An Unexpected Fanfiction: The Hobbit & LOTR One Shots

Clocksmith

(This has been in the works for soooo long and it's finally done woohoo!)

Type: one shot

Pairing: Female (clocksmith) reader x Eomer

Hope you like!

Maerwyn made clocks for a living.

Not just ordinary clocks, though, the most intricate, beautiful clocks in the realm, of all shapes and sizes. Tall, short; fat, skinny; round, hexagonal; simple, fancy; and everything in between- Maerwyn crafted them all. She spent each day from the moment the sun rose 'till the minute it set in her workshop, in the very back of the rustic store. She would sit at her desk - or sometimes stand, depending on the project - and meticulously piece together screws, cogs, wheels, and other mechanical gizmos, her concentration never faltering.

The young clocksmith had inherited the business from her late father, having grown up surrounded by the ticking mechanics all her life. The pair had existed in a secluded state, tucked away from the rest of the townsfolk; Maerwyn had never made any friends as a child, or even now. In recent years, she'd grown into quite the lovely young lady; though few took notice of her looks, as most that came through the shop preferred to admire her craftsmanship. And Maerwyn liked it that way. She would choose the company of her clocks than of a living being most any day. Not to mention her workshop had a porch she could work on in warm weather. Sunshine, clocks, and peace- what more could she want?

Rohan had a rather small central city, built around the modest mansion of the royal family, so most everyone knew each other. Although Maerwyn never made the effort to advertise her business, travelers from all walks of life would, more often than not, want to visit her shop at the urging of the locals. Maerwyn held a stern principle for herself: always satisfy the customer; she made certain to always offer a custom build if a particularly finicky shopper stopped by. In the past nine years of Maerwyn solo-running the business, she had a proud status of a customer having never, not once, left without making a purchase or order.

Rumors in the kingdom, especially the center city, always reached the ears of the royal family sooner than later. Eowyn, the king's niece, was particularly fond of hearing pleasant news from her uncle's subjects. It was by her that, Eomer, her brother, heard of the great clocksmith residing at the edge of the city. Eowyn was a very busy princess, however, and it took her nearly two years after first hearing of Maerwyn to visit the shop, dragging along Eomer as well. At first, the young prince was incredibly uninterested. What a waste of time it would be to shop for something as trivial as a clock all afternoon, he believed.

This was during a happier time, before Sauroman and Sauron's reach extended to corrupt the king of Rohan- yet also at a point when Eomer's life when all he was interested in was combat training, flirting with each lovely lady that crossed his path, and learning to govern a kingdom should he need to one day. His life was full of fun and adventure, and so this minute expedition seemed so silly to him. Just the thought of watching an excited Eowyn flit about a clock shop for an entire afternoon was enough to make the prince yawn aloud.

As a good-natured stable boy led the two young royals (all on horseback) down the rough streets to their destination, however, Eomer's boredom began to fade. The lad guiding them chirped on cheerily about the magnificence of Maerwyn's creations, and of the mysterious clocksmith who crafted them. His curiosity soon sparked, Eomer found himself unexpectedly intrigued by the simplicity of the storefront once they arrived. As they dismounted and Eowyn gave the stable boy a generous pouch of coins in thanks, Eomer studied the brass, tin, silver, steel, and copper machinery he could see inside the open back of a clock in the narrow window. Even from outside, he could tell how well-made each ticking marvel was.