9

I looked at Aragorn, who, having finished with his pipe, was carefully cleaning it so he could put it back in a pouch.

So the evil things abroad might be really interested in me. Dang. I should have known I couldn't have a nice pleasant stay here at the Great Northern Fair.

Seeing Aragorn was done with his pipe, I stood up, wincing slightly at the prickles in my sore foot. Aragorn tipped is head at me, one eyebrow raised. "Do I need to look at your foot, Marie?"

"No, no. It's fine, just stiff from sitting is all."

Aragorn grinned at me. "Come Marie, sit down again and let me look at it. Walking about all day was probably not the best thing you could do for it."

"My lord Aragorn," I said trying for formality. "Seriously, would you expect me to sit about camp an do nothing? Sheesh, I'd go crazy."

He grinned at me crookedly. "No, of course not, Marie. What ever was I thinking?" he rolled his eyes. He bent and took my shoe off to unwrap the linen bandage now dusty from the fair.

And of course, my ankle looked all pale and white, the line between the dust of the fair and the clean skin beneath the bandage sharp.

Aragorn very gently manipulated my ankle, which was fine until he moved it a particular way and I winced.

"See, Marie, your ankle is swollen. Look, you can see it." The puffy flesh around my anklebone was plain to see.

Sighing, I just nodded. "Can you just wrap it up again?"

"Of course, for all the good it will do you."

"Well, it will help some."

As he took the linen and began to rewrap my ankle, I said thoughtfully. "I was wondering if orcs got this little dancing girl that has gone missing from Kran's entertainment camp."

Aragorn looked up at me sharply, slightly shocked.

"What?" I was puzzled by his response.

"What were you doing at Kran's? Hardly the place for a young lady such as yourself. Avoid Kran and his ilk, Marie. His camp attracts a rougher crowd."

Okay, as I've said before, sometimes, I am a little slow. After all, there is so much about life in Middle Earth I don't know. I took a deep breath. "I see. After dark entertainment, for a rougher crowd. All those young girls, er, dancers."

He tipped his head at me, grinning slightly. "Yes, indeed, Marie. As I said, not the place you should be visiting, even in daylight."

"Well, I did. He has an elven wagon, though he claims he bought it some where."

Aragorn shrugged as he tied off the linen. "It is possible. He could have purchased it from elves who had reached the Grey Havens."

Of course. Duhhhhh. They aren't going to need a ride back.

"Well, anyway, it's because I saw the elven wagon. I thought it was your father's for a moment and I went up to it. That's when I met Kran and then as I was leaving, I met Lily who was so young for heaven's sake and she was crying and saying Master Kran had taken away her friend Delath who had not wanted to entertain "night callers." I held up my hand. "I've got it now. I've figured it all out."

Aragorn chuckled.

"Anyway, she said her friend had gone missing. And so, I was just wondering if you though it might be orcs?"

"There are a lot of armed men about this fair, Marie. Orcs, for all their terrifying looks are rather cowards when confronted by numbers."

"But," I shuddered. "Maybe they were sent to get some one? Or maybe they were just...hungry?" I shivered at that, wrapping my arms about me tightly.

Aragorn stood with that and pointed to my foot. He had already put my shoe back on as well, so I stood carefully. It felt as good as before. "Thanks, my lord." He nodded and then suddenly, he came up to me and put an arm across my shoulders, hugging me to him. "Do not be afraid Marie. I and the other Rangers, as well as the elves, are keeping a watch on things here."

I nodded. He was right. The orcs would not be foolish enough to come to such a large gathering. They much preferred to stay in the dark and attack the unwary. Like those people idiot enough to be wandering in the foothills of the Misty Mountains looking for a way back to Rivendell. (That would be me, in case you missed my previous tale)

I just hoped that poor Delath wasn't one of them. I looked at Aragorn with a smile. Well, regardless of the Dunedan's request, I had to check Kran's place. Just for my peace of mind, you understand.

"Thanks for bandaging my foot." I stretched suddenly, happy to feel the sun on my face. "But I will tell you, I do miss Lord Elrond. I cannot believe how long it has been since I've seen him."

