Chapter 8 – What He Did to Me

"What did he do to you?"

Ted cringed as he heard the question and saw the visible flinch across Frodo's face.  Overcome by curiosity, Ted finally decided to join the others in the healing chamber.  The, Isengarder felt a deep relief as he noticed Frodo's condition had seemed to improve.  He looked fresh after a bath and his curls had been detangled and returned to their softness.  Frodo's weak figure now gave off a fresh and sweet fragrance.  But Ted had yet to see the hobbit improve mentally.

Since meeting Frodo, Ted had never felt so grateful to hear the hobbit's replies to Elrond's questions, so loud and clear and fully aware of what the other was asking him.  The man barely knew Frodo, - not in the little one's sensible state, at least.  Flashes of Frodo's terrified and tormented face returned to Ted's mind -Frodo's wide-eyed, full-of-question expression when he was stabbed in his room in one in Bree.  Frodo's pained and unconscious state.  Frodo's panic at Dave's horrible plan while they were in the wild, Frodo's unspoken wonder at Ted's tenderness toward him, Frodo's contorted face, full of pain  as Saruman revealed himself and put the hobbit in merciless torments.  Frodo's resigned state as Ted, though unwillingly, secured him to a tree or leashed him to Saruman's horse.

Then Ted lost Frodo.

Then the man was shocked when he found Frodo, after Frodo fell into Merry's clutches yet again, and saw how the hobbit had been degraded into such a broken being, bound to a post, asking for Merry.  Since then Ted had been asking himself if he would ever meet a true, whole Frodo.

He had heard and seen how Frodo answered Elrond, though some stumbled in places and Frodo had sometimes seemed lost, facing his old doubts.  But Ted was certain or prayed that the elven lord would not fail in revealing and prevailing over the devilish deeds upon Frodo.  Yet, expecting the response to the last question of Elrond made Ted's stomach knot, as it did everyone's in the chamber.

*   *   *

Something flickered in Frodo's eyes and for a moment the crystal clear eyes shimmered, pixyish and blithe.  Frodo seemed to come back to his prankful years and those who had known him long enough felt as if their hearts leapt, marveled and hopeful that Frodo had finally returned to his former self yet wondering why Frodo had looked that way.

Did he mock at Elrond's question?

Or…?

Elrond was considering giving Frodo more tea in case the hobbit's emotion suddenly got out of control.  But sensing what the elf was thinking, Gandalf met his friend's glances and shook his head slowly.

Meanwhile, Frodo had calmed down, his eyes subdued.

"What did he do to me?"  A small, lucid voice filled the room.  "Why, Merry is the best of friends.  My only friend.  He fed me.  He gave me applesauce and rolls.  He even bathed me."

Silence.

Or rather – everyone was silenced, while Frodo's voice were still reverberating, pounding against the four walls of the chamber as well as the contracting walls of each one's heart.

To say that Frodo's confession shocked them all was an understatement.

The feeling was outright sculpted on the youngest being just entering the room, his face pure white with terror.  Pippin wailed before he managed to check himself.

"No, Frodo!"

It would be a miracle if by the end of the day no one staying in this room felt their heart break.

All pairs of eyes were straying to the little hobbit now.  Almost all of them knew Pippin's involvement in this and therefore wanted to know what Pippin had to say.  But so far no one had been attentive to him.  Not while the focus was still on Frodo, who on the other hand, did not seem to hear Pippin's protest at all.  In his present state, Frodo only heard Elrond.  Nobody else was in the room but he and Elrond.  Frodo was staring blankly at the elf now who, with the others, slowly dragged his feet toward Pippin.

Trembling at how everyone was drawn to him, even Merry – with his eyes only for he was still in the elves' grip, Pippin regretted at once having pronounced his surprise so loudly.  But he was indeed started at Frodo's statements.  Pippin missed Elrond's question but he was sure that it was not what Frodo was supposed to say, looking at the reactions for it.  And he, Pippin, who had just tasted a little of the corrupted Merry's bitter pill, felt a sharp stab piercing into his heart learning that those were the things Frodo remembered.  Did he not recall any of those mistreatments?  Or did he choose not to remember?

"Should we not find out from him what really happened to Frodo?"  asked Elrond - his eyes wandering to the wizard and then to Pippin and then back again to Gandalf.

Gandalf hesitated for a moment before he remembered why they carried this out at the first place.

"We primarily do this to bring Frodo back to himself, not to seek the truth."  His eyes gazed back and forth to the three other hobbits in the room.  "Though we intend to know the truth nevertheless."  Gandalf's expression was one attempting to look stern when gazing at Merry and Pippin, albeit it failed and showed misery instead.

He suddenly felt warm on his back and when turning around, Gandalf found Frodo's wondering stare boring into him. 

