As October plods along, with damp skies and windblown leaves, I find myself in a pensive, thoughtful sort of mood. It is raining this morning, so I have put off work until a little later, in the hopes it will dry out before I go.
It was one year ago this month, that I was contemplating leaving Bree-land behind for good. After the debacle with Lord Merton, I was barely able to feed myself by helping in the stables at the Prancing Pony, and using one of his smaller, upstairs rooms for a bed at night. Tothrandir had gone away, and I was feeling about as low as a soul can feel. Rootless and homeless, without friend or family.
I have always been a firm believer that things do not happen by chance. It was not chance that led me to the marketplace at the same time as a certain dark-haired Gondorian girl. It was fate. The powers that be. The spirits that guide us. Whatever one wishes to call it! Without the hand of destiny, I would not have been standing at the honey vendor at the same time as she. We would not have begun talking. She would not have invited me to meet her friends. And I would not have found my new home and family, nor stayed in Bree, nor met my husband, nor anything else that my life has been this past year. These are humbling and quieting thoughts.
Yet here we are! Last night, I encountered Nemmy in the Sizzling Turtle, and we had scarcely said hello when a familiar face appeared at the door, and turned out to be my old acquaintance, Rick Cobb! I'd not seen him in quite some time, and though he seemed his usual, brusque self, such personalities don't put me off. Oddly enough, he wanted nothing to eat or drink except a cup of water.
Not long after, the door opened again, and a stranger entered, seeking rest and a tankard of beer. The man introduced himself as Caaran, and hinted that he was a "new" local of Bree-town. Very curious, I admit, but we did not interrogate the poor fellow, but offered him a drink while he took a chair near the hearth.
The next time I looked up, there was not one, but two figures standing near the door, having snuck in rather quietly! I was surprised at how busy the Turtle suddenly was, but quite delighted, of course! I recognized one of them as the man Loakee, who I met in the Prancing Pony not long ago. His companion was introduced as Baldvin, and after bringing them a bit of mead, they turned out to be the most amiable and entertaining pair! Of course, Nemmy is as charming as anything in her own right, so the exchanges amongst the group were most amusing and light-hearted.
I wished that my beloved could have joined me there, and I felt his absence keenly. Though I sensed a bit of flirtatiousness from Baldvin in particular, and I know I blushed a few times. Such attentions from men amuse me, as I can't help but wonder what they think they see in me? I know my "straw colored" hair and blue eyes are a bit of a novelty in the north. Beyond that, there is little that I consider special or noteworthy about myself. I am just a girl who smells of horses and would prefer to sit in a corner with a cup of tea.
Ah, well! I mustn't linger here too long, as I've promised to meet with Leoffrith today at the stables. He's such a gentleman, he offered to handle the feeding and watering and mucking today on his own, to allow me a break. In turn, I'd like to show him a bit of the work I've been doing with the foals, particularly the stubborn little colt that I've been calling Ánhýdig, or "Dig" for short. The best animals to learn from are the willful ones, after all!
