Scaring the deer

Great East Road: Near Staddle(#32288Rnt)

The countryside along this stretch of the Road rises to the west, as it nears Bree-hill. For a long stretch the Road runs in a fairly straight line east and west, before it bends around an outstretched \'foot\' of Bree-hill to the southwest. Both sides of the Road lead off into a wooded, not quite forested country. The wooded countryside around the Great East Road is dark and silent. To the north of the Road lights can be seen on the south-eastern slopes of Bree-hill.

Obvious exits:

North leads to Lower Staddle.

East leads to Great East Road: East of Bree.

SouthWest leads to Great East Road: South of Bree.

================================== Bree Time ==================================

Real time: Mon Dec 22 14:57:03 2008

Bree time: Dawn <06> on Sunday of Autumn - October 2,1445

Moon Phase: Waxing Crescent Moon

Breelands Weather

The dawn autumn air is cool but pleasant around you. The dark sky is overcast and dreary. The moon is above the horizon and in its waxing crescent phase.

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(Nob) It\'s dawn and the sky is greying. Clouds push together, shutting out the rising sun in the east, while in the clearing west, the moon sets slowly. It\'s a quite time of day - a few birds chirp, and deer feed in the dew-drenched meadows.

To the south of the road, someone - something? Something moves, slipping between the trees, pausing now and then, vanishing entirely for a while, then reappearing.

[Henleg(#20696)] Near a small copse of trees lies one, seemingly in ambush of the deer that so confidently feed. Yet, the appearance of that something seem to alert the prey, their ears picking the sounds of the thing that moves, and pretty soon all of them dash away. Grey is in a sour mood after his prey got scared, and he puts down a stringed bow, while he puts an arow back on his quiver. Still, he does not move, eager to see who or what made his prey escape.

At least one person in Staddle is up early this morning. A yawning Brandebras Bywater trudges along the path, crunching on an apple as he goes. A few birds fly up, twittering - could this be what scared the deer?

Brandebras pauses in his tracks, open-mouthed, as a deer darts past. \"Gosh!\" he exclaims reverently, even forgetting to take his next bite of apple.

[Nob(#16122)] Gidon pauses as the deer startle, watching after them with a strange mixture of admiration and envy when they have all disappeared into another stand of trees to the north of the road, he stoops, then straightens and moves on. He is nearly silent, no cracking twig or rustling leaves betray his going - clearly he is comfortable in the woods. But not quite up to the standards of elves or rangers perhaps - he seems to have no knowledge of Grey\'s presence nearby.

The boy stoops again, fiddling with something, then stands, empty-handed and starts for his next snare. It too is empty, and now he stops, staring through the brightening air at Brandebras. He\'s near enough to the road now that the hobbit might see him - if he looks in the right direction.

[Henleg(#20696)] Grey\'s brow furrows as a youngster comes by... youngsters, always lacking the necessary patience, pah! Still, the Ranger remains silent and unmoving, for this youth he has never seen before in any of his previous visits to Bree.

Brandebras does not look - at first, that is. He stares mournfully after the last deer as it disappears, before comforting himself with a bite of apple. Only then does he glance southward, in time to catch a glimpse of that half-stooped figure. \"Who- who\'s there?\" Curiosity wars with perhaps just a trace of fear.

[Nob(#16122)] Gidon, already standing still, seems to freeze - startled that he is being addressed. He glances over his shoulder, takes a half-step back, as if to melt into the shadows. Then he swallows and straightens his shoulders. \"Follerin\' my snare line,\" he says in a soft, apologetic voice.

[Henleg(#20696)] The Ranger smiles as a hobbit makes his way here. Clearly, this is becoming a hot spot for Breefolk, and thus, not a very good place for a hunter. Shrugging, he begins to stand, yet he is as silent as possible while doing so.

That soft, apologetic voice doesn\'t sound too intimidating. Brandebras squints through the trees, apple in hand, then asks again, \"But who /are/ you? I thought I was the only one up this early.\" Perhaps he catches a flash of Henleg\'s movement with the corner of his gaze, for he turns his head, then rubs blearily at his eyes.

