Disclaimer: I bet you are all smart enough to realize that a fifteen-year-
old Canadian girl is not a...very old English man. Therefore, I don't own
the characters, or the settings. I do own the plot, and ~wish~ I owned the
mighty (cute) Thain. However, I have no money, and they aren't selling him
on E-Bay. You can buy a soul, but not a hobbit. *sigh* Anyway, you get the
point. Tolkein owns everything, I own nothing. Except a jelly lolly, which
the cat stole. Just read the story.
~*~
Dreams ~do~ come true
~*~
"Mother, I'm home!" called Elanor cheerfully from the front hall of Bag- End.
"Ah, Elanor! Just in time for a meal. You're starting to show a Baggins-ish sense of time, my dear. We're in the study, and could you bring some more poppy-seed cake?" Elanor's mother, Rose Gamgee, called from within the warm regions of the hobbit-hole.
Grinning happily, Elanor dashed to the pantry and---with a little less speed and a bit more caution---carried a plate of poppy-cakes into the study.
Sam and Rose Gamgee sat side by side in front of the fireplace. Sam's sandy brown curls were just starting to be touched with paler wisps, a sign of his worries about his family and office as Mayor. Rose's hair was as golden as ever, and her warm blue eyes still sparkled with youthful vigor.
Their companion had the thinly-bladed nose of a Took, along with the same curly red hair. His jade-green eyes sparkled mischievously in the firelight, making him look much younger than his fifty-two years. Elanor gulped instinctively. Her parents didn't have just any Took over for tea. They had ~the~ Took.
"Hello, lass. We've met, am I right?" Peregrin Took extended a friendly hand to the younger hobbit.
"Yes, sir." replied Elanor shyly, shaking hands with the Thain.
Peregrin laughed. "Just Pippin, my dear." He addressed Sam and Rose next; "A very smart daughter you have here, Sam. But I doubt Rosie would have it any other way, hmm?"
Elanor's mother laughed. "Pippin, I swear, every time you see a female, you feel the need to compliment her. Does Diamond know of you habits?"
Pippin feigned a downcast look. "Yes. But she married me anyway." Rose shook her head. Pippin turned his gaze to Elanor. "You're the one Sam told me about, right? Who thinks the Shire is..." He looked to Sam for help.
"Fading?" put in Elanor.
Pippin glanced at her, eyes more thoughtful now. "Yes. Exactly. The Shire was fading. I was wondering, exactly what do you mean by fading?"
Elanor prepared to explain her feelings when a knock sounded on the door. "Who could that be?" wondered Rose aloud. "We weren't expecting anyone. Elanor, go and get the door, will you?"
Nodding quickly, Elanor dashed down the familiar hallway, stopping suddenly at the door. She pulled it open, revealing what could only be another Took. He had the same ruddy hair and turned-up nose as Pippin. His eyes, however, were a dark shade of brown.
He was out of breath, as if he had run all the way from the Great Smials. "M-message for...for the Thain and the Mayor. Must speak to them." he panted.
"Um, right this way, sir." said Elanor, showing the hobbit-messenger in. "Father, Pippin, a message for you." she called ahead.
Sam and Pippin reached the front hall simultaneously, but it was the Thain that spoke first: "What news? Who has sent for us?"
Sam looked at his daughter. "Elanor, go help you mother tidy up tea." The unspoken meaning was clear: 'This may not be for your ears. Please leave.'
Elanor curtsied, taking her leave of the older hobbits. She turned and walked slowly back to the study, hoping to catch some of the message, but the three spoke in low voices and she was unable to hear anything except low murmuring.
Once she entered the study, she found her mother already placing the teapot and cups back on their tray. "Take this to the kitchen, Elanor. Then go and find your brothers and sisters, they went on a picnic. I think they're near the Brandywine river." Stifling a sigh, Elanor did as she was bid. Still, she couldn't help but wonder what had been so urgent that a messenger would need to run from the Great Smials to Hobbiton.
~*~
Later that evening, after her siblings had gone to bed, Elanor walked alone in the garden. It was the pride of Hobbiton, the Gamgee garden. Sam tended it daily, with the help of Frodo, who was showing as much of an interest in gardening as his father. No weed dared rear its head within the enclosure of the garden fence. Elanor loved the garden because it seemed to her to be a piece of another realm, transplanted within the Shire. It reminded her of the stories her father would tell about elves in far-off lands.
