A SLY AND ARTFUL PARTY
Narrated by Frodo Baggins
*Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Not even the apples. Happy now?
*Rating: PG- Comic Mischief and Mild Drinking
*Summary: Frodo knows that Sam cannot possibly confront Rosie, so with the help of his wild cousins, he plans the party that is certain to bring them together. But what if it all goes terribly wrong?
~*~*~*~*~*~*CHAPTER ONE*~*~*~*~*~*~
I HAVE long known of Samwise Gamgee's love for Rose Cotton. I remember watching him deliver hand-made braids of daisies to her doorstep and then running off in embarrassment. I can still picture perfectly the times when he would go on talking about her, only about five years old- saying how her hair was so pretty and how he thought she was so much fun. And I could never forget the times playing in the fields: My cousin Peregrin blindfolded and made to chase after us, while Meriadoc (my distant relation, but we call each other 'cousin') called to him from the tops of trees he'd climbed; Sam and Rosie would giggle together, Rosie clasping Sam's hand and the two of them skipping through the long grass as I let poor little Pippin think he'd tagged me, since no one else was giving him any justice.
But that was when Sam was a child. He loved Rosie in a friendly way. She was the little girl who he played with when there were no more chores to be done at Bagshot. She saved him from being laughed at by other young hobbits many a time. Sam did not need to think of loving Rosie any other way back in those days, and now he is faced with the truth: He would like to take Rosie's hand, not to run with, but to caress lovingly. He'd like to kiss her passionately. He has told me all of these feelings, and I think that it is grand, except for one minor detail.
Sam is afraid to confront her. When I say 'afraid', I mean he will not talk to her for longer than two minutes. When he spots her in the Green Dragon Inn working tables, he begs to be placed where she isn't picking up orders. He is terrified of her.
Merry, Pip and I joke with him a bit more than we should, and instead of laughing back, he gets terribly red in the face and breathes loudly. Once, Pippin wrote a song about a 'young gardenin' lad' who 'loved a bonney barmaid'. Now, it did not name names, but as you can pick up here, it was awfully obvious. Rosie sent grinning glances at Samwise, while Pippin nearly died from laughter, clapping and yelling out the words to the song. Sam, however, was NOT amused. He left, blushing deeply, and we found him out by the cross bridge, smoking his pipe and staring into the water, drowned in thought. Pippin apologised, and though Sam promised that he 'did not mind a bit', we three knew otherwise.
"I didn't mean it to make him angry!" Pippin had sighed sadly, after the incident. I had invited he and Merry to my hole for a late tea and a talk.
Merry snorted. "Think he was more humiliated than angry."
Pippin's mouth drooped in guilt. "Well, I didn't mean that, either."
"I know, Pippin." I patted his arm. "I know you never meant anyone harm, but we all must remember how touchy Sam gets when it has to do with Rosie."
"Does he ever!" Merry declared. "He never used to have a problem with her. He never used to lose his tongue when she'd come 'round. We were all friends, plain and simple." Pippin caught Merry's eye and nodded.
I shrugged. "That was when we were younger. Things did not matter so much then."
"But they were a lot more fun!" Pippin exclaimed, and with that, he ate his third biscuit.
So, we often talked about the sad case of Samwise Gamgee and his love for Rosie. I often wished there was some way of getting the two of them to talk. A natural way. A way that did not necessarily have to depend upon Sam. And that was when I got my brilliant idea.
I could plan a party. A dinner party with plenty of good things to eat, and only guests who Sam was comfortable around. Also, no one who would come between Sam and Rosie. Here is the catch: I would tell Sam that only he and a few other guests were invited, with no mentioning of Rose. Then, I would tell Rosie that Sam was coming along, and he had been the one who invited her. And of course, I would invite both Merry and Pippin, because they'd come rolling through the window if they did not receive a proper invitation. That would be enough guests, because both of the latter always seem to accumulate people as they travel.
Now, to get it all done.
