Helms Deep
Déorwyn woke the next morning alone. Eowyn was not there. She heard craziness going on outside and got out of bed to see what had happened. She threw on a robe and made her way out into the hall. There was no one there. She peered through a window and saw the whole of Edoras franticly moving to and fro, packing up their houses.
She made her way to the hall and saw Aragon, Legolas, Gimli, Gandalf, Eowyn and Eomer standing around King Théoden's thrown. They didn't notice her come into the room.
"What is going on?" Déorwyn asked.
Everyone turned to look at her. her eyes instantly went to Eomer's and he met her gaze. She looked away when Aragon spoke.
"I was just about to go wake you, little one. Wild Men have begun to attack villages and are making their way to Edoras. King Théoden has mandated that everyone evacuate and make their way to Helm Deep in order to be protected from attacks. I'm sorry that I can not offer any more details, we must make haste and prepare for the journey."
She nodded. It was not the time for questions. Eowyn went to her and took her to her quarters.
"Eowyn, what is Helms Deep?" Déorwyn asked.
"It is a citadel, a place of refuge for the inhabitants of Rohan. My uncle wants us there incase of a stronger attack from Isenguard."
Before they got there, they herd, "Déorwyn, a word please?" it was Eomer. Eowyn nodded and went into her room to prepare her things.
"Yes Eomer?"
"Déorwyn, I am not to travel to Helms Deep. We need more men. I journey with Gandalf to find more from the second mark and villages in the north."
"You are not to be at Helms Deep?" She said. She was not sure if she heard him right. He shook his head no. Many things went through her head. What if I don't see him again? What if something happens? What if something happens to me? She was frightened and the only thing she could do was throw herself into his arms to feel safe again.
He instantly wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. "Please be safe," he said, " use your bow if necessary and please keep an eye on my sister. Make sure she doesn't do anything reckless." She nodded against his chest plate. They stood there for a moment. Her thoughts found themselves at their encounter form the previous night.
"Eomer, last nigh-"
"You must forgive me" he cut her off. His mind was on the same thing. "I believe I was under some sort of spell. I had no intentions of catching you off guard."
"Eomer, you did nothing wrong. As you said, you were under a spell" she said with humor in her voice. She knew not how she felt for the Marshall, but she knew that something was only just sparking between them. She did not want anything to happen right now that could smother it.
He smiled. "Its funny, though, because I believe that I am still under that spell. I have not been able to get our kiss from my mind since last night," his head dipped down toward her, "Even now I feel-"
"Eomer…"
"Again, sorry, too forward." She giggled a bit. I never giggle! She thought.
He held her for another moment and said, " I must go, the faster we leave, the more land we can cover before nightfall."
She nodded as he left her in the hallway. She had a big smile on her face. She giggled, again, for a moment at his comments.
She went into Eowyn's room to help her pack. All of her belongings were gone now. They were all on Chestnut who was lost somewhere in the forest. She had not seen him since she got off him when she went to try to save Boromir. Eowyn gave her a traveling dress and a cloak. Eowyn traveled light too, she just threw some healing provisions into a bag and grabbed her dagger and fastened it to her boot. Déorwyn grabbed her bow and arrows and they were ready to leave.
If they moved at a fast pace, they would make it to Helms Deep by nightfall. Aragon, Legolas, Gimli and other soldiers went out to scout the areas for signs of Wild Men or any other enemies heading to the citadel.
She spent most of her time on the walk going over what had happened the night before with Eomer. He had initiated the kiss, so he must feel the same way that she did about him. Also, he had come to tell her this morning about his mission, so he cared for her. She thought for a minute about her potential with him. It would be a good match, Faramir would approve. It would bring some ties between Gondor and Rohan. But, She thought, Do I love him. This is what she was unsure of. She never had been in love before, so what did she have to look for. Boromir and Faramir never had any interests, they were always to preoccupied with protecting Minas Tirath. What am I talking about. I have only known him three days! I couldn't possibly be thinking about a marriage. She couldn't deny her feelings though. The hansom Third Marshall was wining her over and she was not protesting.
