Carrie and Eomer walked aimlessly through the streets of Minas Tirith in companionable silence. After a while, the question that she had wanted to ask Legolas popped back into her head and she stopped and turned to Eomer, figuring it may be easier to ask it of him.
"Eomer?" she began tentatively. "I almost hate to bring this up, but did you speak of what happened in Dunharrow to anyone?"
Eomer stopped and regarded her for a moment before answering. "Do you wish to know if I spoke of it to anyone?" He curled half of his mouth into a knowing smile. "Or if I spoke of it to the Elf?"
Carrie hung her head as she felt her face flush, embarrassed that her intent had been so transparent. When she looked back up she saw Eomer grinning at her, amused that his good-natured taunt had had the desired effect. Carrie laughed and shook her head.
"Am I that obvious?" she asked, a smile still on her face.
Eomer ran a hand through his hair. "No." he lied, and then smiled at Carrie's disbelieving look. "Perhaps a little," he amended.
He stood looking at her with a strange pensive expression on his face and Carrie wondered what could possibly have taken place to elicit that look. She was not kept in suspense long, for he began to speak again, his voice quiet and thoughtful.
"After the battle I wished very much to speak to him about it, to come clean, if you will. I tried to tell him what had happened, but he told me to speak no more of it." Eomer grimaced, and Carrie could see that this was difficult for him, though she did not yet understand why. "He walked away then, and I followed, determined as I was with the need to apologize."
Eomer took a deep breath and his face became troubled. Carrie took a step closer to him and placed a hand on his arm. "It's ok," she said gently. "You don't have to continue if you don't want."
"No," Eomer said firmly, "I must tell you." He took another deep breath and cast his eyes downward. "I caught up with him and he once more requested that I not speak of it." He looked up at Carrie then. "I do not pretend to understand the ways of the Eldar, and it was my mistake to treat him as I would another man." He dropped his eyes again and spoke softly. "I asked him of his feelings for you."
"What?" Carrie exclaimed, dropping her hand from his arm and taking a step back. "You didn't!"
Eomer looked up at Carrie and nodded his head. "I did. I told him if the reason he wishes not to speak of it is because it means nothing to him, then I need to know, for it means something to me."
Carrie stared open-mouthed at Eomer, shocked at what he was saying and berating herself for the can of worms that she had managed to open. As much as she wanted the current trend of the conversation to end, she couldn't help but ask the question weighing on her mind.
"What did he say?" she whispered.
Eomer swallowed and the look in his eyes could only be described as haunted. "He raised an eyebrow at me. 'Nothing?' he asked." Eomer took a deep breath, quite apparently trying to calm himself before he continued. Whatever had happened was clearly distressing him. He took one more breath and looked uneasily at Carrie.
"I can't explain what happened then. I felt something the likes of which I have never felt before. I don't know if I can even put it into words. The closest I can come is to say that my heart felt like it was too big for my chest. I felt as though if it were not for my skin, my being would escape and fly in a thousand different directions. And behind it all, there was a longing so powerful it was painful." He looked off into the distance. "It was so profound I almost wept."
He looked back at Carrie, who was staring dumbfounded at him, and shook his head. "I know I was not the source of those emotions. How could I be?" He smiled a sardonic half-smile and then continued hastily. "The feelings eventually subsided and I was able to meet his gaze again, barely. I saw fire in his eyes and I knew they came from him." He looked down at his hands. "All I could do was say 'I'm sorry' and walk away."
They stood in silence, Carrie not knowing what to say in response to Eomer's account of what had happened. After a moment they turned as one and began walking down the street again in silence. Once they passed several doors, Eomer spoke again.
"I wish you to know, once we have all returned home and life has resumed its normal routine, you are more than welcome in Rohan at any time."
It was a gesture of friendship but it made Carrie uneasy. His phrase 'once we have all returned home' rang in her ears. If she did return home, would life return to normal? If she stayed here, would life ever be normal? She turned to look at Eomer and noticed that he was looking at her earnestly, the invitation hanging in the air, waiting for her to respond.
