I was re-reading some of my stories and got enthused enough to finish a chapter of Jenny's that had been sitting there. I hope I've managed to keep the humour alive. Disclaimer: I do not own the Hobbit.

Chapter 5: There Goes the Reputation.

Her time in prison extended way past what she had expected and before she knew it she had spent a year in the marshy place. She despaired in the fact she hadn't negotiated her payment properly before she started working for the black-cloaked man she now knew as Baldor as she had only received a silver coin every month for her work. She horded every coin though under her bed in a leather sack hoping that one-day she'll earn enough to get to Bree. The work was rough and not one of her customers appreciated her skills. But admittedly… she wasn't doing a great job most of the time.

She had been experimenting with wax to help with leg and underarm hair and so asked the guard if there were any willing volunteers to help her. He had gleefully told her he could find a few and it had taken quite a few attempts to get it right. The first had given the guy a nasty burn that even profuse apologising didn't help. The second try gave the poor girl a huge rash that had her crying. The third attempt was better but the rash thing was almost a guarantee with two in three receiving it. She had tweaked more but still hadn't manage to get rid of the rash issue but from what the guard told her every time he said that they requested for her to do a leg wax they fully understood what it meant and accepted the risk.

It didn't mean it didn't hurt every time they called her a demon when the rash extended up their legs and depending on the customer- the bikini-line.

Her experimenting didn't end there though. She was fully supported by her superior to develop her own skin care range, which was of great relief to her as her the prison atmosphere sucked moisture out of her skin like a desert. She had been devastated when she found out Middle Earth didn't apparently have any coconuts handy but they did have a plant very similar to aloe vera that was a saving grace. She had tried it on a client but apparently it's one of those things that work for some races and not others. The poor dwarf turned completely purple and had to be taken to a healer as he had trouble breathing. She might have gotten into a bit of trouble with that one.

One thing though did comfort her throughout all of this; she was almost like a priest to most of her clients. When they would have a session with her they would all give their confessional and it looked as if a great weight was off their chest once they had.

Prison life all in all was wearing on her though and she worked and saved until it was time that she could go north.

'Scum! Degenerates! Spawn from Mordor itself! Motherfu-'

'-Baldor!' Jenny interrupted the head torturer appalled. She despaired at the crudity of her workplace. She had told him time and again she wasn't comfortable with such vulgarity in her presence. Most of the time he acquiesced and somehow got her clients to do the same, which was nice but now and again he slipped.

'Ah… a thousand apologies,' Baldor simpered, 'I forget your ears are delicate where your hands are… not.'

'Err… right,' Jenny said warily, 'What is the problem?'

'Oh, it's simply is a… travesty,' he lamented, 'While you are a Master of our profession, that clearly shines through, can I not beg of you to stay? But no… you are too… good for this place.'

'Baldor, what on Earth are you talking about?' Jenny sighed at his dramatic behaviour.

'Summons!' he hissed, 'Summons from the Men of Gondor! Your impressive… qualities must have reached their ears.'

Jenny perked up.

'Gondor? Minas Tirith?' she asked curiously.

'Yes, The White City,' he muttered darkly, 'A thin facade of a shining city but like anywhere still has… vermin in the gutters. So much so they have one of the largest prisons in the very bowels of the castle. Now they want… you,'

'Me?'

'Of course they would,' he bemoaned, 'I knew I should not have boasted so to my cousin of your… prowess.'

'Oh,' Jenny said simply feeling a little flattered.

It was true she hadn't seen any other salons around the place but she didn't know such a thing would be so prized she would be headhunted from another country. They must have heard all the good she was doing at Tharbad.

She was slowly but surely improving quality of life for the prisoners. She understood that they were there for punishment but the conditions were just unhealthy. She managed to get the warden to let them clean up their spaces. A whole list of duties was drafted and the prison had never looked so wonderful.

'I'm not sure I can take them up on it,' Jenny ruminated softly, 'I was planning to head North rather than South.'

Baldor didn't seem to hear her though.

'And to think! They would use bribery to get their way. 20 gold pieces for such a… transfer. They insult us! You are worth more than that… tenfold.'

That got her attention.

'…gold you said?'

'Only 20 pieces, scum!'

'…just hypothesising here… how many silver coins are there to a gold piece?' Jenny asked curiously.

Baldor seemed to misunderstand her question.

'I wouldn't mind a pay rise,' Jenny mused.

'If you're concerned about money I have… plenty saved up,' Baldor suggested almost hopefully, 'we could… work something out?'

'No I don't want to borrow money,' Jenny misunderstood, 'I need to earn my own.'

Baldor hunched his shoulders and turned his face to the shadows, 'of course of course. How... presumptuous of me.'

