Spoil of Rohan
~
5. Morning at the Window
- Elliot
THEY are rattling breakfast plates in the basement kitchens,
And along the trampled edges of the street
I am aware of the damp souls of housemaids
Sprouting despondently of area gates.
The brown waves of fog toss up to me
Twisted faces from the bottom of the street,
And tear from a passer-by with muddy skirts
An aimless smiled that hovers in the air
And vanishes along the level of the roofs.
Authoress Note: Sorry for that guys, I felt it kind of poetically expressed what Rohan is like at this time!
~
"Are we ready to leave?" Theodred looked at his seven companions.
"Ready." The seven replied after doing a quick mental check of the gear that they needed to bring along.
"Okay men, I expect you to be gone for about a month or so. There is no need to hurry through the patrol." The captain informed the men.
"Yes, sir."
"Okay men, do your duty, ride for the land and the people and, be safe." The captain nodded and watched as the men mounted their sturdy steeds and slowly filed out of the paddock.
~
It had been a few weeks since Boromir, Faramir, Ciara and their doubles had left the white city and went on a hunting party. Boromir and Faramir had taken to hunting whenever there was a lull in training for a few weeks or so and since winter was only days away they had a longer stretch of time to leave. Ciara always went with her two brothers because she hated to be left alone and the three were so close.
Ciara, their adopted sister, had grown especially attached to Boromir when she first arrived in Gondor but any chances of a relationship between the two vanished after a few years of becoming as close as any blood brother or sister and now the three hardly ever thought about Ciara's strange past and the fact that she was not a man but, an elf. Though she was an elf she hardly ever acted like one and certainly showed more mortal qualities than elvin.
"Ciara, your posture is declining again." Boromir chided his sister gently.
"That is what happens when we ride all day without stopping." Ciara raised her eyebrow in her brother's direction.
"You are the one that suggested we get as far away from the city as we could." Boromir pointed out.
"Yes, yes, I know." Ciara rolled her eyes and sat up straight.
"I think we've past our borders by now." Faramir looked around him.
"We'll keep following the Great West Road then until we are on the other side of Firien Wood." Boromir told the group.
"What if we happen upon Rohirrim patrols?" Ivorwen asked.
"I doubt that would happen but if we did I doubt there'd be much trouble." Boromir shrugged.
"You hope so." Ciara added, though she was joking with Boromir as they are apt to do.
~
Theodred, Eomer and the rest of their group left Edoras late one evening and road along the Great West Road until Folde, where they left the road and traveled closer to the mountains looking for their own people and people of other lands. For the first week or so they met no one on the roads, they were desolate and eerily quiet. The men were forced to make up games among themselves to keep occupied from the long days riding and the oncoming cooler weather. The days grew shorter and shorter as the weather grew steadily colder.
~
"We have not seen many animals in these woods, why is that?" Ciara asked on night as the group was making their camp in a small clearing in the Firien Wood.
"I do not know. I though it very strange myself." Boromir looked around him at the nearly silent woods, they had only heard few birds singing during their hunt that day and had not seen any animals larger than one small squirrel.
"Tomorrow will be a better day, I can feel it." Elfhelm tried to cheer up the group, so far their hunting party had been everything but a disaster, they had hardly any game to show for their long weary travel.
~
"We have not met but three people on or whole patrol so far." Theodred's friend, Aerin complained one that very same evening.
"People know about the relationship between Gondor and Rohan now, they must want to stay closer to Edoras I'm guessing." Theodred shrugged, he wasn't worried about it, whatever got him out of practicing for a month was fine with him.
"I wish we'd run into some Gondorians, I want some excitement, this travelling and doing nothing is starting to bore me." Eomer protested.
"That would be entertaining wouldn't it? Especially if they were in our lands, then we could really have some fun with them?" Eomer's friend, Deor agreed with Eomer whole-heartedly.
"Chances of that are slim, don't count on it." Theodred shook his head.
~
"Where are we exactly?" Ivorwen asked late into the next afternoon.
"We are still in Firien Wood-"
"Thank you, Boromir, I know that much."
"I think we are just a few hours ride from the Mering Stream." Faramir answered to Ciara's double.
