Disclaimer- I own half a pack of Extra chewing gum, a yo-yo, and a copy of "The Fellowship of the Ring" DVD, but I don't own LOTR. This story and any characters in it that Tolkien did not mention I do claim.

A/N- I am incredibly sorry that I was unable to finish this chapter sooner, but I grossly underestimated how busy I would be after my vacation (which was very nice, thanks for asking :). I hope to finish the next chapter faster, but until then, enjoy (and review!) this installment.

Note: Brullia is an invented disease. I have little or no medical training, so the medicines described here are purely fictitious and I would not recommend treating someone with them.

Chapter 8- Brullia and Complications of Relations

Eomer had changed Theo out of his wet clothes into a long nightshirt. The lad's forehead seemed quite hot, yet he kept shivering. His father, at a loss for what to do, had dressed him for a hot summer night but also gave him a large blanket. Theo had wrapped himself in it and then lay on the bed, saying nothing and moving only when he sneezed.

So Mrs. Hazelwood found them: the father standing near the bed, a handkerchief in his hand, while the son was on the bed with a few more handkerchiefs next to him. She sat on the bed, pulling the drowsy Theo into a sitting position and feeling his forehead and cheeks. She noticed his flushed face and stopped up nose and shook her head, mentally reviewing an inventory of illnesses that she knew of- which was very large, seeing as she was the chief healer of Brandy Hall and had been such for more years than she cared to remember. "What are his symptoms? Has he coughed anything up, or had a cough for that matter?"

"No." Eomer shook his head. "He's just been sneezing for a while until he goes to sleep, then he'll sneeze again and wake himself up. He kept shivering but he felt so hot I didn't want to put something too warm on him."

The elderly hobbit woman sighed, but in more of an annoyed way than a distressed way. "Just as I suspected. Theoden does not have a cold, though he luckily does not have pneumonia either. He has brullia."

"Brullia?" Eomer repeated, his eyes wide. "Is-is that bad?"

"If by 'bad' you mean fatal," Eomer tensed, "no." He relaxed again. The healer smoothed one of his son's limp curls sympathetically. "If by 'bad' you mean annoying, but only rarely turns into something serious, yes. He needs a few days of bed rest, and he'll have to stay inside for at least a week. Plenty of liquids as well, and we'll have to keep him bundled up- you usually have to sweat brullia out. Furthermore, I have a few herbs that'll help his sneezing and the brullia itself." She rose from the bed and walked towards the door. "Cover him warmly and if he wakes, see if you can clear his nose a bit. I'll get my medicines. If he complains of a sore throat, send for some hot tea with honey- and plenty of it, mind- and let him drink as much as he wants. But nothing to eat!"

"Thank you," Eomer called. He turned back to the young hobbit on the bed and began to add more covers to the blanket he already had.

As Mrs. Hazelwood exited, she was greeted outside the door by three fearful hobbits and a burst of excited questioning.

"Is Theo all right?"

"Is he sick?"

"Of course he's sick, Tru. What an absurd thing to ask. Didn't you see how red his face was?"

"Will he be all right, if he's not all right now?"

"Is it serious?"

"Stop this pointless interrogation at once!" Mrs. Hazelwood practically roared. Dandelion, Poppy, and Tru stared at her in speechless silence. "Thank you. Theoden is not all right, yes he is sick, he will most likely be all right, and it's not very serious. He'll be in bed for at least a couple of days, and inside for around a week, but after that he should be fine. Now, I hope that's enough information because I have a lot to do." With that, she walked off before the younger hobbits could say anything more. They sighed in relief.

"Well, that is certainly a load off my mind. I wonder what Theo has, though," Dandelion mused. "I mean, is it just a cold or what?"

"Probably, or something close enough to it," replied Poppy. "Mrs. Hazelwood didn't seem very worried, so it can't be bad."

"I'm glad it's not," Tru added. "I would have felt awful, because it was my idea that he go fishing with me and so my fault that Theo fell in. And it would have been my fault if he caught something like pneumonia." He stared at his furry feet remorsefully.

"Tru, it wasn't your fault. It wasn't anyone's fault. It was an accident, and Theo will be all right," Dandelion said sincerely.

Tru looked up from looking at his toes. His apologetic brown eyes met her earnest green ones. "Truly, Dandelion?"

"Truly," Dandelion answered, but she blushed and turned instead to face Poppy, who was looking at them with a knowing (and almost smug) half smile. Before any of them could say anything to ease this somewhat awkward situation, Eomer opened the door and popped his head out.

