Chapter 15
There and Back Again
She quietly opened the door and tip-toes into the bedroom. Sleeping on the warm feather bed was the young master of Buckland. Merril put her hands to her lips to stop a giggle when her eyes looked down upon him. His quilt was twisted and exposed a hairy well formed leg, his pillow was slowly sliding from off the bed, and his right arm was resting just over his brow. His snoring came in two quick snort and long twittering of an exhaled breath. Seeing Merry sleeping so soundly gave her spirit a boost after hearing how badly he was injured. With all the commotion and goings on when Merry first arrived and being shoed by Mrs. Maggot, gave Merril little time to see him and know how he was doing.
Mrs. Maggot was a dear sweet soul who did her best to welcome Merril to her home. She made the best first breakfast that Merril have ever eaten with fried potatoes smeared with onions and butter. She served fresh cut ham with thick juicy mushrooms on the side. Even Mrs. Maggot's daughter enjoyed Merril's visit with them, reading her stories and poems. When Mr. Maggot brought Merry and Estella into his house, it was his wife who attended him and looked after him. She would give Merril news in how he was doing, but insisted that he needed his rest and not to bother him.
Merril sat patiently for most of the day, while she waited. However when everyone went outside to tend their chores, it was a perfect time to sneak in to see him.
She stood there for the longest time, just watching him sleep before she turned and was about to leave when Merry suddenly awoken.
"Merril?" questioned Merry. "Is everything all right?"
Merril turned around and smiled seeing Merry trying to sit up in his bed. "I could ask the same thing of you, Merry?"
"Oh, this little thing?" he pointed to the wound on his chest. "It's nothing. I'll be healed up in no time."
"Can I get you anything, Merry?" she asked.
Merry shook his head no and then asked, "You could tell me how Pippin did riding my pony?"
Merril again giggled just thinking about it. "Mr. Maggot told me that he wanted to tell you and made me promise not to say a word."
"Then Snowclad bucked him off?" Merry inquired crossing his arms and began to worry.
She snickered and giggled, bit her lip to stop her laughter, then told him again, "Merry, I just can not tell you. You have to ask Mr. Maggot."
"Then Snowclad is not in the race after all!"
"I did not say that, Merry. Snowclad is in the race. Your pony took off out here at a full gallop." Merril told him, but feared that she said too much.
"Well, what is the secret then if my pony is in the race?" again asked Merry.
Mrs. Maggot stood in the doorway and saw Merril speaking with Merry. "Come lass, ya let poor Merry get some sleep. He won't heal if'n he does not rest!"
Merril pouted, but stood up and walked passed Mrs. Maggot.
Merry pulled the covers off of himself and tried to climb out of the bed, but before he did, Mrs. Maggot was by his side.
"You get back into 'at bed. Ya be need'n yer rest," she insisted.
"I just can not lay here worrying about my pony and that race," Merry stubbornly told her.
"Mr. Maggot thought as much. He is hitch'n his cart and pony and add'n a comfy spot fer ya to take ya to Buckland. He's taken ya by Buckleberry Ferry, so you'd be there on the finish line in a see'n yer pony win," she told him. "Besides, when yer pony comes in without you on its back, old Saradoc will have every Bucklander in the Marish a look'n fer ya. Now get yerself into 'at bed. I'll fetch ya when he's ready fer ya."
"I'll get back in bed once you tell me about Pippin!" Merry again insisted.
"You'll see him at Brandy Hall and at the finish line, now ta bed with ya!" Mrs. Maggot snapped at him and pulled his covers open for him to put his legs into and to lye down.
After she fluffed up his pillow and straightened the quilts on his bed, she walked out of his bedroom heading into her kitchen. It was no more than a few seconds later, Merry could hear her burst out in a roar of laughter.
"That does it! What is going on?" he shouted out to her.
xxx
It was like flying sitting upon Snowclad's back while galloping up and down the green hills in the country side of Stock. Merry said his pony was magnificent and deserving to win, now knowing this first hand, one could see why.
Cresting the top of the hill and looking down upon Brandywine Bridge, a small group of riders on their Shire bred ponies began to cross it.
Leaning down upon Snowclad's back and giving her a kick, Snowclad flew down the slight incline of the hill and then bolted up with her strong legs, digging her hooves into the earth to climb the bank that would lead her to the bridge of the Brandywine and close behind the riders and their ponies.
Just like Merry told Pippin to give Snowclad her reins and then doing so, the pony stretched her neck out and her strong legs chased after the ponies ahead of her. Faster and faster her hooves hit the rock of the Bridge and the sound was deafening in an explosion of rhythmic thudding.
