[littlemanpoet]

"Ah, yes.. T'was naught but a few months past, I was walking down a bubbling brook... well, not walking, but trotting, for I was on horse. So there I was, in the foothills of Lebennin .... well, not a few months past, but just a couple weeks ago, as a matter of fact...."

Eodwine paused and looked from face to face a moment to gauge their interest; they were still listening with due patience.

"The brook moved quickly down the steep hill I trotted down ... well, it wasn't really Lebennin, come to think of it, but somewhat west of the Gap of Rohan, truth be told. At any rate, there I was, meandering along with the stream, when out jumped a .... well, nothing really jumped out, exactly, but the wind did pick up and blew a stick in front of Flithaf's nose and started him, and he shivered."

Eodwine stopped. Falco was puffing on his pipe, watching Eodwine with raised brows, looking none too trusting for some reason.

"Well, shivered isn't the right way to put it, not really."

Eodwine picked up his rather heavy looking cup of drink, which he wished had more hop in it, and took a sip, peeking over the brim at his listeners. Harreld was drumming his fingers on the table, a longsuffering expression on his face.

"He bucked me clean off."

"That's more like it," Falco said around his pipe.

"I fell head first into a puddle. Well, not-"

"Oh no you don't!" Garreth said. "You said puddle, so a puddle it is!"

"Well, so be it then," Eodwine smirked. "I fell head first into a two foot deep puddle."

"No puddle can be two foot deep," Garreth protested. "That has to be a .... um, what would you call it?" He looked to Harreld.

"Do not ask me! You were the one said it had to be a puddle!"

"Well, how wide was it?" Hama asked. "Five foot about?"

"Nay," said Falco. "Big enough to hold him toe to curls, and then some."

"Trough, then." offered Garreth.

"Pond," Harreld raised the ante.

"Muck hole," Hama grinned.

"Hog wallow," Falco grinned.

"Nothing of the kind!" Eodwine protested.

"It would have been had any hogs been there."

"And they were not, so no more about hogs. Pool it was, or pondlet, if you must."

"Pondlet it is," said Garreth, and he was ayed around the table.

Eodwine took the moment to wink at Gudryn, whose eyes bounced back from speaker to speaker trying to keep up with the badinage. She smiled back at him.

"Anyway, so there I was in the pondlet, and this halfling happened by at just that moment, and threw me a rope, as if I needed it."

"You was half drownded." Falco insisted.

"Nothing of the kind. I stayed put so you could feel useful."

"Nonsense!"

The two girls, Saeryn and Ayeth, walked back in the room, curious expressions on their faces over what they had missed.