"Has Mrs. Hazelwood gone?" he asked, but saw his answer before they could reply. "Never mind. Can one of you get some hot tea with lots of honey sent here?"

"I'll go," Tru offered quickly. Dandelion noticed that his ears had turned pink, much like her brother Bergil's did when that Spring Banks came to visit. She had no time to puzzle over this, however, as the Boffin boy ran down the hall as if wargs were nipping at his heels.

"Is Theo awake, then, Mr. Eomer?" Poppy queried.

He nodded. "Just woke up a minute ago, when there was a loud noise from out here." Eomer paused, but since the two girls didn't explain, he didn't ask, deciding he was probably better off not knowing. "He said his throat hurt, and Mrs. Hazelwood said to give him the tea if that happened."

"Can we see him? Oh, please, Uncle, please!"

"I don't know," Eomer hesitated. "He's not really half awake yet, and he doesn't need to get agitated..."

"We wouldn't dream of agitating him, Uncle. We'll be quiet as elves," Dandelion interjected, lowering her voice and smiling innocently. Poppy followed her example.

"Oh, all right, then. But only for a minute, and no longer!"

"Thank you, Uncle Eomer," the Took whispered joyfully as she and Poppy entered the room.

Eomer had built up the fire, correctly guessing this would help 'sweat brullia out' as the healer had said. There were so many covers on the bed that it was hard for the girls to tell there was a hobbit there too.

The hobbit lasses drew near the bed cautiously, doing their best to remain 'quiet as elves.' Theo's eyes opened slowly. "Father?" he murmured tiredly.

"No, Theo, it's us, Dandelion and Poppy."

"Dandy?" Theo asked, looking confused. "Why you-" he sneezed, "here?"

"We came to visit, remember?" Theo shook his head and his eyes closed again. "Go to sleep, Theo. You'll feel better later," Dandelion soothed.

"Throat hurts," he whimpered.

"I know. I'm sorry. Your father sent for some tea to help your throat. We'll wake you up when it gets here."

"'Kay," Theo mumbled as he fell back into the comforting world of dreams.

"He sounds so sick, Dandy," Poppy whispered, her voice full of concern. "Are you sure he'll be all right?"

"That's what Mrs. Hazelwood said. And I'm inclined to believe her: you wouldn't know how many childhood illnesses she's helped Theo battle. He'll be okay," Dandelion said softly, half to the worried Poppy and half to herself. "He will be okay."

* * *

Tru's ears were still pink as he asked the chief cook for "Some hot tea, with a lot of honey for Master Eomer's son. He's sick." The hobbits who worked in Brandy Hall's kitchen were dismayed to learn of Theo's decline in health and pressed Tru for details. "I don't know how bad it is," he answered irritably. "Yes, Mrs. Hazelwood came, but she didn't tell me any specifics, only that he should be all right in a few days. Now where's that tea?"

The hobbit lad could barely carry the enormous jug in one hand and the bottle of extra honey in the other. "Foolish cooks," he muttered. "How am I supposed to carry all of this halfway across the enormous smial?" He wasn't really annoyed by the cooks, however; he was more exasperated at himself. "You are a ninnyhammer, Truman Boffin," he informed himself quietly. "What in the name of the Shire were you thinking, acting all silly to Dandelion Took, of all hobbits?"

'Because you like her,' part of his mind replied in a matter-of-fact fashion.

'What?!' thought another part of his mind, seemingly appalled at the very idea. 'Dandelion Took? The girl who used to beat him up whenever he went to the Great Smials? Ridiculous!'

"She did not always beat me up. Now leave me alone!" Theo told the idiotic voices. He blew a strand of hair out from in front of his eyes angrily, his mind dwelling on the surprising thought: did he really like Dandelion Took?

* * *

In either case, Tru was the last person on the mind of the hobbit lass in question. All of her thoughts were directed at her cousin lying weakly on the bed. He seemed now too tired to wake up even when he sneezed. She and Poppy sat on two chairs next to the bed; on the other side Eomer stood, all but hovering over the sleeping figure of his son.

The sudden knock on the door, though they had been awaiting it anxiously, made all three jump. Eomer, as he was closest, strode to the door, opening it and taking the tea and honey from Tru's hands before the younger hobbit could do more than open his mouth. Crossing the dimly lit room, illuminated only by the crackling fire, Eomer placed the healing liquids on a table next to his son's bed. He tasted a bit of the tea to judge if it had enough honey; evidently it passed the test, for he gestured the girls to prop the ill hobbit into a sitting position while he poured some of the mixture into a glass. The sitting movement woke Theo up, and he sniffled slightly before asking, "Father?"

