The Green Dragon Inn - Part 9

[Fool Of A Took]

Green Dragon Inn Facts:

It is the 4th Age, year 12. By the Shire Calendar it is year 1433 S.R. (Shire Reckoning).

King Elessar is on the throne of the Reunited Kingdom of Arnor and Gondor.

Mirkwood has been reclaimed by the Elves and is now called Eryn Lasgalen.

Paladdin Took, Pippin’s father, is Thain of the Shire. (Thain is an honorary title for the military leader of the Shire. The title has been held in the Took Family since the position was first established in 3rd Age 1979 with Bucca of the Marish as First Thain.) Paladdin Took dies in year 13, and will be succeeded by his son, Peregrin, ‘Pippin’, Took.

Samwise Gamgee is Mayor of the Shire, having succeeded Will Whitfoot in 1427 S.R.

The Innkeeper, in the Green Dragon Inn of this forum, is:
Aman – a young woman from Rohan.

Before her, the Innkeeper was Piosenniel, and before her it was Dwarin, the Dwarf.

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Other ongoing characters in the Inn:

Ruby Brown, Hobbit – not married – server and maid

Buttercup Brownlock, Hobbit – not married – kitchen assistant and maid

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Ongoing characters from outside the Inn:

Halfred Whitfoot – local Shiriff and Postmaster; his pony’s name is Dumpling.
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Please Note:

• No 'SAVES' are allowed in the Inn.
  
• With the exception of the Innkeeper and the Moderators, no OOC (Out Of Character) comments are allowed in the Inn.
  
• Only the Innkeeper, Amanaduial, or the Moderators move the timeline for the Inn forward.
  
• Visitors to the Inn will need to read the posts that come before theirs to get an idea of what time it is in the Shire, what the weather is like, and what is happening.
  
• Please be familiar with the rules for the Inn and Games in The Red Book of Westmarch, the first topic in the Shire.

IT IS NOW AFTER SUPPER TIME AND NIGHT HAS COME TO THE SHIRE.

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FOOL OF A TOOK'S POST

Umwë

Umwë's sharp elven ears heard a scared cry upstairs. He rose up and left the Common Room. He went upstairs and ran to the room he had heard the cry from. A man, probably from Rohan as he bore the crest of Rohan, and an elf, that was lying on a bed. She seemed to be hurt. "Is something wrong?" he asked. The man looked up and seemed tired and worried. The woman didn't say anything.She is from Eryn Lasgalen, her eyes tells me...

"She is hurt, she haven't told me whats wrong?! It must be some sort of a spell" the man said with fear in his tone. Umwë's voice calmed him down as he said "Dont worry, let me see that wound, I might can do something to help. By the way, I am Umwë, from former Lothlorien. His eyes turned to the elfwoman. The man bowed and said "I am Grimm of Rohan, and this is Cree, from Eryn Lasgalen."

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 9:35 PM February 07, 2004: Message edited by: piosenniel ]

[Fool Of A Took]

Grimm felt like he wanted to answer Cree's question right away, so he said to Umwë "Please, could you wait outside, and try not to hear what we say" The last part he said with a smile. Umwë nodded and smiled "Of course." Umwë went out of the room and Grimm turned to Cree. "Why I care so much about you?" he said and smiled. "Well, actually it is beacuse of all the sorrow I have felt in my entire life. All my close friends and family have died for some reason. And I can't take more sorrow. I don't want to lose you too" he said and felt his tears coming back. Don't die! Please!

He sat down on a chair next to the bed. He looked at her, and her face seemed weak and tired. He tried to focus and don't lose himself and start cry again. Sometimes it gelt like he wanted to die. And not feel anything, no death, no pain. Just eternal living in peace. He drew a deep sigh.

She mustn't die!

[Witch_Queen]

Cree looke at the elf as he left the room. "Do not worry, I am far to young to die right now. Maybe in a few hundred years or more." She tried to shed some light on the situation. "It won't be there for eternity. It happened during one of my episodes. I don't know why." Cree seemed shocked when she realized what the place ment.

"It was where my father was stabbed. Thats what caused him to die. I was in his place. I knew the pain he felt and I still know the pain." Cree was begining to understand Grimm a little more. The look in his eyes told his life story.

"I will not die on you Grimm. I won't let you feel sorry for yourself for the rest of your life either." Should could hear the seriousness in her voice. This time she didn't want to die. I wanted to die so long ago. Now I don't. How can one person change everything.

[Fool Of A Took]

Grimm smiled when she said she wasn't going to die for a few hundred years or more. Though he wasn't going to live then he was happy about it. "So, should I call Umwë back in? I believe he might can help you to get rid of the curse." Now he had the worried look again, and he started to take away the bandage to see if the bleeding had stopped. Umwë... I have heard the name before... But I can't remember that I've seen him before...

The wound had stopped bleed, yet it looked horrible. Grimm slowly shook his head. Poor woman... Grimm could see in her eyes that she still felt pain. Her face looked sad, and especially her eyes. Then he took her hand and placed it in his. "I will always be there, when you need me or not." he said with a smile. Cree smiled too and took a sip of the glas of water. Grimm could see she was exhausted.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 2:13 AM February 05, 2004: Message edited by: Fool Of A Took ]

[piosenniel]

Point of Information

The Shire would like to encourage writers to take more time doing more thoughtful and descriptive posts.

Serial posting between writers is discouraged, especially since it tends to become more dialog oriented than descriptive.

Two and a maximum of three well done posts is enough for one day for a writer to a game.

Please try to keep to this request.

Thanks!

~*~ Pio, Shire Moderator

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 12:21 PM February 04, 2004: Message edited by: piosenniel ]

[piosenniel]

Fool of a Took and Witch Queen

Please check your PM's before you post again.

