Case # 11:


Name: Debbie Guspelle (A.K.A. Serena Brandybuck)


Age: 16


Special Powers: Extraordinary Hobbit Cuteness, tracking ability


Common Adjectives Used to Describe: Cute, Full of Laughter, and Helpful




The Fellowship was no more: its members disbanded and gone on to follow their own paths and destinies. While Frodo and Sam made their way to Mount Doom, Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas were tracking the band of orcs who had hobbit-napped Merry and Pippin. Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas were not alone in their search, however. One other also sought the two young hobbits who traveled with the band of terrifying orcs, and this tracker would not be so easily lost. Her name was Debbie Guspelle (here after to be known as Serena Brandybuck).


Serena was Merry's younger sister, and had begged her big brother to be allowed to join the Fellowship. Merry had forbidden Serena to come along and had told her that it was MUCH too difficult for a young hobbit. Serena had followed anyway, and was now determined to save her big brother from the evil that now held him captive.


Serena was an excellent tracker, despite the fact that her skill had no use whatsoever in the Shire. She dutifully followed the man, dwarf, and hobbit through the wilds of Middle-earth through areas no hobbit lass had ever seen before. She marveled at the flora and fauna around her and had to restrain herself from nibbling on the fruits and nuts around her. Serena was a hobbit, after all, and retained a hobbit's appetite. This was quite a surprise to Serena when she first appeared in Middle-earth in hobbit form. It was unladylike to eat so much, but she just couldn't help it. Food was just so alluring and wonderful, and the way her mother's nut-cakes smelled when they came out of the oven...


Serena shook her head. "This is nonsense" she thought sternly to herself. "I have to think about rescuing Pippin and Merry, not about food!" She forcefully pushed the thought of a piping, hot meal out of her head and concentrated on the task at hand. Her resolve weakened only a few seconds later when a loud, grumbling noise came out of her belly. Serena was glad no one was around to hear it; the thought of Pippin thinking her indelicate was too embarrassing.


"I simply cannot go on in this manner!" thought Serena. "I am starving and have not had a decent meal in AGES! Next town I see I'm going to stop at and have some nice potatoes, or maybe some succulent mutton, or maybe..."


Serena contented herself with thoughts of devouring delicious food. She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she soon lost the trail of Merry and Pippin and was slowly wandering towards a little hamlet that was hidden in the vast plains of Rohan. This little town's position had granted the residents years of safety from the orc attacks that had plagued so many other towns and villages in the Mark.


Serena would not have found the little village either if it wasn't for her keen hobbit nose. It had picked up the scent of fresh bread baking and she stumbled into the town at mid-morning. She felt as if she was going to faint: it had been at least two HOURS since she had eaten last. She was not used to going without food for such long stretches.


The inhabitants were shocked, to say the least, at seeing the small hobbit. They thought at first she was a small child who had lost her way, but her large feet and abundant appetite proved to them that she was in fact, a hobbit. One of the village elders claimed to know about the different cultures of Middle-earth and further confirmed her race. Everyone in town was excited by the new arrival. Not much happened in their sleepy little town so Serena's arrival was cause for much celebration. Plans for feasts and parties were made and everyone wanted to speak to and feed Serena.


Serena was gracious and graciously accepted all the food and good cheer thrown her way. She meant to follow Merry and Pippin as soon as she had a good meal, but somehow she felt it would be rude to leave so early. They had planned a feast for her, and one couldn't very well desert their own party. To do so would be most ungrateful!


Serena began to feel most comfortable in town with its welcoming and adoring inhabitants. Serena began to develop a reputation for being a fine cook herself, and many other aspiring chefs flocked to her to learn her secrets. She thought at least once a day about continuing on her mission, but never quite could get up the resolve to leave her new home.


As the years past, Serena's novelty wore off, but she was still a well-loved and highly regarded member of the town. The war of the Ring had somehow missed the tiny village, but the villagers benefitted from the new peace that had swept the land. New trade goods came in every week, and Serena was quite busy with her successful inn. Every once in a while she thought about the quest she abandoned, but the warm and cheer around her quickly banished any such regrets.



Case #11 is actually a best-case scenario of what can happen to an unprepared Sue in Middle-earth. Serena was quite happy in her warm cottage surrounded by food. Most Sues, however, wish for adventure and romance and would think it a fate worse than death to become an old, plump hobbit. We believe that this reasoning is the cause of so many Sue deaths: it seems that beauty and romance is more important to a Sue than common sense and living to a ripe, old age.