When the elf-girl awoke, she was startled at first to find herself in a room on a bed. She hissed between her teeth when she realized that there was a man seated nearby, singing to himself. But she was soon quiet again; the song sounded vaguely familiar to her. But the man stopped singing as soon as he saw that she was awake. She watched him with wide frightened eyes as he began to talk to her in tongues that also sounded familiar. But finally he hit upon the one that she recognized. He did not seem startled when he found that it was the High Elven tongue. The girl realized that her back was bandaged, and came to the conclusion that it must have been this man that had cleaned and wrapped it. He began to ask her questions, but she wasn't very responsive. She wasn't going to trust him just because he spoke her language, even as rare as it was for a human to speak an elvish tongue. Finally he stopped and just watched her for a while. Then he said, "I am Aragorn. May I ask for your name, at least?" She regarded him suspiciously for a moment, and then mumbled, "Laurelen." He looked surprised for a moment. "You were named in the High Tongue?" She only nodded. At that moment the door opened, and Poppy came tip- toeing into the room. Suddenly she found herself under the stare of two bright gold eyes. That was the first thing she noticed about the girl. The eyes. They were like twin stars. Aragorn had noticed this too, and supposed, correctly, that this was the reason for her name. Laurelen meant "star of gold-color" in High Elven. "Are you feeling better?" Poppy asked. Laurelen looked confused and turned to Aragorn. "Man-ië?" "She asks if you are better," Aragorn translated. Laurelen turned to Poppy and nodded. Then she hesitantly added, "I.thank. you." Her Common speech was hesitant and broken, and very hard to understand because of her accent. But she got her point across. Aragorn turned back to Poppy. "She'll be just fine, though I've never seen one of her kind so tired." "Who is she?" "Her name is Laurelen. She is a very young elf." Poppy looked at Laurelen again with wonder. But Aragorn herded her out of the room, saying that the girl needed rest. "Áva auta!" Laurelen cried. Aragorn turned and looked back as she began talking rapidly to him in her tongue. When he understood what she was trying to say, he turned to Poppy and said, "She wishes to thank you again for helping her. She said she wishes to see you again soon, if you must leave, but if you would stay, she would be glad of the company." Aragorn smiled as he heard the rest of what she said. "And she's hungry." "Oh!" Poppy exclaimed, and ran out of the room toward the main room of the inn to ask Butterbur for some food. "I am in need of some nourishment myself, so I too shall go," Aragorn said. He turned and walked out of the room, and Laurelen settled back to wait. She was not kept long. Poppy was soon back with enough food for both of them. She helped Laurelen sit up again, and set a tray on her lap with hot food and a glass of water on it. Poppy then set her own tray on the bedside table, and, with no further formalities, began to eat. Laurelen watched with amazement at the young hobbit's appetite, and then began to eat her own food. She had not had such good food for years. When their appetites had been whetted and they were eating more slowly, Poppy began to point out things in the room and name them in hopes of overcoming the language barrier. Laurelen would repeat the words, some of which she already knew, and then tell Poppy the word for it in her language. Poppy had the easier task of remembering, for this is the way with elvish words. Laurelen sometimes had to struggle to name something. But it was a beginning. And it was a good beginning, not only of communication, but of a long and lasting friendship.