She took a deep breath. "Maybe. I don't know if I'll ever be able to go there again." She smiled at him to show that she meant nothing bad by that statement.
His expression turned questioning but he did not respond. They both turned their eyes forward walked in silence a little more. Carrie was admiring the ancient stonework when Eomer's voice brought her attention back to him.
"Perhaps, then, when my duties permit I may travel to Bree."
Carrie turned to him, eyebrows furrowed. "Why?" she asked, confused.
Eomer stopped walking and looked at her intently. "To visit, of course."
"Visit?" Carrie shook her head at him. "Visit who?" Belatedly, Carrie remembered her conversation with Eowyn, and the lie she told about where she was from.
Eomer narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously. "Eowyn said you're from Bree." Carrie's mind was desperately trying to work up a way for her to backpedal and retract her last question, but Eomer was not a stupid man. He shook his head. "You're not from Bree, are you?" he asked, raising his eyebrows at her.
There was no way for her now to contradict him, for he had caught her in her lie. She hung her head and shook it. "No, I'm not," she said quietly. She bit her lip and looked up at him. "I'm from much farther than that, and you would not believe me if I told you where." She shrugged. "Where doesn't matter so much, just that, if I go back there, I can never come here again."
"To Gondor?" he asked.
"To Gondor," she acknowledged. "Or Rohan, or Rivendell, or Bree, or anywhere else that you would know of. I could never see you again." She folded her hands across her chest. "Or anyone else for that matter," she said almost to herself.
She saw Eomer swallow and his brows creased. "Do you wish that?"
Carrie uncrossed her arms and wrung her hands in front of her. She looked at him for a long moment before answering. "I don't know," she said honestly.
He grabbed her hands, preventing her from gripping them any longer, and pulled her towards him. "Do you really wish that?" he asked fervently. He looked piercingly at her and Carrie thought that at that moment, his gaze could rival an elf's. "I wish you would stay." He looked away and then quickly back at her. "And I am sure I am not the only one."
He was silent again and since Carrie was not able to come up with anything to say, they just stood there. Carrie was aware that Eomer was still grasping her hands, but her mind was too busy thinking about what he had just said to take too much notice. For that was the big question she needed to have answered. Was he the only one? Did Legolas want her to stay? Before she could give it more thought, a voice spoke behind her.
"Lady Carrie." Carrie felt her back tense at the voice, not prepared after her conversation with Eomer to deal with an irate and highly pissy Eowyn. Eomer dropped her hands and she sighed tiredly and turned to face the other woman. She stood in silence looking at Eowyn, her arms folded and her lips pursed.
When Carrie did not verbally respond, Eowyn continued to try and taunt her. "My, my. You were with the Elf the last time I saw you and now you're favoring my brother with your presence, all in less than an hour." She raised her eyebrows. "You do get around."
"Eowyn…" Eomer said, a warning note to his voice, but his sister paid no attention.
Carrie rubbed her temples. "I'm really not in the mood, Eowyn," she said wearily.
"To be sure," Eowyn answered with her eyes narrowed. "You must be quite tired."
"Eowyn…" Eomer said more forcefully, but still it fell on deaf ears.
"For all I know," Eowyn continued, "you'll be headed up to the citadel next. You and Lord Aragorn were always quite chummy." Carrie bit her lip in an attempt to control her quickly rising temper. She would have been successful had it not been for Eowyn's next words. "And there are lots of other men up there that haven't had the pleasure of your company yet. I'm sure you'll have great fun initiating them all."
And that's when Carrie lost it. "What the hell is your problem?" she shouted. "I kissed your brother. So what! It certainly doesn't warrant all the nasty things you've been saying about me!"
Eowyn glared haughtily at Carrie and answered her at the same volume. "I don't know what it's like where you're from, but here we maintain a certain morality."
