A/N: Hello there! Thank you much for reading this, or attempting to. My first shot at a Pip and Diamond romance. Thanks for the patience, I've been up to my neck in my schedule and I have had no time all during finals but now that it is summer, and I still have volleyball to go to, I have time to write some chapters of this story. Sorry for the long wait, I hope you don't completely hate me.
Disclaimer: I don't own anything LotR-ish. 'Cept the plot.
Beta-Read by: LotR-FaNAtiC
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"That was a wonderful night, was it not?" Pansy gushed about the night before with her friends as they sat under a large oak tree.
"You are only saying that because you danced four dances with my brother." Diamond smiled.
Estella hummed to herself quietly as she made a daisy chain to fit around Nora's head.
"Estella, you seem to be in quite a mood, today." Rosie said as she rubbed her growing tummy. "What happened with Merry, pray tell?"
Estella looked down and blushed as she tried to hide a smile. "Well…" she started.
"Well…" Diamond repeated eager to hear the news.
Estella looked up at each one of them with a twinkle in her eyes. "He proposed." She screamed.
Nora, Pansy, and Diamond all jumped around, screaming for what seemed like hours before hugging Estella congratulations.
Rosie talked in hushed voices with Estella while the other three started to plan out the decorations, music, and food for the wedding.
"Where did he do it?" Rosie asked.
"While we were dancing, he took me out to where he asked me to be his escort for the banquet." Estella examined her hands as she talked. "Then he dropped to one knee and asked me to be his bride."
"That is so wonderful." Rosie sighed. "I am so happy for you Estella, and so are these ones."
She referred with her hand to Diamond scowling at Pansy. "No, no." Diamond said stubbornly. "Linen napkins simply will not do, they must be embroidered with Merry and Estella's names and the date."
"You're right." Nora said. "I like that better…now how about tablecloths?"
Estella smiled and shook her head at them.
A few days later, the news was all over the Shire.
Choruses of "Estella Bolger is getting married to Meriadoc Brandybuck!" could be heard everywhere you went.
All the attention was on Estella everywhere she and Diamond went. At the market, shop owners and cart owners congratulated Estella on the engagement.
Diamond couldn't help but feel jealous, as any other lass would, having all the attention be on her best friend and having to be pushed out of the way whenever swarms of jealous money-hungry girls announced their pleasure at seeing a 'friend' so happy.
Diamond was only jealous for the right reason. She was jealous of the way Estella and Merry looked into each other's eyes every time they passed each other. She was jealous of the way Merry always found ways to surprise Estella in special ways. She was jealous of how much Merry cared for her and always tried to make her as comfortable as possible.
Little did she know Peregrin Took felt the exact same way.
"Merry, how much more of this must we endure?" Pippin muttered as he saw another group of hobbits make their way over to congratulate his cousin in hopes of getting an invitation to the wedding.
"We'll leave after this Pip, I promise." Merry said through gritted teeth. He was feeling irked by all of the false happiness some superficial hobbits showed him. (Which was the majority.)
"No. let's dodge them." Pippin said quickly and pulled Merry into the Green Dragon Pub.
Once inside, Pippin led them to a table in the corner and sat Merry down across from him.
"Alright, this must stop." Pippin sat himself down and rubbed his temples.
Merry took a different approach and smiled at his cousin knowingly.
"Pip, why must you be so bitter about my engagement?" He asked, knowing the answer.
Pippin looked up at him. "I'm not upset about your engagement, Merry." He sighed. "I think it is wonderful that you have found yourself a bride to have and to hold…and lah dee dah dah."
"Tell me the real reason, Mr. Took." Merry leaned in.
"That was it." Pippin said stubbornly.
Merry sat back with a satisfied smile. "You are jealous."
Pippin smiled mildly at him. "Right, I would just love to have people drop at my feet every few moments, praising me for getting myself a bride."
"That's not what I meant." Merry said.
"Oh?" Pippin said. "What else could you have meant, because I am pretty sure—"
"You want the same kind of attention," Merry smiled. "For you and Diamond."
Pippin opened his mouth to retort something but couldn't find anything smart to reply with. What bugged him most was that Merry was right.
This change in events caused him and Diamond to spend more time together whether they wanted to, or not. Having Diamond as a friendly escort, Estella brought her everywhere, as did Merry, knowing that they would not be alone whenever people asked for ideas, invitations, rumors, or stories about the wedding.
