When I awoke I felt like I'd been turned into brittle stone, and every movement was another chance to shear off another piece. I ached so badly that for a moment I asked if I could just lie still another few hours, or days. But Miss Adri told me what I already knew to be true: that moving about might make the discomfort greater at first, but it would ultimately aid in the recovery.
We were fortunate to have fair weather, and clear roads, for the entire day. In fact had it not been for the previous day's adventures, we might have made such good time that, rather than stopping at the camp at the base of Weathertop, we could press on to the Forsaken Inn, or even beyond. It was still cold, but less so, enough that in the lower parts of the Lone Lands the thin layer of snow was melting under the sun's glare, and there was neither cloud nor winds. We saw more wildlife this time, especially birds, and even in the distance a few straggler wolves, but nothing that dared approach us, or even come near to the road. (Apart from a few stubborn boars that were easily walked around.)
As the leagues rolled past, little by little the stiffness worked itself out. By the time we made camp at the base of Weathertop, I felt no worse than I did after an all-out brawl with my brothers, despite having no more willows from which to chew bark. The heat of the fire, trapped by the stones, seemed to do nearly as well in easing away the pain, though, and I slept more easily. Though in the middle of the night, I started awake with the conviction that someone had been watching us, but try as I might, I saw no sign of anyone.
