do not wish to bore you, so I will not tell you of the many 
bad deeds I saw in my life and I will not explain how it made my mind 
become more creative… but I thought it would be a nice way for you, to 
see your deeds my way to make you suffer a punishment the Orcs use to 
make others talk about things they do not wish to talk about.”

Again nothing happened for a long time and Denethor had time to get used 
to the cold stone floor beneath him. He wondered, just what the 
punishment that had been talked about might be, but even though he felt 
angry more than ashamed by the behaviour of the strangers he didn’t dare 
to ask. 

Finally he gave up and raised his head, trying to glare as he asked what 
would happen next. He couldn’t show fear, he wasn’t a wimp like his son 
who rather send others than come himself, because Faramir knew he still 
couldn’t match his father in speed or strength.
Suddenly one of the men knelt down on his legs and smacked his head to 
the floor. “It wasn’t like we pleaded you to ask silly questions, man. You 
will wait until we think it is time for you.” The voice sounded friendly, 
almost gentle, a total contraire to the actions that were almost certainly 
carried out by the same man. 

Chapter 23 / 28
~Thanks to my dear Mira who picked the way it went from here. (She 
picked that Faramir won’t take Mirwyn with him, without knowing what 
she was picking. ;))

Faramir got up early the next morning, readying himself for the trip as well 
as he could. He washed himself, dressed, and collected the few belongings 
he had brought with him to Lórien. But when he went to collect Mirwyn, 
Galadriel stepped in his way. “If you need to leave, my young mortal 
friend, then go. But you will not take a child with you, which is under my 
protection, unless you can prove to me, that she will be safe.”

The ‘young mortal’ sighed, frustrated by the Lady’s words. But he knew 
that he couldn’t take anything away from Lórien, unless Galadriel allowed 
it. And after considering that news for a moment he felt grateful that she 
would protect his daughter, even if something might happen to him. 
Actually it made his choice much easier, as he had felt terrible about 
taking Mirwyn into her dangerous homeland. And if he could find a safe 
place for her to stay at, he could come and collect her. Otherwise Galadriel 
would take care of her.

He smiled, feeling grateful about everything the elven lady had done for 
him. But when he turned to leave, she held his sleeve. “You forgot to ask 
me to give you water and food, little mortal. You cannot mean to go to 
Gondor without anything but the clothes you are wearing.”
Faramir lowered his head, feeling guilty about causing yet more trouble. 
Although he felt even more relieved about the kind offer to give him 
whatever he needed to survive until he reached Gondor. 

Still, when she led him to the stables, he held his breath, wondering how 
he could lead an elven horse into such a dangerous situation, but before he 
could protest she gave him some bread and a little package. “This once 
belonged to Elrohir, I am sure he wants you to bring it to him. Maybe it’ll 
be useful during your trip. One never knows.” 

Faramir did not know what to say, so he just smiled in return, mounted the 
horse, that Galadriel called Novtathra, and accepted her good wishes. He 
pleaded her to watch his daughter until he returned and she said she would 
guard her like she would guard her own child. Then she turned around, 
only to look over her shoulder and smile at him. 
“Never think yourself too weak to react, Faramir, for you are not. You are 
strong enough to care for yourself and those under your protection. It 
might take a while until you realize that, but as soon as you understand 
what I mean you are welcome to come and collect your child.”

Chapter 24 / 28
(I switched chapter numbers and “locations” five times now, cutting and 
fusing a lot. I hope what I decided to do last was best for my timeline. It 
was totally messed up before. It still is, but not as badly anymore. Please 
accept my apologies for not being able to keep it steady. Hopefully the 
prequel won’t show such difficulties as it won’t have to different 
timelines… ;))

“As my father taught me to be kind towards others, and he deserves the 
respect I feel for him, I will answer your question though you do not 
deserve it. Sadly neither my fellow here, nor I have anything close to the 
desire to lie with you or force ourselves on you and we couldn’t find any 
Orc on the whole battlefield that would follow our plea to give you what 
you deserve. It really depresses me, though I sadly have to admit that my 
fellow here does not think it right to have you raped even after what you 
did.  I think he does not share my interest in taking revenge as much as my 
interest in helping victims of such attacks. But luckily he does not desire to 
help you though.” 