Narrated by Frodo Baggins
*Disclaimer: I don't own anything. Not even the apples. Happy now?
*Rating: PG- Comic Mischief and Mild Drinking
*Summary: Frodo knows that Sam cannot possibly confront Rosie, so with the help of his wild cousins, he plans the party that is certain to bring them together. But what if it all goes terribly wrong?
~*~*~*~*~*~*CHAPTER ONE*~*~*~*~*~*~
I HAVE long known of Samwise Gamgee's love for Rose Cotton. I remember watching him deliver hand-made braids of daisies to her doorstep and then running off in embarrassment. I can still picture perfectly the times when he would go on talking about her, only about five years old- saying how her hair was so pretty and how he thought she was so much fun. And I could never forget the times playing in the fields: My cousin Peregrin blindfolded and made to chase after us, while Meriadoc (my distant relation, but we call each other 'cousin') called to him from the tops of trees he'd climbed; Sam and Rosie would giggle together, Rosie clasping Sam's hand and the two of them skipping through the long grass as I let poor little Pippin think he'd tagged me, since no one else was giving him any justice.
But that was when Sam was a child. He loved Rosie in a friendly way. She was the little girl who he played with when there were no more chores to be done at Bagshot. She saved him from being laughed at by other young hobbits many a time. Sam did not need to think of loving Rosie any other way back in those days, and now he is faced with the truth: He would like to take Rosie's hand, not to run with, but to caress lovingly. He'd like to kiss her passionately. He has told me all of these feelings, and I think that it is grand, except for one minor detail.
Sam is afraid to confront her. When I say 'afraid', I mean he will not talk to her for longer than two minutes. When he spots her in the Green Dragon Inn working tables, he begs to be placed where she isn't picking up orders. He is terrified of her.
Merry, Pip and I joke with him a bit more than we should, and instead of laughing back, he gets terribly red in the face and breathes loudly. Once, Pippin wrote a song about a 'young gardenin' lad' who 'loved a bonney barmaid'. Now, it did not name names, but as you can pick up here, it was awfully obvious. Rosie sent grinning glances at Samwise, while Pippin nearly died from laughter, clapping and yelling out the words to the song. Sam, however, was NOT amused. He left, blushing deeply, and we found him out by the cross bridge, smoking his pipe and staring into the water, drowned in thought. Pippin apologised, and though Sam promised that he 'did not mind a bit', we three knew otherwise.
"I didn't mean it to make him angry!" Pippin had sighed sadly, after the incident. I had invited he and Merry to my hole for a late tea and a talk.
Merry snorted. "Think he was more humiliated than angry."
Pippin's mouth drooped in guilt. "Well, I didn't mean that, either."
"I know, Pippin." I patted his arm. "I know you never meant anyone harm, but we all must remember how touchy Sam gets when it has to do with Rosie."
"Does he ever!" Merry declared. "He never used to have a problem with her. He never used to lose his tongue when she'd come 'round. We were all friends, plain and simple." Pippin caught Merry's eye and nodded.
I shrugged. "That was when we were younger. Things did not matter so much then."
"But they were a lot more fun!" Pippin exclaimed, and with that, he ate his third biscuit.
So, we often talked about the sad case of Samwise Gamgee and his love for Rosie. I often wished there was some way of getting the two of them to talk. A natural way. A way that did not necessarily have to depend upon Sam. And that was when I got my brilliant idea.
I could plan a party. A dinner party with plenty of good things to eat, and only guests who Sam was comfortable around. Also, no one who would come between Sam and Rosie. Here is the catch: I would tell Sam that only he and a few other guests were invited, with no mentioning of Rose. Then, I would tell Rosie that Sam was coming along, and he had been the one who invited her. And of course, I would invite both Merry and Pippin, because they'd come rolling through the window if they did not receive a proper invitation. That would be enough guests, because both of the latter always seem to accumulate people as they travel.
Now, to get it all done.