[piosenniel]

Gilly stepped nearer Rose, her eyes wide. Taking her cue from her friend, she blinked back tears that threatened to roll down her cheeks. Mithadan had frightened her with the intensity of his anger. Her lower lip quivered, but she pushed her chin out in an attitude of defiance and looked him straight in the face.

‘I haven’t abandoned Mistress Piosenniel or the babies. I’m looking out for them right now. It’s you they need, not me.’ She stepped toward, him her voice a little firmer. ‘Begging your pardon, Mister Mithadan, but we Hobbits aren’t as helpless as you Big Folk seem to think. We can take care of ourselves, in our own way. And as for ‘allowing’ Shiriff Halfred to handle this task – well, I don’t really think that’s up to you, is it? After all he’s our Shiriff and we all know his limits. We would never think he could handle this all on his own, so we’ll all help him out to see it done.’

She looked up at him gauging the effect of her words on him. Taking courage from the fact that he had not yelled at her again, she stepped forward and touched him lightly on his sleeve, ‘Perhaps I don’t understand because I’m not one of the Big Folk, and maybe I don’t see the larger picture that you and Mistress Piosenniel do, but when you say you and Miz Bird are the only ones of your race who care enough about us to place yourselves in danger and help us, I wonder why you think we would want you to abandon your own family to do this. Not that I’m ungrateful that you would offer your help, but you didn’t ask if we needed you to do this for us, and at such cost.

‘It seems to me you place them in danger by being away from them. You’ve left them unprotected from the threat of ruffians in the Shire. Left them to the protection of the Shiriff you so dislike. Surely Mistress Piosenniel cannot be expected to take up her sword and defend herself and her babies alone. I know Mistress Piosenniel is depending on me, and I’ll go back, to be with her. But you should be there, too, Mister Mithadan.’

Gilly stepped away from him and finding Rose’s hand, gripped it tightly. Mithadan was very quiet, and she was grateful he had not lashed out at her again. A light evening breeze had sprung up and the two Hobbits huddled together, shivering.

‘He can’t expect us to turn around and head back to the Inn in the dark, can he? whispered Gilly to her friend . . .