[Child of the 7th Age]

As soon as breakfast was over, Loremaster guided Cami and Rose into a side alcove where they could speak more freely. "The most important thing is that you manage to talk with the hobbits. Let them know who you are and why you're here." He looked straight at Cami, "What you said last night was perfect. Only it'll need to be...."

Loremaster hesitated. Outside, a guard strolled by. Then the footsteps halted. Suddenly Loremaster grabbed his shovel and dug a trench along the edge of the cave. The women picked up the cue and began digging.

The Man headed in their direction. His suspicions had been aroused by the guarded whispers he'd heard. He wanted to check on things. He eyed the three hobbits warily. Cami's heart began to pound. She kept her eyes down and said nothing.

"Are you supposed to be here?" came the rasping voice. "And what's this?" He pointed accusingly at the straggly ditch.

Loremaster mumbled some excuse which apparently satisfied the guard. He looked down at the hobbit and nodded his head, as if the words made perfect sense. "A trench, certainly. The prisoners will dump their garbage here after a meal."

He continued. "They made a big mistake picking you for this job. That one can stay." He pointed towards Rose. "You two, find something else to do. We need young, strong hobbits for such work."

Cami lingered for a moment in the alcove, reluctant to leave Rose's side. "Be gone, you old hag!" The guard glared at her and thrust a shovel in her direction.

"Old hag, indeed!" Cami grimaced. "We'll see who's an old hag two nights from now." But, fortunately, she said nothing.

Loremaster gently nudged the woman towards the main passageway, whispering in her ear, "Rose will be fine. We'll come back later, once things have settled down."

After a goodly number of paces, Cami couldn't resist turning around to stare. She glimpsed several hobbits with shovels gathering near the ditch, working under the direction of the same guard. When he saw her looking back, he raised his fist and shook it in the air.

As they hurried on, Cami said to Loremaster, "It was the same for us! No one in charge of the camp had the slightest idea what anyone else was doing. But they'd never admit it. They just played along. They wouldn't ask questions because they might look foolish."

There was silence between them until Cami spoke again. "What if, someday, Men made a big camp like this, and they did know what was going on? What if they kept track of things, and had everything perfectly organized?"

Loremaster stopped. His eyes were grey and sad. "Let's just hope we're not alive to see that."

A quiet tremor rose in Cami's heart, but passed quickly as Loremaster again responded. "Come. That's not our worry. Leave it for another Age. We've enough trouble on our hands."

"And, look, here's our first work area." He pointed toward a crowded sleeping nook still filled with hobbits leaving for their morning jobs.

"Exactly what do we do?"

"Garbage collection!" he pointed to a section where there were thick layers of straw, filthy and matted. A few flies buzzed overhead. The pails that had been placed there were by now overflowing.

"I was afraid of that," Cami sighed. If only she were a few years younger, she might be digging ditches instead. Then she laughed. "Where do we take it?"

"Out to the crop fields in these." He held up large cloth bags. "By the end of the day, you'll have seen every corner of this camp."

As Cami began her labors, she heard the tiny giggle of a neekerbreeker coming from just inside her collar. "She'll be sorry when I catch her in human form!" But even the hobbit had to laugh at the predicament she was in.

[ October 28, 2002: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]