Disclaimer: see chapter 1
A/N: thanks for the reviews again!
Arwen Baggins: about Rosie calling Frodo "Mr. Baggins" I just put it in as a respect thing around Mirabella since she's a servant. Just a formality thing that'll pass with time. And as far as Rosie calling Frodo "Mr. Frodo" like Sam, I don't think she would because she and Sam are two different personalities. Oh well, enough of my blabbering because I'm sure everyone else wants more story anyway.
Chapter 4
The next day, I returned to Bag End to find Frodo in the same disposition as he was on the first day I worked there. A few weeks passed and my chores continued normally. I cooked, cleaned, dusted, and did everything in my power to make Bag End as clean as ever. The only trouble was that there was little to clean and I would finish with time to spare, leaving me with nothing to do.
One evening, about two weeks after I had started working there, I was cleaning the final dishes for the evening when Sam came into the kitchen.
"Are you about done in here already?" he asked politely.
"Just about."
"You get things done around here fairly quickly, don't you Miss Mira?" During the time that I had worked there, Rosie and Sam had accepted me like a member of the family and had started to call me Mira. At first, I protested to it since I was working for them and it did not seem proper, but they insisted. I still called them by their proper titles from a year's work at the Green Dragon and many slaps in the face for disrespecting the customers.
"Well, I had to work quickly at the tavern," I replied. I carefully placed another dish in the cupboard
"Ah, I see."
"About that, it seems to me that I don't do much around here. Mrs. Gamgee has a fairly good handle on things around here. I was wondering if there was anything else you needed me to do so I would not have to sit around idly for a while between meals. I don't mean to be rude or anything, but it just seems like you don't necessarily need me." I could not break my gaze from his face even though I wanted to, knowing that this kind of outburst would receive a slap from Otho Chubb.
"You see, Miss Mira, Rosie's…well…expecting and she'll need help around here soon enough. I don't want her working to hard in her condition."
"Okay, sorry for asking, but my curiosity got the better of me."
"It's alright. You would have to know eventually. And about that time problem, I'm sure Mr. Frodo wouldn't mind if you borrowed one of his books from the study if reading is your kind of thing."
"I'll take that into mind the next time I have some free time." I place the last dish in the cupboard and put everything back in its spot in the kitchen. Sam followed me out to the front door and opened the door for me, letting me pass into the inky blackness of the night.
The next day continued as usual. By the time lunch came around, I had finished with the meal and the house was tidied to about all I could take. So, I remembered Sam's suggestion and went to the study.
I rapped my knuckles on the door. No answer. I opened the door and peered inside, finding Frodo not inside. I pushed the door wider and let myself in. The towering bookcase invited me to it and I gazed at the various books with their many colors and fascinating bindings. My hand reached up and ran across them, wanting to take one and read it, but I had not idea which one to read.
Movement through the window brought my attention to peer outside. I walked to the window to see who was there, but whoever had been there had passed. I stepped back, looking down at the desk that Frodo sat at every day. A large book with a plain red leather cover. I lifted the cover to find a thin and wandering script after many scratched out titles saying:
My Diary. My unexpected Journey. There and Back Again. And What Happened After.
It continued for a bit but beneath was a stronger script saying:
The Downfall of the Lord of the Rings and the Return of the King
I turned to a later part in the book and began reading the firm lettering.
It called me every waking hour and haunted my sleep even further. Sam worried about me. He could see the toll it took on my mind and body. I knew what it was doing to me, but I did not want to believe what it was doing to me. Its weight bore down on me every day, growing heavier with every step. It consumed my thoughts. Over and Over I would ask myself why I agreed to take it in the first place, but I was naïve then and did not understand the full power of the ring. Gandalf was wise not to tell me for then it would have never left the Shire and the Ringwraiths would have taken it.
