A cheerful sun flickered and danced playfully behind tall clouds. Rose Goodchilde watched as they passed overhead, and marveled how alike they seemed to the ship she had once called home. She was a majestic sight, soaring over the seas with a methodical pace, faster than one at first realized, but always with a powerful grace. How she longed to be held once more in the embrace of that vessel, a shield from the fickle sea, and to be a part of the crew it had carried. With everyone working together, it had seemed more like a family than a motley assortment of the most unusual characters. But, Rose thought with a sigh, everyone was now scattered, both through time and space. The time Cami and Maura had together had together weighed heavily on Rose’s thoughts of late, but she was now forced to abandon her worried reflections and concentrate on the task before her. It almost seemed a relief to be out of the way, as she saw herself, and allow them some time to be alone.
Rose had spent the day familiarizing herself with the streets of Bree; new places had always held a fascination for her, and she only faintly remembered a visit to the town when she was very young. The common room of the Inn had been quiet, so she had sought refuge in a small garden just off the side of her rooms. A quaint bench, conveniently placed by the path, seemed to be inviting the young hobbit to rest, so she had sat down gratefully and lapsed into thought.
A pair of feet plodding quietly brought Rose to attention, and she was relieved to see one of the hobbits from the night before, Toman, she though she remembered another call him, appear from behind a bright batch of sunflowers.
“Hello!” He greeted her with surprise. Rose returned the greeting and asked him to sit beside her for a moment. “Thank you,” he replied with a friendly smile. They began to talk of the weather, and after several minutes of small conversation, Rose was able to turn the conversation to the subject of the kidnappings. She remembered his words from last night, and could not risk passing up an such a perfect opportunity to learn more. After inquiring more about Ferny, her eyes began to widen as the red-haired hobbit spoke. Rose began to remember hearing his name in Cami’s tales of the War of the Ring, and Toman backed up that memory. “He was ruined after Sharkey was killed, so they say. Left town in a hurry, but came back to Bree after a few years to live quietly until now. He certainly still hates us hobbits anyway; he would have had it nice under Sharkey if the Shire hadn’t been raised against him and his ruffians. I suppose he still holds a grudge, and a nasty one at that. I wouldn’t be surprised if he tried to get revenge, if he could figure out one person to blame for it all.”
Rose sat back, and tried to take it all in. Toman shook his head, stood, and stretched. “Still, nothing can be proved, he’s done nothing against the law, it’s really just the ways he treats us and the rumors one hears.” Shaking her curls thoughtfully, Rose got up as well and made her way back into the inn with Toman. He tried to cheer her up, mistaking her silence to be caused by worry, by offering to buy her a drink but she declined in favor of seeking her room and parted, wondering how she would reach Mithadan and Bird with this news.
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