Chapter 2
A little sales trip
Jaker rode along the Great East Road beside the Water without stopping at any of the villages on the way. He crossed the Brandywine Bridge at a gallop. But instead of turning south to Newbury and the rest of Buckland after he'd crossed, he rode straight on, skirting the Great Wood, as though he were heading for Bree.
But he wasn't headed for Bree. Just as the Great Wood to his right was petering out into bushes and scrub, he pulled up his horse. He took out a spy-glass from his coat pocket, spat on the eye-piece, rubbed it on his kerchief, put it to his left eye. He scoured the edge of the wood, clearly searching for something or someone. After a while he pocketed the spyglass, gave his horse the spurs, and cantered off purposefully in the direction of the Wood.
As he came closer to the edge of the Wood, two figures left the canopy of the trees and stood waiting. Both were men, or at least man-like – sometimes it paid to look very closely before characterising anyone as a man in this part of Middle-Earth. Anyway, they were of a man's height and bearing, and were dressed in the rough leather tunics and woollen trousers that were almost like a uniform among the men who burnt charcoal in the Wood for a meagre living.
"Halloo, Jaker," cried the taller of the two, who had the coarser features, "you're a little late this time." "And what if I am?" Jaker responded, "I have a lot further to travel than you two."
"It's hard for us, too" said the other. "We had to slip out of Bree unnoticed, and trek here on foot because there's not a horse to be had in Bree for love nor money." The speaker had a soft voice, and, despite the rough clothes, topped with a dull grey cowl, was clearly a woman.
"So you're the third member of Armfast's cell, are you?" asked Jaker, thoughtfully. "I didn't know the brotherhood recruited women." He didn't seem impressed. "Cantian is as strong as most men" responded Armfast, "and twice as cunning, I'll vouch. Anyways, how and why the brotherhood recruits is neither your business or mine. So long as when the Chief give the order to rise up, we all do rise up, that's all that matters."
"Happen you're right" replied Jaker. "Anyhow, what have you got for me today? Any orders for ale from hereabouts? My "partner" is getting a bit uppity, asking what comes of my trips."
"Well, as it happens, I can help you with that" said Cantian, softly. "I work at the "Prancing Pony" in Bree, and I've jawboned the innkeeper there to try some of your 'Heartstarter' in the outer bar."
"Very good," replied Jaker, seeming quite impressed, "now, Armfast, what about the real business of the day? Is your new recruit going to be any help there, too?"
"I'm not his 'new recruit', thankyou" snapped Cantian. "Armfast told me you were 'all mouth and trousers', and it seems he was right. I brought him into the brotherhood, and he brought you. We needed someone who could join in the everyday life of the Shire, and hold down a job with the locals – most of our members are fighters, not dealers or tradesmen."
"I can fight when needs be" growled Jaker.
"I've no doubt you could, but we've got plenty better than you for that, I'm thinking," said Armfast. "Anyway, give us your report – has anything unusual been happening in Hobbiton?"
"Well, everything's been very quiet since that Old Man Baggins went away" Jaker started. "How long ago was that?" asked Cantian. "Oh, let's see now, it would be half a year, at least, now. Our sales were down for a month or so, but they're beginning to build back up again. There's been a number of strangers passing through, just peat-burners, mainly, and other folks and creatures as find jobs where they can, in the orchards or the granaries."
"Has this Baggins fellow been back at all?" asked Cantian, casually. "Not at all" replied Jaker. "But his nephew keeps a good house, so we haven't lost that trade completely."
"I'm not interested in your blasted trade!" snapped Cantian. "It's reports I want, reports of the folk in the Shire, and anyone passing through. These passers-through you were talking of, you called them 'folk and creatures' - are they not men?"
"All right, keep your hair on," ventured Jaker. "They are men, mostly, though some are women, of course. But there are a few that seem like half- men, half ... something else. Not Orc, of course, that would be too horrible to think of" – Armfast gave Cantian a momentary glance at this point, but she didn't respond – "but they look like no men I've ever seen before, powerful big folk they are, and ugly as sin."
