The Golden Perch Inn

[MaskedNicci]

Alassë had not been sitting long, when Elorn returned to seat himself nearby her in a quiet thoughtfulness, as though he was trying to find something to say. This idea struck Alassë as very comforting, as that would mean she was not the only one with difficulty coming up with this foolish small-talk that humans seemed to enjoy so much. Turning her attention from the girl at the window, she watched Elorn with cold intensity, and regarded him with quiet question; when something strange happened. As they sat there in silence together, her suspicious and mistrusting gaze altered to a queer, almost child-like curiosity to his thoughts. In wonder, she asked herself what she knew about this man. What was his past? What was his future, as he saw it? What was he thinking? She enjoyed this nearly companionable silence, seeing it as a rare moment of pleasant social behavior on her part.

Unfortunately, the silence did not - and could not - last, and Elorn added verbal topic between them, to her inner dismay. "How often do you come to the Shire?” He asked, and if Alassë wasn't mistaken, there was a strange tone to his voice. It wasn't a terrible bad voice, nothing compared to her own kind, to be sure. But it did carry a certain quality she couldn't place. It reminded her of something - someone. “This is my first time seeing these parts, and I probably wont be staying long.”

Putting forth a front of indifference, she gave the smallest of shrugs, turning her gaze back to the girl near the window. "My second time. Before was brief, and long ago. I plan on staying as long as I stay." She took a small sip, then contemplated a moment, before asking, "I come here for reasons unknown even to myself. What is your purpose, if I may intrude so?"

Alassë felt strange - had she just given out free information to this stranger? Unthinkable! She hadn't given undeserved facts about herself since she was a youngster! Granted, she was still quite young either way, but it had been a great deal of time since she had stated her purpose without due cause to.

[Finduilas]

Luckily the Alasse didn’t seem too insulted by his question, and she even returned with a question.

“Oh, I was just picked up for a messenger. Some random person wanted some random message delivered to a random hobbit name Maggot,” he replied.

Elorn again lapsed into silence. What were you supposed to say to someone you don’t know, in a country you don’t know enough to talk about, when you business wasn’t even your business?

Apparently the dwarf was still causing some sort of trouble, but Elorn felt like ignoring him, so ignore him he did. After all, the dwarf had been getting plenty of attention.

[Newsman]

Vehil looked away in an effort to veil his frustration. This was far from the response he had hoped for, it almost seemed like Nienna was tormenting him with this. Yet he turned and acted like nothing had happened, a faint smile on his lips as he reached into his pouch. "You needn't worry, I respect your secrecy." He pulled out a plant and tore off a small portion which he offered to Nienna. "Eat this, it will help."

Shortly after Nienna took it, Vehil could see the effects, her eyes were heavy with sleep. Just what he needed, it would make the job easier for the healer, it was always easier if the patient were sleeping. He thumbed one of his knives absent-mindedly. How easy it would be to simply cut her throat, he thought. Yet he quickly banished it, he had nothing that pointed to her as having anything to do with Maikaalph's disappearance. Besides, finding a dead elf and himself gone would make his search all the more difficult.

Once Nienna's eyes slid shut, Vehil quietly shut the door and moved toward the common room. He noticed someone go by toward the room who he assumed was the healer. The faint din of the common room grew louder as he entered. Luriniel shot him a suspicious stare, which he gave a look of ease in response to. She had nothing to fear from him.

Vehil headed toward the door to get some fresh air and try to figure out what his next plan of action would be. Yet a booming voice stopped him in his tracks. "Vehil! There's an elf I'm glad to see." Vehil recognized the voice and turned to respond. "Master Fain," he began as he headed toward the tables to the dwarf. "It is a great pleasure to see you. What brings you here?" Vehil asked.

"The same reason that you are here I'll wager, looking for your brother." Vehil sat down slowly, "So where should we begin?"

[MaskedNicci]

She pondered the mental image of Elorn muttering and giving a message to a small hobbit. Maggot...an interesting name...but then again, hobbits did have a way of naming themselves strange things.

Alasse felt the silence between them this time was different, it was more tense and awkward. It was, in a strange way, one of the worst feelings Alasse had experienced in quite some time. She shrugged again, secretly wishing the gesture would tip off the strange, overbearing weight on her shoulders, as though she could just let go of the strange silence.

