Summary: In the spring of 2012, four American children find themselves thrust into an unfamiliar world and part of an unexpected adventure.  This story is AU, and blends Lord of the Rings book-verse and movie-verse.  This story also contains a lot of spiritual and religious content as a part of the AU elements.

Disclaimer: The world of Middle-earth and all its peoples belong to the estate of J.R.R. Tolkien; the three films of The Lord of the Rings​ belongs to New Line Cinema and to Peter Jackson.  This story is not for profit, but is a gift for the enjoyment of those who read it.

Citations: In most chapters, there will be some quotations directly from both the books and/or the movies.  Quotations from Tolkien's books are in italics, and quotations from the movies are underlined.  Occasional quotations from other sources as well as silent dialogue, words spoken in emphasis, and passages from the Bible will also be in italics, and those citations will be footnoted at the end of each chapter in which they occur. We will also footnote research sources and credit the ideas of other people.

Thanks: We would also like to acknowledge the invaluable help of our beta, Linda Hoyland, another well-known and prolific LotR fanwriter, whose many wonderful stories also grace this site.

A/N:  One of the things that KG asked me (DF), when we were going to partner in this story, was that we try to include my OC, Mendelcar, who appears in my story “Chance Encounter”.  I agreed.  Therefore, you may see bits of that story quoted here and there in the next few chapters.  Those are from my own story, so be assured that if you see something you recognize, it is not plagiarized.  Thank you.  DF and KG.

Chapter 101: What a Night

Jennifer, Lalaith, and Firieth had almost been late reporting to their shift in the new ward.  Tonight, they were in the children's ward.  This was a first for all three of them, but since many of the soldiers and war victims had recovered and been released, there was less demand in the wards for more serious cases.  The three girls were scarcely needed, as most children were sent home for recovery once they had been treated.  But there were a few who were a little more serious, or they were children who had no one at home who could give them the amount of care they needed.

The girls were still chattering and giggling about the party as they entered the ward, but they quickly quieted down as they saw Healer Adanel.  There was a girl there, even younger, who stood silently at the healer's side.

They stood before her in a line.  "Good evening, Healer Adanel," Firieth said.

"Good evening, Jennifer, Lalaith, and Firieth.”  The healer nodded toward the young girl beside her.  “This is Nimrodel of Linhir; she has just come to join us today.  She was sent to us by her aunt, who is the village healer.  She is not quite thirteen."  Normally they usually did not take apprentices younger than thirteen at the Houses, but since she already had some training, it seemed an exception had been made. 

"Good evening," the child said shyly.  "I was helping my aunt there.  But she wants me to have some city training."  

"It's nice to meet you, Nimrodel," Jennifer said, smiling.  "Are you named after the Elf-maiden in the song?"

She nodded.  "I was.  It was my mother's favourite song.  She was from Belfalis."  Jennifer nodded, remembering when Legolas had sung that song to the rest of the Fellowship.

Healer Adanel scanned their faces.  "It is time, girls.  Since none of you have been on this ward before, I shall tell you about it now."

Right away, all four of the girls were instant attention.  "Tonight, we have seven children here.  Two of them are infants, only just born.  Normally they would have been born at home, but one of the mothers had a very difficult birth, and is too ill to take care of her baby boy right now.  The other baby is now orphaned, for her mother died in childbirth, and her father was killed in battle before her birth.  The warden has sent for a wet nurse or two if possible, and they will be fed as soon as possible."  She pointed to a corner where there were three cradles, but only two were occupied.  Since the babies were sleeping, the healer led them quietly past the infants.

Jennifer smiled at them as she and the others walked past their cradles.  Aww, I want to hold the babies!  They’re so cute!

Healer Adanel led them to the first bed that was occupied and smiled at the little girl who lay in it.  "Good evening, Amartha.  These young ladies will be helping me look after you tonight.  Here are Jennifer, Lalaith, Firieth, and Nimrodel.  If you need help, ring the little bell next to you, and one of us will come."  

