[Nuranar]

When Luinien opened her eyes, she saw her baggage piled neatly against the door. Strangely enough, that innocuous sight sent her leaping out of bed and into her clothes. As she paced across the floor, grappling with the buttons that closed up her gown, she muttered disgustedly. Usually her inner clock was most reliable, waking her up on the dot just before dawn. Every so often, though, it chose to malfunction. And it would be the morning of their first day in Bree.

“What ho, sleepyhead!” Tarondo’s voice, muffled but still clear, came through the door.

“Come in!” she called to him, securing the last stubborn button with a quick twist of her fingers.

“I was beginning to wonder,” began her brother, but Luinien interrupted him.

“Never mind that. I’m up now. Is everyone else downstairs?”

“Veryadan, Osric, and the Rangers have already eaten, and I think Silrûth is nearly finished. Aidwain just came down. I think he may rival you in terms of sleeping late.”

Luinien gave a refined snigger. “I am not the one who slept through the meeting last night.”

“True, I had forgotten that.” Tarondo grinned, then sobered. “Thoronmir has been speaking to our landlord. Butterbur talked about some stolen livestock and a burned cornfield, and several others volunteered similar information.”

“That sounds like thieves. At least, the missing stock does.” Luinien stood before the small mirror, braiding her hair. She frowned at her reflection and at Tarondo, sitting on the bed behind her. “But burning crops? That’s simply destructive.”

“Maybe it was an accident.” Tarondo toyed absently with his bootlaces, then looked up. “Luinien, that man was in the common room again.”

“The one who tried to hide when we came in yesterday?” The Elf paused to consider. “I don’t see that it matters. Why shouldn’t he eat here?”

Tarondo sighed. “There is no reason. But he appeared both very tired and very wrought up in some way. There is probably no reason for concern, but I would like to keep it in mind. And do not forget that Menecar thought someone was outside the door last night.”

“I will remember it, and be careful,” Luinien assured him. “Are you hungry?”

“Famished, as usual,” he said, jumping up.

A thought struck her. “Wait a moment. If you have not eaten, what were you doing? Don’t tell me you were sleeping, too!”

“No, thank you, I was studying Veryadan’s maps. It has been some time since I have traveled in this area, and I wanted to get the lay of the land back into my mind.”

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

In the common room, Veryadan was reclining negligently at a somewhat bare table across from Aidwain, who was eating. When Tarondo and Luinien joined them, the serving girl remedied the table’s nakedness with plates of eggs and ham still hissing.

“Where are the others?” Tarondo inquired, between bites.

Veryadan gestured with his head. “Thoronmir got an earful from Butterbur, and then he announced to everyone in here. He and Menecar are over in the far corner right now, asking for details. Osric’s somewhere about. Oh, Butterbur came up and said he had someone else with news; Silrûth went over there with him.”

Luinien followed his pointing finger, and her eyes widened in surprise. “Tarondo, look!” said, in a hushed voice.

Her picked up his mug and drank, letting his eyes slide quickly to the far end of the bar. “Ah, the man in the shadows again. Very interesting.”

“Are you going to warn her?”

Tarondo was surprised. “If you mean, Shall I interrupt their conversation, of course not. But when she reports what he has to say, I shall simply keep in mind that he did not appear, shall we say, sympathetic to Elves and Rangers when we first saw him.”

Luinien nodded and quickly finished her meal. “I am going out to find some shops. I will probably find something I need, but I think that would be another good place to hear the news.”

“Very true. You may see me about later.”

Luinien nodded and left the Inn with her swift, silent stride. As she passed the pair at the bar, she caught Silrûth’s eye with a lightning admonition to be heedful.