A/N: Yay! Beta-read and reposted. Hopefully it's better now even though I've got some encouraging words about the progress I've made. I promise, Anila, I'll work on the problem you've mentioned :D

Chapter Twelve: New Danger Ahead

or: Could it be worse before it gets better?

I stopped writing, my eyes riveted to the man that had arrived so suddenly at our camp. The scouts had never returned in such haste and they had never rushed to Ghân upon locating him among the men either. And then there was the expression on his face that I did not like at all. Worry, even alarm. Something big must have happened - but where was the second scout?

I strained my ears to hear what he had to say. Ghân was listening intently, his brows knitting together with every word uttered by the scout, looking more and more concerned by what he was told. Achâk was nearby, his face too betraying worry. I admit it alarmed me for I'd never seen them like this – they were usually the rock I leaned on and not the concerned men in need of some support themselves.

'What's the matter? What's going on?'

The other men too stopped their hushed conversations and listened to the news. They obviously learned more than me. The rapid speech made words blur together into unrecognizable sound patterns. I attempted to stayed calm – at least outwardly, even though I was dying to know what was going on. My eyes darted from the scout to the expressions of his listeners, trying in vain to read their faces for more information. I could feel that I was loosing the proverbial ground under my feet and found myself upon the edge of a knife – I was convinced deep in my heart that something big had happened. The protective circle the men formed unconsciously around our camp made me rise up too. The papers lay forgotten at my feet while I clutched at the ends of the blanket like it would help to disperse the cold creeping into my soul.

What I had understood did not reveal much, but the problem was somehow connected to the beacons… That titbit of information was clear enough, I believed, but I could not guess what exactly was wrong with them. Was it the guards? Or something else on the road that was causing them trouble? I knew not, but the men exchanged few hushed words while the scout finished his report. Whatever trouble awaited us further on our road affected Ghân's plans – at least of that I was sure.

Achâk and Ghân both thanked the man soon after I stood up, and called to their side two of the older hunters. It seemed I would have to ask Nawat what had happened since nobody had bothered to tell me anything. I wished I could roll my eyes in annoyance for I was left in the dark about the problem our scouts had stumbled upon, but I could not – fear being the main emotion directing my actions at the time. I knew that a short and censored version of the report would be given to me much later – probably when they had dragged me away and everything was already under control. As much as I liked to be protected, I wanted to have at least some say in the events playing out. I hated feeling helpless.

It was clear our stay here was over in any case, so it was time to prepare to hit the road again. At least here I was of some use for I could help to pack. If we were turning back towards my home I would have been overjoyed, but I now knew these men well enough to know that it was not an option to them – they would find a new way past trouble on the road. Even if the 'problem' scared them like their faces told me it did.

Stubborn… Headstrong…My only chance at survival…

I moved towards Nawat who was talking with one of the younger men in a hushed voice. The small wooden bowl covered with leather and filled with black poison was strapped to his belt and he held one of the smaller bows in his hand. A quick look at other men confirmed my gut feeling that we were in serious trouble. They hid the bowls with the poison (that I was forbidden to touch) during the day in the folds of their clothing, but now they all had them revealed. I could only assume that they intended to use it on their arrows – whoever found themselves at the receiving end had a zero chance of survival. I shuddered and tentatively moved towards Nawat. I was not so sure I wished to know what was wrong. People do say that ignorance can be bliss – I agreed at the moment. However, I wouldn't be who I was if I backed away then, so I moved forward.

Nawat suddenly turned around and made my heart jump in fright as he had whirled around suddenly and without warning. My instinctual reaction was to back away and slightly to the side and consequently I bumped into one of the other men moving around.

"I'm sorry," I quickly apologized, and turned around again to Nawat who nodded to the man with two dark beads in his long hair. It seemed their conversation was over.

"Megan," he said and gestured to me to come even closer so his voice could be lowered as much as possible. I could practically feel the tension roll of his dark skin.

"What's going on?" I asked directly, pushing away the last vestiges of the fright and clutching the warm covers around my shoulders. He turned his face towards his father for a second in an almost instinctual move – to get instruction about me, I guess – then gently took me by my upper arm to turn me around and away from the men who were still discussing the events while the scout got something to eat from the leftovers.

