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The shadows of the day lengthened and Indy and Fungrim made their way back to the new Inn, ready for the party. Fungrim had plaited his beard, a design which seemed to fascinate the young girl. He was cleaned and his clothes were neat. Meanwhile, one of the hobbit women took note of Indy's condition and dragged the poor girl off.
"No! No! I don't wanna take a bath! I'm fine, I like it like this!" she protested, her feet dragging. She turned pleadingly to Fungrim. "Fuuungriiim!" she whined, "Tell her that she can't make me take any stinkin' bath!"
Fungrim laughed heartily, his eyes twinkling. "If I have to clean up, so do you!" he teased her in response. That was all she heard before being dragged upstairs. The woman led her to a small washroom and quickly put her in the oval tub, soaking her from head to toe. She scrubbed and scrubbed, taking off what seemed to be layers of grime, nearly as stubborn as Indy herself who pouted and sulked in the water.
Finally, Indy re-emerged with a pleased-looking hobbit. With a warning to not get dirty again and the promise of another bath if she did, Indy was released. Her hair was shiny and clean, and partially pulled back by a red ribbon. She wore a red dress with sleeves that reached to her elbows and what appeared to be a corset of a pale white around her middle. The only consolance for her was that she had not been forced to wear shoes.
Trudging over to Fungrim, she pulled herself up to the chair and sat down with a dramatic flourish, folding her hands on the table and setting her chin down on top. "I didn't need a bath. I'm just gonna get dirty again anyway!" she said.
"Well Indy, it's the way things are. You have to take a bath. Sometimes you have to do things that you don't want to, it's life." he told her in a matter-of-fact manner.
"Traitor!" she said, glaring at him. Her brow was drawn low over her large, expressive eyes which were at the moment half-squinted. Her lower lip pouted out slightly, and she had an overall air of being miffed about her. Put together, she looked like a tiny, angry bull. Fungrim chuckled at the image as he drank from his mug. "What are you laughing at?" she accused.
"Well lass, it's just that I can't tell if you're a little girl or a bull, what with that face." he answered. Indy sat up indignantly, her mouth open and her eyes wide. The dwarf laughed again. "Do you have any horns under that clean head of yours?" he asked with raised eyebrows.
As indignant as she felt and as stubborn as she was about making sure Fungrim knew how indignant she felt, she felt a smile tugging at her mouth. In a moment, she broke out laughing, the sound ringing out like the spring cry of a robin. Fungrim echoed her laughter, his voice a deep but matching partner for her child's voice. "I don't have any horns, but watch out, I'm a big, bad, wolf! Rarrr!" she said cheerfully, raising her hands like claws and making a snarling mouth with a crinkled nose, complete with a matching smile and giggle. The party had just begun and already Indy felt wound up and giddy.
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