Chapter 8: In Which Boromir Loses His Horse

Boromir waited until the patrol was well out of ear shot before questioning Luna. "You were in courtship with a Lord of Rohan?"

"Courtship is a strong way to phrase what we had. We engaged in five years of correspondence through letters. When I moved to Minas Tirith, letters to and from Rohan were banned. I suppose I can thank your father for that."

"Theoden was the one who proposed the banning of letters, not my father," Boromir defended. "My father went along with his requests."

"And your father thought they would let me through?"

"I suppose he knew of your courtship. Though, how, I would not know."

"Amrothos," Luna muttered. "He must have told Faramir, who told your father."

Boromir stayed silent a moment before asking. "Why were you reluctant to tell me? It makes sense now, why my father wanted you to accompany me. I thought it strange a young, unmarried maiden would be chosen for this task. Now I understand."

"I am a young, unmarried maiden, Lord Boromir. Lord Eomer has never made any declarations of love past that of friendship in any of our letters, to my knowledge."

"And yet, you love him still."

"It matters not what I feel. Not when both of our countries are plagued by the hardships of this war." She ran two fingers along either side of her temples. "Now, please. Traveling around Rohan to reach the main road again in Tharbad will put us off schedule by a month. Maybe more."

"You...you still wish to continue?"

She raised an eyebrow. "I don't understand."

"I wondered why you had agreed to this journey. It makes sense now, that you would have seen it as a way to reach your horselord. But you cannot cross the border."

"Do you think so little of me to believe that I agreed to this journey for such a selfish reason?"

"To be honest, I knew not what to think of you. Faramir speaks your praises, but you have avoided me until our fates were forced to cross."

Luna grabbed Pepper and gave her mare a few soft strokes on the neck. "I love my country, Lord Boromir. I came on this journey because Gondor asked it of me. I didn't come for Rohan."

Boromir gave a soft smile and pulled Yellowtail closer, mounting his horse. "A month behind this detour puts us, you say. We best be off."

After their forced detour of the Riddermark, things changed between the two companions. Boromir was not what Luna thought him to be. He was a hard man, as any would be who grew up in the soldier's life. But there were so many parts to him and over the course of their journey, slowly those parts started to emerge. He was playful, often initiating games and races or splashing her at the riverside. He had a full-belly laugh that carried throughout the plains of the central lands. He was eager to teach her what she could muster of a sword, even though they only carried the one between them and could not spar. He often asked her questions of herbs and plants she gathered on the road, but grew frustrated when trying to memorize the details.

In turn, she opened up to the Captain, doing her best to be pleasant and helpful and not sour and crass as she had been before Rohan. She agreed to keep close to him at all times, as the warnings from Ridderion of Wildmen and Orcs had indeed been true. It was nearly impossible for the two to have a hot meal for supper. They traveled from dawn until dusk and could not risk the light of a fire. They risked fire only two or three times a week, to cook the meat Luna gathered and only during the daytime. As they neared Tharbad after a month and a half of travel, they seemed to have evaded all encounters of enemies, until Boromir's fist came up, the sign to halt their horses.

Luna pulled Pepper to a sharp stop. "What is it?" she asked quietly.

Boromir suddenly dismounted Yellowtail. "We need to make for the forest." He pointed to the right. "Walk Pepper to the treeline. I will follow."

Luna dismounted as Boromir pulled out his sword, keeping his eyes fixed on the plains. Without argument, she led Pepper toward the treeline, unsure of what the captain could see that her eyes couldn't. But it instilled her with fear. Orcs? Wildmen? The wargs Eomer had written of to her all that time ago? She could only imagine as she moved as silent as possible.

As they entered the treeline, Boromir let loose Yellowtail's reins and held his sword in a defensive position. "Tie them up."

"What is it? What do you see?"

"I saw nothing. I heard the stomping of boots. Heavy boots and lots of them. Orcs, more than likely. Or a very large party of Wildmen."

"What do we do?"

"For now, we keep quiet and wait."

It didn't take long before Luna could hear them too, over the heavy breaths of the horses. They came from the edge of the horizon, a large party, twenty-five of them at least. And, to the horror of Luna and Boromir, they stopped, right where the two had left the main road.

Luna nearly choked on the smell they emitted. Like tannen fat mixed with burnt olive oil. They were loud as well, the clanking of their haphazard metal armor and junk-like weaponry. They growled nonsensical sounds, every movement gruff and harsh. "Why have we stopped?" asked one towards the back.

"Mind your tongue," the one at the front yelled. Their voices matched their appearance well. Luna could tell, just from watching them, they valued size over anything. The largest were leading the pack, and their size decreased through the line. The big one was...sniffing, it seemed. "Man-flesh," he snarled.

Boromir tensed. "Luna," he whispered. "Untie Yellowtail."

"Why?"

"Just do it!"

The sniffing continued. "Winds are harsh, blowing the smell all about," the big one said.

"You don't smell anything," said the one to his left. "You're just hungry."

"I. Smell. MAN-FLESH!" He yelled, grabbing the neck of the protestor and forcing him to the ground. "Smell it! Go on, maggot! Smell his flesh! He's here somewhere. Probably made a run for it."

Luna handed Boromir Yellowtail's reins. "Are we to make a run for it? Or go deeper into the woods?"

Boromir touched his forehead to Yellowtail's, muttering softly. When he came back up, he took a deep breath. "Untie and mount Pepper. Wait for my word, and make for the north, keeping the edge of the treeline, as fast as she will carry, do you understand?"

"I understand," she said, following the instructions. "But what are you doing?"

"Something you will not like." With that, he slapped Yellowtail's rear with the flat of his blade. Quicker than she could anticipate, Yellowtail took off and Boromir mounted Pepper behind Luna. "Now!" he said, barely more than a whisper. She had not the time to process what had just happened. She reacted by doing what he had instructed, and launched Pepper into a gallop lending forward to break the wind. And she didn't stop until Pepper refused to run any farther.

They dismounted with Boromir's approval and Luna fell to her knees. The sun had long since set. "You used Yellowtail as bait," she said, willing herself not to cry.

"He was a good steed. It was hard to part with him." Boromir knelt down beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I could not bear to force you to part with Pepper. You have raised her since she was newborn. She was not meant for a life of war."

"And Yellowtail was?"

"He was bred as a warhorse. You know this, Luna. Without his sacrifice, we would have been found."

"I-I understand. I just wasn't prepared for that."

"All I knew was the leader was hungry. I hoped the temptation of fresh meat would skew his investigation of us. Luckily, I was right. Are you alright?"

"Shaken, but well enough. I can set up camp. There is little to forage here in the darkness."

"I have not the appetite for a meal, anyhow."

They both knew there would be no fire tonight. Luna doubted that sleep would find her in this state. She could not rid her mind of the Orcs. Their discolored flesh, the brutal weaponry they carried. And the smell. It still lingered in her nostrils. "I can take the first watch," she offered, hoping boredom would lull her towards rest. After Boromir's soft snores filled the air, she walked to Pepper and pulled a small bottle from a saddlebag, and an equally small brush. She had not painted her toes once since starting the journey. It was the only thing she could think to do to calm her thoughts. The paint she had brought with her was a deep violet. By the time Boromir woke up to allow Luna to rest, she had finished her painting and had looked over a map multiple times.

"We've left Tharbad in the dust," she informed him. "Rivendell is probably two weeks away. Maybe more now that Pepper will carry the weight of us both."

Boromir shook his head. "On foot, we will have to travel. Pepper will need to carry the provisions of two now. Not to mention we will need her strength at its highest if we need another quick getaway."

Luna nodded. "Four weeks, then."