[Arry]

It wasn’t difficult to find the way to where the old cottage was being renovated. Andwise Banks stopped his small cart at the entrance to the inn path and twitched his ears this way and that. From over there to his left, a fair piece behind the inn building itself, he reckoned, there came the sound of saws and hammers pounding. And the calling out of male voice, one to another, in short clipped sentences when directions were given.

‘Let’s get on then, Turnip,’ he said gently to his donkey, who stood twitching his own ears at the sounds of other horses and donkeys in the stable yard. With a clucking sound and a firm hand on the reins, Andwise directed the cart toward the construction, much to the dismay of Turnip, who had by this time caught scent of the sweet hay left for his more fortunate brethren.

A small space of time later and the cottage came into view. Four Hobbit lads were busy with the framing of an additional room, it looked. While there on the roof, stood a man spreading pitchy tar on the roof’s base structure, and shingling atop it as he went along. Andwise pulled into the cottage yard, stopping long enough to speak with one of the Hobbit lads for a moment. Tomlin shaded his eyes as he grinned up at Andwise, then pointed up to the man on the roof.

Turnip was unharnessed and tied to a tree, in the shade. Gil, always fond of animals, put down his planer and fetched a bucket of water for the donkey. Turnip eyed him expectantly, hoping for a tasty treat to follow, but made do instead with a few kind words and a scratch between the ears. Andwise made his way to a spot near the cottage, and hailed Derufin.

‘I say! Is that you, Master Derufin?’ he hollered up in a voice loud enough to be heard above the sawing and nailing. The man looked up expectantly, shading his eyes against the sun as he peered below. ‘I’m Andwise Banks, cabinet maker. From Bywater. Miz Bunce has asked me to see to the cabinets and cupboards and doors for the cottage. Says it’s a bit of a rush, but she’s assured me I’m up for it.’ He disappeared for a few moments from the man’s view, going under the eaves to peer in through a window.

‘Fair amount of work to be done. But my son’ll be here this afternoon,’ he said stepping back out to give his assessment of the job. ‘We’ll pull off the cabinet doors and drawer facings for the chests of drawers. Sand ‘em down, I expect is all they’ll need then a staining and a polishing.’ He looked at the window casings. ‘We’ll sand down the window casings – you’ll need to get them painted, though. Them and the door frames. Front door looks a bit worn – need to be replacing it, I think.’

Andwise stood nodding to himself. ‘Well, think I’ll get started. Let me know when my boy gets here – Ferdy’s his name.’ And with that he retrieved his toolbox from the back of his cart and disappeared into the cottage, whistling as he went.