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Recap: The Lady Eowyn of Rohan organised for Shield maiden training while her uncle, the King of Rohan, and his men were off fighting Saruman's army. She organised for a formidable team of Ladies of the Realm to arrive on very short notice to help the maidens in their training. The ladies fulfil many rolls: Lady KJ Tauriel (an elf!) was in charge of self defence and weapons training. Lady Normand from the Lightning Mountains, and Lady Chris Tien the Wise help with training in general, getting the women fit and ready. Dwarven Queen Elastiwen of Moria, brought various devices with her to train the shield maidens in strength. The worst of these were the heavy metal balls with handles that the women had to lift and swing. "Control your strength at all times", was the Queen's motto. The last of the ladies who came to Eowyn's assistance was Lady Anny of the Shayr. - a Hobbit-born! She trains those with the aptitude and skill in healing. Elezé enjoyed the slight reprieve from all the training. It was hard going, but she actually thoroughly enjoyed herself. Lady Chris Tien had helped her with the training when she didn't know what or how, while Queen Elastiwen and Lady of Lightning concentrated on drilling her in form and strength. The only lady who was exasperated by Elezé's progress (or lack there of in this case) was Lady KJ Tauriel. It proved early on that Elezé did not have as great an ability with weapons as she had with training, animals and healing. Lady Anny from the Shayr on the other hand, were beaming! Between the two of them they fixed up injuries from small cuts to more grievous wounds caused by the gusto of a good weapons training session! Eowyn sat down next to her cousin in the shade of a huge Acacia tree. They sat in companionable silence for a while before Lady Eowyn spoke: "...No fiction wrought magic lore, but natural was the steed the wizard pressed; For him a filly to griffin bore; Hight hippogryph. In wings and beak and crest, formed like his sire, as in the feet before; But like the mare, his dam, in all the rest. Such on Riphaean hills, though rarely found, are bred, beyond the frozen ocean's bound. Drawn by enchantment from [her] distant lair, the wizard thought but how to tame the foal; And, in a month, instructed him to bear saddle and bit, and gallop to the goal; And execute on earth or in mid air, all shifts of manege, course and caracole; [she] with such labour wrought. This only real, where all the rest was hollow and ideal." Ludovico Ariosto's poem, Orlando furioso (1516) "Those are magical creatures, never seen here before, Eowyn, but oh, how I wish I could fly on the back of such a creature! To be high up in the sky, close to heaven... the wind through your hair... freedom to go where ever your heart takes you...feel the soft feathers under hand and foot..." "Well dear, I don't know about the freedom to follow your heart, but if you accept, you can be trained by a special Lady to fly upon one of these so called "magical creatures" " Eowyn replied. "Eowyn, you jest! Where on Middle Earth are there creatures such as these? Whom are able to tame them, never you mind to teach them to accept saddle and bridle like a horse?" Eowyn told her cousin Elezé of the Lady of Fire Dragon Isle, a magician no less! A lady of light, but a lady also of fire, because she not only tames magical creatures like dragons which breath fire, she also breed and train animals such as the Hippogriff. "Easily offended, hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do." Rubeus Hagrid talking to the class about Hippogriffs The man who delivered this comment was just suddenly there! He had a huge chess-shire cat grin on his face, with a naughty, yet clever look in his eye. Then off in the distance they saw a Hippogriff lying peacefully in the long grass. http://harrypotter.wikia.com/wiki/Hippogriff "Master Willes is the name. From Gryffendor Castle on the Fire Dragon Isle. I call these beauties my Gryffendarlings, and this one is called Buckbeak. Gave me a real hard time at first, but once I got to know them, we made fast friends! I take it you're the one we came to fetch. Back to Gryffendor Castle with you to learn all about my Gryffendarlings." Elezé could only stare in shock and awe at the man and the beautiful creature. She was to fly one? Truly?