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@Ercassie

It seemed to Tobedir as if the carpenter was really not very interested in Toby's mysterious discovery, and he couldn't quite understand why this would be. After all, it wasn't every day that one finds a very fancy, likely expensive, dagger just hiding out in some secret hiding place only a few people even know about! This might actually be the most mysterious thing that had happened all year. Or even in the last decade! At least, as far as Toby was concerned, it was.

However, the moment he revealed the actual location of where he had made this important discovery, it was as if something altered in the former ranger's point of view. He looked more thoughtful, then suddenly answered Toby's question with a reply that may or may not have been actually in answer to the question. Stay here. Watch the store. As this order settled in his ears, Toby blinked in astonishment as the man then strolled out into the street with no more explanation than just 'I need to go across the street for a moment'. Toby stared after him in bafflement. Either the man was stranger than he'd been led to believe, or.. this news had meant something to him, perhaps?

Even before Toby could fully process what just happened, the bells over the door alerted him to the arrival of someone else, just as his eyes widened at the sight of who that someone else happened to be. Almost without thinking, he slipped the dagger, sheath and all, under his tunic so that it would be hidden, as it had been when going through the gates. Oh no! Not her! He thought instinctively, feeling rooted to the spot as the meanest girl in school marched straight to the counter and, to his greater astonishment, began helping herself to the till drawer! Just like that!

The weight of the responsibility that had just been placed upon his shoulders registered a few belated seconds after this, even as Tess tossed an explanation his way. Her father.. half owner? And they let her do this all the time? Toby blinked, and gave a slow nod as she concluded her explanation. Inwardly, he cringed as the girl said his name in that mocking way she liked to do. Why did she have to come in here? Did her dad really own half this place? Inside, he felt torn. She took his lunch all the time. Or rather, she made him give it to her. But, in exchange, if she was around when Colben was picking on Toby, she'd step in and help him out. Usually, anyway. And besides, Toby didn't dare refuse the girl her demands, because if he didn't, she might hit him, and she'd let Colben hit him, and having one person defending you from another was far better than both hitting you, even if it meant going hungry until suppertime. At school, he didn't dare do anything to make Tess angry.

But they were not at school. They were at Addhor's shop. Which Addhor had just asked Toby to watch for him. Maybe Tess really did have permission to take the money, but how did he know that was true? What if she just said that, so he wouldn't try to stop her? As if he'd dare.. everyone knew not to mess with Tess Korsey. But then, Addhor would return and find that Toby had just stood by and let his shop be robbed, and he'd never trust Toby to work for him. Even if he knew who the culprit was, Toby wasn't sure he'd have the nerve to tattle on her, because... that could bring bad repercussions on him later, at school. He hesitated, then casually moved to place himself in front of the door, clasping his hands behind his back casually as he put his weight against the door. Behind his back, his hands grasped the doorknob, as if to secure it from her. She'd have to push him aside now, if she wanted to leave. "Addhor just stepped out for a moment," He informed the girl quietly. "I.. um, he asked me to watch the place. I.. might be getting a job, working here, soon." he explained, a little unsure whether this was such a good idea, now that he knew there were more chances of running into her. Or, if it would even happen.

"So," He cleared his throat, trying to sound like he believed her, and was merely interested, "you get to come and borrow money, whenever you like?" He asked, trying to stall for a bit more time. "That must be nice. Still, I think it'd probably be a good idea if you wait and let Addhor know. Just so he won't be wondering.. he'll be back in just a minute." He hoped so, anyway. "I'd..offer to pass on the message, but I'm not sure if he'd believe me if I told him." He shrugged slightly, hoping she'd believe that. Also, that statement actually made him realize how bad it might look on him, if Addhor returned and found money missing after leaving Toby here... by himself. No, he definitely did not want to be accused of stealing, least of all from the man he'd been afraid of his whole life!

Out of the corner of one brown eye, Tess caught sight of Tobedir, moving in as casual a manner as he could toward the door. Was he going to run ? Flee ? She was not surprised. She had never known a boy so disinclined toward any form of conflict. She was not even challenging him outright. But it was almost as though he expected all the world to be nice to him, for no good reason ! She knew better. She was a middle child, of five, and she had learnt to stand up for herself early, else she would not get a look in.

“I know,” she sighed, and returned one coin to the drawer, in favour of a more shiny one. “I saw,” she added afterwards. A hand found it’s way from swelling her apron pocket to sitting on one of her flat hips, as Tess glanced up from her thievery to give the young man her full attention. The news that he was thinking of getting a job, any job at all, was surprising to her. For Tess had not conceived of any such notion herself. Not yet. School took enough of her time from what she’d rather be doing. And the very last thing she needed was further work to do. She had the whole rest of her life for that.


“So you’ll be the new watchman then, will you ?” The question was delivered with no small amount of amusement. Tess crossed the floor from where she’d stood, from where she’d .. ‘borrowed’. And moved toward where he was now loitering. She could almost read the fight or flight instinct in the boy's eyes, and had a fair guess which way he would go when it came down to it. “We shall have to give you a fair wage then.” A small smile spread across the young girl’s face, her head tilted aside to better consider her classmate, once she had come only a metre away from him. “Is this enough ?” The shiniest of all the coins sat upon her open palm. Fingers wiggled, inviting him to take it.

“Well, you are quite unbelievable. I think. Tobeedee,” she laughed, to disguise the fact of her waiting on his answer. Peering over one of his shoulders, still from where she stood, Tess gave the impression that she’d seen something worth noticing behind him. “Are you locking him out ?” she pointed to where Addhor was not yet heading back toward them. “Or simply making sure we are not interrupted ?”

The key worked smoothly. Strawberry smiled to herself, easing the door open carefully. All was dark within. The shop had been closed for hours, and everyone would be at the midsummer festivities. The guards were busy with the festivities, and while gate security was a bit tighter even than normal, the shops were a bit less guarded than usual. So this was the perfect night. The night she'd been waiting months for.

Strawberry stepped inside, closed the door, and locked it behind her. Picking locks was easy enough for her, but when she didn’t even have to… well that made it all the easier. Now that she was inside, Strawberry looked around the dark shop, trying to decide where to begin. This time, she wasn’t here to steal. This time, she had come with the intention of returning what she had stolen before. She’d had plenty of time to think about her impulsive theft, and realized that it was not right that she had done it.

While the thrill of the moment had been exciting at the time, and... well, let's be honest; irresistable... she had begun to feel pretty guilty for stealing those jewels from some poor shopkeeper. Someone would suffer for it, and it shouldn’t be an honest merchant. She had made up her mind now. From now on, she would only steal from those who deserved it. So here she was, returning what she had stolen. Or planning to.

Just as she was inserting a thin lockpick into the first display case, the sound of approaching voices made her freeze. Someone was coming? She hastily withdrew her lockpick and glanced around before hurrying into the next room. This seemed to be a sort of workroom, she realized, looking around. There was a workbench, a small anvil, even a small forge for heating the gold and silver and stuff. This was where the jewelry was made, apparently. Well, she could hide in here until the people left.

But the voices seemed to be following her! She could hear two men talking in hushed tones. She glanced hastily around, then hoped she wasn’t making a mistake as she hurried toward a small cabinet under the workbench. Fortunately, it was mostly empty. She moved a few things aside and crawled inside, pulling her knees up against her chest as she closed the door after her. Please, don’t let them need anything from here, she thought frantically.

The two men entered the room, involved in a conversation about jewels, it seemed. Strawberry listened, holding her breath. After a few minutes, she cautiously cracked the door of the cabinet just enough to peek through the sliver of a gap. The lantern they’d placed on the table illuminated them both clearly enough that she could see their faces. One of the men was the same shopkeeper she had lifted the key from, a few months ago. She frowned as she tried to follow what they were saying. Something about getting the jewels swapped? She frowned as she tuned into what the two men were saying, and her eyes widened slightly as she began to realize what they were saying.

“See the facets on this diamond? Flawless.” The jeweler offered the jewel to his friend, smiling proudly. “Now, take a look at the ring I took it out of.” He held up the item with a little grin. "The happy couple are due to be wed in a couple of weeks. Apparently, it's his great-grandmother's, but it had a bit of damage, and he wanted to have it repaired for his new bride," The jeweler smirked.

“It's a perfect match,” The other sounded impressed. “It’d take someone with a keen eye to identify the fake,” He shook his head in amazement. “Well done. Is that glass?”

“Yes,” The jeweler chuckled. “Highly polished, of course. All the items in the display cases contain fake jewels. But the customers don’t know that, and clearly, that thief, back in February, also didn’t realize that.”

“Yes, I heard about you getting robbed,” The other mentioned. “Did you suffer much loss from it?”

“On the contrary!” The shopkeeper answered smugly. “I reported all of the stolen items to the insurance, plus several more items that never really existed, and if the items aren’t found by the end of six month's time, I’ll be recompensed for the loss.”

“Very nice.” The other man grinned. “Maybe you should arrange a few more thefts, then. You could come out pretty rich from all this.”

“I might,” The jeweler agreed. “But not too many, and not too close together. I don’t want them to begin getting suspicious.”

“Of course.”

“In the meanwhile, I need to sell off all the real jewels,” The shopkeeper explained. "The insurance people are coming at the end of this week to do an inventory of my goods. That’s where you come in, Dûrben. I need to get rid of it all before then.”

“I’m sure we can arrive at an agreeable price.” Dûrben assured him with a smile.


Strawberry listened to all of this, eyes narrowing as she watched and listened to the two men negotiate about the cost of all those jewels. So, it seemed her guilt had been misplaced. She felt annoyed at the jeweler now, after knowing about his underhanded operation.

“Oh, and this little beauty came out of a fancy brooch,” The shopkeeper was saying, holding up a large ruby. “Some old lady brought it in to be cleaned, a couple months ago.” He laughed. “She never even noticed that the stone had been changed. It looked ‘cleaner’, so she was pleased.”

“Nice,” Dûrben grinned as he admired the jewel before handing it back. “You ought to consider making a new setting to put the jewels to into,” He suggested. “The gem alone is worth plenty, of course, but if it had been set in a fancy piece of, say silver or gold, that would have increased the value tremendously.”

“True.” The other replied, hesitating. “But it is easier to resell the jewels when they’re no longer in a setting, and then you can take them and sell them to another jeweler who can put them into a piece. Then, they’re no longer the least bit recognizable.”

“Hm, true, I see your point. It’s easier to slip them past the guards that way, too.” Dûrben agreed, offering the gem back. “So, let’s talk about a price.”


Strawberry was feeling cramped by the time the secret bartering meeting had drawn to a close. But she knew all about the jeweler’s operation now. They’d agreed on a price, but Dûrben had to return to his wagon to get the money, so they planned to meet again tomorrow night, so Dûrben could deliver the payment and collect the jewels he was purchasing.

Strawberry wasn’t happy. So much for trying to do the right thing. Now, she suddenly found that all she wanted to do was to find all the people to whom the jewels really belonged, and return them. But how could she do that? She had no idea how to even figure out who the jewels had originally belonged to. Except… wait. She thought for a moment. Wouldn’t a shopkeeper, even a crooked one like this, keep a record of sales? Say, the woman who came to have her necklace cleaned, and the couple who'd brought in their family heirloom to be repaired before their wedding. Shouldn’t there be a record of that, somewhere? If she could find that, then maybe she could find a way to track down every person who had been cheated. Maybe.

She waited for a long while after the men’s voices had faded, and after the light had gone out with them. Then she quietly climbed out from her hiding spot, stretching her legs carefully. First off, she went to the lantern and lit it again, keeping the wick low. There were no windows in here, so she wasn’t worried about a passing guard patrol seeing light through the window. She went all around the workroom, searching for some sort of ledger or registry or something. At last, she found what she was looking for. While she couldn’t read the record book herself, she figured there must be something in there that could help her figure out what jewels belonged to whom. She just had to find someone who could read it for her. Someone she could trust.

Once she had slipped the book into her backpack, Strawberry went over to the safe where she had seen the man put the jewels. The lock clicked open after just a little extra effort, and she withdrew the little velvet-lined case the jewels were stored in. Too bad she wouldn’t see his face when he saw that all of the real jewels had been stolen. It occurred to her, with a little smirk, that the shopkeeper might actually believe that Dûrben had been the one to rob him. That would almost be worth sneaking back in to watch it play out, but she figured that’d be too risky.

By the time she left the jewelry shop, locking the door after herself, Strawberry’s conscience was feeling much lighter. She had taken all of the real jewels she could find, as well as the book with the record of sales and such. There were probably still a lot of cheated customers who’d never get the jewel they really paid for, but at least she’d try her best to get all of these jewels to where they really belonged.

As for the fake ones she’d stolen the last time she was here, Strawberry had considered leaving them in the safe for the shopkeeper to find, and maybe for his insurance people to find when they took inventory of his merchandise. But then she figured, it’d do no good. He would find it first, and then he’d hide it before it could do any good. No, she wanted to try and make sure it got found by someone who could make sure the dishonest jeweler didn’t get away with this. She just had to figure out who that was, first. For now, she had the perfect hiding spot in mind for it.

---

@Ercassie

She'd only intended to stay for the two weeks required, after agreeing to help CG with that file thing. But after pulling off the 'heist', there had been no good chances to slip through the gates. While Strawberry really wanted to get out of town and be on her way, that had proven trickier than she'd expected. The wrong guards had been posted on the gates, posing quite a problem for her. And so, she was biding her time, waiting for a good opportunity. Besides, she'd had last night's activities to accomplish. Now, she had a whole new self-assigned mission.

In the meanwhile, it was nice to have someplace to stay that was safe. After the initial misunderstanding between her and the man with the giant sword, they had come to an agreement between them, and he had even allowed her to stay until she was able to find a way out of the city. While she was normally slow to trust people, she had found it easier than normal to decide she liked Gwandhyra. Once he stopped trying to attack her, anyway. She definitely wouldn't have expected to be able to relax around another person, let alone sleep. Yet there she was, off in an out of the way corner of the room, actually asleep. She'd been out late, after all.

Until a hand pressed down on her mouth. Shortly before that, she had been restless, twitching slightly, and whimpering softly while caught up in a dream. Not just 'a dream', but a very unpleasant dream that seemed to haunt her frequently, yet she could never recall it once she had awakened. Being the type that didn't typically scream and make a lot of noise during such nightmares, she jolted awake with her heart pounding, instinctively striking out at the perceived 'attack'. It wasn't until she'd already struck out, that she realized that no one was actually attacking her.

"Sorry.." She whispered, feeling bad for hitting Gwandhyra. She sat up swiftly, rubbing her sleepy green eyes. Keeping to a mostly nocturnal sleep schedule, she had gotten in shortly before dawn after her excursion to the jewelry shop. She'd thought it would be a simple matter, to slip in and return the stolen jewels. That hadn't exactly worked out as she'd hoped, however, and it had taken longer than she'd expected. So here she was, sleeping late. It didn't take much more than a glance around to see by the slant of sunlight coming in the window, that it was much earlier than she'd normally be awake. "What's going on?"

---

Toby watched Tess, feeling rather suspicious. So, she knew that Addhor had stepped out for a moment? She saw him, and then came in to borrow money. Instead of waiting until he got back, to make sure that he knew. So, he was thinking he was right after all. But he wasn't sure what to do now. She was coming toward him! He pressed his back harder against the door, the handle digging into his back. "Watchman?" he frowned a little. That probably wasn't what Addhor had been thinking, but he wasn't actually sure about that. "I don't know, I haven't even talked with him yet." He admitted, feeling a little awkward to think maybe he was jumping ahead of things.

The next moment, Toby found himself staring in bafflement at the girl across from him. Wait. Was she actually offering him money.. to..what? Step aside? Let her out? To keep quiet? Maybe she wanted him to take the blame for this. He couldn't help but feel astonished that she would actually have the nerve to try a thing like this. His eyes focused on the shiny coin resting in her outstretched hand. If Addhor returned and found money missing, and he happened to have some of it, he'd look awfully guilty. "I..don't even work here, yet." He pointed out quietly. "I can't accept that." Not to mention, it wasn't even her coin to offer him. His grandmother would never allow him to accept that coin, and he knew it well.

Seeing her looking past him, Toby felt his stomach twist up a little at the thought of Addhor already coming back. What would happen? Would he get in trouble for blocking the doorway? Maybe Tess really did have permission to take the money, and he'd be upset at Toby for stopping her? Or, maybe he'd think they were working together to rob him or something. He turned his head slightly to peek out of the window to see whether he really was on his way back, but the street was free of all signs of the carpenter. He frowned slightly as he turned back to Tess. "No," he answered, then hesitated a moment, feeling very nervous as he tried to think what to say. He very briefly considered telling her to put the money back, but quickly dismissed that idea. She'd just get angry and would probably hit him or something. "I..um," He couldn't say that he was trying to keep her trapped in. That would upset her, too. "I just think we ought to wait for Addhor to return so you can tell him how much you're borrowing. That's all."

She had to smile at hearing his response to her question about his favorite bread. He explained his survival of rye bread and then he mentioned “horse bread”. She noticed he glanced down. She didn’t feel he was embarrassed about it. She knew what it was and in her life had experienced it. She wouldn’t want to live on it but it would keep you from starving, barely.

When he told her that a bakery was a luxury as a child she nodded lightly in understanding. Rarely did they every visit one since her mother would make baking bread nearly a daily thing in their home. She returned his smile as he explained his improved circumstances and his reason for coming to the bakery. She didn’t miss his glance which caused a small flutter in her stomach which only grew as he explained his thoughts on essential people.

She glanced down at their hands. How she enjoyed this simple contact, she found calmness in it and reassurance. She sought his gaze as he continued with a promise and the clearing of his throat. She could tell he was poking fun when he told her she would not be served nettle soup and acorns for dinner but his next words caused a slight blush to raise on her cheeks. She glanced down a moment to keep from grinning like a fool at his kind words.

She sought his eyes again and he seemed to be embarrassed or something. She squeezed his hand lightly for reassurance that she didn’t find anything wrong with what he said. “Rest assured, if you were to offer nettle soup and acorns I’m sure it would be the best quality and I would bring my best rye bread to accompany it.” She chuckled. “I would dine like a queen with you beside me.” Yep, she said it and gave him her brightest smile at the idea of enjoying his company.

Just then the tinkle of the doors bell rang and she looked over to see a familiar woman trying to make it through the door with two small children in tow. She looked back at Addhor, sorry that their time was interrupted and had come to an end.

“Suppose I should get back to work.” She regretted having to say it. Her smile faded briefly but then she thought of their forthcoming dinner. “I look forward to Saturday.” She smiled once again as it was hard not to smile when she was with him. “And thank you once more for the cabinet. I love it.” She beamed.

@Rillewen


Stepping in toward Tobedir, Tess made a deal about looking hard at him, straight in the eye and then pocketed the shiny coin with a shrug. If he did not want some of the money then she was not about to waste it.

“Boys like you,” she mentioned though, idly away with one hand gesturing as she spoke, “You know, the ones who don’t join in the sports and games with the others, the ones who sit quietly all by themselves, the ones who avoid all attention .. .. usually those are the types of boys who are smart. You know ? So why is it your little brain is not understanding ?”

With an exaggerated sigh, the girl twirled where she stood and placed a hand flat on each bent knee as she faced him again, rather more like a bull deciding whether to charge. Her apron pocket bulged indelicately with the coins collected in it. More than one fell to the floor.

“Do you really think I can be standing about here all day waiting for him to walk who knows where and then back again, when that might take the whole rest of the day ?” A frustrated sigh blew hair away from her face. “I am my family’s one hope, you silly. To buy the eggs and flour and the rest, to get it home and bake a cake for my mother’s birthday. I can not wait. If I could, then I would have done, wouldn’t I ?”

Attempting reason was not her usual approach, not when a fast whumph would work far more fast than wheedling things out of people. But if she made a mess of him, then there was no way Addhor wouldn’t realise Tobe hadn’t took the money himself.

“So here you are,” she sighed, and straightened up. “About to ruin my mother’s whole birthday dinner. Just because you’re such a scaredy cat. Gosh, just move your stupid self out of my way, or I’ll ..” glancing eyes about the shop found the greatest threat to be the till she had already compromised. “I’ll .. just have to push this off the counter,,” she declared. And placed herself in prime position to achieve just that, although by all accounts, the till was made of metal and seemed unlikely to budge.

