Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters and places in this fanfic; they belong to J.R.R. Tolkien, and I am not making any profit or harm of it.

"Morwen bore him two more daughters in Rohan; and the last, Théodwyn, was the fairest (...) Her brother loved her dearly." J.R.R. Tolkien, "The Lord Of The Rings," Appendix A

It was the year of 2963; and although evil was stirring in the East and West, Rohan was still, at that time, living in as much happiness as it could, for its king Thengel was a wise man and the Eorlingas loved him dearly. And although he had just one son, he had three daughters -- and they were the fairest in the land. Of long, light brown hair as the house of Éorl, they were the downfall of many other teenagers. Their mother, Morwen of Lossarnach, was a descendant from the high lineages of Gondor; she was slender and tall, unlike any of the Rohirrim, and they called her Steelsheen for her gracious yet proud behaviour.

But happy times could not last forever; and Thengel and Morwen were growing old. Yet, one year before on the summer of 2962, Morwen had announced that she was pregnant again. A child that came late, but that could prove useful as they had only one descendant for the throne: Théoden, fourteen years of age by now. If war came, he would have to lead the troops of the Rohirrim; and although his sisters would get married as time came, Thengel did not want to leave the throne in the hands of other that not a true descendant of Éorl. And Rohan had never had a queen.

But as the year of 2963 brought Morwen's child to life, high expectations for a male were blown off. It did not mean, though, that the Rohirrim were upset, because the new baby was the fairest of all five. Thengel named her Théodwyn, and by name and love she was always connected to her brother. As she grew up, her hair was of a pure blonde, and soon she overthrew her sisters in beauty and graciousness. They were not too terribly upset -- while her sister was still in her teenage years, they had already married and given birth to their children, who became great Rohan warriors and maidens, and followed another story that is not to be told here.

Being a late child, she lost her mother and father at just seventeen, and she grieved for them with true sadness, because she needed their support and love at such a young age -- although she was very determined and strong and did not give up easily. It was then that she turned to her brother Théoden, heir to the throne and the new king; and he was pleased to have her live with him in the palace. He himself was going through a difficult time, having lost his wife two years ago in her childbirth and having left him with a son; and he needed his sister's help in Théodred's upbringing and taking care of the house.

For eight years, Théodwyn lived in Edoras, looking after her nephew and the house. Occasionally, she took him for a walk in the green fields; and they ran and rode together, visited many places and woods, and learnt a lot about the country. But there were times that she started to spend alone, when Théodred started with his lessons at the age of nine. Then she would go to the palace's gardens, sing to the birds and listen to the whisper of the trees, and she would sit and think about her life.

In 2988 she completed twenty-five years, a number which marked the "coming of age" those days in Rohan. Théoden had told her then: "Théodred has grown up to be a beautiful child; you may go now and proceed with your life."

But Théodwyn had always refused, and she kept living in Edoras with her brother and nephew. Although he was very glad, he never mentioned it, because he did not want his sister's happiness to be spoilt. And it was about time that she found a man to marry, even if she did not seem too interested.

Until one day, in the summer of 2988.

A/N: Thanks to "rabid cow" for the review. It was really encouraging. Here goes the first chapter! Hope you all enjoy!

Théodwyn was sitting on a bench, the usual bench she sat in everyday at that hour of the day, while her nephew was having lessons -- either of archery, riding, arithmetics, or history. It was a very peaceful time. She felt calm there, with only the company of nature by her side (and occasionally a book), with no one disturbing.

"Yes?" she answered. "I'm here."

The boy stood more attentively, trying to understand the direction by which he had heard the voice. From the place where he was standing, he could only see the bench and a tree -- only behind it there was Théodwyn. But he did not know of it; and was desperately trying to figure out the problem when she was actually very near. On the other side, she could see him from the corner of her eye; and closing the book with a deep sigh, she stood up, coming from behind the tree all of a sudden. The boy jumped in shock.

"You were there!" he shouted, breathing in and out very quickly, trying to recover from the long run and exhaustion.

She approached him to check his state. "Théodred! Are you not having lessons today?" It was still very early; he could not have possibly had all of his programmed activities of the day in such few hours, even if he had aced them all at the first try.

He took a deep breath, trying to find a steady rhythm. "It-it was Father," he tried to say, still gasping. Théodwyn felt he would not be all right if he kept talking with such effort, so she lead him to the bench to rest. The fresh scent of the flowers helped her nephew recover from the tiredness.

