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Cardani entered the Prancing Pony for the first time, looking for Strider. Upon asking at the front desk, she was directed to a room down the hall. Following Mr. Butterbur’s directions, she turned and jogged towards Strider’s room, finding it fairly easily. He seemed to have been expecting her, and she soon found herself running off again with a new task to complete.
Darting into the Prancing Pony for the fifth time, Cardani turned towards the corridor that was beginning to look familiar. As she entered, she took a deep breath. Alright. You’ve been here several times now, there’s no reason why you should miss the proper corner. She readied herself to turn left.
Not yet…not yet…not that one- wait!
It was too late. She’d definitely gone a bit too far if she was in the storeroom. Rolling her eyes at herself, she turned around and began to backtrack. At least I didn’t get all the way down the wrong hallway before realizing my mistake this time, she consoled herself. Honestly. You’d think this place would be easier to navigate. The building isn’t even that big!
It wasn’t until her dozenth visit that Cardani managed to navigate through the inn without a single slip. She bought herself a spiced cider on the way out to celebrate.
For once, Cardani was visiting the Prancing Pony for pleasure, sipping a pint of ale and watching her fellow travelers bustling in and out of the inn. She watched as a young man with a silly pointed hat and a big bushy beard walked into the accursed hallway, only to run back out again a few minutes later with an irritated and bewildered look on his face.
It was a very familiar expression. She’d seen it many times in the mirror. Downing the last of her ale, she stood and made her way over to the traveler.
“You look a little lost,” she said as she approached.
Turning in surprise, he scratched the back of his neck and shrugged, looking a little sheepish.
“Yeah, I guess you could say that,” he muttered. “I don’t understand it. It shouldn’t be this difficult to find, I even got pretty solid directions to the place, but…”
“It’s harder to find your way around than you expected?” Cardani said wryly.
The guy blinked at her. “Yeah. How’d you know?”
“You’re not exactly the first adventurer to get lost in the Pony’s halls. In fact it’s quite common. The regulars like to say that the reason why parents don’t let their children come here is less about the drink and more to do with fearing they might never see them again.” She chuckled softly, and he joined in. “They’re joking, of course,” Cardani continued, “The hallways aren’t *that* bad…but it’s fair to say that until you learn your way around, you’re more likely to lose your way than not.”
The traveler considered this for a moment, then perked up as something occurred to him. “Hey! This means you’ve been here enough to know your way around, does it not?” He asked.
She grinned. “That’s why I came over. Figured you could use a bit of help.”
“I see.” He tilted his head at her. “Well, since you’re offering…I don’t suppose you can tell me how to get to Gandalf’s room, by any chance?”
“Certainly.”
His shoulders slumped in relief. “Oh, good. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. And don’t worry, you pick up enough jobs in this place, and you’ll eventually learn your way around too. Just promise me one thing.”
“What’s that?”
“Pay it forward sometime, and do the same for someone else.”
He smiled at her. “I think I can do that.”
“Good.” She turned towards the corridor entrance, preparing to take the lead. “Shall we?”