Pairing: Aragorn / Arwen.

Disclaimer: I'm not Tolkien. I don't own these characters. (darn!) I make no money. Done for fun.

Additional Info: Movie-verse.

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It was not often that the beautiful Evenstar cried. The last time had been three years ago, at the birth of her beautiful, and long-awaited infant son. But as the rain pelted the White City, cracking as it struck the smooth stone, the Queen could not stop the tears from trailing thin paths down her cheeks.

"My Lady?" Eldarion's nursemaid stepped into the nursery and peered curiously at the Queen.

Arwen didn't answer. Didn't even bother to turn, as she watched the rain continue to fall onto the balcony overlooking the royal garden. Even the fresh, blooming flowers did little to comfort the distraught Queen.

Eldarion squirmed in the nursemaid's arms upon seeing his mother, chubby arms reaching toward her and bright gray eyes widening.

Arwen turned at the sound of his coo and smiled slowly, eyes brightening when they fell on her energetic son.

"Thank you. I'll take him now." Arwen rose and stretched out her arms, into which her son nearly leapt in his excitement.

"My Lady, do you want me to fetch the King?"

A chuckle bubbled from her lips at the thought of her husband seeing her in such a condition. The one and only time she had ever discovered her Estel truly speechless was when he saw her tears.

"No. I am well." Arwen resumed her seat and sat Eldarion in her lap, returning her gaze to the falling rain. "You need not bother him."

"Yes, My Lady." The young woman curtsied quickly and pulled the door shut, leaving the elven mother alone with her son.

Arwen smiled down at the boy as he tugged at strands of her hair. She brushed slim fingers through his own dark, unruly locks, mussing how he looked so very much like his father. Save for the delicately pointed tips to his ears, Eldarion looked nothing like her. She smiled slightly, reminiscing about her ongoing argument with Aragorn on this very subject.

When the babe's eyes glanced longingly up at his mother, Arwen enfolded him in a tight, motherly embrace, forcing back the sobs that threatened to burst through her chest.

"Oh, my little one." Arwen whispered, breathing in the soft baby scent of her son while staring into the dark, rain-filled sky. "How I love you so very much." The stars were absent, their bright twinkle obscured by the dark clouds bearing rain down on the City. "I wish you could have known them." Arwen whispered. Her breath tickled his ear and he gurgled, twisting to remove the sensation from his sensitive skin. He grabbed another fist-full of her hair, pushed it into his mouth and looked up at her with a wide, innocent smile.

Arwen dropped her head and brushed his nose with her own, chuckling when the touch elicited a giggle from his lips. She pressed a kiss to his soft, round cheek and bounced him up and down on her legs. "You'll be a heart breaker when you grow up." Arwen's mind wandered before adding, "Just like your father."

"I've done no such thing," Aragorn smiled from where he had been silently watching the exchange between mother and son. "And he does not look just like me. He has your ears, and your beautiful, soft, porcelain skin."

As he walked toward his wife and son, Arwen quickly wiped at her eyes, not wanting him to see that she had been crying.

"He has a baby's skin, Estel. It will not last. He is every bit your son.  Only a blind man could not see it." Arwen forced a teasing smile in an effort to distract her husband enough that he would not see what remained of her tears.

Aragorn's eyes narrowed. He knew his wife too well. And he knew when she was hiding something. "What's wrong, melnya?" He knelt beside the chair and rested a gentle hand on her shoulder.

Eldarion, noticing his father approach, squirmed in his mother's arms, struggling to get his father's attention.

Aragorn smiled lovingly at his son and pulled the boy into his arms. He resumed bouncing the child on his knee as he watched his wife's face carefully for a reaction to his question.

"Nothing, Estel." Arwen forced a small smile before looking up at her husband. "It's nothing."

He reached out his free hand and trailed a finger down the wet lines of her cheek. "This does not look like nothing."

He waited patiently for her to speak and when she did not, he asked again. "Please tell me."

"I love you." She whispered and closed her eyes tightly so he would not see the tears welling within the clear depths.

Aragorn pressed a kiss to Eldarion's forehead and carried him over to the elven crib that sat in the middle of the nursery. Without a peep at being released from his father's arms, the child was immediately enraptured by the toys surrounding him and he completely forgot about his father. Aragorn returned to his wife and, this time, knelt in front of her and took her hands in his own.

"As I love you." His voice was soft and tender as he searched his wife's face. Her eyes remained closed but he could see the wet tears escaping from beneath the closed eyelids. "With all of my heart and soul. Arwen, please tell me what is troubling you." He knew she had gone through a terrible depression just after she had birthed their son and Aragorn feared she was slipping back into such a state.

"You were summoned?" Arwen asked, evading his question. "It is early still for you to be back from Council."

Aragorn frowned. She was deliberately avoiding his question, which caused even more concern to well in his heart.

"I thought to come home and spend some time with my wife and son." Aragorn lied. Of course the nursemaid had summoned him out of concern for the Queen, but he was not about to tell his wife at this moment.

"You are a pitiful liar, Estel." Arwen murmured, finally opening her eyes and letting the tears spill over her pale cheeks.

"Please tell me." He pleaded, eyes searching her face for an answer. "I will do whatever it is you need, if it is within my power." He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed each one. " I would move the City itself for you, my love. Will you not tell me?"

"There is nothing you can do." She said simply and glanced out at the falling rain.

Aragorn breathed deeply, certain now what distressed his beautiful wife, what made her cry alone in the dark with no one to quell the constant longing in the back of her mind. There were few things he could not give her. But this was one. And he felt deeply the guilt that was his alone for robbing her of the sweet land of her ancestors.

The Sea called to his wife and she could no longer ignore its cry.

The King lowered his eyes and swallowed deeply wishing he could find the words to comfort his wife.

Arwen noted the fallen look on her husband's face and tugged her fingers out of his hand. She cupped his whiskered cheek in the palm of her hand and returned his concerned look. "Oh Estel. I do not regret my choice! Not for a moment." Her voice trembled as she spoke, thick with emotion. "If not for love, I would not have you. I would not have our son." She smiled ruefully. "What is a lifetime if you have no one to spend it with?"

"I'm sorry." Aragorn said slowly, lowering his head. It hurt him to see his wife in so much pain. The times they shared and the love and joy in their lives could not erase the memory of what she had utterly given up for him. Sometimes he hated himself for falling in love with her.

Arwen could see regret flash in his eyes before he was able to mask it, and she slid to the edge of the plush chair and cupped his cheeks in her own hands. When she pressed her lips against his, there was a moment's hesitation before he returned her kiss. They clung to one another out of some needless fear and desperation, until Arwen pulled away and stared with deep love and adoration into her husband's eyes.

"The longing is buried deep within every elf and there are days when it screams so loudly I cannot ignore its call."

"I wish I could sate that longing, Arwen." His voice was low, sad, as he glanced up and met her gaze. "I would not have you in such despair. It hurts my heart to see you like this."

Arwen sobbed and smiled lovingly at her sensitive husband. "You cannot fix everything, my love. You cannot heal every hurt, every pain."

"I can try." Aragorn stood with a wry smile and drew Arwen to her feet. "Come, there is something we must do."

Arwen blinked in confusion and wiped at her tear-stained cheeks. "Where are we going?"

"To the White Tower. I have something I want to show you. Something I should have revealed long ago." Aragorn reached into the crib and removed Eldarion, who squealed loudly at being parted from his many toys.

Arwen bent over the rail and scooped up a handful of Eldarion's favorite playthings and followed after her husband, confusion etched into her smooth, ageless features.