A Face in the Crowd: Faramir

Chapter One - The Siege of Minas Tirith

Beyond the gate his path lay clear ahead of him, straight across the fields, towards the river and Osgiliath. Far beyond that ruined place the mountains of shadow rose on the very edge of the horizon. He shuddered, realising that he would be riding over the green fields of the Pelennor for the last time, carrion for crows likely to be his fate, along with all those that followed him - followed him willingly, he knew.

They surrounded him now, trying their best not to appear afraid, mouths set in grim lines. He  spoke softly to those riding closest to him, his friends.

"Look upon our city, and these fields," he said quietly to them. "Hold them in your mind, until the end - whatever that end may be. Remember what we are fighting for. Perhaps, somewhere, there is hope."

At that moment a flash of colour off to the left stopped him in his tracks.

He brought Celtir to a halt, held there by a rich shade of green shining amongst the drab greys and blues of the crowd, and became filled with the very thing he doubted. The colour of cool grass and fresh leaves, of new life in this broken city, made him remember what it was to have hope.

He was about to look away, taking the feeling with him, when he realised the wondrous colour was the silk fabric of a simple yet finely made gown, and he had been staring rather too hard at a young woman's body. Tearing his eyes away, meaning to look to the fields, he looked instead at the girl's face.

Afterwards, for his entire life, he could never say why he looked at her then, and he always said that perhaps things would have been very different if he had not. But, unaware that he was doing so, he had smiled at her.

He put her as younger than himself by more than a decade. She was small, with long, brown hair and a solemn face. At first sight she appeared frail, but meeting her eyes - large, and a deep dark brown - he knew that was not the case.

She was crying, for him as a man, rather than for the noble and distant son of her steward. He did not know how he knew.

She looked relieved that he had caught her eye. A tiny smile, as if in recognition, raised the corners of her mouth very slightly, although he was certain that he had never seen her before in his life. Tears ran silently down her face, but she made no move to wipe them away, holding his gaze with her own, steady and gentle. He was conscious that he was still, unmoving, and that his company had halted behind him, no doubt wondering what the delay was. And yet he found that he could not look away.

She mouthed something he did not catch. He looked at her questioningly, but she shook her head slightly and looked down.

The spell was broken, and he looked away, clicking to Celtir to walk on. The sound of hoof beats as the company moved off again was almost deafening after the silence.

He did not know who she was, but he suddenly felt an overwhelming sadness at the thought that he would never see her again. Despite her tears, hope seemed to spring from her, and he knew it would be her face he saw as he rode into battle.

He looked back over his shoulder, wanting another glimpse of her, half expecting her to be gone, vanished away into the air like the dream she had seemed to be. But no, she was still standing there, although a little obscured now by the people closer to him. She was still looking down, and seemed to be weeping silently in earnest now, her shoulders slightly bowed, her lips shut tight in a grimace of pain. He did not understand why she was crying just for his sake, but it grieved him, and he wanted to comfort her. He thought about turning back, but knew he could not. Instead he willed her, with all his might, to look up, to look at him.

Ignoring his second in command calling his name, he remained looking backwards as he passed through the great wooden doors of the gate, through the thick walls of the city. He didn't care that all the crowd were watching him and the girl with wide eyes and murmurs, didn't care that there would be gossip. Soon she would be out of sight, and he would be alone again.