Aragorn smiled. "Indeed. Well, as I said, I, and the other Rangers, will be out and about during the length of the fair, Marie. If you have any need or you see anything strange, I shall be staying with the elves camped by the creek on the eastern side of the fair encampments. Near the willows. You can always leave a message for me there."

I nodded as I remembered the willows when we came in.

"All right." I bowed to him. "I thank you for the wine and fruit." I leaned over and took a small apple, putting it into my pouch.

Smiling, he bowed back, a full courtly thing with a flourish. I was impressed. "My pleasure, Marie. Enjoy yourself. But please, try to stay out of trouble. And avoid injury if you can."

"Of course." Lord, like father, like son.

In moments, he had blended in with the mid day crowd. So very Ranger like. Smiling, I decided I would still go back to the entertainment camp and see if I couldn't find out what had happened to Delath, the friend/dancer of Lily. It would drive me crazy not to know her fate. Especially if there was something I could do to help.

Okay, I couldn't help myself, while I was wandering back towards Kran's encampment, taking a meandering route so that anyone watching wasn't sure exactly where I was headed, I did get briefly sidetracked by a wagon full of odds and ends, like a second hand store. How marvelous. I loved thrift stores and used bookstores and the like. (I really wanted to go to a big city like Minas Tirith and see what that was like!)

I went up and began looking through the bins and wooden boxes set out around the wagon on trestle tables. One side of the wagon opened out like a counter and the owner sat back in the shadows mending something, He nodded at me pleasantly.

As I went through a small wooden box of old bits of jewelry and buckles and such like, I found a wonderful stone. It was the size of the end of my pinky finger and looked like a drop of moonlight. It had no chain, so I happily looked through the jewelry to find a chain I could hang it on. It didn't take me long to find a thin chain of silver that had a pendant with half a piece of green jade in it. I pulled the pendant off and put the moonstone on it. It looked perfect.

I brought my find up to proprietor and cocking his head slightly at the necklace, he held it up. A shaft of sunlight set the stone glowing. "Well, here's a pretty bauble."

"The stone was by itself, so I found a chain that would fit it."

"Hm. It's very rare, mistress. It is a moonstone from the Second Age of elves. Made in Beleriand."

Oh, yeah. Sure. I didn't just fall off the turnip wagon, buster.

"Second Age, eh? Woo. Then that's got to be too expensive for my purse." I pulled out a gold coin, hoping it wasn't too much or laughably too little.

I stared at the coin for a moment and reluctantly began to drop it back.

"Hold there, mistress. Let us not be hasty. Have you another gold coin to befriend the one in your fingers?"

I nodded. I really did want the necklace. It certainly looked very elvish. And later on, I could ask an elf if it really was a Second Age bauble.

I bit my lip and looked at the old man as if I was thinking very hard. Sheesh. Two gold coins. That had to be a LOT of money.

But the necklace was so pretty.

"Second Age, as I said mistress. Almost certainly made by the High Elves."

"How do you know so much about it? Rob a grave or something?"

He actually looked a bit frightened, but immediately began to bluster.

"Now see here, young mistress. I am an honorable businessman. I don't go robbing graves."

"No, but some one needing cash in a hurry might. And then sell it to a dealer in used goods."

He puffed up again, but I held up a hand. "No, look, really. I will take it. How about a gold and silver coin?"

He made as if debating it internally. I started to slip my pouch back under my cloak. "No. I'll take it. Though I am telling you, I am getting robbed."

I snorted at that and paid him his coins. He fumbled behind the counter for a minute, and pulled out a small wooden box. Dropping the necklace into it, he snapped the lid shut and handed it to me. "Here you go."

"Thanks so much. I shall wear it in good health."

"You do that." He settled back into the dim light of his wagon and went back to his mending.

Sighing, I wandered off.

When I was out of sight of his wagon, I found a boulder and sat on it. Opening the little box, I pulled out the necklace and put it on. The chain was long enough so I could hold the stone up and look at it. What a pretty little thing. Maybe it was actually Second Age.

Laughing as I put the box into my pouch with my coins, I shook my head. It was probably more than likely Secondhand and not Second Age. But I was satisfied.

I hopped off the boulder and orienting myself, went towards where I remembered Kran's camp was located.

