[Child of the 7th Age]

Hawthorne had spent the better part of the day helping Regin and the others gather the large rocks that they would need to finish off the fireplace in the Common Room. She had been in charge of driving the pony cart back to the Inn once the boulders were all loaded into the rear of the wagon. But she had also done her fair share of lifting and hauling. Her arms and shoulders ached, but the feeling was not unpleasant or overbearing. It was merely a constant reminder of the hard work they were doing.

In the course of all this lifting and lugging, she had discovered that she did have one special talent. Since Hawthorne was the only hobbit regularly assigned to rock hauling duty, Regin invariably turned to her to dig out those boulders that were deeply embedded in the dirt. Descended from long generations of hobbits who dug down and tunnelled into the ground to make their homes, Hawthorne could do this job better than any of the others, even those folk much larger than herself.

Regin had given the crew a break, making them promise they would come back in a few hours to continue their chores. Overjoyed to have a few moments to spend on her special project, Hawthorne had quickly disappeared down the road, headed for a wooded grove that lay about a mile distant. An hour later, she re-emerged on the grounds of the Inn, carrying baskets and pails spilling over with more of the plants and small bushes she would need.

She had built the beds up high as Samwise had advised her to do, and enclosed them with a wattle fence. She had organized the small garden in the best way that she could: one section for medicinal herbs; another for kitchen and seasoning agents, and the final section for small vegetable and salad plants. This garden had a far different purpose than the gay flowers that graced the beds directly in front of the Dragon, which another guest had recently planted.

Today she had been looking for medicinal herbs. Her arms were ladden down with an assortment of different plants: Liquorice, comfrey, St. John's wort, feverfew, garlic, Hollyhock, valeria, echenacea, and jewelweed, the latter of which was so effective against skin irritations caused by poisonous plants. For the next hour, Hawthorne worked on planting the tiny seedlings, making sure they were well watered and there were no weeds in the beds.

She had just finished her chore and was hoping to pick up something to eat when she heard Regin ringing the Inn's new bell, the sign that they should gather again for rock hauling duty. Dusting the dirt off her hands and skirts, she pushed her curls behind her ears and ran out to where the workers were gathering.