CHAPTER FIVE A/N – This was originally written for Marigold's Challenge #35, in which the elements I had to include were a valuable piece of jewellery, and a document/missive or letter from King Elessar

Another inclusion of SlightlyTookish’s stars! Thank you so much, Jen, for letting me to borrow them!

The Stars appear in these stories:

“Stars and Sniffles” - by SlightlyTookish

“The Stars Will Light Your Way” - by SlightlyTookish

“Upon the Wings of an Eagle” - by SlightlyTookish

“Unaligned” - by SlightlyTookish

“Wishing on the Stars” - by Marigold

And thanks to Dreamflower for letting me borrow her lullaby that she wrote in “At Crickhollow" - by Dreamflower

I'm just borrowing things left and right in this story!

And what would a story be without great beta readers? You have no idea how much Dreamflower, Marigold, and SlightlyTookish do to improve my writing. My hobbit hat is off to the three of you once again!

CHAPTER FIVE

It was Pippin’s love that made his twin stars effective. Gandalf had said so. The stars would watch over everyone Pippin loved. Since Pippin loved Diamond, they should be watching over her now. It wasn’t that the stars had to decide whether or not to help Diamond; they were bound to Pippin and to look after him and his loved ones.

Pippin told himself that over and over again as he stared up at the twinkling brightness. Studying them as they sparkled in greeting, Pippin smiled at the familiar reassurance he always felt whenever the twain blessed him with their warm light.

But as much faith as he had in his stars, one question kept rolling around in Pippin’s mind - would the stars would be able to “reach” her and help draw Diamond back to the path of recovery the same way they had for him several times?

Diamond’s life was now hanging by a thread, her fever had returned and her breath grew ever fainter. Pippin felt so lost that he had forgotten all about his stars. Thanks to Merry’s reminder, Pippin now reached out in hope to the only light that could lead Diamond through the darkness that had descended upon her.

“They are your own pair of stars and you shall always be able to find them when you need to,” Gandalf had said. “They will be there to guide you when the world turns dark around you, or when you feel lost or alone. And when you are surrounded by sunshine, still your stars will remain, though they may be hidden by the brighter light of happier times. They will never abandon you.”*

Ah, but then, Gandalf had always been there to call down the stars whenever Pippin needed them, and even once for Merry. Now Gandalf was gone, across the Sea with Frodo. And Pippin lacked the power to call them down the way Gandalf had.

Gandalf, I cannot do this without you, Pippin thought as he gazed at his stars, hoping that somehow Gandalf would sense his need.

“You gave me a most wonderful and unexpected gift that night when you bound the stars to me, Gandalf,” Pippin began, closing his eyes in hope and deep concentration. “You said that they would always be there whenever I needed them. They are far more than a mere magic trick of yours to amuse an ill child and I would not abuse my privilege, so to speak. But, Gandalf, I am desperate.”

The stars seemed to grow nearer, as if they were watching Pippin more closely.

“A wanderer finds his way through the darkest of nights by following the stars.”*

Pippin had not actually heard Gandalf speak the words, but he somehow knew in his heart that the wizard had said them from wherever he was across the Sea.

Pippin smiled through his grief as he felt the familiar presence of their warm glow fill his hands. Gandalf, the Kindler of Light. Somehow over the great gulf that separated them, he had heard Pippin, sensed his troubles and found a way to reach out to him. But then, Pippin had always felt as if he had some special connection with Gandalf. It should not be a surprise that the wizard was still able to send the stars to him. But still, Pippin found himself in awe of the magic his dear friend could wield.

Carefully, Pippin closed his fingers protectively around the silver beams of light.
Pippin thought for a moment.

“After your blessings at the Field of Cormallen, I would not seek your aid for anything less than a grave situation. My Diamond shines with an inner fire that gleams with more radiance even than the Simarils. Yet now her light has grown so dim, that I fear it shall be extinguished without your help.

“Without her, I would be more than alone. Without my Diamond …” Pippin paused, overcome with his love for her.