"In Hobbiton, are they?" asked Armfast. "Not yet," replied Jaker, "only in the outer hamlets. They seem to steer clear of the larger villages. Probably don't want to attract attention from the bailiffs."
"Well, don't concern yourself too much about them," put in Cantian. "You're there to watch the locals, the hobbits. What do you think of them as creatures, anyway?"
"I don't mind 'em, really," said Jaker. "Merry little fellows, most of them, only interested in food and drink, it seems. They don't mind work, I'll have to say that. But some of them get my back up. My 'partner', for one, always checking on me, and won't back me up if I get a bit firm with the customers. And that Frodo, Old Man Baggins' nephew, and his gardener. The nephew's a bit too elf-like in his ways for my liking. And the gardener's just a big hairy lump, but he can be quarrelsome."
"What do you mean, 'elf-like'?" asked Cantian keenly, "please explain." "Well, it's hard to put your finger on it, really," started Jaker, fumbling with his cap, "it's just that he seems to slip into view from nowhere, so to speak – I could be sitting at my desk totting up some figures, quite alone in the office, when all of a sudden there he is, right in front of me, asking all natural-like about how the mash is going or something."
"Well, just keep an eye on him," said Cantian, appearing to dismiss the matter from her thoughts. "Well, I'd better be getting back to Bree, and you two to your places" she said, briskly.
"I'd like to know a bit more about the Chief sometime" said Jaker, as Cantian made to slip away. "No doubt you would," replied Cantian, "so would we all. But none of the brotherhood knows who he is – or at least, only three folk do – that's the way the brotherhood works, each of us only knows three others. That's how we keep the brotherhood secret. I get my orders from – well, from someone, and use you two to help me if I need you. Then Armfast has two others that he looks after...."
"And what about me? Jaker retorted, "when do I get to recruit someone?" "When I tell you to" snapped back Cantian, "and don't be too anxious, you might be sorry when it comes to it."
Jaker slunk off. "Same time next month" Armfast called out after him. Jaker looked as if he were thinking to himself "Not if I see you first."
A little sales trip
Jaker rode along the Great East Road beside the Water without stopping at any of the villages on the way. He crossed the Brandywine Bridge at a gallop. But instead of turning south to Newbury and the rest of Buckland after he'd crossed, he rode straight on, skirting the Great Wood, as though he were heading for Bree.
But he wasn't headed for Bree. Just as the Great Wood to his right was petering out into bushes and scrub, he pulled up his horse. He took out a spy-glass from his coat pocket, spat on the eye-piece, rubbed it on his kerchief, put it to his left eye. He scoured the edge of the wood, clearly searching for something or someone. After a while he pocketed the spyglass, gave his horse the spurs, and cantered off purposefully in the direction of the Wood.
As he came closer to the edge of the Wood, two figures left the canopy of the trees and stood waiting. Both were men, or at least man-like – sometimes it paid to look very closely before characterising anyone as a man in this part of Middle-Earth. Anyway, they were of a man's height and bearing, and were dressed in the rough leather tunics and woollen trousers that were almost like a uniform among the men who burnt charcoal in the Wood for a meagre living.
"Halloo, Jaker," cried the taller of the two, who had the coarser features, "you're a little late this time." "And what if I am?" Jaker responded, "I have a lot further to travel than you two."
"It's hard for us, too" said the other. "We had to slip out of Bree unnoticed, and trek here on foot because there's not a horse to be had in Bree for love nor money." The speaker had a soft voice, and, despite the rough clothes, topped with a dull grey cowl, was clearly a woman.
"So you're the third member of Armfast's cell, are you?" asked Jaker, thoughtfully. "I didn't know the brotherhood recruited women." He didn't seem impressed. "Cantian is as strong as most men" responded Armfast, "and twice as cunning, I'll vouch. Anyways, how and why the brotherhood recruits is neither your business or mine. So long as when the Chief give the order to rise up, we all do rise up, that's all that matters."
"Happen you're right" replied Jaker. "Anyhow, what have you got for me today? Any orders for ale from hereabouts? My "partner" is getting a bit uppity, asking what comes of my trips."
