Chapter Three

The man left the room abruptly. Serafina noted that the room looked a lot larger now that he had vacated it. Looking at the four hobbits around her sighed and wondered where they would all sleep. She was pulled out of her reverie by a hand pushing on her leg.

"I don't believe I caught your name miss…" said the hobbit. Serafina noted it was the same that had noticed her bloody clothes lying on the bead.

"My name is Serafina little hobbit. What is yours?" She asked politely. She was quite relieved that she did not have to try and outsmart these little people; Serafina had had enough for the day.

"I am Peregrin Took, and this is my kinsman Meriadoc Brandybuck."

"How do you do" Meriadoc said courteously as he inclined his head. "You can call me Merry" he said with a smile, "just about everyone does."

"Yeah and everyone calls me Pippin." Said the enthusiastic young hobbit.

"Well I know Frodo" Serafina said also with a smile, at Frodo's enquiring glance she added, "I heard the man say it. Which leaves you." She said smiling at the fat hobbit.

He didn't answer.

"This is Samwise Gamgee. The best gardener in all of the shire, even if I am a bit biased." Said Frodo with fierce pride and a smile. It was the first smile she had seen Frodo give, and she had yet to see Samwise smile.

"You can call him Sam, everyone does" Pippin piped up, "but I'm afraid you'll have to call Frodo, Frodo. He doesn't have a nickname. Do you?"

"Pippin!" Merry exclaimed and whacked him over the head.

Serafina laughed, and then regretted it. She thought maybe there were some splinters in her wound. She smiled at the hobbits none the less and curtsied saying "I am very pleased indeed to have met you all."

…………………………

True to his word it was not long before the man returned. He promptly reclaimed his knife from Sam and turned to Serafina who was siting on the bed talking to Merry and Pippin while Frodo and Sam were by the window talking in hushed tones.

"You may stay the night." He said to her solemnly.

"I thank you stranger." She paused, "What should I call you?"

"Strider will do." Serafina raised her eyebrows at this but did not question the false name.

"And you may call me Serafina, however I am leaving this place in the morning and it would serve you well not to mention my name to anyone upon your stay."

"That does not bode well with me. Is the whole village hunting you? What sort of a person did I leave in care these hobbits?"

"Perhaps when you can trust me with something as insignificant as you name, I will trust you with the insignificant details of my life that you question." Serafina was tiring of this verbal sparring. "You promised me you would see to my wound. I ask that you do it sooner rather then later as it is quite uncomfortable."

"Very well." He said simply and motioned for her to lie on the bed.

……………………

Once she was all stitched up and fully dressed the four hobbits took their places in the bed and Strider in the chair, leaving Serafina to find the most comfortable patch of floor. She did not complain but went and sat against the door to be both a sentry and a draught stopper.

Sometime after midnight haunting cries woke Serafina. She sat up and walked quietly to the window and stood next to Strider.

"Nazgul." She said it was not a question. The man looked up at her and nodded.

"How do you recognise their cries?" he asked her in a hushed voice.

"I lived in Gondor until I was 12. I have never heard one before, but I was raised with enough stories of them to recognise one when I heard it. Every child in Gondor is told stories of the Nazgul. I had hoped they were just that; stories."

"Many things we hope to be stories are in fact true." He answered, voice melancholy.

"Yes, I guess you are right." She stated simply before taking her place back in front of the door. She listened quietly to Strider explaining the story of the Wraiths to the hobbits and shivered.

It had been a very long day.