Here is this chapter! As usual I own nothing! :)
Arlena and Eomer goodnesss!
Edoras
Life was passing by as smoothly as it could, given the circumstances. Arlena avoided Grima like the plague and so far, she didn't have anymore unpleasant encounters. It was only recently that she discovered that there was some tension between Éomer and Théodred.
"They won't tell us what's going on. But," Éowyn said as they were sitting in her room.
"But?" Arlena asked, arching an eyebrow.
"I have a theory," the blonde said.
"Please enlighten me, my dear."
"Éomer and Théodred are men of action. Things have become too quiet. It's putting them on edge," the older girl said.
"The calm before the storm," Arlena quietly said.
Éowyn agreed and quickly moved onto a different subject. Although Éowyn's theory had some merit, Arlena couldn't shake the feeling that the tension between the cousins had something to do with her.
x
"She isn't returning my affections," Théodred muttered as he and Éomer were going over some maps.
"Oh?" Éomer said, feigning shock. He, of course, already knew this, but didn't want Théodred to know that.
"Well, your previous attempts at courting weren't your best moments," he then added.
"Oh come on, they weren't that bad," Théodred said defensively.
"Théodred, you compared the poor girl's hair to mud. If you weren't the prince, she probably would have slapped you," Éomer said, pushing a map aside and bringing another one to view.
Théodred remained silent, brooding over a report from one of their outposts. Nothing new to report, it said. Sighing, he pushed it away.
"It's not like you're brilliant at it either," Théodred finally said.
"That's because I just bed them. No woman has piqued my interest long enough to consider courting them," Éomer said, sort of lying. That had been the truth, until he met Arlena.
He just couldn't pursue her, but knowing she didn't return his cousin's affections sent a thrill through his body.
"She rarely teases me," Théodred said cryptically. Éomer remained silent, not knowing where his cousin was going with this.
"She teases you all the time. In fact, every time I see her with you, she's always poking fun at you," Théodred continued.
"It's obnoxious, Théodred. You're not missing much. Besides, didn't she say she's never met a prince before until she arrived here? Maybe she's just intimidated by that or she doesn't know if teasing the heir to the throne a lot is appropriate," Éomer explained.
Théodred scoffed, "Arlena intimidated? There's no such thing."
Éomer paused, remembering her encounter with Grima. Not only was she intimidated, she was afraid. Arlena had begged him not to speak of her encounter with Grima to anyone and he respected her wishes.
"Either way Théodred, don't let her distract you," Éomer said seriously.
Too many times he had seen comrades become distracted by a woman and they would get lazy. Being a member of the Rohirrim was a hard, but honorable life. Many would return to find their beloved married off to someone else or they had been unfaithful. Broken hearts torn apart by betrayal caused many soldiers to carelessly throw their lives away. That's why Éomer stayed away from women, for the most part.
"She'd make an excellent queen," Théodred said and Éomer couldn't agree more.
x
He's been ignoring her. Arlena didn't like it one bit. Ever since her encounter with Grima, she thought that she and Éomer had an understanding of sorts between them. Clearly, she had been wrong since she watched him distance himself from her.
Théodred hadn't distanced himself from her, and if she was going to be honest, she was tired of his company. There wasn't much to Théodred. He loved his country, and his father. She felt he loved Éomer just as much, if not equally to his country and King.
But that's where it ended. His unfaltering love was extremely noble and very Gryffindor, but it seemed he had focused more on becoming the next ruler of Rohan than being a normal man.
She walked past the map room and found Éomer there, hunched over a table. Deciding she was fed up with him ignoring her, she silently entered the room. He didn't notice her presence.
"You've been ignoring me," she said quietly as she made her way towards Éomer.
He jumped in his chair, wondering how she was so stealthy.
"How'd you learn to move so silently?" he asked, completely ignoring her statement.
She stared at him for a while before answering.
"During the war, stealth was essential to survival. In or out of school, it didn't matter. If you were caught, you were tortured or worse," she said quietly.
He sat there in silence, not expecting that sort of answer. He would have figured it was so she could pull a prank on her twin brother or something more innocent like that. He often forgot that she fought in a war.
"Did you ever get caught?" he asked.
"Yes."
Standing up from his chair, he moved to put the maps away. He had been staring at them for hours to the point where he was sick of them.
He could feel Arlena's eyes follow him as he returned the maps to their original places. He knew she wouldn't leave until she got an answer out of him.
"Yes, I have been," he finally said, sliding the last map onto the shelf.
"Why?" She immediately asked as he turned to face her.