Just then, Eowyn walked over to her. She had been with her uncle talking about what preparations needed to be made once they reached Helms Deep for hospitality.
"And what could you possibly be thinking about!" Eowyn said. She was sweet, and through her guarded exterior, Déorwyn could see someone that she could truly be a friend.
"I wish not to say, I am too embarrassed" she replied honestly. How could she talk to her new friend about her feelings for her brother?
Eowyn didn't even need to guess what she was thinking about. "This could not be about a certain brother of mine?" Déorwyn blushed and nodded a bit. She didn't want to lie to Eowyn. "Oh Déorwyn! I knew it! From the moment he rode into the City and told me about you, I knew it!" She practically screamed it.
"Shh!!! Eowyn, please! No one knows!" She said, embarrassed, looking around to see who had heard her.
"Sorry!" Eowyn said in a hushed whisper. " So, what are his intentions?"
"What do you mean?" Déorwyn asked.
"What has he promised you!?" she shouted in excitement again.
"Shhhh!!! He has promised me nothing, of course! Eowyn, I met him three days ago, and yes, I have grown fond of him, but it is far too early to be thinking in such ways!"
"I see, yes I am getting far to ahead of myself. So, how do you feel about him." She asked.
"To be honest, from what I have seen of him, he is wonderful. He is sweet, and caring. He is strong and protecting too. I remember feeling very safe as I rode in front of him after he and the Rohirrim rescued me from the Uruks. He doesn't mind that I am stubborn too. Actually, he is stubborn right back at me."
"Now that part seems like my brother. I have truly seen a new side of him ever since you came to Edoras. I have never seen him look at a girl let alone look at one the way he look at one the way he looks at you. You are good for him, Déorwyn, I can feel it." Eowyn said. Déorwyn smiled and continued walking.
They made it to the fortress with good time. The men also returned, save Aragon, with no news of anyone heading to Helms Deep.
Aragon was taking a long time. Déorwyn, Eowyn, Legolas, Gimli, Hama, King Théoden gathered in the main room of the castle and waited for Aragon to show. Déorwyn began pacing back and forth. Eowyn offered her some soup that she made, but refused it. She was too nervous to eat.
They sat in the hall for hours. The king was discussing the safety and well being of the refugees should anything break out.
Déorwyn kept pacing. Aragon had been gone too long. Legolas had no idea where he was, and couldn't see him coming in the distance. He left the hall to keep watch.
About an hour later, the doors to the main hall burst open, with Aragon trudging in. He looked like death. Déorwyn ran to him " Aragon! What happened to you!" she said very concerned.
"I was just wondering the same thing." King Théoden added.
"I rode here hard." He must have ran too because he was out of breath. "I had to warn and prepare. Uruks from Isenguard. Ten thousand at least. Headed right for Helms Deep. No time. Must save Women and Children"
Legolas went to him and supported his weight. Déorwyn found a chair and pulled it over for him to sit down. He flopped himself down. Horror was sprayed across everyone's face.
"Let them come." Was all Théoden could say. "Come. We must prepare the citadel. Eowyn, Get all the women and children and elders into the caves.
Lady Déorwyn, please help Eowyn. I am relying on you two girls to keep things calm. Legolas, Hama, Gimli, we must go and prepare."
Eowyn and Déorwyn both nodded and headed out. "Aragon, you must rest. You are no good to us half alive!" she heard Legolas say as Aragon got up to help with preparations. She quickly took Eowyn's bag form her and went to her friend's side. Out of the bag, she took a small pinch of a powder and put it in a glass of warm water that was by the fire. She mixed it around and gave it to Aragon to drink.
He, almost instantly, looked livelier. " You still must take it easy for an hour or so." She said.
