Disclaimers: All canon material from The Lord of the Rings trilogy belongs to J.R.R. Tolkien, New Line Cinema, Warner Brothers and Turbine. All other canon material belongs to their respected owners. I only own the original characters, plot, etc.

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Merry poked his head out behind the maroon red curtain. There they were: his fans. Well, to be honest, they weren't just his fans. Oh, who was he kidding? They were probably after Pippin Took, his cousin and friend. Well, he couldn't say his former friend or cousin… no, he must not think that way. He was prepared for this.

Now to move that brown curly lock of hair out of his eyes. Oh, bother with it all!

"Merry," it was Frodo. His cousin from their quest. Yes, he would see some sense into all of this… "Are you ready? Merry?"

Oh, he couldn't take it anymore!

"I'm fine, cousin," Merry said. Wow. He was so calm. In an effort to stay perplexed, he sighed, took in deep breaths and moved onto the stage. There was a quiet cheeriness in the air. Not quite what he expected. "Come on. I'm a hero of Middle-earth. A knight of Rohan."

"Wait. Aren't you the Esquire of Rohan?" Fatty Bolger said, correcting him.

"Oh, he's so dreamy," Estella, Fatty's sister, replied.

"Sis, this is Merry Brandybuck, our good, devoted friend of the family." Fatty said. He burst, calling out to the stage. "Come on! Bring in Pippin or Frodo. Or yes, Samwise Gamgee."

"You don't think I'm good up here!" Merry said. "I'll show you. Now where's some hobbit tunes I can play?" He grabbed his lute, ready to play a tune. "Thank you." He sang a little for the audience, "I am a hobbit. Merry's my name. If you don't fancy me, I'll…" He stopped playing, in the instant Pippin wandered onstage to a bellowing cheer. Merry jeered, "Come on. I haven't finished my song." He continued singing anyway, "If you do fancy me, I'll be more than obliged to… marry Estella."

The crowd was in awe. Pippin was wide-eyed.

"Well Merry, that's quite the introduction," Pippin said. He ran off in seconds. "She's all yours."

"Merry," Estella ran onstage, embracing Merry. "Did you really mean that?"

"Hey, that's my sister! Meriadoc Brandybuck, you stop this nonsense at once!" Fatty spat in fury.

"Um… maybe another time," Merry said, only a moment too late. Estella dived in and kissed him on the lips. The moment was soft and wet, but also tender. Already, he felt like he won his match… or was it met his match? Either way, he was a happy hobbit. The moment after they released, Merry asked Estella, "Estella, my dear, will you accept marriage with me? Will you be my wife?"

"Yes. Oh yes, Merry," Estella said, lunging into another wet kiss.

And, in the end, Merry and Estella were wed. As for Frodo, he had a free pass to travel between Middle-earth and the Undying Lands, by Eru Ilúvatar's blessing. Indeed, it was a merry welcome home for all, for Fredegar Bolger gave his blessing to the happy couple. As for Merry, it was a pun and name intended for all the right reasons.

The End.

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Thanks for reading. :)