By the time Holly had gotten back to her small campsite, Olo had put out the fire, scattered the ashes, stowed the bedrolls and cooking gear, and gotten Peri all packed up in an efficient manner. Her pack lay waiting for her, and he had left out a piece of waybread and some dried fruits for her to munch on as they proceeded down the road.
'Oh, what a treasure you are as a travelling companion!' she said with a laugh, and gave him a companionable hug. She turned away to give Peri a small piece of dried apple, and did not see the Hobbit blush.
'Come walk ahead with me.' she said, as she lead Peri to where Andreth was talking to Poppy about the use of her horse. 'I want to speak with both you and her about learning the Elvish letters and script for Laurëondo.' She fished her notebook out of her pack, along with her writing kit. 'Tell me what you know of Elvish writing, Olo. Are you familiar with any of the letters at all?'
Olo confessed that he had not much experience with writing of any kind, and though he thought the Elvish script was quite beautiful, it was completely unreadable to him. They crossed the camp, Holly studiously avoiding any contact with the Elf, and soon came to where Andreth and Poppy sat, eating.
Holly sat down by Poppy, greeting both of them, and inquired in particular how Poppy was feeling today. After a few moments of pleasant chat, she brought the conversation round to the topic of Elvish writing and asked the Hobbit the same questions she had asked Olo. Poppy finished her breakfast as she considered the questions and then made her reply . . .
[ December 18, 2002: Message edited by: piosenniel ]
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Eldest, that’s what I am . . . I knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless - before the Dark Lord came from Outside.
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