The Green Dragon Inn #11 - The Last Chapter

[Undómë]

‘Of course you may join us.’ Telu put her hand on Farael’s arm to make him pause. He had a certain look on his face, soon smoothed over – as if he preferred not to have the company of Losse.

By the One! This being with him is a tricky thing. And a thing I’ve had no practice in. I’ve stepped over some bound, though what it is I’m not sure.

She took the jeweled hairpin the woman had given her and reaching forward, pinned back a stray strand of Losse’s hair. ‘There – now you’re dressed for the party!’ Telu stepped back, looking at the little gems as they glittered in the lights from the lanterns. ‘Farael,’ she grinned at him, linking her arm through his. ‘Lead on to the lemonade, won’t you?’

[JennyHallu]

‘Lead on to the lemonade, won’t you?’

With a smile at the man that promised mischief she took his other arm, waving gaily at the hobbit server to indicate her new table. She shook her thick chestnut hair, delighted with the way her new gift felt in her locks.

And a gift...this Lady is just determined to let nothing rain on her parade, is she? Well, with such brazen innocence Losse would not contend. Telu's person was sacred, for now, and now Losse would not touch her. A gift...The woman's generousity had defeated her, the cleverest, most lightfingered girl in all Minas Tirith, and that wasn't completely ego. The man however...she could still use some coin, and she had a feeling the evening would be very fun indeed.

She smiled joyfully to herself, catching a glimpse of her reflection in a polished mug. The elven-star in her hair glimmered brighter even than her mischievous eyes...a generous gift indeed. I'll have to remember not to use it for a lock-pick, she thought suddenly, with a guilty thought of the plain metal hairpins already in her hair, bent into odd and unrecognizable shapes by her particular hobbies...

[Farael]

"Great, just what I needed. I thought elves were wise beyond the understanding of men but to invite this girl, of all people, to join us? I guess there is nothing I can do about it." Farael's eyes opened wide and he checked the little bag of coins, the only remaining money he had left. They were still there.

What was he to do? He couldn't ruin the night for Teluyaviel. Her brother was quite intent on forcing her to leave the following morning. In the mean time, the women were talking quite animatedly while enjoying the lemonade. This thief girl was quite happy with her new hairpin. She was quite happy with her new harpin indeed. A smile dawned upon Farael's lips. He couldn't hurt this young lady, he couldn't tell her to go away without having to give Teluyaviel an explanation but with a smile and a quick bow he excused himself only to come back a few minutes later. He joined in the conversation and politely asked Telu's new friend where she was from.

[JennyHallu]

Losse's meal, a steaming hot pastry redolent with the delicious aromas of meat and vegetables, arrived just as the young man, whose name she gathered was Farael asked her of her origins. With a grin she quickly wolfed down a large first bite, fanning her mouth with her hand as she realized the hard way how hot it was.

"Sorry, excuse me, it's been a long trip from Bree and I can't cook for the life of me," she mumbled around the crust. Hastily she swallowed, washed it down expertly with a swig of the ale she'd already ordered, and settled in cheerfully to relate her tale, with only minor...erm...embellishments. She loved a good story, and hers was much better the way she told it than the way it was...

"My mother's name was Estuilas, and she was a great lady of the court Prince Imrahil of Dol Amroth." Estuilas had been a rather silly young noblewoman, who despite her Numenorean ancestry, had not really been considered important enough to keep close to the court.

"My father was a famed bandit of the mountains, who swept my mother off her feet with grand schemes of love and honor, and spirited her away into hiding." Actually this part was mostly true, except for the fame, love, and honor bits. Benden was certainly a bandit, with some notoriety in the pastoral lands he frequented, but it was lust that made him keep Estuilas as well as her horse, as well as a certain dose of expediency: the horse, a mare of the Rohirrim, was a great deal more valuable than the girl.

"And I grew up in Minas Anor, the city of the Sun, in a house on the walls, looking out over the verdancy of the Pellinor Fields. My mother taught me the ways of the nobility, and the lore of the Numenoreans, and my father taught me....other things." She winked at Farael. "My parents died when orcs flung flame over the walls...but I was young, and the King returned, and all of Gondor was rejoicing. I suppose I fell through the cracks..." This, strangely enough, was entirely true. Laws had become somewhat lax in Minas Tirith through the rule of Denethor, and houses built against the walls were definitely illegal. Thus, only the very poor lived there. Benden, while he didn't exactly love his common law wife, was good to her, and doted rather possessively upon his lovely little girl, but still, if someone realized who she really was...no one had searched for Estuilas in all those years, but a life of banditry leaves a man with a certain paranoia, so his family had not been evacuated with the rest of the women and children. After their deaths a girl had to make a living somehow, and in a city filled with soldiers in the aftermath of war...there were worse ways. Losse's narrative paused here, as a tear twinkled at the corner of her eye, but she swept it away and continued with a grin, forking another far-too-large chunk of pastry.

"...And about a year ago, I decided my education could not be complete without a more thorough knowledge of the world. It seemed...prudent." She winked again at Farael.