Year 3 in the Fourth Age
The candle flickered in the dark corridor, lighting the old stone walls off of which Léofe's footsteps echoed. She knew her way to her destination even with her eyes closed, but it would have seemed odd to any other night time wanderers to be without light.
She did not notice that there was already light coming from under the door.
Léofe entered the room, her attention far away, and so did not expect to see another. She stifled a gasp. A large man, unfortunately very familiar, looked up at her looking mildly concerned.
"To what do I owe this surprise?" the new king asked.
"I apologize!" Léofe said at once. "I did not know that anyone would be here."
"So you came here expecting to be alone?"
"Yes." Léofe knew how it sounded, and her cheeks flushed red.
But the king did not speak again, but studied her as he set down the large book he had been pursuing. "Well met again, Léofe," he said, his voice quiet as he laced his fingers together, relaxing in the carved chair behind the desk. "I was intending to seek you out tomorrow."
"Wha—me?"
"Yes," the king smiled, and his resemblance to his cousin hit Léofe in the gut like a vicious punch. Her throat tightened. "Will you ask why?" he asked.
"Why?" she choked, trying to regain control over herself.
"Please, sit." The king motioned towards a chair across from him, and Léofe sat. He studied her for a moment, then said, "Do you enjoy living here?"
This was not the response she expected, and she had to think for a moment. "Most of the time," she admitted. "I have been very busy helping Alfrida since Théobrand was born, but I am not a housekeeper at heart, like she is."
The king nodded. "Are you going to stay?"
Léofe squirmed in her seat. She was not uncomfortable with the king exactly; he exuded a presence that made her feel at ease. But his question made her voice thoughts that she had not spoken of. "No," she said at last. "I cannot."
"You cannot? Why?"
"There are too many ghosts."
This vague answer did not confuse the king; instead, he nodded solemnly. "Mistress Léofe," he said, his voice slow and deliberate. "I knew my cousin better than nearly anybody. In the years I lived with him as a brother, and as we kept correspondence for the remainder of his life, he never once spoke of a woman apart from our aunt and my sister. Until he met you."
Léofe blushed again. The king stood, walking over to a travelling trunk which he rummaged through for several moments. When he sat again, he dropped a large tied bag onto the table, which clanked loudly. "I know you and Théodred were not formally betrothed, though not because of any lack of effort on his part. I would have come at his request, but I was detained as part of the plan of his murder." The king's brows had drawn together, and his voice was gruff. "But I know he would have wanted to provide for you. That was his intention in wishing to have a ceremony during the war. It was a risky decision, as I believe you had already been used to hurt him?"
Léofe nodded, her face feeling numb.
"Hmm. Well, Léofe, you are a very rich woman. This is a quarter of Théodred's personal fortune. It is now yours. The rest you may have when you wish it." The king pushed the bag towards her.
Her mouth fell open. "No! Surely not? That cannot be legal! We were not betrothed!"
"Of course it is legal. I am the king, and I say it is." The man's face was impassive, but Léofe had the impression that his words were a joke. But she did not have a laugh in her. Her discomfort was increasing, and so she changed the subject.
"Why have you come here, sire?" she asked.
"Éomer," he said. "Call me Éomer. If we should have been family…" He frowned, and did not finish his thought. "I am here to see how the Hornburg is recovering. Aunt Alfrida gave me this stack of ledgers—" He motioned to a very large pile of books, one of which was open in front of him. "To examine the accounts over the past four years." Éomer grimaced. "When she brought them, Alfrida told me not to ask for her help, as she had had enough misery doing the accounts in the first place and she did not wish to torture herself again."
Léofe did laugh then. She could very much imagine the lady saying those words. "Why did you not bring the queen?" she asked, starting to enjoy the king's company. "I very much wanted to catch a glimpse of her. I have heard she is as tall as a man and tan as a nut!"
"You have heard correctly." Éomer smiled, and then said: "The queen is with child."
"Oh, how wonderful!" Léofe did not have to falsify enthusiasm for this. A new heir would be wonderful for the Mark!
"Yes. Unfortunately, she is too ill to travel," he sighed. "This fortress is mighty lonely without her."
Léofe tried to say something reassuring, she really did, but when she opened her mouth she was overwhelmed with the truth of that statement, and she ducked her head.
"So," Éomer cleared his throat. "What will you do now? Unencumbered and rich as you are."
"I have thought—that is, I have trained a little with a midwife in a nearby village. I would like to become a midwife myself. Somewhere—far from here."
The king's eyebrows raised at this. "You do not wish to raise horses."
Léofe's hands twisted in her skirt. "No. I wish to do something new, something that cannot remind me of Théodred every moment of the day." She paused. "I—I met a man, a—a soldier. He became a friend." She felt herself flush again. "He has sisters in Edoras who would allow me to live with them while I establish myself in the city."
Éomer grinned. "I am gratified to hear that you have made good plans for yourself. When you come to Edoras, please visit Meduseld. Lot and I would very much enjoy hearing your stories."
It was a kind offer, but Léofe already knew she would never visit her prince's childhood home willingly. But she smiled, and said, "Thank you. And—I am sorry for disturbing you. I only come here when I am feeling anxious or lonely. I should have known this is where you would stay during your visit."
The king glanced around the study which used to be Théodred's, crease lines appearing on his forehead as he sighed. "Yes, I imagine so. Worry not—you will have it to yourself again tomorrow. You are right about Helm's Deep: too many ghosts!"
Léofe stood, smoothing down her skirt. "Fare well, Éomer."
"Fare well, Léofe. Do not forget your coins."
The bag weighed heavily in her hands, but her mind was light, and Léofe left the study feeling remarkably at peace with the world.
Thank you everyone for sticking through this story with me. I apologize for taking so long between updates... but anyway. Let me know what you think! I hope ya'll enjoyed it and I appreciate every single review, even if I haven't replied to them all individually.
Presently I am posting several Eomer/Lothiriel shorts, and I have been working on an AU ending to Brego's Mistress - we'll see how that goes! Keep in touch :)