CHAPTER 35

The innkeeper at The Leaping Hare looked at the thick stack of envelopes that a messenger from the Smials had left. Invitations by the look of the heavy envelopes, each sealed with the Tooks’ crest, and addressed in three or four different handwritings.

Well, these were too important to let one of his lads or lasses deliver. He took them down the passage along which the rooms were built, and began to knock on doors.

Odovocar ran this thumb under the seal, and opened the envelope. His eyes widened as he scanned its contents and he handed it to his wife.

Rosamunda gave a little cry. “That’s only four days to get ready!”

Estella looked at her parents inquiringly.

“We are invited to a ball, my dear!” said her father.

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Ponto showed the invitation to Angelica.

“A ball, my dear! It will be the perfect chance for you to impress young Frodo with your beauty!”

Angelica sighed. She was not by any means ugly. She thought that she was passably pretty; but only a fond father could think she was a beauty. And she still had serious doubts about his plan. He seemed to just assume that if she put her mind to it, Frodo would fall into her arms. Somehow she did not remember him as being that susceptible.

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Clodio Banks gave the invitation to his wife. Beryl was impressed with it, and excited at the chance to dressup and mingle with the Tooks.

But he was suspicious. Eglantine would not go to all the work and trouble of a ball if she did not have some definite end in mind.

Tomorrow he would call on his sister and try to effect a reconciliation. He had to find out what was going on, and getting back in her good graces was the first step.

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“Oh my!” exclaimed Dianthus Goodbody. “Longo, we need to go over to the Great Smials first thing tomorrow. We’ll see Pimmie and Milo, and I’ll find out if Eglantine needs some help with this undertaking.  She’s taken an awful large serving on her plate--a ball in four days, and an assembly in five!”

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Tanto had been getting ready to take his leave of his father, uncle and aunt, and return to the Great Smials and his wife and son, when the innkeeper knocked on the door of his uncle’s room.

As soon as he saw the envelope, he knew what it was. Vinca had told him of her mother’s plan with great glee, but he’d not said a word about it. He considered himself a Took now in everything but name; until he knew which way his canny Uncle Fosco was leaning, he’d not be giving away any of Paladin’s or Tina’s secrets.

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Olo Proudfoot, Chico Chubb and Polo Bunce were sharing a table and ale in the common room. Their wives were all in Olo’s room visiting and talking.

“I have heard that these Men from the South have come with a proposal of compensation for the Shire. Seems that they think they owe us for getting rid of Sharkey for them,” said Olo.

“What do you mean?” asked Chico.

Polo put in “I heard that he was one of their enemies in that big War the Travellers were in, and when they drove him out, he ended up here causing grief. At least that’s what I had from Odovocar Bolger and Milo Burrows. They’ve already had a chance to meet the envoys and talk to them, which I hardly think is fair.”

Just then the innkeeper came up to them, with three envelopes in his hand. “Sirs, I’ve messages for you from the Great Smials.”

The gentlehobbits took the envelopes and opened them. “Well,” snorted Olo, “it looks like we have something to occupy the wives now.”

Chico shook his head. “It’s a good thing it’s on such short notice. I won’t be pestered for a new frock, at least.”

Polo laughed. “A new frock will be the last thing on Lavender’s mind. She’s just looking forward to shop talk with Poppy Burrows. She’ll probably think of a ball as an interruption.” His wife Lavender was a well-known healer in Budgeford.

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Poppy was chatting to her cousin Milo and his wife Peony when the knock came at the door. She gave a great sigh, and wondered what the emergency might be; she kept an ear open as her apprentice answered the door, but heard no anxious voices, and soon the door closed again.

“Mistress Poppy,” her apprentice came in bearing two envelopes “you have letters from the Great Smials.”

“Thank you, Viola.” She took them and raised one eyebrow, then handed one to Milo. “Looks like invitations. I should have known that with the assembly coming up there would be social occasions.”

Milo had already opened his, and showed it to Peony. “It’s a ball, Poppy! How long has it been since there’s been a ball in the Shire?”

“Not long enough,” snorted the healer gruffly. “But it won’t do to offend the Took. I guess I’ll have to see if my suitable frock still fits.”

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As the messenger galloped away, Mistress Whitfoot looked at the invitation in her hand. It was addressed to her husband, but she would have to see what it was before she passed it on. She knew he was getting much better, and he was champing at the bit to get back to being mayor.

A ball? There hadn’t been a ball since Paladin was invested as Thain. Well, that’s it then. He’d never forgive me if we miss this, she thought. Besides, it would be a good chance to wear that new dress.

Looked like they’d be travelling to Tuckborough after all. And The Leaping Hare would be full up by now. She sighed. Looked like they might have to impose on one of the cousins.

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Back at the Great Smials, Paladin and Eglantine had greeted one another more fondly than possible in public, and after a tender interlude were getting ready to join the family at supper.

Eglantine sat at her dressing table brushing her curls.

“Tina.”

“Yes, dear.”

“I have something to show you. Come here please.” She got up and went over to where he sat on the bed. He had a pouch in his hand that made an interesting clink.

“Hold out your hands.” As she did so, he upended the pouch and poured a small stream of silver into her hands. "I think that the ball will not destroy the family budget now."

“Paladin! What on earth!”

“It seems that the King gave our son the honor last year of being made a knight. As a gift for the knighting he was given a hundred and fifty silver pennies from the King, and another fifty from the young Man whose life he saved, the Steward’s son. The King, however did not tell Peregrin that this stipend would be an annual affair. This sixty is what is left from that original gift. Pippin insisted I take it, and as he was just given another hundred fifty, and next year and every year hereafter will be sent *two* hundred fifty, I accepted.”

Her eyes were wide in shock. “Paladin, sixty silver is three times as much as the average hobbit earns in a year!”

