[Lhunardawen]

As the three companions continued to stand around in the wereduck-constructed tunnel, possibly with the two ambassadors looking in horror at the feathers Elrogorn had pointed to, which should be assumed was what they did in the absence of further instruction, a troubled, faraway expression came over Maika's horrified features, as though she had suddenly remembered that - for the first time in her life - she had failed to fill a save within forty-eight hours.

"Lady Maika, is something bothering you?" Hyarmenwë asked, without wondering why he bothered himself. It seemed that Maika did the wondering for him as she stirred.

"Oh..." she slowly turned to him, her eyes shifting into focus. "I, or a part of me perhaps, was inexplicably transported to and trapped in schoo--" Wait a minute, she thought, a girl my "age" is not supposed to be have anything to do with school. Hyarmenwë and Elrogorn, who had tuned in as Maika stirred, blinked at her expectantly. At the same time. Unpractised.

"Oh, you know, I suddenly had eerie visions of a torturous land of Chemistry and Calculus."

That did the trick for Hyarmenwë, apparently, for he hastily ignored her at the mention of the anakronistic words, and was suddenly fascinated with a tuft of wereduck down on which he had unknowingly stepped. Elrogorn, on the other hand, blinked again.

"But that sounds just like Mordor, doesn't it?"

Maika pretended that Elrogorn had also ignored her, in order to justify ignoring him. She had to admit to herself, though, that he had a point. Before she could start pondering on the repercussions of Elrogorn's unpremeditated wisdom, she hurried after Hyarmenwë, who took off upon realising that he should NOT be fascinated with wereduck down. Maika stole a quick glance at him once she had caught up; the look in his eyes was that of utter disappointment, masked by an utter determination not to let it show. Maika knew it, though, despite his best efforts, for she had been there with him after all.

"I'm really sorry, Hyarmenwë," she told him, for some reason feeling not quite as sincere as she sounded. "But you see, it's probably better this way. I had not the heart to mention this before, but--" she hesitated, and took a deep breath, "Boba means 'stupid girl' in Filipino."

She might as well had spoken the language for all the response she got.

"I hate to tell you this," she continued, rather insensitively, "but your daughter, she's probably d--"

"Don't say it," Hyarmenwë cut in. His eyes glinted dangerously. A clichéd cold shiver ran up Maika's spine at the sight of it; that was a side of Hyarmenwë she had never even guessed existed. She felt the need to make up for her rash remark.

"Or, or maybe," she said cautiously, "maybe I had been completely wrong in my assumption. Maybe the exiled Gondorians did not take her in. Or if they did, maybe she...she ran away."

Elrogorn gasped behind them. "Then maybe a were--"

"--duck once used this very tunnel, and has a mind to use it again." Hyarmenwë glared at his two companions, but its meaning seemed to have flown over Elrogorn's head with a woosh.

"Then maybe we should get out of here," Elrogorn said quietly yet urgently. "Come on!"

And away he ran, swiftly and lightly like the wind, and bade the two ambassadors to do likewise. But Maika might have known enough of the wonders of travelling in an RPG, and maintained her pace. Hyarmenwë was in no mood to run, either.

"Maybe we should head back to the Palace and come up with another plan, before we begin our search again," Maika kindly suggested.

Hyarmenwë sighed. "Maybe you're right."