“Then you can stay .. ” she jammed an elbow against the thing, and heaved, to no avail but her cheeks reddening. “And you can … explain that !” she threatened, as nothing came of ‘that’. “It will be all your fault of course. Making all of this far more troublesome than it ever needs to be. Toby .. ” she giggled at the word play, and then recoiled as the till finally began to give a little after all. The triumph was undeniable in the teenager’s expression. She raised one eyebrow provocatively at the would-be employee, and proceeded to push some more.

@Rillewen


Gone now were the days when he could cloak his presence in a proper hope of stealth. The door had announced the man’s arrival regardless, with the telltale cry of it’s hinges. Still each step stolen across the shop floor grated at his ear in a way that it never did within his own property, as though the very want to stifle the sound made it seem only louder, in the echoing acoustics of the half-empty room. And for each treacherous step that fell beneath him, Addhor held his brown eyes up to gauge the ceiling above him, as though the man expected that something was about up there, though there was no way he could bore his narrowed gaze through the barricade to see.

If this had been a forest and he some twenty years younger .. alas though it was not, in either case. It was a customer-shy city shop, and he a simple carpenter. But a carpenter has an ear still for that slight fall when a nail is loose from the joist. And a man who is more accustomed than he’d wish to the drag of his own gait, did not miss that the sound did not come only from below him, whenever he took a step. Someone, up there, had also heard the pattern; was walking when they imagined him to be walking, hoping to hide their own passage beneath the tread he took. He smiled. That ‘someone’ was up there then. Good. He could scarce afford for this to be a waste of time.

Reaching the counter, the former Ranger wound his way about it until he stood between it now and the door that led upstairs. The curtain which had once hid that door, did not any longer, and the barricade was laid bare though the light from the shop front scarcely stretched this far within.

A hand rose, formed a fist and made it’s blow against the wood. Once, twice.

“I know that you are up there,” Addhor found his voice, and shared it. Absent of any indication of annoyance or urgency. The words gave up only their own meaning, which ought to be enough. “And I know in who’s name. So I would have words, for I would have my news find her, as I am sure you have seen your own to, these past months.”

He paused, allowing for the summons to be received and considered, but before he could fall to the belief that this all was his vivid imagination and he was hearing things, speaking to nobody, .. he had one more thing to add.

“I do not have a key to this door, though I have the tools to remove the door, if you would prefer.”

As threats went, it was probably too polite, but he was out of practice. He was also almost out of patience. Being watched over by some unknown agent of the Belfalasian might be considered a kindness, from her point of view. But from his, it was more than time for the good intention to do some actual good.

@Rillewen


The last time that the man had startled at somebody entering downstairs, he had not known who it was. For no one came here, that had been the point of his abiding there at all. It had been too, on that last occasion, in the dead of night. And Gwandhyra had faced that uncertain intrusion alone. The fact that the girl, who called herself ‘Strawberry’, had been not at all the threat that he had expected, had been a surprise.

But now, another surprise. Although perhaps it was also inevitable. For this time, the authorised squatter knew exactly who had entered downstairs. He had watched from his vantage point and backed off from the upstairs window as Addhor came out of the woodshop and crossed the street. Closing brown eyes had not answered Gwandhyra’s prayer, and as he was forced to consider the situation, it occurred to the man that he had an equally paranoid housemate to consider here.


‘Strawberry’ was undoubtedly some alias, or other breed of lie, because he couldn’t reason anybody naming their child that. Still, it was what she liked to go by, and he had only told her his own alias as well. They had an understanding. He’d seen the girl in action, that first night, although he’d returned the favour somewhat himself. But while the pair had managed a delicate alliance, he did not want her to be startled by his brother. While Gwandhyra was unsure, to say the least, how Addhor would react to seeing him again, particularly given all that Warder and Duinion had told him had happened while he was away ... the girl was a further complication. She had made it clear that she absolutely did not wish to be known or recognised or found. Which raised the point, foremost of .. where even was she ? She had come in earlier, he knew. And she had settled … brown eyes scanned the room … there. Her huddled form did not evade his keen eye but she lay too far off to rouse with a whisper, or to reach by hand. And he was going to have to first warn her, before she woke into this situation.


Thankful that his brother was not especially swift in traversing the shopfloor below, Gwandhyra stifled his disbelief that the man had actually made it inside of the closed up shop at all. The front door always screamed on it’s hinges, and had done, which meant his brother had a key. Had the Lady given it to him ? Had she tired of her lodger’s ‘waiting for the right time’ to reveal himself ? The Ranger’s hand had automatically reached for the sword, and revealed it’s absence .. A sigh remembered the reason. He’d agreed to share his cloistered lair with the thief girl, but there was no way he was trusting her around the sword. He’d lost it before and to do so now, when he was so close, would be .. unthinkable. Duinion had promised to keep it safe at the farm. So Gwandhyra was now both unarmed and encumbered with complications … With a sigh he was forced to compromise stealth for the sake of speed. And so he managed to reach ‘Strawberry before she seemed to ever realise that somebody was already downstairs. And in waking her, she was of course, startled by him instead. In hindsight, placing his hand over the young thing’s mouth had stalled her sound but certainly not stifled her panic.



“No damage done,” he assured his startled attacker, and leaned back on the flats of his feet so that he was no longer leaning over her. Just as she asked him what was happening, Gwandhyra paused, and raised an index finger, as though to signify the stern rap at the door downstairs.

“I know that you are up there,” Addhor’s voice came through the barricade and tugged his younger brother’s heart in several directions all at once, to hear the sound again. As though it had not been nearly twenty years since he had last had it put to him.

“My brother,” Gwandhyra explained, whispered, so close to the girl’s ear that his beard would likely tickle her. “He’s at the door,” he clarified. And as Addhor continued his own spiel, in that so familiar deep voice, the man upstairs knew he did not have to tell ‘Strawberry ‘which’ door.


“He means ‘the Lady’ who owns the place,” the man continued to convey or translate, to the girl beside him. Before she panicked at their invader naming ‘her’. "He can not know I am here," he muttered, mostly to himself. And yet, that ignoring the very real chance that his brother already was well aware of his being here. Why else had the man come ? He wanted .. words ? What did he know ? His brother was not the type to just give up and go away, Gwandhyra remembered all too well. It was true that Addhor would not intervene unless he felt it was important to do so, but once he had decided to act, he would not let it go. The question ought to have been what had moved his brother to come here, now .. but there was no time for that. It had not been the first thing from his brother's lips, so it could not be a matter of life and death. He needed to know .. more than he currently did. And he knew, that his brother must know, that much in itself was a drag to get him to respond.

“If I answer him, he will .. definitely want to come in here,” the hideaway shared his fears with Strawberry. “But if nobody answers him, he will come back, with his tools. And he will have that door down.” his eyes spoke the plea they both knew was coming next, though at least this second option offered the pair a reprieve to prepare, or to flee. “If he doesn’t come in, then he won’t know what you look like. But if you tell him that you can get word to the lady, he will think you work for her. And he will not ask questions about why you are here,” he offered each brief gasp of supposing as it occurred to him.

Unused as he had become to having to stop and confer with anybody, much less trust somebody, at least by now Strawberry and he knew some little of each other’s situations. But would it be enough for her to trust him, now ? And ought he to be trusting her ? Somehow, the man felt like he was six years old again, and caught in the act of causing some mischief with Duinion. A world ago …

@Ercassie
As Gwandhyra began a whispered explanation, another voice from downstairs broke in. Strawberry tensed, giving a vague nod at hearing that it was his brother. Ah... the brother she had heard about. She'd seen him through the window plenty of times, too. But why was he here, now, suddenly? She slowly sat up and shifted to sitting cross legged while she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, swiftly transitioning from half-asleep, to mostly alert. She was used to having to be on alert at a moment's notice while out in the wild, but so far that hadn't been the case, here. Not since that first night, anyway.

Glancing inquisitively toward Gwandhyra, she nodded again when he explained which 'her' the brother was referring to. But none of this explained what was going on, exactly. She felt like she'd missed something, while sleeping. If only that wasn't necessary, she'd have a lot more time for other stuff. She continued looking at the man as she heard his brother speak, and idly wondered, really, what would be the worst thing that could happen if his brother did find him. And for the millionth time, she wondered whether she had any family anywhere in the world. She fought against that familiar little ache of longing, and pushed that feeling deep down inside, where it wouldn't resurface until she let it.

Taking a slow, deep breath as she heard the carpenter 'threaten' to come back with tools to remove the door entirely, she gave a tiny nod when Gwandhyra assured her that he meant it. She assumed that he did not want her to go down there and fight off his one-legged carpenter brother, so she tried to make sense of just what he was asking of her. Considering how kind he'd been to let her stay here at all, without reporting her or anything, Strawberry figured she at least owed him a few small favors here and there. Within reason. But she was a bit confused. Did he want her to go down and talk with his brother, or just call down there and answer him? Or something else entirely?

"What exactly do you want me to do?" She asked after a short pause, keeping her voice to a very quiet whisper. The answer came soon enough, in the form of suggesting that if she answered his brother, he would assume she worked here. She really just wanted to lie down again and close her eyes. But she was awake enough now to fight the urge. "Fine." She stretched her arms, then got to her feet smoothly and sighed. "Relax," She whispered softly, then ventured down the steps, thinking quickly about how to deal with this situation.

Stopping at the bottom, within arm's reach of the door, she leaned against the wall and folded her arms over her chest. "I'm fairly sure that's called something like 'breaking and entering'," She commented, at normal volume. "Which, last I checked, the guards really frown on that sort of thing." And she definitely knew a thing or two about that, she thought with a tiny smirk. "But if you'd like to say whatever you've got to say, I can make sure the message gets to the right person." She offered, and then waited to see how her words would be received.

---

As Tess began to speak about 'boys like you', Toby frowned as she took a long way to basically call him stupid. He dropped his gaze, but it was hardly the first time one of his classmates had said something of the sort. He tried his best not to take it to heart, but still... he couldn't help wishing Iuldir were here. He always seemed to know how to handle things like this far better than Toby did. But he lived off in Dol Amroth, and hardly ever came to visit anymore. He was on his own today. And tomorrow. And the next day...

Which was really what was giving him so much trouble in deciding what to do. Because, on one hand, he didn't want to anger Addhor and be mistaken for a thief. On the other hand, he didn't want to anger Tess, and have her for an enemy at school from now on. It was quite a dilemma, and one he did not have a solution for. When she leaned forward, staring him down like a bull about to charge at him, he stared at her wondering.. was she about to do just that? Plow into him, ram her head into his stomach and leave him lying on the floor gasping for breath, while she made her escape? "He just went across the street," he protested, wondering how that could actually be taking this long. He swallowed nervously, watching as a few coins, having fallen out of her pockets, spun around noisily on the wooden floor before rolling to a stop around Tessa's feet. Thankfully, headbutting him in the gut was not her plan. Instead, she... accused him of trying to ruin her mother's birthday?

Tobedir's mouth opened slightly as if he was going to say something back, but he couldn't think of what to say. 'At least you have a mother...' The thought flashed through his mind before he realized it. But he didn't speak it out loud, and closed his mouth seconds later. He couldn't think of anything to say to that, and felt guilt tugging at him. He didn't want to ruin her mother's birthday, of course. But why was it such an urgent matter? And then there was his own concerns to think of. His grandmother was old, and they needed more income than what she could bring. He was old enough to help, but this might be his best shot at doing so. He didn't want to lose that, and she was going to ruin it for him! But he couldn't get his voice to work...

"Or I'll..."

The sound of a threat brought Toby's attention abruptly back up from the floor to Tess's face, slightly alarmed by what she intended to do. But, when she came up with her threat, he just stared at her, watching as she struggled in vain to push the heavy thing off of the counter. At first, it seemed that her threat was nothing to be concerned about. Some might have merely laughed at her for it, but he was still struggling to think of some way out of this situation, and didn't really find it very funny at all. Then, the thing did begin to move. Toby felt a quick flare of alarm then. Maybe it would fall. There'd be a huge mess, and the coins would be all over the floor. He glanced briefly over his shoulder, wondering if Addhor was close to coming back yet.

Looking back at Tess, as she proclaimed that it would be all his fault, Toby frowned. What could he do? None of this was supposed to happen! His eyes swiftly scanned the shop, searching for some sort of inspiration. His gaze briefly landed on the coins that had fallen on the floor, then returned to the metal device she was trying to push onto the floor. Recalling how loud it had seemed, when just those few coins hit the floor, he could only imagine the noisy crash that would happen when that thing hit the floor. If it burst open, then there'd be even more noise. More coins hitting the floor, rolling, spinning, making noise. Being only just across the street, he couldn't imagine how Addhor could possibly not hear something like that.

"I really don't think you want to do that..." he informed Tess with a little frown. But then, he hesitated. Should he explain why? Or should he just let her do it and find out what happened? Would she be angry at him for telling her what to do? Or for not warning her? Which way was worse, he wondered? Feeling a bit frustrated inside, and unsure what to do, he took a slow breath in. "I mean, I'm not going to tell you what to do or anything..." He added. "Just, I..um, I don't think it's a good idea, is all." He fidgeted. The doorknob was uncomfortable against his back, but he was still unwilling to move to let her escape and let him take the blame for this.

@Rillewen
As the girl stretched and came to full alert, Gwandhyra glanced back toward the stairwell, with as much yearning as remorse. Why now, of all times ?! He loved his brother, wanted to protect him, and Unalmis, but therein lay the problem, that he had not managed to last time. And now .. now ? There was so much still to find out, that might make all of the difference .. and .. well, things had just escalated. What if after this untimely intrusion the girl decided she wasn’t safe to stay here any longer ? What if she left town ? Before he could find out any more from her about the ‘pretender’. Strawberry had other names for the guy of course, but they were between them still working through their respective experiences with him to understand exactly what he was up to. Fate had brought the two hideaways together for a reason, .. and now ? Now Addhor might just have stuck out his stupid wooden foot and tripped up the whole investigation ! Damn him !

Part of the man’s mind urged him to run down there, throw open the door and bring his brother into the loop, so they would have a third presence of mind to try to put this all right. But .. to expect things would be so simple .. that they could work together all cohesive and productive when .. when it had been seventeen years .. ? Best not. No. He needed to know all he could first before he could judge it even safe to make contact with his family. He was watching them. It was clear that he was not the only one. Else why had that stranger approached him, pretending to be Unalmis ? Somebody knew he was in town. And who he was. And he did not know half enough about that somebody yet to judge what to do about that.


He ought to at least have felt more misgiving about sending ‘Strawberry’ to speak with his brother, he knew. But he also knew that, for all her slight size, the girl, the thief, the locksmith, .. she was far more capable than she appeared. He had a daughter, couldn’t have been too far off in age to this one herself, and the paternal roots had been sowed deep. So that when his strange squatters-mate told him to ‘relax’, one eyebrow rose in an amusement which tried to quell all patronising airs. Still .. Strawberry is not Dessy, he reminded himself. Not at all. And so, with a soundless nod, the man followed the redhead’s path as far as the top of the stair case. From there, she descended alone, and he readied to get a reminder of quite who and what this ‘child’ could manage.

Her greeting was a little less than civil, but undeniably entertaining. And the Ranger felt his anticipation hang in the wait that followed her retort. Quite what his brother would make of her, he had no clue. The man he’d seen since coming back was not the one he’d left behind him, years before. But Strawberry showed no fear, and that spoke well of somebody who was assured they were permitted to be here. That was all they needed to convince Addhor. For now.




The voice when it arrived was so foreign to the silhouette which he had observed in the window, often, that Addhor took a pause for consideration. It was .. a woman ? Trying to force that fit with what he had seen of his secret observer .. he struggled. And then frowned, wait .. was she really threatening to have him arrested ? With a sigh, he put away the offence. For had he not just threatened to have her shelter and security away ? She was clearly not alarmed by him at any rate. Which meant that she was more familiar with him than he with her. Perhaps she was the person who had spent months watching .. Perhaps she was not alone. A swift glance back toward the opened front door, assured the former Ranger that there was no one come around to surprise him.

“I shall have to take your more experienced word on that then,” he conceded meanwhile, to the mystery female’s ‘threat’, and to his own. “But if you would have mine ..” the Carpenter pondered how best to phrase his answer so that it left no risk of questions from the recipient. It was not like they could check back and forth this way countless times now. He needed to have Isys know what he had found out, but he was not speaking to her directly .. “I would have you let the lady know, .. that I have what her friend left at the tree yesterday,” in the end he clung to the facts. “Unless she knows herself where and how to find him, it shall be turned in to the City Guard,” Addhor thought hard. “Tomorrow,” he added then as an afterthought.


Perhaps granting that small time would ensure Ilisys had the chance to intervene, if it was important that she did so. Moreover, if the secret squatter above her unopened shop was going to have to go and tell the lady his message .. perhaps he could watch himself tonight, and see exactly who would sneak out of the building ..

---

For a long time Toby did nothing, and she ought not to have been surprised. He looked like a fly trapped in a spiders web, all backed up against the door like that. As though he couldn’t get far enough away from her and still remain in the shop. Tess was rather surprised that her classmate hadn’t turned tail and fled from the building entirely by now. But then, he was probably as scared of the carpenter as he was of her.

“You’re just going to stand there and tell me what NOT to do,” she responded, when he said he wouldn’t tell her what to do. With a final shove against the uncooperative till, the young girl nursed her sore elbow and frowned as Toby pointed out that Addhor had only gone across the street. He really could be back at any moment and she did not have the time that it would take to move the till. With a final shove, the girl cursed the stupid heavy thing, and it flung open at what she must have pressed without meaning to. Coins, those she had not pocketed, stared up invitingly at her. The young thief glanced toward their protector and then back down toward the shining treasure.


Without warning, she plucked one up and out of the opened drawer, flinging it with all her force at her classmate’s head. As he flinched at the unexpected assault, the girl seized full advantage of the opportunity and his clear unease, by gathering a palmful of the coins in one hand and flinging them one after one another at Toby across the shop. Assured that she had enough of them in her hand to make clear her displeasure, she came closer and dead on in front of the boy so that he could not evade her without giving up his guardpoint at the door. The temptation tore at her, to hurl the lot of the coins at him all at once, and inundate him. But the one at a time was satisfying, to see him react over and over. None of her tiny projectiles were hard or large enough to do her antagonist real damage, not here, not now. They would smart, when they struck for sure. And maybe by tomorrow he would have some bruises. But she did not intend to be available for comment by then, and even if called on, she could always say that he'd done it to himself during the course of the night, and how could they prove how it had really happened ? She could probably convince him not to tell how it had happened, or that he had ever been injured. If he was at all.

The notion made her throw the next series of coins harder, caring little where she aimed but knowing there was little chance that she could miss at this range.

@Ercassie
Much to her relief, the former ranger accepted her 'threat' of calling the guards. As if she would actually have anything to do with them. She smirked faintly to herself, amused by that. But then she listened to what the man had to say, finding it a bit confusing. Turning her head upward to look to the top of the stairs, she hoped that Gwand had heard all of that, and that she wouldn't be required to remember the message.

"Sure. She'll get the message." She assured the carpenter, after seeing that he was looking down, and had seemed to give a nod. Considering how easily they had both heard the man's words from up there, she didn't doubt that he would have heard these words, too. And while the message was intriguing and aroused curiosity, she realized it was probably not really necessary that she understand the message. So long as it was understood by the Lady he referred to. Going quiet after her assurance, Strawberry waited in silence to hear whether the carpenter had anything else to say.

---

"Ow!" Toby flinched as the coin struck him in the ear. "What're you..ow!" He brought a hand up to his nose, and frowned as more coins began to come at him. "Please.. ow, stop it!" He brought his hands up to try and shield his face, cringing as she continued to fling coins at him. He really couldn't understand why she was so mean. He'd never done anything to her that he could think of, and had always tried to be nice to other people. So, why did they always seem to want to be mean in return?

As Tess came nearer, throwing the coins harder, Tobedir tried his best not to move from his spot in front of the door, but still managed to turn this way and that, with his hands brought up over his head. "Please stop it! That hurts," He begged. "I.. ow! I'll give you two sandwiches tomorrow, if you just please stop that?" He tried to reason with her, wincing as a coin hit his elbow. He held the throbbing spot with one hand, and hid his face behind the other hand, feeling tears welling up despite his best attempts to keep them back. That really hurt his elbow!

@Rillewen


He had hovered, almost hung over the bannister at the top of the stairs, and he had heard it all. When Strawberry glanced up, clearly deferring to him before she chose what to do next, Gwandhyra nodded once, and with enough meaning that she knew he had assented.

