"Years from now, when all the junk they've gotten is broken and long forgotten, you'll still have your stars."― Jeannette Walls

Chapter 16

Fion didn't wake again until morning. When he did, I ruffled through the bag of food that had been dropped off here before the battle. The weybread Legolas had given me was finally wearing off and I knew Fion would be hungry. Lia was still in Vanesse's room with the others and it was just the boy and I.

"I owe you a thanks," he said, taking an apple from my hand. "Many thanks, actually."

"For what?"

"Vanesse is good at this," he said, turning the red fruit over and over in his hands. "But when you are the eldest of the bunch, you tend to get overlooked. It is not her fault. She has cared for me more than I could ever know. I never knew my mother. She died in childbirth. Vanesse was the best I could wish for. Then you came along. I just...I owe you many thanks, Mallory. Even if you do decide to go back to your home, I want you to know that."

I smiled, sitting down beside him, wrapping one arm around his neck and pulling him into a nuggy. "I'm not going anywhere, squirt, you hear me?" I said over his laughter.

When I released him, he smiled "You're staying? You mean it?"

"Of course I'm staying. What would you do without me?"

He jumped up, taking a bite of the apple. "We should pack. Vanesse said we're going back to Aldburg today."

"Aldburg?" I asked, remembering my conversation with Eomer last night. "Aldburg doesn't have a great feast waiting for us."

"Huh?"

"We'll head to Edoras today. Eomer told me himself."

"We get to go to the feast!" he said excitedly.

"You bet your bottom dollar! Get packed, my dude. We wouldn't want to be late."

I left him and made to knock on Vanesse's door beside me, but was stopped on the other side of my own. Erkenbrand, the soldier from the noble halls was there. "I am glad to catch you awake, Lady Mallory." Lady? Huh. I didn't have a good grasp of the noble social customs. I assumed he was just being polite. "Do you make for your party to pack for the travels?"

"I was about to."

"Lord Eomer has requested me as your guard to Edoras. We know not what creatures still walk the lands after the victory yesterday. It may still be dangerous."

"Why would I need a guard?" I asked. "I've never been given one before."

"I only follow orders, my lady. I rarely ask questions. A party will leave earlier than the wounded. Make haste and we can meet them before they depart."

He backed up to the wall of the corridor, grasping his hands behind his back. I crinkled my eyebrows in curiosity, but didn't question him before knocking on the door and informing Vanesse of the plans. She was excited, of course. All of the kids were, even Lia. And I was shocked a bit when we went outside and she practically jumped into Erkenbrand's arms. "Uncle!" she called excitedly.

I vaguely remembered her telling me that her uncle still fought as a Rider and the old man laughed, catching her as she jumped. "I see now why Eomer has asked this of me," he said happily. "What joy your happy face brings me, my niece."

I smiled. It made sense now. This was another thing I would have to thank Eomer for when I saw him tonight.

Two horses and a cart had been gifted our group by Eomer. "He said to not have the children walk any father, least they wish it themselves," Erkenbrand said, motioning for them all to jump onto the cart.

"Whose horses are these?" I asked, petting the grey one bearing the cart on its soft nose.

"They are part of Theoden King's personal stables."

"It is too much," Vanesse said, hesitating getting onto the cart herself.

"Eomer said you would say such things, Miss Vanesse. But the Marshal insisted nonetheless."

She looked like she wanted to argue, but I assumed she thought of the long walk ahead and decided to spare her feet another journey.

"There is no room for Mallory!" Tara called.

"And that is the reason for this filly here," Erkenbrand said, pulling a blond mare whose reins he held forward. "Eomer said it was time you had a horse. He doesn't lend Firefoot to just any filly either. This one here is his offspring."

I shook my head. "I'm not a rider. I don't know how."

Erkenbrand laughed. "Then it is time you learned, my lady."

"Wait," Mariel said, standing up in the cart. "Why would Lord Eomer give all of this to us?"

"Because he is in love with Mallory, you dolt," Fion said, lazing back against a barrel of hay.

"Fion!" Vanesse said and scolded him for his name calling.

I ignored him and turned back to Erkenbrand. "I can't learn to ride on the road."

"There is no better place. The mare is well trained."

I walked over and petted her mane. "What's her name?"

"Brytta, my lady."

"Why have you started calling me by a title?"

"Would you like me to stop?" he asked. "It only felt appropriate, given the situation."

"What situation?" How much did he know?

"Rohirrim are an honorable people, my lady. Lord Eomer has begun to court your heart and I respect that."

"Did he say anything to you?"

"Only to grant your party these gifts and see you safely to Edoras."

"Nothing else?"

"What else would there be, my lady?"

I shook my head. "Just making sure." The mare was already tacked and I slipped my foot into the stirrup, and swung my leg over the saddle. "How do I look?" I asked, holding the reins tightly.

