3. Library Visit - by Vilwarin
Halbarad entered the library and stared. Shelf after shelf of light wood stood on the walls and made rows in the middle of the room.
"This place is so huge! However do you find what you are looking for?"
Aragorn smiled at his cousin's wonderment. "It is easy. Do you see the every book is labeled with a code of letters and numbers?"
Halbarad nodded, approached a shelf and pulled out one of the books. At the bottom of its spine stood the code Fy 52 in fine letters.
"The title says 'Fíriel and Morwen. Secret correspondence between the years 1940 and 1950.' The letters were copied for this book by someone called Arneth. Well, the letters between mother and daughter are not so secret now."
"Yes, the originals, if they still exist, are somewhere in the archives. I read through this book once, it is full of motherly advice and court gossip. I got a good idea how it must have been like in Fornost."
Halbarad placed the book back where it belonged. "You were explaining what the codes are about."
"Ah, yes. We have a huge box with cards that are ordered by the names of the author. You find the title of the book and its code on the card."
"And what if I do not know the author?" Halbarad asked.
Aragorn laughed. "Well, in this case you can ask Heidiriel, the library's good soul. She knows the author of every book that was ever written. I suspect that she has never done anything else."
"Impressive. But can you show me the kitchen now?"
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.