"Get everything packed as fast as possible," said Nawat in the same hushed voice he used before. I could feel his warm breath on my cheek as I tried to look at him in the corner of my eye when he hurriedly moved me towards the packs. The strong grip I slowly started to get used to being subjected to made me realise how surprisingly strong he was while being gentle at the same time. I guess I was a bit floored by his handling of my person too – Nawat's people touched each other repeatedly from morning to evening, completely ignorant of many things people from my world would frown upon.

"But whatever is the matter?" I still demanded when he released me beside the packs under one tree. He could see the questions in my eyes, but still seemed to hesitate. I will not be so easily put aside, damn it! I thought with bite. They were afraid for God's sake! I had to know!

"Wolves," he said suddenly with a tone in his voice that I'd never heard from him before.

"Whaa… What?" I stuttered, not sure I heard right at first. Wolves? Here? But then it hit me like a ton of bricks. There were wolves in these woods – Middle Earth wolves in service of the Dark Lord! Holy Mother of a… Not those monsters! NO!

He couldn't be right; not when we were so close to our destination, I thought. I was scared shitless. It was almost even more frightening than facing Orcs. My aunt had been bitten by a dog once and she was scared of bigger canines ever since. I guess I could share her sentiments now – I felt animals were more unpredictable than human-like Orcs. At least I could delude myself that they could be reasoned with or bribed – a big IF, but that was my foolish opinion nonetheless.

"Wolves?" I gulped and from the look in his eyes I knew he was aware I comprehended the seriousness of our situation completely. A small nod was the only answer I got but it felt like I'd been doused with cold water. His dark eyes were like two black stones and I realised he was a warrior now, not the friendly brotherly man I got to know in the last few days. I have to be strong now too… I swallowed the bile fear made rise in my throat and got my weak knees under a semblance of control before I replied in the most controlled and serious tone of voice I could manage. "I see," I said and closed my mouth in a grim line.

Nawat's eyes lost some of their ice. "Go and help pack the things – let me worry about the Wolves," he said. I believe my reaction and impression of control when he knew I was scared shitless made him trust me to be okay alone.

"I will," I replied and he moved away swiftly. I followed him with my eyes for a few moments then balled my hands into fists to prevent them from shivering with the adrenaline flowing in my veins.

By all that is holy… why was it me that got here? Why not some super muscular Seal or GI for instance?! Wolves! Those big monsters described as super intelligent and malicious in the books! Heaven help me – I will never return back home!

I could feel tears of desperation gather in my eyes so I quickly began to collect dirty dishes, knives… whatever needed a wash before it could be put away. I had to be alone for a few moments to get myself under control again, even though I felt it was foolish to go too far from the men at the time.

Experience told me that things should have been packed by now if we had not decided to wait for the scouts to return. It was customary for the men to do things right away. I guess everyone wanted a few hours of true rest before tackling the road again, so nobody had bothered to lift a finger until now. Now they were packing their things; one extinguished the fire and began to put dirt over the charred remains of the logs… The four older and more experienced men were still huddled together, talking things through in hushed voices.

In no time at all I had my hands full of wooden mugs, bowls and other things that needed a wash. Good thing I knew how to balance things after my summer job – I was nervous as hell. The path through the bushes was a small challenge I braved with no trouble even though I was prepared to bolt at any suspicious sound. Thus I was once again beside the stream, on my knees, scrubbing with icy water and a piece of cloth as fast as possible, my senses tuned to the sounds of the woods. I did calm down somewhat after a while, before I began to consider the knowledge of the books again. Their contents were never far from my thoughts these days, but I hadn't really concentrated on animals, but Orcs and people. Now I felt foolish – Middle Earth was a place where even animals were important players. How stupid of me!

I quickly let the mugs dry before I could bring them back to the camp, while admonishing myself for my stupidity. Perhaps I should call it naivety. It did not matter, I decided in the end, when I noticed I forgot to take a second dry cloth with me. I had to leave the clean mugs resting on the cloth I'd spread on the ground. I could not hear the men from this location, even though the sound of the rushing water was not loud. This made me nervous again, but the loud chirping of the birds reassured me everything was ok.

They've put up guards, silly. There's no way they would let you go here if there's a chance of the wolves being near. Don't panic like a city-girl…

But I was a city-girl and thus packed everything as quickly as possible to return back, feeling safer in their company. The kindling was gone, I noticed – strapped to several packs, the remains of the fire nowhere to be seen. It was like we had never lighted one. A bit of dirt and soil, a few stones and leaves… at first glance there was nothing to be found. Of course, a skilled ranger would find ample of tracks if he searched for them, but it was good enough to fool the eye when one was not looking close enough. I worried that the smell was not so easily hidden though.