She looked hurt by this and he instantly regretted making the decision to ignore her in the first place. He had distanced himself for Théodred's sake in hopes she would maybe pay more attention to his cousin. In reality, it did the complete opposite.
"I don't know. At the time I thought I had a good reason to, but I can't remember it anymore," he said quietly. He didn't want to tell her the truth. Not yet, at least.
She nodded silently, knowing that was all she was going to get out of him. She walked up closer to him and squeezed his hand.
"Please don't ignore me anymore," she said before leaving the room.
Éomer sighed and stared down at his hand. He could have sworn he still felt her warm hand on hers.
He cursed and stormed out of the room in frustration.
x
"What were you two talking about that caused both of you to choke on your soup?" Éomer asked Éowyn a few hours after his encounter with Arlena. Even though that incident happened ages ago, it wouldn't leave him alone.
Éowyn placed her basket on a table and turned to stare at her brother in disbelief.
"Why in Helm's name are you asking me about this now? It happened ages ago!" she began to sort through her basket full of vegetables.
"What were you talking about?" he asked again.
"It's really none of your business," she said, still not answering him. He was growing frustrated with her.
"My dear sister, just tell me!" he was practically begging and she knew it.
"A man."
"What?" Éomer asked confused.
"That's what we were talking about," Éowyn said, tossing a nasty looking carrot to the side. It was rotten.
"Who?"
"I'm not at liberty to say," Éowyn said before taking her basket to the kitchens.
Éomer was left with more questions than he started with.
x
She was walking in a forest. The trees were ancient and there was a sort of magic humming within them. They shifted uneasily as Arlena walked past them. She was desperately searching for someone.
She approached a clearing in the forest and discovered she was not alone. The old man had long white hair as well as a long beard. His clothes were white and even the walking stick he had was white. He was a stark contrast to the dark colors of the forest.
"Where is my King?" she asked him, pleading. Her brown eyes searched his icy grey eyes for any clue.
"I am sad to say, my Queen," his voice was deep, almost like the rumbling of thunder in the distance. "That I do not know where your beloved King is," he looked truly sad but Arlena found no comfort in this.
"Oh," she said brokenly before her knees buckled underneath her. Tears welled up in her eyes but she fought to keep them from falling.
"Do not lose hope, my Lady. He shall return to you soon," the old man said. She looked into his eyes and found some comfort in them.
She nodded, smiling slowly at him. She heard a twig snap in the forest behind her.
Arlena woke up with a look of pure confusion on her face. What in heaven's name did she just dream about? This was different from any dream she had ever had before. It felt too real to her. She had experienced everything so clearly; from the feel of the grass beneath her knees to the rustling of the trees.
Who was this King she was desperately looking for and why was he so important to her?
She abruptly sat up in bed when she remembered the old man had called her Queen. Getting out of bed, she knew her questions would not be answered anytime soon.
x
"Take care of yourself, Éomer," she quietly said to him as he finished saddling his horse up. He was setting out to go visit one of the many outposts of Edoras. He would be gone for only a couple of days, a week at the most. The thought of him being away saddened Arlena more than she expected.
"I shan't be gone for long," he quietly reminded her. They were currently alone in the stable, which was a rare occurrence.
"I know," she whispered. "But I shall miss you nonetheless."
Turning away from him, she picked up a single piece of straw. Pulling out her wand, she transfigured it into a bluebell. She had always admired the purple little flower. Adding an anti-crumple and wilt charm, she was satisfied with her work.
She turned back to him, the flower in her hand. He stared at the small flower with a raised eyebrow.
"May I?" she shyly asked. Realizing her intention, Éomer remained silent but nodded his consent. The gesture was innocent enough in his opinion. No harm could really come from it.
Carefully approaching him, she magically attached the flower to the shoulder buckle of his armor. She gently petted the petals of the flower for a last time before slowly moving her hand away from him. His hand caught hers though.
"I hope you don't mind such a feminine addition to your armor," she said quietly.
He chuckled softly, running his thumb over her knuckles. The contact sent a thrill through the witch.
"No, I don't in the least," he said and Arlena inwardly let out a sigh of relief.
Summoning up her Gryffindor courage, she gently placed a kiss on his cheek.
"Until we meet again," she said, pulling away from him slightly.
With his other hand he gently cupped her face. He ran a thumb over her cheek before reluctantly moving away from her.
"Aye, and what a lovely reunion it will be," he said before mounting his horse.
Arlena stood alone and watched him depart with an alarmingly heavy heart. She quickly returned to her room to prepare for her weekly rounds with Éowyn to tend to the village sick.
A.N: Feedback is appreciated! Next chapter will definitely feature James! :)