Merry's cloak floated and flapped in the wind while rider and pony came around the first Shire bred pony and then another. Faster and faster Snowclad raced pouring more speed upon her strong legs.
The riders of the Shire breeds whipped their ponies in fear of the foreign pony taking their lead. Excitement reeled through each rider trying to out do the other while the minutes ticked on and on.
Snowclad never seemed to tire in her effort to keep stride in her speed. There were only three more riders just ahead and they were coming close to Crickhallow, another few miles to Brandy Hall and the finish line, to the race.
Leaning closer to Snowclad's neck and whispering into her ear, Snowclad heard the words coming from her rider saying "Come on, Snowclad, do this for Merry!"
Instantaneously the white pony poured on more speed giving everything that she possessed in her spirit and in her strength. They soared passed the two riders ahead of them taking their lead.
The ground pounded in a fury of hooves and dirt upon the path that lead to Brandy Hall. The dust and dirt flew high above their heads and in the far distances it could be seen.
The hobbits shouted and cheered in seeing the thick cloud of dust and dirt and knew the ponies were coming.
Merry perched himself upon the edge of the cart while it came to a stop just behind the crowd of cheering hobbits and he knew the race would soon be over. Not one hobbit turned to greet the young master nor gave him a minute of their notice while their eyes remained fixed on the dirt road and the first sight of the lead pony.
Merry closed his eyes tightly and only hoped that Pippin could bring his pony in first. With the first shout of a line of Bucklanders that stood a far distance upon the road, called out to the others waiting by the finish line, "The Shire pony is a lead'n!"
Merry's heart sank, but knew no matter what, that Pippin did his best in bringing his pony home.
Shaking his head with his hopes dashed, Merry looked just to the right of him and noticed the black stallion and Whinny trotting through the crowd of hobbits. He looked for Estella in knowing that she road ahead to Brandy Hall to help Pippin, he scanned the crowd for her. Instead of seeing her lovely light brown curls, he saw the back of a very familiar hobbit and his eyes widened in surprise.
"The White pony is neck and neck!" came the shouts of the Bucklanders and the crowd instantly parted allowing the ponies all the room that they would need.
Merry saw the cloaked rider upon his pony and Snowclad neck and neck to the Shire breed pony.
Saradoc and Paladon stood on the finish line waiting for the ponies to cross. The crowd of hobbits instantly became silent just watching for the winner to cross the line.
Merry stood up from the cart even with a bolt of pain with his effort and planted the stance of his feet in the dirt and shouted with everything he had, "Come on, Snowclad!"
Hearing his master's voice and seeing him standing there, Snowclad bolted in a speed that not even Merry believed was possible for his pony and he cleared a good length ahead of the Shire pony and crossed the finish line.
Hobbit jumped straight up in the air shouting and screaming their victory. The roar of the crowd boomed in excitement and went running after the white pony and its rider.
Seeing the young master standing in front of them and then seeing Pippin who walked a bit awkward coming up towards him, the crowd's eyes snapped to the rider upon the white pony and wondered who was riding her. When the cloak rider jumped from off the white pony's back the hood of the cloak came off to reveal long, light-brown curls and sparkling, clear-blue eyes. Estella ran to Snowclad and threw her arms around her neck and hugged her tightly.
Merry came around his pony and stared at Estella and began to laugh.
Estella's brilliant smile and excitement that glowed from her lovely face while her eyes meet those of Merry and she ran to him and stood before him.
Merry gazed into her eyes and smiled, saying, "What kind of lass am I marrying?" he asked her playfully.
"A lass who will love you forever," she said crying with excitement and wrapped her arms around him and kissed him.
Snowclad joined them nuzzling her nose in between them, looking for attention from her master. Merry laughed and petted her soft white nose.
Tom stood proud next to Snowclad and took her reins and hugged and petted her, giving her congratulations and his deepest respect.
Saradoc, Esmeralda and especially Hattie came running up to Merry and knew that something had to have happened to him in order for him not to have been on his pony.
With all the excitement, and cart ride across Buckleberry Ferry and onwards to Brandy Hall, Merry's face went white with exhaustion and pain and he weaved in his stance while holding on to Estella.
Hattie barked out orders to her servants upon seeing Merry's white face, "Get the young master into Brandy Hall and get the healers at once!"
Emeralda and Saradoc led the way, while a small group of lads picked up Merry and carried him and followed the Master of Buckland.
The crowd of hobbits all cheered and shouted out his name, "To Meriadoc the Magnificent and to his lady Estella!"
The roar of the crowd echoed long after they entered into Brandy Hall.
xxx
Hattie soon had Merry tucked in his bed with an added thick quilt to keep him warm and had the servant bring him a warm cup of fresh goats milk to sooth him to sleep while they waited for the healers to come.