“Diamond must be the most foolish of all Tooks to be in love with me, but for some reason that mystifies me, she has given her love to me. Our hearts are bound together and I can feel in mine that her spirit has wandered far. The enchantment that surrounds her is all but spent. Without her, my life would be empty of all music; my spirit would wither and fade away. If her heart should stop, then mine shall die with it,” Pippin whispered faintly into the silence of the cold night air.

“When Gandalf bound you to me, he gave me a gift dearer than any hobbit had a right to receive … more of the grace of … of the Valar.” Pippin gulped at the word so foreign to his tongue as his fisted hands pulsed with the glow of his stars. “I know all too well that it is not so easy to return to the waking world, but please, let Diamond have the strength to find her way back, as I did more than once with your guidance… and as Merry did at Cormallen when you helped guide him back from the Shadow of the Black Breath.”

Pippin sighed deeply. “Help our love and our bound hearts be strong enough to bring her back.”

Instinctively, Pippin opened his hands a slightly, but that was all his stars needed. Pippin watched, his heart pounding in his dry throat as the brilliant sparkle that he had been holding a moment ago left his hands and flew through the air to the nearby smial, where they disappeared.

The next thing Pippin saw made him gasp with unfathomable hope. The faint glow of the candles that lit Diamond’s room was replaced by a brilliant shimmer that illuminated her entire room, spilling out the window and bathing the sparkling snow around it in a warm glow.

Pippin bowed his head, tears flowing unheeded down his cheeks, as he watched the stars’ warmth melting into the clean, white snow.

When he had recovered himself, Pippin headed back to the warm smial and Diamond’s now bright room to wait and hope. The only sound heard in the clear, cold night was the sound of Pippin’s feet as they quickly crunched through the deep snow.

*****

Diamond felt as if a heavy weight lay upon her, suffocating her as it stole all of the air from the shadowed garden where she lay. She was all alone, yet she had not the energy to move, remaining in the darkness, drifting into a timeless and veiled sleep.

She wandered far as she slept, yet she continued under the starless sky. She was lost in the cold, trying to find a light through the gloom. Diamond turned to listen when she heard echoes of voices that whispered to her through the silent oblivion. But whenever she tried to reach for them, they disappeared, and she was alone once more in the dark silence.

The nothingness swelled around her as she lingered in the dim garden where time had no meaning, her head resting against an old elm tree. Her thoughts were as tangled as the roots around her, gnarled and formless. But then she heard a familiar lullaby sound faintly in the distance above her. She tuned her ears towards it, trying to follow.

Pippin.

The music grew steadier, filling her with a sense that only by climbing could she escape the Darkness and reach Pippin, who would lead the way back to the light. She reached her hands up against the tree, and held tightly wherever she could gain purchase. The tree seemed to glow with an inner heat that warmed her palms wherever she placed her hands, as if she could feel its very heart. Diamond felt its life coursing through her. She tried to steady her breathing as she climbed. Whenever she held paused, the lullaby would fade, waiting patiently for her, yet urging her to follow up the tree to its uppermost boughs illuminated by two beads of light.

Diamond’s heart grew lighter the higher she climbed. She was above the consuming Darkness. Higher and higher she climbed. And as she did so, her path became brighter, lit with two small spheres that somehow reminded her of Pippin and gave her comfort.

Suddenly, she felt the old elm tree change. From the two beams of light, she could tell that it was now the mighty oak on the edge of that secluded pond at the Great Smials that Pippin had shown her, Hidden Hollow. It had become their favourite haunt, and they would often go there with one of Pippin’s sisters, who were always considerate in giving their younger brother enough privacy to be able to court their cousin.

Diamond gazed up into the branches of the oak and smiled with a lightness she had not felt since she fell asleep under the smothering weight in the garden. High above her, almost lost in the blinding light of the stars, was Pippin.

“Come along then, Diamond,” he sang to her, his voice lilting with the tune of the lullaby.

She reached up, trying to grasp his outstretched hand, but found that she was not high enough yet.

“I have waited for you all these years, Diamond, waiting for you to catch up. And so I always shall,” Pippin said with a smile. The closer Diamond got to Pippin, the more blinding the shining stars around him were. They were so bright she could not even see where the light of the stars ended and the glow that always surrounded Pippin began.

