Ah the new NLSS! Review as you go along, I wanna know your thoughts, good or bad! :) Also, more notes on this have been updated to my profile, so check that out too when you get the chance. Thanks!

A Necessary Adventure

Not long after Frodo left the Shire did Mayline tie loose ends and finish giving a good amount of what she owned away and packed the rest. Although she had known Sam would be leaving her also, it wasn't until later she realized Merry and Pippin had also departed, and somehow become a part of whatever had befallen Frodo.

I don't know how to say it, but, I'm sure I love you Mayline.

She sighed heavily as the words echoed in her mind again. Her vision blurred as she carried her last crate of belongings out the front door of her aunt's hole and loaded it onto the small wagon waiting just outside. A small grey pony was attached and the front of its long, white mane covered its eyes on either side.

Her aunt and sister stood side by side and at last Mayline turned to them. Her heart was as heavy as it had ever been, but at least, this was the last goodbye.

Walking forward Mayline fell into a group embrace.

"Are you sure you must go?" her sister pleaded.

Mayline sighed. "I need too. It's about time I strike out on my own Della; it'll do some good for me. But I'll write so expect a lot of letters."

Della nodded, although she was no more satisfied.

The three ended their embrace and Mayline's aunt put her hands on either side of her face. She was getting on in her years, and never failed to treat her as though she were still very young.

"Come back if ever you change your mind," she said. "The road is tough and won't be all you expect."

After one last hug to each of them and a few more words, Mayline turned and headed to the empty seat beside the hobbit tween at the front of the wagon.

"Buckleberry Ferry?" he asked, double-checking his orders.

Mayline nodded slowly. With of a click of his tongue the pony started forward and Mayline twisted around. Her aunt and sister remained as they were and waved to her, but it wasn't long before the road dipped, and they were lost from sight.

Mayline turned back around, and for a while her gaze drifted as Hobbiton went by slowly. At most spots she seemed to have a memory with Frodo or the group, and all too soon it became too much.

Feeling as though she might burst and change her mind so soon, Mayline looked at the tween. Conversation might distract her, at least to the ends of Hobbiton.

"He's a grand pony," she said lightly, glancing at grey. "Grey ones have always been my favorite."

The tween nodded. "Mine too. His name is Teldae, and my Amra is fond of him."

Mayline raised her eyebrows. "Your Amra?"

"You know, my girl."

The wagon had begun to round a corner, and set back at the far end was Bag End. Mayline closed her eyes and took in a deep breath. Although relatives of Frodo were now living there, she still considered it barren.

Do you believe in promises?

Her chest tightened.

I want you to promise me you'll always stay in Shire.

"Miss?"

Mayline blinked. She looked over. The hobbit tween was staring at her. "Can you tell me something?"

She nodded. "I suppose so. Depends on what it is."

"What's going on with Bag End now? No one has any good answers, but—isn't it true every Baggins's that lives there just up and disappears?"

The tween was suddenly excited, but Mayline sat frozen.

"It seems so," she at last managed. "But… there's not much I know about it."

She looked the other way, her gaze vainly searching for something to focus on. It's true… right when they settle into the palm of your hand… they're gone.

Neither Mayline nor the tween said much after that, and right before dusk, the wagon finally reached Buckleberry Ferry.

…

During the ferry ride down stream, Mayline was happy it had taken most of the day to reach Buckleberry. Now that it was night, lanterns with small flickering flames sat here and there along either side of the shore, and Mayline felt as though she was truly passing on to something new.

A light fog had settled across the surface of the water and she inhaled the cool night air. The ferry guide paddled quietly, and Mayline idly wondered if Frodo had taken the same route. From Bag End, the ferry was the quickest way out of the Shire, but she didn't contemplate it for too long.

…I'm sure I love you, Mayline.

Another wagon waited at the river bank when at last they reached another dock. After Mayline loaded her things, it began down the road and toward one of the small towns of Buckland. Again she sat in the space beside the driver, saying nothing, but as always thinking and feeling much.

Her plan was to stay the night at an inn before continuing her journey on to wherever first began to feel like a new home. Although she had a few towns in mind to visit, she decided it was best to live this new phase as spontaneously as she could afford.

…to have my own adventure and disappear.

When they had almost reached town, Mayline noticed a small flicker a little ways down the road. She squinted and as the wagon neared it, she realized it came from a lantern hanging above a sign, which read: Crickhollow.

It was a small, lonely smial tucked back into the trees, and during her last days in the Shire, it had been rumored Frodo left to live there. Obviously it wasn't true. But even so…

"Stop!"

Her sudden outburst startled the driver. He quickly reined the pony to a halt Mayline jumped down from her seat, her feet hitting the dirt as she jogged around and came to a stop in front of the wooden gate.

Just ahead sat an eerie and vacant Crickhollow. She swallowed and pushed open the gate, shaming herself for letting a wild idea get the best of her. As she approached both her sense of caution and curiosity heightened. But finally at the front door, Mayline hesitated before doing anything else.

Slowly, her hand slipped around the handle. Frodo would not be inside, she knew. But to her surprise, the door was not locked, and moved back easily at her slight push.

…

The earth of Crickhollow was cool beneath her feet as Mayline moved around the main room and took her things out of crates. She scurried about as she worked to make the place more homely, and although it had been rather radical, she'd decided to move in.

The home was nicer than anything she could hope to afford somewhere else, and given the fact it had sat vacant for quite some time, she didn't think her presence would be a bother.

A small fire burned in the fire place, and after a while she finally settled down in the rocking chair her aunt had gave her. Mayline pulled her shawl tighter around her shoulders and peered into the flames, her heart already lighter.

Crickhollow, in its own way, was starting to feel like that home-away-from-home she was searching for. Mayline yawned and settled back, her eyes partly closing. It wasn't long before she fell asleep and the fire gradually burned out.