Hunter of the Rings

Chapter 15

With their friends out of sight, the three remaining Fellowship members returned to the great hall where they discussed the plan "are we sure splitting up is for the best?" Legolas wondered, only to earn a sigh and shrug from his human friend as he merely reminded them how they needed to trust Gandalf. "Are we sure the lass is going to be alright? Gondor is a new place for her and we all know she usually leans towards you in those situations, especially when she feels anxious or nervous" Gimli stated with concern; this only worsened Aragorn's mood as it was hardly a secret that he really did not want Maddie being separated from him with hundreds of miles between them. "I'm sure she will cope and adapt well" he reasoned, reminding his two friends that Maddie was hardly alone "she had Arwen and Gandalf" he assured. As they each took a seat around a table, Legolas rose a brow at the ranger "speaking of Maddie, what was that about outside?" he questioned, only to earn the plain answer of "I don't know" from the man; Gimli lent against the table as he pointed out the girl's actions of running and hugging Aragorn "tell me I'm wrong, but that's the kind of thing a daughter might treat her father" he stated with a raised brow. Shaking his head at the Dwarf, Aragorn folded his arms across his chest as he denied knowing what he was talking about; the pair shared an eye wide look as realisation overcame them, however, they weren't all that shocked. "You...You see the lass as your own, don't you?" it might have sounded like a question, but Gimli was definitely stating it; the man's reaction, which was further denial, merely succeeded in making the pair burst out into a fit of laughter. "Shut it, will you!" Aragorn hissed, noticing the looks they were being sent "I don't want the whole damn village knowing!" he stated; his two friends managed to compose themselves, taking a few deep calming breathes before sharing their thoughts on the excellent news. "If you tell Arwen, who clearly sees Maddie as her own also, the lass could finally have a family again" Gimli grinned at the thought, having come to care for the girl and wished for her to have the life she deserved.

With hearing this, Aragorn knew the Dwarf was running away with his thoughts "I won't be telling anyone, and neither will you" he stated. This confused and shocked his two friends as they asked why he wouldn't want anyone knowing "the three of you would be quite a nice little family" Legolas reasoned. The ranger let out a sigh as he reminded them of how they were in the middle of a quest with the up most importance "not to mention the fact that we are all preparing for a war" he reminded as he rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh "I can't be thinking and worrying about having a family right now, nor can any of us if we are to succeed" he explained. And on that note, Aragorn left his two companions in order begin some training outside. Both Dwarf and Elf sighed as their friend left the hall; Legolas sighed at his friend's stubbornness, always finding it to be annoying. As he took a gulp of his drink, an idea came to the Dwarves mind "you know" Gimli began; the Elf returned his attention to the table "we never exactly promised anything" he reasoned. Legolas could merely smirk "we didn't, did we?" he agreed. Not wasting another minute, the two returned to their feet as they made their way to the Elves room where he sat down at the desk; he retrieved some ink, a quill and some parchment from the one of the draws before beginning to write a letter. It was addressed to Arwen, explaining all that they had learnt only minutes before, as well as hoping she, Maddie, Gandalf and Boromir were alright and had arrived into Gondor safely. Once they were satisfied with the letter, Legolas rolled up and tied with a ribbon while Gimli managed to find a messenger hawk; they attached the letter to its ankle before giving the beautiful creature a treat. Assured it knew where to take the letter, they send the bird on its way. With that out of the way, they returned to the hall with the promise to keep their mouths shut on what they had just done. The war hadn't begun yet, but if Aragorn learnt of the letter, both knew they wouldn't live to see and contribute to it.

With the Ring Bearer and those she was with, however, they travelled for days upon days before the city of Gondor could be seem. And by god, Maddie had never such a sight! The city was huge and full of life, all of its people busy and rushing around. Gandalf guided them as they rushed through the city, all the way to the very top; they dismounted on the top level and walked across a courtyard, Maddie and Arwen glancing around at their surroundings in amazement. The teenager's eyes landed upon the centre piece to which she thought was beautiful "the White Tree of Gondor, the tree of the King" Arwen explained, having noticed the girl's stare; she lowered her voice as she reminded how Lord Denethor was not the king "he is a steward only - a caretaker of the throne" she whispered, not wishing for a certain someone to overhear. Entering the throne room, Boromir rushed towards his father who could be seen sitting quite comfortably on the throne, the pair sharing an embrace as they greeted one another; there was another man standing beside the throne who Boromir smiled to and pulled into an embrace. "That is Faramir - Boromir's brother and the second son to the Steward" Arwen lent over and whispered, earning a nod of understanding from the grateful girl. The two young man did appear to look familiar so it wasn't that much of a shock to learn the pair were brothers, but Maddie was surprised Boromir hadn't mentioned a Faramir or even that he had a brother. Pushing the thought away for the time being, Gandalf slowly approached the two with the She-Elf and teenager walking a step behind him. "My son! So good to have you back home were you belong!" they heard the Steward exclaim before his attention was drawn to his son's fellow companions; the wizard held out his hands and bowed "hail Denethor, son of Ecthelion, Lord and Steward of Gondor" he spoke politely and respectfully, knowing they would have to tread carefully when it came to the Steward.