Diamond felt the warmth flow down from Pippin as he extended his hand to her.

“Pippin…”

“Diamond, I have seen that same Darkness. I have been there and felt it as it tried to consume me,” Pippin began. “But always what brought me out of that Darkness were thoughts of my connexions. And always, shining like a beacon was you, Diamond. You led the way with your enchanting song that enthralled my soul and captured my spirit.”

Diamond startled as she listened to the intensity in Pippin’s voice. She had heard this speech once before.

“Follow my voice, lass,” Pippin urged, climbing a little higher. “It is not much farther.”

Diamond nodded up at him, and struggled upward.

“I have watched you ever since you were a little lass, singing and dancing with a lightness that I had never seen before, only felt inside me,’ he said softly. “Watching you, I saw my own spirit in your eyes, heard my own tune in your sprightly voice,” Pippin gazed down at her intently as she continued to climb toward him.

Her ears thrilled as she listened to Pippin’s voice, expressing what her own spirit had felt in seeing him.

“Diamond, we have played together since we were children. For most of my life, you have been my fountain of infinite joys and possibilities, fresh and bubbling with laughter. And now that I have come of age here in our blessed Shire, your constancy and strength of spirit fills my heart with a love more grand than the highest peak in Middle-earth. I know that my love for you will never fade or wither. Even when we are in the Winter of our years, our song shall play as strong as ever, with your strength and wonder as its centre.”

Pippin hesitated for a moment, licking his lips as though he were trying to steady his nerves. “Diamond, will you not do this hobbit the honour of becoming his wife. Will you be my very own lass?” he whispered into her ear, his voice filled with passionate as she finally approached him.

He held his hand out to her once again. Diamond looked up into Pippin’s eyes and gasped. For his eyes shone more than ever, filled with the twinkling brightness she had been following out of the Darkness, like two stars guiding her to happiness.

Finally, Pippin was a mere breath away. “Aye, my very own lad,” she whispered back, reaching for his hand, and grasping it firmly, felt the two magical spheres it held whose light shone as one. “I will marry you, Pippin.”

Diamond lifted her chin toward Pippin. He lowered his head to hers and pressed his lips firmly against hers. The shimmering light of their bonded hearts blazed as brightly as the stars Pippin and Diamond still held within their tightly joined hands.

And then the world went black.

*****

Diamond opened her eyes and blinked at the strange light in her room. The lit candles were nearly spent, yet her room shone brighter than it had at noon.

She managed to turn her head a little, and gazed into Pippin’s adoring face, smiling as he stroked her cheek with a gentle hand.

Yet, it was Pippin’s other hand that caught her attention. She could feel that it was joined with hers. Diamond looked down at their hands and smiled. Their joined hands shone brightly, streaks of light escaping into the room and illuminating it with a silvery light equal to their hearts.

Diamond turned their hands over between them in utter awe.

“Welcome back,” Pippin whispered to her, his eyes brimming with unshed tears.

“You came for me,” Diamond said faintly.

Pippin nodded, a soft chuckle escaping him. “Always. But you were so far away that Merry needed to rekindle my hope, remind me that all was not lost.”

Diamond smiled weakly at him, and then turned to look appreciatively at Merry.

“Your family is in the sitting room. I’m afraid it’s been a long night, and they all fell asleep,” Merry explained. “We told them that we would keep watch over you so they could rest and see you in the morning.”

It was only then that Diamond raised her head slightly and looked out the window, realising for the first time that the Sun had not yet risen.

“Rest, my very own lass,” Pippin coaxed in a soothing voice. “You will need all of your strength in the coming weeks.

Diamond coughed softly, relieved that it did not hurt as deeply as it had before.

Pippin pressed his lips to her forehead and kissed her with the lightness of a dove’s breath. And then he gently sang to her the old lullaby from her dreams until she fell back asleep:

Evening has fallen, the Sun’s in the West.
The nightbirds are calling, the Shire is at rest.
Peaceful the night and gentle the breeze,
In cot and in smial, the folk take their ease.
High above the Stars are kindled,
Kith and kin within are nestled,
Safe from harm
In loving arms,
Find slumber deep,
Fall into sleep,
May joy find all your dreams,
May only joy find your dreams… **

Merry looked out the window at the Sun’s first pale lights. He motioned toward it with his chin.

