A/N: This was typed up very quickly, on the spur of the moment...sorta. It probably isn't one of my best but I simply don't care enough to make it better. So it will stay as is. But I still figured I would post it for you to possibly hold you over a little longer for Second Chance. We haven't forgotten our ASCAL readers.

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Gondor Will See It Done

"You carry the fate of us all, Little One. If this is indeed the will of the council, then Gondor will see it done." - Boromir to Frodo, FOTR

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Minas Tirith

Frodo carefully made his way through the crowd inside the Merethrond, intending to step outside for some fresh air. He wouldn't be missed; the celebration was for Gondor's new king and queen's marriage after all. One small hobbit stepping out for a moment wouldn't cause a major issue. Besides, he wouldn't be gone long.

As he stepped outside he was surprised to see Faramir sitting off to the side on a bench, obviously deep in thought. For a moment Frodo hesitated, not sure if the man would accept his presence. He'd actually had very little contact with the steward since the end of the war. The last time they'd really had any form of conversation was when Faramir had sent Frodo, Sam and Gollum on their way through the old sewer in Osgiliath.

Yet, somehow, in spite of his doubts, Frodo felt himself inexplicably drawn to the man. His feet seemed to move of their own accord, bringing him closer to Faramir with each step until finally he stood right in front of him.

Faramir smiled down at the hobbit, "Is there something I can do for you, Master hobbit?"

His smile was genuine but sad, as if he was burdened by heavy thoughts, and somehow Frodo felt he knew what weighed heavily on the young steward's mind. Hoping he wasn't making a mistake he took a breath, meeting Faramir's gaze.

"He was a good man, your brother. I was not as close to him as were Merry and Pippin, but still I considered him friend. He seemed to avoid me, though...or maybe he instinctively tried to avoid the ring. It was almost as if he feared it somehow, even as he thought to take it at the council."

A small wince was Faramir's only physical reaction before he whispered, "He did fear it. He had no wish to go to Rivendell, but our father trusted none but him. He expected Boromir to bring it back...a mighty gift."

Faramir paused to sigh, "Boromir was loyal to our father. He was ordered to bring the ring to Gondor."

Frodo shook his head, "He had his mind set to helping me destroy the ring. It preyed on him the whole time the Fellowship was whole. Gandalf said none could withstand the ring forever. Even I fell to it in the end. If not for Gollum, it would never have been destroyed."

"You have a kind heart, Frodo, to so resolutely defend one who swore to protect you then broke his oath."

"No," Frodo argued, "Boromir never broke his oath to me."

"I do not understand." Faramir shook his head, "Sam said..."

"Sam is over protective." Frodo replied with a touch of humor, "He speaks before he thinks. Boromir never broke his vow to me, because he never offered me his protection."

"What do you mean?" Faramir asked.

Sighing, Frodo climbed up onto the bench beside Faramir and faced the man, "Boromir vowed to see the will of the council done. He never swore an oath to me personally. The council voted to destroy the ring and Boromir said Gondor would see it done."

"But he tried to take it from you"

Frodo nodded, but his eyes were sad, "True, the ring defeated him, but in doing so it helped Boromir keep his vow."

Faramir tilted his head, honestly confused, "How so?"

"I knew that the only way to fulfill my quest was to leave the Fellowship, but I was too afraid to do it. I would never have left them if not for..."

Frodo cut off, not wanting to finish that sentence, "I would have stayed with the Fellowship all the way, and one by one they would have fallen and it would have found it's way back to it's master."

A moment of silence stretched between them as both considered Frodo's words. A shuddery sigh escaped Faramir as the hobbit's meaning registered and he closed his eyes as a single tear slid down his cheek.

"So you see," Frodo continued, "It was Boromir's...sacrifice...that indirectly destroyed the ring. Without it, I would never have found the courage to leave the Fellowship...would never have made it to Mount Doom before we all fell to the ring. Boromir said Gondor would see it done."

The last words they spoke in unison, as if their minds were on the same wavelength.

"Gondor saw it done."

END

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Regarding the origins of this story:

Just to clear some things up and explain where this came from so suddenly. I was trying to sleep (its 2:45 AM) and this bunny hopped into my room and drove me insane until I got up and satisfied it's demands. It got me to thinking about the scene in TTT in Osgiliath when Sam says to Faramir that Boromir tried to kill Frodo after swearing an oath to protect him (which he NEVER did...either swear the oath OR try to kill Frodo). Boromir's oath at the council was NOT to Frodo. He said he would see the will of the council done (translation: he would see the ring destroyed) which he ultimately did. In fact, in keeping his vow, he indirectly gave his life. Had he not been alone after Frodo ran from him, he may have lived because the others would not have been searching for him and Frodo, so Merry and Pippin would not have been alone and wouldn't have needed to be saved. But realistically, had the whole Fellowship been together when the Uruk Hai caught up to them, the chances of them ALL being slain increased because the full strength of the enemy would have been centered in one place, not spread out as it was.

Beyond that, I truly doubt Frodo would have left the Fellowship in time if the ring hadn't defeated Boromir and it inevitably would have destroyed each member of the Fellowship one by one...as Galadriel herself said in FOTR.

So, the whole point of my little rant, here, is that Boromir never actually broke his vow. He was merely the victim of an evil even Gandalf feared. Matter of fact, even Galadriel was tempted, and had she been preyed upon by the ring as long as Boromir had been, she very well could have...and probably would have...fallen as well. Plus, going by her own words, her motives for taking the ring would have been purely selfish. Boromir's motives were to save his city and the people he had spent his life fighting for. Besides, Boromir was the ONLY other member of the Fellowship to have actually touched (or rather had in his possession) the ring besides Frodo. It's quite possible...even probable...that fact also had something to do with his eventual defeat by the ring.

Now, I don't claim to know what Tolkien was thinking when he wrote the books, but this is how I interpret the movie at least, because I do not clearly remember how things unfolded in the books. It gives a person something to think about, though.

Now, farewell all, and goodnight.