For the Love of Flowers

This story is dedicated to all the gardeners in the world.

Frodo and Sam slowly trudged up the mountain. Frodo sat down and took out the

canteen. Why isn't there much water left? I haven't been drinking much, and neither

has Sam. He sighed. Looks like I'll have to go without. He put the canteen back in the

pack and stood up.

Then Sam hoisted himself up to where Frodo was. "Are we taking a break? Good. I'm

jolly well in need of one. Oh no, Mr. Frodo. You don't have to stand up when I walk

over. But it's mighty pleasing. I've always wanted someone to stand up when I came

over." he sighed contently. He turned to look at the path they had walked. "Isn't it lovely?

Don't you think it's lovely Mr. Frodo?"

Frodo shook his head. "I told myself I wasn't going to look back. And I don't intend

to. And anyway, the mountain is just a lot of rocks and boulders. Nothing special."

"But it's actually quite pretty, especially from this height."

Frodo just shook his head. "Are you quite rested now? I'd like to make it at least

halfway up the mountain by nightfall."

"Whenever you're ready."

Frodo fell to the ground. "That's all the farther I can go, Sam." He waited a moment.

"Sam? This is where you're supposed to say, 'But we have to keep going, Mr. Frodo!'

Then I say, 'I suppose you're right, Sam.' And then we keep going up the mountain. Got

that? Okay. Go."

Then Sam came around the corner. He saw Frodo lying on the ground. "Oh no!" He

cried. "Poor Mr. Frodo's dead!" He started bawling.

"I am most certainly not dead! This is quite foolish! You didn't say you're line, so I

was forced to wait for you."

Sam stopped wailing. "You're alive!"

"Of course I am. What else would I be? Now where's the water? I'm dying of thirst."

He grabbed the bag from Sam and pulled out the canteen. He was about to get a well-

earned drink, when Sam snatched it from him.

"You can't have that, Mr. Frodo, I need it! Well, to be precise, Rosie needs it."

Frodo stared. "Sam? Are you alright? Rosie's back in the Shire."

"But she's right here!" Sam pulled out an odd-looking plant from his bag. It had a

regular stem, but the flower was cotton in the middle, with rose petals around it. He

beamed. "See? It's a Rosie Cotton, thought up by S. Gamgee himself."

"So you've been using all the water to water your frivolous plant?!"

Sam looked shocked. "Of course not, Mr. Frodo! I would never use all that water on

one plant!"

He flung his arm to gesture to the path behind them. "I used it on a bunch of plants!"

Frodo looked and in horror realized what Sam meant. All the way they had walked,

about every ten feet, there was a flower planted in the ground. They went all the way

down the mountain and out of Frodo's eyesight.

"So you see Mr. Frodo," said Sam, who was kneeling on the ground planting yet another

flower, "that's why I needed the water more than you did."

Frodo fainted.

The End