Vanquished Shadows
Mar. 25th, 2014 at 8:46 PM
Title:
Vanquished Shadows
Author Name: Linda Hoyland
Prompt:
"Then, as a sweet rain will pass down a wind of spring and the
sun will shine out the clearer, his tears ceased, and his laughter
welled up, and laughing he sprang from his bed." (Return of the
King, "The Field of Cormallen") combined with Your
character gets caught in a spring rainstorm. What happens
next?
Summary: Faramir ponders the events of a momentous
day.
Rating: PG
Warnings: None
Beta:
none
Author's Notes: Written in honour of Defeat of Sauron
Day. 500 FLF
Such a day it had been, unlike any other he
had known. Faramir felt he wanted to laugh and cry both at the same
time.
All his life, Faramir had dwelt beneath the Shadow. Now
it was no more. He had seen such marvels today that he could hardly
take it all in.
He had kissed the Lady Éowyn. For granted, a
chaste kiss upon her brow, but nonetheless a kiss. She had not
objected.
Then a great wind had blown, the sun had come out
and the Shadow had departed.
If those were not marvels enough,
a Great Eagle had come from the East and announced that the Black
Gate was broken and henceforth the City would be blessed and her King
was returning.
The wondrous day was now almost at an end.
Faramir desired to quiet his racing thoughts before nightfall. He
decided to take a stroll in the gardens of the Houses of Healing. He
was still under the healers’ care and recovering from his wounds,
but he did not feel yet like returning to his bed. He had half hoped
that he might behold Éowyn again to bid her goodnight, but she was
nowhere to be seen. Faramir was not downhearted. He knew now that
there would be a tomorrow in which to woo her.
His thoughts
turned to those who were not there to see this day. He blinked away
the tears as he thought of Boromir. How his brother would have
rejoiced in the defeat of the Dark Lord! Then his thoughts turned to
his father. Faramir tried to imagine Denethor smiling as everyone
around him had smiled today. It was not easy. Denethor would most
surely have rejoiced at Sauron’s defeat, but would he have welcomed
the return of the King? Faramir felt certain he would not.
His
heart soared again when he thought of the man he had recognised as
the heir of Elendil, even as Aragorn had saved his life leading him
forth from the dark vale in which the Black Breath had imprisoned
him. This man was the king of his dreams, wise, compassionate, and
mighty. It would have been so easy for him to let the one man who
could hinder his path to the throne, perish, but Aragorn had put
forth all his strength in order to heal him. He would gladly
surrender the White Rod to such a man.
Suddenly, Faramir felt
moisture upon his face, this time not from weeping. He looked up and
although the sun still shone, it was raining. As a child, Faramir had
always thought there was something quite magical about rain and sun
at the same time. It seemed a fitting end to this day. He laughed
aloud with sheer joy and lifted up his face to better feel the
raindrops against his skin. He would be soaked and the Dame Ioreth
would scold, but he cared not at all.
Then Faramir looked
towards the East and beheld a perfect rainbow.