"Was that Grass root seed?" he asked.
"Yes, I saw Eowyn put it in her bag. I assume, being a ranger and all, you know that it will only make you half way better, you must take it easy. The ride was long for you." He nodded, but still went with King Théoden. Legolas rolled his eyes.
"You have skills in medicine, little one. I will know to call upon you whenever I need help." Aragon said.
After a few moments, Déorwyn found herself standing at the entrance of the cave with Eowyn, ushering people into the caves, telling them to go down as far as they could.
"After we get everyone in, we should go to the armory to help the men prepare." Eowyn said. Déorwyn looked at her for a minute. She seemed very antsy and angry.
"Eowyn, my friend, what is wrong?"
"I should be allowed to fight. They are recruiting boys, farmers and old men to fight. I could actually be of use to the battle!"
"Eowyn, it doesn't work that way. We have been commanded to keep watch over the caves. That is an honorable task in itself!"
"You do not understand. I have been brought up my entire life with men. I have been trained and treated like one of the men yet when it comes time to step up, I am not allowed to do the things that they can do. I want to fight for the country I love. I want to protect my people. Why can't they see that?"
Déorwyn had no answer. Although she would never go to battle herself, She saw cause in Eowyn's eyes. She saw both sides. She knew that Eomer was only trying to protect his sister from the horrors of war. Though in the three days she has known him she never saw a dark side of him, she knew it was there. It was in all men who had seen such things. But Eowyn wished to protect the things she loved.
"Eowyn, I understand your cause, believe me I do. I just wish that you would stay with me in the cave. I know nobody and nothing about keeping a mass amount of people calm. It will be like you are protecting me!" she tried to compromise with her. She didn't want to let her know that she had promised Eomer that she wouldn't let Eowyn do anything reckless.
Eowyn gave in. "Alright. We should probably go in then."
"I wish to see my friends be fore we are sealed in!" Déorwyn said.
"Of course." Eowyn replied as she walked up the stairs into the cave.
Déorwyn found Aragon, Legolas and Gimli alone in the armory. She couldn't control her laughter when she walked in. Gimli had put on a Rohan soldier's chain mail and, obviously, he was swimming in it.
"It's a bit tight in the chest." Gimli pointed out. The four just erupted in laughter. It was good that they could still have some air of laughter in these trying times.
"Little one, shouldn't you be with Lady Eowyn in the caves by now! The hour grows close!" Aragon chastised.
"I wished to bid my friends good luck! I swear, if anything happens to either of you-" she patronized.
"Don't worry my lass," Gimli said, still in his chain mail dress, " I will have all the sets of eyes I have on these two rascals!"
"You have more than one set of eyes?" Legolas questioned. Gimli, who had just realized what he said, just roared in laughter again, causing the others to do the same.
When the laughter died down again, Aragon placed a hand on her shoulder and presented her with a small sword. It was bigger than a dagger, but nowhere near the size of his sword.
"This was Merry's. We found it by the Uruk camp outside of Fanghorn forest. This should fare you well if you were to need it, which I hope you will not." She fastened the belt around her. She hugged each of her friends and left the armory to take refuge along side Eowyn in the caves.
As she walked into the caves, she was instantly happy with her decision to wear her cloak. It was warm out side, but in the caves it was dark and drafty.
It was cramped too. All Women, young children and elders were brought into the caves to take refuge during the battle. She found Eowyn settling in a family. Eowyn saw her, and went to her and grabbed her arm.
"Come with me!" she whispered.
Eowyn led her along the cave entrance wall to a small nook set away from the refugees. As they reached the end of the pass, Déorwyn could see a grate through which, she had a perfect view over the battlefields.
"No." was the only thing that Déorwyn could get out her mouth.
"What?" Eowyn said, her faced scrunched up in confusion. She thought Déorwyn would want to watch the battle.
