Disclaimer: The Lord of the Rings, all characters, places, and related terms are the sole property of J.R.R. Tolkien's estate, and New Line Cinema.
Why a Child Watches
Éowyn cups her chin in her hands and sighs. Her eyes search the plains before Edoras, but her eyes can see nothing except the tall grass swaying in the wind. Still no sign of him.
"My Lady –"
"No, thank you, Iris," Éowyn does not allow her nurse to finish. "I shall stay here and keep watch."
The old woman sighs. "Please, my Lady Éowyn, we will be told when Lord Thorongil arrives. Sitting here watching will only make the waiting pass more slowly and be harder to endure. Come, you have not eaten since this morning. Let us go to the kitchens and get something for you. And then perhaps we can go for a walk in the garden," she suggests hopefully.
"I will stay right here," the girl replies. She turns her face to Iris and with a sweet smile produces an apple from her pocket. "I shall not go hungry. But I do not have another apple to share with you," she adds apologetically.
The woman is unable to hold back a chuckle and shakes her head in amusement. She watches her charge return her attention to the view outside the window and begin eating the apple. "Suppose he does not come today?" she wonders out loud.
"Then I shall watch for him tomorrow," the child answers promptly. "He said he would visit me around my birthday, not precisely on my birthday."
Iris shakes her head again, amazed by the child's determination not to give up hope. As she takes up her sewing again, she muses over the unusual friendship the Lady Éowyn and Lord Thorongil share. The child is one who does not take to strangers easily, but something is different about Lord Thorongil. He has a connection with the girl, and they bask in the other's presence. The image of the Lord Thorongil Iris had carried with her over the years was of a grim man who could be quiet, yet give wise counsel when the need came, and who was loyal. A man of secrets, for at times the woman had seen his eyes shimmer with sadness, his shoulders sometimes slump as though he carried many cares. She had never witnessed him smile or laugh.
But then she discovered he could laugh, smile, and have a twinkle in his eyes when he first met Lady Éowyn. She had been astonished that he caught Éowyn's interest and that she had connected with him in such way as to cause his face to light up with happiness. And the bond between the two has only kept growing. It has not ceased to amaze Iris.
Éowyn shakes her head and opens her eyes wide, refusing to give in to the drowsiness that is slowly creeping over her. But her head nods, and her eyes slowly start to shut. Deciding get in a more comfortable position, she places her head on her arms on the windowsill and searches the plains a final time before her eyes close against her will.
Slowly opening her eyes, Éowyn jerks her head up in surprise as she sees the afternoon is waning. She must have fallen asleep! Straining her eyes in the coming dusk, she desperately looks over the plains before Edoras. But she can see nothing. Starting to feel disappointment, her gaze wanders over the city, coming to rest on the stairs leading up to the Golden Hall far below her. A figure climbs the stairs and is issued inside.
The child jumps up and races from the window to the door. "Iris!" she exclaims joyfully, rudely awaking her napping nurse. "He is here!"
The girl does not pay any attention her nurse's pleas to wait for her but runs through the halls to the Golden Hall. At last she enters the hall and leans against a pillar to catch her breath. Looking about with sparkling eyes, she discovers the hall to be almost empty, except for three men standing near the fire; she sees her father's and uncle's faces while the third man's back is to her. She grins.
"Thorongil!"
The men turn towards her. Éomund and Théoden smile, and Thorongil's face lights up as he kneels down and opens his arms. Éowyn runs into them and squeals when they tumble to the ground. She laughs when Aragorn lifts her up in his arms.
"My, what a welcome!" Thorongil chuckles, looking up at the child he holds. "It is great to see you again…Éomer."
"That is my brother!" Éowyn laughs.
Thorongil's eyes widen, and he can barely conceal his amusement. "You cannot be little Éowyn!"
Giggling, she nods.
"My, but you have grown! You must be as big as your brother and cousin," he teases, settling her on her feet and sitting up.
"Not yet, but I will be! I have just turned seven," Éowyn informs the man proudly.
"Seven!" Thorongil exclaims and looks up at Éomund and Théoden, who have watched the whole exchange with amusement. "She is growing up much too fast," he says, shaking his head.
Éowyn hugs him a second time. "You came! Just as you promised," she says, stepping back. "I knew you would."
"And I have a present for you," Thorongil murmurs, searching his pockets.
Éowyn's eyes light up, and she watches with excitement and interest as he brings a handkerchief from his pocket. On opening it, he reveals nestled inside a gold necklace, a precedent of a flower on a chain with a tiny jewel in its center. The child for a moment looks at it in wonder before bestowing a smile on Thorongil. She holds up her hair and turns around, allowing him to place the necklace around her neck. She touches her gift gently before turning around and sees the pleased expressions on the men's faces.
"Thank you for your present," she says, dropping a lovely little curtsy to Thorongil, who has gotten to his feet. "I shall always treasure it."
"I am glad, little Éowyn," Thorongil says, returning her smile.
"You will have to visit every year around my birthday!" the child hopes.
"Perhaps, perhaps I will," the man chuckles with a smile.
But it was not to be.
Several months after his visit to Edoras, Aragorn was called on by Gandalf to help track down the creature Gollum and had the guard on the Shire doubled at the wizard's urging. He was grieved by the news of Éomund's passing; and his mind turned to the daughter Éomund left behind. But as the years passed, he forgot about those rare happy times he spent in Edoras.
He found the miserable creature Gollum after seven years of searching and gave him over to the elves of Mirkwood. Then two years later he at last met up with the hobbits Frodo, Merry, Pippin, and Sam in Bree, and they made for Rivendell. The Council of Elrond came together and decided what would be done regarding the Ring. He left with the Company of the Ring. The Fellowship was broken with the loss of Gandalf and Boramir, Frodo and Sam's leaving, and Merry and Pippin's capture.
It was only after meeting up with Gandalf again and they drew up before Edoras with Legolas and Gimli that he recalled the time he had been here years ago. But it was when he reached out to stop a lady from rushing to the king, when his gaze fell on a familiar necklace, and when he gazed into a pale face, that a wave of memories washed over him. He barely paid attention to the scene before him but, instead, was very aware that he held little Éowyn to him: no longer a child, but a beautiful young woman. Yet he was troubled, for there was no trace of the happiness or joy which had radiated from her before. Her face was stern and cold, and her eyes swam with sorrow and suffering. Aragorn felt a painful ache in his chest as he wondered how she had fallen into such darkness. What had happened to her as her uncle and Edoras had fallen under the influence of Grima and his master, Saruman? What had happened to the child he remembered so long ago?
THE END
A/N: According to the timeline in appendix B, Gandalf called on Aragorn for help soon after Bilbo's farewell party in 3001. But for the sake of the story, I pushed that event to the following year, 3002.