Chapter Nineteen - Shall We Dance?

Still alone inside the tent, Diamond and Pippin sat beside one another at the table; Peregrina sat with her handsomely carved face on the other side of Diamond. Once Pippin made known his feelings to Diamond, he decided that he wanted to know exactly how she felt about him. “Well?”

Diamond looked at him with a twinkle in her dark brown eyes. “Well, what?”

Pippin conjured up an injured expression, “I told you what was on my heart--isn’t there something on yours as well?”

Diamond gazed into his shining green eyes…his dark eyelashes. She smiled, taking one of his large hands, enfolding it between her small ones. “The night my family and I arrived at Great Smials, I saw you. I could see that you were hurt, angry, and your heart lay on the floor in pieces. I want to say…that I actually felt your pain, though I cannot say for certain because I have never sensed anything of the sort before in all my life. Yet, from that moment on, all I ever wanted was to be your friend, to help you through the anguish and help you move on.

“However, since our first game of draughts…I haven’t been able to think of anyone else. I found myself purposely getting up in the wee hours of the morning hoping to see you and the special game Mr. Beregond gave you all set up in the sitting room and ready for a go.” Diamond blushed, “I suppose…somewhere along the way…I went beyond friendship…and well…I want us to be more than friends.”

Pippin gave Diamond a loving kiss to her hand. “I should like us to more than friends, too. I must admit, too, that there were many nights that I sat in the parlour waiting for you. I don’t know if it was the way you seemed to genuinely listen to me, or the way you closed your eyes, letting my music take you to places you’ve never been. But somehow…you’ve managed to touch my heart, Miss Diamond North-took, and it’s been a long time since any lass has done that.” He placed his free hand over hers and tenderly squeezed it.

Diamond smiled sweetly. “And all this time, Mr. Pippin, I thought you just liked the way I spilled milk all over you!” Pippin smiled then they both burst out laughing.

“What’s so funny?” asked Pervinca, entering the tent pushing a pram and holding little Sweet Pea’s hand in hers. “Did I miss a joke?” The cry of baby Primrose rose to a fevered pitch as Pervinca pushed the pram toward the secluded corner of the tent.

“No,” answered Pippin, “but you did miss a lot.” He gave her a mysterious smile.

“I got go, Mama!” shouted Sweet Pea.

Pervinca was out of breath as she tried directing her efforts to both children. “Diamond, could you please help her to the privy? Merimas took Brody and Hilly, but I didn’t want her to…”

“Of course, Mistress Pervinca,” said Diamond, then quickly got up to tend to the wee lass, taking her out of the tent toward the further end of the Fairgrounds.

“What happened to her bandage?” Pervinca casually asked from around the corner. “I noticed she wasn’t wearing it.”

“It got a little bit damp.”

“Damp?” Pervinca thought that was odd. “Was she crying?”

“She was sad,” Pippin answered evasively.

“Something is up,” said Pervinca, “You’re not telling me a whole lot.”

“Hullo, Pip!” said Merimas, entering the tent with his son Brody and Hilly. “I thought you were going to meet up with your parents at the games?”

“Diamond ran off and I had to go find her,” said Pippin, glad for the diversion. “We ended up having a long talk.”

“About what?” asked Pervinca from behind the curtain.

Pippin could clearly hear in his sister’s voice from where he sat at the family table that she was grinning from ear to ear. “About nothing,” he responded just to tease her.

“You always were a bad liar!” she said. “Did you tell her about…you know?”

Merimas rolled his eyes, “Vinca, love, let the poor hobbit be!”

“I’ll let him be,” yelled Pervinca, from behind the partition, “when he tells me that he told Diamond how he feels about her.” The lads could hear Pervinca pacing impatiently behind the curtain. Pippin knew she was dying to hear everything; he held his hand over his mouth to keep from laughing out loud. “Well?” he heard her ask again, “Did you tell her?”

Pippin smiled, “I did.” He laughed outright when he heard his sister’s overjoyed shout.

“And?” she asked further.