~*~ Piosenniel, Shire Moderator

[Linnahiril Tinnufinwen]

"So how are things on the Plantation, Halfred," asked Sigismond cheerfully, as a Buttercup Brownlock brought him huge mug of ale, obviously compensating for his large hands and frame.

"Oh, they go on as always," said Halfred. "It's definitely been a good season."

"There's a rumor, though, Halfred," said Sigismond, moving closer and speaking in a lower voice, as though this was a secret, "that you are planning on expanding your business."

Halfred sucked at his pipe, removed it from his mouth, and blew a somewhat disfigured, though what definitely looked like a white smoke ring. "Bah," said Halfred, "I was much better at this sort of thing when I was in by tweens."

Asphodel, who had turned her head for a moment, observing people coming in and out of the wooden Inn door, twisted back around just in time to get a face full of smoke. She felt as though she had just swallowed ash, and began coughing vigorously.

"Oh, I'm very sorry, my dear," said Halfred, as he used is hand to clear the rest of the smoke away. Tolman laughed.

"Good shot, uncle," he said to Halfred. "I could not have done it better myself."

Asphodel, who had momentarily gotten better, made a sour face at her cousin. "Such a gentleman, he is," she thought. So he had been called by many of the Shire Hobbits. So he was, at least to the adults and to small hobbit-boys and hobbit-girls. But to those his own age, especially his own kin, he was a very rascal. A master of pranksters, whenever he could manage it. He was never mean, but he was not one to be reckoned with. That was not the worst part, however; the worst part was that no one, especially the elders, believed you when you said he did those things.

Asphodel didn't hold it against him. Not much, anyway. He was not putting on airs; he really did respect adults and small children, but he knew who he could have fun with. And he was fun indeed. When he and Asphodel were small, he had been the leader of the pack. He always had come up with the best ideas and adventures to have. He certainly had a streak in him, did the gentlemanly Tolman.

"Come, Tom," was all his uncle said to him. "Have pity on your cousin."

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 1:22 PM February 04, 2004: Message edited by: Linnahiril Tinnufinwen ]

[Crystal Heart]

Crystal walked over to the door and opened it slowly.

"What is it that you must tell me?" Crystal asked cautiously. She wasn't sure if she could trust this person. She couldn't even see their face.

Her heart didn't stop racing as she continued to hold Angry's hand. She just couldn't bear the thought of being taken away from him. She just didn't want to have to deal with never seeing him again. She had already gone through that pain, that torture once before. Now would not be the time of saying goodbye.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 5:20 PM February 04, 2004: Message edited by: Crystal Heart ]

[Amanaduial the archer]

Aman, wiping the bar absent-mindedly as she looked out of the window, was drawn back into the Inn momentarily by the sound of dry coughing, followed by a deep throated, "Oh, I'm very sorry my dear!", the cheeky, "Good shot uncle, I couldn't have done it better myself!", and finally the sardonic, female voice saying, "Such a gentleman he is." She smiled at the trio of hobbits sitting together, two of them endeavouring to blow smoke rings apparently to the bemusement of the third, younger hobbit. Catching the hobbit lass's eye, Aman grinned and raised her eyebrows and was greeted with a return grin and a roll of the hobbit's bright eyes.

The light was fading outside the Inn, although the merriment went on inside the bustling Common Room, and Aman noticed a silhouette against the window, a shy, intimidated looking elf man, his blonde hair caught by the dying rays of sunlight over the hills in the far distance. But, even as Aman was starting out of the bar towards him, the elf looked up sharply and left the bar.

Unperturbed, the Innkeeper shrugged to herself and continued absent-mindedly wiping at mysterious, but nonetheless ancient and well-established stains on the bartop. The Rohirrim woman was content with looking around at the Inn for the moment - it's patrons were many and varied tonight. Brushing a wisp of silky brown hair back behind her ear, she rubbed a hand across her weary green eyes and let them settle on the hobbit trio, although she did not, of course, make it too obvious.

At the fireside, the stories went on, the crowd waxing and waning; as much as they are thirsty for tales, they are probably thirsty also for more drinks, Aman thought to herself and, tucking the cloth behind the bar, she started over to the fireside to offer around refreshments.

[Kransha]

Toby smiled cunningly and tossed his newfound wealth up in the air, catching it nimbly a moment later. The man was too busy tending to the woman to notice the loss he’d sustained. Tobias had scurried out, as thriftily as ever, as soon as the two began their conversation anew. They hadn’t bothered to follow, and he hadn’t expected that they would. He knew it was rude, especially in a private area, to barge in unannounced on people, but he didn’t give his respect to foreigners, and that justified fifty percent of his actions. He couldn’t justify the stealing, but it was a too addictive habit to give up, and he profited by it greatly whenever he was succesful in it.

He ambled, feigning weariness, back to the common room and found himself a chair by the fire to sit in, tucking his findings neatly into one of his many coat pockets. He leaned back again, sighing melodramatically, and whipped out his pipe. He looked around the dim room again, seeing some familiar and new faces. The sight that caught his eye was the large table manned by that stern gentlehobbit Halfred, and the lass called Asphodel. He remembered the food he’d gotten out of that encounter, but decided not to try again, since it was obvious that those hobbits didn’t think to highly of him. He resigned himself to eavesdropping on their conversation, which was no crime in a public inn. He swiveled his chair over and reclined further, his ears twitching strangely as he acoustically adjusted to listen in on their discourse. He began to pick up snippets of the dialogue between them.