‘She’ll get the message .. ’ the girl replied. And the man blinked. He was not sure at all that he had ‘got’ the message. It seemed his brother had been spending too much time with the Belfalasian. Either that or there was truly some code to comprehending the lady, which Addhor had been schooled in.

“I shall have to take your word on that as well,” the carpenter mused aloud, though it did not sound as defeatist as it might have. He did not sound concerned. Footsteps sounded his departure, without further small talk, or explanation. The man upstairs marked each one as they made path across the shopfloor, stepping in time all across the first storey so that he could hang back from just one corner of the window and see his sibling go back across the street.

Assured they were safe, the Ranger strode more casually back into the main, though still bare shell of the upstairs.


“You did good,” he praised Strawberry, without embellishment. And leant against the wall as he considered the words he had been delivered. It was not the first message he had received since going into hiding here .. clearly he was not as well hid as he had thought !! All the comings and goings to see Dessy and Duinion were probably a bad idea, if he had stopped to think about it. But he could not sit here all alone and try to work things out all alone. He needed as many minds on this as he could trust. And therein of course lay the problem. He had only told the girl the very bones of his tale, for he was sure she had done likewise. There were a lot of things she claimed she simply ‘couldn’t remember’. And that seemed all too convenient for her and inconvenient for him.

But one problem at a time. He knew Strawberry at least was the enemy of his enemy. For now, that was enough. Because ..

“He said .. ‘her friend .. at the tree' ..” Gwandhyra realised, belatedly. And all but ran back to the window as though Addhor might be stood out in the street holding up a placard with his proper meaning painted on it in bold lettering. No such luck of course. The former Ranger of Ithilien was nowhere to be seen. And the errant Ranger of the North sank back into his lonely seat, with time to tap his chin and wonder ..



.

---

As her classmate cowered and complained, Tess took a short vacation from hurling coins at his head. Honestly, she had to sigh. Some people were so stupid ! Or did Tobedir simply wish to be a martyr ? Might have done him better to try and be a man about it. He looked like he was going to cry ..

“Most people would just get out of the way, you know ?” she felt it only fair to point out. In case he had somehow not realised the point of her assault. “You’ll give me two sandwiches ?” A shake of her head saw the girl pause to tuck errant hair back behind both ears, after all the exertion. “I. don’t care. About. Your stupid. sandwiches !” she shared, through closed teeth, and with coins thrown at intervals to make sure he got the message. I mean, it’s not that the lunches were inedible. It wasn’t even that she didn’t enjoy them. But it was far more to do with her having somebody to sit with at lunchtime. Even if she had to eat his lunch in front of him to ensure he was too stunned to run off.


“You’d better pick those up,” Tess suggested then, rolling brown eyes as she waited for the fool to realise she had run out of things to throw at him. “If he comes back and sees that mess, I don’t think you’ll be getting a job here. In fact he’ll probably tell all the other shopfolks not to hire you either. Oh ..” the girl caught her mouth with one hand in a show of mock concern. “He’ll tell your granny for sure,” she shook her head, despairingly. Because apparently the twit boy only cared about the opinion of people who were not standing in front of him.

Rounding the counter, she walked the fingers of one hand along the wooden edge, and headed back toward the threat of re-arming from the till. “All you had to do was nothing,” she muttered, watching the walk of her feet as she went. “You couldn’t even do that. Useless !”


Her ammunition shone within reach again, and Tess sighed. “If you don’t just do as I say and .. get out of my way, I’ll ..ngyah !” The frustration escaped her without any meaning further than the very most primal. One coin teased within the girl’s two fingers as she turned away, sending her bi-bound hair in two whips of fury behind her. “Last chance,” she warned the boy, her back to him as she considered the small, hard disc in her hand.

“Counting to three .. Tobedee ..”

Addhor was on his way back across the street as the young antagonist began her countdown.

“One ..”

He reached the door as she was inching the coin up to the tips of her fingers.

“Two ..”

The door opened outwards as he returned, and stunned for a moment at the scene which met him.

“THREEEE !”


The coin left Tessamy’s hand as she whirled where she stood to give the throw a dramatic flourish and then froze, frowned, and all in the same moment, dropped down behind the counter and hoped she was in time. Though in truth it was already too late.

Addhor glanced down as the small but swift projectile punched into his clavicle and fell flat to the floor, where it rolled shamefully in a circle and then folded down flat. A tiny scuffle was heard from behind the counter where Tess had scrambled quite un-gracefully behind the barricade.

Her words which claimed .. “He did it. It was all his idea ..” were the first to break the silence. Biting back his shock and let’s not forget the sting which had struck him, Addhor came inside and closed the door behind him.

@Ercassie
Ascending the stairs once more, Strawberry went to sit on the floor where her blanket still lay. She offered a faint smile at Gwandhyra's words, but didn't reply to that. "Do you have any idea what that means?" She wondered, even as the man hurried to the window. She frowned slightly, thinking about that. "Maybe he meant some other tree." She suggested, trying to consider various possibilities for what that message may mean. "Isn't there supposed to be some sacred tree up in the top level of this city?" She pointed upward, leaning her back against the wall.

"He couldn't mean..." She paused, thinking about the possibility. "Surely, your lady friend wouldn't be his friend." She frowned, hesitating though as she considered that. He would know who she meant, though anyone listening might wonder whether she was referring to Addhor. "But then, maybe she doesn't know what he's really like..." She rubbed her eyes as a bit of sleepiness lingered, but she decided she would probably be fine without any more sleep for today, and she held back a yawn. This might be important enough to discuss. It was definitely enough to make her think about it.

"She is a nobleperson," She mentioned with a thoughtful frown, thinking of that one time she had sneaked into a castle looking for loot (and a safe place to sleep), and had discovered, to her shock, that the place was actually home to the greatest danger she knew of. It had taken some time to get back out of his castle without being discovered, and she had learned that he was nobility, apparently. "Don't they go to parties and things, and get to know one another and all that?" She glanced at Gwandhyra, her own knowledge of the nobility being limited to that which her friend had told her. It seemed logical, then, that this lady Isys might be quite familiar with this evil nobleman.

---

Tobedir's attempt at bribery failed, and only seemed to make his classmate all the more irritated. He flinched and brought his hands up to shield his face as the coins came at him, wondering how much more ammunition she had left. It seemed that Addhor's business was doing quite well, if the amount of coins were anything to judge by.

At last, it seemed she had come to an end of her ammunition, to his relief. He looked up and stared incredulously at her when she demanded that he pick the coins up. "Why are you doing this?" He asked, frowning as she suggested the idea that he would get in trouble when Addhor returned. "Why..why should I get in trouble?" he asked, alarmed by the thought that not only would he not get this job, but may not be able to get any job at all! And if that wasn't bad enough, she then taunted him with the idea that his grandmother would hear about it. He looked down at the coins around him, wondering what would happen when Addhor returned.

While he was still thinking of how to explain this, she started back toward the counter. All he had to do was nothing. He frowned. But what else could he have done? He bit his lip, wishing his grandmother hadn't fixed up this whole thing, and that he could be somewhere else.

"Last chance," She declared.

Tobedir frowned, trying to understand why she was doing this. He found it hard to believe she was doing all of this just because of wanting to buy her mother a present. She must be doing it just to torment him, he was sure of it. He swallowed, his hands moving behind his back again to grip the doorknob once more. "I'm.. not moving," He declared quietly, a little timidly. "I don't believe you have permission to take this money, and.. I won't believe it until I hear it from him." He figured he was doomed now, so he might as well admit that he hadn't believed her story at all. As she counted down the seconds, he stood pressed against the door, tense. He felt sure that she was going to come over and punch him or something, like she hit Colben when he tried to pick on her. It occurred to him that she would probably never again defend him from that bully, after this.

Suddenly, he felt the knob turning in his hands. His eyes widened as he swiftly released the knob, hastily leaping to one side so not to fall backward into the empty space there. This happened just as Tessa's count reached three. He watched, as if in slow motion, as the coin arced through the air and struck the man who had just stepped through the door. Addhor. Toby felt a mixture of relief and horror at this new turn of events. He stood frozen, speechless in the tense moment that followed. It came to his thoughts that he was about to find out what would happen when Addhor was angered. Was there any grain of truth to those wild tales his brother used to tell him?

When Tessa's voice broke the silence, attempting to lay all the blame on Toby, he looked toward the counter with shock. "What.. no! I didn't do this!" He protested, taking another step back, only to step on a cluster of coins that were scattered around where he had stood. Slipping as these slid easily on the wood floor, he winced as he fell to the floor. A few coins flew from under his feet, and there was a light clatter as something fell from beneath his tunic and lay exposed on the floor beside him.

He quickly picked it up again, then looked up, anxious about whether Addhor would believe him, or her. "I'm sorry, sir," He dropped his gaze, feeling guilty about letting such a mess be made of this place. He glanced around at the scattered coins, strewn all around the entry. Around him. "I suppose I've failed your trust in me." He said quietly, disappointed. He had been entrusted with watching the shop, and now.. this happened. Holding back a sigh, he moved onto his knees and began to quietly pick up the coins with his free hand, so that he could put them back where they belonged. All the while, he hoped that Addhor would not mistake his actions for attempted thievery.

@Rillewen
“Yes,” the man admitted, when the girl began her enquiries. “And also .. no,” he confessed. Dirtied fingers ceased in tugging at the unkempt, dark beard and came to sit on one knee as he sat. The other hand capped his other knee, and a frown conquered the entire weathered face.

“The White Tree, scion of Nimloth, stood long barren in the Court of the Fountain, up on the highest circle of the city,” he agreed with her, and yet, “The King, when he came to his crown at last, saw it to rest in the Houses of the Dead. A sapling was found in a secret hollow of the mountains by he and the Istar, Mithrandir, in the early days of the most recent reign. Symbolising a new start, it was set in place of the dead, with hope that it, and all Gondor with it, would come to know a new start.”

Gwandhyra glanced back from his seat to find the face of his audience. “It is not yet a tree, though already it flowers,” he assured her. “No that is not the one my brother was meaning.” Somehow he knew it, and was shuffled toward a smile as the thought that they still shared .. memory ..


As Strawberry considered what the Lady Isys might be all about, a subject which had baffled many before now and doubtless would continue to, in days to come, Gwandhyra tried his utmost not to shake his head or discourage the young thief’s concerns. He shared those same concerns, undoubtedly. But still, “The lady in question is .. ” words were pondered and dismissed before he settled on “atypical.”

He had not known the Belfalasian very long, but she had kept her end of all and any bargains he had trusted her to, thus far. Unless .. the note that the imposter had delivered to him, had been delivered here. So that meant that the young man who had falsely claimed to be Unalmis, .. knew that at least he had been abiding here. That was what had incited a far more urgent need to sneak the girl back out of the city, where she would be safe from the stranger. But then Thorley had not come through with the gate as he had promised to .. Paranoia began to gnaw at the Ranger’s worst doubts. Could he trust .. anyone ?

He’d trusted her, at least. The girl. Slowly the man dissected Addhor’s diction.


“Unless she knows where and how to find him,” he recounted, aloud. “It shall be turned in to the City Guard.” Brown eyes narrowed as though he might somehow find the truth of things somewhere within the room. “What her friend left at the tree yesterday.” He sighed. “He does not sound like a very ‘close’ friend, to me. Not if the lady may not know where or even how to find him. And if whatever was left is more suited to the City Guard’s custody, than to her own ... ”

Rising, Gwandhyra stared hard out of the window, at the building across the street, where his brother kept his secret. Maybe they had more in common than they’d even used to. A half-nervous laugh escaped the man, as he rounded back to Strawberry. “I’m going to have to go and speak with her. Tonight,” he realised. “And he knows it ..” The man rounded back again, toward the window. “Curse him !” he slammed both palms against the window sill, although shook his head from side to side, in some amusement at .. well, not anticipating something of this sort.


“How do you feel about helping me sneak out tonight, without my brother seeing me ?” he asked. “Think you can keep him convinced that we’re” a hand was thrown out and drawn back between the two of them, “here all along ?” One eyebrow rose as Gwandhyra approached and bent into a squat before Strawberry. “I’ll do something for you in return ..” he promised. And so the game of trust or to not trust, and who in fact to trust … continued ..

---

If Addhor had believed that he would return back to a normal day, he had forgotten why he had left the store in the first place. But, how and what was this all now, when he had only been gone … a glance through the window of the door made him consider how long it had taken. Longer than he ought to have allowed ? Not near long enough ? There was no opportunity to muse over the fact either way. There was more than enough for him to deal with in the here and now.

The first thing he did was lock the door behind him. The boy was scrabbling about the floor where he had fallen, seeking to retrieve the dagger which had started this whole thing. And the girl .. was still behind the counter. There was no way she could sneak out that way or get past him. The door to the stairs and his private rooms he always kept locked.


“Is that what you suppose ?” he asked Toby, and offered a hand toward his prospective apprentice. “I am also sorry,” he sighed. “Come and lets have a word over by the horse.” He didn’t ask, but rather assumed the lad’s compliance. To make sure, he pointed toward the shaving horse, which he had not yet had the time to introduce to the boy, given the way things had happened. Not at all the way that he had imagined his day turning out, but then that was often the way of things.

“Tessa, would you pick these coins off the floor for me ?” he encouraged his friend’s daughter to peer back out from behind her barricade. “That would be a great help.”


Unsure, but aware that she did not seem to be in trouble, Tess emerged warily from behind the counter. Having not seen the man lock the door, she soon after threw a side smirk at her classmate as they passed each other. “I don’t mind at all,” she smiled, toward the carpenter then, with a face full of innocence. “I already had started to pick them up for you. See ?” She extended the pocket of her dress which showcased the coins stowed there. And half skipped, though slightly offbalance by her weighty treasure, over to where the bulk of the coins had not yet been all gathered by the boy she had flung them at.

On their way to the horse at the back of the shop, Addhor led Toby past the open till, and indicated for him to drop any coins he may have collected thus far, back where they belonged. The man did not even look up when the noise became apparent of Tessamy checking the door handle. And finding it locked.

“Here’s where you take a seat,” Addhor suggested to Toby, indicating the horse’s bench. “And tell me, first of all, are you hurting anywhere ? Because you look .. upset.”

@Ercassie
Yes.. and no? What did that mean? Strawberry sent a puzzled look toward the man as he gave conflicting answers. But soon he clarified. The 'sacred' one wasn't technically a proper tree yet. She might have rolled her eyes at the technicality, but he seemed rather sure that it was not the one his brother had meant. So, she merely nodded and kept quiet, thinking during the pause that came after. Both of them, thinking.

“The lady in question is .. atypical.” He said at last.

Strawberry tilted her head slightly in question, but didn't ask whatever question was in her mind. In fact, she was wondering, 'a typical what?' but the way he had spoken, it seemed that was the end of his sentence. And that made no sense, but she also didn't want to ask something which might sound dumb. So, she didn't.

As Gwandhyra spoke again, Strawberry withdrew from her own thoughts, and looked at him again. He was repeating part of the message, she realized, and thinking about it. "Do you think it has anything to do with you? Or.. me?" She wondered, hesitant, debating about the likelihood that she could sneak in after hours and have a look at whatever this was...

His laugh caught her off guard, and she watched him turn toward her, then to the window, clearly frustrated by the fact his brother was trying to force his hand, or something. "Do you think he planned it then?" She wondered. "Could it be a hoax?" She frowned thoughtfully, considering that possibility. Did the man even have reason to suspect who was up here? Honestly, she wasn't entirely clear on the reason why he was hiding up here from his brother, and she was sure he had kept about as much information from her, as she had from him. There was not yet so much trust between the two that they had revealed all their secrets. And she could respect that, and was glad that he had so far done the same.

Still, curiosity ran strong in her, by nature. It was hard not to ask more questions. She was just thinking up a few to ask him, concerning what his brother might do if he should find him, when Gwand posed one to her. How would she feel about sneaking him out? Temporarily putting aside her own questions, Strawberry grinned slightly. "I think we could manage something." She declared, her mind already racing with ideas.

Glancing around the room, she took a mental inventory of what supplies were there, and tried to decide how they could utilize each thing. She thought they had enough stuff to make it work, and hopped to her feet. "We could take this, and this," She gathered a few things from around the room, "and make up a.." She paused, unsure what to call what she had in mind. "Person shape, about your size and shape." She explained. "Just a torso probably, with a head, is all we'd need, I think. And sit it here in the window, with the shade drawn down.. then if he were to look up at the window, he'd see the shadow shape of what looks like you, sitting there.."

She glanced at the ranger questioningly, wondering what he thought of that plan. "I could move it now and then. And actually..." She realized. "Something like that might be a good idea to do other times, too. In case.. someone else is watching." She added meaningfully, thinking about a matter that concerned them both, in different ways.

Having already begun trying to rig up something to match closely to the shape of his chest and shoulders, she paused after a moment, she considered his other words. 'I'll do something for you in return..' Her first thought was to ask that he again try to help her get out of the city, swiftly and secretly, now that it had become evident that her pursuer was here in this very city, possibly watching this very building. But she hadn't forgotten the discussion they had recently held concerning that very matter. And his plan before had failed. Gwand's guard friend had failed to be at the gate when he said he would be there.. and that made her wonder. There were a great many things she couldn't help thinking, and wondering, and yet she was reluctant to say them out loud.

Had the Lieutenant guy known of their plan somehow? Could he have overheard something, somehow? Suddenly a bit nervous about the thought, she asked softly, "Anyone out there?" As she glanced toward the ranger, who stood by the window, and had looked out of it just moments before. Once her sudden anxiety was laid to rest on that matter, she let out a little breath of relief, and turned her attention back toward wrapping a blanket around the pillow figure, as if it were a cloak.

"I was thinking," She mentioned hesitantly. This had occurred to her more than once since the failed attempt at exodus, yesterday. "If he had any reason to believe I was here, I think he would have already tried to capture me, somehow," She frowned in thought as she spoke. It had troubled her dreams earlier when she tried to sleep, and had also troubled her all through the night while she was out doing different things. Up on the roof, watching, for one. Emerald eyes remained focused downward on her project for a bit as she tried to think how to phrase what she wanted to say.

After a little hesitation, she spoke again. "It seems to me, that for some reason, he's only interested in you, in this case." She couldn't imagine why, but it seemed the most logical explanation, right? "I don't know what he might do next, and," She glanced up slightly. "I don't know why your friend didn't follow through with what he promised, but.. maybe it has something to do with him. And maybe.. if I try to leave town.." She trailed off, leaving the rest up to the imagination. "It also bothers me that it sounds like he knows quite a bit about your family. Too much." She frowned deeper. He hadn't told her a great many details, but it would have to take a lot of information to be able to pull off that impersonation job he'd done, right?

"Thing is, well, you can't watch day and night," She pointed out. "And I.." She hesitated, a little reluctant to admit she was a little afraid to go off on her own again, hiding and fending for herself. Not only was it difficult and dangerous to survive out in the wild, but it was lonesome, too. "What I mean is, maybe it's safer for both of us if we stick together?" She shrugged. "I can watch half the time, you watch the other half. And, if he did try to come up here, he'd only be expecting you, I think." She felt fairly sure in that. "We might be able to surprise him if he ever dares to make a move against you." She concluded, shrugging. It would be a great relief to put an end to that menace, if possible. And yet, she had not yet come around to asking what favor she would ask of him...

---

“Is that what you suppose ?”

Toby paused and looked up, surprised to see a hand being held down to him. A friendly gesture. His gaze flicked up to the face behind the hand, and saw no hidden menace behind it. Slowly, he reached to accept the offered hand and found his feet again beneath him. "Well.." He began, but stopped in confusion when Addhor said that he was also sorry. Sorry? For what? A mixture of thoughts ran through his mind. Sorry that he had misplaced his trust? Sorry that he would not be giving Toby the job? Sorry that he was going to tell his grandmother about this? Or, hearing the words 'let's have a word over by the horse' made him suddenly fear a meaning somewhat darker... was he sorry that he would now have to kill Toby!?

He wanted to ask 'what horse?' but the words stuck in his throat, and then he saw Addhor pointing to a strange contraption off in the back of the shop. He frowned as he stood staring at it, wondering what in Arda that thing might be for. Torture? A quick glance was shot toward Tessa as the carpenter requested that she clean up her mess, and he was just in time to catch her triumphant smirk. While he figured she was only smug that she hadn't got in trouble, he was hardly concerned about that. He had seen Addhor lock the door, even if she hadn't. And that made him all the more nervous. Neither one of them could get out, now. They were trapped. Maybe they were both going to be murdered... or at the very least, have their legs chopped off!