“And…from what she told me, she feels the same way,” Pippin said simply. “She’s never had a lad-friend before so I figure we’ll start things out slowly, let it progress naturally.”

“That means no meddling,my dear,” Merimas put in.

“My feet are killing me!” announced Merry, holding the flap open for Holly’s pram. “Oh, and look who we found wandering round outside without her bandages on,” he said in a tattletale manner. Merry continued to hold onto the flap while Diamond followed Estella inside the tent holding onto Sweet Pea’s hand. Curious, and ever the healer, Merimas got up to examine Diamond’s uncovered wound.

“I was going to take her to the healer’s tent until Miss Nosy Brandybuck came along,” Pippin said jokingly.

Estella’s eyes twinkled, “I beg to differ, Mr. Peregrin Took! I’m not always nosy.”

Pippin laughed, “I meant my sister!”

Hilly came up to his uncle Pippin, tugging on his shirtsleeve. “What is the time, Uncle?”

“Time for all six-year-old hobbit lads to take a nap,” said Pippin, tousling Hilly’s curls.

“Noooo!” said the anxious child. “Mummy said that when the big hand is on the three she would meet me at the rope-jumping field. And when it’s on the four, the jumping starts. I want to win a prize, Uncle Pippin.”

Pippin sighed. “You still mean to do this, don’t you?”

Hilly frowned. “I do--because…because…”

“Because you’re a determined lad,” said Pippin, taking out his pocket watch then brought up the wee lad onto his lap. “The big hand is on the two right now, so we ought to hurry.” He kissed Hilly’s cheek then set him down. “And I’m coming to watch, all right?”

“You are?” smiled Hilly.

Pippin tweaked the child’s nose, “Of course I would. I wouldn’t miss your rope skipping for all the toffee apples the Fair had to offer.” He winked at Diamond. “Come, Diamond, we’re going watch Hilly skip rope.”

Merimas halted his inspection of Diamond’s eye. “If you can’t get to the healer’s tent directly after the rope jumping then come find me,” he said. “It really ought to be cleaned prior to applying another bandage. A healer always keeps his or her bag near at hand, and I brought some bandages with me that would work well enough until we get back to the Smials.”

Merry gaped at the two young hobbits leaving the tent in haste with a young child in tow. “Were they…?” Merry pointed toward the door-flap. A huge smile spread across his face, “They were holding hands, weren’t they?”

The rest of the afternoon rolled by quickly; Hilly moped after not placing high enough for one of the green ribbons, thereafter Pippin promptly escorted Diamond to the healer’s tent for a new bandage and then they met up with Paladin, Eglantine and the rest of the family at the Ring-Toss.

After watching the children play a few of the games, they were off to have supper in the Thain’s private tent. Pippin sat to his father’s right, and beside him on his right, sat Diamond--being more vigilant this time about her glass of milk. Gelly was wondrously surprised at receiving a birthday cake after dinner; tomorrow, on his “proper” birthday back at the Smials, he would hand out his gifts to everyone.

It would be just over an hour before the dance would begin; in the meantime, folks would merely socialize or fill up their corners.

Pippin had a quick word with his father and Merry and then left. “I have urgent business to attend to at the Smials,” Pippin told Diamond when taking his leave of her, “but I shall quickly return to receive my dances.”

While the children indulged in another helping of birthday cake, Diamond thought the setting sun set off lovely golden-orange hues. She went to the tent window for a better look. “It’s beautiful,” she said to no one in particular. Then she noticed the multitude of young lasses heading in the direction of the main pavilion. “Look at them all!”

Pimpernel came up beside the tween, taking in the view. “Yes, it is a lovely sunset,” she answered, then leaned in toward Diamond so that she couldn’t be heard on the outside. “Mother refers to it as the March of the Lasses,” then she smirked, “but father calls it March of the Huntresses”. Diamond grinned at the Thain’s allusion. Pim went on, “It began when Pippin turned twenty-five, I think--the year he started to take an interest in how he looked. My little brother is rather handsome…for a pest, that is.”