"Well.." She mumbled for a moment, "I suppose, since odd introductions are out of the way, and we've discussed our business, the proper thing to do would be to converse in some nonsensical talk of our interests?" It was more thinking out loud than an actual question, but she turned askance to him either way. "I don't understand art, I'm no good at cooking, and I'm no good at talking without a purpose." She allowed a crooked smile to adorn her features momentarily, "I suppose I'm exactly what humans would call, 'unromantic'. But then, these aren't times to be romantic, in all honesty. Too much opportunity for foolishness already."

[Elfchick7]

Luriniel hurried into the room where Nienna was. When she arrived, she found Nienna fast asleep and the healer cleaning the wound.

"How long has this girl carried the wound?" the healer asked.

"I am not sure. It was not until four days ago that I learned of it and by that time it was very infected as you see now. My sister does not like to trouble me and so she kept the injury a secret."

"Do you know what caused the wound?"

"Yes. The injury was caused by an orc arrow."

"Then it probably was touched by poison. I will mix a poultice that will draw the poison out." as he began putting different ingredients in a mortar and mixed them with a pestle, he continued, "Apply this every three hours. When the wound starts to look less green and more pink, take the ordinary healing herbs and make a compress for it. If the wound does not begin to clear in three days, send for me again."

"Thank you." she said, removing some gold pieces and holding them out to him, "Take this for your trouble."

"Pay me when she is healed. I will be by as soon as I can to assure that she is healing properly. She needs a good bit of rest. I'll move her to the be before I go. Do not let her move about if it can be avoided."

The healer lifted Nienna and set her on the bed. Luriniel, who had turned down the blankets, was now tucking her sister comfortably in them. She walked the healer out of the Inn and turned to rejoin her sister. Just as she was about to leave the room she heard the new dwarf mention Vehil's brother.

Remembering how much Vehil had originally struck her as resembling Maikaalph, she walked over to them.

"Pardon me for interrupting, but I couldn't help but overhear that you were in search of someone. It leads me to wonder, Vehil, if you are perhaps related to the elf Maikaalp and if he might be the one you are seeking."

[Forest Elf]

Gable took a deep breath to calm herself as fear made her heart beat quickly. Slowly she pushed the wolf off of her and turned around. There were five wolves, the one that she had rescued long ago and the four others with barred fangs and blood lust gleaming in their eyes. Finally calming herself, she prepared herself to run if they decided to come much closer.

Gable took a step back and looked around to see if anyone was coming down the road. She couldn’t see anyone, yet. Then she looked around for something to use to protect herself from them, the only thing that she could see was a limb that was too big and too heavy for anyone to lift, unless there were two or three men doing it.

One of the wolves howled and they began to circle around Gable. Gable took a step back, desperate not to be surrounded. The wolf that had jumped up on Gable snarled at the other wolves, the looked at Gable hesitantly. With a quick growl from a wolf that just stepped out of the bushes, they began to form a circle around Gable again.

[mormegil]

Kuric paced the room furiously kicking any object in his way. He had already torn the bed apart and tipped over the night stand in search of his precious ring. With constant stream of mutters curses he searched on, hoping beyond all hope that his ring would be found in his room or that some clue would point to where it had gone. "Naw, it could be missing," Kuric spoke to himself, "The necklace is still here." He thought perhaps he had left it in the wash room and he made a quick dash in that direction but on his way he vividly remembered removing it and placing it next to the necklace.

This recollection sent a fresh wave of fury through him and he charged off to his room, so infuriated he was, that he punched the nearest wall with his spiked glove driving the spikes deep into the timber.

"It's okay lad," he told himself "ye'll figure it out, stop and think for a moment." He promptly cooled himself every so slightly and afforded him a moment of clear thought.

Upon hearing somebody at his door he barked "Come in!" Hoping that somebody was coming to tell him his ring had been found. The door slowly opened and a very nervous and reticent Tollers appeared. Kuric could hear the tenseness on his voice when he asked, Master Dwarf, so sorry to bother you, but something else has gone missing. Five children....the ones who live just across from you....their mother says they've been gone all day, and I'm trying to help find them. I've been up and down every floor with no luck. You wouldn't have seen them by any chance?" Before Kuric had a chance to explain that right now he didn't care that a couple hobbit children were missing, Tollers spoke again, “You know maybe the same person who stole your Ring has also made off with these children...."

Kuric instantly made the connection and his heart was somewhat softened at the thought. While he had a gruff exterior he truly cared for the welfare of kids. He thought of the poor hobbit children in the clutches of some ruffians and became even more determine. "Lad, this may be worse than we thought." He said caringly. "We had best sound the alarm and search for them."