Thank you to all who have reviewed, and special thanks to those who review so frequently.

Inspired by a fic by Silivren Tinu, and brought to life by the film The Secret Garden. The overgrown garden is her idea; whose garden is of my own creation. She too put Arwen in it, though I have my own spin on what happened there.

Prompt 42: Peace
Ficlet: The Secret Garden
Rating: G
The Citadel, July 3019

She had only been in Minas Tirith for a week, but Arwen already knew that her favorite part of the Citadel were the gardens. Between the King's House and the Tower of Ecthelion grew her favorite gardens; they were the private grounds of the Steward's family, and now they were her own. Enclosed by walls of stone, she could wander around the flora without disturbance from others.

Despite the fact that the grounds had been little trod within the last decades, the gardeners that were employed by the Citadel had kept them, even in the hard times of war; there were few dead brambles, and the paths were well-kept and clean. Nonetheless, the gardeners were few and the gardens large, so they worked harder on those outside of the King's House than in the ones where so few went. Arwen assumed that with the King's coming it would soon change, but for now she noticed that the deeper she went, the less prim the flora became. For now she enjoyed the nature growing wild as it would.

After wandering for an uncounted amount of time, she stumbled upon an enclosed part of the garden. A wall was around the area, and the only entrance to it was a wooden door. She was startled to see that the door was open; during her last time there she had found the door locked. Peering beyond it, Arwen was surprised by who she saw.

"Lord Faramir," she said, more out of wonder than in greeting.

Faramir was sitting on a bench in the enclosed garden. The garden itself was wild and overgrown, with bramble and brush covering the pathway, and weeds overtaking the flowers that grew there. A large tree shaded the area from the hot sun. He seemed to be deep in thought, though immediately came out of it at the elf's statement. "My Lady Queen," he said, standing up and bowing.

Arwen smiled and bade him to sit. "I am hope I am not disturbing you, my lord."

"Not at all, my lady," he replied.

She nodded, and looked around at the garden in wonder. "When I came here last, the door was locked. Do you have the key, then?"

He nodded. "This garden was my mother's garden; she tended to it herself. After her death, my father locked it, and I have just recently found the key. I still have memories of her working in here."

The elleth glanced at the weeds that were overtaking the other plant life that grew in the area, and gently untangled a bud from an ensnaring vine. "This garden has been overlooked for quite some time, but I would see it blossom again. If you would permit me, Lord Faramir, I would make this place my own project, and would take care of it personally."

"I would be honored, my lady," the man replied with a smile. "I would see this place tended once more." He stood and gave her the key with a small bow.

She smiled, but before she could say more, she heard footsteps coming from behind. Turning around, Arwen was gifted with the sight of her husband.

"Ah, here you are, my love. I was told you would be found in the gardens." Aragorn stepped inside the enclosed area, and looked at Faramir in surprise. "Lord Faramir, I did not realize you were here as well."

"I was just about to leave, my Lord King," Faramir said with a slight bow. "If you have need of me, I shall be in my office, sire." With another bow, he left the royal couple alone.

"Finduilas' garden," Aragorn thought aloud, "I never imagined I would see it again."

"You knew of this place?" Arwen asked.

"Aye; I sat with her here a couple of times when she needed solace." Aragorn gently brushed a few leaves from the bench. "She was young, and while she loved Denethor, she missed her home greatly. This garden was one of her comforts."

"May it be a comfort to her to see it grow again," Arwen whispered.