The child did not speak, but nodded her head.

"Do you need anything now, Amartha?" the healer asked.

Nodding again, the little girl turned her head and pointed to the pitcher of water on the small table next to her.  Healer Adanel picked up the metal cup next to the pitcher and poured some water.  Amartha took it in both hands and took a few sips and handed it back, mouthing ‘Thank you’ silently.

They walked away, and the healer told them, "Amartha came in with a high fever and Speckled Throat*, more serious than usual.  She is getting much better, but she is forbidden to speak until all of her symptoms are gone.”

The Healer led them to the next bed.  A little boy of about six or seven was sound asleep; his lower left arm had been splinted and placed in a sling.  "This is Îbal.  He broke his arm this afternoon while playing among the ruins and rubble on the Third Circle.  His arm has been set, and he has been given a strong soporific.  He should sleep through the night."

"What is a 'soporific', Healer Adanel?" asked Nimrodel.

The healer turned to Lalaith.  "Can you answer Nimrodel's question, Lalaith?"

"Yes, Healer.  A soporific is a potion or other medicine meant to induce sleep."  Healer Adanel nodded.

Another little boy was in the next bed.  He was about Joey's age, Jennifer thought.  "Hello, Adrahil.  I would like you to meet Jennifer, Lilith, Firieth, and Nimrodel.  They will be my helpers tonight.”  After gesturing toward the girls, Adanel turned back to Adrahil.  “I am going to look at your stitches.  Will you object if they watch?"

He blushed furiously.  "I guess they have to learn like those other ones.  Just as long as I do not have to watch this time."  He squinched his eyes closed and turned his head.

Adanel smiled and shook her head.  "Please be respectful of him," she said.  Carefully she moved the blanket just far enough to show the site of the incision.  The skin was pink and clean.  And there were not so many stitches as Jennifer had expected to see.  It was not nearly so bad as some of the wounds she had seen after battles.  The healer used two fingers to lightly probe around the edges.  "It seems to feel better, Adrahil.  You did not cry out tonight?"

Jennifer winced.  Even though the incision looked as if a bad cut had been stitched up, the fact remained that this little boy had been operated on.  How did he stand it? she wondered.  Without anaesthesia, how was he even able to endure the operation?  She shuddered at the thought of having to endure any operation without being put to sleep first.  But she remembered that after the battles, when some really painful procedures had to be done, the King himself, or sometimes Elrohir or Elladan, would be there, and would use athelas and would sing, which seemed to put the patients into a trance.  Once that happened, the injured soldiers had seemed to be completely unaware of the pain.  But surely, they'd be too busy now to take care of all the patients…

Jennifer's train of thought was interrupted when Adrahil said, "It is still sore, but it is not as bad as this morning.  When can I have real food?"

Adanel chuckled.  "Not quite yet.  You may have some tea in a little while.  Perhaps tomorrow you may have some applesauce."  She turned to Firieth.  "Firieth, would you fetch the green jar of salve on the table by the door?"

"Yes, Healer."  She went over and got it, not running, but moving bristly to return it to the healer's hands.  Adanel gently applied a fingertip's amount to the area, and then returned the blanket into place.  "Thank you, Firieth."

"You are being very brave, Adrahil," Adanel said.  "If you find you cannot sleep, let us know, and I will allow you a small amount of poppy tincture in some tea."

"Can I have some honey in it?"

"You rascal!”  Adanel laughed.  “Yes, you may have honey."  She ruffled his hair as they passed on to the next little patient.

“Healer Adanel?” Jennifer asked in a low voice.  “How was Adrahil able to endure the operation?  Was he given anything first?”

"As a matter of fact, that was not needed.  The King himself attended the surgery.  It is not a thing we could have tried with a child otherwise."  She paused.  "It is good that we have the healing hands of the King available.  Did you know that almost every week, he spends some time here for such things?  The Warden of the Houses of Healing sends him word if there is an urgent case."  Jennifer was very relieved to hear this.