"Oh." Ivorwen nodded, though the answer didn't really help her with her bearings, Ciara's either. Neither had really so much as study a map before, they were left to trust the four men with them to know where they were.
"Actually, I believe I hear the stream right now." Boromir's double, Estelmo corrected Faramir.
"So you are right." Faramir nodded after he heard the gentle sound of running water up ahead.
"Why do we want to find this stream again?" Ciara asked.
"We can fill our water and there should be fish there instead of the few morsels of meat we have been finding." Boromir smiled and urged his horse on a little faster towards the stream.
When the group arrived they all dismounted and their horses gratefully drank the cool water as their riders filled their share of water for themselves and began to make a comfortable camp near the stream.
"We can stay here for a day or two and then we'll head home, how about that?" Boromir gave his judgement to the rest.
"You do not want to see the other end of the wood?" Elfhelm asked.
"This is nearly the edge and besides, what more is there to see?" Boromir smiled.
"I guess you're right." Elfhelm nodded.
"I want to go for a walk, who will come with me?" Ciara asked the group.
"I will stay and make a fire." Boromir answered her.
"I am staying right here, I am sore from all that riding." Ivorwen shook her head, though it was more because Boromir was staying.
"I will go with you." Elfhelm stood up from where he had sat down to rest.
"Anyone else?" Ciara offered but no one else answered so Ciara and Elfhelm headed off alone.
"Don't go too far." Boromir called after them.
~
"We should stop soon, my horse seems to be limping." Eomer called to his fellow riders.
"We'll stop up ahead, it's the borders of our land, we can keep a good watch there." Theodred called, since he knew how much the others wanted to feel like they were really doing their job.
"Fine." Eomer nodded.
The Rohirrim stopped and began to make their camp while Eomer tended to his horse's foot, the limp was only because the horse had a small rock stuck in his hoof, nothing more.
"Eomer, go get some water will you?" Theodred asked his cousin.
"Yes, Deor, come with me." Eomer called to his friend as he gathered water canteens.
"I can't believe we haven't found anyone yet, this patrol was pointless." Deor complained to Eomer.
"I know, I was hoping we could do something while we were out." Eomer agreed.
"Wait, what was that?" Deor and Eomer stopped and listened. Laughter, someone was laughing and it sounded like a woman.
"Do you think they are Gondorian?" Deor whispered to Eomer.
"I hope so." Eomer nodded and the two put the canteens done and drew their swords as the advanced towards the noise.
~
Elfhelm and Ciara had decided to cross the Mering Stream, it was shallow enough and the water was only flowing gently over the smooth rocks on the bottom. Ciara had slipped once and nearly fell into the stream but Elfhelm caught her.
"Oh!" Ciara cried as she slid sideways and Elfhelm grabbed her to steady her.
"Watch out their graceful!"
"Oh, be quiet!" Ciara laughed and the two came out on the other side of the stream, Ciara's dress wet all along the bottom.
Ciara splashed water towards Elfhelm and he leaped towards her, Ciara dashed away into the woods, her hair falling out of the neat clip that Ivorwen had helped her put on that morning, "Come and get me!" Ciara called to Elfhelm and he ran after her.
~
"Wait, someone is coming." Eomer stood still in a clearing listening.
"Come and get me!" a voice called out just near the clearing and a girl burst through the trees and towards Eomer, "Oh!" Ciara saw both Eomer and Deor with their swords drawn and stopped.
Before either men could say anything Elfhelm came flying after Ciara.
"I've got-"He stopped short when he saw Eomer and Deor.
"Don't move." Deor said, both her and Eomer could tell the two were Gondorian by their dress.
Ciara and Elfhelm stood, weaponless, side-by-side.
"Do you have rope with you?" Eomer asked Deor.
"No."
"Me either, I'll take the girl, you take him." Eomer came towards Ciara.
"Don't touch her!" Elfhelm warned.
"What are you going to do? Fight me with a stick?" Eomer taunted.
Elfhelm didn't say anything but stood still. Eomer grabbed Ciara by the hand, earning him a slap in the face, "Don't touch me!" Ciara cried out.
Eomer picked up Ciara and tossed her over his shoulder in one fluid motion.