To distract myself I bundled up one of the dark brown blankets still lying on the floor and tightly bound it to the pouch I knew belonged to Nawat. He was nowhere to be seen as he, just like some other men I knew, was busy covering our tracks left on the road and around the camp and standing guard. A small symbol was embroidered in the same colour on one end of the blanket, so I knew I'd taken the right one. When I turned to search for him since several men had returned, he was already at my left side. With a word of thanks, he took the leather pouch and slung it over one shoulder. Already carrying his weapons, he was ready to depart. I quickly made sure everything belonging to me was safely packed too before I put my pouch over my shoulder, just like Nawat. My bow was beside the trunk of an old oak, together with my quiver. It was odd to see how different it was from the ones the men carried - bigger and darker, with stiffer wood. From what I'd seen of the men's bows, they used some kind of glue to strengthen chosen areas of their bows. But the most effective weapon they had was poison – a small jar of blackish substance was all they needed to defeat even the strongest enemy. I prayed they would not need to demonstrate how effective it was.

When I directed my gaze towards Ghân, the group seemed to have ended their discussion – the old hunter with an impressive scar on his shoulder nodded to Achâk and turned to those who had gathered together. He quickly divided them into pairs that would walk in a line. I was to stay at the centre, protected by Nawat. It seemed he was satisfied with this, but I had a feeling it would be better to turn around than going forward. I would have never forgiven myself were they to come to harm on this journey.

"Stay close; be prepared for a swift attack," said Ghân. "You know the signs, you know your skills."

The men nodded and the signal to move out was given. Nawat and I silently followed the men in front. For a long time, the journey continued like every day before this one, the only difference being the tense atmosphere and the larger number of scouts sent forth. And no conversation whatsoever, which was a pity for I still managed to find several plants I'd never seen in my life. Being scared did not affect my ability to study the surroundings, it seemed.

So we walked for two hours, every minute appearing to last forever or passing in a second. Then suddenly we were halting again. The men stopped at point where the spring waters had destroyed the road through the years, practically erasing one half of it. A small waterfall still poured water over the stones thus creating perfect conditions for lichens and moss. It was slippery, especially in my new shoes, when I was so used to modern wonders of rubber treads. I got over with no trouble though when the men in front moved forwards. It was here that the first prints of the wolves were found and where one pair of scouts left our group to move closer to the beacon.

"We turn left here," whispered Nawat when we crossed the little stream and turned around the bend. The rest of our group was to leave the road here and not follow it anymore. My gaze lingered on the two men that bravely disappeared down the stone path and closer to danger. Something told me we would be lucky to see them again, but I erased the thought immediately and ignored the warnings my intuition whispered every now and then.

We were going deeper into the forest where it was harder to track a larger group, higher up the mountains. Our feet carried us across a small trail meandering among old pine and spruce trees that grew here with younger birches and elms. It was an easy road for some time; before we began to climb again, that is. I hoped they knew what they were doing for I disliked the sight of the steep slopes and dark woods, the jagged peaks capped with snow. I knew what those roads looked like from experience and did not wish to get lost once again in a maze of dead ends. Nawat himself had confessed they did not live here anymore, how would they know the way for sure? And when wolves seemed to be hunting here to boot?

It was just as I had foreseen, the path was difficult – steep and full of slippery roots, rocks that got in the way. The men tried to find the best routes but it was to be expected that the terrain here was not as good as the old roads. They were made for a reason. Despite the hard road, we continued forward in silence. I dared not complain when my joints and muscles began to ache again, but the pace the men set was hard on me; especially on my sore throat.

We were moving along thorny bushes, slippery lichen-covered stones and who knows what, so I dubbed the path the 'break-your-neck' road of the month, for I felt it was madness to continue forward. I would have turned around long ago, but the men persisted. My deepest gratitude went to Nawat for his help - he came to my rescue every time I stumbled or slipped. The thin leather moccasins were good for covering tracks but a nightmare for the wet and steep conditions of our path. How they moved with minimal mishaps, I would never know, but one thing was sure – I cursed the shoes to hell and back whenever I grabbed for hold at various rocks or trees. The fact that I managed to walk just fine after a while and did not need Nawat's help so often was the only consolation I had. I was not a klutz, but the few times I stumbled or almost slipped made me feel like one.