Whenever Merry and Estella met, Diamond and Pippin were left to entertain themselves in whatever way possible in each other's company.
One day, Diamond and Estella were walking among the party field, overseeing the preparations while Pippin and Merry helped with the dirty work.
Diamond watched as Pippin helped lift objects, and wondered why he had been so nice to her in the past couple of days. Maybe Estella or Merry put him up to it. They sat and chatted for a while before they heard their names being called.
"Estella! Diamond!" Diamond turned at the sound of her name.
"Hello girls." Estella smiled as Nora and Pansy stumbled up the hill towards them.
"Watching your fiancé in all the hustle bustle?" Nora asked.
"Maybe." Estella smiled.
Diamond looked at Pansy. She seemed to be in a daze, stroking a flower and humming to it.
"Pansy…are you alright?" Diamond asked. "I'm not sure if the daisy wants to be serenaded right now."
Nora laughed as they watched Pansy get up and start to waltz with herself, holding her skirt out to the side. "She is really in love with Bentley."
"Do you really think so?" Diamond asked. "They only danced with each other a few times."
"Ah, but he has been sneaking out every night to see her." Nora corrected.
"You're kidding!" Diamond laughed. "Well then, I think I might join her."
Diamond stood and started to waltz with Pansy around the tree Estella had her back against, Pansy humming all the while.
Estella got up and waltzed with Nora, while all four tried to contain themselves from stopping and having giggling fits.
Eventually, Diamond heard a male's voice behind her.
"May I cut in?" Merry asked.
"Certainly." Pansy said and started to dance with Pippin instead, who had appeared with Merry. He watched Diamond with a content stare.
"Hello Merry, what has possessed you to want to dance with me?" Diamond asked curiously.
"Nothing has possessed me, dear friend." Merry said as they waltzed away from their friends. He added in a low whisper, "I must talk to you about something."
"Sure, what is it?" Diamond said as they twirled a bit away from the others.
"I want something particular planned for Estella before our wedding." Merry said, his eyes starting to glaze over at the mention of the wedding. "And I want you and Pippin to plan, since you two are the only friends I trust with something so special."
"Of course! Anything for the bride and groom." Diamond smiled. "What should it be, a party or gathering?"
"We'll discuss that much later, I think I am in need of a dance with Estella as a matter of fact." Merry smiled and slipped away from Diamond.
Diamond smiled, she had a huge part in this gathering and Merry trusted her to help him. The only thing was that she would be working alongside with Pippin for the preparations.
What had he said when Merry told him he would be working with Diamond? Was he upset? Did he want to back out because of their rivalry?
And then it hit Diamond.
Merry and Estella hated each other in their younger days and Merry teased her endlessly. And now they were getting married.
Diamond watched as Pansy danced with Pippin near the engaged couple. Pippin was laughing as Pansy acted in her usual odd manner. Diamond watched his green eyes sparkle as he laughed at Pansy's stories. She didn't realize she was staring until his eyes turned to hers.
He immediately smiled at her and Diamond turned a crimson color before turning around to talk to Nora.
Pippin frowned, thinking how stupid he was for actually smiling at her. He had done it before, but she never smiled back.
'Great job you stupid Took.' He thought angrily. He hopefully shifted his eyes away from Pansy back towards Diamond.
Diamond exhaled and muttered to Nora how embarrassed she felt when Nora replied with, "You love him."
"I do not." Diamond said.
"Yes you do, and he loves you as well." Nora folded her arms across her chest.
"What on earth gives you that idea?" Diamond asked.
"He only stares at you in the same way you do to him." Nora mused. "It's funny how the both of you always do it whenever the other is not looking."
Diamond only looked at the floor. He did smile at her.
'No,' she mentally scolded herself. 'You do not love that Took anymore and you never will.'
"He wont break you heart, you know." Nora said knowingly. "Goodness, I don't know how its right under your nose and you refuse to believe it. I wish I had some infamous, sweet, funny, helpful, loving—"
"Nora."
"Caring, intelligent, adventurous lad madly in love with me." Nora went on. "But I don't, do I? You do."
Diamond blinked, he wasn't in love with her, as Nora described.
She looked at him once more to see him staring at her.
This time, she smiled.