Disclaimers: See the Prologue for more information.

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This chapter took me a couple of times to rework and rewrite certain scenes, even during the revision process. Anyway, the chapter's out and posted now. :)

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4:

As We Walk in the Garden…

"Good morning!" Frodo called out, hoping that the students in the cafeteria would notice. "Pipe down, please." For a moment, he didn't think anyone would listen to him. But then the room grew silent. Okay, he could do this, "Or should I say 'good afternoon'. Anyway, you were pulled out of your worlds for a reason. You were chosen to be here, very much like I was. This is a heroes' university, and we treat each other with respect. The heroes here know this, as do their descendants." He turned his gaze to his wife and daughter. They still needed him.

He admitted to the crowd, "And you're here for different reasons. By and by, we'll get through this. The school year begins when Aslan says so. Then we will have our schedules. Until that time, I encourage everyone, as this may be your first time here, to go on tours of the school, get familiar with the hallways, the cafeteria, and even your dorms, apartments and houses. I hope to see everyone having a good time here, and making friends. The same goes to you, fanfiction authors. We're here to help each other, as that's what we do. Thank you, and enjoy the day!"

As he waved and walked off-stage, Frodo froze for a second. Everyone… was cheering and applauding. So, he did it right this time. He sighed in relief, rejoining his wife and daughter.

"Where's Sam, Merry and Pippin? Your friends, father," Rosemary asked. Frodo had to agree. Where was his friends?

"I'm sure they'll be here," he admitted.

"Yes, but we haven't seen them yet, have we?" Rose asked, quite confused.

"They'll be here. I saw them I the smial just last week." Frodo rested a hand on Rose's arm. He encouraged her, "They'll be here. You all right?"

"We're here to help you…" Ebony was cut off by her daughter, who said in return:

"I know, Mother. Thank you," she smiled at her mother. Good, Frodo thought. This was good for them. Getting along and all.

"I'm glad we're all right now," Frodo grinned at them. Yes, they were. What could possibly go wrong?

His question was answered when a flock of birds careened across the tables, interrupting many lunches. Frodo did his best to duck, but more so protecting his wife and his daughter. It was the best he could do. As much as he wanted to get the birds out, he had no power to stop them. Just when things could have gone worse, Frodo glanced over at Radagast the Brown. The wizard in the brown robes and hat said a few words, leaving the birds to fly up and out of the castle, through the ceiling. By the time Frodo looked up and around, the cafeteria was in a mess: food was thrown in places, drinks were spilt. It couldn't have been a more terrible lunch fiasco.

Standing up, Frodo told the crowd: "Don't panic. We'll get this sorted out."

"No, no. We'll take care of it, Frodo Baggins," said a man in grey robes and silvery hair.

"Thank you, Dumbledore." Frodo sat back down, only to discover a moment later – thanks to Aslan's roar – the cafeteria was spotless and shiny. The gentlehobbit waited until Gandalf and Dumbledore used their magic to make food appear on all the tables, as well as fresh glasses filled with splendid drinks.

Shortly after lunch, Frodo returned to the stage, where he said to the crowd, "Tonight, we're having an open house in all the buildings. Those wishing to join in any activities, clubs and whatnot may go to your designated booth. An hour afterwards, there will be a party, for everyone. Please remember to be respectful. You may visit your dorms, houses and apartments if you wish. I trust this will be a long moving day and week. Thank you."

As he sat back down, when the applause died down and the crowd of students and staff went their separate ways, Frodo returned his gaze to his wife and his daughter. Before he had the chance to stop her, Rosemary asked him, "I'm going to find Edmund, if that's all right?"

"That's fine." Frodo whispered in her ear, "I trust Edmund more than Bane."

Rosemary whispered in return, "I'll be careful, father."

"I know you will." Frodo kissed the top of her forehead. "Now go. You don't want to keep Edmund waiting."

"Thank you father, mother." Rose stood up, rushing into Peter and Edmund. "Oh, I'm sorry. But can I join you two?"

"Sure," Edmund was unsure about this.

"We'd be grateful that you come with us. I'll show you the garden," Peter said.

"Then we can take you the waterfall and…" Edmund's voice was drowned out by the crowd. Frodo waved to them, as did his wife, as soon as the Pevensies wandered out of the cafeteria. Frodo looked back at his wife, as she was finishing the last of her chocolate cake, with vanilla frosting.

"I'll wait until you're done." Frodo leaned in close to his wife. "I have something to show you, too."

"What is it?" Ebony asked between bites. Frodo chuckled behind his teeth. His wife was sure curious over what he had in store for them.