As I raised my gaze again to judge the distance I had to climb this time, I saw Ghân and several of the more experienced men at the front stopping at a bend in the steep path. They were looking down at something that I and the younger men behind me could not see. There was nothing extraordinary among the dark leafless trees and conifers from our position. Whatever it was, Ghân did not think it important enough for he continued forward after a few moments without any sign to us. Nevertheless, I looked down too once I got to the spot. A group of fallen trees was located several yards away – like someone had purposely cut them down and forgot to move them away on a narrow trail running along the slope later on. They were quite old though, since younger sprouts were growing from the rotting wood already. This was the first sign of human activity in the woods I'd seen (besides the old roads), albeit a very old one. I moved forward with a peculiar feeling in my stomach that I did not seem to be able to shake off.

We finally set camp again when the shadows lengthened. I gulped down my share of water, stretching my legs and toes under a big oak with great satisfaction. I should feel proud, damn it. I'm no mountain goat and I did just fine on those slopes, I thought. Everything ached, my scalp itched like mad and I seriously feared I'd caught lice or something similar. It irritated me greatly! I had to go pee too, yet couldn't just disappear in the bushes and do my thing – we had to dig a hole that we all used afterwards. So, I was not a happy camper as I sat under my tree.

We had more guards stationed around the camp than usual because of the wolves. Despite the trouble and the change of plans, we managed to get far again. Ghân seemed to find right paths with the help of his scouts. It should not have been so easy for him to find his way in this maze, but I began to suspect he knew more than he led on.

Dinner was a silent affair after we set up camp and everyone relieved themselves, but I was not in the mood for talk anyway and it suited me that we sat around in silence. So, I was quite surprised when Nawat chose his seat next to me and started up a conversation. He should have known the warning signs of my temper by now. The thunderclouds gathering the entire evening should have been enough to tell him he better stay away.

"We have passed the beacon," he said after swallowing down the meat he was chewing like a piece of gum. I just raised my eyebrow at that, but this seemed invitation enough for him to continue. "It is unusual for wolves to wander these mountains – they are usually in the north. I wonder how they managed to get here…"

"The usual way, I guess," I replied dryly, "on foot."

The comment made him bark out a laugh he quickly muted. "I didn't know you were such a joker, Megan," he exclaimed after he clamed down and stopped shaking in mirth. The men did not seem to be too happy about the level of noise he produced, though.

I caught the gist of what he tried to tell me and grimaced while ripping off another bite of the meat. "Obviously," was my reply as I tugged at my hair – again. One spot itched like mad.

He seemed to realise I was not in the best of moods and my huff of exasperation as I couldn't stop my scalp from itching a few minutes later made him put aside his dinner and turn towards me. "Let me look what's gotten caught in your hair or you'll drive me mad," he said and tugged at the braids keeping my hair contained.

"Nawat," I protested, "you don't…"

"Shut up and let me sort this out," he said and batted away my hands. "You have a comb nearby?" he asked, so I gave him the desired item. It was useless arguing with him.

His fingers quickly undid the braids and removed some of the usual things that got caught in them, but this was not what made the skin itch this hard; it was the urgent need for a good wash. I could never go without washing at least once a week as my hair turned greasy at the roots. But somehow I had a feeling this was not the only reason for my scratching this time – it was most probably (to my horror) something small and blackish.

Taking the comb in his hands, Nawat quickly got rid of the few snags before he started to part the hair so he could get to the skin. It was the moment of truth. "Ah, I should have known," he said and I internally winced when he produced the evidence. It really was lice.

"Damn…" I cursed. "I haven't got them since I was six years old!"

He was surprised. It was then that I saw two other men scratch at their scalp, something I had not noticed in the previous days. I should have known something like this would happen. We slept close together at the night to contain warmth. ARGH! Stupid, stupid Megan – they have families and where there are small children, there are lice. Or the other way round…

"Great," I grumbled as he continued to comb through my long hair with patience, "Where are my scissors?"

"Scissors?" Nawat repeated the unknown word while moving towards my ears where more of the nits were bound to be located if what my aunt (who worked in a kindergarten) told me was true. With my luck, it was.

"Yes, scissors. I have to cut my hair," I told him with bad grace. It had taken me years to grow my hair to this length. I felt really bad about loosing it even though it would be practical to keep it short. But somehow my vanity did not make me consider the thought with anything other than annoyance, regret and anger. It was their fault, I thought as I looked at the two possible culprits.