In the next bed was a girl who appeared a little younger than Nimrodel.  She looked uncomfortable; her face was pale, except for her flushed cheeks.  She was sweating, and she looked miserable.  She looked up as they approached.  "Healer Adanel?" she whispered.  "I do not feel well."

The healer placed her hand on the child's forehead.  "Your fever is up again, Almiel."  Adanel took a cloth from a bowl on the table by the bed, wrung it out, and placed it over the child's forehead.  "Almiel, here are tonight's apprentices, Jennifer, Lalaith, Nimrodel, and Firiel."  She turned to her helpers. "One of them will bring you some more willow bark tea, with a little catnip and elderflower in it."

"Thank you," Almiel whispered.

Catnip!  Cats loved that plant, but Jennifer had only recently learned that catnip was also a good febrifuge.  I also learned that a febrifuge is a medicine that’s given to reduce fevers, she thought.  That's something I never knew that catnip could be used for until I started training.

The last patient was a boy who’d fallen down a flight of stairs, Adanel explained.  "Or so he said.  He fell from the upper story of an inn on the first level."  He, too, had been given a sleeping draught.

Jennifer gasped at the sight of him.  She saw a big bump on his forehead; he had two black eyes, and there was a bandage around his nose which was tied at the back of his head.  She could also see some scrapes on his arms which had been treated with some sort of herbal salve.  She couldn't tell the herbs by the smell yet, though she was sure that at least one was lavender.  He was also asleep.  

"The innkeeper was angry when one of the guests insisted on bringing the boy here, saying that he would pay nothing for healers.  The Lady who brought him said the only name that she heard some of the workers calling him was 'Gal'."

Lalaith looked at the child, and her own eyes looked rather angry.  "Do you think someone hurt him on purpose, Healer Adanel?"

She gave her helpers a shrewd look.  "I cannot say," she answered.  "But the Lady who brought him in said it certainly looked suspicious to her."

Too bad there’s no child abuse hotline here, Jennifer thought, shaking her head.  "In the land where I come from, the pol—I mean, the watchmen have to be informed if someone thinks a child is being abused.  Do they do that here?"

"It is done, save that here in Minas Tirith, we inform the Warden of the Houses of Healing.  He will see that the truth will come out."  

“What about the King?” Jennifer asked.  “Will he be told, too, and will he do anything?”

"It will depend on many things.  But if it turns out to be true, I know in the past, they would have informed the Steward.  I do not know if it will be different with the King."

Jennifer nodded.  “Well, back then, you had no king, and Denethor was the Ruling Steward, so he had to be told.  But now that Gondor has a king once more, I think he should be told instead.  Now that he’s here, he can do something about it.”  She frowned as she gazed down at the sleeping child.  “What about his parents?  Are they dead?”

Adanel shook her head.  "We do not know.  The Lady who brought him here said he would not answer any questions.  It is only known that he had been working at the inn for several days."  She shook her head.  "We should not be discussing this now.  Come, now.  Nimrodel, you will tend to Almiel; keep her cool with the wet cloths upon her forehead, and give her sips of water.  Firieth, have you prepared the willow bark tea before?"

"Yes, Healer," Firieth answered.

"Very well, that is what you will do."  She turned to Jennifer and Lalaith.  "I want the two of you to change the linens on the other beds."

The girls got busy about their tasks.  Jennifer had gotten used to flat sheets on both top and bottom now.  She laughed at herself when she remembered Joey teaching her how to do that.  In a way, they were actually easier than elastic.  It did tend to pop loose on the corners with elastic, especially if the patients were restless. 

Just then, they heard one of the babies begin to whimper.  This disturbed the other one, and both began to cry.

The two girls had almost finished their job, whereas Firieth was still engaged in hers.  Jennifer went over to pick one of them up and walked about, jogging her in her arms and cooing at the baby, and Lalaith followed suit.  But despite the girls’ efforts, the babies didn’t stop crying.