A short silence followed and the man seemed to enjoy the shivers that still 
ran over the tied man’s body. “But do not worry, for I have a punishment 
in mind, that is suitable of a man of your position. Sadly it is useless to 
punish a man like you would punish an elf who had committed such a 
crime. You could just ban him from the elven realms and he would rue his 
deeds all his life. However, as I do have no desire to rape you or to whip 
you, I had to think of something else. It pains me, for I do not believe that 
it is matching with your crime. But at least it will destroy your life better 
than death could.”

“You cannot hold me here against my wish for long, intruder. If you want 
to ruin my life you should better murder me.”
“Oh, I would not call it murdering, Steward. I would call it executing. It 
won’t be necessary, though. For your punishment will follow shortly. We 
must plead you to get up now, mortal being. Get up and come with us.” 

Slowly, and more than just reluctantly Denethor got up to follow the men. 
He heard how they unlocked a door and he was pulled through a floor he 
hardly recognized without using his eyes. Noises became louder and 
suddenly something dawned inside of him. But he couldn’t turn back 
anymore. He couldn’t turn back without being called a wimp. Gritting his 
teeth he stepped forward and heard a question, a loud, almost angry 
demand what was going on. 

“Oh do not sound so angry. He is a prisoner of my father’s realm if not of 
Gondor. Denethor, the Steward of Gondor committed a crime before the 
law of the Valar, something that is not to be tolerated. And we wish to 
have him arrested. However, if it is not a crime in Gondor to force yourself 
onto a fellow being, we must sadly escort him all the way to Imladris and 
as he lost his clothes and as father would not like to see him this way, it 
would be better to hear him here before everyone who wishes to listen.”

Aragorn sighed, once again wondering just how to act around his brothers. 
But as he knew that Elrond himself would expect him to be able to deal 
with the crimes of the Steward that had ruled his realm he nodded. 
“Denethor, Steward of Gondor, you are charged of a crime before the 
Valar. As you submitted to the treatment that has been thought suitable to 
take you here, I assume you do not wish to controvert your crime?”

Denethor lowered his head in defeat, stuttering when he finally admitted 
what he had done. 
For a moment Aragorn wondered what his brothers had done to the man to 
make him break like that. But hearing about the charge made him lose his 
pity. Brought up by Elrond just like his brothers he had become used to the 
stern, but friendly and loving way the elven Lord had used to raise all his 
children. He waited for the shivering, weak formerly so proud man to 
finish before he asked the men around them what they thought.

It was annoying that the twins hadn’t been able to pick a better time for 
their charge. But now they had to judge the man. And to his surprise 
Éomer and Éowyn stepped forward together. “You are not to turn to 
Rohan at any time of your life. Rohan only welcomes those that know how 
to treat their friends and how to treat their enemies. You will be turned 
away if you seek help among the Rohirrim.”
Denethor nodded, not knowing what else to do and Aragorn explained that 
he would not be welcomed in Gondor anymore either, which didn’t 
surprise the former Steward of the realm much. Legolas explained fiercely 
that no rapist could seek council among the Sindar in Mirkwood and Gimli 
followed his example, saying that no dwarf would welcome an abuser. 
Then, last of them the twins spoke, forbidding him access to Imladris as 
well as Lórien. 
And slowly it Denethor understood that he had not only been charged 
naked and before all of his subjects, but had also been condemned to live a 
life somewhere, away from the civilized creatures on Arda. 

Chapter 25 / 28
~Thanks to Esteliel and Mira for their wonderful suggestions. *hugs* I 
really enjoy everything you have to say about this fic. *laughs*~

Faramir had been riding for hours, until he felt too exhausted to go on. He 
was rather insecure in how he was to prove that he was worthy to care for 
his daughter. But he had understood and even accepted Galadriel’s 
judgement, that he shouldn’t just take his daughter away from Lórien 
where she was safe, until he hadn’t shown that he could protect the two of 
them from harm. 

Still, although he missed his little girl a lot, he was glad that she was safe 
back in Lórien while he travelled to see if Gondor was safe enough for 
them. He wasn’t sure how he would have managed to take her home safely 
and even worse, how to keep her safe at his former home, even if his father 
had given up his grudge. 