As I wandered through booths and wagons, I made note of places I wanted to visit again. I saw another secondhand booth, run by a pair of hobbits that I definitely had to stop by. Why, I might even get something from Hobbiton! Too cool. And there was a wagon that sold all kinds of sweets. My mouth watered as I looked at it. There were pastries as well as small candies in jars. Why there even looked as if there was a jar of lollipops! I loved lollipops, or suckers where I came from. I stood at the edge of a small crowd of children perusing the choices, when I heard the tiny of wail of a very unhappy child. Looking about, I saw a small girl sitting in the dust holding up her lollipop which now had broken into pieces and the small piece still on the stick was coated in dust. A human boy nearby stuck his tongue out and started laughing, which got a couple of his friends going too.

Well, I enough of that. I plowed through the children and picked up the girl, which by her delicate features was a little hobbit miss. "Come sweetheart. I'll get you another lollipop."

The boys stared at me with frowns and then moved off, unhappy no doubt, I had interrupted their rude behavior.

She reared back in my arms and looked frightened but I smiled and then turned to the proprietor, a young teenager about 15 or 16, I would guess. "What one do you want?"

Biting her lip, she tremblingly pointed to a bright red one. The teenager saw the one she pointed to and opened the jar, pulling it out. He took the broken one and exchanged it for the new one. I adjusted the little one in my arms to reach my pouch, but the boy waved his hand at me. "I would have given her another one, mistress. My mum would tan me good if'n I didn't."

"All right. Let me buy one for myself. I will take that pink one." Hoping it wasn't some strange icky flavor.

He reached into the jar, pulled it out and again waved his hand. "No, no. You take it."

"All right." I had a sudden idea. I leaned in close and left a silver coin on the counter, saying in a low voice. "For your kind heart, here's a silver piece for any wee ones who haven't got the money, all right?"

Smiling, he nodded and put it below the counter.

I waded through the children and then set the little one down on the grass. "All right, mistress?"

She looked up at me, her eyes still sparkling with tears. She could only nodded as the sucker was deep in her mouth. Grinning, I patted her on the head and went off, feeling cheerful.

I tried my lollipop and was delighted to find it was a combination of rose and honey flavors. I loved it and vowed to get more.

Finally, I saw the elvish wagon and made my cautious way to it. Finished with the sucker, I put the stick in my pouch. As I approached, I scanned the area to see what was going on. The place looked empty and I realize it was probably lunch/siesta time.

A couple of horses, heads bent, eyes half closed, tales switching at flies, stood with back hooves cocked in the shadow of the elvish wagon. Using them as a shield, I went to the back of the wagon and called out quietly. "Lily. Lily, are you in here?"

I heard some shuffling around and suddenly, Lily's face peeked through the canvas flap. She looked wan and exhausted as if I had just woken her from a nap. Which I probably had.

"What do you want? You got me in some trouble last time you were here." She fretfully tucked a long tangle of hair behind her ear.

"I am sorry, Lily. I just came by to find out what happened to Delath?"

Lily's face blanched at the mention of her friend's name and looked hurriedly about. Seeing the camp was wrapped in mid afternoon quiet, she beckoned me into the wagon. As quickly as I could, I clambered in, wincing as I made my foot do something it shouldn't. Dang foot! I wished, for the hundredth time, that Lord Elrond were here. And then I grinned to myself as I made my way through discarded gowns and rumpled blankets. Not that I would pay any more attention to his strictures than I had with Aragorn!

Lily sat on a small stool and pointed to one opposite her. I sat on it and asked, "Did you find out what happened to your friend Delath?"

Lily, looking as young as I had thought earlier, played with an end of her hair. Her eyes were still heavily made-up and she even wore red nail polish. She really looked like a 12-year-old dressed up in her much older sister's clothes. And I knew that women undoubtedly matured much sooner here than they did in the 21st Century, but still...

Swallowing, Lily looked up at me, the sliver of outside sunlight coming through the canvas flap glowing like pearls in her dark eyes, now wide with fear. "I am not certain, but I think Delath was sold to slavers. I overheard one of the other dancers telling a friend that if she didn't perform better, Kran was going to send her to Master Bron'Nala's camp."

"And who is Master Bron'Nala?"