All his former fears came rushing back as he slowly followed the carpenter, thinking of all those terrible stories his brother used to tell him. He'd begun to think that was all a lot of nonsense, but suddenly he grew worried again. Besides... his brother wouldn't lie to him, would he?

Tobedir was so distracted with these thoughts, as he paused to deposit his load of coins into the drawer, that he hardly noticed Tessa showing off her pocketful of coins she had 'picked up for him'. As a means of delaying whatever was coming, Toby took his time in carefully placing his handful of coins into the drawer, trying to straighten up those that had been knocked out of order, separating the different kinds as they ought to be, and probably had been before Tessa got involved.

“Here’s where you take a seat,”

The words drew him back from delaying the inevitable, and Toby stepped away after placing the last castar into the open drawer (making sure the tree side was facing the same direction as all the others he had managed to straighten thus far) and turned back to the 'horse' the man had spoken of. It definitely didn't look like any horse he'd ever seen. And he stood eyeing the device a bit skeptically, unsure whether it might have some sort of straps that would hold him down, or blades that would start hacking his limbs off. But he saw nothing of the sort, and tentatively eased down on the edge of the seat, facing Addhor.

And then.. the following question took him further by surprise. Is he hurting anywhere? Toby looked up at him, wondering how he should answer that question. "Uh," He hesitated. Why was he asking, the boy wondered? Did he plan on finding out where he hurt, and making it worse? Or if Toby wasn't hurt, did he plan to remedy that? And, catching a glimpse past him, of Tessa trying to open the door, Toby wondered what she might do later, if he tattled on her. If there was a later. Then again, there was always the bit of embarrassment that came from having to admit that a girl had hurt him... yet he couldn't put out of his mind that his grandma always insisted on honesty, no matter what.

He took a slow breath in. "No sir, just.. a few spots that may be sore tomorrow." He answered quietly while trying not to fidget. "I didn't mean for all this mess to happen, really. I just.. I didn't believe her, and I just wanted to make her wait for you to come back, and then.." He trailed off, unsure whether he ought to tell him any more of the story, worried the girl would decide to get revenge on him sometime later. Like at school, when he was outnumbered, and most vulnerable.

@Rillewen

He could not fault the girl for her confusion. After all, the notion that the man’s brother had been referring to some ‘other’ solitary and yet still significant tree, still in Gondor but not Gondor’s ‘one’ tree .. well, of course it would not have been obvious. To anyone but a small few .. Yet the last person until now who had spoken of the Oak, ‘his’ significant tree, had been the young man who had turned out to NOT be his nephew. The Ranger’s mind was a whirl with all the plausible, not to mention merely possible options of what this latest conundrum might mean. Before a headache claimed him, he gave up and watched as the girl proceeded to go about the small clan of rooms. She very swiftly gathered up the means to make a ‘dummy’ to take his place at the window.

Having found no answer from observing the street, Gwandhyra did not miss the almost timid question that crept up behind him. “Well now I don’t know whether to be impressed or insulted,” the Ranger laughed, bringing them back toward mirth. “That a dummy could be such a fine stand-in for me,” he considered, shaking his head slowly at the same time in some awe. It was not the first time that Strawberry had showcased her quick thinking, and the sorts of smarts which had no doubt kept her out of the imposter (aka ‘the Creep’)’s clutches for this long.


Her fears however were voiced, and the perception of how street-smart the girl was, was suddenly countered by a reminder of how vulnerable she could also seem. “I agree,” the Man said, slowly, “that ‘the Imposter’ only seems to be aware of me staying up here. And you’re right too, that we outnumber him. But we also know that he is in the Guard, or at least has managed to pose as one of them. So if this secret thing which my brother wants to get to the Lady, is maybe going to be handed in tomorrow, to the Guards .. then there’s no choice. I have to speak to her tonight, so that she can stop him from handing it in. In case it’s something we don’t want him to have access to.”

He wouldn’t mind seeking out Thorley as well, for an explanation about what had gone wrong on their last attempt at sneaking Strawberry out of the city. Giving the ‘dummy’ a closer look over, Gwandhyra then turned to contemplate his ‘guest’ and her further brainstorming, with an unintentional father’s concern. As she pointed out a want to work together; which was something that he had, admittedly, suspected she’d had to resort to, rather than really chosen to do, until now.


“You aren’t terrible at taking people by surprise, as I recall,” the man grinned, remembering how they had met. “But I do feel better about leaving you here alone, if he would be distracted by the dummy. I mean, say he comes here looking for me, then ‘that’,” he pointed at his understudy, “will give you a chance to get away while he’s sneaking up on ‘me’,” he mused. “But if he’s watching my family, as it seems quite clear he might be .. then I don’t think he will trouble you tonight. Since my brother will probably be watching to see if ‘you’ go out later. And he wouldn’t risk breaking in when somebody else is watching the place as well.”

As soon as he had spoke it, the Ranger realised he must somehow get word to Addhor not to share with anyone about a ‘girl’ in the abandoned shop. Because if their mysterious stalker heard that .. he might put two and two together and realise that there were two of them staying in the one place. There was no escaping it then. He would have to speak to Isys and it had to be tonight. If he were lucky then his old friend would be at one of the Gates. Because if he could find out anything from Thorley as well, about the mysterious 'Guard'/nobleman/imposter/'creep', then more the better.

@Rillewen

Her hand serving no leverage on the door handle, Tess frowned, and refused to turn back to see if the other two were watching. It was easier to hide her concern when their eyes could observe only her back.

“It is locked,” Addhor spoke up, after a moment. “I would not want anybody to come in and step on you, while you were picking things up off the floor.” While both these statements were entirely true, the second was not the right cause for the first. But it was as much as the man was willing to reassure the girl, when he had first to consider the boy.


The difference between the Tobedir whom he had left and the one he had returned to, might have convinced the carpenter that it was a whole other boy before him. If not for the coins and the added company, for clearly both were factors in the change. The boy now seemed extremely nervous, which surprised Addhor, since it was quite clear that the girl was behind the mayhem which had occurred in his absence. Even if he did not know some little of both their characters, from being friendly with both their families, there was enough evidence to hand to suggest what had happened. Albeit not really why.

Why then was Tobedir acting so hesitant. Was the prospective apprentice so diligent all of a sudden over the man’s expectations of him ? Not, when Toby had come in, so clearly taken up by distraction from their intended duty. He had took his time in replacing the coins in the till as well. Which was either meticulous attention or deliberate delay. Addhor watched as the lad lowered warily into a seat and seemed almost no more comfortable for doing so. Was he .. stars, he looked something like scared ! Still answers were offered toward questions. Honest and apologetic, though the explanation was rather sparse in details. The man sighed, as he took a step back, and considered what best he could do to deal with this. Babysitting had not been on the agenda for today, and teenagers no less .. though nothing really had seemed to turn out yet how he had expected.


“I don’t believe the mess was your fault,” he allowed, calmly. It would not do to admit that he did not believe Tessamy either. He was the adult here and could not take sides, particularly without all of the information. “And I am back now,” he asserted though. Perhaps it would relieve Toby’s fears if he realised that Addhor would take back his responsibilities now. That the boy could hand back all thought of handling their guest. With a slight nod of his head, the proprietor laid a hand slightly on Toby’s shoulder, and then turned to stand behind the counter himself. One hand came to rest without drama, beside the till, as he watched the girl picking up the remaining coins on the floor.


“There are a lot of them over there,” he mentioned, as casually as he could muster. The girl’s back had been almost rigid as she went about her work, as though expecting some penalty to rain down on her. Guilt though was not obvious about her face, as she prepared to trot back over and place her stolen goods back where she had gotten them from.

“Well, I already picked up all the ones which were on the floor behind the counter,” Tess piped up, swiftly. “I have them here in my pocket for you. That is why I was ducking down, when you came in.”

“So he was throwing them at you, from the door, while you threw them back at him, from behind the counter ?” the carpenter considered, without glancing to the boy for any hint of confirmation. He had heard from Toby and was interested in what Tessa would say.

“It wasn’t my idea,” she alleged again. And having closed in toward the counter, now deposited her hoard back into the till. A frown settling about her brow, as though she were concentrating on how to do so, without spilling any on the floor.

“The till is a long way from the door,” Addhor pointed out. Finding holes throughout her argument, without ever pressing outright for an accusation. “And there are no coins in front of the counter ..”

“Honestly it was just a bit of fun,” Tess dropped her head, even as she backed away dolefully from the till, the counter, and the carpenter. “We're always larking about, the two of us. We’re friends from school, aren’t we Tobeedee ?” she raised brown eyes to find the boy, who was stowed back in the corner of the shop.


“Was there a reason you came by, Tess ?” the question caught the would-be thief by surprise, and she flickered her gaze away sharply back to the floor.

“I saw him in here all alone,” she confessed, that much at least. “I was curious what he was doing in here. Honestly I was concerned that he was in here all alone ..” The picture of earnest innocence, Tess fluttered her eyelashes and tried to look as doleful as the silly boy usually did.

“He is not here alone any more,” Addhor observed.

“I wanted to remind him anyway,” the girl threw in, expecting for the accusations to come any moment, and eager to delay them by as many excuses as she could think up on the spur of the moment. “He’s helping me to get an awesome gift for Mother ..”

“Your mother’s birthday is tomorrow,” the man remembered. The girl nodded enthusiastically.

“There isn’t much time left and I don’t know how I’d manage to make sure she has a lovely gift, without his help ..” Tess shot a meaningful glance toward Toby as the carpenter closed the till thoughtfully. “I’m lucky to have such a good friend I can count on,” she added, by way of a hidden threat, before smiling at her sudden smarts in finding a way out, perhaps, of her predicament. She would not have to take the money at all if somebody else came through with a gift for her mother all on his own. And he had better, if Tobeedee knew what was good for him !

Ercassie wrote: ↑Wed Mar 22, 2023 2:49 pm

Gwandhyra Harion – Interrupted
‘Needful Things’ store (before it’s official opening)
Middle of the Night. With @Rillewen

Brown eyes narrowed, seeking in the darkness for the stranger he had last seen right in front of him. It was tempting to reach out with his free hand, but he did not want to compromise his stance at all. She could not see him any more than he could her, which levelled the field so to speak. And though he did not hear her shy out of his path, when the girl spoke he knew immediately which direction she had moved to.

Her words were quiet but not steadily so, and so Gwandhyra knew that she was moving further from his reach the longer that her efforts carried on. Her words, such as they were, did not sound extremely far fetched. They suited the silhouette which he had seen take flight, and the shake about her shrill voice matched the story that she spoke.

Of course, the reason why she was afraid might be quite something else than the reason she had described. The word ‘safe’ had snuck into her explanation at least twice. And though she claimed to have been chased by ‘some men’ .. that could be some criminal element, or the City Guard. Or an outright lie.

Placing himself certainly in front of the door, as that had clearly been her goal, the Man sighed, and lowered his blade some, bringing it in closer toward his body. Not only to relax the weight of it ..

“Why do you not tell me how you got in at all ?” he asked for another answer, rather than betray his reaction to any that she had offered him.

If it was a pack of lies that she was telling him, then diverting her away from what she’d already said, would make it easier to determine if she kept to the same story when he returned to query it later. He was not only a father. He had survived this long by becoming grossly paranoid and evolving a practiced history of lying himself. That he could recognise these traits in another human being did not make him any more inclined to trust her. Even if she had stumbled into his sanctuary on an accident, which was possible; that just meant that now there were a potential pair of perils out there, instead of just the one he was trying to establish it was safe from, before reaching for the bait that had brought him here in the first place.

The question was rather unexpected, although hearing his words did tell her that the man had not moved from the door. She paused, considering her options. If he was determined to stay there, then maybe she could go back up the stairs and get out through a window. Although… if he realized it, he’d surely be after her pretty quickly.

She was getting a little tired of having to run from everyone, if she was totally honest. It seemed every town she came to, someone eventually came after her. Even when she didn’t do anything wrong. Once, she’d only walked into a shop to buy supplies, and had to flee the little town with all the guards on her heels, and nearly became a pincushion for all their arrows. Thankfully, she’d lost them in the woods, but it was not an experience she’d like to repeat. Since then, she had learned to disguise herself and sneak around at times when she was less likely to be spotted. And avoid people, for the most part.

Having spent plenty of time just roaming in the wilds between towns, and keeping her distance from people when she did come into any city or town, Strawberry had gained very few friends in the last few years. Precious few. Three to be exact. A boy who’d once helped her, whom she hadn't seen since. A young apprentice healer in Rohan… and a young noble-lady in Dol Amroth. A tiny smile flitted across her face, unseen in the darkness, as Strawberry recalled meeting the latter under similar circumstances. Having sneaked into the obviously rich house to sneak a little food one night, she’d ended up coming face to face with one of the inhabitants, who seemed near to her own age, best she could tell. Dina hadn’t tried to kill her, though, and had even given her food and sneaked her into the attic and kept her hidden for weeks while Strawberry recovered from some injuries.

The memory of that made her wonder if maybe there was a chance that she could turn this situation around. The man obviously had a wrong idea about who she was, and why she’d come. She had tried to sound like a frightened little girl (which, in some ways, wasn’t too far off from the truth, though she’d never admit to being truly afraid). That hadn’t entirely worked. So, maybe it was time to drop the act and just answer honestly. She didn’t do that often, mostly because she didn’t often get into a place where she might do so freely without being hunted… but three times in the life that she remembered, she had tried it. She had three friends that had each helped her, as a result.

“Why do you not tell me how you got in at all?” The man’s question had hung in the air for only a couple of seconds while Strawberry’s thoughts raced and she considered all of these things.

Alright. He wanted to know… she’d tell him. She let out a slightly amused scoff. “Please. Have you seen the lock on your door?” She asked, somewhat rhetorically. “It’s got to be the simplest lock I’ve ever encountered. You hardly even need any skill to turn those tumblers. I would've been out of here by now, but..” She paused, a little embarrassed. “Well with you chasing me and all, I dropped my pick.” She admitted, then cleared her throat awkwardly.

“Look, I don’t know who you are, or who you thought I might have been,” She added hastily, trying to listen for any sound that he might make, to indicate he’d left his post by the door. “But.. how about we start over?” She suggested, hopeful. “I’ve got no interest in doing you any harm… if you stop trying to kill me.” She assured him. “I meant it when I said I was just looking for someplace to sleep.” She paused. “But, I will defend myself I have to.” She added, letting a little bit of a hardness enter her voice at the last bit. trying to make it clear she would fight, if pushed. She’d had to defend herself more than enough times before, in more places than she could even keep track of, and from various sorts of foes. She really just wanted to be able to relax for a while, without the threat of dying or being captured looming over her every second.


Taking a slow breath in, Strawberry made an extreme effort to appeal to the swordsman. “I could help you.” She mentioned. “I could show you how you can make this place more secure, if you’re worried about someone getting in here?” The offer spilled out soon after. “So that even I would find it difficult to get in here uninvited. And, so that whoever you thought I was.. couldn’t get in here at all.” She suggested, since it was obvious the guy had expected someone else. An assassin, perhaps? She had heard rumors about such things, but had never really encountered any, herself. Thankfully. Hopefully, that would remain the case.

“I just..” She hesitated. “I need to stay out of sight for a little while.. that’s all. Someone’s out to get me, too.” She added softly. “Someone very dangerous. Someone corrupt.. and in the guards.. who has a lot of influence.” She elaborated as much as she dared, hoping that little piece of information, spoken with such raw honesty, might convince the man that she was not a threat to him, and that perhaps they might be able to work together and therefore, outwit and thwart both their pursuers. “I’m called Strawberry, by the way.” She added with a hopeful smile, risking a tentative step toward him. And thus, an unlikely alliance was begun.


(Just wrapping up a story that was previously placed on pause. Ercassie, you are under no obligation to post back to this one, I just felt like it needed some closure. *hug*)

---

@Ercassie

When Strawberry had first met Gwandhyra, and suggested they might work together, she’d had no idea that she would end up staying as long as she had so far. Nor that their enemies were linked, somehow. She’d only thought, then, that they could both help each other, in small ways perhaps, and she’d spend a night, maybe two, here.. and then she’d be on her way. But then she’d had two weeks to wait before she could even pull her heist of those files for the Crooked Guard, and then.. well, she hadn’t been able to get out of the town when she’d planned on it. And while she was worried about overstaying her welcome, there was also some loneliness to be dispelled, on her part at least, and perhaps on his too. She'd been on her own, and on the run, ever since she could remember.

She didn’t remember any sort of father figure in her life, but had often craved that sort of relationship. Or any sort of family, for that matter. If she’d ever had any, they were lost to the depths of her memory, and may never be a part of her life again. She tried not to think too much about that subject, as it saddened her. But, anyway, she wouldn’t have admitted it out loud, but after getting to know Gwand a bit, she couldn’t help wondering if this was how her own father might have been like. Or, if she’d even known him. Perhaps, she’d always been alone. She knew that Gwand had a daughter, probably around the same age as herself. Maybe that was why the man was nice to her. Well, after he got over their initial meeting, anyway.

She had found it difficult to pronounce the whole name he’d given, and thus after several times getting it wrong, she had simply shortened it to Gwand. During the past few weeks, staying here, she had been surprised to find herself laughing at times, even being a bit silly. The fact that she felt comfortable enough to let down her guard slightly and joke around sometimes… that was unexpected, but not unwelcome. Laughing lightly at his comment about the dummy, she was reminded again of how easy it was to let down some of her guard around Gwand. “Don’t worry, there’s no way it’d fool anyone if they actually came in here. But just seeing the shape in the window...” She shrugged. “Should work, I think.” She tilted her head as she thoughtfully appraised her work, and gave a small nod.

The next words spoken by her cautious host, however, brought her thoughts back to the serious matter before them. Narrowing her eyes thoughtfully, Strawberry gave a slow nod as Gwand made a few very good observations about how they ought not let that secret thing get into the hands of the guards. She quite agreed. Though she had no idea what this thing was, she felt it was a bad idea to let anything important fall into their hands. But, she also knew that for his own reasons, Gwand didn’t want his brother to know he was here. She frowned, trying to make her sleepy brain work a little more clearly. “Maybe, instead of you going to talk to her,” She spoke up with an offer that seemed quite reasonable to her, “I could just slip over there tonight, and get it from him?” She shrugged. It was no secret to Gwand, by now, that she was a thief. And despite the fact that she had admitted to having been sort of pushed into that ‘trade’ due to having little other option… she was quite confident in her skills. And not without cause, either. “I can get out the window much easier than you can,” She reminded him with a shrug.

A smile tugged at her face then, when the man recalled how good she was at handling herself and taking people by surprise. But, as his thinking unfolded, she was a bit surprised to hear him suggest that, if the evil guy tried to come here, she could get away while the enemy was distracted by the dummy. Her own thoughts had been more along the lines of.. if the creep did come after Gwand, he would quickly be distracted when he saw her there. And if necessary, she could draw him away from Gwand and his family. Or, they could fight him together, and maybe between their combined skills..defeat him. But of course, slipping away to find Gwand and warn him was also a good option. Still, to hear him speak, she wondered… was that.. concern? for her? She hadn’t really expected that. Unbidden, her thoughts flashed briefly back to that rainy night she’d returned here, after her successful heist at the guard tower, with her hands skinned up from the mishap upon her exit. She recalled how kind he had been in putting some sort of salve stuff on her palms to help them heal better. She was not used to anyone being concerned about her, but rather, having to take care of herself any way she could. She considered his words briefly before nodding. “Something like that,” She agreed vaguely, deciding not to mention what her own thoughts had been.

She grew thoughtful then, after hearing Gwand mention that the guy had apparently been watching his family. Yes… that was troubling. Strawberry frowned, some thought deep in the back of her mind stirring a nagging worry. As if.. she should know something, but couldn’t put her finger on it. “Do you really think your brother would break in here?” She wondered with a change of thought, tilting her head curiously. “I mean.. he’s all.. law-abiding and stuff, right?” She was aware that there were those who actually did have limits to their curiosity, and that some people wouldn’t dare break the law no matter how curious they might be about something. And whether anyone was watching or not. From how Gwand had talked, she had the feeling his brother was in that group.

---

Upon hearing Addhor’s confession that he did not think that this mess was Toby’s fault, he did feel somewhat more relaxed, even if there wasn’t an obvious change. A subtle shift in his shoulders might have been evidence of a little less tension, but there was still plenty of other things about this situation to make him anxious. The problem wasn’t just Addhor, standing over him so intimidatingly. There was Tessa to consider, too.

