After that night, the nightly gathering became a time for everyone to share their stories. Frodo, with the help of Gimli, even retold the story of Bilbo and the dwarves, of their adventures finding the Lonely Mountain, and of the finding of the Ring. This story lasted many nights, and drew in even more audience members than usual.

At one point in the story, Gimli told of how the elves of Mirkwood had imprisoned his father and his companions, excluding Bilbo. At this point, he pointedly mentioned how unjustly King Thranduil had imprisoned them.

"I apologize for that, Gimli my friend," Legolas said. "You must excuse my father, for he was only acting in the best interests of our people. We do not often have visitors, especially dwarves, in our land."

"Wait, your father? You're a prince?" one man asked in awe, the others all looked upon Legolas with renewed respect.

"Yes, but that hardly matters right now," he said, trying to deflect the attention he was now receiving.

"You were stalking a prince?" another man asked loudly, looking at Tinwe. All eyes shifted to look at her.

"See what you've done now?" she said, elbowing Legolas who sat beside her. "Hurry and continue the story, will you?"

So Gimli and Frodo continued the story. By the time their story was concluded, they had only one night until the coronation. Everyone was growing excited, knowing that soon there would again be a king of men.

"Does anyone have any other story to share?" Tinwe asked, looking around.

"Surely you have at least one more story to tell," Pippin said eagerly. "You've seen so much over the years."

"Well, I suppose I have one more," she said, smiling at the hobbit. "Would you like to hear about the nomads in the east?"

There was a murmur of assent in the crowd, and Tinwe smiled.

"Alright. I'll tell it." She cleared her throat, and began her tale.

"It was upon my last trip into the east. I reached the desert land, and began traveling directly into their center. There was rumored to be group of nomads living there that could help me navigate the harsh land. So I journeyed through the sands. The air was hot and dry. No water for leagues in all directions. Creatures of the strangest sort. There were the smallest lizards, and the largest cats. I was lucky, and saw little of these creatures, for I knew not if they were dangerous.

"I traveled for weeks, growing steadily weaker as my supplies waned. But I was lucky. I managed to find an oasis, and there I found the nomads I had been hunting for.

"As I rode into their camp, they looked at me strangely. Turns out, they had never seen an elf before, or heard of one before. They spoke a language I did not know, and did not speak any language I did know. However, one woman managed to inform me, through hand gestures, that the one who could understand me was lying ill in a tent. She led me to the man, and asked me if I could help. I gestured to her that I was unsure, but I would do what I could. So I went to work.

"The man had been attacked by one of the great cats of the desert, and had been torn to shreds. So I spent many hours stitching up his wounds, while his people watched. He remained unconscious through the whole ordeal, and once I finished, remained that way for another three days. But he did wake, and spoke to me.

"He was the leader of the nomads, and had traveled far and wide, as I had. He thanked me for healing him. I was welcomed into their tribe, and a feast was held in my honor. They thought I was a god of sorts, come to bring them knowledge. I tried to tell them otherwise, but it was no use. I was given many gifts and was asked many questions. They wished to know why I had come to them at that time. I told them I was a traveler and wished to see all the world. I came to ask them to show me their world. They were thrilled, and told me that they would show me everything they could.

"Slowly, I learned their language. Some even learned mine. I made many friends among them. In particular, I found a friend in a young boy of about ten. He was called Wealdul. He turned out to be the son of the chief whom I had saved. He would follow me around, and ask questions about the world, what it was like, and who lived in it. He would sit and listen to my stories for hours, much as you all do. I became very attached to the little boy.

"After a while, he began teaching me of his culture, especially their devotion to raising and training horses. He told me of all the creatures of the desert, of which were deadly and which were harmless. He was very proud of his knowledge. He kept saying how he was to be the future leader of his people, and how he needed to know everything about the world, so he could keep them safe. He desperately wanted to travel like his father did, to see the vastness of the world. I sympathized with him, and so I gave him a map I had been making of all the vast lands I had ventured through. He was thrilled.

"Wealdul was probably the reason I stayed with them for so long. I stayed there for nearly six years, traveling with the tribe, hunting with them, learning how to work as they did. It felt like home more than any other place I'd traveled to. But I still felt restless. I would go out hunting with the men, just to get away. But I always came back, and I credit that to Wealdul. He was a brother to me. In the six years I was there, he grew into a handsome, proud leader of his people. He was able to speak fluently in both Sindarin and Westron. I in turn learned to speak his language fluently. He called it Bethrun, or eastern word in Sindarin. He loved to show off, speaking in different tongues. He was very popular with the girls of his tribe.

"But as he grew older, I grew more restless. I made my decision to leave the day of his 16th birthday. It was then I realized that he was no longer my little curious friend. He was a leader of his tribe, and had more important things to do than talk with me, as he did every day. When I told him of my decision, he tried to convince me to stay. But in my heart, and his too though he wouldn't admit it, he knew it was my time to leave.

"But as I prepared to leave, the entire village turned out, and together, they gave me three gifts. The first was a book, filled with their language, history, and legends. Inside was also a map of their land, so I would be able to find them if I ever chose to return. Second, they gave me one of their horses. They were much like the Rohirrim, and were great masters of horses. I still have the horse they gave me. Alagos has stayed with me since then. And third, they gave me a horse pendent."

As she spoke, she drew out a long silver chain, and upon the end was a brilliantly white horse with deep black eyes.

"It is made of mithril, and is said to have magical properties. Wealdul gave this to me, and told me how it would keep safe whoever wore it. It was the most precious gift they could give me. I thanked him and his people for their generosity, and gave them a small pack with healing herbs in it. I wish I could have given them something more, and someday I shall return their kindness.

"I told Wealdul I would return someday. And I shall. For as I made my way here to the White City, I was ambushed by Orcs. I fought them off, but was shot by an arrow. I fell to the ground, my sword falling from my grasp. The Orc that had shot me came over, and looked down at me, grinning evilly. He told the other Orcs I was soon to die, and to let me suffer. The arrow had hit me square in the heart. He saw the silver chain around my neck, and removed it, taking it with him as he left.

"But I did not die. That mithril horse had deflected the arrow. It had hit me in the heart, but had slid off the charm, piercing my skin a hairsbreadth from being fatal. If you look closely, you can see the dark line the arrowhead made along it. Anyway, I managed to pull the arrow from my chest, and stitch myself back up. As soon as I was well enough, I began tracking down the filthy Orc that stole the necklace. I found him here, at Osgiliath, and took it back. So now, I must return to Wealdul and his people, and thank them, for they saved my life."

Everyone remained silent as Tinwe finished her remarkable story.

"Well, if you all have nothing to say, then I believe it is time for bed. Off you go," Tinwe said good-naturedly. They all stood up, talking about her story, marveling at what she'd said. Tinwe herself said goodnight to her friends, and walked by herself to her room, where she stood on the balcony, looking out over the city. She had made friends here just as she had in the east. But, just like then, she felt a strong desire to move on. She resolved to do so, but first, she would stay for the coronation. She owed it to her friends to do so. With a sigh, she walked to her bed, and lay down, wondering yet again what the future had in store for her.