faemused | Open To Anyone For Anything RP Post

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From:

theywhowait

He echoes the smile, for he has begun to daydream of the same, but as she sobers, so also does he.

"I think you will do well." He says slowly. "And what you do not know, we will learn together. I have no memories of my mother either, as you know, and I do not wish to be a father as my father became. We will both be fumbling in the dark, I think!"

From:

withoutswords

The thought has impact, it seems; she had not yet remembered that he too had a parent he would not wish to emulate. "Husbands and wives have managed it since time began." She reaches up to stroke his hair. "We will manage, no doubt. But it is strange not to know how to begin."

From:

theywhowait

"It is." He leans into her hand.

"I wish there were more that we could learn from, but it is not as if folk have written of their experiences! I suppose we could ask around and see if any of our people have advice?"

From:

withoutswords

She laughs a little. "I do not doubt we will have advice pressed upon us from all directions, whether we wish it or not." As had been her experience during their betrothal, in the days leading up to her wedding night...to say nothing of advice given to her about how to quicken a child's conception, none of which she had followed.

She laughs again, more fully, as another thought occurs to her. "Bema, I wish I could be there to witness Eomer's reaction when he hears."

From:

theywhowait

"True! But hopefully some of it will be actually useful?"

He smiles, laughing with her.

"Are you going to wait to surprise him with the news, or write?"

From:

withoutswords

"It could hardly be less so!" She laughs and leans her head back to kiss him a little. They had hardly needed advice (much less encouragement) on their wedding night. And the advice about how to conceive a child had been an endless run of folklore and superstition, which Eowyn had early on decided to accept graciously and then ignore. It would have taken her a year to try every suggestion, if she'd attempted them.

"I hardly know." She places a hand on her abdomen, wishing she could feel some evidence of the life growing there. "Wait a little, at least. It is not uncommon to miscarry before three months are passed. I should be at least that cautious." Even as she says it, she has an inkling of how devastating such an event would be, and swiftly moves on.

"But we are not to see him again for almost half a year. I do not think I can wait that long!" She curses suddenly. "Bema, by that point I will barely be able to move, I will be so round. We may have to alter our plans. A number of our plans. How strange, to reorganize our lives around something we cannot yet see!"

From:

theywhowait

"Ah, good point." He grimaces.

"Odd indeed! Although not all I think. We will see what comes and adjust accordingly. As you say, we will wait for a while. Did you want to give birth here or there did you know?"

From:

withoutswords

"Here." It is said firmly, with no doubt or hesitation whatsoever, even with some surprise. "This is our home, and I would have our child born nowhere else. Or in the Houses of Healing at Minas Tirith, at the least, should it come to pass while we are there."

It had not even occurred to her to pilgrimage back to Edoras for the childbirth, but she does not wish it. They are however often in Minas Tirith, for Faramir still has duties as Gondor's Steward and the king's counsellor, and Eowyn often accompanies him.

"Though there are a few traditions of my homeland I will wish to include, for the babe will be half of Rohan even if he is to be a prince of Ithilian thereafter." She considers, musing. "In the royal household we make sure a babe's first food is mare's milk, for example. I do not know if there are other traditions in Gondor."

From:

theywhowait

Faramir kisses her fondly for her determination. "I too, would prefer the babe to be born here. We will have to do our best to see it done!"

He considers that thoughtfully.

"We may have a problem there, as none of our mares are in foal, yet. Hopefully some will be obliging! And we have no great traditions saving only that it is tradition, as it was for the Noldor of old, that the first name the child has is from the father, and then the mothername will come after, as she sees fit, although it has fallen out of fashion, these days, and few hold to that any longer. Some still refuse to name the child until after the first sennight, however, beliving it unlucky.

From:

withoutswords

"Ensuring the babe is born here is easy enough," she says ruefully. "All I must do is refuse to travel anywhere else from my ninth month onwards, or perhaps a little earlier, and then he will have no choice!"

She turns her head and kisses him. It is a point on which they are agreed, on which their hopes had been well-founded and proven true: for all that she loves Edoras and he loves Minas Tirith, both are happiest when in Ithilien, in the home they've made.

"So you will get to name the child, despite my doing all the hard labour?" she teases. "That hardly seems fair."

From:

theywhowait

"We will have to do our travelling early, then!"

Faramir kisses her back fondly.

"I thought so! Father did not abide for that - mother named us both, although I do believe he had some say in the matter. But I think for the elves it comes down to the mothername have some prophetic impetus. I would prefer it if we could name the child together, myself."

From:

withoutswords

"We must plan sooner rather than later, then," Eowyn says dryly. "Rides across the Eastfold are not done lightly or without preparation, even during midsummer." The weather, at least, is in their favor. Their child will be born after the harvest, if all goes well. "And alas, we are not free to merely saddle our horses and ride off at a moment's notice, much as I would like to."

She considers Gondorian names. "I too would prefer a name we both choose," she agrees. "Not something out of the past, as you and your brother were named. Something more personal."

From:

theywhowait

"True." He smiles, hugging her. "And we should try and get out while it is still comfortable for you, I think. I suppose we should plan early."

He nods. "Hm. Well, I suppose we could pick a name for both a boy and one for a girl - not that we need to decide yet."

From:

withoutswords

She leans back into the embrace, contentedly using him as a pillow, his breath stirring her hair. "Perhaps in...two months, or one if we can manage it. Could Aragorn spare you?" She still calls their king by the name she first knew him by, when they are in private, for they are on friendly terms with their liege-lord and his lady. "If we can go that soon, it would be fun to surprise my brother and see his reaction to our news in person. If we can keep him from becoming suspicious at why we have moved up the time of our journey by so much."