And Faramir didn’t make himself any illusions to what his father would do 
to him if he learned of Boromir’s part in the siring of Mirwyn. He was 
glad that Mirwyn would not be around to see it, even though she would 
not have understood it. But as he was not sure what Mirwyn understood 
and what she would understand when she was a little older, he did not feel 
like finding out when she would understand the hurtful names his father 
called him.

Faramir started to doze off, trusting the horse to alert him if danger was 
about. As that was what Elrohir and Elladan had told him about elven 
horses. They could not only understand their Lord’s language, but also 
help to protect their owners from danger. A trait Faramir had only thought 
the horses of the Rohirrim capable of.  

He hadn’t rested for long though, when he heard the horse become 
agitated… 

*******************

Denethor hadn’t been waiting for the troop to leave, but instead went back 
to his rooms immediately, to gather some belongings. Of course he could 
not dare to take anything of real worth, as the sneaky Elves were watching 
him closely. But he took what he could, before glaring at them. “I am 
done, I will leave now, and there is no need for you to become violent 
again.”

One of the Elves smiled at him, with an expression he did not like at all. 
“If I had been violent towards you, you would be dead by now, please 
always remember that. Or if you would not be dead yet, you would be in 
enough pain to wish you were dead. But you are not. I could change that, 
however, so I would advise you not to bother me again.”

“So all your wonderful mercy was an act and you will kill me know? You 
are so merciful, Elf.” 
“Yes I am, and you should appreciate that as it means that I will not kill 
you unless you give me yet another reason.”
“What reason would you have to kill me? I did you no wrong.”
“Oh do you really still not see what you did? Do you really not understand 
that you hurt your son badly?”
“Did the little snake come and whine at you? Such a little coward. He 
should have dared to face me instead. Not go and cry in some sneaky elf’s 
arms and send him to face me.” 
“You think that a young one like your son should have faced you? Are you 
only strong enough to face those that are corporally weaker than you are? 
That is sad. Because you will encounter many people who are stronger 
than you are. And everyone shows such patience if you enrage him like I 
do.”

The other elf laid an arm around the speaker’s shoulders and shook his 
head. “He is not worthy of your attention, he really isn’t.”
Denethor considered to react, but decided that he didn’t dare to find out if 
the elf would really hurt him. The elf seemed full of hate, even though the 
sneaky elves usually didn’t show their feelings like that. 

So he preferred to grab his stuff and then turned his back on the two Elves. 
Quickly leaving the realm he had ruled before they would lay a hand on 
him. 

Chapter 26 / 28

Confused and worried, Faramir searched for a reason for Novtathra’s 
behaviour. He couldn’t make out the reason yet, but trusted her to know 
what she had heard or felt. But Novtathra ignored his tries to calm her. 
When he tried to reach for her rein she ran of, leaving behind his 
provisions and other things she had be carrying, and even as he called her 
name she wouldn’t return to him. 

Worried, he turned his attention to the forest, trying to hear what might 
have upset her so. There were rustling sounds, caused by the wind that 
played with the leaves. But it was dark and apart from wind he could hear 
no sound. He shuddered, suddenly feeling the fear again, that had left his 
body soon after reaching Lórien. Lórien, where he had been protected, 
where the Lady and the Lord of the realm had taken care of him. He 
remembered the twin-brothers who had taken him there, suddenly 
wondering if Elrohir would forgive him for endangering himself.

And there was Mirwyn, his little child. Would she ever get to know him? 
Or would she learn that her father was killed due to his foolishness? 
Would she be raised by someone like Haldir? Or maybe sent away from 
Lórien because Galadriel couldn’t protect her against the will of her 
people? 

Faramir cursed himself, feeling the tears that were silently running down 
his cheeks. If Mirwyn would be endangered, he was to blame for it. After 
all he had brought up the riddle; he had sent his brother to death. And who 
but Boromir could have protected Mirwyn, had the duty to protect 
Mirwyn, if not him? But he had left her behind, even if it was for her own 
sake. 