"Why would you do that?" asked Nawat with surprise clear in his voice.

"But how else will I get rid of them?" I asked him. My mother chose a short hairstyle for me when I was still in the kindergarten and it made getting rid of the little monsters much easier. It was no doubt Grandmother's idea – she was the practical one in the family. No wonder I only had long hair after hitting puberty, I thought.

He smiled at me and turned my head back around, so he could attack another portion of my scalp. "Nothing water and a good comb cannot manage, Megan," he said, "It would be foolish to cut such beautiful hair."

"Erm… thank you." I was surprised at the praise for my friends had encouraged me to get a new haircut for a long time. Something stylish and fun, they'd said, would be good for me. I guessed they wanted me to turn a new leaf in my life, so to speak, after my break-up with Adrian, and in their opinion having a new haircut was just the first step. I disagreed, apparently, but went out more often in the weeks following our separation. That shut them up for a while.

"What about them?" I asked and motioned in the men's direction.

Nawat shrugged, "They'll take care of it when we arrive. I just hope I didn't get any," he muttered and I had to stifle my laughter at the grumpy tone. It seems he was not so keen on getting them himself even though he attacked my head with relish. Was this some ritual or custom of theirs I did not know of? But I knew for a fact that the long hair they sported did not make get rid of the little monsters easier.

Ghân approached us, a small smile playing at his lips. "Ah, busy nitpicking," he remarked and sat down a few steps away from me. I just raised my eyebrow at that for he usually sat much closer. Couldn't fault him though – I would have done the same had I known about those two. I sighed internally and held my head at an angle for Nawat.

"Is something wrong, father?" he asked as he wiped the comb after dousing it with water from my flask.

Ghân's brows knitted together, "Yes. The scouts still haven't returned," he said.

"They will come," comforted Nawat in his warm voice. "It's still a while until dark."

Ghân did relax minutely. It seemed he wouldn't close an eye until all of his people were accounted for. Wolves were a serious threat and not only for their fangs and claws – they were often companions of Orcs and other unsavoury creatures of Middle Earth. He was entitled to his worries. "Yes, but if they don't appear until nightfall, we will have to move forward without them in the morning. You know I could never look into Rayen's eyes and tell her I've left her husband behind."

"I couldn't do that either," replied Nawat with a sigh.

"One of the scouts is married?" I asked them, as we'd never really talked about this topic. They generally explained things about their culture in general terms. I was curious.

"We all are, except the youngest, Awan," replied Ghân and I had to lock my teeth together to prevent my jaw from dropping in surprise. They never talked about their families – at least I did not catch that with my limited vocabulary and knowledge of the language. So only the young man carrying my backpack was single... Wow.

"You never told me," I exclaimed, waving my hands in agitation. I really had no idea and felt even worse about putting them in danger. It would have been surprising indeed to contemplate their marital status when we had other things to worry about, so I never wondered. It was clear that the elder ones had families, but it was odd to know Nawat had a wife too. He was like one of my friends and none of them were married – yet. "Do you have children?" I asked the next logical question for I doubted their women waited to have a career first and a family later.

"A son; he is three years old," he said, love and pride heard clearly when he mentioned his flesh and blood. "What about you, Megan?" he inquired as he continued to comb through my hair. "You didn't tell us a lot about you."

"Me?!" I turned to him with surprise. "No, no. I have no children," I hastily told him. My plans for the future did not feature children soon – perhaps in eight or ten years. But since I was on the 'market' again, the thought was pushed even further aside.

"But you surely have a husband or someone you would like to bind yourself to," he prodded. Ghân chose to remain silent on the matter since my answer on the topic of children told him quite enough.

"No, our women marry later – when they're twenty-six or so and have children even later nowadays," I explained. "And no, I don't have a lover waiting for me…" At least not anymore.

"Ah," he remarked and the conversation about marriage was closed. I did ask him more about his son though, it interested me and Nawat was more than happy to oblige by sharing his memories. But all this talk of children reminded me that I had completely forgotten to take the pill the last few days.

Drat! Is it too late to take one now?

The question made me aware of another problem – my monthlies. I have always had strong cramps in the first days so pain-relievers were a blessing; I couldn't possibly function without them. Two pills a day and I was as right as rain. Now, I was more than aware that my stay here was getting prolonged by the hour, so the possible complications when the stack of modern medicine would run out were something I had to think about. I could only cross my fingers that my periods would stay regular without the pill – I had been horrendously irregular before them. A small spark of hope that I would return before this could become an actual problem lingered in my mind, but its glow got smaller with each day.