"As I was saying," he restarted, more calmly, "Father wishes to have an afternoon snack; and he would very much like you to show up as soon as possible. That's why I came running so fast."

"I hope it's something important," she observed, raising an eyebrow. "I do not want to see you coming to such exhaustion so often; not because of me, at least."

"Please, Aunt Théodwyn! You know how important you are to us. Oh, and about the matter," he said, lowering the tone, "I think it's because of a man visiting in our house."

"Oh, don't be silly!" she exclaimed immediately. "Have you come to warn me so quickly because of a man in our house? That way you might have me not going."

He rolled his eyes. "I was jesting! But yes, there are men visiting our house. I heard them say to be coming from the borders in the Eastfold; and one of them is the chief Marshal of the Mark."

"The chief Marshal of the Mark?" asked Théodwyn with true interest.

"Yes, why?" Theódred asked innocently with his ten years of age. "Is it that the chief Marshal of the Mark is of this lady's special interest?" He winked, sarcasm noticeable in his voice.

"Now, don't be playing again! No time for jokes, my dear... It's just that he does not come to our house for no reason... He must be bringing news..."

"What kind of news?"

"None of your business," she answered sharply, not letting him know of the troubles that were starting to appear in Rohan's borders: orcs, spies, and rumours of a shadow in the East. "You will know about it when you have to. Now, let's go as fast as possible. Have you rested enough yet?"

"Oh no," he said lazily. He pretended to gasp, terribly grieved by pain; but Théodwyn simply laughed, and tickled him, making him laugh so hard he begged her to stop.

"So, are you not coming? You should know by now that your tricks no longer work on me," she remarked, a jokingly superior tone in her voice. "You'll have to find a new one."

He stood up slowly. "Okay, okay..." Then he was suddenly pushed by his arm and followed his aunt, running quickly by the path of the garden, hurrying to the palace as fast as they could.

When they reached the back door of the palace, which led to the kitchen, they were already walking. The bright green grass, lit by the hot sun, bowed to their passage, leaving temporary footprints. The intensity of the footprints faded as the trace got nearer the door, for Théodwyn and her nephew had felt tired at halfway and decided to slow the pace. After all, it was not a very easy distance to accomplish in just one speedy run.

"I will have to tell Master Aladon that he'll have to train you better in your physical resistance," observed Théodwyn as they cleaned their shoes at the threshold. "You can barely run as much as I do."

"You forget," replied Théodred in return, "that I ran this all at once before; and therefore I'm much more exhausted than you are."

She put her arms on her hips, pretending to be disgusted. "I know what's best for you." She sarcastically emphasized the second word.

Théodred shrugged his shoulders. His aunt told him always the same -- he did not care anymore. Then he felt a gentle slap on his shoulder, and her aunt opened the door to the kitchen. He rolled his eyes just to think of what he was going to find inside.

A confusion of maids running to and fro carrying food, drinks and all other types of things. Some things you wouldn't even expect to be in a kitchen, such as hairbrushes and other hair accessories. Théodred was used to the bustle: he had to go through it every time he did not want to disturb his father by entering through the front doors. (This was the case; he and his aunt had to get a bath and new clothes before they met the Marshal.) But now that he had grown up enough to be considered more than just a child, and his aunt was accompanying him, respect immediately followed the moment they stepped into the room. Everyone was silent, hiding the hairbrushes behind their backs, dropping the food plates on the tables, leaving the oven cooking; they gave room for them to pass, curtsying as they walked by. Théodred had to try very hard not to giggle with the situation. When they were on the other side of the room, Théodwyn spoke.

"Evelynn?" she asked, referring to the chief cooker. "Can you do me a favour?"

"Yes, milady," she answered shyly.

"Can you please tell the King that his son and I will be there to meet his men in thirty minutes?"

"Of course, milady."

"Thank you. And, oh," she returned, as if she was forgetting something, "young girls, please leave your hairbrushes in your own rooms."

She turned back and opened the wooden door to another corridor, leaving a couple of girls behind blushing with embarrassment, Evelynn the chief cooker sending threatening glances to them all the time. They knew that, for a while, they would be watched carefully...

Meanwhile, Théodwyn and Théodred arrived to their rooms upstairs, one right next to each other, on the same side of the house, with Théoden's room just in front. They took a quick shower and met twenty minutes after. It was refreshing in such a hot summer day; and now they looked much better. They both wore white, as Morwen had usually done in her time, when welcoming visits. It had been a tradition coming from Lossarnach in Gondor and they would not let it end as descendants of those lineages.