" No. I will not watch as our friends battle for our lives. I have seen death and I will not watch it happen to innocent men!" Only then did she notice the keypad on the bars and the key, which was in Eowyn's hand, dangling off a chain. Déorwyn also became aware of the armor that was piled up in the corner and the long, warrior's sword sheathed upon a belt around her waste.
"NO!" Déorwyn screamed. She was furious with Eowyn. She didn't have to guess as to her intentions. Déorwyn made a move for the key and snatched it out of Eowyn's hand. "You made a promise to me to keep me safe, and I made a promise to your brother to watch out for you."
"So you're doing this for Eomer, not my safety!"
"Not at all!! I care for your safety and I do not want this battle to be over and not have you return. So," Déorwyn threw the key out of the grate. "No. You will see that this is the best option in time."
Eowyn stared, wide-eyed at the outside as Déorwyn brushed past her quickly and made her way to the camp.
She found a seat near the entrance of the nook and against the wall of the cave. She could hear the silent cries of Eowyn, but soon, they were repressed by a soft beating of a drum. She could feel them approaching. She herd them marching along, throwing all their weight into the earth, making a loud noise. It made her cringe. All she could think about was their hands all over her.
She repressed her thoughts by curling up in a ball and covering her ears. In no time, she was asleep.
She woke up several hours later, hearing the thrashing of swords and the cries of soldiers and Uruks. Confusion soon got the best of her. She didn't want to, but she wanted to know what was going on. She also wanted to check on her friend.
She saw Eowyn at the end of the nook. The noises that were coming in from the front line was nothing she had ever herd before. She noticed the tears that had stained her friends cheeks. She went to her side and sat down with her, putting her head on Eowyn's shoulder. No words had to be said.
Outside, Déorwyn could see the men of Rohan fighting the Uruks with all their might. By now, they had been fighting for a couple of hours, and it would be morning soon. It didn't look pretty. Although they fought strong, their numbers were too little. Where is Eomer? Déorwyn thought. He told her he was going to be there with more men. Maybe he anticipated the fight to be at a later date, maybe he thought he had more time. It didn't matter. The king had already sounded the retreat.
It was painful for both Déorwyn and Eowyn to see the Rohan soldiers retreat back to the helm and the Uruks barging into the citadel, claiming it as their own.
There were no tears, no words and no movement. Déorwyn couldn't believe what was happening in front of her, and Eowyn was, being the leader that she is, was figuring out what would happen next. Eowyn got up finally and said, "Come, we must warn the others and figure out another way out of the caves."
Déorwyn nodded and got up and they turned to leave, but stopped due to a new noise from outside. A great horn sounded and broke through the stagnant dawn. Eowyn rushed to the grate, as did Déorwyn. The king, Aragon, Legolas, Hama and a dozen other high ranking soldiers were charging down the stairway on horseback and through to the great ramp, slaughtering Uruks as they went. It was one of the most honorable things Déorwyn had ever seen.
Just then, the light crept up in the east and over the mountain pass. A figure in white appeared right at the crest of the mountain. Gandalf, Déorwyn thought. Suddenly, another figure came into vision next to the wizard. His broad shoulders and horse tail helmet unmistakable.
"EOMER!" the two women screamed, each with their own reasons to be happy to see the third Marshall. They looked at each other- hope had arrived. The Rohirrim charged down the mountain and unstoppable speeds, the sun's rays serving as another weapon they had up their sleeves. From either side of their ranks, the Uruks found themselves cornered; the men that Eomer and Gandalf had found now outnumbered them. Their only choice was to run to the woods.
Déorwyn looked down on Eomer as he fought off the Uruks. She couldn't take her eyes off him. He looked strong and rugged. He was in his element. As he slashed through the last Uruk, he rode to the front of the troops to stop them from following into the forest. Just as he did that, the trees began to sway back and forth, releasing the screams and cries of the Uruks they finished off.
Eowyn and Déorwyn rushed out of the nook and cave to welcome the men back from their victory.