Suddenly, Elanor heard the sound of voices. Glancing around, she spotted the open window of her own hobbit-hole. Quietly, she snuck forward until she was directly under the window, and able to clearly hear the discussion.
"Sam, what did that messenger want?"
"It's nothing, Rose. Just news of the roads..."
"Don't try that on me, Master Gamgee. I know that look of yours. There is no way that I'm letting you leave for Gondor! Not now, with the roads being dangerous and all..."
"Rose, how do you know the roads aren't safe? I've traveled to Minas Tirith plenty of times and..."
"I just have a feeling, Sam. Please don't go. I just ~know~ something is going to happen, I can feel it."
There was a long pause as Sam thought about it.
"Alright Rose. I won't go. A written message will do well enough, I suppose. I'll write it tonight."
Elanor crept away from her hiding place and collapsed under the Party Tree, as it was called. It was the large mallorn tree brought back by Sam from his trip. What should I do? she thought. What can be so important that the King has to know now? And why couldn't father just use a written message from the start?
There was only one thing to do. It was probably the one thing she'd been dreaming of since she'd first heard her father's tales of lands beyond the Shire. She was going to have to leave the Shire, with the message, and ride to Gondor and the King. All she had to do was wait until her parents were asleep, take the message, and some food. Then she could sneak out and find her way to Gondor. She didn't stop to think of how long it would take, or her mother's ominous words about the conditions of the road. All she could think of was that finally, she would get to have an adventure as great as her father's.
~*~
A/N: Wowies. I have put up two chapters in the same day! This is truly amazing. You may have already discovered this, but thoughts are in marks, emphasis in ~~ marks. Oh, and also: Yes, another title of the Thain is The Took. No, this won't be a way for me to have fun with Pippin, since he's no longer in the story. Or at least, he has almost no mention. If you have any comments at all, feel free to use the review option, or e-mail me directly. Criticisms are welcome, how else can I get better? But, please don't flame. And before you ask, no, there won't be any Legolas in this tale. I'd like to thank you all for reading this story, and don't worry, more stuff will happen soon. And....do you think that orcs are still around after the Fall of Sauron? Out of curiosity...
~*~
Dreams ~do~ come true
~*~
"Mother, I'm home!" called Elanor cheerfully from the front hall of Bag- End.
"Ah, Elanor! Just in time for a meal. You're starting to show a Baggins-ish sense of time, my dear. We're in the study, and could you bring some more poppy-seed cake?" Elanor's mother, Rose Gamgee, called from within the warm regions of the hobbit-hole.
Grinning happily, Elanor dashed to the pantry and---with a little less speed and a bit more caution---carried a plate of poppy-cakes into the study.
Sam and Rose Gamgee sat side by side in front of the fireplace. Sam's sandy brown curls were just starting to be touched with paler wisps, a sign of his worries about his family and office as Mayor. Rose's hair was as golden as ever, and her warm blue eyes still sparkled with youthful vigor.
Their companion had the thinly-bladed nose of a Took, along with the same curly red hair. His jade-green eyes sparkled mischievously in the firelight, making him look much younger than his fifty-two years. Elanor gulped instinctively. Her parents didn't have just any Took over for tea. They had ~the~ Took.
"Hello, lass. We've met, am I right?" Peregrin Took extended a friendly hand to the younger hobbit.
"Yes, sir." replied Elanor shyly, shaking hands with the Thain.
Peregrin laughed. "Just Pippin, my dear." He addressed Sam and Rose next; "A very smart daughter you have here, Sam. But I doubt Rosie would have it any other way, hmm?"
Elanor's mother laughed. "Pippin, I swear, every time you see a female, you feel the need to compliment her. Does Diamond know of you habits?"
Pippin feigned a downcast look. "Yes. But she married me anyway." Rose shook her head. Pippin turned his gaze to Elanor. "You're the one Sam told me about, right? Who thinks the Shire is..." He looked to Sam for help.
"Fading?" put in Elanor.
