"Tonight we remember those who gave their blood to defend this country." Theoden raised his goblet, and so followed all the Hall. "Hail the victorious dead!"
"Hail!"
‘The victorious dead,' thought Aragorn, and then, unbidden, ‘Boromir.' He hesitated then a moment, then drank of his ale in remembrance of those that had passed. He did so with a heavy heart, and cheerless, for Boromir had died far from his home, for a country and a king not his own. To have come so very far only to fall in battle there in Rohan – there was honour in his death, Aragorn knew, but it grieved him that they would not go to see their home together.
The night wore on and the drink flowed freely; the sombre air of the Golden Hall turned to that of festival, though Aragorn felt himself outside of it. He saw Legolas and Gimli, drinks in hand, sitting together with the king's captain Gamling; he wondered if they spoke of Haldir and of Hama, their friends fallen at Helm's Deep. He saw Pippin and Merry up on the tables, dancing and in rather fine voice; it brought a small smile to his lips to see them so happy, but for his own part he could not forget.
He sat apart from the rest, away in the shadows, and watched through the hazy, smoke-filled air. He set down his mug; he tugged at the buckles of the vambraces at his wrists. Though he knew he would not remove them, they felt somehow wrong. He had taken them from Boromir as he lay dead by the Deeping Wall. Their leather still retained the shape of their dead owner's arms.
"You loved him." Eowyn's voice was soft as she came to sit beside him. Her thigh brushed his beneath the table, and he blinked back tears.
He nodded, and did not turn to her. To any other he should have denied it, but Eowyn had always known. "Dearly," he said. "As did you."
"Yes, I did," she said, and looked away, out into the noisy throng. "He was brave and strong. Yes. Yes, I did."
Then she looked up and caught his gaze; she lifted her goblet to her lips and drank, then held it out for Aragorn to take.
"Westu, Aragorn, hal," she said, tears shining in her eyes.
He took the cup and drank from it. "Be thou well," he said in reply, and passed her back the cup.
The small smile that crossed her face was brief, and she walked away.
***
He drank more than he knew he should but no more than the others; he did not drink then to forget, as they did, but rather to remember. He drowned away his sorrow ‘til only memory remained – the memory of touches, glances, smiles and of their passion, stolen moments south of Rivendell and lazy days in Lorien. He saw the arrow pierce his lover's shoulder, then his own blade embedded in the creature's neck before its job could be completed. He saw Boromir with his heart torn when at last they came to Edoras. He saw Eowyn.
Boromir had never said a word to him about her, how they had met in a break from his journey to Rivendell, and yet Aragorn had known what was between them; he knew it from the look that had been in their eyes. Boromir had never asked leave of Aragorn to go to her, but Aragorn still gave it. He had longed to tell him no, he must not go, to stay there in his bed and in his arms instead. But in his heart he had always known that once he was made king he would take Arwen as his queen, and a wife deserved fidelity. Eowyn would have loved Boromir for all her life. And more, she would have never left his side.
But now Boromir was dead. They had both lost him. He was gone.
He wiped his eyes and drained his ale and set the mug down on the tabletop. There was still dancing and singing in the Golden Hall, and Aragorn felt out of place, one sombre face to mar the gaiety. Then his eyes swept the room and they chanced upon Eowyn; her back was to a column and her face was in her hands. He stood, and went to her. He knew she should not be alone.
"My lady," he said softly, as he came up to her side. Hurriedly she wiped her eyes. Then she saw that it was Aragorn and fresh tears spilled.
"I should not cry," she said, her voice thick and broken as her hands fisted in the fabric of her skirt. "He is gone to the halls of his fathers, the victorious dead. I should be happy for him. I should not cry."
"But he is gone from you." Aragorn stepped forward slowly, and reached up to brush the tears from her face. "You are right to grieve now, for a time, for yourself if not for him."
She held his gaze then for a moment, then she sobbed; her whole body moved with it, she shook, and Aragorn gathered her quickly in his arms. He held her tight and she held him, her face buried in his shoulder as she cried. He softly stroked her hair, blinking back the tears in his own eyes. He held her, ‘til her breathing slowed, then he stepped back and cupped her head in his hands.
She smiled softly, her hands pressed lightly to his chest as his thumbs brushed at her cheeks. And then her fair face went solemn, and she grasped at his shirt with her hands.
"I do not wish to be alone tonight", she said.
He frowned. "But I…" The touch of her fingertips on his lips brought him to silence.
"Just for tonight", she said, her light eyes full of tears. "Please, come with me."
She tugged at his shirt. He resisted for a moment, his head swimming with the drink and grief. Then he let himself be led, his hand in hers. Amid the merriment, they slipped away unnoticed.
***
They lay together then that night, behind the closed door of Eowyn's chamber. There was no hesitance, there was no fumbling of the unaccustomed; it was as if they knew each other through what they had shared. There would be no regret. Each resolved that they would never speak of what had happened.
His fingertips brushed at her bare breasts and she moaned, with her eyes open. Her pale skin was soft beneath his rough hands, her cheeks flushed, her legs spread wide; he buried himself inside her, deeply, and they rocked together with their fingers laced and gazes locked. She was so fair, his beloved's lover. She would have made him happy. He would have let her fight by his side, and she would have loved him for it.
He lay there with her after, his arms around her, his fingers toying with her hair until she slept. And then he left the bed; he dressed quickly then he left the room. He met Legolas outside the Hall. He did not ask where he had been. Perhaps he knew, but he did not ask.
***
They left soon after and Eowyn went too, as Aragorn had known she would. It came as no surprise when he saw her in Gondor, and he learned that she had gone to battle as a man. It brought a smile to his lips to think of her fighting and free, courageous still in the face of the Nazgul's lord. A shield-maiden of Rohan, she was, truly.
The news of her betrothal was no surprise to him, either; he had met Denethor's son Faramir and seen in him the likeness of his brother. He was a noble man, and brave, and Aragorn felt that he was pleased for both of them. It gave him great pleasure to see them wed.
The surprise came finally when he heard Eowyn was with child; it was his own wife, his queen, that told him of it, and he did his best to hide his chill. Then later he went to her, while he knew Faramir was engaged elsewhere. He only had to see her face to know her mind.
"The child is not your husband's," he said then. She shook her head. He took her hand, and kissed it, then she brought his to her belly.
His eyes grew wide. "Not mine!" he said, and then she smiled.
"My husband knows," she told him. "And though the child inside me is his brother's, he will love it as his own."
"As will I."
Tears stung then at his eyes; she rose and held him close.
"Thank you," he said. She nodded. She understood. There was more of Boromir survived than just a memory.
***
The child was born later that year. It was a boy; he was born in winter, and they named him Estel.
Summary: Aragorn meets someone unexpected on the corsair ships.
Rated: NC-17
Categories: LOTR FPS Pairing: Aragorn/Boromir
Warnings: NoneChallenges:
Series: Five Things That Never Happened to Boromir of GondorChapters: 5 Completed: Yes
Word count: 8372 Read: 8621
Published: 07 Aug 2009 Updated: 07 Aug 2009
Author's Chapter Notes:
Boromir survived Amon Hen; he didn't survive Helm's Deep. Aragorn remembers.