Magnificent

5: Letters from Far Away Friends

Merry walked into Crickhollow to be greeted by Pippin’s smug, grinning face. The Took seemed to be holding a bundle of letters in his hand. Yule was fast approaching, and they were trying to make the house presentable for their expected guests.

“You have letters,” Pippin stated.

Merry shrugged. “I quite often get letters.”

Rolling his eyes, Pippin started to flick through Merry’s mail, reading out the places of origin as he did. “Rohan, Ithilien, Minas Tirith…”

Merry’s eyes widened, and he snatched the letters from his cousin’s hands. Pippin had not been fooling with him. He really did have letters from his far away friends.

“I told you they would send you letters once you sent some to them,” Pippin bragged, but Merry hardly heard him. He had found a letter with his name and address written in a bold, messy script.

While in the Houses of Healing, Merry had seen Éowyn write several letters to her brother (who was at Cormallen at the time). She had some of the messiest handwriting he had ever seen, though Éomer’s was almost as bad. It was easy to work out which letter came from his dear friend, the White Lady of Rohan.

Merry tore it open, not caring that Pippin was still hovering nearby, eager to read what might be said about him in the letters.

Dearest Meriadoc,

How wonderful it was to hear from you! Like you, I had been meaning to write for some time, however, the duties as Lady of Ithilien have been keeping me quite busy.

But on saying that, I did have good reason to write, and even if you had not written, you would have received a letter from me, for I have wonderful news! I ordered Faramir not to tell Peregrin before I had the chance to tell you.

Just after your last visit, I discovered that I was carrying Faramir’s first child. The child was born just last week, a beautiful daughter that we have named…

Merry stopped reading. He went back over the name of Éowyn and Faramir’s new daughter several times, but there could be no doubting what it said.

Pippin, who had been reading over his cousin’s shoulder, started laughing. “Meriwyn – that certainly is a pretty name. I wonder where they came by it.”

Merry scowled at Pippin, and covered the rest of the letter from the young Took’s view.

…a beautiful daughter that we have named Meriwyn.

I realise that this may be somewhat of a surprise for you. I will admit, I did not expect a daughter, but a son, to be my first-born. But a daughter she is. I promised that I would name my first-born after you, and I am never one to break my word, no matter what the situation may be.

Meriwyn is a sweet child. She is sleeping nearby as I write. However, in appetite, she certainly takes after her namesake! Faramir has told me that he wishes to name one of our future children after Peregrin. I dread to think what that child will be like!

I hope that you shall write back soon, for I deeply miss you, my Holdwine of the Mark.

Your loving friend,

Éowyn, Lady of Ithilien

By the time Merry had finished reading his letter, Pippin’s laughter had subsided into snickers. Merry glared at his younger cousin.

“What’s so funny, Peregrin?” he demanded.

“Oh, nothing, Meriadoc,” Pippin replied, with a giggle. “It’s just that you have a little lass named after you.”

“May I remind you, dearest cousin, that your sister, Pervinca, has a daughter named Pippa? She was named after her uncle, I believe.”

“Actually, she was named after my nickname. And besides, Pearl named her son after me first. In your case, the very first child to be named for you is a lass.”

Merry grumbled something inaudible. Deep inside, he hoped that the child Faramir decided to name after Pippin would be a girl too. Or perhaps, he could name one of his own daughters after Pippin.

With that somewhat comforting thought on his mind, Merry moved on to his other letters.

* * * * * *

Yuletide came more quickly than any of the hobbits expected. Soon the Gamgees, Tooks and Bolgers (for Fredegar and Melilot had come also) had all arrived at Crickhollow, making it slightly overcrowded. Diamond had to stay in Merry and Estella's room so that Sam and Rosie (and little Frodo) could have hers. Elanor stayed in Pippin's room, much to her delight. He let her stay up much later than her parents did.

Little Frodo Gamgee was fussed over by all of the lasses. Like Merry and Estella, Freddie and Mel had not had any children yet, and Pervinca and Ev had a daughter (in fact, the Thain had only one grandson, from his eldest daughter, Pearl, but four granddaughters). Frodo did not seem to mind the attention. He gurgled happily - until it was time for him to be fed or changed, in which case he almost made enough noise to rattle the cottage to the ground.

Berilac and Pimpernel Brandybuck came down from Brandy Hall for a visit with their daughter, Garnet (who was only a month older than Elanor). Pimpernel's belly was very rounded, and Garnet proudly told everyone, "Mama's going to give me a little brother for my birthday."

The group feasted merrily, and exchanged gifts. Diamond, however, was not enjoying herself. She was so nervous about what she would have to say that her stomach had knotted up and she had started taking short, sharp breaths. She barely managed a smile when Fredegar offered her some pudding.

"Something the matter, Di?" he asked.

"M-must be the weather," she lied, but he accepted it, and even stirred up the fire to warm the room. Since Freddie already knew parts of Diamond's story, he had no reason to suspect that was what was causing her to be acting so.

After supper, the children were put to bed (Garnet being placed in Freddie and Mel's guestroom for the moment), and the adults all sat around contented while Estella and Diamond cleared the table. Pervinca and Rosie offered to help, but were quickly declined. Once the final plate had been cleared away, Estella grasped Diamond's hand and squeezed it in encouragement.