She could go alone (well, not alone, but without Faramir, which would feel much more alone), and has done once...but would much prefer not to.

From:

theywhowait

Faramir considers this, breathing in the scent of her, hands idly rubbing circles on hers.

"I think so. There is nothing urgent coming up that I can think of, and there are no new ambassadors due."

He chuckles. "Eomer will wonder if you're homesick, to suddenly show up so early."

From:

withoutswords

"Mm. That feels nice." She is distracted briefly by his fingers gently rubbing the backs of her hands, which relax in his grip. Almost she could purr like a cat. "If we time it well we might bring him back with us for the Midsummer council in Minas Tirith, and combine business with pleasure." Rohan's king is not required to attend the great meetings of Gondor's nobility, but is invited all the same, as Gondor's closest ally and Aragorn's personal friend. "Lothiriel has had little chance to see her family since their wedding, and would no doubt welcome the idea. Really, even without this other inducement it seems a sound plan. I will have to write him tomorrow and suggest it. And if he blames it on homesickness, well, that will do no harm."

From:

theywhowait

"Ah, that is a good point! More efficient, too. And I think Eomer would enjoy the festivities. Although he might twitch when he finds out what Lothiriel likes doing during them!"

From:

withoutswords

"I'm sure he'd enjoy the festivities. I'm less sure he'll enjoy the work accompanies them." Her tone is wry and amused. Midsummer is a festival, yes, but for the powers of the land it's also a time to get together for various negotiations.

That last is far too intriguing to overlook, and she turns her head to try and see his face. "Why? What does she do?"

From:

theywhowait

Faramir laughs.

"Sadly, the province of kings is to never stop working. But I will make sure to drop an ear to our Haradri friends to bring some of that fortified spirit of theirs he likes so well."

He grins.

"She likes the games. She's very good at some of them, in fact. Has won awards, on several occasions. Specifically, staff fighting. Not that he'll mind that, I'm sure! But she also has a habit of sneaking out, disguising herself, and doing the fire-juggling. She's very good. But Uncle Imrahil still doesn't know she won it last year."

From:

withoutswords

A quirk of a smile touches her mouth. "That is true, and I am most glad that you are not a king."

She kisses him at that, for the memory of the day he proposed to her, but has to stop before long, partly because of the uncomfortable angle and partly because she begins laughing. "And that would be most kind--as much to me as to my brother, because if I have to hear him complain overmuch about how watery Gondorian wine is compared to our mead and ale, I may break a few bottles over his head!"

Not that she disagrees, but Eomer has been known to belabor the point, if only in private.

She laughs again at this image of Lothiriel. "Oh, I like this idea! I wonder if she will let me accompany her? I should like to see her juggling fire." Her mouth quirks again. "I should like to see my brother's face, if he should find her out."

From:

theywhowait

"As am I!" He says fervently, and grins, pleased to have made her laugh.

"It cannot be helped, and it will flatter them greatly, which will make things easier all around!"

"I am sure she will greatly enjoy it - you know she looks up to you! It will please her to be able to demonstrate her skill, I am sure."

He laughs. "I suppose I should try and endeavour to encourage you to behave, at this point, but I do rather wish the same myself!"

From:

withoutswords

She blushes just a little to hear her sister-in-law looks up to her, for it is a strange thought, just as it is still a strange thought to know she has a sister at all. Though she could not ask for a better than Lothiriel, whose easily delighted and slightly impudent nature charms her.

Though not as much as it charmed her brother, who adores his young wife. It is good to be able to tease him as much for doting as he once did her, when she and Faramir were first courting. She could not see him more happily wed, and that is always a great joy to her, for Eomer is dear to her above all people save only her own husband, and even then it is a near thing. That his wife is Faramir's own cousin is the cream of the jest.

She laughs again, marvelling at her own contentment. "Perhaps we might tempt you to try it?" she teases. "You are trained in stealth! Surely you could slip away with us for a night and walk unknown in the crowds."

In actuality it is she who would have the most difficulty being anonymous in Gondor, given her long, bright hair. She may need to hide it under a cap, as she did as Dernhelm...and would that not shock Gondor, if she wandered around Minas Tirith disguised as a boy? But Lothiriel would think it a grand scheme.

From:

theywhowait

Faramir chuckles, shaking his head.

"Walk unmarked? Aye, I probably could. Fire-juggling? That, I will leave to the experts! But you would have to hide that lovely hair of yours, my wife, if you plan to pass unnoticed!"

Lothiriel is slight and flexible, and passes easily as someone much younger - or a boy, in fact, when she wishes to, although no longer as easily as she has grown and developed. But she's also been fire juggling since before the war, and knows it well.

From:

withoutswords

She reaches up to brush her hair away from her face. She still prefers to wear it long and loose, rather than binding it up always as a Gondorian lady would, though she will certainly tie it out of her way when needed, and can arrange it as skillfully as any. The fact that Faramir loves to stroke her hair is but an extra inducement.

"I have bound it up before, and walked dressed as man with none knowing," she points out, then laughs ruefully. "But disguise my hair as I may, there will be no disguising the babe I carry by that point, so I must abandon that option. A shame; I would have enjoyed that, a little. Though I too will be content to leave the fire juggling to your expert cousin, and merely applaud her skill."

From:

theywhowait

"That much is true." Faramir smiles and does reach out to do exactly that.

"I suppose we could put you in a cloak, but that would only tell everyone that you were trying to hide! But I think we can certainly enjoy the performace."