He overheard little at first, but slowly edged his chair closer, swiping a rusty tin mug filled with frothing ale from a nearby table, as of yet uninhabited. He took a great swig and lowered the mug onto his knee as his ears began to twitch more. The ear movement was just another one of his quirks, though many other citizens of Longbottom and the Hornblower family shared this idiosyncrasy, along with many other hobbits in the Southfarthing.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 4:13 PM February 04, 2004: Message edited by: Kransha ]

[Fool Of A Took]

Umwë
Umwë stood against the wall outside Grimm's room. He closed his eyes and pictures came back from Lothlorien. It was all gone, it was now abandoned. He drew a deep sigh. As he waited he got bored and thought of go down stairs again. After a while and still nothing happened Umwë went down again. He walked over to the bar and sat down on a stool. He pulled up his hood again and tried to hide his face. Do people here know me? So many faces looked at him as they knew him, yet never seen him before. He closed his eyes and avoided their looks. He ordered an ale and looked around himself. No one looked at him anymore, a few dwarves were still mumbeling in a corner and their faces turned to Umwë a few times but nothing more. He didn't enjoy dwarves that much, they were so greedy. When he got his ale he took a sip of it. It was cool and tasty. He swallowed the ale slowly. The ale was really good in these parts of Middle-Earth. He had just tasted ale a few times before. In Rohan and Gondor he had drinked ale before. The men there couldn't believe he had never tasted it before, so they wanted him to try it.

Umwë finished his ale and rose from the barstool. He thought that he might could talk to someone in the Common Room. He walked to the Common Room and sat down in a chair near the fireplace. As he sat there and stared into the fire he almost fell into slumber. He was walking on green fields with joy in his heart, no pain nor death. Clouds suddenly covered the sun as he was walking. He walked faster, but the darkness caught up to him. Then he fell. He woke up and sat straight up in the chair. He leaned back again and sighed. It was just a dream. The shadows are gone now. He pulled his hood tighter around his head and leaned back again. He shouldn't worry anymore about shadow and evilness. It is gone now, he thought and closed his eyes again.

Now he thought that he should go to the Grey Havens after all. He had no one left to trust here. No friends or family. No, my hope shall not fade yet. I might find someone here that I can trust.

[SonOfBombadil]

Lewis watched as the innkeeper apparently didn't hear Ravon. It wasn't a shock though, the poor woman had been working hard all day and was probably tired too. He reiterated the request, "Excuse me, Miss Aman, my friend and I would like to know if you had a couple of rooms still available?"

Lewis hoped that there was a couple of rooms, for he was tired and longed for the comfort of a bed. The long cold nights sleeping on the ground of Middle Earth had been getting quite uncomfortable of late. But he began to have doubts, why oh why didn't I ask for a room earlier.

[Kransha]

Toby was reading wearily, his half-closed eyes focused on the torn page of a small, leather bound booklet. Of course, the book wasn’t his. It was small enough to be whisked neatly from the satchel hanging at a young hobbit’s hip. He flipped through pages of the neglected packet and brushed gathering dust from ancient parchment. The book had obviously been passed down as an heirloom, perhaps worth something more than just good reading. If he could not find a fitting cost, he could give it to his niece, Tanta, who particularly enjoyed her newfound ability to read and comprehend most forms of writing to some extent. Tobias smiled dimly as he thought of Longbottom again, but the warm look faded as he began to skim over the editon critically.

On the first page was the title, inscribed in flowing cursive. It said ‘Tales of Wonder,” with no author or publisher beneath. Tobias assumed it was a collection of some kind and peeled aside the next page with his skinny fingers. It bore picturesque scene filled with painting intricacy, though the ebullient color of the work had faded after many years of having voracious children gawk at them. The picture was reminiscent of a tapestry, bearing several different images spliced together with curling designs separating each one. There were no words anywhere on the page, and Toby scoffed under his breath, eyeing the pictures. He turned the page.

“Oliphaunts,” he read aloud to himself, “are great and beautiful beasts that bear great tusks to smite their foes. It is said that they live in the far south with their masters, ferocious southern warriors.”
He looked at the picture skeptically, frowning at the elephantine figure painted marvelously on the page. It seemed to be braying like a horse with its nasal appendage flailing like a whip. Toby’s right eyebrow rose even more skeptically than before and his left eye widened slightly as he examined.

“Oliphaunts, what nonsense. What hobbit has ever seen one to know what such a beast might look like? If any man or beast got close enough to draw such a picture, they would be long dead.” He snorted indignantly and turned the page, his nose and face wrinkling angrily as he looked at these other pictures, more delicate than the last. Here were great green beasts, which sprouted wings and horns and all manner of great limbs. From one such beast’s mouth, fire was pouring like water and aimed towards something not on the parchment.

“More nonsense. Fairy-talls and children’s dreams. Has the world lost all perception of reality?” He asked no one in particular as he spoke, snorting again and wrinkling his nostrils in disgust.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 4:19 PM February 05, 2004: Message edited by: Kransha ]

[piosenniel]

Buttercup

Begging your pardon, Master Lewis,’ came the friendly voice from behind him. Lewis turned to see one of the serving girls looking at him. ‘Miz Aman, I believe, didn’t hear your request. But I can show you to a room.’ She pointed out the great ledger at the end of counter which he would need to sign, then took the necessary coins from him.

‘Now your payment comes with a breakfast tomorrow,’ she said motioning him and Ravon to follow her up the stairs. ‘There are towels, soap, and a basin in your room on the night stand. A pitcher, too. But you must bring it down to the kitchen for hot water if you wish to wash up. No baths tonight – it’s far too late. You can get one tomorrow – the room for that is at the end of the hall. And the privy for guests is just down that back stairway by the bath’s room and out the door, then to the east of the stable. You’ve a lamp in your room, and a lantern you can carry to the privy to light your way.’

She handed him the key, and saying good-night, went back down to the kitchen to finish up her duties.

Luthien looked around the bar and drank slowly from her goblet of wine. her grey-blue eyes glimmered beneath her hood and her dark hair fell out onto the forest green tunic.

Her hawk Estel screeched from her shoulder and fluttered it's wings. She stroked it softly and fed it meat from the small plate in front of her. She did not eat, but continued to drink her wine.