“Gandalf is not here, so I shall say it for him,” Merry said quietly. “It is nearly morning. You know what that means, Pip.”

Pippin nodded and turned his and Diamond’s joined hands over one last time, awed by the sight of the bright light of his stars held fast between them. And then he carefully opened their hands, and watched as the stars danced in the air about him for a moment before floating toward the window. Pippin watched as they twinkled in farewell, and then escaped to join their cousins in the fading nighttime sky.

“Good night, and thank you for visiting,” Pippin whispered after them, in the proper way his parents had taught him so long ago.*

When Diamond woke again, her mother and father were sitting beside her, both of them with relieved smiles glowing on their faces.

*****

“Good morning, my little one. Your fever has broken,” Holly said with a grin.

Diamond's breathing was steadier and came easier as she smiled back at her parents. She had turned the corner and was beginning to recover.

The days ahead stretched out long and cold, yet filled with light and happiness as Pippin watched Diamond’s health slowly return. Her breath remained raspy at times, and her cough still plagued her.

But the gentle blush had returned to her cheeks and the ache in her side that had pained her at every breath was gone. Her teeth no longer chattered with a chill so deep that it gripped her soul. Slowly, as Pippin stayed by her side, Diamond began to resemble a fresh bloom in the Spring again.

Foreyule was now upon them. The purity of the new month shone brightly through the window into Diamond’s room, bathing it in a light that swept the grim old month away.

With Pippin at her side, Diamond watched from the window as Merry played in the snow with Gemma, Hale, and Helinand, all wrapped securely in many layers of clothing against the crisp outdoor air. They had formed teams of two, each one hiding behind a wall dug deep into the snow, armed with a mountain of snowballs as high as Caradhras itself. It was to be Merry’s last day with them. Now that Diamond was doing so much better, he planned on riding back to Buckland in the morning, saying that he had been away from Estella long enough.

Pippin fidgeted, his thoughts far away from the snowball fight, mulling over how best to ask Diamond the one question that had plagued him ever since he knew she would recover.

The combatants continued their battle outside. Diamond’s brothers were no match for Gemma and Merry. Diamond laughed gaily as Helinand brushed snow out of his eyes after being pounded with a snowball by his youngest sister.

The sound of Diamond’s laughter filled Pippin, like silver bells chiming with joy. He turned to face her, entranced by the golden lustre that silhouetted her against the window, making her sparkle like the new snow. Her radiance took Pippin’s breath away.

“What is it, Pippin?” she asked, sensing his uneasiness.

“I do not know where to start,” Pippin gave an uneasy laugh. “I am so very glad that the danger has passed, Diamond. Sitting here beside you, worrying so that I would lose you, your illness reminded me of just how fragile life is and how blessed I am to have found you.”

Diamond tucked a lock of her hair behind one of her ears as she bent her head down and blushed at the compliment.

Pippin fidgeted with one of his sleeves. “Please forgive me; I am so very bad at expressing how deeply I love you.” He chuckled softly, amused by his own failings.

“It was so very difficult to leave you and go on the Quest with Frodo, especially when we had just declared our love for each other. We did not know what dangers we would face, Merry and I, when we agreed with Sam to go out into the unknown world in protection of Frodo.” Pippin’s words began to come easier to him. “We saw wonders more spectacular than any you could imagine, met friends as loyal and true as the best hobbit. In all the foreign lands we dwelt, strangers treated us like adults, every one of us. Even me.”

“Lord Elrond was the only one who questioned my youth, entertaining thoughts of trying to send me back, if you can believe it, as if that would have worked,” Pippin scoffed. “Well, and then there was Bergil, but I soon set him straight.” Pippin paused as he recalled the way his dear young friend had questioned his age, mistaking him for a young child.

