[Noinkling]

Before going to bed, Tolly had gone out to check on his pony. Benny enjoyed these nightly visits from his owner . . . there was the lovely scratching between the ears, the soft words, and of course, the tasty carrot, or apple, or better yet, a sugar lump. Benny nosed about in Tolly’s pockets until he’d ferreted out the treat. No! Treats plural. A sugar lump in his cloak pocket, and an apple in his breeches. Keleth had come out with the Hobbit, wanting to stretch his legs a bit before going to bed. He sat on one of the hay bales, watching Tolly and Benny.

As they walked back toward the Inn, Tolly looked toward the west with a smile just seen under the spare moon. ‘G’night, my dear,’ he said, then laughed a bit at Keleth’s look of surprise. ‘We always say goodnight to each other,’ he explained, my dear wife, Blossom, and I. I mentioned her when you asked if I were courting anyone.’ Tolly laughed again. ‘My stars she’d be laughing, too at the question.’ He looked thoughtful for a moment, ‘Though of course, being married, if you really work at it, or so I’ve discovered is a lifetime of courting each other.’

The two had gotten back to the warmth of the Common Room and stood shaking off the icy rain that had just started from their cloaks. Keleth had insisted on a last round of drink. ‘Something warm,’ he’d said, taking a chair by the small fire in the hearth. ‘Let’s have a bit of tea, then. Laced with honey and a drop of Bywater brandy. Good for sleeping.’ Tolly pulled out his pipe as he sat near Keleth and offered his pouch of Southern Star to his companion. ‘Here, take a pipeful. I’ll be back in a trice with the tea.’

The door to the Common room blew open with the wind and rain, allowing in an odd group of folk who looked about the room with suspicion. As Tolly and Keleth watched they made their way to where Aman stood, wiping up the last of the cups. An odd lot, the two companions agreed as they puffed on their pipes.

‘I think I’ll make my way to bed,’ said Tolly, knocking the ashes from his pipe into the fireplace. Two cups of the special tea had made him quite drowsy and he noted Keleth was yawning, too. ‘I’ll see you at breakfast, then,’ he called as he made his way to the back of the Inn where the nice, snug Hobbit rooms were. ‘There’re still a few tables to be moved out to the lawn . . . after that we can relax and watch the lasses pretty them up with the cloths and flowers and all.’ He waved goodnight to a widely yawning Buttercup as he passed by her. ‘And of course, we should test the ale . . . make sure, you know, that it’s up to the high standards of a Hobbit party.’ He nodded to Keleth who had gone toward his own room. ‘See you then . . .’