A small dot of light started to grow out of the infinite abyss. It was small at first, then grew and grew. The light was dazzling in the darkness. It soon over powered the inky blackness.
Breathing could be heard. Shadows and noises. The figure moved closer and closer to the edge of the light. As he did so, the figures became more and more sharper. The light seemed to have smoke twirling silently around it. But there was no source of the brightness.
The shadows moved around. His eyes darted at each one of them. This was a very tall figure. He was dressed in different cloths. The white light started to die down. The small being looked around. It was then that he felt it on his face.
Wind.
But not a harsh, cold wind. But a warm, gentle wind. Like that in the height of summer. Feeling came to the small beings feet. The light was now a curtain behind him. Trees were standing tall and graceful before him. In the distance, rolling hills stood below tall, snow capped mountains.
Birds flew on their own or in flocks. More people then the being had ever seen. He was used to a calm and peaceful life. These people seemed to be wild and dangerous looking. But there was one figure that he recognised.
It was a hobbit. A young looking one. He smiled and started to walk towards him.
"Odovacar" he said, embracing him.
Odovacar was still confused. He was in a strange place. But he wasn't scared. In fact, he was feeling calm.
"You made it" said the hobbit.
Odovacar still confused. He had not seen his father for a very long time.
"Where… Where am I?" he asked, mustering up the strength to talk.
Odovacar's father was called Herugar. Like most hobbit families, they looked the same. But there was some difference in their looks.
"You have past the silver curtain"
There was a smile on his face. But it had no evil in it. Odovacar's eyes darted around. There was small groups of men talking. About what, he did not know.
"You are safe here, this is where they come when their time on Middle-Earth had ended" Herugar told his son.
"End their time?" Odovacar asked.
Herugar gave a small nod.
"Yes, everyone has time on earth to change it for the better or the worse. Everyone you see here had a good sprit" he told him.
But all of it was too much to take in at one time. There were so many people, dwarves and hobbits around.
"This son, is where you will be spending the rest of time"
Back in the real world, silence. The crackling of the fire had all be gone. Red hot embers were now sitting at the bottom. Rosamunda was sitting in the same seat she had been for hours. Her husbands hands were now cold and lifeless. His eyes were closed.
All three of the living hobbits were in different rooms. Memories and emotions were flooding over in all of them. Tiredness seemed not to be a problem for them at this moment in time. Estella was laying on her own bed. Tears were running down her face.
A feeling that she had never felt before was running though her. She could feel an invisible hand touching her shoulder. But there was nothing there. No hand and no body else in the room.
Time seemed to be going slower. Estella laid there, on her side, her left arm under the pillow while the right was on top. The pillow case soaked up her tears. Her nose was running and her eyes red.
"Why?" she whispered to herself.
Tears ran over her nose. It annoyed her, but she did nothing about it. Everything in the world seemed to be against her. A small bit of hatred surfaced.
"Why did this happen to us?"
Estella knew that deep down, lots of other people, men and dwarves were feeling the same thing. But at this moment in time, she felt that she was the only one suffering.
The snow outside was still coming down on the land. Creatures of every sort tried to find shelter from the relentless snow. Owls perched in abandoned buildings. Their big staring eyes scanned the area. The snowflakes were coming down at an amazing rate. The carpet of snow was now getting deeper by the minute.
Small mice and rats run about. The owls suddenly and silently swooped down and scooped them up. The mouse squeaked in terror as massive, powerful claws closed around it.
The owl's wings were silent and graceful as it climbed in height to a different tree. The own was so silent, that even the small fairy could see it.
But this was not important to her. Her little wings were very wet. The wind was blowing her off course. There was a small path leading back to Hobbiton.
Ivy had no idea where Origo had gone. The snow continued to pelt down at the small fairy. Worry was strong in her heart. She needed to find the puppy. But there were many different directions that he could have gone.
Ivy stopped in midair and fluttered for a few seconds. The snow was heavy, it created a white blanket that she could not see though.
"Where is he?" she asked herself.
The small fairy the fluttered off again. There was no sign of the fox or Origo. Origo had run off in an unknown direction. The snow was hitting his face as he looked back to see the large creature bounding behind him.
For a moment, it looked like Origo was going to be caught. But the small puppy rounded a tree. A rabbit hole had been dug from the earth.
The small puppy scampered inside. The small, tight tunnel lead deeper and deeper into the ground. A few times, it branched off. But Origo could still hear the angry fox trying to get to him.
The night slowly started to turn into day. The sunlight started to revile what happened during the night. Hobbiton was now in a blanket of white snow again. Chimneys smoked on the hill side. Life inside the hills was starting up again after a cold night.
