Hi! Here is a post for Willofain. Feel free to edit this to fit the story line, or let me know if you need something else. Regards - Chathol-linn
Willofain overhears the bandits outside the Hedge
Willofain never knew what made her follow Minastan’s wolfhound into the Chetwood. She thought it was a wonderful spy game, just as the Mayor had hinted. When Minastan took the note from Huan Vu’s red neckerchief and replaced it with one of his own, Willofain thought it was part of the fun. A secret!
She watched Huan Vu speed away from Minastan. Willofain followed as best she could, all the way back from the Chetwood to the Hedge. There she heard voices. It was dark but she could see from their silhouettes that they were four Big Folk. Willofain had never seen any of them before. They were each leading a horse. She heard the biggest one say, “Be careful what you do and say. Listen to the conversations around you on the streets; do not be afraid to talk to others. Find out everything you can, but be careful to hide your true identity.”
Willofain wondered, Why are you hiding who you are? She could not make it out what they meant to do. She decided to find Mayor Harald and tell him, and she slipped through the gap in the Hedge.
Now other voices came to her ears. This time the owners of the voices were both Big Folk and Little, and Willofain knew some of them from school.
"What are you doing?” she asked.
Kari explained, “We are helping Edmund save the bunnies from the stewpot. We brought them here and now we must get them some food and water.”
“Oh, I can help!” said Willofain, forgetting all about her message to the mayor. “Water, you say? Well, I can fetch that for them. Where shall I bring it?”
“Do you know the cave near the gap in the hedge?” said Edmund. “We’ve put them in there.”
“I will be back straight away,” said Willofain. She made off to get her water skins filled, and it was then that she came upon the smoldering embers left by the four Big Folk. The nearby leaves had caught fire and were burning.
“There are leaves everywhere!” exclaimed Willofain. Sure enough, the fire began to spread, and it raced downhill toward the cave where the children had hidden the conies. She ran toward the flames, trying to outpace them and give warning when suddenly she caromed into the legs of a Big boy and went flying backwards.
The Big boy came over and offered her a hand up. “I’m Will Farroweed,” he said. “You’re Willofain. You know the mayor, don’t you? Then I have a job for you.”
***
The night was darkest just before dawn. The fire at the Hedge was behind her, and its smoke still pained her eyes and made it hard to see. Few lights showed in the houses of Bree.
Harald, please be at home, Willofain thought as she ran through the dark streets.
She passed the house of Dantha, the mayor’s sweetheart, and continued up the graveled street to the stone house that was the mayor’s. To her joy a light shone through the upstairs window that overlooked the street and the town.
“Mayor Harald!” she cried in her little girl voice.
The window opened outward. “Who calls?”
“It is Willofain! O Mayor, there is a fire down town. Please let me in!”
Let her in! Harald was downstairs in an instant and nearly carried the girl upstairs to the kitchen. “Give me you news!”
And she did. “The fire is headed for the Hedge! And the girls and boys from school are in the cave with the conies,” she finished.
“What next,” he groaned. “Stay here!” Harald stormed outside and ran down the hill, shouting for Telien all the while.
Willofain was never one to follow orders, but she stayed long enough to search the kitchen for some food. She found a slice of cheese, the end of a loaf of bread, and some cool cider. She wolfed these down like Huan Vu, and then took after the mayor, catching up to him at the sign of the Prancing Pony.
“Fire!” he was roaring into the night.
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Chathol-linn -
Nice post! I divided it into 3 sections and posted each in where they fit best.
~*~ Pio
<font size=1 color=339966>[ 2:23 PM January 11, 2004: Message edited by: piosenniel ]
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