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While They WalkedChapter 17: Food and Hardship
The fellowship was walking, which was nothing new. They were still adjacent to the stream and aside from footsteps, it was the only sound. That was, until Boromir, being the most curious about the hobbits, finally decided to ask them something he had been wondering about for a while.
"Do you value your food so highly for a reason?" He asked of the group of hobbits. They all stopped and looked at him in near disbelief.
"Value food?"
"So highly?"
"What do mean 'value food so highly'?"
"I'd say we only just valued it enough," the train of thought travelled around the four beings as though they shared just the one mind. "Too many back in the Shire take it for granted." Sam looked up to the sky, wistfully thinking of his home and the steaming roast which would be on the table at about this time.
"Aye, you never know what you've got until you lose it," agreed Merry, "Why Boromir, do you find our minds to be occupied by the thoughts of food too often?"
"I wouldn't say 'too often' just more than usual."
"Usual for whom?" said Aragorn, "They've restrained themselves from talking about food for quite a while, I'm quite proud of them."
"Restrained themselves?" said Boromir, raising an eyebrow, "Whatever is the matter with talking about food?"
"You've not heard hobbits talk about food though, that's something to rival dwarves talking of their work underground." Gimli huffed in appreciation and the hobbits smiled to themselves, no doubt thinking up all kinds of things they could say about food. "The words they use, makes you almost believe that there is a slice of perfectly roasted lamb on a plate in front of you. With mint sauce and steamed broccoli." Aragorn looked nearly lost in memories.
"Don't forget the beautifully golden-brown roast potatoes,"
"And the carrots cooked to such perfection that a single second more in the water and they wouldn't have tasted half as good."
"The smells drifting enticingly towards you," Merry and Pippin smiled as they watched Aragorn, lost in a hobbit-induced fantasy about roast lamb. Aragorn took a deep breath in, but found, to his disappointment, nothing more interesting than the smell of freshly fallen rain. His eyes flickered open.
"You two! I told you back in Bree to not do that!" Sam and Frodo were hiding their giggles while Merry and Pippin were looking for all the world like two innocent young lads, which they most certainly weren't.
"Oh but you started it off so well! We couldn't help ourselves." Merry grinned mischievously.
"I suppose it was my own fault." Merry and Pippin both nodded in agreement.
"Talking of food," said Pippin, Aragorn groaned, "No, not in that way Aragorn, I have a few questions for all of you," it was Merry's turn to groan, he knew exactly what questions these were. Pippin smiled sweetly at him. "Firstly, scone," pronouncing it with a short o as in 'con' "Or scone?" this time with a long o as in 'cone'.
The answers were immediate, so immediate that Pippin had to ask for them individually. Boromir and Gimli went with the short o and Legolas, Aragorn and Gandalf went with the long one.
"Bucklanders have it!" cried Merry and he and Frodo gave superior looks to Sam and Pippin.
"It's just a rare time when the majority is wrong," said Pippin, waving his hand dismissively.
"Frodo's not a Bucklander surely!" said Boromir, his brow creased in confusion.
"He was born in Buckland and lived there long enough to learn how to pronounce scone properly!" said Merry, exaggerating the pronunciation to annoy Pippin and Sam.
"That may be, but at least he knows the proper size of a pat of butter!"
"Quite right Sam! I'm afraid Merry, that at this point I must leave you and join my other kin."
"Traitor," mumbled Merry.
"That's my second question, how big is a pat of butter?" The answers weren't quite so immediate this time and it took a small amount of time until the fellowship had their hands held at a certain distance apart. There were two main groups, one into which Legolas and Boromir fitted held their hands around an inch apart. The other, which included Gandalf, Aragorn and Gimli, held their hands around five inches apart. "One for the Shire!" cried Pippin hugging Frodo and Sam, Merry merely glared.
"Last time pays for all," he declared while Pippin grinned at him, "What goes better with strawberries; whipped cream, or clotted cream?" Everyone answered this question in unison.
"Clotted,"
"Merry, what was that supposed to achieve? You know everyone always says clotted!" cried Pippin.
"I couldn't think of another question," said Merry, shrugging his shoulders apologetically.
"I think we can call that a draw then," said Gandalf and he picked up the pace.