She lowered her hood and revealed her long dark brown, almost black hair. She wore a silver head dress that looked to be woven of glimmering thread.

The golden trands in the middle fell down in between her eyes, and around her neck was a necklace and on the end was a silver circle with an emerald in the center.

A long wooden bow was behind her chair and into it was carved elvish runes. She also bore on her back a long quiver of black arrows with green feathers on the end.

[Nilpaurion Felagund]

Aldwine looked around. He had been quiet for the last hour, debating whether to leave now and go to the Tooks' Great Smials, or stay, and listen to tales of others. Surely, he would learn more of the hobbits in the great libraries of Master Paladdin, but they will be there to stay. Meanwhile, the stories that will be told here might not be told again - or at least not within his hearing.

Having decided to stay, he requested for a drink. The flavoured tea Hawthorne had given him was quite good, so he had another large mug of it. He had heard one hobbit talk of oliphaunts as though they don't exist - of course, they do, and Aldwine has a few tales to prove it.

[Witch_Queen]

Cree
"Bring the elf back in? Sure why not. I haven't talked to an elf in a long time. Well actually since I believe this morning." Cree desired to be back amongst her kind. Though Grimm made her feel as if this was her home. "No one could get rid of my curse." Her words were empty.

"Not even the best medicine doctor in all of Middle-Earth." The sound of her voice was meaningless. She felt as if nothing could cure her troubles but death.

Am I going to always be like this. Always afraid of some disease or curse that I can't leave. It is like my shadow always there and never leaving. Even in the darkness I know it is always there. Cree had so many thoughts going through her head. She didn't know how she could tell Grimm the story her father had told her.

I will always be running from my curse. Even after death. Life can't fight my battles for me. So there is no way to win an on going war that is inside me.
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Aduthondiel
The door began to open. Aduthondiel looked up with amazement. This can't be his daughter. "So you are his daughter? Hardly something he would be proud about." Her words were harsh. "I believe you would like to know that your father's men were killed in the woods beyond the Shire. Evidently it was something important that they were caring since the beast attacked them and not me."

Aduthondiel pulled the hood of her cloak down. Her black hair fell down to cover her the cut on her cheek. Aduthondiel went on explaining how she was sent there to see if Crystal was hiding anywheres. She told her how she spent the months with her father before leaving to find his daughter. She noticed Hama in the back of the room.

"So he did find you after all. Hama I need something to send back to tell her father that she's dead. He should believe that right?" It appears that she is too happy to leave. Why would she want to stay with a hobbit. Such foul creatures.

Aduthondiel never had a love for hobbits. She couldn't see why a woman of Crystals degree would stay with a hobbit. "So what will it be? Crystal your father will be told that you died because of a beast. Just like all the others did."

Even if she loves this hobbit at least she won't have to suffer the fate her father has for her. At least she has found love.

&lt;font size=1 color=339966&gt;[ 3:35 PM February 06, 2004: Message edited by: Witch_Queen ]&lt;/font&gt;

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 3:36 PM February 06, 2004: Message edited by: Witch_Queen ]

[Fool Of A Took]

Umwë
Umwë still sat in the Common Room and was totally quiet. He had some daydreaming about Lothlorien. He missed the former elven kingdom alot. Now when he thought about it, he began to understand that the kingdom was abandoned forever by elves that lived there. Yet there was now Eryn Lasgalen. Umwë had been there a few times and been staying there for a week or two. But he had never really like it. It had never felt like a home to him. While he thought about this he constantly stared into the sparkling fire. He didn't move a finger, he sat like a statue in the chair and with his face cloaked. Lady Galadriel... So fair, he thought. It was hard to leave Lothlorien, he never thought he would have the strength to do it. Now, when he had seen so many places, and had so many memories from the rest of the world, the memories of Lothlorien began to fade. All the memories got blurred. But he would never forget the trees. He sighed and came back to reality from his thougts. He realised that it was quiet late now, and many people were going to get a room for the night. I will do that too soon...

He pulled back his hood and rose up. He decided to have another ale by the bar and maybe talk to someone and after that find a room for the night. The Common Room was quiet when he left, just a little mumbeling from a few dwarves and a hobbit. I wasn't interested in dwarves, neither hobbits. He just passed them by and walked to the bar. He ordered an ale and sat down on a stool. The bar was almost empty now. But a few people still sat there. He took a sip of his ale that he just got and then he looked at the others who sat by the counter. When they looked up at him he blushed and looked down at his feets. Why must this be so embarrising. I should start talk to someone instead of blushing all the time. He cleared his throat and looked up again. I hope anyone of these people like elves, he thought.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 11:25 AM February 06, 2004: Message edited by: Fool Of A Took ]

[Angel_Queen]

One room? Ravon wasn't about to share a room with a man. She felt it was not right. But she had gotten to know Lewis a little better. "I take it that elves aren't like as much as men." She had a smirk in her voice. "Shall we?"

It had been so long since Ravon had gotten a chance to sleep on a soft bed. The ground was always hard as a rock. Then she would wake up and notice that she was laying on a rock.

I could never get use to sleeping on rocks. Even if I spent my entire life doing it. Can you imagine the pain.

[Crystal Heart]

Crystal looked at her in surprise. This was her chance to make her father think that she was dead. That he had no chance of ever finding her ever again. This was the one thing that she had wished for.

She unclasped the now bloody necklace from around her neck. It bore her blood and her father knew that Arty had given it to her before his death. He would believe without a shadow of a doubt that she had been killed if he saw the necklace and the dried blood. It was all she needed.

"Take this back to my father. He will believe my death."

Crystal smiled brightly as she looked back at Angry. She would be able to live in the Shire safely. There would be no threat on the Shire or the life of her new found love.

"I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I shall not forget you and what you have done for me."

[Linnahiril Tinnufinwen]

"That bar maid is a nice lady," thought Asphodel to herself, "even though she is one of the big folk." She turned her eyes upon her father, who seemed not to have noticed that she had exchanged glances with the Big Folk barkeeper.

