Brandybuck Hospitality
By unspoken agreement Saradoc and Paladin did not mention their sons again that evening. Instead, they stayed up far into the night discussing the finer details of Shire politics, which inevitably involved large doses of genealogy, obscure references to Brandybuck and Took family history, and minute examination of the small doings of all the branches of their extended and inter-related clans. Rumors of troubles on the borders were, for the most part, ignored, being less interesting than idle speculation about where Lotho Sackville-Baggins had come by the money he had been lording-it-up all over the Shire with, and what fool thing he would get up to next. Talk was that he was in negotiation to buy Sandyman's mill, indeed the deal was near completed, some even went so far as to say that he was planning to tear it down as antiquated. Saradoc and Paladin shook their heads, and called for more beer.
Esmeralda found them there in the wee hours of the morning, when even the wildest hobbit 'tween was safely home in bed, or passed out in the inn of their choice. By this time they were both nodding over their mugs, which had been refilled many times while they had solved the problems of Buckland and the Four Farthings from the safety of their chairs by the fire. They woke to the sound of her laughter.
"Look at you two! A fine pair of old gaffers, asleep over their beer!"
"Not asleep, my dear," Saradoc managed, "just…um…"
"Thinking deeply," supplied Paladin.
"'S right. Deeply thinking," Saradoc finished with dignity, and somehow contrived to stand up without swaying.
Esmeralda shook her head. "Now I enjoy the smell of pipe-smoke as well as any other hobbit wife, and I warrant I could still blow a finer smoke-ring than either of you, but this is ridiculous. How do you breathe in here? I've told you before Saradoc, a room without windows is no place for smoking. Now to bed, both of you!"
Saradoc looked sheepish. Paladin, who knew how worry sharpened his sister's tongue, grinned and winked at her. "Yes, little mother."
"Don't 'little mother' me big brother," Esmeralda had her hands on her hips, but here face was softened by an answering smile. "I've had your usual room made up. I'm sure you can find it well enough. If you get lost, no doubt someone will trip over you in a few hours when sensible hobbit-folk are getting up. Come on old love," she murmured to her husband as she put a hand under his elbow and gently steered him out the door.
Paladin did find his room, and an inviting feather bed, warmly made up, and was soon contentedly oblivious to the world.
When he woke up, it was obvious that the day had been underway for quite some time. He would have been quite happy to let it continue on its way without him, but a small sharp voice somewhere in the fog in his head reminded him that it was a long ride back to the Smials, and Eglantine was waiting.
Four large mugs of Saradoc's excellent ale last night might well account for the fog, he conceded as he sat up groggily. No, at least five. Six perhaps? Sitting up made the room tip briefly, but it was rewarded by the sight of a heaping tray of sticky buns set out on a small table beside the fire, along with a large mug, and a steaming pot of tea warmed by a brazier. The fire had been tended recently and was adding its cheerful light and warmth to the autumn sunlight streaming in through the window.
Esmeralda knew his weaknesses. The pile of buns was much smaller by the time he washed his hands and face in the bowl on the nightstand and went in search of his hosts. He found them in the Sun Room. Dug into a projecting knob on the hill, it had exceptionally large windows, facing in three directions. Being a hobbit room, it was naturally equipped with a large table, and the table, naturally, was laden with food. Paladin arrived to find it set with assorted platters of cold meats, cheeses and fruit, accompanied by thick warm bread and butter. He was soon seated comfortably with a plate on his lap. It had been far to long since he had enjoyed the fabled hospitality of the Brandybucks.
"I suppose this is Second Breakfast for you. I'm a bit behind on my meals it seems."
"Elevenses actually," his sister laughed at him. "But take as much as you want. I'll join you!"
The empty plate beside Saradoc's chair showed that he had already eaten. He sat thoughtfully puffing on his pipe and watching the siblings banter. When Paladins plate was nearly empty, Saradoc cleared his throat "So is the Thain going to make an official response to the riders?"
Paladin looked up, but did not reply.
"They made it easily past the Bounders. They know how slight our defenses are. They are content now to pursue Frodo, but I have a feeling this is not over for us. There is more at stake here than mere dragon treasure. Maggot feels it to. It is time the Thain did something."
Paladin looked troubled. "What would you have the Thain do? Raise a Shire-muster? I would be laughed at from Bywater to Michel Delving. I'm afraid on the other side of the River, this whole affair is considered a Brandybuck problem. The Riders did no damage in the Farthings, and the few eyewitnesses that saw them are believed to be telling tales."
"So…If the Brandybucks chose to live right up against the Old Forest, then they had better be prepared to deal with any trouble themselves, is that it?"
"I'm sorry Saradoc. As The Took, and as an old friend, I can send some of my own lads over to help if you need it."
Saradoc shook his head. "The Brandybucks can take care of themselves, although I thank you for the offer. It is the rest of the Shire I am worried about."
"I will do my best to prepare the Tooks, although I don't know what I am preparing them for. I'll speak to Will Whitfoot too, but I'm not sure what more he can do. He has already increased the Bounders twice in the last year in response to troubles in the South Farthing.
"He did?" Esmeralda broke in, "Good for the Dumpling. I never would have thought he had it in him."