[Nob(#16122)] The boy hestitates, looking around again, hoping for escape still, but he replies at last. \"Gidon.\" He stands entirely still, not even fidgeting - not much like the ordinary Bree boys who run and jump and shout. He is somewhat small for his age and his dark hair lies straight about his face. Another pause, uncertain if Brandebras last comment requires an answer or not. \"Hopin\' I\'d caught summat,\" he explains finally. Sort of.

[Henleg(#20696)] \"Well, you\'re getting nothing here, with hobbits and boys trudging around and scaring the deer now, do you?\", comes a voice from the copse of trees to the south, and then Grey steps forward. \"If you\'re trying to catch some deer, you better be a tad more silent, lad... else you\'ll scare them away\", he adds.

\"And did you?\" the hobbit enquires, then realizes that perhaps introductions are called for. \"I\'m Brandebras,\" he offers, beginning to step a little closer. His hobbit feet make little noise on the leaves.

At Grey\'s words, he turns with a half-squeak. \"Oh, it\'s you, Mister Grey.\" He looks quite relieved at identifying the newcomer. \"Sorry,\" he mumbles belatedly, realizing who\'s been making the noise here.

[Nob(#16122)] The boy shakes his head, the gesture standing in for unneccessary verbage, and then he freezes again as someone unknown and unforeseen speaks from behind him. He turns warily, only half reassured by the hobbit\'s apparent knowledge of this man, and spreads his hand enough to show they are empty. \"Nothin\' t\'get deer with,\" he says. \"Got some snares set. Fer rabbits an\' th\'like.\" Then he shuts his mouth.

[Henleg(#20696)] \"Well, rabbits, like deer, will run away if you come traipsing along, mister\", comes grey\'s reply to the young man. Turning to the hobbit, he adds, \"Well met, master Brandebras. No need to apologize, really... the deer got scared by the boy here first\", he says sourly.

Brandebras, having decided to Make Less Noise, contents himself with looking at the strange boy, and listening to Grey\'s words. \"Oh,\" he murmurs, looking relieved.

Absently he takes another bite of his apple, then blushes guiltily. That crunch did sound rather loud.

[Nob(#16122)] Gidon\'s face stiffens and his dark brown eyes turn hard. Silently he lifts a hand to the hobbit before stepping widely around where the man stands to continue towards where he has laid the next snare. Rabbits, he doesn\'t say, can\'t run if they are caught in a snare.

[Henleg(#20696)] \"So, what is new in Staddle, Master Brandebras\", Grey says, as the boy seems intent to check his snares. \"How are the Appledore\'s? And what about the heatherseeds?\", he asks, his voice now turning kind and soft.

Brandebras\' brown eyes follow the boy\'s progress. He has another question on his lips, and from the way he\'s fidgeting from foot to foot, he\'s finding it hard to keep in.

Absently he remarks to Grey, without taking his eyes off the lad, \"The Appledores don\'t live in Staddle. But everyone\'s fine, except ... well, Ma and Pa aren\'t very happy at the moment.\" He sounds rather mournful about that.

Eventually he bursts out, to Gidon, \"Do you live out here - in the woods?\"

[Nob(#16122)] The boy stops some feet away and looks back. He glances at the trees around him, then back at Brandebras. \"Not here,\" he says, economical with his words. Grey receives a black look and no words at all.

[Henleg(#20696)] \"I see\", comes Grey\'s reply to the hobbit. \"I\'m sorry to hear that\", he adds, and then grows silent as brandebras asks his question.

\"Where, then?\" Brandebras queries the boy, a puzzled frown settling on his features as he finally realizes the reception that Grey is getting. What\'s not to like about those wandering folk with a never-ending fount of unbelievable stories?

[Nob(#16122)] \"East a bit,\" Gidon says shortly. He jerks his head towards the east and north.

\"But .. there\'s nothing there,\" Brandebras protests. \"Only the Chetwood.\"

He takes the last bite of his apple, and tosses the core off into the trees. Perhaps in twenty years time there will be an apple tree standing here. \"I\'d best get on,\" he tells Grey hurriedly. \"I\'ve got to get to Bree in time to supervise the folks loading the last cart of Torebras\' things. I\'ll tell the Heatherseeds and Appledores you were asking for them, will I?\"

Raising a hand to both ranger and boy, he trots off with the rising sun at his back, panting as he goes.