The lady barkeeper was the only woman, not of Hobbit decent, that Halfred did not object to being in the Shire, though his ill oppinion of the Big Folks was as staunch as ever. He was at first very sceptical. As he had once said to Pinto Goldburrow, "First a dwarf, and now a Big Folk lady at the Dragon! How is she even to fit behind the bar? No good will come of this, Pinto, mark my words." He had been correct in his assumption - to an extent. After the bar maid took over the Dragon, more and more Big Folk had come more often, occasionally disturbing the peace of the quiet Shire Folk. But no great evil was to be had from this, at least in Asphodel's eyes. Halfred had learned to put up with it, though Asphodel imagined that it was, perhaps, a greater evil to her father than it was to her.

Sigismond Proudfoot, who had stepped away momentarily to order some more ales, came back, to Asphodel's surprise, with three of them. She wondered if the third one was for her cousin.

"What's this, Sigismond?" asked Halfred, removing the pipe from his mouth. "Why, you have bought one too many ales."

"I haven't," said Sigismond. "I've got two for me." He patted his large belly. "I'm a big man, as Hobbits go, and I need twice as much as normal."

All Halfred said to this was, "As you please, Sigismond," though she could tell that he was not pleased. Not because Sigismond drank too much - no Hobbit would ever say that of anyone - but rather Halfred was a frugal Hobbit, and did not often waste money on more than he could consume.

Everyone was about to settle back down to their normal occupations: Tolman observing the different people in the Dragon, Asphodel sitting and staring at nothing, and Halfred going into the particulars of the weed plantation, when Sigismond let out a great laugh."

"Can't you good folks take a bit of jesting?" He asked. When no one said anything, as they were obviously confused, he laughed again. "I may be a big Hobbit, but I'm not greedy. Here," he slid one of his ale mugs across the table, slopping a bit of the dark brown liquid on the table, "the third ale's for young Tom. He's thirty-three now. About time he started acting like it."

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 1:59 PM February 06, 2004: Message edited by: Linnahiril Tinnufinwen ]

[Witch_Queen]

Aduthondiel looked at Crystal. She thought she saw a smile but wasn't sure. "Child there is no reason to thank me. I was sent her to get you if Hama failed. If you didn't want to go back I was going to have to kill you." The words flew out of her mouth.

"No reason to thank me." She placed the hood back on her head.

[Crystal Heart]

Crystal's eyes widened as she turned back.

"You were suppose to kill me? But why didn't you?" Crystal asked.

She was confused. She hadn't thought that she was so liked before. She had no idea that anyone would think highly of her. There had been Arty and the King of Gondor, but she really hadn't thought that anyone else would.

She just couldn't imagine that so many people were on her side and yet at the same time so many people on her father's side that were trying to collect the randsom that had been placed on her head. It was a large sum and she was surprised that anyone at all would go for it.

[Feared Half-Elf]

Elkamia stretched, almost ready for her bed. There had been some interesting stories tonight, she had been tempted to add some of her own. Her sharp eyes suddenly saw the lone elf by the bar. She had seen him enter, vanish up towards the rooms and return, and now he seemed to be blushing a lot.

'Perhaps he's shy' she thought, and went up to him, sliding onto the seat next to him. "Care for some company?" She asked.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 1:34 PM February 07, 2004: Message edited by: piosenniel ]

[SonOfBombadil]

One room... allright then. Lewis thought it was a bit odd to share a room with an elf that he had just met this day, but if this was the only room left, it would have to suffice. "I do not think it would be proper if we both slept in the bed," Lewis began, "you can sleep in it, and I will sleep on the chair or the floor. It's bound to be more comfortable than the ground outside, and warmer."

Lewis smiled at Ravon, and then he went over to a drawer and pulled out a blanket, and lay it on the chair. He also took one of the pillows from the bed. He took off his sword belt, and also his boots and cloak. He sat down in the chair, and it was a lot better than the ground outside. And he also didn't have to worry about being attacked in his sleep by wild animals. "Have a good, restful sleep Ravon." he said with a smile.

[Kransha]

Toby yawned loudly and snorted again, sniffing indignantly at nothing as he slammed the dusty pages of the book shut, sending a fine-grained spray into his face. Irritated, he wiped the soot off with his cloth sleeve and let the book drop onto the table he was sitting at. He slid it to the other end of the table and swung his chair around nimbly, yawning again and stretching his arms out ceremoniously.

Without a second thought, he let his weary head fall limp on the table with his arm beneath it as a pillow. He couldn’t stay in a room, since he had no money, but he could still sleep. He whipped his other arm around and slid it under his head; he scratched his nose for a moment with his stubbly finger and sighed deeply. His frowning lips curled into a slumbering smile as his breathing slowed and his well fed stomach began to heave up and down rhythmically. He pulled up his large feet beneath him and his head lolled to one side as a gruff guttural noise began to well up in his throat, coming out moments later as a gurgling groan of comfort, rather unsettling to hear.

Soon his eyes drifted closed and an obnoxious noise resembling a snore began to come from him at varying intervals. He was near enough the crackling fire to absorb the rays of its gentle warmth as he slept, slowly descending into a muddled dream of veiled pleasantry and happiness.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 9:36 PM February 07, 2004: Message edited by: Kransha ]

[piosenniel]

ALL POSTERS PLEASE NOTE

Tomorrow, Sunday, very late at night I am moving the time in the Shire ahead to early morning.

Please finish up all your necessary "night time in the Shire" posts by Tomorrow evening.

Thanks!