"A slaver, of course. Though to everyone here at the fair, he is just another man with a group of entertainers."

"Well, then, if he is like Master Kran, what makes him a slaver?"

"None of the same girls are with him from year to year. And the girls he has don't talk to anyone. I never see them out and about at the fair. I mean, even Kran lets us go shopping and such like. He says it's good for business. Of course, we are watched by a couple of Kran's men, but still, we can have a bit of fun. I never see Master Bron'Nala's girls.

I frowned, trying to follow her logic. "Well, just because he doesn't have the same girls from year to year doesn't mean he is a slaver."

She leaned close to me. "Don't you see? He isn't from around here. We think he is from Far Harad or some such place way to the East. He is as brown as oak bark and wears loose clothing in very bright colors. Like nothing I have ever seen. And his voice, it doesn't sound like anyone I ever heard. Not even an elf."

I grinned. "Not even an elf?"

Lily blushed. "I beg your pardon. Well, you dress elvish, but I know you aren't elvish."

I bristled for a moment. "And how do you know that?" I knew my hair covered my ears.

"You are much too friendly for an elf. They are always so far away when they talk to you. Like they want to be somewhere else."

I just shook my head. "Well, anyway, just because he is a stranger, well, maybe you just don't understand his ways."

Lily shook her head firmly. "I know you are a nice woman and all, but you wear elvish clothing, which is pretty strange to folks in these parts. But that's not what I mean. Master Bron'Nala is scary. Not friendly at all. And Jenna, who's been with Master Kran through several fairs, says he's a slaver. And she just don't say that about anyone."

I nodded with a deep sigh. Maybe Master Bron'Nala was a slaver, and maybe he wasn't. The whole thing began to sound like an urban legend about some stranger no one had bothered to get to know. I would just have to go to his camp and see.

"Well, I cannot believe Master Kran would just let some other fellow steal one of his performers."

"He would if he was afraid of him."

I was way out of my depth now. But this just made me even more certain I would go visit Master Bron'Nala.

"Well, try not to worry Lily. I'm going to see what I can find out about this Master Bron'Nala. And perhaps discover what happened to your friend Delath. Where is this mysterious slaver's camp?"

"On the edge of the fair, of course. In the shadow of Little Rock Hill. Do you know where that is?"

I nodded. I had had it pointed out to me by Jafa when we had taken a walk one afternoon. He claimed the ghosts of dead warriors haunted it from some ancient battle. But I wasn't going to tell Lily that.

Lily grabbed me suddenly in a big hug and I patted her gently on the back. "Thanks ever so much." She sat back with that. "Say, I don't even know your name."

I stuck out my hand. "I am Marie."

She shook my hand timidly and then smiled. "Well, thanks again, Mistress Marie. I hope you can find out something."

I got up with a slight wince and made my way to the canvas tent flap. "I will Lily. And I will let you know as soon as I can."

Lily nodded and waved.

I waved back and slipped out of the wagon. Glancing around at the still quiet camp, I hurried away toward the rest of the fair.

Off to visit Master Bron'Nala.

By the time I had walked halfway around the perimeter of the fair, I gratefully found myself in the shadow of Little Rock Hill and staring at a sign, painted in red and gold with a great many gold curlicues, "Master Bron'Nala's Exotic Entertainers. One show a night, four hours after sunset. One copper."

Well, I thought, that would give me plenty of time to explore the area. There was hours to go before his show.

Taking a deep breath, I began to go slowly around the base of Little Rock Hill looking for a back entrance to the "slaver's" camp. My bad foot was not happy, but this was important.

Following the trail of deep wagon wheel ruts, I came across a small canyon in the east side of the hill, where a circle of wagons stood. A medium sized tent, painted many colors with birds and flowers and vines all over its sides was in the center of the camp. All was quiet in the canyon save for a few snorts and stamps from dozing horses just like Master Kran's camp.

Well, from first look, there wasn't much to be afraid of here.

I stood for several minutes assessing the camp. What to do now? Should I stick my head in a wagon and see what was happening? I reached into my pouch to grab an apple I had put in there earlier. I could think better with a little food.

As I was pulling my hand out, all went black as I was hit on the back of the head.