[Amanaduial the archer]

Hearing the commotion in the kitchen, Aman excused herself from Soronume after serving him with supper and a drink. No other customers were immediately clamouring for the Innkeeper's attention, so she slipped away into the kitchen. It would probably be some of those nosy Farburrow boys, Merrimac's cousins, or second cousins, or some other relation...they had a habit of sneaking into the Inn and pilfering biscuits. The problem was that they were actually astonishingly bad at it - Aman caught them every time almost without exception. When faced with the furious (and slightly amused) Innkeeper, they merely protested that she was going to give them to Merrimac anyway...and the lad didn't need any more biscuits, they would go to a far better cause strengthening the surprisingly skinny Farburrow trio. Unamused, Aman usually shooed them out, but let them escape with a biscuit or two - safe, at least, in the knowledge that they would never make it as any sort of professional thief.

Rolling her sleeves up menacingly as she approached the kitchen door, Aman heard a whoop of delight and gritted her teeth - no doubt they had found Buttercup's cakes made in preparation for tomorrow. Well, if they thought they would have Buttercup Browlock's finest carrot cakes, they had another thing coming.

Bursting through the door, Aman put her hands on her hips...and her mouth dropped open. There, before her, stood three figures she had almost forgotten the sight of over the past long weeks.

"Cook! Derufin! Zimzi!" she gasped, looking from each to the other, genuinely flabbergasted at this secretive and surprising back entrance. "When in Arda did you arrive?!"