“War was terrible in that dark land that ate all hopes, more horrible than you can imagine. I saw first hand just how quickly life can be snuffed out and families torn asunder. Merry fought bravely alongside the Rohirrim. You would not have recognised him as he staggered before me after helping to slay the Witch King. He looked so old and haggard. Frodo and Sam … it is good that you did not see them as they were when first brought back after destroying the Ring. I was unconscious at the time, and am told that they were much improved in appearance by the time I awoke. But even then they were so thin and worn they barely resembled hobbits.” Pippin shuddered at the memories.

Diamond said nothing, all of her attention focussed on Pippin as she gazed at him, her eyes mainly green once more.

“We crossed so many foreign lands, often hungry or thirsty, marching on though we thought we could go no further. We were buried in snow so deep that it would make this seem as a light dusting, and then buried in a cave that almost killed Gandalf.” Pippin’s eyes filled with tears as he thought of his dear friend. “I saw Lord Denethor burn himself alive before my eyes, his hands … as if glued to the Seeing Stone that stole his sanity. It was only by the province of Beregond’s timely arrival and Gandalf that Faramir was not killed by his own father on that funeral pyre. And the war…” His eyes looked past her to sights from long ago.

Pippin inhaled deeply and heaved a great sigh.

“I was may not have been of age, but I was not treated as a child. I was treated as a member of the Fellowship, and then as a soldier with duties and responsibilities to perform, even being hailed as a prince of hobbits, or Halflings, as they called us. Nobody asked how old I was or if I had come of age.” He looked intently into her eyes, taking hold of both her hands and grasping them firmly but gently in his.

“Diamond, I do not want to wait to marry you, although I would wait longer than an Elf’s lifespan if I had to. After having been on the Quest and been treated as an adult for so many years before I came of age in the Shire, age just does not mean as much,” he said. “I do not hold much stock in ages determining when someone is an adult. I do not care that you are but thirty-one. What really counts is the hobbit you are inside, not some age that custom sets forth. I could not bear it if I lost you. Every moment we have is precious and I want to spend them all with you beside me as my wife. May we not ask your father’s permission to marry as soon as possible?”

Tears filled Diamond’s eyes. A large lump in her throat made it impossible for her to speak, and so she merely nodded at Pippin, squeezing his hands to make sure he understood.

When they approached Bandigard about marrying early, Diamond, her Baggins stubbornness taking over, was adamant that she loved Pippin and would not wait an additional year and a half to marry him.

After what Diamond and Pippin had been through during Diamond’s nearly fatal brush with death, Bandigard was understanding and realised how much this had distressed the young couple.

“Aye, the two of you are of one mind, and of one heart,” Bandigard said.

Bandigard stood with his hands joined behind his back and deliberated, rocking back and forth on the heels of his feet. “Thirty-two,” he said decisively. “When you are thirty-two years old, then you may get married, Diamond. Though you have proven yourself to be mature and I have no doubt that you will be a good and loving husband to my Diamond, Pippin, Diamond is still recovering from her illness and is not fit to travel yet. She should be much better by the Spring.”

“Do you have a specific date in mind?” Holly asked.

Pippin and Diamond glanced at each other and beamed with delight.

“We do not want to wait a single day more than we have to before we wed,” Pippin said enthusiastically. “We will get married on Diamond’s birthday then. The twenty-eighth of Astron.”

Pippin felt someone come up behind him and clap him on the shoulder.

“Ha! If I know Pippin, which I do, he only wants to get married on Diamond’s birthday so it will be one less date for him to have to remember!” laughed Merry, dripping fresh snow all over him as he hugged Pippin to him fiercely. “I should have expected naught else from a pair of Tooks!”

Gemma, Hale, and Helinand came alongside their sister and embraced her just as enthusiastically.

“It looks like I really do need to get back to Crickhollow straightaway then,” said Merry. “Estella will want to make the place ready for your welcome, Diamond, though what you ever did wrong to get stuck with this cousin of ours for the rest of your life, I’ll never know.”

Everyone hugged each other joyfully. Holly called Myrtle over and bade her bring wine and sweets for a celebration.