"Right here, Theo," Eomer answered, all trace of his normal joviality gone from his voice. "Open your mouth, son." Theo did so obediently and Eomer placed the container to his lips. "Drink some, it'll help your throat."

At first, the conscious part of Theo's mind was reluctant to follow his father's direction, remembering the many disagreeable medicines he had been force-fed over the years. Despite his apprehension, this new remedy tasted surprisingly good and it assuaged his aching throat. He drank the majority of the cup hastily, as if it would be found to be the wrong beaker and they would give him some nastier treatment instead. Suddenly, his nose tickled and Theo pushed his father's arm away and sneezed loudly into a handkerchief that was promptly handed him. "Thags," he said softly.

"Do you want any more tea, Theo?" his father asked.

"Not now," he answered, eyes closing again. He leaned back against the headboard of his bed and was soon sleeping again.

Eomer put a hand to his son's forehead and bit his lip in worry. The lad seemed no cooler than before, yet hopefully the tea had helped his throat. "Dandelion, Poppy, Tru, I'd like for you to leave the room." At their protests, he added, "I don't know if brullia is contagious, and I don't want any of you to get sick as well."

Dandelion could not help pointing out, "But if it is contagious, you'll catch it if you stay, Uncle."

He glared at them sternly, letting them know under no circumstances was he going to leave or let them stay. "That's a risk I'm willing to take. Now, out!"

There was no arguing with the Master of Buckland, as the three young hobbits saw when the door to Theo's room was shut in front of their noses. "Humph! I'm willing to catch brullia- I suppose that must be whatever Theo has- if I can stay in there!" Dandelion said, somewhat offended by being brushed off so easily.

"Me, too."

"Aye."

There was a moment of silence. Dandelion chanced a quick look at Tru, only to find him doing the same thing. Her checks flamed and his ears reverted to their pink state as they both looked away.

"I should, er, go help my father with his fish. Bye!" Tru sped off with his confusing thoughts once more quibbling with each other.

Poppy opened her mouth to speak. "Don't say anything. Not a single word," the Took warned her.

"Oh, I won't say anything." Poppy smiled. Dandelion glared and focused instead on Theo and his illness, instead of her conflicting thoughts about Tru.

* * *

Mrs. Hazelwood voiced her ideas aloud. "A tablespoon of sap mixed with a few drops of melted oak bark, add a sprinkle of that seasoning Mother always called a cure-all for throat and nose disorders, then stir quickly and add water. Oh, and better bring a few leaves of kingsfoil to put on the fire. Old Master Meriadoc said that was good for whatever ails you. That should be enough." Gathering the aforesaid ingredients and following the recipe she had recalled from her mother's instruction on illnesses and remedies, the healer exited the storeroom of her medicines. She walked back to where her patient slept and his father watched him nervously, while outside the room one girl observed another debating with herself over a boy who tried to assemble his jumbled thoughts into some kind of order.

* * *

A/N Part 2- Before you ask- no, Tru is not schizophrenic, he just has two very different feelings toward Dandelion. I forgot to mention the last time I posted a chapter that if anyone, not just cheerleader15, would like an e-mail when I update, just put it in a review and I'll be glad to do so. Also, I've managed to write and post a short vignette called 'Wishes' that I think is complete and I'm starting a short series called 'Concealing of a Conspiracy' whose first chapter was posted a couple of days ago, in case any of you are interested. 'Wishes' takes place during "The Two Towers" and 'Concealing' is pre-"Fellowship". Enough of selling my own stories, on to thank-yous!

cheerleader15- Eep! More compliments! [Dodges 'inflated ego arrows'] Seriously, I'm glad and somewhat surprised you like it so much. An e-mail? Your wish is my command!

GreyLadyBast- I adore hobbits, too. Elves may be 'the wisest and fairest of all beings,' but hobbits are much more fun! I'm grateful you think so much of my work.

acorngirl- Thanks for the compliments! And don't worry about things taking a long time- [snorts] I'm the queen of that! Yeah, a little bit of angst- now I feel mean to poor Theo! Thanks for the plug on the last chapter of 'Hostile Takeover'; I can't remember if I said that in my review. Thanks again, anyway!