"Put me down!" Ciara beat Eomer's back with her fists and tried to kick but Eomer's grip on her legs was to strong.
Elfhelm lunged towards Eomer and a quick flash of blade and Elfhelm was on his knees holding a bleeding arm.
"I told you not to move." Deor warned.
"Theodred!" Eomer called back to their camp and in only moment Theodred and Aerin appeared.
"What is it?" Theodred asked as he and Aerin came running through the trees.
"Gondorians." Deor answered.
"We are on our own land." Elfhelm spat at Theodred.
"That is where you are wrong, you crossed that stream and came right into Rohirrim land, you are now our prisoners." Theodred smiled and tossed Eomer and Deor the rope he and Aerin were carrying.
Eomer dropped Ciara back on the ground, nearly knocking the wind out of her and proceeded to tie her wrists behind her back and wrap some rope in her mouth so she couldn't scream, Elfhelm was also tied up.
~
"Where are those two?" Ivorwen asked as she Faramir, Boromir, and Estelmo ate the freshly caught fresh from the stream.
"I am getting worried myself." Faramir confessed.
"I and Estelmo will go look for them, you stay here with Ivorwen." Boromir commanded Faramir and he and Estelmo left to find Ciara and Elfhelm.
~
Ciara woke up with a headache hours later and felt her body being jarred but the movement of a horse, she had been thrown over one of the extra pack horses and tied down. She was luggage, and extra pack to carry home, and being treated like one. The sun was just beginning to rise in the distance and she could see the shadows of riders all around her. Her head throbbed with pain.
~
"This is her hair clip." Boromir picked up a small silver object lying on the forest floor. They had given up looking on their side of the stream and crossed over to see what they could find and this was all. There was no sign of them anywhere.
"Boromir! I found a camp!" Estelmo called to Boromir.
"Is it fresh?"
"Yes, I'd say they made it last night and left shortly after they made it. They must be Rohirric, maybe they took Ciara and Elfhelm?" Estelmo suggested since it seemed the only other logical thing to assume.
"Let's go back to camp and see if they came back." Boromir didn't want to think of his sister and friend in the hands of the Rohirrim.
~
~
5. Morning at the Window
- Elliot
THEY are rattling breakfast plates in the basement kitchens,
And along the trampled edges of the street
I am aware of the damp souls of housemaids
Sprouting despondently of area gates.
The brown waves of fog toss up to me
Twisted faces from the bottom of the street,
And tear from a passer-by with muddy skirts
An aimless smiled that hovers in the air
And vanishes along the level of the roofs.
Authoress Note: Sorry for that guys, I felt it kind of poetically expressed what Rohan is like at this time!
~
"Are we ready to leave?" Theodred looked at his seven companions.
"Ready." The seven replied after doing a quick mental check of the gear that they needed to bring along.
"Okay men, I expect you to be gone for about a month or so. There is no need to hurry through the patrol." The captain informed the men.
"Yes, sir."
"Okay men, do your duty, ride for the land and the people and, be safe." The captain nodded and watched as the men mounted their sturdy steeds and slowly filed out of the paddock.
~
It had been a few weeks since Boromir, Faramir, Ciara and their doubles had left the white city and went on a hunting party. Boromir and Faramir had taken to hunting whenever there was a lull in training for a few weeks or so and since winter was only days away they had a longer stretch of time to leave. Ciara always went with her two brothers because she hated to be left alone and the three were so close.
Ciara, their adopted sister, had grown especially attached to Boromir when she first arrived in Gondor but any chances of a relationship between the two vanished after a few years of becoming as close as any blood brother or sister and now the three hardly ever thought about Ciara's strange past and the fact that she was not a man but, an elf. Though she was an elf she hardly ever acted like one and certainly showed more mortal qualities than elvin.
"Ciara, your posture is declining again." Boromir chided his sister gently.
"That is what happens when we ride all day without stopping." Ciara raised her eyebrow in her brother's direction.
"You are the one that suggested we get as far away from the city as we could." Boromir pointed out.
"Yes, yes, I know." Ciara rolled her eyes and sat up straight.
"I think we've past our borders by now." Faramir looked around him.
"We'll keep following the Great West Road then until we are on the other side of Firien Wood." Boromir told the group.
