I need to apologize. My Microsoft Word is messed up so I am writing this chapter on Wordpad. There is no way to tell how many words I have or how long it is. There is also no spell check and I can't open other documents (I usually keep the previous chapter open for help). So if there are any spelling or grammar problems I didn't catch just try to ignore them! Thanks and don't forget to review!

White Angel Chapter 7: Alone Again

Aragorn looked out at the red sun and sighed. He had a long day of moving bodies, orc and man, ahead of him. He could only breathe calmly knowing that Eowyn and the children were safe at the castle. As he looked around he saw a small amount of dead men mingled with the many orcs. He dreaded having to tell their families the news.

He walked back and forth several times just looking over the damage. As he was walking a young man ran up to Aragorn and bowed.

"I carry a message from the castle." He said, standing rigid. He had obviously never met the king or delivered a message before.

"Relax." Aragorn said. The man let out a breath and loosened up, looking embarrassed. "You carry a message from Queen Eowyn?" He asked.

The messenger looked down nervously and fidgeted. "No..." He said.

"Then who?" He asked, becoming slightly worried at the man's nervous behavior.

"From Faramir. He said that when he went back to the castle Eowyn and Eodwyn had both disappeared."

Aragorn's face was turning red slowly. "Anything else?"

The messenger hesitated.

"Tell me now!" Aragorn said sternly.

"Two horses are missing..." Aragorn shook his head. "Cinnamon and Isilme." The messenger finished.

Aragorn stared at the ground with balled fists and the messenger slowly stepped away. What had Eowyn done? How could she have been so careless? She gave her word!

He stormed off in a run along the battle field, looking beyond the bodies. Suddenly he saw someone lying on the ground a few yards away from the heaps of bodies. As he neared it he saw the figure was wearing a mud stained white nightdress and had long wavy golden hair. He ran towards Eowyn and when he reached her he knelt down beside her.

He found a large deep wound on her right arm. It was surrounded by caked blood and a small trickle of dried blood ran down her arm and chest, staining her white dress. She was breathing and had a steady pulse, so she was merely unconscious. This made Aragorn both relieved and angry at the same time and he began to shake Eowyn, saying her name repetitively.

When she didn't wake he instead got up, surveying the surrounding area. He still had his Ranger abilities and there was obvious evidence of a small fight here.

There was a ring of footprints, orc footprints. In the center was a smaller pair of a child's footprints. A few feet away from that there lay an imprint of a small child no more than three feet tall. The body had been removed however and he followed the tracks leading away for about five minutes. He stopped short and bent down to pick up a small elven dagger. He recognized it as the one he had given Eodwyn about a year ago.

He cursed to himself and ran back to Eowyn. He knelt down next to her again, this time shaking her more violently.

"Eowyn wake up I know you aren't hurt that bad!" He yelled.

She stirred and opened her eyes slightly, blinking in the light, and looked up into Aragorn's dark eyes.

"Why are you here?" He hissed.

Eowyn shuddered and then began to cry. Aragorn shook his head and without thinking slapped her across the face. She stopped crying abruptly and reached up to grab her stinging cheek then looked up at him with frightened eyes.

"Where is Eodwyn? Where is our daughter?" He asked, fearing the answer.

Eowyn cowered under the strength of his voice and then slowly proceded to tell Aragorn everything that had happened.

"And they said she would be fun to "play around with"... Then they hit her upside the head and she... she flew into the air and landed on the ground unconcious. They took her away and that is all I remember." She finished. Aragorn shook his head again.

"How could you do this? How could you be so selfish?" He asked. His voice was softer now but just as strong.

"I just wanted to fight again... It has been so long." She said. He stood up and paced for a moment.

"Eowyn you can't do this anymore! You are a parent! You have children who look up to you! You have resposibilties and they are your first priority." He stopped pacing and knelt back down close to Eowyn's face. "You are not a child and you cannot afford to be the same spontanious young woman I met that was looking for danger all the time. Come on, Eowyn, you are smart enough to know that!"

She looked down and away. "I didn't think..." She began, Aragorn stood up again and yelled down at her as if she were a small child being scolded.

"There is the problem Eowyn! You didn't think! You were selfish and just had to get out and kill some orcs or else you were just going to die. You didn't stop to think that your kids might just follow you and that THEY might be the ones to die! You know Eodwyn has the same restless spirit as you! Now your not thinking might've killed our child. If you had stopped to think for a moment... I would not have to track down a large band of orcs to save her."

"You can save her."

"But I should not have to!" He screamed. He began to walk away and then turned around once more, "If anything happens to my little girl..." He looked down and the pain and worry shown on his face. When he spoke again his voice was ice, "This is your fault. You will have to live with your decision."

"Where are you going?" Eowyn called.

"I am going to save my daughter!" And with that he turned and walked away. *****

Eowyn was left in shock. Had her husband just abandoned her? She never wanted any of this to happen! She just wanted to fight again...

