Chapter 6
Chapter 6
“You’ll be careful, right?” pleaded that sweet voice.
Faramir looked at the beautiful youth, who watched him with concern.
When his father decided to send one of his sons to maintain the dominance over the old main city, Osgiliath, no one was more surprised at his choice than Faramir himself.
It was clear his father had wanted to send his older brother and favorite son, if to further his glory or to keep him away from the “distractions of court” no one knew.
Boromir, knowing his younger brother’s wish to prove himself worthy before their father and not wanting to leave Harry, had somehow gotten their father to send Faramir in his place.
“Of course. You must not worry, Harry; I’ll be back before you realize.”
However, his words didn’t seem to calm the wizard at all. Faramir turned to his brother, who stepped forward to give him a brief hug.
“Take care, brother.” He muttered clapping his back.
Faramir nodded, stepping back. Turning to Harry, the warrior with an academic’s heart tried to smile.
“Some would say you don’t trust me to take care of myself.”
“It’s in the orcs and their dirty tricks that I hold no trust on.” Replied Harry before stepping forward and hugging him. “Come back safe and sound, please.”
Faramir pressed him tightly to his chest, placing a hand on the back of his neck and the other on his back. He had to resist the temptation to bury his head in the silky black hair and he raised his eyes to the sky to avoid his older brother’s piercing eyes.
“I promise.” He whispered.
Having prolonged the contact longer than he should’ve, Faramir stepped away from his young friend, walked down the steps of the Citadel and got on his horse.
With one last look to the top of the stairs, where Boromir and Harry watched him from ―and much to his sorrow, still feeling a pang of disappointment that his father hadn’t bothered to show up to see him off―, Faramir spurred his horse on and left Minas Tirith.
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Harry watched sadly how horse and rider disappeared. Faramir, with his calm nature, his desire for knowledge and his dreaming spirit, had become a great friend to the wizard.
The youth could not forget all the questions the Man had had upon knowing of his magic nor the easy with which he’d accepted his nature.
If not for Faramir, Harry would barely leave his rooms or the garden, nor would he know what to do with the time Boromir had to leave him to take care of his duties.
Without him noticing, Boromir’s brother had taken a place in his heart and had become a constant for Harry.
None of that made it easier to see him off.
A servant interrupted his thoughts by bowing and delivering a message.
After escorting his sweet Harry to his rooms and pressing a kiss to his lips, the man left him under the protection and company of Arborn and Tolan before going in search of his father.
He found the seneschal in the throne room, as usual, and the old face lighted up at seeing him.
“Boromir, my son, sit down and eat with me.”
Boromir observed with barely hidden disgust as his father devoured a dish full of pig ribs, chicken and different cheeses.
“No, thank you, father; I’m not hungry.” He answered taking a seat in front of the man. “Faramir just set off for Osgiliath.”
“Let’s hope he’s at least able to keep order amongst his men.” Muttered the seneschal with a disdainful move of the arm. “But I haven’t asked you to come to speak about the disgrace your brother brings our family.”
Boromir gritted his teeth strongly to avoid saying something that could worsen his father’s mood more than the mere mention of his brother had.
“What for, then?”
“I’ve heard rumors. They say you picked up a child from the streets of the city during the festival.”
“That is true. His name is-”
“I don’t care what his name is. Get rid of him.”
“What did you say?” asked Boromir, trying to keep his temper in check.
Denethor stopped with a piece of rib close to his mouth and looked him in the eyes.
“Bring him back to the city.”
“The child is an orphan…”
“This is the Citadel, not an orphanage, and he is a thief.”
“He’s just a hungry child, father!”
“If we had to take on every hungry person in the city, there wouldn’t be space for them all.” Cut him off the seneschal in a firm voice. “And do not dare to raise your voice to me, boy, I’m your father!”
Boromir took a deep breath and clenched his fists under the table.
“If the boy hasn’t left the Citadel before nightfall, my own guards will get rid of him.”
“Father, please…”
“It’s already enough having to tolerate the presence of that… distraction of yours; I won’t tolerate you giving a home to a little thief under my own roof.”
“Harry is not a distraction.” Answered the warrior with a fierce scowl. “I love him, father, and I wish to marry him.”
A deafening silence fell after his words and the servants stood still, fearing the explosion that would surely follow.
Denethor, however, stayed very still in his seat, the food abandoned, and his eyes rose slowly.
