Title: The Good in Everything
Author: Rachel Stonebreaker
Credits and Disclaimers at the end
Chapter 3: The Good in Everything
Spring had come to the Shire with more than its usual deluge of colour and greenery. The efforts of Samwise Gamgee in replanting the Shire, as some tell of the work being "almost single handed", were paying off. Master Peregrin Took stood outside Bag End staring in wonder at the tendrils of the Purple Trumpet vine as they began their journey up the trellis outside the south wall. The first little shoots were already staked to the trellis. They'd be blooming soon, according to Sam. How he ever got that vine to bloom outside a hotroom Pip would never guess. But he did know he loved its flowers. They reminded him a lot of something like it he'd seen in Gondor. The best translation he could give it into Westron was Purple Bells. They weren't quite as dense and were much more purple but they were still somewhat trumpet shaped and twinned and very pretty. They grew like weeds down in the south.
"Come join us for tea, won't you, sir?" Rosie asked poking her head around the corner, still shy about asking this giant of a Took into tea in a smial she couldn't quite believe she was going to be living in with the hobbit who'd finally gotten up the courage to ask her to marry him. Things had been moving fast this last winter and faster now that spring was here. She'd been spending a lot of time up on Bagshot Row helping restore Bag End with Sam and Mr. Frodo. Sam had insisted she get used to visiting with Mr. Frodo's kin whenever they were about seeing how they were such a big part of Mr. Frodo's and Sam's lives. It wasn't the farm, and that was the truth of it, but it was Sam's new home and it was going to be hers soon so she'd just as well face it and get on with what was expected.
"I'd be delighted, Miss Rose" Pippin answered but he didn't move. In fact, he didn't move for another half of an hour. Sam finally came out to see if there was something the matter.
"Pippin?" he'd given up any honorific now as a matter of self preservation. Frodo and Merry and Pippin had all but boxed his ears every time he added any title to their names in address. They insisted that he'd just have to get used to it because they'd have none of being his better after all he'd done. He didn't feel like he'd done any more than they so he didn't need no jumpin' up but they were insistent, especially Frodo. "Pip? You comin' in or do I need to bring a tea service out here and serve you like the fine spoiled gentle hobbit you used to be?" That got his attention, it did.
Pip looked up from the window box. "Do they always grow so quick at the start of the year? I've never paid much attention."
Sam walked over to stare at what held the young Took's attention so. Of course, these days, lots of things held Pip's attention. Some of them just downright odd. He had been a lad who never sat still and now he could sit for hours staring at things. He was growin' up fast. "Hmpf", Sam thought, "Grown up. Not growin'." And to Pippin he asked, "What? These plants here? No. They're right hard to get started. They like the warm weather. It were a surprise when they popped up a few weeks ago. The daisies surprised me too by startin' to show green so soon. And I've not nearly as many weeds as usual. Seems a lot of things are just sort of takin' care o' themselves and makin' a right good show of it early." He softly petted the dark green long leaves Pippin was admiring. Very gentle, like he didn't really want to touch them for fear he'd spoil them or something. "Frodo thinks it's what were in that box The Lady gave me. He says a lot of Good was in that box."
"I think he's right." Pip added in approval. Then with a short laugh he added, "Of course he's right. Frodo's always right, isn't he?" He turned to fix Sam with a bright smile.
"That's the way I like t'see the lad," thought Sam as he smiled back, adding out loud, "Yes, Sir, a lot of Good."
"You see, Sam, there's that Good again I was talking about ever so long ago. But do you think I could interest hobbits in a story about purple belled flowers and how fast the gardens grew this year because of The Lady Galadriel's magical gift?" Pippin looked down at the greenery, the smile still on his face.
"Oi, your not back on that again are you?" but Sam could see that this time Pippin wasn't at all maudlin. "So" he started as an enticement, "I've thought of the Good of the Troll that Squished Master Peregrin Took." His smile was smug.
"Go on. Tell." Came the taunt.
Sam took a deep breath as he always did before performing something he wasn't quite sure about, "…Because a very large, very noisome Troll dared approach Master Peregrin Took durin' the last battle before the Morannon, and our brave young hobbit stood fast and killed The Troll so it would not kill his fellow friend, a noble Captain of the Guard named Beregond, and whereupon The Troll fell dead on Master Peregrin, nearly crushin' the life from his poor battered body, and whereas Gimli the Dwarf, stalwart friend of hobbits, was able to recognize our squished Peregrin by the extra furry foot stickin' out from under The Dead Troll thereby rescuin' Peregrin and … and … makin' every one ever so proud of both of them. The End."
"You just made that up, didn't you?" Pippin shifted his eyes to look sideways at Sam with just a slight frown, hard kept as it were.
"You could tell?" Sam asked a little downcast.
"…. No. Not really. It was very good." Pippin answered in his best serious voice.
"No, it t'weren't. Your just bein' kind."
"Well. Yes. I am. And it doesn't really suit my original definition of Good. Which, unfortunately, I've completely forgotten. But I'm sure it doesn't fit." Pippin could hardly keep from laughing.