/My poor child… I am sorry that I called you a monster, when I didn’t 
know better. I am sorry for leaving you behind and for the sorrow I caused 
you. I have been scared of you, but I did not mean you. I meant myself; I 
was scared because I am strange. For being able to carry children, for 
being weak, I am sorry. You are not to blame, and I hope that no one will 
harm you for what I did. It was wrong that I lay with my own kin, with my 
own brother. And it is wrong that I do not regret loving him. But whatever 
they might tell you, whatever they might call you… please know that you 
are the jewel of my heart, you will always be the first, for it was love that 
created you. They might think you a monster, they might think you a 
bastard, but please know that it is not true. My brother and I, we have both 
been foolish, we have both not seen what we did and I pray that it will not 
cause you any harm. Still I hope that you will know how much Boromir 
would have loved you. How much I would love you, if I get the chance to 
stay with you. Still it is now that I fear for you, and now that my life might 
be ended by some strange creature you will hopefully never see. But 
please, my child, whatever life does to hurt you, please find the strength to 
go on and don’t be as weak as I have been. I love you, Mirwyn, I wished 
Boromir could have seen you before he died, because seeing that he died 
while trying to save the world for us, he could have known that what he 
did happened for his daughter’s sake. And I hope he will forgive me if I 
fail to return to you to raise you. / 

He fell to his knees, praying to the Valar that they would not force him to 
leave his daughter before she could care for herself, when he suddenly 
heard a cold voice from the behind. “There you are. I wondered if we 
would meet again.”

Chapter 27 / 28

~Blame it all on Esteliel. Ask, if you don’t understand why. ~

Faramir shuddered when he heard his father’s words, but did not dare to 
turn, even as Denethor’s hand roughly grabbed his shoulders. “Where is 
your lover now, slut? It was a mistake to send him alone, instead of going 
with him when he tried to humiliate me. Under his protection you might 
have been safe. But you aren’t only a weakling who submits to the touch 
of elves, but also a fool. What did he tell you? That he would come on his 
steed to save you from any harm like the prince of your beloved fairy 
tales? Do you even realize that you should be a male, not a female? But 
how would you… you can’t be male if you give birth to children. I don’t 
know who made a mistake when he laid you into my arms, telling me you 
were my son. Maybe your real mother-father who tried to get rid of his 
child, so nobody would learn of his shame? It can’t be a trait of my family, 
for it must be of elven origin. Only elves are both males and females at the 
same time. That’s why every good human knows to stay away from them.”

The younger man froze, not knowing at all what to reply to the strange 
speech. After all, it would have been too good to be true, if Denethor 
hadn’t been his father. Not only because he had been a father so cruel and 
bad, that no one could feel the wish to have been sired by him, but also 
because Boromir and he would not have been brothers then. 

He did not get time to ponder upon such a great possibility, though, as 
Denethor roughly pushed him to the ground and held him down. “Do you 
know what your elf did? He banned me. And he made others; even 
Théoden’s kin ban me from their realms. I could have forgiven that, 
perhaps. As I do not intend to visit any of those snakes. But he made some 
friend of his ban me from GONDOR. They banned me from my own 
realm. Some young foolish man came and wanted to claim the throne. The 
throne of Gondor, as if the line of the kings had cared for it at any time 
since centuries.” 

When Faramir still remained silent, Denethor shook him. “Is that what you 
want? That I have to give my realm to some stupid little boy that wants to 
play king without knowing how to rule a realm?” 
Faramir turned and looked into Denethor’s face, feeling strangely calm, 
even though both his fear and his disgust of being touched from the older 
man made him want to vomit. “At least it is sure that he will do better than 
you did as no one could ever be as cruel and heartless as you were back 
then. And sadly it seems that you did not change much since we last met.” 
Wondering how and why he could have said such a thing to enrage 
Denethor who was obviously even more out of his mind than the last time, 
Faramir ducked his head to try to avoid a slap he was sure would follow.

But nothing happened. Denethor stared at him, totally surprised by his 
son’s words. And even as Faramir managed to free himself from the hard 
and hurtful grip, he didn’t react. It took several moments, until he 
remembered that Faramir had just insulted him and before he got up. He 
yelled, telling his son to return immediately, then slurring angrily like a 
drunk as he realized that Faramir was faster than he was. “You *will* 
listen to me elf-slut: Or do you think your little bastard needs you to return 
to him that urgently? Is he pregnant already?”

