For weeks, they discussed the inevitable: with the new ruling King, Faramir and …owyn had to find a dwelling that would be fitting for his new title as Prince of Ithillien. The issue was, however, how both could travel together to those places unchaperoned. After much discussion where …omer demanded the Steward’s oath that no harm would come to his sister, Faramir gave …omer what he requested. The White Lady would be treated with all due respect and courtesy, but secretly asked himself why …omer feared for her honour at all. Hours later, after sundown, Faramir realised that keeping to such a promise was more difficult than he ever realised. Yet he clung to sleeping in different bedrolls, even though his …owyn kept on arguing to share.

“You can not stay out like this in the night. It is common knowledge that if you want to survive this cold, two bodies generate more heat together. I promise I will behave myself.” …owyn bantered.

Faramir grunted and knew that she was right. The question was: could he restrain himself? “Alright” he said and wrapped himself in his cloak to lower himself to the bedroll next to …owyn who smiled at him.

Without a word, …owyn handed him the end of the blanket and tucked her side under her body before she spooned herself to his back. Faramir could not deny that this was not such a bad idea after all, especially since …owyn made sure that she was covered properly.

“This night is going to be a long one,” he muttered and tried to let the sleep take him, but his mind plagued him with ideas of what to do with her enticing curves.


It was deep into the night when Faramir’s cries awoke …owyn from her dreams in the night. Once she turned around, she noted how he wrestled fervently with the blanket like it was an enemy. Just in time, …owyn evaded his wildly swinging arms.

Without any hesitation, …owyn quickly snuck her arm around his waist and started to talk softly in his ear. “Faramir, it is me, sleep and do not let those hauntings plague you. Listen to my voice.” She moved her hand upwards and caressed his tensed neck and shoulders. “Listen to me Faramir, I am here, let me be your beacon in the darkness. I will be here when you awake.” Faramir grew less tense after hearing her soft whispers and his wild movements subsided. With love and care, …owyn wrapped her cloak around him and tucked him in with the blanket on top. She remained awake until dawn to make sure he would sleep for the balance of the night.

****

They travelled for two days together, telling stories from their pasts. …owyn did not ask about his night terrors and Faramir was glad that he did not have to explain. He was not sure what she knew of Númenor, but his heart was glad that it was she who could ease his troubled mind. Before them lurked the heights of Mordor; their dark hills loomed eerily over the forest of Ithilien. Dusk was setting in early.

“We are almost there,” …owyn said with regret in her voice. “Four days here at the very least before we have to return.”

“Is it still your wish to live here with me?” Faramir asked.

…owyn turned her head and glanced sideways. “Aye, is that not the reason we are here?” A strong gust whistled through the trees, and the wind’s fingers ruffled her blonde hair and ripped at his clothes, giving them both goose bumps.

“If my eyes do not lie, I remember a small shelter in the woods. I might see if we can sleep with a roof above our heads for one night. A night’s sleep without any rocks sticking in my back, sounds great excellent to me,” Faramir offered and slid of the horse, his sword ready as he opened the door.

“Hay? Since when is there bedding like this in the shelter?” He reported surprised and slipped inside. …owyn dismounted as well and waited for him to return. All of a sudden, she heard him talking back to her, followed by crashing wood. Without any hesitation, …owyn rushed forwards and found him inside holding a jar of cherries with a content smile on his face.

“We are lucky; it might be preserved fruit, but it is food.” Faramir opened the bottle and closed his eyes, delight written all over his face. “It smells delicious.”

“This is not ours Faramir”

“I do know that, but when was the last time you ate cherries? And there is much more in this crate. I will leave the remainder of my money when we leave to compensate. Why don’t you see for yourself while I fetch our horses both inside?”

…owyn looked around and inhaled the scent of warm hay and enjoyed the warmth coming from it. A memory of Meduseld flashed through her mind and she remembered how she used to climb the haystack at her old home to watch the stars at night. From the outside, the shelter seemed small and was hardly to spot for an untrained eye. It was that Faramir knew it’s exact location, for Eowyn would not have noticed it in the thickness of the forest. The shelter consisted of two levels: the first floor was intended for storing goods and stables for livestock, the second level seemed to be an hay loft which also seemed to serve as a hiding and storage spot. “This place would most certainly suit for the night.” After a few days on travelling rations with the unforgiving ground under their backs at night, this place seemed a small heaven on Middle Earth.