Furthermore, he did not need to be reminded that Addhor was back. It was quite obvious, of course, since he was standing right there in front of him. But Tobedir nodded slightly. “Yes, sir,” He agreed quietly. He was, most definitely, back. The next moment, he caught his breath and somehow managed not to tense up again, when the man grabbed his shoulder! Well, not so much grabbed, as rested a hand on it, but still... Toby sat very still for a moment, and then to his relief, Addhor went over to stand by the register. The nervous young man let out a slow breath he hadn’t quite realized he was still holding.

Next, his dark eyes flicked over to Tessa. She looked angry. Even though her back was turned toward them, he just.. felt that she was angry. Probably seething inside, waiting for a chance to catch him alone and punch him, just like she hit the mean boys at school who had dared try and mess with her. He watched her silently from where he remained on the ‘horse’, and wondered what to expect at school tomorrow. It really didn’t help him any, that his all his grandmother could teach him to do was cook and sew. ‘Girl stuff’ as his classmates teased him. Perhaps.. perhaps that was why Toby had not utterly rejected the idea of coming to work for Addhor, after all of his grandmother's nudging. Because.. well, even if he was just sweeping up sawdust and wood shavings, there was still a slim chance he might get to learn some sort of ‘manly skills’ in the process, right? Or at least watch how some of the tools worked. And maybe he could even figure out how to help fix some of the stuff in their house.

But that wouldn’t be happening at all, if Tessa ruined this for him. With his gaze locked onto the floor, Toby swallowed silently, a slow frown growing on his face as she made her claims, in her sweet, innocent tones. Then he looked up in slight alarm at what Addhor said. Wait, did he actually think Toby had been throwing the coins at her? That was absurd! He actually opened his mouth, with the thought of protesting and denying this accusation, but swiftly thought better of it. Tessa, meanwhile, was even claiming that it wasn’t her idea. So, whose was it, Toby’s? He couldn’t believe what he was hearing, and looked back toward Addhor, slightly distressed to think he might actually believe any of this.

Before any words had managed to spill out of his mouth, however, Tobedir shut it again. He had just remembered that he did not want to make an enemy of Tessa. And, to his relief, he realized that Addhor was presenting a logical argument to her claim. Right. There were only the coints that Tessa had thrown at him, near the door. ‘Tell a lie once, and all your truths become questionable,’ The thought popped into his head unbidden as the girl. It was something his grandmother often said, and he found himself wondering if Addhor believed a word she said. Because, well.. the lies were starting to become obvious, he thought.

“Honestly it was just a bit of fun,” Tessa claimed next.

“Fun for you, maybe,” Toby muttered under his breath, too quiet for Tessa to hear from where he was seated in the corner. He made no answer to her when she tried to pretend like they were friends. Like they did silly things like this all the time, for fun. He kept his own gaze down, even as she looked toward him in hopes of having her claim confirmed. The only friends he had lived too far away to see regularly, but he didn't mention this. Somewhere, in the back of his mind, he half-remembered saying something of that nature only yesterday.

He did look up, however, when Tessa declared that he was helping her. What? He gave her a rather baffled look for a second, but it took little time to realize what she meant. He fidgeted in his seat and looked down at the floor. He felt torn. He wanted to speak up and tell Addhor that none of this was true... and he also wanted to refuse to help her. But, he also knew that she would be angry if he spoke up. And he didn’t want to be a tattletale, either. Trev and his friends always used to get so upset with him for telling on them about some of the things they had planned… and now, well... Tessa was not someone to make an enemy of.

He was really in a tough situation, now. Find a gift for Tessa’s mother? He had never even met the woman. He had no idea what sort of things she liked. He frowned, a little perplexed with this dilemma. He’d never even met his own mother. What sort of things do you get for your mother? Flowers..? He stared down at the floor, thinking. He used to ask Trev about their mother, back when he was very little. His brother, however, never wanted to tell him much about her. It was almost as if he wanted to hold onto his memories of her for himself, and not share. He used tell Toby to go away, and he'd say he didn’t want to talk about her. He’d even said - once - that it was Toby’s fault she was gone. Grandma, of course, had assured him that it wasn’t his fault, and had made Trev apologize, but the words had stung just the same, and he had not asked Trev anymore about her. Grandma had only told him a little bit about her. That she loved singing, and that Toby looked a lot like her. He knew very little else about her, except that grandma said she loved him and Trev very, very much. Talking about her seemed to make Grandma sad, so he stopped asking her, too.

And now, Tessa wanted him to help her find some great gift for her mother? Realizing he was biting his bottom lip rather hard, he stopped and also loosened his grip on the seat. With a hand on either side of his legs, he had been gripping the plank seat so tightly his knuckles were almost white. He was not one to lose his temper, like Trev always used to do so easily. But he also wasn't immune to feeling upset and angry, once in a while. He just tried his best to keep anyone from seeing that. Drawing in a slow, slightly shaky breath, Tobedir laid his now-relaxed hands on his knees. He let the breath out slowly, forcing himself to stay calm the best that he could.

Yes, flowers were always an option, he supposed. That was what he brought to his mother’s grave each year, on her birthday. He used to tag along with Trev when he did it. But now, with him gone… Toby had taken on the ritual for himself. The only other option he could think of for a gift was the sort of gifts he made for his grandmother on her birthday. But that wouldn’t seem right to give something like that to Tessa to give to her mother. Besides, there wasn’t time to make very much. Flowers would have to do. He risked a glance toward Tessa and gave a tiny nod, wordlessly accepting the fate that had been thrust upon him by his classmate. He just hoped she wouldn’t ruin his chances of getting this job.

@Arnyn

Building a fort had been Domanol’s idea. After the events at the barracks and Little Mess, Duinion had gone to find his friend in hopes of getting a little cheering-up, and had ended up staying overnight. After being dismissed from the Barracks the evening before, he had thought it best not to go home just yet because he knew Aggie and Eryn were sure to ask him about the summons from the lieutenant, and he wasn’t quite in the mood to talk about certain parts of it. And, knowing those two, they would pick up on his reluctance to talk about something. And that would make them wonder what was wrong. So, he decided to avoid that altogether.

Instead, he hoped maybe a talk with Dom would cheer him, so that he wouldn’t be as gloomy or troubled by the time he came home. When it got to be so late that Addhor decided to go to bed, the other two began discussing what to do for their own sleeping arrangements, and before long, Duinion and Domanol were making a fort in Addhor's lounge, just like they might have done when they were kids. Duinion was amused at the whole idea, but he had to admit, it was a lot of fun. And somehow, they managed not to break anything, much to Addhor’s relief, although with very little thanks to Dom. The night passed similarly to the many, many sleepovers they used to have as boys, only without Dom’s mother fussing about them getting to sleep, instead of talking into all hours of the night. Which was exactly what they'd ended up doing.

Duinion had taken his leave from them early in the morning. The market tended to get very crowded, as Duinion recalled, and so he really didn’t plan on sticking around town for very long. But, ever since he’d had the idea of bringing something back for Eryn, he had wanted to do that. Then, the food fight had vanquished all thoughts of bringing her anything from the sweets supplied at the Little Mess, and had further brought his thoughts to the orphan boy he had befriended some months ago. Since he hadn’t been able to go and see Daevion the night before, Duinion had gone to find the boy as early in the morning as he could manage. Before he got stuck sitting in some classroom all morning, being bored to tears by some uninteresting teacher. He figured if the children's lessons at the orphanage were similar to what they'd been when he was there, a day off from those lessons would hardly make a difference anyway.


Daevion was happy to be able to escape from the orphanage for a few hours, and eagerly came when he saw Duinion motioning for him to sneak out of the backyard. Together, they went to the bakery which Addhor had recommended so highly, and in addition to some tasty breakfast-y items for them both, Duinion let Daevion pick out whatever he wanted. Within reason, anyway. When the boy asked about getting a whole cake, Duinion laughed and told him no on that, but suggested a smaller, singular slice of cake, or a chocolate pastry or something of the sort.

Eventually, both adult and child were satisfied with what treats were selected, and he'd even found something for Eryn, although it might be a while before he could get it to her. After paying for their selected items, Duinion suggested they head to a nearby park to enjoy them. He figured it would be a nice reprieve from the market, which was already getting slightly busier, and it would be nice to sit in the shade of the trees and eat sitting on a bench.

Once the treats were packaged up in a nice little box, Duinion smiled as he watched Daevion practically bounce with excitement. He held open the door to let him go out first, figuring they'd best get to the park quickly before the eager child exploded from anticipation of the yummy goodies they'd picked out. Grinning slightly, Duinion followed the boy, with the box of baked goods in one hand.

@Rillewen
She was planning to stop by Nell's to get some breakfast for her and Thûllir - it was still early, and they had a bit before Thûllir had to leave for his duties of the day, while Kaylin hardly had any planned. Right as she was walking by the window and about to head inside, a young boy bouncing with excitement bumped into her. Holding out her hands to steady him if need be, he quickly stepped back, however, uttered a quick apology and drifted back more to the man leaving the bakery behind him.

"Duinion?" Kaylin asked, somewhat surprised to see the ranger in the city this early as well as that the boy drew close to him. The boy didn't look like one of the children Aggie and her husband had adopted, although she knew she might have that wrong. She hadn't seen them all that much. But she was generally pretty good with faces. She smiled at the boy. "Hey there! Don't worry about bumping into me. I bumped into you, too, right? Sorry!" she told him cheerily.

@Arnyn

Before he could stop Daevion, the boy bounced on ahead, only to crash into someone. Duinion was preparing to offer apologies as Daevion ducked behind him, but the words froze in his mouth when he saw who it was. "Kaylin?" He replied in mild surprise, though he wasn't sure why. She lived in the city. It wasn't as much of a surprise to see her there, than it would be the other way around. Her words to Daevion brought a little smile to Duinion's face, as well as to the boy's.

Daevion relaxed a little and smiled to hear her friendly tones, though he still clung to Duinion's sleeve. "S'alright ma'am." He answered when she apologized to him. "I got too excited, I guess."

"Uh, Kaylin, this is my friend Daevion," Duinion realized introductions were in order. Holding the box of pastries in one hand, he rested the other lightly on the boy's shoulder. "Daevion, this is Kaylin, she's also a ranger. And she's a good friend of my daughter's," He explained.

Daevion looked up at her. "Hello! We're gonna go to the park over there and eat yummy stuff!" He informed her with an eager look up at the box of pastries.

@Rillewen
"Too excited?" she repeated, as if that were a foreign concept. "No such thing," she grinned at Duinion. At Duinion's introduction, she looked back to the boy. "Oh, Daevion? That's a good name," she said with conviction, as if she had knowledge of such things. She couldn't help but smile at the boy's sweet hello and what he so enthusiastically told her. "Ohh, lucky you!" she laughed, and leaned forward as if sharing a secret. "Eating yummy stuff at a park is the best, isn't it?"

Straightening again, she looked at the bakery's window. "I was about to go in for some breakfast, myself. Was going to bring some home..." She looked at Daevion again. "Anything you could recommend, young sir? Or is this your very first time?" With muted curiosity, she glanced at Duinion. What was he doing with this little boy? A friend of the family? A visiting relative? She was curious as surely as her name was Kaylin, but she managed to keep it in check. For now.

@Arnyn

Duinion was happy to see Daevion smiling. Though, as nice as it was to run into someone he knew, it would be nicer to run into someone he knew while in a place less populated than right here in front of an apparently, very popular bakery. While Daevion answered Kaylin's question about what sweets he'd thought looked the yummiest, including the fact that he'd wanted to get a whole cake, but Duinion said it was too much for such a little boy, Duinion glanced around a bit as the market, inevitably, began to grow a little busier with the beginning of the morning rush.

Just as he was thinking of suggesting they let Kaylin get on with her own bakery shopping, a particular face caught his attention. Aggie? This wasn't a delivery day.. and she was on foot. She looked upset and flustered as well. That troubled him. "Excuse me a moment," He said to Kaylin, having enough forethought to recall she might be startled. He stepped a little to one side and gave a short whistle to catch Aggie's attention.

---

The whistle did catch her attention, and while she hadn't really expected to find Duinion there in the market, she was relieved to see him. A little breathless, she hurried over. "Hello, Kaylin, Daevion," She greeted them both, but it wasn't a time for pleasantries. She caught Duinion's arm and tugged him aside slightly, but not so far that Kaylin couldn't overhear easily enough. "I was looking for you, Dui."

"What's wrong?" He frowned, his mind racing with possibilities. Had something happened to Eryn? Cailon? The kids? Or was there trouble of some sort happening?

Aggie took a deep breath, trying to regain her breath. "I.. have you.. is Eryn with you?" She asked in between puffing for breath, trying to maintain some sort of calm.

Duinion was puzzled, as well as concerned, by this question. He frowned. "No.. why?"

Aggie bit her lip, worried. "Well, she didn't come home last night, and.. well I thought she must've come to town, with you and Domanol and Unalmis." She paused to take a breath, and glanced at Kaylin. "What about you, have you seen her today, Kaylin?" She asked, hoping very much that her worries were needless.

@Rillewen
She was grinning at Daevion's waterfall of words, even when Duinion excused himself for a moment. Kaylin kept listening to the boy, and started thinking out loud along with him what she might get herself. Part of her attention was on the exchange between Aggie and Duinion. To Aggie, Kaylin offered a wave and a smile, although she noticed the woman was having trouble returning the smile. Uh oh. Trouble?

When Aggie asked her if she'd seen Eryn today, Kaylin regretfully shook her head. "No, I haven't..." She'd only recently gotten up and left the house. But she hadn't seen Eryn on her way down the circles. "Could she be helping out at the Houses of Healing?" Kaylin suggested, trying to be helpful. "She's been spending a lot of her time there, right? Maybe there was some interesting emergency yesterday and she stayed the night or something? And she forgot to send word? Or maybe she did send word but it didn't reach you?"

@Arnyn
Aggie bit her lip as she slowly shook her head. "I don't know.." She replied sketpically. "She goes to the houses of healing most days, for training, but had all day off yesterday, and she said she'd help with the milking in the evening. And, then I thought maybe she'd decided to come into town with the guys," She was regaining her breath a bit by now, at least. "But that isn't really like her, not sending word and all. And she wouldn't have gone to the houses of healing with Hattie... they'd never allow that, I'm sure." She explained in a bit of a rush. "Anyway, Cailon's been off looking for her since before dawn, but then, just a little bit ago, I was finising up the morning milking when Buttercup came running up to the gate. Without Eryn." She revealed.

Duinion caught his breath at hearing this news, having been on the verge of thinking up some possibilities where Eryn may have gone. "Perhaps she fell off?" He asked in concern, thinking of Eryn lying unconscious in a field somewhere, and it took a bit of restraint not to rush off to find her right away. Beside him, Daevion had gone quiet and listening, catching on to the serious sound in the adult's voices.

Aggie shook her head slightly. "I don't think so, Dui." She focused on him now, looking worried. "Buttercup had a note tied to her bridle. I don't know what it means, but I was hoping.. I don't know what, just.. that she was someplace safe, and that it meant nothing..."

"What note?" Duinion was fighting to keep the panic out of his voice as the news suddenly sounded much worse.

Silently, Aggie pulled out a folded paper from her apron and handed it to him, watching anxiously as she wondered if he would understand the meaning of it. "There's no words," She explained, confused. "Just that.. sketch.. but it's got me worried. Do you know what it means?" She asked anxiously.

Duinion opened the paper and stared at it. A chill crept down his back as he made sense of what the sketch must be. He had never actually seen this animal, himself. But Domanol had described it to him during one of their many night time visits, while Duinion recovered from the foot injury. Dom had told him all about these creatures. And what this particular animal represented. Who they were a symbol of. Despite the lack of words, the message on the paper was loud and clear to anyone who was informed enough to recognize the symbol.

Duinion swallowed dryly, mind racing swiftly to try and sort what this message meant. Eryn was in serious danger. Someone was letting him know that they had her as a captive, and that was very, very bad. Somewhere in the mixed jumble of thoughts, he recognized that this must be a trap. Not for him, though... He had no history with these people, and no cause for them to even know he, or his family, existed. But somehow, they did know. How? He knew Domanol would not be to blame for that. But... then, how?

"What is it?" Daevion wondered, curiously reaching to see if he could get the paper from Duinion. He didn't prevent the boy from taking it, feeling a little too stunned by the situation to think whether Daevion should see the sketch or not. "Looks like a doggy, or a fox or something." Daevion looked up at the grown-ups questioningly.

"It's.. a jackal." Duinion answered softly, distracted as he was still trying to sort out how they might have known he and Eryn were connected to Domanol. He nearly forgot Kaylin was there for a moment, he was so intent on thinking how to handle this situation. Whoever was behind this, they knew it would get his friend involved, he was sure of that. Because of course he would. Dom was too good a friend to not get involved when Duinion's daughter was clearly in such serious danger as this. He had a daughter of his own, and he knew what it was like to fear for her safety. Then it crossed Duinion's mind suddenly to wonder.. was Dessy safe? Had they grabbed her too? After all, why would they grab Eryn and not Dessy, if it was Dom they wanted? Or was it simply that Eryn was easier to get to than Dessy, who spent most of her time within the walls of the city, and lived on the sixth level?

@Rillewen
Hmm. The more Aggie told them, the more Kaylin agreed it wouldn't be like Eryn to just vanish. If Eryn had primised she'd help with the cows in the evening... and if she had the whole day off yesterday... and if Hattie was also gone...

Kaylin still wondered whether Eryn might be hauled up with Unalmis somewhere. After the Lieutenant's thing at the barracks yesterday, he'd had no more duties, she thought. And if Unalmis had finally figured out how Eryn felt about him... and if he felt the same... Kaylin shook her head. It was a possibility, but she shouldn't assume. A girl could probably all but offer herself to Unalmis and he might still think she was just feeling feverish or something.

But then Aggie mentioned Eryn's horse coming up to the gate - without Eryn. And with a note tied to the bridle. Kaylin's eyes were wide as they shifted between Aggie and Duinion. Both of them clearly concerned. Duinion nearly panicking. Kaylin put a comforting hand on Daevion's shoulder, squeezing gently. Kids were more sensitive to these things than adults often remembered.

When Duinion opened the note and visibly blanched upon reading it, Kaylin's lips parted. She wanted to offer reassurance, but she had none. And she really wanted to know what the note said. What was going on? It was a miracle she managed to remain silent. Daevion took the note to look at it himself, and that's when Kaylin snuck in a peek, as well. She frowned. A fox? Her frown was joined by a questioning look as well as she looked back up at Duinion at the same time Daevion did. It was a jackal, he said. Okay. So what did THAT mean?

Looking at Duinion's expression, Kaylin realized they probably shouldn't ask endless questions at this point. His daughter was missing. He needed to think only about the best way to handle this. He needed action. And if there was one thing Kaylin understood - it was the need for action.

"Alright," she said firmly. "So we go looking for her, too. Now." She looked Duinion over from head to toe to see what weapons he had on him. "Do we have enough weapons?" she asked, straight to the point. Judging by how panicked he was looking, even though he tried to hide part of it still, they would need weapons.

@Arnyn


Duinion drew in a slow breath as Kaylin spoke up, asking about weapons. He had left his at home, having figured that if it was some sort of mission, it wouldn't take but a few seconds to stop off and grab what he needed before setting off. Yes, weapons were definitely a must. But where to begin? This entire situation was bad. Really bad. And it was getting difficult to think clearly as his worry for Eryn began crowding out other thoughts. Struggling to hold back the panic that naturally came at the thought of his daughter being in danger, he instead forced his mind to focus as a ranger should think. First, he needed to ensure that all the others were safe. Aggie. The little kids.. if these Umbar people knew that Eryn was likely to draw Domanol out, due to his friendship with Duinion, they might just as easily target others of Duinion's family as well.

He glanced at Kaylin after her question, and it sort of helped him focus a little. He didn't reply to her right away, deciding that the safety of the others should be addressed first. "Aggie," He turned to his 'adopted' sister. "Take Daevion with you... I need you to check on a few things for me..."

Nodding, Aggie listened as Duinion swiftly gave her some instructions. Places to check in case Eryn might be there. People to check on. A couple of messages to pass on to this or that person. While she still didn't know what this was all about, she understood that it was serious, and that she should probably do exactly as he said and not ask a lot of questions that would delay him.