"What if we happen upon Rohirrim patrols?" Ivorwen asked.
"I doubt that would happen but if we did I doubt there'd be much trouble." Boromir shrugged.
"You hope so." Ciara added, though she was joking with Boromir as they are apt to do.
~
Theodred, Eomer and the rest of their group left Edoras late one evening and road along the Great West Road until Folde, where they left the road and traveled closer to the mountains looking for their own people and people of other lands. For the first week or so they met no one on the roads, they were desolate and eerily quiet. The men were forced to make up games among themselves to keep occupied from the long days riding and the oncoming cooler weather. The days grew shorter and shorter as the weather grew steadily colder.
~
"We have not seen many animals in these woods, why is that?" Ciara asked on night as the group was making their camp in a small clearing in the Firien Wood.
"I do not know. I though it very strange myself." Boromir looked around him at the nearly silent woods, they had only heard few birds singing during their hunt that day and had not seen any animals larger than one small squirrel.
"Tomorrow will be a better day, I can feel it." Elfhelm tried to cheer up the group, so far their hunting party had been everything but a disaster, they had hardly any game to show for their long weary travel.
~
"We have not met but three people on or whole patrol so far." Theodred's friend, Aerin complained one that very same evening.
"People know about the relationship between Gondor and Rohan now, they must want to stay closer to Edoras I'm guessing." Theodred shrugged, he wasn't worried about it, whatever got him out of practicing for a month was fine with him.
"I wish we'd run into some Gondorians, I want some excitement, this travelling and doing nothing is starting to bore me." Eomer protested.
"That would be entertaining wouldn't it? Especially if they were in our lands, then we could really have some fun with them?" Eomer's friend, Deor agreed with Eomer whole-heartedly.
"Chances of that are slim, don't count on it." Theodred shook his head.
~
"Where are we exactly?" Ivorwen asked late into the next afternoon.
"We are still in Firien Wood-"
"Thank you, Boromir, I know that much."
"I think we are just a few hours ride from the Mering Stream." Faramir answered to Ciara's double.
"Oh." Ivorwen nodded, though the answer didn't really help her with her bearings, Ciara's either. Neither had really so much as study a map before, they were left to trust the four men with them to know where they were.
"Actually, I believe I hear the stream right now." Boromir's double, Estelmo corrected Faramir.
"So you are right." Faramir nodded after he heard the gentle sound of running water up ahead.
"Why do we want to find this stream again?" Ciara asked.
"We can fill our water and there should be fish there instead of the few morsels of meat we have been finding." Boromir smiled and urged his horse on a little faster towards the stream.
When the group arrived they all dismounted and their horses gratefully drank the cool water as their riders filled their share of water for themselves and began to make a comfortable camp near the stream.
"We can stay here for a day or two and then we'll head home, how about that?" Boromir gave his judgement to the rest.
"You do not want to see the other end of the wood?" Elfhelm asked.
"This is nearly the edge and besides, what more is there to see?" Boromir smiled.
"I guess you're right." Elfhelm nodded.
"I want to go for a walk, who will come with me?" Ciara asked the group.
"I will stay and make a fire." Boromir answered her.
"I am staying right here, I am sore from all that riding." Ivorwen shook her head, though it was more because Boromir was staying.
"I will go with you." Elfhelm stood up from where he had sat down to rest.
"Anyone else?" Ciara offered but no one else answered so Ciara and Elfhelm headed off alone.
"Don't go too far." Boromir called after them.
~
"We should stop soon, my horse seems to be limping." Eomer called to his fellow riders.
"We'll stop up ahead, it's the borders of our land, we can keep a good watch there." Theodred called, since he knew how much the others wanted to feel like they were really doing their job.
"Fine." Eomer nodded.
The Rohirrim stopped and began to make their camp while Eomer tended to his horse's foot, the limp was only because the horse had a small rock stuck in his hoof, nothing more.
"Eomer, go get some water will you?" Theodred asked his cousin.
"Yes, Deor, come with me." Eomer called to his friend as he gathered water canteens.
"I can't believe we haven't found anyone yet, this patrol was pointless." Deor complained to Eomer.
"I know, I was hoping we could do something while we were out." Eomer agreed.
