Hello there and welcome to my second chapter of my new fanfiction. This chapter was a little hard to write but I hope you enjoy it and that the characters are not to OOC. It's hard to imagine how they act because they (and especially Eoadoen) has only a few words to say in the game which is a shame.

Anyway have fun reading :)

Your FMC


Is pride stupid?

"Eaoden?"

She was astonished to see the Rohirim in front of her. She couldn't make out his eyes under his helmet mainly because the rainclouds had brought a dark shadow over the plain land of Rohan. In one hand he held his spear, a truly dangerous weapon, while the right hand held the tracks of his horse. He did not seem surprised in the least and had a small smile on his lips. It unnerved her!

"Don't tell me Berethor has sent YOU to accompany me to Minas Tirith?"

Morwen spoke the words as cold as the rain that poured down on them. She urged her horse to go pass him, but he followed and after a few seconds rode beside her. He wore a raincoat and looked dead tired. Where had he come from? She had not seen him during the last six years, which was rather strange for she had been in Edoras for so long. Had he quit his job in the Royal Guard?

"Why do I have the feeling You are not very content of the whole idea?"

The sarcasm was clearly evident in his voice and it made her angry. Why was he the one to accompany her? I mean, it would have been a whole different story if it was Elegost or Hadhod but no... It had to be the man, whom she knew the least of all.

The rain was getting heavier and even though it was only late afternoon, it looked as if it was already past midnight.

"I don't need a bodyguard. Get back to Edoras, you look horrible."

"Unfortunately, I am indebted to Berethor and I am not going to disrespect his wish. By the way, did I hear concern in Your words?"

She could hear him smirk. Gripping her reins tightly in her fists she tried to resist the urge to ride away from him and his teasing. She had wanted to brood a bit after leaving Edoras and then to enjoy her last journey. How should she be able to do that with a horseman who took pleasure in unnerving her? Also she did not quite get why he was addressing her so formally. They might not have been close friends because surely they had not much time during their journey to bond or get to know each other better, but she thought that he was a good companion, loyal, trustworthy and strong. Why was he treating her like a lady? She was still only a shield maiden of Rohan and not married yet. There was no need in calling HER a lady.

"What makes you think I am concerned about you, Rohirim?", she growled, angry because he kept following her.

He chuckled hoarsely while guiding his horse next to Enyà. The rain was now a real downpour and Eaoden looked around before directing his mount to the left.

"I see You have not changed at all during the years we did not see each other. How about we keep the talk for later? I know a place where we can stay during this heavy rain."

Even though Morwen wanted nothing more than to ride away, she felt that her horse had problems to ride down the stony hills in the rain and she wanted to avoid hurting her new mount because of her stupidity and childish behaviour. Growling frustrated because she knew he was right, she followed the Rohirim without answering him.

They did not speak for a long while. Morwen kept glaring daggers at the man who rode in front of her, which did not go unnoticed by Eaoden. But he was too tired to keep arguing with her. Instead he tried to concentrate on finding the place where they could wait until the rain passed. He knew that there was a rock shelter not too far away that could provide them protection from the heavy downpour. The only question was where was it? He would have oriented himself with the help of the position of the sun or the stars but neither was visible because of the huge rain clouds. Also he had the small feeling that something was not right. He could not put his finger on the reason but something was off.

Sighing he wanted to turn to the still fuming woman behind him, when his horse begun to snort nervously. He gripped his spear tightly and stopped his horse while listening for any signs of danger. Morwen could barely make him out in the dark and so she rode beside him with furrowed brows.

"Why did you stop? Don't tell me you are afraid of darkn….?"

Her smile died on her lips. He raised his hand in a swift movement and right in time. His spear pierced right through an orc, which had tried to kill her by jumping up to her. It died with a horrible loud scream. The horses begun to prance on the muddy ground and the riders had problems to stay in the saddles. The heavy rain hid the coming enemies and made it hard to see something let alone fight in this weather. Morwen took the reins between one hand and the other she took one axe ready to slay anything that came near them.

"That was a scout.", Eaoden growled while getting rid of the dead orc on his spear.

"A scout?"

Morwen could not believe it. Sure she had heard of some orcs that kept attacking travellers in the mountains and the forests, except the Fangorn Forest, but she would never have guessed that those creatures dared to come back on the plains of Rohan.

"What are those beasts doing here? I thought they had returned to their filthy holes."

Eaoden stayed silent for a few seconds before answering her question in a low voice.

"I don't know, maybe because of the lack of food. I recommend we get away from here."

Morwen shot him an angry glare.

"You don't expect me to flee?"