They came downstairs again; she went again to the kitchen, and asked Evelynn if the afternoon snack was ready yet.

"Five minutes, milady," she answered, "It will be there in five minutes."

Then they proceeded to the main hall. Théodwyn knocked at the door and opened it just a little bit, taking a glance inside. She saw at least five men in the table, chatting on about unimportant things. From what she could listen, they were not discussing anything about the matters that brought the riders to Edoras. As she heard Théoden asking for them to come in, she opened the door widely, stepping into the hall along with her nephew.

Théoden jumped from his chair. "Oh, it's you! May I present you," he addressed the men, who had now stood up, "my sister, Théodwyn, and my son, Théodred."

"Your Highness," they all responded in unison, curtsying.

"It's my pleasure," said Théodwyn, gesturing for them to sit back down. However, she did not take her seat immediately. She looked at all the men and noticed that none of them was the chief Marshal. Had his nephew been lying to her? Anyway, why do I care? she thought to herself. She had only met the Marshal once; it had been in the ceremony when he had been given that title, about one year ago. And she hadn't even talked to him; she had observed it from the outside. She even doubted that he had noticed her.

She was interrupted from her thoughts as her brother noticed her staring blankly at the walls. "Will you not take your seat?" he asked, his tone of voice accusing that the real meaning of this question was, Is there anything troubling you?

"No, I mean, yes," she answered, confused, sitting down. "Evelynn said the snack should be here in two minutes."

"Great," he said, rubbing his hands. "I'm starving. Are you?"

The men agreed, some nodded, others let out a small laugh. Then suddenly, they were interrupted by the lady's voice.

"Where is the chief Marshal?"

This question surprised Théoden, who did not know his son had been informing his sister with such details. "He went to check the horses; he will be here soon." Before he could ask the normal question Why do you ask that? he was interrupted by a voice, coming from the door.

"I am here," the voice said, the steps like thuds in the wooden floor, as he approached the table. All of them stood up except Théoden, the king.

Théodwyn stood up and turned back to see him. He was tall, strong, his voice deep and manly. He had light brown hair -- he was a descendant of the royal lineages; he had a short beard. He wore the equipment necessary for war and battles, and she immediately confirmed her suspicions that they brought news from attacks in the Eastfold.

He greeted with respect the Prince of Rohan, then turned to the princess.

"The White Lady of Rohan," he solemnly announced, bowing before her. "I had heard rumours of her beauty and grace, yet the descriptions don't even do her justice."

Théodwyn blushed, very embarrassed. Théodred made a huge effort not to laugh. These situations amused him greatly.

"You're being too kind, Éomund of Eastfold," she responded, then gestured to his seat, right next to her. "May you take your seat?"

"As you wish," he answered, sitting in the chair. His men sat right after him.

"The food will be here soon, Éomund," Théoden informed. "I assume you are very much in need of it."

"I am, thank you."

Before long two young ladies served them with food and drinks that they thanked them for bringing, for they were tired from their long journey from the borders. Soon they were chatting about everyday things of the Rohirrim's life. They were careful not to touch adult matters in front of little Théodred, for he was still a child of ten years of age. When they were finished, Théoden dismissed both Théodred and Théodwyn from the table. She noticed they wanted to discuss the news Éomund brought; and she wanted to stay as well.

"If you do not mind, I would be glad to stay," she asked Théoden.

He seemed to ponder about her plea; but Éomund was surprised by her attitude, and as he did not know her, he thought it not very indicated for her to stay and hear about news of the war, problems that only concerned the king and his counsellors.

"Your Highness, pardon me," he said, addressing Théodwyn, "I do not think it wise of a lady to stay to hear such matters. It will not be very pleasant what will be discussed in here."

"Pleasant or not, I would like to know about it," she replied immediately. "If it concerns my people, it concerns me as well."

"I think," he replied back, "that your Highness King Théoden will take care of the matter wisely. You do not need to worry."

"Still, I would like to be here," she insisted. "What do you have to say, my lord?"

"You may stay," he said slowly, as if still thinking about it. "Sometimes you are my best counsel." He smiled, then looked at Éomund, with an expression that tried to reassure him that Théodwyn would be fine.

"Thank you," she said, leaning her head in a sign of gratitude.

"Well then," Éomund started, shrugging his shoulders. "We may start with the important news." Théodwyn observed him attentively. "Your Highness, two nights ago we were attacked by orcs in a small village in the borders of the Eastfold."

