Chapter 8.
Five months later
Haldir was regretting ever going back to Lothlorien. Seeing the familiar elves' faces pass one by one, smiling at him as usual, only made him feel even emptier inside. I shouldn't even be here, by right, he thought, shaking his head. He could not seem to get the image of Éowyn out of his mind – and her image seemed to haunt him as he slept. There was so much that he remembered, and shockingly, he would willingly trade his life in Lothlorien for what he had with Éowyn. Would he ever, ever see her again? Most importantly, could he? As he eased back into the daily routine of guarding Lothlorien, or traversing through the Golden Wood and keeping it safe, he longed fro the mortal touch of life at Helm's Deep. His content expression never quite matched his eyes, which were marred by sorrow.
Éomer paced up and down Edoras, the Golden Hall.
"Éowyn, you have to stop this pining and sadness – he's not going to return," he said, concerned and worried.
"There is nothing – nobody – left," she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes again.
"Please don't cry, Éowyn, I just can't bear to see you so weak, so hurt..." Éomer said, shaking his head. "That elf...I swear that I will get my hands on him – break his neck," he added furiously.
Éowyn stood up. "There was something he had to do, and he left against his own free will," she snapped. "And if – when – he returns, you must not ever, ever try to harm him," she said.
"Don't you see, Éowyn? He is not going to come back for you, for anything or anyone, no matter what you want to believe," Éomer snapped.
"He will. I know it," she replied, before sweeping out of the room regally.
It was time to slam another door shut, to open a new one. That would bring him to where his heart longed for. Galadriel and Celeborn probably knew what he was going to do. He was certain that they did – or had predicted that something like this would happen, and that he would leave eventually. As he walked around the Golden Wood once more, his eyes drinking in every image, lips mouthing the words of his own elven-tongue, he realized that he would make his decision, to leave for Rohan. Mounting the horse, he whispered a sad goodbye to his home and set forth for his only love.
Meanwhile, Éowyn sat in her room, fingering a single dried leaf, fallen through the windows. She contemplated setting forth for Lothlorien, and said aloud to herself. "After all, what's the worst thing that could possibly happen now? The old foe of the past returning again, and killing me on the way?" staring at herself in the mirror, she sighed. The old sparkle was gone from her eyes as quickly as they had come, and her cheeks were pale once more. Everything that had materialized from their brief elf-mortal relationship had gone. She had lost so much...and so had he.
She wasn't going to sit around anymore, thinking and pretending to be simply a grief-stricken maiden who could do naught but sit and whine. Éomer would – could – rant and rave at her, and demand her immediate return, but she wouldn't and didn't need to follow. Tonight, she said to herself.
"Éowyn! Where are you going?" Éomer demanded as he caught her dashing into the royal stables.
"Nowhere," she replied coolly.
She stepped in, easing herself out of his grip and barreled off towards the stable. Now, if only she knew exactly how to get to Lothlorien, safely and quickly...she leapt onto a horse and rode off into the distance.
"Who comes hither?" Haldir shouted as he approached Helm's Deep. Riding as quickly as he could, and he was proud to have reached it by nightfall. Gazing at the figure, galloping towards him on a swift-footed horse, he could make out the distant figure of a female, riding...
All of a sudden, the horse jerked and let out a long and loud whinny before it collapsed to the ground abruptly. Haldir had no idea who it was, or why, but he rode towards the casualties – after all, it was on the way – and looked at the figure lying on the ground.
"Éowyn?" he asked, cradling her like a rag doll. He remembered hours, days of careful tending to him while he was injured. He would take her back to Rohan. Carrying her delicately, he mounted the horse and carried her, going back to Rohan as quickly as he dared. He had never heard of anyone dying from a bad fall from a horse, but he had to be sure.
When Éowyn awoke, she found herself back in her room. Her horse – perhaps dead – after a terrible fall...who had found her? She placed a hand to her forehead to stop the world from spinning and walked slowly to her door. Opening it, her jaw dropped.
"Haldir!"
A/n: Sorry for all the short updates - lots of projects and other stuff going on right now. Will update more after the exams (: And a big thankyou to all my lovely reviewers too (: