Rhavaniel was curled up comfortably asleep in Kili's arms. She dreamed she heard bells, like the toy carillon she and her grand-niece often played with years ago. She heard the bells again, only clearer this time, cutting through her dream.
She bolted upright in the bed. The bells on the river gate!
She jumped up, and slipped on her nightshirt. She grabbed her sword and approached the bedroom door.
Her bare feet felt it in the dark - water trickling underneath the door.
She gasped and grabbed her sword tighter. The sword did not glow. This was not Orc or goblin. She told herself she was being a silly child, it was only rats. The smell of fresh food and cooking had drawn them to the house, was all. Kili was sound asleep behind her. She did not want to wake him, not for rats, not when he needed to be strong and rested in the morning.
She opened the door slowly. Nothing moved. There was a trail of water down the hall. She followed it, checking every room. Nothing had been moved as far as she could see. The rest of the floors were dry, even in the kitchen.
Rhavaniel made her way to the dark entry, and turned up the wick on the nearest lamp. The gate to the river was open. Something had come in - something too short to step over the gate, but clever enough to open a latch.
Her lamp caught a reflection near the edge of the water. She picked it up. It was a single moonstone, round and perfectly smooth, with a brilliant blue glow. She put it in her scabbard.
She could hear something in the dark. It was not the ominous rustle of night creatures, but the entrancing hum of a lullaby. She stepped into the river, and followed the sound upstream.