He shrugged. “It embarrasses me to say this, dear, but if it were not that Merry’s king has been similarly generous to him, I would have given this to him. Do you realize that for years our nephew has been subsidizing our son? When they left on their journey, Merry was fully prepared to bear all Pippin’s expenses.”

“I’ve known that for a long time, dear. But we never trusted Pippin with much pocket money. He was so spendthrift as a lad.”

“Well, we may have done him an injustice. He has a great deal more left of this after a year than I would have thought. And from what I have been able to pry out of Meriadoc, a great deal of what Pippin did spend was on others.”

“Did that surprise you, love?”

Paladin looked thoughtful. “Yes. But it should not have, I should have known my son better than I do. I am ashamed to say that it took seeing him through the eyes of others to discover what a splendid person he is.”

“It’s often that way for parents, dear. To us he will always be the baby we watched over when he was ill, the lad who could get into so much mischief we wondered would he even live to be a tweenager, and who drove us mad with his questions. And he bore a double burden, being the youngest, which made us overprotective, and being the only son, which made us expect too much too soon.”

“Made *me*, you mean,” chuckled her husband. “Now you are being diplomatic.”

Eglantine smiled. “Dearest, I am his mother, you are his father. Two entirely different creatures.”

She leaned over to kiss him, and as he returned her kiss, they both wondered if there was time for another interlude before supper.

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After tea, the younger hobbits had gone out into the gardens with their guests.

Sam and Rosie had managed to wander off, hands entwined, as he pointed out all the various kinds of roses to be found there. Pearl trailed along at a discreet distance, just enough to keep them in sight and preserve the proprieties.

They neared the end of a path, where a small fountain played. Sam stopped and turned to face Rose. The breeze had blown one of her curls across her cheek, and he reached up to tenderly brush it away.

“Rosie,” he started, but his voice caught. He cleared his throat and started again. “Rosie, I was going to wait until our wedding day, but what with this ball and all--well,” he reached into his jacket pocket and drew forth a small box. “The King, Strider, that is, King Elessar as they call him now, and Queen Arwen, they sent you a wedding gift.”

Her eyes grew wide. “A king and queen of Big Folk sent a gift for *me*?”

“Aye, Rosie, they did.” He smiled. “Open it.”

She took the lid from the box and gasped. Reaching in with nerveless fingers, she drew forth the fine silvery chain, glittering as only mithril could, to see the perfect golden rose that hung from it. The rose was the size of her thumbnail, each petal delicately made. Had it not been of gold, she would have thought it real. Tears of joy sprang to her eyes.

Sam took it, opened the clasp and fastened it gently around her neck.

She grabbed him around the neck and drew him down for a kiss. Pearl gave a discreet cough, and they sprang apart blushing.

“Mistress Pearl--I mean, Pearl! Come see what the King and Queen sent to me!”

Laughing and curious, Pearl made her way to them. She had heard about the royal wedding gift, but she had not seen it.

On the lawn at the top of the garden, Pervinca, Pimpernel and her husband Milo, Pippin and Bergil were playing on the grass with the babies. Pippin was swinging little Largo about, getting peals of laughter, while young Bergil was giving “ponyback” rides to little Flora and Alyssum. Flora, especially was taken with the boy, whom she had dubbed “Birdie” for some reason.

On a bench nearby, Legolas and Gimli were chatting amiably with Freddy and Frodo. Suddenly Freddy stiffened and looked annoyed. “Don’t look now, but here comes ‘the Jewelry’.”

Gimli and Legolas looked puzzled, and Frodo mildly alarmed. Pimpernel rose to her feet and made her way over to the bench as Amethyst, Garnet and Opal arrived there, giggling and ogling Legolas in a predatory fashion.

In a flat voice, Pimpernel introduced her cousins. She gave them a glare that, had it come from her mother, would have easily repressed them. Unfortunately, coming from her, it had less effect.

More or less ignoring Frodo, Freddy and Gimli, they bore down on the Elf.

“Master Legolas,” cooed Amethyst. “It is so nice to finally meet you.”

“You are certainly tall,” smiled Garnet.

“Are all Elves as beautiful as you?” asked Opal.

Legolas suddenly decided he preferred hobbit lasses to be tongue-tied. He drew around him his air of Elven majesty, that he mostly dispensed with when around his mortal friends, and wondered how he could extricate himself politely. He noticed that Frodo and Freddy looked terribly embarrassed, Pimpernel angry, and Gimli--of course--amused.

Just then Pearl came up, with Sam and Rose. They backed off a bit; Pearl was not as intimidating as her mother, but she ran a close second.

Frodo decided to answer Opal’s impertinent question. “I do not imagine that Legolas could answer that, Opal, but I can tell you from personal observation that, yes, indeed they are. It is, after all, why they are called the Fair Folk.”

Oh, well done, Frodo! thought Pearl. She decided to provide the one distraction that would work for these three.

“Have you seen the gift that the King and Queen sent to Miss Rose?”

Pervinca, Milo, Pippin and Bergil had joined the group now, and all looked admiringly at Rose’s necklace. She blushed to be the center of attention.

“That chain is of mithril, Miss Rose, and fair it looks on you, if I may say so,” said Gimli gallantly, earning a smile from Sam.

As Pearl had hoped, the sight of a valuable bauble drew their eyes away from the Elf. She smiled to herself to see the gleam of envy and avarice on their faces.

“Well, cousins,” she said pleasantly--too pleasantly-- “I am sorry, but Mother and Father are expecting us to supper in the family apartments with our guests, and Uncle Sara and Aunt Esme, so we shall have to cut this short.”

She herded everyone towards the Smials, leaving Hyacinth’s daughters staring after them in dismay.

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