~*~ Piosenniel, Shire Moderator

[Linnahiril Tinnufinwen]

Asphodel watched in amusment, as Tolman sipped tentatively at his large ale. Her cousin Tom didn't strike her as the kind of Hobbit who would spend his nights drinking ale. A clock somewhere in the other room, probably on the huge mantle piece over the story room fire , struck eleven o-clock, its silvery notes mingling with the noises and voices of the Dragon. Asphodel turned to her father, who was still in deep conversation with Sigismond Proudfoot about his plans for his future leaf plantation.

"It is getting quite late, father," said Asphodel. Halfred ceased his plans and figures momentarily, and looked up at his daughter.

"I'm sorry to bother you, father," said Asphodel, "but it is going to be quite a long walk back to the plantation. Mother is probably starting to be worried about us."

"Oh, but Miss Hamfast," said Sigismond, "I've only just arrived. I've only just got into particulars with your father. Don't be going yet. I'll buy you a little something to keep you awake, miss, if you'd like."

"No thank you, Mr. Proudfoot," said Asphodel. "I am quite alright. But I think that in a minute, I'm going to suggest to my aunt, that she walk my younger sister home."

"Quite right you are, my dear," said Halfred. "Hanna ought to be taken home, soon. But you may stay here, if you'd like."

"Perhaps I'll consider it," said Asphodel.

[Feared Half-Elf]

"I'm ready for my bed I think, good night to you, sir!" Elkamia stretched and said goodbye to the elf, who she had just had a pleasant conversation with. She had been right, though, he had been shy.

She smiled in his direction, and headed towards the rooms. It had been a long day's travelling, and there was another to come in the morning. covering another yawn, the elf vanished into the room she had booked earlier, closing the door against the night.

[Galadel Vinorel]

Galadel

It was late night in the Shire when a soft singing was heard echoing through the village. All who heard it was moved, and stood still till it had passed by their house. The sound was gentle, and to the tune of a lullaby, yet in a language that the hobbits could not understand. It filled their minds with thoughts of distant woods and adventures, and left them breathless with wonder.

On through the village the singing travelled, until it stopped as the figure that it was coming from reached the Green Dragon Inn. The person stood staring up at the sign over the door and smiled. Opening the door she stepped into the Common Room, and flung back her hood revealing a fair face with crystal blue eyes that were shining at the moment.

Quietly the female elf crossed the almost empty room to the bar. A familiar-looking elf sat there all alone, yet she was not worried about him for the moment; she needed a room to sleep in for the night. Smiling at the innkeeper, Galadel, the Keeper of the Woods of Lothlorien, asked in her quiet, but firm voice, "Might you have a room available, mam?"

[Hama Of The Riddermark]

Hama looked daggers at the woman, before looking down to Crystal and trying to force a smile. She just looked painedly up at him as if she was afraid of him. Hama shook his head and looekd down at the floor.

"Yes, Crystal, I was sent by your father to kill you. He dispatched riders everywhere, to everywhere of note in Middle Earth. I can not kill you now, I have not the heart to, and I have sworn to protect you."

He sighed deeply as he looked at her. He could never harm a woman, that much he knew... "Give the woman the bracelet, then get yourself some sleep." He slumped back into the chair, and very soon was wheezing in sleep...

[Kransha]

Toby’s eyes shot open suddenly and he popped up, his chair’s legs screeching loudly as the seat slid back along the wooden floor boards. His head and arms slid off the table, he slumped awkwardly out of his chair, and hit the floor in the common room with a painful thud. He cursed silently and kicked the obstructing chair away, getting up. With a disgusted and irritated look on his face, he brushed the soot off his sleeves, shook off his clothes ceremoniously, and sat down again, grumbling under his breath.

He could not recall if he’d been dreaming or not, but he was definitely annoyed at being awoken. He didn’t know what had disturbed him and he didn’t care. He wasn’t sure if he could get back to sleep again. He got up from the chair after less than a minute and looked around with tired, red-rimmed eyes. The common room was nearly empty, save only for two or three figures in the darker corners. Outside, the sky was pitch-black with some pale yellowish moonlight seeping through thick clouds. Inside, the fire was dying down; its former soothing crackle reduced to a soft and subdued tapping noise. The dim but warm light had become a colder and darker projection of bright colors, dancing in shadow on the wall and playing out colorful stories that no one could read.

He walked over to a stool near the bar and sat down, yawning and sighing all at once. He turned his head slightly to see someone asking the innkeeper a question. He was taken aback by her fair face and gleaming blue orbs that he guessed were eyes. She was a dazzling individual, not like many hobbit lasses Toby Hornblower had ever seen. He couldn’t help but stare rudely at the woman with his mouth slowly opening. She was assuredly the nicest looking thing he’d ever seen, except perhaps a very large supply of Longbottom Leaf.

She had pointed ears, the second thing Tobias noticed. ‘Of course,’ he thought, ‘she’s an elf. That explains the face.’ He hadn’t seen many elves around, even though there were presently several in the inn, very near him as a matter of fact. He propped his gawking lower jaw back into place and assessed the female, one eyebrow raised.

<font size=1 color=339966>[ 4:28 PM February 08, 2004: Message edited by: Kransha ]

[Linnahiril Tinnufinwen]

Asphodel got up slowly from her chair and stretched her legs. Then, after informing her father that she would be not long absent, she boldly made her way through the hoards of Hobbits, Dwarves, Men, and occasionally Elves (though they were so tall, she took them for wooden posts). She tried hard not to concentrate on any one person or thing, lest by her small height she should be overwhelmed by everyone else. Instead, she kept her gaze stright forward and focused only on weaving through the maze of wooden chairs and tables, and kept a keen eye out for the Hobbit maids balancing trays above the crowd.

Finally, Asphodel broke out of the throng and found herself at the door of the Story Room. The Story Room - she wasn't sure that this was the correct name for the comfortable Inn parlour with a huge fire place and cheerfully roaring fire, but that was what Hanna and Marigold had first called it, so she had gotten into the habit of speaking of it by that name.