“You love him?” he repeated mockingly, his voice rising with every word till he found himself screaming at his favorite son. “You obviously don’t know what you’re saying. You think you love him because he is young and beautiful? You think you love him because he lets you stick your dick into him whenever you wish to!?”
His last accusation was too much for Boromir, who jumped up from his seat, overturning the chair in the process.
“Don’t you dare, father!” roared the man shaking from rage. “Don’t you dare to speak as such about him! I would never dishonor Harry with such actions outside of the bond of marriage!”
“A bond you shall never share!” shouted the old man hitting the table with his fists as he stood up at the same time. “My son will not marry a vulgar servant, no matter how beautiful the people believe him. You will marry a woman from a good lineage capable of giving you an heir. Until then, you may have your fun with whoever you wish to, but in the end you will fulfill your duty.”
With that said, the seneschal left the throne room leaving a furious Boromir behind, not without issuing a last warning.
“Make sure to get rid of the boy or your prized servant will be the next to leave the Citadel.”
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Boromir went to his rooms in search of Harry, profoundly shaken and furious over his father’s words. It wasn’t the first time he’d expressed his disapproval, but never had he done it with so many words or such vulgar accusations.
A servant directed him to his private garden when he found the rooms empty. There, sitting on the same stone bench of the small temple he’d been at the day they met for the first time, was Harry.
At his side, Tolan was the first to notice his presence. The man stood up silently to let his Captain-General take the place he’d been occupying next to the wizard on the stone bench.
Instead of that, Boromir placed himself behind and placed his hands softly on the shoulders of his beloved.
The youth turned his head to look at him with a smile that was replaced with a concerned look upon seeing his expression.
“Boromir? What has happened?”
The warrior observed the scene that Arborn and Galeth presented, the older one teaching the kid to catch frogs and laughing when they escaped.
With a sigh, he looked away from them.
“The seneschal had ordered that Galeth leave the Citadel before nightfall.”
Harry looked at him with wide eyes and swallowed.
“But… but he’s just a child…”
Boromir run a hand through his hair, frustrated.
“I know, but the seneschal will not listen to reason. If I don’t obey, he’ll send his own guards.”
Harry let out a shaky breath and placed one of his hands over the one resting on his left shoulder.
“What are we going to do?”
“I don’t know, my love. I don’t know.” Answered Boromir shaking his head slightly.
“If I may…” intervened Tolan waiting for them to give him permission to speak. “I don’t think you need search far to find a good solution to this problem.”
Following his stare, Boromir found himself watching Arborn again, who laughed as he kept the child from falling into the pond.´
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Days later, Harry walked around the Citadel in the company of his two guards. Tolan kept his characteristic silence, whilst Arborn told him all about his wife’s happiness at having a child to take care of.
“Maina spent all day buying anything we might need and Galeth was wrapped around her little finger as soon as the shyness disappeared.”
Arborn had a wide smile as he thought of his family. It was obvious to anyone with eyes that he adored his newly adopted son as much as his wife.
However, Harry was distracted. The last few days, Boromir had been in a strange mood. Despite his statements that nothing else apart from Galeth’s removal had happened when he joined his father, Harry knew something else was gnawing at him.
The rumors extended by the servants weren’t calming at all either.
Harry stopped a moment in front of a window with views of the city, but his eyes rested further away, in the fields and forests that surrounded it.
He did not like thinking he was the reason for the problems between Boromir and his father.
Faramir, who he missed dearly since his leaving for Osgiliath, would have suggested a walk to clear his mind. That’s how he’d found himself walking through the Citadel in the company of his two guards, but such thoughts refused to leave his mind.
Faramir’s absence was most felt in moments like this when Boromir’s duties kept him away from Harry.
With a sigh, the youth kept walking, a new idea taking shape in his mind. He had to ask several servants before he found out where the Captain-General was.
“Harry, did something happen?” asked Boromir, saying his farewell to his companions as soon as he saw him close.
The wizard shook his head carefully and returned his kiss shyly when the Man leaned down.
“No, Boromir, nothing at all.”
The warrior nodded, relieved, and looked at him inquisitively.
“I was thinking of going for a ride.”
Boromir blinked a couple times before smiling.
“Do you want me to keep you company?”
“Only if you have the time.”
“I will always have time for you, my love.” Answered the man caressing his cheek. “Arborn, Tolan, you may leave; I will stay with Harry the rest of the day.”
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Harry closed his eyes an instant to enjoy the warn rays of sun and the wind in his face. At his side, Boromir watched him from upon his horse with a small smile.
“Boromir?”