"What did exactly happen?" asked Théoden in a worried voice.

"They set fire on the houses; some people were burnt inside." Théodwyn was frightened, and stirred on her seat. "We pursued all of the orcs until there was none left; but there were still people who tried to escape and perished on their hands. We're afraid that another attack might follow; what should we do, my lord?"

Théoden raised his eyebrows and started to think. Théodwyn broke the silence.

"Which was the village attacked?"

"Liluin. Near the Entwash."

Théodwyn put her hands to her mouth, letting a small cry come out. A tear rolled on her face. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Very sure," Éomund answered.

Théodwyn woke up the next day with the sunlight coming from the window in her room. It felt warm and made the room so bright she had to wake up. It was the same every day; she was used to it. She sat in her bed, rubbing her eyes to get used to the sunlight. She looked outside and noticed it was still early. After taking a quick shower, she put on a brown dress and hurried outside. She had to wake up her brother; he was going to leave soon with the Marshal and his men.

It had been decided yesterday on that conversation after the afternoon snack; they were going to leave to Liluin, the village attacked and other nearby villages, which could have been attacked right after. Théodwyn remembered the shock she had had when she knew where the attack had happened: it was the place where her older sister Folcwyn and brother-in-law lived. She feared for them; Éomund had reassured her that nothing had happened to them this time, but who could know whether the orcs had attacked once again the following nights?

She pushed those thoughts aside in her mind, shaking her head in denial; but she wanted to go visit her sister (which her brother wouldn't let her do), although she trusted her brother Théoden to bring Folcwyn and her family safe to Edoras or to any other better place than the borders. She knew of the love her brother-in-law had to his lands, but now the safety of their children was more important -- or so Théodwyn thought.

She knocked softly at his door, but all she got for a response was a groan. She knocked once again, a little stronger. "Théoden!" she called. But she got no response as well, apart from the sound of heavy breathing and groaning inside. *I'm not going to be knocking very loud like I'm mad,* thought Théodwyn. *He'd better wake up soon. Either that or...* A nice idea came to her head. She giggled softly and hurried downstairs for breakfast, hoping that Théoden would keep wandering in the world of dreams.

There she met with Théodred, who, to her surprise, was already awake. They chatted a little, then Éomund and his men arrived for the small meal before they left for their long journey. After a while, the Marshal spoke.

"Where is King Théoden?"

Théodred shrugged his shoulders innocently. He finished the snack and then Théodwyn dismissed him. Taking a deep breath of courage, she put her little plan to work.

"He... He is a bit ill," she answered, a little afraid. "I am afraid he cannot go..."

She was interrupted by one of the men on the table. "Your Highness is ill? May we visit him?"

"I-I'm afraid not," answered Théodwyn, already regretting this lie of hers. But as she had tried, she would have to keep it going. "He also has to take care of some matters here in Edoras," she tried to explain, trying to build any other possible excuses. "He will not be able to ride with you to Liluin."

"What?" the Marshal exclaimed immediately, surprised. "But then -- then who will help us? Who will lead the men from Edoras? Has our journey been in vain?"

"No," Théodwyn answered shortly. "For I will go with my maid and ten men from the city; and I will help you in your task."

The men exchanged glances, surprised with the lady's behaviour.

"Are -- are you sure?" asked Éomund, astonished with the information. "You cannot go with us... It's too risky, my lady."

"I can fight," she informed the men, with a determined voice. "I will ride with you back to the Eastfold."

"I do not think it wise..."

"I hope you do not try to stop me, Éomund of Eastfold," she remarked. "Otherwise your journey might have been useless, then."

Éomund looked at her, amazed with her bravery and determination. "As you wish, milady," he agreed, bowing before her. "You may go, but do not think it is with my consent. Yet, I admire you for your bravery."

"Thank you," she said with relief. "We leave in half an hour."

She left the room with a smile and a curtsey and the men exchanged looks between them again, still astonished with the revelation.

Not influenced by the rumours, but still let asleep for a long time, there was King Théoden, still lying in his bed, breathing heavily as he slept. Anyway, the morning was getting late, and if it had been unnatural of him not to wake up as early as his sister, it was even more unnatural that he kept sleeping the whole morning. So, as Théodwyn finally mounted Elanya, and her brave servant Marianna mounted her own horse, near the front doors of the palace, and waited for Éomund and the men to give their orders, King Théoden opened his eyes, lazily, and sat in his bed as he saw the sun's rays illuminate his room, warning him that it was late enough for him to wake up.

