Rohan was a great kingdom of Men located in the land once known as Calenardhon, situated in the great vale between the Misty Mountains and the White Mountains. The land of Rohan extended from the banks of the river Isen in the west, up to the East wall of Rohan and the shores of the river Anduin in the east. The forest of Fangorn lay on its border, and the Elven forest of Lothlórien lay north of the river Limlight. The land of Rohan was originally part of Gondor but gained independence from it. The land was first known as "Rohan" to the Men of Gondor, and its people the Rohirrim, meaning 'the Horse-lords', but the people of Rohan called themselves the Eorlingas- sons of Eorl the Young, first King of Rohan- as the land of Calenardhon was given in gift to Eorl and his people by Cirion, Steward of Gondor, in thanks for their service to Gondor in the battle against the Balchoth. Eorl swore an oath of friendship, and aid when summoned, to the Lords of Gondor, and were known for their cavalry and horse mastery.
And its capital, Edoras, was built at the end of the valley of Harrowdale, which lay under the great mountain Starkhorn. The river Snowbourn flowed past the city on its way west towards the Entwash and was joined by a small stream with its source near the top of the hill. As Rohan consisted of mostly small villages and farmsteads, Edoras was the largest settlement and held the Golden Hall of Meduseld- the seat and residence of Rohan's kings. The Barrowfield, where Rohan's kings were entombed, lay outside the city's main gate.
The countryside of Rohan was a land of pastures and lush tall grassland, like seas of grass that spanned over eight regions of the kingdom. The Eastfold bordered with the Westfold via the Snowbourn River on the west and bordered with Anórien in Gondor to the east, with tall grasslands and had a modest climate. The Westfold was east to the Gap of Rohan and contained Helm's Deep; its border with the Eastfold was marked by the Snowbourn River. Fenmark stretched from the Firien Wood through the wetlands along the Mering Stream, marking part of Rohan's eastern border with Gondor. The Folde, with its tall grasslands and moderate climate, was at the heart of the Kingdom of Rohan- containing the cities of Edoras and Aldburg. Westemnet was bordered on the north by Fangorn Forest and its grasslands were west of the Entwash, extending to the river Isen. The Eastemnet was an area of wide, grassy plains found east of the river Entwash, between it and the Great River Anduin, and the region was bordered by the lands of Anórien in the southeast, the Emyn Muil, marked by the East Wall of Rohan, in the east, the Brown Lands and the Field of Celebrant in the north and northeast, and Westemnet in the west. The Wold was the northeastern area of Rohan- virtually treeless and somewhat bleak- located between Fangorn Forest and River Anduin, and to the north lay the river Limlight and in the south by the East Emnet. And the West-March was to the West of Edoras, lying south of the Isen river and north of the Adorn river.
Its people were known for being tall, blonde, and mostly blue-eyed people. The men were large, husky, and handsome while the women were particularly beautiful. They were heroic, noble, brave, strong-willed, and fiercely independent, remaining within their own language and culture. Their horses were very important assets in their everyday lives, with their entire culture based around the breeding and trading of them. They lived mostly in villages on the plains of Rohan where their horses grazed and had few cities. The outlying villages, however, had to contend with attacks from the Dunlendings- who hated and feared the Rohirrim for having driven them to the mountains. It wasn't uncommon for the wildmen of Dunland to attack villages, often doing so without warning, but their attacks had become more frequent as of late and the Riders of Rohan in their éoreds were constantly sent out to deal with these attacks.
Nearly a week after one of the most recent attacks, the horn sounding the return of the éored under the command of the Lord Éomer, son of Éomund, rang out and Héodis, daughter of Héogrim, ran out to greet them. Many of the men were bruised and bloodied, some worse for wear than others, and as eager as she was to embrace her younger brother upon his return- to welcome him back home- Héodis was needed with the wounded. She immediately began directing where the wounded needed to be taken and followed the men inside, giving instructions to the others who came to tend to the wounded. She quickly immersed herself in her work, not wasting a single moment.
It was not long after the return of the éored that Héodis was approached by the king's nephew. She greeted him with a reassuring smile and informed him that his men would make a full recovery despite their injuries, but she knew that something was amiss and felt tension in the air between her and Éomer.
"My lord, what is it?"
Éomer found it difficult to meet her gaze. He had known Héodis and her brother, Héoláf, for quite some time- having taken on Héoláf as a squire and trained him to become the soldier he eventually grew into. He had even named Héoláf as his second in command after the young man had exceeded his expectations, and was very fond of him- viewing him more as a younger brother than a subordinate. But during this last battle, Héoláf fell to a Dunlending's blade while trying to cover Eomer's back.
"Éomer, what's wrong?" Héodis asked, dropping formalities. "Where's Héoláf? Where's my brother?" She backed away and her chest tightened, tears beginning to brim her eyes and threaten to break free when she saw Éomer's face fall. "No..."
"Héodis, I am so sorry..." Éomer managed, trying to keep his own grief at bay. His heart sank even further when he saw the sense of betrayal she was feeling in that moment reflected in her eyes.
"You promised to protect him..." Héodis said, fighting to keep her composure.
"Héodis, I-"
"You promised!"
The room went silent and all eyes had turned to them and as Éomer reached out towards her, she recoiled.
"You promised, Éomer..." Héodis refused to meet his gaze after that and turned away. "I should return to my duties... you should do the same..."
Éomer knew he could say nor do anything more at that moment, so he took his leave and went to make his report to the king.
His sister, the Lady Éowyn, approached Héodis cautiously and asked if there was anything she could do for her, but Héodis only asked for more bandages and fresh water.
It was all Héodis could do to keep her grief at bay, burying herself in her duties, but when night fell and she had returned to the home she had shared with Heolaf- the home that felt even emptier than before- she could no longer contain her grief and wept. She wept for the loss of her younger brother, the only living family that she had left. She cursed herself for letting him join an éored, to begin with- thinking that if she had only convinced him not to, that maybe he'd still be alive- and she blamed Éomer for breaking his promise, for not protecting Heolaf as she had believed he would. The tumultuous storm of emotions raging within Héodis only quieted when she finally cried herself to sleep.