Despite the toll it took on me, I trudged on, knowing that I had to. My only solace was seeing that it had left Gollum alive, but at the same time he frightened me. He was once a hobbit too, but the endless years with the ring had shriveled his body and focused his mind on only one thing. I hoped that the Valar would save me and kill me before I turned into a similar hideous creature. My thoughts began to dwell on the ring night and day, just as Gollum's mind dwells on the ring at all times. It consumed my energy as fire consumes anything dead. With every step closer to the mountain of fire, I wanted to run away, but the ring drew me there and I knew that it was our only path to rid Middle-Earth of such evil. This journey would certainly be the end of me.
A hand slammed down on the book, halting my reading. I glanced at it for a second and saw the stub of a finger lying on the book. I glanced up to see fire burning in Frodo's eyes.
"What are you doing?" he asked, his rage clearly evident in his voice.
"I-I was… I didn't mean…" I stuttered, completely taken back by his sudden appearance.
"Get out!" he yelled.
"I'm sorry," I said, getting out of the chair and backing up. He held his gaze tightly on me as I crossed the room.
"Get out! I do not want to see you in this house again!" The fury in him burned and I was afraid to do anything for fear or stirring it anymore.
I continued to back up until I found my way out of the door. I hurried through the house, and ran out into the fresh air. My feet carried me to the forest near the edge of town where I went to a tree and curled up beneath shade. Bringing my knees to my chest, I buried my head in my arms and cried.
How could I have been so stupid? I thought to myself. I done anything really wrong, but I had known that it was Frodo's book and that I would have reacted the same way in his position. My mind flashed to seeing the pain and anger in his eyes, knowing that it was my entire fault.
Time passed and my sobs were soothed by the gentle sounds of the river flowing by. I got up and walked to the river, splashing water over my face to wake myself up from my half dream state from crying. I wanted to return and apologize, so after arguing with myself for a while, I returned down the path to Bag End and stood in front of the gate. I reached for the gate, but my hand would not touch it. Fear still consumed me. Nothing was going to make me touch that gate at that moment. Instead, before I knew what exactly I was doing, I started to walk home.
The night was now beginning to claim the Shire and everyone was retreating indoors. The closer I came to my home, more fear claimed me for I began to think of how my father might react if he found out that I had lost another job. My feet began to weigh me down. I entered the small hobbit hole and scurried to my room, hoping that no one had heard me sneak in. I promptly jumped into bed and covered my head with the covers, wanting to hide from everything that had happened and wishing that that day would never exist.
After a while, a knock came on the door. I peeked out from under the covers and stared at the door, hoping that it would not open. Slowly, it opened, revealing Lily. She came in and closed the door behind her.
"Oh, I didn't know you were home."
I buried my head underneath the covers again. I wanted to be alone and sulk in my own world.
"Mr. Gamgee is out in the hall waiting for you. You wouldn't want me to send him home now would you?" She crossed the room and sat on the edge of my bed, seeming more like my mother than my younger sister.
"I would want you to send him away. I can't face him," I murmured from underneath the blankets.
"Mira, quit acting like a child." She tore the covers from my body. I knew I could not hide any longer. "Come on now," she continued, "He's not here to punish you."
I groaned inwardly and got out of my bed, straightening my dress out and messing with my dark hair a little so it wouldn't look like I had been in my bed crying. I took a deep breath and exited the room. I went to the hall to find Sam looking around at our very modest furnishings. He noticed me come in the room and looked at me. I turned my gaze to the floorboards, hoping that it would soon be over.
"Miss Mira?" he asked. I nodded in response, too embarrassed to do anything. "Mr. Frodo's really sorry about what happened. It was all a big misunderstanding. Rosie and I were wondering if you wouldn't mind coming back tomorrow. The whole place seems a bit cheerier with you around."
I looked up at him, not sure what to think. I nodded cautiously. "I'll see you in the morning Master Gamgee."
"Aye. I'm sorry for all this trouble."
"It's no trouble, really."
Sam smiled and nodded, letting himself out. I sighed with relief, thankful that I would not have to explain to my father how I lost another job. I returned to my room and rested comfortably, knowing that everything was right with the world.
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Okay, so I took a few liberties with what was in the book. Please don't flame me. * hides * anyway. Let me know if you want more ;)