When Ebony was finished and her tray put away – Frodo did the same minutes ago – the gentlehobbit took his wife to the campus' courtyard. It wasn't the first courtyard, which had statues of lions standing next to the doors to the castle, but it was just as impressive, as all the courtyards were at the Heroes' University. But this second courtyard had a large fountain in the shape of a swan, with three tiers and a large pool of water. The water was crystalized and very clean, enough to see reflections from them. Surrounding the fountain and acting like barriers, was large green hedge, encircling the fountain but with gaps for exploring the rest of the garden.

Ebony was in awe, and for good reason. This second courtyard was miraculous to behold.

"What do you think? I just found this courtyard not two days ago." Frodo grinned at her. She was so beautiful, he felt like he was falling in love with her all over again.

"Aslan sure went through a lot of work." Ebony blushed. "It reminds me of Lothlórien, Rivendell and wherever the elves gather."

"I think that's what Aslan had in mind." He couldn't stop looking at Ebony. Frodo did his best to look away, and yet he couldn't. He didn't want his wife to miss anything else. "You know we have to go back tonight and chaperone."

"Do I have to?" she asked. Frodo shook his head.

"Well, only if you want to."

"But you just said…"

"Yes, I know what I said, Ebony." Frodo continued, calmly, "Look, anyone whose been a character, in books or movies or whatnot can chaperone. But that doesn't mean that we can't enjoy ourselves, while we're there."

"Well, if it's an open house party, then sure. I'll do that. Yes." She nodded.

Frodo sighed. "Good. I'm glad."

"So, the staff are chaperones tonight," Ebony asked, curious.

"Yes, they are. And there's a lot of staff that'll be there tonight. So, we may not have that much to do, except keep an eye out for our daughter," Frodo said, peering over at Rosemary, who was having quite the conversation with the Pevensie brothers.

"Yes, I believe you're right." Ebony asked next, "So, does chaperoning mean it'll be our first date here or… well…"

"If you can call it that. Then yes." Frodo nodded in return. Taking her hand, the gentlehobbit led his wife over to the fountain. He looked at his wife again, asking her, more out of curiosity, "Ebony?"

"Yes Frodo?" She asked, also curious.

He paused for a moment. "You look beautiful."

"Thank you." Her gaze returned to the fountain. Frodo heaved a sigh, unaware for a brief couple of seconds that Ebony had noticed. "Frodo, what's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just we've been living together for two weeks and… well, I wondered if you wanted to go on a date with me." Now that he said it, he returned his gaze to her. But when he did look at her, she was avoiding him. "Ebony, are you all right?"

"Yeah. I'm fine." But even she couldn't keep the truth from him. She said, transfixed on the fountain, "Yes Frodo, I'll go on a date with you." Frodo placed a hand close to his ear. Ebony tried again, a little louder this time, "I want to go on a date with you. Yes."

Frodo chuckled. It felt good that she agreed to go on a date with him. While he hardly understood what a date meant, having his wife with him made things better. He wrapped an arm around her to show that he heard her, even adding a kiss on her forehead to lighten the mood. And yet, he could sense that his wife was already planning her part in the date.

He smiled at her again, looking into her eyes as he said next: "I'll help you plan the evening. Since this is our first date together, we'll plan it out." He whispered in her ear, "We'll plan it out as a family, but tonight we've got the open house party."

"Then when will we have it?" Ebony asked, looking up at him.

"Sometime this weekend." Frodo kissed her forehead a second time. "Don't worry. We'll figure it out together." He watched the fountain now. Relief washed over him as the fountain's water splashed and flowed in a calming movement. The water in this world calmed him, allowed him to let go of the past, even when he couldn't. It was something about this university, this world, that gave him the strength needed to keep his emotions and memories intact. And for once, with his family and friends, he was happy.

-.-.-

Rosemary loved looking at the roses, whether by her namesake or otherwise. For all she knew, the rose had many purposes. Well, she liked looking at the roses, but it was the petunias that she liked the most. She was grateful Edmund and Peter brought her to the garden, or she would have missed the flowers. Her gaze met Edmund's as they walked further into the garden.

"What do you like about the garden, Rosemary?" Peter asked, getting her attention.

"The flowers. They're always so wonderful. They know who their parents are," Rose said, looking up at the eldest Pevensie brother.

"Do you? We know your parents are Frodo Baggins and Ebony Fisher," Edmund said.

"Yes, and I'm Rosemary Blain," Rose countered. "But seriously, if I'm supposed to be a Baggins, how did this whole mess get started. And why, after all these years, my parents happen to not have the same last name. Did they divorce or something? Because Frodo and Ebony's relationship is mending." She apologized at once, "I'm sorry. I don't mean to offend…"

"Rosemary, I'm afraid it's a bit more complicated." Edmund explained, "And no, they didn't divorce." He turned to Peter, "Pete, can you help explain this?"