“Do you want to sleep up there or on the floor?” …owyn awoke from her short reverie and looked at her betrothed, puzzled. “I think we are safer when we sleep up there. My horse can take care of herself if someone visits us,” Faramir explained.

“I agree.” Both explored the small shelter and found some smoked ham, a couple of bottles of mead and another crate filled with preserved fruit. They settled themselves into the loft for the night with the small treasure of food between them. …owyn carefully lighted the lantern she found downstairs before they attacked the food in front of them.

After a while, …owyn braced her back against the wall and settled herself with her bottle of mead. She watched how Faramir devoured the ham greedily. ‘He must have been starved’ she thought to herself. With some regret, she realized that this night there would be no reason to sleep close to each other. With a deep sigh, she started to untie her boots, relieved to take them of after a long day. “Do you want the blanket or the bedroll?” …owyn enquired.

“The blanket will be fine. Good night, sleep tight, and don't let the bed bugs bite.” Faramir said with a playful smile.

…owyn laughed, lay down, and closed her eyes with a contented sigh to drift slowly into dreams, reassured by the knowledge that Faramir was nearby this night to watch over her.

***

…owyn awoke to Faramir’s night terror and the dreadful noise of a blanket that threatened to be ripped apart by his hands. …owyn lifted her head and located him a few metres away. For some reason this nightmare seemed more intense than the previous ones and …owyn had to rescue her only blanket from its ultimate doom.

Quickly she straddled him and tried to pin him in the hay. In response Faramir opened his eyes and asked in the old and forbidden language of Númenor: “Ma yanna nómë lendelyë?”

…owyn’s heart skipped a few beats and responded with words coming from her heart, not fully aware what she was saying. “Sinómë eanye, mal nwalca Ambar ciltane nye lyello.”

Faramir’s eyes turned lucid and he whispered: “So you remember Númenor …owyn?”

“I do Faramir.” The looks they exchanged made words unnecessary. With a fast move, he rolled her over on her back. Fascinated by the heat between them and by his body's reaction to it, Faramir leaned into her as if unsure what else to do, given that there was no question of rolling away. Not with such heat, not with this undecided something between them, not when breath refused to be caught and the colour in their faces could not be excused so easily as that of exertion.

It was an agony of uncertainty deciding what to do next, but in the end Faramir solved it, leaning over …owyn to kiss her suddenly, fiercely. He was answered shyly but soon …owyn shifted to an eager reply. His hands slid under her tunic and he shivered when he felt her warm and soft skin. Even so, fear threaded his pulse, and desire as well, and a half dozen other feelings caught up and tangled in his breast, for there was now but one thought in his mind; something irrevocable was about to be decided. And …omer would kill him: that was certain.

“Do you want to proceed?” he asked and heard her breath catch as she read the desire in his eyes. The answer came back soft and breathless, but uncompromising: "Yes." His hands moved to the clasps of her tunic and kissed the skin that was revealed to him when he slowly removed the garment. Watching her reaction to his hands, Faramir felt how his heart raced while he tried to describe what he felt for her. Ever so carefully, he reached for her undergarment, but could not untie it as fast as he wanted. With a gentle smile on her face, …owyn sat up and started to undo the ends, but his hands covered hers to push them aside. Unwillingly she shivered from this unexpected attention and willed herself to stay upright.

Faramir smiled when he noticed her restraint and kissed her fiercely. Slowly he pushed her back onto the bedding and found the laces of her pants. His hands trembled slightly when he undid them and held his breath for a few seconds before her body was unveiled to him.

A soft moan escaped his mouth when he started to take off his own clothes, except for his breeches, and bent in for a long awaited exploration of her body. …owyn’s hands searched for some grip as soft moans left her mouth while Faramir touched her in places that gave her the ultimate pleasure. Once more he reached up to kiss her fiercely, his deep love for her shining through, and she kissed him back with equal passion, understanding his urgency, yet wishing the moment to last forever. …owyn knew and had heard often that the pleasure of a man should come first before the woman. The joyful realisation that Faramir would be a tender lover to her was more than she ever asked for. Yet she felt afraid in her uncertainty not knowing how she could ask for more or maybe pleading him to continue of the passion he just set upon her, deeply fearing that if she did do so, he would offend him deeply.

