Not beta-ed. Forgive the mistakes. All are mine (El's).
~~~~
"Em, yes... well..."
Rebekah kicked Elinor, none-to-subtly.
"Ow! Oh. Um."
Bex put her hand over her face. Then she looked up at Frodo.
"Our story?"
Frodo shrugged. "Would be nice, too." He seated himself, and Sam sat nearby.
"You won't believe us," El said.
"Believe you about what?" Sam asked.
"They said age," Bex said quickly. "I'm 15."
"14," El said, shrugging. She supposed by their standards, 15 and 14 would be about 22, 23, but Bex gave her a look.
"You're so young," Frodo said. He looked at Bex's bruised face. "How did you get... like that?"
"Um... that's... my uh... my dad," she said hesentatnylu.
Frodo looked appalled.
"Well, not my real father," Bex said quickly.
"That's no excuse!" Frodo cried.
"Oh..." Sam said quietly.
Bex looked at El, pleading her to change the subject. El caught it, but not well.
"So, don't you want to hear our story?"
//Not what I MEANT!// Bex thought, glaring at her friend. "Much too boring," she said, trying to cover up.
"Oops," El muttered.
"I'd like to hear it. Where are you two from?"
"Oh, around," Bex said. "We go here, there, and back again."
El snickered. Bex chuckled at her own joke. Then she winced, touching her side gently.
"What was that?" Frodo asked.
"A small bruise," Bex said, reassuring him.
"Wimp," El muttered. Then she grinned. "I'm kidding, Bex, I am."
Having gotten an approving nod, Frodo slid Bex's shirt up to show the bruise on her ribcafe.
"Little?"
"Am I missing something important?" El said, smirking.
"Shut up, El."
"I don't know. I- ouch," Sam said. "That looks- I'll get Kingsfoil."
El sighed minutely. "He's wonderful... Did I say that aloud?"
Bex grinned. "Yes."
But Sam was off to get the athelas, and didn't hear it.
"Ah, shit," El said.
"We should be going," Bex said, pulling her shirt down. "We need to find a place to stay."
"Oh well."
"Right, El?"
Sam was back at that point, and heard it. "You could stay at the Green Dragon again."
"No money," El said softly.
"Then stay here," Frodo offered. Sam raised an eyebrow. He explained. "Rose has taken Elanor to Farmer Cotton's tonight, hasn't she?"
Sam smiled, blushing a little. "Elanor and Frodo-lad."
"You named him after me?" Frodo asked, incredulios.
Sam nodded. Frodo hugged him. "You're wonderful, Samwise.
"Very good," Sam said. "You stay with us tonight."
"I don't want to be-" Bex started.
"No, 'tis no trouble, do don't say so."
"We'd love to," El said with a meaningful look at Bex. "Wouldn't we, Bex!"
"Thank you," Bex said. El grinned.
"You two look a mess. Go bathe, and we'll get supper ready." Frodo smiled, feeling rather parental to these two already. Bex was already out out the doorway.
"Okay!" El followed. Then she had to wait patiently until Bex was quite finished to bathe herself. Bex met her afterwards, clean and dry.
"Wow, I look practically normal!"
El rubber her dark hair with a towel and dragged a brush through it. She began braiding it behind her. "This is so much fun!"
"Not even close to this morning," Bex said, admiring the new her. "What do you think?"
"Lovely," El said, searching for something to tie off the braid with. She found it, and smiled.
"Ready?"
"Sure." El smoothed her shirt.
They walked to the kitchen.
"Well hello!" Frodo said. "I hardly recognized you! Supper's almost ready. Sam?"
"Yes?"
"Shall we visit Merry and Pip tomorrow? I haven't seen them in a while."
Bex jumped up. "I'd love to meet them!"
Frodo smiled. She sat down, a little embarrassed.
"Woops.
"I'm sure they'd like to meet you, too," Frodo said. Bex grinned.
"What about you, El, would you like to meet them?"
El set the plates out. "That'd be wicked!"
After a nice, home cooked dinner, courtesy of Sam, they talked for a long time, Frodo telling them of Valinor, Bex making up things about the "travelling" she and El did, and Sam talked about life in the Shire. Then Bex fell asleep on the table.
"I suppose it's time for bed," Frodo said, smiling.
El giggled. "I s'pose so!"
Sam picked Bex up. He led El and Frodo down to the room his children shared. He set Bex on one bed, and El clambered into the other. She gave Sam a hug, which he looked mildly surprised about, and bade Frodo goodnight. Frodo kissed her forehead, which she suppressed a "squee" of delight to, and the hobbits left. El snuggled into her pillows and grinned.
Across the room, Bex smiled happily.
An interesting day.