Pippin glanced at her, eyes more thoughtful now. "Yes. Exactly. The Shire was fading. I was wondering, exactly what do you mean by fading?"
Elanor prepared to explain her feelings when a knock sounded on the door. "Who could that be?" wondered Rose aloud. "We weren't expecting anyone. Elanor, go and get the door, will you?"
Nodding quickly, Elanor dashed down the familiar hallway, stopping suddenly at the door. She pulled it open, revealing what could only be another Took. He had the same ruddy hair and turned-up nose as Pippin. His eyes, however, were a dark shade of brown.
He was out of breath, as if he had run all the way from the Great Smials. "M-message for...for the Thain and the Mayor. Must speak to them." he panted.
"Um, right this way, sir." said Elanor, showing the hobbit-messenger in. "Father, Pippin, a message for you." she called ahead.
Sam and Pippin reached the front hall simultaneously, but it was the Thain that spoke first: "What news? Who has sent for us?"
Sam looked at his daughter. "Elanor, go help you mother tidy up tea." The unspoken meaning was clear: 'This may not be for your ears. Please leave.'
Elanor curtsied, taking her leave of the older hobbits. She turned and walked slowly back to the study, hoping to catch some of the message, but the three spoke in low voices and she was unable to hear anything except low murmuring.
Once she entered the study, she found her mother already placing the teapot and cups back on their tray. "Take this to the kitchen, Elanor. Then go and find your brothers and sisters, they went on a picnic. I think they're near the Brandywine river." Stifling a sigh, Elanor did as she was bid. Still, she couldn't help but wonder what had been so urgent that a messenger would need to run from the Great Smials to Hobbiton.
~*~
Later that evening, after her siblings had gone to bed, Elanor walked alone in the garden. It was the pride of Hobbiton, the Gamgee garden. Sam tended it daily, with the help of Frodo, who was showing as much of an interest in gardening as his father. No weed dared rear its head within the enclosure of the garden fence. Elanor loved the garden because it seemed to her to be a piece of another realm, transplanted within the Shire. It reminded her of the stories her father would tell about elves in far-off lands.
Suddenly, Elanor heard the sound of voices. Glancing around, she spotted the open window of her own hobbit-hole. Quietly, she snuck forward until she was directly under the window, and able to clearly hear the discussion.
"Sam, what did that messenger want?"
"It's nothing, Rose. Just news of the roads..."
"Don't try that on me, Master Gamgee. I know that look of yours. There is no way that I'm letting you leave for Gondor! Not now, with the roads being dangerous and all..."
"Rose, how do you know the roads aren't safe? I've traveled to Minas Tirith plenty of times and..."
"I just have a feeling, Sam. Please don't go. I just ~know~ something is going to happen, I can feel it."
There was a long pause as Sam thought about it.
"Alright Rose. I won't go. A written message will do well enough, I suppose. I'll write it tonight."
Elanor crept away from her hiding place and collapsed under the Party Tree, as it was called. It was the large mallorn tree brought back by Sam from his trip. What should I do? she thought. What can be so important that the King has to know now? And why couldn't father just use a written message from the start?
There was only one thing to do. It was probably the one thing she'd been dreaming of since she'd first heard her father's tales of lands beyond the Shire. She was going to have to leave the Shire, with the message, and ride to Gondor and the King. All she had to do was wait until her parents were asleep, take the message, and some food. Then she could sneak out and find her way to Gondor. She didn't stop to think of how long it would take, or her mother's ominous words about the conditions of the road. All she could think of was that finally, she would get to have an adventure as great as her father's.
~*~
A/N: Wowies. I have put up two chapters in the same day! This is truly amazing. You may have already discovered this, but thoughts are in marks, emphasis in ~~ marks. Oh, and also: Yes, another title of the Thain is The Took. No, this won't be a way for me to have fun with Pippin, since he's no longer in the story. Or at least, he has almost no mention. If you have any comments at all, feel free to use the review option, or e-mail me directly. Criticisms are welcome, how else can I get better? But, please don't flame. And before you ask, no, there won't be any Legolas in this tale. I'd like to thank you all for reading this story, and don't worry, more stuff will happen soon. And....do you think that orcs are still around after the Fall of Sauron? Out of curiosity...