In the Shadow of the Star: Part 1

[Child of the 7th Age]

Cami squirmed uncomfortably in her seat. "Not yet, not yet." She raised one hand and flipped her palm upward, as if tossing aside an unimportant detail that could be dealt with later.

To be truthful, Cami felt increasingly uncomfortable about her deception, but saw little alternative to secrecy. She knew Maura too well to think that her husband would be unaffected by what she would tell him. The balance they had achieved had come at great cost, and such a piece of news was sure to upset whatever peace of mind they had managed to wring out of the present situation, with its stipulation that they each return to their own time. Once again, Cami pushed Pio's words to the back of her mind, and told herself that she would deal with the problem later.

Neither did she feel comfortable with the tone and content of Pio's own response to her. She knew the Elf too well. Cami had no idea what secret her friend was hiding, but she was certain some dangerous plan was being hatched that Piosenniel and Mithadan had decided to keep secret. Cami knew that pressing and pleading would probably get her nowhere, but she resolved to do a bit of sleuthing on her own at the Inn to see if she could discover any hint of what was actually going on.

As she turned to go, she gave Pio a final piercing look, "Your twins are to be born in just a few days. Make sure Mithadan does not go rambling off on some errand away from the Inn. The Shire is too dangerous for him right now. It's not just the bandits. I truly wish I could tell you otherwise, but any hobbit who sees him could bcome frightened and take a swing with a pitchfork or shovel." With that, Cami left to go back to the kitchens and try to talk with Prim.

[ April 20, 2003: Message edited by: Child of the 7th Age ]