17. Homeward Bound
“You may be wondering,” says Barliman, wiping a glass, “why am I standing ’ere, dressed in the clothes of my wife’s mother.”
The hobbits nod. Hearing a muffled curse, Sam peers round the bar. “Why are there two Ithilien Rangers hidden in them barrels?”
“Hello!”
“You’ll find all’s not well in the Shire,” Barley explains.
“Now, Barliman,” says Gandalf, “listen very carefully – I shall say this only once. We took the sword of the king from the shelf of the elf and gave it to the stranger Ranger who found the Halfling with the ring and...”
“Oh ’eck,” says Barley.
~ Altariel
The hobbits nod. Hearing a muffled curse, Sam peers round the bar. “Why are there two Ithilien Rangers hidden in them barrels?”
“Hello!”
“You’ll find all’s not well in the Shire,” Barley explains.
“Now, Barliman,” says Gandalf, “listen very carefully – I shall say this only once. We took the sword of the king from the shelf of the elf and gave it to the stranger Ranger who found the Halfling with the ring and...”
“Oh ’eck,” says Barley.
~ Altariel
This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of J R R Tolkien. The characters, settings, places, and languages used in this work are the property of the Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Enterprises, and possibly New Line Cinema, except for certain original characters who belong to the author of the said work. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, is available solely for the enjoyment of Henneth Annûn Story Archive readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author.
