Chapter Text
Edoras, TA 3003
Books what a waste of time! Eomer thought as he read a heavy tome on the history of Gondor assigned to him by his tutor.
In TA 2148 Belegorn became the fourth Ruling Steward of Gondor. His reign was largely peaceful, and he introduced many important legal reforms to Gondor...
Eomer groaned and threw down the book in frustration. A cloud of dust appeared in its wake. Why did it matter if he knew who was Steward of Gondor almost a thousand years ago? He looked out of his window with longing, where he could see some young stable hands exercising the new colts that had been born in the spring. Ah, to be outside on such a fine day rather than reading pages and pages on the lineage of the Stewards of Gondor.
Eomer could not wait until he was old enough to join an éored as a rider. When he was a rider, he would never waste his time with books again!
Edoras, TA 3008
“How dare you!” Eowyn yelled as she entered her chambers and saw her brother thumbing through the pages of her beloved journal.
Eowyn saw red as she dashed over and grabbed the journal off her desk and began to beat her brother about the head with it. Infuriatingly, he easily swatted away most of the blows with his hands “Stop that Eowyn.”
“You! Stupid! Oaf!” She screamed, each word punctuated by a strike – the last one caught his nose with a satisfying Crack!
“Crazy woman!” Eomer roared as he put his hand up to his nose to try and stem the blood currently spurting out from it.
“Well, you have only yourself to blame brother. Next time maybe you will think twice before prying into my personal things!” Eowyn angrily responded as she rummaged around in one of her drawers and then produced a handkerchief for his nose.
“I do not know why you are so upset, you left that damn book open on your desk. If you did not want others to see it, you should have put it away properly.” Eomer stated indignantly, though the effect of his outrage was somewhat diminished by the handkerchief held against his nose muffling his voice. “There was not even anything that interesting in it.”
Something about this last statement seemed to set Eowyn off, as her face turned bright red and she screeched “You are an impossible lout. GET OUT!” And then she pushed him bodily out of her chamber and slammed the door closed.
Stupid Eowyn overreacting as usual! Stupid book! Eomer thought as he walked back to his chambers clutching his bleeding nose.
Edoras, TA 3019
“Here is the book of household accounts. And the country’s treasury reports, crop yields, and tax records” Alfric said as he dropped a heavy pile of books onto Eomer’s desk.
There were many downsides to being king Eomer was discovering – chief among them the need to shift through endless pages of reports.
After depositing the books, Alfric hovered nervously in front of Eomer's desk, which was odd as his steady unflappable disposition was one of the main reasons that Eomer had selected him as his Steward.
“I take it I will not like what I find in these.” Eomer sighed in resignation.
“I am afraid not Sire. The war has devastated the country. The Westfold in particular has been hit hard, there will be famine if we do not act quickly. And…” Alfric paused, as if unsure if he should proceed.
Eomer impatiently waved his hand, “Spit it out, there is nothing to be gained from delaying bad news.”
Alfric nodded and took a moment to gather himself before speaking carefully, as if weighing every word, “There are items in the household accounts and treasury reports that do not add up. Signs that large sums of money and goods have been disappearing over the last few years.”
Eomer swore and asked with venom in his voice “Wormtongue?”
“It would appear so. I have reviewed the main accounts for the last three years, but we will need to go further back and in more depth in order to understand the full extent of his treachery.”
Eomer groaned and put his head in his hands wishing desperately that his cousin Theodred was still alive. Though Theodred had cared as little for books as Eomer, he had been much more learned and would not have felt the terror Eomer currently did about the prospect of needing to open these books and unravel their secrets.
But Theodred was not here, Eomer reminded himself harshly. Eomer was and it was his duty to review these records as diligently as possible. Eomer reluctantly picked up the first book from the pile.
Eomer King would not come to love books until later in life when he met the Princess of Dol Amroth…