The Steward withdrew himself from her and quickly removed his last garment before he returned to her welcoming body. He placed his hand on her stomach, rubbed it soothingly to release the tension that now held her beautiful body in its grasp, and said: "Trust me my love."

…owyn nodded without words, dropping her head backwards, losing herself in Faramir’s touch as he moved down on her body, finding his way between her thighs and gently separating them. Before her eyes could clear of the pleasured haze, he swiftly moved between them and hovered above her to find her ready. Fully aware that there was no possibility of stopping now, Faramir gently moved inside her, cleaving her maidenhead and caught her cry in his mouth. Holding himself perfectly still, he realised what he just had done. Maybe …omer would only ban him from the Mark, he hoped.

…owyn’s body quivered, adjusting to him, his own tenuous control barely maintained at the feeling of being there. He released her lips when she relaxed her legs and wrapped them around his hips. Faramir looked down into her face as she took a deep shuddering breath. He brushed several locks of her golden hair out of her face, gazing down at her with complete adoration and asked: "Are you alright my love?"

…owyn smiled tenderly at him, her fingers tracing his face and said huskily; "Aye, Faramir. I am well."

Faramir kissed her again as he slowly began to move within her. His passion gradually increased as he heard her gasp at the new sensations he caused with her eyes almost closed. Making sure they would not regret this moment, he rocked slowly until he was sure she had adjusted and began to move at a faster pace, his own eyes closed.

After a moment, he reopened his eyes and looked down on …owyn's face. "Look at me Wyn, my love." She opened her eyes, gazing to the blue eyes of her lover, and kept their gazes fixed on each other when he increased his pace.

…owyn tried to keep up and moaned in response to his fervour, her hands gripping his back as if she was afraid he would leave. Where shortly fear and doubt claimed her mind, she now realised that Faramir would see to it that she would enjoy their moment as much as he did, maybe even more. The sensation passing through her confirmed her love for him: it was so intense and earth shattering to her and yet she realised that their lovemaking here and now brought them even closer then before. They both quickened their pace as they drew ever closer to the edge.

…owyn cried out his name first as their movements sent her spiralling into bliss unknown to her. Faramir followed suit; her clenched muscles drove him forward as he released himself in her. Faramir’s arms gave way and he dropped exhausted on top of her, totally spent. Neither of them dared to move and panted raggedly, spent and exhausted.

For some moments, neither of them moved, but too soon for his liking, Faramir opened his eyes to find …owyn’s closed in contentment. He slowly shifted until his face hovered just above hers. Sensing his gaze, …owyn looked up into his eyes just barely visible now in the dim moonlight. He dropped his head to capture her lips for a moment before retreating and sitting up.

“What are you doing?” …owyn asked, confused by his move. She sensed a new soreness in her body and wondered if she had done something wrong.

Faramir felt a strange feeling sweeping through him. He was glad to be her first lover and yet he felt that he had no right to take her maidenhood. “Your brother is going to kill me.” He stated simply.

“What has my brother to do with what just happened? You asked me if I wanted you to proceed and that answer is still yes. You did not enquire what …omer might have thought of it.” …owyn said softly pushing back her tears. Unbelievable. They were hours away from her brother and yet somehow he managed to sneak in her finest and most important moment. While her hands trembled, she searched around for a tunic to cover her body.

“Despite what the Rohirrim might say about Gríma and what he might have done to me, I did not lie with you as a pleasure for one night Faramir.” …owyn’s voice trembled when she spoke. “On the contrary even, I fought hard to keep him away from me, barring my doors with chairs and what more. I can understand that my reputation at court is non-existent, but I do not regret a single minute of what we just shared.” …owyn rolled away and gathered her clothes.

Faramir reached out his arm and stayed her. “Wyn... I do not wish to quarrel. Not like this. Aye I wished that it was different, but not because of your reputation or what is known of you in the north. I wanted it to be special for you, maybe indeed we should have waited until our wedding night.” …owyn halted and stared at him. “This was special Faramir and I do not wish to bed another man after this. Are we not betrothed? Will we not exchange vows in a year’s time?”

Faramir said nothing, uncertain of what to say now: of course he wanted to marry her, but he felt that whatever word he uttered now, she would use against him.

“It is either marriage with you or working as a healer for the rest of my life,” …owyn fiercely stated.

Faramir harrumphed: “The houses of Healing, my goodness. There would be no house like that on Middle Earth that could handle you.”

“Oh, and you can, noble Ranger?” …owyn countered.