"You look like a shieldmaiden!" Tara said wistfully.

Erkenbrand laughed. "One step at a time, little miss. Let us teach your caretaker to ride first."

From the back of a horse, the trip seemed to fly by, though it was past midday when we reached the golden hall once again. Smells of food wafted from inside Meduseld and my mouth watered. It had been over a week since any of us had seen a hot meal.

My thighs ached from the ride, however. When I tried to descend Brytta, my knees buckled and I collapsed under the weight of my body and pains from my legs. Erkenbrand was a good teacher, showing me from atop his own horse how to use the reins to tell Brytta my commands. The Rider jumped off his own horse and helped me back to my feet. "Fatigue," he said. "It is common, no worries, my lady. The more you ride, the more used to it you will grow."

"Did Eomer say why he was gifting me a mare?" I asked.

"Only that he hoped you to learn swifty with a good companion." I nodded as a woman in a simple green dress approached us.

"Lord Erkenbrand," she said with a small bow. "Quarters have been prepared for the Riders in the barracks. I can lead your companions to the lower levels for rest before the feast tonight."

"Nay, miss. I have instructions from the king's nephew on that matter," he said, handing her a scroll from his pocket. "That is a message for Lady Eowyn. Lady Mallory is to be housed in the king's personal guest quarters, her entire party."

"All of these children?" the girl asked, looking over at their tired bodies crawling off the cart.

"Aye, miss. It is all explained in the letter."

"Lady Eowyn did not have us prepare such quarters."

"And that is why her brother wrote her directly."

"We can stay in the lower level," I said. These gifts were becoming too much. "It really is no trouble."

"No, my lady," she said with another bow. It was weird to be bowed to. I didn't like it. "If Lord Eomer has requested it, we will make it happen. Rooms were prepared for others. We can put you in those and prepare more for the guests tonight."

The rooms were the closest thing to exquisit that I assumed this world could get. Hot baths were drawn for us when we arrived and I sank into one immediately. I hadn't had a hot bath since before coming here. That luxury had never been offered to me in Aldburg. All of these luxuries hadn't.

Vanesse came into the bathing room when I was done. A servant of the hall came to fetch the children to give Vanesse and I a moment of peace and help them bathe before I started. I had protested, but the servant had said she had been sent by Lady Eowyn. That seemed unlikely, given our singular past encounter, but I accepted, grateful for some alone time with my friend.

"It this normal?" I asked her.

"Is what?"

"This," I said, gesturing around the bathroom. "The gifts, the kindness from Eomer."

She shrugged. "My husband was a miller's boy. He had not the means to woo me with gifts to the likes of these. He brought me flowers. Once he purchased rare oranges from a Dol Amroth trader. But I suppose for the king's heir, it is normal, yes. Why do you ask?"

"It's just...where I'm from relationships tend to start out with paying for a nice meal. Not a bunch of expensive gifts."

"You mean to stay now, yes?" she asked. I nodded. "Well, perhaps this is something to get used to."

I couldn't lie, while it was a lot, I liked the gifts. I liked the attention. I felt special. Taken care of. I had spent the last few months of my life taking care of all these children I had forgotten what it was like to be given that myself. Did Eomer know that? I hadn't even known it.

"Evening draws near," she said as I pulled on a shift behind a screen. "While you were bathing one of the servants brought us some fresh clothes. Fion is to sit with the Riders and the other men who fought the battle. Lia with her uncle. The little ones will be watched over by one of Meduseld's girls. Lady Eowyn insisted."

"You spoke to Eowyn?" I asked, coming out from behind the screen.

"Yes. She is waiting for you out in the room."

Oh holy shit. I wasn't expecting that. I had been hoping to ask Erkenbrand what Eomer had said in his letter to her before I was forced to confront her. Better yet, I had hoped to not speak to her at all. I knew I would have to eventually, but I at least wanted Eomer there in case she tried to attack me again.

I had been given too much luck for one day, it had seemed.

She was sitting on the edge of one of the beds in the room. I didn't know who the room had been intended for. The room held two beds, larger than the ones I had become accustomed to back in Aldburg's barracks and its orphanage. There was an adjacent room that held the same two large beds. Cots had also been moved there for the children, but they were not the straw stuffed things they had been sleeping in as of late. I smiled thinking of the great sleep they would get on the downe mattresses.

"Lady Eowyn?" I said, walking into the room.

Her eyes surveyed me. They were the same shape as Eomer's, but grey rather than green. And they were taking in my entire form. "I take it my brother has recently made some kind of declaration in your favor?" she asked.

"If you already know the answer, why ask the question?" I didn't want to be rude to her, but I also wanted to make it clear that I wouldn't back down when it came down to whatever animosity we somehow held for each other. She was strong, it was clear to see. I was strong too, and I needed her to know that.

