Alassante's Fiction

Story Summary:

 Rated: R

Chapter 9

Revelations

Over the next few weeks, Lillianna caught up with Faramir, Éowyn, and Éomer. She was always with one of them it seemed and she knew they were trying to cheer her up. She still felt overwhelmed by the emptiness in her heart. She could not even get excited about the baby and felt guilty for it. Aragorn kept in close contact with her as well and she was touched by his kindness. One day she was walking to meet Éowyn and she saw Merry and Pippin. The two hobbits walked with her for awhile. Realizing she had forgotten something, she said goodbye and went back to her chambers to retrieve it. Coming back outside she saw Merry and Pippin talking to Frodo and Sam. She thought she would say something to the other two despite their definite coldness to her. Coming up, she heard her name mentioned and listened to them talking without her being noticed.

“I saw you two walking with Lillianna.” Frodo said.

“Yes, we were. She is a lovely person. You should give her a chance.” Merry said cutting his eyes at Frodo and Sam.

“I have tried but I cannot. I cannot forget what Boromir did. He betrayed us all when he tried to take the ring. Not just me.” Frodo said.

Lillianna covered her mouth as tears started to form.

“Boromir died trying to save us. It was not his fault the ring had driven him mad. The ring was evil.” Pippin argued.

“Besides it isn’t her fault at all.” Merry snorted.

Sam shook his head and said, “I agree with Frodo. He betrayed us and if he had not, we all might not have been split up like that and he would not have had to save you like that nor would you have been taken.”

“I do not agree with you at all. And how can you justify feeling ill will towards her because of it? You are completely wrong about……” Merry trailed off seeing her at last. The four hobbits turned towards her in shock and shame.

Running away from them, she went straight to the Citadel and threw open the door to the throne room. Faramir saw her and reached for her arm as she ran by him unseeing. She came to Aragorn who was sitting at a table and slammed her hands down on the table.

“Why did you not tell me? How dare you not tell me?” She screamed at him.

All of the men looked at her in shock. Faramir tried once again to pull her away as Aragorn looked at her calmly.

“Why did I not tell you what?” He said confused.

“Why did you not tell me that Boromir tried to take the ring? That it drove him mad.” She said as tears were rolling down her face.

Legolas, Gimli, and Gandalf looked away from her. Aragorn looked like he was at a loss as to what to say.

“Lillianna, we should discuss this outside?” Faramir said taking her arm.

She jerked her arm back and said “You knew.”

He looked at her sadly.

“You knew and you never told me.” Backing away from him, she said, “I cannot trust you, Faramir.”

Turning back to Aragorn, she said, “You told me if I wanted to know you would tell me. I want to know now. The whole story, not the edited one for my behalf.” She said glaring at Faramir.

Aragorn stood and taking her arm led her to a room away from the throne room. She sat down and he pulled a chair in front of her. Holding her hands, he told her about all of the good things that Boromir had done with the Fellowship prior to the day he died. She listened to him calmly as the tears streamed down her face. When he stopped, she wiped away the tears.

“Aragorn, please just tell me.”

He told her a slightly edited version of the rest of it stressing how he fought so hard to save Merry and Pippin.

When he finished by telling her about his conversation with Boromir before he died, she said “Did he say anything about me?”

Searching his memory, he started to open his mouth and lie. She looked at him and put her finger up to his lips and said, “Do not bother to lie. Your eyes have told me enough.”

She got up and left the room without another word. She must have gone out a side door because when he came out, the men were all looking at him not knowing she had left. Faramir was worried with guilt so Aragorn told him to go after her and see if she was okay. Feeling horrible, Aragorn fell back into a chair and sighed.

“I assume she did not take it very well.” Gimli said.

“No. She was very calm. Too calm in fact.”

“Maybe she is just in shock.” Gandalf suggested “It would make sense. No one would suspect someone they love and trust that much to do what he attempted to do. But knowing the pull of the ring, I understood it. I think out of all of the nine, he was the one I feared most but I realized that was because his father had driven him so hard to take the ring for himself and he was desperate to save Gondor.”

“I cannot forget what he went through before and after he tried to take the ring. We all went through a lot but he fought to the death to save Merry and Pippin. He gave his life for them and he had someone like her to come home to.” Aragorn said shaking his head sadly. “No matter what anyone says, I cannot think ill of him at all.”

“Nor will I.” Legolas said softly. “Do you think she will be all right?”

“I do not know. She is quite hard to predict.” Shaking his head, he said, “I never expected her to come in here the way she did yet she did and showed no regret for doing so.”

“She has been through so much in a short time and I think she is so overwhelmed right now she no longer cares of what is proper or not proper. Being proper is what kept her marriage a secret for four years. She has lost all desire to care about things such as that.” Éomer said. “I have tried to get her to open up but she is no longer the girl that I knew. She is like a wounded bird. No matter how gentle you are with her she is still so hurt, she pulls away.”

“I need a rest from this tedious work before I go mad anyway. Let us start again tomorrow.” Aragorn said getting up.

The men agreed and went their separate ways.

Faramir had looked for her everywhere he could think to look. Éowyn had come looking for her as well. Finally Faramir thought of one place she could be and he and Éowyn went to the house she had shared with Boromir. They found her sitting on the floor in an area that was safer than the others. When she saw them both, she looked away.

Crouching down, Faramir said, “I did not tell you because I did not want to hurt you. I was trying to protect you.”

Looking at him for a long time, she said “Did you know that he never said anything about me the whole time they were together. None of them knew about me because he never told them. And when Boromir was dying, he never spoke of me then either. How am I supposed to feel about that? To know that he kept our love secret even from strangers.”

“Lillianna, none of that matters. He loved you. He loved you more than anything in this world. You know this in your heart. Why would you doubt him now?” Faramir said pulling her closer. “Boromir loved you. Do not ever doubt that.”

“I just miss him so bad.” She began to sob uncontrollably. Éowyn came up on the other side and the two of them held her. When she finally stopped crying, they walked her back up to the guest chambers and Éowyn tucked her into bed.

Faramir walked Éowyn to her room and kissing her gently, he said, “I am so glad you are here for her. Seeing her like this is killing me.” He shook his head. “She and Boromir are the ones who taught me what being in love was all about. Seeing them together made me want that with someone special. It is so sad that while I have that someone special, she and Boromir are now apart.” Stroking her hair, he smiled “I am glad I found you.”

She leaned in for a quick kiss before Éomer could catch them and said good night with a smile. Faramir walked back to his chambers feeling guilty for being so happy with Éowyn when Lillianna was so unhappy.