Decisions in Love

By: Jen Grimbee

Ch.3- Meeting Sam and Pippin

Disclaimer: Only Shaye and Aurora belong to me. Nothing else.

Another two days passed and the sisters and the cousins saw each other regularly after their outing to The Green Dragon. Frodo and Merry told Sam and Pippin all about the girls and soon the two were begging Merry and Frodo to introduce them.

"So… when are we finally going to meet these mysterious lasses you've been rambling on about, cousin?" Pippin asked Merry for the tenth time that day.

Merry sighed in exasperation and turned to Pippin with a huff. He grasped his younger cousin's shoulders and shook him slightly as he spoke.

"Goodness Pip!" Merry exclaimed, "If you ask me one more time I swear I'll pop your head off!"

"Relax Merry," said Frodo, holding back a laugh as he walked into the room. "We've set up another outing with the girls for tomorrow. We're heading for a swim at Bywater Pool."

"That's fantastic," cried Pippin once Merry let go of him.

"You mean those two can actually swim?" Sam asked in astonishment.

Frodo and Merry nodded in response. Sam's eyes widened and he walked off muttering things under his breath. The others snickered.

The next day found the occupants in Bag End all in frenzy. The four hobbits were bustling about for things to pack away in the baskets they were taking with them.

"Is everything packed, Sam?" Frodo asked as he checked one of the two baskets for the thousandth time.

"Yes, Mr. Frodo. Just calm down and we'll be on our way soon," Sam replied, leading his master away from the kitchen table where the baskets sat. Once he had finally managed to seat Frodo, Sam went back into the kitchen to put the finishing touches on their basket of goods.

The four hobbits jumped when they all heard the sound of the doorbell ring through the halls. Frodo bounded up from his seat and sprinted toward the front door yelling, "I'll get it!" And just as he expected, Frodo opened the door wide for Aurora and Shaye and welcomed them into the smial happily.

"It's great to see you two again!" Frodo greeted cheerfully to the lasses. "You did remember to bring something to swim in, right?"

"Of course," Shaye answered for the both of them.

"Where are your other two friends that you wanted us to meet, Frodo?" Aurora asked eagerly as she sat down in the seat Frodo offered her.

"Just one moment," Merry said, striding into the room. "They're coming, they're just finishing up some last minute things."

Soon Sam and Pippin's voices could be heard echoing down the hall. They were arguing over something silly. Pip had probably gotten into one of the baskets for an early snack, which had annoyed Sam quite a bit.

"You're such a bottomless pit, Mr. Pippin!" Sam scolded Pippin as the two walked into the room where Frodo, Merry, Aurora, and Shaye were sitting.

"I can't help if I'm hungry, Sam," Pippin said back, crossing his arms in front of his chest with a huff. Sam only shook his head and held up his hands in defeat.

Suddenly, their attention was drawn to the eyes staring at them. Aurora was holding her hand to her mouth, trying desperately to muffle an oncoming laugh. Shaye was doing the complete opposite and was laughing loudly. Merry and Frodo only smirked at Sam and Pippin. They blushed and hung their heads.

Sam was the first to recover. He cleared his throat and lifted his head and said, "Um, excuse me, my apologies misses."

"It's quite alright," Aurora replied, eyes watering from suppressed laughter.

"Yes! It's perfectly fine! You two are the best form of entertainment since our father!" Shaye told them.

"Shaye!" Aurora shouted to her sister playfully.

"Uh, well. It's seem Pippin and Sam have made a wonderful first impression on you two," Merry cut in with a smirk toward his younger cousin and Sam.

"I agree," Frodo added with a chuckle of his own. "Shall we get going?"

"Yes, let's," Shaye and Aurora said together as they stood from their chairs and linked arms.

They group watched as Pippin ran back into the kitchen and grabbed the baskets off of the table. Sam also watched him intently and shouted at him once he was out of his sights.

"Don't you dare touch anythin' in those baskets, Mr. Pippin!"

"Yes, mother!" Pippin shouted back sarcastically.

Merry and Frodo snorted quietly to themselves and led the two laughing sisters out the door and towards the gate. When the two fighting hobbits finally emerged from the smial and joined the others, the group finally was able to set off toward Bywater. As the hobbits walked along the wide dirt path, a small conversation began to take form.

"So what brought you two here to Hobbiton?" Pippin asked, speeding up to get closer to the sisters.

Shaye and Aurora glanced at each other quickly and both took a deep breath before answering. Shaye started.

"Aurora was about ten and I was nine when our parents decided to move out to Bree. They wanted something new."

"After many years of living in the same old hobbit hole near the outskirts of Bree, our father died in a nasty cart accident. Mother was devastated and was hardly the same again," Aurora then added.

"She hardly ate or slept. Finally she also died once the despair was just too much for her to bear," said Shaye.

"After this, Shaye and I decided it was time to go back to Hobbiton. I was finally of age to make the decision on my own and we sold our hole almost immediately and were out of Bree the very next day. And so… here we are," Aurora finished.

Once the sisters had finished telling Frodo, Sam, Merry, and Pippin their tale, all was silent for the rest of their journey. The sisters glanced at each other one last time before turning their heads toward the path ahead of them. Shaye tilted her head over towards Aurora's ear and whispered,

"I think we just dampened the mood."

Aurora shrugged her shoulders in response and said nothing. Shaye did the same. Once the group finally reached Bywater, the mood shifted a little. Aurora and Shaye glanced around at the small village, taking in the sights. They had never left Hobbiton after moving there so Bywater was a completely new thing for them.

"Are we far from the pool yet?" Aurora asked, finally breaking the silence between everyone.

Frodo looked over at her and shook his head. "No, we should be there shortly."

And just as Frodo had predicted, the hobbits found themselves overlooking the beautiful scenery that surrounded the pool just ahead of them. Aurora and Shaye's eyes widened as they stared ahead.

"Wow," the sisters whispered together.

TBC…

A/N- Hey everyone! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. My computer went on the haywire on me and I couldn't get online for a while. Then I had writer's block for the longest time and couldn't come up with a new idea for this chapter. But now I'm back and I hope that this is worth the wait. Enjoy and thanks!

Jen