A/N: finally the chapters you have been waiting for, Merry and Estella's wedding..Thank you all for the reviews and keeping up with this story. It really helps in keeping me writing...

Chapter 26

The Wedding

All through the night the winds howled and the thunder cracked. The Rain pounded against the Halls of Mirkwood. Merry should have been lying in his bed thinking of Estella and the wedding vows they would make to each other this following afternoon. However, with the storm pounding outside his window and the thunder cracking as it shook the entire halls of Mirkwood, Merry's thought traveled away from Estella to the horses in the corral. He only hoped that they faired well.

Slowly the thunder edged its way towards the east and it became a low distance rumble. The rain slowly tapped against the window pain and lulled Merry into a peaceful sleep.

With the rising of the morning sun, its beams shining brightly on Merry's face, awoken him. Slowly getting out of his bed and walking to the window he gazed out looking at the gardens. He could see some fallen branches and turned over flowerpots. Leaves scattered the lawns from the intensity of the wind.

Today was going to be the most important day of his life and he smiled thinking about it. He looked forward to this afternoon in making Estella his wife. No longer would he be lonely or waking up to an empty room. Merry began thinking of his future with Estella as the Lady of Buckland. How Hatty would of loved to see this day. Since his mother death, Hatty would nag him endlessly of finding a wife and filling the halls of Buckland with little hobbits. 'Oh, Hatty, how much I will miss you.' Merry thought of her, and how she had touched the lives of Bucklanders that dwelt there. Her voice and presence would always echo in his heart and mind.

With so much going on, Merry forgot to tell Pippin about Hatty and he knew this news would break his heart as well. Hatty had loved Pippin almost as much as she loved Merry. Merry knew every summer, Hatty would begin making blueberry pie especially for him. Pippin's eyes would widen every time she would put a pie on the table just for him. He got a chuckle thinking that the only reason Pippin would visit Buckland was to get one of those pies. No cook in the Shire was as good as Hatty was. Nor a cook brought so much laughter to those halls. Thinking about Hatty made Merry long for Buckland, but without Hatty there, would Buckland ever be the same?

The view of the elves that just entered the garden to begin cleaning up after last night's storm, brought Merry back to the present and the thoughts of his horses in the corral. He now worried about their safety.

Dressing rapidly, Merry rushed out to the stables, saddled a horse and took off for the corral. The stables were empty and no one saw Merry leave.

Riding the pathways from the Halls of Mirkwood and down steep inclines, Merry saw the destruction from the storm last night. Many branches were down and the pathway was cluttered with fallen branches and leaves. He had to dodge many obstacles, going around some old fallen trees in the path. When he reached the valley were the corral of horses were kept, he was amazed that the corral still housed the horses. The elves that guarded this valley were no were in sight. They all must have returned to the Halls of Mirkwood to weather out the storm there.

Getting off his horse and tying him to the corral fence. Merry froze in shock, seeing his small colt lying in the mud next to its mother. Merry rushed to the side of the colt and was thankful it was still alive, but very weak. It tried to struggle to stand, but it was unable. Merry knew he had to get this colt to Aragorn to save its life. Finding a rope and tying a lasso, Merry caught the mother of this colt and brought out of the corral and tied her next to his horse. The colt was soaked in mud and it shivered from the cool morning air on its wet fur. Picking up the colt and carrying it from the corral, he laid it on the ground before his horse. He had to make shackles to keep the small horse for kicking when he placed the colt on the back of his horse. Merry caught the sound of a distance neighing from behind him that did not sound quite right to him. Leaving the colt for a moment, he walked behind the thick bushes, he gasped to see the stallion barely able to stand.

The stallion's legs were sunk into the thick mud. Legolas's rope was still around the horse's neck and it was caught under a thick log that had fallen in the storm, trapping him. All through the night the horse fought to free itself, but was unable. Now he sat before Merry completely weakened and exhausted from its struggling. Whenever he approached the horse it would try to stand and fight to free itself. Merry could see the fear in its eyes at his approach. Calmly Merry approached the stallion, talking to it, to calm it. Gently Merry reached his hand out to the stallion and stroked his cold wet nose. He took his time to show the stallion he was not here to harm it. After a time, Merry slowly edged his way around the stallion to the rope to cut the stallion free. He expected the stallion to run as soon as the rope was cut, but it could hardly move from the mud. It took hours trying to dig the stallion from the mud that held him.

The sun climbed high noon, but still the stallion was not free from the mud. Every attempt that Merry made seemed futile. The horses breathing came in hard laboring breaths and Merry began to fear that the stallion would not make it.

