As we crossed the bridge over the River Gilrain and passed through the Lebennin Gate into the town of Linhir, I glanced to my wife, who looked absolutely lovely upon Windfola, her plaited golden hair resting in its usual thick rope down the middle of her back. The town was busier than I would have expected, most likely filled with farmers from the surrounding countryside, buying seed for crops and replenishing their dwindling supplies after the long winter. But it did not take long to find a suitable room at a respectable inn near Wanderers' Square, and we remained incognito, Faramir, the merchant and Éowyn, his bride.
We opted to eat dinner in the common room that evening, and I greatly enjoyed the roasted chicken and potatoes that we received, being some of the best food that I had eaten in a great while. I complimented the mistress of the kitchen most thoroughly when she happened to pass through the dining area, and she bowed respectfully to me. When my wife and I had finished our meal, I urged Éowyn to return to our room as I had a small errand that I needed to complete before I could join her there. She readily agreed though she seemed curious, and I simply smiled and kissed her soundly upon the cheek before I departed the inn.
Years ago when I had been a lad of about twelve, I had spent a night in Linhir with my Uncle Imrahil, and he had taken me to a tiny shop on the west side of the Outer Market that sold the tastiest confections in all of Gondor. But on the way there this evening, I took at least one wrong turn because I soon was horribly lost and embarrassed by my poor memory of the town's layout. I glanced behind me, deciding that perhaps it might be best if I turned back to regain my bearings as suddenly I found myself upon a deserted street. I spotted a man with dark hair and dark clothing standing at the place where I had entered the street. I walked toward him, hoping to get some directions from him, but he turned and walked away before I could say aught to him.
There were a few other wrong turns that I took, and soon I was concerned that I might be the target of a thief since every time I turned back, I found the same man staring at me. Somewhat angered by his silent appraisal of me, I managed to circle around behind him at one point, and using all of my skill, I approached him stealthily before I said to him in a deadly tone. "Are you following me?"
He started violently, but when he whirled to face me, he had an odd smile plastered upon his face. His pallid visage was almost frightening to gaze upon, as were his icy blue eyes, but my gaze did not falter as I awaited his reply. "Truthfully, I am, good sir, but I fear that I am lost, and I was only hoping to find someone to follow out of this maze of streets."
I relaxed to find that this man was just as lost as I was, and I apologized for my rudeness before admitting that I was also lost. Together we walked until we managed to find the main road again, and he went his way, bidding me farewell, and I went my own. At last, I was able to find the confectionery yet open for business, the woman inside the same one who had waited on me all of those years ago, though we both had more grey in our hair now. She smiled as I told her that I had come here especially to purchase something for my new bride, and she showed me the sweetmeats that she recommended. Without hesitation, I bought a dozen of them, tiny chocolates with tidbits of dried fruit embedded within them, and I then departed the shop, eager to return to Éowyn's side with my gift for her, careful not to become lost once more.
When I reached our room and showed my wife what I had bought, she kissed me until I could not stand under my own power any longer, and I sank down onto the mattress, delighted that she appreciated my gift to her. She explained that she had never eaten chocolate, but she had always wished to try it, though she knew that she could not until after she had been married, having heard that the effects of chocolate greatly increased the pleasure found in bed-sport. I laughed, eager for her to taste them, but she lifted one from the box and instead brought it to my lips with a soft smile, saying, "If anyone deserves more pleasure, Faramir, it is you."
"My love, I do not know if I could stand more pleasure, but I shall try mightily." It was the most delicious thing that I had ever tasted next to Éowyn herself. As she sat next to me, I fed her a sweet from my fingers, and I began to tell her the tale of the strange man that I had encountered in the street. Instead of amusing her, as I had intended, the story caused her to grow pensive, and I noticed that the color had once again left her face.
"Describe him to me, Faramir," she told me, her tone flat and low, her eyes hard.
"Éowyn," I laughed, "he is no one. . . ."
"Describe him to me!" she commanded, using a tone with me that I had never heard from her before. Somewhat taken aback by her vehemence, I told her all that I could remember of the man, his dress, and his demeanor. "Faramir," she said, her voice edged with desperation, when I had finished speaking, "we must leave this place immediately."