The second day of Yule had just begun. But for some, this was a day to forget. Sadness had replaced the happiness in one household. Estella was laying on her bed. Her eyes were closed. The fire in the heath was burning in small red and white embers.
It had been an uncomfortable night for her and the rest of her family. A strangeness came over the whole house. The sprit of Odovacar had past over into a new and unseen world. Rolling hills of the greenest, lushes grass lay before him. But he was not alone in that world.
All the hobbits, humans and dwarves that had ever lived under the sun were there. Yet there was no hatred or regret. There was calm and happiness.
Estella slowly arose from her shallow sleep. In fact, she felt like she hadn't slept a wink all night. Her eyes slowly opened. They were out of focus as she looked around. Everything in the room, although it was hers, looked different somehow.
The memory of the night before came flooding back to her. She had lost her father. She could not come to terms with the fact that she would never be hearing his voice again.
A few tears started to flow from her eyes again. The sadness was so much so that she felt like she would never feel happiness again. Estella looked up at the ceiling. Her fathers voice running though her head.
The clock on the wall chimed nine times. The light outside was still growing. Estella looked towards the door, but had no plans in going out of her room.
Rosamunda was already awake and in the kitchen. She took a deep breath and flipped the bacon. The sound of sizzling arose from the room.
There were slices of bread laying on the work top. Butter had been spread over them. Rosamunda looked down at the hot slices of bacon sitting in the pan. They were taken out and laid on the butter covered slices of white bread.
The woman placed another piece over the top. She placed it on the first of three plates. The sandwich was placed the plate. But there were still slices sitting there with no bacon to fill it.
Yet, luckily, there were more thin slices of meat. The sizzling started up again as Rosamunda picked up the plate and walked out of the room. Only her feet could be heard slapping on the cold tiles as she made her way down the hall way.
A door way came into view. It was Fredegar's room. She stopped outside the door and knocked three times. After a few seconds of silence, there was no answer.
Rosamunda slowly gripped the cold handle. The door was slowly opened. It creaked at its hinges. The room was very warm. The fire had yet to reach the state of the others.
On the bed, a large hobbit lay. Fredegar was facing away from the door. Rosamunda stood there for a few more seconds.
"Fredegar?" she asked, coming in and closing the door.
"I brought you some food"
But there was no answer. Fredegar just continued to lay there, ignoring his mother like she was not even in the room. Rosamunda continued looking at her oldest child.
She knew the pain that he was going though. A big hole had been ripped out of all of the hearts. Only time could heal it. But it would not be a smooth ride.
"It's bacon, I thought…"
But she was interrupted.
"I'm not hungry" Fredegar told her.
Rosamunda was confused.
"Not hungry?" she asked.
But like before, he question was not answered. Rosamunda took a deep breath and looked down at the plate. She slowly walked up to the bed. There was a small bed side table. A single candle had been left burning over night.
There was no movement from Fredegar.
"I'll just leave this here, you can eat it later"
The plate was placed down. Rosamunda stood there for a few more seconds before turning and walking out of the room again.
Diamond was sitting at the kitchen in the table. She took a deep sad breath.
"I just, don't know where he is" she told her husband.
Pippin was holding his son. A small bowl was sitting on the table before him. A spoon was held in his hand. Diamond had made yet another batch of orange mush.
"Well, he couldn't have gotten out, could he?" Peregrin asked, scooping a bit of the mush out on the spoon.
Both hobbits had a mug of tea before them.
"I don't know, I don't think neither of us let him out"
Diamond knew that she had been busy yesterday. She looked over at his bowl. It was empty.
"Maybe I had been too busy yesterday"
She started to blame herself again. Worry started to over take her, not a strong worry, but worry none the less. She drank her tea and placed the mug down.
"I'm going to see where he is, if he's not in the house, maybe he's outside somewhere" she said, getting up for her seat.
She yawned as she walked out of the room. Diamond was already fully dressed and ready to go out. The temperature outside was much colder then it had been for the last few days.
Snow covered the ground in a smooth carpet. But the beauty was soon spoilt by hobbits walking along the path. Small children ran in the fields. Their snow hobbits had all melted, but that didn't bother them. Cold balls of snow were being made. They were either thrown or built up.
But there was one small boy that was going to miss Yule. Frodo Gamgee was still laying in his bed. He had not woken from his sleep for the past few days.
But all of that was about to change.
Samwise, his father, had been getting warmer water. He had walked back into the room. It was then that he noticed something different about his oldest son.
