[Mithalwen]

Ah but the context has changed greatly. . Look at their conversations in "The Steward and the king". Faramir see them as equals and indeed he is at her mercy since he does not conceal his feelings. There is that crucial moment when they stand on the walls of the City and she says "I stand upon some dreadful brink , and it is utterly dark in the abyss before my feet, but whetherthere is any light behind me I cannot tell. For I cannot turn yet. I am waiting for some stroke of doom.' and at that moment everything is still even their hearts for a moment. Only then is Eowyn able ot turn to light and life and love. The world has changed - Eowyn was a warrior becasue it was the only way of doing something that might make a difference. As she says later when she accepts Faramir "The Shadow has departed. I will be a shieldmaiden no longer....I will be a healer, and love all things that grow and are not barren" . It is Eowyn who changes in response to hope.