"Where I'm from," Carrie snipped back, "we don't turn on our friends because our brother molested them."
"Now wait just a minute," Eomer interrupted, holding up his hands in protest, but both women ignored him.
"You were asking for it since the minute you arrived at Helm's Deep." Eowyn accused.
"Asking for it?" Carrie demanded and Eowyn smirked and nodded at her. "Asking for it?"
Eowyn looked at her disdainfully. "The way you threw yourself at that Elf!"
Carrie gasped. "Oh you're a fine one to talk," she scoffed. "Look at the way you threw yourself at Aragorn!"
Both women were oblivious to the people on the street stopping what they were doing to watch this exchange that was quickly developing into a spectacle. Eomer, however, was well aware of it and tried to intervene. "Ladies…"
"Threw myself?" Eowyn stuck her chin out defiantly and spoke over whatever it was her brother was about to say. "I behaved in a way befitting a lady." She glared angrily at Carrie. "That's worlds more than I can say for you."
Carrie's lips curled into a mocking smile. "I suppose it's befitting, then, for a lady to dress up as a man and ride out to battle on a crazy suicide mission because you can't have the guy you want." Carrie put her hands on her hips. "Real ladylike, Eowyn," she sneered.
Eowyn's mouth formed into an 'O', but she quickly recovered and put her hands on her hips. "Oh, and what about you? Were you completely insane when you rode from Rivendell to Helms Deep?" Her eyes narrowed. "You had no message," she spit out. "You came for the Elf."
"Ladies!" Eomer yelled over the catfight. As one the two women turned on him.
"What!" they both shouted.
Eomer lowered his voice and raised his eyebrows. "You have an audience."
Carrie glanced around the crowd and noticed for the first time that the other activities on the street had stopped and everyone was tuned into Eowyn and her argument. The spectators apparently did not bother Eowyn as much because she continued to needle Carrie. "I'm sure it's not the first time this one has performed in front of an audience."
Being a performer in what seemed like her past life, the irony of Eowyn's comment struck Carrie as immensely funny and she laughed, startling Eowyn and Eomer, who both were most likely expecting round two to start with this latest jab at Carrie. When she calmed herself she turned to Eowyn.
"You're so not worth my time," she said with a disparaging shake of her head and walked off to make her way back to where she was staying with the Elves.
Thank you reviewers, as always! I'm glad to see that people are still enjoying this story!
Lainfaer: I'm glad you liked the chapter! I'm sure Eowyn has her motivation. It can't be easy losing out on the man you love to an elf you can never compete with.
crimson7319: No, Eowyn still ends up with Faramir. Haldir was just trying to help Legolas out, getting Eowyn and Carrie away from each other. I'm so happy you enjoy the story!
Jack-Sparrow-Lover: Thanks for the review. Say 'hi' to Leggy for me.
Moralinde: Wow…sugar…I'm glad you're enjoying it and that you popped in for a review.
PsychoPixie: Thanks for the review! I guess you can tell by this chapter that Eowyn and Carrie haven't made up yet…
moonbunny77: I like that Haldir was alive. I was kind of pissed off when they killed him off in the movie. Almost as pissed as I will be if they include that awful drinking game scene in the EE of RotK. Here's more Eowyn/Carrie, but jealous Legolas? Sorry, not going to happen. Elves don't get jealous, remember?
SayDee27: I'm glad you loved it. It's ok you didn't log in, I do that all the time, except I get to the review screen, see I'm not logged in and say "ahh, forget it." At least you left a review :)
Vanima Bliss: I'm glad you came back to review! Life does sometimes get in the way of reading and writing.
Lopus: Take as much time as you like to tell me I bring you joy! Thanks for the compliments. Oh, and there is nothing wrong with slash writers. They're no worse than writers who drop a girl into middle earth and make her and Legolas fall in love with each other. Ahem. --hide-- But I just don't want to hand Leggy over to them on a silver platter, you know?