"Why? Whom do you think this man is?"
She looked away from me and remained quiet for a moment. When she spoke at last, her voice was tremulous. "He is someone from my past, a slithering, evil monster, who brings only despair to all that he touches. Would that you had never spoken with him, my lord."
"Éowyn, there are many people in the world who might fit that description. . . ."
"Faramir, I saw him in Pelargir, from the window at the inn, though I did not wish to believe that I had."
Now I understood the reason for all of her strange behavior since we had arrived in the port city. "But who is he?" I asked.
She took a steadying breath before she spoke. "He is Grima Wormtongue, a longtime advisor to my Uncle Théoden, the one who, with the help of Saruman, placed the King of the Mark into thralldom before my very eyes. Théodred, Éomer and I were powerless to stop him, and when he at last had my brother banished from Meduseld after Théodred was killed in battle. . . ." Never before had I seen fear in Éowyn, but I witnessed it now, and I was rendered speechless by it. "He is an evil snake, and I would be far from him, husband, as far as we can go. The sooner that we are surrounded by your uncle's Swan Knights, the better." I touched her arm and found her trembling.
"Éowyn, perhaps you were mistaken." I had naught else to offer her as I was still uncertain about with whom we were dealing.
"I was not." Her tone had a chilling finality in it.
"You wish to depart tonight?" I asked, setting the forgotten sweets aside, rising from the bed.
"I do."
"Then rest here, Éowyn. I shall go see to our preparations and fetch you when all is in readiness."
"Thank you, my lord," she murmured.
"No thanks are necessary, my love. I would walk through fire if you asked it of me."
Faramir was not gone very long from the room, but I worried anyway while he was apart from me, though I knew that he was quite capable of defending himself against any physical attack under normal circumstances. I could not rest as he had suggested, so instead, I collected our few belongings together, readying myself to depart Linhir as soon as possible. When my husband returned, he gathered me soundlessly against his chest with his strong arms around me and hugged me for a long time, and I slipped my arms about him as well, drawing strength from his presence.
"How much farther is it to Dol Amroth, Faramir?" I asked, resting my cheek upon his shoulder.
"At least five days ride, though it would not surprise me if we should encounter some snow in the higher hills of Dor-en-Ernil, which might lengthen our journey somewhat."
I nodded and pulled away. "Then we had better go now, Faramir. Perhaps if we slip away in the night, he shall not know that we are gone until we are far away."
"Would it not be better to find him and face him, Éowyn? If he is as evil as you say, perhaps we could have him arrested."
"Nay, husband. He can snare a person's mind with a mere word. I would not have that happen to you, my lord."
He nodded grimly. "Then let us away."
Despite the lateness of the hour, the road was easy to navigate as it was bathed in bright moonlight. The landscape was becoming more hilly, and Faramir explained that we would soon be in the foothills of the Unnamed Mountains that lay to the east of Dol Amroth. It was two and a half days to the town of Ethring upon the River Ringló where we would leave the North-South Road, heading west through the Ringló Vale, the only route that was guaranteed to be passable this time of the year.
We had only been upon the road for a few hours, and it was not yet midnight when a chill went down my spine. The clouds had increased quickly, completely covering the moon, and the scent of rain was in the air. Faramir suggested that we stop to wait out the rain in our tent. Truly, there was no reason to continue, risking our health by riding in a storm, so I yielded to his proposal.
Luckily there were quite a few trees close to the road, and therefore plenty of wood for a fire, so I built a small one mostly for light, and as the wind increased, Faramir did his best to erect the tent before the rain began. Knowing that it was always possible for the rain to linger for days, I stowed some extra firewood in the pack upon Seregon's back, thinking that it might be difficult to find any dry wood in the coming days.
The tent was up just in time, and we entered it just as the heavens let loose, and the fire was quickly extinguished, leaving us in the cold darkness, occasionally illuminated by a flash of lightning. Faramir spread out our bedroll and bade me to lie down. "I shall keep watch over you, my love," he said softly, and I kissed him soundly before I lay down. Knowing that I was safe in Faramir's care, I fell asleep almost immediately.