Suddenly the hate was running into his veins. Cooling both disgust and 
fear inside of him as he turned his head towards his father. “You will not 
call my child a bastard EVER again. Did you understand that? My child 
will be the jewel of our line, there will no one who can dare to insult it 
without having to feel my wrath. And if my child gets pregnant in some 
years there is no one who will consider it strange.”

“Because it is normal for your elven lovers to have pregnant males 
around? Do Elves even have females of their kind?”

Faramir turned around, throwing his father to the ground with a sudden 
push. “No. It will be alright because my child is not a son. And if you 
would ever have shown love and respect I might even allow you to see 
your granddaughter. But my jewel lover is too good for you. You are not 
worthy of her, just like you always thought me not worthy of your family. 
We don’t want you, do you understand me? There is nothing we could 
wish from you, for your hated elves have proofed to be as loving as a 
family for us and there is nothing we will ask of you. For your own sake I 
will hope that you will find a place to dwell at. Maybe even someone who 
can help you to give out your grudge you seem to hold against anyone.”

Suddenly he heard a horse and hoped that it might be Novtathra. And then 
he heard someone call his name. “Faramir! We were worried when Nov 
came to find us. However, I hear you already managed to get rid of your 
trouble yourself.”
The horses came near and Faramir wondered why he hadn’t heard that it 
was more than one before, instead of reacting to Elrohir’s strange 
statement. When the twins jumped down next to him and Elrohir pulled 
him into his arms he began to cry, not caring if Denethor would mock him 
for his weakness again. It just felt too good to be hugged again. 

Chapter 28 / 28

While Elrohir was still hugging his mortal friend, Elladan had knelt down 
next to Denethor. “He is indeed dead, you were right Elrohir.” He said, 
careful not to congratulate his brother while Faramir was around. As even 
though Faramir had suffered the most from the former steward’s actions, 
they were still father and son. But Faramir just stiffened lightly before he 
turned around. “Are you sure that he is dead? How could that happen? Did 
one of you kill him?”
Elrohir shook his head, looking at Faramir seriously. “I considered killing 
him, I will not deny that. And I am glad that he is dead. But neither of us 
did kill him. Elladan forbid it because he’s too sensible and because he 
fears that father might finally lose his patience with us if we not only have 
a relationship with our closest kin but also go around and kill others.” 
Elladan nodded. “We did not kill him, young mortal. He died through an 
unintended accident, even though I am sure that everyone agrees that he 
deserves what happened to him. I fear Nov lost something…. I wonder if 
grandmother intended it to happen like that. She likes to keep to good 
ideas she gets from her mirror. Whenever she sees events that turn the way 
she wants them to turn, she enjoys helping them to turn out that way.” As 
if to prove his words Elladan pulled up the bundle Novtathra had been 
carrying from beneath Denethor’s body. “Your dagger, Elrohir. You might 
have missed it. Somehow reminds me that our gentle grandmother has 
once been a warrior, bound to kill those she thought did injustice. One 
should never forget about her skills, especially not when it comes to 
helping destiny and revenging deeds. If it had not been the will of the 
Valar, Denethor wouldn’t have fallen on the package Nov dropped. But 
now he is dead, even though no one did kill him.”
Faramir looked at Denethor, still pale all over his face. “But I killed him; I 
killed my own kin, like I send my brother to war by bringing up the old 
riddle. I pushed him down and he fell on the dagger. It is my fault.”
Elrohir and Elladan exchanged a frustrated gaze. “You couldn’t know that 
my grandmother packs daggers beneath the clothes. And please, you can 
by no means be blamed that Boromir agreed to join the fellowship. It was 
for the well of all free folks of Arda, that he died. You cannot blame him 
or yourself for that.”
Elladan smiled, trying to calm the young man by changing the subject. 
“You surely did not come here before giving birth to your child. Will you 
tell us what it looks like? Will you come back to Lórien with us?”

“I can’t.” Faramir replied, feeling sad. And as the twins kept nagging, did 
not hesitate for long until he told them of Haldir’s words. Both twins 
looked very alike in their anger, but Elrohir smiled after just a few 
seconds. “Do not worry