"This isn't going to work," Jennifer finally said, with a sigh.  "We don't have what they want."

Lalaith nodded.  "We are not the nursemaids, to be sure," she said dryly.  The two girls laid the wailing babies back in their cradles, unhappy that they could not calm the little ones.

Just then the door opened, and they saw two women enter the room.

"I sure hope those two are who we want them to be," Jennifer said.  Sure enough, she found herself relieved as they marched straight over to the cradles, each of them taking up one of the babies.  They expertly cradled them on their shoulders and started bouncing them slightly.

Healer Adanel had followed along behind, to introduce the wet nurses to the girls.  "Jennifer and Lalaith, these are two of the wet nurses who help us out when we have babes who are not weaned."  The healer glanced at the older woman.  "Irildë and Tindòmiel, these are Jennifer and Lalaith, two of our apprentices tonight."

One of the women appeared to be about the same age as Gail.  She had a small amount of grey sprinkled in her temples, but her hair was otherwise black.  But rather than the usual Gondorian grey eyes, hers were brown.  She was plump and jolly looking, and her cheeks dimpled when she smiled.  The other woman was younger, not more than twenty.  Her hair was dark, also, but her eyes were certainly grey.  Tindòmiel had a very serious look about her, but she, too, smiled briefly at the introduction and then turned her attention back to the baby in her arms.

As soon as the two wet nurses had calmed the infants, the two headed over to a corner of the room, where two rocking chairs were, as well as a bench and a small table.  Irildë and Tindòmiel were each holding a baby in one arm, and with the other hand, they were unlacing their bodices.  Jennifer felt herself blushing, though Lalaith seemed to take it in stride.  The two sat down in the rocking chairs, and once they had set the babies to suckle, they pulled down a scarf and hid their charges and their bare breasts from view, much to Jennifer’s relief.  It wasn't like Jen had never seen her mom nurse before, when Joey or Kaylee or Megan had been tiny babies, but Gail had always only nursed in front of family; if other people were around, she had always gone in another room and closed the door until she had finished.  Maybe that was why Jennifer had been a little embarrassed.

Healer Adanel had fetched Firieth, who had finished making the willow bark tea, and Nimrodel from their patients, who had now fallen fast asleep, and now introduced them to the wet nurses.

There were teacups and a steaming teapot that smelled of rosemary and peppermint and honey on a table that sat between the rocking chairs and the bench, and the girls had taken seats on the bench.  Firieth made to stand back up, so that the Healer could sit down.  Shaking her head, Healer Adanel brought up one of the chairs that were next to a bed and placed it at the head of the table as she placed a basket filled with cookies—no, biscuits, as they were called here, Jennifer silently reminded herself—which smelled of spices.  Are they gingerbread biscuits? She silently wondered.  They sure smell good!

The little babies soon settled down once they had latched onto their dinner, and they were happily suckling.  Jennifer was curious about the wet nurses.  Of course, there were no formulas for babies or baby bottles here, and so it was only logical for a woman who could nurse a baby in need to do so, but how did it work?  But she didn't want to be nosy.

Fortunately, Lalaith wasn't so shy.  She turned to Irildë.  "Pardon me, Dame Irildë, but what led you to become a wet nurse?  My mother became one for a neighbour once, when my youngest brother weaned early, and my mother still had milk."

"It was much the same for me, lass,” Irildë answered.  "When my baby girl was ready to wean, I still was producing milk.  And word had been put out after the war ended that there was a need for wet nurses up here at the Houses of Healing, for many little ones had been orphaned."  She glanced down at the little one at her breast.  “So long as I can help, I will do so."

The girls cast a curious glance at Tindòmiel, but before Lalaith could speak, Tindòmiel, she shook her head.  "I—lost my babe…" she whispered.