~*~

The women elves gathered around Estella in helping her dress for her wedding. They braided her hair and weaved small flowers in between those braids. They placed white lacey ribbons that draped from her hair. The long satin white gown was buttoned with tiny small beads all lined down the back of her dress. The full skirt rustled with every step she made. The dressmaker attached a long satin train that trailed behind her. Elaborate white beads covered the front of her wedding dress in delicate designs and embroidered with white tiny lace at the edges. The small delicate golden crown of weaved leaves adorn the top of her head and the sheer white veil that draped from the crown to fall well past the floor, trailing behind her.

For the final touch, the dressmaker presented her with a small box that was a gift from King Thranduil. Opening the box, Estella's eyes widened. There was a rare beautiful small pearl necklace and matching pearl earrings. Estella stood before the mirror and saw the most beautiful hobbit that she had ever seen before, herself. After all the years of being plain old everyday Estella, in her vest and matching skirt, now stood a princess dressed in white. Tears slowly ran from her face as she looked at herself in the mirror.

There was a knock on Estella's door and a servant walked in. He carried a long box in his arms and laid it on the bed. Opening it, he took out a bouquet of wedding flowers that she would carry down the isle. The servant placed this in her hands and turned her around to view herself one last time. The bouquet of flowers were white delicate roses with a touch of small matching yellow roses that gave a hint of color to the bouquet. Long draping ivy vines poured from the bouquet almost falling to the ground. It looked like a waterfall of roses descending from the bouquet towards the floor.

Estella turned from the mirror and with tears in her eyes she hugged the elves who made this day the most special day she would remember all of her life.

~*~

Pippin and Aragorn paced in Merry's room trying to think what they should do next, while Legolas watched them. Berilac burst into the room, as he and Pippin were to be Merry's best man for his wedding, when he found out that Merry was missing.

"Aragorn what should we do?" Berilac said in panic, "The wedding is going to start in less than a half hour."

"Legolas and I will find him, he must have went to see to the horses. I had hoped he would have been back before now. Do not worry, we will find him. Tell King Thranduil to stall the wedding for as long as he can." Turning, Aragorn and Legolas headed out to find Merry with Gimli following behind them.

Gimli scouted the terrain and freed the path from broken branches with his ax, as the three followed Merry's tracks heading for the corral.

Finding the young colt shackled and barely alive, Aragorn worked to save the little creatures life. Legolas heard a distance noise and told Gimli to follow him. Following the thick bush area they came to a small clearing where they found Merry waist high in mud with the stallion. The both were stuck deep in the mud.

"You do not know that you are late for your own wedding?" Legolas fought the laughter from brimming over at the sight of Merry covered in mud.

"It is about time you both shown up, I have been stuck here for hours!" Merry snapped at them from being so humiliated at his predicament with the stallion.

With in moments Gimli and Legolas freed Merry and the Stallion. Legolas was shocked seeing the stallion walk slowly by there side.

Aragorn seeing Merry covered in mud from head to toe, did not like the idea of riding with Merry on the back of his horse, picked Merry up and tossed him into edge of the river.

"What did you do that for, Aragorn!" Merry shouted at him in indignation.

"You can not get married covered in mud and besides I just had a bath. You are not riding with me being that filthy," Aragorn teased him, "clean yourself off, while I look after the stallion."

~*~

King Thranduil screamed as his voiced echoed throughout the hall, after being told that Merry had disappeared early this morning. They were already one hour behind schedule. "I have invited the highest dignitary in our realm to this wedding and now you are telling me that we need to wait!" shouted King Thranduil, "I will be the laughing stock of all members of my cabinet. You find that hobbit and get him here now!"

The guards rushed from the King's chambers and headed towards the stables for their horses.

The elvish guests were beginning to pace at the delays and were tiring from the endless offers of wine and cakes from the servants. Even the musicians were becoming bored with the same tunes being played over and over again.

~*~

Estella laid her bouquet neatly on the table. She reached up and removed her crown and veil. Tears fell from her eyes, as she believed that Merry had a change of heart and no longer wished to marry her. Lying on her bed, she began crying from her broken heart. Pippin knocked on her door, but she would not open it. She just wanted to be left alone.

"Estella open this door, I need to talk to you, please." Pippin asked her in a gentle tone.

"Here, Pippin, let me try," Fredegar brushed Pippin aside, "Estella, you open this door right this minute! We have a wedding to get ready for and I will not hear of you making a fuss about it, now!"

Estella jumped from her bed and opened the door to allow her brother in. Fredegar wrapped his arms around his sister to comfort her.

"Estell, don't be cry'n so. Merry is coming, you will see. He is just a little late. It has to be something mighty important to keep him away from you. He loves you, and you should know that by now. You once told me not to give up, even when I thought there was nothing else to hold on too. You made me see that I was not alone in this world. That we have friends we can count on. If you love him, Estell, do not give up on him just yet."

Estella wiped the tears from her eyes and hugged her brother tightly.