She was sitting up now and her head was throbbing. She reached up with her left hand and gently brushed her fingers across the place where she had been hit. She recoiled it and gasped. There was a large, very painful bruise by the hairline on the right side of her head. She then looked down at the wound on her arm. It was very deep and she could not raise her right arm or a blinding pain would shoot through her whole body.

These were the mildest injuries. The real injury was in her heart. Eodwyn was gone and even if Aragorn could save her body, she was doubtful that her daughter would ever be the same carefree child who loved to run through the gardens and chase the butterflies after an experience like this. Eowyn couldn't help but feel that by being selfish and fighting that she had taken away Eodwyn's childhood and innocence.

"This whole thing is my fault." She whispered to herself.

Eowyn slowly and painfully stood up. Her body cried out in protest and she felt very weary and tired. She told her body that she deserved the pain and she slowly with much effort made her way back to the castle. Many people recognized her and tried to help her along the way but she shunned them aside and continued to walk alone, lost in her thoughts.

Horrible pictures came to Eowyn's mind of orcs torturing her daughter. Pictures of orcs slowly and painfully slicing Eodwyn's flesh as they laughed at her screams. She shook her head to rid the dark visions and fell to her knees, crying out, "Eodwyn, no!"

A village woman saw her fall and ran up to Eowyn. She grabbed her right arm in an attempt to help her Queen but Eowyn cried out again, this time in pain. She shook the woman off and stood, beginning to jog along as best she could without falling over.

Finally she reached the castle and walked up the steps to the door of the Throne room. The moment she stepped inside nurses and maids came running to her, some leading her toards her chambers, some towards the kitchens for food, some to go see her children. Her head was throbbing and the world spinning around her.

"Where is my husband?" She asked in a voice hardly more than a whisper. Everyone went dead silent. "Where is he?" She repeated.

"He left."

"Did he see the children?" Eowyn asked.

Everyone looked uneasily at each other and bowed their heads. "Eodwyn is missing." A faceless voice said softly.

The visions flashed through Eowyn's mind and she spoke loudly to drown them. "I am aware. Did Aragorn see Meldahin and Eldarion before he left?"

"Aye" The faceless voice said.

Eowyn nodded. "I need just one nurse to help me dress my wounds. Everyone else get back to work.

The crowd dispersed and one young nurse was left behind. She took Eowyn's left arm and gently helped her to her bed chamber. They walked in silence and the nurse left Eowyn at her door to get some bandages and ointments. Eowyn nodded and walked into her room.

When she entered she walked straight to her mirror and stood in front of it. She saw a muddy, bloody woman with tangled blonde hair and bags under her clouded blue eyes. She was thin and pale and hardly recognized herself. She slowly reached a trembling hand up to touch her freckled cheeks as the tears welled up in her eyes.

She broke down and cried uncontrollably as she peeled the ruined night dress off and slipped a light warm robe painfully over her bruised and aching body. She walked over to her bed and layed down on her left side, curling into a ball and sobbed so hard that her body shook. She wished with every stinging breath she took that Aragorn was here to hold her and forgive her and tell her that everything was going to be just fine. She wanted Eodwyn to be there so that she could hold her and apologize for being so selfish.

She wished the orcs had taken her instead of her daughter.

When the nurse walked back in Eowyn sat up, still shaking and crying. The nurse didn't say anything because she was at a loss for words. She helped Eowyn down the corridor where a hot bath was waiting. The wounds needed to be cleaned. Eowyn walked along shakily.

When they reached the bath room Eowyn slipped off her robe and stepped into the hot water, slowly sliding down into a sitting position. the nurse gingerly washed her bruises and then cleaned her wound with a burning liquid. Eowyn flinched but did not cry out or say anything the entire time. When she was clean, her wound was dressed and head wrapped, and the water was cold, Eowyn stepped out of the bathtub and the nurse dried her off.

As she was walking back down the corridor alone in her robe she heard a child squeal.

"Mummy!" She heard. For a split second she thought it was Eodwyn but then Eldarion ran to her and wrapped his arms around her legs. "Mummy I missed you!"

Eowyn bent down, picked Eldarion up with her left arm and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Hello little one! I missed you too." she said sadly. She knelt down so his feet were on the ground and set him down. He simply refused to let go though, and Eowyn simply smiled and held on tightly to her son. Even if Aragorn or Eodwyn weren't here... she figured she could find comfort from her son for now. The next few weeks would be tough, but Eowyn deserved it.

'It was my fault and I deserve to suffer' she thought.

She stood up and carried Eldarion down to the kitchens. "Let's go eat." She said as cheerfully as she could. Her only job now was to take care of her other two children and keep herself healthy. As long as she had her other children she knew she would have to be strong. *****

Review please!

Cerasi