CHAPTER 19

Freddy kept a firm grip on Bergil’s surcoat, even as he quickly felt several strong hands grasping him. Soon they both were lifted from the water. Freddy was shaking and spluttering. It had been a terrifying moment, but luckily had not lasted long. He realized it was Legolas who was carrying him to the bank of the stream, while Targon had Bergil in his arms.

As they got to the bank, where everyone had crowded round, Freddy noticed that Bergil did not seem to be coming out of it as quickly as he had.

Mistress Poppy stood there with Viola. “Put him down,” she ordered Targon. Then she and Viola rolled the child onto his stomach, and began to press on his back. He gave a weak cough, and water came out of his mouth. As she pressed again, he whimpered softly.

“I do not understand this,” said Targon. “He knows how to swim, and the stream was not that deep?”

Mistress Poppy lifted the surcoat and undertunic, to reveal discolored areas on his back, one near the right side of his upper back, and another, lower down. She began to probe, and Bergil whimpered again. “It probably is because it was so shallow; he tumbled in quickly, and it seems hit his back hard enough on the stones of the stream bed to knock the breath out of him. I suspect a cracked rib or two.” She lifted the pendulum over her head, turning to Viola. “Get some water on to boil, and steep the contents of one of the blue packets.” She looked up at Freddy, who was shivering in spite of the warm day. “And also of the yellow, for Master Fredegar.”

Viola nodded and got up quickly to do her mistress’s bidding. The healer had prepared a number of packets of herbs for various purposes, color coded them, for emergency use during their travel.

She looked at Targon. “I suspect he’s still got a lot of water in his lungs; the cracked rib will make it difficult for him to cough it all out. He runs a definite risk of lung fever. We should probably not try to travel for at least three days.”

The Gondorian captain was pale, as he thought of what he might have to say to Beregond if anything happened to his son while in his care. He looked up, and Éothain nodded.

Orders were quickly given, and the tents brought out to set up for a more prolonged stay.

Freddy had not spoken since they had been pulled from the water. He gave a start when Legolas gave him a squeeze of the shoulder. “Are you all right, my friend? Knowing how you feel about the water, that was most brave of you!”

Freddy glanced up at the Elf in astonishment. “I didn’t even think about that part of it, I just knew I had to get Bergil.” He felt a bit shocked that it had *not* occurred to him just what he was doing. Amazing.

He felt a blanket being draped around his shoulders, and murmured his thanks to Beri. Then he gratefully took the cup of steaming tea from Viola.

The herbal taste was strong, but he could not distinguish any particular one. It put a bit of heart into him, and he could feel himself warming up.

He watched as the healers carefully tended Bergil, using the warm liquid to carefully bathe the reddened areas on his back. The red was already beginning to fade into the black and blue of bruises.

“Once we have him in a tent, I will strap up his ribs,” said Poppy, as she put her pendulum back around her neck. “He has two cracked, but none are broken badly enough to fear piercing a lung.” She reached up and took a blanket being handed her by Borondir, and lay it over him carefully.

The tents were quickly set up, and Targon carefully gathered the boy up. Bergil stirred and whimpered a bit, but did not otherwise react, as he was carried into the captain’s tent and lain down upon his stomach on his bedroll. With Targon’s and Borondir’s assistance they removed his wet clothing. Freddy had rummaged in the child’s pack, and handed out a dry tunic, but they did not put it on him yet.

Freddy, Targon and Borondir stayed in the tent, as Mistress Poppy and Viola tended him.

“Viola, have you the bruise juice?” Viola handed her mistress a stoppered bottle, containing the infusion of arnica, witch-hazel, comfrey root, goat weed and black willow-bark, and watched as Poppy carefully massaged it onto his sore back. Then she handed Poppy the rolled bandages, and helped her turn the child over. He was a bit large for Viola to support him sitting up, so Targon knelt down to help. He coughed wetly, and whispered, “hurts.”

“I know it hurts, lad,” said Poppy gently. “This will help.” She and Viola strapped his ribs firmly. Borondir gently pulled on the dry tunic, and they lay him back on the bedroll.

Viola had been preparing a cup of tea, with willow-bark and boneset and other soothing herbs, which she handed to her mistress. Poppy held the cup, and Bergil sipped at it. He made a face at the bitter taste, but otherwise drank it down. Then he lay his head back, exhausted.

He started to cry, just a little. “I--I’m sorry,” he whispered. “D-didn’t mean to--”

Targon smoothed his hair back. “Shush, child! You did nothing wrong. It was an accident.” He watched as the grey eyes grew heavy, and Bergil drifted into sleep.

Poppy stood up. “He’ll sleep for a few hours. When he wakes, we’ll give him some soup, and see how he’s doing.” Her brow was furrowed. She would like to have been able to press more of the water out of him, but his injury had made that inadvisable.

She turned her attention to Freddy. “Now you, Master Fredegar, need to go get into some dry things as well. Don’t need *you* sick on top of it all.”

Freddy nodded, and went to find his pack and some dry clothes.

He was in the Gondorian tent, nearly finished dressing, when Berilac entered.

“Hullo, Beri.”

The Brandybuck gave him an intent look. “You know, you don’t swim. That was a brave but foolish thing you did.”

“I’m sure it was foolish, but I didn’t even think about it to be honest. He was being carried downstream so quickly, and I didn’t know how soon help would reach us.” He shook his head. “To be truthful, I still can’t believe I did it.”

Beri pursed his lips, and set his face. “I am not sure how you will take this, since you are the one in charge, but this has made me very sure of something.”

Freddy looked puzzled. “Whatever are you talking about?”

“It was all well and good in the Shire, but there are too many dangers out here to not do all we can to prepare for something like this. As soon as we find a spot where the water is deep enough, but not too rapid, I think it is time all the hobbits had swimming lessons.” He sounded very firm.

“Swim? On purpose?” Freddy gaped at him.

Beri laughed at his expression. “Yes. On purpose. One can hardly learn to swim by accident. When it is by accident that one goes into the water, one can only drown or be rescued if one can’t swim. I’m perfectly serious.”

“It didn’t help Bergil. I know he can swim, I watched him once with Merry and Pippin.”

“No, he had the breath knocked out of him, and was injured. You on the other hand could not swim at all, and if help had not already been on the way, you would have assuredly drowned.”

Freddy stared. The Brandybuck had a point.

“Swimming lessons?” He sounded more speculative now than appalled.

Berilac nodded. “*I* can swim, and I believe Rolly and Denny also know how, being Bucklanders also, though I don‘t know how well. I am perfectly certain that most of the Men know how. It shouldn’t be that hard.”

“Swimming lessons.” He sighed. “The hard part is going to be convincing Mosco and Jolly,--and I don’t know *what* Mistress Poppy and Viola will say.”

“Mistress Poppy has some sense. She’ll know it’s the right thing to do.”

Freddy nodded. And sighed. He was not at *all* sure he wanted to do this.

But it looked like he was going to, will-he or nill-he.

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