"Oh!"  Looking abashed, Lalaith shook her own head.  "I am so sorry!  I did not mean…"

"You could not know."  Tindòmiel sighed, and a tear trickled from one eye.  She took a fold of her shawl up and wiped it away, while still holding the baby with her other hand.  "It is hard, but my mother encouraged me to do this.  She thought it would help me get my mind off things."  She looked down at the babe at her breast and conjured up a wan smile.  "It does, a little."

Irildë looked over at Jennifer.  "'Jennifer' is not a name I have heard before.  From whence do you hale, child?"  It was clear she was changing the subject for her companion's sake.

Jennifer startled, but answered after only a small hesitation.  "Well, uh, it is—it’s kind of a common name where I come from, in Oregon.  You probably haven't heard of it—it’s very far from Gondor, to the North and East of here.  We traveled a long, long way, from Rivendell.  Some people call it Imladris."

"You travelled with the Elves!"  Nimrodel sounded excited.  "The Elves who came down the River!"

Jennifer shook her head.  "My parents did, but I only travelled with one Elf and my two brothers.  And several others."

Lalaith laughed.  "She is being modest!  She travelled with the King!  And she fought in the battle here!"

"Lalaith!" Jennifer exclaimed sharply, her face growing warm with embarrassment.  "I only shot a few arrows!  And he wasn't the King then!"

Healer Adanel intervened.  She had noticed that Lalaith sometimes tended to talk too much.  "Jennifer, I have never heard of your homeland before.  Can you tell us a little about it?"

This time, it was Firieth.  "They have a wonderful custom there about people's birthdays!  Show them, Lalaith!"

Grinning, Lalaith reached into the little pocket underneath her apron, took out the little birthday card Jennifer had made, and passed it around.

Jennifer had been surprised to learn that many Gondorian women had pockets, but they were tied on separately, instead of sewn into the garments.  She had yet to buy one for herself.  She looked up and blushed to hear everyone "oohing" and "ahhing" over her simple little note.

"I made it myself, but at home, I would have been able to buy a much prettier one at the store."  She didn't think of herself as much of an artist.

"It is beautiful!" Lalaith exclaimed.  "I will keep it forever, for I have never had such a thing in my life!"

Healer Adanel looked it over.  "It is quite lovely, Jennifer.  You say these can be bought and sold in your country?"

"Yes, ma’am.”  Jennifer nodded.  “They have many cards for birthdays, but also for other occasions, such as weddings, or anniversaries, or holidays, or grad—I mean, for when someone completes their education.  What do they do here in Gondor for birthdays?"

Irildë spoke up once more.  "In most of Gondor, parents give their child a gift.  Friends might give sweets or biscuits or small cakes and have quiet celebrations."

"Hobbits in the Shire give other people gifts on their own birthdays!  But others can give them presents until noon," Jennifer said.  "And I thought that was about the weirdest custom I had heard of!  At home, children usually have parties once they get old enough, like say, three or four, and they can get really fancy.  People bring them toys or other gifts, and they get birthday cards, too.  Some people have birthday parties every year of their whole life, but grown-up parties are not as busy as the one for kids—I mean children.  Most people stop having big parties after they are grown though.  They still get birthday presents and birthday cards, though."

She smiled.  “But whether we have parties or not, we always get a birthday cake with little candles on top.  The one whose birthday it is makes a wish and blows the candles out, and then everybody who's helping to celebrate gets a slice.”

Wide-eyed, Nimrodel asked, "Why?"

Jennifer scratched her arm.  "Well, the tradition is that if you blow all the candles out—one for each year of your age—then a wish you make will come true.  Of course, you can't tell the wish out loud, or it won't work—but that's just a little tradition.  Only really little kids believe it's real, though."

Adanel looked over.  "That is the second time you have called children young goats.  What does that mean?"

Jennifer looked surprised.  "You know?  I’ve never thought about 'why' before.  It's just something most people do where we live."  She tried to think.

"I think I know," said Irildë.  "Children are often full of energy; they like to run, jump, and climb all over things, and often eat things they should not!"