“Yes, my angel?”
The wizard blushed slightly, still not used to the sweet terms the man referred to him with.
“Do you think Faramir will be alright?”
“I’m sure he will be.”
Harry nodded weakly before sighing and removing those thoughts from his mind. They had gone out to enjoy the day and, in his case, to help Boromir feel better.
“I know these last few days I’ve been in a bad mood.” Started Boromir much to his surprise. “I’m sorry, I may have been neglecting you.”
“Not at all, Boromir. I understand these last few days have been… difficult.” Said Harry before sighing and choosing to be honest. “You’ve had an argument with your father. It was because of me, right?”
Boromir hesitated and that was all the answer he needed.
“It’s not your fault. My father is…”
“…difficult?” suggested diplomatically the green-eyed youth.
“…perturbed.” Affirmed the man.
A short silence settled between them.
“I’m sorry.” Muttered Harry then.
“Why?” asked Boromir, surprised.
“For causing trouble between your father and you.”
“Do not apologise for that. Not only it’s not your fault, it would’ve happened sooner or later. His sanity vanishes and with it the bond we shared.”
“Still, I am sorry. I know what it’s like to lose your family and I know it’s not easy, no matter the reason.”
Boromir watched him.
“Did you lose your family in the war?” he asked delicately.
“Yes, my parents. I was just a year and a half old when our house was attacked. They died protecting me.”
“I’m sorry.” Said Boromir. “I lost my mother when I was ten years old, but at least I have her memory. Faramir, however, barely remembers her.”
“I’m glad you had each other.”
Boromir smiled at his beloved.
“Yes, we were fortunate in that sense. Father was never the same after our mother’s death, so I sometimes feel that we lost them both that day.”
Harry sighed and Boromir looked at him inquisitively.
“It was not my intention to bring up such heavy topics when I proposed going for a ride.”
“And what was your intention, then?”
“Distracting you from your problems.” Explained Harry. “I wanted you to have a chance to rid your mind of all that darkens it lately.”
“Then let’s leave such topics and let’s enjoy the company. Your light is enough to rid me of all thought.” Said Boromir, getting one of those blushes that he so loved. “Come, follow me, there’s a place I wish to show you.”
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The news that Osgiliath was being attacked surprised them in the middle of the night. At sunrise, the battle had ended and the soldiers, defeated, returned to Minas Tirith.
As soon as Faramir’s company reached the courtyard, Harry shot himself towards the tall and familiar figure of the gondorian. Faramir barely stumbled when their bodies collided and a pair of thin arms surrounded his neck.
“I’m so glad you’re back.” Muttered the youth. “I was very worried.”
Pulling away, Harry observed him, frowning upon seeing the blood on the weakest points of his armor, though none of the wounds seemed too serious.
Boromir, who’d followed at a more sedate pace, was the next to hug his brother, but he said nothing.
“They attacked from the water, from the only point we did not expect them to and we could not completely cover.” Informed Faramir. “A group came out of the water and before we knew it had dispatched the patrolling garrison. When we realized what was happening, boats full of orcs were arriving. Most of the men were not even ready, I had to order a retreat to avoid a massacre.”
“You did well, brother. Losing a ruined city is better than losing an army.”
“Yes, but will father think the same?”
The brothers exchanged a look charged with meaning. Of course not. Denethor would not think the same.
“My lord Faramir,” intervened then the servant who’d been waiting next to Boromir and Harry. “your father demands your presence in the throne room.”
“Relay to him that I’m on my way.” Nodded Faramir.
The servant nodded, bowed and left. But Harry couldn’t help protesting.
“You’re wounded. We should treat your wounds first, Faramir.”
“My father will only see it as further offense, Harry. It’s better if I go now. There will be time to heal my wounds later; anyway, none of them are serious.”
“But…” Boromir placed a hand on the wizard’s shoulder and shook his head. Harry bit into his lower lip. “Alright. But later you will allow me to use my gifts to heal you.”
Faramir nodded and, without further delay, the three of them walked to the throne room, where Harry stopped at the doors to wait for them. Even so, he could hear Denethor’s screams.
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At the end of the day, the gondorians got ready for battle again. At sunrise, the army would leave to retake Osgiliath under Faramir’s and Boromir’s command.
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That night, Harry could not rest, assaulted by nightmares where Faramir and Boromir died and strange dreams where rings whispered and a shadow grew. Not even Boromir’s presence at his side, caressing his hair to help him sleep after a nightmare, managed to rid him of his fear.