"Wait, what was that?" Deor and Eomer stopped and listened. Laughter, someone was laughing and it sounded like a woman.
"Do you think they are Gondorian?" Deor whispered to Eomer.
"I hope so." Eomer nodded and the two put the canteens done and drew their swords as the advanced towards the noise.
~
Elfhelm and Ciara had decided to cross the Mering Stream, it was shallow enough and the water was only flowing gently over the smooth rocks on the bottom. Ciara had slipped once and nearly fell into the stream but Elfhelm caught her.
"Oh!" Ciara cried as she slid sideways and Elfhelm grabbed her to steady her.
"Watch out their graceful!"
"Oh, be quiet!" Ciara laughed and the two came out on the other side of the stream, Ciara's dress wet all along the bottom.
Ciara splashed water towards Elfhelm and he leaped towards her, Ciara dashed away into the woods, her hair falling out of the neat clip that Ivorwen had helped her put on that morning, "Come and get me!" Ciara called to Elfhelm and he ran after her.
~
"Wait, someone is coming." Eomer stood still in a clearing listening.
"Come and get me!" a voice called out just near the clearing and a girl burst through the trees and towards Eomer, "Oh!" Ciara saw both Eomer and Deor with their swords drawn and stopped.
Before either men could say anything Elfhelm came flying after Ciara.
"I've got-"He stopped short when he saw Eomer and Deor.
"Don't move." Deor said, both her and Eomer could tell the two were Gondorian by their dress.
Ciara and Elfhelm stood, weaponless, side-by-side.
"Do you have rope with you?" Eomer asked Deor.
"No."
"Me either, I'll take the girl, you take him." Eomer came towards Ciara.
"Don't touch her!" Elfhelm warned.
"What are you going to do? Fight me with a stick?" Eomer taunted.
Elfhelm didn't say anything but stood still. Eomer grabbed Ciara by the hand, earning him a slap in the face, "Don't touch me!" Ciara cried out.
Eomer picked up Ciara and tossed her over his shoulder in one fluid motion.
"Put me down!" Ciara beat Eomer's back with her fists and tried to kick but Eomer's grip on her legs was to strong.
Elfhelm lunged towards Eomer and a quick flash of blade and Elfhelm was on his knees holding a bleeding arm.
"I told you not to move." Deor warned.
"Theodred!" Eomer called back to their camp and in only moment Theodred and Aerin appeared.
"What is it?" Theodred asked as he and Aerin came running through the trees.
"Gondorians." Deor answered.
"We are on our own land." Elfhelm spat at Theodred.
"That is where you are wrong, you crossed that stream and came right into Rohirrim land, you are now our prisoners." Theodred smiled and tossed Eomer and Deor the rope he and Aerin were carrying.
Eomer dropped Ciara back on the ground, nearly knocking the wind out of her and proceeded to tie her wrists behind her back and wrap some rope in her mouth so she couldn't scream, Elfhelm was also tied up.
~
"Where are those two?" Ivorwen asked as she Faramir, Boromir, and Estelmo ate the freshly caught fresh from the stream.
"I am getting worried myself." Faramir confessed.
"I and Estelmo will go look for them, you stay here with Ivorwen." Boromir commanded Faramir and he and Estelmo left to find Ciara and Elfhelm.
~
Ciara woke up with a headache hours later and felt her body being jarred but the movement of a horse, she had been thrown over one of the extra pack horses and tied down. She was luggage, and extra pack to carry home, and being treated like one. The sun was just beginning to rise in the distance and she could see the shadows of riders all around her. Her head throbbed with pain.
~
"This is her hair clip." Boromir picked up a small silver object lying on the forest floor. They had given up looking on their side of the stream and crossed over to see what they could find and this was all. There was no sign of them anywhere.
"Boromir! I found a camp!" Estelmo called to Boromir.
"Is it fresh?"
"Yes, I'd say they made it last night and left shortly after they made it. They must be Rohirric, maybe they took Ciara and Elfhelm?" Estelmo suggested since it seemed the only other logical thing to assume.
"Let's go back to camp and see if they came back." Boromir didn't want to think of his sister and friend in the hands of the Rohirrim.
~