Kneeling in front of the boy, Duinion rested his hands on his shoulders as he offered an apologetic smile. "Sorry, we'll go to the park another time, alright?"
Daevion nodded. "Can I help?" He asked hopefully. "I wanna help!"
Though it was difficult to smile, Duinion smiled at him. "I actually do have an important job for you." Not knowing how long this thing might take, he had to admit to himself that he might need something to eat before setting off on a search. He took one of the breakfast pastries out of the box, then handed the box to Daevion with a serious look. "You guard these carefully, alright? You can enjoy yours, but don't let anyone take mine."
"Yes sir!" Daevion promised, nodding seriously as he took the box carefully.
"Now keep close to Aggie and do as she says." He added quietly, then guided him toward Aggie.  
"Come on Daevion," She smiled and offered a hand to him.
"Aggie?" Duinion thought of something else to add. Something that might make a huge difference in what happened. "Whatever you do, do NOT let either Domanol... or Unalmis... know about that picture."
Aggie looked a bit confused, but nodded slowly before taking Daevion's hand, and the two hurried off as briskly as Daevion could manage.
 
Taking a slightly shaky breath as they set off to accomplish the tasks he had requested, Duinion rose and turned to Kaylin again. He had a slightly less-panicked look about him now, and a bit more determined. Possibly like someone that enemies should not cross. "I've got extra weapons at home, if you don't mind borrowing mine." He answered her question. "I'm going to grab mine... if you want to get some breakfast or leave a message for your husband or anything, you can catch up to me." He didn't wait for a reply, and set off immediately.

@Rillewen
Kaylin blinked after Duinion as he set off. Was this what she'd done to Thûllir when she'd heard about Hazel? All that time ago...

She shook her head, banishing the memories, and turned to Aggie and Daevion. "Well. Bye, I guess..." She gave Daevion a quick smile. "Don't worry, I won't leave him alone. Okay?" She winked at the boy, then nodded more seriously at Aggie. "Promise."

No breakfast, then. She could manage without. Or get something quicker on the way down... for that was where Dui was heading. Down to the first circle. Kaylin hurried after him, though she gave him his space for a bit. When they passed a booth out on the streets with different fruits, she quickly handed a coin to the seller and grabbed an apple. This time, when she joined Duinion again, she walked next to him. Biting the apple. When the first bite was down, she gave him a sidelong glance. "I'll borrow some of yours then." When they reached the gate to the first circle, Kaylin had a brief discussion with one of the guards. She knew him, thankfully - and asked if he could get a message up to Thûllir at some point. Not to worry about her, but that she'd been dragged into a search party for her friend. All the while, she was looking at Duinion's back. He had not halted at the gate. Not that Kaylin expected him to.

Catching up again, she fixed her eyes ahead. "So. Back to the farm, for weapons and... then what? You can track her?"

@Rillewen

The girl did not laugh long, but she had laughed, sincerely. And Gwandhyra enjoyed the hearing of it. True it was that they still knew each other only by an alias, and that they shared, above all else, a reluctance to share too much more. And so he asked no direct questions of her past, for he learned far more about her, the less that he pressed her for answers. The less interested he played, the more she was prepared to talk about. Every day she was slowly lowering her guard. He was unwilling to admit of course that the same could be said of him.

“I do not doubt that you could sneak out of here, faster than I, upon need,” he agreed freely. “And you are certainly faster than my brother on foot.” There was no warning shared though about what steps he might imagine his brother would employ to counter this disadvantage. For one, Strawberry was exactly the type of nimble footed thief who would see the challenge of traps, meant to slow down an intruder, only as a challenge to test her own prowess. “But we don’t know what he even has, if anything, that you would be breaking in to steal over there,” Gwandhyra pointed out with a frown.

He did not think much of the girl going over there for merely some time-wasting errand of hunt and hope, rather than an effective in and right back out again. He could not outright forbid the very idea of theft as a more general rule, not any more. For he had seen an awful lot of the world since his days serving in the City Guard and if the corruption that had taken him from that vocation years before wasn’t enough, then the greater span which he’d seen of the human condition since then would certainly have put paid to the very notion.

“Besides if that fellow is watching my family, as we think he is, then the very last place you should be showing up is where we know he’s looking,” the Man put his reasoning to Strawberry and resolved himself to the run around. All because his brother had managed to pick up at least half of the story.

“So, I will go to the Lady tonight, and find out what she knows about people lurking around the meeting tree. And you .. need to make enough of a distraction over here to have both my brother and anybody else looking out to see me leave, .. to not notice me leaving. Else there’s nothing to stop either one of them coming over here to find out who else may be here.”

---

@Rillewen

For all of Tessa’s claims that the two youngsters were having ‘fun’, it seemed to Addhor that Toby was having anything but, at the moment. Or perhaps the boy’s enjoyment had soured when the carpenter returned, when the ‘fun’ had been forced to end. He certainly seemed extremely uncomfortable now, a vastly more subdued young man than had previously burst into the shop with an excited tale of mysterious finds.

Without a word, Addhor made his way to the door, and unlocked it. “You’d better be getting on then,” he let the girl know. “Toby is busy now, helping me out. Do let your father know I’ll come by the house tomorrow, won’t you ?” He paused, on that part of the point, and watched as Tessa went through a range of considering her chances, and then withdrawing, while she was still ahead. “To wish your mother happy returns ..” he gifted her the explanation which invoked a mightier relief than it ought to have.

“There’s still so much to get ready for the party,” the girl decided. “I’d better go .. do .. that ..” She made it through the opened door, and then halted a moment on the porch. “Be seeing you later, Tobeedee,” she called merrily and loud enough that he should not mistake her. There was no mistaking the slam of the door with some gusto afterwards, either.


Addhor considered again the difference in the Toby who had burst into the shop before, and the one who sat now, avoiding eye contact. The man came and leaned slowly against the counter closest to the shaving horse. “I asked you to be responsible for the store while I was gone,” he started, slowly. His own brown eyes came to rest on his somewhat unenthusiastic apprentice, and raised his gaze up slowly up to hunt out the apprentice’s expression. “Being responsible for something which does not belong to you can be daunting. And also it can be exciting. Do you still have the dagger which you found up in the tree ?”

The man allowed due time for a reaction before he continued to speak. It seemed rather irresponsible on his part to leave a dangerous weapon in the hands of an innocent lad. Particularly if it had something to do with what had sprung out of the tree during Erulaitalë. On the other hand, no one would ever suspect to find it in Toby’s possession. Could he trust the youth with the responsibility ? He had coped well enough with unexpected obligations so far. But if Toby fell in again with Tess on his way home, and the dagger came between them .. Addhor would never forgive himself. And neither would his best friend, or his neighbour, if their respective children got hurt.


“It is my turn to ask you to trust me now,” the carpenter decided. “Let me take the dagger to make some enquiries tonight. You may take the rest of the afternoon off and we shall start again tomorrow. With no distractions.”

He did not ask if this plan met the boy’s agreement, because if it didn’t and if it really mattered, then surely that would be made clear. If the boy really did want to help Tess to ready her mother’s birthday present, that could be his focus for the rest of the day. Because the one thing Addhor could be sure of .. between the dagger and the coin war .. was that joinery was the last thing on Toby’s mind right now. Quite what else was going on between the lad’s ears, he was less sure of. And he could not help unless he knew.

Tonight he would investigate the matter of the dagger, just as he had vowed to. Well, not exactly as he had implied that he would. Whoever that had been in the shop across the street, they would likely sneak out to speak to Isys tonight. And Ranger though he once had been, the now-woodworker knew he could not stalk a quarry up three circle streets these days, not without due risk of losing or alerting them. It was a good thing he knew already where they would be headed. He would simply get there first, without them realising that he had left his shop yet. And then see who else called at the lady’s house that night. Toby’s departure out of the front door, was just the distraction that he needed to leave without detection. For eyes were watching, he knew. And his son had joked enough times about a woodshop being set on fire, .. that the proprietor had built a secret back door. Just in case. He was far too old to be climbing out of windows any more, after all.

@Ercassie

While it was a mild disappointment to be told no, don't break into that place and try to steal the thing, Strawberry had to admit that he made very good sense. She had no idea what this item even was. And while that would ordinarily not discourage her from trying anyway, she had to think about a few other things. One, that Gwand was a friend, and she did not steal from friends. And two, the guy across the street was his brother. Which meant she should not steal from him either. Only if he was really deserving of it, which he did not seem to be. Gwand did not seem to want her to break in over there, at any rate.

She could have gone in and grabbed anything that looked remotely like it could be the item and hope she got lucky. But, while it didn't really make a lot of difference to her whether she knew the exact item they were looking for... she decided that it would be best to refrain, and go along with Gwand's plan, instead. "Alright." She gave a small nod as she consented to let him do this his way. "Well, in that case, I'm going to get some more sleep," She decided, figuring it would be best to be well rested by the time she was needed for this plan. "If you need to wake me again," She added with a little amusement in her green eyes, "don't get close enough for a strike." With a little grin, she returned to her bedroll and took a moment to try and get comfortable, hoping to get back to sleep for a few hours, at least.

She was starting to wonder though if her being here might not be putting him and his family in more danger. While the evil guard clearly had some ill intentions toward Gwand and his family, perhaps it would make things worse if he learned that he'd been hiding Strawberry. She had left other places before, so not to draw danger toward people who had helped her, whom she had begun to call friends. Maybe it was time to do that again, as much as it pained her to have to go off on her own again.. and leave another friend. Curled up on her side, the petite thief let out a slow sigh and closed her eyes, eventually dozing into a light sleep.

---

Watching his tormentor being released at last, Toby couldn't help a faint little cringe at the mispronounced version of his name which she insisted on calling him. Still, he was relieved to see her go, though not without a reminder to him that she still expected him to produce some sort of gift for her mother. He felt his heart sink at that reminder. What in Middle Earth was he supposed to get for her? He knew nothing about Tessa's mother. He didn't even know much about mothers in general.

As Addhor approached him again, he couldn't quite bring himself to look up, and felt his heart sink yet again at the reminder that he had been asked to be responsible for the store. "I.. I tried..." He started saying, but didn't get much further. He did not expect the inquiry about whether he still had the dagger. Slight surprise brought his dark brown eyes upward at last. "Yes, sir." He replied. Of course he did. He wasn't quite sure where else it would have gone, but he quietly brought the weapon out from where he had been keeping it hidden under his shirt, as proof that he did still have it.

He blinked, inwardly stunned, when the man asked him to trust him... with the dagger. It took a great deal of effort not to stare at him speechlessly for several seconds, but instead he turned his gaze down toward the dagger. Inwardly, he was struggling... should he trust this guy with a weapon, which would mean he was without one? Outwardly, he likely only appeared to be studying the dagger, or so he hoped. But.. what if he turned into the limb-hacking-off monster from those tales Trev used to tell him? Then again, Toby tried to find better reasoning, if he wanted to attack Toby, he could just snatch the weapon away right now. Right?

Then, the rest of the sentence caught up with him. Wait, he spoke as if Toby had not lost his chance at this job. He looked up again. "You mean.. you're giving me another chance?" He asked, surprised. "I thought... well, if this was a test, I figured I failed," He admitted regretfully, and let out a little sigh. "I'm sorry about the coins, sir. I was trying... to be responsible, I mean." He timidly offered the dagger, held horizontally in both hands, still sheathed. "She just wouldn't.. well, nevermind." He let out another sigh, but then gave a little nod. "I will be here tomorrow then." He confirmed. "Thank you, sir." He added hastily, before moving for the door, his mind frantically scrambling for some sort of ideas on a birthday gift for someone else's mother.

On the way out, his gaze landed on some fancy little wooden boxes lining one of the shelves, for customers to buy. He paused and looked at these as an idea sparked in his mind. He knew of another box similar to those, for putting jewelry or other trinkets in. And it wasn't even being used! As far as he knew, his grandmother had no want to keep the box, since he had once found it in the trash, and had rescued it and taken it up to the attic, since it seemed too nice to be thrown away. He was pretty sure it was still up in the attic, and if he remembered right, it had some pretty flowers carved on the lid or something. Having no idea why his grandmother wouldn't want it, he figured she must simply have some personal reasons why she rejected the thing. But surely, Tessa's mother would like some pretty, engraved box like that?

Slipping out of the carpenter's shop, Toby ran as fast as he could to get home and find that fancy box, and hopefully that would appease Tessa's anger, and she would not torment him any further after what happened today...

(Just a solo, one-time post - Private)
The market was crowded as everyone rushed around, trying to get their last-minute preparations sorted. The small group clung together as well as they could, for fear of losing one another in the tide of people. Brooke kept a tight grip, with one hand, on Chewy’s leash, while the other hand held her bag firmly to her side, in case of thieves. It might have been wiser to leave it in the inn room, but she couldn’t bear to be parted from her beloved bag, which contained something even more valuable to her; the remnants of the book once belonging to her mother.. and before that, her grandfather.

Brooke kept so close to Seri that she nearly bumped into her when the lady paused to glance back and make sure that their group was all together. Smiling when she saw that they were, Seri then looked around and herded them all toward a fountain in the midst of the square, as if they were all her children. “Alright,” She declared, as the eldest of their party. “I know Brooke is going to the library,” She scanned the faces of the two brothers, questioningly.

“I will accompany her,” Gwestion volunteered, quietly. That was his only reason for venturing out of the inn at all, so soon after they had arrived.

“Oh, there’s one of the shops the lady at the inn told us about!” Gladhron pointed eagerly toward a clothing shop he’d spotted, as if he were an eager child waiting for permission to go off and play.

With a little laugh, Seri shook her head at him in amusement. “Wait just a moment, Gladhron.” She asked, and turned to make sure the other members of the group were situated. “Alright. Remember, Brooke,” She turned to her niece, “You’re only going to look for a book to help Gladhron learn to dance, for now. We’ll need you this evening, if you find it.” She reminded her little bookworm with a smile.

“Yes, I know,” Brooke replied quietly. “I’ll find what I can, and return to the inn before Aislin wakes from her nap.” She promised, unless, of course, her ‘sister’ awakened before she anticipated.

Once Brooke, Chewy, and Gwestion had set off for the library, Seri turned to Gladhron. “Alright, let’s go see what they have,” She laughed as the young man offered his arm with a grin, and led her eagerly toward the shop he had spotted.

---

“If you don’t pick something soon, there will be nothing left to pick from.” Seri pointed out, as Gladhron rejected yet another boring, plain mask that had only some basic swirl designs on it. Another customer had just grabbed one of the other masks and hurried to the counter to make their purchase.

“I know,” Gladhron sighed. “I just.. well there’s nothing really that great.” He muttered, then shrugged and picked up a simple blue mask, with no adornments whatsoever. “We should’ve got here a couple days earlier,” he sighed. “If not for that delay at the river crossing…”

“Don’t,” Seri chided gently. “It was very sweet of you and your brother to wait until Brooke was comfortable crossing... Don’t ruin it now.”

With a little nod, he dropped the issue, knowing she was right. And then, as he turned, his gaze landed on a mask that he had missed before, resting on a slightly lower shelf, which had previously been hidden by the blue one. Dropping the blue mask, his jaw actually dropped, forming an ‘O’ with his mouth while his eyes widened with barely concealed excitement. “Seri!” He exclaimed in a barely-hushed tone. In fact, he almost seemed like a young child trying his best to not jump up and down with excitemt, while struggling to keep his indoor voice acceptable. Eager arms outstretched toward the mask as he moved toward it, arms dramatically framing the item as if it were some splendit treasure he had discovered at long last. “Look!”

Seri had trouble not laughing at the young man’s enthusiasm, and looked at what he had found. “You like that one, then?” She guessed with a smile.

“It’s a DRAGON!” He stated the obvious, but with such enthusiasm it was hard for it not to feel contagious. If his grin got any wider, it would split his face! “A dragon, Seri!” He repeated with delight, as if she had not heard him before.

“We’ll take that one,” Seri laughed softly to the shopkeeper, while Gladhron held the mask up with mock reverence, and held it up in front of his face to peer through the eyeholes at her. He grinned and flipped it over to examine the front, which everyone else would be seeing, and looked quite thrilled. “I’m gonna be a dragon, it’s gonna be great!” He declared, as he reluctantly handed the mask over to the shopkeeper, to be stowed carefully into a bag.

“Best not to wear it around on the streets, sir,” The man pointed out. “Else, everyone will already have seen it before the dance.”

“Yeah, yeah..” He grudgingly gave in to the sense of the other man, but took a grinning peek into the bag, afterward. “I can’t believe I didn’t see that one right away!” He shook his head slightly in amazement.

“Do you have anything to go along with that, clothing-wise?” Seri asked with amusement, shaking her head at her young friend. Really, she could easily imagine he was her son, but he was just a couple of years too close to being ‘too old’ for that, so she mentally settled for a ‘nephew’ kind of mentality. She already had nieces, so why not nephews as well? And he and his brother had stayed at her house for a few months, many years ago, while their father recovered from wounds. She had taken on a 'mother' sort of role, then, although the pair were practically grown even then.

“Right this way, ma’am,” The gentleman ushered them toward the clothing racks and began to show them some clothing he thought would go along with the mask. Soon, they had picked out something that would fit Gladhron while also looking nice with the mask he had selected. But when Seri and the shopkeeper turned to ask if he was satisfied with this selection, he was nowhere to be seen. “Gladhron?” Seri called, suddenly a bit alarmed, and felt almost as if she’d lost a five-year-old she was supposed to be babysitting.

“Seri!” His voice hailed her from across the store, still quite eager. “You gotta come see this!”

She exchanged a lightly concerned look with the shopkeeper, held back a sigh, and weaved her way through the racks of clothing. She was mildly confused to locate him at last, standing by the racks of gowns for ladies. “What is it?” She asked, unsure what he had located.

He had been trying to spot her, by standing on tiptoe and looking over the top of the racks, but he had guessed wrong about where she would emerge. Whirling around, he grinned as he thrust out a gown still on its hanger, offering it to her. “Look!” He looked quite proud of himself. “It’d look gorgeous on you, Ms. Seri,” He pointed out. “You should go to the dance too.. please?”

As her gaze landed on the gown, Seri caught her breath and took hold of the hanger, holding it up in front of her. “Oh, wow,” She uttered breathlessly. “It is gorgeous,” She admitted, a little impressed that he had located something so lovely, with her in mind. Vaguely, she thought of how sad it was that his mother had died, for she thought that although Seri had never known the woman, she would surely be proud of her son. Both of them in fact, but in this moment, she was thinking more of Gladhron.

“I..” she paused, clearing her throat. “I don’t know that it would fit me, though.. and I probably couldn’t afford it,” She reminded herself, trying not to feel too terribly disappointed. She smiled softly and moved to place the gown back on the rack.

“No, wait,” Gladhron stopped her. “I don’t know about it fitting you, but it’s rentable,” he pointed out the tag on the rack. “See, all the gowns on this rack are available to rent, just for the ball tomorrow. So it’s like a tenth of what it cost to buy it for keeps,” he smiled. “We could manage that, right? Surely…”

“Oh,” Seri hadn’t realized that, and hesitated. She was feeling very tempted, but still... “I don’t know…”

“If you’d like, ma’am, there is a dressing room?” The shopkeeper suggested, pointing to the back of the store. “You could find out if it fits.”

When she came out of the dressing room, Seri was feeling a little self-conscious. Although the gown fit her quite well, it was a far more elegant gown than she had ever worn in her life, and she feared she might trip on the hem or something. But between the shopkeeper and Gladhron going on about how lovely she looked in it, she soon found herself blushing lightly. It was nice, and it was reasonably priced… for renting. Maybe it would be fun to go to the dance, after all. And besides, how could she say no after such praise? She laughed softly, and allowed the shopkeeper to show her a few other items that would go along with it nicely. A mask, of course… and gloves. She had never seen such dainty, lacy gloves, and at first, she turned down the idea. After all, she’d only ever bothered to wear gloves while gardening, or during the winter. But the man insisted that it ‘completed the outfit’ and gave her a bargain on them, so she agreed in the end.

Both Seri and Gladhron were quite happy with their selections as they left the store and headed back for the Wayfarer’s inn, smiling as they chatted among themselves about the upcoming event. Gladhron was, naturally, far more excited than Seri, but she was beginning to feel some enthusiasm as well, now that she had been persuaded to attend, and had a lovely dress to wear. She just hoped it would be worth all the hype.

