Ellen sila lumenn' omentielvo, melloni! EHAB here; it's been a while, since
Phe has been posting most of our collaborative efforts lately. I promised a
friend of mine that I'd say this several chapters ago, and haven't done it,
so here goes: The person on whom the character of "Megan" is based would
like to tell Skylar, one of our reviewers, that she greatly admires their
"Pride and Prejudice" fanfiction - I'm not certain, but I believe it's
called "Conviction." Thank you all for your kind reviews, and I give you
now, "Chapter Thirty-Six: 'Hobbits and Angels and Elves, O my!'"
"Paladin did WHAT?" Bilbo demanded sharply.
"He and about twenty-nine or so of the other Tooks and Brandybucks came and Elf-napped my friends," Megan repeated.
"Fool of a Took!" Bilbo exclaimed angrily.
Sitting timidly in a corner of Bilbo's study, the Gaffer cringed. He had been at Bilbo's door asking to borrow a few spices for a stew that he was going to cook that night when Megan came jogging up the Hill, looking for volunteers to help her go and rescue her friends. Bilbo immediately agreed and strong-armed the Gaffer into doing so as well.
"Now, Megan," Bilbo said, taking charge, "I want you and Master Hamfast to create a diversion while I free your friends."
"But if they see you -" began the Gaffer.
"They won't," Megan assured him. "Trust me."
Bilbo looked at her in some surprise but nodded and took something small from a drawer of his desk. He left the room and returned with Sting affixed to his belt.
"Shouldn't need it, but just in case, you know," he said with a shrug, and the three of them set off for Tookland.
"Now what?" Erynsir grumbled.
"Just have to wait for Megan, I guess," Jeremie shrugged.
"What can she do?" Erynsir asked grouchily.
After long hours of being carried upside-down with his hands and feet tied to a pole, his head dragging the earth, and a really annoying Hobbit walking song in his ears, he had rather a right to be grouchy.
"Megan can do a whole lot more than you'd think," Jeremie told the Elves as the heedless Hobbits righted the poles and planted them in the ground outside Paladin's hole.
"I have faith in the daughter of Gregory," Erynen said firmly. "She has proven herself intelligent and courageous. What other mortal woman would have braved the Marshes of the Dead?"
Erynsir shook his head, unhopeful, but conceded the point and waited in the stillness. It didn't stay still for long. One of the Halflings grabbed a stick and poked Erynen in the belly.
"Paladin," the little creature cried, astounded, "he's every bit of 'im muscle and no fat at all."
"Maybe they aren't well-fed, poor creatures," said a female Brandybuck from the back of the group. "Should we feed them?"
"What do they eat?" asked the Hobbit who had poked Erynen.
"Here, you!" cried Paladin. "What do you eat?"
"I think I've landed in 'Gulliver's Travels,' rather than 'The Lord of the Rings,'" muttered Jeremie.
"We require nothing at the moment, Gracious Host, so much as that you should set us free," Erynen said politely.
"I like him; he's nice," said the female Hobbit.
"Well, look here, it's like this," Paladin said uncomfortably. "We don't mean no offense to you, nor to your kind in general, but, see, we've got our reputations to uphold."
"What tragic event has earned the Tooks to fall from their neighbours' high esteem?" Jeremie asked sympathetically.
Hobbits were sticklers for good manners; maybe he and the Elves could talk their way out of this mess.
"Oh, well, it's that Bilbo Baggins," said another Hobbit.
"Yes, tell them about Bilbo, Saradoc," said the female.
"He isn't one of us; he's a Baggins," Saradoc went on, "and Bagginses have always been extremely respectable."
"Ah, I think I begin to see," Jeremie nodded wisely.
"You do?" Saradoc said, puzzled.
"Bilbo has gone off on a grand adventure and left the Tooks and the Brandybucks, the most renowned of all Hobbits for adventurous and daring deeds, at home wishing they had gone, too. His treasure is becoming a local legend, where once all the local legends belonged to you. But he's never caught Three Big Folk all at once, and now you have, and so you should claim back some of that stolen glory," Jeremie summarized.
"Exactly so," said another female, a Took, in astonishment. "Here, now, who are you, and how do you know all that?"
"Listen to me," Erynsir said. "There was and is no need for this. My kind have the gift of prophecy," he added, "and of the line of the Tooks and of the Brandybucks we see much. My cousin," he addressed Erynen, "tell them what you have been told while walking with the daughters of Gregory and Joseph. Tell them what you have seen."
The Hobbits turned great, wide eyes on the young Elf, and Erynen began to speak.
"I am Erynen, and I know," he said quietly. "I know that there will be four sons among the Hobbits of the Shire that will make a name for themselves within the Shire and without, throughout the entire known world. One is a Baggins, one a Gamgee, one a Brandybuck, and one a Took. These four will see adventures and danger and dread such as this Middle Earth has never known before, and they will tread upon it and beat it down. Without the Shire, the greatest part of the glory will go to the Baggins and the Gamgee, but within the Shire, it will belong to the Took and the Brandybuck. Does this appease you, my Gracious Hosts?"
There was a rippling murmur through the group of Halflings.