Jenny sighed and rubbed her face- that was still baby soft thanks to her latest skin cream.

'Baldor where is this summons you saw?'

Baldor pouted and with a flare of his cloak revealed a piece of parchment.

'It came by… courier this morning,' he muttered.

'Thank you Baldor,' Jenny replied distractedly and took the letter… and was greeted with a myriad of strange letters.

Oh… Jenny gulped nervously.

'Oh yes I see…' she trailed off, 'Summons to Gondor?'

'Wretches,' Baldor cursed, 'and to only give you a month to reply.'

'Yes. I see,' Jenny hummed in agreement as if she understood. She didn't.

'Today is a… deplorable day,' he mourned.

'Oh pish posh Baldor. Today is looking up,' Jenny cheered, 'be happy for me. I'm getting out of this prison and possibly going to Gondor!'

With that Jenny flounced off excitedly to pack while Baldor sat on the torture chair Jenny had been half-heartedly cleaning and put his head in his hands.

'How cruel,' he moaned, 'To have Tharbard's very own queen ripped from her kingdom.'

He pulled another piece of paper out of his cloak and stroked the face carefully drawn there.

'Jenny… we could have been so… happy,' he whispered longingly at it, 'I'll never find someone like you again. No one quite shares your… creativity to our craft.'

Baldor folded the piece of paper up carefully and tucked it back in his cloak and patting it lovingly. He stood up, straightened his cloak and strode out of the torture room with resolution because his Momma always told him to let go of the things you love.

Jenny may have been a little over hasty in preparing to go to Gondor. She had packed her bags within an hour but found out from a bitter and reluctant Baldor that a contingent would come to pick her up once she sent a courier back with her acceptance.

She got the courier to write the letter and waited at the gates of Tharbad almost every opportunity she had hoping to see essentially a knight in shining armour to save her from the prison.

They couldn't come too soon as Baldor was being quite the pill at the moment and she was heartbroken to hear most of the prisoners were celebrating her impending departure.

In the end it took over two months for the contingent to arrive.

The contingent from Gondor, when they did arrive, were certainly not knights in shining armour but rather grimy men in scruffy leathers.

Jenny when she heard of their arrival and raced out excitedly but was less excited when she was caught downwind of them. After a night for the men to refresh themselves and have the horses rested it was time for the group to depart.

Jenny dragged her bags to the prison gates eagerly enough though that morning and not even Baldors foul mood and depressing comments could shake her relief on finally escaping the prison.

'This is it... the end... the finale... the dissolution.'

'Enough Baldor,' Jenny demanded, 'just be happy for me. You'll find someone new to replace me soon enough.'

'No one and nothing will even replace you,' he decreed solemnly, 'Even if I searched for a thousand years.'

'Stop being dramatic. Oh! Hush now. The captain is waving us over.'

True enough the man leading the contingent to take her to Gondor had mounted his horse and beckoned Baldor and herself to come closer.

'Men of Gondor I bequeath the Queen of these lands to your care!' Baldor announced dramatically to the entire party and Jenny in response hid her face in her hands, 'She is a shining light that does not dim! Her hands while soft can strike fear into peoples hearts! Take care to protect her on her journey to your black lands because her wrath will be mighty in response if you fail her!'

'Shut up Baldor!' she hissed mortified, 'You're giving them the wrong impression.'

'But they deserve to know who rides along them,' Baldor griped, 'A Goddess beyond all measure!' he said overly loud again so the riders could hear.

'Baldor shush!'

Jenny despaired. It seems she would never lose her menacing reputation. Even now her escorts shied away from her… the ones that weren't laughing of course.

'But my precious-'

'Oooh please don't call me that it brings up bad memories,' Jenny pleaded, 'It's not goodbye forever anyway. I'll only stay at Gondor until I earn enough to make it north again. I plan to buy a house and everything once I get there.

'Near... Tharbard?' Baldor asked with dawning hope.

'God no!' Jenny refuted swiftly, 'I already am concerned I'll never get the stench of the swamp out of my nose. No, I'll head further north. The Shire I think if they'll let me.'

'The... Shire?' Baldor asked confused but the lead Gondorian that had come to fetch her trotted forward on his horse seemingly to hustle the progression on.

'Milady your noble steed awaits,' he said coolly and Jenny sighed as she saw the mockery in his eyes.

'Goodbye and thank you Baldor,' she said despondently and swung up onto her horse (something she had a learnt how to do out of sheer necessity) and the entire party began to move off. She didn't end up looking back so didn't see Baldor's heartbroken face as the love of his life rode out of the prison gates.

'What… a woman,' Baldor murmured heartbrokenly as he watched the love of his life leave the prison grounds.

Jenny didn't look back.

xx