With that support, Diamond felt as though she could carry on. She waited until pipes had been lit and all were comfortable. "If you would not mind, I have something I'd like to tell you all."

A general murmur of confusion ran through the group, and Fredegar even raised an eyebrow. "Go on, Di."

"Well, firstly, I should like to thank you all for being such wonderful friends. Coming all the way from Long Cleeve, I could never have hoped to meet such fine hobbits."

In the Shire, this was usually the correct way to start an important speech. By complimenting the audience, the speaker was more likely to hold their attention for the rest of what they had to say. However, in this case, it was not needed, and Diamond had said it because she meant it.

"You all know I met Estella and Freddie while we were prisoners in the Lockholes, but I am afraid I have kept the reasons for my imprisonment secret from many of you."

Pimpernel gasped, and Everard frowned. Many of them had begun to worry. If Diamond's crime had been bad that she had to keep it secret, what could it have been? Even Melilot was unsure, for Fredegar had not told her what little he knew.

Tears filled Diamond's eyes as she stumbled over words, trying to find the right ones to say. Pippin moved closer to her, and clasped his hands around one of hers. Merry smiled warmly at her.

"I was to be the wife of Lotho Sackville-Baggins," she finally stated. "He took me from my home in Long Cleeve, threatening to harm my family if I did not come with him. I was taken to Bag-End..."

"That's why you have not come to visit us there," Sam said slowly, as the pieces fell into place. "The bad memories you have of Bag-End come from your time there with...Lotho." The name was still foul tasting to him.

Diamond nodded. "You must forgive me, but it would be so frightening for me to go there, and Michel Delving would be just as bad. I still have nightmares if I wake up in an unfamiliar place, or with no one familiar around."

"That must have been terrible for you, dearest," Pimpernel soothed.

"If you don't mind me asking," said Everard, "what was it that made Pimple choose you? He can't have just been visiting Long Cleeve and saw you there. That is no short distance from Hobbiton." Everard had kin in the Northfarthing, but rarely visited them because of the distance.

"No, he came to the Northfarthing with a specific purpose," sighed Diamond. "When I asked him why he chose me - after all, I was only twenty-four! - he said that it was because he could not get to the Thain's daughters."

Pimpernel covered her mouth before she gasped again. Pervinca searched for Everard's hand to hold. Sam held her other hand. He had an inkling about what Diamond was going to say next. Both Pearl and Pimpernel had already married before the time Diamond was speaking of.

"I suppose he would have wanted you, Pervinca. At the time, you were the only one of your sisters unmarried. Lotho hated Paladin, and nothing would have pleased him more than making one of you his wife. But with all of you practically besieged in Tookland, he had to settle for me."

"Filth," Everard spat. He could remember a time long ago, when he had almost hit Lotho for saying something inappropriate to Pervinca. What Diamond had just said increased his hatred even more. As far as Everard Took was concerned, Lotho was lucky he was already dead.

"He wanted Took-blood, didn't he?" asked Berilac. "He wanted children - heirs - with Took-blood in them. When he could not get to Pervinca, he found the North-tooks. Bullroarer's descendants."

Berilac had worked it all out faster than anyone else. This final piece of information horrified them all. It was not simply a case of Lotho wanting a wife. He had only wanted a mother for his children.

"He kept demanding me to make up my mind when we would wed, and I kept demanding more time. Finally, I could take it no longer, and I refused to marry him at all. He tossed me into the Lockholes," Diamond whispered. The tears had started now and she could not stop them.

"It was the right decision to make," said Fredegar.

Peregrin was glad to see that Diamond had kept her story in its most simple form. He knew many of the frightening details from the private talks they had shared together. He did not think that his sisters and friends needed to know any of those details. Pippin doubted that Estella even knew those parts, and it was better to keep it that way.

Her story complete, Diamond sat down. Pervinca slipped from the room, returning soon after with a mug of water for the younger lass.

"Thank you for telling us all of this, Diamond," she said, softly, her own part in the story still weighing heavily on her mind. "I know it must have been hard for you, but it means a lot that you trust us enough to share your secret."

"Lotho was a pathetic being, who did not deserve any wife," Sam growled. "Especially not in a lass so sweet as yourself."

Diamond managed a smile. She was surprised to realise how much better she felt now that she had shared her story with them. Perhaps her sister-in-law had been right when she said it was always good to share secrets with someone, and it seemed the more you shared it with, the better you felt. Diamond was also delighted to see that her worries had been for nothing. They were not looking at her differently. They did not think less of her. Pippin caught her eye and winked. Her smile broadened.

This little exchange did not go unnoticed by Pervinca, a notorious matchmaker amongst her family and friends. She had hoped to set Merry and Estella with each other, after Pimpernel and Berilac had come together without her assistance. More recently, she had introduced Everard's sister, Yolanda, to the hobbit she married. Looking at Peregrin and Diamond, Pervinca was sure she could see that affection was just waiting to spark.

Perhaps all they needed was the right encouragement.

* * * * * *

A/N: I have noticed that Merry and Estella have been somewhat overlooked in the earlier chapters of this story - and it was supposed to be about them! This is what happens when you let two Tooks run loose. I promise that I will have more Merry/Estella moments in the upcoming chapters. Just because they're married doesn't mean there's no romance between them!