Note: I'm sooo getting into this. Tehe. Read!
"Asimma, what should I do?"
Threwen had been quietly whispering to her horse for about a half an hour now. It would be midnight soon. She wondered if he would be late.
The stables were a rather creepy place to be at night, she noticed. There were some spider webs strung between the beams and she'd made the mistake of running into one earlier. Luckily her mare made her a little more comfortable but discussing such matters in such a dark place was a little…chilling.
The blonde wrapped her cloak more tightly around her. She took a deep breath, the smell of hay and animals filling her nose. Her thoughts wandered to other things, particularly one person. She wanted him to be safe and to take care of himself, but why did she care? She was supposed to keep a distance from other people. He was just a pawn. She had to remind herself of that.
She jumped when she heard a noise. She turned to see a shadowy figure in the doorway. Her heart starting ramming against the inside of her chest, but she kept still and calm.
"What're you doing in here at this late hour, missy?"
It was the keeper of the stables. He was an older man who Threwen had seen many times since she visited the stables often in the months she'd been in Edoras now. She didn't even know his name but she felt like the old man was kind and she didn't have to worry about him.
"I was just visiting Asimma. I couldn't sleep." Keep it short and simple.
He smiled, his face wrinkling. "Oh, alright. I just wanted to make sure no one was trying to steal one of my horses. You never can be too careful these days. There have been more and more orc raids lately, you know."
Threwen nodded but didn't say anything. He was right. The Riders had had their hands full of late. They had taken it upon themselves to slaughter every orc in Rohan which is no easy task. Lord Théodred, son of the King, and his cousin, Lord Eomer, were among those who were fighting.
"You take care now." The man turned to leave but not without giving Threwen a kind smile.
She put on a weak smile in return.
After the stable door shut she fell back to whispering to Asimma. Despite the fact that the horse couldn't answer her she felt like she had all the answers. They were such powerful creatures and Threwen had a feeling that Asimma could sense what she felt, the mare could understand her thoughts.
She sighed. "Asimma, what should I do?" She'd ask the horse this before and she knew she was just repeating herself with no hope of answer. "Am I doing what's…" She didn't finish.
Am I doing what's right? she asked herself. Deep down she knew the answer…and she didn't like it.
Creak.
"You're late," Threwen said, as she sensed a presence behind her. This time it was the person she had been expecting.
He didn't answer her question but went straight to business. "What happened?"
She shrugged, patting Asimma's nose. "The plan was jeopardized. You're lucky I had a backup in case something like that happened." She could feel him move closer.
"Lucky? I wouldn't call that lucky."
She shrugged again. "What are the arrangements?"
"We need them gone."
Threwen had to keep in a gasp. Gone? "How?" she asked.
"I have my ways. What I need you to do is get close to them. Find out what's going on. Get on the inside."
"I can't do that."
She could feel him smile slyly. "Yes you can."
"How?" Then she remembered. She whirled around, about to say something and then stopped when she realized how dark and menacing his eyes looked. She looked at the ground. "Alright. What then?"
"I'm already on the inside. Everything is working so far. Once they're gone there's nothing left to stop us. We just have to wait for the opportunity."
"What might that be?"
He smiled again, but it wasn't a pleasant look. "You need to find out where they're going tomorrow. Then leave the rest up to me. I'll contact the master and he will set it up. The trap will be set."
Threwen closed her eyes. She hated this. She hated him. How had she gotten herself into this? She opened her eyes and saw him preparing to leave. She was about to breathe a sigh of relief when she realized something.
I don't know his real name! How am I going to find him again without knowing his real name? The only knowledge she had of him was that he was on the inside and had elevated himself to a prestigious position quickly, with the help of her master.
"Who should I ask for if I need to contact you again?"
He stopped at the door and turned his head slowly, the light from the lantern giving his pasty white face an eerie glow. "Gríma."
End Note: sigh I love cliffhangers.