"Boromir! How could you do that to us?" said Pippin, hitting him on the thigh.
"Do what to you? What am I being accused of?"
"I'll not be able to stop thinking of food for at least another week now!"
"You mean you actually stop thinking of food occasionally?" asked Frodo incredulously.
"Very occasionally," said Pippin, "But it does happen,"
"I know what Mr. Pippin means, now strawberries and clotted cream have been mentioned, I'm not sure if I'll get 'em out of my head,"
"Boromir, you are very cruel," said Merry.
"I'm sorry! I didn't realise it'd be such a problem, it was such a simple question,"
"That's what you'd think, Boromir," said Gandalf, "But on the subjects of food, families and the Shire, hobbits are never simple,"
"I think I found that out,"
"It was a good question though," voiced Legolas, "In Rivendell at least, they ate twice as much as any elf did,"
"And more than any dwarf," Gimli grudgingly acceded, not entirely willing that another race should be better at anything than the dwarves, be it fighting, digging or eating.
The hobbits, by now, were near glowing with pride. Until they patted their stomachs. They each sighed.
"We're only half the hobbits we were back then,"
"I'd say the opposite myself," said Aragorn, "Nothing like a bit of hardship to bring out some personality in people,"
"A bit of hardship, maybe but this is three meals a day! A night even!"
"Calm down Pippin," said Merry in a mockery of Pippin's old tutor (who often had to tell Pippin to calm down). Pippin continued grumbling to himself for a little while. "What has this journey brought out in us then Strider?"
"Well," Aragorn thought for a moment, "You are more organised than you first were,"
"More organised?" said Pippin, "That's impossible, Merry's the most organised hobbit in all of Buckland!"
"That may be true," said Aragorn with a smile, "But he no longer has to dig deep into his pack to find the things he needs, everything is at the top ready to be used. Sam has become more efficient in everything he does. Nothing is wasted, from energy to bacon rinds,"
"O no Strider, that's nothing new, I've always done that,"
"No Sam, I've noticed the change,"
"So have I," said Legolas, "You used to throw the straggly rinds away and now you keep them all, for one thing," Sam blushed,
"Keeping them rinds is just something silly I do. I don't know why I do it, not ever going to be any use to anyone,"
"You never know that, Sam," said Boromir, "The strangest things can become useful when you're travelling,"
"Frodo, you're a lot more thoughtful,"
"More thoughtful? If Frodo was any more thoughtful he'd never get around to doing anything!" cried Pippin.
"Something has to be said for not jumping into every situation headfirst though, doesn't it Pippin?" retorted Frodo. Pippin mumbled his assent and Aragorn laughed.
"There are a few mistakes that were made early on that would not be made now on account of Frodo's new-found thoughtfulness,"
"Now Pippin,"
"No need Strider! I can guess!" he started to mimic Aragorn's voice, "Pippin has had nothing but the bad sides of his personality brought out. He complains constantly, almost always forgets something, couldn't organise his pack to save his life and talks his head off like there's no tomorrow making him the worst travelling companion possible," Pippin finished with a resounding nod.
The whole company burst out laughing, aside from Pippin's attempts at a man's voice and quite a deep man's voice at that, what he had said was just so wrong.
"On the contrary Pippin, you complain less than ever you did," said Aragorn.
"He does?" said Gimli in disbelief.
"You've not heard complaining until you've camped with a sixteen-year-old Pippin on the wettest day of the year. Not an experience I would recommend," said Frodo quietly, just to Gimli.
"You've not forgotten a thing since you forgot to see to Bill and that was almost two weeks ago!" continued Aragorn.
"Poor old Bill, I felt so terrible after that,"
"And as for talking, if you didn't talk so much what would we do with our time? We would walk in solemn silence and you wouldn't want that would you?"
"Well, no,"
"I think," said Boromir, "That everyone should have their own hobbit to travel with, I don't know how I ever managed without one!"
"I don't think you'll find many people in the Shire who'd agree with you, we're not the travelling type," said Frodo.
"You've adjusted well," commented Legolas.
"We've had to," Frodo's hand came to a halt on his chest where he could feel the band of metal beneath the material. He smiled, comforted that it was still there even though it couldn't have moved, then he quickly moved his hand and glanced around. Good, no one had seen.
TBC