A/N: This is Part Two of The Measure of Love saga.  It follows the post-Quest love story of Frodo and Sam as well that of Frodo and his Creator - and I'm not talking about the professor :).  It's AU and you do not necessarily need to have read the first part to understand most of this, but it would be helpful as it does continue almost directly from the first.  No slash, just lots of TLC and angst.  Enjoy! :)

"And if Sam considered himself lucky, Frodo knew he was more lucky himself; for there was not a hobbit in the Shire that was looked after with such care." The Return of the King, The Grey Havens.

Chapter One: Family

"Are you ready, tithen min?" Aragorn asked Frodo the morning the hobbits were to leave Minas Tirith.

The Ring-bearer looked up at his beloved friend and king. "Yes and no," the hobbit answered.

This would be the last of their daily talks in Aragorn’s private chambers. The day before they had mutually decided Frodo was strong enough to part from the healer king’s care, but they were already missing each other.

Aragorn smiled. "You must miss your home. Hobbits are made for open fields and warm sunshine, not cities of cold stone."

"I miss Bilbo," Frodo acknowledged. "I hope he is well. I look forward to seeing him again and it will be nice to walk barefoot through grass again." He raised his eyes to his friend again and this time they were bright with tears. "But I am going to miss you so. I ’m afraid, Aragorn, of what I must now face alone. I can still hear the Ring."

The king knelt down and embraced his brother tightly. "You will never be alone, mell min, but I’m going to miss you, too. So much I’ll wonder how I shall bear it, but I shall because you will be ever near in my heart."

Frodo held on just as tightly. "As you shall always be in mine," he said softly.

They held each other for a long time, then Aragorn broke apart slightly and looked at his dear friend. "Do not be afraid. If you ever need me, call on one of the Rangers and word will be sent. I will come to you."

Hope flared, then died down, in the troubled Ring-bearer’s eyes. "You have a whole kingdom to heal, Aragorn, not just a hobbit. I couldn’t..."

"Yes, you could. You need to heal too, Frodo. Don’t try to do it alone. Lean on Sam and your cousins and Gandalf. I know he’ll be coming around to check on you." He took his brother’s face in his hands. "I will come if you need me." He smiled. "And don’t think I’ve forgotten how stubborn you Bagginses can be. If you don’t send word, I will leave instructions with Sam to do so, if he sees the need."

Frodo’s eyes narrowed as he looked at his beloved king. Aragorn took heart at the ghost of a smile that tugged at the edges of the Ring-bearer’s mouth. "Are you threatening me?" the hobbit asked suspiciously.

The king’s smile grew wider and he kissed his brother’s head. "I’m promising you, tithen gwador."

Frodo touched the hands that cupped his face, then held his beloved friend again, head resting on that strong chest. "Hannon le," he whispered.

When Frodo at last felt strong enough to break away, he smiled bravely at Aragorn. The king returned it and stood. They left the king’s private chambers together. Sam was waiting in the outer room as he did most every day. The Ring-bearer smiled for his dearest friend and took his hand. Over Frodo’s head, Aragorn and Sam shared a look and the hobbit nodded. His hand tightened a little around the brother of his heart and the two left.

An hour later, all four hobbits were packed and ready to leave. They stood in a courtyard of the citadel, the three younger ones in a protective circle around the eldest with Gandalf on the outside edge. Aragorn and Arwen bade them farewell as did Faramir, Boromir, Legolas and Gimli.

"Namarie, my brothers," the king said as he knelt to hug all four of them, Frodo and Sam first, then Merry and Pippin.

They all returned the embrace. Arwen knelt next and each hobbit also received a farewell hug from her. The queen lingered longest with Frodo. Sam thought he heard her whisper something to the Ring-bearer that gave him comfort, but what it was, neither said. She then bestowed a kiss on each of their heads, which had Sam blushing furiously and the younger hobbits grinning. Faramir also stepped forward to hug them and kiss their heads.

"Safe journey home, my friends," he murmured.

"Thank you, Faramir," Frodo said, "for all you did for us. We are in your debt."

The Ranger smiled. "I believe it is we that are in yours."

"Thank you, Captain," Sam said with a bow.