Faramir met her gaze, a challenge clearly written in her eyes. …omer’s men were right about one thing: she would not yield easily. “Oh you would be quite a challenge.”

…owyn laughed. “I have been named many things, but a challenge? I think we both like a challenge then.” Before …owyn realized what happened he floored her by grabbing her by the ankle and pulled her close.

“Now,” he said with an impish look written all over his face. “One of those riders said that you do not yield so easily.” Before he finished his sentence, he started to tickle her feet.

“No!!” …owyn squirmed while she tried to fight him off while giggling uncontrollably.

“All is permitted in love and war milady.” He let her go and leaned into her face. Before his lips met her, he asked: “Do you yield?”

…owyn smiled and returned: “I yield, my love.”

First: thank you Neumeindil for helping me with this story in such short notice.

I wrote this short story for Elfnut/Maram. She really loves stories about …owyn and Faramir, as soon as the oppurtinity arose, I dusted off this bunny to write it for her. Thank you for being such a wonderful friend and encouraging me to post it here on OSA.

Quenya used:
Ma yanna nómë lendelyë?
Where did you go?

Sinómë eanye, mal nwalca Ambar ciltane nye lyello
Here I am, but the cruel world separated me from you.

I can imagine that this Rhapsy!verse bunny might surprise readers. Tolkien explained in his letters that the knowledge Faramir has of Númenor mainly comes to him by means of dreams:

From the Letters of Tolkien (163 To W. H. Auden):

I say this about the 'heart', for I have what some might call an Atlantis complex. Possibly inherited, though my parents died too young for me to know such things about them, and too young to transfer such things by words. Inherited from me (I suppose) by one only of my children, though I did not know that about my son until recently, and he did not know it about me. I mean the terrible recurrent dream (beginning with memory) of the Great Wave, towering up, and coming in ineluctably over the trees and green fields. (I bequeathed it to Faramir.) I don't think I have had it since I wrote the 'Downfall of Númenor' as the last of the legends of the First and Second Age.

Tolkien mentions it again in letter 180 To 'Mr Thompson' [draft]

Out ofthat came the 'missing link': the 'Downfall of Númenor', releasing some hidden 'complex'. For when Faramir speaks of his private vision of the Great Wave, he speaks for me. That vision and dream has been ever with me — and has been inherited (as I only discovered recently) by one of my children.

I started to wonder what the connection to …owyn was since in a scene from The Steward and the King from Return of the King, this happens:

‘It reminds me of Númenor,’ said Faramir, and wondered to hear himself speak.
‘Of Númenor?’ said …owyn.
‘Yes,’ said Faramir, ‘of the land of Westernesse that foundered and of the great dark wave climbing over the green lands and above the hills, and coming on, darkness unescapable. I often dream of it.’
‘Then you think that the Darkness is coming?’ said …owyn. ‘Darkness Unescapable?’ And suddenly she drew close to him.
‘No,’ said Faramir, looking into her face. ‘It was but a picture in the mind. I do not know what is happening. The reason of my waking mind tells me that great evil has befallen and we stand at the end of days. But my heart says nay; and all my limbs are light, and a hope and joy are come to me that no reason can deny. …owyn, …owyn, White Lady of Rohan, in this hour I do not believe that any darkness will endure!’ And he stooped and kissed her brow."

This left me wondering why a) …owyn accepts this, b) how does she know how it will look like that it scares her so much. Thusly a Rhapsy!verse bunny surfaced, combined with this piece from The Letters of Tolkien:

244 From a draft to a reader of The Lord of the Ring
Criticism of the speed of the relationship or 'love' of Faramir and Eowyn. In my experience feelings and decisions ripen very quickly (as measured by mere 'clock-time', which is actually not justly applicable) in periods of great stress, and especially under the expectation of imminent death. And I do not think that persons of high estate and breeding need all the petty fencing and approaches in matters of 'love'. This tale does not deal with a period of 'Courtly Love' and its pretences; but with a culture more primitive (sc. less corrupt) and nobler.

I have taken the liberty to create a connection between them, which primarily manifests when Faramir dreams or remembers Númenor, but …owyn has the same, but is not versed enough to place it. Both are from Númenorean lineage and as Tolkien explained this in his letters: it will be passed onto generations. In my Rhapsy!verse, it will end with the two of them: both finding each other in this time and finally being able to claim the love in how it was meant to be.