PART THREE: The scent of love

“This is a fine sight indeed.” Aragorn said laughing a little to himself as he entered Merry and Pippin`s tent and found the two hobbits sound asleep and Gandalf snoring in the chair by the brazier. Gandalf awoke with a snort and sat up, but neither of the hobbits so much as stirred.

Aragorn went over to Pippin`s bed to check on him. He started to examine the still sleeping hobbit, and carefully looked under bandages and gently peeled blankets away to assess his injuries as much as he could without disturbing him. The healer in him marvelled again over how fast Pippin was healing after he had been found all but dead from being crushed by the troll he had slain. Fondly he tucked Pippin in again, and looked at the wizard. “He is progressing nicely,” he said softly to Gandalf, but turned again as Pippin yawned. The hobbit smiled sleepily at Aragorn and Gandalf.

“That is good news indeed,” Gandalf said and went to Merry`s cot to rouse him.

“Good morning Pippin. Have you slept well?”

Pippin yawned again mightily and blinked up at Aragorn. “Yes, thank you, Strider. I don`t think I had any bad dreams either, leastways I can`t remember them.”

“That is good. How do you feel about getting up for a little while?” Aragorn said, feeling Pippin`s broken ribs, watching the hobbit`s face intently for any sign of pain.

Pippin stretched his sore muscles a little. “I`d love that. Can I get up for real today? Not just walk about the tent in my nightshirt?” He looked pleadingly at Aragorn.

“Yes, I think you can. You need to prepare for the big feast when Frodo and Sam awake. You will be serving me like a proper knight you know.”

Pippin turned to look at his cousin. “Did you hear that Merry? I`m going to serve Strider at the feast!”

“I heard,” Merry said, sitting up in bed and stretching a little. “That is wonderful. I will be serving Èomer too, so we`ll be there together to honour Sam and Frodo.”

Aragorn moved to Merry`s bed now, and sat down on the bedside. “Lie back down for a moment, will you, Merry?” he said.

“But...” Merry protested.

“No buts.” Aragorn gently pushed him down, and without further ado put one hand to Merry’s brow and the other to his heart, looking searchingly at the hobbit. Then he took the injured hand in his own and examined the hand and arm carefully. Merry had quieted but shot questioning glances between Aragorn and Gandalf while avoiding Pippin’ s worried glares.

“Did you think I wouldn`t notice?” Gandalf said when Aragorn had finished examining Merry. “I asked him to come look at you, my lad. You`re not fully healed at all, and you are so tired that you barely can stand on your feet, and your arm is not only hurting you but you barely have use of it.”

Merry was rather taken aback at this speech about how he was faring, and he nodded numbly. Gandalf had everything to the point. He opened his mouth in defense, but Gandalf wasn`t finished.

“Now, I know that you`ll hear more of this from Pippin. He has voiced his fear about you too, you know. You need to rest Merry. You can`t spend all your time worrying over the others and not think about yourself. Your cousins and Sam need you, and you need to be able to be there for them, not worry yourself back into your own sickbed!”

“But…”

“No buts!” Pippin said from his bed. “He is right Merry. Don`t you think I`ve noticed that you`re here all the time? And if you should chance not to be here with me, you are with Frodo and Sam. Of course I want you to be with me, but I want my Merry well and happy again. Frodo and Sam would want the same, and you know it. You are too important to us all to be so careless with your health, and I won’t have it. Now you do exactly as Strider and Gandalf tell you!”

Pippin climbed off his cot and Aragorn helped him hobble over to Merry`s and he pulled his cousin into as heartfelt an embrace as he could manage with his broken ribs and broken arm, and hugged Merry as tight as he dared. He put his hands on Merry`s shoulders pushing him away so he could see into his cousin’ s damp eyes.

“I love you Merry. I can`t lose you. I need my merry Merry, so you must take care of yourself. Please, Merry…”

“Oh, Pip!” Merry pulled Pippin back into an embrace of his own, and hugged him tender and close. “I love you too. I will start taking better care of myself, I promise.”

Gandalf and Aragorn had retreated to the other side of the tent and watched silently as the young hobbits had their heart-to-heart talk. The love and devotion between the hobbits was not new to any of them, and they had seen it expressed between all four hobbits so often on this Quest, but there was no doubt that what Merry and Pippin shared was something closer than brotherhood and deeper than friendship. They had been separated and almost lost each other, and now needed reassurance of the other and that he would be all right.

*****

Later, when they had eaten both breakfasts - meagre amounts compared to their usual standards, but they ate at least- Merry went to watch over Frodo and Sam again, promising to be back in an hour for luncheon and then to rest, and Pippin took a much-needed nap.

It was different to watch over them in daylight, and Merry felt an almost elven atmosphere surrounding the place where they slept. Almost as if they were back in Lothlórien again. He sat down on Sam`s bedside first this time, and talked a little about an interesting herb he`d learned about yesterday when Pippin had been tended by one of the healers. When he felt the too obvious silence of his audience become too much, he patted Sam very gently on his shoulder, and gave his curls a light stroke.

“Happy birthday Sam. May you celebrate double when you wake up. I expect you to stand us an extra round of ales when you celebrate, to compensate for having a late party.”

Merry moved to Frodo`s side, and sat down there. For a long time he sat without thinking about anything special. Usually the memories of their shared life in the Shire came flowing, but today the memories held back for some reason. Surely he couldn`t have remembered everything there was to remember? Merry thought back, but nothing came to his mind. I`ll just have to start from the beginning then, he mused. Now, what is my first memory of Frodo?

