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Old 04-06-2005, 07:45 AM   #329
Ealasaide
Shadow of Tyrn Gorthad
 
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Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: The Fencing Lyst
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Benia

As the column of smoke from the pyre of Barrold Ferny dropped farther into the distance behind them, the small party of man, woman, and two hobbits moved leisurely toward the west and the steep trails through the Misty Mountains back toward Rivendell. With Toby still not in peak form and the rest of them tired to their bones despite their lightened spirits, they traveled only a short distance each day, camping in the late afternoon and getting underway again well after sunrise the following day. Evenings around the campfire were spent merrily in storytelling and song. On more than one occasion, Benia wished for the little brass finger cymbals that remained in her pack back in the Elven refuge of Rivendell, letting her voice rise unaccompanied as she sang songs from the Southern deserts and her childhood for the first time since that unfortunate evening in the Forsaken Inn. Nonetheless, despite her joy, Benia watched her companions closely with a mixture of affection and concern as they traveled. Toby seemed to be mending well, though slowly, and Gilly’s mood seemed to improve with each step as every mile drew her that much closer to a reunion with her beloved husband and sons.

One evening, Benia found Dúlrain standing on the edge of their camp, gazing into the southern distance where his captain and the others no doubt still pursued the Ravener to whatever end, his dark brow clouded with worry and deep thought. At a touch from her hand, he smiled and rejoined the rest of them at the fire, but she could tell that his thoughts still strayed to the chase. He had agreed to relinquish the idea of revenge, but she knew that the knowledge Naiore Dannan was still at large troubled him deeply. His sense of duty was strong and, while other obligations -- and perhaps his heart -- kept him with her at the moment, she knew that he would feel the inescapable pull of duty so long as Naiore remained free to wreak her havoc upon the peoples of Middle Earth. He was still not fully recovered from the wounds he had received in the Lone Lands and the weeks since then had been demanding on both his body and his soul, but Benia was determined not to release him from her sight until he had fully regained his strength. When that time came, she knew she must let him go to pursue his duty in the service of his king, but she also knew that she would follow him as far as she could and wait for his return to her arms with the unshakable faith of her love.

Seeing her looking at him, Dúlrain reached out and touched her shoulder. She smiled. A long road lay between them and Rivendell, and the future that would take him away again. She would enjoy the moment, she decided. After all, there was no point in frittering away a happy present in worry about the future. Gilly, on the other hand, was already looking to the future, prating away happily to an interested Toby about Bywater and the Shire. She wondered if Toby would return to the Shire with Gilly and cash in on his status with the hobbit ladies as the One Who Got Away, possibly even settle down with one of them, or if he would return to Bree and his old ways. It would be interesting to find out. She was certain that Gilly would keep her informed to the best of her knowledge as to what the good Mr. Longholes was up to. Quite a friendship seemed to have taken root there. As for herself? She was happy. The future could descend upon them all, however and with whatever tidings it chose to bring along, once they reached Rivendell, but for the moment? With the exception of her finger cymbals, Benia had all that she required.

Last edited by Ealasaide; 05-04-2006 at 08:52 AM.
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