A few days go by before Éomer and Kiana can spend more quality time together like the night of the storm. The young lord was tasked with training and assisting his cousin in their royal duties while Kiana was busy tackling her smaller projects- the ones brought in to her by residents of the town. They were both pretty busy and barely got the chance to greet each other, even in passing, so when things settled down again- for the time being- they were relieved and took the opportunity to enjoy one another's company once more.

"Sister," Éomer said in greeting as he approached Éowyn and Kiana.

"Evening, brother. Are you all finished for the day?"

"Yes, finally."

"You seem to have had a long day."

Éomer looked at Kiana as she spoke. "It is to be expected, given the circumstances."

Éowyn looked between the two of them, noticing the rare smile from her brother as he and Kiana continued to chat for a moment. "Have you eaten yet, brother?"

Éomer shook his head. "No, not since this morning."

"You really should be eating more than once or twice a day, my lord," Kiana noted, keeping formalities as they were in Meduseld. "You shouldn't eat anything too heavy, though, lest you upset your stomach."

"Weren't you telling me earlier of the soup you had cooking at home, Kiana?" Éowyn asked.

"Yes, it's a wild rice and mushroom soup in chicken broth," Kiana explained. "It's nice and light, and easy on the stomach."

"It sounds delicious," Éomer said.

"You're welcome to join me, if you'd like," Kiana offered, blushing a little.

"That sounds like a wonderful idea," Éowyn added.

"What of you, sister? Have you eaten already?"

Éowyn nodded. "I had something earlier, so please don't worry about me." She gestured for them to go on.

"Are you sure, my lady?"

Éowyn nodded. "Go, I'll be just fine."

Kiana stood and smoothed down the wrinkles on her dress that had begun to form from her sitting. "At least let me help you finish with this?"

"Alright," Éowyn agreed, smiling.

Kiana looked at Éomer. "If you would like to join me, my lord, I just need a few moments to finish here."

Éomer nodded. "I will take the opportunity to get changed."

Kiana smiled, then went about gathering the linens that she had been sorting through and organizing with Éowyn. As she did that, Éomer headed off to his chambers to wash up and change into something fresh and more comfortable than his armor.

And just as she had said, a few moments later Kiana was finished helping Éowyn with the last of her duties for the day and waited eagerly for Éomer to join her. When he stepped out of his chambers, now dressed in a warm tunic rather than his armor, she found herself feeling rather excited to be spending more time with him. The two bid Éowyn farewell before taking their leave of Meduseld and making their way towards Kiana's home. As they walked, Éomer and Kiana discussed the events of the day, but Kiana noticed that Éomer's mind kept wandering elsewhere and wondered what troubled him.

Upon arriving at her home, Kiana stepped inside and slid off her cloak and her boots- setting them in their usual places. Éomer followed suit, thankful that the roads weren't nearly as muddy as they were just a few days prior.

"Would you like some tea, Éomer?" Kiana asked, dropping formalities now that they were in her home.

"That sounds wonderful."

"Would you like the same blend as last time, or would you like to try a new one?"

Éomer came up behind Kiana to look at the labels on the tea jars she had stored, startling her a bit when he reached forward to take one from the shelf. "Is this one of the berry teas you spoke of?"

Kiana's cheeks felt as though they were on fire, suddenly feeling a bit embarrassed to be so close to him at that moment. "Y-Yes, this one has elderberry, bilberry, and blackberry mixed with some rosehips and mint. However, this tea is on the heavier side so I would suggest this one instead." She pointed to a different jar. "This one is a blend of rosemary, thyme, and mint. It's rather light and would go well with the soup. Would you like to give it a try? We can save the berry blend for another time if that's acceptable?"

Éomer chuckled softly when he caught a glimpse of blushing cheeks as she glanced at him to see his answer and took the jar from the shelf, opening it to smell its aroma. It was a delicately scented blend that made him feel at ease. "This will do."

Kiana took the jar from him and made her way to the prep area to spoon the tea blend into the mesh strainer ball. While she busied herself with preparing the tea, Éomer made his way over to the loom and looked at the project. It looked to be a rug with a traditional Rohirric design, colored in natural tones.

"That rug is for the family just up the hill and west of the Golden Hall. They asked me to make repairs to it, as it's a family heirloom. It should be done in about a week or two."

"You seem to have quite a lot of projects lately," Éomer observed, looking over at her as she stepped back from the fire. "You are still working on the tapestry in the Great Hall as well, are you not?"

Kiana nodded. "Unfortunately, it ended up using more materials than I thought it would, so I need to wait for the merchants to get their next delivery. Thankfully, that should be sometime next week, so I can finish the tapestry repairs once I've finished mending the rug and can get more materials."

"I see." Éomer moved to the couch and lounged in the corner across from Kiana. "You must keep fairly busy with all this work."

Kiana smiled. "I like to stay busy, especially if it can bring joy and comfort to those around me." She went about setting the table and pouring the tea into the readied mugs, adding just a touch of honey to sweeten it.

"Aye, but a break is important, too," Éomer pointed out with a brow raised, "something of which you remind me of quite frequently."

Kiana giggled and stuck her tongue out playfully at him as she returned the kettle to its hook. "Fair enough." She checked the soup and her smile grew. "The soup is finally ready, would you like to come sit?"

Éomer nodded and moved from the couch to the table, once again taking the seat across from hers. He waited patiently for her to serve herself next before returning the pot to the hearth and grabbing the basket of rolls from the shelf.

"The baker wanted to try a new recipe and made these fresh this morning." Kiana offered him the small basket before taking one herself and setting it to the side.

Éomer took a roll and tore off a small piece, dipping it into the soup. They sat for a moment in silence before Éomer spoke next.

"This is delicious, Kiana. Perhaps you could come work in the kitchens instead."

Kiana beamed and swallowed her mouthful of food before answering. "As flattering as that is, I like my work as a weaver."

"Then perhaps instead, I could join you for meals more often," Éomer stated, looking at her briefly over his mug as he sipped his tea. "If it's no imposition to do so, that is."

Kiana blushed and tried to hide it behind her mug, but she answered in a similar tone, "It would be no imposition at all."