“Who is she?” asked Diamond, pointing to a group of lasses headed by a tall lass in the centre wearing dress made of a soft, silky fabric, the colour of deep gold. “She’s beautiful!”

“That’s Petunia Chubb,” said Pim, “and she thinks so, too.”

“Stop!” Diamond whispered, snickering. “You’re going to get us both in trouble--making me laugh like this.”

“What are you two lasses whispering about?” asked Merry, stepping up beside Pimpernel. He took one glance out the window, seeing Petunia and her group passing in front of the Thain’s tent. “Oh--nothing of relevance, I see.” He quietly went back to the table, talking with his cousin and uncle.

Pimpernel grew sombre. “Diamond, it was people like her that made our own adjustment from farm life to life within high-born social circles difficult.”

“You’re high-born--and you lived on a farm?”

Pim nodded. “That drawing you have hanging in your room of the farm smial is the actual smial where Pippin, my sisters, and I grew up. Merry drew it one summer while he and Pippin visited after Tilby was born. Hilfred and I moved there soon after our wedding.”

Diamond saw that Pimpernel’s eyes glistened in the light of the deepening sunset. Without a word, she placed her arm round Pim’s shoulder.

“It looks as if Pippin is going to be late; he should have returned by now,” said Paladin, looking at his pocket-watch.

“He shouldn’t be much longer, Uncle Paladin, assuming he was able to borrow Sancho’s pony like he wanted to,” Merry put in.

Paladin gazed round at his family inside the tent. “He should know to meet us at the dance pavilion,” he said, then took Eglantine’s arm in his. “Shall we?”

The whole family slowly walked in the direction of where the dance would be held, mingling a bit along the way with various relations also walking the same route.

“The dancing won’t start until my father and mother begin the first dance,” Pearl instructed the tween, who walked between her and Pimpernel. On Pearl’s other side walked her eldest child, Delia. “And father won’t begin the dance without Pippin being present. So, we have plenty of time to get there.”

“I wonder what sort of urgency compelled him to go all the way back to the Smials in such short notice,” said Diamond. “It must have been very important.” Pearl gave her sister a wink; they, too, had been in on Pippin’s plan.

“As Merry said,” Pimpernel replied, “Pippin will return soon.”

“There’s that Petunia lass,” remarked Diamond. “She has two lasses to attend to her hair!” The tween stood still for a moment, gaping at all the to-do going on with Petunia. She noticed an older matron smoothing out Petunia’s party frock, Diamond guessed it must have been the lass’s mother. Seeing three Took-lasses staring at her daughter, the matron nudged the younger lass, muttering something Diamond couldn’t hear. Diamond made to continue walking.

“She’s coming over to greet us, Diamond,” said Pearl, holding Diamond where she stood. “Pim and I are the Thain’s daughters, so according to protocol, she is making the first move. It would be impolite for us to ignore her.”

Pim snorted a laugh, “Someone ought to tell her that.”

Diamond watched how graceful the lass strolled, the shimmering hues of gold in the material as she moved. Her hair pinned up with flowers, and a small, thin gold circlet was set round the knot of hair behind her head.

“Hullo, Mistress Pearl, Mistress Pimpernel,” Petunia said as she approached the little group. The latter name she said rather flatly; it was not lost on Pim.

“Hullo, Petunia,” Pearl greeted the lass in return. Pimpernel forced a smile while gritting her teeth. “Allow me to introduce Miss Diamond North-took of Long Cleeve.”

Petunia glared at the young tween. “She’s one of your…staff at Great Smials, or is she to attend your daughter?”

“My daughter, Delia, is only nineteen years old and does not require such,” Pearl answered firmly. Delia’s eyes were wide with surprise; her mother was usually calm and easy-going. “Even if Diamond is a part of our staff, she was invited by my sister and me to walk with us, and decorum dictates that you address her as our equal.”

Petunia let out a long resigned sigh. “Good evening, Diamond.”