Or, as it was the case -- too late.

When he could get used to the bright light, he stood up and walked over to the window to check the weather outside. What he did not expect was to find Éomund, his men, and his own men from Edoras near the steps of the front entrance of the golden palace, with their horses -- and his sister Théodwyn in the middle of them. Suddenly aware of his lateness, he helped himself to his clothes and equipment as fast as he could, until he tripped over a small thing, that he recognized being an envelope as he picked it up from the floor. Outside, it was written: "Read as soon as possible." He sat in his bed, and read as he unfolded the piece of paper:

"Dear brother,

"I could not wake you up this morning so I made a decision by myself. I hope you forgive me: I prepare to ride to the Eastfold with the Marshal and his men. You know how much I wanted to go on such a mission since I was little; I know how to fight and I really wish to help Folcwyn in her hard times.

"I will take care of the matter along with Éomund; he knows much of Rohan and his men are well trained. We will bring Folcwyn back to Edoras, do not worry. Théodred will be fine, I'm sure, for I warned the maids; and the Golden Hall is not the same without you, dear brother.

"I also take Marianna with me. Once again, I do hope you forgive me for my decision. Farewell!

Yours, Théodwyn."

Théoden reread the letter just to make sure he wasn't dreaming. Then he dropped it on the table and took a look at the window again. Around fifty men and two young ladies, one of them on a white horse, prepared to leave the city soon. He sighed as he understood his sister's intentions, and thought it useless to try stopping her.

Someone knocked on the door and the King ordered to come in. A young dark-haired maid promptly entered, bringing breakfast with her.

"King Théoden? Is Your Highness feeling all right?"

"Yes, I'm perfectly all right," he answered immediately, looking to her. As he noticed the young maid's look of surprise, he guessed his sister had been inventing excuses for his absence, and sighed deeply. "Oh, now that you talk about it...I have a terrible headache. Can you please bring me a cup of tea later?"

"Sure, Your Highness," she said, putting the breakfast on the table and leaving to make the tea.

Théoden shook his head. Théodwyn and her ideas!

The gates of Edoras creaked as they were opened. Éomund shouted then, and one by one, the horses, trotting, left the main city of Rohan. People waved goodbye enthusiastically, and tried to take a small look at the most beautiful horse of those: Elanya, the one the Princess of Rohan mounted.

As the gates closed again, all horses started galloping southeast, the direction of the Eastfold. When they faded in the horizons of Edoras, people returned to their everyday work.

They galloped for hours on end in complete silence. They were so concentrated on what they were doing, and their goal of arriving as soon as possible, that they did not feel the necessity to talk. At the same time, it was a silence of understanding, as all of them were sure the others had the same reason in mind.

It was just before nightfall when they stopped to sleep. The distance of Edoras to Liluin could have never been managed in a day, even if they galloped continuously as they had done. Moreover, the horses were getting tired and that tiredness could also be felt in the men. They were now trotting in the plains, looking for the right place where to stay, wishing that they would find it before the sunset.

The sky had already a reddish colour, and the sun itself could barely be seen in the horizon when Theódwyn cried: "Over there!" Elanya started galloping fast in the direction of the wood, and the other horses followed it. The white horse stopped near the borders of the forest, and its owner got off it and jumped to the ground. She made Elanya approach one of the trees, then took a rope out of her bag and tied the horse to the trunk. Immediately the men started copying her, tying their own horses to the near trees.

Then they took the equipment necessary for building their tents for the night and dedicated themselves to that task. Meanwhile, Théodwyn and Marianna went into the forest to pick some wood to make a fire. It was not difficult, as there was plenty of it, from the weak branches broken from the trees to one or two large trunks cut down by orcs and other evil creatures. When they had enough to maintain a fire, they started their way back to the camp. But as they were walking they heard a noise behind them -- a noise of something evil, as they started to hear it better.

Immediately, almost automatically, their hands grasped their swords, but they only unsheathed them when the sound repeated, now even nearer. They stood side-by-side, one turning the back at the other, in position to face any stranger coming. They looked desperately around them, up to the boughs of the trees, down to their feet, but they could see no one coming. With the tension they felt, the pieces of wood they carried started to feel heavy, and they could feel the tiredness of the day in their arms; and it grieved them even more to see the night finally starting to fall upon them as they heard the creature move in the woods around them.