After days of his eyes being closed, they were now a small bit open.
"Frodo?" asked Sam, placing the bowl of water on the floor.
Sam pulled up the chair and sat on it. He took one of his son's small, cold hands.
"Frodo, can you hear me?" he asked.
Nothing mattered to Samwise any more. The bowl of water, the sounds of his other children. They could all wait. A small mumble came from him. Frodo Gamgee's lips were very dry. The small boy was weak, having had nothing to eat for a few days.
The coldness that he had been in had taken his toll. The warmth of Sam's hands fed into Frodo's. A few blinks could be seen as the boy continued to come round.
"Frodo, Frodo can you hear me?" Sam asked, looking worried.
For the past few days, Sam had spent most of that time locked in the room.
"Y.. yes" Frodo said weakly.
He was pale and looked very ill. Samwise gave a small smile. He couldn't dream of losing his oldest son. But now, everything seemed to be looking up for the Gamgee family.
Frodo could only get better in health.
"I'm.. I'm hungry" Frodo said, taking a deep breath.
His eyes continued to scan around the room. everything seemed different to him some how. He recognised some things, but they did not mean anything to him.
"Alright, just stay here alright?" Sam asked.
Frodo gave a small nod as Sam got up. His father walked to the door, opened it and went out. The sounds rose for a second, the were dulled out by the door.
Samwise walked down the small tunnel to the kitchen. There, Rosie was making breakfast for the rest of her children. She looked around.
"Sam?" she asked, turning away from cutting the bread for her children.
But Sam did not answer. He walked straight to the cellar and opened the door. Rosie had a white apron on. The cutting knife was left on the side.
Elanor looked between her mother and the cellar where her father was. Rosie stopped at the door. She could barely see her husband. But she did not have to wait long for him to come out.
"Sam, what's the matter?" she asked.
Still, Samwise did not answer. He placed the loaf of bread on the work surface and got out a mug. The hobbit filled it with cool water.
Without a word to his wife, he left the room. Elanor was looking at the door that her father had just walked out of. She didn't know what was going on, but she had her own ideas.
Rosie took a deep breath and walked over to the worktop. She picked up the knife and continued to cut though the bread.
Meanwhile, Sam had sat down again. He ripped off part of the bread, crumbs feel on the floor in small flakes.
"Here" he said, holding it out.
Little Frodo looked at it.
"I've changed my mind, you have it" Frodo told his father.
Samwise continued to hold out the piece of bread for a few more seconds. He lowered it.
"Would you take some water?" Sam asked, picking up the full mug of cool water.
Frodo grabbed the mug and lifted it to his lips. The level of the water slowly started to drain away. Samwise smiled. Frodo stopped drinking and took a deep breath in.
Samwise looked down at the bread and placed the loaf on the side of the bed. But the small bit that he had ripped off was still in his hands.
"It seems a waste of bread" Sam thought, looking at it.
So, he started to eat it. The crust crunched as he chewed down on it. Sam had had barely anything to eat for the past few days. His son was now sitting up. His eyes were still scanning the room.
Just then, Rosie walking into the room.
"Frodo!" she said, rushing towards him.
Frodo and Rosie instantly embraced in a huge hug.
"Frodo, are you alright?"
There was a tear in Rosie's eye. But it was not due to sadness, it was of happiness. For the past few days, all of her worries had been about her oldest son.
Rosie tore herself away.
"Are you upset at me?" Frodo asked, looking down.
"No, no of course not" Rosie answered.
Frodo took a deep breath.
"I knew I shouldn't have done it" Frodo told his mother.
But Rosie was not worried about that at the moment. Her son was all that mattered.
"Are you hungry?" Rosie asked, looking down at the bread.
Little Frodo gave a small nod. He was very tired and hungry.
"Here" said Rosie, breaking a bit off.
Crying came from the kitchen. Something had happened with the other children. She looked at the door and took a deep breath.
"I'll be back soon" she said.
She stood up and walked out of the room.
Meanwhile, Diamond was walking on the crisp snow that had been lain over night. Her hair was blowing in the gentle wind. the coldness was tickling her face as she made her way towards the Green Dragon.
But there was no signs of her puppy around. Hobbit children were running all around her. Diamond smiled, knowing that one of them would be Faramir in a few years.
The hobbit stopped and looked around. she was trying to get into the mind of her puppy.
"Now, if I were him, where would I be?" she asked herself.
All around her, hobbits were immerging from their warm houses. Some hobbits were talking about the meals that they had had. Others were talking about warmer weather. Diamond continued to walk down to the small square in front of the pub.