"Well, as it happens, I can help you with that" said Cantian, softly. "I work at the "Prancing Pony" in Bree, and I've jawboned the innkeeper there to try some of your 'Heartstarter' in the outer bar."
"Very good," replied Jaker, seeming quite impressed, "now, Armfast, what about the real business of the day? Is your new recruit going to be any help there, too?"
"I'm not his 'new recruit', thankyou" snapped Cantian. "Armfast told me you were 'all mouth and trousers', and it seems he was right. I brought him into the brotherhood, and he brought you. We needed someone who could join in the everyday life of the Shire, and hold down a job with the locals – most of our members are fighters, not dealers or tradesmen."
"I can fight when needs be" growled Jaker.
"I've no doubt you could, but we've got plenty better than you for that, I'm thinking," said Armfast. "Anyway, give us your report – has anything unusual been happening in Hobbiton?"
"Well, everything's been very quiet since that Old Man Baggins went away" Jaker started. "How long ago was that?" asked Cantian. "Oh, let's see now, it would be half a year, at least, now. Our sales were down for a month or so, but they're beginning to build back up again. There's been a number of strangers passing through, just peat-burners, mainly, and other folks and creatures as find jobs where they can, in the orchards or the granaries."
"Has this Baggins fellow been back at all?" asked Cantian, casually. "Not at all" replied Jaker. "But his nephew keeps a good house, so we haven't lost that trade completely."
"I'm not interested in your blasted trade!" snapped Cantian. "It's reports I want, reports of the folk in the Shire, and anyone passing through. These passers-through you were talking of, you called them 'folk and creatures' - are they not men?"
"All right, keep your hair on," ventured Jaker. "They are men, mostly, though some are women, of course. But there are a few that seem like half- men, half ... something else. Not Orc, of course, that would be too horrible to think of" – Armfast gave Cantian a momentary glance at this point, but she didn't respond – "but they look like no men I've ever seen before, powerful big folk they are, and ugly as sin."
"In Hobbiton, are they?" asked Armfast. "Not yet," replied Jaker, "only in the outer hamlets. They seem to steer clear of the larger villages. Probably don't want to attract attention from the bailiffs."
"Well, don't concern yourself too much about them," put in Cantian. "You're there to watch the locals, the hobbits. What do you think of them as creatures, anyway?"
"I don't mind 'em, really," said Jaker. "Merry little fellows, most of them, only interested in food and drink, it seems. They don't mind work, I'll have to say that. But some of them get my back up. My 'partner', for one, always checking on me, and won't back me up if I get a bit firm with the customers. And that Frodo, Old Man Baggins' nephew, and his gardener. The nephew's a bit too elf-like in his ways for my liking. And the gardener's just a big hairy lump, but he can be quarrelsome."
"What do you mean, 'elf-like'?" asked Cantian keenly, "please explain." "Well, it's hard to put your finger on it, really," started Jaker, fumbling with his cap, "it's just that he seems to slip into view from nowhere, so to speak – I could be sitting at my desk totting up some figures, quite alone in the office, when all of a sudden there he is, right in front of me, asking all natural-like about how the mash is going or something."
"Well, just keep an eye on him," said Cantian, appearing to dismiss the matter from her thoughts. "Well, I'd better be getting back to Bree, and you two to your places" she said, briskly.
"I'd like to know a bit more about the Chief sometime" said Jaker, as Cantian made to slip away. "No doubt you would," replied Cantian, "so would we all. But none of the brotherhood knows who he is – or at least, only three folk do – that's the way the brotherhood works, each of us only knows three others. That's how we keep the brotherhood secret. I get my orders from – well, from someone, and use you two to help me if I need you. Then Armfast has two others that he looks after...."
"And what about me? Jaker retorted, "when do I get to recruit someone?" "When I tell you to" snapped back Cantian, "and don't be too anxious, you might be sorry when it comes to it."
Jaker slunk off. "Same time next month" Armfast called out after him. Jaker looked as if he were thinking to himself "Not if I see you first."
