Two Rohirrim by Himring

Two Ladies of Rohan

Guess who these Ladies of Rohan are!

I am no man—nor shrinking maid, either.
Secret under helmet, I rode southwards,
hearth forsaking, battle-death seeking,
rode the path to ruin and a red morning;
I drained that cup to its darkest dregs,
bitter though they were, I found life at the bottom.
Say, what am I called?

A war was fought over my hand,
yet I am woman—and unnamed.
My suitor became my bitterest foe,
yet no one had asked me.
One brother died at the gates,
the other lost in the snow—
my father went fey,
my grief unrecorded.
My cousin succeeded.
Who am I?

Chapter End Notes

Zdenka's wrote solutions to these in alliterative verse; find them here on AO3. You can also check the character lists in the end notes of the following two chapters, if you need help.

Two semi-drabbles written for the prompt "riddle" in the Old English Writings Challenge on Tolkien Weekly.

Some Old English riddles are really riddles and even very obscure, others are more like poems about their subject. They are often in the first person and end with variations of "Say what am I called?"