She rolled her eyes. "I did not come here to fight with you, Mallory Gilmore."

"Then why did you come?"

"Eomer will be arriving soon. I wanted to speak with you before he could intervene."

"Do you still think I'm mooching off of your brother? Or that I intend him harm?"

"I do beg your pardon, but I do not understand. 'Mooching?'"

"Taking advantage of him and his hospitality."

She nodded. "I will not deny, since receiving his letter, the thought has crossed my mind."

"I never asked him for help," I said, sitting down in a chair by the fireplace. "I was lost, scared, and confused. I didn't speak Rohirric and my ability to communicate was limited. I was thrust into a world I never knew existed. He saw that and he showed me kindness. Whatever happened after was a result of that kindness, not a desire to use him."

She took a deep breath. "My brother is Eorlingas. As deep of an Eorlingas one can be. And as much as his desire to help those who need it is embedded in Eorlingas culture, he is also a hard man. We are a country of hardships, Mallory Gilmore. Hardships make men weary. Protective. It also makes them prone to hard exteriors. What I am trying to say is that my brother does not often let strangers enter his life as you have. Our family has a difficult past with love. And Eomer has adapted to that past."

"Have you?" I asked.

She all but dropped her jaw. "You are rather impertinent, aren't you?"

"I've been told that once or twice, yes."

"I let people in more than my brother, and I have suffered for it," she admitted. "But I learn from my experiences. I would rather him learn from mine than suffer it himself."

"I know you love your brother," I said. "I can't imagine what that love is like. I am an only child. But I swear to you, Eowyn, I do not intend any harm to him."

"Your intentions are no longer what I fear. What I fear now, after reading his letter, is that his fate will be similar to that of our mother's."

"What happened to your mother?"

She shook her head. "I have said more than I intended. Let us leave this matter, for now, with an apology. I have had time to think over my harsh words to you since the people's departure to Helm's Deep. Being alone with my thoughts...I have been given time to make sense of them. And I am sorry."

"Why did you do it? Attack me like that?"

She took another deep breath. "The halls of Meduseld have been dark for many years. After Grima Wormtongue had grown bored working Saruman's magic on my uncle, his attention turned to me. My guard has been heavy on any potential threats since then. But he is gone now and I am as safe as I can be in these times."

She would probably never tell me what is was that this guy did to her and it really wasn't any of my business, in the end. "Thank you, Eowyn."

She nodded and stood. "I am by no means ready to call you a friend. But I am Eorlingas and will show you the hospitality you deserve. There are dresses for you and Vanesse in the wardrobe. They are not extravagant, but they are clean. I will see you again at the feast."

I smiled as she walked out of the room. All of that was more than I ever thought I would get from the White Lady. I didn't need to be her friend, but it was nice to know that I was no longer her enemy.

I dressed in the simple green dress from the wardrobe, leaving the blue one for Vanesse. There was also a brown vest to wear over it. Eowyn said they were not extravagant, but I begged to differ. I owned only three dresses, one given to me from Frieda and two more that I had purchased with the coin she had given me back when I had been working for her. They were both uneventful and served only the purpose of clothing me and keeping me warm. This dress, while still simple compared to American standards, would be the most beautiful thing I owned. I fingered the embroidery on the neckline and hems of the sleeves. It was a pattern of white flowers, like the ones that lay on the graves back in Aldburg. Great care and detail had been put into this dress which could only have been stitched by hand.

A horn sounded and I jumped to the window. Theoden's party was approaching the gates, which had been left open as people made their way from the Hornburg throughout the day. I could see Gandalf's beard flow in the wind and a spotted grey horse that could have only been Firefoot.

Tonight would be my last good night in this war, though I couldn't have known it in that moment.

A/N: I have some questions, if you wouldn't mind me asking.

Who is your favorite of the characters and who do you want to see more of?

Does this story, after having been casually written over the course of a year and a half so far, make narrative sense? Are you confused by anything?

Are you here cause you're an Eomer fan or do you like GFIME stories?

What do you think of Mallory? Do you need more backstory? Do her choices make sense?

I'm asking these questions because I'm aware that it's taken me a long time to get this out onto the internet. Since starting it, I have graduated college, moved 500 miles away from home, and gotten my first career-based job. I know it's been a slow ride, but I really do enjoy writing fanfics and I want to keep doing it. But I also want to keep my readers involved. Thank you to the readers who've stuck it out. I still don't know how often I'll be able to write. I managed to squeeze out these last few chapters so quickly because I finally figured out where I'm going with this story and what I want to say. I was also on vacation. That helped.

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks for sticking around and I'm sorry I can't be as productive with this story as I would like to be. I have every intention of finishing it, especially now that I know where it's headed, but I wanted to give an explanation for my ridiculous timing.

Thank you guys so much and I can't wait for your feedback!