“Merry!” Pippin began. “If you are still intent on leaving for Crickhollow tomorrow, would you please bring some letters back with you? It is urgent that they be delivered as soon as possible, and you will be the closest. I must leave for Tuckborough to tell Mother and Father.”

Merry nodded. “Now that would be a celebration I would like to see. I am sure your mother will really appreciate your giving her only five months in which to plan a wedding fit for the future Thain.”

Pippin’s ears burned to their very tips. “I had not thought of that.”

Everyone laughed at his discomfiture.

*****

Aragorn and Arwen were seated at the table, enjoying their midday meal with Faramir, Gimli, and Éowyn. Normally, Legolas was with them, as it had become something of a tradition for them to take their midday meals together as much as possible. However, Legolas was visiting Éomer in Rohan, and so would not be joining them this day.

Just as the roast beef was being served, the door opened and Legolas entered; a wide grin on his face as he surveyed his friends’ astonishment at seeing him return so much earlier than expected.

“Legolas?” said Aragorn, furrowed his eyebrows in wonder as he looked more carefully at the Elf’s visage. “The news from Rohan must be good, indeed, for an Elf to grin with all of the glee of a child.”

“I haven’t seen a grin like that on your face since we went to the shore with Imrahil. Out with it, Elf!” barked Gimli. “What says Éomer?”

Faramir and Éowyn exchanged a glance, and Éowyn shrugged her shoulders.

“The news from Rohan is better than good,” Legolas began. “We have had word from the Shire.”

Legolas took an envelope from his jacket and handed it to Aragorn. “The Gondorian messenger’s horse came up lame. Fortunately, he was still riding with the messenger bound for Rohan at that point, and so the Rohirrim messenger took his messages and promised to see them through to Gondor.” Legolas beamed. “There was a message just like it for Éomer.”

“Trust an Elf to keep us all in suspense!” Gimli growled.

“Is it from Merry?” Éowyn asked, filled with hope.

A light shone in Aragorn’s face as he broke out into a great peal of laughter and smiled broadly. “It seems that you will be making that journey to the Shire sooner than anticipated Faramir. We are all invited to a wedding. My knight is getting married sooner than anticipated.” He handed the letter to Faramir.

Faramir read the letter and grinned. “It will be a pleasure, my lord.” He held the letter out for one of the others to read, and Gimli reached for it quickly.

“Well, it does fit right in with the Tookish sense of urgency to act without waiting,” Gimli howled with laughter.

“Hobbits are amazing creatures,” Aragorn reminded him.

“I do not understand. Merry said that Pippin would have to wait until Diamond was thirty-three years old and had come of age before they wed,” Éowyn commented, passing the wedding invitation to Arwen after reading it.

“Trust that rascal to find a way around the rules,” Gimli replied.

“It is the enchantment of his Tookish blood,” beamed Legolas. He was rather proud of the fact that he had known Pippin was in love before anyone else, even the other hobbits. Of course, he had kept Pippin’s secret, which he understood was not to be divulged until sometime after the hobbits had returned to the Shire. “Perhaps I will accompany you on your journey, Faramir.”

“You are not going anywhere without me, laddie,” growled Gimli. “Besides, I suppose now I will have to deliver those special wedding rings Peregrin had me make in person. Only a Took would have ordered wedding rings four years in advance.”

Faramir looked at his wife, questioningly. “Éowyn? Would you like to come along as well? You have been saying how you much you missed Merry and longed to visit with him again.”

Éowyn’s grey eyes smiled in answer. “It has been far too long since I have seen my shield brother!”

“Then it is settled. You four will journey to the Shire to attend the wedding,” Aragorn said. “Faramir, you may of course bring with you your choice of the Men, although there is little doubt but that young Bergil would like to accompany you. You are ordered to personally deliver the King and Queen’s best wishes to their knight and his lady in their married life together. Once the celebrations have concluded, and all of the hobbits have digested what will no doubt be a feast larger than any of us have seen, it would be an opportune time for Faramir to deliver the King's decree to the entire Shire.”

*From “The Stars Will Light Your Way” - by SlightlyTookish.

**From “At Crickhollow” - by Dreamflower.

To be continued.