Paladin looked at her soberly. "I'm not sure I have it in me. I'm a farmer, Esse. I know soil and root and leaf. I know nothing of defense and strategy. I don't even like wearing the Thain's ceremonial sword at banquets, and I am suppose to rally the entire Shire to arms against an enemy they don't believe exists? Pippin might be able to do it, if he could be persuaded of the seriousness of the situation. He has a way with people. I can't."
Saradoc looked keenly at his friend. "You are respected because you are a farmer. You know the land, and you love it. Not just Tookland, but every piece of cultivatable land in the Shire. You will defend it if you have to, and people will follow you." He sighed and shook his head. "Maybe I am just over-reacting. I could use Merry right now. Solid, level-headed Merry…It's up to us old men now my friend. We will do what we can."
They sat for a while in silence, feeling their shared loss. Paladin thought of Merry's coming of age celebrations. He remembered sitting in this room listening to his nephew share his hopes and dreams for the future, while Saradoc and Esmeralda beamed with pride. Pippins face had sparkled with love and excitement for his cousin.
Hobbits were not good at sharing their deeper feelings. Part of their amazing resiliency lay in their ability to speak of even great trauma with a light jest. He had found himself unable to share his true emotions with Eglantine, as burdened as she was with her own grief and fear, so he had busied himself with the collecting information, with riding out and doing something, anything. Here, suddenly, all the feelings he had not yet acknowledged came rushing over him. He reached out his hands to hold them both, his dearest sister and his closest friend.
It was in this room that the siblings' friendship with Saradoc began thanks once again to Brandybuck hospitality. Saradoc was only two, perched on his grandmother Mirabella's knee, when Paladin first really noticed him. Mirabella was a Took by birth; Esmeralda was not the first Took female to find a home across the Brandywine. They had come on Mirabella's invitation to celebrate the return of her favorite nephew, Bilbo.
Esmeralda was six at the time. She entertained herself for a while playing with her youngest Brandybuck cousin, but she lost interest as soon as Bilbo began speaking. The room was filled to bursting with Mirabella's wide network of relations, and they were all hanging on Bilbo's every word. Esse sat staring at him with her mouth wide open. Paladin found himself watching Saradoc instead. Little Rady was watching Bilbo intently, with none of the squirming and babbling young Paladin had observed in most of the toddlers he knew. The boy sensed that he was being watched and turned his head to see who was looking at him. Paladin met eyes of a startling Brandybuck blue. Blue eyes were found in many Took families to be sure, along with grey and, most uniquely, green, but there were no eyes as intensely blue as those found in the Brandybuck line. The large blue eyes peering at him from the small round face, already showing signs of the distinctive Brandybuck chin, had a cool intelligence to them, but bubbling underneath was a curious and profound amusement. Pal found himself smiling at the little tyke, and Rady grinned happily back at him, before sticking his fingers in his mouth and turning his attention back to Bilbo.
After that Paladin began begging his father for visits out to Brandy Hall. It was a long way to Buckland from the family farm near Whitwell, but Aldagrim was fond of his Aunt Mira and his cousin Rory, so he did his best to accommodate his son's wishes. Sometimes when Aldagrim could not take them, Paladin and Esmeralda where permitted to ride out with Bilbo, who continued to be a frequent visitor to the Brandybuck table. Rady's mother Menelgilda welcomed Paladin as a cheerful and reliable babysitter. Together Pal, Esse, and Rady managed to explore every nook and cranny in Brandy Hall, quite and accomplishment. Very few even among the adult residents of the Hall knew for certain how many rooms were tucked away in the tunnels under Buck Hill. As Rady grew older, Rory and Gilda were easily persuaded to send him on extended visits to Whitwell.
When they had explored all the lands within a day's walk of Whitwell, Tuckburrow and Buck Hill, they began wheedling 'Uncle' Bilbo to take them on expeditions in the country around Bag-end. Paladin was in his 'tweens and Esse was 18 when Menelgilda suggested delicately to Aldagrim that perhaps it was no longer proper for Esmeralda to be tramping in the woods with the boys. When this came to Esmeralda's ears, she responded to the suggestion with a most un-lady like snort, and immediately went to see her Great-aunt Mirabella. Mirabella, 92 and still quite formidable, looked thoughtfully at her niece. "Oh dear. You will have to forgive Gilda. She is a Goold. What you need is the guidance of a natural born Took female. How would you like to move out here and keep and old hobbitess company?"
With Esmeralda living in Buckland Paladin saw less of his former traveling companions. He was beginning to tire of wandering anyway. He had always been the least adventurous of the three. Instead he put his knowledge of the Shire to good use, carting produce to distant markets for his father. He was out marketing vegetables when he met Miss Eglantine Banks, a quietly pretty hobbit with a gentle, teasing wit, and a talent for putting even bashful farmers' sons at ease.
Eglantine. She was waiting for him back at the Great Smials. He should be getting home.
As Paladin's pony was saddled and led out, Saradoc and Esmeralda embraced him in turn. Saradoc's embrace was firm and silent, Esmeralda's was tearful.
"I'll come back again as soon as I can," he promised.
"You say that every time you're here." His sister sniffed, and wiped her eyes with her hand.
Paladin silently handed her his handkerchief. It was widely known that the Mistress of Brandy Hall frequently misplaced her own. "I always mean it, Esse" One last hug and then he rode off swiftly, never looking back.
