Chapter nine: Getting closer to Yola.

Dreams haunted me that night I slept in the Green Dragon. I saw my mother Yola being captured by awful and ugly warriors of a relentless, cruel enemy. I screamed in horror, but she looked at me and smiled, like she smiled in the picture I had found of her in an old newspaper. I reached out to her, but I could not reach her. She waved at me and then vanished in a puff of smoke.
I slept much longer then I had wanted. After all, I now had an address, the address of Yola Plumblossom in Bramblebury, and I wanted to go there as soon as I could.
But that was the only positive thing that I had found out. The other thing was as scary and disturbing as my dreams: my mother was captured in a far away land and there was no information about how she was. Was she even still alive? I needed to find out more. But how? I had a tiny little hope, that, because I had read a quite old edition of this Bramblebury Gazette, there would be further news, hopefully good news. But it was a tiny hope indeed and I did not want to think of it too much. But then..  hope is good, I told myself, when hope is lost, all is lost. This tiny flame of hope, I must cling to it, so it will not extinguish.
Bramblebury, it was not on the map that Pa had given me, his old map of the Shire. But the innkeeper of the Green Dragon knew where it was. “Turn south when in Waymeet.”, he told me when we parted.
I soon came to the crossroads that gives Waymeet it’s name. And I stood in doubt: should I go to Bramblebury first or rather see the authorities in Michel Delving first, in hope of better news ofcourse. Last night’s emotions flared up again and I was incapable to decide. I let the reins go loose and gently spurred Francesca, to let her decide which way to take. She took the road to the west and so I entered Michel Delving for the first time in my life.
It was not as big and crowded as Bree was and I looked in amazement at the many hobbits going about their business. A big statue caught my eye. It was on a small hillock and dominated the centre of Michel Delving. I wanted to know who the two hobbits depicted in the statue were, but I had more urgent investigations to do first. But where to start? The Prancing Pony had been a good starting point for me in Bree, so I looked for an inn. Hoping there would not be a time-consuming ‘tour of Michel Delving’, I entered the Bird and Baby and approached the publican. Less impressive in stature as was Master Barliman, Master Carlo was friendly and helpful nevertheless.
“A missing hobbit, hey?”. He scratched his head. “Your best bet would be the shirriff then. Ow, and tell him this riddle: What has a feather on his head and hides behind a rock?”. “A duck?”, I tried, smiling and shrugging. He chuckled and with smiling eyes, assured me the shirriff could tell me the answer. Hmm, I did not totally trust this riddle-message..
Second Shirrif Bodo Bunce was indeed not amused and mumbled “Brat!”, but not meaning it to be the answer, I believe. After all, he did have a feather on his hat himself and maybe he felt insulted! After I explained that the riddle came from Master Carlo, he shook his fist in the direction of the Bird and Baby Inn and then asked me about my business. I explained I wanted more information about my mother, who was missing. He then sent me to the Mayor, Master Will Whitfoot, who then sent me to his assistant, Master Fallohide, who then sent me inside the Town-hole, to speak with a clerk and ask about missing hobbits . I spoke with several clerks, but they all referred me to another desk. “Missing hobbits? That’s not me. Please go to... ” When the last one finally referred me to the the first one again, I had enough! What I did was not very nice, but they had driven me almost to madness: I shouted at the poor clerk, demanding he’d help me properly this time. And I started to cry, tears running down my cheeks. “All I want is, to find out more about Yola Plumblossom!” The clerks fell silent  when they heard my mother’s name. “Yola Plumblossom? But then you want Special Branch!”, said the one I had yelled at, happy that I was no longer his concern.
As I followed him down the stairs to the deepest parts of the Michel Delving Town-hole, I felt I was finally getting closer to Yola and about to find out more about her. That premonition was right, but not in the way I had hoped it to be.

Next: Eyes that follow.