“Miss Diamond,” Pimpernel put in. “And I will say that Miss Diamond is a very close friend of the family.” Pimpernel mischievously grinned, “And later you will see just how close of a friend she is.”

Diamond wanted to sink into the ground.

Petunia gazed distastefully at the lass with a new bandage wrapped about her eye, at the lavender smock with a gravy stain on the thread-worn cuff. Half-blind, reeks of garlic, and has no notion of clothes she should wear to a dance. I have nothing to worry about, thought Petunia. “I can hardly wait,” she said smugly. “Good evening to you.”

“The cheek!” Pimpernel muttered when Petunia was out of earshot. “Did you see that hair bauble she wore?”

“I saw it,” said Pearl.

“Grandfather says it best,” said Delia. “She’s definitely a wolf.”

Diamond couldn’t help but smile, Pearl pulled her astute daughter into a hug as they walked.

Soon they drew near to the pavilion; colourful, bright lanterns lit magnificent tent with ambience. Families came together at picnic tables, children ran up and down the length of the pavilion with excitement while the tweens gathered in groups, milling about the dance area. Pearl and Pimpernel found the table where their parents and the rest of the family would be sitting.

“What took you so long, Mummy?” asked Hilly.

“I ran into an old friend,” she answered him with a wet kiss to his cheek. Pearl raised her eyebrow to her sister. “He wouldn’t understand,” Pim explained.

Merry leaned in to whisper to his cousins, well out of earshot of Diamond, “He’s back--tell her to go wait with the other lasses.”

“Diamond, the tweens usually stand over by the dance area to await their opportunity for a dance,” Pimpernel told the lass.

Without further thought, Diamond ambled her way to the various groups of tweens not too far away. Diamond didn’t know exactly when Pippin would be able to dance with her, however, she wanted to be close by to him nevertheless.

“Hullo, Miss Diamond!”

Diamond turned toward the cheery voice. “Hullo, Miss Myrtle,” she responded. Today, Myrtle wore a simple, but pretty, blue frock with several thin ribbons of varying hues of blue tied in her hair. “Everyone is all dressed up,” Diamond began to worry.

“This is just an average dress that I would wear to a ladies’ tea,” Myrtle said, sensing the lass’s anxiety. “Don’t worry--you look fine. There are one or two lasses running round here who are very overdressed for the occasion.” She grinned, then indicated with a nod toward Petunia Chubb. “Are you here to try for a dance with Pippin?” she asked Diamond.

“Yes…well, he asked me if I should care to dance with him,” Diamond replied innocently.

“He did?” Myrtle asked in amazement, a hint of a smile on her lips.

Diamond nodded. “I do apologize if I seemed…unfriendly when we met before.”

“I wasn’t exactly being a proper lass, either,” Myrtle said in apology. “Trust me, my mother taught me better; Sancho and I had our hundredth row the night before and I wanted to make him jealous. Pippin and I are only friends, yet I found myself hoping to be on his arm all evening for just that reason, not for just one dance.”

“Do you love him?” Diamond asked.

“Pippin?” Myrtle giggled, “I love him like the distant cousin that he is. I suppose I’ve always had a soft spot for him, but as we grew into older tweens, we went in different directions.” Myrtle had an impish grin on her face. “We had our first kiss together behind the blacksmith’s shop in Hobbiton, but that is the extent of our love life,” she quipped. “Sancho and I have been courting on and off for about a year.”

“Are you both considering betrothal at all?” Diamond asked, warming up to her old nemesis. Instead of feeling jealous, Diamond felt she had found a new friend.

Myrtle pondered the frankness of this working lass, enjoying not having to put on airs as with her peers. “I am,” she answered Diamond, “but, I’m waiting on him. I think he’s getting ready to ask the question.”

Diamond smiled sweetly, “I hope he does that tonight, and good luck to you both.”

All at once, a throng of lasses pushed past the tweens. “He’s here!” Diamond heard one of them shout.

“Myrtle!” yelled Petunia from the front row, “Come up this way! He won’t see you standing all the way in the back.”