The hobbit was speaking softly as if he was chanting.

"Truth…  What more truth can there be?  Merry is the only one who cares for me.  That is the truth…"

The wizard was forced to shut his eyes as they threatened to spill tears.  "Frodo…"  He whispered, painfully.  Elrond, too, was frozen in his place.  He started to doubt his plan and method.  He could get nowhere even if he pushed it, not with Frodo's mind stuck to what he believed.  Something else must be done.  Elrond's mind worked hard as he glanced around the room, frowning.  No, not from Merry.  The hobbit would not want to confess anything.

He looked around again.

Pippin.

Elrond took a deep breath.

The youngest hobbit was the key to this.  Gandalf must agree to question him this time.  Or at least, to aid the elf while he was questioning Pippin.

*   *   *

Soft, gently fluttering lashes framed Frodo's clouded eyes that absently shifted from Elrond to Gandalf, who were in the middle of a heated argument.  Frodo heard all of their conversation but his mind hardly registered what the discussion was about.  Soon Frodo let his reverie drift about and his luminous eyes wandered around the room.

To stop at the one he missed most.

Merry.

M – E – R – I – A – D – O – C

Frodo smiled weakly at the startled hobbit, his eyes sending stark longing through empty air.  He felt someone plop down rather harshly beside him.

"Hullo, Pip," Frodo muttered, knowing exactly who it was without even glancing at the person.

Not once did he cast his eyes loose from Merry's face.  He would have run to throw himself into his cousin's embrace had he not been in a trance.  Thus, Frodo could only drink in the sight of Merry, gulping in unsatisfactorily as if he was in a great thirst, while transfixing a bewildered Merry in his trance at the same time.

Gripping his hands on the blanket until his knuckles turned white, Frodo gazed longingly first at the golden brown color of Merry's curls.  It would feel soft against his palms should he be able to stroke them, Frodo swallowed hard.  He missed the sensation of rubbing them as he often imagined him doing that as Merry stroked his soaked hair after the beloved cousin finished bathing him.

Next, Frodo moved down to Merry's grayish green eyes.  As always the eyes poured over him with love and affection.  And taking a deep breath, Frodo closed his eyes slowly in bliss.  He felt peace gush all over him and Frodo opened his eyes again, now glassy with unshed tears. 

Then he came to his cousin's thin lips and Frodo could hear again loving words coming out of them, convincing things Frodo should have known before.  That no one would ever care for him more than Merry did.  Not Gandalf.  Not Bilbo.  Not even his own parents.

"We were running from hooded dark creatures.  I didn't know what they were, and neither did Merry.  And he was suddenly impatient.  He asked Frodo but he didn't answer.  That did it.  Merry snapped at Frodo and he slammed Frodo against a tree."

The voice was halting and soft, slurred with swallowed tears.  It had not caught Frodo's attention yet, though.  Not fully, as Frodo was still enthralled by his soul mate in this world, Merry.

"I – I didn't know what came into me or Merry at that time.  I just wanted to help Merry and I saw that Frodo didn't help at all by being silent.  I felt my temper rise and when Merry asked me I was just…"  Pippin gulped down.  "so happy to comply.  I tied Frodo up against the tree and Merry, he… he…  He beat him up.  But Frodo kept resisting until I – cut his palm."

Several jaws dropped heavily.

And Frodo – he kept his eyes fixed on Merry, a more blanched Merry this time, but those eyes began to darken.

"I hit Sam behind his head so he could not give us more trouble and we took Frodo by ferry to Bree.  OH, and Frodo, he had told us then about his plan to go away from the Shire, but he hadn't said why.  In Bree we managed to duck away from - "  Pippin stole a glance at Aragorn.  "from Strider's curiosity.  We brought Frodo to an inn and there, Merry found the Ring."

That was one of the dark parts Frodo hid deep into his mind, unreachable, or Merry would hurt him again.  Hearing it again from Pippin was such a torment and Frodo started to writhe.

TBC

AN: Here comes the update!  My gratitude for aelfgifu for checking all the silly mistakes I had here.  And my thanks go to all that have read and reviewed.  *smooch*

heartofahobbit: Now that you mention it, I can feel how cold Elrond is.  *shiver*

Yahiko: Hi!  Thanks for reading NH and thank goodness for finding this and reviewing it, too!  I'm so happy.  No worry.  Pippin will always be there!

FrodoBaggins87: Wah!  I would be very honored if people write fics based on my fics!  :)  Merry is going to pay but he won't die.  And Frodo, will he be always so forgiving?  Hey, FB 88 has contacted me.  Thanks for recommending me, honey!  I was so surprised!

Agent Pip: And I tell you, I'm just so glad people like what I wrote.  And it's even more rewarding you spared your time to review!  ^_^