Water vapour was rising as she stopped and looked around. There was no sign of her puppy anywhere.
"Maybe I should just go home" she thought.
There seemed to be no hope of Origo ever being found again. Feelings that were once buried were now coming back.
Diamond had only been a young girl at the time. Hunger was now getting to her. She had not been out of her room for the past few hours. But now, she was ready to come out. She felt more tired then she had been since she arose from her sleep a few hours before.
The sun outside was still beating outside, yet its height was slowly sinking towards the western horizon. Birds and bees continued to fly around as the clouds made the temperature lower then it should be. Diamond continued to walk to a very warm kitchen. There was no one in there. Her mother and father had gone out for a small walk and provisions.
The kitchen was silent as she walked in. her lunch was sitting on the table. cold mushrooms, bacon, sausages but to name a few were sitting on the plate.
Diamond got onto her seat, where she always sat and looked at her meal. She took a look at her meal as she picked up the knife and fork. The small girl then started to cut up the cold bacon.
Diamond did not bother about it being colder then normal. Hunger was now over taking her. A small shred of bacon was cut off. The fork was lifted up. The bacon was stuck to it.
The young girl continued to eat. It took her a few minutes to finish her meal. All of the condense had been cleared. Diamond was now smiling, her sprits were lifting as her hunger was being fought back.
A noise echoed though the house. Diamond looked over at the door. She knew exactly who it was. Her mother and father had returned.
The young girl quickly got off her seat and walked towards the door. But she had left it too late. Her mother had come around the door way. Little Diamond stopped in her tracks. Her mother stopped as well. She was carrying a basket full of fresh bread and uncooked beef and bacon. There were a few eggs and a few pints of milk also.
The two of them looked at each other. There was a strange tension between them. A few times, Diamond's mother went to say something, but did not.
Diamond slowly walked out the room and along the corridor. Her mother took a deep breath as she placed the basket on the work top. A white cloth had been placed over the packages in the basket.
She took it off and placed it on the work top. Inside the basket were different packets of stuff. The eggs were taken out and placed carefully on the side. The large flask of cool milk was taken out.
Loaves of bread, a large chunk of red beef and a few slices of bacon. Soon, everything was place on the work top. The basket was placed by the cellar door. Diamond's mother then went back to the work top.
In the present, Diamond was slowly walking back to her house. The coldness was deeper then it had been in a while. The snow crushed under foot. The wind made her even colder then would have liked. Chimneys smoked, showing signs of life in the hill side. As Diamond was heading back home, someone called out her name.
she looked around to see Marigold Gamgee smiling and walking towards her.
"I haven't seen you in an age!" she said, hugging Diamond.
Diamond gave her a forced smile. All she wanted was to go home and wait for her puppy. But she had to put on a different face.
"I know, I'm sorry" she said, looking at the golden hair girl before her.
"What if you come over later on? We could have a nice long talk" Diamond said.
Marigold smiled and nodded.
"I could come now if you would like"
Diamond thought on. Faramir would want his nap soon.
"Well, Faramir will be asleep soon and I have to clean up a bit" Diamond told her.
"Oh, right" Marigold said.
There was a strong likeness to Samwise in Marigold. They were the two closest born Gamgee children. Both Sam and Marigold, also known as Mari to her closest friends, were the closest in age.
"Well, I need to go and see my brother Sam for a while, I'll be around later on" she said.
The two girls hugged and parted ways.
Diamond walked to her gate and opened it. There was still no sign of Origo around. In fact, Origo was asleep. Asleep in a small fox hole.
Ivy was still searching for him. Her little wings were beating fast as she flew though the forest. A path wound though the forest. But there was still no sign of Origo.
"Oh where could he be?"
Ivy had been searching for most of the night, going down rabbit hole and foxes dens in search of him. Another fox hole came into view.
"He has to be in this one" she told herself, zooming down to the floor.
The snow seemed to be thinner around the edge of hole. Ivy looked inside. The darkness seemed to go on for ever. Her little, fragile wings were tucked away.
"Origo?" she asked.
The small fairy was a bit scared. The darkness seemed much bigger then she was. The small fairy slowly walked in. The land outside swallowed her up as she walked deeper.
The coldness of the wind seemed to be blocked out by the walls of soil either side. Small roots seemed to poke out of the black soil. The small bit of light radiated from the small fairy. It was the only light that was down in the darkness.
Ivy's small heart was all that she could hear. Her eyes were scanning around. The roots seemed to thin the further she went down. It was then that she saw it. A large black hole.