While I tried to remember what I had in line of female hygiene and medication, the scouts finally arrived. Ghân was more than satisfied with this, but hid the majority of his emotions to not injure the pride of the men, I believe. Thus we could go to sleep with one worry less on our minds – yet, the threat of wolves did not make it possible for me to give in to Morpheus' call easily. When morning came and we set out again, I was tired but satisfied we were moving away from the dark woods and toward our destination. The journey was too long and I itched to arrive already.

"The scouts did not find fresh tracks of the wolves, but old ones that the guards of the beacons inspected, too," explained Nawat as we followed other men across a small stream. "It is quite possible several soldiers are in the forest, but we have yet to find signs of them."

"Did the scouts see them yesterday?" I asked, worried.

"No. But we better move quickly though," he replied gravely. My mind projected an idea, feeling we were being herded somewhere, surrounded from all sides by enemies. Was this how the Fellowship felt when they set out? It was clear to me that the Gondorians had more than enough people stationed here to find us – eventually. I could never forget the Ranger who had followed me like a bloodhound.

"Yes, I'll be happy to leave this place behind…" I muttered and moved the hair obscuring my face away. I had just gathered it together in a high ponytail since I knew it was useless braiding it when I would only mess it up by scratching. Damned lice! "I have no desire to see them again."

Nawat did not comment so I believe he shared my sentiment.

The day passed like any other, except the path we took was much more difficult than before. Still, Ghân and his men found their way and safely brought us past the beacon stationed at the edge of Firien Wood. I could not see it, but we were above it in the early afternoon. Our journey led us upwards and into the cleft where the Mering Stream flowed from. It was somewhere along this deep and dark cleft in the mountains where one of visitors had hidden himself years ago. I disliked darkness, so I hoped the dwelling we searched for was located in a friendlier place.

I also disliked the forest – it was creepy. I did not know much about it, only what April told me – it was here that Eomer, king of Rohan, renewed the oath of Eorl, whatever it was. Why and how, I did not know, but the knowledge that good things happened here, or would happen, was enough to give me at least some comfort and painted the silent forest in a better light. Nonetheless, I pledged to never wander inside these woods. A promise I was unable to keep in the end.

Nawat turned to me when we took a short break – we had been climbing for an hour – "Horse-lords control this beacon," he said and indicated the direction of the hill where it was stationed. I almost blurted out my stupid question if we were in Rohan, before I bit myself on the tongue. I couldn't control my face though – he knew then for sure I was aware of more than I let on. His face hardened, before he relaxed and I felt like a stupid bint for betraying myself and also for misleading them. But they did not ask directly, I argued and defended myself.

"So that is what my father noticed," he said in a low voice.

"You never asked," I said but knew my argument held no strength. He knew that too, no doubt. I didn't know where to look in discomfort, but at the same time told myself to stand behind my decisions. Remember what you decided, what danger you can bring to these people if you tell too much! You've hurt them once – don't do that again.

"I am not angry," he replied.

"Good," I sighed as I looked at him again. It seemed he could not decide between being slightly hurt at my secrecy and understanding my decision and approving of it. We were pretty close and the last days only helped to deepen our bond. It seemed I had damaged that and it hurt, even when I tried to reason with myself that I barely knew him and that what he thought of me should not count. But it did count – more than I was comfortable with. They helped me, protected me. I depended upon them and began to regard them as good companions.

"I don't know much and am not sure I'm allowed to tell what I know. You understand that?" I asked, needing to clarify things before it was too late. He nodded and patted me on the shoulder.

"My father will talk to you, if you wish," he told me and I agreed with relief. It would be good to get things clear once and for all. But even when I confessed to hold knowledge about Middle Earth, I had no intentions to tell the tale of the fall of the Dark Lord. There was still the problem of the timeline and the books. How did they get to my world and how I came here – these things could change everything. What if Sauron was still alive? What if the books are wrong? What then?

I was glad to be walking again afterwards so I could sort out my thoughts. So I was more than surprised when our scouts took a long time to return because they couldn't find the path towards the dwelling. Night approached when we arrived at the winding and almost non-existent hidden path at a collapsed wooden building located before a fairly big rock shelter.

"Oh," was the only thing I could think of saying at the sight. Is this supposed to be a place where I would be safe?

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