A peaceful autumn evening set upon the quiet lands of Bree. The great oak and birch trees stood tall, swaying gently in the cool breeze as a beautiful golden sunset lit the leaf covered ground.
Crows bickered in the canopy above as they settled down to roost. A soft breeze teased the golden orange leaves lightly off the branches and they whimsically floated down to the ground to cover the forest floor with brilliant oranges and yellows.
The woods were full of deer and boar, an abundance of animals wild and free, though the perfect quarry for both wolves and Man, they enjoyed relative peace, disguising amidst the earthy colours of the forest, they were seldom disturbed by aught save for the odd hunter
Seldom did travelers delve this deep into the woods. But who would be wandering through the Far Chetwood miles from home other than a Hobbit of all sorts? Bare feet softly tread all but silently as the curious creature no quietly made her way through the woods without a sound. Her small stature and earthy green clothing almost seemed to blend in with the forest itself. In fact she did not look all that out of place with her pouches of sweet smelling berries and wild forest herbs, a pack of mushrooms and other goodies foraged from the forest gave off a sweet earthy scent.
She wore an earthy green traveling hood and thick robes of browns and greens, bright and alert deep blue eyes scanned the trail ahead of her as little hands whimsically brushed against the bushes and trees that she passed.
The little wanderer looked up to the ever dimming golden sky, it would be dark soon... Why exactly was she wandering this late? It gets dangerous at night they say... The feint sound of a trickling brook caused the small wanderer to follow the path down the bank out of pure impulsive curiosity.
Derosyn was always a creature of curiosity and whimsy, ever since she was a young Hobbit she would always wander the Bindbole woods, feeling more at home beneath the tall pines and larches of the Northern forest than anywhere else. She often took to the habit of foraging for mushrooms and berries, as a result she had developed quite a knack of knowing just where all the great mushroom spots were.
But what compelled her to travel this far into the woods this late at night? The sun was falling down beneath the hills and even with her sharp eyes visibility was poor. Derosyn simply wandered on quite happily with a smile on her face, feeling the soft leaves beneath her feet, listening intently to the song of the birds and trees, the scent of wild garlic reached her nose and her eyes lit up.
“Ooh...” she thought, “Could always do with some wild garlic I could! Been a good days foraging for sure!”
But it was getting late, and she knew this. Her instincts told her to head back to the safety of her Smial, to rest her head down on a soft bed, not to keep wandering into the woods this late.
What drove her on? Wild curiosity? Foolish impulse? Maybe she did not want to return to Bree, maybe she was happy in the forests.
“But... I have no where to sleep out here” she thought.
It was then she had wandered to a rather familiar sight...
The brook she had followed lead into a deep lake, sparkling water shimmered in the evening sunset, several autumn leaves floated on the surface. The water was curiously inviting but it was the sight on the opposite side of the lake that made Derosyn's heart sink.
“Oh yeah... I remember now.”
The damage around the southern shore of the little lake had not fully recovered, nor did the memory quite leave her mind of that night.
It was once the home of a very special friend of hers, a fellow creature of the woods as it were. But now the ground was scorched with black soot and grime, foul rusted metal sprung up from the earth, rotten sheets and filthy trash lay on the shores, the plants and grass surrounding the once fine lake was hacked and burned off.
It was the work of Goblins...
They attacked this place once and forced the pair to flee, a horrific nightmare that even to this day the little Hobbit could not quite get her head around.
The bickering of the crows and twittering of the birds had died down, the breeze calmed down and all of a sudden it seemed still and quiet. Though this was not a calming quiet, it felt odd... Eerie almost,
“Maybe that's enough wandering for one day...” Derosyn thought to herself as she sat down on a rock next to the lake and begun soaking her feet in the cool water. She saw her reflection in the last rays of the sunlight as night set in and she sighed.
“I miss you already...”