Boromir smiled at all of them. Legolas spoke to Frodo in Sindarin which eased his heart further so by the time Gimli embraced them with a laugh, Frodo was able to join in. The three hobbits looked at him and each other happily. Then they turned their ponies to leave the courtyard. Gandalf went with them on Shadowfax. Frodo looked back at Aragorn and king and hobbit watched each other until they were lost to one another’s sight.

* * *

The trip to Rivendell was as peaceful and comfortable as could be made. If Frodo was irritated by how much his Sam and cousins fussed over him, he did not comment on it. He even laughed at Pippin’s jokes which thrilled them so much that the tween talked nearly non-stop from that moment on. Sam, Merry and even Gandalf watched him fondly as he sought to draw his cousin out.

There were tears also, mostly of frustration, whenever Frodo tried to anything even remotely resembling a proper hobbit meal and promptly lost it nearly before he finished it. Sam cleaned him up as automatically as the "Thank you, Sam. I’m sorry." issued from the Ring-bearer’s lips. One night he buried himself in Gandalf’s arms and began to cry. "Am I ever going to get well?"

The wizard stroked his friend’s curls as Frodo sobbed into his robes. "Yes, my dear hobbit, you will heal," he assured. "Body and soul. But you need to give yourself the time and patience to accomplish that."

He revealed just the smallest sliver of his true nature and surrounded the hobbit with healing Light. Merry and Pippin didn’t seem to see it, but Gandalf was not truly surprised when Sam’s eyes widened slightly.

Frodo raised his head after a while. He had felt the Light enter and strengthen him, similar to the kind that continued to surround him. "Thank you," he told Gandalf and the wizard smiled. He looked at his Sam and his cousins. "I’m sorry," he said.

They looked at him with sympathy and love. Sam pressed a warm mug of peppermint tea into his hand.

"Thank you, Sam."

He slept that night in his beloved guardian’s arms and the darkness did not trouble him.

* * *

The closer they got to Rivendell, the stronger Frodo got. He smiled more and the sadness that clung to him like a second cloak lifted a little under the bright sunlight. He was softly singing to himself as they entered the safety of the Elven lands. But then a shadow passed over the sun in his heart and though he remained outwardly cheerful, no one missed that he was more subdued, even nervous under his excitement.

He nearly leapt off his pony when he saw his uncle Bilbo standing in the courtyard, supported by Elrond. The two hobbits’ gazes caught and the ancient one’s face lit with joy. Frodo ran into his uncle’s arms and felt strong arms wrap around him.

"Frodo, my lad, my dear boy," Bilbo murmured into his beloved nephew’s ear. "I’m so glad to see you again."

The younger Ring-bearer held his uncle and began to cry in his joy and shame and pain. He softly began to beg over and over for forgiveness. The ancient hobbit continued to hold his nephew tightly and murmured comforts and assurances of love and forgiveness, though he was just as much at a loss this time as he was the last why the latter would be needed.

Elrond, Gandalf and Sam knew and ached for it. Merry and Pippin did not know exactly, but their cousin’s pain tore at their hearts. Merry clasped Pippin’s hand, finding the tween already searching for his and they held each other’s hands tightly.

Finally the two Ring-bearers pulled apart and Bilbo had his first good look in his nephew’s ravaged eyes and soul. His own eyes filled with tears then and he touched Frodo’s cheek and the tears that still streamed down there.

"I’m so sorry, dear boy. It is I who should be begging forgiveness from you. I let you get hurt again and it is all my fault that you had to go out at all to face those dangers alone. It should have been me."

"I wasn’t alone, Uncle," Frodo said quietly. But he remembered the times he felt so.

They held each other and cried in one another’s arms for a long time until finally they broke apart and Elrond guided them to a room where they could rest. The other hobbits and Gandalf followed silently. Frodo surrendered to exhausted sleep almost immediately, tossing himself on top of the covers and not even bothering to change into his nightshirt. Bilbo took a seat in a chair next to him and watched him sleep. Frodo’s maimed hand was firmly wrapped around his uncle’s and he looked almost peaceful. Sam watched his brother for a long time, lost in the light that still shone, then he laid a blanket over him and curled up next to him to sleep himself. Merry and Pippin slept on Frodo’s other side. Gandalf stood over the bed as though guardian for them all.