Everyone laughed at this, and Jennifer shook her head in amusement.  "You know, Dame Irildë, I would bet that you are absolutely right about that!"

Healer Adanel laughed with the rest.  But then she glanced at a small sandglass on a shelf, put down her teacup, and stood.  "The glass tells us one half-hour has passed.  I need to check on each patient, though they do appear to be asleep."  She went to check on them personally, noting that Amartha's fever had broken.  Then she asked Jennifer and Lalaith to take two baskets of soiled linens down to the laundry.  "Just place them in the box by the door; the laundry is already locked up this time of night, so you will not need to bring any clean ones back."  

"Yes, ma'am," Jennifer responded for both of them.  The baskets were by the door, so they each picked one up and slipped out the door with their burdens.

"I am glad to get a chance to stretch my legs," said Lalaith.  It was about a fifteen- or twenty-minutes’ walk from the outdoor building behind the Houses of Healing, where the children's ward was located, to the other building where the laundry was.  And it would take about the same amount of time to walk back.

"So am I."  Jennifer glanced over at her companion.  "Are you nervous about your dinner with Anborn's family tomorrow night?"

"A little," Lalaith answered.  "I hope that they like me."

The two girls chatted as they walked, discussing what Lalaith was going to wear to the dinner.  "I have only my two gowns; the yellow one is fancier, but the colour is not very flattering.  It used to be my cousin's…"

"But your blue one looks much nicer on you," Jennifer said.  “It really does; I think it suits you much better."

"Aye, but it is beginning to fray about the hemline, and if I turn it up, it will be too short…"  Lalaith sighed and shook her head.  Right then, Jennifer remembered something that she and Nicole did back home; sometimes, they’d borrow a dress or shirt from each other to wear to a special school or church event.  She smiled.

"I know!  You could borrow one of mine!"

"Jennifer!  I could not do that!"

"It would fit you; I do believe it would!  You could wear my blue one!"

"Well…what if I soiled it?"

"Well, what if I soiled it when I wore it?  It will clean up.  You'd look so cool in it!"

Lalaith giggled.  She had just begun to get used to Jennifer using "cool" to describe something really good, and it still sounded somewhat odd now and then.  "Very well, Jennifer!  I will wear it, then, if you really want me to."

Soon they arrived at the empty building.  A large, wooden trunk-like box stood next to the door.  Jennifer set her basket down and lifted the lid.  Lalaith put the basket in, and then she held the lid up while Jennifer added hers.

They continued their conversation as they headed back to the children's ward.  When they arrived, they saw that Irildë and Tindòmiel had left, and the babies were asleep in their cradles.  Healer Adanel had set Firieth and Nimrodel to studying the big book that listed the uses of various herbs and the making of remedies.  The Healer herself was a chair alongside the little boy who had been brought from the inn—they had yet to find out his name, save for the nickname "Gal".  There was a bowl of steam that smelled of lavender on the small bedside table, and the healer held his hand and was softly singing to him.

She saw the two girls come in and gestured with her chin for them to come near.  "He was suffering some nightmares," she told the girls in a whisper.  "Jennifer?  You have learned to make bruise balm, have you not?"

Looking the healer in the eye, Jennifer nodded.  "Yes, Healer, I've made it twice."

Adanel nodded.  "And you, Lalaith?"

"I helped Dame Ioreth make it once."

"We are running low.  You will find the ingredients on the table by the fireplace.  If you girls will, now, make two jars of bruise balm.  You should find everything you need.  The kettle is already boiling.  You should be able to finish by sunrise."

Both girls nodded.  "Yes, Healer," said Lalaith, while Jennifer said, "Yes, ma'am."

Once at the table, the two of them did not chatter, but instead concentrated on their task, speaking only to ask for an ingredient to be passed, or to proceed to the next step.  They had just sealed the second jar when the Healer came over to the table and asked to see their work.

"Very good, girls," she said as she held up each jar to the light.  "The colour looks good, and the seal is tight.  Good work."

