There was a great commotion outside the front door of Bag End one fair day late in March. Samwise Gamgee, now widely known as Sam 'Gardener', roused himself from his comfortable chair in front of the cozy fire to see who was hanging on the bell.
"All right, all right," he called out, slightly annoyed at having his afternoon tea interrupted. "You might wait half a sec for me to get the door."
As he pulled open the round front door, there stood Hob Proudfoot, the Quick Post messenger, all huffing and out of breath.
"Hullo, Hob!" said Sam, "What's got you puffing like a bellows?" asked Sam, alarmed that something might be amiss. But it had been quite awhile since there was any real trouble in the Shire, not since before the crowing of the King at Gondor.
"Hallo, Mr. Mayor," answered Hob, bending over now to catch his breath.
"Come on now, Hob. You know I don't hold with formalities and the like. We've known each other since we were in our tweens! Come in and have a cup of tea."
Hob looked grateful and pleased. Sam was quite famous now in the Shire, although most Hobbits only had a very general idea of his trials and adventures in the War of the Ring, as it was now called. They knew he had travelled in the company of great folk, and that he knew the king personally, and that was all they needed to know. It was this innocence that King Elessar had worked so hard to preserve, and Sam, who had no desire for fame of any kind, was happy to oblige.
Hob handed Sam a packet of letters, which was pretty much a daily thing nowadays. There was so much business to handle, and everyone looked to Sam for guidance.
"I would'a just left it in the box as usual, begging your pardon, but there's something that's special, see?"
Hob reached into his large mail bag and carefully pulled out a flat silk pouch, of a quality so high it was unequalled in all the Shire. It was of silver with fine white stars embroidered on it. He handed it carefully to Sam, as if it were fragile. Sam's eyes widened at the sight of it.
"Now, bless me," he whispered taking the pouch, knowing that it could only be from someone very important.
"I looked inside, begging your pardon, as I had to see who it was addressed to," Hob added quickly, as if Sam would be angry at him for touching it.
"Hob Proudfoot, stop begging my confounded pardon and sit," he motioned to a nearby chair.
As he did so, Sam's wife Rosie rounded the corner with a small girl on her hip and a young lad following closely behind her.
"Hallo, Hob," she said with a warm smile. Rosie was pretty by hobbit standards. With laughing blue eyes and curly dark golden hair, she was very fair to look upon. There was a light in her eyes that told of her quick wit and good humor.
"Hallo there and good afternoon, Rosie," said Hob shyly. He actually blushed a little under her gaze. She laughed and came closer to see what Hob had brought.
Sam unwrapped the silk pouch and took out an envelope. Inside was a letter of fine black paper, written upon with gold ink. A fairer hand was never seen unless it be from the House of Elrond. Hob whistled and Rosie let out a gasp. It was addressed to Sam and on the back, was a silver rendering of the White Tree of Gondor, The King's own seal.
"That's an eye opener, and no mistake," said Sam, now excitedly trying to open the letter neatly.
As Sam's eyes scanned the contents of the letter, they did in fact get wider at every sentence. Rosie now came in behind him to get a glimpse.
"What's it say?" asked Hob in great anticipation.
Sam had only read the first few lines, but at that he stopped and took a deep breath.
"King Elessar is coming to the Shire," he said quietly. "Lord Aragorn and Lady Arwen are coming to the Shire!" he said more loudly to the room.
Rosie laughed out loud and clapped her hands together. Hob was gobsmacked, and altogether forgot his tea and cookies.
"Oh dear! Oh my!" exclaimed Hob, now launching himself from the chair.
"The King is coming to the Shire!" he yelled. And with that, he ran out the front door and shouted the news to everyone he saw, happy to be the first to tell it. It was quite an event, to say the least, that could cause a hobbit to forget his afternoon tea.
But Sam stood very still as he read the rest of the letter, and Rosie, being attuned to Sam's expressions, said, "What is it, Sam?" She rested her hand on his shoulder.
Sam took a deep breath. "They want Elanor to be a handmaiden to Queen Arwen!"
"What?" gasped Rosie. "That's, that's…"
"It's a very high honor," said Sam.
"It's is,"agreed Rosie, 'but, she's so young!"
Sam took Rosie's hand gently, and smiled with a great pride in his eyes.
"She'll only be with them at Lake Evendim for a short while. That's not so far. Just a few days ride from here. When she's older, she can go with them to Gondor. We could all go for a bit," he said hopefully. He loved the Shire with all of his heart, but he longed to see other realms again, especially the White City, now that the roads were safe to travel.
But Rosie's eye were filled with tears. "I don't know, Sam…"
They would have to tell the children about the King's visit, since Hob would have the whole Shire in an uproar by now. But it was only after a long debate that they would agree to tell Elanor about the special invitation from the King and Queen.