Listening closely, Asphodel could hear someone speaking softly from the front of the fire place, no doubt whispering some fantastic tale to the hobbit-boys and girls as they gathered all around. The grown Hobbits sat farther back, so try as she would, even balancing on her toes, Asphodel could not see the person who was telling the story.

Taking a deep breath, for she hated to interupt such a cheerful party, she plunged into the herd of adults, in search of her aunt.

Belladonna was among those grown Hobbits that were forward most towards the storyteller. After a few minutes, Asphodel found her and, sitting down next to her on a dark wooden chair with a snow-white pillow upon it, was about to say something, when her aunt spoke first.

"I saved this chair for you," she whispered, "for I thought you might like to hear some stories after you grew weary of your male company."

"I have not come to hear stories, nor because I am tired of Tolman and father," said Asphodel, speaking quietly so as not to disturb the story telling. "It is after eleven-o-clock, and I think Hanna should be taken home."

"After this last tale," said Belladonna. Asphodel was about to protest, but her aunt motioned for her to be quiet. Asphodel had no choice but to listen to the rest of the tale.

[Everdawn]

Sírabel had finished her chat with the mysterious Eradan, who had asked to get some sleep, or at least that was what Sírabel had thought he had said, she was laready caught up in her day(or night rather) dreaming of what his stories might look like in colour. She was brought back by the chiming of a rather old clock nearby on the wall, so old that it was minus of many numbers.

"How am I supposed to tell time if there is no time to tell? I am terribly vexed." she frowned and sat with her arms crossed staring at the clock for many minutes, silent at that apart form the occasional mumble, "...so terribly vexed." Though she would not be alone for long.

Lanus had spent all day and all of the night delivering messages, like he usually did, apart form the day off (or several) which he had had when he met Sírabel. Lanus was tired and sore and in a very bad mood that night. "Miss Delone." he said shortly form behing her chair.

"What!" she exclaimed in an angered tone, as she tipped her head over the back of the chair to look at Lanus upside-down. "Look what youve done!" she replied next seeing that the clock began to chime again. "It's half past the hour!"

"Whats that got to do with anything?" stated Lanus taking a seat. "Besides, i have news"

"Well, have i ever cared for news my dear friend?" snapped Sírabel in a childish tine. "I have some for you, and here it is; you smell like your horse."

"Im flattered Sí, i really am, but look here. I managed to find somewhere just outside of the shire who is looking for an artist to paint a picture of their farm house." Lanus looked pleased wiht himself.

"Fantastic." she muttered dryly.

"Are you not happy?" he asked

"I piant real things, not farm houses. Oh look, dont be like that! I give you thumbs up for spirit."

"Spirit or no, im going to get a room and sleep for the night, i encourage you to do the same, you must be tired with all your clock watching." and he stromed off angrily to the innkeeper and then up the stairs.

"Well" said Sírabel quietly. "Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning."

[Arry]

Alwin smoked his last pipeful as he sat near the banked fire in the Inn. Many of the guests had gone up to bed already, and he was looking forward to sinking under the quilts of his own bed in due time. Buttercup had come round with the broom, saying nothing to him as he sat, chair tipped back a bit and his feet on the raised hearth. But the determined sweeping of the young hobbit made comments of its own as the strokes came nearer and nearer his chair.

‘All right, my dear,’ he chuckled as the swish of the broom against the wooden planks of the common room grew louder and closer. ‘I’m surrendering this most comfortable seat to your able housekeeping and going off to bed.’ Buttercup smiled widely at him, mouthing a thank-you at the elderly gentleman.

‘Just one thing,’ he said, ‘drawing near and whispering to her. ‘Do you think I might get a small basket of food and a flask of hot tea with honey?’ Buttercup’s eyes went wide, wondering where the old fellow was going to put away a basket of food. ‘None of your business, Buttercup,’ she said to herself, as she went to fetch him the small repast.

Once delivered, he thanked her, then watched as she walked back to the kitchen to finish up in there. Alwin slipped out the front door of the Inn and hurried toward the oak tree. He rapped lightly on the trunk of the old tree and spoke softly into the dark, thick canopy of leaves above. ‘Something to hold off the cold of the night, my friend,’ he said, sitting the basket securely between two roots at the base of the tree.

Not waiting for an answer, he turned back toward the Inn, thoughts of a warm, soft bed drawing him on.

[piosenniel]

PLEASE NOTE:

Time in the Inn is now moving forward.

It is very early in the morning, breakfast is not yet served.

And most of the Inn is still in bed.

[Child of the 7th Age]

Hawthorne Brandybuck:

A star or two still twinkled in the skies when Hawthorne Brandybuck slipped out of bed and put on her clothing. The corridors of the Dragon lay dark and silent. As the hobbit padded down the hallway towards the Common Room and the kitchens, she took a quick look at the small chambers where Ruby and Buttercup slept. Their doors were still drawn tight; no sounds came from within.

Hawthorne smiled in delight. She had managed to get up before the other girls and would be free to do whatever she wanted in the kitchens. How pleased they would be when they later arose and discovered that breakfast was already being served! Hawthorne was hoping to offer a meal of hot eggs and biscuits served up with a rasher of bacon. It was true that she had never cooked any of those foods before, but how hard could it possibly be? Back home in Buckland, the Harfoot servant girls whisked out the breakfast after bustling around in the kitchen for only a moment or two. If they could do it so efficiently, certainly a smart Fallohide girl such as herself should have absolutely no trouble.

She tiptoed across the Common Room. There were already a few folk sitting at tables waiting for the food to be cooked and served. One of the hobbits had her head bent low on the tablecloth and was making snoring noises. Several other Men and an Elf had satchels sitting near their chairs, apparently expecting to take off on the road as soon as they had finished their early morning meal. Someone had unlocked the front and back doors of the Inn and, every so often, a tradesman came in to drop off their wares for the day.

