The Fellowship's Silvertongue

Ch. 5: Seventeen Years

In a number of years, Rosa successfully started her lifestyle as a healer in Bree. Every afternoon she and Aragorn went hunting. In a matter of weeks he took her under his wing and taught her his skills as a ranger; how to hunt, track, and keep herself hidden when she wanted to. Even though she planned to keep her distance from Aragorn, she appreciated the company and his help. Pretty soon, the people of Bree recognized that the pair traveled together often, and sometimes they were mistaken for siblings. Aragorn didn't bother to correct them, so neither did Rosa. 

There were times when Aragorn disappeared without telling Rosa of his whereabouts. He would be gone for days and sometimes weeks. When she asked about it, he would simply respond with "I had meetings with other Rangers." But, she knew that he was under orders from Gandalf to hunt for Gollum. She didn't pry as she didn't want to be too involved with the storyline, but she couldn't help but be curious. Besides, how close were they to the arrival of the Hobbits in Bree?  

"Aragorn," Rosa started, they were sitting on her front porch skinning animals they had caught. "How many years has it been since I came to Bree? Or when we first met?"

"I believe seventeen summers," Aragorn answered. 

Rosa paused and thought. They would be arriving quite soon and the journey would begin. 

"You can take the two squirrels, the deer and the quail." Rosa moved a pile towards Aragorn.

"Thank you. I will see you tomorrow," Aragorn stood up, took his belongings and left. 

As it was planned, they met in the forest and hunted. As they sat on a boulder waiting for any animal to come by, Aragorn looked up at the sky.

"It will rain tonight. Can you smell it?" He glanced at Rosa. She took a quick whiff and nodded.

Ahead of them, some leaves rustled and both their heads turned in the direction of the sound. Rosa narrowed her eyes and peered past the bushes to see a wild boar. She turned her head to look at Aragorn and he nodded pointedly to her bow which laid over her lap. Rosa pulled an arrow from her quiver and nocked the bow. She drew back the string and let loose the arrow. It whizzed through the bushes and the boar let out a pained squeal. 

"One more," Aragorn said as it began to move. 

Rosa nocked another arrow and fired. It hit again and Aragorn leapt off the boulder with his dagger drawn to kill the boar. Rosa climbed down from the boulder as well and followed him through the brush. By the time she had reached him, he was already hoisting the boar onto his shoulders. 

"It's larger than I thought," Rosa commented. 

"Sell or keep?" Aragorn asked. 

Rosa chewed her inner lip as she thought. "Let's give it to the market, they can divide it and sell it to those that need it. We have plenty." 

Aragorn nodded with a light smile. "We should be on the move soon." He adjusted the large beast on his shoulders.

The sun was setting quickly, and soon enough it began raining. 

"Lets get a drink and bite to eat at The Prancing Pony," Rosa suggested. "After we drop off the boar, it'll be celebration." 

"I suppose that won't hurt," Aragorn replied. 

They put their hoods up against the heavy rain and headed back to Bree. Aragorn handed the boar off to the butcher, who gave them a bag of coin to split, and they headed to the Inn. 

As they entered, a few eyes looked their way, recognized who they were, and went back to their business. Aragorn and Rosa were thought of an unlikely duo. The reclusive Strider in the company of the kind Healer. They knew better than to question it. Aragorn headed to a corner table, as he usually did, and Rosa stopped at the bar.