It was not long before a loud roar came as clear to their ears as possible. It was with terror that Marianna saw a black orc come from behind the trees ready to face her; its heavy steps almost made the ground shake below her. It had a horribly ugly face with eyes that looked at her with a feeling of hunger, and dirty, sharp teeth which seemed eager to eat her.

Marianna was terribly shocked, but, to an outsider, she simply opened her eyes in surprise. But it was not surprise the expression in them; it was pure fear. Thoughts of death invaded her mind as she saw the hungry expression on the black orc's eyes, and its sword -- or an imitation of a sword -- dirtied with blood from previous hunting trips. The maiden heard a thud on the ground and, as she felt her arm free, she realized she had just dropped the wood.

As it hissed in the dark speech, it drew its sword and raised it above her head. She could not understand its hissing, though it was unbearable to be heard with all the evil inside it; and she felt unable to do anything but watch as it prepared to bring its broken sword down her head. All she could do was desperately seize Théodwyn by the arm.

She turned around immediately, and as she saw the orc swinging its sword she immediately moved her own to block it. "Eorl!" she cried, and with the most strength she had, she shoved it against a tree and brought her sword upon its head, making it fall dead on the ground.

Two orcs followed the first one; and as Marianna kept standing there, with eyes open and unable to do anything, Théodwyn had to fight with both. One of them was weaker and soon suffered the same fate of the first one; but the other took profit of her distraction and shoved her against a tree. It then took a small knife and tried to throw it at her, but she escaped from it. She did, but not her dress, which was pinned to the ground.

Desperate, she did the only thing she could do -- call for help. "Mari!" The maid stood still, only observing the fight, but too afraid to take an active part in it. "Mari!" Théodwyn repeated, as the orc stepped closer. When Marianna saw the situation, it already seemed too late, as the orc had already his sword unsheathed, but she was quick enough to kill him first.

Then she cried, for she did not like violence, or battles, or anything of that matter, although she was brave; and Théodwyn tried to comfort her, but she was busy trying to take the knife out of the ground. She finally made it after a few minutes, and the patience proved to work well as her dress wasn't too damaged.

Seizing Marianna by the arm, she picked the wood again and started running through the path that led them to the camp again. "Those were the first ones, there are more coming," she said, to Marianna's despair, "We must run as fast as we could." Tears rolled on the maid's face, but she followed the Princess of Rohan, as she had ordered. Soon they were on the camp again; and the men, seeing them in a little dishevelled state, with their swords dirtied, were immediately worried.

"What happened?" one asked.

Théodwyn and Marianna dropped the wood in the place where they were going to make the fire, and first answered, "We were attacked by orcs."

The men started to whisper among them, as Théodwyn continued with her explanation. "There were only three of them, but I guess there are many more," she said. "They never wander alone in the woods, they come always in groups."

As she finished talking, a man who had just come from inside a tent approached the two women. It was Éomund; he was surprised when he saw the maidens' hands with scratches and a small cut on Théodwyn's shoulder. "Lady Théodwyn!" he exclaimed when he saw her. "By the Valar, you're injured!"

Théodwyn smiled weakly. "It's naught, Éomund," she answered, "I will take care of this soon. Now I must inform you that the orcs are coming, from the woods, so that you may make a decision."

Éomund looked around to the men, and as he saw some of them nodding, he immediately felt the need of pursuing the orcs to slay them and make sure they wouldn't attack Rohan. "We will take care of this matter." He selected five men and ordered them to stay with Théodwyn and Marianna just in case something went wrong; the others, he ordered them to follow him into the woods.

"You cannot go like that! They may be hundreds. Éomund!" screamed Théodwyn, when she saw Éomund advance to the woods, while Marianna searched on their bag for something she could cure Théodwyn's and her own scratches with.

Éomund turned back and looked at her. "Listen, Théodwyn: I must go, or they'll attack us at night. We must not let the orcs wander freely through the lands of Rohan."

"You're right," Théodwyn said, "but should we not wait for them here? They may follow a different road, and that way you do not have to put your lives at risk!"

Éomund let out a small, bitter laugh. "A different road, Théodwyn?" he said, as if teasing her. "They're in Rohan. Do you not see they may be the ones that have killed others of the Rohirrim?"

Théodwyn lowered her head and a single tear rolled down her cheek. Looking up, she observed Éomund and the other men turning back to face the dark wood and its dangers. "Good luck, Eorlingas!" Her voice echoed in the dusk, until the steps of the men could no longer be heard.