The fairy stopped.
She was weary going down any strange or dangerous passage that may lead her into trouble. Ivy took a step towards it.
"Origo, are you here?" she asked, looking inside.
The light fell on an empty chamber. The floor seemed to be covered in thin strands of red hair. This means foxes had once lived here. But there was no sign of her puppy.
Ivy took a deep breath and looked around. She wondered how many other small chambers she had to check before she would find him. There was a small bit of cold wind blowing down from the outside world.
Ivy came across the second chamber. It was then, when she was just about to go in, she heard a small sneeze. She stopped suddenly. Her heart quickly began to rise in pace.
The small fairy slowly poked her head around the side of the hole. The green light touched a small black creature. Two small eyes glinted back at her. It was Origo.
"Origo, what are you doing here? Are you alright?"
But she was not answered. The puppy continued looking at her, but didn't answer. Ivy slowly walked towards him. To the fairy, Origo was big and more powerful then she was. But to hobbits, Origo was small and vulnerable.
"Do you want to go home? I'm sure Diamond is trying to look for you" Ivy told the puppy.
By Origo was not in the mood to talk to anyone. He was cold and alone in the world. All he wanted to do was to lay where he was.
Ivy took a deep breath and looked around. The chamber was not very nice. A few cold drips on muddy water fell from the top of the chamber. A few landed on Origo's fluffy fur.
He whined every time a drip landed on him. The temperature was making him shiver a bit. He longed to go back to his Diamond. But he wasn't sure that she loved him anymore.
In fact, she did. Diamond was feeling very guilty indeed. She knew that she should not have ignored him. But there was nothing to do but wait for him to come back, if he did at all.
Marigold had reached her brother's home. The door opened and Rosie was standing there. A smile came over her face.
"Hello Marigold, do come in" she said, opening the door wider.
Marigold smiled and made her way in. There were no mats to wipe her feet on. But Rosie didn't seem to mind. The door was quickly closed. The children, from what Mari could hear, were now playing though out Bag End.
Marigold took off her coat and went to hang in. but there were no free pegs. She looked around, but Rosie was busy picking up toys. Mari thought better of it and placed her coat on one of the very full looking pegs. She then walked away.
A small girl suddenly started to run up to her. Mari instantly started to smile.
"Auntie Marigold!" the girl said.
The two of them embraced in a big cuddle.
"How are you doing Elanor?" she asked, kissing her niece.
Elanor giggled.
"I am fine" she answered.
"Come on, lets go and find mummy"
So, Elanor was carried all the way to kitchen. There, Rosie was getting out two mugs of tea.
"So, how have you been?" Marigold asked, putting Elanor on the floor.
There were other children around. Merry and Rose were playing a chasing game. They scooted past Mari as she sat down. They both laughed as they left the room.
"So, how is Sam? I haven't seen him for a while" marigold told her.
Rosie stopped for a split second. It was the subject matter that she couldn't hide.
"Oh, well, he's fine" Rosie answered, hoping that was enough to change the subject.
Deep down, Marigold knew that she was being lied to.
"The house seems really busy today" Mari said, looking around at the wooden toys on the floor.
Within the mess of the toys there were flutes, wooden swords, small pull along ducks for Rose and some how, one of Rosie's wooden spoons.
"Well, the children are just excited about Yule" Rosie answered, placing the now heavy kettle on the hook above the fire.
The fire was raging, sending smoke rushing up the chimney into the cold air outside. There were clocks mounted to the wall. They were all showing the time. The minute hand was on the black number seven and the hour hand was on the number ten.
The fire tickled the underside of the kettle. It had already been burnt black after years and years of being placed over the fire.
A small bit of water vapour started to snake out of the top of the kettle. This was a sign of the water starting to heat up. Two mugs were placed on the work top. A small box of tea leaves was taken out as well as a jar of white sugar.
The box was opened and a strong smell of tea hit Rosie's nose.
Marigold was looking around. Candles were flickering on their stands. Over all, the whole room had a welcoming feel to it.
The tiled floor, although having a large family walking over it nearly ever day, was unusually clean and dirt free. The kettle slowly continued to boil the water inside. Rosie placed a few of the tea leaves into the mugs.
"I have to put the two chickens in the oven soon" Rosie said, half to herself and half to Marigold.
The cellar door opened. Rosie walked in, leaving Mari sitting by herself in the kitchen. But she was not alone for long. Elanor came walking in. Her hair was near enough the same colour as her aunties hair.
"What are you doing Auntie Marigold?" she asked, stopping.
Marigold smiled at her favourite niece.