[Nurumaiel]

Celebgaladhgwend sat down at a table, a plate of food in her hand. She gave a soft sigh, and flung up her hood over her head. If her brother was at the inn, she didn't want him to recognize her. She began to eat, her dark eyes scanning the room. I suppose it's too much to hope there is someone from Gondor here, she thought. Besides myself and my brother, of course. If my brother is here at all.

Her eyes rested on a hobbit girl, looking no more than seven years of age. Her brown tangled curls fell down to her waist, and her large brown deer eyes gazed at Galadh in wonder and interest. When she saw she had been caught staring, she blushed and ducked her head, turning around and beginning to wolf down her breakfast. A few minutes passed, and the girl slowly turned her head. Seeing that Galadh was still watching her, she was about to turn back to her food again when the Gondorian girl gave her a bright smile. She almost smiled back, then a rebellious look appeared on her face and she whirled around to finish eating.

Galadh shook her head, her black hair tossing about. Just like my younger brother, she thought, laughing silently to herself. Wanting to be friendly, thinking about being friendly, and deciding not to because she, or he, wants to be appear 'tough.' But she's different than my brother somehow. Galadh looked closely at the girl She looks like she wants desperately to be friendly, but she's afraid I won't be friendly back. Poor thing. She must have had a hard past. Like me.

Galadh blushed and ducked her head. No one had heard her, but it embarrassed her to think that way, because she hadn't had a hard past. Just one that was rather… difficult. No one would be able to tell by looking at her, but she was a girl who desperately wanted to let loose her tongue and tell every hardship that had come into her life, only she was afraid she'd tell the wrong person, and only be laughed at. She didn't even dare tell one of her family. Not even one of her closest friends back home. Nobody understood.

She finished her meal and sat back, smiling to herself, to watch the hobbit girl. Well, if she wanted to play a game of hide and seek, so be it. If the girl glanced at her, she'd look away so it didn't appear she had been watching, and then look back and try to catch the girl at it. If you play with a child, they'll immediately warm up to you, Galadh thought. At least, that's the way it was with my family. And I think I'll let this game go on until the girl leaves, or I find my brother, or someone -she looked around for a friendly face- pays some attention to me. And so the game begun.