Here's a sketchy idea for the Forest Fire:
It needs to be in a place not too far from the town - something easily accessible by the children.
The Old North Road comes down from Fornost (the southern tip of the North Downs). It is the road used by the Dunedain in the early Third Age on their travels from Fornost, the chief city of Arthedain down to Tharbad and then to Gondor.
The north Road passes through the North Gate of Bree. The children could pass out there and up to a moderately large sized copse of trees and underbrush along the western edge of Bree Hill (where there could be some small old shallow caves or burrows).
The 'desperados', the displaced men from the far north and east of Bree can be situated in the Weather Hills and possibly have sent out a small group to see how the pickings were in Bree-land and how easy it might be to get into the town of Bree itself. They can have a small camp in the wooded area that the children go to, from which they are trying to determine how easy it would be to get in the North Gate.
Their carelessness can start the fire (a hasty retreat - not wanting to be seen or caught . . . the cause of the fire might rouse some suspicions as to who might have actually set it).
One or two of the children can have lagged behind and when they go to join their comrades (either as Hobbits to have fun, or as bullies to make trouble)they can spot the fire and run for help.
It would probably be easiest to rescue the children from the hill above the cave (bringing them up by rope sling) - though it might be interesting to have one or two that are not in the cave and have to be found and brought to the rescue site.
It would probably be good to dig a fireline betweenthe southern edge of the fire and the northern edge of the dike and hedge that are the defense of the town.
[ August 28, 2003: Message edited by: piosenniel ]
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Eldest, that’s what I am . . . I knew the dark under the stars when it was fearless - before the Dark Lord came from Outside.
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