The rain beat down mercilessly on the worn cobblestones. It was as if the weather was trying to keep up with the gloominess in his heart. Duinion stared ahead, apprehensively watching the people rushing about here and there, heads down, hoods up, trying in vain to keep dry in the steady downpour, trying to hurry to their destinations before they became soaked. While the streets of the marketplace were emptier than usual, on account of the rain, there were still far too many there for his liking. The ranger stood still, paying no heed to the water drenching his hair and clothing, dripping off of him. It did, at least, wash away some of the mud clinging to him.

He knew the way to the blacksmith’s shop, of course. Ironclad Armor and Weapons was well known in Minas Tirith, and would not have been hard to find even if he hadn't been there countless times growing up. It felt like ages ago, now, those days long ago when Dawion used to want to join he and Domanol on their adventures. A friend who had later become his brother-in-law. It had been a hard enough blow when he died. Now, his heart felt heavier than his feet at the thought of the task which lay ahead. Still, he could not put this off any longer. He had delayed for as long as he could stand it… in the hope that he might at least be able to bring some small comfort to them, with news of justice being brought to the culprit of this heinous crime. No such luck. The rain had seen to that. Even with all of his skill, there was little hope of finding what no longer existed. All traces of the murderer’s tracks had been obliterated before he had a chance to begin searching.

He should have stayed behind and checked for the tracks himself. In his head, Duinion chided himself for the thousandth time. He ought to have stayed when the others left to bear their comrade’s body back to his family. If only he’d gone right then and taken a look at the tracks, maybe he could have found the murderers. But he had not done that. And a storm swept in that night, with strong winds and lashing rain. And it had continued to rain off and on for a week now. Duinion hadn’t even been home in all that time. He had not made it to the funeral.. even if he could have endured it. He had needed to be doing something, searching, trying to find the one responsible for this tragedy.

At last, it became obvious he was not going to find the bandit group believed to be responsible. It seemed the group had moved on, for he found no more signs of them, no matter how hard, nor how far and wide, he looked. They were simply gone. Just like his trainee. Fighting down the lump in his throat, Duinion drew in a slow breath and closed his eyes. At least the rain helped hide the tears in his eyes.

The grey sky above made it a little harder to gauge the time, but he believed it to be late in the afternoon. Perhaps near closing time. He shouldn’t delay too long, or he would have to come back another day. Unwilling to have to do that, Duinion started forward at last, once a little of the traffic had died down. His strides took him hesitatingly toward his destination, and soon he was stepping quietly under the roof of the blacksmith’s work area. The steady hammering sounds made it so that his presence was unnoticed for a moment, until the bleary-eyed smith paused to take a drink from a tall glass near at hand.

“Mr. Dringolben?”

Though quiet, the sound of his name caused the smith to pause and turn. He frowned. “That’s me. Shop’s closed for the day, though. You’ll have to come back t’morrow.” He informed the prospective customer with a bit of gruffness to his tone.

“No.. I..” Duinion hesitated. Now that he was here, he realized that this was.. difficult. Far more difficult than bringing himself here had been. “I’m not here to buy anything, nor to place an order.”

“Then begone with you,” The smith retorted. “I’ve no interest in an audience while I work. And I’m not buying anything.”

“I came to speak to you, sir.” Duinion explained.

“I’m busy,” Damion grumbled, shoving the breastplate he was working on onto the coals. He turned and seemed as if he would ignore Duinion from that point on. “Got too many orders and not ‘nough time. I don’t got time to stand around talking to strangers, so go on, get outta here.” He grabbed the bellows and began pumping, scowling at the coals as they grew hotter.

Duinion watched him, closed his eyes briefly as he took a small breath in, then made himself release it slowly. “It’s.. about your son.” He almost winced as he heard the words leave his mouth. It sounded so.. harsh, almost cruel, now that he heard it out loud. He hadn’t meant for that. The funeral would have been only a few days ago… it must seem like poking hot iron into a wound that was still fresh.

Damion’s shoulders tensed, and as he turned, he leveled a glare at Duinion. “My sons.. are all dead.” Though his voice was soft and low, the anger, pain, and sorrow were as obvious as the water dripping from Duinion’s hair.

Duinion swallowed and gave a tiny nod. For a second, he thought he wouldn’t be able to get the words out. But he managed somehow. “I know… I.. I’m sorry,” He took a half step nearer.

“I told you to get out.” Damion growled, clenching his hands. “Who are you, anyway?”

Duinion hesitated. He had something important to tell the man. He couldn’t leave just yet. Still, he wasn’t sure how wise it was to linger when he had been ordered to go. But he had an excuse now; the man had asked who he was. “Ranger Duinion.” he answered quietly. “I.. worked very closely with Ryndir throughout his training.” He explained. Far more than anyone else, he might add, though he didn’t.

Damion stared at him for a moment, looking somewhat unsteady on his feet. He rubbed a hand over his face, then grabbed the glass and took another long drink. Setting it down, he let out a heavy sigh. “Duinion. Yeah. I remember you.” He mumbled. “You used to drag my oldest boy into trouble all the time, didn’t you?” He frowned and placed his hands on the anvil, leaning his upper body on it as he frowned at Duinion.

“We were friends,” Duinion answered cautiously, though personally, he disagreed about him being the one to drag Dawion into trouble. If anything, that would have been Domanol, or sometimes Dawion was the one who pulled Duinion along into mischief. But never anything truly bad. He decided not to say this, however.

“Ryn talked ‘bout you.” The grieving father added a moment later, with a hint of anguish in his voice. He looked up with a darkened expression. “What’re you doing here?”

Duinion felt his heart sink deeper and deeper as he began to recognize familiar signs. Slight slurring, a little unsteadiness in his stance… The man had been drinking. He was still drinking. He had seen this before, with Addhor… and he felt saddened to see it. Still, he didn’t know this man very well, and didn’t feel it was his place to say anything about it, although he felt that Ryn would have been displeased by it. But the man was mourning, after all. Clearing his throat softly, he tried to ignore it. “I’m here because I need to tell you something.” He answered, as delicately as he could manage. He hesitated. “Because.. Ryn asked me to tell you-” He added tentatively, but didn’t get to finish that.

“Ryn?” Damion cut him off, straitened as his glare intensified. “Ryn.. is dead.” He reminded the ranger vehemently. “He couldn’a asked you to do anything.” He strode nearer to Duinion. He was taller than him, and more muscular. “Where were you when it happened, anyway?” He demanded, jabbing a finger into Duinion’s chest.

Duinion stepped back, slightly stunned by the man’s reaction and his words, far more than the jab. For a second, he was unable to speak. After swallowing, he managed to force some slightly strangled-sounding words out. “I’m sorry, truly sorry.. I wasn’t there.” He looked down, took a few shaky breaths, and steeled himself to go on. He looked up again, his eyes brimming with unspilled tears. “I was with him, when he..” He trailed off then, blinking the tears back hastily. What he meant to say, however, was taken wrong.

“That don’t make sense.” Damion cut him off. “You weren’t there, but you were with him?” Damion stared at him. “If you were with him, why is he dead now, and you’re without a scratch?” He demanded, glaring down at the slighter man. “And if you weren’t there, why weren’t you?!”

Realizing he had been misunderstood, Duinion shook his head, trying to correct this misunderstanding. Meanwhile.. the words cut him deeply. “I meant..” he struggled to draw in a breath without letting go the dam that held back his emotion. “at the end. After.. he was wounded. I was..” He swallowed that lump back again. “I held him, as he..died.” Another shaky breath, while mentally pleading for the man to just listen for a moment, and stop accusing. He rubbed a hand over his eyes briefly. “He spoke to me, in.. his last moments.” He managed to get the rest of his explanation out in a whisper thick with held back emotion.

Damion fell silent, staring at him with reddened eyes, though whether it was from tears or drunkenness, Duinion wasn’t sure. But at least he was listening, now.

Duinion drew in a short breath. “I.. couldn’t save him.” He whispered, wanting to drop his head down, but he kept it up. He looked Damion in the eye, though it was difficult. “But.. I was there to hear his final words.” He quietly drew out a folded paper, though it was slightly damp now. “I.. wrote it down. Word for word.” He had memorized the last words of his mentee, but he had also written it down so there would be no chance he might forget by the time he spoke to the young man’s father. “I.. couldn’t make any sense of it, but.. perhaps, to his family..?” He held the paper out to Damion, in case he wished to take it.

“He wasn’t lying. He does have a brother. Tell them, he, Rip, wasn’t lying.” Duinion spoke what was written on the paper, repeating Ryn’s last message to.. someone. He had never made it quite clear who this message was for, so Duinion had concluded that it must be for his family. If not, they could pass it on to whomever it seemed to be for. “It made no sense to me,” He admitted. “Perhaps, to you, it will.” He took a slow breath. “He.. also asked that I tell his sister something.”

“Cali,” Damion muttered, staring at the note. Some of the ink had smeared and blurred from the dampness, but it was still readable. He sagged slightly against the work table, then straightened and put a hand over his face, hiding his eyes for a moment. He shook his head. “She wouldn’t hear it if you told her.” He grabbed his glass, finishing off the contents sullenly. “She just sits and stares at nothing. Won’t eat, won’t sleep.” His expression darkened. “She’ll grieve herself into the grave s’well, ‘fore long.” He muttered, under his breath.

Duinion barely heard this. But he did hear it. His eyes closed briefly, hearing this. He knew exactly how that felt. He had been there, himself, only a year or so prior. He wished there was something he could say that might help the young woman, but what could anyone say, at a time like this? He opened his eyes again, finding his vision blurred slightly from unshed tears. “Will you tell her, then? When.. when she’s ready to hear it?” He asked.

“If she ever is.” Damion scoffed, as if figuring it unlikely to ever happen.

“He asked me to tell her that.. he is sorry he could not keep his promise.” Duinion swallowed hard. He didn’t know what promise the young ranger had meant, but he knew it must have been important to him to get that message to her.

Damion nodded, but frowned at him. “Is that all?”

“That’s all.” Duinion confirmed. “Just.. that he’s sorry. He.. seemed to think it was very important.”

“Fine. Now get out of here.” The blacksmith scowled and grabbed his tongs in one hand, hammer in the other, and prepared to get back to work.

Duinion was mildly surprised by the blunt rudeness, but at the same time.. he understood. Damion was certainly not in a social mood. Yet, he remembered him being far more good-natured than this. “I’m sorry.” he said quietly.

“You’re sorry?” Damion rounded on him angrily. “You’re sorry? That doesn’t bring back my son, does it?”

Silently shaking his head, Duinion felt his heart breaking all over again, this time for the grieving father before him. He knew that feeling. He’d lost his own son.. before he even got a chance to know the infant. And he couldn’t imagine losing his little girl, whom he was so close with. “I wish I could.” He blinked a few times to try and clear the tears from his eyes.

“You being sorry doesn’t bring justice to those murderers, does it? Why aren’t you out there looking for them?” He demanded. “You let them get away!”

“You’re hurting.. I know, but-” Duinion didn’t get any further.

“You don’t know anything of this pain!” Damion retorted, his voice cracking a little with emotion. “What could you know about it? You don’t! So stop trying to pretend like you have any idea how I’m feeling. You.. this is your fault!” He jabbed a finger in Duinion’s direction, accusingly.

Stunned as the words hit like daggers in his heart, Duinion’s lips parted, but no words came out. He stared in silence, trying his best to swallow back the retort that he wanted to let loose. That he had lost a son too, and his wife.. and not very long ago either. That Ryn’s death had been tragic for him as well, and how he had spent every day since, scouring the forest for the culprit. In the pouring rain, at that. Instead, he said nothing.

Damion scoffed when he had no answer for this, and shoved Duinion in the chest so that he stumbled back a step. Despite the angry words and actions, his expression was more of anguish than anger. “You let him die, and then you.. you let the killer get away...” He angrily brushed at the tears in his eyes. “Just.. get out!” He shoved him again, this time harder.

Duinion stumbled back a couple of steps. He swallowed with some difficulty, then gave a wordless nod, and backed a few more steps away. “I’m sorry,” The words were barely audible, but he felt the need to apologize again for upsetting the man. Trying very hard to hide his own grievous expression, he turned and walked out into the rain, feeling like such a failure. Glancing back once, he saw Damion pull out a bottle from somewhere, and turned it up as he took a long drink. Saddened even further, Duinion's head bowed as he turned his steps toward the closest refuge from the market; a park he used to come to with Domanol many years ago. He really needed to get away by himself right now.

---

@Arnyn
This was one of his least favorite places to be; the marketplace. There were very few reasons for which he endured it, and also very few reasons for him to ever need to venture here. Mostly, for the sake of people he cared about, since he rarely needed to buy anything. For Dom, he had come occasionally to visit him in the room above that shop of Isys', and sometimes he came to the woodworks shop to see Addhor. But today, he had not come to see Dom. Today, he had come for the sake of Daevion.

The idea had formed months ago, when he first began to befriend the little boy, and while he was sitting around, waiting on his ankle to heal, with nothing to do but make arrows. He had thought on this plan for a long while, and now, finally, he had decided to make his idea into a reality.

He stood outside the blacksmith shop for a long while, trying to gather up the nerve, fidgeting slightly with the bundle of arrows in his hand. He couldn't help recalling the last time he had been there, at this very shop. About six years ago, now, he believed. Damion Dringolben had been the smith there, then. It had been a trying day for them both, and it had been one of the hardest conversations Duinion had ever tried to have with anyone. It had been a failure, or at least he considered it to be, and he struggled to make himself go in and talk to this stranger, now. The shop had a different name, these days; Truesteel Armour and Weapons, run by a man named Ramdir. Eventually, Duinion went in and spoke with the smith, who paused from teaching his teenaged son how to make a knife.

Duinion came out a little while later, feeling he had failed again. Tucking the bundle of arrows safely in the crook of one arm, he sighed and set off walking toward the nearest park, needing a break from the busy, crowded market. He should have come up with a backup plan, but he had really thought the smith shop would be the most likely place to go. But, as it turned out, the man was not very interested in selling arrows, and he did not know of any shops around that would be. His shop, he said, only sold armor, blades, and other things of metal, but not even a great variety of those were on display. Duinion frowned to himself as he left, wondering if it had been a waste of time and effort to come to the market today.

@Rillewen

After his daily early morning run, clean-up and breakfast with Ziran, Macardil had bid her goodbye as she'd set out for her duties of the day. The wedding was still fresh on his mind - and it gave a bounce to his steps as he went through his daily sweep of the house before taking inventory of what supplies needing replenishing.

Now he found himself going from shop to shop at the marketplace, a soft smile in his eyes and on his lips as he conversed with the shopkeepers and steadily went through the mental list of items that needed purchasing. He was thinking about surprising Ziran with something a little more special for dinner this evening, when he blinked at the sight of someone leaving one one of the blacksmith shops. Wait, was that...? Macardil slowed his steps, watching the man. It had been a few years, and there was still a good distance between them, but the resemblance was uncanny.

Doubt surged as his boots kept taking him forward. Duinion had been presumed dead after the end of the war. In fact, Macardil hadn't known the man was still alive until Ziran had spoken about him being a part of her unit. And even then he had not been sure that it was the same Duinion - not until she had revealed more tidbits of information through their conversations. He had been hard pressed not to tell her that he had worked with Duinion in the past, during both of their time with the Rangers of Ithilien. However, Macardil did not know Duinion's mind when it came to him. And he had no intentions of soiling the working relationship between the other man and his beloved, based on mere assumptions. They deserved a chance to build a working relationship without any bias. For surely Ziranphel would draw certain conclusions if she knew Duinion and Macardil had known each other, given that Duinion had not reached out since Macardil had left the dungeons.

Perhaps... perhaps Duinion did not know?

Perhaps... perhaps Duinion did not want to speak to him at all?

Unless Macardil was going to dart into one of the side streets, however, he would soon find out. For his path and Duinion's were about to cross. And while Macardil had been too stubborn - and honestly, insecure - to approach any old friends and acquaintances of his own accord, he was not about to throw away a chance like this.

Macardil drew to a halt when they were just a few yards away from one another. "Duinion?"

@Arnyn
"Duinion?"

The sound of his name caused Duinion to stop abruptly and look up, swiftly seeking the source of the voice. Something about it was familiar, though it wasn't until his eyes focused on the man not far from him, that he realized why. He had been simply keeping aware enough of his surroundings to not bump into anyone, but now he realized he had been a little zoned out, focused entirely on getting out of the busy area and into the more calming park area.

Recognizing the person to whom the voice belonged, Duinion's eyes widened slightly in surprise, and for a second, he was at a loss for words, but soon smiled faintly. "Macardil?" He hesitated, thinking of the many times he had knocked on the door of the house up on the fifth level, on his way down from the ranger headquarters or from his healer checkups, and got no answer. There was a part of him that couldn't help wondering if it had been deliberate, that maybe Macardil did not want to talk to him, though he tried not to think that. This encounter, right now, seemed to prove otherwise, right?

Regardless of that, he was glad to see a former comrade, and his smile reflected that. He was also surprised to have encountered the other man, after months of trying to. "I.." He paused, deciding to hold off on mentioning having tried to go and see him. "It's good to see you. How are you?" He asked, not quite sure what else to say at the moment, being a little unsure of how things stood between them. "You look well," He added, observing that he did, in fact, look much better than Duinion would have imagined, given certain events that he knew had transpired.

@Rillewen

Duinion seemed to find the meeting as unexpected as he did. But the ranger did not seem to want to run away from him, at least. Nor did he cast any evil look or words his way - not that Macardil would have called that Duinion's way. To his surprise, however, instead of silence, it only took a brief moment of hesitation before he was met with a smile.

A smile. And a proper greeting.

Stunned, Macardil needed a moment of his own before an obviously insecure smile found its way to his own face as he minutely shook his head at the ranger's question. As if to say there were other things to cover, first. "It is good to see you, as well," he managed, while gathering his wits back around him and trying to revert back to the easygoing and open nature he had been able to develop in Ithilien and Minas Tirith while growing into manhood. Even though life had presented its challenges in order for him to maintain this nature, it was still what he preferred. And this was not Belfalas.

"I was told you were presumed dead," he offered. "After the Eye's demise. It was not until Ziran spoke of you -" he realized that name might confuse Duinion, and interrupted himself to clarify, "- until Karis spoke of you, and added in a more detail here and there, that I learned the news had been false. So..." He stepped forward, shifting the bag he was holding to his other hand to offer Duinion his right arm. "When I say it is good to see you, Duinion Raedor, it is no mere recited pleasantry."

@Arnyn
At hearing Macardil’s words about what he had heard, a soft, brief laugh escaped Duinionbefore he could help it. "Is that rumor still going around?" He wondered, mildly amused as he shook his head. He was somewhat surprised, therefore, that Macardil had even heard the news was incorrect. Apparently, he had heard from Karis, which surprised him, that she would have spoken of him at all, since he did not know her and couldn't remember if he'd ever even met her. Of course, Duinion had also heard a few things from others, so why shouldn't Macardil have heard as well?

"That rumor is certainly not founded in truth, thankfully." He assured Macardil with a small grin. Seeing him shifting his bag to the other arm to offer a hand out to him, Duinion transferred his bundle of arrows to his left hand, and smiled as he clasped the other's forearm in a warrior clasp. "I, in turn, have also heard things concerning you which make my own statement 'more than pleasantry' as well." He informed him quietly. "Though, I also heard that you had gotten married?" He spoke the last bit with surprise, as if not quite sure to really believe it.

@Rillewen

"Well, it was," he emphasized, about the rumour going around. "I cannot say whether it still would be, now, however. People do not talk to me as often or as easily, anymore. Even though enough time has passed, it seems, to smooth over a few things." Things had improved, with the news of his release and the clearing of his name spreading. Slowly, but steadily. Not as sensational, he assumed. And therefore, much slower to permeate through the social fabric.

They clasped each other's arm. "But yes, I can see you are very much alive," Macardil confirmed, as if this only now closed the matter for him. A joke, evidently. Macardil almost cringed at Duinion's softer words, about what he had heard about him. "You have heard plenty, I am sure," the black-haired Belfalasian said somewhat reluctantly.

The shift in topic to marriage, though, lit up his features. "I did," he confirmed, as he let go of Duinion's arm. "Ziranphel caught me completely by surprise. And I will be forever grateful that she did." Macardil realized that Duinion might be both someone who had the circumstance to understand that better than most, yet the ranger might also understand it the least. Macardil was not certain if he himself would have quite understood it, before Ziranphel had spoken to him as she had in that cell. Before they had conversed as they had over that first dinner. He also realized Duinion would probably remember the way Mellaurel's death had hit him, and his resulting absence from the Ithilien Rangers...

