Somewhat reassured, Niniel half-smiled. For once, she wasn't immediately disliked and distrusted. But how to answer Elwen's question? How she became a thief was as much a mystery to her as it was to Elwen and Soronume.
"I--I don't know. All--all I know is that I--that I am. I know i-i-it must sound odd, but I--but I don't remem--remember anything of my life before--before my sixteenth year. Sometimes, I have--I have horrible dreams. All--all about fire, and--and loss, and fear. I--I always wake--wake up with my cheeks wet with--with tears." Tears were the least of it. She would wake screaming, in a cold sweat.
Then she asked, "A--another thief? A--a hobbit? I--I'm afraid that I--I haven't heard of anyone who--who's gone over--gone over the sea."
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