Grima and the Lord of the Rings 'Verse are (C) J.R.R. Tolkien.
Grima had never been particularly fond of having to do his dirty work himself. Oh, sure, he could blackmail and bribe and frame anyone he liked without any particular trouble, but murder...
Ah, well. He supposed there was nothing for it.
Grima silently pushed open the door to the chamber where Theodred lay half-dead and, for the moment, unguarded, Luring Eowyn away had proved to be slightly more difficult than he had anticipated, but the news of her brother's banishment from the kingdom had drawn her away long enough for Grima to accomplish what he needed to. SLipping quietly over to the side of Theodred's bed, he carefully slid one overly-stuffed pillow from under the fallen soldier's arm and shifted it carefully between his own two hands.
Saruman had a testy way of going about his business. He rarely explained anything as far as the 'what for' components of his orders, but Grima felt complied to oblige any orders he received, unless he fancied finding himself at the receiving end of either Saruman or Sauron's ill favor.
It was a shame, really, Grima thought, as he carefully tucked a loose, sweaty strand of hair away from Theodred's face and around one ear. The prince really had been a rather promising candidate for King. Things might have actually gone better for the people - he would have been far less likely to fall under the sway of, say, a conniving snake in the guise of advisor. Then again, that really was part of the trouble, now, wasn't it? People like that just tended to get in the way, always thinking for themselves.
With a shrug, Grima steadied his strength and pressed the pillow flat over Theodred's face.
This has been kind of floating around in my head for a while.. I always thought that maybe Grima had actually gone in and smothered Theodred, knowing there was a chance that the prince might recover and survive to take over the Kingdom. Anyway, hope you, erm.. enjoyed. Reviews appreciated.