Hawthorne went straight to the kitchen and began taking out the foods from the pantry and larder that she would need to make her meal. There were fresh eggs, sweet butter, a good haunch of bacon, a slab of rendered fat, a large burlap sack with flour and a bottle of thick cream all waiting for her on the counter; these had been delivered earlier by one of the farm lads.

Within only a moment, she had set out her frying pans, bowls and spoons beside the stove and tied on an apron. Thankfully, one of the house lads had already started the fire on top of the stove so she did not have to worry about that. Someone had forgotten to drop off the peat so the oven was not yet lit. She decided to make a pan of fried biscuits rather than waiting for the peat to be delivered. She could always use baked biscuits for her second batch. In any case, she had a personal hankering for fried biscuits so that seemed like a good idea on several grounds.

Cracking the eggs into a bowl, the hobbit carefully mixed them with the cream and beat the mixture until it was frothy and smooth, dumping the whole thing into a fying pan. She set the bacon in another pan on the side burner and quickly made up a batch of biscuits following a recipe that her servant had kindly written down for her from the night before. It took her only a few moments to prepare the biscuit dough.

At this point Hawthorne was feeling very pleased with herself. She knew that fried biscuits needed to be cooked in the fat so she filled the third frying pan almost to the top with oil. The bacon was sizzling on the stove, and the eggs almost done. She pulled the eggs off the burner and set it to the side, slipped the biscuits into the fat to fry, and then decided to go out and have a look at what was happening in the yard.

It took her several minutes to make the rounds of the courtyard gathering a bouquet of flowers that she intended to place on top of the serving bar in the Common Room. She was about to gather a second bouquet of flowers when she noticed a wisp or two of smoke floating out the back door of the Kitchen. Dropping the flowers and wrenching open the door, she was met by a burning smell and a thick column of smoke spurting up from the frying pan where the biscuits had been. Worse than that, they were tendrils of flame leaping up from the rendered fat.

Hawthorne kept her wits about her and reached for a large bucket of water that was always kept near the door. She did not notice another pail of sand that was also kept next to it. She hurled the contents of the water pail directly at the oil, thinking this would quell the flame, but it only rose even higher. But now the tiny flames had grown considerably in size and were beginning to crawl up the wooden beam that sat on the wall just behind the stove.

Hawthorne looked on in horror. This was not what she had in mind. Ruby and Buttercup would not be pleased. In fact, they would be very angry. For a minute she wondered if she should try to battle the blaze herself, but then realized that this could only lead to folly. She raced out into the Common Room of the Inn calling for someone to help:

"Help! Help! The Inn's on fire!

[Regin Hardhammer]

The Dwarf’s auburn beard bobbed as he walked down the dirt path to the Green Dragon Inn. Regin Hardhammer had traveled on foot from Ered Luin where just a few of his kind still lived. He was journeying on to the Glittering Caves of Aglarond to help with the mining and metalwork, the colony that Gimli had started following the War of the Ring.

Regin was a skilled metal smith, especially in the fashioning of battle raiment and weaponry. His axe, coat of mail, and helmet were all crafted using the finest precision. He had been trudging along the road for days with nothing but bread, cheese, and water, and had not had a strong ale for far too long. In the wee hours of the morning, after travelling all night, he approached the Inn’s front gate eager to quench his thirst with a nice tall pint. The Inn was quiet when he entered and no one seemed to notice him. A group of Hobbits was chatting softly in the corner. A Man and an Elf sat at a round table sipping their brew wordlessly. There was a pall of weariness over the tavern, perhaps because it was so early or a number of the folk seem weighted down with heavy cares.

“It seems as if someone died in here,” Regin ruefully reflected. He went up to the bar hoping for a drink . A repugnant smell of burnt eggs wafted through the air. Dain shifted his gaze hurriedly around the room. From the kitchen appeared a tongue of flame spreading swiftly across the wood. A hobbit girl stood agape with a pan dropped to the floor beside her. From the open doorway, thick billows of smoke poured into the Common Room.

“Fire,” Regin yelled , “ Fire in the kitchen. Grab a pail from the shed and bring water from the well.” He grabbed a milking bucket outside the inn and hurriedly dashed toward the well. His pint of ale would have to wait.

[Child of the 7th Age]

Witch_Queen's post:

Aduthondiel slowly placed her dagger back in its holder. "Like I said, I'm not going to kill anyone. Hama I don't even want to hurt you. But if you dare lock daggers with me again. Lets just say I will have to tell our lord that you was the one to start it." The cut on her cheek was beginning to bleed again. She quickly wiped away the blood.

"Crystal I won't be leaving for some time. So your father will have to wait." She turned to look at Hama. "Dear friend why would you want to hurt me. I was always better at swords than you." She knew that times had changed. The young boy she once knew had grown up.

Does he dare to challenge me? If it wasn't for me where would he be now? Aduthondiel took her elvish cloak off. Her sword began to glow. Aduthondiel pushed on the hilt of the sword to make it fit securely in place. "Yet now it appears that you are happy here Crystal. So I will leave in a few days or weeks to set back out to find your father. It will surely be death for me if he finds out that you are still alive. Don't forget it will be death for you too Hama if he hears of the news."

Death.. It sounds only welcoming that I should want to die now. After all my troubles I won't deny this girl happiness. Even with such a creature as a hobbit.

She turned as she heard the screams coming from down stairs. "The inn's on fire." Aduthondiel wasn't used to a place catching on fire out of nowhere. It's got to be the kitchen. But if the fire spreads then what?

[Child of the 7th Age]

Angel_Queen's post:

She didn't feel right sleeping on the bed. Ravon picked up the pillow and began to lay down on the floor when she thought she heard a scream. "Lewis did you hear that. I think someone said the kitchen was on fire."

Ravon quickly noticed that she wasn't imagining it. Someone did say that the kitchen was on fire.