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Brandy Hall, SR 1384, so Frodo is 16 and Merry is a faunt of only two years

Esmeralda Brandybuck came into the library at Brandy Hall with a basket on her arm. Inside the basket lay her little lad, sleeping contentedly after a good and nourishing meal.

“Oh, may I take him, Cousin?” Frodo said, laying aside the book he had been reading. He looked down at the tiny, peaceful face framed in honey-coloured golden curls and smiled at the sight.

“Of course Frodo dear.” Esmie knew Frodo would take the utmost care with the wee hobbit, and gave him the basket. Frodo put the basket down on the floor and lifted the sleeping lad and took him in his arms. The faunt awoke, but looked about contentedly and smiled up at Frodo.

“Fo,” Merry said.

“Yes Merry, it`s me. It`s Cousin Frodo. Did you have a good nap?”

The little child just snuggled closer to his cousin and sighed contentedly. “Fo.”

“He always recognises me.” Frodo said, watching the baby, who was completely at peace in his arms.

“Of course he does. He knows his Frodo,” Esmie said. Merry had from his very first days always wanted one of three people. His Mum, his Da and his Frodo. She could already sense the great friendship her two lads would share, and was happy that Frodo had found joy and merriment in his life again.

“How does he always know it`s me?” Frodo said. “He can see me I suppose, but…”

“Yes he can, but even if his eyes are closed he can sense it`s you. All his senses are fully developed by now. He knows your touch and your voice, and he also smells you.”

“Smells me?” Frodo said, stroking the baby`s face, and grinning as the little one chuckled and patted Frodo’s own cheek with a chubby hand. “How`s that, Cousin Esmie?”

“It`s how babies, even very tiny new ones, recognise people. Especially their Mum and other close family members. Merry has known his Cousin Fro for two whole years now.”

“Oh!” Frodo said, sniffling a little at Merry, who giggled and grasped Frodo’s hair. “He smells like milk and something else, something sweet.”

“Yes. All babies smell of milk, but he has started to develop a unique smell that is only his.”

“He has?” Frodo said.

“Yes, you said he smells of something sweet as well as milk. That is his unique scent.”

“Sweet Merry,” Frodo said, giggling a little. He sniffed his cousin again, and Merry giggled up at him. “You smell like… like apples and hay and I don`t know what else.” Frodo laughed and buried his nose in Merry’s curls, breathing deeply. He hadn`t thought about this before. He remembered the comforting scent of his own parents and if he reached long enough back in his memory he could still bring it forth. But now he had a new little cousin he could recognize by scent alone.

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It`s how he smells! Merry realised, leaning close to sniff his cousin`s curls. I thought it was his eyes, but it`s really the scent of him. Even now, in this deep healing sleep, Frodo had that smell of fresh air, soap and something… something he`d only understood in Rivendell and again later in Lothlórien. Something elvish Merry had decided. There had always been some otherworldliness about Frodo. Sam smelled of good tilled earth, flowers and spring, but Frodo smelled of something greater almost, something higher and not very hobbity at all.

Merry remembered clearly Frodo telling him stories and singing to him since he was very, very little. He remembered piggy-back-rides, chasing through the autumn leaves, splashing and later swimming in the Brandywine. Frodo had been there for all the important things in his life: when he started to walk, talk and run about. When he learned his letters and lost his first tooth. When Pippin was born and when he was sick and Merry needed someone to be there and be strong for him too, Frodo was at his side. Frodo had been there for him when he had his first pipe, his first ale, the first time he kissed a lass. Frodo had been there when Merry`s feelings for Estella became too large for his heart to contain in secrecy and later when he had found out that she felt the same for him. He’d been there for Merry through all the big events in Pippin`s life too - important moments that Merry considered of just as much consequence as the same happenings in his own life.

Frodo had always been there, but the earliest memory Merry had of him was of how his cousin smelled, of knowing Frodo was with him through that sense alone. And for all its unhobbityness it was a comforting smell. The scent of a trusted and beloved older cousin that was his anchor when Pippin could not be or had been too little to understand the world of grown-up hobbits.

Merry could not remember Frodo`s scent changing after he got the Ring. The Ring tore at his soul and body and tried to take away what made him a hobbit, but Frodo`s smell hadn`t changed. Frodo had changed, deep down too, but here in Ithilien Frodo smelled like Merry always remembered him and that was a comforting thought. He hadn`t lost his Frodo, though his Frodo was changed.

Merry rose and stretched a little. It would be time for luncheon soon, and Pip would probably be finished with his nap and want company.

Merry kissed Frodo`s curls and bid the guards and the healer in attendance farewell for now.

As he promised, Merry rested after he and Pippin had eaten lunch and after Pippin had been helped into proper clothes, he helped his cousin outside. Pippin leaned most of his weight on Merry`s left side, and Merry managed to keep them both upright. Pippin stared at all the tents and people he had only heard but not seen after they arrived Ithilien, and as he and Merry walked around a little, he glimpsed the beauty of the land around them. Soldiers he had come to know during their journey to the Black Gate stopped and talked to them, and when Pippin spotted Beregond he hailed the man and they talked at length, finally sitting down on a little grassy hill. Beregond carried Pippin to the hill, as the hobbit wavered on his feet and Merry was having more and more trouble holding them both up.

Pippin was happy and chatted away, but his energy dissolved too soon for his liking, and Beregond carried him back to the tent. He helped Merry put Pippin to bed, and the young Took slept the rest of the afternoon away.