"He’s wonderful, isn’t he, Gandalf?" Bilbo murmured. "So incredibly beautiful. My little Elven child. I saw it from the first." He didn’t need to look up to know that the wizard smiled in return. His own smile faded though. "And I’m not saying any of that because I believe I had anything to do with it. He’s always been that way and I was selfish enough to want him beside me and look at what’s happened."

"It all..." the wizard began.

Bilbo didn’t look up, but remained focused on his nephew’s face. "I know what you are going to say," he interrupted softly. "That it was all meant to be, but tell me, Gandalf, tell me, what was meant to be about all the terrible hurt in those lovely, unbearably sad eyes? What happened? Why did he have to endure it at all and especially a second time? Once was more than anyone should have to bear."

"I cannot tell you why such evil was allowed to hurt him, but I will tell you that he freely chose to accept his burden both times so you and everyone else in Middle-earth could be free. He did it out of love and he was saved and shielded by Love that entire time. He still is. He’s just beginning to learn about that Light that has always surrounded him, but he knew enough to trust that he would be taken care of and he was. You can see his light just as well as I can, can’t you, old friend?"

"Yes."

"Do you know where all that beauty and light comes from? Frodo is not merely the son of your heart, Bilbo, but he is the beloved child of quite Another. He is learning more about that and to respond to that. That is what will heal him, just as your love and that Love healed him after his parents’ deaths and Sam has held him close all these decades as well."

"It still should have been me," Bilbo said softly. "I should have gone both times."

"You would have never made it and all the world would have been lost, him too. No, Bilbo, that was not your task. It was his. You were created for another purpose and you performed that perfectly. You gave Frodo love and security and a home he was willing to do anything to protect. You showed him what and who that was worth fighting for and gave him the strength to take on the burden he was created for. You have no idea how much you helped shape him and all Middle-earth because of what he learned from you. He’s still wonderful, dear Bilbo. He just needs to relearn that himself and to believe in his own goodness again. He was very sorely tested, but he did not fail in what he had been created to do. He was protected by a Power greater than anything you can imagine and he served as best as anyone could. Don’t keep blaming yourself for what happened. This was all set into motion ages before you were even born. You were meant to find the Ring and bear it as long as you did so Frodo would be ready and strong enough to bear it in his time. The blame for his hurt does not lie with you, my dear, stubborn hobbit."

"Then who can I blame?" Bilbo asked and there was a quite violence in his voice.

"The same one who hurt you. Sauron. The one you helped defeat."

* * *

The four hobbits spent a month in Rivendell with Bilbo. Frodo spent much of it in the library and some of the pain left him for a time as he absorbed himself with his beloved uncle and the books that he knew a lifetime could never be enough to read each one. He was as happy as he could be with his burden still so heavy. Sam, though anxious to get back to Rosie, would have happily stayed much longer as he saw how good the Elven land and being with Mr. Bilbo helped his brother. It was Frodo who made the decision to leave. His heart was lighter, it was a beautiful day to set out and he was anxious to sleep in his own bed again. He also knew Sam wanted to return, though the gardener never said anything.

Bilbo stood in the courtyard to wish his cousins and former servant goodbye. He and Frodo had already said their farewells. They gazed at each other until they were lost to sight, then the ancient hobbit sighed and returned to his rooms and his books.

* * *

The day was unusually warm and bright and Frodo’s spirits were higher than they had been for some time. His uncle was well. He was able to keep down a little more food if he ate slowly and carefully enough. The Shire awaited him ahead and he was glad that Sam would get his reward and his Rose. The birds sang merrily in the trees. Frodo looked at his beloved brother and smiled mischievously as he faced forward again and his voice lifted to join the birds when the borders of their beloved land came into sight.

"The light in the window is shining for you,

Calling you home, calling you home.

Your lass by the window is waiting for you,

Calling you home, my laddie.

"Long you have wandered and far you have been,

Glad of the fireside you'll be.

You'll sit and you'll tell of the things you have seen,

While safe with a hot cup of tea.

"Your lass, she is waiting, she's waiting for you,

To see you safe home she'll be glad.

Though long you've been roving, to you she's been true,

So hurry, O hurry, my lad!