"Rosemary, even your parents are trying to figure this out, too," Peter said.

"Why is it complex? Why is my family like this? We don't even share a last name together. Did something happen that I don't understand?" Rose knew she had better ask the right questions.

"I'm afraid it is a long story," Peter hesitated, "I think it's best if Frodo and Ebony explain it themselves."

"We would love to tell you," Edmund said, "but Pete's right. You'll have to speak to your parents about it."

"So my search to find my family is…" Rose didn't know how to describe it.

"Your family is here, Rose, and there are people here as well that care about you," Edmund explained.

"We do as well. Uh… we'll protect you for as long as we can." Peter said, as he moved next to Rose, "You're safe here in these walls and in this university. We're here to help you, and each other. Some of our wounds last longer than others, but we're here to help you and if you need any healing, the healers are available to help out, too."

"Well, that's all very nicely handled, but who's going to keep an eye out for Wolf and his son, Bane?" Rosemary asked. She didn't like how Bane kept coming onto her, offering her various gifts, including chocolates and flowers. It was as if she had her very own wolf mate… eh, admirer sounded better. "Frodo doesn't approve of him."

"Well, he's well aware of Wolf," Edmund told her.

"That's one reason to explain Frodo's dislike for Bane," Peter added.

Suddenly Rosemary felt a little better towards her own dilemma. "What can we do about him?"

"We'll keep an eye for him. Won't we, Ed?" Peter looked at his younger brother.

"I'll start this way and meet you two around the bend." Edmund took off at a run.

Rosemary was now alone with Peter. She felt her heart racing inside her chest. She hadn't met a king before, even one from Narnia, but Peter… well, Peter Pevensie was someone she could trust. A bit more than she could trust Bane, even with his attempts at trying to woe her.

"So, what's on your mind?" Peter asked, bringing Rose back to reality.

"Well, you see, there's a lot going on that…" Rose explained her story of how she ended up in Narnia and met her father, Frodo Baggins. In a way, she was glad to have met her parents and the Pevensies. The Lewis-Wolfson family had their ups and downs, but they acted like wolves. But since she, Rose, was born from a family of hobbits, having a wolf admirer was not on her to do list. And from what Frodo – her father - said about wolves and hobbits, it almost seemed unheard of that the two sides should meet. Hobbits did not like wolves, so how she ended up in this mix of things… it was unheard of in her ears and eyes.

Maybe she was becoming a wolf lover… no, that was too much for her to handle. For now, she just hoped at the open house party, she wouldn't run into Bane. Given it was a vast school with so many buildings being built in one world, added to the number of farms and woods available for their use… well, she just hoped to get through this evening without much delay.

And so the day commenced without question. Although, Rosemary couldn't help but notice her parents' relationship was on the mend. That was good, but how was she to get through this evening? She would need something to wear, and if she needed to bring food and drink… well, maybe it was better to get through this morning without… oh no. It was Bane again, with an arrangement of freshly picked flowers.

"For you, Miss Rosemary." Bane smiled at her. Bad timing, Bane, she thought, bad timing.

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Chapter 5 Teaser:

Indeed, it was bad timing. The moment Bane tossed to Rose the flowers, he darted through the gardens and into the next building. But he wasn't alone, for Peter and Edmund chased him right into the cafeteria. Bane howled and Edmund pounced, until Peter broke them up.

"This fighting won't help us." Peter turned sharply to Bane. "I don't know what your plan is, but leave Rosemary alone. She's been through enough."

"Haven't I? I was only being polite." Bane asked, curtly, "Why did your brother, King Edmund, pounce on me? I can't help how I feel about Rosemary. It's animal passion, as my father says."

"You look human to me," Edmund said, confused.

"Well, I'm not. I'm part animal, part wolf, son. And I'm outta here. See you royals later!" Bane scampered out of the cafeteria a moment later. Edmund was confused.

"Do you think we should keep an eye on him?" Edmund asked.

"Yes, we should, especially tonight, at the party." Peter told his brother last, "You stay and keep an eye out on Bane."

"Where are you going?" he asked, still confused.

"To see if someone else needs our help," he said.

"I thought I was supposed to keep an eye out on Bane," Edmund retorted.

"Well, you decide where you want to go…"

"I'm coming with you."

"Okay. Then watch my back." Peter scurried off in search of someone else to help. He looked back as his brother. Good. At least he had someone else to keep an eye out of things. Then again, Peter hoped this evening would turn out well.

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What do you think? Are the teasers too long or too short? Either way, there's something to look forward to for the next chapter. :) Thanks for reading. :)