I may be from Rohan, but my family are farmers not warriors, and I am simply a scholar. I am not brave and adventurous like some people I have met on my travels. But I have to work for a living, mostly doing tasks people need done, and a few days ago one of these has caused me quite a bit of trouble.
I was asked by a hobbit to collect mushrooms for him in the Old Forest. He offered a nice amount of coins so I decided to grit my teeth and go into the forest, despite my dislike for it. It’s really a very dark place and strange as well. But the hobbit said that these mushrooms could be found at the very edge of it, just a bit past the gate, so I thought it wouldn’t be such a dangerous task.
At first everything seemed quiet and well. I diligently kept watch of my surroundings and collected mushrooms, placing them in a small pouch the hobbit had provided for the task. But all my carefulness was for nothing because there was a lurker among the trees in the shadow and I didn’t even realize.
It was a wolf, dark grey and vicious looking, but I only noticed it was there when it was already slinking toward me, snarling and baring its ugly teeth.
I don’t carry a weapon, only a staff I use to practise what the loremaster in Bree tries to teach me, but faced with the growling beast, I gripped the staff in both hands, knowing it would be no good to run. The wolf was too close already.
My hands were shaking and my heart was beating fast as I stood there and watched it amble closer, trying to circle behind me. I knew I would lose the grapple before it even began if I turned my back to it. My only chance was to knock it down, maybe a good hit on its head so it would be dazed and I could flee back to the gate and to safety.
As the wolf was readying itself to launch itself at me, my raven companion screeched shrilly and dove from the sky, distracting the vile beast just long enough. With all my strength I brought down the wooden staff on the wolf’s head and when it fell I turned and ran, not pausing to check if I had really injured it much.
The raven flew ahead of me and I was almost at the gate when I heard the wolf again, snarling but still a few feet away apparently. I didn’t look around and thankfully I managed the last few steps and then rushed through the gate, continuing on even when I was already past it. I wanted to put as much distance between the wolf and me as I could manage.
But as soon as I was outside the forest, past the hedge and among hobbits again, the noises from the wolf ceased and when I finally dared to stop and glance around I saw that the beast hadn’t followed me out of the forest at all. Out of breath and shaking all over, I sat down right there in the grass, my knees too weak to carry me for quite a long while.
The hobbit I had been collecting mushrooms for noticed me sitting there and wandered over, asking if I was okay. I wasn’t, but I didn’t want to bother him with my cowardice, so I just handed him the pouch with the mushrooms I had already collected and told him that I wasn’t going to go back to the forest for any price.