"Can you be a little more specific?" someone asked pointedly.
"Prophecy is a very imprecise gift," Jeremie said kindly. "What is it you wanted to know?"
"Names," said the she-Hobbit promptly.
"Names we have given you," Erynen said solemnly. "The names of Took and Brandybuck we have given you. It is never wise to be very clear with prophecy."
"Well, okay, we'll let you go. but is it okay if we wait until Bilbo gets here?" paladin asked hopefully. "I want to see the look on his face."
"I suppose that we could hang around -"
"Listen up, Hobbits!" came the cold, feminine cry as Megan stepped boldly into the light of the fifteen Hobbit lanterns.
The Gaffer wobbled not-so-boldly into view behind her.
"I'm Megan, daughter of Gregory, and I've walked with Men and Angels and Elves - and I'm not afraid of Tooks and Brandybucks!"
'Angels?' thought Jeremie incredulously.
"Free my companions now," Megan continued, "or I say to you, I shall spill blood this night!"
The Gaffer fainted.
"That really is not necessary, Lady Megan," Erynen said, inclining his head respectfully. "Mr. Took and I were just negotiating our release."
"No, no, I want to see what she's going to do," said the Brandybuck female.
Erynen felt his bonds loosen and fall away, cleft by invisible hands.
"Then look!" he cried. "See the power of Gregory's daughter to free where and who she will, by the force of her will alone!"
The Tooks and Brandybucks shrank away as Jeremie and Erynsir brushed off the ropes that had bound them.
"Paladin?" queried Saradoc Brandybuck.
"You said you'd stay until Bilbo came," Paladin sighed disappointedly.
"They have!" said Bilbo, stepping from the shadows.
Paladin's face lit up.
"You had a grand adventure, didn't you, Mr. Baggins?" he cried. "But you never captured two Elves and a Man."
"You're right, I've not," Bilbo agreed. "My Dwarvish hood is off t'you, Paladin."
Paladin had obviously not expected these humble words of praise.
"I mean to go back someday, wander the paths of Mirkwood, visit Laketown, see the Lonely Mountain again. You're welcome to come, if you like, but I don't make much of a traveling companion."
"Whoever's going where, we need to get out of here," Erynsir spoke up.
"Wish granted," Sarah said with a grin.
This time, everybody jumped.
"Who're you?" demanded Saradoc.
"Ambassador for Altariel Galadriel of Lorien. You've made off with her friends and kin, and she wants them back. All aboard for Caras Galadhon!" Sarah hollered recklessly.
"Bye! Thanks for the prophecy-thing!" called the Brandybuck she- Hobbit.
With a flourish of Narya, Sarah; Megan; Jeremie; Erynen; and Erynsir had gone, leaving the bewildered Hobbits staring at the spot where they had been, the friends of Men and Angels and Elves.
Press the magic button and you shall make us happy.
"Paladin did WHAT?" Bilbo demanded sharply.
"He and about twenty-nine or so of the other Tooks and Brandybucks came and Elf-napped my friends," Megan repeated.
"Fool of a Took!" Bilbo exclaimed angrily.
Sitting timidly in a corner of Bilbo's study, the Gaffer cringed. He had been at Bilbo's door asking to borrow a few spices for a stew that he was going to cook that night when Megan came jogging up the Hill, looking for volunteers to help her go and rescue her friends. Bilbo immediately agreed and strong-armed the Gaffer into doing so as well.
"Now, Megan," Bilbo said, taking charge, "I want you and Master Hamfast to create a diversion while I free your friends."
"But if they see you -" began the Gaffer.
"They won't," Megan assured him. "Trust me."
Bilbo looked at her in some surprise but nodded and took something small from a drawer of his desk. He left the room and returned with Sting affixed to his belt.
"Shouldn't need it, but just in case, you know," he said with a shrug, and the three of them set off for Tookland.
"Now what?" Erynsir grumbled.
"Just have to wait for Megan, I guess," Jeremie shrugged.
"What can she do?" Erynsir asked grouchily.
After long hours of being carried upside-down with his hands and feet tied to a pole, his head dragging the earth, and a really annoying Hobbit walking song in his ears, he had rather a right to be grouchy.
"Megan can do a whole lot more than you'd think," Jeremie told the Elves as the heedless Hobbits righted the poles and planted them in the ground outside Paladin's hole.
"I have faith in the daughter of Gregory," Erynen said firmly. "She has proven herself intelligent and courageous. What other mortal woman would have braved the Marshes of the Dead?"
Erynsir shook his head, unhopeful, but conceded the point and waited in the stillness. It didn't stay still for long. One of the Halflings grabbed a stick and poked Erynen in the belly.
"Paladin," the little creature cried, astounded, "he's every bit of 'im muscle and no fat at all."
"Maybe they aren't well-fed, poor creatures," said a female Brandybuck from the back of the group. "Should we feed them?"
"What do they eat?" asked the Hobbit who had poked Erynen.
"Here, you!" cried Paladin. "What do you eat?"
"I think I've landed in 'Gulliver's Travels,' rather than 'The Lord of the Rings,'" muttered Jeremie.