Pippin knocked on his door and Hattie let him in, but scolded him in keeping his visit a short one. Leaving the two hobbits to their visit, she headed towards her kitchen.
Merry looked at his cousin and smiled before he commented, "So you got bucked off again?"
Pippin paced in his room and set pleading eyes upon him, "I tried, Merry, really I did. I did everything that you told me to do and it did not work. I tell you that pony of yours really hate me!"
"Oh, Pippin, she does not hate you at all!" said Merry.
"Oh, but she does! Not only did she buck me off the second I sat upon her back and went sailing into the air. Then luck be it, I landed upon by bottom. Then sore as it was then, still that was not good enough for your pony! No, she had to make it worse!" added Pippin and his face went red as a beet being so embarrassed just remembering that event. He went on to add, "There I was doing my best to stand up and thinking perhaps, just for you that I would try it again feeling so sorry for you, as it were. When I turned around, she came charging up at me and put her nose down and shoved me with it. There were the Maggot's lads, all standing a laughing, while Estella was over there a giggling."
"They were just teasing you, Pippin," remarked Merry with a mirthful smirk upon his lips, while the image of that scene played in his mind.
"It was not funny at all, Merry!" snapped Pippin. "I was fear'n for my life!"
"Pippin, it could not have been all that bad," he assumed becoming serious once again.
"Not all that bad, you say! It was humiliating is all, Merry, completely humiliating!" Pippin added with an unbelievable expression upon his face. "Oh, she did not shove me once! No, the second she shoved me, I back up some and put my hands out in front of me, but she's come around again, putting her nose down and shove me again. I tell you my heart jumped in fear of her. I don't know what she was thinking, but the look in her eyes set my blood cold in fear of her."
Pippin heard Merry choking down chuckles that began to spill out, but he continued. "There I was standing in the middle of Farmer Maggot's yard with Snowclad facing me down and a shoving and shoving me. With each backward step I took, the closer I got to their barn and the harder my heart pounding in my chest. You would have thought all those lads would have come to save me, but they just stood there laughing!"
"Pippin, you should have just grabbed her reins," added Merry in between his chuckles.
"I am telling you, Merry, that pony of yours is crazed!" Pippin looked at Merry with fear upon his face just thinking about it, and he continued, "I was in fear that she would have pounce down upon me. So I just kept backing up!"
Pippin again paced upon the floor while Merry bit down upon his lip doing everything that he could not to burst out laughing so not to hurt his dear cousin's feelings. Tears of mirth filled his eyes and threatened to spill over. Merry closed his hand and placed it over his lips to keep his laughter from spilling out and tried to put on a concerning face.
"I argued with your pony and pleaded with her, saying how close we are and all. But she did not listen to me and just kept pushing me closer to the barn. The second I got close enough, I made a run for it and dove in through the doors and immediately shut them to keep her away from me!"
That was enough for Merry and no matter how he tried the laughter spurted from his lips and he clutched his chest in pain. Tears poured out of his eyes and he almost doubling over trying to regain his composure.
Pippin wanting Merry to stop laughing and feeling a bit sorry for himself, he added, "So there I stood waiting in the barn and peering out in between the cracks, but your pony guarded it prancing up and down just waiting for me to come out and have another go at me."
"Stop it, Pippin!" giggled Merry hysterically. "You're killing me!"
He clutched his chest harder and rolled over onto the bed laughing and crying.
Seeing it caused Merry some discomfort, Pippin continued with his story, "Estella had no choice but to put on your cloak, in which I had to hand it to her from a crack in between the door because your pony would try to stick her nose in between it and snorted at me!"
Pippin listened to Merry laughing even harder. Merry turned and pointed at him trying his best to tell him, "stop it, Pippin, I can not take any more!"
Pippin smiled and knowing his little story was getting back at Merry for all that he felt he suffered, again added, "Farmer Maggot's sons pleaded with me to open the barn door so they could get their chores done, but I was too fearful to come out or let them in. So they offered to escort me out of their barn and over to my pony, promising me that they would keep your pony away from me.'
Merry was incoherent in his laughter, seeing in his mind, his cousin's trembling form, full of fear and being walked over by four of Farmer Maggot's sons, walking on either side of him to protect him from his fierce pony, all the while laughing and giggling to themselves. He could almost hear their snickers in his mind. Merry placed a pillow over his head to drown-out his cousin's voice and his story to stop his laughter and the pain it was causing him. Merry waved to his cousin to leave, crying and laughing all at the same time.
