10

That night, with a little help, I set up my tent and then went and helped make the evening meal: roasted chicken and potatoes and some early berries. We all ate well. And once the dinner was cleared away, then came the entertainment (well, I guess for them it was really just practice.) The dancing, the juggling---even fire eating! It was great fun to watch them.

And Felana and I were able to tend to Jafa's rapidly healing burns and settle him for the night. Because the burns were coming along so well, there was little I had to do for him, save change his dressings. He needed no help to sleep, especially since Felana and he cuddled together under their blankets.

Well, my first day out on the road with these folks and boy, I was exhausted. I made myself a nest in the quilts and sheepskins Elrond had given me and slept like an unconscious rock.

The next days were just as fun, and interesting. As we got further away from Rivendell, and further down the East Road, we began to meet other travelers headed to the Great Northern Fair. It was fascinating. Why I met some people from Laketown! All the way from Laketown. Whoosh. They came in a large caravan of wagons and walkers and folks on horseback. It was all so colorful. This particular group was merchants and I couldn't wait to see what they might have once they set up their booths. Felana told me they had brought a great many live fish in barrels to sell.

Jafa was excited as well, improving day-by-day. He was enjoying the large crowd of travelers. My goodness, once we set up camp, well it looked as if a city of tents had sprung up. Felana and I figured there were close to sixty people once we reached the dwindling foothills of the Misty Mountains.

By the end of the second week, Jafa did not need much more than a soothing cream that helped the new skin stretch and move comfortably. And he was back to riding his pony Taffy. However, he kept far away from the campfires, and only practiced in the open space beyond the encampment.

We had been away from Rivendell for almost three weeks, when one twilight, while the air was filled with wonderful cooking smells, a new group of travelers joined us.

Elves! Elves from Mirkwood (No, no, Prince Legolas was not with them!). I was thrilled. They looked just like the elves of Rivendell, save they were all dressed in forest colors: russet browns, dark greens, greys, some pale yellows. Even some orange-brown colors. Though some of the riders were cloaked and hooded, I could see some of them wore their hair differently, too. Many of them had their hair braided back into long ponytails with leather and beads and bits of silver hanging from the ends and some down past their ears. They had an air of swiftness about them, if that makes any sense. Even sitting or standing still, they gave off the feeling of quickness. And really, if and when they wanted, they could just disappear into the brush and oak. (And yes, I had met a few with Prince Legolas when we were at Radagast's home. But again, they were only a few and sort of stayed to themselves.

This group, I had been told, were part of a fluctuating number of wanderers who frequently joined up with Rangers and drifted about Mirkwood and places north, keeping a watchful eye out for anything unusual. Hanj told me they usually showed up at the Fair. Occasionally they joined in archery displays and spear-tossing and what not. But for these elves the Fair was a great source of news and rumors from all over Middle Earth and they and the Rangers were able to discern the dross from the gold.

I wanted to go talk with them, but this evening I had kitchen duties, so I knew I would have to wait. I also wondered if I would ever see Aragorn here. Or the twins? It had been some time since I had seen either of them. This sounded like just the kind of place they would come to in their ceaseless watch of the North.

I looked over at the elves as they took care of their horses and put up a pavilion. There looked to be about a dozen of them. Hanj mentioned that was a rather large number for their group as the most he had seen was four together. Well perhaps they had been joined by other elves.

The wind had come up while dinner was being served (a thick rabbit stew) and as I passed Felana on may way to the stew pot she said, shaking her head, "Weather's changing. We will probably have rain soon."

"That will certainly slow us all down, won't it?"

"Aye, some. But we've traveled through worse. There's enough men to help with the wagons in the mud." She glanced over to where the elves were sitting about their fire, talking. "Though it's right handy the elves have joined us, they're very strong."

"Indeed. Well, nothing to worry about then."

Felana glanced at the view of the night sky above us, what we could see through the scrub oaks we had camped around. "Let's hope not."

As she passed me, I shrugged: A group this size would be able to take on anything that arose because of a summer storm.

Ohhh, me and my big mouth.

