Disclaimer: I do not own any of these characters. I am merely playing with them for my enjoyment :)

Eowyn peered out at the swarming mass of people. She sighed. It wasn't as if she had expected anything else, but still, a woman could hope.

Or rather, the woman.

For that was what she saw- men. Lots of men. In fact, she was the only female in the mass of warriors. A woman among soldiers, she thought. That is not how it should be. We are comrades, side by side. We will fight together, regardless of gender.

She really had nothing against men. She just couldn't understand how her fellow women could be content with sitting huddled together in the caves, content with their naivety of the battle, content with leaving all hope to their husbands, content with being passive when they could take action. If the women fought, it would double their army.

"Eowyn."

She turned quickly. Lost in thought, she had not seen her brother approach. "Eomer. What brings you to me?"

"I have been looking for you. Why are you not with the other women and children? They need your comfort to endure the battle," he said.

"They are strong. They can comfort each other," she replied. "Besides, it is the orcs' necks that need comforting with my sword. We are fighting a battle, not running a daycare."

His eyes flashed with disapproval. "Do you think that we take this lightly? We have gathered all of the forces we can muster to fight here with us. Even boys and our elderly men must take up arms against Isengard."

"And what of the women, Eomer? If we add all of the females who can wield sword or spear, we can increase our army twicefold. We could win this fight."

Eomer took his time with his response. Eowyn noticed that he had dark shadows under his eyes, and he looked as if he had aged ten years in the past few months. "Because," he said, "if everyone in the Riddermark fights, there will be no one left to fight for."

Eowyn was silent. How many times had she watched the warriors sharpen their swords? How many times had she readied horses to go into battle? And it had taken this long to sink in that she was one of the people they sought to protect? Eowyn's pride flared. Did they think that she could not protect herself? She was strong enough! She had joined the army, regardless of their disapproval! She opened her mouth to argue, and then shut it. There was no point arguing with Eomer now. She would just have to show him that she could fight, and fight well at that.

But the fact remained that their forces were limited, and the enemy was vast. She had overheard her uncle talking to her brother about a possibility, a chance, something that could sway the outcome of the battle. Eomer began to walk away, but she called after him.

"What of the elves?"

He turned, and his gaze hardened. "What of them?"

"They could aid in our fight. Any soldier would be welcome, with the enemy we face."

"And if their aid was even a possibility, how would you know, Eowyn?"

She averted his eyes. "I have listened to you talking with our uncle. I know that it is a possibility."

"It was a chance. A hope. Nothing of which to concern yourself." Eomer tried to walk away again, but his sister's words held him.

"Why must you beat down your hopes? They are all you have left."

It was true. In a battle like this, hope was the only thing to cling to. Nothing was to be taken for granted. "We called for Gondor's aid. They did not come. How could we be sure that the elves would not desert us similarly?"

He saw that Eowyn was smirking slightly. "Turn around, Eomer."

He whirled around. There, in orderly lines, stood an army of elves.