But Pippin continued, "Estella, then walked over, proud as can be, mind you. Placed her foot into her stir and sat upon your pony's back who stood willing and able to take her anywhere that she pleased and as mild and even temper as you would see any!"
Merry groaned and whimpered hold onto his aching chest, laughing and laughing. Taking his pillow he tossed it at Pippin to get him to stop.
xxx
Some folks argued that the race was not fair because it was Estella who brought the pony to the finish line, while others said it did not matter, the pony was the real winner, depending on which line of the Shire you were on. The Bucklanders stood firm on all accounts that their pony they betted on was the victor of the race, while those in Frogmorton, Stock and even in Hobbiton dared to differ on that opinion. The Tooks, being who they are held no opinion on either side just enjoyed the adventure of having a long distance pony race that covered their neck of the woods and all the way down the Brandy Hall, and they wrote about it in their books so all would remember this notable events for all times to come. The bets were paid in full, some irately, but paid no less.
It was not long when Merry was back on his feet once more and spending a lot of his time in Stock with Estella or Estella spending time in Brandy Hall. Either way they were an item that everyone took noticed too. It was during Pippin's wedding to Diamond when the real questions began of when they would set a date for their own wedding and their wedding invitations would be mailed out. However, Merry and Estella just kept telling everyone that they just could not come up with a date on their calendar.
Mostly it was Estella who always found a reason each time Merry would ask her. She would tell him he needed to wait. However, after six months of excuses she was running out of ideas to hold him off from setting a date and he was pressuring her daily.
It was the first day of spring on a very warm sunny afternoon when they went riding their ponies through the country side of Buckland. Estella was especially nervous and watched the sun as it crept through the afternoon sky. Feeling that the time was right, she asked Merry to take her across the Brandywine Bridge and offered to race him there. They took off in a flash, laughing with excitement while running their ponies.
The closer Merry got to the Brandywine Bridge he immediately noticed two odd looking fellows standing and waiting upon the bridge. One was very tall and the other very short, but not near as short as a hobbit would be. A brilliant smile of recognition crossed Merry's face the closer he got. He kicked Snowclad and dashed off to meet them.
Standing in the center of the bridge was Gimli and Legolas and they waved when they saw him. Dismounting Merry ran to greet them, with Estella following closely behind him.
"Whatever are the both of you doing this far from Gondor?" asked Merry.
"We come with an invitation to see you," offered Gimli.
"That letter came from a lass, who wants you to fulfill your dreams and take you with us back to Gondor, for a visit," added Legolas.
Merry looked at Estella in surprise and then knew why she kept putting him off on their wedding plans. Smiling at his beloved, he turned to his friends. "I had no idea that this conspiracy of yours was being arranged. It is something that I must think over before I accept."
"Take your time, Laddy, since we just got here, I am not looking forward to riding on the behind of that elf's horse, any time soon," said Gimli and he chuckled and winked at Legolas.
"You two are welcome to stay at Brandy Hall, while we catch up on our times missed," offered Merry.
Legolas turned to Merry and told him, "I do appreciate your offer, Merry, but on our way here, we met up with Lord Elrond's sons. He had offered me to share his camp as we have much to speak of. You know they guard the lands of the Shire."
"Elves," grumbled Gimli, "But I, Laddy, would find great comfort in the walls of your home, so lead on and we will follow you."
Legolas and Merry spent their time visiting with each other on their way to Brandy Hall, since he would not stay with them. Estella listened carefully to their conversation and could see for herself how much Merry had missed them. She was happy that she had sent the letter to them asking them to come to Buckland.
She heard stories of the king and his gentle rule of his people where their lives have come to know peace and prosperity and the rebuilding of Minas Tirith. Gimli interrupted Legolas when he would forget his part in the tale and his efforts to aid and assist the king of Gondor. Legolas would only smile back at Merry and the both would break out in laughter at his grumblings. She knew before they bid Legolas their good evenings and turned back to the road heading for Brandy Hall that Merry would go with them. Although she knew in her heart how much she would miss him, she knew that they would spend the rest of their lives living a life full of happiness and love.
The end….
A/N: Okay that was a little bit longer….smile…
I just wanted to thank everyone who reviewed my story and I hope that you enjoyed it as much as I did in writing it.
If you have not read, 'The New Mistress of Brandy Hall', it is some what a sequel to this story that I have rewritten. It begins with Merry and Estella's wedding and carries on to events that shake the entire walls of Brandy Hall….It is one of my favorite stories that I have written and one I think you would enjoy. So if you read it, please offer your review, I would love to know your opinions…
I have another story I am working out in my head about Frodo and secrets within the walls of Bag End. Until I have the plot figured out entirely, then I will write it….
Until my next story…bye for now….Loveofthering