He did not have the strength to fight with the stubborn woman, so he took her reins from her and set off in a fast pace. Morwen had trouble to stay in her saddle and had to grip on the mare's mane for dear life. The rain was ice cold and every raindrop felt like a cold needle that pierced her face. She gritted her teeth and would have cursed the Rohirim if she had not heard the howl of a few wargs and their riders. A shower rolled down her spine when she thought back on her dead parents, both killed by wargs and orc-scum. Eaoden spurred his horse a little more and Morwen did the same. On the plain-lands they were easy target for wargs. It did not sit well with her to flee but to fight such a battle would be stupid and a real deathwish. The rain felt even heavier and while they rode as fast as they could, Morwen sometimes had the feeling of a foul warm breath of a warg in her neck. Closing her eyes tightly she gritted her teeth and let Eaoden take her away in the darkness.


They had been lucky. After a long ride they had reached the outpost of Snowborn. The rain had still not stopped and the ground was difficult because of the muddy soil but the wargs would not track them down because their scent was already washed away in the downpour. The horses looked as exhausted as their riders and welcomed the rest. Eaoden dismounted with a deep sigh and Morwen did the same. She felt weak in the knees after riding for such a long time and in such a fast pace. Her legs and her back hurt and she felt uncomfortable in her clothes that were dripping wet. Her armour had given little protection against the cold or the weather and she felt grateful for Eowyns simple raincoat. Without it she would have surely frozen to death on her horse. Even though she wanted nothing more than dry clothes and a good rest, she knew that their horses needed to be treated first.

Both riders stayed silent while bringing their horses in the stables attached to the small hut. They were tired and even though Morwen wanted to talk about the attack back on the plains, she did not know if it was a good idea to bring it up, after her stupid attempt to protect her pride. Sighing she took a bundle of straw to dry her horse. Enyá looked drained from the ride but Morwen could not find any injuries on her legs.

"Good girl.", she whispered while caressing the horse nose after finishing the drying and her examination.

Morwen glanced towards her old friend who looked dead tired but took his time to examine the horse legs too. Although his mount seemed as tired as the rest of them, it begun to nibble on the fake hair on his helmet, which made him smile. He turned towards her while petting the horse neck.

"Do You have an apple or something with You? I think they earned a reward after that race."

Either she hadn't noticed or hadn't cared to notice his formal salutation, Morwen grinned before rummaging in her bag. After a short search and a few curses she handed him a small apple. He nodded his thanks.

"They did really well.", she smiled while feeding Enyá her reward.

"Without them we would surely eating dinner with the ghost army tonight."

The joke did nothing to lighten her mood, as it reminded her on her stupid behaviour a few hours ago. She avoided to face him and occupied herself with wringing her hair out. The feeling of guilt rose in her chest and it made her even more uncomfortable than her wet clothing. How come she had acted as a stubborn child and jeopardized them both? It might have been because she had wanted to spend her last journey on her own. But was that really a reason to endanger herself and an old friend?

"Eaoden, listen. I…"

She turned to the soldier but stopped in her speech. He had raised his hand again and she knew that he had a reason for doing so even though it angered her as she had wanted to apologize to him.

He took his helmet off and wiped his face with his hand. It was the first time after six years that she saw his face and he had not changed that much. His beard was perhaps a little longer and he had cut his hair shorter. His eyes looked dark with exhaustion and lack of sleep.

"Let's forget about that incident. I think it would be wise to settle for the night and seeing as the orcs had returned with their filthy beasts, we have to leave early in the morning. Are you fine with that?"

Morwen would have disagreed with him for she wanted to discuss that incident but seeing as he was visibly tired she gave in.

"Alright."


After making a fire in the small fireplace in the middle of the hut and taking off their armour, his being far heavier than hers, they settled near the flames to dry their clothes. The small room, firstly filled with the strong smell of wet clothing, turned into the sweet scent of dinner as Morwen made a small portion of stew with the few things Eaoden had found in the secret hideout only known by the Rohirim, who used that place during their travels. It was hid so that orcs and bandits would not find it.

They had not spoken the whole time until Morwen decided that she did not like the silence at all. They had not seen each other for six years for crying out loud! Did he not want to know how she had been during those years? Wasn't he a tiny bit curious about her life like she was about his? Her eyes mustered the man that sat across from her with a pipe between his lips. Little clouds came from his pipe and she recognized the scent as old toby. His gaze was fixated thoughtfully on the flames and he seemed to have forgotten about her. Well, she would have been okay if he was a stranger and therefore did not want to speak with her, but they had travelled together on a godforsaken journey during the war! They knew each other for crying out loud! But she would not be the one to start a conversation again.

Cursing under her breath she took the small blanket she had found in the hut to cover herself as she laid down with her back facing the fire and her silent companion. Before she had closed her eyes, she heard his deep voice.

"Have a good rest Morwen."

It was the first time he had addressed her without the stupid formalities. She did not face him and simply muttered:

"You too."


Well I don't know if Morwen woudl behave like this but I can imagine that she would not like to back down in a fight. I hope you stay tuned for the next chapter and if you have any suggestions, let me hear them ;)

Your FMC