Sam just stared at him in mock disbelief. He'd gotten very good at telling when Pippin was jesting with him and he wasn't about to let the lad get the jump on him by being the first to break and laugh.
"Here. This is better." Pippin cleared his throat and began, "Because the brave, wonderful and noble, clear eyed and handsome young Peregrin Took slew the evil, noisome I like that as it certainly was a smelly old thing. I shall keep it (cough) where was I? Oh yes … the evil, noisome, hideous, grotesque …"
"I'll be needin' a nap afore long…"
"… nasty Troll, all of Middle Earth rejoiced."
"And do tell me this, young clear eyed and noble Master Peregrin Took, how is it we all of Middle Earth would rejoice? I do not believe there's enough of a story there to make ev'n a babe blink in wonder."
"Yes, but there was a lot more specifically about me in it." Pippin linked arms with Sam and steered him towards the door. "I do believe our tea is getting cold."
"Ah! Not so fast. We need more 'story' in that story." Yet Sam didn't stop their progress but instead upon reaching the door first, opened it and in a gallant display of civility bowed to the younger hobbit ushering him indoors.
Pippin snorted through his nose, continuing the idle banter, "If you insist I shall develop the story further … If The Evil and Noisome Troll had but survived the battle, it would have gone on to sire hundreds, nay, thousands more evil, grotesque and repulsive Trolls. So, you see, it was a good thing our Hero dispatched of it early in it's life."
"Ach! I hate t' think on Trolls doin' that and makin' more of 'em. Thank you but I'm in no mood for tea now."
"Good, I'll have yours then." Pippin said with a smile. Then he added just out of kindness to soften the unpleasant picture in Sam's mind, "I don't think they really do it like we do … I mean like a lad loves his lass. I mean … well, it's not as if I've any idea but … well … we're civil and pleasant what with courting and kissing and all, if you catch my drift. They probably don't have nice babies proper, perhaps they just burst of eggs or something, like birds." He was prattling again. His mother's face popped into his head just then reminding him of her attempts at explaining where babies came from. He turned red when he realized he was discussing reproduction. Everyone suspected him of innocence and for his mum's sanity he always played along. No mother wants to know just how much her youngest child knows…
Sam quietly smiled at Pippin's attempt to lighten the mood. After a second he did brighten a bit, "Remember the Trolls in Mr. Bilbo's story? The ones we found after poor Frodo'd been attacked by the Black Riders. See there's some good… you said the oddest thing later after it were all over and we were safe in Rivendell. Do you remember? You said you'd seen a bird's nest on one o' them trolls and wondered how somethin' so Good could have decided to have babies sittin' on somethin' so ugly." Sam had stopped in the hall just before entering the parlour where Pippin's tea sat waiting.
"No, I hadn't remembered until just now. I guess dead trolls are good for something." Pippin answered with a very large, very typical Pippin smile. "Do I still get your tea?".
Sam smiled and knowing Rosie had made extra just for their growing hobbit friend he replied, "Why certainly, what sorta servant would I be to let someone so august as The Master Peregrin, Survivor of the Troll Squashin', go hungry?"
The End.
Title: The Good in Everything
Author: Rachel Stonebreaker
Email: reach me through fanfiction net
Rating: G
Characters: Sam, Pippin, a troll named Sawg and a bird or two and some mice and a cameo by Rosie.
Publish Date: March 2005
Summary: Sam cautions Pippin to remember that there can be good in nearly everything.
Disclaimer: JRRT created these wonderful creatures. His estate owns all rights. I just take them out to the pub for a drink now and again. I do NOT make any money, fame or other gain from them. Don't sue. It's bad for your karma.
Authors Notes: This is in answer to Marigold's Challenge 14 as seen on The World Wide Web livejournal's talechallenge14 (sorry you have to build your own URL as ff has rules about inserting URLs)
Part of my story must take place in Mordor after the Quest. After the Quest in Mordor? Was there anything left after the Quest? Was there anyone there? I commented to Marigold that maybe a few orcs or a troll or something might be there … But as I haven't written anything in years, AND as I asked for this challenge, I accepted. Naturally, there is a Pub in it. Sort of.
The flowers referred to in this story are Rhodochiton Atrosanguineum and Iochroma. They are similar in colour and both have bell shaped flowers though Rhodochiton Atrosanguineum grows significantly further south than the Iochroma. I've never seen "common" names for either so I made them up for this story. Purple Bells and Purple Trumpets respectively.
Beta: The kind Dreamflower email me for her address pointed out many helpful things most importantly (as I do love my Pub Series) that I'd gotten it wrong to have a pub open so soon after the Scouring as they'd all been closed down and probably trashed and that I hadn't a clue about writing Sam. She insists, how did she put it, that I had a clue about Sam because I "had the bones of his personality" I just needed a few pointers. Nah. She added some depth to my Sam. She's a good beta pointing out areas that are in need of more development (yeah, and just why was Pippin in Hobbiton just hanging out anyways considering the mess that was waiting at home). She also found some truly weird British spellings, such as titbit instead of tidbit (weird to Americans that is).