"The light in the window is shining for you,

Calling you home, calling you home.

Your lass by the window is waiting for you,

Calling you home, my laddie.

"So hurry on home, my laddie!"

Sam blushed furiously and Merry and Pippin giggled and Gandalf smiled, but as Frodo turned once more to smile and laugh lovingly at his beloved friend and guardian, the gardener returned it all and was happier than he had been in a long time. His brother’s light poured from him as it once had and all seemed well with the world.

* * *

Frodo walked into Bag End for the first time in months and simply stood in the parlor and breathed in deeply. Sam was right behind him. He took his brother’s cloak and hung it on its peg near the door. He started a fire and the kettle for tea. He then opened the windows and aired out the place. Frodo watched him with a smile on his face. The gardener stepped out for a moment and returned with flowers from the garden which he was about to put in a vase, but the elder hobbit took him by the arm and practically pushed him back out the door. "Thank you so much, Sam, but now Rosie is waiting, isn’t she, and wouldn’t those flowers just look lovely on her table?"

The gardener blushed and smiled. Frodo watched him walk down the path, then turned to the whistling kettle and sat himself down for a mug of tea. He was home. He could hardly believe it. After a short dinner, he looked out the window he saw Sam come back up and let himself in. Frodo smiled at his return.

"And how is the fair Rose?"

Sam flushed. "Beautiful," he said.

"When have you set the date?"

"Mid-Year's Day."

"Wonderful! But I hope you'll be coming here to live sooner, Sam. Please. This place is too big for one person. It needs cheer and you and soon Rosie and all your children will provide that for decades. I can’t wait."

Sam smiled. "Neither can I."

He spent that night in one of the spare bedrooms in case his brother needed him, but both slept soundly. It was one of the few that went so well.

* * *

Frodo was determined that the day of Sam and Rosie’s wedding was one that his brother would not spend worrying about the continuing struggles he had with his memories and the darkness that still so haunted him. And he wasn't going to worry about himself either. They had already suffered through another March 13th illness, but the day of the wedding, he laughed and danced. He led many of the toasts and all of the cheers. He drowned the song of the Ring with his own songs. He silenced its harsh whispers of false promises with his own vows to be ever grateful for the sacrifices his Sam had made for him and had now been duly rewarded for. He did everything he could to fill the emptiness inside him. The only tears he shed that day were ones of joy and relief as he embraced Sam to congratulate him.

He was well aware of Sam’s many anxious glaces at him throughout the day. He met each with a loving smile, until with fond exasperation, he drew his brother aside, wrapped his arm around his shoulder, drew him close and whispered gently into his ear, "I’m all right, Sam." And that day he was.

Sam drew back slightly and looked at his beloved brother for a long time, trying to decide if Frodo was telling him the truth or not, for they were both aware that shadows still lingered in many of the elder hobbit’s smiles and not all of those smiles reached his eyes. But this one did and the shadows were so faint only one who know Frodo as well as Sam did could see them at all. He touched that smile as thogh to assure himself it was really there which only made it broader, then he smiled himself and held his friend briefly but tightly. Frodo returned the embrace, glad to see the worry disappear for that day at least. Sam’s glances at him for the rest of the day were of fond love which Frodo returned in full measure.

Merry and Pippin also watched their cousin nearly as solicitously and it was for their benefit as well that Frodo was determined to enjoy himself so they could also. This was a day for joy and merrymaking, not for sadness. Though Pippin was still underage, Merry and Frodo both allowed the tween sips from their half-pints of stronger ale than usual which Pippin took full advantage of.

"Are you all right, cousin?" he asked when Frodo looked at him as lovingly as ever and laughed at all his jokes, but still behind his eyes there was a sadness none of their or his own efforts could completely dissipate.

Frodo smiled and ruffled his cousin’s hair. "Yes, dearest, today I am nearly all right."

Pippin’s heart leapt to see that smile and hear those words as some of the lingering pain left Frodo’s eyes. He kissed his cousin’s cheek quickly and held him tight for a moment. "I’m so glad."

"So am I," Frodo said and kissed his head and squeezed him quickly but tightly.

A/N: The song is another masterpiece of Queen Galadriel.