"How is Erynneth?" he asked, with a calm smile.

@Arnyn
He was saddened a bit to hear that people didn't talk to Macardil as much anymore. He gave a small nod, then glanced slightly to the side as a group of strangers passed them, before refocusing on Macardil. "I.. have come by your house many times," He confessed. "I must have very poor timing, though, because no one ever answers." He paused, and smiled, "Either that, or Kaylin gave me the wrong address." He did not mention the other possibility which he had considered, and waited to hear what Macardil might say.

Whatever the case, he wanted to make it known that he had tried. And he was all the more glad he had said so, after hearing the next comment. Yes, he had heard plenty. He wasn't sure whether to steer away from that topic, or discuss it. For now, he elected for the former. Seeing that the topic of his marriage had cheered Macardil, he was glad for it. "I have not really made her acquaintance yet, though I have seen her around. I am glad for you, Macardil." He told him sincerely. Personally, he could not imagine finding anyone else to marry, but having seen both his 'brothers' finding new romance in their lives, he had come to be aware that it could happen for some people.

The inquiry about his daughter brought a smile to Duinion's face. "She's quite well, thank you." He answered, mildly surprised that he had so easily remembered her name. "She's sixteen now, if you can believe that." He laughed softly. "She is an apprentice healer at the houses of healing." He added, with a touch of pride. "Oh," He suddenly recalled something and smiled, "By the way, do you remember about six or so years ago when I was hesitant about teaching her to shoot, when she'd asked to learn archery, and you pointed out a few things that convinced me to go ahead and teach her?" He was quite sure he was correct in remembering that, since he had not known many other fellow-archers in the company he'd served with at that time.

@Rillewen

Surprised by Duinion's admission that he'd been by his house many times, Macardil assessed the other man's expression. "You have?" he repeated quietly. They had never been close friends - more like mutually appreciative colleagues - if someone were to force him to label their connection. And yet, Duinion had been by his house many times? He had tried to speak to him more than once? Part of Macardil wondered if others, closer friends, might have been doing the same - but the more realistic voice crushed any such hopes. It was singular enough that he had not been home anytime Duinion had come by his door. Let alone that it would be the same for others.

"I doubt you had the wrong address," he said, mildly amused. "While my now cousin in law is rather entertainment-driven, I do not believe she would joke around with a matter such as this," he spoke of the red-headed Hyandaner with the appropriate degree of familiarity. "It must have been nothing more than strange coincidence." HIs face fell back into more serious lines. "Or I certainly would have answered."

When Duinion told him he had not really made Ziran's acquaintance yet, Macardil smirked. "Neither of you is the most extraverted of the bunch," he said, his tone however not at all judgmental. "It will take a mission, I suspect, where the two of you must work together..." He shook his head, unable to imagine how it was that neither Ziran or Duinion had taken the step to at least engage in superficial conversation a few times by now. They all had their own way of doing things, however. His smile re-emerged. "In the end, that is how we learned the most about each other." Despite his own more sociable nature, it had still come down to that, had it not?

Hearing that Erynneth was doing well, kept the smile on Macardil's face. "I cannot believe it at all," he denied. "Are you certain you are not counting wrong?" He almost grinned. "An apprentice healer. You must be proud." The ranger's question made Macardil raise his eyebrows minutely. "Yes," he drawled. "I remember. Though I would not have expected the same from you. Did you turn her into a markswoman? Or did she lose interest over the years?"

@Arnyn
"I have," He confirmed with a small nod. "Since.." he thought for a second to recall when he had gotten the address. "Around July, if I remember right," He shrugged slightly and glanced around as various people hurried to and from shops around them. He looked back at Macardil. "Are you busy, or do you have a minute to catch up? There's a park not far away where we could talk more easily.. it'd be quieter." he suggested. It was getting busier as the morning got on, and while he wanted to have some time to talk to his former comrade, he also was not very eager to stand in the way of all the foot traffic, to do so.

Meanwhile, however, he smiled slightly as Macardil commented on the fact that neither Duinion, nor Karis, were very extroverted. "No, I suppose not, not me, anyway." He agreed with mild amusement. "Lieutenant Dealedwen, at one point, suggested the possibility of some sort of casual archery competition between us, but it was not possible for me to do anything of the sort at the time. That was months ago, I'm sure she's forgotten about it by now, anyway." He shrugged slightly. It didn't matter that much to him if such a competition occurred, although he would participate if she set one up.

His smile grew slightly when Macardil asked whether he had counted wrong about Eryn's age. "Oh, I have to keep a very close track of that. Believe me, if I were going to miscount, I'd go down, to about.. twelve or so." He grinned. "And if it were up to her, she'd go in the other direction." Of course, Macardil would not know the details behind that, but perhaps he'd explain it another time. "But yes, I am very proud of her," He confirmed more seriously. "Sometimes it's hard to believe my little girl is growing up so much." He sighed softly.

He gave a soft laugh at the latter question. "Eryn doesn't know the meaning of 'giving up' or 'losing interest' once she's set her mind on something. She's actually gotten to be quite a good shot," He smiled proudly. "Not quite on par with you or I, but she's getting there. I've recently begun teaching her to use daggers, as well." He paused, considering whether to mention something, and decided to go for it. "It was partly because of what you said, all those years ago, in fact." He admitted, although he could not quite remember the exact wording of what he'd said. "It was said originally in reference to archery, but.." He shrugged. "It seemed to apply the same to this, too."

@Rillewen

Since July? July. Macardil was not sure what to think about that. That this man, who was not even a close friend, would have gone through the effort of coming by on multiple occasions. Since July. "I have a minute," he agreed, without having to think about it. "And more." As Duinion mentioned a park that would be quieter, Macardil remember the other man's disposition. He was not an enthousiast of being in a larger group of people. Let alone a busy marketplace. "Of course." He started out into the direction Duinion had been heading, diverging from his own set course before he had halted to greet Duinion.

"I doubt your Lieutenant has forgotten," Macardil said with a light grin. "She never struck me as the forgetful type," he delivered his own assessment. And what little he had heard of Trevadir after his friend's meetings with her, had not debunked that.

'Eryn doesn't know the meaning of 'giving up' or 'losing interest' once she's set her mind on something.' Macardil slanted his head as he gave Duinion a sidelong glance as they walked. "Sounds like a man I know," he said casually. As Duinion continued, a warm smile mastered Macardil's expression as he gave a slow nod in response. It seemed that his words had really hit a note. "Was it Eryn who asked about training with daggers?" he asked. "Or was that your idea? If it was hers, might I conclude she is not planning on remaining a healer apprentice?"

"Did you, perhaps, set too good of a role model, Tirdinen Duinion?" He smiled softly.

@Arnyn
As they started toward the park, Duinion gave a little grin at Macardil's words. "I suspect you're right," He admitted, thinking of how the woman seemed to remember the most obscure details and somehow keep everything straight. He wondered if she was simply too busy with all the other things going on. He wouldn't be surprised, nor would he blame her, if she needed to put something like an archery contest on a back burner for a while. He also didn't mind, for it gave him more time to get better familiar with his new bow.

He was glad that he was finally having a chance to talk with Macardil, after so many times failing to find him at home. As they passed into the quieter park, Duinion felt a bit more relaxed, and less 'on edge' as he tended to feel in the market. It was also easier to talk with someone here, as there was not so much background noise.

As Macardil glanced sidelong at him with the comment that Eryn sounded like a man he knew, Duinion gave a small shrug in return and didn't comment. The next question, however, did bring a response. He let out a short laugh. "Oh, she's been after me to teach her for months," He answered. "It seems that I did," he added ruefully, when asked if he'd set 'too good' a role model. With a nod, he confirmed that Macardil was correct with his conclusion. "That's right. The healer apprenticeship is only a means to an end. She's left no doubt in anyone's mind that she will be a ranger one day." He sighed, looking off at a flowerbed, currently dormant during the winter. "And I know she'll make an excellent one.. she already knows almost as much about most things as any trainee. But I don't think I'm ready for her to join up just yet," He admitted with a little laugh. "Fortunately, she agreed to wait a couple more years.. but..." He shrugged and trailed off.

"I was initially against the idea of her learning to use weapons, until after she had officially joined," He admitted. "But.. certain things happened which made me re-evaluate that idea. And I started thinking about what had made me teach her archery, and why I'd done so. And.. I realized that she could face danger whether she knew how to fight or not." He glanced at Macardil. "I decided I'd rather she knew how to defend herself if she needed to than to not have a clue what to do if such a situation did arise." He frowned slightly. "And, one did, in fact.. not very long after. But that's.. a story for another time."

He cleared his throat lightly. "Actually, teaching my daughter how to fight wasn't the only thing that I started thinking about." He mentioned. "There's been... many things to happen this year, some good, and some bad. And, well, I have had a lot of time to think about.. a lot of different things." He wasn't sure whether Macardil would have heard much about his being injured, but he didn't bring it up. He drew in a slow breath, trying to think how exactly to put his thoughts into words. "Like.. how dumb I've been." He smiled wryly and looked down to the path where they were walking.

@Rillewen

Macardil offered a sympathetic tap on Duinion's shoulder. "No one ever talks about how a child wanting to adopt some of the best qualities of the parent, can also be dangerous." But in the case of soldiers, knights and rangers, that danger was ever-present. As much as an adult took pride in their own service, it was often a hurdle when their children chose the same path. And it was not so much about wanting better for them. The calling was honourable, after all. It was about the sorrow of it still being necessary. Frowning lightly, Macardil understood it was even worse for Duinion in the sense that the Great Enemy was already defeated. Why did his daughter want to become a ranger? For the smaller, lingering threats? A difficult matter for the man walking beside him, to be sure.

"At least Sauron is no more, my friend," Macardil said quietly. "Not that this means there are no more dangers left in the world." No. Macardil might know more about that than most, considering what had happened to him. "I think it is prudent to ensure Eryn can handle herself in every way you can think of. Not only in the setting of the city or the farmlands, but also in the woods and open country. And, if nothing else, the bow and the dagger are tools, after all. To be used for much more than the offensive." He glanced at Duinion. "I hope she was unharmed in this situation you speak of."

"Duinion?" he questioned when the man said he had been thinking about how dumb he'd been. "I am afraid I am not following?"

@Arnyn
Giving a small nod as Macardil spoke in understanding of his concerns, he then paused to consider how to answer the inquiry about Eryn being harmed. He was unable to fight off the tiny smile of pride that tugged at his mouth. "Actually, the person who meant harm to her ended up more harmed than she was," He answered. "Perhaps you'll hear the tale another time. But she was alright, yes. I think she was frightened, and a little shaken, but more angered than anything." He shrugged, then smiled at Macardil.

"Perhaps you'll meet her someday. Or, you may have even seen her before," He realized. He wasn't sure whether Macardil got any dairy deliveries, but he could have still seen the cart going around. "She doesn't do it as much anymore, but she used to do the dairy deliveries for the Daisy Dairy farm. She'd go all over town making deliveries, every couple of days, before she started at the houses of healing. Her aunt does most of it now, but sometimes, if she doesn't have healer training or anything else that day, Eryn does it."

Hearing the questioning tone in the man's voice, Duinion smiled wryly. Of course, he wouldn't follow. Duinion was going to have to explain what was troubling him, of course. That was why he had come repeatedly to try and speak to his former comrade. This was where it got more difficult, of course. He drew in a breath slowly, trying to think. He watched a bird hop around on the ground, looking for crumbs or something. "We served together in the same unit for.. however many years," He shrugged; the exact number was not really important, nor did he feel like adding it up. "And in all that time.." He struggled for the right words, briefly. "There were a few of our comrades in that group whom I might have been better friends with, if I had chosen to be. Did things with them while off duty, perhaps. Invited them over for dinner, I don't know.. whatever things friends do together."

He glanced at Macardil. "You likely would have been the top of the list, if I had." He admitted quietly. "I remember we got along quite well, back then." He hesitated. "And.. we suffered grief around the same time. Sometimes, I wonder, if we had been friends back then, perhaps it would have been good for us both. I.. think perhaps I might endured it more easily, if I had not been alone." He admitted quietly, then glanced away and let out a quiet sigh. "But.. that's where I was so dumb."

He drew in a deep breath, finding this difficult to put into words, or perhaps it was more difficult to simply say it out loud. "I've recently come to realize how.. ridiculous it was, to.. hold people at arm's length, so to speak. To deprive myself of having any new friends, out of.. fear." He cleared his throat, keeping his gaze focused the arrows tucked in his arm. "Fear, that I might lose that friend... as I had lost other close friends, before." He added quietly in explanation. Glancing up at Macardil, he went on, "I don't know if I'm making any sense to you.. or if you even care about what I'm saying. I just.. wish that I had realized sooner how foolish I was. Anyway, I wanted to apologize to you, for not trying to be a friend when I had the chance before."

@Rillewen

Duinion's small smile was explained swiftly by his explanation that whoever had meant Eryn harm had drawn the short stick, so to speak. Macardil nodded in recognition. "That bodes well, I would say," he declared, honestly. "I do not believe I have seen her before. Though, I cannot be sure without you actually making introductions. I would not mind meeting this daughter of yours. She sounds quite remarkable. With such a clear, seld-determined goal in life, at her age. " Stubborn, too, most likely. Like her father. Macardil smiled.

As the other man delved into the reasoning behind his statement about... not following his best judgment... Macardil did not need to be told to watch the bird as well. As an unspoken agreement between them, he simply did. Sometimes, talking was easier without eye contact. Especially among men. When he felt Duinion's glance, Macardil firmly kept his eyes on the bird as it flew into a tree, his gaze tracking the animal through the bare winter branches. He let the words wash over him, offering a nod when Duinion said he remembered that the two of them had found common ground in more than one way. "We did," Macardil confirmed quietly - and just once, since it applied to both statements.

He nodded again, a thoughtful frown on his face, by the time Duinion made his apology. The former ranger did not wish to revisit his own grief, nor his response to it. Yet it was a difficult matter to avoid, sometimes. This was one of those times. And what Duinion was doing, what he was offering... It was entirely unexpected, and Macardil found himself ill equipped for just a moment to respond to it properly.

Finally, he turned his head to look at his former comrade in arms. "Well then," he began, as a small but easy smile started to appear on his face, "when are you inviting me over, exactly? We do have about twelve years to catch up on."

@Arnyn
He had plenty of other things prepared to say, things he had been thinking about for several weeks, even months. Every time he'd gone to try and find Macardil at home, he had tried to plan what he would say, how he would say it. And suddenly none of it was actually necessary. He was caught off guard by Macardil's question.

Blinking, he turned to him in surprise, then smiled as he let out a soft laugh. "Anytime, actually." He shrugged, thinking for a moment. "I'm off duty all day today, or, if you're busy today, perhaps tomorrow afternoon? Or whenever works for you." He grinned slightly, but the twelve years wasn't quite adding up right in his head. "If you're going by the number of years we've known each other, it actually would be sixteen years to catch up on." He pointed out, since he recalled that when he had met Macardil, it had been shortly after Eryn was born.

@Rillewen

The smile grew into a grin when Duinion laughed. Moments of mutual understanding like these, were priceless. "I believe tomorrow afternoon will suit," he agreed to the second presented option. "Well, I was going by the number of years we were part of the Rangers of Ithilien," he specified. "Which was about twelve years from the time I joined the ranks until the end of the war, when... when we lost track of you." And you were presumed dead. "But yes, about sixteen years if you also count the last four. And you make a good point that we should count those, as well." And that brought him to the question: "Where should I go then, tomorrow?"

Macardil gestured to the arrows tucked under Duinion's arm. "Also, I have been wondering. I seem to remember you were one to make your own arrows. Why would you bring such a number to the city? Any devious plans?" He raised an eyebrow. "Have you become a troublemaker, Duinion Raedor? Or - have you taken to purchasing your arrows rather than craft them yourself?"

@Arnyn
"Tomorrow afternoon, sounds good." Duinion was happy to agree to that. It would give him a chance to give Aggie some warning to expect company, and also, Eryn would be at home by then. Then he thought.. what to do, during this visit? He was not used to having company over, except for Dom, or Unalmis, or occasionally, Addhor. And while one never quite knew where a visit from Dom, or Unalmis, was likely to end up, he recalled Macardil being significantly less.. chaotic than either of those two friends.

He was interrupted from thinking about that when Macardil asked where he should go. "Ah, right," He smiled as he recalled that he did not know where Duinion lived. "Do you know where the Daisy Dairy farm is?" He asked, but when the answer was a negative, he gave directions for how to get there from the main gate. "My sister and her husband run the place," He explained. "Eryn and I live there, with them." He smiled as an excellent idea struck him. "When you come, bring your bow. You can help us test out our new archery range." He suggested with a little grin. "Eryn got bored of having only one target to shoot at, and her little cousin has been learning to shoot as well, so between the three of us, we've been working on a few new additions."

As his attention was drawn to the arrows, Duinion paused, mildly surprised the
other man remembered that Duinion made his own arrows. "You have a good memory," He commented with a little smile, then shrugged as he glanced down at them. "In fact, I do make my own arrows. I made these," He glanced up with a little smile. "No devious plans, however. Nothing mischief-related, anyway." He added with a little laugh. "Actually, it was a plan that seems to have failed. I thought perhaps I could get a little extra money on the side by selling some of my extras to one of the smiths in town." He explained with a hint of disappointment in his voice.

"Unfortunately, the fellow who took over the Dringolben forge wasn't interested. Apparently, he doesn't do any archery stuff, nor custom stuff, nor much of anything but the basics." He rolled his eyes slightly at that, wondering how the guy could get much business that way. "I hadn't yet ventured to try any of the other smiths, but that fellow says it's not likely anyone would be interested in buying them to resell. So, I'm not sure what to do with these." He shrugged. "I've got more than I can probably ever use in my lifetime." He concluded with a little laugh.

@Rillewen


He listened carefully as Duinion described where the dairy farm was and where Macardil would need to go the next day. Must be nice to live with family like that, he reckoned. Yet it was not something he was wise to comment on in front of his own family, since he had chosen a life in Minas Tirith, away from his estate where several other members of the family lived. If he wanted to, he could have that. Mentally frowning at himself, he shook off the thought and returned his focus to his conversation with Duinion, which had now moved on to an archery range.

"An archery range at a dairy farm?" Macardil smiled. "Excellent. I will bring my bow," he confirmed, then raised an eyebrow at the arrows. "I suppose I will not have to bring any arrows." Looking at Duinion with some disbelief, Macardil cleared his throat. "You know there is... a bowyer... Right?" He could not imagine the ranger, an archer to boot, would not know. However, then why would the man go to a smith instead of the bowyer? "Although, it is not on the main street running through the marketplace. You might try your luck there." He shrugged. "It's where I obtain my arrows. I do not have the patience to make an endless supply, I am afraid," he admitted with a smile.

@Arnyn
Upon hearing that there was a bowyer, Duinion was mildly surprised. "I knew there was one many years ago, but that shop is something else now. I was under the impression the bowyer was no longer in business," He answered. "Of course, it has also been a very long time since I visited any shop for things like that," He shrugged slightly. "I make my own bows, arrows.. all the equipment I need, I make myself, so I don't have to come to a shop. Where is it? Maybe I would have better success there."

He smiled slightly as Macardil spoke of not having the patience to make an endless supply. "Well, fletching began as a practical hobby for me, to eliminate the need to buy arrows." He shrugged slightly and looked down at the bundle. "I only ended up with so many because.." Hesitating briefly, he glanced at Macardil. "I'm not sure how much your wife has spoken to you about me, nor how much she knew about this. But... I was injured, back in the early spring." He explained. "I could not walk for several months, and there was very little that I could do. It was... extremely boring. But, making arrows was one thing I could do, as long as I had someone like Eryn to bring me the supplies I needed. So," He smiled faintly. "I made a lot of arrows," he shrugged and added quietly, "and did a lot of that thinking I mentioned earlier."

@Rillewen

Macardil gave Duinion directions to the bowyer, and hummed thoughtfully when the man mentioned his injury. "She mentioned something," he allowed. "Or what little she has seen and knows of it. Which is not much." He frowned. "What happened? If you couldn't walk for months... It must have been severe. Yet you have made a full recovery?" he questioned, unsure whether Duinion mentioning his 'thinking' once more was a way for the ranger to indicate he wanted to share more about that, or whether it was a slip.