Both of them smiled with relief and sighed, as they were glad to be done with the task.

"Look, Jennifer and Lalaith.  Dawn is breaking.  You may be dismissed.  You have the day free of duty.  Get some rest now," she ordered.

“Yes, ma’am.”  Jennifer yawned and stretched her arms.  “Well, Lalaith, I don’t know about you, but I’m sleepy!  I’m going to see my family, and then I’ll come back to the dorm and take a nap.”

“I also am going back to the dormitory and get some sleep; I wish to be fresh this evening,” Lalaith said.  She and Jennifer parted company, and Jennifer returned to the rooms that her family was staying in.  She froze as she noticed that Merry and Pippin had stopped by to visit her family.

“Hi, Merry!  Hi, Pippin!  Nice to see you here,” she said, raising a hand in greeting.  Looking around, she asked, “Where’s Mom?”

“Taking a nap, as I suspect you need to be doing,” Steve said.  “Merry and Pippin came by to invite us all, including Kaylee and Megan, to dine with them and the other hobbits at their guesthouse this evening.  And you know, hon, this is perfect timing, because we need to plan your mom’s birthday celebration, and the hobbits have volunteered to help.”

"It sounds like jolly fun," said Pippin.  "Your father explained that it is a tradition to surprise her!"

"And we thought she would be very surprised if we held it at the guesthouse!  Then she wouldn't see any of the preparations being made," added Merry.  "I am sure that Frodo and Sam would enjoy helping as well."

"Perhaps you should ask them first, and also Gandalf, Legolas and Gimli, as they live there, too!" said Steve.  "I don't want to put anyone out."

"Pish!" Merry answered, waving a hand dismissively.  "They will all be happy for a chance to celebrate, and besides, I know that Frodo will definitely agree—and if Frodo wants it, he will get it."

Pippin laughed.  "Of course, he will.  And he likes your wife, and your whole family.  Besides, Bagginses love parties."

"We hobbits can handle the food with no problems," said Merry.  "Then we will need music."  He turned to Pippin.  "You know Menelcar better than the rest of us.  Would he mind playing there?"  He'd snatched a small wax notepad and a stylus from his pouch, and now he began making notes.  "Music, Menelcar, food, hobbits…keep it secret, hmm…that will make invitations tricky…"

Kaylee and Megan were watching with wide eyes at the two hobbits, and Kevin was grinning at them.

"I can invite people in person," piped in Joey eagerly.  "And maybe Bergil and Sador can help me.  People are used to us taking messages."

Steve was shaking his head in amusement.  "Have you ever considered a career as a party planner, Merry?" he asked with a chuckle.

Merry looked up in surprise.  "People get paid to plan parties?" he asked, clearly intrigued.

"Where we come from, some people do…"  Jennifer’s sudden yawn cut off the rest of what she’d intended to say.  “Well, if I’m going to eat with you hobbits later, I’d better go back to the dorm and take a nap now, or I’ll be falling asleep in my food, come suppertime.  I’ve been up all night."  She yawned again and stood up.

"Of course, princess," Steve said.  She bent over and kissed her father on the head.  "You need your rest.  I'm very proud of you."  Steve responded and returned her kiss on her hand.  "Get some sleep."

"I will, Daddy.”  She turned towards the others and raised her hand to say good-bye.  “See you guys later."  Kevin and Joey waved at her, and Kaylee and Megan jumped up and hugged her.  The hobbits waved.   

Jennifer made the short trip to the dormitory, where she saw that both Lalaith and Firieth were already fast asleep.  And she noticed another bed had been assigned to Nimrodel, who looked very young, now that she lay curled up in her bed.

Jennifer undressed to her shift and lay down on her bed.  In a few minutes, she drifted off.

-ooo000ooo-

*“Speckled throat” was another word for what is now known as strep throat, which is caused by the bacteria Streptococcus pyogenes.  It causes spots or white streaks in the affected person’s throat.