I should have known better. I awoke the next morning to find my tent ropes sway in a gale and thunder rumbling about, as well as the flashes of lightning. Idiot. I put everything away in my tent and made my few bundles as waterproof as I could. Running towards the kitchen tent, I ducked under the flap and wiped the rain off myself. I immediately set about to helping with making hot cereal sweetened with a healthy dose of honey. Another member of Hanj's troupe, Allar was cutting apples in small slices and dropping them into the cereal. I went over to her. Finding another knife, I watched what she was doing and began slicing along with her. Soon we had the small sack done and the cooking cereal smelled so good.

I listened to the rain pouring on the roof and shook my head. How were we going to be able to keep everything dry and then get this whole crowd of entertainers and merchants moving? I was suddenly glad I wasn't Hanj.

Soon, the hungry came in and I helped serve the glutinous mash. There was even goat's milk to pour on the mixture.

When Hanj finally came abreast of me, near the end of the line, I saw the pour guy was all wet and dripping. "Are we really going to move out in this storm?'

He grinned as I slapped the food into the wooden bowl, "Oh certainly Mistress Marie. This is just a wee summer shower. It will be over in an hour or so."

I nodded and fed the next person in line. Sure. But with the mud this "wee" storm was making, I am sure we weren't going to get too far.

I spent another hour helping get the kitchen things squared away.

When I was done, I dashed back into the rain (which didn't look as if it was slowing any) and went to my tent. I stopped in surprise, heedless of the downpour. My tent and all my belongings had been packed up and I assumed, put in the wagon.

I saw the elves had put all their gear away and were helping others get their things packed. You know, you can always count on the elves.

Wiping the rain out of my face, I went to Felana and Jafa's tent and found they had been packed up and tucked into our wagon. I then went to the picket line and got Carenloth and deciding I'd rather ride in the wagon this time, I just tied Carenloth to the back. She shook her head and I rubbed her down some and gave her an apple. She shook herself flinging rain every which way.

I was about to get into the wagon, when I saw a little girl running in the rain towards the edge of camp. I could just see some kind of critter racing ahead of her. A bunny? A small dog? (though I had not seen any of those). I looked around and saw that there was no one nearby that I could call out to. So, taking a deep breath, I let go of the back of the wagon and went after her.

She ran me a merry chase too! Fleet little thing. I finally caught up to her because she had slid down the hillock ahead of us.

I came up to her and said "Sweetheart, stop. MY name's Marie. Come now, we have to get out of this rain."

She pointed up the hill. "But Karfy is up there."

"Who or what is Karfy? "

"He's my pet squirrel. He must be so scared." She scrambled out of my arms and struggled up the hill again. I went after her, trying to find foot holds in the slick earth. But the ground, soggy with the sudden rain proved loose and down we both went. I thwonked my head hard on a rock, but at least it stopped us both from sliding any further.

Getting up shakily, I ignored the mud on me everywhere and picked up the now subdued little girl and made my way back towards where I thought the camp was. But in my running, I hadn't really paid any attention to any landmarks. And there were hillocks like this all around because as I said, we had camped at the very edge of the foothills to the Misty Mountains.

"What is your name puss?" I said, holding her close because she was shivering now.

"Mela. And you said you are Marie. You are helping Jafa."

"Yes. And now I hope I am helping you. Do you remember which way camp is?"

Mela looked around us and squinted in the rain and then shook her head. I could see blood dribbling down from a scratch over her eye. Poor little bug.

"Did your mum or dad see you leave?"

Mela turned towards me and then brushed rain off her face. "No." she said in a small voice. "I was moving Karfy's cage and I dropped it and Karfy got his door loose and he ran."

"Well, someone is bound to come looking for us."

"But it's raining and everyone is busy leaving and there is so many people."

Shivering more, I held her closer and walked slowly to a large boulder. Setting her down, I clambered up the wet granite and looked about. But the still heavy rain made it hard to see in any direction. Sighing, I got down and picked up Mela again and just started walking.

Someone was bound to notice one of us was missing! I rubbed my now aching head and decided huddling under a big tree would be a better idea than the two of us walking aimlessly.

Soon a large oak presented itself, and Mela and I sat next to the trunk of the tree and huddled together.

Surely someone would find us.