Several more late comers pushed past Diamond, shoving her into Myrtle. Diamond tried to avoid falling into Myrtle, but her blindside only made the matter worse. “I’m sorry, Miss Myrtle,” Diamond said after her new friend helped her recover her balance. “I couldn’t see how close you were.”

“Are you all right?” Myrtle asked Diamond, giving her a once-over to ensure she didn’t injure herself.. “I think I will stay here with you in case a few more eager lasses rush by.”

“Myrtle!” Petunia called out again.

“I’m staying here with Diamond,” Myrtle shouted above the murmuring of the gathering crowd.

“You’re staying with a servant?” Petunia shot Diamond a look of disdain.

Myrtle leaned toward Diamond, “Are you a servant?”

“Well…I do work for a living,” Diamond answered truthfully. She didn’t get the impression that Miss Myrtle was anything like Miss Petunia.

“Yes, with a servant! And I’m rather enjoying her company,” Myrtle returned her equivalent the same look of disdain. Then she whispered to Diamond, “I don’t like her one bit.”

As Pippin approached the dance area, he greeted his mother and father with a kiss. The musicians struck up the first cords of the dance. Not a fast song, yet not too slow, either.

“Pippin!” Eglantine kissed her son, “This is why you went back home?”

Pippin smiled in response, “I did.”

“Leave the lad be, love,” Paladin linked his arm with his wife’s, taking her out for the first dance of the evening. “He has his reasons.”

Pippin let his parents have a respectful few minutes before seeking his dance partner. His green eyes lit with excitement, he scanned the crowd of lasses on the other side of the dance area. Some of the lasses caught his gaze and waved at him. He politely waved back, but they weren’t who he was looking for. Pippin stepped forward, looking for her, but she wasn’t in the front row.

“Hullo, Pippin,” he heard someone call his name, but her voice was not Diamond’s. Pippin continued searching the multitude of female hobbits.

“Peregrin Took!”

Pippin’s head snapped round when he heard his full name used.

“I asked you for a dance,” Petunia said, hands on her hips. “You are supposed to respond in kind.”

Pippin thought Petunia’s frock looked quite lovely; he imagined Diamond wearing a beautiful dress much like it. He smiled, imaging his sweet Diamond. Then he saw the Petunia. “Perhaps later,” he replied in a flat tone, then put his attention back to wading through the crowd. He was at least a head above most, so he thought finding Diamond shouldn’t be a problem.

“Pip!”

For some strange reason, Pippin looked up. He spied Myrtle way in the back; she must have been standing on an old tree stump. She was pointing downward beside her. He smiled and gave Myrtle a nod. The sea of lasses parted to make a path for the young Knight.

“Thank you , Myrtle,” he said gratefully as he drew near. He looked about, “I thought Sancho would be here by now.”

“He told me he’d be along as soon as somebody brought back his pony,” she grinned.

Pippin smiled, “I shall return soon to give you the dance I promised, but I do know that Sancho will want to dance with his favourite lass.”

He turned to Diamond, standing demurely off to the side. “Diamond North-took,” he began, “I would be honoured if you would share this dance with me.”

Diamond gaped at the sable surcoat with the silver tree of Gondor stitched into it, and the seven stars over it. She spoke softly, almost a whisper, “This is your livery…,” she covered her mouth in awe. She thought Pippin looked refined, tall, and very handsome. All of the places he had travelled to came to her mind, and with it, the evil creature Merry had sketched. She couldn’t fathom the things this lad had been through in order to stand here today, proudly wearing the symbol of the new kingdom. A tear fell from her eye. “No, Mr. Pippin--I’d be the honoured one.”

“Let us be honoured while dancing with each other,” Pippin whispered into her ear, jesting. He then took her by the hand, gently guiding her through the crowd of lasses. They all murmured to one another as Pippin--and this unfamiliar lass--passed them by. He took her to the centre of the floor, put his arm lightly around her waist then took her other hand in his…and they danced.

TBC