"We require nothing at the moment, Gracious Host, so much as that you should set us free," Erynen said politely.
"I like him; he's nice," said the female Hobbit.
"Well, look here, it's like this," Paladin said uncomfortably. "We don't mean no offense to you, nor to your kind in general, but, see, we've got our reputations to uphold."
"What tragic event has earned the Tooks to fall from their neighbours' high esteem?" Jeremie asked sympathetically.
Hobbits were sticklers for good manners; maybe he and the Elves could talk their way out of this mess.
"Oh, well, it's that Bilbo Baggins," said another Hobbit.
"Yes, tell them about Bilbo, Saradoc," said the female.
"He isn't one of us; he's a Baggins," Saradoc went on, "and Bagginses have always been extremely respectable."
"Ah, I think I begin to see," Jeremie nodded wisely.
"You do?" Saradoc said, puzzled.
"Bilbo has gone off on a grand adventure and left the Tooks and the Brandybucks, the most renowned of all Hobbits for adventurous and daring deeds, at home wishing they had gone, too. His treasure is becoming a local legend, where once all the local legends belonged to you. But he's never caught Three Big Folk all at once, and now you have, and so you should claim back some of that stolen glory," Jeremie summarized.
"Exactly so," said another female, a Took, in astonishment. "Here, now, who are you, and how do you know all that?"
"Listen to me," Erynsir said. "There was and is no need for this. My kind have the gift of prophecy," he added, "and of the line of the Tooks and of the Brandybucks we see much. My cousin," he addressed Erynen, "tell them what you have been told while walking with the daughters of Gregory and Joseph. Tell them what you have seen."
The Hobbits turned great, wide eyes on the young Elf, and Erynen began to speak.
"I am Erynen, and I know," he said quietly. "I know that there will be four sons among the Hobbits of the Shire that will make a name for themselves within the Shire and without, throughout the entire known world. One is a Baggins, one a Gamgee, one a Brandybuck, and one a Took. These four will see adventures and danger and dread such as this Middle Earth has never known before, and they will tread upon it and beat it down. Without the Shire, the greatest part of the glory will go to the Baggins and the Gamgee, but within the Shire, it will belong to the Took and the Brandybuck. Does this appease you, my Gracious Hosts?"
There was a rippling murmur through the group of Halflings.
"Can you be a little more specific?" someone asked pointedly.
"Prophecy is a very imprecise gift," Jeremie said kindly. "What is it you wanted to know?"
"Names," said the she-Hobbit promptly.
"Names we have given you," Erynen said solemnly. "The names of Took and Brandybuck we have given you. It is never wise to be very clear with prophecy."
"Well, okay, we'll let you go. but is it okay if we wait until Bilbo gets here?" paladin asked hopefully. "I want to see the look on his face."
"I suppose that we could hang around -"
"Listen up, Hobbits!" came the cold, feminine cry as Megan stepped boldly into the light of the fifteen Hobbit lanterns.
The Gaffer wobbled not-so-boldly into view behind her.
"I'm Megan, daughter of Gregory, and I've walked with Men and Angels and Elves - and I'm not afraid of Tooks and Brandybucks!"
'Angels?' thought Jeremie incredulously.
"Free my companions now," Megan continued, "or I say to you, I shall spill blood this night!"
The Gaffer fainted.
"That really is not necessary, Lady Megan," Erynen said, inclining his head respectfully. "Mr. Took and I were just negotiating our release."
"No, no, I want to see what she's going to do," said the Brandybuck female.
Erynen felt his bonds loosen and fall away, cleft by invisible hands.
"Then look!" he cried. "See the power of Gregory's daughter to free where and who she will, by the force of her will alone!"
The Tooks and Brandybucks shrank away as Jeremie and Erynsir brushed off the ropes that had bound them.
"Paladin?" queried Saradoc Brandybuck.
"You said you'd stay until Bilbo came," Paladin sighed disappointedly.
"They have!" said Bilbo, stepping from the shadows.
Paladin's face lit up.
"You had a grand adventure, didn't you, Mr. Baggins?" he cried. "But you never captured two Elves and a Man."
"You're right, I've not," Bilbo agreed. "My Dwarvish hood is off t'you, Paladin."
Paladin had obviously not expected these humble words of praise.
"I mean to go back someday, wander the paths of Mirkwood, visit Laketown, see the Lonely Mountain again. You're welcome to come, if you like, but I don't make much of a traveling companion."
"Whoever's going where, we need to get out of here," Erynsir spoke up.
"Wish granted," Sarah said with a grin.
This time, everybody jumped.
"Who're you?" demanded Saradoc.
"Ambassador for Altariel Galadriel of Lorien. You've made off with her friends and kin, and she wants them back. All aboard for Caras Galadhon!" Sarah hollered recklessly.
"Bye! Thanks for the prophecy-thing!" called the Brandybuck she- Hobbit.
With a flourish of Narya, Sarah; Megan; Jeremie; Erynen; and Erynsir had gone, leaving the bewildered Hobbits staring at the spot where they had been, the friends of Men and Angels and Elves.
Press the magic button and you shall make us happy.